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Aparna Ponnappa on Ravindra Gaikwad, Slapgate and Civil Society!

THE HYPOCRITICAL FUROR OVER RAVINDRA GAIKWAD’S BEHAVIOR | Reddnetwork Redd Network We strive hard to build a community of people who believe strongly about competency building!

We kickstart 2017 with thoughts, musings, kick-ass ideas, and inspiration.

Hot off the Press! Here's the first of many in our new series:

From The Desk Of: Aparna Ponnappa

http://reddnetwork.com/goal-crazy/

2016

And our third and final reflection - of unicorns and more....

2015 and 2016 have been the years when faith in the unicorns began to falter. Just consider the word ‘unicorn’ for a moment. Isn’t it somewhat comical that wall street honchos and white collar investors alike would believe in things that are as closely related to a fairy tale character as ever? And a fairy tale it was, with company valuations touching billions and trillions. Especially well-known is the case of Flipkart, a company that went on to raise several series of funding, only to lose their trust just as suddenly. It then proceeded to roll-back offers it made to the top management students in the country, thus destroying the faith of aspirants and veterans alike on what a unicorn really means.

Where are the days of a simple, soundproof business model that may or may not be valued in billions, but paid its employees on time and found a solid purpose in the market?

In fact, hundreds and thousands of such companies, with their roots firmly planted in the ground, continue to flourish and thrive in India. They may not be very well-known, but in the race for popularity, how much are these other startups writing off in losses? It isn’t pleasant to think of these things, but it is essential we do so. A billion-dollar startup isn’t perhaps what people should aspire to build, a solid business is.

That said, we can never deny the difference that disruptors such as Uber, Ola, Swiggy and PayTM have made to our lives. Perhaps, wisdom lies in investing in a solid business model as opposed to projections and click-through rates.

2016

Another practice that was tested in 2016 - Open Office!

The open office culture is neither new nor was it first invented by Google as is widely believed. A Washington Post article about how the open office culture is destroying productivity went viral this year. So what is this culture and why does it have such ardent supporters and fervent haters in equal measure?

In an open office, the idea is that people can work from anywhere within the premises without being constrained by such things as a table, chair, and stationery. Just come to work, find a spot you like for the day and do what you do. Sounds great, right? The reason Google made the trend popular is because the tech behemoth offered a variety of seating options, recreation, and even food in each of their ‘rooms’. Now who doesn’t want to work in an environment like that?

A lot of people, it turns out. While the open office was designed to enhance creativity and collaboration, a lot of creative, albeit introverted, geniuses are finding that collaboration is the last thing on their minds. No, some people don’t want their work frequently interrupted by banter about the weekend cricket match or the trek the office team is going on.

Some HR experts feel that when a company is transitioning to an open office model, change management is key. Gathering opinions from all employees, ensuring that there are still some private spaces left throughout and introducing the idea gradually can go a long way. When people oppose the idea and prefer their cubicles instead, it is perhaps necessary that you give them that space to be productive in.

2016.

Let's look at some time-tested HR practices that were tested in 2016.

For a period of time that is longer than we can ever recall, the bell curve has been the standard measure of employee performance in an organization. Simply by drawing a performance curve and placing employees on it based on their individual performance, it was easy to group people based on perhaps nothing more than the results they delivered. It seems counterintuitive that such a rigid procedure based on nothing but statistics could ever make sense, but the bell curve has been around for decades. It has certain obvious advantages- a degree of standardization in grading and the consumption of less time.

However, giants like Microsoft, Cisco and Accenture are realizing the importance of doing away with this practice.

Microsoft feels that a bell curve is essentially relative grading, meaning that the performer is happy to have done better than his peers, as opposed to doing his own personal best. Thus, the notorious curve kills innovation and promotes bureaucracy. Cisco too agrees that such a system is perhaps best suited to a test or an examination and not a professional setting where the team far outweighs the individual.

So what approach are these HR departments using for appraisals instead? Continuous feedback is the new buzzword. Employees are no longer presented with a questionnaire yearly, instead being engaged with continuous feedback and discussion with the management. While quantifying these insights is much harder than using a bell curve, the results are there for all to see.

at Work

If you are a manager, then you are probably heading into a performance appraisal cycle at work. Some organisations also take regular pauses to look at work reflections. This is over and above the prescribed annual review.

What are some examples of work reflections?

Examples of work reflections include listing an employee's strengths and weaknesses in the work place. A good reflection or evaluation also focuses on an employee's strengths or talents that have benefited the company.

A good work reflection catalogs the positive attributes of the employee, such as having good problem-solving skills. This section includes any accomplishments of which the employee is proud. The reflection contains examples from the most recent evaluation period that are specific to the employee's strengths and abilities. An employee should be prepared to explain to his supervisor why he is an asset to the company.
It is necessary for an employee to elaborate on things he can improve at work, as well. The language used in this section needs to be constructive and imply a desire for improvement. This section shows a supervisor that the employee is able to identify vulnerabilities but also find solutions to overcome or change them.
The reflection concludes with a section dedicated to the employee's results on the job. This is an appropriate section to list successful accounts, commendations, successful implementation of an improved system, client reviews or work completed.

As a manager, coach your team member to regularly reflect on their work. The more details they share, the better you are able give them what they deserve from the organisation.

December is a great month for...