I’ve had time the past two months to reflect and write my thoughts about my time at PNB. Here are my some things I gathered during my time there:

(1) The myth that change is impossible is not true. You must articulate the what, why & how. Communicate how that change will affect personnel individually. Buy in for change is very important. Granted, it will be a journey

(2) Having clear strategy is imperative. Knowing what you will and will not do / is critical. It’s how you keep focused and dont go off tangent, which is easy when you are large, and huge part of the system

(3) When in position to make lives better by way of wage increase, do it. The long term productivity impact outweighs the short term financial impact. It went a long way in recognising people who keep the firm going daily, the forgotten ones

(4) Flattening organisation unleashed many hidden talents who excelled when given room to think. They will never be ready 100%, just give them a go. Cross rotation of people very important. More so outside the firm on secondment

(5) Command & control, top down leadership style is outdated and does not work. Empowerment with accountability, within a prescribed risk management framework is the way to go. Most cherished this, and never abused it.

(6) Staff engagement across all levels is crucial. Never underestimate the suggestion a non executive can make. I learnt a lot from my sessions with them. Their input went towards changing the remuneration structure of firm.

(7) Internal communication is key. People must understand purpose of the company, why they come in daily, how is their work impacting the end client. Constant update of activities done and what to look forward to is a powerful tool to rally the firm together

(8) There is no one way of doing things. What works somwhere else may be disastrous here. Find the right balance and dont by shy to copy what has worked well elsewhere.

(9) Short but regular meetings were the new norm. Limiting number of participants to only those that were speaking. I liked charts over words, with every deck having an objective & how that is to be measured

(10) Dont overthink. If it’s right just do it. No way to get 100% buy in from everybody, but should explain rationale of decisions so people understand and appreciate the thought behind it

(11) Embracing technology was made easier with Covid-19 where it was forced upon onto people. Everybody picked up new skills and surprised themselves with something they never thought they could do.

(12) Being paranoid was a necessity especially when you had multiple stakeholders. Many things could go wrong and you should be prepared. The circle of trust becomes very small but not bad thing

(13) Assume that whatever you say is not a secret. News will find its way. Walls have eyes & ears as they say. I confided in only one person. Quite fun to see how news loops back to you.

(14) Lastly, treating employees like adults. Let them wear what they want, decide how they want to work (and where). Give them deliverables and the tools required. Very powerful when people managers understand this and learn how to manage remote teams