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Kapila Bandara

When the headhunter came knocking on his door, Bard Wilmar told himself, well, why not close a chapter in banking and turn a new leaf in human resources.

By taking that decision, he embraced change, and made the transition by telling himself, he wanted to make a difference.

It has been a few weeks since he accepted a new challenge as the Managing Director for Hong Kong and Greater China at Drake Beam Morin (DBM), a global leader in strategic human resource solutions, and a pioneer in outplacement.

For more than two decades, banking had been his preferred currency. Now, he is investing his energies in intellectual capital. He has turned his hand into something more fulfilling.

The former banker describes assuming new responsibilities at DBM, as a 'chance to make a difference', and to 'apply my knowledge gained over 30 years'.

DBM, he says, is an organisation that is 'upbeat, positive and forward-looking'. He is infected with that enthusiasm. 'It's a rewarding organisation to walk into each day.' DBM operates more than 200 offices in 46 countries.

Drawing on his extensive experience and leveraging his people management skills, he is leading a team of consultants which counsels people about adapting to change.

Change is good, he reassures us. But we must understand how to manage it.

In an environment where change is the only constant, Mr Wilmar points out that many personal and professional factors are important to those in the managerial ranks of organisations.

'One of the most important attributes is good communications skills. As a manager you need to be able to persuade those who you work for, those who you work with and those who work for you, about things that you strongly believe in,' Mr Wilmar says.

A manager should be conscious of cultural sensitivities and cross-border sensitivities, Mr Wilmar says, adding that this would mean taking into consideration political beliefs of others and business ethics in the countries in which you operate, among other things.

And in the ever-evolving business landscape, flexibility is a valuable attribute to nurture.

'You have to be able to adapt to your organisation's goals - which could change literally overnight - or even when you are joining a new employer, which is not uncommon these days. You need to be able to identify what the goals are, even when they are badly stated, or not stated at all, and adapt, so you can align yourself with the direction in which your organisation is moving,' Mr Wilmar says.

Internal networking is also 'absolutely critical', for managers, he points out.

In addition, a manager must have a sales and customer focus, he says.

'In client-driven organisations, you need to know your customer and how your organisation can add value for the customer. You've got to be focused on how you can make a difference.'

Functional skills and personal attributes may be important to a person's career progression in an organisation, but in these turbulent times, change events such as mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and bankruptcy, can raise the level of anxiety among employees, while suspicions can come to haunt organisations for a long time.

The impact of change can be severe on employees.

'It has been estimated that up to 25 per cent of an organisation's top performers leave within 90 days of an announcement of a major change event,' Mr Wilmar says, citing a study done in the United States.

Organisations are not the only ones that change. Employees and their careers are constantly undergoing change, too.

Citing a survey by New Jersey's Gibbs College, Mr Wilmar says, 51 per cent of men and 59 per cent of women will change their career within the next five years in the United States. Another study by Korn/Ferry International found that people change careers up to nine times and work in as many as 25 different jobs in their lifetime.

Change, in whatever form it may come, can jolt us, but there are strategies to help us cope with change events.

'Recognise the changes taking place and respond to it,' Mr Wilmar advises.

It is also in the interest of employees to accept that the workplace has been transformed and that it continues to evolve.

'There has been a paradigm shift in the employer-employee relationship,' Mr Wilmar says, pointing out that the psychological bond between an employee and the organisation has been broken to a great extent.

Under the old structure, the company provided financial and job security and in return the employee gave a great degree of loyalty.

'The company you worked for defined who you are,' he says.

This no longer holds true in the modern-day workplace. But by identifying the crucial issues, employees can cope with the shifting currents in the workplace.

'Know your skills and develop more skills; take charge of your career; know where you can add value to your organisation now and in the future; think about how you have made a difference in the past past and how you can make a difference in the future, and keep yourself up to date [in terms of knowledge relevant to the job],' Mr Wilmar says.

He reminds us that handling change is about identifying your career direction and supporting it with strategies that will help you to reach your goals.

Classified Post welcomes contributions to be featured in these pages. We reserve the right to edit articles. Send your articles by e-mail to kapila@scmp.com or by fax to Special Reports at 2565-0885.

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Change is good, if it's well-managed