Epanorama05

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

*************************************************

Whenever an individual or a business decides that success has been attained, progress stops.

Thomas J. Watson Lots of people know a good thing the minute the other fellow sees it first.

J.E. Hedges

Page 1 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

“Manager’s role in Performance” (Excerpts by Ms. Sheela Mistry, Insight Associates.)

Strategic HR, Performance Management, talent retention are the buzz words these days Lot has been said and debated on these issues. In addition to performance reviews, performance management systems and processes are being integrated with hiring, retention, learning, compensation and career transitions initiatives. Strategic and integrated performance management not only drives effective measurement, it aligns hiring and retention efforts with organizational objectives and focuses on the efforts that produce the optimum returns. HR conventionally spends significant time and efforts in order to enforce and improve performance management systems (PMS). But is HR alone responsible for making PMS effective? Well, generally it is the line manager, who is fundamentally accountable for the performance of the team. With the availability of technology-driven performance management processes, line managers and HR face a typical dilemma; which makes the task challenging. While HR devises program to enhance and measure business results, the line managers have more of day-to-day business processes that are conventionally focused. Considering this delineation, in most of the cases, HR chooses and introduces performance management programs and expects line managers to embrace them.

In view of the predominance of dysfunctional performance management processes in the organizations, a panel of experts from Human Capital Institute was assembled to probe into the topic.

The focal point was “Effective Performance Management through better HR - Line Manager Relationships” Line Managers’ view point about their role in managing performance Line Managers opine different sets of expectations, aspirations and ideas around performance management and it becomes imperative for HR to know and understand the line manager’s perspective. There are two kinds of line managers who have distinct ideas about managing performance; 1) Who think about managing performance but want a simplified system and…

2) Those who don’t think about performance management and want a system that can justify somebody’s behaviour.

Line managers do not put a lot of time and effort in managing performance if they can find a way to get around what HR has put in place. According to them… to avoid such complexities, the goals need to be measured rather than competencies. At the other end, many managers use systems to justify decisions made related to promotion, compensation, firing, etc. However, in the short span, it was noticed that “more and more managers are using PMS that HR has put in place to set expectations for people, monitor their progress, and evaluate performance.” Also line managers work with their people all the time but... with HR… only or mostly during performance appraisal time.

Experts also believe that performance management goes beyond annual performance appraisals to managing expectations in terms of aligning individual and organizational expectations. “If there is an integrated approach to manage performance by creating a mindset around developing talent, accountability among line mangers for the success of their team members increases. A continuous process of feedback and development targeted at line mangers can take care of the distance between line managers and HR.” What do experts think line managers should do around performance management?

Performance management is mainly about aligning business goals with individual objectives. The reason for PMS not taking off in a significant way among line managers, is the absence of good tools and technology in the past. Now, organizations have a wide variety of tools such as goal alignment and succession planning. Line Managers need to understand their and their team’s goals in order to achieve alignment with HR. What do line managers want from HR ?

1) HR, to provide adequate training and tools to line managers for them to adopt the processes.

2) To communicate the context in which Line Managers are expected to arrive at their goals.

Page 2 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association 3) Giving and receiving feedback is at the core of performance management initiatives and HR cannot assume managers will do it.

4) Line managers want HR to help them set good goals that are measurable and that the manager, as well as the employee, can identify with.

The core constraint in this case is… Line managers are reluctant to join in whole-heartedly unless they seen an alignment between what they expect personally from the goals, and the goals of the organization. “The partnering approach” is the key to achieve alignment experts articulate…

What does HR wants from Line Managers?

• HR wants line managers to accept performance management processes as their own rather than see them as an HR driven process.

• HR wants to feel they are playing a role in total organizational performance just as line managers would like to see the employees under them performing and producing desired results.

• Experts also stated that HR wants some attention and credibility from the line managers.

• The panel expressed their opinion that HR wants to partner with line managers in the best organizations and in the worst cases, and wants the managers to take the whole thing over.

The Panel expressed concern about HR playing a policing role as that will have a negative effect on mobilising support of employees and line management.

Pulling this together: how do HR, line mangers and senior managers collaborate on running an effective performance management system?

In the best of organizations, performance management processes are intertwined with talent management programs. Senior leadership should actively and visibly build a talent mindset as talent is essential to organizational success. A Performance management process is one of the many tools available for the development of talent.” In the trio consisting of senior management, line managers and HR, HR is a strategic partner. The challenge for HR is how to review performance in order to take the company to a ‘high Performance culture’. The senior leadership can play a powerful role in early adoption of performance management processes. “Everything starts from the top, and flows from there.” HR often encounters a basic problem pertaining to the setting of goals. Goals are not easily definable in industries having a bulk of software, electrical and mechanical engineering personnel, as in such organizations, given the background of the managers; goals are very precisely and scientifically defined, but not so much the context in which these goals are to be realised. In such situations, tools and applications should be flexible enough to support different populations and their different needs. Also, give them some coaching on how to give feedback to establish the critical relation between behaviour and business result.

