“Right Stuff” is a book written by Tom Wolfe in late 70s that won American book award for non-fiction. This is a story about about the pilots engaged in U.S. postwar experiments with experimental rocket-powered, high-speed aircraft.
This is a story set in 40s and 50s when the mortality rate of the test pilots was very high. They had a certain underlying belief that kept their morale up. They believed that the machine could never let you down and if you had the right stuff you will always survive; the unspoken and unwritten code of bravery and machismo that persuaded these men to ride atop dangerous rockets. In the foreword to a new edition published in 1983 at the time the film adaptation was released, Wolfe wrote that his "book grew out of some ordinary curiosity" about what "makes a man willing to sit up on top of an enormous Roman candle… and wait for someone to light the fuse.
The right stuff is not an algorithm that you can learn by heart. It is sum total of a variety of Attitudes, Knowledge and Skill.
What I intend to discuss in this article is a set of attributes that makes up the right stuff for a project man. These are not what Tom Wolf observed for an astronaut. These are some of my observations from my experience which I have grouped as the right stuff for the prject man. I don’t say this is comprehensive nor can I give you the recipe on how to mix this together.
When we try to identify the right stuff for the project man we need to first appreciate what is so uniquely different about Project Management in comparison with General Management. It is the ‘level of uncertainty’ which requires multiple skills to manage.
In this context of managing uncertainty let us look at the ‘stuff’ that makes the ‘right stuff?’
i. Don’t Give Up…
This represents your ability to persist and look out for a new window when one after another the windows close, because when you handle uncertainty you should be capable to continuously come up with new ideas and options. You should critically evaluate what works and dump the ones that don’t. Don’t get married to your ideas. Be ready to divorce, if the idea doesn’t work.
ii. The Seal Motto ..
My God, My Country, My team and then Me.
I’ve read somewhere that the most diversified commando force of the US government called the SEALS (on account of their proficiency in fighting in sea, land and air) have an ingrained order of sacrifice. First be ready to kill yourself for the sake of your team and then be ready to sacrifice the team for the country which stands only one step below God. (This may be a romanticized version of the story; or just plain fiction. But I like the relevance in this context)
Very often the priority chart for many is exactly in the reverse order. Ready to dump the company for your gang and ready to dump your gang for your self-interest.
You need the same S’EAL binding Philosophy’ as a team and commitment to a project to be a successful project man.
iii. Right Fighting Spirit
‘Fight when you Plan and Fight when you dissect. But when you implement, fight as one.’
As we are trying to manage high levels of uncertainty, the team should have the maturity and strength to put each idea to the furnace of critical evaluation and to dissect each mistake with the vengeance of a ruthless attorney.
At the same time when you take a decision, it should be a collective one. Each one should own the decision whether you supported the idea in the first place or not. No one should dare to work towards proving his point at the cost of implementation- no room for “I_told_u_so”
iv. Get Out of the Box.
Don’t get caught up in your ideas and stereotyped readymade solutions. Be willing to experiment beyond the ordinary, with focus on the end-result and not anything else.
v. Self Confidence
““Nothing great has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstances.” Bruce Barton
You need enormous self confidence to push ahead with what you believe is right. This is important to the leader as well as each member of the team.
vi. Show your Guts.
Project management need lots of guts to push and bully many uncommon ideas at uncommon speeds. You seldom gets chance to test out all your assumptions or point our credible references. Then your strength of conviction and the courage to take a position becomes very critical.
vii. Be in Synch
In projects the speed of change is quite high. The normal communication channel often fails in keeping each member updated about any new development. So each person should have the ability to judge the impact of any change in his area in the areas of others. He should take special effort to bring this to the attention of the affected party.
The project team should also have mechanisms in place to broadcast key developments to each member of the team.
viii. Fire in the belly
Every member of a project team should be a person with fire in the belly, a burning passion to make a difference and make things happen.
ix. Self Driven-SETI Vs Master Slave
Normal management structure often follows the Master Slave Model with the master distributing work and the slaves executing them. When a slave has a slack, he waits for a new job to be assigned and till then he is idling.
A project management team should follow the SETI@ home model (SETI @ home is a virus like program sitting in your computer, crunching numbers to support ‘Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence’ when your CPU is free from your work) polling his team for meaningful support when he has a slack.
x. Have Fun
Most important of all you should have fun in what you do. You should enjoy the challenges and the heartache as enriching experiences and not as sufferings in hell.
xi. Walk the Talk
A project manger should be a leader who leads from the front and not from the armchair. Be ready to roll up your sleeves and get grease in your hands.
xii. It is all in your mind..
Develop an attitude that takes pride in looking ahead and not rest on your laurels.
My favorite quote that portrays this spirit, is by Barnard Shaw
“I dread the word success. To have succeeded is to have finished one’s goal in life. Like the Male Spider that gets eaten up once it succeeds in its courtship. I like the world of continuous becoming. With a goal in front and not behind”
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
Relationships – Part II: Lessons from Arabian Nights
In the first part of this article I discussed the spectrum of relationship. It was not a thought that is new or a new revelation. It was meant to be a trigger, to remind ourselves that this is a critical issue that we often neglect or wish away although it has very high influence on the success of any team or any organization.
Some of my friends who took an effort to read this told me that though this was relevant there I have not introduced any solution or tool. I agree I did not provide any prescription drug the Cartesian world is comfortable with.
In managing relationship there cannot be any algorithm. The only true foundation on which a strong relationship can be nurtured is an awareness of the spectrum and the human tendency to drift to its wrong end; accepting what the Japs said. ”You go to office to make your boss look good and to make your sub feel wanted”
Be a giver and not just a taker.
Having said that, in this part II I would like to share two thoughts that came to my mind when I read the story ‘Arabian nights’ for my daughter. First of all, for those who do not remember the story let me narrate it as I remember.
Once upon a time there lived a king who loved his wife very much. Somewhere along the line he went for a long expedition, to conquer the world around him. When he came back from his expedition, he heard that his wife had an affair with his friend. He was devastated. He lost his faith in womanhood. He executed his wife immediately.
From that day, as an expression of his anger at the womenfolk he was on a trip of vengeance. He would marry a woman every day and kill her the very next day. It was the duty of his trusted minister to find a prey every day.
