Excellence is essential

Published: The Hindu
On: October 10, 2012
At: Chennai, Hyderabad

To read The Hindu online, click here.

Top minds of various industries speak on how to identify people with zeal to excel and share tips on achieving excellence:

So, how would one identify the employees who can make things happen? Rohit Gadia, CEO, CapitalVia Global Research Limited says, “Excellence can be drawn when work is done with dedication, determination and self-confidence. When an individual says that he will ‘try’ in the initial stages of the task, it indicates that he doesn’t believe in himself. However, when an individual initiates the task stating that he’ll ‘do’ it, he means business. Such people do not bother about results and certainly deliver the best. They leave a profound impact and that makes them different from others.”

Tony Mira, Group CEO and founder Ajuba Solutions, considers honesty, integrity and ability to work in teams as factors that govern the achievement of excellence. He says, “Someone with ego and feelings that he or she can do it alone is not the right person.

No one can achieve excellence without the support and participation of others in the company. Also, the person has to have essential skills, expertise and experience which will help in giving the best to each and every task that is undertaken.”

Delving deeper into the traits that distinguish a zealous employee from others, Subhro Bhaduri, Executive Vice President and Head – Human Resources, Kotak Mahindra Bank says, “Individuals who have a zeal for excelling constantly look out for opportunities to learn. They don’t focus on turf issues but look at collaborating with others to get the work done. Individuals who want to excel exhibit an inclination towards action, impact and also think and remain sensitive to the impact their actions would create in the short and long term.”

Inspiring employees to pursue excellence and encouraging them to keep up their pursuit are constant challenges for managements that are passionate about excellence. Mr. Gadia says, “In CapitalVia, we encourage our employees to achieve excellence by respecting their thoughts, making them a part of decision making, boosting their knowledge, appreciating their efforts, rewarding their achievements, delegating authority and responsibilities and promoting them as per their competencies”.

Mr. Mira explains the virtues of active listening to inspire excellence. He believes that it is more important to listen than to talk. He says, “When employees know that you care and value their opinions, they will in turn want to do more and achieve excellence. Excellence is a team process where we will have to work our way with the team to excellence. People by nature like to be recognised and honoured. It is very important to recognise the efforts made by the teams to keep them motivated to deliver a constantly improvised performance.”

Subhro Bhaduri believes that the first step towards inspiring excellence is to build a workplace, which encourages everyone to express their views and opinions openly. He adds, “It is important to create an environment where employees can experiment, innovate, make mistakes and focus on the learning that comes out of initiatives. Here, it is also important to provide regular and timely feedback on areas of improvement. Lastly, we expect our leaders to walk the talk and exhibit personal excellence before expecting their colleagues or team mates to strive for the same.”

Achieving excellence involves relentless pursuit of one’s passion. It encompasses hard work and intense practice. Sharing some tips, K.K Rajesh, Director – Sales and Marketing, Decorative Paints, Akzo Nobel India says, “The starting point to achieving excellence is to breed a great sense of desire ‘to excel’ in oneself. Without this desire, there can be no delivery of the objective. This desire should be followed up by sharply focussed actions aimed at achieving excellence.

Identifying these actions requires a lot of self-work and guidance. While pursuing these actions, one must be ruthlessly focussed and committed hundred per cent. One must be sure that the path chosen is the right one.” Here, he also makes an important differentiation, “Becoming proficient in a field is to excel, but achieving excellence is about the ability to do the same thing at the same level over and over again so that it becomes a habit.”

Tony Mira believes that people must be honest with themselves and with the organisation. He says, “They should constantly question themselves and find new and innovative ways to do things better.

One must be a team player and bring the enthusiasm to the organisation that others will want to follow and achieve excellence. Immense passion and commitment to the work and the organisation is indeed very important.

Finally, the ability to push in hard work and perform under pressure always proves to be helpful.”

Excellence is essential

Published: The Hindu
On: October 03, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read it online, click here.

Today, excellence is a virtue that is considered an essential ingredient at work. What is excellence? Why is it so important? Are some people born with special gifts and talents that lead to excellence? Can it be inspired? Experts from industry share their insights about excellence in this two-part article.

Mr. Rohit Gadia, CEO, CapitalVia Global Research Limited says, “When a person delivers a result, which is more than expected, it leads to excellence. To deliver excellence, a strong determination must be generated in one’s mind to perform a task, since there is no substitute for hard work with smart efforts.” He further adds, “Time is changing extremely fast, technology is developing rapidly and generation is becoming advanced. Hence, there is no place for average, good and better. Everyone needs excellence since the best outcomes can be drawn with best made efforts.”

Tony Mira, Group CEO and founder Ajuba Solutions says, “In business, excellence means being conscious of your business surroundings and having the readiness to change accordingly. Change is needed to improvise on services and provide the best to customers. Any business that does not focus on excellence will find itself obsolete.” Emphasising on excellence, he says, “In today's business environment, competition is fearless. The rules have changed; organisations are not competing with competitors in their own country, but the world. Unless they demonstrate to customers that they can be faster, better and cheaper than their competition, organisations cannot survive. Excellence is the only way to achieve such results. Only through an emphasis on excellence, businesses can have more efficient operations while providing better services and results to their clients.”

Subhro Bhaduri, Executive Vice President and Head – Human Resources, Kotak Mahindra Bank says, “Excellence is the inherent desire and endeavour of an individual or a team to be aware of opportunities to improve and constantly learn and stretch to make things fundamentally better keeping in mind the impact in the short and long term. Hence, excellence is not an end goal but an ongoing opportunity to do things in a better and more efficient and inclusive manner. We are moving towards an environment of knowledge super specialisation. To achieve excellence, individuals need to be knowledgeable about the job they do and also endeavour to keep themselves updated of the latest in their fields.”

Are there any inherent skills and traits to attain excellence? K.K. Rajesh Director – Sales and Marketing, Decorative Paints, Akzo Nobel India explains, “The starting point to achieving excellence is to breed a great sense of desire to excel in oneself. This desire should then be followed up with focused actions, complete commitment and a total conviction that the path chosen is the right one. Having become proficient in the area to excel, the gap between excelling and achieving excellence is about the ability to do the same thing at the same level over and over again so that it becomes a habit.”

Subhro Bhaduri considers three primary skills that every individual should exhibit to attain excellence; building in-depth working knowledge about the job and always looking at doing an end-to-end job, holding a belief that he or she can make a difference and constantly being aware of opportunities to make things better.

Excellence can set yourself and your organisation apart from the mediocre. It can lead to higher profits and higher employee morale. Are there any factors that inspire excellence? Tony Mira says, “An individual in any business, first and foremost needs to have a fire in the belly that constantly wants to excel. To continue to survive in business, individuals must compete against themselves. Unless you compete against yourself you cannot compete against your competition.”

Subhro Bhaduri, says, “The rapidly changing environment and the availability of copious information all around us makes it imperative for us to chase excellence. So, I don’t think that in the new information age, there is a requirement of any external or internal stimulus to inspire an individual to chase for excellence, but excellence is the new norm of this age. It should become a part of life for everyone if they don’t want to be left behind.”

As K.K. Rajesh sums it up, “Excellence is about the highest quality of proficiency in a chosen field, and requires a combination of will power, smart planning, ruthless execution and the humility to make it a habit. While the reason chosen to achieve excellence may be external (competition, winning in sports, and so on), a big driver for excellence comes from within. While excellence may manifest itself physically, it originates from the heart and the mind, always!”

Let us see how to recognise people with eagerness to excel and gather some tips on achieving excellence, in the concluding part of this article.

Recognising a job well done

Published: The Hindu
On: September 26,2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read it online, click here.

