On this episode of The Shape of Work podcast, we have Shishupal Rathore, Senior Vice President of Technology at Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.
With two decades of experience working as an IT leader across industries, Shishupal discusses with us:
Challenges faced while leading a team of engineers:
Shishupal says that engineers are really dynamic people. In particular, IT engineers are enthusiastic and sharp. He feels it is both an honour as well as a challenge to lead a group like this. He further describes engineers as very humble, who love to take ownership, and are extremely vocal.
As a leader, being dynamic and updated with new technology is necessary. It is challenging for a leader to understand the new trends and drive them in their own organization. People look for guidance from them. Thus leaders need to ensure a clear vision, flexible communication, patience, and listening skills. These qualities can help in keeping the team motivated.
Challenges his organization faced due to the pandemic:
The pandemic has brought a big disruptive change. No one knew how to tackle this situation. However, Shishupal mentions the flexibility, agility, and adaptability shown by the team members in coping with the situation and delivering projects.
When everyone started working from home, plenty of issues came up in their organization. Non-availability of hardware, internet bandwidth issues, power issues were a few of them that he mentioned. However, new solutions came up, and a new way of working was introduced. There was a lot of flexibility, and most people stood up to the moment.
One big issue that Shishupal observed was the expectation with the expansion of working hours. Among the blurred boundaries between work and home, the availability of the team was expected at all hours.
Managing performance of employees:
Shishupals’s company set its goals before the beginning of the pandemic. Hence, the parameters of these goals were not according to the ongoing situation. However, he feels that there has not been any major change in the basic parameters. However, one change our guest observed was the attitude of the people. They rose above the situation and demonstrated flexibility, adaptability, and commitment to work. The company found its most hardworking people during the pandemic.
Feedback system to make the hiring process better:
Candidates and hiring teams need to ensure open communication. Every level of the hiring process needs to be updated to the candidate. However, hiring has become a tricky process. Plenty of times, candidates do not turn up or go looking for better opportunities. Shishupal feels that ethics are getting compromised. The focus has shifted from a career to a job. People are focussing on job-hopping rather than building credibility. However, this should not stop the hiring manager from being transparent to the candidates. They should maintain professionalism and be open to sharing feedback. It can increase the chances of the candidate joining an organization. Understanding the candidates makes it easier to figure out whether they are interested or not.
Follow Shishupal on LinkedIn
Produced by: Priya Bhatt
Podcast host: Yashwanth Jembige