Getting Naked

A book with the title "Getting Naked" was given to me to read by my ex-Boss and Mentor, Himanshu. Till date, i think it is the best book I have read on how to consult our Clients. The focus of the book is Client Trust and Loyalty. In one of my earlier blogs, I have spoken on the topic of 'trust' and how do we build that. This book takes that logic to another level and showcases that regardless of what service you provide, these principles will help you develop stronger relationships. But remember authenticity is at the core. If you cannot be authentic, and do lip service to these principles, people will see through you. Let us take a look at these principles :

a) Always Consult instead of Sell - Walk in to the Client's set up and start telling them what changes they can make. Do not worry about the fact that you may be giving away too much IP or the fact that this is scope creep...just provide additional help. The Client will start to rely on you and call on you whenever they need a sounding board or any advice. Isn't that a good place to be.  One of my partners actually lived by this principle. I remember landing once with my entire team at the Client's office, even without a signed contract in place. I know that at first i felt a little irritated, but you know what, his dedication paid off. The CEO would have never gone to anyone else, especially as we were so keen to start work.

b) Give away the Business: Related closely to the previous one.  Consult even before they have become a  paying client. 

c) Tell the kind truth: This one is tough; this is about telling your clients, the facts but in an empathetic way... offer help to sort through the situation. At one of our clients, we were struggling with one of the Client's team member; the person was not just able to contribute and instead forcing us to take heat. We raised the matter to the Supervisor suggesting that  it might be good for the Supervisor to do some in person mentoring, in addition offering the support of one of our colleauges to help aid the project in the meanwhile. The Client got the message and we saw improvements immediately.

d) Enter the danger: This is the best, it means simply countering any situation confidently, dealing with the elephant in the room. Present it as an observation instead of an accusation, maybe present it first to your client confidante, before bringing it to the larger group. This will help enable the success of your long term project relationship.

e) Ask dumb questions and make dumb suggestions and make mistakes : I am all for data based consulting, but sometimes, you need to put every thought out there, without worrying about how you will be percieved. Don't worry about making an error, you will be better for it.

f) Take a bullet for the Client: Sometimes, you have to take one for the team, be it Client or our internal teams. We were once presenting a key deliverable on the Competency Framework to the Client Stakeholder team. One of our key SMEs, cross questioned us in front of the audience, but we could not afford to call it out, as our project team credibility would have been eroded. We decided to take one for the team, and handle the problem separately; and we sure did :-)

g) Make everything about the Client: The relationship is not about you impressing the client with your skills. It is about them, you have to hone their skills and make them successful. Remember they always know more about their business, than you will.

h) You have to honor what the Client does: if you cannot, then pass on the work. It is not worth doing something for a client you cannot respect regardless of the money.

i) Do the dirty work: Do not hesitate doing every small thing, everything counts as a successful implementation. If it means photocopying, co-ordinating....just get it done.

I have tried using some of these principles in the past, needless to say they are very powerful, more than we can imagine, I recommend that you read the book !

Making friends over the age of 30

I came across this interesting article day, in NY times. Those of you, who are on connected with me on facebook will recall the link i shared on my timeline sometime back.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/15/fashion/the-challenge-of-making-friends-as-an-adult.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

The article examines why we find it so tough to make friends over the age of 30. His moot point is that the ability to make Best Friends or Close friends like you did when you were in school or in your teens is over post 30 years.

Seems scary right; given that I moved between schools every 2 years, moved to a brand new city for my college, and my MBA years are best forgotten @ XL, given my obsession with getting good grades and having extra currciular to boast on my 'resume'. My only chance of making close pals was once I exited my teenage years.

Well maybe that is just me, because my hubby's closest circle is his college circle. They have been buddies forever, and that circle has grown over the years. Friends have got married, had children and the group has grown. An aunt counts her social circle pre-dominantly of her business school, college and school classmates, and their spouses.

