Sheena Rajan-Co-Founder & CHRO at Flamingo BPO Technology Solutions Ltd

Sheena Rajan is a highly accomplished HR leader with a 27-year career spanning diverse industries, including hospitality, energy, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals. As the Co-founder and CHRO of Flamingo BPO Technology Solutions Ltd, she has led HR initiatives across 30 countries, driving transformative change and earning accolades such as the Taqdeer Award from the Government of Dubai and the Chairman’s Exemplary Award from Gajanan Oils Pvt Ltd. Known for her visionary leadership, Sheena has successfully centralized HR functions, increased diversity, and reduced attrition to just 1%.

Her career highlights include resolving union issues in South Sudan, implementing HR modules like Oracle and SAP, and pioneering the Success Plan Ladder through training. She has served as a Board Director for a Singapore-based trading company and is a recognized industry leader, honored to speak at prestigious forums such as the Bombay Chambers of Commerce and Dubai Chambers. Sheena’s dedication to building a strong foundation in the face of challenges is evident in her numerous achievements and contributions to the HR field.

First and foremost, once the goals are set, follow-up with employees at appropriate times. Managing a scenario where a high-performing employee experiences a sudden drop in performance requires a thoughtful and empathetic approach. Here are the steps to handle it effectively:

1. First and foremost, once the goals are set, follow-up with employees at appropriate times. 
2. Remember they have been excelling and they know their job well, please don’t make a mistake of telling them how to do their job, that is the best way to lose them. 
3. Ensure you make them comfortable, managing a sudden drop in performance requires a compassionate approach. 
4. Have a private one-on-one meeting to discuss the observed changes without making the employee feel defensive, they should not feel it is a criticism, approach with empathy. Express concern of well-being rather than performance. 
5. Be an active listener, many people have a habit of interrupting thoughts, give them the space to share any challenges, it can be personal or professional. 

Once you identify the cause/ causes, depending on the cause/s, offer appropriate support such as flexible working hours, access to counseling services, or additional resources.

Feedback works both ways, it motivates good performance and improves performances. It helps employees understand their strengths and weaknesses.  Identifes gaps, clarifies expectations, motivates to improve and eventually builds trust, which in return promotes growth.  

Giving constructive feedback is crucial, remember you are here to improve performance and not make a person feel dejected and de-motivated, hence have a systematic approach:

1. Be Specific: Clearly articulate the issue with examples.
2. Focus on Behavior, be objective, don’t get personal or have an opinion driven approach and do it soon after the behaviour is observed.
   – Immediate feedback ensures the issue is fresh and can be corrected promptly.
3. Always start a feedback with positive notes, then address the issue, and end with encouragement.
4. When you give feedback, they look upon you for solutions. Suggest ways to improve and be open to discussion.
5. When they leave your room, they should feel empowered and motivated.

According to a Gallup poll, about 76% of employees experience burnout on the job at least sometimes, and 28% say they are burned out “very often” or “always” at work. There has been an increase in the stress & burnout by employees, because workplace stress has not been managed professionally. Burnout causes issues and impacts businesses. 

Some solutions that can help in tackling this are:

1. Empower employees, ask for feedback, ask them for suggestions. Employers should understand the dynamics of the workforce and identify the factors that contribute to burnout.  
2. Give relevance to work-life balance.  Empathy and family time should be given importance, make them feel you care.
3. Equipping employees with the right resources, tools, technology, and support to accomplish tasks is also critical to employee empowerment. 
4. Mental health initiatives, including the provision of mental health days, access to counseling services, and paid time off can also enhance employee resilience in navigating workplace challenges.
5. Create a culture, where employees enjoy working and look forward to coming to the office.

We do have traditional methods of appraisal, but is it effective, ask yourself, what more can be done? Get creative and develop a model which is not complex, is doable, brings in the best out of people and motivates them to perform.

What are your predictions for the most significant trends in performance management and employee engagement in the coming years?

As mentioned above, the new workforce demands changes, the rules of the game need to be rewritten, not just in how we work but in how we evaluate and enhance work. Soon these are going to be by-gones, where annual reviews and rigid metrics define performance. Instead we are stepping into an era where feedback loops are instant, development is continuous, and personal growth is intertwined with professional success. AI will leverage performance evaluation and data analytics will predict employee engagement levels and identify areas for improvement. Remote work dynamics have changed the way performance is measured.