Why would a manager who’s able to claim the credit of their reports in order to advance their own career then PIP the best ones? Wouldn’t they keep them around to keep claiming credit from?
I’m not doubting your story (I’ve never worked in India) I just don’t understand the incentive to fire a good worker in this scenario.
They already got promoted and might not be managing the same team, plus it sells the lie better, and most people wouldn’t go along with this forever and might start claiming things so they have to discredit you first.
Most CEOs and VPs in these companies are nepotistic and political. They are happy to take credit but will never allow their direct reports to become a threat to them. In general the structure looks like this
CEO
VP (usually a family member or a "chamcha" literally spoon, but means sycophant.)
Directors (all yes-men chamchas)
Worker bees
Not very different from most companies, in my experience.
Is sycophancy different there? I think in many places employees often praise their managers and agree with everything because it’s a survival strategy. Or maybe a misplaced hope to get recognized that way. I assume that’s all this is too?
In India loyalties run deep. It can come along the lines of religion, region, caste, family, color, class etc.
Many times novices to this game, work mad hours, only to realise a year or two down the lane, some guy who practically did no work but comes from the same state your manager does, is now promoted above you.
> some guy who practically did no work but comes from the same state your manager does,
I took over a unit where 80% of the engineers were from one state, and mostly from the same college as the previous hiring manager.
There was one particular misfit - competent engineer but didn't have any skills for my BU.
I tried to transfer him to the hiring manager's new unit, and he refused. So I told him I would have to fire the misfit. Guess what, the next day he found a req and took the misfit.
This was a pattern everywhere I worked. So when I was able to dictate hiring policies, one rule was that we would never visit the same college twice in row. This of course made me very unpopular with HR. Now they had to work harder to maintain connections with placement departments.
They don't care that much. Probably from their point of view the merit is theirs anyway and consider anyone below them easily replaceable. Also, good employees understand their value and will start asking to be rewarded adequately for their contribution- this is a problem, so getting rid of them or waiting until they give up and leave solves it.
I’m not doubting your story (I’ve never worked in India) I just don’t understand the incentive to fire a good worker in this scenario.