Challenging Loyalty

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in First City, October 2010 Ramayana speaks of two brothers, Vibhishana and Kumbhakarna. Vibhishana refuses to support his elder brother Ravana who abducts the wife of Ram. Kumbhakarna, however, stands by his brother, even though he does not agree with Ravanas actions. Vibhishana is a disloyal defector while Kumbhakarna is a loyal brother. The scriptures celebrate Vibhishana. While every year, during festivals, the effigy of Kumbhakarna is burnt alongside his brother. In the Mahabharata, Karna owes his meteoric rise in station, from charioteer to warlord and king, to Duryodhana, who refuses to return the land of the Pandavas. Karna stays loyal to Duyodhana till the very end, refusing the most tempting bribes offered by Krishna. For this he is ruthlessly killed under instructions of Krishna. The scriptures challenge the traditional notion of loyalty. Loyalty is not seen as an end in itself. It is seen merely as a means. If the end is not noble (as in case of Karna and Kumbhakarna) it is not venerated. In the modern corporate world, what matters more: talent or loyalty? What affects the balance sheet? During the annual appraisals, Madhukar was furious. He had received the same bonus as Champaklal. But he had done so much more work. He had turned around a loss-making unit into a profitable one in less than a year. He had cut costs and acquired new customers. Thanks to him, the company was on an accelerated growth curve. In comparison, Champaklal had done nothing but sustain running a marginally profitable unit. That unit had so much potential that Champaklal refused to tap. Why couldnt the owner of the company see that? But the owner of the company saw things differently. He told the CFO as they were finalizing the bonus, Madhukar is an MBA, a professional. Sooner or later, he will leave us and go to another company where he will be paid more. We will never be able to match up the competition. Champaklal

will never leave us. He may not be a great stallion but he is a dependable donkey. Horses will come and go, adding bursts of success, but donkeys grant us sustainable slow growth. We must reward both equally. In the uncertain world of business, loyalty offers comfort to owners. This is an emotional need whose value is not understood by professionals. Champaklal will never be as smart as Madhukar but he is able to satisfy an emotional need of the owner. Madhukars brilliance makes the owner insecure. Retaining talent is not easy. In Madhukars case, the owner has to make active efforts to retain him. In Champaklals case, the owner is passive; he knows that Champaklals mediocre talents ensure he will never look out for another opportunity. Champaklals low returns are compensated by the high assurance he offers. And this matters in the owners strategic long-term balance sheet. The owner sees Madhukar as Vibhishan and Champaklal as Kumbhakarna. Some of the practices that the owner follows are not quite ethical. He knows that Madhukar will shy away from these practices or at least demand a hefty pound of flesh in exchange. Champaklal, aware of his low-market value, will do the unethical tasks quietly and will ask for no extra reward. Champaklal may not be as talented, but like Karna he will not be tempted by any Krishna and like Karna he will be ready to die in the battlefield. For this he needs to be rewarded.

The Most Superior Weapon

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Corporate Dossier ET, October 15, 2010 It was a rare occasion when the Pandava brothers fought amongst each other. It began when Arjuna claimed that his weapon, the bow, was the most sophisticated weapon in the world. Bhima argued that it was his weapon, the mace, that was the most sophisticated. Yudhishtira joined in; he felt his weapon, the spear, was the best weapon created by the gods. Finally, the twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, had their say: the sword they said was the ultimate weapon. The arguments went on for days and nights, each brother defending his weapon passionately. Their teacher, Drona, watched in bewilderment.

