This work refers to the results of an exercise validated for more than a decade by the author in trainings and workshops related to the function of Installation and Orientation of HR developed with executives, specialists and young managers from the business field, where reflections are exposed They are based on the positive or negative influence that a boss can have on the future performance of his work team.
What was the influence of your first boss on the person you are? How was your entry process to the organization when you took your first steps? Did your first boss support you, teach you, listen to you, pass on your experience, give you confidence and prepare you to face challenging tasks? Or did you receive it as a necessary evil, ignore it, assign pedestrian tasks, did not listen to it and underestimated it, making it sometimes insecure and unmotivated?
It is necessary to emphasize that the results of an investigation designed with all instruments for the collection, analysis and processing of information are not being presented, but if the results of the experience of an exercise validated for many years are to be shared, which has always been considered very thought-provoking and thoughtful by all parties involved.
Introduction
More than a decade ago, I began my first experiences in consulting work in the business world, being part of a multidisciplinary team at the Conrado Piña Company and later, I had the opportunity to be part of the work team of Dr. Jorge E. Pérez Narbona, considered in the opinion of many of the colleagues who worked with him, a guru in the implementation of the Collaborative Integral Consultancy (CIC) in Cuba and in the development of the Human Resources Administration (HR) at the University of Havana, and precisely these reflections, are based on the positive or negative influence that a boss can have on the future performance of his work team, according to the criteria obtained in the trainings and workshops related to the function of Installation and Orientation of HR developed with managers,specialists and young managers linked to the activity.
Around the 90s, as I was introduced to the fascinating world of HR, which began with the CIC in the “Blas Roca” Contingent in Ciego de Ávila and continued through the delivery of the HR Diplomas in GESTA to all managers and specialists from SIME, in addition to the incredible experience obtained from the work carried out over more than 2 years with the 15 groups of experts in the Design of Workstations throughout the non-hotel chain of what was the Rumbos Group and the Diploma in The Center for Improvement of Cubalse (not only for personnel linked to the HR activity, but also for managers, administrators and part of their professors), gave me the opportunity to increasingly corroborate the great influence of these elements on the levels of performance and realization of the most important resource of the organization:their human talents.
Over the course of these years, we regularly developed an exercise that collects the first experiences of the members of the different groups in which we were doing the training, trying to investigate the possible links that could exist between the process of entry, coupling and adaptation of a new worker from the relationships that developed between him and his boss or mentor, these results and considerations being the fundamental aspects that we would be interested in sharing with you, based on our experience and the partial conclusions that we have reached. throughout these years, taking into account some questions:
What was the influence of your first boss on who you are?
How was your entry process to the organization when you took your first steps?
Did your first boss support you, teach you, listen to you, transmit your experience, give you trust and prepare you to face challenging tasks or did you receive it as a necessary evil, ignore it, assign you pedestrian tasks, did not listen to you and underestimated him, making him insecure and unmotivated at times?
We would like you to stop and think for a moment if you agree or disagree with some of these statements, because we only want to share the results of the experience of an exercise validated for more than a decade, which has always been considered very stimulating and thoughtful. by all parties involved.
Development
This work intends to expose some reflections that start from the influence that a boss can have on the future performance of his work team, reflecting results that when analyzed, were astonishing for those involved, because in one way or another when doing them reflect on the impact that their first job, their first important tasks and their first boss had had on the person they had become professionally, in more than 95% of the cases, they recognized their decisive influence on the results achieved in their working lives and even the majority of them showed that they had not realized that they had set fundamental guidelines for their future performance and that many of their values and beliefs had their origin in the work methods and styles that were part of this stage.
However, we also found a small group that spoke of a second boss or of such negative results that they drove them to a performance totally opposite to their first experiences, but in one way or another they all agreed that the first work experiences marked milestones important in the professional performance achieved by each of them (for some it represented a ladder to climb the tower of their dreams, while for others it had been like a channel to reach a basement without light and with little ventilation).
When can the exercise be applied?
