• Process helps individuals understand how others perceive them
• Personal development needs are revealed
• Feedback is essential for learning
• Individuals can better manage their careers and performance

• Increases communication between team members
• Supports teamwork by involving team members in the development process

• Better career development for employees
• Improves customer service by having customers contribute to the training
• Drives training

H R Era,     Info # 1      Sep 15th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. HRDWebvarsity - A Web Based Training Software - from SMR, Malaysia

3. Workshop on Competency Mapping with Psychological Testing - by XLRI, Jamshedpur & Hughes Escorts Communications Ltd

* In 11 Cities Simultaneously !
* Mr. Kuldeep Reddy says he has given a Special Offer for HR Era members !!

4. HR Training Programs (India)

Bangalore HR Summit, Bangalore -
by Institure of HRD and naukri.com

Workshop on Performance Management, Bangalore -
by Institute of HRD

5. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

We have received 4 long notifications. I find the 2 on e-learning are exciting & tempting!

The notifications are too long to include our regular issue & cannot wait till then. All 4 are sent herewith! Kindly note, Alka / I do not have personal knowedge of these products / services.

Training organizations & trainers are welcome to post their programs in HR Era.

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

2. HRDWebvarsity - A Web Based Training Software - from SMR, Malaysia

Dear Friend,

As the new century opens up numerous opportunities for the use of technology for the benefit of humanity; can we then call it e-Century !!! We are finding new ways of work; new ways to trade and it is only proper that we find new ways to learn as well. E learning is beginning to take roots to most people, to achieve these.

SMR - Specialist Management Resources, incorporated in the year 1978 is Head Quartered at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She is an ISO 9002 company & is also considered the regional leader in the field of HRD. Today, she has operating centres at Australia, Singapore & India.

SMR with this credentials, is proud to announce the launch of its Web Based Training Software by HRD Webvarsity for the World. HRD Webvarsity Integrates Web-based learning into your Human Resource Strategy and lets you to build your own Courses easily using existing documents, graphics, files, etc. HRD Webvarsity provides a secure, virtual learning centre with concrete results and let your employees or customers or public get trained on a self-paced and in exciting manner.

Please find enclosed a short write-up of e-learning "HRD Webvarsity".

With Best Regards,

M.C.Jitha

Consulting Services Executive, SMR, Chennai
Tel / Fax: 044 - 6604550 / 6449903

HRDWebvarsity

A Complete Web Based Learning Management System

Web Based Training Software by HRD Webvarsity lets companies and organisations utilise a complete Learning Management System using only a common Web Server and a simple database. With HRD Webvarsity, you can quickly build, deploy, manage, and monitor your own on-line courses. Students enrol, sign on, and conduct all class activities, from any location, with only a standard Web Browser and without complicated plug-in software.

HRD Webvarsity gives you complete web-based control over all course content, course guides, class schedules, enrolment policies, testing policies, and progress monitoring. HRD Webvarsity works for courses with or without Instructors, and includes advanced features and complete security.

HRD Webvarsity software leverages your education resources. Now you can build and deliver on-demand structured online courses over your Intranet or the Internet without the help of programmers and without installing browser "plug-ins" for your on-line learners. With HRD Webvarsity, programming skill is not required to set up new course structures, build online tests, schedule classes and generates reports.

With an ease-of use that's almost revolutionary, HRD Webvarsity gives you the power to build and manage online training courses and testing without programming or complex set-up and administration.

Product Summary

• HRD Webvarsity Integrates Web-based learning into your Human Resource or Marketing Strategy
  
• Build your own Courses easily using existing documents, graphics, files, etc.

• HRD Webvarsity provides a secure, virtual learning centre with concrete results

• Let your employees or customers train on their own schedule

• Automated student signup, and configurable enrolment approval

• Automated content management and online multi-chapter Course Guide

• Automated Course Administration, Test Definition, and monitoring of student progress

• HRD Webvarsity Uses technology to enforce a consistent, successful training structure, while maximising interaction between student and instructor, if an Instructor is used

• Individual, customised, secure Student Menus based on your class configuration options

• HRD Webvarsity lets students easily track their own progress through the course online

• HRD Webvarsity includes Web-based course set-up, scheduling, monitoring, reporting for Administrators

For further information on our products and services, please feel free to email me at jitha@... or log into any of our websites www.smrhrd.com www.palan.org www.hrdwebvarsity.com www.hrdpower.com.

  

* In 11 Cities Simultaneously !
* Mr. Kuldeep Reddy says he has given a Special Offer for HR Era members !!

Dear All Group Members,

In joint association: XLRI, Jamshedpur & Hughes Escorts Communications Ltd (HECL) bring to 11 cities simultaneously; a 2 day workshop by Prof R.K.Premarajan on:

"Competency Mapping with Psychological Tests"

September 27-28, 2002 @ (Delhi \ Mumbai \ Bangalore \ Calcutta \ Hyderabad \ Chennai \ Pune \ Madurai \ Trichy \ Coimbatore & Cochin) simultaneously

Many organizations today are faced with the dilemma of choosing the right kind of competency measurement tools! .

It is in this context that organizations are increasingly turning to Psychological Testing as a cost-effective method for mapping competencies. With the growing emphasis on Competency Based Human Resource Management the Psychological Testing has become a vital tool in the task of minimizing risk on all sides in recruitment and in career management decisions.But which psychological test or tests should be used, in which circumstances, and why is the question.


Dr.R.K.Premarajan, one of the well known names in field of competency based HRM, in his 2 day workshop tries to find an answer to the above question. Further some of powerful tools such as OPQ, Thomas Profiling etc will be explained by senior consultants from SHL & Thomas International respectively!

This "Live and Interactive" workshop, from XLRI, will be delivered on Hughes DirecWay Global Education's interactive learning platform which facilitates faculty-participant interaction using video broadcast, two way data and audio interactivity.


Workshop Objective

*The key objective of the workshop is to make participants:
*Familiar with the concept of Competencies
*Understand the use of Psychological Tests in Mapping Competencies
*Familiar with some of the widely used Tests/Instruments

Workshop Contents

The workshop will provide the participants with an exposure to:

*The conceptual understandings of Competencies and Psychological Testing.
*Various Tests to assess different facets of Competencies ranging from Aptitudes, Interests, Personality, etc.
*The benefits of using Psychological Tests.
*The pitfalls and limitations of Psychological tests and overcoming them.
*The experience of organizations using Psychological Tests.
*Experience of the providers of Psychological Tools.

Some of powerful tools such as OPQ, Thomas Profiling etc will be explained by senior consultants from SHL & Thomas International respectively!


Who should attend

Managers and executives from: Personnel and HR functions, Others involved in Personnel Decision-Making

Registration fee

Special Price for all the Hrera eGroup Members from (Delhi \ Mumbai \ Bangalore \ Kolkata \ Hyderabad \ Chennai \ Pune \ Madurai \ Trichy \ Coimbatore & Cochin) in India.

Rs 8,000 per participant
Rs 7,000 for a XLRI alumini/HECL customers
Rs 14,000 for a team of 2 from the same organization

Contact Person for Hrera eGroup Members

Kuldeep Reddy
Asst. Manager - HR
Solix Technologies Ltd., - HYDERABAD.
Mobile : 91 - 98490 21633
Tel : 91 - 40 - 7018783 \ 7015102.
Y! Pager : kuldeepsolix@...
Email : kuldeepr@...

4.1 Bangalore HR Summit, Bangalore - by Institure of HRD and naukri.com

BANGALORE HR SUMMIT 2002
on 28-29, Nov.2002, at Hotel Atria, Palace Road, Bangalore-1, India

Theme: HR - A Strategic Business Partner

We wish to inform you that Institute of HRD in association with naukri.com will be hosting the  Bangalore HR Summit 2002, a Two Day  convention on the theme HR: A Strategic Business Partner, on 28-29 November 2002 at The Hotel Atria, Palace Road, Bangalore, India.

Speakers Invited

Mr.Ravi Uppal, President & MD, ABB Ltd.*
MR.C.Mahalingam, Group VP-HR Scandent Group.
Mr.J.M.Prasad, Head-HR, i2 Technologies India Ltd.
Mr.Shrihari Udupa, Director-HR, Oracle Software India Ltd.*
Mr.Arun Raman, MD, Raman Group Of Companies.
MR.H.N.Shrinivas, Sr.VP-HR, BPL Ltd.*
MR.D.P.Mehta,MD, MCF Ltd.*
Mr.Pallab Bandyopadyay, GM-HR, Sasken Communication Technologies Ltd.*
MR.Ammineedu. V, Director-Personnel, BEL*
Mr.Prakash Chandra, MD, Hureysys Network
Dr.Subhash Sharma, Director, IIPM, Bangalore
*  Confirmation Awaited.

The Summit will provide a platform for discussions and deliberations on a number of issues related to the theme HR a Strategic Business Partner. Papers are  invited from interested Companies, Speakers, Adamecians, Consultants and Delegates, on the following sub themes:

HR: A Strategic Business Partner- Perspective from IT industry.
HR: A Strategic Business Partner- Perspective from Public Sector Units & Manufacturing Sector.
HR: A Strategic Business Partner- HR Competencies neccessary for Business Growth.
HR: A Strategic Business Partner- Perspectives from Business Schools.

Rules for Submission of Papers.

1. The papers will have to be original and being presented for the first time.
2. The papers should be neatly typed in double spacing, with 12 font size and should not exceed 2500 words.
3. The papers will be evaluated by a committee of eminent specialists on the subject.
4. The institute reserves the right to accept or reject any paper.
5. The paper presenters will be given 15-20 minutes time for presenting the papers in the summit, if selected.
6. Papers can be submitted for more than one sub theme.
7. The accepted paper presenters will be offered 30% concession in the delegate fee for attending the summit.
8. The paper should be enclosed with an overview of the paper in 75 words, self introduction in 50 words, and accompanied by a covering letter.

Submission of Papers

All the papers must be sent  on or before 30-9-2002 to the following address.

Chairman Technical Committee-Bangalore HR Summit 2002

INSTITUTE OF HRD
# 6/2, I floor, Tristar House
4th Cross, Rahmath Nagar
(Behind MRF Showroom)
R.T.Nagar Post
Bangalore- 560 032, India
Phone: 080-3436406, E-mail: ihrd@...

Delegate Fee:

For individuals : Rs. 3000/- per participant.
Gulf & Foreign Delegates: US $ 200/- per participant.
For MBA(HR) Students: Rs. 1500/- per participant. (College ID card to be produced. Only limited seats.)

Registration & Enquiries.

Nominations should be forwarded along with DD/ Cheque in favour of Institute of HRD, Bangalore to the address mentioned below. For more details kindly contact our office or send an e-mail.

Director
INSTITUE OF HRD
# 6/2, I floor, Tristar House
4th Cross, Rahmath Nagar
(Behind MRF Showroom)
R.T.Nagar Post
Bangalore- 560 032, India
Phone: 080-3436406, E-mail: ihrd@...

For Printed Brochure:

In case you wish to have a printed brochure, kindly send your complete postal address to us by a return mail.

INSTITUTE OF HRD
BANGALORE

Presents
A Two Day  National Workshop on
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
A TOOL FOR EMPLOYEE DEVEOPMENT
on 27-28, Sept. 2002 at Hotel  Atria, Palace Road, Bangalore-1

We wish to inform you that Institute of HRD  will be hosting the third  annual  workshop on "Performance Management " on Sept. 27-28, 2002(Friday & Saturday) at   The  Atria Hotel, Palace Road, Bangalore-1.  The workshop will focus on Desining a Performance Management System, Appraisals, Compensation, & Performance Counseling. Senior Corporate HR Managers will be the resources persons

For more details and registration contact :

J. Reuban
Coordinator
INSTITUTE  OF  HRD- Bangalore
Phone: 080- 3436406, E-mail: ihrd@...

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 23,       Sep 8th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space: Praise for our Contributors

2. The Basics for a Successful Training Program - by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

3. Quotation Corner: My Favorite Quotes - by M V Vasudevan

4. New Members

S Ramachandran, Rahul U Bharat

5. Readers' Forum

Need info on "HR Score Card" - Ramkrishnarao
Help on Employee Satisfaction Surveys - Nikhil Taneja
Help on Best Part-time or Correspondence MBA - Svetlana

6. Tomato Soup for the Soul - - From Amelia

7. Office Politics: To Play or Not To Play - by Susan Dunn

8. More from our Members & HR Era Website

9. HR Training Programs (India)

10. Best HR Jobs (India)

11. Accountancy and Indian Philosophy - by Ranjith Menon

12. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

We do keep receiving praise for members who contribute article and contents in HR Era. Here are two such emails:

Dear Mr. Pankaj Gurumukhi,

i liked your article summary of "beware the busy manager" in recent issue of hr-era and found it thought-provoking

with regards, debanjan roy, hr team, hindalco, deb_roy@...

Dear Ramakrishnarao

WOW!
7 WONDERS OF WORLD IS REALLY SUPERB

THANKS, RAJAN, rr.trg@...

Prophet Muhamad adviced each of his followers to give one-fifth of their earnings in charity. He added, that when we do charity, it is not to help others but to help ourselves - because doing charity makes us feel worthy & happy. (Syed & Taj - both our members - will verify !)

Similarly, when we share, we learn & grow the most. I invite all members to write & share like Pankaj, Ram, and literally hundreds others in HR Era.

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

2.THE BASICS FOR A SUCCESSFUL IN-HOUSE TRAINING PROGRAM
- by Dr Donald E. Wetmore

As a Professional Speaker, I have conducted hundreds of in-house training programs during the last eighteen years and I have observed several practices that make in-house training work better than not. This is not a comprehensive list, or all inclusive, for that matter. It does represent what I would consider the more important "basics" for a successful in-house program.

1. Giving information v changing behavior.

Presumably, one of the outcomes of the program is that people will change what they do and how they do. It's not what happens in the training room that counts as much as what happens after it is over. The hardest thing to get anyone to do (myself included) is to change their behavior. We all value our "comfort zones". Therefore, attention ought to be given to not only "what to do" and "how to do it", but, more importantly, "why" they ought to do it. Without an understanding of "why" it ought to be done, it is difficult for adult learners to consider changing what they do.

2. What do I do next? End the program with the answer to that question.

Give them a list of specific practices to follow, what additional information or resources they will need to secure and how to get them, or whatever it is that they need to do to now get the value from the program into their lives. Just like when a doctor releases a patient, give them the follow-up plan of action to put into practice what was discussed in the program.

3. Offer the program as a reward, not as a punishment.

Sounds silly, but some companies use in-house programs to correct deficiencies and failures, almost as a punishment for their failings. Attendees are forced to go to get corrected. Position your programs as an enhancement of whatever they are and wherever they may be. In my Time Management Seminars, people are never invited because "they are broken and I'm
going to fix them". I am not going to make them productive. Everyone is productive. The question is, and the emphasis of my programs is, "how much more productive can we help you to become?"

4. Allow only a qualified instructor in the front of the room.

Anyone can spend a little time researching to give a "book report" on a topic. Audiences are perceptive. They know when an instructor has "walked the talk". They know when an instructor is only one chapter ahead of them. Giving a weak program does two things. First, it probably does not accomplish what it was intended to do. Second, and more important, while it is generally a struggle to get people to commit to training in the first place, you are only as good as your last program. If the last program they attended failed to not only meet, but exceed, their expectations, if their lives were really no different after taking the last program, then there will be even more resistance to attending what you offer next.

5. Don't hold the in-house program in-house.

I know about training budgets and issues of convenience. Half of the in-house programs I conduct are on company premises. Having an in-house training room is an asset. The problem may be, however, that it might not be the proper venue for what you need to accomplish. If the training room is on premises, the participants' temptation is to go back to work during the breaks, to get caught up on email and voicemail, and be interrupted in the session since they are in the building. Often they are coming back late and not having a focus on what the program is intended to accomplish. Holding the session off-site, at a hotel, for example, has an additional cost but alleviates the problems and makes the event somewhat more special. I ask my audiences to be with me not only physically, but also emotionally, just for the duration of the program because they will get a lot more out of it. I ask them to ignore their problems until our program is over, assuring them that their problems will still be there when they return.

Contributed by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore
Professional Speaker, Professional Member-National Speakers Association
Productivity Institute, Time Management Seminars, 60 Huntington St., P.O. Box 2126, Shelton, CT 06484.,
(800) 969-3773, (203) 929-9902, Fax: (203) 929-8151, mailto:ctsem@...
Visit his Supersite: http://www.balancetime.com

Would you like to receive free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal productivity and get more out of every day? Sign up now for your free "TIMELY TIME MANAGEMENT TIPS". Just go to: http://www.topica.com/lists/timemanagement and select "subscribe". We welcome you aboard!

  

Vasu's Note: Some quotable quotes, which touches me very closely.

Don't count the things you do, but do the things that count.

Every new idea is met with ridicule, opposition and finally acceptance.

Believe in yourself and act on your convictions.

Sent by MV Vasudevan
SR Manager -HR, EID Parry, Chennai,
Phone No. (044) 5340251 Extn 360
We had carried Mr. Vasudevan's Introduction in Issue # 21. His correct email id is VasudevanMV@...

S Ramachandran,Human Resources Manager (Asia Pacific operations), Ramco Systems Ltd, Chennai

Message: I am happy to associate with HR Era (as a reader of course!). The articles are good and I enjoy reading them. Very soon I will also contribute.

Ram has B.E (Hons.) from Regional Engg College, Tiruchy and MS in Manufacturing Systems Engineering, University of Warwick, UK.

Overall 15 years of professional experience in the areas of manufacturing, planning, project management, consulting and HR.

Earlier worked with Fenner (India) Ltd., NTTF Electronics Centre, TVS Electronics Ltd and Maxworth Information Technology Ltd before joining Ramco Systems Ltd.

Ram has switched over to HR function from the role of the Project Manager in Ramco Systems because of his interest in HR . Holding the position of HR Head for Asia Pacific operations for the past 3 years.

Other interests include listening to music (both classical and light), singing, reading light subjects.

He likes to be called "Ram."

Contact: s_rams@... or sram@... , Chennai

Rahul U Bharat, Dy. Manager - HR, Ace Glass Containers Ltd., Rishikesh

Rahul has done MBA from Pune University. He has total experience of 7 years. Ace Glass Containers Limited is a market leader in manufacturing and marketing of glass containers.

Contact: rahulbharat@... , Phone : 98970 28066, 0135 - 432963 (R), 451030 (O), Rishikesh.

Please email your replies to the person asking, with a copy to us at HREra@... for publication. Email new questions to us.

Need info on "HR Score Card" - Ramkrishnarao

Dear Friends,

Where can I get insight about "HR Score Card". I would like to know about the concept and how it should be implemented in the Organisation. The most important thing I want to know is "Deliverables" of "HR Score Card".

Regards,

Ramakrishnarao,
Tata Telecom Ltd, Gandhinagar, Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467
E-mail : rthallam@...

Help on Employee Satisfaction Surveys - Nikhil Taneja

Hi,

I would like to seek help about Employee Satisfaction Survey.

We are one of the automotive component manufacturing company employing around 600 employees and based at Delhi & Gurgaon.

We want to know the names of the companies in and around Delhi, which have got the Employee Satisfaction Survey conducted through some outside Agency and what is their experience, effectiveness, benefits, etc. about the same.

Request please help us in this regard.

Regards,

Nikhil Taneja
Dept. Leader - HRD, Minda Industries Limited, Delhi.
nikhil@...

