Hi all...
I am a Performance Management Consultant..working for a leading training and consulting firm. I have a sound performance solutioning background..(n if you are wondering wat it means....identifying a performance issue - people or process based, building a solution around the same, deploy the solution through people and process correction mechanism like training, coaching, mentoring etc, and show effectiveness in what we do...)..
I thought of writing this article, from my experience of having to work with a large client organisation....(guess is not right to name .. :wink: )
Fighting the enemy within...
Have you come across this situation?
you are in a client facing role, your customer is very demanding, you are anxious to grow for your self and your team..am sure many of us would relate to this...
But this is interesting..
have you had to work in a team, where your operations / back end team tests all your persuasion abilities to be able to deliver a project on time? To an extent, that if you have spent the same energies at the client side, you would have grown the business three fold?
Sounds funny isnt it? Does this happen? Can it happen? Am sure it happens in most cases...as professional in HR practices, do we get to understand what causes these? does it tire our teams? is it why people quit? do people articulate these when they leave?....
Whom are we fighting with...customers and competition outside or the back end team which is supposed to be your strength?
There are few people based attributes which contributes these issues..
First of all, are the goals of all the departments linked to the same objective? Say for exp: if the organisation's critical goal is Customer Satisfaction, does it link to every department in the system? is your finance guy working towards customer satisfaction? Is your HR system aligned? Is your purchase / admin linked to it? Though it sounds very obvious it is only painful to observe that many big organisations do not do this...you wanna check if your organisation does this? Ask ten people around you.."What is the organisation's most critical goal, which links the entire organisation to work towards it?" if you get varied responses ranging from vague to wierd, you work for a system which is close to 60% of most organisations today...Check2: Do you have teams working on new projects but struggle during implementation? Check3: Do you have people quitting in the middle of the project abruptly?
To sum it up, the organisation's most critical goal needs to be linked to every department, every individual in the organisation
Secondly the CYA Attitude....pardon my language on this. But would prefer to be this strong...You would find people wanting to cover theirs and be protected, not bothered about the outcomes..."oh! if its good, it mine, if its bad...is it yours? or isit yours?...sure its not mine"...have you heard this before? This is another issue what we review people on...Do we reveiw actions or outcomes? Prudence says review actions, reward outcomes...pls check what happens in your teams and other teams you liase with. LInk it back to the GOALS again...do this pls. Write down the departments who are dependant on you and departments whom you depend upon. Ask yourself...do you know what their goals are? If you do not know...CYA...is the best policy.
Sum it up: What do you review?
Thirdly, leadership. the largely abused word...Is your senior management aware of these issues at the ground? Are they talking about global stratgies, when people below are fighting fires continuously and consistently?
Sum it up: Leadership..where is it focussed? Is there a balance between internal and external?
Fourthly, the SNAFU Managers...Snafu does not need explanation..though if you want pls look up the net....These are managers, who push people to get things done, and avoid the pain of handling issues, which surface everytime....afterall solving a problem is sure a lot of pain and effort...they do not stop to check for the issues...why not? Stopping by to check issues...will lessen my productivity...short sightedness. Are managers qualified to manage people? For all the management qualifications we all have...no one teaches people management better than experience. Am sure you agree. In the current economy, we develop managers too quickly, even if they are not ready...Longivity of tenure in an organisation sometimes, seem to be reason for people growing...cos good performers would leave anyway...
But, the point is what gets projected to the management? Results or issues with methods to handle them? Most often, managers do prefer to paint a rosy picture always..(Situation Normal bit)...afterall managers need not be evangelists, but effective. A manager sharing his issues openly is considered ineffective..but a manager sharing the issues and also validating his methods with his supervisors and peers is considered to be more proactive and willing to learn. Are our managers willing to learn? If you are saying yes, check 1: Do you have the same problem arising again and again? Check2: is The team is polarised on your manager?..
sum it up: Managers..What are they doing? Solving issues or trying to be popular?
Hence, fighting the enemy within an organisation is all about setting the right goals and linking them to all teams, reviewing them properly, Leading through execution excellence and managing issues well.....
Lets stop fighting enemies internally..build a culture to fight the market forces...all the best to al of us..and as HR professionals hunt for such issues to be escalated and handled properly..
