Illustration: Maurice Vellekoop
Jimmy Jeong/KlixPix TKTKTKTKT/KlixPix
Workplace MANAGEMENT AND THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT BUSINESS ETIQUETTE
Q: My colleague always leaves personal documents in the photocopier.
What should I do?
A: YOU PROBABLY HAVE SOMEONE like this at your workplace — the guy or gal who never retrieves his or her medical insurance forms, performance evaluation appraisals, pay stubs, other personal documents or even sensitive business information from the photocopier, kitchen counter or other shared spaces around the office. What’s the best way to handle repeat offenders? “Since we are dealing with personal and/or confidential documents,
I would act with discretion by taking the document from the photo- copier and either giving it back to the owner if you can find him or her immediately, or putting it on his or her desk face-down,” says Nina Durante, an etiquette expert in Vancouver. “Depending on the sensitiv- ity, perhaps I’d even go so far as to put it in an envelope or folder before placing it on the desk.” Durante says if the paperwork is always of a personal nature, you could speak with your colleague directly. “Mention that you have found his or her confidential documents on the photo- copier on numerous occasions and it’s not the kind of information that others in the office should see. If it continues, or if the content of the haphazardly leſt papers contains sensitive business information, then it can be brought to the next level.” — Lisa van de Geyn
PROFILE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT
BRIAN FRENCH, president of Peregrine in Burnaby, BC, gained much experience during his time as an auditing accountant at PwC — from conversing with banks to the importance of cash flow. “The great thing about a CPA certification is that you get your learning done on the job,” says French, who spent nearly two years at PwC. But accounting, it turns out, wasn’t what made French tick. Aſter a failed attempt to start a business in 2005, French and a friend started shopping for a pre-established company in 2009. In 2012, the company then known as Peregrine Plastics, a fabricator of plexiglass products, came on the market. The timing was perfect, but the organiza- tion was “fairly stale.” However, aſter investing in oper- ations, equipment and marketing, and acquiring Stelmark Products (a retail merchandising and millwork manufac- turer) in 2014, they had a thriving business on their hands. “You get to see something as a drawing, see it in the shop and then see it in place,” French says. “With accounting, you do your thing and it’s filed away. But with this, results are tangible.” — Martha Beach
14 | CPA MAGAZINE | MARCH 2017
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