Help on Best Part-time or Correspondence MBA - Svetlana

Dear Friends,

I am on a look out for best Management institute or University who provides Part-Time or correspondence MBA in HR. I am residing in Mumbai. From where can I get the required information?

Regards,
Svetlana Fernandes
svetlana@...

Wife: What would you do if I died? Would you get married again?
Husband: Definitely not!
Wife: Why not - don't you like being married?
Husband: Of course I do.
Wife: Then why wouldn't you remarry?
Husband: Okay, I'd get married again.
Wife: You would? (with a hurtful look on her face)
Husband: (makes audible groan)
Wife: Would you sleep with her in our bed?
Husband: Where else would we sleep?
Wife: Would you replace my pictures with hers?
Husband: That would seem like the proper thing to do.
Wife: Would she use my golf clubs?
Husband: No, she's left-handed.
Wife: - - - silence - - -
Husband: Shit.

From Amelia

Playing too hard is just as bad as refusing to play at all, according to management professors Bob Kreitner and Angelo Kinicki. Office politics is here to stay, and how you play can influence your success, satisfaction and performance at work.

According to their research studies, two of the most common tactics used in office politics are attacking or blaming others, and withholding (information, resources, supplies). The next most popular tactic is “impression management.” Impression management means dressing or grooming for success, and also drawing attention to your own success and influence, and taking credit for others' accomplishments. Over half the managers asked to name political tactics mention these three.

How people play the political game, they say, depends upon “need, style, personal values, ethics, and temperament,” but there’s one thing to keep in mind: people like people who aren't too different from everyone else, i.e., people they can understand. It’s the people at either end of the spectrum-too extreme one way or the other-who have trouble in offices.

Use your emotional intelligence at work! People who are either strictly non-political or highly political generally find there’s a price to pay for “aberrant” behavior; that is, being different.

Contributed by Susan Dunn
The Perfect Coach for You, www.susandunn.cc . Susan Dunn is a personal and professional development coach, writer and speaker with an international clientele. Go to www.susandunn.cc for FREE Distance Learning course. mailto:sdunn@... for FREE Ezine.

Your 168 Hours , Rhoberta Shaler, PhD.

Dr Rhoberta suggests an exercise for clear understanding of how we use our time. The logical consequence is to aligning the usage to what is really important to us in life - our priorities.

Salty Coffee, sent by Neeraj Narang

Neeraj sent this story about "love" several months back. I am not sure whether it fits in our forum. But Neeraj was sure & had written "I hope everybody must like it." He wanted it titled "Funda of Life."

Let me not be a wall between you & Neeraj. Hope he finds and drinks his Salty Coffee!

Dr. Abdul Kalam's Address in Hyderabad , Dr Abdul Kalam

HR Era carried Dr. Abdul Kalam's Hyderabad speech before he became the President. Around that time [May 2002] he had come to Larsen & Toubro Limited in Chennai and addressed all the executives. I was fortunate to listen to him!

Here it is once again.

Free Service: Training Institutions & Trainers can email their Programs to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free.

For detailed calendar of major Institutes visit http://hrera.tripod.com/trainings.htm

Bombay Management Association

Bombay Management Association (BMA) is India’s most premier management Association, established in 1954, with a mission to promote mutual exchange of sound Management Principles and Practices. BMA has 48 years of illustrious history in creating ‘Thought Leadership in Management Practices’. Programmes for the month September:

“Promotion Of Positive Discipline and Management Of Indiscipline”
Date: Saturday, September 25, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. J. B. Kabra
Members: 1700/- Non Member: 1900/-

“Cost Reduction Strategies”
Date: Friday & Saturday, September 27 & 28, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. Ajoy Kumar Guha
Members: 2800/- Non Member: 3000/-

Contact:

Deepali Mulay
Bombay Management Association
3rd Floor, 9 Poddar House, ‘A’Road, Churchgate Tel: 2047650, 2049698 Fax: 2024743
Email: bma@...

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free

[68] Executive Administration, Condor Building Contracting Company LLC, Dubai

Graduate / BBA / MBA with 5 years' experience. Expertise in compouter operatyion is a must. Age limit is 30 years.

Apply to: condxb@...

[67] Senior Manager HR, A Corporate Finance Company,

Hi Folks,

We are a Professionally Managed Executive Search Firm into Personnel Search Services at Senior and Middle Management Levels in various management functions.

We have been retained by One of the Top 5 Corporate Finance Companies in India to advise on the selection of Senior Manager HR who shall be responsible for the entire HR activities (Recruitment, Training, Counselling, Performance Appraisal etc.). Shall be groomed to take over as Head of HR within 5 Years.

The right candidate would be an MBA in HRD from a Premier/reputed institute only (IIM/ XLRI/ TISS/ JBIMS/ NMIMS).

The company offers excellent package at par with the best in industry. Interested professional may forward their resume quoting reference No. Sr-Mgr-HR to sgk@...

WITH WARM REGARDS


S G KEWALRAMANI
GIPS MANAGEMENT & PERSONNEL CONSULTANTS
16 VEENA BEENA
OPP BANDRA STN. (W)
MUMBAI 400 050- INDIA
TEL: 6412081/2/3/4
FAX : 641 1482
E MAIL: sgk@...
WEBSITE: www.gipsmanagement.com

According to Indian philosophy, there are many lives for an individual before he attains Moksha... The karma of the previous life will be transferred to the present life so as to be worked out and nullified. One can find striking similarities between the teachings of Indian philosophy and modern accounting practices. Here are some of them that can induce an earnest reader to think in comparative terms between Indian philosophy and accountancy.

Credit, Debit and Carry Forward

In accounting terms, the balance of last year will be carried forward to this year's account and brought down. Here, credit side represents all the bad karmas and unfulfilled desires that propel man to take birth again. The debit side represents the good karmas and his fulfilled desires. Obviously, for every one the credit side exceeds the debit side, (with few exceptions!).So the balancing figure of each year, ie.. Each life will be always in the debit side. And, each year's balancing figure will be carried forward and brought down into next year's (or life's!) account.

One conclusion that an individual can draw from this (which is fully true according to Indian philosophy) is that he/she has the full power to make the account tally this year (life) itself, Attain liberation from the cycle of re births.... Moksha!

Abnormal Gain or Abnormal Loss

In Indian philosophy, lot of emphasis has been laid, in the recent times, from the medieval period on fate and luck. What is Fate?, and Luck? When we get more than we expect, we call it luck. When we have to be satisfied with what we get, or, in other words, when we get lesser than what we expect, we call it fate.

We can observe the same phenomenon in Accountancy also, especially in "Process" accounts. In process accounts, abnormal gain and abnormal loss aptly exemplifies this process. When the actual output is more than the expected output, we call it abnormal gain or luck! When the actual output is less than the expected output, we call it abnormal loss or fate!

Fixed Assets

Much more could be said along these lines, but I leave it to the reader to think upon this and to find out more.... Say, for instance, the term "Fixed Assets" in accountancy can be, to some extent associated with "Monadic Essence" in Indian philosophical terms, and the term "Prarabdha Karma" can be associated with "Deferred Revenue expenditure".

A Big Multi-Year Account

So one can undoubtedly say that life (the whole of it, till Moksha), is nothing but a big personal account spread over many years (or individual lives) wherein, the individual, or the accountant, who has poor knowledge in the accountancy of life, struggles to tally the account or the balance sheet, and fails many times, till he finally succeeds.......

Contributed by Ranjith Menon,
Human Resources Department, Global Edge Software Ltd, Bangalore - INDIA. Ph: 91-80-3467944 Extn:478.

Email: ranjithmenon77@... Website: http://www.ranjithmenon.com

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 22,       Aug 25th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. Truly Terrible Training Tips - by Mike Delaney

3. Quotation Corner: Leader versus Boss - sent by R Rajan

4. New Members

R Srinivasan, Francis Jerome

5. Readers' Forum

Praise for Ramakrishnarao

Is Money the Primary Motivator? - R Narayanan, Inder Jeet Singh, Raju Anish, Maneesh Goel

6. Tomato Soup for the Soul - sent by Rajesh V Kamath

7. Inspiring Story: Seven Wonders of the World - by Ramakrishnarao

8. More from our Members & HR Era Website

9. HR Training Programs (India)

10. Best HR Jobs (India)

11. Invitation to ALL Trainers & Training Institutions - NDDB

12. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

Alka has gone [only for few day]. This gives me a chance to meddle with her issue besides include an interesting joke. Let us get serious, there is good news.

Mr. R Srinivasan, one of the giants of HR Profession, has joined our egroup. To benchmark your career aspirations, read his resume in New Members section.

The email from Mr Srinivasan was a surprise to me! What is surprising about it? We all have seen senior managers who keep a computer (preferably a laptop) by their side as decoration pieces. Here is a person who has learned internet and uses it for himself even though it came to India much much after his retirement.

His choosing to join HR Era enhances our egroup's standing!

Regards.

Rajeev [for Alka Bhatnagar]

2. TRULY TERRIBLE TRAINING TIPS - by Mike Delaney

It's been reported that the most common human fear involves public speaking. In the business world, the day will come when most of us will be called upon to give a training presentation. The result is a flock butterflies the size of pigeons in the pit of your stomach.

Sometimes, the best way to learn how to do something well is to know how to poorly. With that in mind, here are some ways to give a simply horrible training presentation.

1. START OR END LATE

Starting and ending your presentation late sends the message to participants that you do not feel their time is valuable.

2. APPEAR UNPREPARED

Fumbling through your notes, or searching for out of order visual aids makes you look unprepared and you are less effective. Rehearse your presentation. Thirty minutes before your presentation is scheduled to begin, check your teaching aids to ensure that everything is in order.

3. DON'T INVOLVE THE PARTICIPANTS

The quickest way to lose your audience is to simply stand in the front of the room and talk at them. It was as true for Confucius in 451 B.C., and it's true today --

What I hear, I forget; What I see, I remember; What I do, I understand.

4. USE INAPPROPRIATE LANGUAGE OR HUMOR

There is never an "on" reason to be off color. Inappropriate language and humor lessens both your image as a professional and your effectiveness as a trainer.

5. BE A KNOW-IT-ALL

As the trainer, you really are the expert. Just don't remind the class of it. Remember that every chance you have to raise yourself up will almost always mean lowering someone else by the same margin.

Contributed by Mike Delaney
Mike Delaney is a shoplifting prevention trainer with over 20 years experience as an expert shoplifter, and almost 10 years stopping them. He is the author of "How to Beat Shoplifters and Increase Profits", offered by Bison Creek Desktop Publishing, http://www.zianet.com/bisoncreek
delaneybookreview@...

  

Rajan's Note: After reading the article Are You Managing to Lead? in HR Era .., I wish to add this info. R. Rajan.

A boss creates fear, a leader confidence.
A boss fixes blame, a leader corrects mistakes.
A boss knows all, a leader asks questions.
A boss makes work drudgery, a leader makes it interesting.
A boss is interested in himself or herself, a leader is interested in the group.
The leader seeks to communicate his vision to his followers.
He captures their attention with his optimistic intuition of possible solutions to their needs.
He influences them by the dynamism of his faith.
He demonstrates confidence that the challenge can be met, the need resolved, the crisis overcome.

Contributed by R Rajan, Training Department, Delphi Diesel Systems Limited, Mannur, Near Sriperumbudur. Email: rr.trg@...

Mr R Srinivasan, Ex-Director (Personnel), Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited

Positions held by Mr Srinivasan speak for themselves.

He retired as Additional Director (Corporate Planning) of Steel Authority of India Limited in 1986 and was retained as Consultant for two more years. In SAIL he played a key role in implementing the turnaround strategy of this elephant with more than 2,00,000 employees.

For two years he went as Director (Personnel) of Neyveli Lignite Corporation during his 26 years service with SAIL (1962-88).

Prior to SAIL, he held senior managerial positions with TISCO, mainly in Management Development and Training Division(1950-62). Presently, he guides the Business Development activities of Brilliant Tutorials in Chennai.

Now that is a dream career for every aspiring HR professional. Does any one disagree with me?

Contact: Email - rsrini@... , Phone - 044-4917725 , Chennai.

Mr Francis Jerome, Manager (HR & Admin), Proteck Circuits & Systems, Chennai

Francis has double qualifications - PG Diploma in PM from NIPM and Diploma in Training & Dvelopment from ISTD. He has 14 years of well-rounded experience in of which first 12 years were with Alstom. Now Francis is Head of HR function for Proteck.

He likes to travel and gives guest lectures to students on career guidance and HR (Any students reading this?)

Contact: Email - pcshrd@... , Chennai.

PRAISE FOR RAMAKRISHNARAO

dear sir,

i went through the article entitled "know your worth" and found it very thought-provoking
looking for more such stuff in future...

with regards
debanjan roy
hr team, hindalco industries ltd.
deb_roy@...

IS MONEY THE PRIMARY MOTIVATOR?

Recall Satyam's comment on Ashit's article?

"infact HR has become a very idealistic department in companies, trying to talk about motivation, culture , empathy and other big words. whereas at the end of the day we all know that its all about money, which really makes a man work."

Here are 4 responses. None of them agrees with Satyam, all the same 3 accept that there is some truth in Satyam's contention.

We thank Satyam for risking a thought provoking & controversial remark.

From: Narayanan R [Agrees mostly]

Greetings....

With reference to the article published in the Reader Forum regarding the "HR Field" it is very sad to know that the future generation of HR professionals are not understanding the true aspect of being a HR professional.

While in every other field, dept, portfolio the major motivating factor would be "money", HR dept has always been an exception to this. We HR professionals are motivated and driven by the fact that we are the chosen few to guide and help others, understand every human being as a potential resource and develop suitable methodologies so that this resource could be utilised for the benefit of itself and for the common. I would like to say to the budding HR professionals that this is a profession that is more nobler than that of the doctor's ( the saying : "Doctor;s profession is a noble profession").

There cannot be more great motivation than in the prospect of "serving" others rather than in just looking at this portfolio as "Work" or "another way of life".

Regards

R. Narayanan
r_narayanan16@...

From: Inder Jeet Singh [Agrees partly]

Hi

My experience in last 6 yrs in the IT industry is that..
Its MONEY & KIND OF WORK(TECHNOLOGY) people work on,
are the most motivator in any job.

Regards

Inder
inderjeetsingh71@...

From: Raju Anish [For some persons yes, for most no]

to a certain extent yes. and that is the extent to which i can comment on this.. anything more definite will not truly represent the huge range of factors that motivate people to work and perform...

to me , a plain "money is THE motivator" comes across as immature, and interestingly, reminds me of myself at that stage in life, when i too was a management student, and i too had a slightly restricted view of business and how it affects(or should i say is affected by) life....

lets say we have two test cases. Test Case A comes from a family which has known hardships and has a father who earns, a mother who is a housewife, and has 4 children...the test case A being one among the 4. Test Case B is from a family where both the mother and father are highly succesfull careerist executives, and have this single child , our test case B.....

yes, in test case A, money could well be the prime motivator UNTIL our test case reaches the point in life where money ceases to motivate..

and for test case B? its very unlikely that money will motivate to a great extent....my money is on freedom/quality of work/variety of exposure being the prime motivators....

so , it depends to a great extent on

1-background
2-upbringing
3-education, and
4-social environment..

coffee? or toffee? its not that easy to make a black OR white decision. is it?

Regards
Anish Raju, HR Team
Covansys (India) Pvt. Ltd.
T: 044.2628080/3880 x 6131
www.covansys.com
ARaju@...

From: Maneesh Goel [Disagrees]

Dear Rajeev

.... One more message which I read of ... an MBA student ...about the reality of HR in companies. It is really very disappointing to see the attitude of a person,who is supposed to bring the change in system. I, however, do agree with him on the limited role which HR plays in companies.But the question is who can change it? Obviously we people & at least we can try for it.

With regards

Maneesh Goel
MBA student
manish_goelhrd@...

Santa was talking to his fiancee, Jeeto, and he said, "Be honest, how am I as a lover?"

To which Jeeto replied, "Honey, I would definitely say that you`re warm." "Really?" Santa said excitedly. "Yes, in fact I would say that you`re the dictionary definition of the word `warm`."

Santa was pleased until he went home and, just for fun, checked his dictionary and found, "WARM: Not so hot."

Sent by Rajesh V Kamath
Email: kamathrajesh@...

A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present Seven Wonders of the World.

Though there was some disagreement, the following got the most votes:

1. Egypt's Great Pyramids
2. Taj Mahal
3. Grand Canyon
4. Panama Canal
5. Empire State Building
6. St. Peter's Basilica
7. China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one quiet student hadn't turned in her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list.

The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help."

The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World are:"

"1. to touch"
"2. to taste"
"3. to see"
"4. to hear"

She hesitated a little, and then added

"5. to feel"
"6. to laugh"
"7. and to love"

The room was so full of silence you could have heard a pin drop. It is far too easy for us to look at the exploits of man and refer to them as wonders while we overlook what God has done for us. Those things we overlook as simple and "ordinary" are truly wondrous.

Contributed by Ramakrishnarao
People Excellence, Tata Telecom Limited, Gandhinagar. Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467 Extn. No. 290, e-mail : rthallam@...

How Taking More Coffee Breaks can Get You Promoted, by Susan Dunn

Susan says that 70% of organizational learning takes place informally. Are you tuned in?

Will Driving Blindfolded Help Employees Build Productivity, by John G Agno

Agno gives a brief logic on why team building is important for organizations.

Who's Number One?, sent by R Rajan

R Rajan, our member, shares a story that reminds us of how team members feel in a real team.

Six Sure-Fire Steps to Become a Love Magnet (c), by Rinatta Paries

Rinatta is talking about long-term relationships like marriage. One needs a lot of introspection to apply the steps she lists. She is an experienced coach on relationships.

Free Service: Training Institutions & Trainers can email their Programs to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free.

For detailed calendar of major Institutes visit http://hrera.tripod.com/trainings.htm

Bombay Management Association

Bombay Management Association (BMA) is India’s most premier management Association, established in 1954, with a mission to promote mutual exchange of sound Management Principles and Practices. BMA has 48 years of illustrious history in creating ‘Thought Leadership in Management Practices’. Programmes for the month September:

“Changing Role of Finance Function”
Date: Thursday, September 12, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Dr. Girish P. Jakhotiya
Members: 1700/- Non Member: 1900/-

“Power Of Positive Attitude”
Date: Saturday, September 14, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. Hiren Vakil
Members: 1700/- Non Member: 1900/-

“Service Tax”
Date: Saturday, September 21, 2002 Timing: 2.00 p. m. to 6.00 p.m.
Venue: M. C. Ghia Hall, Bhogilal Hargovindas Building, 18/20, K. Dubash Marg, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. T. Gunasekaram, Mr. S. S. Gupta
Fee: Rs. 500/ Per Participant

“Promotion Of Positive Discipline and Management Of Indiscipline”
Date: Saturday, September 25, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. J. B. Kabra
Members: 1700/- Non Member: 1900/-

“Cost Reduction Strategies”
Date: Friday & Saturday, September 27 & 28, 2002 Timing: 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Venue: The Emerald Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Near Juhu Beach, Mumbai
Faculty: Mr. Ajoy Kumar Guha
Members: 2800/- Non Member: 3000/-

Contact:

Deepali Mulay
Bombay Management Association
3rd Floor, 9 Poddar House, ‘A’Road, Churchgate Tel: 2047650, 2049698 Fax: 2024743
Email: bma@...

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free

[67] Senior Manager HR, A Corporate Finance Company,

Hi Folks,

We are a Professionally Managed Executive Search Firm into Personnel Search Services at Senior and Middle Management Levels in various management functions.

