Recruitment: Amazon India to hire 20K staff in customer service

Amazon India announced that it has opened close to 20,000 seasonal employment opportunities in its customer service (CS) organization to ensure customers worldwide continue to have a seamless online shopping experience. The new positions are now open in Hyderabad, Pune, Coimbatore, Noida, Kolkata, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Mangalore, Indore, Bhopal and Lucknow. Most of the positions are part of Amazon’s ‘Virtual Customer Service’ program that provides flexible work-from-home options. 

The new positions will require associates to support customer needs and deliver personalized, peculiar experiences that customers love through various mediums like email, chat, social media, and phone. The eligibility criteria for these positions include – minimum educational qualification of 12th standard pass and proficiency in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu or Kannada. 

 Akshay Prabhu, Director – Customer Service, Amazon India stated,“We are continuously evaluating hiring needs across the customer service organization in response to the growing customer demand. We estimate that customer traffic will further scale up over the next six months with the onset of Indian and global holiday seasons. The new associates who will join us in our offices or work from home through our Virtual Customer Service program will play a key role in relentlessly advocating for our customers and raising the bar on their experience.”

He added that over the past few months, Amazon has scaled up to prioritize the safety of its CS associates and continue to serve its customers’ needs. These new seasonal positions will provide candidates job security and livelihood during these unprecedented times. 

The efforts come as Amazon is investing in building a highly collaborative customer service work environment, offering opportunities for growth. Based on the candidates’ performance as well as business needs, a percentage of the present temporary positions are likely to be converted into permanent positions towards the end of the year.

The announcement comes almost a month after it announced in May that it will hire nearly 50,000 temporary workers to cope with surging demand from online shoppers for both essential and non-essential products. Earlier this year, the ecommerce major had announced that it plans to create 1 million new jobs in India by 2025 through continued investments in technology, infrastructure, and its logistics network. As the ecommerce sector bounces back from the lifting of the lockdowns, the sector is witnessing a surge of job creation.

Topics: Recruitment, #Hiring, #COVID-19

Source: People matters 29 June, 2020

9 Ways to Lead Your Team Into an Unknowable Future

The workplace is changed. As parts of the world begin to loosen coronavirus-related restrictions, organizations are emerging from COVID-induced hibernation. These transitions back to work are gradual. Uncertainty will remain for months as threats of renewed waves of coronavirus persist. We are anticipating a new normal — but what we need is a new now.

The radical change of these times demands empathic leadership to keep teams engaged, cohesive and forward-focused. Leaders must demonstrate a spirit of purpose and optimism to reinforce the idea that an uncertain future has the potential to be a better future. Here are nine steps for leading your team into an unknowable future.

1. Envision what success looks like and move toward it. 

In its recovery guide for organizations, Deloitte encourages leaders to imagine what post-recovery success looks like. Once you’ve clarified goals, reverse-engineer the next steps for quick and effective action. Envisioning what success entails frees up thinking about the present and can help teams identify quick wins.

As preparation for returning to work, leaders have an opportunity to review their organization’s operating models, expectations, standards, values and strengths. Reflect on what worked well during the recent period of isolation and let teams decide what they need to start, stop or continue doing to achieve goals.

2. Embrace trust. 

“Trust is the glue of life,” says The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People author Steven Covey. “It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.” 

Leaders must transition their organizations from a state of treading water to moving toward a restored future. Enable your teams to succeed by embracing trust. Like many business leaders, you’ve likely built a substantial reserve of trust from your teams through your navigation of the coronavirus crisis’s early stages. Now is the time to build on that foundation with acts that unite your team.  

3. Make productivity sustainable.

Today’s distributed workforce demands new thinking about organizing work. Establish clear boundaries to ensure sustainable working hours and productivity. Teams must discuss office hours, share tips on time-tracking and set clear expectations about responding to emails. 

One benefit to organizations from the pandemic is the reduction of the number of meetings. Despite a traditional argument that face-to-face meetings are necessary, businesses didn’t grind to a halt when meetings ceased as a result of the pandemic. Going forward, meeting organizers should define the purpose, the necessary attendees and the amount of time every meeting requires.  

4. Document your recovery playbook.

Resuming work requires answers to questions such as where to begin, how to keep employees and customers safe and healthy, when to communicate and what the next steps are. PricewaterhouseCoopers developed a guide to returning to the workplace (PDF) with additional questions for leaders to address. 

Whether it be leading and communicating change, prioritizing the health and well-being of team members, operating with additional demands or encouraging empathy, leaders should initiate discussions in the workplace around these critical areas as they develop plans to keep their people and businesses moving through a recovery. As an example, Tesla’s leaders designed a return to work playbook outlining the company’s plan to provide a safe and healthy work environment for its employees.

5. Prioritize your people over yourself. 

Organizations want their leaders to exhibit vulnerability and empathy. On a national level, the leaders who have most effectively dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic have demonstrated clear and consistent messaging, compassion, and solidarity with their constituents. Most of these leaders are female, from Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel implementing testing from the get-go and Tsai Ing-wen in Taiwan implementing significant measures at the first sign of illness to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern locking down the whole country with swift and decisive action. And in a press event, Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg spoke directly to her nation’s children, answering their questions about the coronavirus and letting them know it was okay to feel scared. 

Leadership demands an emotional connection with your people. When leaders prioritize their people ahead of themselves, they elevate others and foster team well-being.

6. Practice empathy.

Expecting all employees to resume a so-called normal work life isn’t realistic. The COVID-19 crisis impacted everybody, leaving a stain on the fabric of your organization. Be mindful of the ongoing health concerns employees have for friends and family, the challenges of juggling childcare and homeschooling or the stress of navigating the crisis’s financial impact. Empathy will serve you well as a leader and provide your team an extra measure of grace as they return to the office.

7. Provide access to support for emotional wellness.

When employees do begin to return to the workplace, they’ll be dealing with various emotions. People may experience feelings of loss, sadness and grief — emotions that will inevitably impact the way they work and how teams perform.

Leaders must help employees work through these emotions by providing access to support resources such as the Lifeworks-offered Employee Assistance Program and help them navigate sensitive and mental health conversations in the workplace.

8. Re-open with a people-first culture in place.

As you re-open and reset your business, put your employee’s needs at the forefront. That means more than creating a physically safe workplace. According to a Harvard Business Review article on returning to work, here’s what leaders should do:

Source: Entrepreneur India 24 June, 2020

Time’s Up for Toxic Workplaces

Millions of people face abusive supervisors and bullies at work. These employees are targets of ridicule, threats, or demeaning comments by their manager on a daily basis, which results in decreased satisfaction, productivity, and commitment to the job as well as the organization at large.

