Going the extra mile is taken for granted

MANAGERS ON MANAGEMENT:ONE OF the problems about working for a large company or organisation is that individual initiative tends to get lost in a welter of process. As long as the wheels continue to turn, there's often no need to contribute more than you absolutely have to.

But that's not enough for David O'Meara, chief executive of Havok, the Emmy Award-winning Irish technology firm whose physics engines are behind the dramatic visual effects in the new James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace.

"I've recruited people who believed it was enough simply to do a great job in their own particular area - say finance, and getting the numbers right - without ever really understanding the company and what drove those numbers. But without that understanding, they can never make the additional personal contribution we need . . ."

The problem is often one of background. "They've come from a world in which there are processes in place. If they've worked for a multinational corporation, for instance, they're used to being just one component in a big international play. And because that's what they're trained for, that's their horizon. They'll never take risks to go beyond that," he says.

"That will be a challenge for the Irish economy in the future. It's a downside of foreign direct investment. Some of our best, most talented managers are trained to work in their own little area of a large company - without ever understanding what drives the entire business."

In Havok, however, personal initiative is a prerequisite. "We let a VP [ vice-president] of sales go some time back because, although our sales were growing by 60 per cent per annum, we felt they could have grown more.

"The reason we were growing so rapidly was because Havok is a great product and because of things like customer service, not simply because of the way our sales were being managed. You have to make a contribution that's personally visible - over and above the specifics of your job."

O'Meara gives an example of a manager who went the extra mile: "We have someone in our finance department who went far beyond the immediate demands of his job and developed a thorough knowledge of our industry, its dynamics and our customers.

"That knowledge and understanding allowed him to identify an opportunity we hadn't seen in a new market segment - and he was able to conclude perhaps the largest software deal ever done by an Irish company in Japan. I gave him the freedom to go out and do that deal with Sony - and he did it."

If Havok sounds like a demanding work environment, O'Meara makes no apologies for it. "Havok is definitely not for everyone. Our remuneration is excellent and we believe in rewarding through bonuses and career progression, so we certainly don't take commitment for granted. But there are occasionally casualties, mostly at management level. We expect more from managers," he says.

"And, of course, were we to overlook instances where people were not willing or able to make that additional personal contribution, we would end up losing our culture. Six years ago when I arrived, it would have been 'shock horror' if someone had been let go for that reason - now the organisation almost demands it.

"There is absolutely no compromise for me on issues such as customer focus, personal contribution and dealing with issues quickly. Those are our core foundations. We are number one in the world at what we do. Our customers are also world leaders and very demanding. So without our commitment to excellence, we simply wouldn't survive."

But on the other hand, O'Meara adds, "I'm not CEO of a bunch of shrinking violets here. Our people are talented and headstrong, PhDs and gold-medal winners. We all make our own personal contributions. And I couldn't be CEO of Havok unless I had their respect."

Next week: Dr Markus Miele, managing director of home appliance firm Miele, on the importance of thinking long-term.

petercluskey@yahoo.fr

Name: David O'Meara

Company:Havok

www.havok.com

Job: chief executive

Management advice: It's not enough just to do your job - you also have to make a personal contribution.