Hello,
I am working in a small IT company as an HR. Our company size is 25 employees. There are two people who are the CEOs of the company. One is in the US and another one is in India.
The company is under the dictatorship of these two CEOs.
Now, when I had one-on-one discussions with my employees, what I understood is there are mistakes from the management side creating problems for employees in accomplishing their tasks on time.
A small example - A team of 5 people is working on a project (A) which they have to deliver within a stipulated period. These people make plans accordingly and start working on it. What happens is, these CEOs suddenly come in the middle of the work, assign some urgent tasks (Project B or C) to those people, and they have to do it. Later on, when the CEOs need Project (A), people need extra time to complete it, creating problems.
For example, a team of 4 - 5 people is assigned a project with all the details required and everything based on client requirements. They start working on it properly; suddenly, what happens is these CEOs come in the middle of the work and give some inputs that were not given earlier, requiring employees to rework tasks they have already finished.
Problems:
1. Whenever we discuss this issue with the management, they don't accept their fault.
2. Due to dictatorship, there is no one who can contradict them.
3. Being a small organization, we don't have replacements if urgent work comes from the CEOs.
4. As urgent work comes from the CEOs, employees have to do it.
5. Due to this problem, my employees' efficiency is being affected, and they have to stay extra hours to complete the work.
Kindly help me with your valuable suggestions.
From India, Pune
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3I am working in a small IT company as an HR. Our company size is 25 employees. There are two people who are the CEOs of the company. One is in the US and another one is in India.
The company is under the dictatorship of these two CEOs.
Now, when I had one-on-one discussions with my employees, what I understood is there are mistakes from the management side creating problems for employees in accomplishing their tasks on time.
A small example - A team of 5 people is working on a project (A) which they have to deliver within a stipulated period. These people make plans accordingly and start working on it. What happens is, these CEOs suddenly come in the middle of the work, assign some urgent tasks (Project B or C) to those people, and they have to do it. Later on, when the CEOs need Project (A), people need extra time to complete it, creating problems.
For example, a team of 4 - 5 people is assigned a project with all the details required and everything based on client requirements. They start working on it properly; suddenly, what happens is these CEOs come in the middle of the work and give some inputs that were not given earlier, requiring employees to rework tasks they have already finished.
Problems:
1. Whenever we discuss this issue with the management, they don't accept their fault.
2. Due to dictatorship, there is no one who can contradict them.
3. Being a small organization, we don't have replacements if urgent work comes from the CEOs.
4. As urgent work comes from the CEOs, employees have to do it.
5. Due to this problem, my employees' efficiency is being affected, and they have to stay extra hours to complete the work.
Kindly help me with your valuable suggestions.
From India, Pune
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Dear Shwetavi,
It is not clear how old your organization is. However, if it is a new one, then the so-called management (CEOs) will try their best to create a good image in the market. They will strive to satisfy and delight the customers and seize new opportunities. However, the way they are doing this is not effective. Due to their approach, you may lose your good employees, ultimately tarnishing the organization's reputation.
It appears that your employees are not very stable.
As an HR professional, you should consider the following:
1. Collect the data of the departed employees.
2. Gather feedback from your employees regarding the management style.
3. Understand their expectations concerning their jobs and rewards.
4. Obtain other crucial information.
After analyzing this data, present your report to the CEOs. Try to persuade them about the adverse consequences of such a management style. Provide practical examples from other organizations to support your points.
Remember, there is no shortage of job opportunities in the market.
Also, assess whether you have adequate manpower to handle the projects. After convincing the CEOs, work on filling any gaps.
Best wishes,
From India, New Delhi
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It is not clear how old your organization is. However, if it is a new one, then the so-called management (CEOs) will try their best to create a good image in the market. They will strive to satisfy and delight the customers and seize new opportunities. However, the way they are doing this is not effective. Due to their approach, you may lose your good employees, ultimately tarnishing the organization's reputation.
It appears that your employees are not very stable.
As an HR professional, you should consider the following:
1. Collect the data of the departed employees.
2. Gather feedback from your employees regarding the management style.
3. Understand their expectations concerning their jobs and rewards.
4. Obtain other crucial information.
After analyzing this data, present your report to the CEOs. Try to persuade them about the adverse consequences of such a management style. Provide practical examples from other organizations to support your points.
Remember, there is no shortage of job opportunities in the market.
Also, assess whether you have adequate manpower to handle the projects. After convincing the CEOs, work on filling any gaps.