The life of the minister was really sad. He couldn’t stomach what was happening around him. But he could not control.
The minister had a beautiful daughter who was smart and witty. Let us call her Raisina She decided to give a try to change the king. He forced her father to get her married to the king.
She had expressed one wish as a condition to the marriage. Allow her younger sister Rubena to sleep in the next room on her wedding night. The king agreed and they got married. The next day at two in the morning the Rubena woke up and as planned asked Raisina to tell her a story; a last story. Raisina started her story; the story was gripping and when it was early morning and time for her to die the story had just reached the its moment of suspense. The big sis told Rubina, “My baby, it is time for me to go”
The story was so touching and the king too was enthralled. The king allowed one more day for her to complete that story. During the day Raisina went about her normal day and made her useful for the king’s court. The night fell and the story continued. One story was over and a new story started. Early in the morning the story reached suspense again. One more day is extended. It continued for 1001 days. And then king realized the worth of Raisina. They lived happily ever after.
Let me present the learning I got from this story. First, till such time you have a credible story you are alive any relationship will live only if there is a story that interesting to both parties. So start developing storylines..
What is the next take from this story? Don’t make sweeping judgment based on few incidences. Be willing to spend the ‘1001 nights’ before you make your conclusion.
In most of the relationship we have in our life, specially in our office relationship we seldom get this time. But one thing that we can try is to avoid jumping to conclusion on the basis of few incidences. What you observed as a behavior could only be an aberration. There could be an extenuating circumstance so on..
When you are willing to take this position, then there is hope that you may be able to nurture relations to work for you.
Some of my friends who took an effort to read this told me that though this was relevant there I have not introduced any solution or tool. I agree I did not provide any prescription drug the Cartesian world is comfortable with.
In managing relationship there cannot be any algorithm. The only true foundation on which a strong relationship can be nurtured is an awareness of the spectrum and the human tendency to drift to its wrong end; accepting what the Japs said. ”You go to office to make your boss look good and to make your sub feel wanted”
Be a giver and not just a taker.
Having said that, in this part II I would like to share two thoughts that came to my mind when I read the story ‘Arabian nights’ for my daughter. First of all, for those who do not remember the story let me narrate it as I remember.
Once upon a time there lived a king who loved his wife very much. Somewhere along the line he went for a long expedition, to conquer the world around him. When he came back from his expedition, he heard that his wife had an affair with his friend. He was devastated. He lost his faith in womanhood. He executed his wife immediately.
From that day, as an expression of his anger at the womenfolk he was on a trip of vengeance. He would marry a woman every day and kill her the very next day. It was the duty of his trusted minister to find a prey every day.
The life of the minister was really sad. He couldn’t stomach what was happening around him. But he could not control.
The minister had a beautiful daughter who was smart and witty. Let us call her Raisina She decided to give a try to change the king. He forced her father to get her married to the king.
She had expressed one wish as a condition to the marriage. Allow her younger sister Rubena to sleep in the next room on her wedding night. The king agreed and they got married. The next day at two in the morning the Rubena woke up and as planned asked Raisina to tell her a story; a last story. Raisina started her story; the story was gripping and when it was early morning and time for her to die the story had just reached the its moment of suspense. The big sis told Rubina, “My baby, it is time for me to go”
The story was so touching and the king too was enthralled. The king allowed one more day for her to complete that story. During the day Raisina went about her normal day and made her useful for the king’s court. The night fell and the story continued. One story was over and a new story started. Early in the morning the story reached suspense again. One more day is extended. It continued for 1001 days. And then king realized the worth of Raisina. They lived happily ever after.
Let me present the learning I got from this story. First, till such time you have a credible story you are alive any relationship will live only if there is a story that interesting to both parties. So start developing storylines..
What is the next take from this story? Don’t make sweeping judgment based on few incidences. Be willing to spend the ‘1001 nights’ before you make your conclusion.
In most of the relationship we have in our life, specially in our office relationship we seldom get this time. But one thing that we can try is to avoid jumping to conclusion on the basis of few incidences. What you observed as a behavior could only be an aberration. There could be an extenuating circumstance so on..
When you are willing to take this position, then there is hope that you may be able to nurture relations to work for you.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Relationships- Part I: Bonding with the Boss
Managing and maintaining relations is a challenge; whether it is the relation between husband and wife or boss and subordinate or just between friends. How successful we are in this will determine how strong this team is. In private life if the relations sour the parties drift apart. If it is a family then the family may breaks down. In organization whose success critically depends on the interactions among the human beings, the challenge is manifold and a failure could lead to its degeneration.
In this article I don’t plan to discuss the whole gamut of relations; but just focus on the relation between boss and immediate subordinate. Especially, high up in the hierarchy where this gets to be more complex. If the sub is equally or more competent then managing the relation gets to be even more difficult.
A healthy team at the top is a blessing for the organization. They gel well guiding the organization to greater heights. The subs support the boss and help to implement their shared vision. The boss guides and encourages the sub in this endeavor. Thus the relationship is tightly coupled and complementary. As the Japanese say, ”You go to office to make your boss look good and to make your sub feel wanted”.
There can be many examples of such winning combinations. Infosys top management succession is a good example for this. Narayanamoorthi as the head of the organization lead from the front for a long time. At the same time, Nandan, Kris, Mohandas etc who were part of Infy from the beginning played critical role in making Infy a great company. Over the period this team ensured that each of these senior players was growing in stature both within and outside the company. This has helped in the smooth transition of the captainship of the company multiple times. Moorthy and Nandan who have now moved over from the executive positions, are still there as mentors and at the same time their credibility and stature has reached such exalted levels that they are able to contribute in a significant fashion to the policy map of India. I think this particular dimension of managing the relationships has been one of the key contributors of its astounding success.
It looks so obvious and simple. But it is one of the most difficult challenges. We looked at one end of the spectrum. Now let look at the other end of the spectrum. What are the risks that derail the relationship?
The sub may feel that the boss is there more by an accident of age or seniority. So he tries to belittle the boss and strives hard to prove him wrong. The game to make the boss look like and asshole is in full swing. You hide key info from him. Make a big story about the mistakes he made. Does it help? Most often not. It would be just counterproductive. If you take an effort to prove that your boss is an idiot, you are proving to be a bigger idiot for working for him.