When all the brothers were exhausted unable to convince others, they turned to their teacher and asked him to act as judge. The contest reveals nothing about the weapons but it does reveal a lot about you. You are claiming what is best for you is best for the world. You are turning subjective reality into objective reality. Arjuna was good with the bow and so became a great archer. That does not make the bow the greatest weapon in the world. Bhima was good with the mace and so became a great mace-warrior. That does not make the mace the best weapon in the world. Each one was presenting their natural strength as an objective choice. They were functioning in hindsight an error that is commonly done in corporates. Yogesh and Shailesh were having a fight. They were childhood friends. Yogesh worked in a multinational company and had done very well, rising to the rank of a director. Shailesh had started his own business and it had done very well. Yogesh felt that working in a multinational company is the best thing in the world. Shailesh felt running ones own business is the best thing in the world. Each one argued his case logically without realizing that neither possessed the others skill sets. Had Yogesh started a business, it would have in all likelihood failed and Shailesh would have not survived a day working in another mans organization. Yogesh was great at working in a given organization and getting people to follow processes, while Shailesh was great working on his own and leading people independently. Each one presenting his natural strengths as a rational choice. They were making these claims post-facto (after the success) but declaring it to be pre-facto (decisions taken before success). During recruitment, young interns are put in various departments and each departmental head declares their department to be the best department. Few sit back to wonder, is it good for the intern? Does he have the attitude and the aptitude for that department? Are we unknowingly putting the bow in Bhimas hand and the mace in Arjunas? That would not lead to success.

The Promised Land

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Devlok, Sunday Midday, August 29, 2010 Ancient Egyptian civilization flourished for over three thousand years, gradually collapsing less than two thousand years ago. What is peculiar about this civilization is that in its long history, its art remained relatively static and unchanged! It was always two-dimensional, expressionless, rigid and flat. This indicates a civilization where the art was determined by the state, and not a product of individual inspiration. No individual innovation was allowed; everything was determined by the

nameless faceless system. Peoples lives were governed by this system. They devoted their time to farming and when the harvest was done, they were enlisted to build the kings pyramid. Thus everyone was well-fed, busy, with no time to challenge the system. Clearly, this was the slavery that is described in the Bible. A break was needed from familiar slavery to unfamiliar freedom. This was offered by one Moses. He presented the people with a value proposition, described as the Promised Land. This was the land of milk and honey. There was no map to the Promised Land, there was no brochure either or satellite images. Just faith. People were willing to risk everything to follow Moses across the sea and the wilderness to that dream of a better life. A Vision Statement, genuinely constructed by a leader, is the Promised Land. Unfortunately, today it has become a meaningless business ritual. We have two choices: either hire expensive consultants if one is obligated by the parent organization and is governed by audited processes, or go to Dilbert.com, if one is more cynical. But ultimately every venture offers a Promised Land, and most leaders fail to recognize this. Vishal buys old properties all over the world. He then renovates it and sells it for a higher price. I dont need a Vision Statement, he told his uncle, I am a small business. His uncle did not comment but he knew that without articulating it, Vishal had a Promised Land in his mind. He transformed ugly soulless buildings into joyful settlements. This idea he shared with his engineers and architects. It provided everyone with the satisfaction of doing something meaningful. It also brought in good profits. Every person who worked for Vishal believed in his vision. They walked the extra mile through the wilderness with him. The results were spectacular and for all to see. The point of a Vision Statement is not to carve it on a wall in the reception of the office; it is to inspire people. Vishal has nothing on paper; but his vision drives every aspect of his business. It is not propaganda. It is genuine belief. When Vishal started his business, he needed investment. So, guided by his uncle, he spoke to several venture capitalists and angel investors. He told them his plan. He did not realize that he was doing the role of Moses. The Promised Land that he presented to the hard-nosed bankers was all an imagination. But he had faith in it and conviction that it could be done. He had studied the known the competition, the opportunities, the threats, his own strengths, his weaknesses, what were the gaps he needed to fill. He was also clear about the unknown he told the bankers that he was uncertain about realty prices and how the market would move. As he spoke, the bankers, were smitten by his passion and enthusiasm; they sponsored Vishals journey to the Promised Land. Ultimately, all new businesses are a step into the unknown. And no one has the map to the unknown. Vishal has taken things further. He does not have just one Promised Land, or rather he looks at the Promised Land from all perspectives not just from an overall business perspective (as most Vision Statements, unfortunately, do). He presents to his customers, their view of the Promised Land. He also slices and dices his vision to make it relevant to every member of his team. He tells them how growth of the business, will bring growth to the junior-most engineer: even if it is something as rudimentary as a better bonus. Because of this attention to every persons Promised Land, Vishal is able to fire the imagination of his entire organization. He transforms into a leader who provides liberation from the daily meaningless corporate drudgery that is best equated with slavery in Egypt.

