I am back again after a gap of few days. Today it's Diwali morning in India. Diwali is a festival of light & about positivity & victory. It is the biggest festival for Hindus. Today it's even more special for me personally since I am at home.
In Hindu culture one can find multiple occasions which are celebrated as festivals, probably more than any other religion. We have festival in almost every month of the year. But the purpose of each festival is the same to celebrate life & spread positivity everywhere. Be it Hinduism, Islamism or Christianity or any other religion, everywhere it's the celebration of life & make this world a joyous place is the basic concept behind any festival. There can be challenges, pain or grief in our lives but these festivals provide us that positive mindset which can further enhance the happiness in this world.
So Enjoy! May all of you a very Happy, Prosperous & Wonderful Diwali!!!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Human Face of Capitalism!
Just when I logged into blogger.com to enter today's entry I came across a sensational news....Jet Airways laid off 850 of it's flight attendants. The total Flight Attendant work force in Jet Airways was 1903 by last week & almost 50% of them will be axed now. Most of them were on probation or were in the organization for less than 1.5 years. Considering today's economic & market situation this sounds logical business decision & even the leading Indian Newspaper put its view in support of this lay off.
But such a drastic decision points that India Inc. still needs to learn a lot. India is booming & going to be a Super Power in next few years but should we not learn from the mistakes of other super powers in the world? This is especially true in case when enthusiastic management go ahead with hiring spree, when we have huge number of surplus employee who were hired in the name of backup plan. I remember a personal experience when it was just the start of my career. After passing out of college in my first job I was being layed off within 3-4 months of joining. Rather there were 50% of the hired employee from our team were laid off in a night...reason - the company lost one of it's client & they had to reduce the workforce. There was a catch in this organization's HR Policy though that they will give you training & will put you on production based upon your scores in the assessment after training. The one's who can go ahead would be paid the salary during the training period & the rest would be sent home. Thus the salary even for training period used to be given only after you went on production & if you fail you will be sent home without a single penny. So those 50% from my team who were sent home after the assessment(including me) were not paid a single penny during those 3-4 months. Can you call this an ethical business? Is it even legal for that matter?
I am giving this example just to point out that negative professional approach which most of the companies follow. They will go ahead with Hiring spree without considering the actual productivity requirement of themselves. You might need to put some % workforce as reserve is understood but that amount should be as minimum as possible because with large reserve work force you are not just spending shareholder's money extravagantly but are ruining the career of that eligible employee who might have to suffer in such lay off situation. Even that Lay Off supporting Leading Indian News Paper has mentioned "There is evidence in other countries that show that when industry is given the flexibility to reduce workforce during a severe downturn, it is quick to hire during an upturn." This is that approach which I am talking about. Be it upturn or downturn if the foundation of the organization is strong & if the policies being followed are truly professional then there is no need for hazardous hiring spree during upturn or such massive lay off during downturn.(Of course extreme situations can be spared.)
I really wonder the way share market reacts or organizations react to any event i.e. they will be over confident during boom(e.g. Dot Com Boom in the 90s) or will be in fatal panicky when the boom bubble busts(e.g. today's US Credit Crisis). For any organization employee are the most valuable asset of the company, so that asset has to be utilized & cherished with full care. Hence it is very much important that we should utilize our human resources in the best possible way. Decisions can be right or wrong, people can come or go but we must remember that everything is human centric & in the end whatever will be given might return back to us!!!
But such a drastic decision points that India Inc. still needs to learn a lot. India is booming & going to be a Super Power in next few years but should we not learn from the mistakes of other super powers in the world? This is especially true in case when enthusiastic management go ahead with hiring spree, when we have huge number of surplus employee who were hired in the name of backup plan. I remember a personal experience when it was just the start of my career. After passing out of college in my first job I was being layed off within 3-4 months of joining. Rather there were 50% of the hired employee from our team were laid off in a night...reason - the company lost one of it's client & they had to reduce the workforce. There was a catch in this organization's HR Policy though that they will give you training & will put you on production based upon your scores in the assessment after training. The one's who can go ahead would be paid the salary during the training period & the rest would be sent home. Thus the salary even for training period used to be given only after you went on production & if you fail you will be sent home without a single penny. So those 50% from my team who were sent home after the assessment(including me) were not paid a single penny during those 3-4 months. Can you call this an ethical business? Is it even legal for that matter?
I am giving this example just to point out that negative professional approach which most of the companies follow. They will go ahead with Hiring spree without considering the actual productivity requirement of themselves. You might need to put some % workforce as reserve is understood but that amount should be as minimum as possible because with large reserve work force you are not just spending shareholder's money extravagantly but are ruining the career of that eligible employee who might have to suffer in such lay off situation. Even that Lay Off supporting Leading Indian News Paper has mentioned "There is evidence in other countries that show that when industry is given the flexibility to reduce workforce during a severe downturn, it is quick to hire during an upturn." This is that approach which I am talking about. Be it upturn or downturn if the foundation of the organization is strong & if the policies being followed are truly professional then there is no need for hazardous hiring spree during upturn or such massive lay off during downturn.(Of course extreme situations can be spared.)
