BALANCING VALUES AN INDIAN PERSPECTIVE ON CORPORATE VALUES FROM SCANDINAVIA

Please answer the question 1-2page(s)

ACT 2 Pharmaz india's orice in Bangalore, October 177 2012, 9.30 AM Amrita and Niets meet to discuss challenges and possible courses of action Niels arrives 30 minutes late. He is dressed in jeans, a short-sleeved blue shirt and sandals. Amrita reflects that with his laidback attire, one could almost mistake him for one of the American tourists she saw in Goa last month when she spent a long weekend there with her family. He apologizes so profusely for having kept her waiting that it almost makes Amrita feel as if he is the subordinate and she the superior. Although it makes her slightly uncomfortable, it also makes her feel that he respects her as a person. So she is a little more at ease when Niels comes straight to the point and addresses the issues he would like to see solved. Niels begins by showing her a long e-mal sent to him by Sebastian Skram, the corporate finance direc- for. It is in Danish (and Amrita is tempted to remind him that the corporate language is English, but she checks herself, so Nels translates for her. The mail reads: Dear Nels, Some Initial small talk about the bleak weather in Copenhagen and inquiries about the well- being of Niels' family, he leaves this part out when translating to Amrita.) As you no doubt remember, we fook some measures last year here in the corporate finance department at headquarters to make sure that our corporate values of empowerment and open knowledge sharing are implemented as fully as possible. Among other things we redefined the team lead- ers' job descriptions so that they now spend less time on supervision and more time on de- velopment of new services and procedures in dialogue with our colleagues from the depart- ments involved. They do, of course, still involve themselves in the teams' task, especially the more complex ones, but they spend less time following up and checking the team members work. Although this means that an occasional minor crror slip through from time to time, wo have found that it has freed a lot of resources for more creative purposes. In addition, we have also introduced a team bonus to promote the colaborative spint. It is a very minor part of the employees' pay, so the psychological aspect of the incentive has probably been more important than the money in itself. The team leaders as well as the team members find that the changes have made their jobs more interesting - as clearly reflected in our latest employee satisfac- tion survey. I mentioned this to Emi Eml Bistrup, the corporate CEO of Pharmaz) when we had lunch together yesterday, and he was very enthusiastic about it-you know how much weight he attaches to our corporate values. He suggested that similar efforts are made in the financial services center in Bangalore, with the plans for its growth it will soon be more impor- tant to the company that our corporate finance department here. I promised to take it up with you, but I realize that other measures may be more appropriate in Bangalore, so I leave that up to your judgement entirely. What matters is the result: the best possible implementation of our corporate values. I you believe it will be helpful I'm sure we can find the means in the budget to put the center's employees through a more elaborate course in our corporate values. Anyway, think about it and let me know what you plan to do and how can assist you. Best regards, Sebastian The mall makes it clear to Amrita that the financial services center has the attention of the top manage- ment, and although this may be an advantage in her future career, she cannot help feeling a little apprehen- sive about it. Also, she finds it puzzling that the corpo- rate finance director appears to say in his mal that he does not see an occasional error as a problem. She thinks that is a risky attitude in a finance department, but she decides not to mention this to Niels as she does not wish to appear overly critical of her superiors. She asks Niels what he intends to do, and he says that the mall only underlines the need for changes that would be necessary anyway. He staturales: The growth plans for the financial services center mean that the future and present employees need to be empow- ered to work out more solutions Independently - or together in their teame, but without constant managerial input and follow-up. As long as the center's tasks pri- marly consisted in invoicing for the headquarters and other relatively routine oriented tasks, this was less im- portant. But now the center is expected to carry out more and more complicated tasks, not just for the headquarters, but also for many different subsidiaries. Colleagues from al over the world call the center when they need help to solve a wide variety of financial issues. And Niels has received some complaints that although everybody is very friendly on the phone, it sometimes takes several days to get an answer to a fairly straightforward question. Niels knows that the center's employees have all been very carefully selected and as he sees it, their technical qualfications as financial experts cannot be questioned. So the problem, he says, is not that they are unable to respond, but rather that their work procedures are too bureaucratic and that the employees do not feel empowered to do much without the explicit approval of their team leader. In many cases they will also walt for the approval of their senior financial manager, Amrita. He would like her to spend less of her time exercising micromanagement and more time on actively empowering her subordinates. In addition, Niels goes on, it has been mentioned by several of the center's users that the team mem- bers do not seem to know very much about each other's work, so when the person they have talked to previously is off or at a meeting, no one else on the team seems to be able to help them or to know any thing about the issue. He concludes that more know- edge sharing is caled for - in line with Pharmaz corporate principles As always, Niels Nielsen asks Amrita for her opinion and feedback on his thoughts. The question is how he and Amrita can ensure that the employees get the cor- porate values under their skin and act accordingly, ideally without even thinking about it? Amrita feels embarrassed because her management style has been criticised, and she finds it difficult to come up with solutions right away. She tells him that in principle, she agrees, the values are not implemented fully, and some changes may be called for. She does not, how- cvor, bolove that another course in the corporato val ues - which the employees have been told about so ofton that they know the exact wordings from the an nual report by heart - will change very much Niels agrees, something else is needed to teach the employees how to live the values Amrita tells Niels that she has actually done her best to put the corporate values, especially the value of empowerment into practice in her dealings with her subordinates. She has left a lot up to them and given fewer orders. But