War Tactics
Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in First City, September 2010 Vishnu is the preserver of cosmic order. This often involves battling Asuras, conventionally understood as demons. Every battle involves a different demon and so Vishnu takes different forms for each battle. When Hiranayaksha dragged the earth under the sea, Vishnu took the form of a boar, Varaha, plunged into the waters, gored the Asura to death, placed the earth on his snout and raised her back to the surface. This confrontation was highly physical. Hiranakashipu was a different kind of Asura. He obtained a boon that made him near invincible: he could not be killed either by a man or an animal, either in the day or in the night, neither inside a dwelling nor outside, neither on the ground or off the ground, neither with a weapon nor a tool. To kill this Asura, Vishnu transformed himself into Narasimha, a creature that was half lion and half human, neither man nor animal completely. He dragged the Asura at twilight, which is neither day nor night, to the threshold, which is neither inside a house nor outside, and placing him on his thigh, which is neither on the ground nor off, and disembowelled him with his sharp claws, which are neither weapons nor tools. This complex confrontation was highly intellectual; a battle of wits. Then came Bali, an Asura, who was so noble and so generous that his realm expanded beyond the subterranean realms to include the earth and sky. To put him back in his place, where he belonged, Vishnu took the form of a dwarf, Vaman, and asked him for three paces of land. When Bali granted this wish, the dwarf turned into a giant and with two steps claimed the earth and sky, shoving Bali back to the nether regions with the third steps. This battle involved not so much defeating the opponent as it did transforming oneself. A study of these avatars of Vishnu indicates a clear shift in war tactic. From Varaha to Narasimha to

Vamana there is a shift from brute force, to brain rather than brawn and finally an exercise in outgrowing rather than outwitting. The demons are becoming increasingly complex Hiranayaksha is violent, Hiranakashipu is clever and there is no real fault in Bali; his goodness disturbs cosmic balance. Each one forces Vishnu to change, adapt, and evolve. There is no standard approach; each approach is customized. What is significant is the shift from animal to human, from strength to cunning, from external drive to internal drive. Dinar is now the head of sales in a television production house. And he has realized the value of changing his war tactics with people, he felt, threatened his growth, his very own Asuras. He began his career as a print journalist. I recall in the early days, I competed with my colleagues by filing in more stories and better stories. I produced faster than most and of much better quality. Naturally, I was loved by my editors. But then I became an editor and then moved up the corporate hierarchy. The rules of the games changed. My competitors did not play by the rules; they bent the rules, slipped between the cracks, monitored and manipulated situations against me. It was all politics. The only way to survive was to outsmart them in their game. I became better at networking. I found a way to plug holes through which they could slip out. I would anticipate their moves and walk a few steps ahead of them. This got me far. But not too far. I was always having to look over my shoulder. One day, I just quit. I realized playing the same games in the same pond would not take me far. So I moved from the newspaper to a television company. I knew nothing and had to learn everything from scratch. I was a small fish. I worked hard and grew to be a very big fish. I suddenly knew two domains: print and television. My old colleagues are still in the newspaper, still reporting stories, still fighting over who gets the credit, still playing politics with one another. I have meanwhile a wider and deeper experience and have earned respect across industries. While they are still pulling each other down, and have stayed where they were, I have risen so up in the pursuit of my potential, that all they can do is stare in awe and admit defeat. Initially Dinar was a Varaha, using brawn to win the rat race. Then he became Narasimha, using brains to outsmart and win. But then he stopped being an animal. He realized true victory lies in personal evolution. No more boar or lion, he accepted he was a dwarf and grew up to be a giant, outpacing the rats and outgrowing the race.

