Shoaib Akhtar has announced his retirement from International Cricket (not IPL?) and this saddens many fans like me. The frames of picture roll over before my eyes - the 160Kmph balls, the airplane action and yes, the motorbike ride inside the stadium!
Read this piece from cricinfo.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/page2/content/story/506724.html
Not just in cricket but in organizations, we will find some Shoaibs occassionally and it is important that such performers are covered under organizational management strategies.
What every manager, who manages such mavericks, needs to keep in mind:
- These characters will not appreciae, follow or influence what is 'standard'. Organizations, as they grow bigger, grow more robust on structures, frameworks,definitions etc etc have processes that will help the big organizaion manage predictability, reliability and sustainability in the market. So, a typical assessment of Shoaib-like-mavericks would be towards eliminating them.
- A Good manager lives with a maverick. A Great manager leverages the maverick. As an ode to the maverick - these are the guys and gals, who think out of the box and who provide you orthogonal and lateral ways of working. For them, what matters is how grandly and audaciously the results are produced; how big the impact is and how innovative was the whole solution.
- Bloated egos, unpredictable temperaments, high romanticism are the traits of mavericks. This can cause ruptures within team dynamics, cause impact to an organization that is geared to do only as per copy-book. A great manager looks out for great fitments for these mavericks in such situations and locate the best environments for these romantic geniuses to survive.
- Never ask this highly intelligent Akhtar clones to project manage a project. They just cannot! They are not wired to manage tasks, milestones and risks. Those are for the proces experts.
- What you assign to these big picture thinkers is always wrought with high risk and high returns. There is every possibility that the maverick will abandon his project when it is almost done or completely change the fundamentals just when the project is stabilizing and entering the 'me-too-organized' stage.
- These characters are usually emotional and will be very loyal to you as a manager when you show deep empathy for him or her. They are not bean counters.
So, what do you do with a Shoaib Aktar in a pakistani team? First of all, his captain Afridi is also a maverick. Now this combination rarely works. A maverick has to be managed by an emotionally, structurally stable manager. And as the organizational system (eg. Pak board) is hierarchial, traditional, process managed, the captain will be seen as showing favouritism to his 'buddy' while he is actually shielding the maverick!
So, Shoaib goes and the world loses a great bowler. I do understand how Shoaib could have avoided all those controversies and agreed with the systems. But this article is an ode to the maverick you see.....
Enjoy the world cup!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Loved this post on Courage
Source:
Business
10 tips to gain driving force
Fear and dread stultify your strength. Courage and energy redouble it! The best ideas are no use if you have not got the courage and drive to put them into practice. Take in the following statements. They will help you to keep improving your potential at being brave:
1. Keep in mind that you can continue to develop your personal strengths on a daily basis. Being self-conscious means leaving nothing to chance and taking things into your own hands.
2. Fear is energy which you can easily turn into a positive strength. Fear implies uncertainty and not knowing how things will develop. But that’s exactly where chance is hiding: Get enough courage to take the right route and follow it.
3. Courage is like a driving force, which helps you meet your goals and encourages you to believe in yourself and concentrate on what’s important.
4. Courage makes it easier to deal with every new matter. Stop wasting time before starting something. Courage will make you save time!
5. Courage is also a sign of vitality - people can immediately discern inner strength from a person’s face. Courage is charisma!
6. In future, your name will be the representation of courage and eagerness to act. Always speak out your name with courage and self-confidence - in that way you will give your life the right drive.
7. Courage changes your body language and expressiveness, courage improves your health. Courage gives you the aura of a personality who doesn’t just talk but also takes action successfully.
8. Courage gives you satisfaction and an eye for the meaning of life. You can deal better with other people's opinion and, at the same time, represent your own ideas with force and commitment.
9. Courage is simply indispensable on many days. Courage is a feature of your personality. You can boost this quality on any occasion.
10. Pluck up your courage time and again, thereby getting to know yourself even better. Explore your own boundaries time and time again.
A brave person is self-confident. They send out positive vibes and confidence and increase inexorably their creativity, their will to succeed and their zest for action. They work with full concentration on implementing their plans, thereby overcoming internal and external forms of opposition. They aren’t afraid of the future, because they know that they will shape it themselves!
1. Keep in mind that you can continue to develop your personal strengths on a daily basis. Being self-conscious means leaving nothing to chance and taking things into your own hands.
2. Fear is energy which you can easily turn into a positive strength. Fear implies uncertainty and not knowing how things will develop. But that’s exactly where chance is hiding: Get enough courage to take the right route and follow it.
3. Courage is like a driving force, which helps you meet your goals and encourages you to believe in yourself and concentrate on what’s important.
4. Courage makes it easier to deal with every new matter. Stop wasting time before starting something. Courage will make you save time!
5. Courage is also a sign of vitality - people can immediately discern inner strength from a person’s face. Courage is charisma!
6. In future, your name will be the representation of courage and eagerness to act. Always speak out your name with courage and self-confidence - in that way you will give your life the right drive.
7. Courage changes your body language and expressiveness, courage improves your health. Courage gives you the aura of a personality who doesn’t just talk but also takes action successfully.