The first part of this article discussed the benefits of recognising the achievements of employees. In this concluding part, the top minds of various industry sectors share the initiatives taken by their organisations and the role of social media in recognising employees.

So, how do organisations make employees feel appreciated? Sonia Kutty, General Manager, Human Resources, QuEST Global says, “One of the key initiatives is recognition from the customer, which we consider as the ultimate, as no one better than the customer can give a better testimonial. This is one of the key indicators of appreciating an employee’s contribution.” Several awards - CSAT Champions Award, Service Anniversary Awards, Employee of the Month, and Strong Contender for Employee of the Month Award, Team of the Year and Strong Contenders and Knowledge Management Champions Award are given throughout the year based on set parameters and votes of a team of judges. ‘The CEO Club Dinner’ is a quarterly event where the best employee of the quarter gets the opportunity to join for an informal dinner with QuEST CEO, Mr. Ajit Prabhu. ‘Conveyor’ – the company’s newsletter makes special mention of employee’s key achievements”, she adds.

Tejas Pandit, Business Operations and Strategy Lead, EMC India Centre of Excellence says that EMC has designed a customised platform to recognise employee achievements. This platform not only recognises individual employee’s achievements but also enhances collaboration. It also induces motivation for right behaviours and actions to be exhibited while working at EMC India.

Naveen Narayanan - Global Head, Talent Acquisition, HCL Technologies says that while there are cash rewards, the primary focus is always on recognition and appreciation. He says, “Awards such as Long Service Awards and Delivery Rewards and Recognition Awards Programmes bring to life HCL’s Employees First philosophy. O2 League of Extraordinary is an annual gala event to celebrate the high performance and achievements in the presence of family and colleagues. Xtra Miles is an online platform through which employees can appreciate the extraordinary efforts of peers. Recognition comes in the form of ‘miles’ or points earned, and gives them an opportunity to be a part of a select club of achievers.”

As Nagarajan Balanaga, Vice President – Human Resource, Cummins Group in India elucidates, “All major achievers are personally recognised by the Group Managing Director at the all-employee communication forum held quarterly. Individual and team efforts are recognised at this forum in the presence of the leadership team.” Additionally, key achievers are also recognised by presenting the CMD (Chairman and Managing Director) Awards for demonstrating allegiance to Cummins’ six core values.”

Rajesh Ramanathan, Director, HR, Cadbury Kraft Foods says, “Internally, we highlight and recognise achievements through mailers, newsletters and announcements on the intranet along with announcements in town halls and key forums.” Among their initiatives, ‘Managing Director Club’ is a concept wherein the best performing sales and customer business development colleagues are nominated to the exclusive Managing Director Privilege Club – ‘The Heroes’ and are flown to an international location for fun-filled 4 days.

Additionally, they have a regional award system where key achievements from teams of different countries are recognised across functions. Recently, 11 top performers were selected from across Cadbury Kraft offices in India and were awarded the opportunity to witness the London Olympics 2012.

Tapping the power of social media

The emergence of social media – like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter is a great benefit for organisations with branches worldwide. A bit of fun is added while ensuring the organisation’s visibility and employee engagement.

As Sreehari S, Managing Director, India Development Centre, The Attachmate Group (TAG) says, “Social media plays a vital role in the company’s reward and recognition process, especially in geographically distributed teams. Most of our recognition programmes are structured around peer recognition, and the company supports this with enabling tools and processes. This allows employees to express appreciation, gratitude and recognition for each other’s contributions across locations. The employees and their significant contributions are posted on the collaboration sites within the company’s intranet and are also displayed at various points at the workplace.”

Rajesh Padmanabhan, HR Head, Capgemini India says, “The public recognition that follows infuses a sense of accountability in the winners as they are regarded highly by others. Such announcements leave strong impressions on the external viewer about the company’s values and culture. As for the employees, it reinforces them to align themselves with the company’s ethos.

Today, we see that many companies are active on Facebook, Yammer, Twitter and they have strong alumni networks. In this age of netizens, such initiatives will be very successful.”

Meena Wilson, Senior Faculty, Centre for Creative Leadership – Asia Pacific says, “The role of social media is expanding. At this point, social media recognition seems to be driven by employees as individuals, not by their organisation. Individuals recognise each other via comments on Facebook, Yammer, and other networks. This may change. With organisations creating their own ‘pages’ on social media sites, savvy employees step forward to blog, twitter, youtube or post. In effect, social media enables employees to step out and directly win accolades from internal and external audiences in ways that were not possible earlier.”

It is easy to be carried away with all the praise about social media. However, it is critical to ensure privacy concerns are addressed in line with the organisation policies and culture. Otherwise, companies will flounder and make mistakes resulting in loss of reputation, customers and employees.

As Rajesh Padmanabhan cautions, “We need to be careful with the context and messaging to ensure the spirit of recognition and appreciation is not lost.”

With an effective recognition strategy and judicious use of social media, companies can enable employees to give the best they can at work.

Recognise employees’ achievements to improve engagement

Published: The Hindu
On: September17, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here. 

Research has proven that lack of praise and recognition is the main reason for employees leaving an organisation. While salary raises and bonuses are important motivational factors, companies must recognise the achievements of employees more than once a year in different ways. Do today’s companies believe in announcing and celebrating the achievement of employees or teams across the organisation? What are the benefits of recognising and rewarding employee achievements in the presence of peers and senior managers? Leading thinkers and experts from industry share their insights about the connection between visibility of appreciation of achievements and employee engagement in this two-part article.

As Meena Wilson, Senior Faculty Centre for Creative Leadership, Asia Pacific substantiates, “People work in organisations not just to make a living, but to make a life. Tangible benefits – salary, bonuses, club and car allowances and other perks – are necessary. But so are intangible benefits – recognition of the expertise, skill and talents employees bring to work. This is what engages employees, motivating them to do their personal best.”

Sonia Kutty, General Manager, Human Resources, QuEST Global says that recognising and rewarding exemplary performers is a key ingredient of QuEST’s core values, which encourages the employees to set new standards.

S. Chandrashekhar, Director Human Resources, Juniper Networks India Pvt. Ltd. opines, “At Juniper, we have multiple modes of recognising and celebrating contributions of our colleagues. These include individual as well as team recognitions. These programmes enable us to set the bar for others as well as highlight the role models that may be emulated.”

Naveen Narayan, Global Head, Talent Acquisition, HCL Technologies while speaking on the merits of recognising an individual and its influence on the organisation says, “While Gen Y today expects immediate gratification by supervisors for the effort of walking that extra-mile, acknowledgement by peers, colleagues also goes a long way in motivating them. A motivated and dedicated employee is an asset for any organisation and proves instrumental in building a high performance culture that drives organisational growth. In other words, happy employees perform better and their loyalty towards the employer also increases.”

As Rajesh Ramanathan, Director, HR, Cadbury Kraft Foods concurs, “Recognition has multiple advantages. It builds a culture of appreciation, belonging and reinforcing the right kind of values and behaviours we’d like to encourage as an organisation. For employees, it is also an opportunity to showcase their achievements with pride. It encourages heightened ownership at work.

Rajesh Padmanabhan, HR Head, Capgemini India, feels that acknowledging contributions on a larger platform sends out two key messages to the employee community, “ We acknowledge that the contributions are creating a difference and we are counting on you to continue adding value to the company with such accomplishments.” He says, “The key here is involvement. Employees feel extremely connected when companies reach out to them for seeking their opinions and suggestions, acknowledge these, incorporate them in action and award such employees. That’s what makes the employee feel as a valued stakeholder in the company’s performance and makes the entire company, a collaborative workplace.”

