HR message of Bats, the corporate people must know

In corporate, when one cannot clearly see things around, then one should vigorously try not to get seen by others. The above statement or phrase may look a bit confusing. However confusing it may appear, but it is true and has great management message.

Look at the behaviour of bats. Bats are nocturnal flying mammals. But interestingly bats have poor vision/eye sight and they detect their prey and danger through a different method called – echolocation. The ultrasound waves they produce and based on its reflectance pattern, they locate and differentiate the objects in front of them.

When bats do not have the eye sight and employs echolocation method to identify both prey and predator, it makes no great difference whether it is ‘day’ or ‘night’.

Then why bats have chosen to be nocturnal? The possible answer should not be searched truly from the scientific angle, but it should be understood only from the management space or ambit.

When bats cannot see things around and can locate things only through echolocation, they have to be extremely careful as other animals/predators can easily see them. Therefore they have to avoid getting easily seen by other animals. The philosophy is that when you cannot see things around you, it is only your problem but it creates necessity upon you to avoid getting seen by others. What one cannot see does not stop or prevent others from seeing you. Therefore an extra care is required and that is why bats have preferred to be nocturnal.

In most corporate, the people are known to employ several ‘tricks and techniques’ of bats, often. When there is a ‘goof up’ in the corporate, the people who does not have any reply or answer to the above, will try their best to hide their presence. It means, they try to avoid getting seen by anyone in the corporate so that they can escape from the liability of answering. They avoid so because they do not have answers to the above goof up. Imagine, if they have an answer means, they prefers to occupy the front bench and do everything possible to get seen/noticed. This attitude of people can be seen especially when the problem/goof up is relating to a different function/department.

Imagine, if the R&D is under attack, other functions like marketing, sourcing, HR etc will love to jump into the well and try to get seen by others so that they can also join the team. If the problem/goof up is relating to their own department/function, then people from the respective department/function loves to hide and try best to avoid getting seen by others. This scene can be seen during most corporate discussions/meetings.

This behaviour shown by people in corporate is not that strange. Even a bat in wild does that. How beautifully the nature has engraved the finest management script in bats. When you cannot see things, it is better not gets seen is the wise management message bats communicates to the corporate by they being nocturnal. Those who know this wise management message are the one tends to hide and shy away from the scene especially when they do not have the answer.

Dr S Ranganathan