I think we find it harder to make closer relationships, as we approach midlife, given changing priorities, or critical events in our life, say you got married. I have some very close friends from work, however our interactions did reduce when I got married. We still can pick up from where we left, but our meetings are reduced, as they don't move in the same circle of friends that me and my husband share in common. It definitely helped my Aunt that her husband went to the same school as she did, so they could have a common pool of friends.

Friends also end up serving myriad roles. One of my closest pals is SD. We may not talk as often, but I do not hesitate to talk to him about career related advice. I consulted him, when I made my last move to a health care company. Similarly, if we need to crib about personal lives, or the lack of it, I dial a close pal in Singapore, and we can talk for hours like last week. You know who you are. If i want to travel to Tanzania or just anywhere ..or just have fun, I dial my friend from Bangalore or Gurgaon...and we get together..

Friendships in the professional world also are marred by a sense of competition and self preservation, intentional or not; people get re-assigned or travel, and the nurturing period for a friendship is never available.

In the article, the author examines, that people have an internal alarm clock that goes off at big life events, like turning 30. It reminds them that time horizons are shrinking, so it is a point to pull back on exploration and concentrate on the here and now. So suddenly you want to spend time with kids, or focus on your spouse, or being financially stable. I completely agree, however it is a cycle. What you want to focus on changes... A close friend of ours, married and father of two; recently confessed that he feels "life is slipping him by and he does not have any time to focus on things that he wants to do". So he ends up traveling, long drives, do date nights with his wife, meet us for coffee or lunch..etc.

Regardless, I am on the wrong side of 30, and try very hard to make new friends;... a colleauge and I planned to go shopping, as soon as our schedules + Delhi weather could get coordinated, its been 3 weeks. I am not giving up :-)

Connectedness

I was reading an article the other day on "What do top leaders do..." and underneath the article, a raging debate was underway, focusing on the pros and cons of staying connected 24X7, and constantly focusing on your emails. I smiled to myself, as i count myself part of this infamous group.

Why do i percieve it that way, consider this :

• I have my official email configured on my blackberry, previously my Nokia, my IPAD, and can access office email through my personal laptop, kindle and my official laptop of course
• I have connectivity at home with a high-speed broadband, a work provided tata photon when i am on the move, wireless internet at work, an international wireless card, for working at airports, a personal Tata Photon connection etc.
• I check my emails in the morning, when I wake up; I check it precisely every 3 minutes 
• My inbox has always '0' emails
• I worry about internet running out, hence always take unlimited GPRS plans :-)
• I work through most plane journeys
• I catch up on email while driving to work or a client location
• I have BBM, Google Talk, Yahoo Chat, Office Communicator all enabled on my mobile

..... i can go on


Some of this will seem bordering on obsessive compulsive disorder but I will argue the Yin and the Yang to this connected ness.

• To me the customer is paramount, and hence responding to an email or call within 12-24 hours is a non-negotiable, except when I am away, and I have an assigned delegate for the time frame.
• Social media allows me to meet old friends, so it is a blessing
• BBM is cost effective, and allows me to connect with people all over the world  including my local husband :-)
• Listen to some great music from all over the world thanks to the amazing radio stations

In the last so many years, this is one trait, which has worked for me and my clients surprisingly well.

But let us look at the flip side....

• Having so many avenues for staying connected and over use, kills your ability to focus, innovate, and confuses your senses
• It even numbs your ability to exercise your core brain functions, why think when you can google..
• Your body is more tired, if you work all through plane journeys
• Typing or even touch typing stresses your limbs, this is coming from some one who wore a splint on her left hand owing to over use of her blackberry
• Social skills if not used a lot, tend to get rusty....

Now there is enough research to argue the merits of staying connected as a fast track to the top, there is enough push out there that top leaders take time for self, to reflect on their next big win.

It is not my business to tell you what to do; am sure you are wise and all there... Keen to hear what works for you....:-)

Say, Stay and Strive... the Key is Trust

In any relationship we have all heard Trust is the key... More so in a supervisor subordinate relationship especially at the workplace. Seems common sense right. Absolutely, take this scenario.

