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 Software
organisations today are struggling to get management staff in place,
realising that technical competency alone is not enough but people
management skills play a very important role in business success,
says EJ Sarma
The
fundamental resource for any software organisation is its knowledge
pool. It is amazing to see software companies repeatedly committing
the mistake of hiring more in numbers with scant respect for the
post-hiring process of quality building, completely ignoring their
people management capability or competency building ability. The
long-term survival of a software organisation depends on the manager’s
skill in quickly shaping raw talents into competent employees. Today’s
project managers in most organisations can do project tracking,
reviews, bit of customer handling, negotiating and renegotiating
project commitments, but very few can plan, organise and train people
building competencies for the future of the organisation. Therefore,
companies which place its future in the hands of less competent
managers, can hope to gain very little as well. They soon have to
devise other plans to improve the quality of software that is built
and achieve the growth they expect. All that the management of various
organisations do is to rely on few key people who are technically
sound, to do anything and everything, and soon burn them out.
 I
am personally aware of two such companies who hired a few IIT graduates
and groomed them initially, and after a few years the CEO had to
face the threat of their resignations almost every two months, for
reasons of overwork and high stress. All this because the organisation,
with two hundred people, had two technical heroes to deal with underestimated
and over-committed project deadlines.
Software
organisations today are struggling to get their management staff
in place. Many are realising that technical competency alone is
not enough, but people management skills play a very important role
in business success. One can build software capability, expecting
the quality through process improvement, but getting there without
improving the capability of the people, is a distant dream. Process
guidelines and ISO documentation can achieve nothing, if the people
are incapable of appreciating the advantages of those processes.
However,
creating a performing team requires more than the process definitions.
Software projects are critically dependent on the skill of team
members. The question therefore is how do we create winning combinations
all the time. Architecting people capability is also a key requirement.
Some managers appear to be born with the skill to get along with
people. While many are lacking in those skills.
 Managing
software talent: If the project leaders are ill equipped to
deal with people, no amount of HR systems and people friendly policies
can deliver projects. Therefore to build a winning team, managers
must be capable of developing people. They must see to it that the
skill of developers is constantly under upgrade.
The
key focus areas
Communication:
Software professionals are proficient in every language, but
the language of effective communication. Despite various channels
in an organisation, one hears constant complaint of lack of information
and communication. There are enough meetings but very little comfort
after them. What managers need is the skill to listen and empathise.
Performance
management: In few organisations, I had the fortune of changing
the appraisal format three times in four years. All because the
appraisers and appraisees would put forward the reason that the
format was complex and time consuming. I believe that one should
do away with the appraisal system for the simple reason that the
managers are not capable of effectively using it. If the best tool
is deployed in the hands of ill-equipped or ill-trained people,
the result will be disastrous. I would advocate a strong training
system that would make it mandatory for all leaders and developers
to go through intense appraisal workshops. Of course, you would
need a strong HR manager and department to take the ownership for
the process and system.
Resource
management: All project managers want the best talent. But they
have very little time to devote in supporting the HR department
to do interviews. Matches are won or lost long before they are played,
that is, the project success is sealed at the recruitment level
only. The stakes in recruiting are higher than any other project
management activity. The responsibility to select quality people
cannot be that of the HR department.
Training:
Competency building is part of long-term strategy while plugging
skill gap is a short-term training need. Project managers must periodically
devote time and use appraisal data to figure out the training needs.
Classroom training creates visibility and hence must be liberally
done. Adequate training plan and budget must be allocated. Self-administered
training under the guidance of a mentor is found to work well.
Compensation:
A software organisation today is most vulnerable if the compensation
design is faulty. In perception the compensation must be viewed
as fair and just. Project managers today have no knowledge or inadequate
knowledge of the compensation structure that exists in a company
for various positions. They are therefore not in a position to explain
how the company is adequately competitive in compensation. Moreover,
narrow view of compensation also spoils many prospective candidates
at the time of interview itself. I have seen very senior project
managers running to HR with salary issues every time there is a
threat of resignation. Today companies go to any length to woo candidates.
Joining bonuses, incentive plans, accelerated increments, are all
part of the compensation strategy.
Team
work: Nothing can affect the morale and productivity than poor
team climate and even working environment. Physical resources like
proper software tools, workstations and seating arrangements, etc,
all contribute to team integration. A few days waiting period for
the computer by new hires can make them feel frustrated. Hence the
systems department must work in close coordination with the HR to
understand the recruitment and new joiners schedule.
When
an organisation focuses on these areas for competency building,
they would have taken the crucial step in ensuring sustained growth.
These are essential in moving an organisation from adequacy to excellence.
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