MSME Briefing Bureau

Leadership Mantra- Episode-4

Malik-Manager ya HR?

When managers stop leading, HR is expected to repair what leadership allowed to break.

Sudhir had just graduated as a mechanical engineer. Like thousands of young engineers, he walked into his first job carrying more enthusiasm than experience.

A reputed machine tools company in Ahmedabad recruited him as a Graduate Engineer Trainee. After completing his induction, he was posted on the production floor under an experienced supervisor—a mechanical engineer himself, with four years of shop-floor experience.

The first few weeks were encouraging.

Sudhir observed machines, assisted operators, learnt production planning and understood manufacturing processes. His confidence grew with every passing day.

Then, gradually, the learning stopped.

Instead of being exposed to engineering responsibilities, he was increasingly assigned routine labour work—moving material, assisting in non-technical activities and performing tasks that neither challenged his engineering knowledge nor helped him understand production systems.

Initially, he assumed it was temporary.

Weeks turned into months.

Whenever he politely questioned the assignments, the supervisor dismissed his concerns by saying, “First learn the basics.”

The enthusiasm with which Sudhir had joined the organisation slowly turned into disappointment.

One morning, the Human Resources department received a formal note from the Production Department.

“The trainee lacks initiative. He is not proactive and shows little interest in learning production.”

On paper, the matter looked simple.

Another young employee struggling to adapt.

HR scheduled a discussion.

Only during detailed conversations did a different story begin to emerge.

The supervisor had stopped mentoring the trainee long before the complaint was written. Instead of developing a future engineer, he had begun treating him as an additional shop-floor worker. Whether it was insecurity, fear of being outperformed or simply poor leadership, the result was the same.

The relationship had already broken down.

By the time HR entered the picture, trust had already left the production floor.

The Leadership Failure

Stories like Sudhir’s are not rare.

They unfold every day—in production plants, sales offices, warehouses, corporate headquarters and service organisations.

A sales executive reports to a Sales Manager.

A production engineer reports to a Production Manager.

A purchase executive reports to a Purchase Head.

Each manager is expected to guide, coach and develop the people who report to them.

Yet when disagreements, poor performance or behavioural issues arise, many managers quietly transfer the problem to Human Resources.

Almost as if leadership itself can be delegated.

It reminds me of criminal investigations being transferred to the Crime Branch or the CBI because specialised investigation is their mandate.

But imagine a dispute at a seaport being handed over to the Education Department.

It sounds absurd.

Yet organisations frequently expect HR to solve problems that originated because managers avoided conversations they should have had weeks—or even months—earlier.

What HR Actually Receives

HR rarely witnesses the beginning of the problem.

It receives emails.

Complaint letters.

Performance notes.

Show-cause notices.

Exit interviews.

What HR never receives are the missed opportunities.

The coaching session that never happened.

The feedback conversation that was postponed.

The misunderstanding that was ignored.

The insecurity that remained unaddressed.

The trust that quietly disappeared.

By the time HR becomes involved, it is often trying to repair relationships that leadership allowed to deteriorate.

Management Is Not the Same as Leadership

Many organisations promote excellent engineers into production management.

Outstanding sales performers become Sales Managers.

Highly capable accountants become Finance Heads.

Technically, these promotions make perfect sense.

Leadership-wise, they often do not.

Technical expertise teaches people how to manage machines, systems, numbers and processes.

Leadership requires an entirely different capability.

It requires understanding people.

Listening before judging.

Giving difficult feedback with respect.

Recognising fear, insecurity and frustration.

Developing people instead of merely directing them.

Unfortunately, very few managers receive formal training in these skills before they are asked to lead others.

HR Cannot Replace Leadership

None of this diminishes the importance of Human Resources.

HR creates policies.

Builds systems.

Designs performance frameworks.

Facilitates learning.

Protects organisational fairness.

Supports both employees and management.

But HR cannot become the daily leader of every employee.

That responsibility belongs to the manager sitting closest to the team.

Leadership is not demonstrated when everything goes well.

Leadership is tested when conversations become uncomfortable.

The moment a manager starts avoiding those conversations, the countdown towards an HR intervention begins.

A Question Every Organisation Should Ask

Before promoting someone into a managerial position, perhaps organisations should ask one question that rarely appears in an interview.

Not,

“Can this person manage production?”

Not,

“Can this person achieve sales targets?”

But,

“Can this person develop another human being?”

Because organisations do not lose talent overnight.

They lose it conversation by conversation.

And before asking what HR should do, perhaps every leadership team should ask itself one uncomfortable question.

Did leadership fail long before HR was ever called?