The boss may feel that the sub is a threat to him or that he doesn’t play to his tune. Then lots of his energy goes in neutralizing the sub. You belittle him in front of the team or even outsiders. You don’t involve him in key deliberations. You go out of your way to ensure that he doesn’t grow in stature within or without. You rely more on outside experts and make him feel small. Does this help? No. It only dissipates the energy within the organization. The sub no more is your alley. He will work towards torpedoing your plans. He will never give his best. You need to remember your sub who is ready to give his life for you and the organization can be your biggest asset. (I assume that your sub is worth this respect. If not, you are to blame for having him there in the first place) when you help him to grow you grow too.
The reality is seldom at either end of the spectrum. It is a floating point that dances all along the spectrum. The success of the team depends on how both the boss and the sub fully absorbs and appreciates the essence of this continuum; analyze their relationship in this framework and work towards keeping the course steady. Then the relationship grows in trust and the teams become a winning combination and avoid game of one-upmanship.
In this article I don’t plan to discuss the whole gamut of relations; but just focus on the relation between boss and immediate subordinate. Especially, high up in the hierarchy where this gets to be more complex. If the sub is equally or more competent then managing the relation gets to be even more difficult.
A healthy team at the top is a blessing for the organization. They gel well guiding the organization to greater heights. The subs support the boss and help to implement their shared vision. The boss guides and encourages the sub in this endeavor. Thus the relationship is tightly coupled and complementary. As the Japanese say, ”You go to office to make your boss look good and to make your sub feel wanted”.
There can be many examples of such winning combinations. Infosys top management succession is a good example for this. Narayanamoorthi as the head of the organization lead from the front for a long time. At the same time, Nandan, Kris, Mohandas etc who were part of Infy from the beginning played critical role in making Infy a great company. Over the period this team ensured that each of these senior players was growing in stature both within and outside the company. This has helped in the smooth transition of the captainship of the company multiple times. Moorthy and Nandan who have now moved over from the executive positions, are still there as mentors and at the same time their credibility and stature has reached such exalted levels that they are able to contribute in a significant fashion to the policy map of India. I think this particular dimension of managing the relationships has been one of the key contributors of its astounding success.
It looks so obvious and simple. But it is one of the most difficult challenges. We looked at one end of the spectrum. Now let look at the other end of the spectrum. What are the risks that derail the relationship?
The sub may feel that the boss is there more by an accident of age or seniority. So he tries to belittle the boss and strives hard to prove him wrong. The game to make the boss look like and asshole is in full swing. You hide key info from him. Make a big story about the mistakes he made. Does it help? Most often not. It would be just counterproductive. If you take an effort to prove that your boss is an idiot, you are proving to be a bigger idiot for working for him.
The boss may feel that the sub is a threat to him or that he doesn’t play to his tune. Then lots of his energy goes in neutralizing the sub. You belittle him in front of the team or even outsiders. You don’t involve him in key deliberations. You go out of your way to ensure that he doesn’t grow in stature within or without. You rely more on outside experts and make him feel small. Does this help? No. It only dissipates the energy within the organization. The sub no more is your alley. He will work towards torpedoing your plans. He will never give his best. You need to remember your sub who is ready to give his life for you and the organization can be your biggest asset. (I assume that your sub is worth this respect. If not, you are to blame for having him there in the first place) when you help him to grow you grow too.
The reality is seldom at either end of the spectrum. It is a floating point that dances all along the spectrum. The success of the team depends on how both the boss and the sub fully absorbs and appreciates the essence of this continuum; analyze their relationship in this framework and work towards keeping the course steady. Then the relationship grows in trust and the teams become a winning combination and avoid game of one-upmanship.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Can you blame me.. (Fiction)
When I first saw him at the pet store in a small little cage cuddled up in a corner, he looked like bundle of cotton. Suddenly this bundle of joy was up and running towards us. That naughty little cuddly face reached out to lick my extended palms which send an electric shock up my spine. I knew I had fallen in love. The shriek of excitement from my baby daughter who was near me, made it clear that that she shared the same sentiments.
We took him home with no hesitation. Soon he became a part of our family. The perfect companion for my daughter, the one I look forward to meet when I return home.
He is so quiet and gentle. He barks a bit when he feels ignored. Even that is so gentle and it doesn’t irk me at all.
He runs to me in the morning when he sees my eyes open. He is out with me when I go to make my morning coffee.
He tags along with me all around the house. He waits outside the loo patiently till I am out and he is beside us when we sit down for a round of loo.
He jumps up and runs to me any time I call, irrespective of what he is doing. He is too happy to put his affectionate face on my lap and be there till I tell him to buzz off.
He gets excited when some bitches passes by. But if I call he is back to me with a sheepish grin.
When I am angry I shout a bit. But never does he shout back.
Even if I kick him in anger (which I will never do) I know he will not hold it against me.
He doesn’t spend the whole day in office. He is always there when I call him.
He doesn’t go out gallivanting with friends. He is happy to come out with me any time I want or anywhere I want.
He protests, but doesn’t make an issue when I want to be out with my friends.
He doesn’t go for binges or stag parties leaving me alone at home.
He is not too finicky about food. No complaints on what is cooked at home.
He looks so handsome and that make my friends jealous.
Can you blame me for caring for my dog more than my husband!!
We took him home with no hesitation. Soon he became a part of our family. The perfect companion for my daughter, the one I look forward to meet when I return home.
He is so quiet and gentle. He barks a bit when he feels ignored. Even that is so gentle and it doesn’t irk me at all.
He runs to me in the morning when he sees my eyes open. He is out with me when I go to make my morning coffee.
He tags along with me all around the house. He waits outside the loo patiently till I am out and he is beside us when we sit down for a round of loo.
He jumps up and runs to me any time I call, irrespective of what he is doing. He is too happy to put his affectionate face on my lap and be there till I tell him to buzz off.
He gets excited when some bitches passes by. But if I call he is back to me with a sheepish grin.
When I am angry I shout a bit. But never does he shout back.
Even if I kick him in anger (which I will never do) I know he will not hold it against me.
He doesn’t spend the whole day in office. He is always there when I call him.
He doesn’t go out gallivanting with friends. He is happy to come out with me any time I want or anywhere I want.