Best wishes,
From India, New Delhi
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Dear Shwetavi,
It seems that their behavior most probably is a reflection of some deeper psychological issues that extend further than a typical workday. Find a discreet way to inform them about the negative effects their unhelpful behavior is having on employees' work. Address these issues factually and in a relaxed manner, without questioning why they acted as they did. Remember, some managers have no idea that what they're doing is making employees unhappy at the workplace. This is when your feedback and good communication can be an essential prerequisite to them improving their behavior. Make sure your tone is non-accusative.
Regards,
Sharat
From India
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It seems that their behavior most probably is a reflection of some deeper psychological issues that extend further than a typical workday. Find a discreet way to inform them about the negative effects their unhelpful behavior is having on employees' work. Address these issues factually and in a relaxed manner, without questioning why they acted as they did. Remember, some managers have no idea that what they're doing is making employees unhappy at the workplace. This is when your feedback and good communication can be an essential prerequisite to them improving their behavior. Make sure your tone is non-accusative.
Regards,
Sharat
From India
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Dear Shweta,
From your narrative, it seems that both the CEOs have a tacit understanding about their roles in the organization, i.e., one to procure assignments by staying abroad and the other to accomplish them in time by being here. Since theirs is an IT Company, they should have been more obsessed with time-bound delivery to satisfy the existing clients as well as to attract prospective ones, as suggested by Mr. Bhardwaj. However, in the process dominated by haste and dictates of artificial time-limits, possibilities are abound that in the absence of unity of thought and direction among themselves, they lose sight of work difficulties faced by the people on the job. That is indicative of the fact in your post that quite often the CEOs forget that the purpose of a control system is not to dominate people but to enable them to take appropriate action. Of course, it is a sordid state of affairs for an HR executive who has to act as a buffer. Since their disposition seems to be pretty autocratic, politely bring the difficulties faced by the members of staff in this regard to their knowledge when both are present and convince them that the growth of the enterprise is always in tandem with the development of the human resources. As CEOs, it's up to them... either to make the enterprise flourish with a contented and stable workforce or mar it!
From India, Salem
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From your narrative, it seems that both the CEOs have a tacit understanding about their roles in the organization, i.e., one to procure assignments by staying abroad and the other to accomplish them in time by being here. Since theirs is an IT Company, they should have been more obsessed with time-bound delivery to satisfy the existing clients as well as to attract prospective ones, as suggested by Mr. Bhardwaj. However, in the process dominated by haste and dictates of artificial time-limits, possibilities are abound that in the absence of unity of thought and direction among themselves, they lose sight of work difficulties faced by the people on the job. That is indicative of the fact in your post that quite often the CEOs forget that the purpose of a control system is not to dominate people but to enable them to take appropriate action. Of course, it is a sordid state of affairs for an HR executive who has to act as a buffer. Since their disposition seems to be pretty autocratic, politely bring the difficulties faced by the members of staff in this regard to their knowledge when both are present and convince them that the growth of the enterprise is always in tandem with the development of the human resources. As CEOs, it's up to them... either to make the enterprise flourish with a contented and stable workforce or mar it!
From India, Salem
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Hello,
Thank you all for your valuable suggestions.
Well, this company was started 3 years ago in September 2009. All the employees are very hardworking, cooperative, stable, and dedicated towards their work. It is indeed correct, as mentioned by Mr. Bhardwaj and Mr. Umakanthan, that these CEOs are striving to create a positive image in the market, identify different sources for business development, and satisfy existing clients to generate leads. In this process, they prioritize more crucial and significant tasks, which often results in internal problems being ignored, neglected, or redirected to other discussions.
Furthermore, this company is neither System-Oriented nor People-Oriented; the focus is on making it Process-Oriented. However, this is where the flaw lies, as discussed above. As someone in an HR position, it can sometimes be challenging to comprehend the technical aspects of operations and provide inputs effectively, which I believe could be a drawback.
Thank you.
From India, Pune
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Thank you all for your valuable suggestions.
Well, this company was started 3 years ago in September 2009. All the employees are very hardworking, cooperative, stable, and dedicated towards their work. It is indeed correct, as mentioned by Mr. Bhardwaj and Mr. Umakanthan, that these CEOs are striving to create a positive image in the market, identify different sources for business development, and satisfy existing clients to generate leads. In this process, they prioritize more crucial and significant tasks, which often results in internal problems being ignored, neglected, or redirected to other discussions.
