By Frank Waltmann, Ph.D.,Head, Corporate Learning, Novartis<\/p>\n
This is the second of a three-part series of articles written exclusively for <\/em>Trainingmagazine on business challenges and opportunities in Asia and how Swiss-based pharmaceuticals and life sciences company Novartis\u2019 learning and development programs are helping address the myriad issues.<\/em><\/p>\n In the context of leadership and development, discussing motivating employees in Asia\u2014or any country, for that matter\u2014is somewhat challenging. After all, motivation is rarely the issue for those being groomed for leadership. They typically already have established their strong motivation to succeed through their job performance. So, let\u2019s pivot just slightly and also talk about a close sibling of motivation: inspiration. Taking these two aspects together, I can offer some unique perspectives from Novartis Asia and China University instructors, as well as participants whose development and leadership readiness is vital given the rapid growth of the overall Asian economy.<\/p>\n Employee Retention in China<\/strong><\/p>\n There has been a marked shift in the work culture in China within the last 20 years. Recent data shows that today\u2019s Chinese worker is more individualistic than in the past, and places a far higher value on quality of life.<\/p>\n In Kathryn H. King-Metters\u2019 2008 Wall Street Journal<\/em> article, \u201cMisunderstanding the Chinese Worker,\u201d based on her study, \u201cA Shift in Loyalties: How Do the Personal Values of Hospitality Service Workers in the People\u2019s Republic of China Compare on Hofstede\u2019s National Culture Dimensions Over Time?\u201d (2007, Capella University), it was revealed that many employees want more than just a paycheck. They want training, time off, and community building. The concept that there is no loyalty to the company and that money alone is the driving force for staying or leaving a job is erroneous. This makes leadership development programs in Asia all the more important.<\/p>\n Nelson Hsu, president of Alcon China, a Novartis company, agrees and explains why leadership development is particularly important to China: \u201cThe market and business growth in China is approximately 25 percent per year in many areas,\u201d says Hsu. \u201cThis presents many opportunities for workers and affects the market turnover rate. Our Novartis China University gives people a reason \u2018why\u2019 to join our company, and to stay with us.\u201d<\/p>\n Cross-Cultural \u2028Learning Programs<\/strong><\/p>\n In many Novartis Asia and Novartis China University programs, courses are interactive and dynamic; participants get feedback from others about themselves, which, for many, is a new concept.<\/p>\n \u201cThe majority of the groups I teach are new to Novartis and have only been with the company for one to three years,\u201d says Dr. Muhammad Shiaz, a native Pakistani leadership training instructor. \u201cSo the learning curve is high. They want to learn and find out what Novartis is all about, in addition to growing their leadership skills.\u201d This is key to their motivation to stay and build a career at Novartis.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of what they\u2019re learning is about emotional intelligence,\u201d shares Dr. Shiaz. \u201cFor example, through internal exploration, participants learn how to know their blind spots related to personality. When you understand your personality type, and know your blind spots, you more likely will prevent yourself from \u2028derailing under stressful conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n Ling Yuin Fong is an instructor for the Novartis \u201cGaining Your Momentum\u201d (GYM) program for new leaders. He explains how learning is not just a one-time experience, but also a long-term journey. \u201cAfter finishing the first-time management program, we send participants reminders about leadership on a weekly basis so as to trigger memories about topics they\u2019ve learned,\u201d explains Ling. \u201cThese include video links and articles about leadership topics. This brings consistency and keeps them engaged with the content they\u2019ve learned in our programs. We want them to \u2028become more conscious about what they know, what they do, and their actions as a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n Jacqueline Wong is an instructor at our Asia University for the TEAM program, which, as the name implies, helps develop better team interaction and teambuilding skills. \u201cAll company teams struggle with strategy implementation and could do better. Our program is not specific to Asia; rather, it is a good program that happens to be delivered in Asia,\u201d she says. \u201cThe reason we\u2019re teaching it here is because Asia is a large growing market, and we have to make sure our teams are effective.\u201d<\/p>\n Chen Siyuan, head of Commercial, Vaccines China, is involved in putting together a future program at our Novartis China University called \u201cCritical Thinking Process.