Bala
I am a Performance Management Consultant..working for a leading training and consulting firm. I have a sound performance solutioning background..(n if you are wondering wat it means....identifying a performance issue - people or process based, building a solution around the same, deploy the solution through people and process correction mechanism like training, coaching, mentoring etc, and show effectiveness in what we do...)..
I thought of writing this article, from my experience of having to work with a large client organisation....(guess is not right to name .. :wink: )
Fighting the enemy within...
Have you come across this situation?
you are in a client facing role, your customer is very demanding, you are anxious to grow for your self and your team..am sure many of us would relate to this...
But this is interesting..
have you had to work in a team, where your operations / back end team tests all your persuasion abilities to be able to deliver a project on time? To an extent, that if you have spent the same energies at the client side, you would have grown the business three fold?
Sounds funny isnt it? Does this happen? Can it happen? Am sure it happens in most cases...as professional in HR practices, do we get to understand what causes these? does it tire our teams? is it why people quit? do people articulate these when they leave?....
Whom are we fighting with...customers and competition outside or the back end team which is supposed to be your strength?
There are few people based attributes which contributes these issues..
First of all, are the goals of all the departments linked to the same objective? Say for exp: if the organisation's critical goal is Customer Satisfaction, does it link to every department in the system? is your finance guy working towards customer satisfaction? Is your HR system aligned? Is your purchase / admin linked to it? Though it sounds very obvious it is only painful to observe that many big organisations do not do this...you wanna check if your organisation does this? Ask ten people around you.."What is the organisation's most critical goal, which links the entire organisation to work towards it?" if you get varied responses ranging from vague to wierd, you work for a system which is close to 60% of most organisations today...Check2: Do you have teams working on new projects but struggle during implementation? Check3: Do you have people quitting in the middle of the project abruptly?
To sum it up, the organisation's most critical goal needs to be linked to every department, every individual in the organisation
Secondly the CYA Attitude....pardon my language on this. But would prefer to be this strong...You would find people wanting to cover theirs and be protected, not bothered about the outcomes..."oh! if its good, it mine, if its bad...is it yours? or isit yours?...sure its not mine"...have you heard this before? This is another issue what we review people on...Do we reveiw actions or outcomes? Prudence says review actions, reward outcomes...pls check what happens in your teams and other teams you liase with. LInk it back to the GOALS again...do this pls. Write down the departments who are dependant on you and departments whom you depend upon. Ask yourself...do you know what their goals are? If you do not know...CYA...is the best policy.
Sum it up: What do you review?
Thirdly, leadership. the largely abused word...Is your senior management aware of these issues at the ground? Are they talking about global stratgies, when people below are fighting fires continuously and consistently?
Sum it up: Leadership..where is it focussed? Is there a balance between internal and external?
Fourthly, the SNAFU Managers...Snafu does not need explanation..though if you want pls look up the net....These are managers, who push people to get things done, and avoid the pain of handling issues, which surface everytime....afterall solving a problem is sure a lot of pain and effort...they do not stop to check for the issues...why not? Stopping by to check issues...will lessen my productivity...short sightedness. Are managers qualified to manage people? For all the management qualifications we all have...no one teaches people management better than experience. Am sure you agree. In the current economy, we develop managers too quickly, even if they are not ready...Longivity of tenure in an organisation sometimes, seem to be reason for people growing...cos good performers would leave anyway...
But, the point is what gets projected to the management? Results or issues with methods to handle them? Most often, managers do prefer to paint a rosy picture always..(Situation Normal bit)...afterall managers need not be evangelists, but effective. A manager sharing his issues openly is considered ineffective..but a manager sharing the issues and also validating his methods with his supervisors and peers is considered to be more proactive and willing to learn. Are our managers willing to learn? If you are saying yes, check 1: Do you have the same problem arising again and again? Check2: is The team is polarised on your manager?..
sum it up: Managers..What are they doing? Solving issues or trying to be popular?
Hence, fighting the enemy within an organisation is all about setting the right goals and linking them to all teams, reviewing them properly, Leading through execution excellence and managing issues well.....
Lets stop fighting enemies internally..build a culture to fight the market forces...all the best to al of us..and as HR professionals hunt for such issues to be escalated and handled properly..
Bala