Who’s the Boss!
‘Sorry to be late guys! Hope you don’t mind’ I said while settling down at Symphony-The Lounge.
‘Of course not! And
anyway, we have started, so please don’t mind’ Ajay replied, raising the
glass.
‘You know how these
guys are…’ Veeru expressed his displeasure signalling at Ajay and Tarun.
‘ I am absolutely
okay macha!’ I said and called the waiter for the order.
‘Thanks, Sanju bhai,
you know Veeru is a forever complaining soul’ Tarun replied.
‘You know his
problem is that he thinks all those who drink are assholes.’ Ajay opined.
‘Hahaha..It’s not
his problem, but a universal issue…’ I expressed.
‘Drinkers think
that non-drinkers are assholes and vice versa’
‘Perfect Bhai’ Ajay
high-fived me, ‘Only a PhD holder like you can explain it without any
hesitation! By the way, Howz your new job going on?’
‘You guys already
know my story, right!
‘Yeah! I mean, we
know that you quit that coveted government position after an unwanted transfer and
have joined the prestigious university now.’ Tarun told.
‘Yes, after my PhD,
I quit the old job, although it was something I cherished a lot. But then too
much negativity crept into me after the transfer. So, I left it and joined
the varsity. But it’s just an academic set-up. Nothing exciting.’
‘I also felt the
same when I left my first job as an RJ to join a corporate.’ Tarun expressed.
‘But I have heard
that employees leave their bosses more than their organizations, is that right Sanju
bhai?’ Asked Ajay.
‘Yeah! It
definitely matters WHO’S THE BOSS, but the company culture also matters.’ I
replied.
‘But what matters
the most, culture or the Boss?’ It was the inquisitive Veeru.
‘It has to be the Boss.
The boss is your first illustration of the company and subsequently the culture.
Whatever he or she says is listened carefully or observed through the LENS. And
LENS here means ‘Leadership Effect Never Stops’, even in an informal setting.’
‘That’s why I love
meeting you, Sanju bhai. We always learn something new whenever we meet you.’
Ajay said.
‘Bhai he is
senior to us, and has a Doctorate in Philosophy.’ Tarun expressed.
‘We know that’,
Veeru affirmed with a cryptic smile.
‘But whatever I
said has nothing to do with my Doctorate, it’s just my experience. I have seen
many bosses in my two decades of work-ex.’
‘Yeah! We too have
seen a couple of them within a decade of our work ex.’ Veeru explained.
‘And one of them
was common to us,’ Ajay quipped while looking at Veeru.
‘I am sure you are
talking about George.’ Veeru High-Fived Ajay and asked the waiter for some
appetizers.
‘You guessed it
right. George, I tell you Sanju Bhai, was a pukka micromanager. You remember
Veeru, he used to call at the Adyar Centre on the landline to know if you are
there at 9 am.’
‘Of course, I
remember that, and I also remember you calling me his pet for abiding his
orders.’
‘Hahaha! But you
can’t deny that he was fond of you.’
‘It was nothing
like that Ajay,’ Veeru refuted.
‘But you know, in
every office there is one guy who is ‘boss ka favourite’ and one who thinks
that ‘Boss doesn’t know anything.’-Tarun opined.
‘I agree with
Tarun. In fact, I had seen both sides of the coin in my earlier roles. In one
role ‘I was Boss ka favourite’ and in another organization, I was like ‘This
boss is good for nothing’ I explained.
‘It’s like in our
first company, I was ‘Boss ka favourite’, Veeru was HR’s favourite but Ajay
always felt that both the Boss and HR were fools.’ Tarun bantered.
‘That was your
first company and I believe that your first company after college teaches you
some great lessons and can give you some lifetime buddies.’ I expressed.
‘I agree. After
college friends it’s only a few colleagues from the first company are my trusted
buddies’, Ajay opined.
‘That’s because in corporate
no one is your friend, everyone is your competitor,’ Veeru proclaimed like a
Business Head honcho.
‘I agree! And that’s
why I avoid the after-office parties. Because most of the time the teams
gather less for a drink and more for gossiping about the Boss,’ Tarun offered his
perspective
‘Very true. You
know, as we climb the corporate ladder the trust deficit increases. And
progress in corporate is ultimately, about trust! It doesn’t matter how
smart or competent you are if your boss doesn’t trust you.’
‘Hmm. But the million-dollar question is how to gain the trust of your Boss? Because that’s what is needed to survive in the corporate world’ Asked Tarun.
‘You will find
thousands of videos explaining that, but in the end, it’s all your game and you
have to play it.’ I replied.
‘That’s true. Touch wood I am blessed to have
good bosses so far, and Veeru has always been Boss ka favourite,’ Ajay
expressed.
‘Hey, it’s nothing
like that. I am no one’s favourite. But I listen to what the boss says because I
know he has more power in the organization than me. And I don’t pick up fights with
colleagues or Bosses like you or Tarun.’ Veeru vehemently defended himself.
‘What did you say?
I pick up fights. I never did that until my boss brought that asshole Sandip as
my head, whereas he was supposed to head another vertical.’