We have been retained by One of the Top 5 Corporate Finance Companies in India to advise on the selection of Senior Manager HR who shall be responsible for the entire HR activities (Recruitment, Training, Counselling, Performance Appraisal etc.). Shall be groomed to take over as Head of HR within 5 Years.

The right candidate would be an MBA in HRD from a Premier/reputed institute only (IIM/ XLRI/ TISS/ JBIMS/ NMIMS).

The company offers excellent package at par with the best in industry. Interested professional may forward their resume quoting reference No. Sr-Mgr-HR to sgk@...

WITH WARM REGARDS


S G KEWALRAMANI
GIPS MANAGEMENT & PERSONNEL CONSULTANTS
16 VEENA BEENA
OPP BANDRA STN. (W)
MUMBAI 400 050- INDIA
TEL: 6412081/2/3/4
FAX : 641 1482
E MAIL: sgk@...
WEBSITE: www.gipsmanagement.com

[66] Deputy Manager (Personnel), Pondicherry

Organisation: Johnson Tiles ( Member of Johnson Ceramics International, UK)

Person & Responsibility: Selected candidate will head the function at the plant and will be responsible for all labour matters including time office functions, statutory compliances, legal matters laisoning with local authorities, training, industril relations etc. The candidate should be a Post Graduate in Personnel Management or MBA from a reputed institute with 5-7 years experience in handling all personnel matters in a manufacturing organisation. Proficiency in Tamil language and in computer operations is essential

Remuneration: Will not be a constraint for the right candidate

Apply To : dmsouth@...

Hello All,

I am looking for good trainers in the technical as well as behavioral areas in India and abroad. The details of the organization and the need are given below.

The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) is an autonomous body created by an Act of Parliament in 1965, to replicate the Anand pattern in different parts of the country. NDDB has in it's credit many first and have been the facilitating agency to make India the number one milk producing country in the world. As on date in India there are more than 1 lakh dairy cooperatives integrated through a three tier cooperative structure - "The Anand Pattern", owned by more than ten million farmers.

Since its inception, the Dairy Board has planned and spearheaded India's dairy programmes by placing dairy development in the hands of milk producers and the professionals they employ to manage their cooperatives. In addition, NDDB also promotes other commodity-based cooperatives, allied industries and veterinary biological on an intensive and nation-wide basis.

NDDB is all set to define new heights in the dairy industry and we in NDDB are looking forward to gearing the staff to meet this challenge. Presently we have 4 regional offices, 16 State offices and five training centers. Apart from taking care of the training needs of the above offices NDDB takes care of training requirements of most of its subsidiaries and federations / Unions where in we are associated, with a target population of more than 40 thousand. For the details on our organization please visit our web site www.nddb.coop

To achieve the above objective, NDDB is in the process of building up a data bank of all the trainers / institutions in India and abroad for it's training requirements. To be specific we are looking at major two areas, technical and behavioral. Technical skills (Dairy Sector), which includes engineering both mechanical and civil part from quality plant management. Behavioral skills like leadership, change management, communication etc., to name a few.

Those who are interested, may please send in your details to Manager (Manpower Development & Training), NDDB, Anand, Gujarat - 388001,
E mail: krishnanhr@...

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 21,       Aug11th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. Are You Managing to Lead? - by Monty J. Sharp

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul

The IT Interview - sent by Amareesh C Arora

4. New Members

K.Soundarraj, Abhisheka Varma, M V Vasudevan

5. Readers' Forum

Who is Right? Satyam Arora or Ashit Sarkar!
Is Money the only motivator?

6. Quotation Corner: Wisdom - by K Jayaraman

7. Ten Positive Sources of Energy - by Myrtis L. Smith

8. More from our Members & HR Era Website

9. HR Training Programs (India)

10. Best HR Jobs (India)

11. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

As promised, the re-designed HR Era is here.

Firstly, you will receive HR Era every alternate sunday. Emailing the issue on sundays is more compatible with my commitments at work / job, so you will receive it regularly.

Secondly, each issue will carry article on HR, Best HR Jobs, HR Training Programs. So you will have something to learn every fortnight. And info on training programs as well as HR jobs will reach you faster, when still hot!

Greater success depends on all the members. The more articles you send, the more members you refer, the more HR Era will contibute to us as a learning platform.

We welcome 100+ new members and especially Mr K Soundarraj. Look forward to him for enriching the group with his knowledge.

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

2. ARE YOU MANAGING TO LEAD? - by Monty J Sharp,
Personal & Business Coach, http://www.success-synergies.com

For many people, the terms "manager" and "leader" are synonymous. In the business world, they are often used interchangeably, i.e. "team leader", "team manager", "project manager" - you get the idea. And why not? After all, leaders and managers do basically the same thing, right?

In some instances, there do seem to be commonalities between the two and management techniques are sometimes confused with leadership traits. However, there are, I believe, some key distinctions to be made that radically separate the two.

Here then, are what I consider to be some key differences between a leader and a manager:

1. A manager administers. A leader innovates.

Managers take policies and procedures and ensure that they are carried out. Leaders are constantly challenging the "status quo" to achieve bigger and better things.

2. A manager maintains. A leader develops.

As long as things are running smoothly, the manager is typically happy. The leader is never satisfied with the "status quo" or "the way we've always done it". Leaders are constantly asking for more and bigger things - of themselves as well as those they lead.

3. Managers rely on control. Leaders inspire trust.

Managers can feel threatened by subordinates who don't seem to be "towing the line". In doing so, they create a co-dependency in the subordinates who, in turn, rely on the manager to dictate nearly every step of the process. Leaders know how to tap into the inherent strengths of those they lead and then foster those strengths to the benefit of the organization.

4. A manager has his eye only on the "bottom line". A leader has his eye on the horizon as well.

In orienteering (using a map and compass) you must set your sights on a distant object to get an accurate bearing. If you take only short-range sightings, it is much more likely you will stray far off the right course. In the same way, "bottom lining" only without also "visioning" can result in ending up at a destination you did not plan on.

5. The manager imitates. The leader originates.

While using "tried and true" methods isn't always a bad thing, someone else's methods may not be exactly right for every organization. Leaders aren't afraid to try new, and even unorthodox, methods to achieve optimum results.

6. Managers focus on product. Leaders focus on process.

While still holding to the principles of quality, productivity and efficiency, the leader is able to recognize the effort as well as the "end-product".

7. Managers need lots of positive feedback. Leaders have an innate sense of their own self-worth.

Everyone likes a "pat on the back" for a job well done. However, managers rely heavily on things like "performance reviews", "appraisals" and "kudos" from their supervisors and their subordinates to demonstrate a job well done. They also tend to rely heavily on those tools as motivators for their subordinates.

8. Managers need subordinates. Leaders strive to develop other leaders.

Leaders are always in the process of developing other leaders. Managers tend to feel very threatened when they perceive someone may be "passing them up".

9. Managers tell "what". Leaders share "why".

The manager is primarily concerned with simply giving the steps to achieve the desired result. The leader also takes the time to explain why those steps are crucial to the desired result. In doing so, the leader is also imparting his "vision" to those that help make that vision a reality.

10. Managers are more concerned with doing things right. Leaders are more concerned with doing the right thing.

Managers tend to be very "order" and "structure" oriented. Leaders have a keen sense of the "spirit of the law" and aren't afraid to "bend" the rules if it will achieve a greater good for everyone.

Contributed by Monty J. Sharp, Personal & Business Coach. Monty J. Sharp works with executives and managers who want more than a title and a fat paycheck. To schedule 2 complimentary coaching sessions, contact Monty at mailto:monty@... or visit http://www.success-synergies.com . Subscribe to Success Steps E-magazine. It's FREE! subscribe@... .

Copyright (c) 2002, Monty J. Sharp

  

THE IT INTERVIEW

This imaginary interview is based on the common PJs and conceptions in IT industry. By the way all the characters in it are fictitious and any resemblence to any living or dead is purely coincidental.

Interviewer: Tell me about yourself.

Candidate: I am Rameshwar Kulkarni. I did my Tele communication engineering from BabanRao Dhole-Patil Institute of Technology.

Int: BabanRao Dhole-Patil Institute of Technology? I had never heard of this college before!

Candi: Great! Even I had not heard of it before getting an admission into it. What happened is - due to cricket worldcup I scored badly in 12th. I was getting a paid seat in a good college. But my father said (I prefer to call him 'baap') - "I can not invest so much of money". (The baap actually said - "I will never waste so much of money on you"). So I had to join this college. Frankly speaking this name - BabanRao Dhole-Patil, can at the most be related to a Shetaki Mahavidyalaya. he he he...

Int: ok, ok. It seems you have taken 6 years to complete your engineering.

Cand: Actually I tried my best to finish it in 4 years. But you know, these cricket matches and football worldcup, and tennis tournaments.. It is difficult to concentrate.. So I flunked in 2nd and 3rd year. So in all I took 4 + 2 = 7 years.

Int: But 4+2 is 6.

Cand: Oh, is it? You know I always had KT in maths. But I will try to keep this in mind. 4+2 is 6, good, thanks. These cricket matches really affect exams a lot. I think they should ban it.

Int: Good to know that you want cricket matches to be banned.

Can: No, no.. I am talking about Exams!!

Int: Ok, What is your biggest achievement in life?

Can: Obviously, completing my Engineering. My mom never thought I would complete it. In fact, when i flunked in 3rd year, she was looking for a job for me in BEST through some relative. (My moms's exact words were - "Melya, kiti divas fukatache gilat basanar aahes?")

Int: Do you have any plans of higher study?

Can: he he he.. Are you kidding? Completing 'lower' education itself was so much of pain!!

Int: Let's talk about technical stuff. On which platforms have you worked?

Can: Well, I work at SEEPZ, so you can say Andheri is my current platform. Earlier I was at Vashi center. So Vashi was my platform then. As you can see I have experience of different platforms!

Int: And which languages have you used?

Can: Marathi, Hindi, English. By the way, I can keep quiet in German, French, Russian and many other languages he he he...

Int: Why VC is better than VB?

Can: It is a commom sense - C comes after B. So VC is a higher version than VB. I heard very soon they are coming up with a new language VD!

Int: Do you know anything about Assembly Language?

Can: Well, I have not heard of it. But I guess, this is the language our ministers and MPs use in assembly.

Int: What is your general project experience?

Can: My general experience about projects is - most of the times they are in pipeline!

Int: Can you tell me about your current job?

Can: Sure, Currently I am working for Bata Infotech ltd. Since joining BIL, I am on Bench. Before joining BIL, I used to think that Bench was another software like Windows he he he..

Int: Do you have any project management experience?

Can: No, but I guess it shouldn't be difficult. I know Word and Excel. I can talk a lot. I know how to dial for International phone call and use speaker facility. And very important - I know few words like - 'Showstoppers', 'hotfixes', 'SEICMM', 'quality', 'version control', 'deadlines' , 'Customer Satisfaction' etc. Also I can blame others for my mistakes!

Int: What are your expectations from our company?

Can: Not much.

1. I should at least get 40,000 in hand.
2. I would like to work on a live EJB project. But it should not have deadlines. I personally feel that pressure affects natural talent.
3. I believe in flexi-timings.
4. Dress code is against basic freedom, so I would like to wear t-shirt and jeans.
5. We must have sat-sun off. I will suggest wed off also, so as to avoid breakdown due to overwork.
6. I would like to go abroad 3 times a year on short term (preferably 1-2 months) assignments. Personally I prefer US, Australia and Europe. But considering the fact that there is a worldcup in South Africa in Feb 2003, I don't mind going there in that period.
As you can see I am modest and don't have many expectations. So can I assume my selection?

Int: he he he ha ha ha. Thanks for your interest in our organization. In fact I was never entertained so much before. I request you not to apply in our organization for next 100 years. After that we might consider you!!

The candidate still doesn't know why he was not selected.

Sent by Amareesh C Arora
Sr Manager (HR), Tata Infotech Limited
Email: amareesh.arora@...

K.Soundarraj, National Vice President of National Institute of Personnel Management, Kolkata

Meassge: I am happy to see your news bulletin this morning . I congratulate you and all those who contributed for the same.

Soundarraj has done MA., M.L. (Labour & Industrial Law), and a Post Graduate Dip in Industsrial and Business Administration.

Presently he is Dy General Manager (Corp HRD), Chennai Petroleum Corp0ration Ltd, Chennai.

He has recently been elected as National Vice President of National Institute of Personnel Management, Kolkata. As you are aware, NIPM is a premier professional body of HR Professionals in India and has 52 chapters throught India.

In addition, Soundarraj is a Life member of ISTD , MMA member, CII-HR&ER sub committee member (SR), Life member Hospitality Association and also Humour Club of Chennai.

He has wittten a book on Discipline in Industry. He belongs to Pollachi and has two daughters .

Contact: ksoundarraj@... , Chennai

Abhisheka Varma, Recruitment and HR Manager, Panoramic Group Of Companies, Mumbai .

Message: To have a job profile that will enhance my skill's and knowledge in conjunction with organisation's goals .

Abhisheka completed MMS at the Indian Education Societies College of Management from University of Mumbai. He has an experience of 1 year . His hobbies include music, travelling, cooking and interacting with people . He was executive member of cultural association of his college and organised many cultural activities .

Contact: abhisheka_varma@...

Vasudevan M V, Senior Manager- HR, EID Parry India

Vasudevan did his commerce graduation, LLB from Kolkata University. Thereafter he completed his DSW from IISWBM, Kolkata University and Post Graduation in PM & IR from Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai. He has an experience of 15 years in IR & HR. He hails from Kerala. Vasudevan is married and blessed with a son studying in class 6th.

Contact: vasudevanMB@...

Who is Right? Satyam Arora or Ashit Sarkar!
Is Money the only motivator?

To: Mr Ashit Sarkar

dearsir,

i am in my final year at symbiosis center for management and hrd ,pune specialising in HR. nice to read yr article, but i am very disappointed by the extent of words that u have used here.

the more u try to describe HR in words , the more idealistic it becomes. infact HR has become a very idealistic department in companies, trying to talk about motivation, culture , empathy and other big words. whereas at the end of the day we all know that its all about money, which really makes a man work.

anyways, great article, someday, i would hope to write something similar for some other magazine or website

regards
satyam arora
satyamarora@...

From: Mr Ashit Sarkar

Dear Satyam,

Thank you for taking the trouble to express your feedback on the article in HR Era.

Your perception that HR function is idealistic - only using big words (obviously without understanding or belief), certainly has validity in some Companies, and that is the very concept undergoing change, or requiring so, for any progressive organisation has been historically presented in the article. It seems that I've not been able to be successful in communicating it convincingly to you!

Your statement "whereas at the end of the day we all know that its all about money, which really makes a man work" must in itself be a reflection of your strong personal belief as of now before actually being employed, which goes so contrary to the reality of today in other than at the most basic need at the lowest level only.

This concept of need weakens with maturity and rising to higher levels of existence. You might wish to re-examine this concept of yours with your professors (or even your co students), or from other individuals actually working in successful organisations for validity.

Good luck to you for your future career.

Sincerely,

Ashit K. Sarkar,
ashitsarkar@...

From: Moderator

Two strong view points exist. Personally I find that money is not the only motivator. The true answer is important for HR Professionals.

MEMBERS PLEASE EMAIL YOUR OPINIONS TO HRERA@...

To handle yourself, use your head.
To handle others, use your heart.

Deal with the faults of others as gently
as with your owm.

If you want to get the best out of a man,
you must look for the best that is in him.

If you judge people, you have
no time to love them.

Never let a day go by without giving
at least three people a compliment.

Contributed by K Jayaraman,
Larsen & Toubro Limited, Chennai.
Email: kj@...

People will get that energy from anywhere, even negative sources. Many individuals rely on caffeine, adrenaline, sugar, even drugs or alcohol to give them the push to make it through the day. But using negative energy sources will take its toll on your body and mind, often leaving you feeling worse than you started.

So the next time you find yourself in a mid-afternoon slump, try one of the sources below for an energy boost instead of reaching for that candy bar or cup of coffee.

1. Exercise

2. Sleep

3. Children (their laughter is contagious)

4. Motivational books or tapes

5. Food (the nutrient rich type, not the caffeine or sugar laden type)

6. Positive people

7. Successful people (who also are often positive people)

8. Pets

9. Music

10. Meditation

Contributed by Myrtis L. Smith,
(c) Copyright 2002 All Rights Reserved.
Myrtis Smith is a personal coach. She gets people to stop hating thier jobs. To see how she might be able to help you, sign up for her free newsletter (Change Now!) or visit her on the web at www.premeditatedlife.com .......because life doesn't just happen!

Mental Vacation - by Rajesh V Kamath

Here is a technique we can use for relaxing our mind, de-stressing. Short and simple. Rajesh has not told me whether he has tried it himself. Click Here to view.

Points to Ponder - by Ranjith Menon

Last time we carried 3 extracts from Ranjith Menon's forthcoming book. Here are 7 more. These ones are more philosophical than the previous. Click Here to view.

Free Service: Training Institutions & Trainers can email their Programs to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free.

For detailed calendar of major Institutes visit http://hrera.tripod.com/trainings.htm

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for fr

HR Manager, Indian Pharma Company, Kolkata

We have a good vacancy in Calcutta as under

1. Orgn: Indian Pharma
2. Exp - 3-6 yrs
3. Position: HR MANAGER
4. Qualification: HRD SPECIALISATION MBA
5. Salary: 2-3 LACS P.A
6. Location: Kolkata

PLEASE SEND CV'S ASAP WITH CTC

Incase you know of an CA's with 8 years experience please ask them to contact us for the same company listed above.

Thanks

Bala

Email resumes to: careeradvisor2002@...

Training Professional, MNC Insurance Organisation, Mumbai

Dear Members,

We are looking for a Trainer for an MNC Insurance organisation based in Mumbai.

The candidate should be 5-8 years of experience in HR from premier institute out of which at least 3 years in Training.

The candidate will be responsible for identifying of training needs,conducting of training programmes for top management , conducting management development programmes.

The position will report to the Head of Training.This is an all India
assignment which will involve a lot of travelling.Compensation will be as per industry standards.

Interested candidates can email their resume to namrata@....


Thanx & Regards

Namrata Mohanty
Manager
Consindia Hr Services
Tel - 4606791/92/93

HR Executive, Large multinational FMCG company, South India

A large multinational FMCG requires for one of their Units:

H R EXECUTIVE

Age: Around 30 yrs

Qualifications: P G Degree in Social Work / Personnel Management from an Institution of repute

Experience: Minimum of eight years out of which atlease five years independently handling personnel and Industrial Relations in all its dimensions, in a Unit having good systems. Exposure to TQM / TPM concepts would be an added advantage.

He shall be a self starter and be capable of setting in motion initiatives for further fostering the prevailing the excellent IR Climate at the Unit.

Knowledge of Tamil would be essential.

Please respond in confidence to

N SRINIVASA RAGHAVAN
PRINCIPAL CONSULTANT
ANUBHAV TQM & HRD FACILITATORS
CHENNAI

anubhavtqm@... or nsr@...

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 13B,       Jul 26th, 2002

 

1. My Space

2. New Members

P Mayuri (Ms), Rahul Deokar, Svetlana Fernandes (Ms),
P V Ravi Kumar, VJ Priyan, MS Sanjeev.

