Alan Chng
Vice-president
for South and South-east Asian region,
Canon

IN these turbulent economic times, I often think of myself as a captain sailing in the middle of a stormy sea, where the maps and compasses which have guided me before, now work differently.

At times like this, I like to go back to the basics and reconsider the thinking behind theories, as I believe the thought process is still valid even when the hypotheses no longer apply.

For example, in 1943, an American psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed a theory called Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs*. I often go back to this model as a way of understanding how my company is meeting the needs of its most important asset - our employees.

A great deal has been talked about Generation Y and how to manage them. The real challenge is managing a mixed workforce and providing a platform for a fulfilling career path that works across age groups. Mature employees are responsible, problem solvers and experienced with wide networks. Younger employees, on the other hand, are tech savvy, enthusiastic and bright, and most importantly, they are needed in order to lead the company in the future.

In my view, an organisation needs individuals from both Generation X and Y to weather this economic situation and emerge as an even stronger player when the storm subsides.

Identify your team's satisfiers and dissatisfiers

With generation X-ers continuing their search for the next fulfilling opportunity and generation Y-ers entering the workforce, there is a risk for conflict that can negatively affect an organisation's work environment and business performance.

I deal with this by identifying employees' needs and segmenting them into two separate groups - potential satisfiers (motivators) and potential dissatisfiers (demotivators).

Some potential satisfiers (motivators) that I capitalise on or work toward include:

• Recognising employees' achievements
  
• Providing advancement opportunities
  
• Sharing job responsibilities
  
• Identifying strengths rather than weaknesses
  
• Providing a conducive and healthy work environment

Some potential dissatisfiers (demotivators) that need to be identified to achieve minimum negative impact include:

• Strict company policies that don't take into account individual needs
  
• Relentless supervision or micromanaging
  
• Poor work conditions
  
• Internal conflicts
  
• Poor job security
  
• Poor job status
• Perceived salary unfairness

Self actualisation

When it comes to managing a team of people, I always take a moment to go back to these basic concepts to constantly re-evaluate how as a leader, I can help my team to reach self-actualisation or what Maslow considers to be the pinnacle of human need.

According to Wikipedia, Maslow describes self-actualisation as a person's need to be and do that which the person was 'born to do'. As an example - 'a musician must make music, an artist must paint, and a poet must write'.

These self-actualisation needs make themselves felt in signs of restlessness. The person feels on edge, tense and lacking something. If a person is hungry, unsafe, not loved or accepted, or lacking self-esteem, it is very easy to know what the person is restless about. It is not always clear what a person wants when there is a need for self-actualisation.

As managers, I believe it is our responsibilities to help people under our care achieve these needs as best as we can. Here are some of the areas I always pay attention to:

Is the vessel sound?

Are business needs and objectives really understood by everyone? Do people really believe and have motivations to achieve their goals?

Do people understand their roles and responsibilities?

Since people could have different beliefs, ideas or perceptions, it is important to let people buy into your ideas and for you as the leader to buy into theirs.

Do people understand the impact of their contributions to the organisation?

On board a ship, as with a company, people need to understand the intricate relationships that make them indispensable to the organisation. Do people understand the intricate relationship between self, colleagues and the company and that each entity depends on each other for harmony and success?

To be able to provide a work environment where fairness and trust are constantly being fostered and nurtured, one must be ready to promote intelligent risk taking, devote time and patience to coach, guide and allow mistakes to be made - after all, mistakes are the mother of all success.

This article references Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. First published in 1943 in his paper, A Theory of Human Motivation

This article was first published in The Business Times.