Keeping It Together
ONE OF the major boulders weighing down the bent shoulders of HR managers today is the problem of managing star performers. It is hard enough to keep the wolf of attrition at bay, but when your best and most productive employees spearhead the exodus, it is as much as a self-respecting HR manager can do to stop himself from bursting into tears.
The problem, as you may guess, is rather severe. In fact, talent management heads the list of priorities in many companies now, or at least the companies that have enlightened despots at their helm. Productive employees are hard to find and it is harder still to keep them. Especially in job markets like the IT sector, where the wiser companies have had to install turnstiles in their doorways for obvious reasons. This plague is quickly spreading to other industries as well. Take the media minefield for instance. The explosion of news channels in the recent past has opened a floodgate of opportunities for media professionals. In fact, this is one giant employment supermarket where there are more jobs than people. There are more dangling carrots in the IT and media industries than there are in the fecund filth of the Ganges. And not surprisingly, the best of men are biting the bait. That is where talent management comes into play.
But, to begin with, what is talent management? To cut a long story short, talent management is an offshoot of the traditional bull-headed corporate approach at retaining the best employees; a strategy also known as `here, have a cigar son, how do you like your new cabin?' While this has paid off in the past, the number of rival organisations offering bigger pay cheques and better working facilities have multiplied exponentially and are now a dime a dozen. The old formula has now become `here-have-a-Cuban-and- how-do-you-like-your-floor-and-attached-massage-parlour'.
So, how can you keep a tight leash on your VIEs (Very Important Employees) and ensure that they don't stray from the chosen path? By giving them something that goes beyond fat salaries and fat perks; something that transcends the material world and wraps them in a cocoon of joyous bliss. We are talking about growth. Nine times out of ten, you can keep a star employee from tripping over into the dark side merely by offering him better prospects for growth than your rival.
It is not just about promotions and raises, although rewards like that do play their part. You can keep your best performers by giving them the best assignments. Not many companies take note of the fact that a lot of employees decide to row the same stream for years on end because their company provided them with something other employers couldn't. For instance, many people prefer flexible work timings to higher salaries. They would rather do without all of the stress that comes from longer working hours. Then there are people who stay with the same company because they feel valued and appreciated and like the nurturing work environment. Yes, their HR people must be really good liars but that's another story.
The first thing therefore is to find out what makes your favourite employee tick. Once you have managed to do that, the rest of it should be easy. Essentially, there are two things you must remember. The first is to encourage employees to give you feedback. This should not be too tough. Venting is something that comes naturally to most people. And your feedback forms will be a hit if you ask them what they want from the company and what the company currently lacks.
The second is to listen to your employees when they come to you with problems.
This whole theory of a working team being like one big family does have its uses. If you can't really bring in a sense of togetherness, at least try and create an illusion of one.
Ultimately, all you really have to do is follow a simple plan: do what you can when you can. There are very few companies that can provide everything their employees wish for. In fact, there are none. Man is an inexhaustible bundle of desires. The least you can do is assure him that his needs will be taken care of.
ARJUN SENGUPTA
arjuns.hyd@cnkonline.com
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