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul - by Ravindra Nath

4. Readers' Forum

Needs material on HR & IR - Joseph Varghese
Appreciation for HR Era - CS Sundaram
Praise for Pankaj - Rajesh Kamath

5. Quotation Corner - by Neeta Bhatnagar

6. Inspirational Stories

Carrot, Egg and Coffee - sent by Tarkesh Gupta

7. Best HR Jobs (India)

8. HR Training Programs (India)

9. Aims of HR Era, How To Contribute Articles, & Legal Stuff

To get you uptodate & latest information, we are modifying contents of HR Era.

Staring next issue, every issue will contain Best HR Jobs and HR Training Programs (instead alternate). This would enable employers & trainers to reach you quickly. Similarly, every issue will contain article(s) on HR.

We also want to carry photos of members, so please email the same.

regards

Alka Bhatnagar

Mayuri P, Asst. Manager-HRD, SSI, Chennai

Message: Looking forward to be a part of this informative and professional association, where in we can share and exchange ideas, experiences and information pertaining to our HR profession which may be useful to one and all

Mayuri has done her MBA (HR) from Madras University.

Contact : mayuri.phalgunan@...

Rahul Deokar, Recruitment Officer, Geometric Software Solutions Ltd. , Pune

Message : I am really impressed by the group and its activities.

Rahul has done his Master's in Industrial Psychology and there after did his Diploma in HRM. He has a total experience of 3 years in recruitment and HR in IT Sector

Contact : rahuldeokar@...

Svetlana Fernandes, Kores (India) Ltd. , Mumbai

Svetlana has done BA in History and Diploma in HRD. She has experience of 2.5 years. She is interested in astrology, computers, music, reading, travel and thrill therapy

Contact : svetlana@...

P V Ravi Kumar, Senior Manager-HR, Ram Informatics Ltd. , Hyderabad

Ravi Kumar has MA in Personnel Management, BL (Law), and also a PG Diploma in PM & IR.

He has 12 years of scintilating experience in HR - with several acheivements to his credit. Has worked with leading Indian and MNC'S in Software Development, Engineering and Pharmaceutical Indutries.

Ravi is a member of National HRD Network and NIPM. His hobbies include reading, travelling and music. He has visited US offices on deputation for about 6 months spread over three years (1999-2001) to operate the office and / or for business development acivities. His wife is working for NIC as a Software Engineer.

Contact : ravee_hrd@...

V J Priyan, Head-Placements SBU, Excell Management Consulting Pvt. Ltd. , Chennai

Priyan is a MA in (Psy) and MBA in (HR)

Contact: vj_priyan@...

Sanjeev M S, Senior HR Executive, Ishoni Networks, Bangalore

Message: It feels great to be a part of this HR Era. As the name suggests, I am sure this is going to be real fun here. Looking forward to a new era of e-interaction and learning.

Sanjeev is taking care of recruitment in Ishoni Networks.

Contact: sanjeevrao@...

Bholaji's knowledge

Bholaji and his son went fishing one day. Sitting in the boat for a couple of hours gave them not much to do, so the son started thinking about the world around him. He began to get curious so he asked his father some questions.

"How does this boat float?" Bholaji thought for a moment, then replied, "Don`t rightly know, son." The boy returned to his contemplation, but soon came up with another one, "How do fish breath underwater?" Once again Bholaji replied, "Don`t rightly know, son." A little later the boy asked Bholaji, "Why is the sky blue?" Again, Bholaji replied, "Don`t rightly know, son."

Worried he was going to annoy his father, he said, "Dad, do you mind my asking you all of these questions?" Bholaji immediately assured him, "Of course not, son. If you don`t ask questions, you`ll never learn anything!"

Hearing aid

Paramjeet realized he needed to purchase a hearing aid, but he felt unwilling to spend much money.

"How much do they run?" he asked the clerk. "That depends," said the salesman. "They run from Rs 20 to Rs 2,000.""Let`s see the Rs 20 model," he said.

The clerk put the device around Paramjeet`s neck. "You just stick this button in your ear and run this little string down to your pocket," he instructed."How does it work?" Paramjeet asked. "For Rs 20 it doesn`t work," the salesman replied. "But when people see it on you, they`ll talk louder!"

Contributed by Ravindra Nath, robeendar@...

Joseph Varghese: Needs material on HR & IR

Dear Friends,

One of my professional colleagues has to give a presentation on the following topics: Latest trends in Labour Relations. Latest trends in HR with particular reference to globalisation & liberalisation. If you can give some reading materials, please send it immediately.

Best regards,
Joseph Varghese

Email ID: jvkerala@...

CS Sundaram: Appreciation for HR Era

I have learnt it pays to read HR Era regularly, fully.

Regards

CSS

Rajesh Kamath: Praise for Pankaj

Dear Rajeev and Alka,

Good morning, Another wonderful issue , as usual, esp. the Summary of the article by Sumantra Ghoshal and Heike Bruch. Keep up the good work ! I know I ve contributed in a while, but shall surely do so , shortly.

Cheers,
Rajesh

Anger is a condition in which the tongue works faster than the mind.

You can't change the past,but you can ruin the present by worrying over the future.

God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him.

All people smile in the same language.

A hug is a great gift... one size fits all.It can be given for any occasion and it's easy to exchange.

Everyone needs to be loved...especially when they do not deserve it.

Laughter is God's sunshine.

Everyone has beauty but not everyone sees it.

Take time to laugh, for it is the music of the soul.

For every minute you are angry with someone, you lose 60 seconds of happiness that you can never get back.

Contributed by Neeta Bhatnagar, N.Bhatnagar@... . (You guessed it right, she is Rajeev's sister. Now a software engineer with MDLI, USA.)

CARROT, EGG & COFFEE - sent by Tarkesh Gupta

A certain daughter complained to her father about her life and how things have been so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and she wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed that just as one problem was solved another arose.

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen, filled three pots with water and placed the fire on high. Soon the three pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the other he placed eggs, and in the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word. The daughter sucked her teeth and impatiently wondered what he was trying to do. She had problems, and he was making this strange concoction.

In half an hour he walked over to the oven and turned down the fire. He pulled the carrots out and placed them in the bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in the bowl. Then he ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her he asked. "Darling what do you see," Smartly, she replied. "Carrots, eggs, and coffee."

He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Her face frowned from the strength of the coffee.

Humbly, she asked. "What does it mean Father?" He explained. "Each of them faced the same adversity, 212 degrees of boiling water. However each reacted differently."

"The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. But after going through boiling water, it softened and became weak."

"The egg was fragile. A thin outer shell protected a liquid center. But after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened."

"The coffee beans are unique however. After they were in the boiling water, it became stronger and richer."

"Which are you," he asked his daughter. When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?

Are you the carrot that seems hard, but with the smallest amount of pain, adversity, heat you wilt and become soft with no strength? Are you the egg, which starts off with a malleable heart? A fluid spirit. But after a death, a breakup, a divorce, a layoff you became hardened and stiff. Your shell looks the same, but you are so bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and heart, internally.

Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean does not get its peak flavor and robust until it reaches 212 degrees Fahrenheit. When the water gets the hottest, it just tastes better. When things are there worst, you get better. When people talk the most, your praises increase. When the hour is the darkest, trials are their greatest, your worship elevates to another level.

How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?

Contributed by Tarkesh Gupta, Executive -HR, Dabur India Limited, Delhi
Email tarkeshg@...

 

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free.

[62] Executive Search / Placement Consultants, Mumbai

Hi Folks,

We are a Professionally Managed Executive Search Firm into Personnel Search Services at Senior and Middle Management Levels in various management functions. For our expansion we urgently need 5 Executive Search / Placement Consultants with 2-4 years experience in HR, Sales & Marketing, Finance and Engineering functions/industries. We offer excellent salaries + exciting incentives. If you feel you fit the bill , contact or e-mail your resume

with warm regards

S. G. Kewalramani

Gips Management and Personnel Consultants; 16, Veena Beena; Opposite Bandra Station (West); Mumbai - 400050.

Phone: 022-6412081 to 4, Fax: 022-6411482, E-mail: sgk@... , Website: http://gipsmanagement.com

[61] Vacancies in Human Resources

Organisation : Ford

Hit : www.india.ford.com

[60] Dy Manager-HR, Multinational Software organization in the North.

Person & Responsibility: MBA / Post Graduate in Human Resources from a reputed institute.

The candidate must have a minimum 6+ years experience in Training and Organization Development. Should have designed, co-ordinated and delivered training programs. Is grounded in key HR concepts, is aware of conceptual models and determine contextual applications. Can implement a develoment and training strategy meeting business needs, is familiar with and able to evolve key training metrics to determine training effectiveness. Additionally is good at employee realtions, communication,has analytical skills, is computer savvy - microsoft office - familiarity with databases, spread sheets, power point etc. . Has the flexibility to meet rapidly changing business needs and is capable of working through challenging situations. Knowledge of Organization Development, and the ability to determine and run with interventions for business units.

Apply To: erevolution2002@...

Free Service: Training Institutions & Trainers can email their Programs to HREra@... . We reach them to 1100+ HR professionals for free.

For detailed calendar of major Institutes visit http://hrera.tripod.com/trainings.htm

3rd Workshop on Managing for Excllence: Competitive Advantage through People

By International Management Institute.

Venue: Clarkes Amer, Jaipur, From August 7 to 10, 2002.

Contents

* Developing a Learning Culture for Continuous Improvement
* Transformational Leadership: Achieving Commonality of Purpose
* Building and Leading Teams for Synergy
* Performance Management
* Motivational Strategies: Achievement Orientation
* Creative Deployment of Self and Emotional Wisdom
* Competitive Advantage through Innovative Man Management Strategies / Practices
* Action Planning

For Whom

Senior / Middle Level Managers of public and private sector organizations and Officers of the departments/ministries of the government

Resource Persons

Dr. G. S. Das, Professor, IMI
Dr. Mirza Saiyadain, Dean (Research) and Professor, IMI

Workshop Director

Dr. Bhupen Srivastava, Professor & Dean (Academic), IMI

Co-Ordinator

Nominations should be sent to: Ms. Mamta Panda
International Management Institute, B -10, Qutab Institutional Area, Tara Crescent New Delhi 110 016. Tel: 6529238/39, 6863701 Fax: 6867539. e-mail: mamta@> mamta@...

Participation Fee: Residential / Non-Residential
Rs. 15,000/- per participant / Rs.12,500/- per participant

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. They enable sharing of learnings. Article should be about 800 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Alka Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 13A,       Jul 11th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. Why Young Executives are Chronically Unhappy? - by Tarkesh Gupta

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul - by Sonia K Nair

4. An Article Summary - by Pankaj Gurumukhi

Motivation vs Volition - by Sumantra Ghoshal & Heike Bruch

5. Quotation Corner

I Have Learned ...... - by Sushanta Ganguly

6. You Know ANGER is one short of DANGER - by M Thomas Prabhu

7. Points to Ponder - by Ranjith Menon

8. Recommended Website on HR - by R Narayanan

9. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

How can we write articles?

One style is Pankaj's. He read an article by Sumantra Ghosal & Heike Bruch. He liked it very much, so made a summary of it to share with others. Read it in this issue.

Another style is Prabhu's. He liked the story on "Nail in Fence" on anger. The subject interested him, so he read a few things on it. Adding some thoughts to what he read, he wrote an article. You will find it in this issue.

Third style is Tarkesh's. He shifted from college to office a few years back and found a drastic change. Being in HR, he observed that others too find the change tedious. Tarkesh had some ideas about what organisations can do to ease the change. He has put his experience & ideas on paper. Read his article in this issue.

Fourth is Ranjith's. I can't fathom now.

These are the different ways you can also write for HR Era. It is not as difficult as it may appear. Each author gained - knowedge of the subject & confidence. WANAA TRY OUT!

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

WHY YOUNG EXECUTIVES ARE CHRONICALLY UNHAPPY? - by Tarkesh Gupta

The Typical conclusion

It is impossible to please new generation.

I believe, this is harsh conclusion. I agree, young people have lot of expectations and high ambitions and often find difficult to fulfill them because of organization’s certain policies. It is really difficult for them to make the transition from schools to office as campus life is entirely different from work life. If we compare campus Vs office life, we may come to know the reasons of their discontentment even company treating them so well.

Let’s examine and try to do an exercise to make this transition comfortable and let’s see how we can keep our young managers / executive happy for better productivity :

Here is a comparision between what students live with in campus life and what they find on entering a work place. Also here are suggestions on what organizations can do:

Campus versus Work Place

1. Place of work: In campus class rooms change frequently. In work place, place of work remains the same for long.

Good organizations organize the works in projects and change the locations.

2. Campus is lots of fun - canteen, break after every hour. In office we have long day work with no time for fun or break.

Provide opportunities for break and out location training, recreational activities.

3. Subjects, teachers and even colleagues change every year in college. Job, supervisor, colleagues remain same for a longer period in work place.

Train people to make change in nature of work. Have college like training. Remove monotony.

4. In campus, work means periods (There is no link between two periods contents). Structured day. You can bunk one period if you do not enjoy. In work place one has to structure her day. Need to do all the task whether you enjoy it or not.

Help people by minimizing the subjects to begin with.

5. In campus students work in small teams (2-3 people) & work for short period. In work place, teams are typically much larger and stay for long.

Assign work in small teams initially as some may feel lost in large team. Rotate roles continuously.

6. Interaction level in college is much higher within colleagues (classmates) even after work (class room) as usually all are available in hostel. Typically, in work place, staff do not meet outside the work place.

Create opportunities for socializing to bring the openness.

7. Student gets frequent feedback from the professors in quantifiable terms. Supervisor’s feedback usually has subjective elements and is done once in a year.

Should have multiple appraisal meeting, provide support.

8. Reporting relationship - student reports to faculty member. In work place you are responsible to more than one person including customers.

Delay the exposure of multiple reporting. Provide clarity about each role.

9. Performance in one subject does not affect in other subjects. Since the supervisor is same in work place, performance in one subject affects other subjects also.

Train supervisors, provide objectivity in goal setting.

10. One know in campus when she will complete Ist, IInd…….semester and when she will complete her graduation. In work place, one may have vague idea of where they will be after one / two years.

Have formal career planning, Supervisor also should make parallel plan.

All good organizations do all these things to make this transition from college to office smooth.

With best of learning.

Contributed by Tarkesh Gupta,
Executive -HR, Dabur India Limited, Delhi
Email: tarkeshg@...

  

Hi Folks,

I would like to share a few jokes that i recently read somewhere. Enjoy Reading.......

Tough Hiring

At the end of a job interview, the HR Person asked the young programmer, "What kind of salary were you looking for?"
The programmer said, "Oh, something in the neighborhood of $75,000 a year, depending on the benefit's package."

The HR Person said, "Well, what would you say to a package of 5-weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every 2 years. Say, a red Corvette?"

The programmer sat up straight and said, "Wow!!! Are you kidding?"
And the HR Person said, "Certainly, but you started it."

The Microsoft Engineer

There are three engineers in a car; an electrical engineer, a chemical engineer and a Microsoft engineer. Suddenly the car just stops by the side of the road, and the three engineers look at each other wondering what could be wrong.

The electrical engineer suggests stripping down the electronics of the car and trying to trace where a fault might have occurred. The chemical engineeer, not knowing much about cars, suggests that maybe the fuel is becoming emulsified and getting blocked somewhere.

Then, the Microsoft engineer, not knowing much about anything, comes up with a suggestion, "Why don`t we close all the windows, get out, get back in, open the windows again, and maybe it`ll work!?"

Printer Problem

A woman called the HP help desk with a problem with her printer. The tech asked her if she was "running it under Windows."

The woman then responded, "No, my desk is next to the door. But that is a good point. The man sitting in the cubicle next to me is under a window, and his is working fine."

Sent by Sonia K. Nair
Sr. Manager - P&A, Gujarat Water Infrastructure Limited, Gandhinagar
sonianair@...

Main Article:

Motivation vs Volition - by Sumantra Ghoshal and Heike Bruch. Everyone knows Sumantra Ghoshal. Heike Bruch is Professor of Leadership at the University of Saint Gällen in Switzerland. Published in the Harvard Business Review.

Pankaj's Note:

Dear Rajeev,

(Further to my summary) of article "Beware The Busy Manager," I was able to get the next part of this article by the name "Motivation v/s Volition"...

I am just here to forward the thoughts made by Sumantra Ghoshal & Heikh Bruch. Pls find the article summary ....

Thanks & Take care,
Pankaj

Article Summary

SOMETHING very interesting happened to Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, then a fashionable, London-trained barrister in South Africa, in the small train station at Maritzburg, capital of the Natal Province - something that fundamentally changed his life, and the course of world history.

Conscious of his status as a barrister and armed with a first-class ticket, Gandhiji had boarded the first-class compartment of the train at Durban, on his way to Pretoria. At Maritzburg, a fellow passenger complained about the presence of a ‘coloured’ man in a first-class compartment. Asked by a railway official to move to the van compartment, he protested and was promptly thrown out of the train.

That winter night, the frail and slender man sat shivering in the waiting room - unable to get his coat which was in his luggage that had been ‘taken charge’ of by the railway officials. As he described in his autobiography: “I began to think of my duty… The hardship to which I was subjected was superficial, only a symptom of the deep disease of colour prejudice.”

He had confronted this prejudice earlier, both in India and in South Africa, and had been angered by it. That night, that anger transformed into will - a firm personal commitment “to root out the disease and suffer hardship in the process.” That night Gandhiji crossed over from the domain of motivation to the domain of volition.

Throughout history, it is the power of the human will - volition - that has achieved the impossible. Gandhiji changed the world by exercising his volition, as did Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela. Volition has its downside too, as any reader of ‘Mein Kampf’ knows. But while much of the evil in the world has been caused by volition, almost all the significant progress has also come from the same source.

What is true of societies is also true of companies. As observers and students of business, we have studied a variety of companies all over the world, including companies that have made significant breakthroughs - whether in turning around declining fortunes or in creating stunning new products - and in each case, the success, we have found, could not ultimately be explained except as a product of the human will. In companies, as in societies, real changes do not just happen. They happen when someone uses the power of personal volition to make something happen, no matter what it takes.

Jack Welch wrote: “I learned the most important principle in life from my mother: you just have to want it.” It is volition that enables managers to fight the headwind that comes with change. It is volition that gives them the energy to overcome barriers, to deal with setbacks and to persevere through the demanding and often long journey from a vision to its realisation.


A Different Model of People

Most managers recognise that it is people who drive action and, therefore, the performance of their companies. Typically, the question they ask themselves is “what can I do to motivate people to take the required actions?” The model of ‘people’ they have in their heads is that of rational human beings who pursue their self-interest.

As philosopher and psychologist Peter Köstenbaum has argued, much of management practice is based on a theory that reduces the individual to the level of most primitive instincts and needs. The job of the managers is seen as one of motivating people by meeting as many of these needs as possible. With this model of people, managers focus on creating the policies, strategies and incentives that would best align people’s self-interests with the company’s - that is, their own - vision and goals.

This is absolutely right - much of individual behaviour in organisations indeed follow the theories of motivation managers have and practice. Much, but not all. What these theories of motivation exclude is the concept of volition, which lies at the heart of the human will.

Motivation is a wish or a desire to do something. It is triggered by external stimuli or the expectation of some reward. Yes, the concepts of motivation in theory as well as in management practice acknowledge the role of intrinsic motivation - the desire to do something that is driven by an internal need.

But, ultimately, motivation remains in the volatile state of wishing to engage, feeling attracted by certain opportunities or being tempted to act out certain behaviours. There’s always the danger that a more attractive opportunity will emerge, or that obstacles will come in the way or that the desire will just fade away. Motivation is susceptible to changes in both the environment and inner preferences.

