MANAGEMENT MANTRA – SURVIVAL KIT
In the management battle field, the fear of redundancy is rated very high among the possible threat scenarios. Time and again it has been proved that neither age nor experience , seniority not even competence can provide adequate protection when the axe falls. Fortunately, there are a number of well established strategies, which, if skillfully used and consistently applied, will virtually guarantee you a place in the team. These are listed below :
KGB (Kill the Good Brains)
Bright, ambitious subordinates must be kept firmly in their place; unchecked they constitute a potential threat to your survival. Avoid delegating anything to them other than the most mundane chores; and on no account ever ask them for their opinion.
The Boss is Always Right
However intelligent you may be, do not fall into the trap of appearing cleverer than your boss. Acknowledge the reality of his superior fire power and recognise that his ego is no less sensitive than yours. Every boss loves a good loser and many times the consolation prizes available can be well worth having.
The Jasoos
Any executive who wants to stay ahead of the pack must always take care to cultivate his own private intelligence network. To start with, cultivate the boss’s PA, driver or the office peon.
Dynamic Inertia
Among the most fashionable precepts of current management theory is the idea that progress means constant, never ending change both for the organisation and individuals. Any executive who enthusiastically acclaims a new idea put forward by his boss will soon go places. Naturally, you will have to allow your boss to take all the credit even if you have really conceptualised the idea in the first place.
Uncle Image
This strategy is well suited for the middle ranking executives who have little prospect for further advancement. While it is essential with any of the preceding short range strategies ,the object of this approach is to create an image for yourself which will render you virtually fire-proof. In effect, you aim to be the organisation’s No.1 good samaritan, a man who is loved by everyone and feared by no one. Take on the plenty of chores around which no one else wants, and acknowledge the tremendous help which you actually did not get from every possible quarter. Phrases such as team effort’ and ‘combined operation’ are particularly potent in producing the desired effect.
The Godfather
The best possible insurance against redundancy is to have a few powerful friends outside your organisation, the mere mention of whose names enough to stay the hand of even the most dedicated axeman. Work on the formula of the ” threat is being”, because organisations like people, tend to fear the unknown.
Tail Piece
“A living dog is better than a dead lion”
– From the desk of Dean, FIET Brig K Harikumar , June 1996