Recognition must inspire others to take positive, transformational action. However, does this generate competition among colleagues? Does it lead to dissatisfaction and jealousy? Sonia Kutty explains, “This is not used as a system of benchmarking one employee against another but more so to do with the fact that the company is grateful for the dedication each employee puts forward every time the need arises.”

Rajesh Padmanabhan opines, “Every single contribution matters. It encourages others to explore opportunities that allow them to bring this zeal on to the table and give their bit in making the company a better workplace.”

However, it is important to be fair and consistent. One way is to develop criteria for what makes an employee eligible for the recognition. Anyone who meets these criteria is then recognised. It is very important for companies to have the right parameters for recognition. As Meena Wilson questions, “What achievements deserve public recognition and what form must that recognition take? Does the number of years in the company call for congratulatory handshakes and applause at annual functions? Should the sales revenues generated by teams in different regions of the country be published weekly? When a manager successfully slashes operational costs, should he/she be promoted as a reward? If an executive effectively handles a lock-out or merger, does he/she merit company-wide acclaim at a public function?”

Meena Wilson further makes a point, “The need for celebrations and recognition is a given. What has to be taken into account is what the company values most. This can be high sales volume, innovative ideas, loyalty and service, community service, cost-cutting, success in steering the company through labour problems, and so forth. What top level leaders and HR identify and celebrate will determine the culture of the organisation. This in turn will determine whether employees give more than 100 percent when they come to work.”

To sum it up, Sreehari S., Managing Director, India Development Centre, Attachmate Group rationalises, “Conventional wisdom of ‘appreciate in public, and criticise in private’ very much holds ground in today’s environment. An environment of open celebration of individual and team achievements, not only provides motivation to the achievers, but also serves as a mechanism for the organisation to convey to its employees as to what it expects of them and what will be appreciated.”

Let us look at the initiatives taken by organisations in this regard and the role of social media in the next part of this article. 

Self-discovery and leadership

Published: The Hindu
On: August 22, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

 

Being an effective leader is challenging and honest self-reflection is the key to creating a successful organisation. What is self-reflection? It means that you regularly examine the decisions that worked and those that didn’t in your organisation. It means your day-to-day experiences are drawn on as learning opportunities, and options are explored or the choices identified. You look at your weaknesses, strengths, and your interactions within your team with a critical eye. This results in a higher level of self-awareness and a realistic view of oneself. It can be agonising, yet essential to look in the mirror and face the demon.
Then turn your answers into positive, firm statements that will give you tangible goals you can work on immediately.
As you develop new leadership skills and insights, it leads to inspired and empowered employees, projects instilled with organisation’s mission, vision and values, and a big picture vision that is linked to positive results.
Today, the focus is on your ability to react to crises and make quick decisions. However, it is also important that you make it a habit to step aside and look back. Harry Kraemer, in his book From Values to Action says, “The journey to becoming a values-based leader starts with self-reflection.” He further asks, “If you are not self-reflective, how can you know yourself? If you do not know yourself, how can you lead yourself? If you cannot lead yourself, how can you lead others?”
So, how does one get self-reflective? Pause for a while and answer a few hard questions – be honest!

• Where did I fail as a leader in the past? What could I do that would have made it better?
• Where did I succeed? What qualities or values did I show of which I am proud?
• Am I a cooperative leader? When did I last provide support and encouragement to my team or organisation?
• Do I enjoy being a leader? If not, what can I do to increase my joy of being a leader?
• Are there some aspects I am ignoring for fear of change or lack of knowledge?
• What can I do to become a proactive leader?
• What are my goals for my team or organisation?
• What are the new skills I have learnt in the last one year?

Write down the answers and analyse them. Develop a greater awareness of your strengths and explore challenging areas. Develop sound, positive leadership thoughts and skills.

Another way of looking back is careful observation. Analyse your own verbal and non-verbal communication. Note your tone and style used during meetings. How do you react when you face change, controversy, or crisis? Decipher the meaning of what you see and what you hear.
Being open to suggestions also helps build insights. Suspend your assumptions and look at things from a different perspective. Be prepared to listen with minimum defensiveness. Be open and curious even with people who disagree with you. Project yourself as a real person. Share your feelings that are believable. Otherwise, you may send mixed signals and come across as a manipulative leader.
It is important to respond in a flexible way. Responding with empathy and taking active interest in others is vital to managing relationships.
Meditation, reading and maintaining a journal are some other ways that can help you in your journey of self-discovery and leadership.
Finally, be prepared to do a reality check consistently and support your inner growth if you truly want to commit to becoming an effective leader. It requires personal discipline, hard work and continuous practice. Good luck!

Use humour to increase productivity

Published: The Hindu
On: August 08, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.
Research has proved that fun and humour at the workplace is essential to balance the mind, body, and spirit. From a company’s perspective, an employee’s wellbeing plays an important role in his performance, quality, and productivity, which in turn affects business success and profits. Factors such as a good working environment and employee engagement are crucial to improve employees’ wellbeing. When an employee’s wellbeing reduces, so does his or her performance. By adding humour in your workplace, you are making people happier and happier people produce more work and are loyal to their companies. They are motivated to work and grow to be innovative in their thinking. Importantly, it releases tension and manages disturbing negative emotions.
Laughter creates a positive energy that is contagious and everyone bounces back with enthusiasm. While doing mundane, repetitive jobs, having some boredom-breaking activities leads to greater tolerance levels. Even the most challenging work can be fun and less stressful. Besides, humour reduces job stress and burnout, lowers blood pressure levels, and releases the feel-good hormones known as endorphins that work as natural pain killers.
The communication channels open up between co-workers and soon they find themselves solving problems together, celebrating together, and assuming combined responsibility for the organisation’s success. There is a strong culture of trust and collaboration with enhanced task performance and decrease in turnover. All these are significant features required in the operation of a strong and successful company.
The following are some ideas that you as a human resources representative or a manager can use or customise your own:
1. Ask employees to volunteer and form a social committee group to organise fun activities appropriate for your company. It could be as simple as sending Su-do-ku puzzles, joke of the day, or an engaging event like bringing in board games and having a competition.
2. Organise a bake sale (treats made by employees) and the proceeds could go to a charity institute.
3. Add up the fun factor by having a ‘lunch and learn’ programme with a personal focus every month where employees have an opportunity to learn something new. For example, ergonomics, nutrition, healthy cooking, time management, and so on. If your budget allows, provide food. Otherwise, employees can organise a potluck or carry their own lunch.
4. In meetings, set aside some time for fun.
5. Encourage employees to create a bulletin board where fun quotes, fun facts, and so on are posted.
However, here is a word of warning. Defining what is acceptable as fun and humour and what is not acceptable is essential. For instance, indulging in crude or violent jokes or pranks is a strict no-no at any workplace.
Humour does not mean that all employees should have the ability to tell jokes or fire off clever remarks. It simply means that employees should not take themselves too seriously while keeping a positive attitude.
The workplace need not be a carnival. It should be courteous, happy and a positive place to work. It is important that we honour work ethics and not be distracted from work. We need to continue being professional and competent while embracing humour and laughter with gusto. This is not difficult to achieve. It requires trust and commitment from management along with the right attitude among employees.
It’s all about de-stressing and having fun while being productive. When the atmosphere is relaxing, fun and humour happens naturally.
To sum it up in the words of John Ruskin, art critic of the Victorian era, “In order that people may be happy in their work, these three things are needed: They must be fit for it. They must not do too much of it. And they must have a sense of success in it.”

Timeless tips to be competitive

Published: The Hindu
On: July 04, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai
To read The Hindu's online version, click here.


