Whose "process" is it ?

One more thought from last nights marathon work to make a customer happy !

Customer had a critical issue that dissapointed thousands of German people's, watching an interesting soccor match.

But the problem was identified, solved. Its just time to deliver them the fixed product.

The last mile is the "process". Go to defferent depts of this big corporation, get everyone's stamp. Ship it.

There was the problem. Release dept told, they are too busy doing special releases and they wont support this. A lot of VPs were copied.

They all sent e-mails asking me to make it happen. But no one was responding to the release dept. to bend their stance, work over the weekend and get it done.

People react differently to this situation. And I reacted in my own (which is "almost" illegal). I had to get the release out over the weekend.

The bosses or release dept said NO. I said OK - Thanks ! Went to a personal friend within the dept, who is in east coast of USA. Asked her, how much work is it for the release team to approve this ? She showed me 3 tools and 3 forms to fill up and click submit. Just that, I am not allowed to do it. My login does not have that privilege. She has. Bus she wont do it, as her bosses say NO.

I told her, in this economy, here is a customer, who is putting 30M USD on table. If we don't win these sums, some of us lose our job and be part of the recession. And East Coast is the one that gets hit first !

That worked !

Now, I ve all tools / forms submitted. The release will go out on Monday as promised. With legal Company stamp on it.

Funny thing, is I responded to the "NO" mails, every VP copied, saying it is "YES" now. Somehow, magically !

No one has reacted to that yet.. or may be they are enjoying their weekend so far.

Acknowledgement - The most critical part of "Good" Communication

Last night was one of those fateful nights, with a screaming customer, a ton of e-mails floating, 50 executives interested in knowing real time status.

2 engineers working to get there. Everything was under control so to speak. Fix already verified. Time, when panic should end. But it was reaching fever pitch, may be it was Friday in that part of the world. But it was already early morning Saturday here in India.

When I got caught in catching up of many e-mails floating in, and arranging other process stuff, I was wondering why people panicking so much ?

It was a long night of working.. and around 6AM, my elder son got up as I promised him to go bi-cycling with him in the morning. I was still busy on 10 instant message windows. He dressed up and came to me asking for help to tie the helmet strap. I registered that. But was in middle of a conversation. I thought, I would complete the thought and then help him. He stood there for a minute and then SCREAMED !!!!!

I asked , "why you screaming ? I ll do it once I finish typing".

His response was - "How would I know you heard it ? I thought you did not even hear me ?".

Then I realized a small thing - I ve not acknowledged to a few guys who sending me e-mails for update. Because, I had put my own filter regarding who needs to know.

Just to stop the flooding, I sent the status all over again, this time copying all the people getting excited. And also mentioned that next update will only come on Sunday. Flooding stopped !

I do acknowledge now that acknowledgment is must in any meaningful communication to happen and to prevent screaming !

The morning bi-cycling did not happen for me !! But there will be another morning tomorrow.

Being traded ??

....thats a wired feeling. There is a place / plain where everyone is a comodity. And in the plain, you are being traded.

Chess lovers can call it a pawn, may be !

While I am being traded, I ll continue to stay close to the basics. Keep cool and grace. Win gracefully. Gain gracefully :)

It will take 6 months to unfold the result of the chess match.

All is well that ends well ..

My year end scrutiny by the IT dept was an excruciating experience.
And while going through that, I found some long forgotten money that belongs to me, but was never noticed by me. It was lying in the pile of trash until the scrutiny helped me discover it.

Today I got two snail mails. One from the IT dept that I owe nothing to them. The other letter had the re-issued check of this so called un-realized money.

Yeah yeah ! This time I ll deposit it for sure.

One thing the scrutiny has taught me is that, if these minimal discipline of storing all the records should have been done from day one, I would not have so much pain.

Just like the accumulated extra mass around the body over years, takes a lot of pain and then discipline life long to get off and keep off :)

Follow up on Biking in Bangalore - 2009

Ok. I went to the nearby mall (6kms from house) for some fruits, vegetable and other stuff. I took my cycle this time.

Apart from harsh reminders on the road from the Car and Auto drivers, that there is no right of the way for cyclists, there was nothing wrong.

That is, until I got to the mall !!

The guy, who was mending the parking tickets, did not know whether to let me go in without a parking slip or charge me same as a motor bike (two wheeler as they call it in India).

