So what are you paid for?

A couple of years ago, a software developer of mine asked me why aren't people who get to do harder work get paid more? His argument was that people like construction workers, miners, and those doing dirty jobs should be paid a premium primarily because their job was tougher and more labor intensive. This got me thinking really hard to come up with an answer because to a certain degree, his argument was logical.

Given the fact that my wife, who's a domestic diva, complains about the household chores and doesn't get paid for it, makes the argument more pressing.

If you take a look at the common stereotype we have for top executives, playing golf as part of "business", attending social events, and even having huge corner offices with nothing but papers on their desks to sign (whereas coders and testers have half-a-cube filled w/ source code print-outs, test reports, and user manuals) - we can but only think that this does not seem right. If you work more, you should get paid more, right?

WRONG.

So what are you paid for?

The short and simple truth is that people are paid based on their ability to think and decide. That's it. Period.

Ok. Step back a bit and look at each job you can think of and the level of thinking and decision making involved for each job and relate that to how much each job is being paid. Of course there will be variances here and there, including nuances such as hazard conditions and market demands, but the general trend is towards the notion that the more you think and decide in your job, the better is your paycheck.

This is why software developers are paid higher than construction workers. This is why a doctor is paid more than a nursing aide. This is why people who do menial tasks, such as washing dishes at the local fast-food pays significantly less than a heart-surgeon doing a triple by-pass surgery. This is why you are most likely paid less than your pointy haired boss.

On the bright side of things, Now that you are aware of this general truth - take it to yourself to accept more levels of responsibility from your company. Do not be afraid to make the call. Show management that you can think and decide - and the moolah will come.

On Negotiating

My professor once asked, "Who makes the best negotiators in the world?" The whole class was dumbfounded. "Someone that can influence you to agree on something without you losing trust and respect on the other person. Someone that takes your best interest at hand, but at the end of the day, she gets what she wants." No one in a class of twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings knew the answer.

"It's your mothers." said my professor with a smirk on his face. Then it all hit us like a brick on a wall. This man was correct.

Negotiating is an art. Let no one tell you otherwise. A lot of project managers fail at being project managers because they lack the ability to negotiate. What could have been a simple trade of needs ends up in a stalemate simply because project managers cannot get what they want out of the other party. This could be with the customer, stakeholder, staff, suppliers, etc. It is ironic to think though, that negotiating is one of the key activities we do each day as an individual. We negotiate when we do shopping... We negotiatie when we order food... We negotiate with our work mates... heck we even negotiate the roads when we travel.

While it would be fun to write all that I know about negotiation, the truth is that its such a broad topic and the only time I really appreciated it was when I actually started using everything that I learned about negotiation. (I give credit btw to Mr. Joey Estreta, my professor who gave us the opportunity to practice negotiation in his class).

Nonetheless, here are the top three things you should always remember about Negotiating.

1. Know your Interest.
Interest is the "why" of negotiating. Before sitting at the negotiating table, ask yourself..."why am i doing this?" Interest is the ulitimate goal behind the negotiation. It is the need that has to be met. Interest is different from Position. Position is the "what" of the negotiation. Position is that which you are requesting from the other party to satisfy your interests. Telling your dad, "I want a car" is a position. Chances are, you'ld get a resounding "No" in record speed. But what is the real reason why you are asking for a car? Is it because you are having trouble going home late? Is it because you want to impress the girls in school? Is it because your allowance ain't enough for the ride home? Anyone of these reasons could be your Interest. And if you look real hard, you'll notice that there are several ways to go about finding the win-win situation. Knowing your Interest opens up several possible positive avenues of resolution. A position is typically just one of those avenues. Your dad can probably lend you his car on date-nights, or he can just increase your allowance, or you can ask your professor for a change in schedule so that you don't need to go home late.

