Meru, Air India and Kingfisher – Sleeping Regulators, Greedy Managers and Cunning Politicians

There are three news reports about strikes. When read individually, those may sound as very routine stories, but when read together they present a terrible picture of our society.

The first story is of Meru. They have done pioneering work in establishing Radio Taxis in India. The drivers enter into a contract with Meru and it is a contract for service and not contract of service. There is actually nothing new which Meru has done. Such Radio taxis exist almost all over the world and all follow similar if not same contracting with drivers.

This means that Meru is not the employer of the drivers. The drivers are actually ‘contractors.’ As a consequence, the drivers are not workmen and do not enjoy protection of the Industrial Disputes Act. But given the psyche of drivers who are usually not well read, they cannot see anything else than an employer-employee relationship. The political leaders however understand the difference. And certainly the foreign educated son of Narayan Rane who leads Swabhiman understands this aspect. But they have a vested interest in fomenting trouble for political gains. Most of the drivers are not locals, they belong to the North belt and so out went MNS and Shiv Sena unions which had organised the drivers earlier under their unions. Nitesh Rane is cleverly recognised this opportunity to build a political base.

And adding fuel to the fire is the MMRTA or Mumbai Metropolitan Region Transport Authority which is notorious for not deciding the Auto-Taxi fares quickly after any price rise. This invariably leads to strikes which Mumbaikars have got used to. Whether they are accountable and to whom is another story, but it is a story of simple neglect and dereliction of duty. Since they have not revised the fares, one would have expected that Swabhiman would take up the issue with MMRTA. But no! This is what the new report says....

K K Tiwari, president of the Swabhiman Taxi Rickshaw Union, said: "Drivers have to pay a fee to Meru every day. Either the fare be revised by Re 1 per km or the charge levied by the management be reduced to help the drivers reduce their losses. The strike will continue till our demands are met."

If Meru discontinues its operations, which I hope they will not, it will be the insouciance, and vested interests of political ‘leaders’ and the negligence of MMRTA which will have to be blamed.

The second case is that of Air India whose pilots have threatened to go on strike if their salaries are not paid immediately. Actually many have not been reporting for duty. The Air India story is too well known. No salary for three months is a bad situation indeed. Corruption at all levels, not just in Air India but also including their bosses in New Delhi, complete mismanagement of merger of the two airlines are factors that have led to this situation. Who is really responsible? Air India employees presume that the airline will not be closed down. Given the vested interests that are involved, and also political considerations, they may be right in their assessment. So taxpayers will finally pay for the greed of who’s who in Air India and in the Government of India. Greed, vested interests of political leaders and neglect are the factors that are bringing down this airline.

   

Air India plans to have smaller companies to handle various operations. This means that many employees will be moved to different companies. While such a move may be justifiable on commercial grounds the ability of Air India to manage any change is a big suspect. It will also cause untold worries and hardship to employees who are already worried about the future. The average age of Air India is quite high meaning there are many who are in the higher age groups. Impact on them at this juncture of their life is going to be an unbearable hit.

   

Kingfisher Airlines is a classic story of mismanagement. This is what Anjuli Bhargava says in her story on Kingfisher “Kingfisher Airlines chairman Vijay Mallya, of course, pointed to the various negative factors that his airline was battling. What he seems to ignore is that all these factors apply to the other airlines as well. Sure, oil prices have risen, but they have risen for all the airlines. Taxes on air turbine fuel remain an issue, but every other airline in India pays the same. And foreign direct investment has not happened for any of them. So, if he finds himself in a unique situation, he has only himself to blame.