While direct interactions with “bad bosses” can be traumatic for employees, the problem often goes further than a single individual. Indeed, some of my own research has shown that abusive behavior, especially when displayed by leaders, can spread throughout the organization, creating entire climates of abuse. Because employees look to and learn from managers, they come to understand that this type of interpersonal mistreatment is acceptable behavior in the company. In essence, employees start to think that “this is how it’s done around here,” and this belief manifests itself in a toxic environment that tolerates abusive acts. More so, studies have even shown that employees who experience abuse from a supervisor are also more inclined to “pass on” this type of treatment in a ripple effect.

As such, the outcomes of destructive workplaces are devastating, harming work teams and individuals alike. For example, in a multi-study effort, my colleagues and I discovered that abusive climates negatively impact a work group’s collective efficacy, which indicates that the team has lost its confidence to adequately perform a given task. Furthermore, abusive work environments destroy important bonds between team members, which further results in reduced performance and citizenship behaviors, meaning that employees are less likely to help and support each other. Toxic workplaces also impair the lives of individuals beyond the work realm. Employees report feeling emotionally drained, experience lower well-being, and even increased conflict at home (i.e., work-family conflict).

Given the harmful consequences of abusive bosses, the question is what can be done to change this behavior. My latest research sought to provide answers by asking both supervisors and employees about their willingness to address abusive supervision at work.

First, my colleague, Bailey Bigelow, and I wanted to understand what makes abusive bosses change their behavior. To do so, we asked supervisors to reflect upon a time in which they directed demeaning comments and rude behavior towards subordinates. We then asked them to write about this experience with as much detail as possible. After recalling and describing the abusive incidents, supervisors were instructed to rate how they felt and acted in the time after exerting abuse. We also asked whether they stopped the abusive behavior in the end.

What we found was that supervisors experience a loss in social worth after abusing subordinates, which means that they generally feel less valued and appreciated at work. This reduced sense of worth, in turn, seemed to hurt managers’ performance behaviors, as employees increasingly reported that their supervisors were unable to complete assigned work duties or tasks that were expected of them.

But, at the same time, we also found that some managers (those who did not have psychopathic tendencies) ended up halting mistreatment towards employees. Thus, abusive bosses significantly improved their bad behavior when they cared about their level of social worth and the general well-being of employees. In contrast, psychopath bosses (up to 10% of managers across companies) who are cold, callous, cynical, and lack remorse appear indifferent to social repercussions and social welfare, which makes them less likely to stop abusing subordinates.

Beyond understanding when supervisors change abusive conduct on their own, I was also curious about the conditions under which witnesses to supervisor mistreatment would aid a victimized colleague. Thus, in another research study, my coauthor Marshall Schminke and I used time-lagged, multi-source survey data to understand when employees stand up for an abused coworker.

We found that organizational norms were essential in guiding observers to address the wrongdoing. When employees felt that their organization overall valued and emphasized fairness (e.g., people perceived promotion, compensation, or bonus structures to be fair), observers were much more likely to help a victimized colleague. In fact, these norms seem to empower bystanders to act, because they start to believe in their ability to make a positive difference in the lives of others (a concept known as “ethical efficacy”). It is this newly gained confidence that drives them to speak up.

Together, the findings from my two latest studies suggest that we can structure work environments in a way that helps combat abuse.

First, companies should increase awareness and educate managers about all costs associated with abusive conduct. By emphasizing the detrimental consequences of abusive behavior right at the outset of one’s career during company orientation, as well as through continuous training programs, managers would come to understand that negative actions not only harm others, but also themselves. Consequently, many bosses might refrain from abusive actions out of pure self-interest.

Second, companies can incorporate or strengthen anonymous feedback channels where employees can voice their concerns and report abusive experiences without fear of retribution. Peer managers, superiors, or HR could deliver the relevant feedback to managers, making it clear that the organization does not tolerate this kind of behavior. Knowing that others disapprove — or even worse, that they don’t value or appreciate the supervisor— may lead this perpetrator to self-correct abusive behavior.

Third, organizations need to uphold and enforce fair and ethical norms in all aspects of company life, because employees reflect upon these values before deciding whether to stand up to abuse or not. If they sense that fair and respectful treatment is commonly valued and supported in the company, employees might be more confident to confront an abuser and protect someone who has been mistreated.

In all, by raising awareness about the costs for perpetrators and by constantly communicating fair values and norms that empower employees to speak up, we might be able to say that “Time’s Up for Toxic Workplaces.”

Source: HBR 19 June,2020

There will be significant focus on reskilling and upskilling: India Skill Development Minister

Skill development and new models of learning will be central to the recovery post-COVID-19, according to Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship of India Mahendra Nath Pandey.

Mahendra Nath Pandey is an Indian politician who is the current Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship of India and Member of Lok Sabha for Chandauli since 2014. He has also served as Union Minister of State for the Ministry of Human Resource Development between 2016 and 2017. 

In an interaction with People Matters, the Minister shares his thoughts on the current economic scenario due to COVID-19. The economy has come to a standstill because of this current pandemic, with millions of job losses and laborers returning to their homes are an alarming situation and what is the government doing to keep things under control. 

Read the edited excerpts here. 

You have been the HRD Minister in the past and are now handling the Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. How has the journey been so far? What were some of your significant challenges and achievements?

While the Ministry of Human Resource Development is focussed on the education of India's citizens, the Ministry of Skill Development is focussed on empowering the youth with skill sets towards being gainfully employed and contributing to the economic growth of the country. 

MSDE primarily drives the Skill India Mission that was launched by the Honorable Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, and was designed to help India’s youth achieve their full potential, hone their skills, and help in the economic development of the nation. The journey so far has been full of different functions towards creating an employable and stronger workforce. We have revamped many initiatives from policies for skill development and entrepreneurship, to the Apprenticeship Act and the programs for skilling, upskilling and reskilling of the nation’s workforce.

Significant achievements include:

Over 1 crore youth join the Skill India Mission annually

Launch of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) to aid those who cannot pay for their skill training and find a means of livelihood for them 

Setting up of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKKs) – close to 750 state-of-the-art skilling centres for youth

Introduction of a wide range of reforms to the Apprenticeship Act of 1961, to make it significantly easier for the industry to take on much-needed apprentices, extended it to the service sector

Reinvigorated the ITI ecosystem through modernization, enhanced pedagogy, revised curriculum, better technology, quality training, and an online examination and assessment system

Introduction of new-age courses in 12 NSTIs. These include Internet of Things – Smart Healthcare; Internet of Things – Smart Cities; 3D printing; Drone pilots; Solar Technicians and Geo-Informatics among many others.

The country is going through an economic slowdown. How are you planning to link skill development with employment in the current crisis?

