A Bengaluru-based company has revolutionised organisational restructuring by announcing the creation of a new role: Person Actually Working (PAW). Interestingly, the position was discovered accidentally during an internal audit.
The company management noticed that its projects kept moving forward despite 14 people being involved in reviewing, aligning, escalating and providing strategic oversight.
After a discreet probe, it was discovered that a quiet employee named Kushal, who had not attended a leadership workshop in three years, was completing tasks without first creating a task force. “We were shocked,” said a senior executive from the company.
Closer observation revealed that Kushal not only maintained Excel sheets, corrected client presentations and resolved technical problems, but also occasionally fixed the office printer.
What caused concern was his practice of answering emails with the information requested. “This left no scope for stakeholder alignment. It was against our communication framework,” said the Head of Strategic Engagement.
The discovery has prompted the company to form a six-member committee to study Kushal’s productivity. However, his promotion has been deferred as the company cannot afford to move him from his current role.
This is satire. The company, characters and events are fictional.