From Sun Bird and Humming Bird, Learn Your HR wisdom

The question of why most people in some corporate always show nervousness are scared and skeptical about taking decisions and or even to answer simple questions. Is this behaviour sign and indicator of the ‘rudimentary’ HR culture of such organizations? Won’t this behaviour affect the leadership style and quality performance of people at large?

When this question was posed to an HR head, he answered smartly. The organization he works for was the one governed and controlled by ‘single man’ or in another word, the single man owned corporate.

The HR head answered smartly the question by citing a few people as an example, to show how good the HR culture of the organization he work with. He stated that a few people have joined recently to his organization at a higher rank. These employees were working in a top ranked MNC’s before they join the organization.

On close examination, all these people also exhibit the traits of nervousness, fear & skepticism, and indecisiveness & lack of spontaneity. Does this mean, the MNC’s HR culture is also ‘rudimentary’ was his argument? If so, how such MNC’s can be referred as a world leader?

Nature has the best answer to the above comparison. The HR function must know about the theory of evolution and more so about ‘what is convergent evolution’? If they know the definition correctly, the “devil quoting scriptures from the Bible” style they can avoid.

Convergent evolution means, two different species living in two different geographical areas develops similar characteristics/feature. Nature has thrown several examples for the corporate man to learn. Hummingbird resembles sunbird and so are swifts and swallows. Pillbug and pill millipede are another examples.

The presence of such behaviour in people from MNC’s only confirms the fact of the existence of the ‘rudimentary’ HR culture in MNC’s as well. The cause for convergent evolution is by and large one and the same. However, the fact remains that, the hummingbird is different from sunbird, however, close they may resemble each other.

Understanding of the anomaly should never be attempted through comparison. Comparisons always favour dispute or limit our understanding. Only to understand the meaning of ‘understanding’, comparisons should be used. The HR function must be sensitive in knowing not justifying or comparing the facts.

The ingredients of HR culture can be same in different organization and that is why people from different organizations exhibit great homology in their behaviour, leadership style etc. This does not support the culture of every corporate is good and healthy.

Only when the definition of convergent evolution is understood, knowing and correcting is possible. Understanding only will help one to correct the mistakes but justifications, however wisely it is done, never justify a mistake.

Dr S Ranganathan