Once the nationwide lockdown ends and the COVID 19 crisis is behind us, we expect the country will be at a distinct advantage when it comes to economic recovery.  Needless to say, that on one hand while a few sectors will be impacted like travel and tourism, hospitality, automobiles, real estate, and entertainment; on the other hand, there will be a few which will likely see growth – like pharma, FMCG, Health, logistics, and e-commerce. 

With a decreased dependency on China, India will see several opportunities come its way. We will have to uplift and enhance our manufacturing and industrial output to reduce external dependency while catering to international and domestic demand. 

This recovery will not only be driven by the above factors but also by the entrepreneurial spirit that we have been inculcating in our students over the years, and the focus we have laid on new-age skills that will become increasingly important in the post Coronavirus world. We expect these new-age skills to become highly in demand. 

Also, through our e-skilling initiatives, we have enabled possibilities for many to upgrade their existing skills. The lockdown has given many people time to catch up on their skilling requirements and upskill wherever necessary. 

Under the leadership of our Prime Minister, we are working on an action plan to reskill unemployed migrant and informal sector workers once the lockdown is lifted. These will not only help rehabilitate those who have lost their jobs because of the coronavirus crisis but also make the workforce readily available once economic activity restarts. 

How closely are you working with the HRD Ministry in the area of employment? Has there been any discussion about a change in the approach of creating more jobs and upskilling more people post this crisis?

We have been working closely with the MHRD on ensuring integration of skills both at a school and college level so that we can engage with the youth at the right age and tap them at the right time.  

Of late, India has been getting queries from the European Union and the US for textiles, homeware, ceramic tiles, engineering goods, furniture, among others as part of one plus one strategy in relation to China. India’s electronics industry is heavily dependent on China, importing about $20.6 billion worth of electronic items in 2018-19, which can be now made in India. We should explore this opportunity and should uplift and enhance our manufacturing and industrial output to reduce external dependency. 

Degree Apprenticeship is a new education route, recently introduced by the Government, bringing together the best of higher and vocational training. This new option enables university study and the invaluable on-the-job training typical of an apprenticeship. While pursuing a degree course the candidate can undergo apprenticeship training as an integrated component of the curriculum. 

With COVID-19 impacting all the major sectors and employment opportunities will be limited. How do you plan to deal with this? 

With each challenge and adversity comes an opportunity. While it is right to say that some sectors will take a hit, there will be a few which will see increasing demand. New job roles will be created to meet demand nationally and internationally. As mentioned above sectors like Healthcare, Logistics, Emergency services, Green jobs, E-commerce, Home delivery services, IT/ITeS will see increasing demand for a skilled workforce. We have always focused on a job-ready workforce. Now that the opportunity will arise, we will be able to meet these requirements of the industry. 

In a few segments, like in reskilling and upskilling, continuous and quick assessment of demand will be done by a special research team which will be formed soon. There will be a clear focus on employer-led training for the focussed outcome and we will enable fast-tracking approval for an additional courses. We can expect large scale entrepreneurship led skilling especially supporting the micro-entrepreneurs along with the creation of linkages to the credit network. The focus will be on a blended model for learning with increased scalability and quick turnaround time.

How is the ministry navigating through the challenges brought on by COVID-19?

Firstly, we are trying to ensure that we keep all our students, staff, and partners safe hence all centres were shut with immediate effect of the nationwide lockdown that was announced by the Hon’ble Prime Minister in late March 2019. All our training centres, including National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs), ITIs, and their hostels across the country have either been converted into quarantine/isolation facilities or shelters for the needy and have been extended to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and to the respective State Governments. 40 percent of this capacity is already being utilized for the welfare of the people. 

MSDE has also notified all establishments to pay the full stipend to apprentices engaged with them. Currently, 24,884 establishments are engaging 2.42 lakh apprentices in both designated and optional trade. The Government will reimburse stipends to these establishments.

We have made extensive online resources available through the Directorate General of Training for around 2 million students enrolled in industrial training institutes who are unable to attend classes. The complete curriculum is available through video lessons, question banks, mock tests and e-learning content through the Bharat Skills portal and mobile-friendly application.

What’s your take on the Indian job market at this point? Post COVID-19, how will the future look like?

The sections of population that are likely to be most impacted are – workers from impacted sectors, daily wage earners, migrant workers and those working in the formal economy. There must be quick and continuous assessment of demand and blended models for learning which are scalable and have quick turn-around time. There will be heavy focus on reskilling and upskilling. This recovery will not only be driven by the above factors but also by the entrepreneurial spirit that we have been inculcating in our students over the years and the focus we have laid on new-age skills that will become increasingly important in the post Coronavirus world.

What is the ministry doing to help people who have lost their job because of COVID-19?

The nation is witnessing thousands of migrant workers, many of whom have been rendered jobless by the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19, continue to return to their villages and home-towns. The government is planning on using these workers for infrastructure projects, a move that could help address two crucial problems – joblessness and workforce shortage. We are trying to find opportunities to link the semi-skilled and skilled workers so that they can earn their livelihood and at the same time support the local economy. We are also looking at agriculture, agri-processing and healthcare as immediate avenues to restart skilling with a focus on reverse migrants. 

What are your plans for the Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship in the coming four years?

We have received a significant amount of feedback and suggestions on what changes we can make to our various initiatives to make them more efficient, with better outcomes. We are evaluating these and making some tweaks to the programs with a continued focus on apprenticeship, reskilling and upskilling as well as certification and standardization of existing skills. 

Beyond that, we are all working together to overcome the challenges and continue our work in this environment where there is a new normal in place. 

The Ministry is currently in the midst of planning the next phase of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, the umbrella scheme under the Prime Minister’s Skill India Mission along with other initiatives like IndiaSkills, Rozgar Melas, etc.

Source: People Matters 22 June, 2020

Fashion e-tailer Myntra hires 5,000 employees for 'End of Reason Sale'

This will be the first time Myntra's employees will work from home during a sale.

Online fashion and lifestyle store Myntra has hired 5,000 employees across its supply chain and customer care departments for the 12th edition of its 'End of Reason Sale' that started on June 19. The sale will end on June 22.

This will be the first time Myntra's employees will work from home during a sale. The entire sale event has been managed digitally by employees connecting with each other through live video conferencing. During the End of Reason Sale, shoppers from across the country will have access to over 7 lakh options from 3,000 plus brands. Myntra expects about 30 lakh people to shop on its platform during the sale.

Myntra CEO Amar Nagaram stated that categories like fashion essentials, women's ethnic wear, kidswear, active and sportswear, and beauty and personal care have seen strong growth in the 'Unlock 1.0' phase, and are also expected to drive sales during EORS.

"Our teams are geared to handle 20,000 orders per minute during peak, and over 7.5 lakh concurrent users at peak...we are expecting 3 million people to shop during the 12th edition of the EORS," Nagaram added.

