Portability

Very recently came the concept of portability in Mobile telephony. It was to provide the customer the choice of migrating, in case he has service issues with his service provider. Customer retains his identity, his unique number.
I used this service few days back. No sooner, my application got registered with my next service provider; I got a call from my old service provider, seeking reasons for my leaving. The call from service rep. was apologetic with promises of improving all issues that I faced over next 7 days. I guess these promises & apologies were too late. I am now waiting for activation of same number with new provider now.
This experience set me thinking.
The concept of portability has existed for much longer. Employees make choices when they are not happy with their current organization. They look out for opportunities and change jobs to new organizations. That’s employee portability. His perspective. Organization perspective, call it attrition. Some organizations use the more positive term – Retention. Employee is a customer too for the organization. There is concept of internal customer discussed for a long time now.
Who owns the customer / employee after he / she has been acquired by the company? Are there any lessons to be learnt?
Yes of course. In the call I had from service provider, he only made promises to improve the experience, which was too late as I had already got my application submitted (akin to putting in resignation). The caller should have asked me what are those things which we need to improve apart from your reasons shared. He did not do so. He let go of an opportunity to get feedback and perhaps feed it into organization to be able to proactively improve services & retain more customers.
Portability / Attrition can be predicted or forecasted. If it can be, why do organizations and businesses do not consider proactive actions.
Like in case of customer it is fair to ask a question, who owns the employee? Is it HR? Is it the Function Head? Is the ownership shared by HR & Concerned Business/ Function? There are arguments for each of these. The one argument that I have seen most organization throw up to preclude any discussion when an employee quits is:
“Employees do not leave companies they leave their Managers”
To be fair, research does show & prove that, it is one of the top reasons among others, for people to quit jobs. When it happens more often, does it not make the responsibility to treat & go about resolving the challenge? Most often it is seen that, as soon as this argument is put forward, out goes the accountability and pain of Top Management & HR. Abandoning. My guess is that most senior employees in organization extend conveniently this argument to cover up deficiencies related to company culture, talent management etc.
Organizations would do well when they conduct a follow up analysis to highlight managers who have contributed to the highest or critical attrition. (High_PO). I have worked with few organizations and have talked to innumerable professionals but none have confirmed that any Manager was asked to leave because he had the highest attrition in his team.
Organizations need to truly acknowledge attrition (Employee portability) only then the perspectives will change. Till then attrition as a performance indicator is not owned by any. It is akin to orphaning the employee. Literally. So if & when an employee resigns / quits no one sheds a tear. No one owns him. He becomes a statistic. And then again we hear. People leave managers not companies. Think about it from the perspective of organizations facing high attrition at almost 25-30%. Such high attrition means that virtually all the Managers in the companies are to be blamed. Collectively these Managers make an organization.
Organizations now seem to resolving the attrition problem by analysing data as Voluntary and Involuntary Attrition.  That’s reduces the pain and effort a bit. To further distance the issue from HR ,  there is a thought process to measure attrition as only Critical Resignations % (people who have to be retained / have High PO).

 It seems an admittance that HR community did not understand the concept well and measures it all wrong. They have now redefined measurement rather than addressing the issues itself. Most organizations don’t seem to acknowledge it. At their own peril. 

Transforming Manager as Manager Coach

I am quite confident that by the time I finish writing this blog article, there will be new insights for myself and perhaps some readers too. These insights well could well confirm my doubt or perhaps give me some hope and answer on what it takes to transform managers of today to be manager -coaches. I believe it is awareness and understanding.

There seems to be an inherent contradiction between these two. Managing and coaching are two different activities. One is about directing & other has to be about teaching. Managing is all about telling, directing, authority, immediate needs, and a specific outcome. Coaching involves exploring, facilitating, partnership, long-term improvement, and many possible outcomes.

The manager focuses primarily on strategy and managing the flow of the work. He decides who does what.  He allocates the work based on role & competencies. Manager goes about providing resources and ensuring outcomes.

 How many times have we heard a Manager almost shouting on phone to his sales guy on 25^th of the month “I don’t know how you do it, but I want you to achieve your target by end of month” . The poor sales guy has no idea how to do it but is shut up by his manager who is not willing to understand that probably this person needs new ideas to get the numbers.