2. Know the other party's Interest
It is equally important to understand the other party's interest as much as yours. This gives you more ways to satisfy their needs without necessarily putting you on a disadvantage. A lot of people managers fail badly on this area. I know of a scenario (actually a lot of scenarios) wherein an employee left the company and the manager simply failed to realize the interest of the employee. He was a pretty good employee, his skill was rare within his organization, and he has served the company for a good number of years. The manager kept insisting that he cannot give him a pay raise for various reasons hence the employee decided to go. Yet, what the manager failed to realise what that a pay increase was only the position that the employee was taking. The real interest was the fact that he wanted to be recognized for his efforts in the company. He was highly utilized, yet his accomplishments did not seem to pay off anywhere. Money was only secondary. Having a pay increase was only a manifestation of his need for recognition.

3. Know your BATNA
No this is not Robin's man-friend. BATNA stands for Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement. To put it simply, if the negotiation does not push thru as planned, what is my other alternative? A big risk during negotiation is that we settle for something less than what we want or expect. This is not necessarily a bad thing because this could in fact be the best available settlement for both parties. But sometimes we settle less than what we could have elsewhere. Knowing your BATNA increases your ability to negotiate since it makes you aware of your alternatives. Remember: There is always a BATNA. At its very least, your BATNA is your ability to walk away from the negotiation. A good example of BATNA is if you are negotiating with a prospective employer on a job offer. Your BATNA is your other existing offers (if there are any) or just staying with your current employer. You need to constantly measure what is on the table with your BATNA. If the offer is less favorable than your BATNA, then why proceed? Sometimes too, it is good to inform the other party of your BATNA. It makes them aware of your Least Acceptable Result (LAR).

These are the three most important things to know during a negotiation. But knowing this is just the first step. Being able to master the various negotiating techniques and formulating a negotiating strategy is also crucial in achieving a win-win agreement.

This is a nice link on the various negotiation techniques out there (http://changingminds.org/disciplines/negotiation/tactics/tactics.htm). Remember, it takes practice before one becomes proficient in the art of negotitation.

Passion and Commitment

If you work for a man in heavens name
Work for him
Speak well of him
And stand by the institution he represents
Remember that an ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness
If you must growl, condemn, and eternally find fault
Why? Resign your position
And when you are on the outside
Damn it to your hearts content
But as long as you are part of this institution
Do not condemn it!
For if you do so
The first high wind that comes along
Will blow you away
And probably, you will never know why

I bet some of you have heard of this literary work. I actually know this by heart and wrote down the words without skipping a beat. This is one of the few stuff I needed to remember while joining my good 'ol college org. Looking back, these words have shaped my professional career in the realm of employer-employee relationships. I have always had the stand that if you commit yourself to something, you should exert all efforts to make it succeed. I believe a lot of my colleagues can attest to that.

One thing I like about my current employer is the value of Passion and Commitment. Amongst all the corporate values, I find this the most important - and I consistently tell my staff about it. This is the key ingredient to a top performer.

Then again, Passion and Commitment, like everything else... fades.

There comes a point in time when one loses the passion and becomes less committed to the work. This is typically caused by a fork in the road, wherein both the employer and the employee start seeing differences in direction. This is NOT a bad thing. Its just the way things are. You will not always have the same plans and directions as that of your company, boss, stakeholders, and even your staff. You will not always see things eye-to-eye. If it were so, everyone would be working for the same company 'til they die.

What is bad however, is to force oneself in a situation that he is not agreeable with. You cannot walk to the left if you really want to go right. It's just not right (pun intended). It's ok to influence, discuss, and dialogue to come to an agreement... BUT when it becomes clear that plans and directions are different, then its time to go. You will only be doing a disservice to your employer if you decide to stay but not agree. It will only cause strife, both to you and your employer (and even other employees) if this setup is maintained. This results to a lose-lose situation.

It is good to remember that while you may have differences with your employer, there are a lot of like-minded employers out there who have the same vision and direction as you. Its just a matter of meeting them down the road.

Right now, I know a lot of folks have this in mind. Hence I decided to write about it. And I do hope no one gets blown away by the first high wind that comes along.

The Halo Effect

To put it simply, the Halo Effect is an action done by a manager wherein he does a sweeping generalization of a person's overall performance based on the merits of a single activity. Another form of the Halo Effect is wherein the a subordinate is evaluated based on the most recent events alone.(Its anti-thesis is the Horns Effect). The Halo Effect is something that MUST (again - MUST) be avoided by managers, both people and project managers, at all times. This is because it skews perception of a person towards the specific activity.