Also, 15,000 kirana partners will cater to 75 percent of the overall deliveries spanning about 300 cities, the CEO added. The fashion e-tailer has also introduced "recharge leave", that is two days off for all employees after wrapping up the sale. 

The hires come as ecommerce is finally getting back to pre-COVID levels as restrictions lift. India’s ecommerce industry has recovered about 90% of its overall order volumes since restrictions on the shipping of non-essential products were relaxed in early May, according to industry estimates. Last month, ecommerce major Amazon also announced plans to hire nearly 50,000 temporary workers to cope with surging demand from online shoppers for both essential and non-essential products.

Source: People Matters 22 June,2020

4 actions that organizations need to take amid COVID-19 crisis

Here are the top four actions that organizations need to address now and prepare for what is next.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way the world lives and works. What started out as a global health crisis has rapidly snowballed into an economic crisis. As the pandemic continues to rage across the world with no real insight into when things would completely settle down, organizations must focus on practical actions to keep people safe, healthy, connected, and foster resilience among their employees.  

As per the latest research, ‘Human Resilience: What your people need now’ shows that employees look to their organizations for empathy, flexibility, and confidence while navigating difficult times. Here are the top four actions that organizations need to take to address them now and prepare for what is next:

Be compassionate and flexible, and practice responsible leadership: 

Through weeks of extended lockdowns and social distancing, most people have been working in unfamiliar conditions. They have been experiencing newer pressures as they balance work and responsibilities at home with significantly diminished external support systems. 

As people settle into the new ways of working, leading with compassion should be the biggest organizational priority. It is important that leaders be coached on stakeholder inclusion, emotion and intuition, mission and purpose and technology and innovation. 

People need flexibility to work differently in these extraordinary times. For instance, as a number of people work from home and manage family responsibilities, they may not be able to put in uninterrupted consecutive hours of work. Managers must adapt work rules for more flexibility, based on emotional intelligence and employees’ individual needs. They need to help people focus on crucial work and eliminate unnecessary tasks.  

Rally the troops and develop an action plan: 

As much as employees appreciate the compassion, companies also need to demonstrate that they have a plan to manage the crisis. 

Listening to people is the first step towards developing an action plan – collect feedback from across all echelons and units of the organization. 

Agility is key as is the ability to quickly respond to unanticipated and difficult scenarios. A leadership team that looks ahead proactively and responds rather than reacts goes a long way in helping people during volatile times.

Remember that like all adversities, this too shall pass! Hence, leaders need to go beyond the present and think of future goals and requirements. Reserve some time every day to do the groundwork needed to get the organization and workforce future-ready for the post-COVID world. 

Promote digital ways of working and collaborating: 

The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to have a long-term impact on how people work and participate in society. Organizations must adjust their workplaces and make technology investments that enable their employees to work remotely through digital collaboration tools. They need to accelerate human + machine collaboration and support people as they transition to digital ways of working.  

Collapse hierarchy, wherever possible, and work in a cross-functional and agile team environment with a focus on problem-solving– this can yield surprisingly good results. Teams must focus on what will best help the company and its clients navigate the current situation and prepare for the future.

Communicate responsibly: 

Employees look to their leaders for transparent and clear communication about decisions that impact them and the organization’s plan to get through these volatile times. Consistent and regular communication is key - a communication vacuum could lead to ambiguity and cause anxiety among employees. Be genuine and communicate the larger story with employees. Share insights that matter rather than just meaningless data points and predictions. 

Companies must put together effective communication governance and a set of guiding principles if they don’t already have this in place. Robust communication governance is critical not just for the current state of affairs catalyzed by the global pandemic, but for any situation – even if it is business as usual scenario. 

Leaders must also leverage every communication channel to reinforce the organization’s larger mission and values as a shared purpose is essential to give people a sense of belonging. As a remote working and social distancing continue to be the norm, people need a sense of connection to keep doing meaningful work. 

Every organization’s workforce, culture, and resources are different, and one approach does not always fit all. However, a guiding set of tested principles and recommendations helps each organization tailor its unique response. Leadership in our current reality calls for shared principles and actions: ones that prioritize people and recognize their needs. 

Source: People Matters 19June, 2020

How to Keep Working When You’re Just Not Feeling It

Motivating yourself is hard. In fact, I often compare it to one of the exploits of the fictional German hero Baron Munchausen: Trying to sustain your drive through a task, a project, or even a career can sometimes feel like pulling yourself out of a swamp by your own hair. We seem to have a natural aversion to persistent effort that no amount of caffeine or inspirational posters can fix.

But effective self-motivation is one of the main things that distinguishes high-achieving professionals from everyone else. So how can you keep pushing onward, even when you don’t feel like it?

To a certain extent, motivation is personal. What gets you going might not do anything for me. And some individuals do seem to have more stick-to-itiveness than others. However, after 20 years of research into human motivation, my team and I have identified several strategies that seem to work for most people—whether they’re trying to lose weight, save for retirement, or implement a long, difficult initiative at work. If you’ve ever failed to reach an attainable goal because of procrastination or lack of commitment—and who of us hasn’t?—I encourage you to read on. These four sets of tactics can help propel you forward.

Design Goals, Not Chores

Ample research has documented the importance of goal setting. Studies have shown, for example, that when salespeople have targets, they close more deals, and that when individuals make daily exercise commitments, they’re more likely to increase their fitness levels. Abstract ambitions—such as “doing your best”—are usually much less effective than something concrete, such as bringing in 10 new customers a month or walking 10,000 steps a day. As a first general rule, then, any objectives you set for yourself or agree to should be specific.

Goals should also, whenever possible, trigger intrinsic, rather than extrinsic, motivation. An activity is intrinsically motivated when it’s seen as its own end; it’s extrinsically motivated when it’s seen as serving a separate, ulterior purpose—earning you a reward or allowing you to avoid punishment. My research shows that intrinsic motives predict achievement and success better than extrinsic ones do.

The trick is to focus on the elements of the work that you do find enjoyable.

Take New Year’s resolutions. We found that people who made resolutions at the start of January that were more pleasant to pursue—say, taking on a yoga class or phone-free Saturdays—were more likely to still be following through on them in March than people who chose more-important but less enjoyable goals. This is despite the obvious fact that aspirations for the New Year are usually tough to achieve; if they weren’t, they wouldn’t require a resolution!

Of course, if the external reward is great enough, we’ll keep at even the most unpleasant tasks. Undergoing chemotherapy is an extreme example. In a work context, many people stay in their jobs for the money, feeling like “wage slaves.” But in such situations they usually do the minimum required to meet the goal. Extrinsic motivation alone is unlikely to help us truly excel.

