Uniform

Have you noticed the new police recruits at Bangalore? My office is situated very close to the office of the Asst. Commissioner of Police which is a sprawling campus off Millers Road, and across the street there’s a small darshini where we often break for a cup of tea. This place is frequented by the local police staff, and one can very usually find the constables, new recruits, police – drivers, and not so regular Sub Inspectors there. The special tea in this darshini is among my favorite tea available in Bangalore.

Well, so this note is about the newly recruited cops at the Constable levels. We see some extremely well built; height above the 5’7” standards, youngsters, who in due course will form the fresh breed of policemen. Most of them are from rural areas, exude the nervousness of being in a large city, but have a sparkle in their eyes of having landed a cops job. Yet, the striking feature that one gets to notice among them is their dress; their khakhi uniform; their cap, which probably was designed some few decades ago (I did not check the history – but am sure like the Indian Penal Code which was coined before Independence for sure and is yet to be updated), and this feature separates them.

I mean, you have a city which has evolved over the years, and the economy which has grown over so much with the advent of all that can be called the latest, whilst the policemen and the system that need to guard the city and keep the law in order have just got frozen in time. I have not surveyed the morale of the new recruits to find what they thought of their uniforms, (though it would be an interesting HR assignment to do) but I am fairly certain that the very look and feel doesn’t tell you much of being proud of their appearance. The uniform is an indispensable part of our work that conveys a sense of pride and bestows accountability and responsibility to the job one is supposed to carry out. It is symbolic of the state of mind of the person who wears it and needs to reflect the culture of the system for which it is worn.

The uniform issue I guess is not limited to the new recruits but is more or less applicable to most among the junior level of cops. Whereas, the mid to senior brass would manage to wear some very decently designed clothes on duty, due to their State Police Academy or IPS tag. The decision makers like very often have kept the best for themselves and conveniently choose to forget the story down the line.

A lot of tax payer’s money is given to the home department and considerable amount I gather would probably be needed to spend on maintaining the law and order. The very fabric in its true essence is not offered to the people wearing the law on their sleeve, leaving much to be desired to find a vibrant force in action to take challenges faced in the wake of rapid urbanization. I need to be affirmed of the confidence of this newly recruited constable to whom I can walk up-to and he needs to complement the value that the department has added to him than just carry something he brought along himself. We need a force which relates to the public at large, feels comfortable in what they wear, and take pride in what they do, and not necessarily be related through the media featured top cop who has a take on all that happens in city with just a morality stick in his hand.

I am sure this situation is quite true for most states, and is the state of the junior cops all over the nation. Post 26/11 attacks, there were many discussions on having reforms in State Police Departments and their functionality. It’s a year approaching now, and probably would not be very untrue to find that a file would not have moved a place yet.

Cynicism apart, a case in contention is the BMTC, the city bus service, a very accountable service that has managed to get its staff relate well to the city population in general. It took some time for them to realise that they were there to make sensible business transporting people and survive in the business. While the home department and the decision makers there are yet to mean law to be their business.

 

I am willing to Pay!

Well, its not that we have much option when the government decides to increase the price of fuel.  It is much to the whims and that they say its based on oil market movements, yet, I am willing to pay. But let the money be put into the better use of the purpose that they are claimed to be used, and not to cover up for the arbitrary losses that the so called public sector enterprises gobble up in the name of correcting their balance sheets.

A look into the business operations of the hyped navratnas, or elephantine companies like the state air carrier and the oil companies and it is evident to see the usage to betterment of their babu-dom than efficiency and better use of resources. So much so that the very concept of accountability doesn’t creep into them, and you will have the nonsensical, unreasonable unions of these companies actually playing the labour welfare trump card and justifying many of the wasteful expenditures that they indulge in.

Its high time that the markets decide the price of any commodity and / or the business operations make them accountable for their fate. We are no different when we cry hoarse on over protectionism measures announced by countries to protect their interests. Why the double talk? If I am willing to pay; let me get the worth of it.

