When we get fresh out of MBA/PGDBM we are presented with a rosy picture of working for large multi national companies..big moneys..fully challenging job profiles and a brilliant work atmosphere. Where we can have career discussions with peers and bosses alike, where we can approach your HR's for problems and get solutions..In short a Next to perfect job.
And everyone knows that this is all but true. A very small percentage of organizations are actually able to offer these luxuries to their employees. Very few are able to understand and manage these expectations of their employees and are able to mould them to fit into more practical environments.
Employees are people with ambition. Employees are people with ideas.
Today I want to write about how comapnies handle their people in times of crisis. No, this is not about cutting costs or job cuts. Its more about attitudes. Unfortunately or fortunately I have been in two companies where I was present in such ascenario. One is a small start up, the other a large MNC.
1. The small start up
We were'nt able to actually kick start the sales of the company's product. It was due to many factors. Primarily the lack of experience in the comapny with almost no one having any experience in sales, including myself. This went on for 6 months, were we dint have a budget to operate, no marketing, no sales force other than myself and a colleague and worst of all no flexibility in terms of margins or payment.
During the period I observed that the company panicked not for business or growth, but that they were paying two guys ( me and ma friend) and we were'nt getting business. They would rather sit with the stocks in the godown than paying two people!!!
We were threatened constantly on the phone to work "PROPERLY", e-mails ignored in the case that they would have to help us and give a suggestion, absolutely no information was givien, let alone training. We were asked to cover entire metroes on a daily bais. Imagine covering around 40 stores of a chain on a single day!! Maybe I looked like superman... :)
Anyway when I look back now, I realize how these things affected me:
1. I felt I am working for people who know even less than me. (BLind men leading another blind man)
2. Confusion as to how we were to sell premium products with no brand appeal in Major retail chains with no flexibility. We were termed " unable to negotiate", while the same people couldnt even negotiate a hall for the launch program!!!
3. Desperation as not being able to achieve, feeling like loosers
I can go on and on, but lets just analyze. The state of mind which is very important in tought imes has gone from worse to WORSE. do you expect such an employee to get you out of a slump? Needless to say the company has still not kicked of almost nearly a year and half.(FYI during this period they have wasted lots of money in desperation to promote themselves, which they could have invested in extra margins to retail chains and created visivility)
Anyone can manage a content employee...the challenge is in motivating and retaining a disintersted, and confused employee in tough times. A comapany grows by its employees, and its the employees who can get you out of tought imes. What the start could of done? my views would be on the next post after the second experience.
More in the next post with company no 2 and the theme of this post.
Do post ur comments. They keep me going. :)
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