In an ideal world we would all seek out work roles and environments that we enjoy and thus keep our engagement high. Unfortunately, people often fail to do this. For example, my research shows that when asked whether positive relationships with colleagues and managers are critical in their current position, most people say yes. But they don’t remember that office morale was key to success in past jobs, nor do they predict it will be important for them in the future. So simply remembering to consider intrinsic motivation when choosing jobs and taking on projects can go a long way toward helping sustain success.

In cases where that’s impractical—we don’t all find jobs and get assignments we love—the trick is to focus on the elements of the work that you do find enjoyable. Think expansively about how accomplishing the task might be satisfying—by, for example, giving you a chance to showcase your skills in front of your company’s leaders, build important internal relationships, or create value for customers. Finally, try to offset drudgery with activities that you find rewarding—for instance, listen to music while tackling that big backlog of e-mail in your in-box, or do boring chores with friends, family, or your favorite colleagues.

Find Effective Rewards

Some tasks or even stretches of a career are entirely onerous—in which case it can be helpful to create external motivators for yourself over the short- to-medium term, especially if they complement incentives offered by your organization. You might promise yourself a vacation for finishing a project or buy yourself a gift for losing weight. But be careful to avoid perverse incentives. One mistake is to reward yourself for the quantity of completed tasks or for speed when you actually care about the quality of performance. An accountant who treats herself for finishing her auditing projects quickly might leave herself open to mistakes, while a salesperson focused on maximizing sales rather than repeat business should probably expect some unhappy customers.

Another common trap is to choose incentives that undermine the goal you’ve reached. If a dieter’s prize for losing weight is to eat pizza and cake, he’s likely to undo some of his hard work and reestablish bad habits. If the reward for excelling at work one week is to allow yourself to slack off the next, you could diminish the positive impression you’ve made. Research on what psychologists call balancing shows that goal achievement sometimes licenses people to give in to temptation—which sets them back.

In addition, some external incentives are more effective than others. For instance, in experiments researchers have discovered that most people work harder (investing more effort, time, and money) to qualify for an uncertain reward (such as a 50% chance of getting either $150 or $50) than they do for a certain reward (a 100% chance of getting $100), perhaps because the former is more challenging and exciting. Uncertain rewards are harder to set up at work, but not impossible. You might “gamify” a task by keeping two envelopes at your desk—one containing a treat of greater value—and picking only one, at random, after the job is done.

Finally, loss aversion—people’s preference for avoiding losses rather than acquiring equivalent gains—can also be used to design a strong external motivator. In a 2016 study scientists from the University of Pennsylvania asked people to walk 7,000 steps a day for six months. Some participants were paid $1.40 for each day they achieved their goal, while others lost $1.40 if they failed to. The second group hit their daily target 50% more often. Online services such as StickK.com allow users to choose a goal, like “I want to quit smoking,” and then commit to a loss if they don’t achieve it: They have to donate money to an organization or a political party that they despise, for example.

Sustain Progress

When people are working toward a goal, they typically have a burst of motivation early and then slump in the middle, where they are most likely to stall out. For instance, in one study observant Jews were more likely to light a menorah on the first and last nights of Hanukkah than on the other six nights, even though the religious tradition is to light candles for eight successive days. In another experiment, participants who were working on a paper-shape-cutting task cut more corners in the middle of the project than they did on their initial and final shapes.

Fortunately, research has uncovered several ways to fight this pattern. I refer to the first as “short middles.” If you break your goal into smaller subgoals—say, weekly instead of quarterly sales targets—there’s less time to succumb to that pesky slump.

Giving advice may be an even more effective way to overcome motivational deficits.

A second strategy is to change the way you think about the progress you’ve achieved. When we’ve already made headway, the goal seems within reach, and we tend to increase our effort. For example, consumers in loyalty programs tend to spend more when they’re closer to earning a reward. You can take advantage of that tendency by thinking of your starting point as being further back in the past; maybe the project began not the first time you took action but the time it was first proposed.

Another mental trick involves focusing on what you’ve already done up to the midpoint of a task and then turning your attention to what you have left to do. My research has found that this shift in perspective can increase motivation. For example, in a frequent-buyer promotion, emphasizing finished steps (“you’ve completed two of 10 purchases”) increased customers’ purchases at the beginning, and emphasizing missing steps (“you are two purchases away from a free reward”) spurred consumption as buyers neared the goal.

This tactic can work for rote tasks (such as sending out 40 thank-you notes) as well as for more-qualitative goals (becoming an expert pianist). The person writing the notes can gain motivation from reminding herself how many she’s sent until she passes 20; then she should count down how many she has left to do. In the same way, a novice pianist should focus on all the scales and skills she has acquired in her early stages of development; then, as she improves, focus on the remaining technical challenges (arpeggios, trills and tremolos, and so on) she needs to master.

Harness the Influence of Others

Humans are social creatures. We constantly look around to see what others are doing, and their actions influence our own. Even sitting next to a high-performing employee can increase your output. But when it comes to motivation, this dynamic is more complex. When we witness a colleague speeding through a task that leaves us frustrated, we respond in one of two ways: Either we’re inspired and try to copy that behavior, or we lose motivation on the assumption that we could leave the task to our peer. This is not entirely irrational: Humans have thrived as a species through individual specialization and by making the most of their comparative advantages.

The problem is that, especially at work, we can’t always delegate. But we can still use social influence to our advantage. One rule is to never passively watch ambitious, efficient, successful coworkers; there’s too much risk that it will be demotivating. Instead, talk to these peers about what they’re trying to accomplish with their hard work and why they would recommend doing it. My research shows that when a friend endorses a product, people are more likely to buy it, but they aren’t likely to if they simply learn that the friend bought the product. Listening to what your role models say about their goals can help you find extra inspiration and raise your own sights.

Interestingly, giving advice rather than asking for it may be an even more effective way to overcome motivational deficits, because it boosts confidence and thereby spurs action. In a recent study I found that people struggling to achieve a goal like finding a job assumed that they needed tips from experts to succeed. In fact, they were better served by offering their wisdom to other job seekers, because when they did so, they laid out concrete plans they could follow themselves, which have been shown to increase drive and achievement.

A final way to harness positive social influence is to recognize that the people who will best motivate you to accomplish certain tasks are not necessarily those who do the tasks well. Instead, they’re folks who share a big-picture goal with you: close friends and family or mentors. Thinking of those people and our desire to succeed on their behalf can help provide the powerful intrinsic incentives we need to reach our goals. A woman may find drudgery at work rewarding if she feels she is providing an example for her daughter; a man may find it easier to stick to his fitness routine if it helps him feel more vibrant when he is with his friends.