 

Governing Technocrat

These are troubled times. The stock market is yet to stabilize with all the beating it took the last year. Business assignments are tough to find, existing clients have not yet opened out their intention on further assignments & newer opportunities have become increasingly challenging to spot. The rains are playing truant. Its almost the end of June, and in a -raining at the drop of the hat- city like Bangalore, this month we have hardly had 4 days of rain. Yes, so all around there’s been an air of desperation.

To such a morning we all woke up to the newspapers screaming of the appointment of Mr. Nilekani by the Govt to head the Unique Identification Programme. Its such a heartening news to hear, not because we heard of this project (this project was due atleast 5 years ago); but to the fact that our PM has shown yet again seriousness on governmental issues. We all are most used to new schemes being announced, new commissions being drawn, new plans being laid out. However with Mr. Nilekani,  accepting this role, convinces us the masses that he will do whatever it takes to get the project doing. I am sure Mr. Nilekani would not have decided stepping out of Infosys unless he would have put forth his conditions of engagement. How many of the many such other projects can we be sure of being managed this way? It is quite wishful thinking the Government now decides to engage more of such people to lead our developmental framework. We all know how badly we need some serious revamping of our judicial system.

This move comes in after we saw the successful intervention in riddling Satyam of its trouble atleast partially, and it bolsters our hope of developmental governance, it looks like we have an able leader who is finding his way out to be accountable to the people who have given him the mandate.

 

MJ

With June 25, 2009 coming to an end, a chapter got closed, with the news of MJ’s death. Located far away from our  world, during the heavily regulated times of information / music & video’s being available to us; he had represented the liberal times to come. Reflecting on those earlier times I am startled and stunned how we as a nation accepted then to have a single channel being beamed across our TV’s in 85’s and 90’s by the maai-baap Doordarshan and the babus there deciding on the content we were to watch. Never ever do I remember having seen a performance being aired of his. And he was considered one of the best entertainers in business then. His music was path breaking then and is so relevant even today.

With his music, his dance, and the gaiety in his entertaining performances MJ symbolised the arrival of a new generation which then grew up from Color TV’s to HDTV’s, DVD’s and then YouTube. Troubled in his life for reasons best known to him, curtains came down on legendary entertainer, and the undisputed king of pop.

 

Yet Again!

So, how many times have we seen this happening, and it happens yet again. Pakistan came from nowhere into the finals, they have had some ordinary performances till the one with SA. Yet again! with SA, the usual brilliance that is exhibited all the time is offset just when it matters. Yonus Khan, not among the most expressive and flamboyant captains, showed some serious stuff that he is made off, I am betting now on a surprise the final could throw up.

 

Doldrums of the Alternative

One among the largest of all kinds of political party seems to be in doldrums. Many years back when we were much younger, I remember our parents talk much about the quality of leaders, all that the party was representative of; most of them were thought to be well (educated, behaved, mannered, spoken, understood, accepted, represented, ground rooted, hard working,  people-conscious),  and all that stood for wellness along with a clean image. This feature stood out when all that was reported was of corruption in and around the other large party that had governed us for so long … !

It seemed for some time.. yes.. we had found an alternative, and perhaps this competition among them to represent us would lead to a better governed system. Alas… power corrupts  and one can see that it has been no different, whether it has been a few states where they got to represent or when they clobbered a workable coalition, they were no different…. all that greedy, self -centered, nepotists, attention seeking and ready to do anything for power seekers had trespassed into this so called think thank, and got the better of them…!

Come on guys, dont you see we have a better alternative than what you all stood for at one point…or that it seems we have someone there who is willing to make the difference felt, and he has had his point proven right… I guess its time to get the act together…or let the doldrums….wash you all away!… we are watching..!

 

New Posts

I had discontinued posting on this site once I started using our corporate blog site at www.greyflex.com. Thereafter each time I thought to comment on anything, I wouldn’t be sure if it was appropriate to put them on the corporate website which is visited by clients and users.

And so, I have returned to write here on all that creeps into me all the time… watch out!

 

Transition !

