Congratulations IRAQ!

Iraq is the new Asian Cup Champions! With their nation burning to the ground, the Iraqi national team displayed grit and sheer determination to win the 2007 Asian Cup. The Saudi players played their hearts out too but not nearly as much as the Iraqis. The Iraqis had fire in their eyes. They were determined. They wanted to win so badly as they knew a victory would be a sweet reprieve for their people back at home who are long due for some sort of victory, a feel good factor if you may. And, they did just that. I was cheering them all the way in my living room!

At the time of this entry, there are no terrorist attacks on the celebrating Iraqis anywhere in Iraq. This of course is a relief as hundreds have died in bombings across Iraq while celebrating their team's progress in the tournament.

It seems, every cross section of the Iraqi populace; the Shias from the south and the Kurdish from the north have all come out in jubilation to celebrate this success. Momentarily, animosity has been forgotten. Just for a flickering second, Iraqis would have experienced what their ancient land would be like if they all got their heads and hearts together. Alas, I know that soon enough once the euphoria dies down, Iraqis will get back to their old ways of feuding and giving their oppressors more reasons to stay on.

Just last week a good friend, Tim, whose training program I had the privilege of observing said that the longest distance between any point on this planet is between the head and the heart!How true. What a difference it makes when we see people from our hearts and not with our heads. What a difference it makes when we manage our organizations from the heart. The Iraqis are celebrating right now because they have found in their hearts something to celebrate about. The 'reasons' for their animosity towards each other are still there...in their heads. But, for this few hours at least, their hearts will rule. They will come together. They will rejoice.They will feel one. And, they will get stronger (in football terms).

I often try to get this point across in my various training programs. I have a brand new example to illustrate it now.

Bravo Iraq!

The Talent War

I am convinced that the real challenge for Malaysia in the next 10 to 15 years will be talent retention rather than talent creation.

Don't take me wrong, I am not saying that we have produced enough talent in all our industries. Far from it. We still lack in that department compared with our regional competitors such as Singapore and Thailand. My argument is this : the problem with Malaysia is never with its ability to produce talent but with its ability to retain talent. As far as I am concerned, talent identification and development for a nation of our size is not a problem at all. Much of the infrastructure and programs to develop talent are already in place. With this and many more plans in the pipeline, we can easily produce the talent we need. Take for example the recent student exchange program between Malaysia and the venerable Infosys of India. For weeks, the mainstream media have been singing praises of how the exchange program has benefited the students. The students themselves have gone on record to say that they have learned more in 3 weeks in Infosys than in 1 year back in our campuses.They felt that now they have a much better understanding of the uses for the knowledge that they have gained. The minister was so amazed to see the changes in the students' behavior and attitude that he took time off to attend their 'graduation. Now, here we are with a bunch of young minds who are obviously very much excited about the prospects ahead for them in their chosen field. The question is are we prepared to do all that it takes to keep them on our shores with the right remuneration, support and assistance or will they be lured away across the causeway.

While, we should continue to invest in talent identification and development we should also concurrently take the necessary steps to retain that talent. The Americans, Indians and the Chinese know this very well. While the Indian IITs and IIMs churned out thousands of world class talents, the country it self did not do enough to retain that valuable talent.They ended up in America. The Chinese universities and polytechnics produced thousands of brilliant minds but where did they end up? At Palo Alto! Needless to say, the trend is reversing but these two countries have already lost 3 generations of its brightest and most talented.

Malaysia is at a state of emergency as far our competitiveness is concerned. There seems to be a general lack of realization that we have over the last 10 years lost our competitiveness to neighbouring countries. Low production cost is no longer a viable leveraging factor. Talent is.

March of the Emperors

I believe it was at the 2006 Oscars that the French made, American produced, Morgan Freeman read documentary called March of The Penguins won the Oscar for best documentary. I watched it on DVD 2 months ago and since then have been so awe struck by these amazing creatures that I have done some research of my own. I have learnt enough of these creatures to convince me that I should share these with my program participants especially during my Team Building and Change Management programs. I developed a creative 2-hour activity based on the Documentary which I have found to be extremely effective to put forward many of the critical points that I want my participants to grasp.