He protests, but doesn’t make an issue when I want to be out with my friends.
He doesn’t go for binges or stag parties leaving me alone at home.
He is not too finicky about food. No complaints on what is cooked at home.
He looks so handsome and that make my friends jealous.
Can you blame me for caring for my dog more than my husband!!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Teeth to the RTI Act..
I had been to Indonesia recently for a holiday. My visit was not just to Jakarta the capital city. I visited a number of small towns around Sumatra Island. One thing that struck me (other than the scenic beauty all around) in most parts of Indonesia that I have visited, both in main town and small villages, is the condition of the roads. It is quite good in comparison with the Indian roads; especially in comparison with the Mumbai roads that I am familiar with. I found this quite surprising, although this is an equally (if not more) corrupt country and also has torrential rains like we have in India.
Mostly these roads were constructed during the regime of Suharto who had to relinquish office in late nineties on account of allegations including rampant corruption and nepotism. However, during long years of autocratic rule of Suharto, he gave enormous focus to development of the country and its infrastructure. He also insisted on good quality implementation. As the corruption in most of the projects was on and above the cost for implementation, there was not much compromise in quality. In India the contracts are awarded mostly to the lowest quote. With rampant corruption in many of the projects, the quality of implementation suffers and it is less transparent and difficult to prove.
We need to find a solution to this dilemma. How can we strengthen the quality of implementation of our public good projects without compromising the democratic governance we have established successfully? Is it a part of our culture not to have civic sense?
One of the prime reasons for this could be the lack of proper regulatory framework which is manned with experts and enabled with necessary enforcement powers. The right kind of law enforced by the right kind of guy.
The next problem is the low and time consuming conviction rate, especially that of white collar crimes. With such poor probability of conviction there is very little incentive for compliance. But the upside profit potential act as an incentive for cheating on quality of implementation in most of the public contracts.
It is easy to hope for a total transformation in enforcement, judicial processes and its turnaround time. But will be a bit impractical to expect any quick change in the habits and practices of a large cross section of section of the society. Because it involves human beings and their values; both of which un-predictable.
Let us address the factors that are more predictable. The first one is the legal framework itself. It is important that we get the governing framework right ie; the rules of the game. If we ensure that this is clear and enforceable, the foundation becomes strong.
The next key factor that provides stability is transparency. Transparency in public expenditure; how much, for which project, paid to whom and with what outcome. Let this be out made public to strengthen the hand of the concerned citizens, watchful NGOs and the fourth estate.
The right to information act (RTI) is a good beginning in this direction. However the paucity in infrastructure in meeting the demand of information blunts its cutting edge, although it acts as a strong enabler. In many places, the human interface either stonewalls the inquiry or the requests get buried under paper.
Information technology can play a major role in here. We could establish a system for tracking the development projects undertaken by the government into a central repository. If we establish such a central repository then it would be easy for making this information available online, on demand. Such an online dissemination of information can be the driving force for decentralized social audit, by the people whose life is affected by each of these projects. It then is no more under the mercy of disinterested bureaucrats for whom these projects are often milking cows or at best job to do or a statistic to report.
The transparency portal established by the Brazilian government is an excellent example for such an initiative. From the feedback of some of my friends who visited Brazil recently, this portal really works and contributes to reduction in corruption.
The whole cost for establishment of such a system would only be few tens of millions and benefits that the society will enjoy will be hundreds of times the cost.
Mostly these roads were constructed during the regime of Suharto who had to relinquish office in late nineties on account of allegations including rampant corruption and nepotism. However, during long years of autocratic rule of Suharto, he gave enormous focus to development of the country and its infrastructure. He also insisted on good quality implementation. As the corruption in most of the projects was on and above the cost for implementation, there was not much compromise in quality. In India the contracts are awarded mostly to the lowest quote. With rampant corruption in many of the projects, the quality of implementation suffers and it is less transparent and difficult to prove.
We need to find a solution to this dilemma. How can we strengthen the quality of implementation of our public good projects without compromising the democratic governance we have established successfully? Is it a part of our culture not to have civic sense?
One of the prime reasons for this could be the lack of proper regulatory framework which is manned with experts and enabled with necessary enforcement powers. The right kind of law enforced by the right kind of guy.
The next problem is the low and time consuming conviction rate, especially that of white collar crimes. With such poor probability of conviction there is very little incentive for compliance. But the upside profit potential act as an incentive for cheating on quality of implementation in most of the public contracts.
It is easy to hope for a total transformation in enforcement, judicial processes and its turnaround time. But will be a bit impractical to expect any quick change in the habits and practices of a large cross section of section of the society. Because it involves human beings and their values; both of which un-predictable.
Let us address the factors that are more predictable. The first one is the legal framework itself. It is important that we get the governing framework right ie; the rules of the game. If we ensure that this is clear and enforceable, the foundation becomes strong.
The next key factor that provides stability is transparency. Transparency in public expenditure; how much, for which project, paid to whom and with what outcome. Let this be out made public to strengthen the hand of the concerned citizens, watchful NGOs and the fourth estate.
The right to information act (RTI) is a good beginning in this direction. However the paucity in infrastructure in meeting the demand of information blunts its cutting edge, although it acts as a strong enabler. In many places, the human interface either stonewalls the inquiry or the requests get buried under paper.
Information technology can play a major role in here. We could establish a system for tracking the development projects undertaken by the government into a central repository. If we establish such a central repository then it would be easy for making this information available online, on demand. Such an online dissemination of information can be the driving force for decentralized social audit, by the people whose life is affected by each of these projects. It then is no more under the mercy of disinterested bureaucrats for whom these projects are often milking cows or at best job to do or a statistic to report.
The transparency portal established by the Brazilian government is an excellent example for such an initiative. From the feedback of some of my friends who visited Brazil recently, this portal really works and contributes to reduction in corruption.
The whole cost for establishment of such a system would only be few tens of millions and benefits that the society will enjoy will be hundreds of times the cost.
It Made Sense...
Government of India has announced that only those officers who have at least one year of service left will be eligible to be selected to the post of chairman of CBDT and CBEC. A very sensible decision indeed. In the absence of such a rule, the post of chairman had become almost of joke. In the last two years there had been four chairmen for CBDT and during this current calendar year there would have been four more. With each of them being there only for few months, these posts ceased to have any meaning except to those who adorned that chair for few months. For them, it gave a feeling of pride and satisfaction at the end of a long career. A parting gift; but not an opportunity to make any difference. Often they just had time to attend the farewell functions as the chairman.