I really wonder the way share market reacts or organizations react to any event i.e. they will be over confident during boom(e.g. Dot Com Boom in the 90s) or will be in fatal panicky when the boom bubble busts(e.g. today's US Credit Crisis). For any organization employee are the most valuable asset of the company, so that asset has to be utilized & cherished with full care. Hence it is very much important that we should utilize our human resources in the best possible way. Decisions can be right or wrong, people can come or go but we must remember that everything is human centric & in the end whatever will be given might return back to us!!!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Mars & Venus on the Earth!
I am feeling good.....especially since I am continuing with my blog entries regularly as I had decided. Whether anybody reads it or not is less important but I think this is an easy way to express myself. I remember during my school days I was fascinated by poetry & I did make some poems too. It was a way to express....but as time passed different things occupied the life. College, then Job, then competition to stay ahead in job & blahh....blahh....But I think all this had made me more mechanical if not emotionless. Expression was never much a taboo for me but this blog did help me in coming out of that daily mechanical/professional routine. Today I think differently, I read different things & may be looking at life with bit more broader perspective. It's Great!!!
Just some time back I was reading an article about Man - Woman friendship & whether can it be pure friendship without that L factor. Of course the intent of the article was more related with friendship between young men & women. But it is true that it is very difficult to maintain that platonic friendship with opposite sex. Can we blame nature for that..may be. Everyone need to accept the fact that though today men & women are more close on social & professional front like never before nature has infused that Basic Instinct in both male & female of all the species. So to overcome that instinct we need to be more & more self disciplined. Especially in countries like India where youth population is majority then this self discipline is definitely the need of the hour. I might sound fundamentalist or orthodox but this is very important considering the future of the mankind. Today we talk of Live-in relationship, Casual Sex or One Night Stand but let's understand this is not something which is invented all of a sudden. Opposite poles attract is the fundamental concept. History shows that right from the age of Cleopatra or Ramayana or Mahabharata it's this man-woman undisciplined relationship which was the basis for all the troubles & even today it is the same. They say there is a thin line between friendship & romance in man-woman relationship & when this line is crossed may be by consent or by that strong force of attraction it can devastate both of them emotionally & psychologically if it is immoral relationship. I remember that famous line here "Sex is not between Legs but it's in the Brain!"
Just some time back I was reading an article about Man - Woman friendship & whether can it be pure friendship without that L factor. Of course the intent of the article was more related with friendship between young men & women. But it is true that it is very difficult to maintain that platonic friendship with opposite sex. Can we blame nature for that..may be. Everyone need to accept the fact that though today men & women are more close on social & professional front like never before nature has infused that Basic Instinct in both male & female of all the species. So to overcome that instinct we need to be more & more self disciplined. Especially in countries like India where youth population is majority then this self discipline is definitely the need of the hour. I might sound fundamentalist or orthodox but this is very important considering the future of the mankind. Today we talk of Live-in relationship, Casual Sex or One Night Stand but let's understand this is not something which is invented all of a sudden. Opposite poles attract is the fundamental concept. History shows that right from the age of Cleopatra or Ramayana or Mahabharata it's this man-woman undisciplined relationship which was the basis for all the troubles & even today it is the same. They say there is a thin line between friendship & romance in man-woman relationship & when this line is crossed may be by consent or by that strong force of attraction it can devastate both of them emotionally & psychologically if it is immoral relationship. I remember that famous line here "Sex is not between Legs but it's in the Brain!"
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Office Office
It's 2:53 a.m. in India & I am in the office. It's Sunday night though but still as a part of weekend staffing I am in office. No actual work so just watched a tamil movie Dashavataram available in the office network. The movie is average & mainly it shows the verstality of Tamil Star Kamal Hasan in 10 different roles...(thanks to the makeup artists for this movie though). Kamal has enacted 10 different roles of a Hero, Villain, 95 year old granny, US President George Bush & so on....amazing!!!
But I am just wondering how the work culture is changing in India. During 80s & before that office was more like 9-5 with 1 day as weekly off. Office meant to be more clerical or factory type work may be some amount of field work as well. But more or less it was monotonous & hence was bit boring. I remember a story which I had read when I was in Std. 7th or Std. 8th. It was a story of a government employee who was so frustrated with his office, work & daily boring routine that he decides to commit suicide. Further he doesn't dare to do so & continue with the life as it comes to him. After reading that story I was quite upset & I decided that I will prefer the job which will keep me moving in different parts of the country.
As time passed by God's grace I got exposed more to the world & today am in a job where I am enjoying my work with amazing work conditions. This may be because I am working in IT Service Sector & in the field which I enjoy working the most. But definetely the face of India is changed due IT. The work culture which we follow today is very lively, positive & challenging. This is especially true in IT Sector. The influence of IT work culture has forced other sectors also to adapt their working style & work culture to be more open, positive & employee friendly today. Recently there was an e-mail in circulation which showed Google Office in Europe & how employee friendly it is where employee can bring their pets in the office, employee can cook for themselves & have world class recreational facilities which will motivate the employee to be more productive. Such positive atmosphere further motivates the person to be more happy & spread happiness in & around his family & further to society. May be this is how we can create heaven on the earth!!!