CONCLUSION

In positive psychology, flow is defined as a mental state in which someone is fully immersed, with energized focus and enjoyment, in an activity. Alas, that feeling can be fleeting or elusive in everyday life. More often we feel like Baron Munchausen in the swamp—struggling to move forward in pursuit of our goals. In those situations it can help to tap the power of intrinsic and extrinsic motivators, set incentives carefully, turn our focus either behind or ahead depending on how close we are to the finish, and harness social influence. Self-motivation is one of the hardest skills to learn, but it’s critical to your success.

Source: HBR

Author: Ayelet Fishbach

 

Ways to stay mentally healthy

Former TV actor and popular Indian film star, Sushant Singh Rajput((21 January 1986 – 14 June 2020)), who entertained cinema lovers all across with his innumerable performances sent shock waves across the country with the news of his suicide.The reason behind him taking this extreme step is not clearly known, however, early reports allege that he was suffering from depression for the past 6 months. This incident highlights that important part of keeping fit and healthy is to take care of your own mental health. There are plenty of things you can do to help make sure you keep yourself mentally healthy and come out of depression. 

Stay mentally healthy by following these simple steps

Connect with others and be sociable 

Make an effort to maintain good relationships and talk to people whenever you get the chance. Having friends is important not just for your self-esteem, but also for providing support when you're not feeling too great. Research has found that talking to others for just ten minutes can improve memory and test scores!. You should develop and keep strong relationships with people who will support you. Knowing you are valued by others is important for helping you think more positively. Plus, being more trusting can increase your emotional well-being because as you get better at finding the positive aspects in other people, you become better at recognizing your own. 

Play! Plan something fun!  

Make time every day to enjoy something you really like to do.  Be silly and laugh – laughter can recharge you.

Ask for help

Everyone hits bumps in the road. Ask a friend, co-worker or teacher for help and advice. One of the most important ways to keep yourself mentally healthy is to recognize when you're not feeling good, and to know when to ask for help. There's no shame in asking someone for support if you're feeling low or stressed. Everyone goes through patches where they don't feel as good as they should. 

Take care of yourself and take proper rest

It’s easier to feel happy if your body feels good. Exercise. Enjoy a good breakfast. Drink water, have a healthy snack and eat a balanced diet.  Physical and mental health are tied together. Be good to your body.

Sleep restores both your mind and body.  Aim for 7 hours of sleep at least. Go to bed and get up at a regular time each day. One hour before bedtime turn off your phone and computer. Take some time to relax and wind down from your day. If you have trouble sleeping, only lay in bed for ½ hour then get up and go into another room, or sit in a chair and read a book or watch TV (no computer or phone as the blue light can keep you awake) for a ½ hour, then try to go back to sleep again for a ½ hour.

Exercise

Your body releases stress-relieving and mood-boosting endorphins before and after you work out, which is why exercise is a powerful antidote to stress, anxiety, and depression. Look for small ways to add activity to your day, like taking the stairs instead of the elevator or going on a short walk. To get the most benefit, aim for at least 30 minutes of exercise daily, and try to do it outdoors.

Tell yourself something positive

Research shows that how you think about yourself can have a powerful effect on how you feel. When we perceive our self and our life negatively, we can end up viewing experiences in a way that confirms that notion. Instead, practice using words that promote feelings of self-worth and personal power. For example, instead of saying, "I'm such a loser. I won't get the job because I tanked in the interview," try, "I didn't do as well in the interview as I would have liked, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to get the job."

Think about today

Too often we are thinking about the past or planning for the future instead of living in the present.  Focus on living “in the moment.”  Outside, notice the sun or wind on your face, or feel your feet on the pavement. Inside, feel your body in the chair, or your feet on the floor. Make a real effort to be aware of the world around you today. It is important for your mental health.

Being mindful of the present moment allows us to let go of negative or difficult emotions from past experiences that weigh us down. Start by bringing awareness to routine activities, such as taking a shower, eating lunch, or walking home. 

Give back

Volunteer for a cause or an issue you care about. Help out a co-worker, neighbor, or friend. Find ways to contribute, it can help you feel good about yourself and who you are in the world. Research shows that being helpful to others has a beneficial effect on how you feel about yourself. Being helpful and kind—and valued for what you do—is a great way to build self-esteem. The meaning you find in helping others will enrich and expand your life.

Avoid alcohol, smoking and drugs

Drinking and smoking aren't things which we always associate with withdrawal symptoms, but they can cause some which impact on your mental health. When you've had a few drinks you can feel more depressed and anxious the next day, and it can be harder to concentrate. Excessive drinking for prolonged periods can leave you with a thiamine deficiency. Thiamine is important for our brain function and a deficiency can lead to severe memory problems, motor (coordination) problems, confusion and eye problems.  If you smoke, between cigarettes your body and brain go into withdrawal which makes you irritable and anxious.

Sources

https://www.psychologytoday.com/

https://nycwell.cityofnewyork.uk/

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Are Digital Organizations Better at Overcoming COVID?

Experts from Harvard Business School's Digital Initiative discuss how technology is helping leading companies gain an edge during the coronavirus pandemic.

Government leaders rushing to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in March gave companies little time to shift to an all-virtual workforce. Ready or not, many businesses had to become more digital.

But true digital transformation takes far more than a Zoom account. Using everything from virtual supply chains and people analytics to artificial intelligence-based models and automated biotechnology research, organizations further along the digital curve are responding differently than those still wondering how to evolve. The digital technology embedded throughout their operations gives them a unique advantage.

With that in mind, we asked faculty associated with Harvard Business School’s Digital Initiative how technology is setting the most successful organizations apart during the coronavirus crisis. Here’s what they said:

Lauren H. Cohen: Leading companies use technology to be more nimble

HBS Professor Lauren Cohen

It pays to be nuanced here. A large portion of the challenges facing businesses are industrywide (and worldwide). For instance, hotels have government-imposed limitations on the services they can offer. These restrictions bind equivalently for the most, and least, technologically advanced hotel in the industry.

That said, technology will be most powerfully utilized during the pandemic by those firms who apply it organization-wide to create more nimble, efficient organizations, more capable of managing the factors of production (e.g., labor, capital, supplier inputs, etc.). These firms will emerge as the long-run winners, and those firms that count their future in decades, instead of months or years.

Lauren H. Cohen is the L.E. Simmons Professor of Business Administration.

Shane M. Greenstein: Robust infrastructure helps companies scale faster

HBS Professor Shane Greenstein 

To begin, some part of this crisis can’t be solved by technology, no matter how good. Anybody in retail or entertainment or education has a difficult situation to handle. Anybody delivering medical services faces an entirely different and unprecedented set of problems.

For business that remain open, an old canard applies: Nobody notices information technology until something breaks. This crisis required rapid and large reallocation of modern information technology, with particular links to communications. Some of it broke.