Undoubtedly, I am the first slumdog cyclists coming to the funky mall !!!!!

I stood patiently until he calls he manager. His manager, unwilling to take a decision, calls another boss. I waited patiently.

Then they started debating right in my front. Another 5 mins !

Finally I interrupted them, and asked a simple question. "How many wheels does my cycle have ? " One of them said, TWO.

I said, give me a parking slip for a two wheeler.

More than biking in Bangalore - it was a classic case of "Decision making ability of Indians and the empowerment".

(One more) Peril of Urban living ..

I had to get the bi-cycles serviced today. Why is this even a job worth mentioning ?

There is no single place in the city unless I go 15 kms in to the underbelly of crowded central places, where a cycle can be serviced.

If I step out of my house, there are umpteen number of places fixing CARs, there are two big CAR dealers opposite. Big motor bike show rooms.

No Cycle repair shop !!

So, I had to put the cycle in the trunk of my sedan, with one wheel in and one wheel hanging out and went in to rural area not knowing where the road would actually end. I came across a few villages interestingly displaying all big real estate players Villa projects, and yet no cycle stores.

After going through what seems like 30 mins of drive exactly away from the City, did come across a small town / village market area and there was a big cycle store.

It was minor job indeed. One more thing, I need to add to DIY.


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As a child we grew up very much dependent on our bi-cycles. My village to the school in town was 7 Kms. When I was in class 6, since then till 10th, I drove my bi-cycle to school. And any place it went bad, there was some one close by who could fix it.

In 1995 Bangalore, I used to live in Indira Nagar and the Office was in Koramangala ( no inner ring road that time). 16 Kms. All I had was a bi-cycle. Never had a need of a motorized vehicle.

(Then there was a break of many years in US .. that spoilt many habbits and created many new ones )

2004 Bangalore. Back in Bangalore. Living in Kormangala, office in Shanthi Nagar. 7 Kms. I never thought why I would need anything other than a bi-cycle again. So, I put on my helmet and started biking.

But the time had really changed when I was away ! Really !!! It was practically impossible to ride a bike from Kormangala to anywhere in by 2004.

Today, my home, my work, my grocery store, my DIY shop, movie theatre .. (almost) everything is within 5 kms of biking. All on service road where one can still bike ! So, after years of not biking in Bangalore, 2009 - again biking year for me ! !


When I went to buy the bi-cycles, I had to go quite some distance. To the busy market area behind the commercial streets to buy one. But its ok as you buy only once. Transporting back to home (15 kms) costs Rs400/-. So chose the drive the new cycle all the way down. That was risky !

Now, only if I can find a place where I can service this nearby :( Until it is true DIY for me !!!

Ghar ki murgi dal barabar ...

There is a lot of action in the gym now a days. People are just entering the new year with usual healthy resolutions !!

As a result, there is a lot of action on the gym mail alias too. Improve this. Do that ! Apply process to de-congest etc.

One thing that jumped out as a refreshing revelation, when I was trying to sort through those gym mails and was trying to respond to a few.

Along with the gym, there is a Yoga instructor also, and a separate Yoga room. Yoga - is son of the soil. Art of the native. Science of our own ancestors. Medicine from our own kitchen.

But, where is the congestion ? In the gym ! The Yoga teacher is relatively free. And so is the Yoga room.

In the mail thread, one of my American colleagues, who has been here as an expat for a while, recommends people of Yoga-land to use Yoga as an alternative and raves about it.

We really do take things for granted that are close to us ;)

Sweet taste of "self reliance"

Do It Yourself .. at least the stuff that is designed to do ourselves :)

Today, I had a flat tyre. Its not that I am having it for the first time. It has happened earlier. But then I had a driver who knew how to do it right.

Now that my driver has found a new expat employee who pays a lot more, I am left on my own with two set of tools.

1. The one I use for most of my problems - Phone / PDA

2. The Jack, wrench and other mechanical stuff !

For a change, I tried to use tool set 2. There was a manual in the car that said how to change the flat tyre with the spare one. Where to locate the spare, the tools etc.

So, I got down to work. And surprisingly, it was easy !!! This tiny lil bit of self reliance adds a lot to road confidence.

A few months ago, I was not ready to drive myself !!!

Ironically, I am getting these sweet opportunities, once my driver left for an expat. Who in his own country, did every thing himself. In India, he is having people do his DIYs :)

Riding a Tiger ..