This exercise can be used to introduce the Orientation function (also dealt with in specialized literature such as Installation and Orientation or Induction), related to the adaptation period that the new worker takes to assimilate the formal and informal rules of the organization, know and dominate their job, interact appropriately with collaborators and supervisors, adjust their expectations and make the decision to remain or not in the organization and the results of the exercise can be linked to the Development of People, which are part of the functions that make up the HR Management System and that can be defined as:
Orientation: A procedure for providing new employees with the basic background information about the organization and the information they need to perform their activities successfully.
Orientation is actually a component of the new employee's socialization process, a gradual process that involves instilling in all employees the prevailing attitudes, criteria, values and behavior patterns expected in the organization, trying to reduce the discrepancy between what the new employee expects from his new job and reality.
People Development: Includes training and development activities. People development is more related to education and future orientation than training, as it is more focused on personal growth and the future career of the employee than in the current position, while training includes personal development activities related to the deeper processes of personality formation and improvement of the ability to understand and interpret knowledge.
Human Resource Development: A set of organized learning experiences (intentional and purposeful), provided by the organization within a specified period to offer the opportunity to improve human performance or growth (includes: training, education and development).
How is your application?
Although the exercise has several significant moments, it is generally divided into two parts, its orientation and analysis of results:
Exercise Orientation:
At first, it is explained what the function consists of, the concepts given by the different authors are related and they are oriented as an extra individual class work (it can be delivered in the form of a case study), and they are given the possibility of use a pseudonym if they wish, although the name of the company and organization is required.
The works are previously collected and grouped a priori, using various criteria (which are selected at the teacher's convenience depending on how the group is made up), which can be:
- Considerations of the trainees Opinions of specialists considered experts Positive experiences Negative experiences Those who have managerial experience Those who refer to a second boss Those who did not consider it a significant experience Others.
The teams are formed according to the groupings previously carried out and they are asked to also analyze the influence that their first boss had and the first tasks carried out on the person you are now, promoting an exchange of experience among its members., where they must select what the team will present in plenary.
Analysis of results
The group is placed in a U-shape and the team presentation begins or volunteers are requested to present their experiences, and it is at this moment where the process really makes sense, as the participants begin to relate their first experiences with career development. achieved by linking it with your current results, levels of motivation, achievements and personal fulfillment.
This exercise can be concluded at the end of the Orientation function or when the entire cycle of functions has been completed, since the results that emerge are related to each and every one of the HR functions and can be used as an integrating element of the entire system.
Although this exercise has always been used with university graduates, significant differences are established between the perceptions of those trained, those with management experience and the specialists considered experts, linked to how their expectations were satisfied in their entry stage, regarding the degree of initial motivation, the assignment of very complex or unimportant tasks according to their competencies and inattention to concerns, which are very important to them.
What premises does the exercise have?
It is necessary that the facilitator of the activity is a person who has at least adequate training in the disciplines of Administration, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management, since the results of the exercise must frequently be linked to the methods and styles of work, the culture, policies and work philosophy that govern the organization.
It is necessary to reiterate the need for each member of the group to express in the most objective way possible their experiences and perceptions about the process of entering the organization and first work experiences.
It should be noted that this exercise goes beyond the limits of a simple positive or negative evaluation of the Induction process, since it involves an inverse reflection from the person I am evaluating my current performance levels, to the young man I was when I became involved with this first boss.
What are the fundamental results derived from the exercise?
The Induction function has been gaining importance in recent years, to the same extent that organizations have been gaining awareness of the importance and need to possess human talent, as the main sustainable competitive advantage in an increasingly aggressive and turbulent environment., where according to Sousa, a prominent Brazilian leader and consultant, “more than a time of change has already begun to speak of a change of time”, with a total breakdown of paradigms under premises such as: unlearning what has been learned and learning to learn, among other.