The best organizations have had the ability to expand existing capacity because the technology did not break under the strain. They had a robust configuration that enabled new purposes, new software deployments, and new coordinated routines across teams.

The best can use this as an opportunity to experiment and learn where technology can deliver service or enable more flexible work arrangements.

Shane M. Greenstein is the Martin Marshall Professor of Business Administration and co-chair of the HBS Digital Initiative.

Ayelet Israeli: Technology can’t succeed without ingenuity and adaptability

HBS professor Ayelet Israeli 

I don’t think it’s about technology. I think that leadership, agility, adaptability, compassion, and ingenuity will set the most successful organizations apart. State of the art technology will not be successful in response to a crisis without these additional components.

With them, organizations will figure out how to leverage technology (not necessarily their own) to achieve their goals.

Ayelet Israeli is an assistant professor of business administration.

Ariel D. Stern: For leaders, digital tools expand and enhance services

HBS professor Ariel Stern 

Some of the most successful organizations will use digital technology not only to replace services that were previously provided but to augment and expand their offerings.

Telemedicine is a terrific example of this. Many health care providers have already moved to virtual visits and ramped up new types of services such as remote-patient monitoring using connected digital tools.

Ariel D. Stern (@arieldora) is the Poronui Associate Professor of Business Administration.

David B. Yoffie: Software can ensure stability in turbulence

HBS Professor David Yoffie 

Marc Andreessen famously said about a decade ago that “software is eating the world.” For most technology-intensive companies today, that prediction proved prescient. For software-focused organizations, there should be fewer layoffs and product delays.

While declining demand will remain challenging for everyone, social distancing can be achieved because disperse teams can build and distribute software from remote locations around the world. The massive productivity losses that are afflicting most companies today should be relatively modest in organizations that build and manage their businesses around software.

David B. Yoffie is the Max and Doris Starr Professor of International Business Administration.

Source: Harvard Business School 11 Jun,2020

Stay Motivated When Feedback Is Scarce

While many of us have worked remotely for years (myself included), for many people, the shift to working while physically distanced from colleagues and managers requires some getting used to. Benefits like wearing pajama bottoms to work and going for a mid-day run can be mitigated by the costs to your motivation, self-confidence, and self-esteem when you no longer hear “you aced it!” from your boss on the walk back from a client meeting, or when you can’t get a high-five in the coffee room from a teammate — or even a smile from the receptionist on your way to the elevator.

Reduced feedback, diminished external encouragement, and decreased interpersonal interaction don’t just take an emotional toll; they can take a toll on our work outcomes as well. As Daniel Pink, author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, says in his TED Talk, “When we make progress and get better at something, it is inherently motivating. In order for people to make progress, they have to get feedback and information on how they’re doing.” And, for many newly remote workers, that’s just not happening often enough — if at all.

And while many leaders are taking steps to improve their remote feedback skills, we each need to take responsibility for developing our own reserves of confidence and motivation to keep us moving forward. “Effective self-motivation is one of the main things that distinguishes high-achieving professionals from everyone else,” professor Ayelet Fishbach writes in her article, “How to Keep Working When You’re Just Not Feeling It.”

Here are three strategies you can use to boost your own motivation and confidence:

Challenge your catastrophic thinking

In my book, coauthored with Sophie Riegel, Overcoming Overthinking: 36 Ways to Tame Anxiety for Work, School, and Life, we highlighted two ways of thinking that are the hallmark of catastrophic thinking: overestimating unlikely probabilities and overestimating devastating consequences. In the absence of regular feedback, we can start to make up stories that undermine our self-confidence and security. That can happen in the best of times — and right now is not the best of times.

When you start to think to yourself, “I’m not hearing much from my boss…am I about to be furloughed — or fired?” you need to challenge yourself with more rational thinking (even if being furloughed or fired is a possibility).

The first step is to name your catastrophic thinking for what it is and the impact it makes. When your mind starts to wander down those dark alleys, say to yourself (out loud if it helps), “I am having catastrophic thoughts, and these don’t serve me at all.” Or, “I am making up a terrible story, and that’s all it is — a story.” Or “These thoughts make me feel anxious and I can change them.”

The second step is to remind yourself that even if the worst-case scenario should happen, you have the resources you need to deal with it. Take a few minutes to list all of the inner resources you have available (your resilience, determination, sense of humor, and so on) as well as the external resources you have available (your family, your friends, your network) that you could lean into if and when you need to.

The third step is to find the core of truth in your catastrophic thinking that needs real attention from you. If you’re constantly worrying that you’re going to be fired, ask yourself what’s actually going on at work (limited feedback, for example) that’s raising your level of anxiety. In The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence, security expert Gavin de Becker writes that we have an intuitive sense of when we are in danger — but that being afraid all the time doesn’t actually protect us from danger.

What does? Making a concrete, actual plan to address what’s worrying you — or let it go.

Draw from your “portfolio of selves”

According to Blake Ashforth, a leading expert on identity at Arizona State University, in his book, Role Transitions in Organizational Life: An Identity-Based Perspective, our sense of self is largely rooted in how other people perceive us. This is what makes limited feedback and fewer kudos so challenging for many of us. In the absence of hearing, “I really value your creative input” or even “we couldn’t have won this pitch without you!” we tend to question who we are and the value we bring. “Am I really a team player,” you may think to yourself, “if I’m not hearing much from my team?”

For each person we engage with — a colleague, a boss, a friend, a child — we have a different “self” who shows up. As Ashforth writes, “A particular role calls forth a particular self, such that the individual is actually a portfolio of selves.” This portfolio of selves allows us to be the person we need to be at a particular moment to feel better, and even to rise to meet a particular challenge or tricky situation.

“One of the coping strategies is to think about yourself as having multiple identities,” author and Wharton professor Adam Grant contends in his podcast, WorkLife. While you may not be hearing from your boss right now about your “team player” self, you can boost your self-confidence by thinking about all of the positive, helpful, contributing “selves” you are to the people around you.

So, if you’re feeling insecure about yourself as a team player, for example, because you’re feeling unnoticed by your boss, you can boost your self-confidence by thinking about all of the positive, helpful, contributing “selves” you are to the people around you. Think about at least 5 other people in your life who hold you in high regard. Write down their names and how they see you — for example, “My colleague Wendy sees me as a reliable advisor”; “My client Sam sees me as a strategic thinker.”

Leverage our reciprocity bias

In Robert B. Cialdini’s timeless book, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, he cites “reciprocity” as the first principle of persuasion. In other words, we are wired to treat other people as they have treated us. This drives us to return favors (or slights) and treat others well (or poorly). It’s also what motivates us to pay back debts (or not — if that’s what the other person has done to us).

