Elephants in the workplace
IT IS A truism universally followed by most organisations `that which cannot be measured, cannot be managed'. Think about it --modern management is all about measurement-- of revenues, profits, and performances. If not measuring individual productivity then you are sizing up team activity. Measuring things is logical, right? And this perception pretty much rules the business world.
But what happens when the work involved is creative and involves the right side of the brain? Can one measure creativity and put the results in an excel sheet? What about concepts like trust and faith in leadership, employee morale and loyalty - can it be measured too? And do they become worthless because they cannot be measured? Unfortunately, in the process of getting all `things measured', we reward mediocrity with the enthusiasm of a group of half-witted monkeys.
It goes without saying that compensation remains the prime motivator for employees. People look for jobs that satisfy their creativity and suit their talent, while compensating them appropriately. However, we spend half our lives doing tasks for which we have neither passion nor penchant. We may not particularly like the work we do but do so just to avoid being caught by the boss. I will be the first one to admit that sometimes even I try the `what I can get away with ' standard, i.e. doing the bare minimum to be noticed. And well, if I can get my annual hike, who am I to complain? Unknowingly we reach a plateau where we are comfortable and do not want to stretch at all.
The way out: There are many ways in which organisations can create the right environment for quality people to work. But the system is not perfect and nor are the organisations. Experts blame the uneven reward system, more specifically rewarding mediocrity, as the root cause of plateauing. Managers often reward mediocre employees to serve their own ends.
One may hate to admit this, but almost every senior manager grooms and nurtures a couple of employees who go on to become their `yes men'. These employees can be banked upon never to find fault with any management policies, they support all its unpopular decisions and more likely than not defend all the management decisions. Mediocre performers themselves, they survive well due to a mediocre management's largesse. And the irony is that the mediocre employees will shine while the more competent ones will languish. Why? Because they know how to play office politics!
Though it is hard to imagine anyone wanting to be where they are, some people are content just doing that. They are the ones who have reached a level of complacency from where they would not like to be dislodged. They are comfortable with their mediocrity especially when it is paying them unexpected and therefore very welcome dividends.
Typically, such employees work long hours (one wonders how keeping long workdays is any indication of high productivity or even being a good manager) in fact it shouldn't come as a surprise to find that the person who works the longest ends up having the corner glass cubicle and a fat pay check! Rewarding people for mediocrity and for spending all their waking time in the office is a great recipe for encouraging resentment and apathy among other employees - especially the good ones.
The fallout: One of the fallouts of rewarding mediocrity consistently is that the organisation will end up driving out the high performers. In their bid to retain a few trusted lieutenants the organisation will end up driving a culture of mediocrity. In such a situation, the top performers will leave anyhow or stop putting in extra effort; while the underachievers will have their `marginal performance' reinforced. It is up to the manager not to encourage these poor-performing and troublesome workplace elephants.
Mediocrity is a fact of life in all organisations. If you want to effect a change then acknowledge these elephants. Don't take the regular performers for granted. They are the ones who need more attention and appreciation from the management. You may not notice them when they are around but without their support you are in trouble.
MP
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