For those of you who have not watched March of the Penguins, allow me to give you a snap-shot of it. The Emperor Penguins are found in the Antarctica. They are bigger than most other penguin breeds. Antarctica is easily the harshest place on earth with the temperature dropping steadily to -50 C during winter. The wind there can reach up to 200 km per hour. The Emperors, it has been found, have been doing something peculiar for thousands of years. Every year, they climb on to the pack ice and walk day and night for more than 70 miles to go to a breeding ground where they will find a mate. This breeding ground is where every one of them were also born! There at the breeding ground, one of nature's most enduring role reversal takes place. After laying the single egg, the female treks back the 70 miles to the ocean to eat while the male Emperor holds the precious egg on its claws (safe from the freezing ground) and protects it from the elements. By the time the egg hatches, the male Emperors would have gone for almost 4 months without any food. They stay huddled throughout the winter. This huddle of theirs is by it self an amazing social structure. Somehow, each one of the thousands in the huddle will be able to get to spend some time in the center of the huddle where it is warmer. They do this to outlast the winter. By then, the female Emperor returns with enough food in her belly to feed the young chick. From then on, they take turns to trek up and down to the ocean to eat and to bring back food for the young chick.

What can we learn from the Emperors? Here is my list:

1. When change happens, keep moving.
2. Leadership is the function of a person not position.
3. Without team-work, we are doomed.
4. Anticipate, act and evaluate.
5. The biggest challenge is not from out there, it's from within.

I hope you have a chance to watch this documentary. The DVD version even comes with a bonus edition which shows how difficult it was to film it in the first place!

March on Emperors!

Managers Are Not Always at Fault; Only Most of the Time!

I often say that a manager is at fault when a valuable employee leaves an organization unexpectedly. Almost always I get asked the question whether it is fair to blame managers when an employee leaves an organization?

It is interesting that over the years I have noted how often people omit the words 'valuable' and 'unexpectedly' when I am asked that question. The point here is this : I am not implying that a manager is to be blamed every time an employee leaves; only when a valuable employee leaves and that too, unexpectedly. Of course the manager shoulders this blame vis a vis the organization. It comes with the job.

Let us now describe who is a valuable employee.
A valuable employee is one who :
1.Continually delivers more than expected.
2. Dares to challenge the status quo for process improvements.
3. Takes ownership of tasks, responsibilities and the outcomes from the tasks and responsibilities.
4. Willing to coach/mentor others AND learn from others
5. Brings new ideas and methods for continuous improvement
6.Has been with the organization long enough and/or has been involved deeply enough in tasks/responsibilities to become a resource person for other employees.
7. Has continually showed passion for self development and the development of others.
8. Has always exhibited values that are complimentary to the organization's values OR has willingly subordinated personal values for the benefit of the overall good of the organization's vision and mission.
9. Has a proven track record of performance excellence, leadership capabilities and change adaptability.
10. Has a reservoir of knowledge, skills and abilities that are yet to be tapped for the benefit of the organization.

Now, why would such a valuable employee leave an organization? The reasons would be :
1. Not properly rewarded for exceptional performance.
2. Not properly recognised for achieving excellence.
3.Creativity and initiative stifled by a bureaucratic and rigid management environment.
4. Not up-dated on the direction of the organization.
5. No clear career development path
6. Suggestions and recommendations made for continuous improvements are seldom followed up or appreciated.
7. Too many broken promises from the management.
8. Lack of job enrichment opportunities.
9. Loss of life balance
10. Natural reasons (these are usually beyond the control of the manager/organization)

Looking at the characteristics of a valuable employee and why he/she may leave an organization, I can't but insist that the bigger part of the blame inevitably falls on the shoulders of the manager vis vis the organization.

How difficult is it to keep such a valuable employee. Not difficult. All that is needed is some creativity. Consider this example : A valuable supervisor of a manufacturing concern approaches his manager with his letter of resignation.The manager decides that this supervisor is too valuable for the organization to loose him. He has a chat with the supervisor and finds out that the reason for his leaving is the lack of salary increment. The manager knows that a salary review is in the books next year based upon the expected increase in profits. But, he knows a promise of salary review next year will not attractive for the supervisor. So, the manager volunteers this information but throws in something else that makes the supervisor think again about moving away and having to start all over again. As the manager can't be 100% sure of the salary review as it is something beyond his control, he offers the supervisor a reduced load of work responsibilities that he feels he would like to forgo in return for the supervisor's willingness to wait for another year. Now, this gives the manager a fair chance of keeping this valuable supervisor (if the salary review materializes) and/or he has time to prepare for any eventualities.

A valuable employee is hard to come by. Hang on to him/her dear managers!