Today, a cutting-edge workforce is seen in every organisation. There are the advantages of being in a competitive environment which include greater productivity and higher profits coupled with work-oriented employees and deadline driven atmosphere. However, this may not necessarily be the work atmosphere in all organisations.
Too much of competitiveness has its disadvantages. Not all can thrive in a competitive environment. While some do, there are others who are productive in an easygoing approach to getting things done. When employees are busy pulling each other down so they can move up, it brings in a toxic environment. It may cause employees unnecessary stress and grief leading to physical ailments. Team spirit may get affected, trust may dive down and malpractices could be a common occurrence. This leads to performances going bland and profits plummeting. Let's look at some tips to stay afloat in a competitive workplace and enhance productivity.
Compete with yourself: It is easy to be consumed by an overwhelming urge to compete and run for the glittering prize at the end of the race. However, it takes courage to take away the need to feel that you always must ‘keep up' with others. Simply emulating what your co-worker does leaves no room for pondering about what it is that truly drives you. As a healthy competitive person, spend your energy on competing with yourself. Have a specific goal to work so you can measure it and see the progress for yourself. As Michelangelo said, “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” Continue to challenge yourself and avoid getting complacent.
Update your boss frequently: Make sure you are periodically updating your boss about the round of applauses that you are receiving. This isn't the time to shrink back and allow others to take over your accolades. Always be prepared. Have information ready to update your boss on any new developments. Keep a detailed record of your achievements and communicate their overall value addition to the department or organisation.
Advocate cooperation: Be the change you want to see in others. Instead of seething silently about your competitive colleague, advocate teamwork. Maintain a friendly relationship with team members through open communication and dollops of trust. Provide support and recognise others' interests and achievements. Suggest ways to collaborate on projects or tasks. For example, creating a database of templates for a project, or online tools and reference documents that are stored in your shared drive can help the entire team.
Focus on the big picture: The ability to think big is necessary to foster a culture of innovation and leadership. Look at what is good for the entire team. Avoid running after pointless competition and losing on the big game. Work on common goals. Learn and grow with each other. Remember, it takes lots of effort of all employees to make a company successful. Find ways to reach full potential, instead of focusing on meeting your targets and deadlines. In the end, you will be amply rewarded.
Better yourself: Consider competition in a healthy way. Be motivated and inspired by others' success. For example, if you are in the sales department, and your colleague is winning accolades by the dozen, instead of making him your foe, use it to your advantage. Try asking for his or her advice regarding your sales pitch. Be curious. Ask questions about how he or she reached the solution. Be a good listener. Take the time to note down the specific areas where you can improve. Think that this as an opportunity to learn. Surrounding yourself with positive, talented, and supportive people is a guaranteed way to success. So be competitive, just differently!

Getting ideas across

Published: The Hindu
On: June 06, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Do you like to know the ‘why' of everything? Do you challenge the conventional wisdom that says innovation isn't vital to your company? Do you wish to introduce small doses of unconventional strategy or present ways to look at your business differently? If so, are hurdles and bureaucracy blocking new ideas from coming to fruition? If you have been nodding your head all along, consider these possibilities to navigate around the blocks and accelerate your career quickly.

Learn to sell: Make the word ‘sales' an invaluable part of your skill set. Why? To introduce a new idea or process in your organisation, you need to sell it to your colleagues and superiors.

After all, this change costs money and it isn't absolutely guaranteed to work. If you want to instantly stand out, win the top executives' trust and get things done, then you are chiefly dependent on your sales skills. 

So, be ready to sell. Ensure that you are adjusting your communication style, attitude and approach as preferred by your manager.

Strategise: Make sure your organisation is ready for the kind of expansion or change you are looking at. Be deliberate, plan and practice your pitch and make sure your timing is right.

Anticipate and prepare for the most probable objections. Build support for your ideas. You may also turn towards your colleagues who can offer constructive feedback and make sure that you are effectively addressing each issue.

Try reaching the top decision makers and get their approval. Perhaps, you can enlist the support of colleagues who are in your manager's good graces.

Or, even package your idea to make it look less innovative. Maria Paul, Data Analyst at Data Monitor says, “Don't overwhelm your manager with information. However, be prepared to elaborate further. Ensure you have done your research and are backed with facts and statistics.”

Specify outcome: Clearly and concisely articulate the benefits of using your idea. Explain how your idea can support the company's objectives.

For this, walk awhile in your manager's shoes - yes, you have heard this one before - see his or her problems, needs, goals, budget, timelines, returns on investments, and so on. Take the time to learn what is going on and understand what you are up against. Be sensitive to his or her needs.

Focus on the outcome rather than you or your idea. In your pitch, address the specific concerns confirming that your manager and organisation's issues are also priorities for you. This way, you will receive fewer objections and be commended for thinking of the big picture.

Persevere: Perseverance is important if you want your ideas to be executed. Now, optimism goes hand in glove with perseverance as well. So, get used to the idea of occasional failures and move past the unfounded fear of rejection. Everyone fails.

Accept it. Look at it as part of your learning curve. At times, we have to try, and fail, until we discover what works. Stay focused even though the temptation is high to give up. As Maria suggests, “Be positive and buy your time. Maybe the situation will change, your boss may change jobs, and you will then be able to sell your idea.”

Move on: When all else fails, it is time to pick up your bags – literally and figuratively - and look for organisations that support creativity and innovation.

Making a move might be a distressing prospect, but if staying in a toxic environment is killing you, listen to your intuition and make the leap. Maybe, even start your own entrepreneurial venture. There is no dearth of possibilities when you choose to persist. Good luck!

Avoid being the perfectionist

Published: The Hindu
On: February 8, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.
Do you settle for nothing less than perfect? Are you taking a lot of time over trivial matters and missing deadlines? Are you hard on yourself? Do you hate making mistakes? Do you believe you must be perfect for everything to work out fine? If so, you may be a perfectionist.
Perfectionism is laudable. However, beware it is vicious and corrosive as well. Being a perfectionist is no fun. With outstanding demands and high expectations, quite often, a perfectionist earns the title of a ‘workaholic'. As Meha Ved, online content manager at Electronic Arts says, “A perfectionist takes longer time than a practical person to fulfill a commitment and achieve the same level of responsibility.”
Quite often, perfectionists are so focused on being conscientious, orderly and attentive to detail that they end up with problems such as procrastination, controlled behaviour, missed deadlines and ultimately low productivity. Perfectionism places unrealistic demands on both the individual and the organisation as a whole. Meha Ved further points out, “A perfectionist finds it difficult to adjust to the average team mates. He may not accept their proposals unless he is fully convinced, thereby not being a good team player.”
Perfectionism can also take a toll on your health. You may be vulnerable to a host of unnecessary health issues from depression, loneliness, social anxiety to anger, frustration and impatience.
On the flip side, if this trait is used where it is most valued and turned off when not required, it can do wonders to your career graph. Needless to say, perfectionism with pragmatism is a tricky blend. Yet, it is crucial. As Shilpa Yalamanchili, an account executive at Hanmer MS&L points out, “While perfectionism is good, it becomes bad when taken to an extreme.” Here are some strategies to avoid the perfectionist mistake:
Prioritise: Prioritise your tasks. Mark the importance of each task: H for high, M for medium and L for low. Concentrate on completing the high priority task first. Break it into small incremental goals.
Eliminate unnecessary goals and be realistic about it. Don't set yourself up for failure. Set timelines and stick to it. What is it that needs to be done immediately? What can wait for next week? Re-prioritise if necessary. This gives you a sense of control over the situation.
Focus on process: Instead of getting lost in the outcome of your efforts, focus on the process of accomplishing a task. Let not the relentless pursuit of the ultimate goal become a burden for you. Look for the bottlenecks in the entire process and solve them first thus creating opportunities to boost your performance.
Seek help: Approach your colleagues or boss. Ask for feedback. Most likely, the report you just completed is not as awful as you imagine. Delegate when deemed appropriate. Reassign a part or an entire project to your subordinate.
This allows you to focus on important tasks. Coaching can also be used to identify self-defeating thinking patterns and substituting them with self-enhanced thinking. Thus resulting in a change in the way you perceive things.
Self-talk: When you are beating yourself up for showing a less-than-perfect performance, talk yourself out of it. Focus on acknowledging the positive part of the performance.
Consider that your way might not be perfect. Shift your approach. Find your own worth in yourself rather than fishing for praise from others.
Be practical and realise that worrying about trivial issues only leads to a waste of your time and energy. As Shilpa Yalamanchili adds, “There is no sense in having a tunnel vision. Accept criticism, learn from your mistakes and move on.”
Relax: Take it easy. Drop your guards and be yourself. Learn to put up with life's frequent imperfections. Relish the chance of knowing something new. See mistakes as learning opportunities. Understand that everyone does not have your same stellar standards.
Give yourself the go-ahead to accomplish something the only way one can in a real world, imperfectly.