‘Guys, just chill!
One more tower please,’ I tried to calm the atmosphere and asked the waiter.
‘I know that, but I
meant you should not pick fights like that in corporate.’ Veeru suggested.
‘Sanju bhai, you
know I am a straightforward guy who cannot take the injustice of any kind.’
‘Just one
correction to what Tarun said, we can replace the word straight forward with Headstrong.’
‘Shut up you Ajju’
Tarun shrieked.
‘I can empathize
with Tarun as I was like him 15 years back. But working in a government office
has made me realize that in Sarkari Naukri, ‘the reward for good work is
more work’. So how much potential you have doesn’t matter, what matters is contacts.
In management, we call it relationship currency.’ I explained.
‘You nailed it
Sanju bhai. Unless you have a Godfather in a company, your progress is limited’
Ajay opined.
‘To a certain
extent, it’s true. In the initial phases of your career, you may rise
with your talent or the ‘performance currency’, but when the funnel becomes
narrow then you need the ‘relationship currency’ which is also known as
favouritism in Corporate and nepotism in Bollywood.’
‘Since you have
brought Bollywood into the discussion, I must say that Bosses are like those
coaches shown in movies such as Dangal or Mr. and Mrs. Mahi who
want the players to play as per their techniques.’ Tarun said.
‘I liked the
analogy. Coaches or Bosses are not your parents or spouse to support you
unconditionally. They are paid to get the work done in given constraints and
they are also imperfect human beings who trust their hunches and previous
success. So, when the employee or player doesn’t perform, they blame their
capability, but when the same employee or player performs without their support,
they become jealous. And as I said it’s natural because they are humans.’
‘But SRK as the
coach in Chak De will always be an exception. Only lucky ones can get a boss
like him ‘Ajay expressed.
‘Yeah, I bet you
can never argue without bringing Shahrukh Khan into the discussion.’ Veeru
quipped.
‘But SRK was a
strict boss in the movie if you are comparing corporate world bosses with him’
I expressed.
‘I agree.’ Ajay nodded in affirmation.
‘But this
generation doesn’t like strict bosses. In fact, Gen Z finds them rude and
intruding’.
‘Very true. And I
feel most strict bosses have nobody to boss at home or in their circle
so they fulfil their wish in the office.’ Tarun replied.
'Maybe that's why the Infy Founder Narayanamurthy who once advocated leaving office on time is now asking to work for seventy hours a week.' Ajay expressed.
‘Hahaha. Maybe. One of my bosses was nearing his retirement, and so was free at home most of the time. And he used to send work-related messages to his team on weekends, thinking they were also free like him.’
‘Typical
Micromanager’ Ajay opined.
‘And on top of
that, he used to stalk employees over LinkedIn as well. I remember he asked me
about finishing the course on Personal Branding and he suggested that you
should not undertake courses like that.’
‘What?’
‘Yeah! Because it
is like self-promotion in his view, and he asked me to undertake a course on
organizational branding to which I replied that there was no such course
available on LinkedIn at that time.’
‘Is that even real?’
‘Yes, dude. This guy
was from the generation of Baby Boomers who felt that employees should stick
to one company for their lifetime.’
‘Oh, Gauche! So old
fashioned.’ Tarun exclaimed.
‘But you know,
irrespective of the generation, power plays as the biggest motivator. So when
you are in leadership position you feel charged and you expect your team to be
as passionate as you are, not only about the work but also about the
organization.’ I opined.
‘But that can
happen only if you empower the employees, right’ Tarun expressed.
‘But then no leader
wants to give away all his/her power to the subordinates.’ Ajay said.
‘I agree! Some
people from this generation always doubt Mahatma Gandhi’s contribution to
India’s freedom struggle, but I feel he dared to convince people
from diverse backgrounds about the idea of independence and then give away the
baton to someone capable like Pandit Nehru. This is really missing in today’s
bosses who call themselves leaders.’
‘Very true Sanju
sir! My boss never trusted me till last year because he was not included in the
interview panel during my interview. Only last year when there was a change of
guard at Leadership, he started taking me seriously because he came to know
that the new Director can fire him anytime.’ Veeru explained.
‘You have
highlighted a very crucial point, Veeru, bosses who when have authority think that
they are indispensable. It’s called hubris in management, but when they realise
that they can be fired or will have to leave then they have to trust someone
and hand it over the charge to that person unwillingly.’
‘I remember my
ex-boss calling me when he was sacked from my earlier company. I told him that
when you were in the chair you were at a high position, but when that chair vanished,
you got grounded, and you remembered who was working with you on the ground.’ Ajay
told.
‘And what was your
boss’ response to this?’
‘He was
flabbergasted.’ Ajay replied, ‘Although he was good to me he became jealous
when I progressed swiftly.’
‘Hmm. Bosses want
their subordinate’s respect but they have to understand that it needs to be earned
and not demanded.’ Tarun screamed finishing the last glass from the tower.
I can’t agree more.
No one remembers your designations after 10-20 years, but every employee is
gonna remember how the bosses treated him or her.’ I said as we ordered the
dinner.
Comments