But I am just wondering how the work culture is changing in India. During 80s & before that office was more like 9-5 with 1 day as weekly off. Office meant to be more clerical or factory type work may be some amount of field work as well. But more or less it was monotonous & hence was bit boring. I remember a story which I had read when I was in Std. 7th or Std. 8th. It was a story of a government employee who was so frustrated with his office, work & daily boring routine that he decides to commit suicide. Further he doesn't dare to do so & continue with the life as it comes to him. After reading that story I was quite upset & I decided that I will prefer the job which will keep me moving in different parts of the country.
As time passed by God's grace I got exposed more to the world & today am in a job where I am enjoying my work with amazing work conditions. This may be because I am working in IT Service Sector & in the field which I enjoy working the most. But definetely the face of India is changed due IT. The work culture which we follow today is very lively, positive & challenging. This is especially true in IT Sector. The influence of IT work culture has forced other sectors also to adapt their working style & work culture to be more open, positive & employee friendly today. Recently there was an e-mail in circulation which showed Google Office in Europe & how employee friendly it is where employee can bring their pets in the office, employee can cook for themselves & have world class recreational facilities which will motivate the employee to be more productive. Such positive atmosphere further motivates the person to be more happy & spread happiness in & around his family & further to society. May be this is how we can create heaven on the earth!!!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Little Angels!
I am back after a longggggg time....
I started this blog with muchhhhhh of enthusiasm & thought of writing regularly...but..............
But I hope henceforth I will be regular with "Life is Beautiful."
Right now it's 3:57 a.m. in India & I am listening some very beautiful songs sung by very cute & talented li'l singers of the age of 8-9 years. They have performed in a reality show on a regional channel & they are soooooooo talented that you simply can't believe that they are of the age of 8-9 years.
Now a days in India & may be in most of the countries we see many such reality shows, talent hunt shows on different television channels where young kids of the age group of 5-10 perform. Even for that matter children are being used in different advertisements also. It may be good for TRP of the channels or for the products which these children endorse but are we not ruining their childhood by all these activities?
Well this question is quite debatable & many people can have different views on this. But the child who is performing in these shows or in the advt. is going through a drastic change at a very young age. This is the age when kids might just have started to see the external world beyond their family. Such an age should be more care free so that they can enjoy the childhood & not just take pressure to perform or handle the pressure which comes after the fame. Today we see so many young artists who have lost the happiness in their life(viz. Britney Spears, Lindsey Lohan, Michael Jackson etc.) These are the names who started their career from their childhood & that sudden fame or the pressure to perform continuously destroyed the happiness from their life. Of course there can be other reasons also but if the child doesn't get his/her childhood as a normal child then it might affect their entire life for sure. Recently released Hindi movie "Tare Zameen par" addressed the same issue of pressurised childhood. (This movie is nominated as an official entry for Academy Awards for 2008 by India.)
I am not against the child's learning new things' but we must respect their childhood & should not sacrifice the childhood at the cost of quick fame or monetary benefits. Let our kids live life happily & enjoy their childhood first....& let their foundation be strong enough to conquer the world!!!
I started this blog with muchhhhhh of enthusiasm & thought of writing regularly...but..............
But I hope henceforth I will be regular with "Life is Beautiful."
Right now it's 3:57 a.m. in India & I am listening some very beautiful songs sung by very cute & talented li'l singers of the age of 8-9 years. They have performed in a reality show on a regional channel & they are soooooooo talented that you simply can't believe that they are of the age of 8-9 years.
Now a days in India & may be in most of the countries we see many such reality shows, talent hunt shows on different television channels where young kids of the age group of 5-10 perform. Even for that matter children are being used in different advertisements also. It may be good for TRP of the channels or for the products which these children endorse but are we not ruining their childhood by all these activities?
Well this question is quite debatable & many people can have different views on this. But the child who is performing in these shows or in the advt. is going through a drastic change at a very young age. This is the age when kids might just have started to see the external world beyond their family. Such an age should be more care free so that they can enjoy the childhood & not just take pressure to perform or handle the pressure which comes after the fame. Today we see so many young artists who have lost the happiness in their life(viz. Britney Spears, Lindsey Lohan, Michael Jackson etc.) These are the names who started their career from their childhood & that sudden fame or the pressure to perform continuously destroyed the happiness from their life. Of course there can be other reasons also but if the child doesn't get his/her childhood as a normal child then it might affect their entire life for sure. Recently released Hindi movie "Tare Zameen par" addressed the same issue of pressurised childhood. (This movie is nominated as an official entry for Academy Awards for 2008 by India.)
I am not against the child's learning new things' but we must respect their childhood & should not sacrifice the childhood at the cost of quick fame or monetary benefits. Let our kids live life happily & enjoy their childhood first....& let their foundation be strong enough to conquer the world!!!
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