The Hindu Business Line : Rules versus values

In the modern business environment that is characterised by continuous changes, organisational rules and regulations are of limited significance. Though people want stability and continuity, success invariably belongs only to those "who dare and act". Such trailblazers and trendsetters have scant respect for rules. On the other hand, any change breeds anxiety. People are unsure of how to act when the rules change. Insecurity and uncertainty cloud the corporate scenario, when it is undergoing a process of transformation.

Values come to the rescue. They provide beacons and signposts that possess an enduring quality. They function as a soundboard for actions, when rules are no longer valid. They provide a `technology' whereby people can generate new solutions to new problems and still act in accordance with the best traditions of the organisation. This unique ability of values to bring together the past and the future provides the continuity that people are loath to let go.

Changing norms

The new breed of business organisations is changing the norms in the game of management. They are better equipped to cope with the rigors of an ever-changing modern business world, in the sense that they are designed and developed to respond better to the challenges of change. They also pursue excellence relentlessly.

They see a business organisation as a dynamic and organic system. All that any management can do is to create experiences from which people can learn; and in sequel, results will flow and follow in a rhythm. This perspective of a business enterprise that almost makes it a social community opens up new possibilities for management.

Any community operates with a set of shared values. Values identify and determine who fits and who does not into the fraternity. Values define the sense of belonging and the parameters of fellowship, which the employees embrace and internalise. In such an organisation, values take the centre-stage; they are the touchstones that guide everything the organisation does.

Values deliver solutions

The question is not, "Are we acting in line with our rules?" The question is: "Are we acting in line with our cherished values?" Rules can only cope with a limited number of situations. But in a world that is fast turning into a kaleidoscope at `the speed of thought' (in the language of Bill Gates), it may not be feasible to envisage the variety of situations that may surface. Rules cannot provide solutions to all the problems that managements may encounter. But values will foster creative solutions. While rules restrict solutions, values create and deliver them.

An organisation is a collection of people sharing a common purpose. People join an organisation because it helps them fulfill an aspiration. But an organisation will succeed only when the people in it act in concert. The previous era in management used structures and strictures to align people. Rules and conformity comprised the predominant criteria. Innovation and individual creativity were anathema to the earlier generation in management.

In the contemporary context, however, values provide the vehicle for alignment. People who share the same values form and function as a community. "All for one, and one for all" (Alexandre Dumas) is the motto and motivation for working together in an organisation. People recognise the common good and the benefits of oneness and social belonging in such an ambience.

(The author is a Chennai-based freelance writer.)