Volition goes a decisive step further. It implies the commitment that only comes from a deep personal attachment to a certain intention - Gandhi’s commitment to root out colour prejudice, for example. Volition is a robust force that is based on conscious choice to make a concrete thing happen. It is this commitment to a certain end state - not to doing something but to achieving something - that leads to the engagement of the human will.

Motivation works outside-in. Outside is the environment that surrounds the individual - company policies, bosses’ preferences, bonus plans and so on. It is the outside that defines what is possible, what is desirable, and the constraints and opportunities offered by the world determine what an individual can and will do.

Volition, in contrast, works inside-out. Inside is the will that defines the goal, the mission, the purpose. People with volition decide what they want to accomplish, and then work to modify the outside world, as needed, to achieve their goal. And this distinction between motivation and volition manifests itself in many different ways.

With volition, people face less difficulty in getting started or in taking actions. They know what they want and do no wait for further information or external stimuli to help them take action.

Volitional people have biased perceptions. Their attention, energy and preferences become so focused on their intention, they look out for information that confirm their intention and block out all contradictory data. They are not tempted by alternative opportunities and they do not get distracted by routine disruptions.

Finally, with volition, people respond very differently to obstacles or problems. Faced with negative feedback, lack of management interest, resistance by others, conflicts with colleagues or any of the other impediments to purposive action-taking, motivation often dissipates. Volition leads to precisely the opposite effect. Barriers only lead to an increase in commitment and effort. Abandoning or rethinking the task is simply not seen as an option.

This difference between motivation and volition becomes critical for really difficult and demanding challenges. Easy and familiar tasks do not engage the human will. Ambitious goals, long-term projects, high uncertainty, extreme opposition - these are the circumstances that both need and stimulate the forces of volition.

People have always recognised this power of the human will, but have been very uncomfortable about it. After all, primacy of the will was the central doctrine of Nazi philosophy. Who can forget Hitler’s chilling words: “We stand at the end of the era of reason. A new magical time of world interpretation has emerged - of the interpretation out of the will, not reason.” In the last six decades, since World War II, the language of will and volition has largely been abandoned, as the discredited doctrine of a fallen and evil regime, and the language of motivation has been embraced as a part of the triumph of reason.

Yes, the concept of volition comes with some dangers. But it is volition that also lies behind most of the really significant and difficult changes that companies achieve. Policies and actions that engage peoples’ motivation typically kill their volition; actions to stimulate volition need an entirely different approach.

If corporate leaders wish to harness the incredible power of the human will in their organisations, they will have to begin thinking about their policies and practices and about their own roles and tasks in a fundamentally different way. What these different ways might be will be the topic of a forthcoming article in this series.

Heike Bruch is Professor of Leadership at the University of Saint Gällen in Switzerland.

Summary contributed by Pankaj Gurumukhi
Senior Software Engineer, Satyam Computer Services Ltd.
Email: pgurumukhi@...

I've learned....
That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.

I've learned....
That when you're in love, it shows.

I've learned....
That just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.

I've learned....
That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.

I've learned....
That being kind is more important than being right.

I've learned....
That you should never say "no" to a gift from a child.

I've learned....
That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.

I've learned....
That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.

I've learned....
That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.

I've learned....
That simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.

I've learned....
That life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.

I've learned....
That we should be glad God doesn't give us everything we ask for.

I've learned....
That money doesn't buy class.

I've learned....
That it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.

I've learned...
That under everyone's hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.

I've learned....
That the Lord didn't do it all in one day. What makes me think I can?

I've learned....
That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.

I've learned....
That when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.

I've learned....
That love, not time, heals all wounds.

I've learned....
That the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.

I've learned....
That everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.

I've learned....
That there's nothing sweeter than sleeping with your babies and feeling their breath on your cheeks.

I've learned....
That no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.

I've learned....
That life is tough, but I'm tougher.

I've learned....
That opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.

I've learned....
That when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.

I've learned....
That I wish I could have told my Dad that I love him one more time before he passed away.

I've learned....
That one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.

I've learned....
That a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

I've learned....
That I can't choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.

I've learned....
That when your newly born child holds your little finger in his little fist, that you're hooked for life.

I've learned....
That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.

I've learned ..
That it is best to give advice in only two circumstances; when it is requested and when it is a life threatening situation.

I've learned....
That the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.

Send this to everyone you consider a FRIEND!

Contributed by Sushanta Ganguly,
Head - Personnel & HRD, ECC Division, Larsen & Toubro Limited, Chennai.
Email: sg@...

Prabhu's Message: Inspirational Story, "Nail in the Fence," was really very inspirational thanks to Ambar Nanavati. I came across some thing on Anger and i added few of my thoughts and wanted to share with you all . Regards, M.Thomas Prabu.

Of all internal and external enemies of human being , anger is the deadliest. It is capable of completely destroying our intelligence, power of discrimination and the very peace of life. Anger is like a ire that gradually spreads and assumes a gigantic form finally burning the angry person to ashes. Swami Shivananda calls it the shortest route to hell and spiritual suicide.

Control it or . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

In fact, anger is the route cause of all evils, jealousies, hatred, revenge, anxiety impatience, irritation, dislike and intolerance; originate from anger through in a disguised form. Freedom from anger therefore implies freedom from these negative feelings responsible for causing many problems on physical and mental levels. Hence, controlling, in fact annihilating anger from one’s life should be the matter of top priority in everybody’s life without which one can't achieve “happiness and peace” the twin essential ingredients of life.

What causes anger?

When someone does not behave according to our expectation, does not agree with us, opposes us or misbehaves with us we are angry. When people don't fulfill the commitments made to us, when our subordinates fail to give us results or when some obstacles come our way, anger creeps in and assumes ferocity.

If we ponder over this matter, it will reveal to us that “lack of mental strength” is the root of anger. People with mental weakness easily fall prey to any such situation on slightest provocation. On the other hand, a mentally strong person remains unruffled and undisturbed in similar circumstances. Keeping mind constantly under control is therefore necessary to prevent oneself from excitement or provocation likely to cause anger.

It Leads to . . . . . . . . . . .

Anger breeds revenge and hatred. We blame others for the bad that has been fallen us. As per the Chinese saying the man who all the time harbors revenge against anybody digs two graves. Never, therefore, allow anger to foster in your mind. The mental thought patterns that cause most diseases in the body are criticism, anger, resentment and guilt. Out of these anger is most dangerous. Anger turns into things that boil and burn and infects the body. Resentment long held eats and festers away and ultimately can lead to tumors and cancer. Irate, angry and despondent emotional states cause harmful and poisonous products in the organism, while the good feeling, jollity love mobilize the healing power of the organism.

It harms . . . . . . . . . . .

Anger activates stress mechanism that leads to many biological changes in the body. Breathing becomes faster, heartbeats increase, blood pressure enhances, gestation is shut down, due to excessive sweating skin resistance decreases and mouth dries up. All these changes happen to provide increased energy to the body to face the impending threat. So a lot of energy is produced in the body when you are angry. Due to mobilization of this energy person can do anything. He can even commit murder in a fit of anger.

By an outburst of anger the whole nervous system is shattered. Various poisons are thrown into the blood. Anger disturbs the normal working of the body. It repeatedly activates stress mechanism. That further stimulates heart and endocrine glands. All this brings about diseases like migraine, gastritis, hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, and spondylitis. It creates nervous weakness and the immune system of the body becomes weak. So far effects on behavior are concerned, anger completely demolishes the reasoning capacity and intellect for the time being. Under the impulsive and emotional fit the angry man can do anything. Every episode of anger leaves a deep impact on our subconscious mind. Repeated fits of anger make these impressions grave, increasing further susceptibility to anger. Thus anger leads to increased anger.

Prescription for Anger

Since the anger has such a tremendous damaging capacity, ways and means must be found out for its control. The first and foremost way is to stop all conversation whenever there is slightest irritation leave the place immediately.

When anger is round the corner, drink a glass of cold water, concentrate on your breathing or just count 1 to 100. All these measures will for the time being subside your anger and save you from ugly situation likely to arise out of sudden outburst of your anger.

The best way to control your anger is to adopt calm and quiet attitude of mind and develop beaming countenance. For this purpose Vipashyana meditation or Yogasanas can play an important role. In “Vipashyana” you are taught to immediately divert your mind from its agitating or disturbed condition and think of happy or gay situation to overcome the gravity of the exasperation of the negative feelings occurring at the particular time. There are some asanas like Shashankasana , Sarvangasana, Shavasana or Vajrasana that greatly calm the mind and nervous system; and thereby reduce your anger arousal level. Pranayama or abdominal breathing may also help in this regard.

In daily routine, constant observance of humility and humbleness will definitely help. “Forget and forgive” policy is perhaps more beneficial in the mitigation of anger. It is the ego, which must be crushed if you really want victory over anger. Similarly power of patient and tolerance and sense of accommodation should also be developed.

Forgive others heart to heart , you need not let him know, if you let him know he will feel ashamed, and all your negative feelings will go and you will be at peace within and you will never be disturbed.

You know ANGER IS ONE SHORT OF DANGER

The greatest benefit one achieves by control of anger is that you gain immense mental strength and will power. Loss of energy is saved and you are at peace. In this regard it is better to listen to Mahatma Gandhi’s advice, “If you are angry, take meals and go to sleep”.

Contributed by M.Thomas Prabhu
Manager - HR, S.R.Nova Private Limited, hrd@...
Address: No. 40, Krishna Rajendra Road; ( Near Bangalore Medical College); Lakshmi Complex, 3rd Floor, Fort; Bangalore - 560 002. Phone - 670 7112 ( 7 Lines), Fax - 670 5971. http://www.srnova.com

Three Cheers for Ranjith

Ranjith recently secured 6th Rank in MBA and his photograph appeared in Times of India. Here are some extracts from his book (still unfinished) called "Dateless Diary" that he plans to publish. You will find it deep and philosophical, like I did. Yes, that is one aspect of Ranjith.

LOVE

Falling in love is just like getting hit by a large truck, and yet not being mortally wounded. Just sick to your stomach, high one minute, low the next minute. Starving hungry, but unable to eat. Hot, cold, forever horny, full of hope and enthusiasm, with momentary depressions that wipe you out. It is also not being able to remove the smile from your face, loving life with mad passionate intensity, and feeling years younger. Love doesn’t appear with any warning signs. You fall into it as if pushed from a high diving board. Not time to think about what is happening. It’s inevitable. An event you cannot control. A real crazy heart-stopping roller coaster ride that just has to take its course. It just one of those mysteries of creation-some thing you feel but cant explain.

CRITICISM

What is your reaction towards criticism? Before that, what is criticism? A sort of mirror showed quite unexpectedly before your eyes? Or is it a projection of someone’s fragmented, egoistic psyche? Whatsoever it is, it doesn’t matter… For, it is the way you take criticism that matters. You may shy away or react fiercely to it… but better still, act ACCORDING to it… Action alone counts, not the reaction… Reaction is a waste of time and energy. And, a Leader never reacts… he only Acts. So thank the criticizer for having shown you the mirror. If you see your face in it change accordingly if you have to; if not, forgive him for his ignorance, by this act you are free. And perhaps, it is he who sees his face in the mirror, now, against his face…

TRUE MOTIVATION

The real key to motivation is to look at how far we have come rather than how far we have to go… true motivation is self-motivation... All others are transient… I call this “ Motivation by Introspection”. The best motivation is achieved from within… why? Because, YOU are the key focal point in the whole process- you are INVOLVED in it… this gives more sense of IMPORTANCE, GROWTH & IDENTITY. That’s why I prefer an egg being broken from “inside” rather than “outside”. The former process gives me a chicken that will produce many more eggs and chicks also. By the latter process, I can at best get a single omelette! MBI concept also gives a sense of RESPONSIBILTY to the individual. And once that sense of responsibility comes, the real motivation sets in and the individual charges ahead…

Contributed by Ranjith Menon,
Executive - HR, Global Edge Software Ltd, Bangalore. Tel:91-80-3467944 Extn: 478. Fax:91-80-3467948.
Email: ranjith@...

Dear Friends,

I would like to refer a website to our group members: http://www.hr.com

Most of us would know this website, but i think many are not aware of the real usefulness of this website. This is a one-stop place for all information regarding HR practices, skills reqiurement, process & procedures for the US market. Anyone interested, can register here for free and get to know quality information about the HR strategy in the US market

Regards
R. Narayanan
narayan@...

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 12B,       Jun 26th, 2002

1. My Space

2. New Members

Ashit Sarkar, Arusha Gupta (Ms), Vikram V Salvi,
Roy J George, Maneesh Goel, Lakshmi Senthil (Ms).

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul

4. Readers' Forum

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members From Singapore to South Africa

Answers Where can I do Doctorate in HR? - by Rahul Bhimjiani

Questions Info on Retaining People - Sophia Das

5. Quotation Corner

6. Inspirational Stories

Know Your Worth - Ramakrishnarao

7. Best HR Jobs (India)

8. HR Training Programs (India)

9. Aims of HR Era, How To Contribute Articles, & Legal Stuff

HR Era has members in more than 20 countries. We are happy to receive two compliments - one from Lex Rourke in South Africa and second from Lee Lin in Singapore.

Lex is R&D Manager with ASTD Forum in South Africa. He has expressed his desire to put two articles from our Issue 12-A in ASTD's website in his country. ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) is the largest association of training professionals in the world. This is certainly a compliment to our members who authored those articles - Ramakrishnarao and Pankaj Gurumukhi.

It is also an invitation to all members to write more articles, so that their contributions get recognition and shared.

regards

Alka Bhatnagar

Ashit Sarkar, Management Advisor and Consultant

Mr. Sarkar did his B.SC from University of Allahabad in 1952 and has a rich experience of 47 years mainly in ITC and Britannia Industries Ltd. He has been connected with many professional bodies like NIPM, AIMA, BMA, and AIMO. Many of his articles have been published in reputed journals, books and papers. He has made many presentations and given a large number of talks at various professional seminars, workshops and other forums.

Mr. Sarkar is a keen photographer, enjoy's people interaction, reading and music and is also involved with many philanthropic and many welfare organisation's .

Contact: ashitsarkar@... , Bangalore .

Arusha Gupta, HR & ADMIN. Manager, Circuit Systems India ( Pvt. Ltd. )

Message: I believe in saying less and listening more that enables me to understand others viewpoint. I can adjust myself to suit the situation and like to go for challenging jobs .

Arusha did Master's of Business Management 2001 from Dayal Bagh Education Institute, Agra and is working since August 2001. Arusha is interested in reading, admiring nature, cooking, computers and trying new things. Arusha organised functions in college and was in the college football team .

Contact: arushagupta@... , Gandhi Nagar .

Vikram V. Salvi, Officer, Tata Infotec. Pvt. Ltd.

Vikram has done B.com from University of Bombay and will be completing his HRM from Narsees Monjee Institute of Management Studies in June 2002, Mumbai. He has an experience of 5 years. He is a quick learner and has ability to relate to people. He is highly organised and attentive to details.

Contact: vikram.salvi@...

Maneesh Goel, MBA First Year Student .

Message: There are lot's of good things which I have been getting from HR Community. My contribution is limited upto sending thanks for articles and putting my queries. But I will also start sharing experiences and offering help once I get that position.

Contact: manish_goelhrd@...

Roy . J. George, Unit HR Head, Samtel India Ltd. .

Message: I hope that I would be able to contribute to this group.

George has done Master of Social Work Specialisation in Personnel Management & Industrial Relations from Rajagiri College of Social Sciences and has 14 years of rich and all round experience in HR. He is personally interested in Performance Management, OD and also Training. He has conceived and implemented two OD Projects in Samtel over the last 5 years. He is interested to deliver the motivation training .

Contact: royjgeo@... , Faridabad .

Lakshmi Senthil, Blue Star, Chennai .

Message: I am sure I will gain more by becoming a member of HR-ERA and enhance my skills in this field.

Lakshmi is a BA graduate with PGD in HR and PM from Liba, Chennai and has an experience of 7 years. She enjoys her work and more so handling the Human Relations part. She is concentrating more on personnel matters like: joining to leaving of an executive, compensation package, coordinating training. payroll and recruitment of freshers etc.

Contact: lakshmisenthil@...

Bholaji in Bombay

Once Bholaji was travelling by train from Delhi to Bombay. He kept getting off at every station to buy a ticket till the next one.

When the train reached Bombay, one of Bholaji's co-passengers got curious and asked him, "Why did you do that. You could have bought a single ticket for the entire trip." "My doctor has advised me not to go on a long journey," replied Bholaji.

Staff Descriptions

Outgoing Personality....................Always going out of the office

Good Communication Skills............Spends lots of time on phone

Careful Thinker................................Won't make a decision

Loyal...................................Can't get a job anywhere else

Lawyer's BMW

A Economist opened the door of his BMW, when suddenly a car came along and hit the door, ripping it off completely.

When the police arrived at the scene, the lawyer was complaining bitterly about the damage to his precious BMW. "Officer, look what they've done to my Beeeeemer!" he whined."You Economist's are so materialistic, you make me sick!" retorted the officer.

"You're so worried about your stupid BMW, that you didn't even notice that your left arm was ripped off!" "Oh my God," replied the Economist, finally noticing the bloodyleft shoulder where his arm once was. "Where's my Rolex?!?"

From the Net

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members

From: Lex Rourke, South Africa

Rajeev

I am the research and development manager of the ASTD Forum in South Africa and I must congratulate you on the quality of the HR Era newsletter. Circumstances surrounding Human Resources issues in South Africa is very similar to circumstances in India and I always find something useful in HR Era. Another thing I find very useful is your inclusion of a bit of humour here and there. In South Africa, HR is way too serious. I am going to change that. I will give full credit to the individual authors AND HR Era of course !

Lex Rourke

From: lex@...

From: Lee Lin Chong, Singapore

Hi Rajeev,

Thanks for your regular HR Era Issue. It's informative especially for a HR practitioner like me who takes care of India office but based in Singapore.

Lee Lin
llchon@...

ANSWER BY RAHUL BHIMJIANI

Where can I do Doctorate in HR ?

Most universities and many deemed universities/autonomous institutes have PG departments in one or more of Psychology, Sociology, Social Work, Management, Labour Studies, etc. This allows you to do your doctoral, subject to the University recognising your PG in SW as equivalent to their minimum necessary qualifications for the concerned Ph.D.

While broad equivalences are laid down by the AIU, detailed rules are made by the concerned university. However, as this is procedural, you will finally have a lot of choices.

The question of how to choose from and prioritise among the shortlisted questions arises. You will have to consider the following issues:

- In what way is the Ph.D. linked to your medium-term professional plans?
- Whether you want to do it full-time, part-time or either?
- Whether your objective in doing a Ph.D. is the rubber-stamp, or learning, or prestige, or some combination of these?
- Whether you are looking forward to intensive help from your guide, or just want a rubber stamp from him/her, or somewhere in between?
- Within HR, what roughly is the area in which you wish to do a Ph.D.?
- Whether you look forward to, dislike the thought of, or are indifferent to doing course-work as part of your programme?

I realise that making such a framework like this is both time-consuming and even frustrating at times, but believe me, it's well-worth the trouble.

With my very best wishes to the future Dr. Raghupathy!

Rahul Bhimjiani

4C-IT: Entrepreneurial Network for Leapfrogging the Digital Divide
91-712-555343 (O+R); 91-712-551554 (Fax); Nagpur, INDIA
rbhimjiani@...