8. Courage gives you satisfaction and an eye for the meaning of life. You can deal better with other people's opinion and, at the same time, represent your own ideas with force and commitment.
9. Courage is simply indispensable on many days. Courage is a feature of your personality. You can boost this quality on any occasion.
10. Pluck up your courage time and again, thereby getting to know yourself even better. Explore your own boundaries time and time again.
A brave person is self-confident. They send out positive vibes and confidence and increase inexorably their creativity, their will to succeed and their zest for action. They work with full concentration on implementing their plans, thereby overcoming internal and external forms of opposition. They aren’t afraid of the future, because they know that they will shape it themselves!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Pandit Ravi Shankar
One of my favourite terms is Passion. It's an often misused word especially in the leadership context. Leadership is most effective when a leader works for his/her cause with passion. Now, is 'Passion' visible all the time? I don't think so. So how does Passion get rewarded if the passionate person does not tie visibility to it as well? A passionate person is satisfied when his or her goal is accomplished and may not even be aware if his passionate work has been visible, got rewards or awards and if they captured the headlines.
No prizes for guessing this one. How many of us know one Muhammed Yunus of Grameen Bank as compared to King Khan? One is passion without visibility and one is with visibility.
Read on this Vijay Govindarajan's blog:
http://www.vijaygovindarajan.com/2009/10/pandit_ravi_shankar_at_spauldi.htm
No prizes for guessing this one. How many of us know one Muhammed Yunus of Grameen Bank as compared to King Khan? One is passion without visibility and one is with visibility.
Read on this Vijay Govindarajan's blog:
http://www.vijaygovindarajan.com/2009/10/pandit_ravi_shankar_at_spauldi.htm
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Cattle Class ...
Afaik, we have evolved from being considered belonging to a herd and belonging to labor class to 'cattle class'.
I learnt it the hard way when I became a manager first time last decade. Being a manager (or for that matter being a first time minister) is also a punishment because every word you say anywhere, even those that you tell silently to yourself, will be scrutinized. And needs to be explained!
Now, read this:
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/tharoor-meets-sonia-over-his-cattle-class-remark/101920-37.html
No wonder, some top managers, always stage manage every activity, every word , even their thinking! Thats life :-)
I learnt it the hard way when I became a manager first time last decade. Being a manager (or for that matter being a first time minister) is also a punishment because every word you say anywhere, even those that you tell silently to yourself, will be scrutinized. And needs to be explained!
Now, read this:
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/tharoor-meets-sonia-over-his-cattle-class-remark/101920-37.html
No wonder, some top managers, always stage manage every activity, every word , even their thinking! Thats life :-)
Friday, August 14, 2009
Anna Daatha Sukhi Bhava
Okay, with all the festivals around and with the associated spirit behind them , it's time to type here some of my principles.
One of my former colleagues who was in senior management lost his job 5 months ago as his entire division was wiped off. He had an almost perfect resume and the necessary skills but the next job was evading him. He would call me almost every second day and tell me how his finances were and how he has to repay mortgages etc. However not once did he bad mouth his company or his boss at all during the whole period.
Yesterday he called to tell me that he has indeed got a very good job, after 5 months of despondency, in a multi national company. I really felt very happy for him especially knowing how much he had struggled with factors that were not under his control and how his family (wife, kids, old parents) had put up with the turmoil.
So, I asked him yesterday about his one trait 'why didn't you bad mouth your boss/company'?. I was his former manager too at one point in time.
He emphasized to me what are my core values as well.
- No boss is so political that he/she targets only you.
- Politics is nothing but a collection of individual agendas
- When you put yourself in your manager's shoes then you will know or internalize his/her own agenda. And you will get a bigger perspective.
- Sometimes factors are so uncontrollable that nobody can do anything to it.
- Boss/manager is not a super hero!
In ancient scriptures there is a popular saying 'Anna Daatha Sukhi Bhava'. Let the person who gives me my bread live well (loose translation). Why don't we extend this . Make Boss = Anna Daatha?
One of my former colleagues who was in senior management lost his job 5 months ago as his entire division was wiped off. He had an almost perfect resume and the necessary skills but the next job was evading him. He would call me almost every second day and tell me how his finances were and how he has to repay mortgages etc. However not once did he bad mouth his company or his boss at all during the whole period.
Yesterday he called to tell me that he has indeed got a very good job, after 5 months of despondency, in a multi national company. I really felt very happy for him especially knowing how much he had struggled with factors that were not under his control and how his family (wife, kids, old parents) had put up with the turmoil.
So, I asked him yesterday about his one trait 'why didn't you bad mouth your boss/company'?. I was his former manager too at one point in time.
He emphasized to me what are my core values as well.
- No boss is so political that he/she targets only you.
- Politics is nothing but a collection of individual agendas
- When you put yourself in your manager's shoes then you will know or internalize his/her own agenda. And you will get a bigger perspective.
- Sometimes factors are so uncontrollable that nobody can do anything to it.
- Boss/manager is not a super hero!
In ancient scriptures there is a popular saying 'Anna Daatha Sukhi Bhava'. Let the person who gives me my bread live well (loose translation). Why don't we extend this . Make Boss = Anna Daatha?