Holier than thou

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Speaking Tree, September 2010. I am dismayed when seemingly honest Indian cricketers claim that they have never heard of bookies approach the Indian cricket team. I mean, come on! Have we forgotten our match fixing scandals, or should I say alleged match fixing scandals? So Pakistan is now in the dock. Three young and talented cricketers have been caught red handed by Scotland Yard, and rather than feel sorry for the tragic state of affairs in our neighboring state, we are going to town claiming we are clean and pure. I think rather than be pompous and self-righteous, we should ask ourselves: what drives young men to do such a thing? Yes, they are Pakistanis, and yes what they have done is a terrible thing, but they are human beings, sons of mothers, brothers of sisters. Are we demonizing them, de-humanizing them, in our desperate bid to feel good about ourselves? Are we losing our humanity? This absence of humanity is often noticed in retellings of the Mahabharata. Storytellers often prejudge characters before they even start the narration. Even before the book is opened, we are told the Pandavas are the heroes and Kauravas are the villains. No one is therefore allowed to question the deeds of the Pandavas or empathize with the actions of the Kauravas. We transform them into 2dimensional card board characters. We never want to know what makes some people heroic and some people villains. We are not interested in the etiology of villainy. We simply want to take sides, glorify one side and condemn the other. But for a moment, let us step back and look at the characters of the great Indian epic.Let us look at the honest Yudhishtira, and ask ourselves, what made him gamble his kingdom, his brothers (first his step-brothers, and then his own brothers) and finally his wife. Is it just momentary madness? Or the release of bottled-up desires? Here is a man who never said a bad thing or a dishonest thing to anyone, a boy who lost his father at an early age, who lived with his widowed mother in the shadow of an insecure uncle and hundred cousins, a boy who did everything in his power to be nice to everyone so as not to risk his disputed inheritance. Was that his nature or his survival skill? We will never know. The epic throws this at us to wonder and speculate on the nature of people. Are we good, asks Vyasa, because that is our nature or because that is the strategic imperative? Let us look at Duryodhana, a boy with a blind father who could not see him, a mother who refused to remove her blindfold even to look at him, a teacher who preferred the Pandavas and a grand uncle who preferred the Pandavas. Did he feel alone, insecure and did this fuel his envy and rage and cruelty? Was his hatred of the Pandavas simply his nature or a product of his upbringing? Once again, the epic throws us such thoughts so that we meditate on the human condition. When we so meditate, we become less harsh in our judgment of people. Why did the Pakistani men do what they did? Could it be because they now live in a state where money is the only security and one has to fend for oneself because no one will fend for you, certainly not the government nor the army or the terrorists or the nationalists? Is it an act of greed, or an act of sheer desperation? We can beat our chests and claim we are honest people with integrity. And when we say that, remember the Pakistanis are pointing to the mess of the IPL and the Common Wealth Games. We can be Gamblers too!

