According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a staggering 3.5 million Americans quit their jobs…every month! What lies behind this growing trend of job-hopping? It’s a question that Leaderonomics chief executive officer (CEO) Roshan Thiran has been exploring of late. While in India to oversee the growth of the Leaderonomics expansion there, he caught up with BJR Group Hyderabad CEO, Sudhir Borgaonkar, to get his insights into why more people than ever before are looking to change their jobs. Sudhir has an impressive track record in business development, spanning 30 years across both Africa and India. Appearing on&nbsp;CEO Chats India, he shared some of his views on the job market trends he’s seen over the past three decades. "According to Sudhir, one of the challenges facing young people today is developing the ability to deal effectively with pressures that come with the demands across industries." He said, “What I see with this new generation is they are not ready to take up the pressures. The moment they get pressured, they leave the company. That should not be the case. You move and learn when you work under pressure – that’s how I came up in work.” To some, Sudhir’s evaluation might sound harsh, but studies have suggested that people in the 18-35 age group today are, generally-speaking, less capable of managing commitment, obligation, and responsibility. Some research points to overprotective parenting styles, which seeks to protect children from challenges that help to build qualities such as resilience and determination. Sudhir pointed to a parallel problem in leadership, where today’s businesses tend to be less concerned with firing underperforming staff and more concerned with keeping people on board – even if it’s at the expense of the employee’s growth and the organisation. Are you too impatient? He also believes that companies who promote those with only eight to ten years’ experience to the position of CEO are putting people into a role for which they’re not yet ready. He said, “When you are at the senior level and leading a team, or running a company’s operations, your decision making has to be fast and accurate. That decision making will come only when you have experience behind you, handing different markets, different segments, and different people." “Only then will you be able to judge, able to know, and make the decision faster. That is key today, especially within the Indian context – it’s a key aspect for a leader.” Sudhir also pointed to the tendency of some young people to work within an industry for a short time before expecting themselves to be capable of leaving their role and taking up a more senior position elsewhere. This kind of impatience is similar to that described by motivational speaker, Simon Sinek, who suggests that young people become frustrated when they fail to make significant progress in their career within just a short timeframe. Perhaps tying back to the overprotective parenting where children are told they can be anything they want to be, the reality then tends to hit hard when they realise they have to pay their dues before they can get ahead. Sudhir said, “Younger generations should understand that, if you want to become a successful leader, you should be able to suck up the pressure – you have to be able to handle pressure.” A journey of self-discovery and continuous learning For young people to get ahead and build a more stable career, Sudhir believes they have to first figure out the direction in which they wish to go, whether it be IT, finance, law, or another industry. One of the pitfalls Sudhir has seen many people in India fall into is entering into industries that don’t align with their educational background, such as in the example of engineers working in IT. This, says Sudhir, means that people are unable to set their personal vision properly and so they are unable to progress in a way that would benefit them the most. Sudhir also advised that, when setting ambitions, people need to realise that the road to achieve worthwhile goals isn’t easy and ask themselves whether they have the capability to reach for whatever vision they have set for themselves. He said, “Once you come out of the college, you would think ‘What should I do now?’ Look at your qualification. If you’ve studied management, such as an MBA in finance, then you choose a finance line. If you have an MBA in finance and you go into marketing, then there is a disconnect. “There are people who have done that; they have gone through a difficult path, but they have stuck to it. Today, turnover rates in many companies are very high. It’s because the moment people get pressured, they leave the job.” Sudhir insists that, in order to make our mark on our careers, we have to persevere in the challenges we are faced with, which helps to build the resilience and experience necessary to chase the kind of ambitious career goals we set for ourselves. But that, he believes, can only happen when we truly persevere and learn valuable lessons along the way.

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With the advent of Industry 4.0 – the growth of automation and technological drivers that impact how we conduct business – how are we to deal with the rapid pace of change we currently face? That was the question put by Leaderonomics India CEO, Parthiban Vijayaraghavan, to Saud Zafar, who is the global head of HR (human resources) at Fulcrum Digital – a leading management consultancy and ICT (information and communications technology) firm. Saud has enjoyed an illustrious career spanning 20 years within the HR space, delivering strong leadership within the IT (information technology), ITES (information technology enabled services), and market research sectors. And yet, Saud began as a software engineer to trade, transitioning into HR after developing his passion for understanding and working with people. As he discussed the merits and challenges of change and disruption, Saud talked about his own career shift and how he overcame initial obstacles. He said: "It took me nine months to move from the technical domain to the HR domain. It’s all about your learning, your passion, your purpose in life. If you’re clear about these things, you’ll figure out a way to achieve (your goals)." Be prepared for change In Saud’s view, dealing with change boils down to how much understanding we have about the nature of that change and to be prepared for what might come. In today’s business landscape – often referred to as a ‘VUCA world’ (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) – the most effective leaders are those who are prepared for and enjoy the challenge of whatever change might bring. When it comes to organisations being prepared for the rapid speed of change brought about by Industry 4.0 and beyond, Saud believes that companies have to be willing to invest in bringing in the right people at the right time. Making real change In order for businesses to flourish, he says that talents need to possess qualities that include creativity, emotional intelligence, and an eager openness to learning not only new skills and practices but also appreciating what has worked previously and to integrate this into their overall capabilities. Talking about how Fulcrum Digital invests in people, Saud said, “Here, we have a career development plan, which provides structured learning – and integral part of our development. From a skills perspective, we help people to develop creativity, emotional intelligence, innovation, and leadership.” “When we talk about leadership, we don’t just mean attaining a title or designation; it’s about making a real change from the ground up.” Adapt to change When asked about embracing change on an organisational level, Saud agreed that companies should walk the talk and be proactive in adapting with the times and making sure they evolve in line with customer demands and market trends. If they’re not prepared to do this, Saud believes that businesses will find themselves left behind as they lose their edge. He said, “Every year, we should set a new target, just as every year we set a New Year Resolution. We have to ask: ‘What learnings are we going to embrace this year?’ It could be picking up one domain certification or one technical certification. Whether or not the organisation is supportive to the idea is secondary; if you need to do it, you should do it. From there, it becomes about how you apply what you’ve learned to your day-to-day operations. Because, many times, we go through a certification and we don’t get the opportunity to implement it in our day-to-day lives.” “So, in that respect, we should force the situation: ‘OK, we’ve got the certification – what next? How do we move it to on-the-job learning?’” Saud agreed with Parthiban’s sentiment that, no matter the external pace of change, if people are well-trained and open to learning in a manner that improves their agility and capacity for innovation, they will surely be able to manage and adapt to whatever change arises. Change is a necessity Saud said, “Change is not an option, it’s a necessity. Gone are those days where we just needed one technical certification or some knowledge and we’ll get ahead. Every year, new versions of change present themselves – just look at smartphones as an example.” “From an Indian context, we are in an era where we can take change and make a difference. There are several areas that we can work on to improve and we need to do that through our continual learning.” Developing a laser-like focus on professional development helps us prepare for change, Saud believes that we shouldn’t try to “clutter our minds with different things”. He added, “Keep it simple. Embrace change with an open heart; if somebody gives you feedback, it’s for your betterment. Apart from that, it’s very important to read something new on a daily basis, whether it’s for 10 or 15 minutes, these things actually make a difference. That’s the message I want to give out to everyone.”

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