QUESTIONS

Info on Retaining People

hello Sir,

i am currently working on a project "to retain people in the organisation". I would appreciate any help or information regarding this.

Regards,
Sophia Das
sophiasophie@...

A part of kindness consists in loving people more than they deserve - Joseph Jovbert

The secret to success in life is to make your vocation your vacation- Mark Twain

Know Your Worth - Ramakrishnarao

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill in a room of 200 people, and asked, " Who would like this $20 bill ?"

Hands started going up.

He said, " I am going to give this $20 bill to one of you, but first let me do this...." He proceeded to crumple the $20 up.

He then asked, " Who still wants it ?"

Still the hands were up in the air.

"Well"... he replied, " What if I do this?"..and he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now who still wants it?" he asked.

Hands still shot up!

"My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson.

No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it..because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20."

Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt, by the decisions we make, and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you never lose your value!

Clean...crumpled...or finely creased...you are priceless to those who love you. The worth of your life comes by your love, affection, care & intiatives for making our lives more meaningful & worthful. You are special....for us.

Regards,
Ramakrishnarao

Contributed by Ramakrishnarao,
People Excellence, Tata Telecom Limited, Gandhinagar. Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467, E-mail : rthallam@...

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1000+ HR professionals for free.

[59] Senior Manager - Employee and Organisation Development, Bangalore

Ideal candidate would be a Graduate / Post-graduate with 8 to 10 years of relevant experience with ability to direct a team of enthusiastic and talented training professionals to make magic for our call center clients.

He / She must be an accomplished corporate training manager with customer service, sales or organization development experience, ideally in a call center environment. Achievements in e-learning will make the incumbent a leading candidate. Must have passion for developing people’s potential, a desire to manage change, and willingness to sink your hands into the instructional systems process.

Salary Range: Rs. 10 to 12 lakhs

Apply to: Govind, Email : heroldcoopers@...

[58] Trainers, Bangalore

Graduates / Post-graduates with 3 - 5 years of experience as a faculty. Must be proficient in teaching written and spoken English, English Grammar, Phonetics, Conversational English, Customer Service and Selling Skills. The incumbent will be responsible for developing, designing, delivering and managing Training Content with emphasis on Techniques and
Tools related to Conversational English. Knowledge of adult learning theory and exposure to program development tools & program evaluation principles are a must. American or Canadian experience is preferred. Must be willing to work in shifts.

Salary Range: Rs. 1.5 to 2.5 lakhs

Apply to: Govind, Email : heroldcoopers@...

[57] Senior Executive HR, AP

Organisation: Radha Krishna Hospitality Services Limited.

Person: Post Graduate Degree / Diploma inHR with a minimum of 5 years relevant experience in a large industry / services sector. Proficiency in computers is essential

Apply To : Senior Manager, Radha Krishna Hospitality Services Limited, 1st Floor, 7-1-70/D/1, Dharam Karan Road, Ameerpet, Hyderabad-16. Enclose one passport size photograph. Email : iicbuhyd@...

[56] Senior HR Manager, Chennai

Organisation: Chennai based ODC of a reputed UK based software company.

Person & Responsibility: MBA / MSW from a reputed institute. The candidate must have minimum 8+ years experience in core HR activities and new age tools in the area of Appraisal, Organisational Development Process etc.Knowledge in ISO is plus.

Apply To: Consulting@...

Free Service: Training Institutions & Trainers can email their Programs to HREra@... . We reach them to 1000+ HR professionals for free.

Certification Programme on Type Indicator-ALTI, Chennai

Alert Management Consultants (Belgium based) will be conducting a three day "Certification Programme" on Alert Type Indicators in August 2002. Website: www.alertmc.com

The Alert Type Indicator is a psychological instrument that provides more insight into yourself and others.This indicator contributes to personal development and stimulates opportunities for growth.

The Alert Type Indicator is based on the psychological type theory of the Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961).He discovered a number of recognizable patterns in this behavior and he incorporated this theory in his book "Psychologische Typen"(1921)

The ALTI gives identifies the Type on the basis of

-Where do I get my energy from? (Extraversion/Introversion)
-How do I gather information? (Sensing/Intuition)
-How do I make decisions? (Thinking / Feeling)
-How do I live my life? (Judging /Perceiving)

The ALTI is a descriptive instrument.It systematically indicates behavioral preferences of an individual. The ALTI not only offers you insight into your own personality, but also of others and can be used in fields like self-development,team building, problem solving, optimizing communication, management and leadership trainings...

The three day Certification programme would equip you with the knowledge of the Types and on it's applications.

Duration: Three days

The cost is Rs.4000/- (Rupees four thousand only)

Date:First week of August 2002.

Programme Coordinator:Mr.Lieven Cornelis (Belgium)

You may contact Mr.Daniel or Ms.Roja (044-8201466, 8311378) for more details.
Email: v_day_in@...

Alert Mangement Consultants
www.alertmc.com

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Alka Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 12A,       Jun 11th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. People Management - Old Wine?? - by Ashit K Sarkar

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul

A Brand New Element - Administratium - by Rahul Bhimjiani
The Vampire - from the Net

4. New Employee Joining - by Ramakrishnarao

5. Leadership Lessons from Geese - by Jignesh Makawana

6. Quotation Corner - by M Sukumaran

7. An Article Summary - by Pankaj Gurumukhi

Beware the Busy Manager - by Sumantra Ghoshal & Heike Bruch

8. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

Bouncing!!!

Several emails from HR Era to members are bouncing. Reasons - members have changed jobs, email boxes are full (holiday season), email account is disabled due to non-use (we all have at least 5 to 10 accounts).

I suggest that you subscribe HR Era to your personal email-id in addition to your office email-id. It would ensure that you receive issues continuously, even if one account is non-functional. So send us your additional email-id.

Mr Ashit Sarkar is a very senior & accomplished member of HR fraternity. He has over 47 years experience in ITC & Britannia & consultancy. Has been member of an ILO committee and travelled the world over.

Read his article in this issue on importance and evolution of HR. It would set to rest the self-doubts of several younger HR professionals that we often get to read egroups.

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

Mr Ashit Sarkar is a very senior & accomplished member of HR fraternity. He has over 47 years experience in ITC & Britannia & consultancy. Has been member of an ILO committee and travelled the world over.

Read his following article on importance and evolution of HR. It would set to rest the self-doubts of several younger HR professionals that we often get to read egroups.

HR has a Key Role Today

Human Resource Management (HRM) and/or Personnel Management (PM) has become a very vital part of the management process in the twenty-first century, and is getting significant attention in management discussions, or in the business strategy of most organisations as compared to the past, more so post liberalisation. The importance of this function for the success of an organisation is highlighted in glowing terms with emphasis on human resource development (HRD), knowledge management, empowerment, flat organisation structure, motivated work groups etc. To some they sound as jargon, but to serious minded people they seem to make a lot of sense, even if there are differences of opinion. It also seems that even professional managers often differ in their understanding of the role differences between HRM & PM, if any at all. Many feel that it is the same old wine in a new bottle with a different label, or that HRM is only a more modern terminology!

It may be worthwhile to look at the development of this function of management in India over the past seven or eight decades to better understand the changing role and responsibility to what it is today - rather than the difference in the name with which to describe this important function in an organisation.

Labour Mobilisation & Welfare

In the early part of the century, larger manufacturing organisations needed a Labour Officer (LO) for locating and selecting unskilled manpower to meet the needs of the industry, and generally to maintain the records of the employees. Their responsibilities gradually extended to looking after the increasing statutory requirements which had to be observed in accordance with the various labour laws and rules, that were being enacted one after the other to protect the rights of the workmen, as well as lay down rules for working conditions, safety and welfare measures etc. About the same time, the Government created the statutory position of Labour & Welfare Officer (LWO) in large organisations responsible to be ‘neutral’, and to specifically ensure the welfare of the workmen.

Industrial Relations

The comparatively “docile and obedient” workforce of the past also started getting organised in the meanwhile, and many unions and managements found that they had to resolve their differences or disputes through the legal process. The LO’s were often involved with dealing and perusing these court cases through lawyers and advocates specialising in labour laws, which necessitated them to develop this expertise themselves.

This changed job demands, and to provide a career progression for LO’s, as well as avoid conflict with the statutory LWO’s designation called for the LO’s to be redesignated as Personnel Officers or Managers (PO/PM), and the beginning of a separate Personnel Department or function was made, with enlarged responsibilities like Timekeeping, Security, Wage computation, Administration, etc. being allocated to them as well. Some larger organisations subdivided the Industrial Relations (IR) aspects, Welfare activities & Canteens, Administration, Training and Development activities, besides Personnel or Staff Department, as parts of the total man management system in the organisations.

Personnel Management Specialist

For considerable time the Personnel staff was dominated by lawyers or legally oriented individuals - who could deal with the much labour litigation faced by the Company more competently. Gradually, it was realised that the demand on this function was getting far more complex, and required many other specialist knowledge and competency, such as in Social Sciences, Industrial Psychology, etc. With such felt needs came the growth of many Management Education Institutes offering Courses and Training Programmes. This resulted in people with professional background in Personnel being available in fair number mostly from early sixties, and being inducted in the organisations, as in other functions. It was felt that such professional knowledge was necessary, to be a better PM, who needed to manage total Industrial Relations (IR), and also many other personnel and organisational related issues, and not just concentrate on legal issues and court cases. However, the main priority for the PM’s for considerable period remained providing assistance and support to the operations of the organisation as a subsidiary, and not as a direct contributing team member - this persists in many places even today!

Human Resources Management - A Business / Strategic Partner

The management philosophy was undergoing changes, and it was realised that most people did not need to be driven only by supervision and fear, but generally performed better on their own, given the freedom of decision making, adequate skills training, broad guidance and knowledge of the plans - these factors motivated people to perform. This called for creation of a more positive and far greater level of interaction between the management and employee in a prevailing environment of trust and dependence, as well as in an open organisation culture. The personnel function had to spearhead and contribute towards this kind of environment creation in the organisation, and to provide the plans & developmental inputs to increase competency across the organisation, as well as generate motivation.

It was realised by the top management that rather than a limited “service” function role that was required from the P.Ms in the past, a far greater contribution could be made by this function being a change agent as an “integrated management team member” in a far more professional manner to meet the organisational goals, rather than the limited functional objectives. These could be in the areas of strategic manpower planning, organisation development, competency analysis and identified training and development of employees, organisation culture and employee motivation & morale, team building, career planning, appraisal and incentive or reward system management, key employee retention, counseling, responsible labour & management attitude building, labour productivity improvement, environmental management etc., and not just the IR & welfare issues, recruitment and employee records. These demanded a far greater understanding and interaction with other functions in the organisation, and not remain limited to the earlier functional boundaries. Lot more proactive function as a business manager with understanding the ultimate customer needs, rather than a reactive fire fighting supporting role, became increasingly necessary by this growing & changing function to enable achievement of organisational excellence in the highly challenging and competitive environment of the twenty-first century.

Where is Your Organisation in Evolution?

The pace of the development of such realisation and corrective measures in different organisations has been as per their perceived or felt needs in light of their own plans and priorities - and therefore are at different stages for each organisation. What is important is that the function must address to meet their own organisational goals - which, and the solutions, must vary from one Company to the other, as with progression of time. The model cannot, and should not, be the same for each. The role definition requirements are therefore, not the same in each organisation. Many still continue to need IR Management as the main priority, with the other issues getting lesser attention - and as such PM & HRM would appear to be no different from each other in such organisations. However, others who have managed IR satisfactorily are able to do a great deal of visible activity in the employee development and motivational areas, culture building and organisation development, etc., and therefore, may claim to be more HRM oriented, rather than Personnel.

The people management does not, and cannot, remain static, and will continue in future to demand the changing management style, philosophy, actions and solutions, which are best suited and needed to meet the differing & changing organisational challenges of each.

One thing is sure, this function is certainly no old wine in a new bottle - whether one calls it Personnel, or Human Resource Management!

Contributed by Mr Ashit K. Sarkar, He is based in Bangalore now. He has too many accomplishments to summarise here.

E-mail: ashitsarkar@..., Home Page: http://personal.vsnl.com/ashitsarkar

  

A Brand New Element - Administratium

A brand new element - Administratium - has been discovered.

A major research institution has recently discovered the heaviest element known to science. This discovery has been tentatively named "Administratium". It has no protons or electrons, thus having an atomic number of 0. It does however, have 1 neutron, 12 assistant neutrons, 75 deputy neutrons, and 111 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312. These 312 particles are held together by a force called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons.

Since Administratium has no electrons, it is inert. However, it can be detected as it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. For example, a minute amount of Administratium caused one reaction to take over 4 days to complete when it would normally take less than a second.

Administratium has a normal half-life of 3 years; it does not decay but instead undergoes continual reorganization, in which a portion of the assistant neutrons, deputy neutrons and assistant deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Administratium's mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization causes some morons to become neutrons, thus forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to speculate that Administratium is formed whenever morons reach a certain concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as a "Critical Morass." You will know it when you see it!

Contributed by Rahul Bhimjiani

4C-IT: Entrepreneurial Network for Leapfrogging the Digital Divide
91-712-555343 (O+R); 91-712-551554 (Fax); Nagpur, INDIA
Email rahulbhimjiani@...,

The Vampire

Here is something to lighten up after harsh truth from Rahul Bhimjiani !

A man spends a month traveling. When he returns home, his youngest son tells him: "Daddy, there is a vampire in mom's room!"
"Vampires don't exist, sweetheart."
"Yes they do, I saw him! He is hiding in the closet."
When the fathers decides to open the closet door and finds one of his friends, he exclaims: "You, of all people, Randolph! I helped you out all your life and you pay me back by hiding in my closet to scare my boy!"

From the Net

The new employee may be a person who will be in the organization for the next generation and may even rise to the very top. Creating a pleasant experience and a positive perception from the start becomes an almost sacred responsibility for a HR person.

A new employee should be taken on a tour of the office and introduced formally to other people, in a very big organization this may not be possible, in which case the common solution is to introduce the new person within the department, and maybe only to other departments he/she will be interacting with.

A junior employee can be taken around by a junior person from the HR dept., but when a senior joins, etiquette would demand that a senior HR person show the senior employee around.

Typical anxieties a new entrant feels

Could you show me my cubicle?
Is this my computer?
Where is the washroom?
Where is the photocopier?
That senior executive wearing spectacles, what's his name?

This sort of feeling can be tackled well by HR persons, all they have to do is a little planning. They could end up having a grateful new employee and even a good friend, in the long run.

A guided tour of the premises

Take care to point out important office areas:

Ø The fax/copier location
Ø Key points in the office ? conference room, CEO's cabin, washrooms, cafeteria, water cooler, library, Stationery room, Mail room, Cash Cabin...
Ø Paper storage area

What to organize for the new person

Ø Stationery
Ø Minor office equipment ? staplers, paper punch?
Ø Company email ID
Ø Cafeteria-use arrangements
Ø Business cards
Ø ID card/swipe card
Ø Door name plate, when necessary
Ø Not normal practice, but a gesture like a bouquet would be nice
Ø Get the bank account number etc for salary payment formalities
Ø Copy of the company employee handbook
Ø Induction
Ø Formal introduction with colleagues & peers
Ø Stay arrangements (if emp. is new in the city)
Ø Lunch (for first day)

What to inform him/her about

Ø What number to press on the intercom to make an external call
Ø Internal intercom numbers along with the names of people
Ø Signing of attendance register - where
Ø Whom to contact for stationery replenishment
Ø Timings and other rules like smoking areas
Ø Internet usage ? company beliefs
Ø Vehicle parking areas
Ø Common resources like a typing pool
Ø Dress code for juniors (especially if it is their first job)
Ø A company brochure would be nice
Ø Brief profiles of people working in the organization, with designations and contact details

Introducing people to the new entrant

It's difficult for a new employee to remember many names when introduced to a large number at the same time. To reduce embarrassment try introducing the new employee by name to a group, and not give the names of the entire group. But when introducing to only one other person, names of both can be given.

During introductions, ideally, the name of the older/more senior person is given first to the junior person.

Simply let your mind do a flashback to your first day at the office. What were the pressure areas, embarrassments, and little frustrations? These are precisely what you need to streamline and systematize. Some old proverbs still hold true, one of them is

"The first impression is the best impression."

Contributed by Ramakrishnarao,
People Excellence, Tata Telecom Limited, Gandhinagar. Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467, E-mail : rthallam@...

My dear HR Professionals,

Here is a story "Teamwork and Geese." It can also be called 'Leadership - Lessons From Geese.'

Fact 1

As each goose flaps its wings, it creates an "uplift" for the birds that follow. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.

Lesson: People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of each other.

Fact 2

When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.

Lesson: If we have as much sense as a goose, we stay in formation with those headed where we want to go. We are willing to accept their help and give our help to others.

Fact 3

When the lead bird tires, it rotates back into the formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.

Lesson: It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership. As with geese, people are interdependent on each others' skills, capabilities, and unique arrangements of gifts, talents, or resources.

Fact 4

The geese flying in formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

Lesson: We need to make sure our honking is encouraging. In groups where there is encouragement, the production is much greater. The power of encouragement (to stand by one's heart or core values and to encourage the heart and core values of others) is the quality of honking we seek.

Fact 5:

When a goose gets sick, wounded, or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.

Lesson: If we have as much sense of geese, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we're strong.

I am sure, you will like this story. Let's try to be a group of goose.

Regards,
Jignesh Makwana

Contributed by Jignesh Makwana
Ph. 6440414 (R), Member : Young HR Professional Group, (A group of 40 young HRP)
Email: jignesh_hrd@...

M Sukumaran

" No more Industrial relations...Go for Individual relations"

Oil Billionaire H.L. Hunt

"There are two rules:

1. Decide what you want.
2. Decide what you'll have to DO to get it, and start DOing it."

Contributed by M Sukumaran, SukumaranM@...

Main Article:

Beware the Busy Manager - by Sumantra Ghoshal & Heike Bruch. Everyone knows Sumantra Ghoshal. Heike Bruch is Professor of Leadership at the University of Saint Gällen in Switzerland. Published in the Harvard Business Review in February, 2002

Pankaj's Comments:

Dear Rajeev,

I was fortunate in finding this article in Harvard Business Review magazine. ... I really found a different view of the work that we do everyday as part of our job, and just wanted to share the same with others. I am sure it would help others too...

Thanks & Take Care,
Pankaj

Article Summary

Most managers are extremely busy. They rush from meeting to meeting, check their emails constantly, make endless phone calls, and are generally engulfed in a constant stream of activities. Yet, often they achieve very little. The problem is that they confuse being active with purposeful action-taking.

Their capacities get fully absorbed in daily routines with no time or energy left for dealing with problems that require reflection, systematic planning or creative thinking, and for which there is no external pressure for immediate action. This is the syndrome we call ‘active non-action’ which, we believe, is a central behavioural problem in many companies.

Situational factors are rarely the reason for this lack of purposive action. In fact, managers can act. As a rule, their jobs provide sufficient scope and freedom, yet relatively few managers make deliberate use of their action-taking opportunities. Most spend their time making the inevitable happen instead of doing what managers are paid to do - to make happen what otherwise won’t happen.

Energy and Focus

What distinguishes the relatively few managers who do take purposive action from the vast majority who just spin their wheels? Two things: energy and focus.