Overcome career anxiety

Published: The Hindu
On: January 25, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

You always loved going to work. But one day you suddenly realise that you no longer feel the same about your work.
You are feeling stressed and burned out. You are no longer sure if you are in the right job. In fact, you hate your job and worse, you do not know what to do about it. You are going through career anxiety!
A bout of anxiety can take a toll on your mental and physical health. It often includes nervousness, sweating, trembling, tiredness and sleep problems.
It can leave you feeling apprehensive and uncertain, paralysing you into inaction. It can affect even those people around you. Let's look into possible reasons for such anxiety.
Social networking: Do you have a Facebook page? Or, do you tweet? How about LinkedIn? Chances are you have all of the above.
No doubt it is a great tool for networking, sharing your thoughts and keeping in touch with friends and family around the world. However, there is a downside to social networking. Comparison with friends through such sites makes people doubt and regret if they have done enough.
As Minal Jain, an employee at a call centre says, “When I see my classmates having foreign vacations, I feel distressed that I have failed in my life.” This kind of negative comparison and dreams that have failed to materialise bring in career anxiety.
Money: As society defines success by our job status, materialistic gains and money, people tend to become so busy making a living that they forget to make a life. Sometimes, individuals tend to compromise their interests for money. They are so caught up in the day-to-day life that they get only empty victories. There is a disconnect between what they want and what they have. This leads to career anxiety.
Economy: The volatile economy is taking a toll on everyone. The uncertainty and layoffs in jobs have led to an increase in career anxiety. As Mehul, an employee in a reputed software company puts it, “I always fear losing my job. I can't help but carry this stress home”.
It's important to get a handle on your anxiety before it spirals out of control. Here are some ways to deal with it.
Join social activities where you can let your guard down and relax. Share ideas and thoughts with different people from varied backgrounds. Take up hobbies that interest you, for example, music, pottery, calligraphy and yoga, or sports activities such as cricket, tennis and badminton. Pick up your iPod and jog to the nearby park. Watch motivational movies and documentaries.
Experiment with new things. Seek out opportunities to discover new and old passions. One good way of following your passion is moonlighting with your day job. Enjoy the challenge of learning something new and meeting new people. If you get an opportunity, relocate yourself. This way you will continue to challenge yourself and avoid the feeling of being lost.
You may also talk to your boss and make changes in your job profile. In addition, you can further your education and avail training programmes to upgrade your skills.
Spend at least an hour with yourself. Do self interrogation. Are you following your passion? Are you doing what you love to do? Embark on a truthful personal inventory of what you want from your career and where you really want to head. Without doubt, individuals who love their work are happier than people who don't. Acknowledge your feelings of insecurity. Identify the source. Talk about your anxiety to someone you feel comfortable with.
Just talking about your worries can make them seem less frightening. If talking about the problem or relaxation techniques don't work, seek professional consultation such as with a psychologist or career coach.
Starting now, spend more time pursuing your passions and less time on those things that don't feel right for you. Good luck!

Difference between coaching and mentoring

Published: The Hindu, India
On: January 18, 2012
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.


If you think coaching and mentoring are interchangeable terms, think again. Yes, there are enormous overlaps, and yet they are two different terms. Let's look at them in detail:
Meaning:
Mentoring is an informal relationship between two professionals based on trust, open communication and mutual respect. The mentor's advice, experience, skills, wisdom and involvement leave an indelible mark on the life of the mentored person.
Mentoring happens through examples, impromptu counselling and the free-flowing exchange of thoughts and ideas. It facilitates personal and professional growth in an individual. It also creates one of a kind opportunity to network with professionals in your field. A mentor's essential qualities include:

• Experience in the field
• Ability to communicate that experience
• Willingness to do so
• Special interest in helping another person
• Finding joy and fulfillment in the success of another person

To cite Oprah Winfrey, “A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope inside yourself”.

On the other hand, coaching is a management term to define development of employee expectations. It is about helping someone to focus on specific goals. A coach is most commonly an external person hired by the HR department of an organisation for a specific period of time. A coach helps to sharpen skills and overcome hurdles to better performance.
A coach is not necessarily a senior person sharing experience or passing on advice. Instead, observation, questions, analysis and unbiased feedback are used to facilitate the learning process. A good coach provides feedback and motivates you to establish your own actions to move forward. To cite John Russell, a prominent Hollywood star, “I never cease to be amazed at the power of the coaching process to draw out the skills or talent that was previously hidden within an individual, and which invariably finds a way to solve a problem previously thought unsolvable”.
The difference:
Both coaching and mentoring have their own uses and a wise manager or management knows the difference and makes the best use of either depending on the situation. Mentoring works best when an experienced, talented professional assists another professional who is an entrant in a new job position or needs to acquire new skills and competencies as a manager. Research suggests it is useful for retention of employees in an organisation. Mentoring suggests to the employee that the organisation supports their professional growth and development. It creates a workplace culture that encourages everyone in the organisation to share their knowledge and collaborate.
Coaching is useful for individuals who need to focus on a specific goal in professional development or improve their effectiveness, are in transition from one role to another, start or expand a business, to identify and achieve personal goals or achieve financial freedom. It can also help organisations move towards a responsive, committed and flexible way of working.
Both coaching and mentoring can work best when the mentee or client is open-minded and has the passion and the will to learn and succeed.
Duration:
Depending on what the end goal is, coaching sets a limited amount of time for accomplishment; whereas mentoring helps the mentee to grow holistically therefore allowing the mentee to develop at his own speed.
Rewards:
Typically, mentors don't charge for their services. They believe in you and have been there and done that and are enthusiastic to share their experiences. However, mentors can benefit as much as their mentees or more during the process of sharing insights and various skills. Tremendous learning and development takes place thus keeping mentors on top of their field and gain the satisfaction of seeing their mentee succeed.
Mentoring is also an excellent way to increase productivity and discover talented individuals. For instance, the mentor can help a new employee familiarise himself with the work culture. Effective training solutions can be made to meet the needs of the organisation.
A coach is usually hired by an organisation to work with individuals or a team. The organisation and the learner is the ultimate benefactor of the coaching. Coaching encourages, inspires, nurtures and brings out the best in employees.
Deciding if you need a mentor or a coach is up to you. Both, coaching and mentoring allow you to accomplish your full potential. While a mentor can be your guide in the confusing jumble of your organisation or field, a coach helps you to speed up your efficiency and achieve your goals.
Choose a mentor if you feel the need to have an advisor or guide, who can nurture you under his or her wings. It's a good idea to find a mentor from your organisation who is well respected, experienced and shares your values. However, if you wish to focus on specific goals, or you have reached a point where you need to develop in your own unique way, hire a coach. Coaching is performance focused centering on an employee. Whether you choose coaching or mentoring, the result is an organisational change with transformation in the culture and increase in productivity.

