Where’s the competency and transparency?

 

People are regarded as competent when they have a combination of training, skills, experience and knowledge which allows them to function effectively and perform tasks efficiently.

As a management consultant and leadership coach, I always ask the people I consult and coach to focus on increasing their competencies because this will foster a strong work culture, build a more connected organisation, and establish their competitive edge.

Company-wide, when individuals increase their competence, ultimately, it ensures that a company has consistent performance standards for everyone.

In organisations, transparency is when information is shared freely in an effort to benefit everyone.

In practice, it requires leaders to be open about information with the whole team. It also entails co-workers having no problem in sharing feedback with each other.

There is a ton of data that supports the idea that workplace transparency is proven to breed long-term success. And that it creates trust between employers and employees.

It improves morale and lowers job-related stress. It boosts employee engagement and performance. And being transparent costs nothing, yet it delivers an exceptional return on investment.

This is how top-notch modern companies deliver phenomenal stakeholder results.

Similarly, in Malaysia, this is what we need right now; competency and transparency to deftly navigate the complexities of a very trying and challenging period.

We need competent people to lead, so that everyone comes together and stands solidly behind a collective effort to combat the pandemic, and manage the health of our citizenry.

At the same time, we need transparent people who are open about information and are ready to receive feedback from us.

When there is leadership competency, consistent performance standards can be delivered to the public. This naturally will make people feel engaged and confident about the way things are panning out.

An overall boost in morale is needed and our collective performance as a nation needs to get better. For this, we need transparent governance that creates trust between the people and our leaders.

Are we, as a nation, getting this in our moment of crisis?

What is apparent is that there is a lot of chaos and confusion. Decisiveness is lacking. Dithering and constant U-turns are the norm.

Leaders bang tables, fight, and post cryptic messages on social media. Opaque transactions get uncovered. This is about the measure of what we are getting.

Some people place the blame for the current problems that the county is facing squarely at the feet of the public. They say that Malaysians are not disciplined enough to follow rules and are acting purely in self-interest. And this is the root cause of all our troubles.

But, how can ordinary folk feel that they belong to Team Malaysia and do their part with enthusiasm and fervour, when they get a daily dose of inefficiency and ambiguity from the very people who lead them?

New rules and procedures are being instituted for the wellbeing of all. But the arbitrary and illogical way that these rules are being interpreted and enforced, has given rise to more hardship rather than the easing of our path to recovery.

At a time when strong, caring, competent, accountable and transparent leadership is needed to get us out of this dilemma, what we get instead, is authoritarian, erratic, inept, unaccountable and ambiguous controlling.

What should every citizen expect during this crisis from our leaders?

I reckon we need our leaders to respond rapidly. We have a dire situation at hand, so the authorities need to show us that they are capable enough to respond quickly and honestly.

If this is done properly, the public’s perception that we have competent leaders increases exponentially.

Next, we need information and it has to be shared across all platforms. Information and not propaganda.

In this crisis, the government can and must expect to receive complaints or feedback from people, associations, business groups and the like.

Instead of defensive or heavy-handed responses, we need information and clarity, which is free from emotional outbursts.

Everything that the authorities put out in the media, are essentially public statements which people will share as they like. So, some decorum in making these public statements and responding to confusion as well as feedback will go a long way in showing competency.

And perhaps the most important thing that leaders can do is to acknowledge their mistakes.

History, time and again, has showed that attempted cover-ups are often worse than any initial error.

Many CEOs and business owners have realised that acknowledging a gaffe and owning up to it, buys them more goodwill than becoming defensive or blaming all and sundry.

The same principle applies to our nation’s leaders.

When leaders exhibit that they can learn from their slip-ups, rather than calling for punishment to detract from their misstep, or sweeping the issue under the carpet, it truly shows that they can lead.

I understand that maintaining transparency during a crisis isn’t easy. But right now, we simply need competent people to act as trusted navigators to get us out of this predicament.

Perhaps, instead of posting photos of themselves eating instant noodles, leaders can better serve the public by showcasing their competency and transparency.- FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.