Furthermore, this company is neither System-Oriented nor People-Oriented; the focus is on making it Process-Oriented. However, this is where the flaw lies, as discussed above. As someone in an HR position, it can sometimes be challenging to comprehend the technical aspects of operations and provide inputs effectively, which I believe could be a drawback.
Thank you.
From India, Pune
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Dear Shweta
It will be agonizing for a HR to be in a position like yours. Between the devil and the deep sea. Mr.Umakantan, Bhardwaj and Sharat have given valid inputs as to how to deal with the situation. My thoughts on this are :
1) There is nothing wrong for CEO's of a company to aggressively drive business but what is important is the kind of leadership they bring to bear on pushing business. it is clearly a leadership issue. Their leadership style is not people oriented but task oriented. One needs to provide people orientation to their leadership style so as to give correct direction to it. The question is who will bell the cat. it should be done either by you as HR or some senior member of the team in the office.
2) To provide people orientation to their style, first they need to be made aware that their leadership style is lacking it and it may affect their business in the near future. Thus there is no other way but to arrange an open “communication” between the CEO’s and the employees, by stating that the employees desire to have a feedback session on smooth completion of projects. This may enthuse the CEOs as the message sounds that the employees are as much interested as the CEOs themselves. This is the weakness of task oriented leaders. They want to hear phrases like ‘work’ or ‘task’ or ‘time schedules’ more than phrases like ‘morale, motivation’ and ‘obstacles’ However the object is to bring them to the discussion table. Do not say that the employees want to express their views on the project working since task oriented leaders will not be habituated to listening to others.
3) So far as inputs supplied during the course of working on a project are concerned, I would like to mention that probably it cannot be avoidable since the clients must be changing plans or adding new plans even after assigning the project to your company and the CEOs may be merely transmitting them to the teams.
So brief the CEOs as to how their inputs are helping them to complete the projects but inform them tactfully the difficulties and hardships of dismantling a project and reworking on it when an input is received when a project is drawing close or after it’s competition and how it may affect the quality of the projects. Enquire with them whether its is possible to set a dead line for receiving inputs on particular project so as to ensure it’ s smooth competition.
4) While assuring CEOs that the teams are willing to stick to time lines in completing all projects but put to them tactfully that shifting a team from one project on which it has stated working and made progress, to another project, is affecting the quality of both the projects. Enquire with them (do not suggest to them) whether it is possible for them whether to visualize in advance the relative urgency of two projects so that the team can take up that project first which requires to be urgent.
5) Finally explain to them as to how some small adjustments can bring about telling results on the quality of projects.
Do not expect miracle to happen from next day as it takes time for one to change one’s nature. So be patient. If you cannot be patient, try looking for elsewhere at the earliest.
B.Saikumar
HR & Labour law Advisor
Mumbai
From India, Mumbai
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It will be agonizing for a HR to be in a position like yours. Between the devil and the deep sea. Mr.Umakantan, Bhardwaj and Sharat have given valid inputs as to how to deal with the situation. My thoughts on this are :
1) There is nothing wrong for CEO's of a company to aggressively drive business but what is important is the kind of leadership they bring to bear on pushing business. it is clearly a leadership issue. Their leadership style is not people oriented but task oriented. One needs to provide people orientation to their leadership style so as to give correct direction to it. The question is who will bell the cat. it should be done either by you as HR or some senior member of the team in the office.
2) To provide people orientation to their style, first they need to be made aware that their leadership style is lacking it and it may affect their business in the near future. Thus there is no other way but to arrange an open “communication” between the CEO’s and the employees, by stating that the employees desire to have a feedback session on smooth completion of projects. This may enthuse the CEOs as the message sounds that the employees are as much interested as the CEOs themselves. This is the weakness of task oriented leaders. They want to hear phrases like ‘work’ or ‘task’ or ‘time schedules’ more than phrases like ‘morale, motivation’ and ‘obstacles’ However the object is to bring them to the discussion table. Do not say that the employees want to express their views on the project working since task oriented leaders will not be habituated to listening to others.
3) So far as inputs supplied during the course of working on a project are concerned, I would like to mention that probably it cannot be avoidable since the clients must be changing plans or adding new plans even after assigning the project to your company and the CEOs may be merely transmitting them to the teams.