Summary In conclusion, it may be said that line managers have a pivotal role to play in the adoption and deployment of processes and tools that impact performance management. While HR can initiate programs, it cannot impose. Line managers have a range of expectations from HR just as HR has an equally diverse set of aspirations from line management. While line managers have been slow to react to the performance based initiatives of HR, HR has at times, been unable to communicate the rationale or logic driving their interventions. In the absence of real, immediate benefits, line managers cannot be expected to follow HR directives. With contradictory sets of expectations and directions, both line managers and HR personnel can find themselves very easily at the opposite end of the discussion table. To make the process of performance management truly collaborative and synergistic, line management, HR, and senior leadership should find a lot of common ground to walk on. One way of attracting line management to the managing of performance is by making line mangers accountable for the early adoption of processes and technologies. This however, is possible only with the training and support that HR is ready to provide. HR must also clearly establish the

Page 3 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association link between the achieving of individual goals and the accomplishment of key business results. Once employee level goals are aligned with those of the organization, line management’s role in performance will be centralised.

Panel members…

• Bob Angel, the Gilford group limited and tps performance Canada ltd • Jason corsello, Senior Analyst, the Yankee group • Michael George, strategist, knowledge point • Steve Johnston - Union Central • Lynne Morton , performance improvement (pi) solutions • Monika Schmidt, Managing Partner - Organization Metrics inc.

****************************************************** INTERESTING WEB LINKS TO VISIT.... http://www.mayyoubeblessedmovie.com/ May you be blessed with all things good (6 minutes movie clip) Link to the "Awaken" presentation:

http://awaken.greatday.com

on motivation… http://touchninspirecom/inspire/youcan.swf ( inputs from Ms. Sheela Mistry, Insight Associates)

****************************************************** ******

Page 4 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

EXECUTIVE READING Business-to-business Marketing & Brand Management The Success Dimensions of Business Brands By: Philip Kotler, Waldemar Pfoertsch Published: Sep 1, 2006 Publisher: Springer Verlag

As products become increasingly similar, companies are turning to branding as a way to create a preference for their offerings. In fact, these brands are worth many times more than the book value of the property used to make these brands. Now it is time for more industrial companies to start using branding in a sophisticated way. Some industrial companies have led the way... Caterpillar, DuPont, Siemens, GE. But industrial companies must understand that branding goes far beyond building names for a set of offerings. Branding is about promising that the company's offering will create and deliver a certain level of performance. The promise behind the brand becomes the motivating force for all the activities of the company and its partners. Thus if Motorola promises six sigma quality, then everyone at Motorola is driven to create and deliver this level of performance. Branding is the road that a company must travel to define what it wants to be excellent at and how its offerings differ from competitors. Branding is the outward expression of the company's earlier decisions on positioning its products and articulating its value propositions to buyers. When branding works, the sales people enter the offices of customers already well-known and respected who stand ready to give them a hearing. The book is one of the first to probe deeply into the art and science of branding industrial products. It provides the concepts, the theory, and dozens of cases illustrating the successful branding of industrial goods.

Page 5 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

CONTACT : 94268 07064 / 98980 46441 / 99980 14005 For more information also visit http://www.ebai.org Page 6 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

....e-Letters from Readers....

Our hearty congratulations on the launch of ePanorama. Very well conceived and executed. Hats off to the Editorial Team. Do keep us on your mailing list and looking forward to receiving future issues.

With kind regards, Sincerely, Gladwyn A. Pinto / Executive Director / Bombay Management Association Thanks for having sent your news letter. The magazine was quite informative.

Give some more details as to what all other activities your Chapter doing/involved. My best wishes... Please keep it up ! Rgds R K Srivastava , Whole Time Director, LML India Ltd. Thanks for e-Panorama. It is an excellent issue! My congratulations to you and your team.

Best Regards, Bhagwan Deshmukh Chief Of Operations /BASF Styrenics Pvt. Ltd Thanks for short and sweet coverage.

With Regards and Best Wishes, N.R.Vyas / HRD - Birla Cellulosic e-Panorama is an excellent initiative. The presentation is very good. Normally I have a cursory reading of the print Panorama but I could conveniently complete reading of 5 pages when read on email. Well done. The “Dabba Wallas” article was precise and well presented.

M. V. Sasikumar, Manager-Finance, CLP Power India Private Limited.

I can simply say....excellent...congratulations to all of you....keep it up....

Anil Kamalia, Manager - HR & Admn. Ion Exchange (India) Limited, Congratulations on this excellent initiative. Best Regards and Best Wishes, Sanjay Chavan. Aventis Pharma.

Congratulations! and the very best of luck for your ePanorama!

Mr. Raja Bellare, President / Pune Management Association.

Page 7 of 8

e-Panorama

25th Nov‘ 06. Year1,Vol.5

Newsletter of Bharuch District Management Association

::Editorial Committee:: Chairman Mr. Jayen Mehta, GNFC Ltd. Members Mr. Mukesh Mehta, Heubach Colour, Ms. Sheela Mistry, Insight Associates, Mr. G M Patel, Mr. G.B. Trivedi and Mr. R V Revar, GNFC Ltd. ePanorama Advisory committee Mr. R P Vyas -President, Mr.Kamlesh Udani -Past President, Mr.Ashok Panjwani -Vice President, Mr.K A Shah -Vice President.

Bharuch District Management Association 601/602 Vaikunth Township, Opp: Polytechnic College Bharuch - 392 002 Gujarat - India To send your feedback, suggestions and articles e-mail: Jayen@GNFC.IN Page 8 of 8