It is a big mistake to imagine that the cheer-leaders — people who bring cheer to others, gently remind people on the urgent tasks, point out shortcomings in behaviour and so on — can only be managers.

More often than not, they belong to various levels in any organisation, especially at the lower rungs. For a short while, this author was employed in an administrative role with a consultancy. There were two cheer-leaders, and they were the junior-most consultants but with excellent people skills. It was left to them to appreciate the performance of the administrative, the accounts, and the front office staff.

The senior consultants were taskmasters who just barked at their subordinates. It was here that the cheer-leaders made all the difference. They often offered support voluntarily.They were very popular and the senior consultants envied them for their clout with other staff. However, the branch head was highly appreciative of the cheer-leaders and offered them full support. Soon enough the cheer-leaders' ways began to rub off on many others in the organisation.

This is exactly what should be done with cheer-leaders. They could be at any level, but they should be recognised for the vital difference they can make to the work environment. These leaders score very high on emotional intelligence. They are motivated and can adjust to any environment. Making them do highly complex jobs without re-training them or adequately preparing them for such challenges can ruin their people skills. It is best to give them space to grow. The emotional support, encouragement, and recognition by the top management are vital for the cheer-leaders.

Once this is done, the cheer-leaders will continue to do their bit to create a good environment, where people develop mutually-beneficial relationships.

(The author is a freelance writer.)

A. B. SIVAKUMAR

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