In my experience with Managers at senior level, I have often heard that coaching team members is time intensive while we grapple with issues and challenges that have to be resolved on yesterday basis. The Tyranny of Urgent. This explains their prescriptive style of management. Managers start believing that there job is to provide answer. In all situations & all the time. I am reminded of a senior manager who even shared that as soon as his subordinate starts speaking, he is already giving him back instructions on what is to be done. To be fair, he wanted to change this. I wish everyone sees this as a problem first for themselves. This problem of not coaching the team members in creates bigger and long term problems for Managers

A Manager Coach normally coaches his team members in situations. It is an approach where he chooses the situation based on its criticality and developmental opportunity for his team members in that aspect. He would discuss & encourage the role holders to think differently and plan action, but they are then free to implement those (using their skills and knowledge) as they see fit. During the situation, he offers encouragement, support, and suggestions. And he suggests on how to react to many possible outcomes depending on what the other team does.

In business, we have to be both coaches and managers. To lead effectively, we need to know when to wear which hat.Managing involves a more directive, task-oriented style that should only be used under certain conditions. It usually produces the best results in a crisis situation, when someone has never done the task before, or when they have little or no confidence in their ability to get it done.

Coaching works best for developmental purposes, especially when you have a team of competent professionals already performing at a reasonably high level. Once you define winning for your organization, team members may need your guidance and support. But in most cases they shouldn’t need direction.

In today’s world though with pressures on goals & outcomes most of the managers tend to stay in the Manager mode over a prolonged period, which almost becomes their style of management. Prescriptive. Directing.Task Oriented. This impacts the team members who just seem to understand their role as just executing the directions of Manager. If and when sparingly they adopt coaching style to lead & develop team members there tends to be certain degree of surprise for team. They almost don’t believe him. Perhaps it is too late for them to react, as they are already hardwired with predominant way of Manager to direct and be prescriptive.

To be a Manager- Coach, knowing when to direct, delegate or develop is critical to managerial effectiveness. Determining which style is appropriate based on the task at hand rather than the individual. Often, people will need a combination of styles depending on the complexity of the task assigned, their experience with the task, and the competency levels required to complete it with excellence. This critical understanding is crucial when we teach our Managers to be coaches. Initially they tend to believe it will slow down their capability to achieve outcomes. They have to be explained that combination of these two styles will work better overall. They must be asked to review and consider situations ( and not individuals) when they can adopt a coaching style.

Here are some of my thoughts for managers who are keen to consider:

Direct when the employee has low to moderate competence with the skills and abilities needed to complete the task. Be sure to define excellence (what, how and when), and provide specifics (templates, examples, etc.) so the person can achieve the desired outcome. Direct when a person:

·         Is new in a role

·         Is new to the company

·         Is new to the client/customer

·         Has new job responsibilities or tasks

·         Has new ways of working

Delegate when the employee has moderate to high competence. Again, define excellence so both sides have clarity around the goal. Then let the employee determine the approach they will take and keep you informed as to their progress. Ask questions and provide direction and specific support when necessary. Delegate when a person has:

·         Some experience in the role

·         A track record or competence

·         A sensitive task or client

·         Confidence in their abilities

·         Similar ways of working

Develop when the employee has high competence and high commitment to the task. Then define excellence and get out of the way! Give plenty of recognition for successful completion of the task. Then determine the person’s next challenge. Develop when the person:

·         Has extensive experience

·         Has demonstrated evidence of competency

·         Has experienced similar clients or task sensitivities

·         Is growing new competences

·         Is trying new approaches

Sometimes we have to coach and sometimes we have to manage. The more we coach, the less we will manage. We grow people. We grow ourselves.

How to assess a company's culture before you take the Job

I am, in some ways, not competent to share my views on this subject. I have just changed 3 jobs in 26 year long career. The only competence that makes me write and share here is my “mistake” in not assessing or ignoring certain aspects when I joined few organizations. I thereafter validated it with some of my friends and colleagues.

The call from hiring consultant will sell you the role & company. High growth, organization is undergoing change to grow and meet challenges, new role created are some of the words you would hear from the consultants. The promoter wishes to change the culture hence looking at professionals at this stage. The selling spiel would persuade you to have a meeting or interaction with company officials. Been persuaded somewhat, if you ask for JD, you may get to hear that since this a senior role, when you meet the Country Head, he will explain the role and challenges to you. If you ignore this and agree for meeting, you have made your first mistake in assessment. 

