How to Get the Right Foot In
by
Raj Nair
Copyright 2015 Raj Nair,
All rights reserved.
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-2614-3
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
Dedication
I dedicate this book to my parents who believed in me, family who made me a better person and all of my colleagues and past team members for your support and great cooperation.
My family - , my wife, Ninju Nair thanks to her for all the motivation. My daughter Megha Nair for patiently editing my book and giving me all support. My son for keeping up the energy and providing all graphics.
1. Commitment
For a successful delivery of a project or to accomplish any goal we would like to have truly committed people on our team. We want people who can set their full mind to the goal and love what they are doing. Commitment comes from the roots of motivation and how we can match our interests with the project needs. It is also important to understand what is meant by commitment. Sometimes over-commitment can be burdening too. A few people are over committed and these folks don’t allow others’ involvement even though they might lack some skills.
So what is commitment?. One definition says the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause of activity. Another definition says an engagement or obligation that restricts freedom of action. Well, you can see two different views in the two definitions. The first one says the person knows what the role is, what kind of job they have to do , and are fully accountable for those tasks and if they don’t do their part, how seriously it will impact the overall delivery. The second definition shows their required presence and accountability. They lose the freedom to act and it potential limits some of the creating outcomes. So we need to understand what level of commitment this person or that position needs.
Another key factor is organizational culture. We should know what the general organization behavior of the people working in that organization and what the norm is. We have to spend some time and study before building a team in an organization.
What do leaders think about commitment?. Commitment is a key quality. When I say I’m in, I’m in with a mindset that nothing can block me, nothing can turn me out. I’m there from the beginning to the end. A few years ago I got the chance to work with a leader who had a more directive style. She told me that she did not think commitment was a good quality that she wanted in her team members. I was puzzled by that comment but that response was really eye opening for me. I understood that all leaders are not the same; they have different styles and even they only want people with a certain level of commitment, to ensure the organization can accomplish what they want to.
What do team members think about commitment?. They have the same sort of comments as the leaders. People have different natures. When people are on-board to a project, their level of commitment changes according to their needs, integrity, style etc.
Several times before I have had volunteers willing to work for me. We go through a selection process to see whether they match the requirements. In a volunteer environment, it is difficult to find true interest and passion in them in which would ensure the commitment required to fulfill the job.
There are also variations in the understanding of what level of commitment is needed based on the cultural settings. The basic values are also different in different cultures. The sensitivity of commitment is also different. It also varies with the individual background, the values and setting that groomed them up.
Do we need the same level of commitment for different roles?
Probably not, I think everybody should have a good commitment for what they are undertaking. Higher up in the chain we should have a higher level of commitment. But think about what is going on now a days?. The average number of years folks stay higher up in the chain is 4. How can we say those people are committed to an organization?. We can think about two ways. First are they committed to this moment are they truthful and loyal to company that they are working?. Secondly just following the command and work on the deals. We can never know what lies down the path, so we can’t blame them if they risks are high, so there is no need to suspect them.
I worked with a CIO who was very new to the organization and knew he would be there for only four years should I follow and listen to him?. I think the best answer is yes, if he is great leader.
As you know the primary job of a production support person is to attend to the customer and understand the problem so that it can be resolved. I have learned a lot from American coworkers on this area and what it means to them to be committed. They start a shift after a briefing from the previous person on the shift. This gives them a very nice summary to see what is going on, whom they are attending and detailed notes of the action they have done and what more to take care. When the previous shift person signs-off, he or she is totally out of contact. They don’t have any emotional commitment to the problem or the customer they are serving. This needs lot of training. Not all cultures and people with background can do that. Some folks blame what the other person done before etc. My point here is to mention how commitment is defined, where the boundaries lie and how relationship is very loose and time bound. But this is not any excuse either the role only needs that kind of commitment but if one person fail to perform the level of commitment in third shift it is going affect lot of people, the customer, the company reputation etc.
Now let’s take a look at project manager. He or she works usually with a virtual team. They have to work with different sets of people and different roles. They need to identify what level of commitment is needed for each role. Some people on their team they have ever had the chance to meet each before, this is the area of relationship building that is most important. This needs to be changed based on the different phase of the project. Let give me an example. I was once working as project manager and I was heavily relying upon team members for deliverable and found that they couldn’t make it because it time for a tea break!.
I was once assigned as a resource and had a critical emergency I had to attend regarding my family. On other side I have to deliver a critical billing process for the customer. If that failed. job is not corrected we would be in deep trouble. I told my business manager and she asked me if I want to leave I can to attend the family emergency. I thought about the impact and quickly attended the family situation I found some alternatives and continue with failed job. The job was taken care of timely and I ran to my house.
I still remember this happened way very early in the year but this business manager remembered everything and when I was about to leave the company she quoted the incident and appreciated my commitment. Yes it is tough sometimes to balance the work and life balance. But sometimes we have to run a few extra miles to keep the commitment. It’s never been that easy for