In my view, this is just a beginning. As the head of an agency responsible for revenue collection, it is practically impossible for any person to develop and implement any sensible policy decisions even in one year. Therefore, a chairman should be given a term of five years (or at least three years) like the head of regulatory bodies like SEBI.
The incumbent should be selected based on his past performance, merit and potential and not on the basis of rank in the civil list which is only a measure of how well he did in the civil service examination about 30 years ago.
The government may also consider bringing some fresh talents in these posts; like the head of internal revenue service is selected even from outside the service (even outside government) in countries like United States. The idea is not to deny the opportunity for the service people. But ensure that there is a process in place for the selection of a deserving candidate.
A related issue is the career progression of civil servants. Today in most of the services the promotions at every level are based primarily on the rank in civil list in each cadre. In fact, one of my friends explained to me that they have developed a computer based utility which also has a database of rank in the civil list and age of their cadre officers. This utility can chart the career progression till retirement with reasonable confidence barring for the unfortunate death of or disciplinary action against any serving officers.
With such strong disincentive for performance, it is surprising that there are still many officers who really work hard and try to make a difference and not to push private agenda. But this is today a rare breed that you site not so often.
Therefore, the HR policies for the civil servants should also seriously consider merit based career growth. At the entrance level the institutionalized process of selection is truly merit based (Although the level of the people taking the exams has significantly dropped in the recent past). The annual CR is almost a farce. Except in cases where the boss has an axe to grind, the annual rating is mostly excellent for everybody.
This total lack of compulsion for results or upgrade of domain knowledge, transforms these bright kids who once qualified in one of most competitive selection process to change their focus to deal making, developing patronage and pushing private agendas. They realize that it is more important to cultivate godfathers from the service and political masters. In an environment that is changing so fast, they soon get outdated. And these outdated minds often based on superficial understanding of issues make key decisions and force it down using the power associated with the government. (This is not to be taken as a sweeping statement. There are many exceptions to this rule; but as per the admission of many insiders, this has become an exception than a rule)
I appreciate the perils of promotions and postings on the basis of performance which may be misused to shelf good officers or boost corrupt or pliant officers. I am sure just like the rigorous process of selection; the government can constitute an evaluation mechanism administered by an impartial team which measures the performance and potential of the officers. May be not for every promotion; at least for two or three jumps (or drops) in a career span of 30 years can be based on merits. Going forward, this evaluation should also throw up mechanism for ejecting the poor performers out of the system
In my view, this is just a beginning. As the head of an agency responsible for revenue collection, it is practically impossible for any person to develop and implement any sensible policy decisions even in one year. Therefore, a chairman should be given a term of five years (or at least three years) like the head of regulatory bodies like SEBI.
The incumbent should be selected based on his past performance, merit and potential and not on the basis of rank in the civil list which is only a measure of how well he did in the civil service examination about 30 years ago.
The government may also consider bringing some fresh talents in these posts; like the head of internal revenue service is selected even from outside the service (even outside government) in countries like United States. The idea is not to deny the opportunity for the service people. But ensure that there is a process in place for the selection of a deserving candidate.
A related issue is the career progression of civil servants. Today in most of the services the promotions at every level are based primarily on the rank in civil list in each cadre. In fact, one of my friends explained to me that they have developed a computer based utility which also has a database of rank in the civil list and age of their cadre officers. This utility can chart the career progression till retirement with reasonable confidence barring for the unfortunate death of or disciplinary action against any serving officers.
With such strong disincentive for performance, it is surprising that there are still many officers who really work hard and try to make a difference and not to push private agenda. But this is today a rare breed that you site not so often.
Therefore, the HR policies for the civil servants should also seriously consider merit based career growth. At the entrance level the institutionalized process of selection is truly merit based (Although the level of the people taking the exams has significantly dropped in the recent past). The annual CR is almost a farce. Except in cases where the boss has an axe to grind, the annual rating is mostly excellent for everybody.
This total lack of compulsion for results or upgrade of domain knowledge, transforms these bright kids who once qualified in one of most competitive selection process to change their focus to deal making, developing patronage and pushing private agendas. They realize that it is more important to cultivate godfathers from the service and political masters. In an environment that is changing so fast, they soon get outdated. And these outdated minds often based on superficial understanding of issues make key decisions and force it down using the power associated with the government. (This is not to be taken as a sweeping statement. There are many exceptions to this rule; but as per the admission of many insiders, this has become an exception than a rule)
I appreciate the perils of promotions and postings on the basis of performance which may be misused to shelf good officers or boost corrupt or pliant officers. I am sure just like the rigorous process of selection; the government can constitute an evaluation mechanism administered by an impartial team which measures the performance and potential of the officers. May be not for every promotion; at least for two or three jumps (or drops) in a career span of 30 years can be based on merits. Going forward, this evaluation should also throw up mechanism for ejecting the poor performers out of the system
Friday, February 6, 2009
Of beggars being choosers… (fiction)
Summer has gradually set in. The day is nearly unbearable, but the strong cold wind from the snow-clad Himalayas still manages to keep the evenings cool.
After a grueling day at the office, crunching numbers and making strategies to con my unwilling brothers, I was eagerly awaiting for a pleasant evening with a beautiful damsel who has agreed for an evening outing. She also, like me, is a yuppie looking for an intellectual companionship. The fact that we belong to opposite sex adds spice to the intellectual deliberations for the evening (after all, the spice is what makes the food tasty).
The dress code for the new breed is quite different from the conventional romantic couple out for a date. Levi jeans (torn), T-shirt and leather chappals with carefully tousled casual looking hairstyle. Natural setting is the ‘in thing’ these days. Unable to go far away from the city, we decided to compromise for the mundane Nehru Park, which I must say is a poor substitute.
After a stroll along the length and breadth of the park, we finally found a place without much intrusion into our privacy. The small talk ranges from trends in modern Indian cinema to Advaita to management theory (you see we are an intellectual duo).
And then he comes.
