TRANSACTIONAL VS RELATIONAL

On my birthday last year I received a text message from “airtel” a local telecommunications service provider wishing me a happy birthday. Just as many who have gone through a similar experience, joy filled my heart! I felt loved. A feeling I normally get when someone shows interest in a particular sector of my life in which I do not expect them to.

 Many a times we have heard couples complain about their partners not having time to listen to each other and failing to spare time for each other. Well, who would want to be in a marriage where they are just enjoying intimacy without companionship? In the same way, employees too desire to feel a sense of belonging and companionship with their employers.

Ever wondered why during fundraisers for causes targeted towards benefiting people, organizations normally bring forth some of the beneficiaries of these programs or even share a number of success stories frequently. The trick simply is: the donors need to have a feel of the impact of their giving so as to motivate them into giving more. Similarly, imagine the magnitude of motivation that would be aroused within an employee if they are acknowledged for and shown the impact of the effort that they put into work everyday.

Accountability according to many scholars is limited to the role that needs to be played by employees in completion of the tasks and duties assigned to them. A view that I find transactional. An efficient manager is one who acknowledges that the relationship has to be rather relational where they too feel accountable to their subordinates. The latter needs to feel that they are more than just machines that are used to manufacture a good but rather a vital raw material without whom the production process can be greatly sabotaged. They need to perceive an equitable importance between the result of their effort and the effort they inject in order to achieve the result.

“…I can pretend that am not lonely but I would be constantly fooling myself…” Said Rihanna in her song “we all want love” This statement implies an inherent desire within human beings to feel loved and cherished. Similarly human resources desire to be loved and have a relational and not transactional relationship with their employers. Just as the employees meet the needs of their employers, the latter also needs to meet the underlying needs of the employees by depositing into their emotional accounts in order for them to be more productive.

Stop having transactional relationships! Make them relational!