Flat Makes One Agile

Confidence is not the word to describe the mood. What is

interesting is the reason Rajnish Kohli, Head Professional Services, HPS, attributes to

this confidence. A flat structure. No designations and no disparity between a trainee and

the VP, who does not exist in any case. He says, "We took a conscious decision not to

have any designations. We have only associates." This makes the employee, oops, the

associate, feel a part of the company. "Designations like 'engineer' convey that the

person only works for the company. Consultant is too misused and suggests an outsider

rather than a part of the team," he adds. The term associate, on the other hand,

suggests each one has a share and belongs to the company. It is not just the absence of

designation that conveys this perception. ESOP is a very material way of conveying the

same. As per the JV agreement between the partners, 10% of the equity has been allocated

for ESOP with a provision to increase it. The company has formulated a scheme to cover

35-40% of the eligible employees over 5 years. There are no promotions in the form of

designation changes and the salary difference may not be much. The recognition of an

outstanding performer will be included in this list of ESOP holders, which is revised

every six months. In addition to this, at an annual function the performers are honored

based on recommendations from department heads. The advantage in not having an hierarchy

is the motivation to experiment and try any job role is high and the scope unlimited.

"Which is why we have excellent performers and outstanding performers," explains

Kohli. "We also take in freshers, train them in our ways so that their commitment

from the beginning is high. Even while traveling, all travel by flight, economy class.

There are no first among equals. And, with five subsidiaries and all clients abroad, the

scope to travel, exposure to new technologies are other motivational factors. But, that's

not all. The company encourages spouses to work, and even together on any project.

"We tried figuring out why couples were not allowed to work in the same workplace,

and couldn't come up with any good reasons. The general view that they are lenient to each

other is undermining their intellect. We believe that the best way to get the best out of

people is to respect them and their intellect," explains Kohli. And, to strengthen

the ambience, the office is designed to give a feeling of comfort and has a gym. There are

no limits on casual leaves, and an associate can take as many as decided between him and

his leader. Mistakes are viewed as points of learning and not as a reason to punish or

victimize. In addition to these, the company conducts team building programs- 3T: Triumph

Through Teamwork and 3C: Contact, Connect and Communicate. While the former aims at

inculcating team spirit through outstation programs, the latter helps individuals unravel

talents other than those of project management and development. Even if an individual does

not know about his talents, he is given a task to perform. It is a program targeted at

helping individuals open up. With the policies focused on promoting a sense of belonging

in the associates, by promoting interaction with each other, respecting their intellect by

placing implicit faith in their abilities, giving room to expand and display their

talents-off the job as well as on it-and with exposure to technologies, it is hardly

surprising that the associates find compelling reasons not to change their jobs. Or is it

partnership?