To visualize the topic, lets just say Consultant A just made an amazing presentation that helped seal a deal with a customer. Everybody was happy, most especially Consultant A's manager. Come performance evaluation time, Consultant A was given high ratings amidst the fact that he did not perform as expected in the months preceeding the presentation, and was even frequently absent at the office. Consultant A did not also follow prescribed protocol and set meetings with the customer without the prior approval of his manager.

We all know that managers should be fair and objective when dealing with their subordinates, but the fact of the matter that it is hard to do such a thing if:
1. You don't know your subordinates that much.
2. You have no memory of prior activities and achievements (or failures) for that subordinate.
3. Activities performed by your subordinates are valued (or devalued) inappropriately. (i.e. they are perceived higher or lower than what they are really worth).

Getting caught up in the Halo Effect would also create negative impressions on the manager. He would most likely be viewed as playing favorites, narrow-minded, unfair to the team, or even discriminatory. This is definitely not a situation that managers want to be as it would cause tension and lower the teams morale.

So how do you avoid the Halo Effect? Here are a few tips.

1. Document subordinates performance regularly. - Try writing down both good points and not so good points of the subordinate. Even small but important items need to be noted down. More importantly, do this on a regular basis. By regular, it means more than the frequency of doing performance evaluations. If performance evaluations are done quarterly, write down performance notes monthly (or even weekly if possible). This takes out the impact of the time element wherein we can only recall the most recent event since the events prior to the most recent are properly documented and can be referred to.

2. Establish standards within the team. - One of the things that a subordinate hates to do is to guess what his manager wants and expects from him. It would end up as a hit or miss situation and ultimately frustration on the part of the subordinates. A manager should make the effort to inform his team of what he expects of them. By establishing the standards, it also provides the boundaries of expected behaviours. This also gives the team substantial info on what factors they are being evaluated on.

3. Provide feedback early on. - Do not wait until the actual performance evaluation kicks in to provide feedback. At this point, everything is just after the fact. Both Positive and Negative behaviour should be fed back to the subordinate immediately after an activity has been performed. Not only does this give the best impact, but more importantly because it gives the subordinate the notion that performance is evaluated fairly and directly. Official Performance evaluations are only a summary of what is being done on a regular basis.

Always remember, the purpose of evaluating a subordinate is to ensure that they are performing at their best. This means influencing them towards the right behaviours and against those that are counterproductive to the project and the organization. It is therefore a very important activity that must not be neglected or downplayed by Managers, nor is it an opportunity to get back at people who you personally dislike in your team.

CYA is not the only PM technique

One of the first acronyms I learned as a Project Manager before PERT, CPI, SPI, EV, etc(thanks to my old bald headed boss) was CYA. For the uninitiated in the world of real-life Project Management (as opposed to conceptual PM studies), CYA stands for "Cover Your Ass". Yes, I know it sounds like an awful way of managing projects but it really transcends more than just a self serving activity.

When you "Cover Your Ass", you technically ensure that all project decisions, activities, and concerns end up in the right person. Being in the middle of the project traffic, a PM is very susceptible to having issues land on his lap without the means or authority to resolve such an issue. By the nature of his role, he is always exposed to being the scapegoat when a project goes south.

Truth is, CYA is a good PM technique if used in the right and appropriate manner. However, this should only be done when absolutely necessary and not ALL the time to a point that it becomes habitual.

Project Managers have a level of responsibility. In fact they are responsible for everything that happens in the project, whether they like it or not - and whether they caused it or not. It is imperative that the PM can take the heat when heat is present. Simpy doing a CYA to save one's skin shows a lack of character on the Project Manager. It is also unfair to those whom the buck is passed on to.

Amongst the various types of Managers, it is the Project Manager who has to be the one most exposed to change. A Project Manager is a Change Manager. Because of this, he has to be able to manage the changes that impact people. When people are impacted, sh!t hits the ceiling, and when that happens - the Project Manager is in the middle being hit on all sides.