Roy Morgan Update: Happy to toe the line, too many managers want more of the same

Debnath Guharoy ,  Consultant   |  Tue, 07/22/2008 10:14 AM  |  Business

Contrary to the generalizations and sweeping statements about Indonesia's work culture, 87 percent of people believe "success is important to me". That's a view shared not just by the population at large, but also by managers, heads of departments and directors of the nation's commercial sector.

They represent not just the white-collar workforce, but the business sector's leaders both young and old. Nor are they willing to achieve success at any cost, as they are strong in their rejection of foul play, with almost nine out of ten people agreeing that "corruption is one of the major problems facing this country".

Of 12 work-related attitudes and opinions continuously measured by Roy Morgan Research around the country, the similarity of these two views shared by both managers and the general population comes as no surprise.

Where we begin to raise our eyebrows in disbelief, follows.

While 77 percent of people "need to have security in my job", 72 percent of managers too feel the same way about their future. Of the public, 73 percent feel "it is important to have responsibility in my job", but only 77 percent of managers feel the same way about theirs.

And while seven out of 10 people find "technology is changing so fast it is difficult to keep up with", a disappointing 44 percent of mangers also agree. Continuing in that vein, six out of 10 people confess that they would have "difficulty coping with a demanding job or career" but a more disappointing five out of 10 managers make the same confession.

Six out of 10 people "find it difficult to switch off from work", including housewives and students. Surprisingly, almost the same number of managers feel the same way. This far, it would seem that the leaders of the country's business sector are not too different from the general population living across this large and still predominantly rural archipelago.

If some of those similarities aren't worrying enough, more disappointments loom ahead. While 49 percent of people "believe in taking risks", only 55 percent of our managers are spirited enough to push the envelope. The rest are content to keep on doing things the way they have always been done.

Yet, in contrast to 37 percent of the populace thinking "I'm a bit of an intellectual", 60 percent of our managers lay claim to that very same view. Perhaps most worrisome of all, 43 percent of them also agree with the statement "I like things to stay the same."

A promise of things to come perhaps, 45 percent of all Indonesians consider themselves "a leader more than a follower". Disappointing yet again, only six out ten managers share the same conviction.

The biggest difference in views between the average Latif and the professional Lutfi is perhaps the least surprising of all: While 27 percent of the population agree that "technology gives me more control of my life", 44 percent of the country's managers, department heads and directors agree.

But that's just one in four, in this -- the 21st century.

These conclusions are based on Roy Morgan Single Source, the country's largest syndicated survey with over 27,000 Indonesian respondents annually, projected to reflect almost 90 percent of the population over the age of 14. That is a universe of 140 million people. The results are updated every 90 days.

Those contrasts, or lack there of, are both disappointing and reassuring, surprising yet, on second thought, obvious. I can only imagine that a 20-year-old would assume that such statistics on managerial instincts must have been even more disappointing during the Soeharto years.

Generations of people told to toe the line are only now giving way to a breed of new managers growing up in an environment of democracy. The ability to speak freely will also impact the workplace, auguring more positive change in attitudes in the years to come.

Put simply, the old are even now hindering the progress of the young. Thanks to modern medicine, age is merely a number today and I am not discriminating against senior citizens. But my continuing experience with diverse businesses in Indonesia confirms the polarization between the mentalities of the "young" and "old".

Consider these contrasting facts and arrive at your own conclusions. Roy Morgan Single Source is not only the nation's most robust syndicated survey, it is used by more marketers and advertising agencies than any other survey.

And while every telecommunications company worthy of note uses this resource as the only tool that gives them an understanding of what's going on in their marketplace on a national level, they are also the industry that is demanding the conversion from quarterly updates to monthly reports of the data.

A young and highly competitive industry, it is anxious to know the truth.

In contrast, the country's banks appear to be uninterested in getting any reliable insights into their customers, regardless of periodicity. As long as more profits keep rolling in, understanding the marketplace is unimportant for this old industry, which has yet to come of age.

The writer can be contacted at Debnath.Guharoy@roymorgan.com

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