Over the years I have
noticed things that start small but can bring the organisation down. These
normally start as exceptions that management in the organisation tolerates but
they can grow into big problems. Here are
the things;
- Nepotism
– in the field of human resources recruitment and selection is one area plagued
by nepotism and corruption. Most managers when they go into positions of
authority they want to surround themselves with colleagues, friends and relatives
for various reasons. One of the reasons is, these colleagues are unlikely to
challenge them should they make wrong decisions. They will be loyal to the
person who brought them into the organisation. Once this practice is ingrained
into the organisation it becomes part of the culture. The whole organisations
will be engulfed by this bad practice such that your organisation is viewed
negatively on the job market. - Do
not advertise for jobs that do not exist – some employers have
gone into a very bad habit of advertising for jobs when they know there is a
preferred candidate already. It is morally wrong for any leader of an
organisation to promote that kind of practice.
People in and outside your organisation will start talking about this
bad practice. Your employer brand gets damaged in the process. Make it a policy
that all job candidates are selected on merit. If you check most of the
recruitment scandals, they surface because someone, somewhere in higher
authority has instructed someone to hire a preferred candidate. The surprising
thing is that most senior people including board members prefer to keep quiet
when such things happen. Such things will only stop when those in power can
call each other to order. - How
you pay your employees. When you pay your staff do not
use their circumstances as the key criteria. Pay and benefits must be paid to
employees based on the value that the employees bring to the organisation. Arbitrary pay adjustments for specific
individuals based on personal preference of the leader are a bad practice. You
may find in some situations people who are close to the bosses are the ones
that get paid more than others regardless of grade differentials. Once such a
practice starts it affects employees perception of equity within the organisation.
You will spend more money trying to correct such anomalies in the future. - Blotted
organisational structures –
When people are put into positions of power and authority the first thing they
often do is to create a blotted organogram to accommodate relatives and
friends. They also accommodate loyalist who may not necessarily be relatives.
In the majority of cases, organisational structures have nothing to do with
facilitating how work is done. It has everything to do with giving each other
power and privileges. In the end, the organisation will have bloated
organisational structures that cost the business huge sums of money without
corresponding value being created. Your organisational structure should aim at
all times not to have more than 5 reporting levels from the lowest person to
the CEO. Aim for a wider span of control to flatten the organisational
structures. Structures cost money and they must be optimised for value
addition. - A
leadership that keeps grudges –
The quality of leaders matter is the success of your organisation. As John
Maxwell said ‘everything rises and falls on leadership “. With bad leadership
in charge, do not waste your money putting together initiatives to drive
business performance. Bad leadership is equivalent to corruption, nepotism and
theft of organisational resources. Such leaders will get rid of talented
individuals simply because they will have challenged the decisions of the
leader. Such leaders make extremely difficult for anyone with the potential to
thrive within the organisation. - Screen
people at entry – Most organisations have lost millions of
dollars because they hired the wrong people. Invest in objective and validated
scientific selection methods, which will allow you to identify the right people
for the job in the first instance. Some leaders do not prioritise ensuring that
only the best people are hired in the organisation. It is a waste of resources
and time to hope that you will be able to correct bad hires when they join the
organisation. - When
your time is up leave –
Leaders must not stay for too long. On average 10 years is enough to give your
value and allow others to carry on with the vision of the organisation. The
average tenure globally ranges from 5 to 10 years. Leaders in your organisation
must on their own adhere to this standard. - Hire
People with high integrity.
Integrity cannot be taught. Select the right directors from the beginning so
that you do not waste time trying to correct them. It is an absolute waste of
money for anyone to think that they can improve someone’s integrity through
training. - Be candid – the inability of board
members, executives and other senior managers to raise the red flag when things
are going the wrong way is one of the most treacherous practices by executives.
Good leaders question things. Good leaders raise objections when wrong things
are taking place regardless of who is leading that bad practice. Executives
must be courageous enough to respectfully raise concerns when the Board or the
CEO is involved in malpractices. Unfortunately, most CEOs hire people with
blind loyalty. As an executive be prepared to stand with the truth and what is
correct even if it means you will be on your own against your colleagues. That
is called leadership. - Never advance your interest at
the expense of the organisation.
When executives get into roles with power and authority, those with a weak
character are tempted to prioritise personal interest ahead of that of the
organisation. They turn their office into a mini – home. They want to be worshipped
as if they are in political leadership. Avoid buying the best cars and other
perquisites when your employees are starving.
Memory
Nguwi is an Occupational Psychologist, Data Scientist, Speaker, & Managing
Consultant- Industrial Psychology Consultants (Pvt) Ltd a management and human
resources consulting firm. https://www.linkedin.com/in/memorynguwi/ Phone +263 4 481946-48/481950/2900276/2900966
or cell number +263 77 2356 361 or email: mnguwi@ipcconsultants.com or visit our website at www.ipcconsultants.com