Encouraging Teams and Learning Points. Interaction with leaders.

 Encouraging Teams  and Learning Points. Interaction with Leaders. 

Dinesh K Kapila 

One at times meets youngsters who are into good paying jobs but feel disturbed about their job profile and more important their overall working environment. Therefore it was indeed encouraging to meet a young couple recently. In leadership cum ownership roles.  They showcased positivity and a can do approach and had a refreshing approach to managing their teams. 

The husband runs his own company focused on constructing premium apartments. He keeps it small in size in terms of projects by design. Taking up limited projects at a time and moving on only when the ongoing projects near completion. The apartments sell because of the reputation and the inbuilt care as regards design and layout. His approach to managing his team was different, he said if a team member was lagging behind in output or in achieving his or her  targets, it’s not that the employee, no matter what his place in the hierarchy, does not realise it. An astute leader understands this and therefore he refrained from rigorous monitoring or continuous pressure. He would point it out as an area of concern and leave it at that. Mostly the employee himself or herself worked  it out. Including in asking for assistance or an additional allocation of resources. He also allowed a certain informality on the day salary was paid. Firstly salary was always paid on time. And secondly, the day salary was paid lunch was on the company’s account. A well laid out affair and informality was ensured. It was not lavish but certainly well laid out and across the hierarchy all joined in. Even though some well wishers advised otherwise or even his wife at times but he found his approach useful in terms of a productive, focused and effective team working in harmony. His team, including those in finance often surprised him with being innovative. He also encouraged talks by doctors, lawyers, artists and leaders in varied fields on the day salary was paid. His attrition rates were low too. But yes, where required, he would step in to be firm too. 

His wife had her own mode and approach to working at a company where she headed the legal team as also has major responsibilities for CSR and HR. While she complied with the rules for say POSH but alongside she ensured the males had their own institutionalised mechanisms for harassment. A few instances of men  pursuing  men was a learning point which led to this. If one state introduced a one day leave for women every month, she ensured it was implemented across all centres in the nation in her company. Whatever were the rules for welfare, as stipulated, her effort was to go beyond the spirit of the rules while simultaneously focusing on the rigorous adherence to productivity and output. The hard driving of fourteen to fifteen hours work days of some organisations including at consultancies was deliberately eschewed at her company yet the results in financial terms were at par if not better. Innovation was encouraged and teams from multiple verticals allowed to collaborate for innovation too.  Many employees who left did seek an opportunity to return too. Salary was important as was the package but it was not everything, a conducive and fair working atmosphere was equally important. 

Both work in a major metro known for IT in South India but it’s not Bangalore. It’s indeed encouraging to meet such enterprising youngsters and to know their approach to work and in leading a team. Both of them were loyal to output, innovation  and results but had strived for maintaining a balance in the structure as regards the review and monitoring mechanisms. Maybe in the North we could learn from this. We need to.