Shhh.Vishnu is asleep
Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Speaking Tree, August 2010 When the rains fall, when the walls go damp and the food is covered with fungus, know that Vishnu, the guardian of the world, has gone to sleep. He slumbers for four months, the Chatur-maas, while the earth is submerged with flood waters. It is the annual Pralaya, after which the world renews itself. This annual submergence takes place in the dark half of the year. The ancient Rishis divided the year into two parts: the first, from January to June, when the rising sun edges towards the Pole Star and the second, from July to December, when the sun retreats southwards. The northward journey is marked by entry into the House of Capricorn, or Makara, the dolphin, symbolizing love and life; is it the time of spring and summer when days get warmer and brighter. The southward journey marks the entrance of the sun into the House of Cancer or Karka, the crab, that gnaws into the light, makes the days shorter and colder. It is in this dark inauspicious second half that rain clouds cover the sky and Vishnu goes to sleep. The world is left in the care of the Goddess and Vishnus avatars. The Rishis declared that the warmer half of the year belongs to the Adityas, the resplendent sky-gods, that the English translators of Hindu mythology called gods. The colder half of the year belongs to the Daityas, the dark subterranean-gods that the English translators of Hindu mythology identified as demons. And so, in the sky, we find the great churning of the celestial sphere with the Adityas powerful for one half the year, and the Daityas powerful in the other half. From this churning is born the year with its many seasons. When Vishnu sleeps, the guru of the Daityas, Shukra, pounds the magical Sanjivani, in the subterranean region. This is what brings back the earths fertility, they say; the seeds germinate, crops rise up from under the earth. Everything is green. The moon is dominated by Kama, god of lust. Husbands and wives trapped at home all day enjoy intimate embraces. It is said this is the period when the Kamasutra was written. Vishnu sleeps from the 11th day of the waxing moon of Ashadh to the 11th day of the waxing moon of Kartik. It is the time when all agricultural activities cease. Traveling is forbidden. Rishis, who were otherwise not allowed to stay under the same roof for more than a day, stayed put in one location for four months. These four months are marked with prayers and festivals, perhaps because there was nothing else to do, and perhaps in the hope that the rains are adequate, not too less or too much. The first of these is on the full moon of Ashadh, when the guru is remembered. A fortnight after this comes the month of Shravan when people fast. All kinds of indulgences like alcohol and non vegetarian food and spices are curtailed. In the bright half of Shravan, on the fifth day of the waxing moon, snakes or Nags are worshipped. In the dark half of Shravan, on the eighth day of the waning moon, the birth of Krishna is celebrated. In between is the full moon day when sisters tie threads on the wrists of brothers, seeking protection. On

this day coconuts are hurled into the sea by fisher folk as the rains abate and soon the sea will allow them to fish once more. In the month that follows, Bhadrapad, Ganesha comes into our lives with his mother, Gauri, who wears a green sari, reflecting the greenery covering the earth at this time. His image and that of his mother is made of clay. After being worshipped for ten days, this image is immersed in water, a reminder of the cyclical nature of all things. After Ganeshas departure, the ancestors rise up and are worshipped by the living. The ritual of Shraadh is performed to reiterate to the Pitrs that the living are producing children to ensure their rebirth. By this time, the crops have reached final form. It is time for harvest. The Daityas who have risen from the subterranean regions are to be killed, a violent act that generates food for man. Thus in the final month of Chatur-maas there are festivals celebrating the death of many demons: Durga kills Mahisha following nine nights of battle and Ram kills Ravana at the same time resulting in the Dussera festivals. In the full moon that follows, the Sharad Poornima or Kojagiri, the Goddess emerges in her gentle form and dances with Krishna as Radha. War resumes in the following fortnight with Krishna killing Naraka and Vaman crushing Bali in the days that mark the festival of Diwali. And since the killing of Daityas brings prosperity, the Goddess is worshipped as Lakshmi. She is also worshipped as Kali, a reminder that wealth generation involves violence and must not be taken lightly. Shortly after Lakshmis arrival, Vishnu wakes up and on the 11th day of the month of Kartik, marries her, she taking the form of the Tulsi plant and he talking the form of sugarcane or the Shalagram stone. This marks the end of the slumber of Vishnu and the start of the marriage season.

The dance of the pot

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Times of India, October 08, 2010 We do not realize what a great invention the pot is. Without the pot, we would still be animals, going to water bodies like rivers and ponds to hydrate ourselves. Thanks to the pot, we can get the water