The pyjama is torn, stitched all around. Haven’t had a bath for days. A pleading look in his eyes, he is trying to earn his livelihood. He sees both of us sitting in a cozy chair, deeply involved in talking.
But he is quite an intelligent fellow. He approaches me straight. Tells me that he hasn’t had anything to eat the whole day. He is trying to strum the soft cords of my hearts at its social consciousness. I just can’t help showing how magnanimous a gentleman I am. Casually I handed over a one rupee note to him, hoping that he will fall at my legs with gratitude.
“What Sir, a good dinner at the dhaba would cost me five rupees, the cigarette you are smoking costs three rupees, are you not giving me the cost of even one cigarette. You privileged one, is this your great generosity”………….
He seems to be going into a lecture on the increase in cost of living and the exploitation of the poor by the ills like me.
The lady with me is having a hearty laugh at me squirming at his harangue. I was desperately trying to find a way to save my face.
Who told you, beggars cannot be choosers!!
After a grueling day at the office, crunching numbers and making strategies to con my unwilling brothers, I was eagerly awaiting for a pleasant evening with a beautiful damsel who has agreed for an evening outing. She also, like me, is a yuppie looking for an intellectual companionship. The fact that we belong to opposite sex adds spice to the intellectual deliberations for the evening (after all, the spice is what makes the food tasty).
The dress code for the new breed is quite different from the conventional romantic couple out for a date. Levi jeans (torn), T-shirt and leather chappals with carefully tousled casual looking hairstyle. Natural setting is the ‘in thing’ these days. Unable to go far away from the city, we decided to compromise for the mundane Nehru Park, which I must say is a poor substitute.
After a stroll along the length and breadth of the park, we finally found a place without much intrusion into our privacy. The small talk ranges from trends in modern Indian cinema to Advaita to management theory (you see we are an intellectual duo).
And then he comes.
The pyjama is torn, stitched all around. Haven’t had a bath for days. A pleading look in his eyes, he is trying to earn his livelihood. He sees both of us sitting in a cozy chair, deeply involved in talking.
But he is quite an intelligent fellow. He approaches me straight. Tells me that he hasn’t had anything to eat the whole day. He is trying to strum the soft cords of my hearts at its social consciousness. I just can’t help showing how magnanimous a gentleman I am. Casually I handed over a one rupee note to him, hoping that he will fall at my legs with gratitude.
“What Sir, a good dinner at the dhaba would cost me five rupees, the cigarette you are smoking costs three rupees, are you not giving me the cost of even one cigarette. You privileged one, is this your great generosity”………….
He seems to be going into a lecture on the increase in cost of living and the exploitation of the poor by the ills like me.
The lady with me is having a hearty laugh at me squirming at his harangue. I was desperately trying to find a way to save my face.
Who told you, beggars cannot be choosers!!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Tale of two towns
Creation of wealth..
Once upon a time there were two villages. Rampur and Sitapur. These were about 25 kms from each other. The people of these villages were poor. They mostly confined their lives to their own village. A local lad of Rampur called Ram fell in love with Sita of the same village. They belonged to different castes and the families did not see eye to eye. They knew that they could not think about a family in Rampur. So both of them ran away to Sitapur and lived happily ever after.
The parents were initially very upset so they decided not to think about the kids. Little by little Ram’s parents melted. One day they set out searching for their son and reached Sitapur. It was an adventurous trip. They managed to trace Ram and family. When they came back they had a lot of stories about the life in Sitapur. Especially about the beautiful waterfall outside the village and the dramas that the local kids organize during weekends. Next time they went as a group. Ram’s father who was a cobbler took some nice chappals he made and found that there were many keen to buy. Eventually the people figured out that travel between the villages was fun and brought some opportunities for business too.
The people were mostly poor and the commute was on foot. The village panchayats got together to build a road to connect both these villages. This road had nice trees on the side to provide shades. Some people set up small coffee and juice shops along the way, to add to the comfort the commuters. Some enterprising people set up regular service of bullock carts to connect the villages. Suddenly the travel time between the villages dropped drastically.
More people were travelling. Now we have more bullock carts out in the road. Some even have nice cushions to relax. In one bullock cart the driver would sing nice kavali songs all along the way. There are more shops along the streets. Nice jain vegetarian restaurants, and excellent kabab joints. Shops to fit all pockets.
Inter village trade flourished. Ram’s father, the cobbler in Rampur decided to set up a shoe factory and he built a big shed. He got youngsters who were normally wasting times at the street to stitch shoes. He started selling these shoes Sitapur too. Eventually every month one bullock cart load of shoes was being sold in Sitapur. The cobbler now set up training school to teach how to make shoes.
In Sitapur the kirana wala opened a showroom for shoes branded with the name of his daughter with Ram’s father supplying him the shoes.
The local chemist at Sitapur sent his son to the homeopathy college and now he is back running a small clinic.
Utopia in making…
These villages are now small towns and are getting noticed as people are getting richer. These towns were situated in a great country where the government had vouched that it will work to touch the lives of every citizen. Their long caring arms stretched out to these two towns.
A bus service was introduced between the Rampur and Sitapur which was run by the government transport corporation from the capital. Wow, the trip takes even shorter time. The bus company issued season tickets to the regular travelers.
The government ruled that only restaurants with permits will be allowed to be operational along the road so that they could control the price and the quality of food. They fixed the price for each food item and the government food inspectors regularly inspected the quality of food.
The government concluded that Ram’s father was exploiting the workers and the Shoe factory was nationalized. The government guaranteed minimum wages for each factory worker. Further, it prescribed very strict approval processes in place that it was practically impossible for anybody else to put up a shoe factory.
The benevolent government frowned upon commercializing education and shoe training school was taken over by education department and now there is no fee for any students.
Homeopath doctor was arrested as he could not show the certificate he got from the college and the government established a dispensary where every patient was treated free.
Now that the government has started regular bus service it banned the bullock cart service which was exploiting the poor travelers.
Truly an utopia
Reality Hits…
The capacity of the buses was not enough to meet the growing demand. Some enterprising bullock cart owners were running services on the sly. They were able get along with this so long as they paid a hafta regularly to the police from the capital.
