It is an opportunity to demonstrate a willingness to keep in line with policy or the best practices of professionalism. The burden is in the display of how gracefully the exchange is handled. At times it cannot be avoided. It may appear to be okay to accept a gift that straddles or barely crosses a line, especially if the gift is given in private. But the implication of perceptions that a bribe was accepted are simply too great to risk a career on it.
Gift giving in the workplace is truly an art.
To give gifts mindlessly is to risk damage to a career. He has 15 years of executive level experience in personnel and project management. Inc. All rights reserved.