Mentoring makes the unlearning process smooth

Published: The Hindu
On: December 14, 2011
At: Hyderabad, Chennai

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Amit is working for the same company for 10 years. Recently, the company was bought over by another company. Now, he has a new boss. His world has changed. The new boss has a fantastic vision about the future of the company. Amit has now embarked on the long road of unlearning with its twists and turns. He realises that the processes and business strategies previously used are not necessarily correct. He is challenged to forget what made him successful in the past. He is now living new values and thereby adapting to change.
What is unlearning? Essentially, unlearning is stripping off the old, obsolete knowledge acquired over a period of time. It involves learning something new. Additionally, there is a change in the belief system. The base belief is changed and altered to a new belief, resulting in new thinking, new action and new outcome.

Relearning involves meshing new ideas with the original concepts thus creating new ways to increase productivity. As Ankush Ved, Managing Director of Allied Agencies reflects, “There is more wisdom in unlearning than in learning. It is a must for anyone who wants to survive in this constantly changing world.”

Benefits of unlearning and relearning:

• Helps to stay one step ahead of others
• Keeps pace with the growing needs of the competitive world
• Seize opportunities

The well known futurist writer, Alvin Toffler has rightly said, “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn”.
So, how does one unlearn and relearn? You can attend conferences, seminars and training programs on change management that enables you to remove the barriers to change.
The exposure allows you to let go of deeply held beliefs and assumptions. Executive Coaching also helps you to identify your emotional and behavioural patterns that reflect in your work. For example, Rohit Kalkar, an executive in a payroll processing company says, “I have always felt that whatever I do is not good enough.”
Also, mentors are the most qualified people to expedite a mentee's process of unlearning and relearning. Ideally, mentors are role models with plenty of common sense and positive outlook. They probe, challenge and push to excel. They love to teach about their field of interest and about life.
Encourage and motivate
As a mentor, motivate your mentee to think in new and different ways. Instead, of a ‘fix it this way' solution, instill courage and confidence to face the challenges. Encourage the mentee to periodically visit websites relevant to his field, and read books and industry publications. It is a good idea to attend seminars on change, culture and innovation. One need not step outside the house to update one's skills. There are courses that can be taken for free. For example, MIT OpenCourseWare is a web-based publication that offers free online courses in various fields: Health, Mathematics, Engineering, Arts and Management.
Sharing experiences and insights about your failures is another way you can help your mentee to gain insight about building resilience.
Action plan
Mentors can help the mentee to list out actions required to achieve the goal. Analyse which actions are necessary for the outcome and remove the ones that are not required. Set the timelines for each action. Revisit the plan periodically and reprioritise, if necessary.
Support
As a mentor, it is important to serve as a sounding board to pitch ideas. Show understanding when the mentee expresses ideas or thoughts. It enables the mentee to figure out where he is going, his long term goal, how he will achieve them and how far he has progressed. Be genuinely interested in the mentee and give him constructive feedback. The experience you gain as a mentor enhances your professional growth. Furthermore, it gives you a fresh perspective on your performance. It may help you take a critical look at the areas that need unlearning.

Perhaps Stephen R Covey said it best, “The way we see the problem is the problem”. The key is to have an open mind and recognise the need to unlearn.

It's a woman's world, indeed!

Published: The Hindu
At: Hyderabad, Chennai
On: December 14, 2011

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

A recent article in a newspaper announced that IBM India is set to launch custom made training programmes for its potential women leaders in technology and sales. In UK, firms have been told to up the number of women by 25% on their boards by 2015, thus ensuring talented and gifted women get top jobs.
We have travelled from an age where parents didn't believe girls needed education to an era where girls' education is the norm. Women with high education are career-oriented and focused on moving up the ladder.
A case in point is Chanda Kochhar, Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Bank is amongst the five Indian women who have made it in the top 50 women in world business awarded by Financial Times for the year 2011. Her father, she says, “believed in equality between daughters and sons and encouraged all of us to build a career.” Yet the progress is not without challenges.
Challenges
The mightiest challenge comes from society itself. Inadequate social support and stereotyped woman's role affects the motivation of women. Quite often, a woman's role at workplace is seen as secondary to her role as homemaker and nurturer.
As a supply chain consultant for a supermarket chain says, “Women don various hats - raising a family, meeting varied home demands besides being a competent professional. Here's where the conflict arises and majority of us agree to downsize our career or prefer to quit”.
Discrimination is another challenge that raises its face often. Juliana Doreen, a senior consultant in a relocation firm finds balancing between work and family as the most challenging to deal with. However, with constant encouragement from her spouse, she is successfully moving ahead in her professional journey. As a woman, Doreen had been subjected to gender bias in her previous company where she was told that she could not handle events as it involved travelling to the villages and interacting with the people there. She overcame these challenges, she observes, “There is certainly a positive change for women in India in the workplace.”
Need for women managers
Since women are increasingly playing a vital role as consumers and financial decision-makers, it is imperative to welcome women managers who can bring in unique perspective to decision making and problem solving. A diverse leadership with a healthy mix of competent men and women embodies different perspectives and approaches to work. Men and women's different social roles imply different experiences and values that can benefit the organisation. It can create a win-win situation.
Roy Adler of Pepperdine University, USA did an extensive 19-year study of 215 Fortune 500 firms showing a strong correlation between a strong record of promoting women into the executive suite and high profitability.
Corporate approach
To advance, women need support from the top management. Encouraging diverse management practices and opening doors to women – through positive human resource programs – is one way for the organisations to increase their talent pool. Mentor programmes are an excellent way where strategies can be identified for advancing their careers. This gives them the opportunity to grow and provides exposure and experience through various projects.
Catalyst, the US based study group focusing on women's corporate advancement identifies, “Rotate women across functions and ensure they have experience of line assignments amongst others as crucial to promote gender diversity within an organisation.”
In order to retain women, many companies are offering flexitime, telecommuting, daycare programs and maternity leave. As a project manager in a payroll processing company happily observes, “With time, the attitude towards women as managers are significantly becoming more positive.”

