Vinnie Bhadra
Posted On Tuesday, January 04, 2011 at 03:13:14 PM
Birds of a feather flock together, right? We find out why the above famous adage may not ring true in today's corporate scenario
Few recently conducted empirical analyses show that there is a strong positive relationship between cross-functionality and team innovation. Wikipedia defines ‘cross functionality’ as ‘a team where people from different functional (read: HR, finance, marketing, etc) expertise work towards a common goal’. According to CR Vinay, founder and managing director, Customer Centria, cross-functionality is “the coming together of a unified cultural mind-set where all functions and departments work synergistically towards enabling the growth of the enterprise.”
Nowadays, in most futuristic organisations, being a cross-functional employee has become an important pre-requisite. It means that when in an organisation, the employees are expected/given a chance to work in different departments so as to get a feel of how the other departments outside his/her field of expertise function. Most senior-level managers who have made cross-functionality a part of their career phase are known to be an asset to their company simply because they derive a lot of practical experience and are well-versed with the nuances of each function. “In every organisation, cross-functionality is a rising trend and team managers put together a team of diverse people and assign them with different responsibilities. For best results, each member is encouraged to explore their skills, enhance their work relationships and chase organisational goals. Even though it is a very well-accepted practice, very few organisations follow it in India,” says B. Ram Mohan, VP, HR, Everest Industries.
Cross-functionality, if encouraged, can also be a contributor towards the personal growth of the employees as the experience enhances their professional skills outside their line of expertise. According to Kiran Nair, country leader, Imation Corporation (India), “Cross-functionality is an innovative practice wherein a company first scouts for talent within an organisation to provide growth opportunities to its employees. This practice helps to gain cross-functional exposure."
At senior managerial levels, cross-functionality is a well-received practice and most senior managers feel that it gives leverage to an individual when he/she has to deal with more than one field of expertise. This practice can be used as an HR tool for motivation and also increases company loyalty. When an employee is assured that he/she can gain exposure to various departments as to how they function and their requirements, they prefer to department hop rather than job hop. The encouragement of this practise is beneficial to HR as well as the employees as it also reduces the HR cost for hiring and training. In the case of a cross-functional team, the concerned employee is aware about the common objective; all they have to be trained in is the working of that particular field of expertise.
Indian organisations need to encourage this practice as a regular HR activity instead of treating it as an additional exercise. Sometimes, when HR introduces a practise as this, the employees are not quite sure of the intention and think of it as a step down in their professional careers, as mostly growth is associated with vertical growth in terms of higher designations and salary. But when presented as a concept fostering employees' personal growth as well as that of the company, cross-functionality can become the solution of many problems that exist in the running of an organisation.
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