I learn something everyday... and today's lesson has been this.

"Do not ride a tiger, as you can not figure out when to get down without being eaten".

Ramalinga Raju, on today's date, the national villain of India (may be just next to Dawood and Pak ISI chief ), made this statement, explaining why he kept on hiding bigger and bigger amount of non-existent cash, year after year, foolling a nation of its hard earned money.

In good old days, Indian working class, once had a job, retired from that job. It was a statement of security, that earnt him social acceptance and family sustenance.

And, then socialism went out of fashion in last decade. Blatant capitalism and Harvard educated greed and mindless pursuit of profit took center stage.

What's interesting to see is, this is not the first country that went down this lane. Other advanced countries has done this and seen their own share of problems (read Enron and Anderson).

How can we do the same mistake again ? Aint we supposed to learn from our mistakes ?

Irony is, the person who erred, thinks he has mistakenly started riding a tiger many years ago !!

Unbelievable crap !!! Legitimized by a world class auditing farm and perpetrated by a name that translates to "TRUTH" in Sanskrit.

Wish, every one figures out how to feel rich by "non-existent" cash !!! That would be a positive out come of this mess ;)

How To - "Surrender"

If you go to a barber, do not think he will cut your throat while shaving you with a razor.

If you chose to do bungee jumping, don't worry about that disclaimer that you have to sign first.

As long as Draupadi did not raise her hands in air while being stripped in Kurusabha, God did not help her with endless clothing.

Surrendering is done with trust. When the underlying trust is shaky, surrendering wont get the desired result.

Devolution ...

[ Not an original post. It came to me via. a new year wish mail from my alumni mailing list. I am just adding the title that I think is appropriate ]

How did one survive growing up in the 70's, 80's and 90's?
We had no seatbelts, no airbags and sitting in the back of a truck was a treat…
Our baby prams had the most gorgeous lead based colours…
No such thing as tamper proof bottle tops…

Opening kitchen cupboards was a breeze… as safety locks were unheard off…
Cycling was like a breath of fresh air…
No safety helmets, knee pads or elbow pads, with plenty of cardboards between spokes to make it sound like a motorbike…

When thirsty we only drank tap water, bottled water was still a mystery…
We kept busy collecting bits & pieces so we could build all sort of things … and we were fearless on our bikes even when the brakes failed going downhill…
We were showing off how tough we are, by how high we could climb trees & then jumping down….It was great fun….

We could stay out to play for hours, as long as we got back before dark, in time for dinner…
We walked to school, or sometimes we even rode our bike.
We had no mobile phones, but we always managed to find each other…. How? No one knows…
We lost teeth, broke arms & legs, we got cuts and bruises and bloody noses…. nobody complained as we had so much fun, it wasn't anybody's fault, only ours
We ate everything in sight, cakes, bread, chocolate, ice-cream, sweet sugary drinks, yet, we stayed skinny by fooling around.

And if one of us was lucky to find a 1 litre coca cola bottle we all had a swag from it & guess what? Nobody picked up any germs...
We did not have Play Stations, MP3, Nintendo's, I-Pods, Video games, 99 Cable TV channels, DVD's, Home Cinema, Mobile phones, Home Computers, Laptops, Chat-rooms, Internet, etc ... BUT, we had REAL FRIENDS!!!!
We called on friends to come out to play, never rang the doorbell, just went around the back…
We loved being let loose in the big bad world…without bodyguards…
We played with sticks and stones, played cowboys and Indians, doctors and nurses, hide and seek, soccer games, over and over again…
When we failed our exams we were given a second chance by simply repeating the same grade…without visiting psychiatrists, psychologists or counselors…
Such were the days…

Take off - Doctor's order !

OK.. Here the doctor is economy, the juncture at which it is poised now.

A quick way to reduce cost (liability) of the balance sheet is to ask employees to take paid leaves for a while.

As, one takes off or not, employer owes the allowed amount of paid leave to the employee every year and if not used by the employee, then it stays on the balance sheet as "Owed money", otherwise known as "liability", which is a negative number.

All negative numbers, pull down the positive total in a sum. In this case the "assets".

And, when best to ask the employees to take off (mandatory) ? The least productive time of the year of course.

Better that laying off a few deserving employees when economy bites !

Where are the Jobs ?