into our homes, our family does not have to trek for miles for a sip of water. The water is safe, no crocodiles lurking beneath the water, no tigers waiting to pounce on us as we are at our most vulnerable. Pot represents human civilization. In fact, pot is the ultimate proof of humanity. It indicates we are no longer animals. In ancient India, the pot was revered. It became the symbol of the womb or garbha, for it sustained human life, enabling storage of water and food. It was equated with the mother. A pot was worshipped as the symbol of divinity. A pot filled with water and sprouts and crowned with green leaves and fruits became the symbol of abundance and good fortune. It was worshipped over 3000 years ago. It is still worshipped today. The gods, the ancient believed, had a pot that overflowed with grain and gold. It was called the Akshaya patra. They also had a pot brimming with Amrita, the nectar of immortality. Humans had neither. But they had amongst them women. Only women created life within them and ensured the survival of the next generation. Women were therefore a combination of Akshya patra and Amrita, holding in their bodies the promise of abundance and immortality for the family. Without a woman, a family perished. The family tree withered. It is strange that India today is obsessed with sons. In ancient times women were clearly more regarded than men. The survival of a tribe depended not on the number of men it had but women. So in the early days, women were given the choice to choose husbands. Those who were rejected turned to abducting or even buying women. The foremost form of wedding was considered to be one where the father gave his daughter to another family. It was a gift of Akshaya patra and Amrita. While the forest was equated with the wild goddess, the field was equated with the domesticated goddess. Forest was woman, field was wife. Forest was water in the pond, field was water in a pot. Field was the womb that sustained a village. It wasworshiped as humanitys Akshaya patra and Amrita, bringing forth wealth year after year. In autumn, as the rains recede and the crops are harvested, three things come together on nine nights: the pot, the woman and the field. In the centre of the field, the pot is placed filled with water and sprouts, and around it women dance in circular formation. They bend down and clap as they thank the earth and the cosmos and energize it with their happiness. This is garbo, the dance of the earth-womb. For nine nights one is reminded that the pot like the wife and the field are cultural constructions, not natural phenomena, created by man. If we do not respect all three, they will collapse. And it will be the end of civilization.

From chaos to order

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Corporate Dossier ET, July 30, 2010 Around 1500 BCE (Before Common Era, formerly known as BC or Before Christ), about the time the Rig Veda was reaching its final form in India, a tale was being told in Mesopotamia, the fertile plains watered by the Tigris and Euphrates, now modern Iraq. It was the tale known as Enuma Elis, or the Creation Myth of Babylon. It is believed that this story had a powerful impact on Greek myths as well as the Jewish Bible or Tanakh, eventually influencing what is now commonly known as Western thought. The story speaks of how the world, as we know it, came into being. It involved a great war in which Marduk led the new gods to defeat the old gods who were led by Tiamat. Tiamat is described as a monster. She was also the great mother of all gods; in her body resided all her children. All was well until the children made so much noise that the old gods demanded the destruction of the new gods. The first time this happened, Tiamat warned her children. The second time this happened, Tiamat, ordered her consort to destroy the new gods. The new gods rallied around Marduk who, after a furious fight, defeated Tiamat and her consort and all the old gods who sided with them. From the body of Tiamat, Marduk created the earth below and the sky above. Tiamats tears became the rivers Tigris and Euphrates. The blood of her consort was mixed with the red earth and from this was created humankind. As the spawn of the old gods, humanity was forced to serve the new gods forever. Failure to serve the new gods led to floods and storms. In this narrative, the old gods are associated with complacency and chaos. The new gods are associated with action and order. This story informs human behaviour when a new management takes over from the old management, usually after a violent struggle, either a boardroom brawl or a takeover. Either it can be the new generation taking over from the old generation, or it can be a new management brought in by the new majority shareholders. Though the stated objective is to maintain harmony and respect the old ways, the reality is a ruthless change, with the new guard holding the old guard in disdain. Marduk comes with his resplendent army, Tiamats old body provides shelter to the new world order, and the children born of her consorts blood are forced to submit. All this is objectively explained using excel sheets and power point presentations. A new vision is drawn up, and a new organization structure is galvanized to achieve the new objectives and goals. And since the old ways did not deliver, the old reporting structures, old processes and old measurements are discarded in favour of new ones. However, rational these actions may be, they fuel fear and insecurity. Egos are hurt. People leave the organization and those who stay behind mourn the passing of the golden age. The new gods mock the old ways, reminding all of the terrible state of affairs, the pathetic growth rate and the lacklustre balance sheets. Those who start working with the old gods are branded as traitors. And the new gods face many dilemmas do they reward loyalty or