In the first years that we began to develop the exercise, this function was constantly violated and most of the criteria could be summarized in the following considerations:
- The companies were unaware of the important role of this process to achieve the adaptation of new workers to the existing culture and seek an integration between their interests and those of the organization, which was aggravated in the case of those trained who did not have work experience; However, significant differences were manifested quite regularly between CUJAE graduates located in SIME companies, who had carried out their professional practices and coursework in industrial companies and responded to a rigorous plan with those trained as part of the Strategy of Training of this Organism, in relation to graduates of other careers with professional practices that did not prepare them to integrate and easily fit into working life.The Induction process was reduced to a formal reception by the factors (Union, Administration, etc.), teaching them on a tour of the entire organization until they reached their job, where they were presented to the rest of the colleagues in their area and the immediate superior boss quickly explained their work content and assigned them some task (usually unattractive and monotonous), arguing that they had to gain experience to be able to carry out other higher-performing tasks.Although they were all university graduates, they were reflected significant differences between the perceptions of those trained in relation to specialists who had been trained from the base and had rotated through the different positions of the value chain developing as experts (which gave them prestige,authority and sense of belonging) and with those who were part of the reserve and had management experience (who had managed to make the values of the organization their own and integrate into its culture).When the immediate superior boss was not a university graduate, generally They treated them contemptuously, frequently pointing out that problems were not solved with theory, but with experience and practice, and on many occasions, they were given tasks that they were not prepared to carry out, which generated insecurity and dissatisfaction. their first experiences to a boss who gradually trained them with tasks that constituted a challenge and let them know what the organization expected of them as well as the opportunities it offered them,instilling in them a sense of urgency and dissatisfaction in the face of what was badly done and acknowledging that they had served as a benchmark in the styles and methods of work that they had developed. Those who had identified their first boss as a proactive and charismatic leader who taught them to be reflective, think and develop strategic thinking and helped them develop confidence without arrogance, they had become agents of change who had generally achieved successful career development.In SIME companies, they frequently assigned trained an experienced worker, considered an expert in the role of tutor (also known as a mentor),so that they were gradually training and preparing them to acquire the technical knowledge derived from practice and incorporating the values and norms inherent to the culture of the organization, for which they developed a discipline, a work style and a sense belonging similar to that of their tutor. Most of the trainees who had been located in Cubalse, stated that their entry process to the organization had been developed in a manner consistent with their expectations, since they felt proud to be part of the Corporation given fundamentally by a privileged Stimulation and Compensation System with respect to other Organizations (annual delivery of quality clothing and footwear, transportation, snacks, food, good working conditions, etc.),In addition to status and the possibilities of improvement that were offered to them, however, they considered that the influence of the styles and methods derived from the Corporate Group's work philosophy was greater than those of their immediate superior boss, given by a deeply rooted culture of the strategic apex of the organization, characterized by a rigorous discipline, a great sense of belonging and absolute unconditionality to the Revolution.In the case of an important group of university graduates located at MINTUR, they pointed out that as recruitment was done by the ranks before graduation, and the demand far exceeded the supply,The process of entering the organization became a fairly formal process where everything pointed to them feeling like privileged beings who had to feel grateful to be part of the emerging sector, however, in general they felt satisfied with the working conditions, possibilities for improvement, professional development and the system of relationships that characterizes this Organization, which in one way or another forced them to grow professionally.At the University, we had an interesting experience, we verified with a group of trained that when they began their Service Social, they were given the opportunity to start in a Master's Degree and as part of the Faculty Training Strategy, they would have strong training in the basic subjects that they had to teach, however,They were relatively dissatisfied because they had not yet joined important Consultancies and Research Projects, having several groups of classes per semester, facing the parallel preparation of the subjects they are teaching and those of the next semester, feeling the equipment limitations of the Sector and participation in complementary activities such as exams and government controls, evidencing that they considered themselves partially satisfied in terms of the entry process by having very high professional expectations and linking their results and motivations to a significant degree with the teachers with whom they had interacted. In the different spheres, however, the assistant students who for 2 years had been training in the Departments,and that to some extent they were more identified with the values and culture of the organization, despite developing the same activities as those trained and also having to prepare and defend their Diploma Work, they were tremendously motivated with the possibility of having had such rigorous training and they considered it an incredible learning opportunity, manifesting a level of dedication, dedication and rigorous discipline that fully corresponded with the behavior patterns that underlie the existing organizational culture and that ratifies the incidence of the process of entry to the organization in the levels of motivation and achievement of people.Despite developing the same activities as those trained and also having to prepare and defend their Diploma Work, they were tremendously motivated by the possibility of having had such rigorous training and considered it an incredible learning opportunity, showing a level of dedication, dedication and rigorous discipline that fully corresponded with the behavior patterns that underlie the existing organizational culture and that ratifies the impact of the process of entering the organization on the levels of motivation and achievement of people.Despite developing the same activities as those trained and also having to prepare and defend their Diploma Work, they were tremendously motivated by the possibility of having had such rigorous training and considered it an incredible learning opportunity, showing a level of dedication, dedication and rigorous discipline that fully corresponded with the behavior patterns that underlie the existing organizational culture and that ratifies the impact of the process of entering the organization on the levels of motivation and achievement of people.dedication and rigorous discipline that fully corresponded with the behavior patterns that underlie the existing organizational culture and that ratifies the impact of the process of entering the organization on the levels of motivation and achievement of people.dedication and rigorous discipline that fully corresponded with the behavior patterns that underlie the existing organizational culture and that ratifies the impact of the process of entering the organization on the levels of motivation and achievement of people.