So brief the CEOs as to how their inputs are helping them to complete the projects but inform them tactfully the difficulties and hardships of dismantling a project and reworking on it when an input is received when a project is drawing close or after it’s competition and how it may affect the quality of the projects. Enquire with them whether its is possible to set a dead line for receiving inputs on particular project so as to ensure it’ s smooth competition.
4) While assuring CEOs that the teams are willing to stick to time lines in completing all projects but put to them tactfully that shifting a team from one project on which it has stated working and made progress, to another project, is affecting the quality of both the projects. Enquire with them (do not suggest to them) whether it is possible for them whether to visualize in advance the relative urgency of two projects so that the team can take up that project first which requires to be urgent.
5) Finally explain to them as to how some small adjustments can bring about telling results on the quality of projects.
Do not expect miracle to happen from next day as it takes time for one to change one’s nature. So be patient. If you cannot be patient, try looking for elsewhere at the earliest.
B.Saikumar
HR & Labour law Advisor
Mumbai
From India, Mumbai
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Dear Sweta, The comments of Mr.B Saikumar, I endorse his comment.
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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Dear Shwetavi,
I'm based in the U.S. Here, the CEO is often unaware of unrest created with constant change.
Of course, your CEO may already be doing the assessment in his/her head without communicating his rationale to others, because the new changes may yield a higher return (income) for the company. If this is not the case, one way to address this matter is to quantify the impact of the CEO's interruptions on past and/or current projects.
Costs can be determined by the number of hours worked and converted to actual company costs, employee turnover, employee availability, etc. If you go this route, be ready to make recommendations on how they can better assess whether or not they still need to make the interruption. It may require a brainstorming session with your CEO, management team, or project team on what is required to make decisions.
If resources or people still need to be pulled, collaborating with the project team on alternatives to meet company objectives and communicating the company benefits can often help improve employee morale. You may consider flexing work schedules to accommodate the workload and provide time off when not busy (if you can do that in India). There are all sorts of good ideas that can come out of the brainstorming session.
I understand that there are some executives who are not concerned about employee workload because they work a lot of hours themselves. Still, I have found that once provided with information that will help them improve the bottom line, they will change their position.
I hope this helps.
From United States, Parker
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I'm based in the U.S. Here, the CEO is often unaware of unrest created with constant change.
Of course, your CEO may already be doing the assessment in his/her head without communicating his rationale to others, because the new changes may yield a higher return (income) for the company. If this is not the case, one way to address this matter is to quantify the impact of the CEO's interruptions on past and/or current projects.
Costs can be determined by the number of hours worked and converted to actual company costs, employee turnover, employee availability, etc. If you go this route, be ready to make recommendations on how they can better assess whether or not they still need to make the interruption. It may require a brainstorming session with your CEO, management team, or project team on what is required to make decisions.
If resources or people still need to be pulled, collaborating with the project team on alternatives to meet company objectives and communicating the company benefits can often help improve employee morale. You may consider flexing work schedules to accommodate the workload and provide time off when not busy (if you can do that in India). There are all sorts of good ideas that can come out of the brainstorming session.
I understand that there are some executives who are not concerned about employee workload because they work a lot of hours themselves. Still, I have found that once provided with information that will help them improve the bottom line, they will change their position.
I hope this helps.
From United States, Parker
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Hi!
Pointing fingers is not the solution; you have to take a diplomatic approach and work towards appointing more people after working on the time, cost, and profitability. Consider yourself a profit center head and find a solution that is amicable and profitable to the organization.
You can't please everyone, and HR exists because they are never happy with each other.
The situation is nearly perfect for an HR.
Remember Rule 1: The boss is never WRONG!
Rule 2: If he/she is wrong, follow Rule 1!
This is the time to manage the HUMAN RESOURCE at its best.
It includes the management and the employees.
You are the only one who can make and break the equilibrium between the two.
Regards
QUOTE=shwetavi;2050196]Hello,
I am working in a small IT company as an HR. Our company size is 25 employees. There are two people who are the CEOs of the company. One is in the US, and another one is in India.
The company is under the dictatorship of these two CEOs.
Now, when I had one-on-one discussions with my employees, what I understood is there are mistakes from the management side that are creating problems for employees in accomplishing their tasks on time.
A small example - A team of 5 people is working on a project (A) that they have to deliver within a stipulated period of time. These people make plans accordingly and start working on it. What happens is, these CEOs suddenly intervene in the middle of the work, assign some urgent tasks (Project B or C) to those people, and they have to do them. Later on, when the CEOs need Project (A), people need extra time to complete it, creating problems.