A nicely drafted JD may land up in your inbox, if you are lucky. However if it appears an average JD rather than being special; ignoring it would be also a mistake. Let us say you don’t realise the mistake and wish to go ahead. Then you must find out from social networking sites if anyone has worked at the company or knows someone who does currently.

• Invite current employees of the company to join your network and ask for their first-hand experience with the company. Rarely would you get a negative response, because firstly the guy doesn’t know your intention well enough, even though you may explain. Your ability to share details is limited as it would mean that you are revealing that you have been approached to replace some existing role holder in the company.

• Therefore it is better to connect with ex-employees and seek feedback. Among various questions that you may ask, do ask about how the organization treats its employees as and when they resign. A lot about company culture is revealed from the way they treat their employees as and when they resign. From relieving troubles to settling the claims. If you cannot get to ex-employees and talk to them, you are probably not well prepared.

• Check out the Web site and see if they have any employee testimonials. If so, do they seem authentic or scripted?

• If the website has details of senior Management team members, do try and understand if they have been there in same role for pretty long. If they have been, look at cultural affinity of these gentlemen to CEO/ MD / Founder. Don’t ignore this fact. It is an indicator for you to ask relevant question during the interview. 

• If you have been told the name of your prospective line manager, if you join, do seek specific feedback from your contacts / sources.

If you do not take these actions now, you are probably making your 2nd mistake. Without gathering enough information about company culture, if you go for interview, you are not prepared well, suffice to say.

One should also notice the sequence of interactions arranged for you, at the company. In case your interactions during the interview process does not include your supervisor or he comes last after his seniors / peers have interacted with you, do not ignore this vital fact. It could mean that when you are in the job, the other seniors / peers to your supervisors are likely to determine your agenda and action. It could mean inter-alia that your supervisor is either weak / ineffective or is being accommodated. In this situation your position will always be weak in the organization, if you decide to join them. Notice, if the interview environment is seriously meant for the interview or there are frequent disturbances. Pay attention to the discussions happening during the disturbances, it may give you some idea of the culture and the attitude of employees in the organization. 

When you will land up for interview / interaction, everyone will seem normal and friendly. The ticket will arrive promptly and vehicle at airport would be there to drive you to Guest house or hotel before you reach office to meet the HR or Country Head. Even the receptionist will know about your arrival and you will be ushered in well.  

Let us assume that you have been courageous enough to reach the stage of interview, ignoring vital sign sin the process till now , atleast now , evaluate all that you see and hear and everyone you meet during the interview process beginning when you walk in the door. Consider things like:

• First impression: What is the office space like, and can you see yourself working in it? Are the aesthetics as per your likings.  Once I had visited a client’s office. The client was a beauty industry giant. As I walked into the reception, I saw the walls were painted grey. I felt somewhat claustrophic. 

• Dress code: Are current employees dressed professionally or business casual, or do they look like they just rolled out of bed?  People in the creative industries like media are open, creative and carefree. At such places you would see people in colourful t-shirts, kurtas, ethnic styles etc. While at manufacturing set-ups, people generally dress formally in pastel colors.

• Energy level: Is the office buzzing, quiet, or chaotic? What kind of visitors come to the office, how are they treated etc.

• Personal Effects: Do people have pictures, toys, and other forms of self-expression in their work area? Are the desks full of cosmetics, snacks, unorganized? 

• Desktops: Do staffers have the latest laptops, 80s desktops, or something in between? Are people carrying gadgets given by the company? 

• Cafeteria/ Meeting place: How are the facilities in the canteen- beverage vending machines, food, drinks, water? How are the sitting arrangements? 

Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the culture, and the things you are seeing and hearing. Consider things like:

• Company behaviour: Do they promote from within, sponsor team lunches, encourage professional development? If the interviewer answers yes to any of these questions, ask for specific examples.

• Ask each person you meet to describe the company culture and notice if you get consistent responses.

• Ask each person you meet with how long they have been with the company.

• If you feel you haven’t met enough people, ask if there are other members of the organization you can speak to about their experience.

• Try to ask as many questions around your role. If role was already existing, ask why did the previous incumbent had left. 

Recruitment, obviously, is a huge cost to the organization. A wrong hire adds on to the expenditure. It is also true that a wrong on-boarding is a cost to the individual’s career and life. One should be wary before leaving and joining a job. Decisions can always be amended though, the only factor irreversible is time.