Mallya has confused business models — low-fare and full service — time and again, and he has paid the price for that. He has never had a proper management team or chief executive in place (and if rumours are true, Sanjay Aggarwal, the CEO who joined in 2010, will be with Mallya only up to March). Instead of focusing on making his operations more efficient, Mallya has — without any compunction — relied on his political clout and influence to convince Indian banks to bail him out. No matter what he says, it is a bailout that he has got. No banker in his right mind would agree to fund his unviable and inefficient company unless it happens to be a government-run bank such as State Bank of India. Can anyone tell me how much exposure Standard Chartered or HSBC have to this airline? How come they are not losing sleep over keeping Kingfisher flying?........

.....And no one should look at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation for steps such as cancelling the airline’s scheduled operator permit and so on. In a country like India, he will be kissing goodbye to his job (and his career) if he starts taking strong, decisive steps like this. It is not even up for discussion.”

The management practices of Vijay Mallya’s companies are not written about because he has both - money and power! But his views on managing a company are gulped down with a smile on face. Greed plays a part there too and corruption is not a monopoly of the babus in New Delhi. The only smart move Vijay Mallya is making is not investing in his own airline in spite of having literally tonnes of money. Captain of a sinking ship goes down with it but not of an airline – he perhaps will fly higher!

What is happening to the pilots and other staff of Kingfisher? Many left and joined Indigo. But Indigo has stopped recruitment. So others have no choice but to wait for their luck to favour them. And some pilots have threatened to go on a strike. It will not help. There is a big fall in social status for Kingfisher employees, though the same can not be said of Vijay Mallya.

Greedy, irresponsible people have caused a great damage. MMRTA and DGCA will not act. Nitesh Rane can hold Mumbaikars to ransom. Mallya is having a great time, and all Aviation ministers have behaved as if they owned the airline. And nobody is listening!!

Vivek

Captured by Corruption

The trouble with studying in good management institutes is that the students very often do not understand what it means to work in industry. They dream of working for Infosys, Wipro, Tatas and such good companies, but the masses work in small organisations. The stories of exploitation and hard life the workers lead are usually not visible to the students.

This has a fallout. Many students do not understand why the Government makes such silly laws like the Factories Act. They do their summer placements, usually their first serious work in a factory, in good organisations which comply with the legal stipulations. Sometimes they offer better than what the law prescribes. But a law is really made for the contingency of its breach. Small enterprises and ‘make-a-quick-buck-entrepreneurs’ merrily flout the legal provisions. And a corrupt bureaucracy helps them too. We understand the purpose of law making when we see this reality.

Sometimes NGOs highlight the plight of the exploited workers. I recently read the report called ‘Captured by Cotton.’ [Link]. It is a report on how dalit girls are systematically exploited by garment makers in Tamil Nadu who make goods for European and US markets. The report sums up the situation in its introduction:

In India, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, girls and young women are recruited and employed on a large scale to work in the garment industry. The promise: a decent wage, comfortable accommodation, and, the biggest lure: a considerable sum of money upon completion of their three-year contract. This lump sum may be used to pay for a dowry. Although the payment of a dowry has been prohibited in India since 1961, it is still a general practice in rural India for which families often incur high debts. The recruitment and employment scheme – the Sumangali Scheme – that is the subject of this report is closely linked to the payment of a dowry. The Tamil word Sumangali refers to a married woman who leads a happy and contented life with her husband with all fortunes and material benefits. The reality of working under the Sumangali Scheme however, stands in sharp contrast to the attractive picture that is presented to the girls and young women during the recruitment process. Excessive overwork, low wages, no access to grievance mechanisms or redress, restricted freedom of movement and limited privacy are part and parcel of the working and employment conditions under this scheme. The promised end-of-contract sum is not a bonus, but part of the regular wage that is withheld by the employer. Often women workers do not even receive the full promised lump sum. Without exaggeration, the Sumangali Scheme in its worst form has become synonymous with unacceptable employment and labour conditions, even with bonded labour.'

Countries which thrive on outsourcing are easy exploitation grounds by their unscrupulous employers and also by MNCs who prefer to turn a Nelson’s eye to it. The ILO has published an ‘ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy.’ This is a step in the right direction but nevertheless the exploitation continues.