Example - A team of 4-5 people is assigned a project with all the details they require to do and everything based on client requirements. They start working on it properly; suddenly, the CEOs come in the middle of the work and provide some inputs that were not given earlier, and then employees are required to rework on the tasks they have already finished.
Problems -
1. Whenever we discuss this issue with the management, they don't accept their fault.
2. Due to the dictatorship, there is no one who can contradict them.
3. Being a small organization, we don't have replacements if urgent work comes from the CEOs.
4. As urgent work comes for the CEOs, employees have to do it.
5. Due to this problem, my employees' efficiency is being affected; they have to stay extra hours to complete the work.
Kindly help me with your valuable suggestions. [/QUOTE]
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Pointing fingers is not the solution; you have to take a diplomatic approach and work towards appointing more people after working on the time, cost, and profitability. Consider yourself a profit center head and find a solution that is amicable and profitable to the organization.
You can't please everyone, and HR exists because they are never happy with each other.
The situation is nearly perfect for an HR.
Remember Rule 1: The boss is never WRONG!
Rule 2: If he/she is wrong, follow Rule 1!
This is the time to manage the HUMAN RESOURCE at its best.
It includes the management and the employees.
You are the only one who can make and break the equilibrium between the two.
Regards
QUOTE=shwetavi;2050196]Hello,
I am working in a small IT company as an HR. Our company size is 25 employees. There are two people who are the CEOs of the company. One is in the US, and another one is in India.
The company is under the dictatorship of these two CEOs.
Now, when I had one-on-one discussions with my employees, what I understood is there are mistakes from the management side that are creating problems for employees in accomplishing their tasks on time.
A small example - A team of 5 people is working on a project (A) that they have to deliver within a stipulated period of time. These people make plans accordingly and start working on it. What happens is, these CEOs suddenly intervene in the middle of the work, assign some urgent tasks (Project B or C) to those people, and they have to do them. Later on, when the CEOs need Project (A), people need extra time to complete it, creating problems.
Example - A team of 4-5 people is assigned a project with all the details they require to do and everything based on client requirements. They start working on it properly; suddenly, the CEOs come in the middle of the work and provide some inputs that were not given earlier, and then employees are required to rework on the tasks they have already finished.
Problems -
1. Whenever we discuss this issue with the management, they don't accept their fault.
2. Due to the dictatorship, there is no one who can contradict them.
3. Being a small organization, we don't have replacements if urgent work comes from the CEOs.
4. As urgent work comes for the CEOs, employees have to do it.
5. Due to this problem, my employees' efficiency is being affected; they have to stay extra hours to complete the work.
Kindly help me with your valuable suggestions. [/QUOTE]
From India, Mumbai
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It is quite easy to criticize a superior, which most of us do in our everyday life frequently. What we don't understand is the compulsions that the superior may have, a perception that the superior may have of an issue, which is based on greater knowledge. Most of us are aware of information in our domain and make our decisions or perceptions based on this knowledge, which may not be complete. It is very easy to say, "You should have given this information to me earlier," but there are times when the information has to be deliberately withheld or is available late to the receiver, which the subordinate does not understand. At times, it is a late brainwave that is the cause of this, but it is you who are working for him, not vice versa.
I am not saying this is the case here. It is possible that the perception of Shwetavi is correct, but most of the time, I have found it to be otherwise. The fast turnover in some industries makes it difficult for the boss to share all information at once, which is quite justified. The solution is generally to gain the confidence of the superior and then regularly provide feedback on the progress of the project and seek any new inputs regularly.
Private companies owned by individuals suffer from this problem. I have spoken to both sides of the problem but have not been able to find a workable solution (there are many theoretical solutions available).
So, Shwetavi, accept this flaw in the system and try to work around it instead of complaining about it.
Manoj
From India, Delhi
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I am not saying this is the case here. It is possible that the perception of Shwetavi is correct, but most of the time, I have found it to be otherwise. The fast turnover in some industries makes it difficult for the boss to share all information at once, which is quite justified. The solution is generally to gain the confidence of the superior and then regularly provide feedback on the progress of the project and seek any new inputs regularly.
Private companies owned by individuals suffer from this problem. I have spoken to both sides of the problem but have not been able to find a workable solution (there are many theoretical solutions available).
So, Shwetavi, accept this flaw in the system and try to work around it instead of complaining about it.
Manoj
From India, Delhi
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