Office reimagined: In team leaders, soft skills take centre stage

At the truck manufacturing unit of Tata Motors in Jamshedpur, Jhark­h­and, a small group of workmen sits in the lounge area, glued to smartphones. They are attending a session being hosted by the company’s human resource (HR) personnel on Microsoft Team from his home in Mum­bai. He, along with a dietician, is delivering a talk on the importance of a healthy lifestyle, nutrition and a fitness regime to beat anxiety and stress amid the pandemic.

Touching upon various fac­ets of mental and physical hea­lth, such sessions are regular now for those employed at the company’s manufacturing units and elsewhere. Until two years ago, few would have imagined blue-collared workers of a manufacturing unit atte­n­ding such sessions digitally. But that is a change Covid-19 has brought in.

Also changed is the way companies now expect managers and leaders to engage and deal with their teammates, with empathy and strong and sensitive communication skills being core requirements. In these exacting times and also in the hybrid work model many firms expect will outlast the pandemic, “companies will need compassionate leadership to bring out the best in their employees,” says Ravindra Kumar GP, president and chief human resource officer (CHRO), Tata Motors.

Managers, say HR experts, are the lens through which an employee sees an organisation. “While leaders are responsible for a better tomorrow, managers are responsible for a better today,” says Ashish Ambasta, founder and CEO of HappyPlus Consulting, a tech-enabled HR firm that measures the happiness index for Indian companies. Ambasta adds that the level of managerial competence will be defined by how attached an individual is to an organisation.

Some of these soft skill requirements are being encouraged by companies by way of new initiatives. Snacking major Mondelez India, for instance, has introduced something called “Gift of Time”, which encourages leaders to look at work that can be postponed or eliminated altogether. “This is because a remote work culture demands that decision-making is simplified and the focus is on the big picture and the most important things to be done,” says Mahalakshmi R, director, human resources, Mondelez India. “There are benefits here. People stay focused, outcomes are better.” The initiative has begun with leaders at the top, but will transition to section heads down the pecking order.

Recognising people in the system who've helped build focus amongst their teams is another initiative. “This internal recognition programme is called ‘Bravo’. We also have a progra­mme called ‘FlexAble’ that helps leaders inspire and motivate their teams remotely,” says Mahalakshmi R.

The message to internal leaders at Godrej Consumer Products is to “be sensitive to your people. For that they have to be empowered to implement suggestions; be empathetic and not over-monitor people,” says Rahul Gama, head, human resources. Goals are set for employees to operate and to be productive. “At the same time, whether it is taking time off to look after a Covid-19 patient at home or just being there for loved ones, we do not calculate it as leave,” he adds.

At Mahindra and Mahindra, says CHRO Rajeshwar Tripathi, “we’re encouraging people to connect more and more. There’s no such thing as over-communication.” He adds that a big change that the transformation of work life will bring is related to one’s skills. Irrespective of the role, employees/leaders will have to be more multidisciplinary, innovative and agile to change, he says.

Each of these three qualities are being increasingly valued in team leaders by Mumbai-headquartered consumer goods company Marico as well. The company has trained leaders to also act as “wellness coaches” to rec­ognise signs of anxiety, depression and stress amongst their team members, says Amit Pra­kash, CHRO, Marico. “The imp­o­rtance of wellbeing of memb­ers is reinforced regularly th­r­o­ugh leadership forums,” he adds.

“At a broader level, I see three big shifts that will happen as we move to a new work culture,” says Mahalakshmi R of Mondelez India. “One is that goal-setting will be focused. Second will be how we dialogue and provide feedback in a virtual environment. The third will be the emergence of wellness as a critical lever for organisations when acquiring or retaining talent.”