talent, place talented members of the old management over the not-so-talented members of their team? Dileep is part of a consulting firm. He has overseen many mergers and acquisitions. Post an M&A, he always feels that he has entered a war zone. There are the conquerors and the conquered. There is arrogance on one side and fear on the other. What is most bewildering is how these emotions are ignored. Dileep remembers this post-merger workshop he was asked to conduct to identify a suitable sales reporting system for the new entity. The workshop was conducted using all tools of modern management forms had to be filled, SWOT analysis had to be done, scores had to be given, so that the final outcome would be objective, stripped of bias, hence acceptable to all. But the workshop was anything but objective. Yes, members of both organizations were forced to sit together but during coffee breaks the two tribes stayed away from each other. Dileep overheard people saying, Be smart. Just celebrate the reporting system that the new CEO likes. And you know which one that is. Beneath the veneer of objectivity, emotions were determining the choice of the sales reporting system. Marduks system won. Tiamats system was broken down.

Packaging Matters
Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Corporate Dossier ET, July 23, 2010 The sage Uttanka stood in the middle of the desert. He was suddenly thirsty. He remembered a promise made to him by Krishna long ago, I will bring you the nectar of the gods whenever you genuinely yearn for it. Yes, that is what Uttanka genuinely wanted at that moment: nectar of the gods. He shut his eyes and wished for it. He opened his eyes expecting a smiling Krishna to stand there with a cup brimming with sparkling nectar. There was no Krishna. There was no one, just a vast sandy emptiness stretching to the horizon. Uttanka was irritated. He shut his eyes once more and wished for nectar and remembered Krishna fervently. This time when he opened his eyes, he saw a beggar covered with filth holding a dirty

stinking bowl in his hand. It contained water. Drink, said the beggar, You look thirsty. Uttanka turned away from him, repelled by his ugliness. The beggar went away. Uttanka was now parched. In fury he yelled, Keep your promise, Krishna. A voice boomed from the sky, I did. I forced Indra to offer you a bowl of nectar. He just did. And you just refused. It dawned on Uttanaka that the filthy beggar who offered him a bowl of water was actually Indra offering him nectar. He had assumed how Indra should look. He had paid a price for his assumption. There are many Uttanakas in the corporate world, men who believe packaging is an indicator of content. Prashant is one such Uttanka. He is the owner of a medium sized BPO. One of his young executives, Suhas, came up with a wonderful idea of shift rotation to improve performance and reduce attrition. Suhas was a young man of twenty-six who had spent five years in the BPO learning the ropes. He did not know English but that did not matter since the calls he serviced were for the local market. He was not even a graduate; he could not afford to go to college and needed to work. He was hired by the organization because he came very cheap. But despite his background, Suhas was extremely sharp and sensitive. He recognized the problem that the BPO was facing and came up with a deceptively simple way of overcoming it. Unfortunately, when Suhas presented the solution to Prashant, he found himself being dismissed. Prashant did not even hear him out completely because he assumed someone as young, poor and barely qualified as Suhas could not possibly solve his problems. A year later, Prashant hired a consultant. After six months of investigation, the solution that emerged was exactly what Suhas had come up with almost eighteen months earlier. Prashant kicked himself for not listening to Suhas as he signed the cheque for his very expensive consultant. Sandeep, however, has accepted the existence of Uttankas in the market place. He has to deal with many governmental agencies. He knows that whenever he asks for an appointment, he will not get it. He will be shunted from one desk to another. Ministers and bureaucrats simply give him the run around. In frustration, he came up with a rather shallow idea. He hired Bob, a tall blonde big built bearded Australian youth, who was keen to gain some experience in third-world markets. Bob was given the designation of Chief Consumer Strategist. Every time Bob called the government agencies, he was given appointments. Sandeep knew it was because of his Australian drawl. Every time Bob entered the offices, along with Sandeep, he was taken straight to the minister or the senior bureaucrats, the very same people who never gave Sandeep the time of the day. In wry amusement, Sandeep observed how everyone ignored the fact that Bob was too young to be a Chief anything. Bob gave a small speech after which Sandeep made the real pitch. Invariably, the deal would go through. Sandeep was very happy. One day, he told Bob, They are so eager to impress the white guy that they are willing to sign on any paper. That makes you a very useful tool for my business. Bob did not feel bad at the racist jibe; he was learning an important lesson in marketing. For some people what matters more is the packaging, even at the cost of the content.