Integrity and Leadership: two sides of the same coin

Published: The Hindu
At: Hyderabad
On: November 30, 2011

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Who do you think is the manager with integrity? The manager who always smiles and says encouraging things, and then never supports you when it comes down to task or the low-key, caring and firm manager who encourages to work hard and consistently praises employees who go above and beyond. Who do you think deserves your respect and trust? Obviously, the second one!
How does integrity relate to leadership? Priti Parekh, Chief Operating Officer at AMBA Research says, “As you grow higher in your organisation, the more important it becomes for you as a leader to demonstrate integrity. Leaders with integrity are able to inspire trust and confidence in their team, which is particularly important during times of crisis. ”
As a leader, your employees look upon you for your values and where you are taking them (i.e. the goals of the organisation). Your values must be demonstrated in action. You must have their best interests at heart. You must demonstrate your reliability, honesty and trustworthiness. You must have the capacity to inspire and lead thus creating a productive work environment.
In other words, you as a leader must act with integrity. Integrity is a must-have quality in a leader. It cannot be feigned, it has to be a continuous effort. If this does not happen, people will experience deterioration in trust and respect ultimately leading to major fallout in organisation. As Buckminster Fuller quotes “Integrity is the essence of everything successful”. Maintaining integrity in a workplace where there is intense pressure to cave in takes immense courage. It is not easy when all you need is profits. Here are some tips to develop integrity:
Role model
As a leader, set an example. Show by your attitude and action how people must be treated and the way goals must be pursued.
Consistency
Unpredictability in a leader’s decisions may risk integrity being compromised. Are your decisions based on your moods? A wise and powerful leader can be relied upon when needed. Demonstrate integrity consistently every day and you will build a level of integrity that your employees will come to trust.
Communication
Have transparent communication. Let there be no communication gap between the levels in the organisation. It is imperative to provide clear direction. A leader must be clear and consistent to be understood and trusted.
Commitment
One of the most sterling qualities of a leader with integrity is to fulfill each and every promise made irrespective of the hierarchy level in the organisation. It is the yardstick by which your employees make evaluations about you. Commit to making your word as good as a contract.
Value integrity
Instead of saying, “I value integrity” all the time choose to show by your attitude and behaviour. Live your values every day. Remember, you are living continuously under a looking glass. Be authentic and show your wisdom, skills and fairness with actions.
Honesty
An honest leader with a strong foundation of integrity does the right thing no matter what the circumstances are in the organisation. The leader treats people fairly and stays away from playing favourites or political games. This ensures a productive environment fostering growth and innovation.
Feedback
It is essential to take feedback from your employees and continue making efforts to motivate employees on an ongoing basis. Know your strengths and limitations, seek to continue develop and learn.
Recruitment
Recruiting people with integrity is the key to ensure integrity remains the life and blood of the organisation. So, how does one know if the potential employee has high levels of integrity? Behavioral interviewing is an excellent way to identify whether a candidate’s characteristics and motivations match your organisation’s values. This type of interview will allow you to examine the candidate’s behaviour in the past.
As D Suresh, Executive Director at Computer Access Pvt. Ltd. notes, “Today, without integrity you cannot lead any organisation whether it is profit or not for profit organisation. Companies without integrity collapse in no time.”

Women and entrepreneurship: success stories

Published: The Hindu
On: November 9, 2011
At: Hyderabad, India

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

The women entrepreneurs' tribe is increasing in India. What characteristics do they have in common? Is it perseverance, passion, willingness to take risks? Or, is it plain inborn characteristics? Here are some local entrepreneurs who share their success stories. All of them are successful entrepreneurs based in Hyderabad. They have each figured out ways to manage the process, and each has struggled. But they have not failed.
Amritha Mishra, owner of Trisha Boutique in Vikrampuri Colony uses her passion to strike out on her own. Amritha is a textile designer from Calcutta. She was a stay-at-home mom for 10 years. With the aptitude for entrepreneurship, she was nurtured by a supporting family. Within a span of the next 10 years, she grew from a home-based start up business to a fully fledged retail outlet store in Vikrampuri colony at Hyderabad. Her products line includes trendy sarees to accessories and footwear.
Amritha's huge clientele is solely based on word of mouth publicity. She says, “As women, it's essential to maintain a healthy balance between your house and career. I have always ensured that my family life does not suffer due to my passion.” She attributes her success to her husband who motivates her and is extremely involved and helpful in every aspect of her growing business. No wonder, success comes easily to her.
Another entrepreneur, Dipali Mehta, is a fashion designer from Mumbai committed to women development. As a head designer for the export division in Kalaniketan, Mumbai and running a manufacturing unit, she saw scope in handlooms. After settling in Hyderabad, she plunged in business with her supportive husband, transporting handloom textiles from the local market to the higher end of the fashion industry through design and development. At the beginning, she did not have any money required to start her business. However, she took it as a challenge and built her business solely on her marketing skills and hard work.
A warm and loving lady, Dr. Suniti Satwalekar is a leading Gynaecologist of the twin cities and the owner of Dr. Shantabai Nursing Home at Hyderabad. Coming from a small middle-class family, Dr. Suniti got married into a well- respected and established family of Hyderabad. Strong support from her mother-in-law, who established the first nursing home in the twin cities, along with a good setup paved the way for her excellence in her field. Dr Suniti notes that the success of her family-career balance was also determined by her team of doctors. She delegates her work, thus achieving more productivity.
Even though she continued maintaining her mother-in-law's establishment, she had a vision: to provide the best care for her patient. For this, she started a five year plan in which she invested lakhs of rupees to buy new equipments and machines. So far, 1500 students have been trained in her hospital. The nursing home continues to take new doctors and hone their skills.
Suman Kumar is a B.Sc Home Science and B.Ed graduate. She moved across the globe with her husband and took small steps to financial freedom. She dabbled in teaching to advertising and doing embroidery and stitching for boutiques in Mumbai. In her late thirties, she relocated to India, and decided to utilise her capabilities. She chose to join her husband, who is an engineer by profession. Coming from a non-technical background, she underwent training in UK. After returning, she along with her husband started Sukaso Engineering manufacturing the first of its kind EPS products. Later, she diversified into Sukaso Ceracolours to manufacture ceramic colours with British Collaboration. Sukaso soon became a one-stop shop for all ceramic raw material requirements. Today, after twenty years, her hard work has paid off and its successful presence is felt in Europe, Middle East, Africa, etc.
She says, “I strongly believe that an entrepreneur must have a goal in mind and should continue honing their skills lifelong. Also, after 35 is the right age to start business”. Suman paired her skills – business savvy and great leadership – with a desire to help people find their inspiration. She is one of the six founders and past president of Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs (COWE), which is a city based non-profit organisation started in 2004 with an aim to uplift women through entrepreneurship.
These women were able to succeed in their business enterprises not only because of their innate skills and abilities but also due to the strong support system they had. They believed in what they were doing and followed their goal with single-minded determination. These qualities helped them forge ahead and make a mark.

Ten proven strategies for career advancement

Published: The Hindu
On: October 27, 2010
At: Hyderabad, India

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Careers don't just happen, not by accident or by luck. There is a lot of commitment involved in setting and achieving goals, and accepting new challenges. The changing work place demands that you design your own career path. Often, it may not be an upward move, sometimes, you need to make a lateral move first and then an upward move.
Here are ten effective strategies to incorporate into your career advancement plan:
Develop professionalism: Professional work behaviour along with appropriate appearance will go a long way toward career success.

• Dress successfully; even on casual days.

• Take responsibility for your actions.

• Don't indulge in gossip.

• If you don't like someone, don't let it show.

• Don't hold grudges.

• Ask for help when you need it, before things get worse.

• Share the credit.

• Exhibit flexibility. Be open to the views of others.
Acquire skills: It goes without saying that furthering your education is a great way to advance your career. Even if going back to school is not an option, read as much as you can to gain knowledge. Reading as simple as trades magazines can be useful to you while chatting with your boss. Knowing about the industry trends can make you an asset in his eyes. Be proactive in learning new skills and getting cross trained in multiple job areas.
Create opportunities: Big or small opportunities within and outside the department shows your readiness to engage in a difficult assignment. Your energy and creativity will be seen by people who are always looking out for enterprising leaders.
Build rapport: Develop a good relationship with your boss that rewards both financially, and builds your respect in his eyes. Use all opportunities to make him a key supporter in your promotion. Know what's important to him; pay attention to his style of working. Strive to be on time, present yourself professionally and do the extra mile in the varying difficulties at work, are some of the ways you can build a bond with your boss.
Network effectively: Networking is an ongoing process that can expand your horizons. Build a network of partners to keep an open eye and ear for new opportunities for you. Share knowledge, make recommendations and build trust. Help others achieve what they want and they in turn will help you achieve your goal. An added benefit of networking is that you will gain knowledge of your company and other departments.
Be visible: Be on top of the mind of your employer. The more visible you are, the better you will establish yourself as a subject matter expert, which will instantly elevate you to a desirable position. Use blogs, bylined articles, self-published books, social networks, surveys and other complimentary or cost-effective Internet vehicles to get the word out. Likewise, forum posts; newsletters; press releases; and free stories written for leading industry publications in exchange for a published link or personal bio can all make handy self-promotions.
Find a mentor: The adage of “It's who you know” is a relatively true expression. Mentors spread the good word about you. They are an excellent source of information and career guidance. Some companies have formal mentoring programs. Even if your company does not have such program, you can develop relationships with people in higher positions in your company. Think of a mentor as a personal business coach who guides you along the bumpy path of the corporate world.
Team player: Look beyond your piece of work and care about the team's overall work. As a good team player demonstrate reliability, communicate effectively and function as an active participant. Share your information, knowledge and experience with the rest of the team thereby increasing your value in the organization.
Track record: When a position becomes available within a company, often the human resource department looks for an employee already working for the company rather than outside applicants. An employee with a memorable track record is bound to be on top of the list. Keep a detailed record of your past performances that enhances the company's bottom line.
Be open: One of the most effective ways to move up is to ask for more responsibility. Volunteer to take on assignments from within or other departments. Accomplishing them successfully puts the spotlight on you and adds your value to the organisation.
If you develop your attitude in tune with these points you can be sure you will move towards bright career.