To conclude, I would like to share with you the criteria of 3 professors from the University of Havana, who have achieved a successful career development, about: "My first work experience, my first boss and I" A
My first work experience was dire. It is not what I told you about the teacher who was really a decisive person in my training and with a great impact on the person that I am professionally, but when I started working as a sub-accountant in a Provincial Company. I had finished business school, but had never seen a minor, since in classes it is done on T accounts, as an exercise. Well, they put in front of me a tremendous book that was the largest expense and told me to pass the operations. You can imagine! Me with that huge book in front of me without knowing what to do. My face was a poem, so much so that another colleague who worked in the same office saw me and came to where I was, asked if I needed help and I yelled at her I think SIIIIIIIIIIII.
He explained how to do it and then I started working.
Actually, I learned almost everything "TO BEAT", because the accountant did not explain anything to me at all. That is why I believe that people, even if they have the knowledge, must go through the socialization process, not only so that they incorporate the values of the organization, but also so that they know how to do things in their workplace. That depends on obtaining a higher performance, at least in less time.
The experience was so demotivating that as soon as I had the opportunity to change my job, I did, because in that office they didn't help you at all. That's why I went for an audit where there was a boss who was much more communicative and helped me a lot.
Well this is my story of my first job at 16 years old. A little girl! B-
What was the influence of your first boss on who you are?
It was high, in the positive sense.
How was your entry process to the organization when you took your first steps?
It was something sui generis. I took my last exam on July 9 and on July 1, without graduation ceremony, I was already located, due to teaching needs.
Of course, it must be taken into account that I was already an assistant student at that Center (ENDE) a year ago and the installation period had practically already taken place, in a very adequate way, since there was a very exhaustive explanation of the importance and tasks of the center, of our role there and we were provided with all the required facilities.
Did your first boss support you, teach you, listen to you, pass on your experience, give you confidence, and prepare you to face challenging tasks? Or did you receive it as a necessary evil, ignore it, assign it pedestrian tasks, did not listen to it, and underestimated it, sometimes making it insecure and unmotivated?
I remember him as a great boss who, all the time, let us know (and it was true) that he had confidence in us, allowed us to take risks and even make mistakes to learn from mistakes. There were all kinds of tasks: challenging and pedestrian, but I think the latter were important to understand the whole process and the other links related to teaching work.
Given the positive results, he stimulated and motivated us; Not only individually, but before superior bosses and before mistakes, he taught us how to learn from them and do it right the next time. C
When I graduated in 1970, at the age of 20, they placed me to work at the School of Physics of the University of Havana where I had studied. Officially my first day of work was on January 3, 1971 and on the 4th I was appointed Deputy Director of Education. I believe that the reasons why they appointed me instead of others with more experience were two:
1) I had been the Secretary of the UJC and it was assumed that I had prestige among the students and knew how to treat them.
2) I was very critical of the existing teaching organization. My first boss was the director of the Daniel Stolik School. He gave me a task that was far beyond my capacity, he gave me enthusiasm, he taught me to think big, he loved to argue and was quite stubborn, he didn't go into details, I had my space and he reserved key decisions. It made me see directing as essentially creative work. At the same time, it supported and encouraged my scientific improvement.
He also loved to share outside work, organized "clubs" at home, and so on. We are still good friends. As you can see, times have changed a lot.