Action demands energy. Some managers fail to take purposive action simply because they lack energy. Some are exhausted or burnt out from stress and do not have the inner resources to re-energise themselves. For others, the lack of energy may be relevant to a particular project which is not meaningful to them. Without energy, they are unable to ‘go the extra mile’ that is often necessary to accomplish non-routine tasks.

Focus, on the other hand, represents the capacity for concentrated attention. It is the ability to zero in on a goal and see it successfully through completion. Focussed managers are not in a reactive mode. They choose not to respond immediately to every issue that comes their way or get sidetracked from their goals by distractions.

While both focus and energy are positive traits, neither is in itself sufficient to produce the kind of purposeful action companies need most in their managers. Focus without energy devolves into either empty execution or burnout. Energy without focus dissipates into purposeless busyness or, in its most destructive form, into wasteful failures.

Combining both these dimensions into a matrix (try to make it yourself please) leads to a useful framework for diagnosing the causes of non-action as well as the basis for purposive action-taking. Such a matrix identifies four types of managerial behaviours: procrastination, disengagement, distraction and purposefulness.

The procrastinators: low energy, low focus

Over the last three years, we studied action-taking by a group of over 120 managers in a very large global company. Over 30 per cent of these managers were procrastinators; they suffered from low levels of both energy and focus. Although they dutifully performed their routine tasks - attending meetings, writing memos, making phone calls and so on - they failed to take initiative, to raise the level of performance or drive change.

Some procrastinators hesitate, Hamlet-like, until the window of opportunity has closed. One of those managers said, “I could have done it, but I could not get started.” The nearer the deadline for the project loomed, the more he busied himself with other activities, rationalising that we could not turn to the project until he completed his other jobs.

Managers procrastinate when they feel insecure or fear failure. Some get into the passive state that psychologist Martin Seligman called ‘learned helplessness’. After experiencing a few times that despite making an effort, they could not make a difference, they have drawn the conclusion that taking action is not worth the effort. They believe that they have no power or control over events, so they do nothing.

The disengaged managers: high focus, low energy

Roughly 20 per cent of managers we studied fell into the disengaged category: they exhibit high focus but have low levels of energy. This lack of energy manifests itself in a variety of ways.

Some of them practice a form of denial that can be described as ‘defensive avoidance’. Rather than acknowledging a problem and taking steps to correct it, they try to convince themselves that the problem does not exist. Other practise ‘distanced behaviour’. While acknowledging the need for change, they distance themselves from the problem. In all cases, disengagement stems from the lack of any personal commitment - typically because the task lacks any subjective meaning for them.

Paradoxically, disengagement can be more exhausting than energetic behaviour. Disengaged managers are often plagued by feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, anger, frustration and alienation. They deal with those emotions by withdrawing or doing the bare minimum, which makes the situation worse. Despite their low levels of energy, these managers suffer from burnout more frequently than their colleagues do. And they are easily overwhelmed by unexpected events.

The distracted manager: high energy, low focus

By far the largest group of managers we studied - more than 40 per cent - fell into the distracted quadrant; those well-intentioned, highly energetic but unfocused people who confuse whirlwind frenzy for constructive action. They always feel a desperate need to do something - anything - and that makes them as dangerous as the proverbial bull in a china shop.

Because they do not stop to reflect, distracted managers tend to have trouble developing strategies and adjusting their behaviour to new requirements. Under pressure and confronting the need for change, they do the same as always, only with even more intensity. They become victims of their established ‘behavioural templates’.

Faced with extreme difficulties, these managers resort to panic behaviours - trying to run away, irrational displacement activities or extensive and uncontrolled trial and error.

Moreover, because distracted managers tend to be short-sighted, they often find themselves overcommitted. They get involved in multiple projects with the best of intentions, but eventually their interest pales, and they wind up either constantly fighting fires or abandoning their projects altogether. In the space of two months one HR manager we observed took on three big projects - redefining the role of the HR department, renewing the 360-degree feedback system, and creating a new leadership development programme - over and above his everyday job requirement. In the end, he abandoned one project, passed on responsibility for another, and did a poor job on the third.

The purposeful manager: high focus, high energy

The smallest proportion of managers we studied - only about 10 per cent - were both highly energetic and highly focussed. Not only do such purposeful managers put more effort into their work than their counterparts, they also achieve critical, long-term goals more often. These managers tend to be more self-aware than others. Their clarity about their intentions, in combination with their strong will power, help them take sound decisions about how they spend their time. They pick their goals - and their battles - with far more care than managers in the other three categories.

A key distinguishing feature of purposeful managers is their sense of personal responsibility for the challenges they have chosen to respond to. They feel accountable for making a meaningful contribution. “When nobody is responsible, I am responsible”, one manager told us. “I own an issue and do what I think is necessary - unless and until the CEO pulls me back.”

Purposeful managers husband their energy. Aware of the value of time, they manage it carefully and consciously. Some refuse to respond to e-mails, phone calls or visitors outside certain periods of the day. Others build ‘think time’ into their schedules. As one of these managers says: “In the busiest of times, I slow down and take time off to reflect on what I actually want to achieve, and sort out what’s important from irrelevant noise. Then I focus on doing what is important.”

But the greatest difference between purposeful managers and others lies in the way they approach work. Other managers feel constrained by outside forces: their bosses, their peers, their salary schemes, their job descriptions. Those external factors determine for them what they can or cannot do. In other words, they work outside-in.

Purposeful managers do the opposite. They decide first what they must achieve, and then they work to manage the external environment so that, in the end, they can achieve their goals. They work inside-out. This distinction between outside-in and inside-out behaviours - between motivation and volition - will be the topic of the next article in this series.

Summary contributed by Pankaj Gurumukhi
Senior Software Engineer, Satyam Computer Services Ltd.
Email: pgurumukhi@...

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 11-B,       May 26th, 2002

Visit our website at http://hrera.tripod.com

 

1. My Space

2. New Members

Nandita Chowdary, Aniket J Joshi, Shajan Jose,
Aditya Singh, Taj Sayed Wasifa

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul (Cool Oneliners from Manoj)

4. Readers' Forum

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members From: Avadhesh Dixit

Questions Where can I do Doctorate in HR? - Raghupathy Viswanathan

Answers What do the following mean? - 1) Golden Handshake, 2) Pink Slip, 3) White Paper

5. Buhari's Quotation Corner

6. Inspirational Stories

Nail in the Fence
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalaam's Address in Hyderabad

7. Best HR Jobs (India)

8. HR Training Programs (India)

9. Aims of HR Era, How To Contribute Articles, & Legal Stuff

Dear Friends,

Here is a big THANK YOU for the congratulatory messages you have sent. We look forward to your suggestions to make HR Era more useful & meaningful to you.

In this issue, I recommend that every Indian reads Dr APJ Abdul Kalaam's speech to which we have given a link. It is inspiring. Save this issue and read the speech sometime.

New members can view Part-A of the issues, containing articles on HR & Self Management, at http://hrera.tripod.com/newsletter.htm .

with warm regards

Alka Bhatnagar

Nandita Chowdary, Consultant,

Message: I have started my own consultancy and am into software placements. My clients are in USA and India. Request help from members on how this industry works and information that may help me.

Nandita is an HR Professional with a footing in US. She has worked in India (TCS) as well as USA. Her mother is also an HR Professional with 25 years of experience in the field. Please feel free to contact her, if you can help or partner with them in some way.

Contact: nandita122002@... , Chennai

Aniket J Joshi, Administrator, Technowrites Pvt Limited.

Aniket has done MPM from University of Pune with 3rd Rank. He has 18 months' all round experience in HR.

Aniket was given "Best Individual Performance" Award for 2000-01 in his company. He has made several presentations on subjects like HR & Time Mnagement. His summer project in Bank of Baroda was recognised by a formal complimentary letter.

Contact: joshianiketin@... , Pune.

Shajan Jose

Shajan has done MA, in Social Work from Kanpur University and completed PGD,PMIR from XLRI in 2001

Shajan's hobbies are swimming, playing pool and surfing the net.

Contact: docx101@...

Aditya Singh, Reliance

Message: Inclusions of vacancies for a managerial positions in the field of HR/Personnel in HR Era is a value -added feature.

Aditya has done his Master's in Personnel Management and has an experience of six years

Contact: adishakt@...

Taj Sayed Wasifa, Manager HR in a IT Firm.

Message: I would like to broaden my wings in HR further.

Taj is a Post graduate in MHRM .

His areas of interest in HR are motivation, retraining and redeployment as it gives satisfaction to HR professionals when their employees improve their performance. He is also interested in making friends, listening to music, singing.

Contact: swtaj@... , Vishakapatnam

Cool oneliners from Manoj


When I read about the evils of drinking...I gave up reading.

My Grandfather is eighty and still doesn't need glasses... He drinks straight out of the bottle.

Seen on a bulletin board: Success is relative. More the success, more the relatives.

Sign in a restaurant: All drinking water in this establishment has been personally passed by the manager.

Seen in railway station at Patna: Aana free, Jaana free, Pakde gaye to khana free. (Coming is free, Going is free, If you are caught then food is free.)

Contributed by Manoj, Mafoi, manoj@...

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members

From: Avadhesh Dixit, HR Group, Tata Consultancy Services, Delhi

I have joined HR Era 2-3 months back.I feel that it is a tremendous knowledge and information sharing tool.

Best of luck for all the new initiatives.

Regards,

Avadhesh

QUESTIONS

Where can I do Doctorate in HR?

Hello,

I am Raghupathy, I work for a Multinational Company as Senior Executive HR. I hold a Masters degree in Social Work with Specialization in PM and IR from Madras University. I have 10+ experience of which 7+ Yrs in HR and 3yrs in TQM Consulting.

I would like to do Doctrate in HR, if you know some university pls let me know.

Thanks
Raghupathy Viswanathan
raghupa2000@...

ANSWERS

What do the following mean? - 1) Golden Handshake, 2) Pink Slip, 3) White Paper

Dear Sonia,

Golden handshake has to do with VRS (Voluntary Retirement Schemes) now prevalent in our country. It is a name given to separating employees from the organization by paying a compensation over & above normal benefits like PF and gratuity. Since payment of a higher compensation is involved, it is termed as "golden."

Pink Slip is a common term in America where employees can be easily fired due to redundancy or inefficiency. There employees can unexpectedly receive a letter, under the above circumstances, saying that his services with the organization are terminated, he can collect his normal due like pay & leave salary, and go home. Such letters are termed as "Pink Slip." In India the employer's right & authority to "hire and fire" at will are greatly restricted in larger organizations. Hence, this can happen only in smaller organizations & on a smaller scale.

White Paper is imported from government vocabulary. It refers to a detailed, factual, frank write up on a sensitive or controversial issue. In organizations also, it carries a similar meaning.

regards

Rajeev

From: SONIA K NAIR <sonianair@...>
Subject: Questions
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 02 15:36:19 IST

What do the following mean? - 1) Golden Handshake, 2) Pink Slip, 3) White Paper.

With Best Regards,
Sonia Nair, Senior Manager - P&A, Gujarat Water Infrastructure Limited, Gandhinagar.

Please email your replies to the person asking, with a copy to us at HREra@... for publication. Email new questions to us.

Remember that the task ahead of us is never
as great as the power behind it .

Be nice to people on your way up, you'll
meet them on your way down.

Your hapiness increases the more you
give your hapiness away.

Contrbuted by Syed Buhari, sibuhari@...

U are my friend. To all of you....please go all the way down, to the last sentence. (Most importantly the last sentence.)

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that everytime he lost his temper,he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down.

He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all.

He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.

The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence.The fence will never be the same.

When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there." A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

Friends are very rare jewels, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share words of praise and they always want to open their hearts to us. Show your friends how much you care.. Please forgive me if I have ever left a hole in your fence.

Contributed by Ambar Nanavati, Larsen & Toubro Limited, Ahmedabad.
ambar_nana@... .

Strong Recommenadations: "A must read for every Indian." "Forward this mail to each Indian for a change instead of sending Jokes or junk mails. Ajay Khanna"

Inspiring to Readers: "I liked it. Hope you like it too.Thomas Verghese." "Dear Friend, I am proud to be an Indian. Luv, Ana."

Click Here to Read.

Sent by Thomas Verghese, ushathomas@... , orginated probably with Ajay Khanna, ajay.khanna@... .

Free Service: Employers can email their job vacancies to HREra@... . We reach them to 1000+ HR professionals for free and list on our website also.

[55] Placement Director, Mumbai

Dear all,

We have been retained by a leading B School in Mumbai to source for a placement director for them. The ideal candidate shall be an XLRI/TISS Alumni with about 8-10 years of work experience in the corporate world and wishing to move on the academics/public relations.The incumbent shall lead all the industry interaction initiatives and shall be totally responsible for Campus Recruitment of the senior/junior students. This is a full time position and salary perks shall be as per UGC Scale in Mumbai. Preference would be for people from Mumbai .

Please send your updated cv to us ASAP.

Bala,
careeradvisor2002@...

[54] HR Executive for Global Tech India (P) Ltd.

Qualification: preferably a female who is an MBA/MSW/PGDBM in HR with 2-3 years of experience in the field of IT industry. Salary is negotaiable.

Kindly mail ur resume to arusha@...

Arusha Gupta

[53] Reader / Lecturer in HR, Mumbai

Organization: Baba Saheb Gowde Institute of Management Studies

Person & Remuneration: Qualification, experience, selection and pay scale for the post will be as prescribed by the University of Mumbai and AICTE

Apply To: The Secretary, Maratha Mandir, 3rd Floor, Dr. A.B Nair Road, Mumbai Central, Mumnai-400 008
( With attested copies of all certificates and recent passport size photo)

[52] Professors/Reader's/Asst. Professors/Lecturers in Management, Chennai

Organization: Bharath Institute of Science & Technology

Person: Preference will be given to PH.D/M.E

Remuneration: The salary will be paid as per AICTE norms

Applyto: Phone No. 2290742 / 2293886 Fax: 2290125

[51] Personnel Officers (10 Numbers), Placement Anywhere in India.

Organization: A Nationalised / Public Sector Bank

Remuneration: Placed in JMGS-I

Full Deatils in: Employment News & Rojgar Samachar dated May 18th, 2002.

Apply to: Institure of Banking Personnel Selection, Mumbai, before Jun 10th, strictly in specified format & with specified fees.

H R Era,     Special Issue ,    May 26th, 2002

Visit our website at http://hrera.tripod.com

 

1. Moderator's Space: From 38 to 1000+ Members

2. Free Executive Counselling from K Thyagaraj for HR Professionals

3. New Members

Siraj, Suresh Kewalramani, S Jayalakshmi (Ms.),

4. Aims of HR Era, How To Contribute Articles, & Legal Stuff

Dear Friends,

HR Era egroup has crossed 1000 membership mark. On the first birthday of this newsletter, which is on May 30th, there could not be a better gift. In the journey from 38 members when we sent the first issue, to now, we have learnt a few little things in this small venture. They will guide us in future.

Participation & Involvement: Majority of HR Era's contents come from Members them selves. Some from independent authors who share their articles for free. Very little from us. Moral - Participation & involvement lead to success. Money is not the sole motivator.

Work and Play: Compiling the contributions into issues of HR Era was "work" when I used to do it alone during first 7 months. After a full day's work, compiling the issues in home all by myself was a tedious task. Surprisingly, the work became a relaxation when Alka joined and we started doing it together. Moral - Having a small team and positive feelings between team members, converts work into play.

Suggestions & Ideas: come from well wishers and all others. Even children can give good ideas. Criticism from others is actually a source for generating ideas for improvement. Moral - Listen to everyone and based on the points they make, identify what can be improved.

Help and Co-operation: comes from unexpected persons, as often as from persons we hoped would help. Moral - Dont be shy in asking for help.

People: Emotional reactions of people vary over a wide spectrum. Here is the range we felt - steadfast support, constant & spontaneous encouragement, neutrality, even occassional jealousy (one person). Moral - Thank your well wishers and move on.

Quality: is always noticed and gets appreciated. If we do quality work, it enhances our self-esteem and it is also the key to continued growth of any venture. Moral - Quality is the mantra.

with warm regards

Rajeev and Alka

Mr K Thyagaraj has offered to give free executive counselling and advice on job changes to readers of HR Era.

He is offering to coach on more than just job changes. When you face any tricky problem which appears to be a dead end to you or puts severe emotional stress, think of Thyag.

Thyagaraj has 20 years of experience in the Indian Corporate in Senior levels. He has worked for Ordnance Factory, Larsen & Toubro, ITW Signode and an IT Company. For last 2 years, he is into Recruitment Consulting. Currently Thyagraj is working as Principal Consultant with Promanns Management Services at Chennai, Heading the Operations.

He is a member of HR Era group for last six months.

Please send your queries directly to Mr K Thyagaraj at Thyag@... with a copy to HREra@... . You would receive the answer directly from Mr Thyagaraj. When publishing the same in next issue of HR Era, we will NOT disclose your identity, unless you specifically request.

We are sure that several young HR Pros will benefit from Thyag's experience & compassionate wisdom.

We thank him for offering this service free.

Rajeev & Alka

Siraj, Regional Vice President (South) , Indian Society for Training & Development; Director, Institute of HRD, Bangalore

Siraj is an engineering graduate and holds an MBA in HRM. He is pursuing M.PHIL in labour studies

He is the director of Institute of HRD, Bangalore, besides being the present Regional Vice President South of Indian Society for Training and Development. He is a founder member of Bangalore's Toast Master's Club. He has published many articles on HR in many professional journals.

Contact: tiit@... , Bangalore

Suresh Kewalramani, Promoter, Gips Management and Personnel Consultants

Message: We look forward to greater and more fruitful interaction between the members of this group

Suresh is a science graduate from Bombay University with around 22 years of experience

Gips, promoted by Suresh, is a major hub for the entire Asia-Pacific region. Its activities in include executive search, head hunting, career counselling/profiling, psychometric testing and resourcing. The clientele consists mostlyof Fortunr 500 companies, multinationals and large Indian corporations

Contact: sgk@... , Mumbai

URL: http://www.gipsmanagement.com

S Jayalakshmi, Executive HR, Qualcore Logic Limited.

Message: I seek a long term relationship with an organisation that offers opportunity and scope to learn through exposure to challanging situations.

Jayalakshmi has done her MBA in Human Resources as major from Badruka College PG Centre and has an experience of 2 years.

She is a member of National HRD Network and her papers on Knowledge Management, Going Global - Leveraging Human Potential were published in the souvenier of the conference conducted by the National HRD Network. Jayalakshmi is a CBSE gold medalist for standing first in school and also securing 100% in Sanskrit.

We need more achievers like her calibre in HR Profession.

Contact: srkjaya77@... , Hyderabad

H R Era,     Issue # 11A,       May11th, 2002

1. Moderator's Space

2. Out Sourcing HR: Issues to Consider - by Tarkesh Gupta

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul

4. Creating Killer Presentation Transparancies - by Mike Delaney

5. Attitude - by Ramakrsihnarao

6. Buhari's Quote Corner

7. More from Members and HR Era's Website

8. Finger Tips (The Successful Side of Failure) - by Rajababu

9. Aims of HR Era, How to Contribute Articles, Legal Stuff.

If only the sweetest bird sings, then the jungle will be a very boring place! Similarly, if only the perfect writer write articles for HR Era then HR Era will be a very boring ezine.

I invite each and every one of you to contribute and share your experience & knowledge.

Regards.