There’s been a small break from my writing due to a new business process engaged by us recently. Activity in business is rare these days and therefore it is a good news considering the turtle pace of deals and action seen in business all-around. The client has been magnanimous to offer us this deal considering that we are yet operating at a smaller scale and on successful implementation the scale seems quite promising. Scaling up fast is possible when you are small and the opportunity is big .

Here I write on client business transition, which is an exciting phase in business. The business then has the opportunity to experience a new process, manage a new process, implement a new system and if all components in the process runs well, reward comes in the form of added bottom lines. A new process for a client brings in excitement and needs to be carried out at a fast pace which often  can be extremely de-settling for the set internal processes. Its like stirring a bowl with mud and water, and then you suddenly see a colloid of brownish liquid till the mud actually settles down and then there is clarity. The water gets it clarity with the passage of time and everything looks settled and is back to normal. Similar is the reaction, with colleagues, associates and even family members when the equilibrium is disturbed from an otherwise set eco-system.  The effect of the stir is quite different on each of these individuals.

From an account manager’s perpective, responsible to such a client, one would wish that the stir settles down instantly and clarity is available quickly. While most account managers would wishfully want such improbable to occur, the length of passage of time will test the nerve of even an otherwise cool mind. It becomes important for the account manager to be able to see clarity because a query from the client in unclear waters can be extremely unnerving leading to the feel of being out of control. A feeling such as this will be the last thing an account manager would ever wish. Though one would want to, there is certainly no escape from the extreme chaos that is bound to happen within the existing systems and the way of doing things. A new process; a new role; changed systems; often warranted by such transitions, can get colleagues & associates, grapple at the pace, and usually leads to bursts of stress and excitement getting the whole ecosystem tense.

To complicate matters further, family chips into the chaos not realising that people involved in transition sometimes unconsciously carry home this experience. They are not unreasonable in their quest to know the reasons of chaos, but explaining chaos requires patience which is generally thin in such circumstances .

I believe, it is during such turbulent times, the tough get the opportunity to prove themselves and clear the stir. It takes attention, commitment, willingness and pace to settle  the process and revert to stability. It is probably an opportunity as well for everyone in the process to align and check each other on reliability and adaptability. Transition in business teaches you valuable lessons, and the gripping experience, like all times is unique and worth each penny being an entrepreneur.

 

Relevant Experience Factor

It is fun on assignments which involves creativity. One could wonder the extent of creative skills possible on recruiting assignments. When a sector is dynamic, evolving and fast growing, client companies allow recruiting agencies the liberty to look for various options in the market. New roles; new positions; facilitates career moves across skills and sectors, thereby making the whole transition interesting to change seekers and facilitators.
 
I remember distinctly, with the Insurance sector liberalised in late 2000, we were exposed to recruiting in the exciting Insurance space. This space had till then invoked an image of the elephantine PSU, Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India which is managed by the Government. The potential of business opportunities in the sector and the extent of career aspirations that were possible in this segment suddenly dawned on us when we met up with young Human Resource professionals from the newly launched  private life insurance joint venture company. 

The opportunity was exciting as we reviewed the database of experienced professionals from various other segments and uged them to explore the new option; as we got into dialogue with educational institutions to initiate freshers to evaluate new career avenues. The dearth of otherwise eager talent to manage this kind of business process, made it creative, fulfilling and meaningful to move people across sectors and skills and get them to accept good positions, career growth and better salaries.

Over the last year or so, with the sluggishness in various sectors, most companies are back to what we call as the relavancy factor. Probably for want of training time, they’d insist on evaluating resumes of candidates with just the similar experience, thereby reducing the role of recruiting firms to being mere resume pushers and end up hiring people only from the relevant sectors and with relevant skills. While such moves could result in short term gains of minimising transition cost of positions left vacant within a project, I believe it could have cascading effect over an extended period with monotony creeping in leading to attrition.

If time is not a serious constraint, client companies should push recruiting firms to offer candidates with relevant attributes and attitude, and not just relevant skills. Training specific skills may perhaps not turn out to be as expensive as attrition.

 

Dr Randy Pausch

I knew of Dr. Randy Pausch, just the day he died. He inspires. I’d pray for his soul to rest in peace.