Develop spitting spider leaders – HR message from nature

The modern corporate must look for spitting spider managers/leaders as they can really make a lot of difference to the organization than ordinary managers or leaders. For the effective management of people and task, the leadership style of spitting spider is needed and inevitable.

Unlike other species of spiders those wait patiently for a prey to get trapped in the web, the spitting spider is indeed not that patient. If it finds a prey like silverfish or moth etc., it immediately spits the fiber in liquid form along with the venom at the prey. The liquid silk of the spider immediately binds and coils the prey and makes the prey immobile. Further, the venom ensures that the prey is totally paralyzed. The silk of the spider if fail to resist the strength of the prey, the venom will definitely ensure the goal of the ‘spitting spider’ i.e., the venom would certainly kill the prey.

Why the ‘spitting spiders’ catch its prey by using such ‘crazy’ technique? With least energy expenditure and labor, it can catch the prey comfortably like how many other species of spiders spread their web and wait for the prey to automatically fall into the web. All the species of spiders except the spitting spider catch the prey by employing the ‘wait and catch’ technique. What management teaching the spitting spiders conveys to the corporate?

Many corporate bosses do behave like normal spiders. They never intervene or try to understand the performances and the leadership qualities the people working under them until the performance appraisal dates are announced. They relax lazily and wait for the time to do the above job. If they learn the art of prey catching from the spitting spiders, they will understand that waiting for the appropriate time is not wise certainly for the organization.

Active catching is what the spitting spiders follow and it is not interested in catching the prey when it is trapped in the web and struggle for help. The corporate leaders and the bosses must not loose time in knowing the work details of the people. Although during performance appraisal of people, they will get to know about the details of their performance, but waiting for such long time will never help the organization in any way. If they intervene regularly and at the right time, course correction is possible and accordingly a likely poor or non-performer can also be helped to become a ‘super performer’.

It is not the subordinates ‘telling’ the bosses about what they have completed or not, but the bosses must ‘know’ what is happening at the other end by using their ‘sense’.

The message is that the corporate leaders should not wait and waste time like an ordinary spider that the prey will come and trap in the web by itself. They should be proactive like a spitting spider in knowing the weak employees to catch and correct. Only when the weakness or defect in the performance is understood in advance, the candidates can be guided to the right path to ensure that they also keep pace with the rest.

Dr S Ranganathan