The regular travelers set up an association to strengthen their rights. They were able to get a ruling from the government that only the association members could get season tickets in future and only they could travel by bus. With the strength of the union many of them stopped paying for the travel and some of them even pulled out seats as sofas for home. In spite of the increase in cost of running these buses, the government was so kind and they did not increase the bus charge at all.
With ticket sales so poor and spiraling operating cost, the government transport company did not have enough money to buy new buses or even repair the ones on the road.
Capacity so limited, there was a trouble brewing from various quarters. The government came out with policies reserving seats for each of the dominant groups. Naturally the impact these groups had in the annual elections was one of the main qualifying criteria. With each new party vying with each other to increase the reservation, at the end of it there were very few who were left without reservation.
To ensure that the reservation policy was not mis-used by un-deserving candidates, the government established a department to issue eligibility certificates. In fact this department was headed by member of the civil service. This department also helped creation of many government jobs and spawned entrepreneurs who acted as agents who helped you to get any certificate at a price.
The new shoe factory managing director who was on deputation from the civil service from the centre had no idea of running a shoe business or rather any business. But he had variety of specialized knowledge honed by his wide ranging experience. He developed a wonderful five year plans for the progress of the company. He identified export opportunities in production of Ski boots. He immediately arranged to import machines from Italy to make these ski boots. The knowledge that he acquired for this project by visiting many European countries has been an asset for the ambitious growth plans for this shoe factory. To avoid distraction during the study tour, he had taken his whole family with him. Even the local MP who is also in the board of the company accompanied the MD.
He established procurement division for hide and got the government to issue an order that hide can be sold only to this authorized procurement agency. He got his wife’s brother who is also member of the elite civil service (trained to collect revenue for the government) to head this procurement agency. Being a revenue service officer he could really understand cost and revenue. As the hide could not be sold to any other agency, the shoe factory could ensure that they got the hide at the price they preferred and get special favors for just having bought it.
The unions ensured that the wages kept up with rising inflation. With shoe making nationalized, there was no competition for shoe supply. The managing director allotted chain of shoe distribution shops. These were allotted to the relatives of the union leaders and the political masters.
As the shoes were used by common men, the government shoe factory sold them at prices below the cost price. But with production far lower than the demand, they fetched a very high premium in the market and the distributers made mother loads of profits. But they also cared for the interest of the country and made sure that they made monthly contribution for all the party funds.
Naturally the shoe factory was making losses. But it is supposed to make loss. Profit making is for the profiteers and government cannot be in profiteering.
The shoe training institutes set up with generous grants from the central government failed only in one thing. To teach how to make shoes. All the directors of the institute have now gone for a tour to North America for inputs on how to better this institute. Mind you, the whole study tour is funded by World Bank. In fact the World Bank is also assigning an international consulting company to undertake a worldwide study and develop a rehabilitation package. However with no fee, no research projects and no corporate funding the sustenance was critically dependent on government support. With changing priorities this was not a sustainable model.
Those who wanted to learn how to make shoes now had to go for private tuition. The rich among them sent their children abroad for studies. Of course these were set up by the teachers from the government training institute. These teachers had lots of time for such private tuitions as they had to visit the institute only once a month to collect the salary.
But it was important for each aspiring student to get admission in the institute as they were the only one authorized to give a certificate which was acceptable. With many children queuing up to get admission, the school could not cope up with the demand. Here again the government came in with policies of reservation which now had now a mass appeal.
The government dispensary has everything except the doctors. There are doctors posted here. But they seldom come here. They are busy with their private practice.
I narrated this story about the challenges of Governance to my little daughter. She looked up at me innocently and exclaimed. “Dad, the government seems to be doing what you do with me. Interfering and doing many things that you are not supposed to do. Your guidance is great and helpful. As I always tell you, if you stop this un-necessary interference, you will see wonders. Don’t you think the villages were doing better when the interference was limited and that the local people managed their affairs better?”
I say could not disagree with her on this. This problem is not just in Rampur and Sitapur. It is the problem of the whole country. The recipe for the public policy often appears to be as follows. First policies that lead to scarcity are made. Then you make policies to manage this scarcity. The policies that buy you votes and provide opportunities for rent seeking.
The controversy on reservation is a case in point. The real issue behind reservation is not about affirmative action. It is about scarcity. There are about 100 to 150 thousand new recruitments for both central and state government. We declare reservation for this. Instead make the environment conducive for employment creation (not in government). Instead of trying to make policies those create more schools and better schools we end up trying restrict schools and reduce the standard of the schools.
We see the same pattern in a variety of areas. From health, to education to labor policies. In summary what we we need is a shift in focus to policy that remove scarcity and enable access.
Once upon a time there were two villages. Rampur and Sitapur. These were about 25 kms from each other. The people of these villages were poor. They mostly confined their lives to their own village. A local lad of Rampur called Ram fell in love with Sita of the same village. They belonged to different castes and the families did not see eye to eye. They knew that they could not think about a family in Rampur. So both of them ran away to Sitapur and lived happily ever after.
The parents were initially very upset so they decided not to think about the kids. Little by little Ram’s parents melted. One day they set out searching for their son and reached Sitapur. It was an adventurous trip. They managed to trace Ram and family. When they came back they had a lot of stories about the life in Sitapur. Especially about the beautiful waterfall outside the village and the dramas that the local kids organize during weekends. Next time they went as a group. Ram’s father who was a cobbler took some nice chappals he made and found that there were many keen to buy. Eventually the people figured out that travel between the villages was fun and brought some opportunities for business too.
The people were mostly poor and the commute was on foot. The village panchayats got together to build a road to connect both these villages. This road had nice trees on the side to provide shades. Some people set up small coffee and juice shops along the way, to add to the comfort the commuters. Some enterprising people set up regular service of bullock carts to connect the villages. Suddenly the travel time between the villages dropped drastically.
More people were travelling. Now we have more bullock carts out in the road. Some even have nice cushions to relax. In one bullock cart the driver would sing nice kavali songs all along the way. There are more shops along the streets. Nice jain vegetarian restaurants, and excellent kabab joints. Shops to fit all pockets.
Inter village trade flourished. Ram’s father, the cobbler in Rampur decided to set up a shoe factory and he built a big shed. He got youngsters who were normally wasting times at the street to stitch shoes. He started selling these shoes Sitapur too. Eventually every month one bullock cart load of shoes was being sold in Sitapur. The cobbler now set up training school to teach how to make shoes.