We know the story of Foxconn which came in focus because of its high profile customer Apple. There are several reports available on how Foxconn works and all are, without exception, shocking. Watch this video to get a glimpse [Video Link].

The NY times article ‘The Dilemma of Cheap Electronics’ points out a very real problem. It says:

‘Nobody wants to see workers exploited, and if Apple can pressure Foxconn to clean up its act, it should...... In other words, what assurance would the Apples and Dells and Panasonics have that if they forced their Chinese contractors to adopt American-level wages and conditions, their competitors would all do so simultaneously?...... The issue is complicated. It’s upsetting. We, the consumers, want our shiny electronics. We want them cheap, yet we want them built by well-paid, healthy workers. But apparently, we can’t have both.’


And see this video too [We shop, who pays?]. 

The assumptions behind these statements are faulty and do not indicate what we want. It is okay if the workers are paid above minimum wages, but they must be paid! In many cases they are denied what is due to them. The unacceptable working conditions must be done away with. And all this can be mandated and implemented by the Government. Relying on the ILO convention is enough. If bonded labour persists in spite of the convention, then obvious conclusion is that things will not improve without rigorous implementation of labour standards by the Government. 

And it also means that workers have to free themselves from the vice like grip of the corrupt bureaucracy.

Vivek

[Picture courtesy: Captured by Cotton]

Every Closed Eye Is Not Sleeping, And Every Open Eye Is Not Seeing!

“Where are you Lulu?” I called out to talk to my parrot, Lulu.

“Here, right above your head on this small branch,” he responded. I had difficulty spotting Lulu hidden in green foliage of the mango tree. “I was watching you yesterday speak to a girl student. It appeared to me that she was visually challenged.”

“Never knew you follow me, Lulu. Yes, she was visually challenged.” I said. “She was appearing for placement interviews. She said that some of the interviewers showed insensitivity in interviews. The mere recollection brought her to tears; it must have hurt her deeply.”

“And I saw tears in your eyes too! Men become sensitive only when they grow old!!”

“May be you are right. People always thought of me as a man with the heart of a solid rock! My children now laugh when they see me crying while watching a movie.”

“Crying? So what did you discuss with her? Did you offer her a job?” Lulu asked.

“I am no longer employed, Lulu, you know that very well. She had several questions on her mind. The reluctance of organisations to offer her a suitable job was finally taking toll, her confidence was eroding.”

“Hmmm.......it is unfortunate, and I hope she gets a good job soon. But I have seen visually challenged persons working with speed on their laptop. Don’t your fellow professionals know that they use software called ‘Jaws? It literally talks to them.’”

“Life would have been different if HR managers were so well informed! But I can’t really blame them. I too did not know about the software and that they do not have a handicap when it comes to working with laptop.”

“Is being visually challenged really a handicap? I remember what happened when you screened a movie for your students. The most insightful observations were made by a visually challenged student who actually ‘heard’ a movie.” Lulu wondered.

“I remember that day. I was actually shocked to hear him raise some questions and observations. I was then so moved ....I had to search for words. Good that he did not see my moist eyes.”

“So visually challenged persons can understand the intricacies of human emotions. I guess they might be better than others at that.”

“Yes, I would agree.”

“Is rational thinking affected if you are visually challenged?” Lulu asked.

“Not at all. The two are not connected. I mean some may be better at it and others not so, but it has nothing to do with their being visually challenged.”

“Interesting.”

“What?”

“You human beings believe that you see with your eyes. The fact is that it is your brain that “perceives” what you think you see.” Lulu said.

“I agree Lulu.”

“You have to make an effort to see things....to perceive them and that too correctly. Remember perception is intentional.”

“Sometimes that is not enough. There is also a question about the safety of visually challenged people in the minds of recruiters.”

“Nonsense.” Lulu shot back.

“What?”

