Hang In There!

Copilot generated Summary

The document details the author's professional journey, challenges faced, and strategies employed to overcome obstacles. It emphasizes perseverance, mentorship, and strategic thinking in navigating workplace difficulties.

• Striving for Excellence The author believes in continual learning and overcoming challenges as key components of excellence.
• Encountering a Difficult Situation In 2024, the author faced a challenging situation with a new manager, which was unprecedented in her over thirty years of experience.
• Initiatives and Achievements As a Business Manager, the author introduced the 'Cost Holiday' concept and made significant progress in Sales Excellence Operations. 
• Return to Delivery Excellence Organizational changes led to the author's return to Delivery Excellence, reporting to a new manager, and dealing with 'Cost Overrun' issues.
• Performance Criticism Despite efforts, the author faced criticism for her performance, leading to the realization of underlying issues.
• Mentorship and Support The author received guidance from two mentors, which helped navigate the challenging period.
• Impact on Personal Well-being The situation affected the author's well-being, leading to sleepless nights and personal struggles.
• Strategic Responses The author documented discussions, consulted mentors, and formally addressed challenges through HR channels. 
• Professional Growth The experience contributed to the author's growth, highlighting the presence of unethical politics and reinforcing the importance of cautious actions. 
• Belief in Karma The author emphasizes the importance of patience, perseverance, and the belief that good deeds will eventually be rewarded.

 Detailed blog below - will take 7 mins to read.

As the saying goes, striving for excellence is a natural inclination of living. For us, excellence encompasses continual learning and overcoming the challenges we encounter. Each day, every one of us gains a new lesson, be it in our personal or professional lives.

I wish to tally up a particular situation I faced for several months in 2024. Throughout my over thirty years of professional experience, I had never encountered such a fabricated situation. Challenging individuals is unavoidable, and the difficulty amplifies when one must report to such a person. Unfortunately, this was my new experience.

In my capacity as a Business Manager (BM) for an Operating Unit (OU), I was making significant progress with a new initiative focused on Campus Recruits and many others. I introduced the 'Cost Holiday' concept, which facilitated the gradual transition of freshers to billable status. I was thankful for the chance to pilot this initiative, having secured leadership approval.

After more than 17 years of Delivery Excellence, I was enthusiastic about exploring new avenues. The saying goes, when one earnestly seeks something, the universe conspires to help achieve it. Indeed, an opportunity for Sales Excellence Operations arose, which I eagerly embraced. I made a substantial impact by bridging the gap between Sales and Delivery. Managing programs across the Region, I had limited support and lacked dotted-line reporting.

However, after six months, organizational changes led to my return to Delivery Excellence, now reporting to a new manager who was previously my peer. Management assigned me another Business Manager role for an Operating Unit, and I was formally introduced to the team. With full vigor, I took on my responsibilities, including an additional task to address the 'Cost Overrun' initiative due to significant financial challenges in certain engagements. This conversation was informal, undocumented, and not officially announced, and I, unfortunately, failed to document it as well.

Engrossed in addressing the 'Cost Overrun' issues and without direction to communicate with key stakeholders, I delved deeply into the matter. However, there was no guidance or clear explanation of the 'how' or 'why.' After about three to four weeks, my manager announced that the leadership was dissatisfied with my support for their OU as a BM, rating my performance as 'Less than Impact Expected.' It was then that I began to understand the underlying issues at play.

Fortunately, I had the guidance of two mentors—one within the organization and one external—to help me navigate through this challenging period.

My passion for my work is indescribable. As the first-generation woman in my family to pursue a career, I have become a torchbearer in my community, inspiring my nieces to seek education and career opportunities equally.

With the grace of a higher power, mentorship, and maturity, I managed to navigate this ordeal with minimal impact. Initially, like any human, I took things personally and experienced sleepless nights. Despite walking 10,000 to 12,000 steps a day and engaging in an hour of walking, I could fall asleep but couldn't maintain it for more than two hours.

This period was particularly challenging for me, having been with the company for slightly more than two years and recently promoted after making a significant impact deserving of that level. I was unsure how to handle the situation or who to speak to about it. Whether escalation was an option or not, but I confided in a couple of well-wishers who had been with the company for several years. They understood the gravity of the situation and advised me to be cautious but did not guide me on specific actions to take.

I understood that they either lacked a resolution or did not want to become entangled in my predicament. They are human too, and I respected that. I took their hint and did not bother them further. Our HR business partner was on vacation and was backfilled by someone from the UK. I discussed the issue briefly, but due to different country rules, advised me to create an HR ticket to avoid receiving potentially misleading guidance.