Avoid Procrastination, reap career success

Published: The Hindu
On: December 1, 2010
At: Hyderabad

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Amit is asked by his boss to prepare a report on an important project that will be discussed in three days. The deadline is weighing on his mind, but so far he has not done anything about it. Instead, he is playing Bricks on his BlackBerry Bold, posting tweets on Twitter, and generally doing everything except the work. Amit is procrastinating. Sounds familiar?
Procrastinating over tasks means putting off tasks for a later date until you are cornered to do them, or sometimes never doing them at all. Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday and avoiding today, says Dr. Wayne Dyer, a well-known author. If you continually fail to deliver your work on time, you will end up with a label of an employee with behavioral problem. Such behaviour could be detrimental in finding career success.
Most individuals suffer through this problem without realizing it. Well, everyone gives in to the urge to put off doing things once in a while. But if the tendency gets chronic, it is time to do some serious thinking. So, what do you do if you find yourself falling into patterns of procrastination? The first step is to be aware of it, and then look for ways to eliminate this behaviour.
Why it happens:
There are several reasons why people procrastinate. Once you understand the reasons for the delay, it is easy to overcome it. When there is a particular task you feel that you do not have the required knowledge or skills, you tend to put it under the back burner. This could be because you have a low self -esteem.
A time consuming project could invite procrastination. You may feel overwhelmed by the project itself, and even avoid starting it.
Poor time management, often associated with a distorted sense of the time available can be one of the reasons to delude work. You may be under the assumption that you have enough time to get around to doing it.
Concentrating on the negative outcome can make you defer. A lurking sense of fear can make you stick to your ‘comfortable’ routine.
Perhaps your difficulty is that you doubt your judgement. You lack experience, and cannot decide which action is best in a given situation.
The bad effects are:
• It is bad for your morale. A job left undone pulls you down completely leaving you with a sense of guilt.
• You have lost an opportunity to prove your capabilities.
• Procrastination breeds clutter. Unfinished jobs tend to leave clutter in your workspace thus decreasing your efficiency.
• Inevitably procrastination leads to accumulation of the tasks.
• If your procrastination habits come in the limelight, your superiors may brand you as a lazy employee, and will not recommend you for promotion.
• The more you procrastinate working on a presentation, or sending off an important report, the more will the task look unpleasant.
• You could lose your colleagues’ respect and support.
Tackling it:
When procrastination raises its villainous head often, it is time to motivate yourself. Seek out opportunities to interact with your colleagues who are successful. Gain insight on how they handle projects, even when it requires skills that they have not used before. Observe how they handle issues and assignments. If you require further training, speak up to your manager. Let him know you need additional skills.
Turn things around and prioritize by doing the difficult things first. You will find that the rest of the tasks will be downhill once you manage the difficult one first. Quite often, a task without a deadline can be put off indefinitely. Set a deadline, and stick to it.
Break the tasks into small manageable sub-tasks. Plan and complete these smaller tasks. Every time you complete a project on time, reward yourself with a treat.
Once you have taken these steps to end procrastination, you may find yourself easily accomplishing tasks that once seemed unattainable. Always keep in mind that if you go back to your old habits, it delays projects and affects others in your organization, and most of all it can damage your career.

Mentoring: Set right agenda to taste success

Published: The Hindu
On: November 10, 2010
At: Hyderabad, India

To read The Hindu's online version, click here.

Mentoring has been used with increasing frequency over the past decade in the business world. Often used for grooming potential leaders, companies draw on it as a means of fostering employee learning and development. Here, the associate is paired with a senior level leader for a series of career development interactions. The mentor can facilitate personal and professional growth by sharing knowledge and insights gathered through the years. A mentor is not necessarily a manager or supervisor. It could be anyone in the organisation, alumni, professional or trade associations.
Even if your company does not have such a programme, you can still look for a mentor. Consider him or her your personal career coach! Research has shown that mentoring relationships succeed when both the mentor and mentee take an active role in developing the relationship.
Suitable type: Look for people who inspire you and motivate you, someone whom you admire and respect. The person should have the values you aspire to have and have good work ethics. He/she must be genuinely interested in nurturing the mentor-mentored relationship and has the desire to help someone else.
Approach that individual and ask if they would consider being your mentor. Don't be disappointed if they say No. Keep looking until you find the right person.
It is important to establish a sincere and trustworthy relationship. You can establish multiple mentor relationships with various individuals to address different aspects of your life.
Take the lead: While the mentor is available to counsel and impart lessons learned, it is the one who is mentored who should take the lead in the mentoring sessions. The one who is mentored can decide the agenda, exchange and discuss potential ideas, and so on.
To boost the sessions, you can spend some time learning more about each other and building a personal relationship. Share career stories, vision and even topics not pertaining to work: movie, hobbies, news and events.
Some guidelines to develop effective mentoring relationship:
Be clear. It is important to understand the agenda and assumptions that mentor and the mentored bring to the ‘mentoring table'. Set the expectations from the beginning. Discuss how feedback will be given.
Establish goals. Know your goals. Use the SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-based) goals method to be effective. For example, you may have a goal of attaining 100 percent customer satisfaction. However, this is not a realistic goal. Instead, 15 percent improvement in customer satisfaction is better. Be open to re-evaluate your goals midway.
Establish communication. Maintain clear and consistent communication. Be reliable, responsive, prepared, and organised. Communicate your ideas, needs, goals and aspirations. Determine the lines of communication that will work for both of you. Will it be through phone, email or face-to-face?
Build trust. At the core of the mentor-mentored relationship is trust. Although this sounds simple, it is essential that both mutually agree that their discussions will be kept confidential. Only when there is trust, will you be willing to take feedback and recommendations and the mentor will be willing to give time to you.
Attitude and work ethics. Be enthusiastic, and prepared to put in the necessary efforts. Stay motivated, and committed. Take the initiative to do something different. Challenge yourself and take risks. Be honest, hardworking and conscientious.
Express your gratitude. In the end, express your gratitude for the time, thought and insight invested in you. Be sincere, honest. This will tilt the scales in favor of finding a successful career.
Sometimes, the closure of mentor-mentored relationship can be difficult. Often, one of them hangs on for comfort or desire not to offend. To avoid such a situation, discuss and plan how you will end the mentoring relationship when you first negotiate your partnership. Respect your mentor, if he would like to be the first to end the relationship. In the mentoring relationship, a good closure is synonymous with learning and growth. You are now ready to begin your new stage.