“I wonder why you just don’t see what goes around. People actually are more protective of a visually challenged person in open spaces and on streets. And so they do in offices.”

 “Hmmm.....let me think what you are saying.....are you saying that it is all about being socially conscious and inclusive?”

“That is right, but it is such a cold and inert statement. I like what Bill Cosby said.”

“What was that?” I asked.

“Every Closed Eye Is Not Sleeping, And Every Open Eye Is Not Seeing.”  Lulu quoted him as he perched on my laptop and looked at me meaningfully.

Vivek

Bajaj Auto Union: First Steps On a Road Less Travelled

Arvind Shrouti of Option Positive, the advisor to 100+ unions in the Pune – Chinchwad belt invited me to join a very novel project. If it is not the only one o fits kind, it is surely one of the rare projects in India.

Vishwa Kalyan Kamgar Sanghatana decided to shape its and its members’ future proactively. It invited Arvind Shrouti to help its members define it and prepare plans for future.

Vishwa Kalyan Kamgar Sanghatana [VKKS for brevity] has a very interesting history. Bajaj Auto closed down its Akurdi plant on 29^th Aug 2007 abruptly. The intention was to move production to Uttaranchal plant which offered advantages in terms of labour cost and financial benefits. Shiv Sena union seems to have helped Bajaj in this closure. VKKS stepped in and got the Shiv Sena union derecognised, and fought lone battle against Bajaj Auto. Finally a settlement was arrived at. Broadly speaking, as per the new terms of contract, each worker was to be paid upfront Rs 5.75 lakh in cash in hand and the remaining Rs 12 lakh would be paid in monthly instalments of Rs 10,000 for the next 10 years.

   

VKKS then organised the workers at the Chakan Plant of Bajaj Auto. This history is important. The immediate concern of its members appears to be how to protect them from a possible loss of job in future. They are aware that the vicissitudes of economy can hit them before they are ready for it. Their long term vision is a reflection of their desire to keep happiness and wellness, not just physical wellness but psychological too, as priorities, while preparing for future shocks, if any. And they are aware that unions have earned a bad name in recent times, they want it to have a positive image for their union.

The one day workshop generated a lot of ideas and enthusiasm. It was preceded with some work on delegates working in groups, preparing collage to convey their dreams with pictures. Interesting thoughts had gone behind making collage. Emerging strongly were concerns of children’s education, social security and empowerment of women. They showed heightened social awareness stating that they must play a part in preventing female infanticide! One group emphasised the need to listen actively, while another group emphasised the need to make their union vice-free. One delegate narrated how he had helped an employee to give up the habit of chewing tobacco [I saw his sms to this delegate thanking him for it!]. A lot of new thoughts and a renewed dedication to take charge of their own lives - this is what made this event so energising.

Establishing meaningful livelihood is everybody’s goal, it should be. It means having enough money to provide for oneself and family and ‘acceptance of his sense of worth.’ If deliberations are any indication, VKKS delegates are undoubtedly marching in that direction.

I was fortunate to be a part of this endeavour. I wish them success.

Alvin Toffler said, “For the first time in human history, virtue is a condition of effective work.” Yes, people are listening Mr Toffler.

Vivek

PS: The photographs show Arvind Shrouti leading the discussion and the delegates involved in a group exercise.

Preparing For Future

I delivered this address at the Seminar of the National HRD Netwrok’s South Gujarat Chapter on Feb 25, 2012 at Bharuch. This is an edited version.

Peter Drucker said it all: Create Learning Organisations

To begin the discussion, let me say that Peter Drucker’s Theory of Business holds good even today. Just in case I sound very academic to you, let me mention what Peter Drucker said. He said ‘every organisation is built and run on a set of assumptions about markets, customers, competitors, value perception and so on. When those assumptions are in harmony with the external reality there are conditions for growth and success. When there is a mismatch, the seeds of crisis are sown.’

