This is what the country needs….
In our fast paced work culture in a globalized economy, quality and productivity are two of the focuses of every business unit to remain competitive. Though this is not bad, an equally important ingredient is seemingly taking the back seat. Knowledge and Skill are given emphasis by management when evaluating its human resources. With the belief that these directly contributes to the bottomline figure, employee attitude, character and habits became secondary in importance.At times, leaders are in dilemma to choose between a technically competent person with character problem and a trustworthy candidate but still lacking in skill. When the demand to fill the office is immediate, can a business unit afford to wait? Which choice is more expensive? The investment cost to train a trustworthy person or the losses that may result from character flaw? We know that the lack of skills and knowledge can be addressed by mentoring, coaching and training program. But is there an organizational intervention that can address character problem?Attitude and character are part and parcel of “integrity”. But what is integrity? Should it be a factor in a person’s effectiveness and development? Should it matter in an organization? Listen along……
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I couldnt agree more with you re integrity or the lack of it in organizations. Of course one way of ensuring people with integrity fill an organization is by way of stringent recruitment standards. The recruitment process must be able to weed out the applicants without character and follow up with applicants who have passed the integrity and honesty tests. There are various ways an organization can use to discern the desirable from the undesirable, and it is for the people responsible for hiring in an organization to find the most suitable and effective way. Too often recruiters are allowed to do their screening of candidates based just on technical competence overlooking the equally if not more important soft skills or attributes of the individual such as attitude and character. The last boss I worked for ( he is the chairman and ceo of a large indonesian conglomerate/mnc with little or no formal education but who single handedly build up a huge business empire ) had this to advise his senior executives when it concerned hiring: “Hire For Attitude Not So Much Skills” His rationale was simple, skills you can teach but attitude and character you cannot. Even if you can it is tough job. We all know how difficult it is change someone’s attitude especially when he has had years of experience in a particular area or subject.
But having said that, I believe attitude and character can still be taught or developed , particularly during a person’s formative years. One practical and effective way is through leadership training, not just for the senior manager but right down to the junior leaders at section/unit/team level. In fact, the focus should be at the lower levels, where the younger minds are more impressionable and therefore easier to influence. Having solid leadership training right at the start of the employee’s career help to forge strong leader characteristics in the individual which they can call on not only in their daily routines, but also in times of crisis, and in situations of moral and ethical proportions. A good example can be taken from the military organizations and the way they develop their officer corps for their often very demanding tasks which can take them from their small home towns to faraway lands they had never dreamed of seeing in their civilian lives. They have a strong code of conduct which had been inculcated into them from day one, and which seem to drive and guide them through strife and difficult times.
I think it will be beneficial for every organization to take a serious look at how they are developing leadership traits in their people. If they can manage this well, they have a great chance of building not just competitive people but also employees who are honest and who are not afraid to act with integrity!