The situation is delicate, yet the management approach is strategic. The workload was altered without a reasonable explanation. My dedicated 'Early in Career' initiative was reassigned to campus recruit. Initially, I believed he was well-suited for the role but soon recognized the underlying strategy. Key responsibilities were redistributed to others, leaving me with less critical tasks. I was abruptly excluded from major projects and work, and began receiving invitations to calls beyond my expertise, merely to share my views. This shift felt both unfair and ambiguous.

Moreover, I experienced increased micromanagement, with scrutiny over every detail. As someone deeply passionate and committed to my work, I began dreading Monday mornings and returning to work. The weekly one and one calls were particularly tedious, resembling a 'Performance Improvement Plan' – a situation I believe I am far from deserving, even in my worst nightmares.

The situation involved unreasonable requirements being imposed. As the Skilling and Enablement Lead with my previous employer, I have always been passionate about upskilling myself and encouraging others to do the same. This approach empowers individuals to be prepared for new assignments with the required skills. During my tenure with my previous employer, I transitioned associates from traditional skills to Big Data and Cloud technologies. In this era of AI, I aimed to upskill the bench associates with AI competencies.

Although this was an internal project, I was asked to prepare extensive documentation as if it were for a customer engagement, which felt unnecessarily burdensome. Aware of the time sensitivity, I completed the tasks promptly, despite the pointless delays caused. I proposed this initiative in July but faced various obstacles and eventually had to pilot it with one of the Operating Units in October. I felt that certain influences led other Business Managers to withhold support for the initiative. Nevertheless, the project succeeded, starting with just four AI skills and later expanding to eleven offerings across the region through close collaboration with the Commercial Solution Area team.

I was pleased to have made a significant impact on Leakages, which I diligently tracked and successfully reduced by nearly 27% in FY24. However, on a global scale, the organization experienced a 5% increase. My efforts in this area went entirely unrecognized, and instead, I faced criticism for my work. Despite this, I have now been coined as a ‘go-to person’ regarding leakages worldwide and automating it in one of our dashboards.

Another initiative assigned to me was the 'Copilot Adoption' project, which I embraced with enthusiasm as it provided an opportunity to showcase my dedication to continuous learning. This project involved collaboration with over 30 key influencers across the region, through which I gained valuable insights and strategies. Consequently, our organization progressed from the 34th to the 3rd position within just three months, marking another notable achievement in my career.

These success stories demonstrated my ability to make a significant impact whenever and wherever opportunities arose, reinforcing the ongoing development of the 'Suchi brand'. To address the challenging situation, I implemented several measures to ensure clarity and professionalism:

1. Meticulously documented our discussions, with specific tasks and timelines, to maintain a clear record, especially as my manager avoided recording our meetings.
2. Consulted with my mentors on critical issues to brainstorm solutions and began watching YouTube videos on handling toxic managers. These resources provided eye-opening insights, which I promptly implemented.
3. Formally addressed the challenges by opening an HR ticket. Although HR's primary role is to mitigate legal risks for the company, this step was necessary for my comfort and documentation.
4. Review the performance management system. Determine if there is a procedure to file a rebuttal for a rating you disagree with. Consult with your HR case manager to ensure it is addressed in the system. This is what I did, which surprised some long-term employees/well-wishers.
5. Noted a lack of support from the skip-level manager, leading me to believe there might be a coordinated effort against me.
6. Realized that unless one's manager has a growth-oriented and open mindset, feedback can often be counterproductive. Therefore, I focused on my goals and minimized friction.
7. Despite the lack of professionalism from others, I remained tactful and strategic in framing my responses to address difficult situations effectively.
8. Strengthened relationships across the team, made meaningful contributions, spotted opportunities, volunteered for visible projects, and took the lead where others hesitated.
9. Built a reputation for reliability and credibility.
10. These strategies not only helped me navigate the complexities of my role but also reinforced my professional brand within the organization.
11. Overall, this challenging experience contributed significantly to my growth as a well-rounded professional. It opened my eyes to the presence of individuals engaging in unethical politics within close quarters.
12. This invaluable lesson now allows me to better guide my mentees, steering them towards cautious, well-considered actions in their professional journeys.
13. Given that we spend a substantial portion of our lives at work, encountering people with negative energy is inevitable. It's crucial to support others in need, as the saying goes: for every negative interaction, you need at least three positive experiences to counterbalance it.
14. As a firm believer in karma, I hold faith that a higher power oversees our actions. It's essential to practice patience and fulfill our duties, knowing that our deeds, whether good or bad, will inevitably return to us in greater measure.
15. No matter the situation, it's important to persevere, as all challenges are temporary and will eventually pass.