Feeling Overlooked by Experienced Colleagues in a New Job: How Can I Make My Ideas Heard?

Hi, I'm Trupthi. I have newly joined one of the manufacturing firms. Here, things are very different, and many processes need to be streamlined. However, all my seniors here have a minimum of 8 to 10 years of experience, and they don't seem to value my ideas that I believe should be implemented.

Seeking Advice on Handling Senior Colleagues

Could you please suggest how to handle this situation? I am eagerly awaiting your reply. Please help.

Thank you.

Regards,

It is quite common in small and medium-sized organizations. Initially, you should discuss with the management where you want to streamline the organization and what the plans are. If the management agrees, then you should start slowly by implementing policies. Make sure that those changes will not affect the organization in any manner. 

Let me know if you need further assistance.

Thank you for your response. I have discussed the situation with my Director, and he has been very encouraging and informed me to proceed with the implementation. However, when I conveyed the same information to my Senior HR Managers, they responded in a very dismissive manner. Since I am new to the firm, I am hesitant to directly approach the individuals involved. Could you please advise me on whether I should inform my Director about this response, or what steps I should take next?

Thank you.

May we know how much experience you have, as you have mentioned the experience that other managers have? How large is the organization? What's your role in the organization, and how is it that you discussed it with the director and not the Senior HR managers? How many Senior HR Managers are there?

Without knowing what you are trying to change, it is difficult to advise you. Changing anything requires patience and tact.

First, it is very important to know in which atmosphere we are working, who the core people are, and why, as well as the priority of establishment—i.e., vision, strategy, future planning, scope of investment, etc. I don't know your designation, but I think you are reporting to the Senior Manager HR. If I'm right, then instead of directly approaching the Director, you must discuss the ideas with the Senior Manager first. If you observe the Senior Manager neglecting your ideas, it could be your attribute or judgment towards a personality. We should not try to judge people very early. I personally suggest spending a little more time before coming to a conclusion.

All the best,
Rajender Singh

I have 2.5 years of experience in the ITES industry, and I am very new to manufacturing, where around 2,000 employees are working (contract + direct) along with around 350 support staff. It is a growing company, and my role has not been specified yet. Initially, they have asked me to handle recruitment and attendance. There are 2 senior managers working here.

After a couple of days of joining, the director and I had a casual talk. He asked about my observations for the last few days, and when I presented them, he was quite happy and told me to implement them.

Streamlining Processes from Scratch

We need to start streamlining things from scratch here. Initially, I have to focus on basic tasks like ID cards, dress code, and proper tracking of login and logout times.

The attitude of the people here is quite different. They even have a problem with wearing their ID cards. As I have less experience compared to them, I am not in a position to confront them about it.

Kindly suggest how to handle this situation.

Regards.

You don't think you are less experienced, and they are very senior in the organization. Once you design the policy, then everybody is the same concerning policies. At the same time, you can have some exclusions for a few cases as required, and even those should be well-defined in the process.

Starting with the ID Card Policy

It is good to start with the ID Card policy. You can advise them that wearing ID cards will give a good reputation to the organization as well as to the employees. However, everything depends on how you communicate and convince them.

Dealing with Resistance to Change

Change is always resisted. Suggestions for improvement from new entrants are very often resisted and looked down upon by the immediate superior veterans in the organization. This may be because the suggestions themselves may not be worthy, or the seniors feel threatened. Whatever may be the reason, one should not expect that one's suggestions, however brilliant they may be, are accepted wholeheartedly immediately. It takes time. Be patient. Try slowly. Analyze the root cause of the resistance.

Discussions at various stages and levels will help clear the scene. Try to gain acceptability without antagonizing the immediate bosses. A quick introspection will also be in order.

I am not an HR expert. However, here is my assessment of the situation. You are still new in the organization, and you have gone beyond your remit, as you were told to handle recruitment and attendance. May we know whom you report to and whether you discussed your observations with him/her before you expressed your views to the director?

Advice from Shakespeare

One thing I learned as a student of Shakespeare is the sound advice given by Polonius to his son Laertes: "Give thine ear to all and few thy tongue." Being so new to the organization, you should not have expressed what needs doing without consulting with your boss. However, I know it is a bit late.

Policy Matters and Management Support

Introduction of identity cards, etc., are policy matters that also cost. Hence, these things should come from the top, and you won't be able to initiate them without management support. You need to tread carefully if you want to be accepted there and survive.

Once, a boss had told me, "If you do not like the way we do things here," and pointed to the door. He implied that I was free to resign and go. At another time, a manager told me, "I may be wrong, but do not forget that 'The boss' is always right," and I am the boss of this department.

So, sincere advice is to be patient and tread carefully. There is a saying in Kannada, "Taalidava baaliyaanu." That means "One who is patient survives."

Thank you.

Thank you for your valuable suggestions. Besides Simhan Sir, I am reporting directly to the director, and disciplinary matters also fall under my Key Result Area (KRA). Anyways, as per your suggestion, I will wait patiently for the right time. Thank you for the advice.

Regards,
Trupthi

Greetings to all seniors, I now require your strong moral support and suggestions as I am losing my confidence. It seems that whatever task is assigned by my director, I am unable to complete due to one of my senior managers targeting me. I am following the director's instructions, but this manager is not allowing me to do my work. I am unable to address this issue with my director as he has never instructed me to coordinate or report to him. However, being new to the company, all the tasks assigned to me are somehow connected to him, and even if they are not directly related, he still gets involved. Recently, he has begun shouting and belittling me in front of my colleagues.

Please help me; I am very worried.

Regards,
Trupthi