The message is clear. If you want to run your business successfully, first reflect on your assumptions about everything in business, have clear understanding of the reality and ensure that there is a match between the two. Everybody knows that this is easily said than done.

Peter Drucker just stopped short of saying that the organisations need to be ‘learning organisations’ in order to be successful. Peter Senge coined that word. We know that a learning organisation has the capacity to adapt and change. It actually takes Drucker’s thought forward. It is important because it also shows us a way of how to prepare our organisations for future.

Learning Organisations Create a Shared Vision

The first hallmark of a learning organisation is a shared vision. Much has been said on this subject so I am not going to talk about it except pointing out some wonderful exercise done by State Bank of India’s Chairman Mr OP Bhatt.

Mr Bhatt screened the movie ‘The Legend of Bagger Vance’ for his employees. Now you will notice that the word Bagger Vance is phonetically so close to the word Bhagwan. This is not without reason. This is a story based on Bhagwad-Gita itself. This movie is about two persons - one is a golfer but he has lost his swing, or in cricketing terms, he is out of form, and the other is his caddy, who doubles up as a guide. Mr Bhatt used this effectively to convey the point that State bank of India is out of sync with business requirements and needs to get its act together. That was a very interesting way to share the reality and share a vision to get people to subscribe to it.

Learning Organisations Create Opportunities for Reflection and Dialogue

The second hallmark of a learning organisation is that the people discard old ways of thinking which they use for solving their problems. I am reminded of the report in the Times of India on Jan 7. I will read out a part of the news report. It has the statements of two MDs of auto companies, Maruti Suzuki and Toyota. I invite you to listen carefully and note the difference.

So here we go - ‘Maruti Suzuki which lost 83,000 units in sales - worth around Rs 2500 crore - due to the labour unrest that hit its operations last year, is clear that part of the problem was a communication gap between the workers and the management. "I hope the workers in Manesar understand that an internal union better represents their interests," said Maruti MD Shinzo Nakanishi. While the strike hit Maruti's sales and profitability, its parent was clear in how it viewed the problem. "Suzuki has a lot of experience handling strikes in Japan and elsewhere," said Nakanishi. "If a market is growing these problems are not possible to avoid and every company will face this kind of situation. How quickly you handle the issue is important." Remember what Peter Drucker talked – he talked about assumptions about everything including how to manage conflicts. Do the remarks of Maruti Suzuki’s MD show that he has learnt anything from the two strikes that happened in succession?

The same news report also quotes Mr Vikram Kirloskar, Vice Chairman of Toyota Kirloskar. Remember that Toyota also had their share of the labour strife. Here is the relevant part – ‘Said Vikram Kirloskar, Toyota Kirloskar Motor vice chairman: "We're trying to improve communication with team members and instil ownership in the company. When we started out, we ended up with fresh hands and failed to understand their demographic and personal requirements. That's why we had labour problems in the first plant but the second plant the going has been smooth. We have promoted career development and ensured a mix of experienced and new people." Don’t the remarks of Toyota Kirloskar’s Vice Chairman show that his organisation has learnt something new?

That is the big point about a learning organisation. People must examine their ways of thinking, and assumptions; they must discard old ways of thinking which they use for solving their problems. Toyota seems to have got it right, Maruti Suzuki is yet to learn. At this stage you might ask me how to get people to examine their ways of thinking, and assumptions; and make corrections? This is a valid question. Let us discuss some answers to it.

There are two aspects about any change which are so vital – the first is about the culture. You are aware that Toyota faced a big crisis in Aug 2009. A Toyota Lexus went out of control and resulted in death of a family. That resulted in recalling several thousand vehicles and tremendous cost to Toyota. The book ‘Toyota Under Fire’ recounts this story and culls out lessons for managers. This is what the authors say, I am quoting them:

‘The chief questions to ask yourself about how your company will respond in a crisis are not about contingency plans and policies, but about your culture and your people. Have you created a culture that rewards transparency and accepts responsibility for mistakes? Have you created a culture that encourages people to take on challenges and strive for improvement? Have you created a culture that values people and invests in their capabilities? Have you created a culture that prioritises the long term? Most attempts to change during a crisis fail.’

