Not Everyone is Replaceable
????♀? Szilvia Olah
Fractional HR Senior Leader | Award Winning HR Solutions | Organisational Psychologist | Standardising HR | Two Published Books | CliftonStrengths Facilitator
The fact that we think we are all replaceable has contributed to the state of disengagement, lack of care and loyalty.
Hearing that and making people feel replaceable can't lead to anything good, so we need to stop this. I know business is business, and sometimes we need to make decisions based on money, but it doesn't mean I, as a person, can be replaced by another if........ we get back to it.
Let's also be honest, most people's performance can be replaced, and this is what we should be talking about. We are not replacing people, we are replacing performance.
And this is when it gets interesting. Sometimes a person comes along with the perfect package and, as a result, with the highest possible performance. That person performs not only because he/she has the competence to do so, it goes beyond that. That extraordinary performance comes from passion, love for the team/company, strengths alignment with the job, interest in the field, personality, the willingness to serve or do anything to achieve success, dedication to a cause, loyalty etc.
This is when we say that person cannot be replaced, and when this happens, we need to acknowledge it, treasure it, and communicate it to the person. The unique combination of many things that come together makes that person irreplaceable. It is very rare, so we shouldn't take it personally.
As for the rest, let's rephrase the "We are all replaceable" to "Our performance is replaceable." I think most people would agree with that. It is logical, measurable, and not personal. If you say Szilvia, you are replaceable, it will hurt me. But if you say, I think we can find somebody who can deliver the same or even better performance, I would think it is a fair statement given all the options out there.
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Be careful what you say because it can hurt people and the global turnover rate.
PS: Those who have a love for their job, the place, or the people at that place will produce higher performance than a highly skilled but loveless individual. Watch out for love, it propels performance.
Engineering Process Manager
1 年Every type of replacement comes with associated costs that need to be consistently estimated and taken into account.
Senior executive leader open for new challenges
1 年I think t is more compicated a bit. Beside to the performace there are side effects, like you are a problemous or even poisonous personality, and so on, and so on. For example your performance might be appropriate (or even superb), just you demolish the team around you. Your boss will replace you (from his own well defined interest) but not on the base of accomplishment. Your point of view was maybe too positive. If I am a positive thinker, your every word is true. Just the life is not fully positive. If I am a multicolor thinker there are a lot of other factors, too.
Company Executive at Eisberg Hungary
1 年Hi Szilvia, I might miss the exact meaning of replaceable, - but for me it is ok to say that my boss wants to replace me. It is true, that many people would be hurt, but I would not take it personal. If he can find a better or cheaper one with same performance, I would say that is ok, this is a deal he should do, this is also part of efficiency. Maybe top management understands better that we are all building other’s houses, and gets paid for that. I always say everybody is replaceable, but to replace the good ones cost overall much more for the company. So we we do not do. If we are too loyal for bad ones, we kill our own company. Is it not only a play with words? If they replace my performance, myself is also gone,-so all the same at the end. I know it is not nice to hear we are replaceble, but that is the reality. Long time I thought my ex is the only one in this world fitting to me, but at the age of58 I know there are many more for all of us. Maybe not romantic enough, but true.
Associate Vice President @ Policybazaar For Business
1 年Great perspective indeed.
Director Supply Chain / Logistics / Transformation / Strategic planning / Continuous Improvement / Systems Integration
1 年Loved your post Szilvia, another great hit from you! Performance is priority#1, and clubbed with attributes as people skills, self-awareness, ethics and honesty and so on. These goes together and the latter(s) just fuel performance further. As you said Performance is measurable and HR can design so many new KPIs (than the standard bit outdated ones of today) around that. Now when it comes to the Boss or line management, they should be geared up with the same convictions and put away when necessary the Financial numbers and Executives/Shareholders. It is a hard one, 'companies driven by numbers or people are just numbers etc'. you hear and know about. But take it like this: a good performance today, will just follow with a good or better performance tomorrow and so on.. I call it the 'Steering Wheel of Performance' and allowing or engaging creativity and innovation will just make the Wheel better and faster!