Monday, July 27, 2009
Time for some stress busting.....
Time for some stress busting.....
I saw some funny OOO messages. Here they are.
Source: http://daveduarte.co.za/best-out-of-office-automatic-replies/2008/06/09/
I saw some funny OOO messages. Here they are.
Source: http://daveduarte.co.za/best-out-of-office-automatic-replies/2008/06/09/
1. I am currently out at a job interview and will reply to you if I fail to get the position. I may be a little moody so be prepared.
2. You are receiving this automatic notification because I am out of the office. If I was in, chances are you wouldn’t have received anything at all.
3. Sorry to have missed you, but I am at the doctor’s having my brain removed so I can be promoted to our management team.
4. I will be unable to delete all the unread, worthless emails you send me until I return from vacation on 4/18. Please be patient, and your mail will be deleted in the order it was received.
5. Thank you for your email. Your credit card has been charged $5.99 for the first 10 words and $1.99 for each additional word in your message.
6. The e-mail server is unable to verify your server connection and is unable to deliver this message. Please restart your computer and try sending again.
( The beauty of this is that when you return, you can see how many in-duh-viduals did this over and over.)
7. Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system.
You are currently in 352nd place, and can expect to receive a reply in approximately 19 weeks.8. Hi, I’m thinking about what you’ve just sent me. Please wait by your PC for my response.
9. I’ve run away to join a different circus.
10. I will be out of the office for the next 2 weeks for medical reasons. When I return, please refer to me as ” Sharon ” instead of “Steve”.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Women and Support structure at work place
What makes some companies succeed very well with women employees? I'm not talking about only-women companies here although I really admire them. In my opinion, women employees primarily need the following infrastructure.
1. Management must proactively listen to women employees
Most women, especially from Asia, have a dual role to play at home and work with completely different set of privileges.
While at work the women are expected to be assertive, make witty comments, talk sports and business and perhaps join the boys' network they have a completely different role at home. They essentially are not the primary decision makers at home. How many women buy cars or decide on an apartment all by themselves? A womean at home is always consensus person. She does take very judicious decisions after consulting other stake holders. So, primarily women make decisions after getting every one's opinion but they do make that known as a group decision. You know what I mean?
The same behaviour is shown at wrk. The woman employee codes, tests, documents and suggests feature changes or product changes. However it is unusual for a woman employee to stand up and say 'Ahem! I did it!' and instead she will say 'Congrats team! We did it!' even though she has contributed 80% to it.
So, good management should have the infrastructure to check out the contributions of women employees. I hear the men saying 'why the hell should we ask?'. Yes, you need to ask - if not you will lose valuable women employees who do great work and instead you will be hiring male employees for twice the price!
2. Create learning opportunities for women to understand business and finance.
In the usual world, women tend to be right brained and usually we don't find women talking near the water cooler about certain stocks going down, the national budget implications, the car specifications or P&L details.
In order for women to gel with the 'boys' it is essential that they learn all the above aspects. And if management can create that learning infrastructure, they have a win-win situation!
We all know women are relationship oriented and are hard working and loyal to the company and are paid less (lets face it!).
Companies can do well to create women friendly infrastructure which is way beyond providing child care facilities and flexi time issues.
HR and Top Management - Time for us to be innovative and feel the pulse!
http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/A_woman_in_Bangalore_can_compete_with_the_world__Obama-nid-58990.html
1. Management must proactively listen to women employees
Most women, especially from Asia, have a dual role to play at home and work with completely different set of privileges.
While at work the women are expected to be assertive, make witty comments, talk sports and business and perhaps join the boys' network they have a completely different role at home. They essentially are not the primary decision makers at home. How many women buy cars or decide on an apartment all by themselves? A womean at home is always consensus person. She does take very judicious decisions after consulting other stake holders. So, primarily women make decisions after getting every one's opinion but they do make that known as a group decision. You know what I mean?
The same behaviour is shown at wrk. The woman employee codes, tests, documents and suggests feature changes or product changes. However it is unusual for a woman employee to stand up and say 'Ahem! I did it!' and instead she will say 'Congrats team! We did it!' even though she has contributed 80% to it.
So, good management should have the infrastructure to check out the contributions of women employees. I hear the men saying 'why the hell should we ask?'. Yes, you need to ask - if not you will lose valuable women employees who do great work and instead you will be hiring male employees for twice the price!
2. Create learning opportunities for women to understand business and finance.
In the usual world, women tend to be right brained and usually we don't find women talking near the water cooler about certain stocks going down, the national budget implications, the car specifications or P&L details.
In order for women to gel with the 'boys' it is essential that they learn all the above aspects. And if management can create that learning infrastructure, they have a win-win situation!
We all know women are relationship oriented and are hard working and loyal to the company and are paid less (lets face it!).
Companies can do well to create women friendly infrastructure which is way beyond providing child care facilities and flexi time issues.
HR and Top Management - Time for us to be innovative and feel the pulse!
http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/A_woman_in_Bangalore_can_compete_with_the_world__Obama-nid-58990.html
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