International Women's Day (IWD )

International Women's Day (IWD )was celebrated on March 8th and it marked the 102nd anniversary of IWD worldwide . In our office though and in most other offices we celebrated it on 7th March as 8th was a public holiday .India and especially Maharashtra has a long legacy of pioneering women – namely Savitribai Phule , Ramabai Ranande , Lakshmibai Tilak etc . But how have fared in these 102 years – here's a small poem to mark that occasion :
On 101 years of International Women's Day and 125 years of Savitribai Phule's birth


It is 125 years and the struggle is still on
The walk that started
Is still on
Reached some milestones but the goals kept on stretching
Some fellow travelers helped
During the rough patches
Some didn't
In the heady whirlpools and uninvited hurricanes
The walk just got longer

Though in our office we used a generous sprinkling of Maya Angelou-Phenomenal Woman and Subhadra Kumari Chauhan – her famous Rani Jhansi poem
The spirit of IWD continues ....

On Shopping In Modern Times

In India we have just got used to shopping in supermarkets, malls etc . I am prodded to think that with the elegant layout and a huge spread before the potential shopper are we enticed into buying more than what we want at times ? Where were the hidden needs for carts and carts of knick knacks before these markets were created?( not that I have escaped untouched from this phenomenon !). Of course the markets are extremely convenient for the busy urban dweller as you get all requirements under one roof . There is a whole lot of work that goes behind the layout , design and other paraphernalia to woo the retail customer . And I think these retailers are doing a damn good job at that !

Parliamentary Behaviour

Arun Shourie has written a book on reforming the Indian Parliamentary proceedings . He has observed that the behavior in Parliament has deteriorated over a period of time . But isn’t a Parliament a reflection of society and the elected representatives of the people will be a sum total of what the society is currently ? Can it be different from the current social ethos ? But the question is how many people have actually voted them into power?
The author writes about the time when stalwarts like Pandit Nehru set a precedent by their exemplary behaviour in the Parliament . But do we have those visionaries in the Parliament anymore ?Is our society in need of leaders , those heros who are demi-gods ? Or the Parliament is no more a place where you can find leaders . Rather you would find them in everyday life . Real Leaders who shun the trappings of power in a Parliament kind of setting might be on the field in unexpected domains – in education , in non profit sector , in R &D labs , in the corporate world . Unfortunately not many have their efforts showcased on prime time television or in leading dailies . Hence they might even go unnoticed .

About Institutes and Intellectual Orientation

The other day we were discussing about intellectual orientation making a difference at the workplace..Or does it not make any difference ? The geek at the workplace is a well known phenomenon but what about people with a not so great intellectual orientation stuck up in an environment where knowledge is one of the key raw material for the organizational building blocks . I think this person stands out like a sore thumb , a fish out of water . We debate if the academic institute would make a difference in selecting a person for a role that demands great intellectual rigour and analytical depth . May be after a few years it does not matter in specific cases . But why does institute matter ? Has it got to do with the early choices in life ? Is it the person’s innate disposition which is unalterable – only a specific type would get into a particular academic institute and only that finished product would be eligible for a role in certain organizations . Anyone else in that role will be a fish out of water …

The Character of the Taj

Character associated with the Taj Mahal is very peculiar -that is how someone described the beautiful monument the other day . A lot of people now are trying to organize an SMS and email campaign to get it listed as one of the wonders of the world officially !! That is a very good expression- a character associated with any place , person , situation .What is it ? I think it is the unique feature of that place , here a monument which probably sometimes is even beyond the physical characteristics . It is the personality that is knowingly or unknowingly formed by that place , person etc and etched in the minds of the significant others or even casual bystanders . In case we are talking about a person then the person can actually put in efforts to build that unique character …. It could be a unique skill, the overall behavior pattern , the indelible stamp that the person puts in every transaction . That is being done all the while .I think the earlier we understand it the better . And then what is the whole blogging movement all about? To create a blog with a character most probably ….

The character
Is the peculiar beauty
Associated with a person , place or object
Gives it a hue
Come light , darkness, dusk or dawn
The seasons fade and arrive
The particular character is retained
Like a Taj
Towering high
In the sun , rain , wind

The Onslaught Of The News Channels .....

There are multitudinous news channels today and hence lots of employment opportunities for budding journalists. But alas the quality of news is far from satisfactory .The recent outrageous coverage of the Abhishek Bacchchan and Aishwarya Rai wedding was a good example. Lot of news time and print is spent on presenting a wedding which would hardly affect the life of the ordinary Indian. Then there is the debate that this is what the public or ‘aam janta’ wants. I am sure if you take an opinion poll of ten people outside Churchgate railway station at least 7 will say that the media did go a bit overboard in that case . In the past newspapers were given to children to improve their language. But today other than the editorial most of the newspapers seem to have taken the the tabloid culture route .Thus the stuff is far away from enhancing language skills of young adults . I think the national dailies and news channels that have otherwise good content should leave the star chasing and gazing to the Hellos and People Magazines of the world …It is their job …

