Study gives tips on effective flattery; Survey shows demand for ‘necessities’ declining

How to butter up bosses; Getting by with less

GETTING AHEAD AT WORK: It can take more than business accomplishments to get you a prominent appointment in the corporate world.

Fawning behavior was more likely to help company executives get appointments to a board of directors, according to a recent study. That was particularly true for historically underrepresented groups such as minorities and women, said study author Ithai Stern, a professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Similar forms of subtle flattery could also help employees move up the corporate ladder, he said. The more effective forms of buttering up bosses and influential peers were disguised, and thus less likely to be seen as scheming or manipulative, according to the study.

Some of his recommendations for effective buttering up of bosses and influential peers:

— Do not express admiration directly. One manager interviewed in the study suggested couching a compliment in a question by asking, “How were you able to pull off that strategy so successfully?”

— Another strategy is to preface flattery by emphasizing your target’s modesty. Some examples from the study: “You’re going to hate me for saying this, but…” or “I don’t want to embarrass you, but…”

— Spreading compliments about the person you wish to influence to others in his or her network, with the hope that word gets back to your contact.

— Telling your manager if you share similar values or belong to similar groups, such as a religious organization or political party.

NEEDING LESS: Americans’ appetite for the appliances that have become standard necessities in the past couple decades declined through the recent recession, according to a recent survey.

U.S. adults were slightly less likely to call standard household items such as microwaves, the home PC, clothes dryers, cars, TV sets and landline phones necessities this year than in the recent past, according to the poll by the Pew Research Center.

To be sure, more than half of the people surveyed said still they considered a car, a landline phone, a clothes dryer and an air conditioner a necessity at home.

Younger people were less likely than older people to say they needed a TV. But younger people were more likely to say a home computer, high-speed Internet access and a cell phone were key accessories, the survey said.

Wealth made a difference in what constituted a luxury versus a necessity as well. Those with incomes of $100,000 or more were far more likely to say a computer at home and high-speed Internet were necessities than those with lower incomes. Lower-income respondents were more likely to consider landlines necessities than wealthier respondents, who in turn were more likely to consider cell phones key to their lives.

The Pew Research Center contacted 2,967 U.S. adults via landline and cellular phones from May 11-31. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 2.2 percentage points.