Talent, digital transformation and strategic planning are key elements to banish the idea of presenteeism associated with an obsolete management model.
Work presenteeism is defined as the presence of workers in their jobs beyond their normal schedule, and there are studies that say it has increased by 40% over the last two years due to the crisis.
It is common to find in organizational culture the concept that equals more hours spent at work with better, more productive professionals, in short, “presenteeism” is rewarded as it is considered a key factor in achieving objectives.
In our activity as interim managers, we keep insisting on the importance of banishing this concept and changing it for others that are much more profitable and healthier such as productivity.
What is presenteeism? What does it give us? Some straightforward data is enough to have a stand in this regard:
First 6 hours of work: the most creative and productive
Following six hours : people gradually lose interest and performance decreases
After 9 hours: obvious exhaustion, non-existent quality and minimal performance
After 12 hours there is no productivity, no focus, no energy, no passion …
Within the culture of the presenteeism we have two differentiated roles:
1.- Managers who reward this behaviour because they used to be this way and still persists on this trade: they are not aware that by not having any life outside of work, their levels of happiness, creativity and innovation decrease ostensibly
- Collaborators that fall prey to presenteeism patterns as part of a bad organizational culture, because they fear for their jobs and believe that, by staying longer, they are less likely to leave the organization and usually these professionals have a clear tendency to procrastinate their tasks.
In an uncertain, volatile, ambiguous and complex environment such as the one we are living in, for us the 21st century professionals are collaborators who add value to the organization from their “know-how” and from “doing what they must do”, they have some clear goals, they’re focused on the business, and display habits that allow for improvement and do all of these with passion. These are people who are engaged, flexible, innovative, adaptable and life-long learners.
In short, they are professionals focused on productivity, on creating value in the organization through the development of talent , they pursue objective indicators and are ambassadors for the digital transformation process that characterizes our time.
For us, the idea of presenteeism is associated with an obsolete business management model. Our value proposition to change the model is made up of three key aspects:
- Talent: seek it, recognize it and develop it as a central axis of productivity and commitment
- Digital transformation: incessant search for new, more efficient channels of communication with customers to increase their satisfaction, using new technological tools
- Strategic planning: a clear understanding by everyone in the organization of the corporate culture, the strategic objectives and the action plans to achieve them
“A 10% increase in productivity would double the profit of most companies” Peter Drucker
