12 O’ CLOCK SYNDROME ?

Let me straight away state that this piece is not about any Sardarji. The 12 o’clock syndrome is a metaphor for depicting a mindset and mental model among managers and executives – may be more commonly seen in Indian context in owner – relatives – family owned and managed enterprises , in an ever changing business environment.

Many of us drive cars or have the advantage of drivers who do the job for us.The way each of us hold the steering may differ . Have you ever tried to drive holding the steering wheel , with both hands at 12 o’clock position , close to each other or on top of each other , without any space or gap between them or even between the fingers ? In this position have you tried or seen some one else drive the vehicle – changing the gear ( and thus speed also simultaneously) , moving around the traffic, running over potholes , speed breakers, even turning and cornering ? Have you had the experience of driving at top speed , without any obstacles , on straight road , with both hands at 12 o’ clock position ? What is your sense of ‘control’ of the car? How each of these manouvres get performed when the hands are apart , say , at 10 o’clock and 3 o’clock positions ? Which position is difficult for driving and also unsafe for oneself and others?

Sometime back I was fortunate to have had a driver who had this habit – for me to learn few things but also had the misfortune of vehicle damage / brush-off etc. few times in a short span of time and had to foot the bill. When the driver could / would not change his habit , I had to ask him not to come till he changed his habit . I ‘ran’ in to him , three months later ; he was sitting behind the wheel of a new car , his hands at 12 o’clock position! the obvious owner in the back seat immersed in that day’s business news paper.

For the person travelling , the purpose of being on the road and the goal or destination is clear ; the direction is known , the road / path is there visible . Steering in a way that one reaches the destination is important. The 12 o’clock position – with both hands tightly held together on the steering is supposedly for better steering and cotrol. Does it happen ? Does it help ? Is it really necessary all the time ? There is more sway and see – saw movement of the whole vehicle even if the road is clear . While the person driving may feel pleased with himself because the vehicle swings and sways in response , for the other travellers in the car and even those outside , the sense of instability is much more than one of confidence ; it is also more stressful and drains the driver’s energy with extra efforts to get that ‘sense of control’ – in fact there will be a ‘drag’ on the forward movement.

I am sure that most of us do not drive or steer a car like this. But in an organizational context , predominance of control by the persons at the top , allowing no space for others to be part of the interactions , discussions and dialogue and decision making process has serious , unfavourable consequences , both in the short term and long term.

Like in a car an organization also has structures , systems and their components in place along with the people all interacting and influencing each other.The quality of anticipation and rate of response is expected to be designed and built in the knowledge and energy deployment of the people ( hence they need ‘space’) ; as also the structures and systems that integrate and support them in their efforts. ‘Total control’ is thus a dispersed phenomenon coming through synchronized and aligned actions of the constituents and can not be done by one or even few handful of persons from the top.

Today’s cars and even heavy vehicles have advanced components and systems in place that the sellers talk about: ‘feather touch’ response , light steering , easy handling , zero to ---- kms. in so many seconds etc. – all achievable in a safe and secured way , for those inside the vehicles as well as those outside , under all types of traffic conditions and environment.

Many of us drive the cars with a gap of about 5 clock hours between the two hands. When traffic is heavy or frequent change is required in speed and movement , both hands may be put to use for steering and changing gear ; when traffic eases , one hand or even one or two fingers may be used . To extend this concept further to an orgnization , an autonomous work group or unit is like a vehicle with automatic gear shift system in operation ; when situation demands , as per requirement responses happen , speed changes and things are in control with proper steering.

Control is a strange phenomenon. The more tightly we hold on to something , the more difficult it is to have real control. It leads to ‘freezing’ with very little flexibility or manouverability . The rest of the systems and the people are restrained and constrained from doing anything , even if doing it will be helpful and useful . One more possible consequence is that the rest of the systems go along with the control – demand but unable to help to avoid / eliminate the brush-offs & near accidents and damages to the vehicle.Those systems and the people also suffer damage . A move away from 12 o’clock syndrome provides the degree of control , as needed and also allows the rest of the system and the people to do their part to continue to move ahead towards destination .

Different organizations may be having leaders at the top with different styles and habits . The 12 o’clock syndrome represents possibly the most inappropriate way to lead and manage in today’s competitive business environment .

If you consider yourself a good and safe driver , look at the way you hold and steer . If you want to verify what is written in this piece by trying out the 12 o’clock position for steering , please drive with alertness and extra caution for your own and others safety and well being .

This narration fits in with the mechanistic model in which organizations are percieved by many – the metaphor is using a motorised vehicle to illustrate the same.The moment we start accepting an organization as an organic , living entity then the whole approach to leading ,directing and managing is expected to change - for the better.