in sport, while people grow in experience in the corporate world, it is ... Leading business schools that offer executiv
www.peopleandmanagement.com
EDUCATION
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT WHICH KEEPS YOU ON A
Right Track
Mr. Swaminathan Subramanian
E
ducation is not preparation for life, but is life itself ”. John Dewey’s quote is still very relevant and has gained utmost importance in today’s corporate world. This world is being defined as VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous). It challenges the very premise of traditional competencies and career development. Talent development is no longer linear, nor has defined boundaries and more importantly has a short shelf life. Hence, education has to be continuous. Let’s examine this in the context of Senior Management roles in companies.
Job Descriptions: Do They Exist? Over the years, Senior management roles have evolved from being just functional leaders to, a senior team of generals for the company. What really do organisations want out of them? The simple answer is “get the job done”. And what is their scope of work? “Whatever it takes.” What is the ultimate accountability? “Deliver to Shareholder expectations”. The underlying reasons are that regulatory, accounting and legal changes, including the onerous responsibilities of Directors have forced these roles to become more contiguous and interdependent than ever before. The CEO wants his team to develop strategic muscles.
Continuous Executive education is increasingly becoming critical to develop talent for CSuite readiness
What Business Are You In? Digital disruption has made management re-look at their vision and strategic intent statement and many organisations are reinventing themselves to stay relevant. MasterCard is now a technology company! The plastic card company has transformed through solutions that are virtual, digital, leveraging on payment technology innovations
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HR SPEAKS
including biometrics. “Fintech” is a commonplace parlance today and is buzzing with ideas. There is a lot to learn from companies that have created value propositions through aggregation and have provided a marketplace. The world’s largest taxi firm, Uber owns no cars. The world’s most popular media company, Facebook, creates no content. The world’s most valuable retailer, Alibaba, carries no stock. And the world’s largest accommodation provider Airbnb, owns no property. All this has happened in a fairly short time reflecting the pace at which concept has been translated to execution and eventual adoption. For any executive in today’s corporate world, there is no such thing as business. As usual, they need to continuously upgrade their own and their company’s capability technologically, commercially, financially and operationally. People reach senior management levels because of their functional expertise and strong execution. Progression thereafter is stymied by questions raised on whether the candidate has “executive presence”, “the ability to operate in a multicultural environment”, “has a global outlook”, “gets the big picture” and most often “is he/she Board ready?” More often than not, these are becoming deal breakers. Continuous Executive education is increasingly becoming critical to develop talent for C-Suite readiness.
Learn or Be Left Behind It might seem chaotic out there, but there are winners and there is a lot to learn from them.
Basics First Never lose sight of the basics. Sportsmen are the best to emulate. Regardless of their world ranking, they train hard to strengthen and refine their basic techniques. Like
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in sport, while people grow in experience in the corporate world, it is easy to lose sight of the basics. Many companies are sending senior managers back to school to brush up on concepts, learn new and emerging disciplines. Also, learn from each other. Leading business schools that offer executive education encourage cohort learning. These are long term courses, interspersed with classroom learning and project deliverables. They are flexible to accommodate the need of working professionals, provide virtual learning platforms and encourage self learning. Companies leverage off these programmes as a means of developing senior talent as well as a useful retention and engagement tool.
These are long term courses, interspersed with classroom learning and project deliverables. They are flexible to accommodate the need of working professionals, provide virtual learning platforms and encourage self learning
| Vol.7 Issue 5 • July 2016, Noida
Ultimately, the one who learns more is the one more curious. One can’t rely solely on structured learning interventions. There is abundance of literature with real time updates on the internet. Learning hasn’t been more “available” and out there. Social media and networks are another source of learning continuously. As Mark Twain said, “I never let schooling come in the way of my education”. As a growing NBFC in India, with over 500 branches and over 10,000 employees across rural and semi urban areas, Fullerton India has endeavoured to build a learning organisation emphasizing continuous learning. The Fullerton Back to School programme targeted at senior management has enrolled participants to Executive programmes at Harvard Business School, XLRI-Georgetown Executive programmes. Towards developing senior talent in the rural business, Fullerton has partnered with Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA). The Company has placed strong emphasis on internal grooming of senior talent and places job rotation and enrichment as a strong proposition to its employees. Over 65 percent of management roles in the company are filled through internal talent deployment. In addition to campus programmes, the company runs an internal learning series called #Knowldgeadda focused on current topics which acts as a forum for employees to learn from Industry experts. The writer is Executive Vice President and Head - Human Capital, Fullerton India Credit Company Limited