In Sitapur the kirana wala opened a showroom for shoes branded with the name of his daughter with Ram’s father supplying him the shoes.
The local chemist at Sitapur sent his son to the homeopathy college and now he is back running a small clinic.
Utopia in making…
These villages are now small towns and are getting noticed as people are getting richer. These towns were situated in a great country where the government had vouched that it will work to touch the lives of every citizen. Their long caring arms stretched out to these two towns.
A bus service was introduced between the Rampur and Sitapur which was run by the government transport corporation from the capital. Wow, the trip takes even shorter time. The bus company issued season tickets to the regular travelers.
The government ruled that only restaurants with permits will be allowed to be operational along the road so that they could control the price and the quality of food. They fixed the price for each food item and the government food inspectors regularly inspected the quality of food.
The government concluded that Ram’s father was exploiting the workers and the Shoe factory was nationalized. The government guaranteed minimum wages for each factory worker. Further, it prescribed very strict approval processes in place that it was practically impossible for anybody else to put up a shoe factory.
The benevolent government frowned upon commercializing education and shoe training school was taken over by education department and now there is no fee for any students.
Homeopath doctor was arrested as he could not show the certificate he got from the college and the government established a dispensary where every patient was treated free.
Now that the government has started regular bus service it banned the bullock cart service which was exploiting the poor travelers.
Truly an utopia
Reality Hits…
The capacity of the buses was not enough to meet the growing demand. Some enterprising bullock cart owners were running services on the sly. They were able get along with this so long as they paid a hafta regularly to the police from the capital.
The regular travelers set up an association to strengthen their rights. They were able to get a ruling from the government that only the association members could get season tickets in future and only they could travel by bus. With the strength of the union many of them stopped paying for the travel and some of them even pulled out seats as sofas for home. In spite of the increase in cost of running these buses, the government was so kind and they did not increase the bus charge at all.
With ticket sales so poor and spiraling operating cost, the government transport company did not have enough money to buy new buses or even repair the ones on the road.
Capacity so limited, there was a trouble brewing from various quarters. The government came out with policies reserving seats for each of the dominant groups. Naturally the impact these groups had in the annual elections was one of the main qualifying criteria. With each new party vying with each other to increase the reservation, at the end of it there were very few who were left without reservation.
To ensure that the reservation policy was not mis-used by un-deserving candidates, the government established a department to issue eligibility certificates. In fact this department was headed by member of the civil service. This department also helped creation of many government jobs and spawned entrepreneurs who acted as agents who helped you to get any certificate at a price.
The new shoe factory managing director who was on deputation from the civil service from the centre had no idea of running a shoe business or rather any business. But he had variety of specialized knowledge honed by his wide ranging experience. He developed a wonderful five year plans for the progress of the company. He identified export opportunities in production of Ski boots. He immediately arranged to import machines from Italy to make these ski boots. The knowledge that he acquired for this project by visiting many European countries has been an asset for the ambitious growth plans for this shoe factory. To avoid distraction during the study tour, he had taken his whole family with him. Even the local MP who is also in the board of the company accompanied the MD.
He established procurement division for hide and got the government to issue an order that hide can be sold only to this authorized procurement agency. He got his wife’s brother who is also member of the elite civil service (trained to collect revenue for the government) to head this procurement agency. Being a revenue service officer he could really understand cost and revenue. As the hide could not be sold to any other agency, the shoe factory could ensure that they got the hide at the price they preferred and get special favors for just having bought it.
The unions ensured that the wages kept up with rising inflation. With shoe making nationalized, there was no competition for shoe supply. The managing director allotted chain of shoe distribution shops. These were allotted to the relatives of the union leaders and the political masters.
As the shoes were used by common men, the government shoe factory sold them at prices below the cost price. But with production far lower than the demand, they fetched a very high premium in the market and the distributers made mother loads of profits. But they also cared for the interest of the country and made sure that they made monthly contribution for all the party funds.
Naturally the shoe factory was making losses. But it is supposed to make loss. Profit making is for the profiteers and government cannot be in profiteering.
The shoe training institutes set up with generous grants from the central government failed only in one thing. To teach how to make shoes. All the directors of the institute have now gone for a tour to North America for inputs on how to better this institute. Mind you, the whole study tour is funded by World Bank. In fact the World Bank is also assigning an international consulting company to undertake a worldwide study and develop a rehabilitation package. However with no fee, no research projects and no corporate funding the sustenance was critically dependent on government support. With changing priorities this was not a sustainable model.
Those who wanted to learn how to make shoes now had to go for private tuition. The rich among them sent their children abroad for studies. Of course these were set up by the teachers from the government training institute. These teachers had lots of time for such private tuitions as they had to visit the institute only once a month to collect the salary.
But it was important for each aspiring student to get admission in the institute as they were the only one authorized to give a certificate which was acceptable. With many children queuing up to get admission, the school could not cope up with the demand. Here again the government came in with policies of reservation which now had now a mass appeal.
The government dispensary has everything except the doctors. There are doctors posted here. But they seldom come here. They are busy with their private practice.
I narrated this story about the challenges of Governance to my little daughter. She looked up at me innocently and exclaimed. “Dad, the government seems to be doing what you do with me. Interfering and doing many things that you are not supposed to do. Your guidance is great and helpful. As I always tell you, if you stop this un-necessary interference, you will see wonders. Don’t you think the villages were doing better when the interference was limited and that the local people managed their affairs better?”
I say could not disagree with her on this. This problem is not just in Rampur and Sitapur. It is the problem of the whole country. The recipe for the public policy often appears to be as follows. First policies that lead to scarcity are made. Then you make policies to manage this scarcity. The policies that buy you votes and provide opportunities for rent seeking.
The controversy on reservation is a case in point. The real issue behind reservation is not about affirmative action. It is about scarcity. There are about 100 to 150 thousand new recruitments for both central and state government. We declare reservation for this. Instead make the environment conducive for employment creation (not in government). Instead of trying to make policies those create more schools and better schools we end up trying restrict schools and reduce the standard of the schools.
We see the same pattern in a variety of areas. From health, to education to labor policies. In summary what we we need is a shift in focus to policy that remove scarcity and enable access.
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