The culture will promote or prevent learning and adapting. We as HR managers must focus on developing culture. That task is not easy. It is now clear that the language determines the culture. That is one of the ways to change it. We have to examine what language we use at work place. Is it a language of complaint or is it a language of commitment? Is it a language of blame or is it a language of personal responsibility? And to rephrase the point of Peter Drucker that a business is built on assumptions about everything – Is it a language of assumptions that hold us or it is a language of assumptions that we hold?

We discussed three cases – Those of State Bank of India, Maruti Suzuki and Toyota Kirloskar. I leave it to you to conclude what language their managers were speaking – did we hear a commitment or a complaint, and what assumptions which they held were revealed in their remarks.

Change the Language to Create Desired Culture

The language of complaint is counter-productive because it is easily expressed, and it says what we can’t stand. It generates frustration, it is non-transformational, and it is energy sapping. On the contrary, the language of commitment is spoken not casually but intentionally, and it expresses what we can stand for. It generates vitalising energy and is transformational. The language of personal responsibility has similar characteristics.

The issue then is how can we promote a different language, a culture-changing language, within our organisation? The answer, to my mind lies in what we speak to ourselves and how we can create opportunities for meaningful dialogues.

We must reflect on events in our work life, our interactions with people to understand what meaning we make. It determines how we see the world around us and how we act in it. How we talk to ourselves determines how we act. This does not happen automatically but it must be done intentionally.

The interpersonal talk on the other hand must show greater empathy. You will recall that the 5^th habit of the famous seven habits of successful people is ‘Understand first and then seek understanding.’ We are discussing ‘Preparing for Future.’ Ladies and Gentlemen, my submission is that we must focus on the language we speak in our organisations and arrange dialogue between various groups that would lead to better appreciation of each others’ view point. Seamless organisation is another characteristic of a learning organisation, and it is achieved by promoting dialogues.

I am now going to talk about one more hallmark of a learning organisation. I am acutely aware that the time is short, and this is the last session, so I will conclude after speaking about this aspect.

Organisation Citizenship Behaviour is promoted through Institution Building

The magazine Frontline published a story in September 2010. The caption is ‘Poisoned Ground.’ It is subtitled ‘Hindustan Unilever is avoiding its responsibilities to its workers exposed to mercury in the thermometer factory it owned in Kodaikanal.’ It alleged death of 23 workers due to mercury poisoning and several others are affected. The article said that the 360 Kgs of mercury was spread over the factory site. But the company that is Hindustan Unilever denies all this. In case you think it was sensational journalism, let me tell you that the Frontline cover story was very well researched with 102 references!

In other words we have a case of a corporation which is accused to have negligently caused harm to its own employees.

I am sure that you would have read that when fire broke at AMRI Hospital in Kolkata, the staff fled the scene! [TOI Dec9, 2011].

And here is another story. Contrast it now.

We have watched with horror the terrorists’ attack on Taj hotel in Mumbai. While Taj Hotels did a splendid job of helping the victims and employees, it probably received world-wide attention after an article was published in Harvard Business Review. The story is titled ‘The ordinary Heroes of The Taj’ and is sub-titled ‘How an Indian hotel chain’s organizational culture nurtured employees who were willing to risk their lives to save their guests.’ We are aware of the story, and all here are aware of how the ordinary waiters and bail boys moved to save lives of their guests.

In one case the organisation is allegedly responsible for their workers’ death and in another case the employees are willing to die for it! In one organisation staff runs away on sighting fire, and in another organisation the employees work three days incessantly in spite fire and firing by terrorists! What a contrast!!