so far, it has not been a success. Indeed, the latest anonymous employee satisfaction survey in her section showed, as Niels already knows, that she was rated poorly as a manager. Naturaly, this worries and frustrates Amrita. Previously, she was rated much better, and she thinks that her low score can be attributed to the attempts she has made to empower her subordinates. With some exceptions, Amrita does not believe that the employees in her sec- tion share Pharmaz' ideas of what a boss should be like. She suspects that they expect a good boss to know all the answers and not wait for the employees to come up with good ideas. He or she should take on the responsibility for everything, give explicit orders and follow them up. When Amrita thinks back of her own experiences in the Indian educational system, she tells Niels, she does not find their attitude very surpris- Ing. She believes it may be different in some educa- tional institutions today, but the way she remembers it, she was not rewarded for being critical or coming up with new approaches when doing her assignments, on the contrary. The easiest way to get good grades was to stick as closely as possible to the teachers' or professors' exact Instructions, maybe even repeating their wordings where appropriate. Amrita is not con- vinced that all her subordinates are eager to take on more responsibility in daily work. Niels reflects on this. Her interpretation of her low score surprises him. He finds it strange that employ- ees should complain about a boss who gives them too much freedom, but on the other hand, what she says may make sense here in India. He thinks to him- self that he has probably been too optimistic - the Implementation of Pharmaz' corporate culture will take time and hard work. Niels says to Amrita that he appreciates that she has taken headquarters' wish to practice empowerment seriously and that she should not be discouraged, they must expect the process to take some time. And maybe she went about it too abruptly so that her subordinates felt suddenly left to their own devica? Amrita nodo, this could will have been the case. Niels specifies that empowerment does not imply that the employees are expected right away to be able to figure everything out entirely on their own, but he would like her to coach the employ- ees so that they understand why things are done in certain ways. The idea is to explain the background and the reasoning behind Pharmaz' business model, financial guidelines and principles for collaboration so that they will, eventually, be able to reason in the same Niels ventures a remark there is no tradition for way themselves and make more Independent deci prices at Pharmaz headquarters and that there, most sions. Amrita is stil hesitant, but says that maybe, after people would find it presumptuous or even slightly a phase of very close managerial monitoring to help ridiculous to flaunt such a certificate on their wal. employees understand how to adapt to the new Otherwise, he listens carefully without interrupting. demands, Nels' ideas might work, eventually Finally, he says that he finds her ideas interesting. also Amrita has given less thought to the value of open considering that a couple of the center's most qualified communication and knowledge sharing, but she tells and ambitious financial analysts have recently handed Niels that sometimes it is a little difficult to motivate in their resignations and accepted positions with team members to share what they know. All her major US-owned companies. Then Niels asks Amrita subordinates have good credentials and experiences to come back the following week with a proposal for from other off-shore centers. As she and Niels integrating Pharmaz' values, especially empowerment both know, the labor market for professionals in and knowledge sharing, in a more explicit manner in Bangalore is highly competitive, and generally, her her section. Also, he asks her to elaborate on her employees are eager to advance their individual ideas about how to motivate and retain employees. careers. This may lead some of them to view knowl- edge as a strictly personal resource that can be depleted if it is shared with colleagues. Amrita realizes Question: that this is not the way Pharmaz would see it, but in a sense, she understands her employees' concerns in Imagine yourself in Amrita's position. Which this respect. After al colleagues are competitors, proposal would you make to Niels Nielsen and too, since not everyone is likely to get promoted to how would you argue in order to convince him? head a team, for instance. Another problem, as Amrita sees it, is that the orga- nization is very flat compared to most Indian compa ACT 3 nies. There, it is clear who refers to whom in the hierarchy, and when you make progress in your work, Pharmaz India's office in Bangalore, January 17th you are promoted to the next level on the career lad- 2013, 2.00 PM dor. At Pharmaz, hoe omployees are all officially finan- cial analysts', even the team leaders, although their Amwita and Niels mest to evaluate the process so far wages are higher. Amrita believes that it would have a Amrita and Niels are seated at the meeting table in motivating effect to introduce more titles. It would give Niels' office. They have been told to expect a visit from people something to work towards and it would make Sebastian, the corporate finance director, next week them feel appreciated, in a manner visible to al In preparation, he has asked them to evaluate the last also to their family and friends outside the company, three months' developments in the center so that they when they reach a goal. Why should the team leaders can discuss the progress made, especially as to the not be called financial managers' for instance? And implementation of the corporate values and decide the best of the team members 'senior financial ana- what else needs to be done. lysts'? She has suggested this to headquarters before, Amrita has worked very hard to change the way in but was told that her idea did not fit into Pharmaz' title which her section works. She suggested in her pro- structure. posal that new job descriptions would have to be writ- Amrita also suggests that they could nominate an ten for everyone, specifying exactly their areas of employee of the quarter' in the services center and responsibility and explaining the types of decisions give him or her a small symbolic prize, maybe a small they would be expected to make on their own. Also, amount of money, as well as a certificate to frame and each team is to hold a short meeting every moming to hang on the wall in his or her cubicle. She beleves that inform each other of what they are doing, and every- her employees would appreciate such a gesture, and one is expected to contribute. Other than that, Amrita she also knows that they would probably like to be suggested that as a first step, most of the focus able to attach such a certificate to their CVs to docu- should be concentrated on the team leaders to make ment that they have done well. sure that they understand what empowerment and