 

When it comes to getting more positive feedback, a boost of cheerleading, or even a friendly check in, our best bet may be to give it to get it. Each week, reach out to a few of your colleagues, managers, direct reports, and even clients and vendors to share a positive observation about them, let them know that you’re thinking of them, remind them about that they impact they have on you, and even share that you miss seeing them. And then, be ready to receive all of that back in return.

As Malcolm Forbes said, “A little reciprocity goes a long way.”

Of course, while you wait for reciprocal kudos to come your way, you may want to simply ask directly for what you need. Saying to your manager or teammate, “I know that this isn’t business as usual, but I realize that I still want and value your feedback. It feels especially important to me now that we’re working together in a different way. Can we set aside 5-10 minutes in our next scheduled meeting to share some feedback with me?” (And be prepared to share your feedback as well.)

Working remotely may reduce our physical and emotional proximity, but it doesn’t have to undermine our motivation, confidence, and self-esteem.

Source: HBR 02 June, 2020

 

Why Women Are the Future of B2B Sales

Although women make up just over half of the college-educated workforce, they hold less than one third of B2B sales jobs. According to 2019 Bureau of Labor Statistics data, women are underrepresented in B2B sales in most industries, including wholesale and manufacturing (27%) and financial services (30%).

Yet research shows that women salespeople often outperform men. A 2019 study by incentive solution provider Xactly reported that 86% of women achieved quota, compared to 78% of men. The B2B sales landscape has been shifting in ways that favor women in sales roles. We think the Covid-19 pandemic will lead to a step change in this trend.

The Changing Sales Environment Favors Women

Research by our consulting firm, ZS, shows women succeed in sales by excelling at different capabilities than men. The research looked at performance of 500+ salespeople across several industries, including financial services, industrial services, and health care. The assessment used a framework we developed that identifies seven capabilities that differentiate high-performing salespeople from average-performing salespeople.

Both high-performing women and high-performing men used all seven capabilities to some extent. But high-performing women were more likely to emphasize connecting, shaping solutions, and collaborating, while high-performing men relied more on improving and driving outcomes. For analyzing and influencing, there was no measurable difference between the genders.

Today’s digitally savvy, self-sufficient, and more informed buyers have new expectations of salespeople. Buyers expect salespeople to add value beyond what digital tools provide. To do this, salespeople need capabilities for collaborating with customers and shaping solutions. These capabilities, focused on addressing customer needs, have become more important for sales success than persuasion capabilities, such as influencing customers and driving outcomes. And this plays to women’s strengths.

Covid-19 has put the deep freeze on many industries. As we emerge from the pandemic and commerce thrives again, the shift to remote selling using video and digital channels will have lasting impact on sales. This will boost the power of women, as capabilities at which women excel align perfectly with the morphing world of sales and the evolving needs of customers.

Consider the traditionally male-dominated industry of financial investment sales. Technology makes customers (investors) less reliant on financial advisors for many needs. “Robo-advisor” computer algorithms can analyze investments and make portfolio recommendations. Investors can execute their own financial transactions online. Yet even highly self-sufficient investors are likely to turn to advisors for help with longer-term financial and estate planning needs. Decisions about these issues are complex and emotional. Advisors create value by listening, empathizing, and sharing perspective to facilitate agreement among family members. The capabilities at which women excel — connecting, shaping solutions, and collaborating — have become increasingly important for success in a financial advisor role.

The skills of women are also becoming more relevant in the fast-growing, once male-dominated field of high-tech sales. Increasing proportions of business technology sales are subscription-based (such as SaaS products) or consumption-based (such as cloud services), rather than one-time purchases. Most value comes not with the initial sale, but rather over time as customers benefit from the purchase and expand purchasing. The trend has created growth in the number of customer success managers (CSMs) — salespeople who encourage customer loyalty and retention by helping customers realize ongoing value. CSMs succeed by connecting, collaborating and shaping solutions; once again, these are capabilities that are women’s strengths. Although women hold only a quarter of high-tech sales jobs, career data sources report that at least 50% and as high as 70% of CSMs are women. And as of April 2020, women were leading global customer success teams at some major tech companies, including Oracle and Salesforce.

Accelerated by the Covid-19 crisis, salespeople are traveling less and relying more on video and other digital communication channels. The shift to less travel aligns with the needs of both men and women who want to balance career and family needs.

Further, as more women take on business buying roles, female salespeople can build stronger relationships with the changing customer base.

Boosting the Number of Women in Sales

Future sales success for many companies in the rebounding economy will hinge on attracting and retaining more women for sales roles. In traditionally male-dominated industries, this can require eliminating the perception of sales as an old boys’ club and creating a more female-friendly culture. Several programs are helping sales organizations attract and retain more women. Programs like these have helped our consulting firm, ZS, attract and retain more female professionals.

Diversity-focused recruiting. Many companies are making gender diversity an explicit goal of sales recruiting, committing to specific objectives for sourcing, selecting and attracting women. Companies are reaching out to sources of female job applicants, such as professional associations for women in sales. They are making job descriptions more attractive to women by toning down masculine language, for example, replacing words like “aggressive” and “compete” with gender-neutral language such as “customer-focused” and “succeed.” Job descriptions are also emphasizing problem-solving over client entertainment responsibilities. And by including more women sales leaders on job candidate interview panels, companies are getting diverse perspective about candidates’ qualifications while reinforcing a female-friendly culture that attracts women applicants.

Female mentorship programs. A financial service firm fostered community among women in its male-dominated sales organization by matching each new female salesperson with a female mentor in the sales organization. Mentors helped salespeople get acclimated and answered questions about topics females were reluctant to discuss with male colleagues (e.g. traveling alone, having dinner with male clients, maternity leave). The firm also hosted “lunch and learn” sessions where female salespeople talked openly about challenges and solutions. Women built relationships with others they looked up to and felt comfortable confiding in.

Better coaching. Companies are taking steps to improve coaching of female salespeople, especially by male mentors. This requires breaking down stigmas for male-female mentorship relationships and ensuring women get the same objective feedback their male colleagues would.

More promotions for women. In the Xactly insights study, female-led sales teams had roughly equal numbers of men and women, while male-led teams were more than three-quarters men. Promoting more women to sales management and leadership roles is a clear path to attracting and retaining more female salespeople. A good way to develop female leaders is to champion women for stretch roles and responsibilities that test and develop their managerial skills.

Gender diversity in sales is not just about social justice. In today’s world, it is about increased performance. The solutions here are a start, but there is more work to be done. One key challenge is addressing the perception that sales requires comfort with risk, such as rejection and income uncertainty, which discourages some women from pursuing sales careers. As customer expectations of salespeople continue to evolve, attracting and retaining more women for sales roles will be a key to future sales force success.

Source: HBR 28 May,2020