\u201d \u201cIn a fast-moving environment like China, we are often reactive to things, and don\u2019t necessarily handle situations in the right way,\u201d says Siyuan. \u201cSo it\u2019s important for our associates to have the right process of thinking and tools. Also, because China is moving so fast in terms of the business environment, the talent pool is affected. Many employees have only been in the company a few years, and have not had much business training. They get put in a position that they are not ready for in all aspects.\u201d Fortunately, China University programs address this, and are tailor-made for China.<\/p>\n First-Time Leader Development<\/strong><\/p>\n The Novartis Asia University starts employees on a continuous growth leadership journey. One of our popular programs is called Setting the Wheels In Motion, or SWIM for short. It is a five-day course in which participants explore their own personality and those around them through the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI)\u2014a worldwide standard for measuring thinking preferences and brain dominance. Also, they explore how to work within and among teams, and learn principles about developing business.<\/p>\n For many, SWIM is the first formal training they\u2019ve ever experienced. For example, Stephanie Espejon works with our Vaccines division, handling Regulatory Affairs for Southeast Asia and the Middle East. \u201cThe SWIM program motivated me to do the best I can, because if the company is giving me training in leadership and management, it means that somewhere along the line I was able to make it see my potential,\u201d says Espejon. \u201cTo me, that is a good sign. And what I learned is that there is no \u2018right\u2019 or \u2018wrong\u2019 leadership style\u2014it\u2019s more about how you make the business relationship with other people work. I have come to believe through these programs that if you are put in a leadership position, you have to decide how you are going to lead, and that the style needs to be for the good of the company.\u201d<\/p>\n Asia University participant Ryany Sekarini adds: \u201cThe SWIM program does not tell people what to do, but shows us how to understand ourselves. I learned that before we can lead others, we must know how to lead ourselves. This is different than a \u2018how to supervise people\u2019 course. Another valuable learning was to gain an understanding about other people\u2019s perception about me. This was new, and useful, because in Asian culture, a leader is someone people respect. Sometimes it\u2019s not about the position but about the attitude. Maybe you won\u2019t get the high position, but if your attitude is good, \u2028according to people, you\u2019re a leader to them.\u201d<\/p>\n Lewis Tan is a production manager for a Novartis contact lens manufacturing plant in Singapore. He participated in training and was particularly affected by something he learned at a recent program: the Q x A = E equation (the effectiveness of a project is determined by the level of acceptance of the idea by the people, a famous General Electric theory). \u201cThis lesson has helped me and my team in many areas, especially with our cross-site projects,\u201d says Tan. \u201cWe looked at the project we brought to class on a deeper level, and noticed areas we hadn\u2019t considered before, such as analyzing stakeholders. This alerted us to the fact that we had left some key personnel out, which would have negatively affected the project\u2019s success.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking Ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n At Novartis, our leadership development programs delivered through our Asia and China Universities are taught and facilitated by both Asian and Western instructors to a wide swath of our Asian employees. We have made the commitment to develop a range of leaders\u2014from first-time managers all the way to top-tier executives\u2014because we believe future Asia country managers need to come from within the region. The reason is simple: We are conducting science and business in Asia as a partner to its existing health-care system, and in doing so offer value to the entire society.<\/p>\n Frank Waltmann, Ph.D.,<\/em>is head of Corporate Learning at Novartis, a Swiss-based \u2028pharmaceuticals and life sciences company.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Frank Waltmann, Ph.D.,Head, Corporate Learning, Novartis
\nThis is the second of a three-part series of articles written exclusively for Trainingmagazine on business challenges and opportunities in Asia and how Swiss-based pharmaceuticals and life sciences company Novartis\u2019 learning and development programs are helping address the myriad issues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[16],"class_list":{"0":"post-9702","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-magazine","7":"tag-feature","8":"magazine_issues-july-2013"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n