MAN VS. MACHINE- 5 things that makes you better than an ATM machine or automation software and how to protect your career.

I remember when I opened my first bank account. I was 16. I had just gained admission to university to study civil engineering miles away from where I had grown up. I needed to have an account so that family and friends could send me some money without having to wait till someone was coming my way. All they needed to do was to pay it to my account at the bank and contact me via the telephone. Thankfully Nigeria was just starting to have the GSM revolution and I owned a small Bird phone; I was not able to afford the popular Nokia 3310 at the time.   

Going to the bank then was almost a whole day’s job. God help you that you aren’t desperate for money on a day that salaries are paid. You will practically do nothing else on that day because the banking halls will be filled to the brim and spilling out of the entrance.

There were days you would get to the bank and discover that you left your passbook at home. So you would have to transport yourself home and back again, because they wouldn’t be able to attend to you without one it. Going to the bank was always such an onerous task.

Few years down the line, a new set of banks came with some revolutionary ideas. These new generation banks weren’t yet well trusted because many believed they could fold up at any time.  However, they were able to leverage on several key selling points, like having your bank accounts opened instantly and with zero deposits. Also the ability to walk into any of their branches with your account details and initiate a transaction without a passbook and this endeared a lot of us to them.

Fast forward a few more years and I don’t need to go into the banking hall to do any transaction. There are machines that I can make deposits in, even if I deal with cash. I can practically wire money to anywhere in the world either on my mobile phone or computer. With a USSD code I can pay all those bills that once compelled everyone to go to the bank.

Life is good, isn’t it?

The only problem is, that with advancement in technology, came a reduction in the overhead costs of these banks. Years ago, banks were one of the highest employers of labour, but today the tides have turned. Many of the processes which are repetitive have been automated and replaced by machines, software and apps. Sad to say, this is not happening in banks alone but also in most sectors of the economy including telecoms, oil and gas, public service, education and so on.

Another problem with this technological advancement is how todays’ managers and employers of labour have begun to look at their staff and consequently how many employees view themselves and their services to the organisation. Many employers are treating their staff like robots; they are trained to do repetitive tasks without asking questions and thinking innovatively. Many employees on the other hand go through the motion like robots without a single thought about how to bring their uniqueness to work.

Truth be told machines, software and apps are less expensive when compared to salaries, sick leaves, leave allowances, training costs and the cost of operational inefficiencies. They are also more reliable and efficient, more apt to deliver predictable results and have no drama resulting from human ego and hurting people’s feelings. However, it is important to keep what American philosopher Elbert Hubbard said, to heart.

He said, “One machine can do the job of fifty ordinary men but no machine can do the job of one extraordinary man.”

What is it that really makes humans superior to the machines, software and apps?

Are there benefits to be derived from working with humans over robots? What are those little extras that give the extraordinary man an edge which can make it practically impossible for machines to replace him?

 Here is how:

SHOW INITIATIVE AND INNOVATIVENESS

Wikipedia defines initiative both as “the ability to assess and initiate things independently” and “the power or opportunity to act or take charge before others do.” No machine, no matter how great it is, can innovate and initiate anything in or by itself. It would still require humans to spot the opportunity and programme it to do so. Therein lies the difference; the ability to spot opportunities, to initiate them and to think innovatively is what makes humans more superior to machines. The only problem is that many employees today have not learnt to take initiative. It takes initiative to not just ask a budding entrepreneur or emerging business person to open an account with your bank, but to analyse his prospects, the industry he plays in and to innovatively tie his challenges and opportunities to a financial service or product your organisation offers.

It takes initiative to know that it is part of your responsibility to generate your salary by marketing and selling the services of your organisation even though you are not in the marketing department. This sounds easy right? You would be surprised at how many never get around to doing this, almost throughout their career and yet complain when they are replaced.

PROVIDE FEEDBACK AND IDEAS EXCHANGE

Every organisation needs feedback and the exchange of ideas to develop, grow and improve on their services and performance. The problem is, machines do not have capacity to exchange ideas on what is working or vice versa. Nido Qubein, founder of The Great Harvest Bread Company, rightly remarked that “robots don't have ideas to exchange. To have an idea, you must be conscious, and nobody has found a way to implant consciousness in a mechanical brain.”

So when you work for an organisation, develop the capacity to exchange ideas, provide and receive feedback and you will automatically gain an edge over any machine, no matter how sophisticated it is.

 GO THE EXTRA MILE

Machines, software and apps like computers are “garbage in, garbage out.” They do only what they are programmed to do. They may have been programmed to greet you in a certain way like most automated teller machines, but they cannot compliment you on the beautiful green head tie you have spent the last few hours trying to get on with such precision.

When I notice that my boss is swarmed with deadlines and requires certain information to make a presentation, I go the extra-mile to provide it and even go a step further to beautifully arrange it in PowerPoint so he has less work to do. Even though “it is not my job” I have done something no machine or robot can do.

When I see one of our clients who is not happy about our service or product and I do all I can to give them a different experience even though it's not my job, that's something no machine can do.

HAVE COMPASSION

Compassion both for your employers and customers is a product of the heart and it is alien to machines. Compassion is what makes people dedicate themselves to the company’s mission of serving a customer or delivering a product in a particular way. Compassion is what makes you know that your company is not making money and will restrain you from making unnecessary demands while you look for ways to make the situation better.

It is also compassion that restrains you from making shady decisions that put your organisation and colleagues at risk. It is what makes you invest in your colleagues so they can do well on their jobs and grow in their careers.  At the root of compassion is empathy. No one can put himself in another’s shoes except the person is compassionate. This, no machine can do.

BE ADAPTABLE

The Oxford’s Advanced Learners Dictionary defines being adaptable as “being able to change or be changed in order to deal successfully with new situations.” Adaptability is one key attribute of humans. We were able to adapt through the agrarian, industrial and now the information age. Humans are apt to adapt, that’s what they do, machines cannot, if they must a human must do the job.

The heart of the matter

If you are an employee the onus is on you to prove beyond all reasonable doubt that no machine, no matter how sophisticated can replace you. Unlock that innate ability of the human species. Bring your power and genius to work. Don’t be docile and do repetitive work the way a robot will - add yourself, be extraordinary.

If you’re an employer understand that you need both machines and humans to succeed. Don’t focus so much on automation to the detriment of your asset - people. Treat machines like machines and people like people. When machines fail, humans will still be there to keep the mission going.

 Feel free to write comments on any experience where you have proven yourself to be better than a machine.

If you would like me to speak to your organisation about moving from being Good (The New Mediocre) employees to Great employees, kindly send a message to my inbox.

Don Azubike Onyegbu is a workplace performance strategist, corporate training consultant and speaker and the author of the newly released book, Good: The new mediocre.