What makes the employees willing to place the organisation’s interests before their own lives and their interests? This cannot be achieved through training or clauses in contracts. Only organisation’s culture can create this magic. This perhaps is the highest point of a learning organisation.

This is all about ‘Preparing for Future.’ We must create a learning organisation in our quest for building an institution, not just an organisation. As one book has put it ‘Institutions are more enduring than organisations, have capacity of continuous growth, ability to cope and adopt under diverse pressures and pulls to make thrust into the future, in addition to having an impact on the society or community in which they exist. They perform services and functions which are valued in the community or society and also play the roles of a change inducing, a change-protecting agent within the community.’

I beg to submit that ‘Preparing for Future’ is all about institution building.

Vivek

Maruti Suzuki: The Arrogance of Success

In Ramayana, Maruti or Hanuman is depicted as a strong, loyal, and a follower of Prabhu Ramachandra sans ego.

But look at the Maruti executives. They seem to be arrogance personified. Here is the statement of Maruti’s MD Shinzo Nakanishi: “I hope the workers in Manesar understand that an internal union better represents their interests.” [TOI Jan 7, 2012]

There are several issues with this statement – Firstly the underlying assumption is that an internal union serves workers’ interests better than external union. There is no basis for making this statement. There are several organisations where external unions have represented their employees and without much problem. So Mr Nakanishi’s statement only discloses his bias and not a fact.

Secondly, the statement may be true if he means that ‘an internal union better represents their interests as far as the Maruti management is concerned,’ one must appreciate his audacity to say it. The newspaper reports have captured in detail how Maruti handled the recent strike and promoted an internal union. Such unions are called ‘puppet unions’ and obviously not without reason. 

Even so, Maruti MD’s statement only smacks of arrogance and a tendency to ‘manage environment.’ Those who followed the strike will recall the rumours that Maruti actually paid Rs 1 Crore to its worker leaders for taking separation. Mr Nakanishi’s statement can only make people believe that the rumour is true.

A mature statement came from Toyota Kirloskar which too experienced labour strife. [Quote] Said Vikram Kirloskar Toyota Kirloskar Motor vice chairman: "We're trying to improve communication with team members and instil ownership in the company. When we started out, we ended up with fresh hands and failed to understand their demographic and personal requirements. That's why we had labour problems in the first plant but the second plant the going has been smooth. We have promoted career development and ensured a mix of experienced and new people."[Unquote]

The language discloses your thoughts. In the case of Maruti, those are far from encouraging. “Learning and innovation go hand in hand. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow” said William Pollard more than a hundred years ago. 

It stands true even today.

Do you get me Mr. Nakanishi?

Vivek

Photo Courtesy EcoTimes

What's Happening at Bandra HR Forum

There was a sense of guilt with which I went to attend a meeting of the Bandra HR Forum. They had actually invited me to meet them in December and like an old man [‘like’ because I do not think I am one, J] I forgot about it. So I made it up by going there in January.

Bandra HR Forum is a small group of HR professionals who meet once in a month. The idea is to interact with like minded people and gain some new thoughts and perspectives. That is very laudable. Sujata said that they are not there for ‘networking.’ Nobody gave me their visiting card [and I did not give mine too]!

It was not a formal meeting, we chatted for a good ninety minutes. At Eat Around The Corner at Bandra. They serve good breakfast, but it appears that the HR fraternity in Bandra is very calorie conscious so they were not eating much. That is okay, that is the problem of the restaurant owner. The restaurant owner is obviously a shrewd businessman who understands that this crowd can only swell, so he did not object.

The discussion focused on industrial relations [what else, with me there?]. I have always said that I am an IR person to the core, and the world seems to agree. But later our discussion later veered around careers, practising fairness in all dealings as the most important value. I picked up some good thoughts; it was a very interesting meeting.

In case the readers of this blog post with to join this group for their meetings, which I strongly recommend, get in touch with Anurag Shrivastava, or any friends seen in the photographs.

Keep the good work going...

Vivek