Rajeev B Bhatnagar

Why Outsourcing ?: Beacuse of the evolving role of HR

The human resources function is increasingly involved in strategic management decisions.
Economic pressures have forced HR to be smaller, more business-like and to provide value-added services.
HR must have in-depth understanding of the business.
Organizations must now use their people to achieve a competitive edge and take a serious look at how their HR policies and practices are contributing to the total business strategy.
HR has to communicate what it does and how it contributes to the organisation’s goals and demonstrate its value to the line.
The competencies required by HR professionals are changing; gone are the days when HR can dictate the rules and policies and expect them to fly. HR staff must now form alliances with line managers and involve them in the development of HR practices.

What are the risks to outsourcing?

Low quality of work
Lack of understanding of organization culture on the part of contractor
Unmet timeframes
High cost
Difficulty in identifying competent contractor

Most important issues to address in order to ensure that an HR outsourcing initiative is successful?

Make sure you have service delivery standards, reasonable cost, and availability of service providers, service orientation, clear accountability, and good communication.
Ensure timeliness, quality of product, cost, and ask "does it add value to the organization?"
Current knowledge, expertise, availability, accuracy, achievers, and honesty.
Contractor must have experience; knowledge of organization, understanding of how small organizations function, flexibility.
Select a service provider who follows best practices; ensure it has a "service" orientation; ensure its philosophy of HR management is consistent with your corporate management style.
Outsourcing should be used selectively and discreetly. However, outsourcing can appear to be too convenient an option which can seriously undermine an organization’s ability to deal with its own human resources needs. Outsourcing should not compromise organizational effectiveness.
Outsourcing will be the future of routine HR functions.
Outsourcing is a solution which allows for flexibility without compromising other organizational demands.
Be accurate and honest with the consultant about your needs, your situation, your workload and your expectations.
The HR activity should not be outsourced when it is important to retain the associated internal knowledge.
Outsourcing is only one way of doing business and should not be considered the solution in all cases.
We need to establish a repertoire which lists names of consultants and firms by HR discipline and type of activity.
Deciding what to outsource
Which areas within the organization are not core? What are the best candidates for outsourcing?
What are the sets of services … the set of capabilities that I want to go outside for?
Who is capable of delivering the services that we’re looking for?
Which of the potential providers are world-class?
Do I integrate my requirements and go with a single provider, or do I separate them and put together a group of suppliers?
Where will I get the best return on the investment from an outsourcing decision?
How do we benchmark the providers? How do we benchmark against other companies in the industry?
What’s the right scope?

Conclusion

Don’t forget that outsourcing is a strategic business decision. Finance (as well as legal) departments have a crucial role to play in supporting the objectives of this decision. The financial and legal terms of the relationship should be aligned with the business objectives.
Establish clear roles and responsibilities: who does what, where, when and how? Outsourcing partnerships require ongoing definition of roles and responsibilities. How much control does the organization give up, and how much does it keep?
Define precisely what constitutes non-compliance and make sure that you include provisions and/or penalties addressing the vendor’s failure to comply with these standards.
The contract must delineate the total cost as well as the payment method. Look for hidden costs; specify bonuses, incentives and penalties.
Ensure a good reporting system. The contract should stipulate a reporting system between the organization and the vendor.
Have an escape route. In addition to setting an expiration date, specify contract renegotiation, arbitration or early termination procedures. Provide for disengagement procedures for both parties.
Specify how the transition will be accomplished. Before signing the contract, review the change management process with the vendor. All participants must understand and agree to the processes outlined.
Address personnel issues. Don’t forget your people.

Contributed by Tarkesh Gupta, Executive -HR, Dabur India Limited, Delhi
Email tarkeshg@...

  

Goal Oriented Kid

Father sends a small boy to bed.

Five minutes later....
"Da-ad...."
"What?" "I'm thirsty. Can you bring drink of water?" "No. You had your chance. Lights out."

Five minutes later: "Da-aaaad....."
"WHAT?"
"I'm THIRSTY. Can I have a drink of water??"
"I told you NO!" If you ask again, I'll have to spank you!!"

Five minutes later......"Daaaa-aaaad....."
"WHAT!"
"When you come in to spank me, can you bring a drink of water?"

Life Long Learner

A man went to the Police Station wishing to speak with the burglar who had broken into his house the night before.
"You'll get your chance in court," said the Desk Sergeant.
"No, no, no!" said the man. "I want to know how he got into the house
without waking my wife. I've been trying to do that for years!"

Why Did You Die?

When Ted was putting flowers on his Grandmother's grave he noticed a man, very distraught, in front of a tombstone several yards away. The man was on his knees, hands tightly clasped in front of him, rocking back and forth, head tilted upward to heaven, tears streaming down his cheeks, moaning softly, "Why did you die? Why did you die?" Over and over again.

Ted was overcome with emotion at this sight and went over to the poor man to try and console him. "Why did you die? Why did you die?" bellowed the man again and again.

Ted gently put his arm around the man and half whispered to him, "My Grandmother is buried just over there. Is a loved one of yours buried here?"
"No," sniffled the man, "It's my wife's first husband."

From the Net

Fortunately, there are some simple guidelines you can use to create high-quality, yet unobtrusive transparencies. Remember the obvious: if it enhances your message, it's good; if it distracts from your message, it's bad.

1. Limit the work area to 7.5" by 10" to allow room to mount the transparency.

2. Appropriate type size. Generally, use an 18-point type size or larger. To get an idea of how your text will look on-screen, hold your transparency at arm's length.

3. Generally, one transparency equals one idea. If the one idea has several components, consider using overlay transparencies to build upon the first. Too much initial information overwhelms the viewer. As a rule, remember "five by five": limit each transparency to five lines with no more than five words per line.

4. Limit your fonts to two or three simple bold faces per series of ideas. Avoid ornate font faces, such as the script and fantasy families. If you must use more than one idea on a transparency, use type size and weight to relate the relative importance of ideas. Sans-serif faces are easier to read on-screen at smaller type sizes.

5. Mix upper and lowercase. It is more readable than all-caps.

6. Avoid vertical lettering. It is requires too much effort to read.

7. Use color and graphics, but sparingly. They should be used to enhance your ideas, not overwhelm them. With graphics, think "loosely-related". For example, a car or a hammer might be used beneath a message "to drive" something, such as "driving customer service home", or "the driving force behind ..."

8. Use clip art bullets, arrow, boxes, and checkboxes instead of numbers in lists. Most transparencies are designed on a desktop computer, and clip art is readily available.

9. Trim, trim, trim. Review your transparencies several times looking for unnecessary words. Cut them ruthlessly. Leave your work overnight, them review them again with a fresh mindset.

Keep these few tips in mind next time your are developing your presentation materials and you will find that your presentations will be much more effective.

About the Author:

Mike Delaney is a shoplifting prevention trainer with over 20 years experience as an expert shoplifter, and almost 10 years stopping them. He is the author of "How to Beat Shoplifters and Increase Profits", offered by Bison Creek Desktop Publishing, http://www.zianet.com/bisoncreek

Harvard and Stanford Universities have reported that 85% the reason a person gets a job and gets ahead in that job is due to attitude; and only 15% is because of technical or specific skills. Interesting, isn't it? You spent how much money on your education? And you spent how much money on building your positive attitude? Ouch. That hurts.

Now here's an interesting thought. With the "right" attitude, you can and will develop the necessary skills. So where's your emphasis? Skill building? Attitude building? Unfortunately, "Neither" is the real answer for many people. Perhaps if more people knew how simple it is to develop and maintain a positive attitude they would invest more time doing so. So here we go.

Five steps to staying positive in a negative world:

1. Understand that failure is an event, it is not a person.

Yesterday ended last night; today is a brand new day, and it's yours. You were born to win, but to be a winner you must plan to win, prepare to win, and then you can expect to win.

2. Become a lifetime student.

Learn just one new word every day and in five years you will be able to talk with just about anybody about anything. When your vocabulary improves, your I.Q. goes up 100% of the time, according to Georgetown Medical School.

3. Read something informational or inspirational every day.

Reading for 20 minutes at just 240 words per minute will enable you to read 20 200-page books each year. That's 18 more than the average person reads! What an enormous competitive advantage . . . if you'll just read for 20 minutes a day.

4. The University of Southern California reveals that you can acquire the equivalent of two years of a college education in three years just by listening to motivational and educational cassettes on the way to your job and again on the way home. What could be easier?

5. Start the day and end the day with positive input into your mind.

Inspirational messages cause the brain to flood with dopamine and norepinephrine, the energizing neurotransmitters; with endorphins, the endurance neurotransmitters; and with serotonin, the feel-good-about-yourself neurotransmitter. Begin and end the day by reading or doing something positive!

Remember: Success is a process, not an event. Invest the time in your attitude and it will pay off in your skills as well as your career.

Think of it.......

Contributed by: Ramakrishnarao, People Excellence, Tata Telecom Ltd - Gandhinagar
Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467, Extn. No. 290 (Lease Line No. 281)
Email: rthallam@...

If people were important yesterday and important today, by God, they will be extremely important tommorow. Therefore, the priority should be to attract the very best talent. We are going to do it in two ways. One is through remuneration. But the important thing is to make the company an eciting and vibrant place to come and work.

M. S. Banga, Chairman, Hindustan Lever Limited.

Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit.

Conrad Hilton, Founder Hilton chain of hotel.

Selected & put in by Moderator

Funny Brain Teasers, sent by Ramakrishna Rao, Gandhinagar

Appear to be very easy & fun. But appearances can be deceptive.

Lateral Thinking Puzzles, sent by Dipa Anand, Tata Infotech Limited, Bangalore

If you can solve even one of Dipa's puzzles, then your IQ is certainly higher than mine. If not IQ, at least creativity is higher than mine. Check out!

Foreword by Rajababu

Today morning, I recd a mail from one of the recipients of my e-Mails. Through a thinly coated veneer of manners, he told me in no uncertain terms that my mails which I am sending out were all trash and that if I don't have any respect for my time, atleast I should have respect for his time. I felt depressed for 15 minutes, then I actually smiled and started feeling happy. Because I had positive proof that out of all my e-mail recipients, atleast one of them actually read my mail. That's failure for you then. Success in disguise. Please read on.................

A Serious Start ...Failure !

Failure doesn't mean you are a failure;
It means you have not yet succeeded.

Failure doesn't mean you accomplished nothing,
It means you have learned something.

Failure doesn't mean that you have been a fool.
It means you had a lot of faith.

Failure doesn't mean you've been disgraced.
It means you were willing to try.

Failure doesn't mean you don't have it.
It means you have to do something in a different way

Failure doesn't mean you are inferior.
It means you are not perfect.

Failure doesn't mean you've wasted your life.
It means you have a reason to start afresh

Failure doesn't mean you should give up.
It means you must try harder

Failure doesn't mean you'll never make it.
It means it will take a little longer.

Contributed by Rajababu, HR Consultant, trainer & author based in Mumbai. See his articles at http://www.mumbai-central/likhaai/rajababu.htm and at
http://www.aicmas.com

Aims of HR Era:
It aims to enhance CAREER GROWTH of its readers by bringing to them practices & ideas they can apply in their work, opportunities to network with other Professionals, training opportunities, jobs available, and techniques for self-management.

Contribute Articles & Other Contents:
Contributions from readers are wholeheartedly solicited. Contributions are the things that enable sharing of learnings. Lead Article should be about 800 words, others 400 words. Please send details about yourself also as we would like to post them along with the article. Kindly note, no honorarium is paid now! Please email contributions to HREra@...

Legal Stuff!
All information in HR Era is presented in good faith. However, before using, please consult relevant experts. We do not accept any financial responsibility for accuracy.

Visit our Website at http://hrera.tripod.com 

Copyright (C) 2002 by Rajeev B. Bhatnagar

H R Era,     Issue # 10-B,       Apr 26th, 2002

Visit our website at http://hrera.tripod.com

 

1. My Space

2. New Members

S Venkateshwaraan, Major SR Roy, P Neeetha (Ms), Surabhi Sharma (Ms),
M Thomas Prabhu

3. Tomato Soup for the Soul

4. Readers' Forum

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members
From: KN Pareek , HS Priyadarshan

Equivalent Labour Laws in India & USA
Saurabh Singh Tomar replies to Vineet's Question from USA

5. Quotation Corner (FAQs from God)

6. Inspirational Stories

Why Go to Church ???
Dog, Monkey, Leopard
Return of a Different Kind

7. Best HR Jobs (India)

8. HR Training Programs (India)

9. Aims of HR Era, How To Contribute Articles, & Legal Stuff

Dear Friends,

I welcome the 100+ new members in last one month.

Soon HR Era would have more than 1000 members and then watch out for Santaclaus. He will come to you in July 2002 with gifts!

New members can view Part-A of this issue, containing articles on HR & Self Management, at http://hrera.tripod.com/newsletter.htm .

with warm regards

Alka Bhatnagar

S Venkateshwaraan, Human Enterprises.

Message: After working for 20 years for others, I decided that it was time to work for self and started "Human Enterprises" devoted to transformation of HR thru training and systems.

SV belongs to the 1980 batch from TISS and has over 20 years experince in companies like TVS Suzuki, Best & Crompton.

His newly set up consultancy can help you particularly in areas of Team Building, Emotional Intelligence, Quality & Systems (ISO 2000 series), Competency Mapping & Analysis, Creative Thinking using Mind Maps.

Contact: venk54@...

Major S R Roy, Adventure Zone, Chennai

Major Roy is an alumini of National Defence Academy & former commando instructor in the Army. Has over 16 years experience in outbound training and adventurous activities.

He runs Adventure Zone and conduct outbound training at his centre near Mahabalipuram near Chennai. Activities include obstacle courses, parasailing, rock climbing, water based activities. Programs include Leadership & Motivation, Team Building. He has many corporate clients.

Contact: adventure@... , 044 - 442 4580

P Neetha, HR Executive, Aster Teleservices Pvt Ltd, Secunderabad (Andhra)

Message: I would like to become an active member of this group.

Neetha has a PG in Management with specialization in HRM. She has 20 months' experience and deals with all HR activities in respect of 375 employees.

Contact: neetha@...

Surabhai Sharma, HR Executive, Halcyon Datasys Pvt Ltd, Noida

Message: I want to take HR as my career field.

Surabhi has a PGDBM from IPM, Meerut. Her exeprience covers all basic HR work and especially IT recruitment. Her hobbies are singing, travelling, & observing people (I feel scared!)

Contact: surabhi_sharma2k@...

M Thomas Prabhu, Manager-HR, S R Nova Pvt Ltd, Bangalore

Prabhu has an MSW as well as LLB. He has over 8 years' all round experience in HR. He is very good in organizing events and good in PR. Prabhu is deeply involved in Quality systems and training.

Contact: hrd@... , 080 - 670 7112

Bholaji Proposes!

Bholaji proposes to a woman.
She says yes, if you bring me a pair of crocodile boots.
He sets off to Africa and disappears. Finally they find him hunting crocodiles and watch him killing a huge one.
He walks over the reptile, checks its legs, angrily exclaims: "71st and *again* barefoot!"

Bholaji commits Suicide

Bholaji is trying to commit suicide on the railway tracks...
takes along some wine and chicken with him.

Somebody stops him and asks, "Why are you taking all this stuff with you dear?"

Bholaji replies, "Bloody train comes late everyday! I donot want to die of hunger.

Bholaji in Office

What does Bholaji do after taking photocopies? He compares it with the original for spelling mistakes.

What does Bholaji do when he has one white sheet and wants an extra sheet? He makes a photocopy of the white sheet.

Contributed by Seema, Seema_591@...

Appreciations & Brickbats from Members

From: KN Pareek, Sr Manager, Bank of Rajasthan

namaste
congrats for making such an interesting site...
good job...
happy holi to all of u. bye
take care
kamal

From: HS Priyadarshan, pdarshan2000@...

thanks a lot
good info, great job
darshan

Equivalent Labour Laws in India & USA

Saurabh Singh Tomar replies to Vineet's Question from USA

Questions

Just like there are specific wage laws,laws on discrimination which includes race, sex,disability,religious in the USA, which are the specific laws that cover the above in India. one more thing laws on industrial safety i.e. workplace safety, worker's compensation laws and overtime laws.need information on all these laws as exist in india?

Reply

Hi Vineet,

I read your message in HREra, regarding Indian Labor Laws. The various Labor Laws covering the different topics are as follows:

1. Factories Act, 1948: It covers health, safety and welfare issues related to factory (manufacturing sector) employees. It provides all the regulations related to leaves, overtimeError! Bookmark not defined., working hours, employment of women and young persons, and industrial safety. For shops and establishments (other than Factories), all states have their different - Shops and Establishment Act.

2. Equal Remuneration Act, 1976: It is about equal pay for equal work to both men and women, without discrimination.

3. Payment of Wages Act, 1936: It is about wage periods, mode of payment and permissible deductions etc.

4. Minimum Wages Act, 1948: It is supplemented by different regional guidelines for minimum wages to be paid to various categories of workers.

5. Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923: It provides rules for payment of compensation to employees in case of employment related injuries or death. Other relavent act is Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948.

6. Some other important laws are: Industrial Disputes Act, 1947; Payment of Bonus Act, 1965; and Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972; Maternity Benefit Act, 1961; Employees' Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.

For more information about Indian Labor Laws and Policies, you can visit :

1. http://labour.nic.in/ (Official site of Ministry of Labour, Govt. of India)

2. http://www.3pjobs.com/3pntsite/unixroot/lawindex.asp?Affiliate=1 (A summarised collection of various Indian Labor Laws)

Regards

Saurabh Singh Tomar

Manager - Human Resourcese, CN India Pvt. Ltd. 405, Avadhesh House,Opp. Gurudwara,Sarkhej-Gandhinagar Highway,Ahmedabad - 380054.

Tel: +91-79-6854100.Fax: +91-79-6843010.Mobile: +91-982-425-5676

Please email your replies to the person asking, with a copy to us at HREra@... for publication. Email new questions to us.

What Questions God Will Ask You

God won't ask what kind of car you drove, but He'll ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation.

God won't ask the square footage of your house, but He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.

God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet, but He'll ask how many you helped to clothe.

God won't ask about your social status; He will ask what kind of class you displayed.
God won't ask how many material possession you had, but He'll ask if they dictated your life.

God won't ask what your highest salary was, but He'll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.

God won't ask how much overtime you worked, but He'll ask if your overtime work was for yourself or for your family.

God won't ask how many promotions you received, but He'll ask how you promoted others.

God won't ask what your job title was, but He'll ask if you performed your job to the best of our ability.

God won't ask what you did to help yourself, but He'll ask what you did to help others.
God won't ask how many friends you had, but He'll ask how many people to whom you were a friend.

God won't ask what you did to protect your rights, but He'll ask what you did to protect the rights of others.

God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived, but He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.

God won't ask about the color of your skin, but He'll ask about the content of your character.

God won't ask how many people you forwarded this too, but He'll ask if you were ashamed to pass it on to your friends

Contributed by: Ramakrishnarao, People Excellence, Tata Telecom Ltd - Gandhinagar
Tele : 079 - 3221773 / 3246467, Extn. No. 290 (Lease Line No. 281)
Email: rthallam@...

[i] WHY GO TO CHURCH ???

A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a
newspaper and complained that it made no sense to
go to church every Sunday. "I've gone for 30 years
now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard
something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of
me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I
think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are
wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."

This started a real controversy in the "Letters to
the Editor" column, much to the delight of the
editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote
this clincher: I've been married for 30 years now.
In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals.
But for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire
menu for a single one of those meals. But I do
know this: They all nourished me and gave me the
strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had
not given me these meals, I would be physically
dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church
for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!"

When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to
something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the
incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God
for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!