Hero with foresight

Nov 15, 2010 | Filed under Articles.

Published in Corporate Dossier ET, July 09, 2010 Greek mythology speaks of two brothers who were appointed benefactors of humankind by the Olympian gods. Their names were Epi-metheus and Pro-metheus. Epi-metheus means hindsight. Prometheus means foresight. Epi-metheus was given a bag of positive traits by Zeus. Give it to humanity, said Zeus. Epi-metheus made his way from Olympus down to the land of humans. On the way, he met plants and animals. Every plant and every animal he encountered asked him for a gift. So Epi-metheus, without thinking, granted them a positive trait from the bag given to him by Zeus. Every plant and every animal thanked him, and Epi-metheus felt good about himself. Finally he encountered humans, and to his surprise, he realized the bag of positive traits was empty. He had nothing to give humanity he had not realized the consequences of his actions, because he lacked foresight. To undo the damage, Pro-metheus gave humanity the gift of fire. Man became the only creature that could control fire. This knowledge made man more superior than all animals and plants. Zeus did not like this. He punished Pro-metheus brutally, tied him to a rock and declared that every day a vulture would eat his liver and every night his liver would regenerate. Thus he would suffer every day for the rest of eternity. Zeus then gave Epi-metheus a box. Give it to the first human you see. Tell them not to open the box. Epi-metheus, once again, without thinking gave the box to the first human he encountered. It was a woman called Pandora. But Pandora, like all humans, was curious, a trait that had developed in humans ever since they were able to control fire. She opened the box. Out flew all the ills of the world decay, destruction, disease, despair. She shut the lid quickly but by then the damage was done. All that remained in the box was hope and luck, ideas that would sustain humanity through its trials and tribulations. Every organization has a Pro-metheus and an Epi-metheus. Pro-metheus is he who thinks before a deed is done while Epi-metheus is he who thinks after the deed is done. Pro-metheus focuses on the future. Epi-metheus focuses on the past. Pro-metheus is a visionary, unafraid of the unknown. Epimetheus is an implementer, comfortable with the known. Everybody makes fun of a Pro-metheus, punishes him as Zeus did. Epi-metheus is dependable; he brings gifts for all that creates a false sense of comfort, and does not prepare you for surprises and accidents. When Rajiv presented his vision and business plan to his investors, he realized they were making fun of him. His ideas seemed too strange and bizarre. They said, Give us proof of the concept. They said, Can you tell us exactly how much will be the return on investment? Rajiv tried his best to answer the questions but his idea was a radical idea. No one had done this before. It was a new product. He would have to create a market for it. He had sensed peoples need for it. The need was not

explicit. It was a hidden need, waiting to be tapped. Rajiv is a Pro-metheus he can see what no one else can see. The investors before him are Epi-metheus they trust only what has already been seen. An Epi-metheus cannot innovate. He cannot come up with a new idea. He cannot imagine. He relies on memory. The case-study method followed in business schools is a creation of Epi-metheus, wisdom from hindsight. It is difficult to extrapolate knowledge of the past into the future because the situation in the future is unknown, unpredictable, uncertain unlike the situation of the past. All that an Epi-metheus can do is do what was done before but only better, and no one does it better than him. A Pro-metheus is a disruptor of the status quo. He brings fire and changes humanity for all time. He is therefore also a troublemaker, one who has to be restrained, for not all his experiments work. An investor may trust Rajiv but there is no guarantee that the business will succeed. Along with vision and hard-work, Rajiv will need heaps of hope and a bit of luck.