Conlusions
In general, the analysis of the results of this exercise allowed us to reach some partial conclusions, which we are interested in sharing with you:
- When the first boss respects you, supports you and teaches you by sharing tasks of all kinds with you: those that motivate you and those that teach you to be disciplined, those that are a stimulus and those that support the fulfillment of important objectives for the collective (even if they are pedestrian), those that train you in the values and culture of the organization and allow you to gain independence and develop a security without arrogance, this first boss has an important place in your future development of career, even without you realizing it When your first boss, without having prepared enough or nothing, imposes too high challenges for your lack of experience or knowledge of all kinds, and causes that even if you put forth your best effort, you never can you arrive,establishing as a guide everything he was able to do, without locating that it is about another time and context, then you can feel unstable, insecure, demotivated and frustrated, so sadly, many choose to take refuge in a routine job, where Everything is established, as a way to protect yourself from the catastrophe of “not knowing how to do - not being able to do - not learning how to do.” When your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone who you admire, which becomes a reference pattern of what you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style to you and their working methods, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.Without locating that it is a different time and context, then you can feel unstable, insecure, unmotivated and frustrated, so sadly, many choose to take refuge in a routine job, where everything is established, as a way to protect themselves from the catastrophe of “not knowing how to do- not being able to do- not learning to do.” When your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone you admire, who becomes a reference pattern of what What do you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal training and professional.Without locating that it is a different time and context, then you can feel unstable, insecure, unmotivated and frustrated, so sadly, many choose to take refuge in a routine job, where everything is established, as a way to protect themselves from the catastrophe of “not knowing how to do- not being able to do- not learning to do.” When your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone you admire, who becomes a reference pattern of what What do you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal training and professional.insecure, unmotivated and frustrated, so sadly, many choose to take refuge in a routine job, where everything is established, as a way to protect themselves from the catastrophe of "not knowing how to do - not being able to do - not learning to do". Your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone you admire, who becomes a benchmark of what you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and You feel like a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.insecure, unmotivated and frustrated, so sadly, many choose to take refuge in a routine job, where everything is established, as a way to protect themselves from the catastrophe of "not knowing how to do - not being able to do - not learning to do". Your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone you admire, who becomes a benchmark of what you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and You feel like a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.as a way to protect yourself from the catastrophe of “not knowing how to do - not being able to do - not learning to do.” When your first boss (many people speak of a second boss, even if it is not the generality) is someone you admire, becomes a pattern of references of what you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and his methods of work, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.as a way to protect yourself from the catastrophe of "not knowing how to do - not being able to do - not learning how to do." becomes a pattern of references of what you want to be, when you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the collective and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and his methods of work, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.When you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the group and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.When you feel that you respect him because he is an example in the group and you feel him as a leader, then that person becomes a beacon that guides you and transmits his style and working methods to you, setting guidelines in your personal and professional training.
Bibliography
- Chiavenato, Idalberto, "Human Resources Administration", Ed. Mc Graw Hill, 5th Edition, Mexico, 1999.Chiavenato, Idalberto, "Management of Human Talent. The New Role of Human Resources in Organizations ”, Ed. Mc Graw Hill, Colombia, 2nd Edition, May, 2002.Dessler, Gary,“ Personnel Administration ”, Ed. Prentice Hall, 6th Edition, Mexico, 1996.
Author's Notes: We will assume as a Mentor a highly experienced worker, considered an expert in the activity, with prestige and authority, appointed in the role of Tutor and directly responsible for the training and education of the new worker.
Dessler, Gary, “Personnel Administration”, Ed. PRENTICE-HALL HISPANOAMERICANA SA, 6th Edition, p. 235, Mexico, 1996.
Chiavenato, Idalberto "Human Talent Management", "Ed. Mc Graw Hill, Colombia, 2nd Edition, 2002, p. 334.
Idem, p. 335.
Collective of Authors. Selection of Readings. Interaction method. CETED. Uh. MONTH
Dr. José de Sousa Silva, Brazil, Workshop "From Vulnerability to Sustainability in Management", TECNOGEST 2005 Event, Doctor and Associate Professor, with more than 30 years of experience and magnificent results as a teacher and researcher.
Notes from the interview.
Full Professor, Doctor and Master, with more than 30 years of experience, magnificent results as a teacher and union leader.
Full Professor, Dr. with more than 30 years of management experience and as a teacher and researcher with magnificent results.