The news channels have to present news 24/7 and hence one finds discussions related to politicians’ visit to temples, their attendance in marriages, someone being declined hospital admissions and other trivial matters which are given a different flavor and also portrayed with a different fervor. In fact there are round table conferences and chat shows around these topics. This does not mean that the entire picture is dismal. Of course there are a couple of interesting news programs as well . But they are relatively fewer and hence do not have that kind of mindshare amongst the viewers .As result the younger generation is fed on newsreels of star weddings , political debates on issues like phone tapping , constituency visits rather than events that would have a greater social , economic and political impact . The impression one gets is that quantity is important , it should be presented fast and if possible in a neat package . The viewer has all the rights to switch the channel or not watch television . But that is just wishful thinking . Television has such a powerful impact on the masses that one cannot say that the effect of this kind of news reporting or journalism can be effaced by controlling the remote . Most people will not even have the time or space to think or act on those lines and hence the media onslaught continues unperturbed . I think sooner or later the news channels and newspapers will have to relook at the whole process of news reporting …

On starting a new blog ...

We have finally started the HR blog- that is a coblog written by my friend and me . It is called hrdialogues. The aim is to present our thoughts and views about the HR profession on a regular basis . HR is a vast domain and at the same time it is an emerging field . One of the chief concerns related to the field is that the body of knowledge is not codified and hence there are too many reference points .
But it is indeed a very good idea to chronicle our thoughts . This is so because even good ideas and thoughts which might have practical value have a huge potential to get lost in the day to day routine and rush .If one reads the book - God of Small Things one cannot but think of the day to day chronicling of events and habits that has gone in the making of the book. It is the individual interpretation and insight of the author that lends any book its characteristic USP , but at the same time there is a great amount of detailing that has gone into the making of a book , chronicle , or piece of art .
Let us see how our HR blog evolves . I am very excited by the idea and hope that we are able to maintain consistency in our writing .

On Perspective

A perspective is important in the quest for personal and professional development . Whenever I think about perspective I am reminded of these lines by T S Eliot :
In our life we never cease from exploration
And at the end of our exploring
We will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time

A perspective allows us to do that -allows us to see the oft seen and repeated things in a new light altogether .We begin with any new venture , any new topic with the basic information . There are levels of information i.e. starting from a preliminary introduction of the topic to getting more and more deeper information related to it . Later on when there is enough and more information with which we can form generalizations for that particular topic we are stepping in the realm of forming our own personal perspective . It is exactly like the theory of relativity moving from the specific to the general from absolute knowledge of one topic to linking it or relating it to other thought processes and bodies of knowledge .The process of perspective formation is moving from the domain of pure information to the field of insight . It is this insight that will help us gain a deeper and intense understanding of the topic and gain mastery over it . Over a period of time in our professional lives – by virtue of repeating the tasks, by virtue of living and breathing the same set of activities and thought processes we are able to form insights , generalizations about the field naturally . It is at this juncture that peers and superiors can play an important role in acting as good sounding boards. That is so because a perspective is always personal , discussions help it gain an objective nuance and the pros and cons of that insight can be examined many times even in a clinical manner .Also it this insight and perspective that will help differentiate after a particular level a high potential employee from the rest of the peer group . It is the responsibility of the organization to provide avenues and opportunities to the people to present their perspectives . Of course it depends on the resourcefulness of the employee to present his/ her viewpoint too at the right forum .So much for perspectives and career development !

Tea

Tea gets me going . I really cannot think of life without tea. Tea Centre at Churchgate -Mumbai is a good palce to get a variety of teas -some of them rather exotic . The place has a quaint look and I think rather regular patrons .
I think the tropical climate in India is just conducive to having cups and cups of tea. Of course after a while you have to think about the sugar and subsequent calorie intake and curb it somewhere. But more on this, Tea Centre and tea history later ...

Hi ! The State of the Art Blog Starts

I just got introduced to blogging . I like to write and a friend suggested yesterday that I should start my blog . I thought why not give it a try and hence this blog . The blog is called state of the art . I look at life as art - ever evolving with new dimensions and refreshing nuances - I thought the blog could be a chronicle of that state of the art.....I pursue multiple interests at a time and many a times it does happen that I leave something incomplete as other things would take the mindshare , time etc . I sincerely want to be regular with the blog - at least once a week and share my thoughts and ideas on a regular basis . My friend has come with another suggestion that we start a co-blog on specific HR issues since both of us read quite a bit and share those things , insights with each other . We are really serious about it and let us see when we are able to design it and come out of stealth as they say in VC language .I read a lot of stuff related to state of art HR practices, Strategy , Growing businesses etc . The aim is to keep the insight and information levels as dated as possible . I hope that I am able to write further ( on the blog ) and hone this craft ie writing to finesse ......That is all for now - need to get back to work and get my morning cup of tea... I like tea a lot and next time I will write about that ie TEA.....