You are a Business Head, who has just recieved the results of the Annual Engagement Survey or Satisfaction Survey or People dip stick (whatever name you choose to give). The results indicate that you seem to be doing well in Corporate Branding, People's perception of their Leadership etc, however there is improvement required in Coaching, Mentoring, Employees's understanding of the firm's direction, managing change etc. You spend hours with your business partner and the leadership team to get additional information, insights, and devise action plans. Well, you have crafted three actions for the next Quarter: Comprehensive Communication Framework, a formal Coaching Program for all People Managers, and Leaders conducting "Floor Walks". How does an employee feel the impact of the same at his or her workstation, in his or her life? Where does the onus of all the action lie - with the Individual and his Immediate Supervisor/People Manager/ Manager.
I can teach a Manager how to coach; but making the best of the coaching situation, ensuring that there is the right amount of sharing and guidance give and take between the two parties, needs a strong catalyst which is "Trust".

How does one build Trust? By not taking advantage of the confidence placed in you, maintaining sanctity of the relationship, maintaning confidentiality of the issues discussed and most importantly, not letting your 'self' / or your 'ego' come in the way of the relationship.

Well this is easier said than done. A few tips to make your team high performing and effective

• Listen with attention, don't do lip service
• Follow through, in actions not just words. If you cannot achieve optimal results, provide transparency
• Do not let title and authority give you false ego
• Be Genuine
• Know your people
• Coach people to think through options, don't trouble shoot for them
• Laugh.. Nothing like laughing the stress away
• Be present and visible, Hiding in your cabin or closed conference room is not helping anybody
• This is not about you, it is about them. Think what might work for them
• Ask permission to share information. People confide a lot of things, hoping that they can trust you. Trust once breached, can never be repaired.

I have used this time and again to build trust with my team members, my colleauges...my friends... It really works. Hope you liked it.

You asked for it

Interesting conversation yesterday evening. The Geetika Sharma case was on Television; and we were discussing the merits and de-merits. A point of view proferred to me was "Well she is an air hostessor a TV Actress, and you know to get into that kind of profession, we all know what she might have to do". and the second opinion proferred was, "He paid for her education, what was she thinking", another opinion was - "The issue with women is that they are willing to compromise to get ahead to fulfill their ambitions, but when things start to get serious, the women scream blaming the guy and half the scenarios being discussed on the media these days fall in that category", and the final opinion was "Why do women wear such revealing clothes to invite temptation". I know that such behavior is rampant, I know that there will be people men and women who will compromise values (maybe it is my moral compass) to get ahead however that is not the point at all.

I do not want to get into the debate of whether the recent crimes against women are justified. I have a set of simple questions for my fellow bretheren.
- Who gave you the right to violate my self respect? No you think it is the right of your sex? You are made that way.
- What makes you think that because i go to a Pub at night, I want your attention?
- Just because I have a drink with a friend/colleauge, you have to judge my character?
- Just because I have a job that ends at 9 pm, the next best thing we need is you and not a cup of tea? So blah !
- I should cover myself head to toe (not that it has ever stopped you), so that you have the freedom to dress lewdly, talk crudely, and do whoever,whatever wherever, and whenever. YES YES and YES.

But you know what, I as a woman, have to curb myself, so you can live your life, because that is what you are. Poor Men, they are like that only, so let them be.

So next time, you want to start this debate, DON'T. I will be told, you asked for it.

Courage is not the absence of fear

Courage is not the absence of fear


Tragedy struck our community a few weeks back, as one of our colleauges in a hit and run accident, lost his beloved wife and is now being treated in the hospital along with other injured family members. This incident shook many of us to the core; not able to fathom such a bereavement and loss to one so close to us. A sense of helpless-ness, an inability to even share what we feel..which has sparked a sense of outrage that I personally have never seen before.

People have shown up in troves to help out the family, commiserate, do relays at the hospital to take care of things, spent hours in the hospital lobby fielding media and by standers; spent time chatting with the family and many are doing much more in the background. Friends and batchmates of the victims have created a petition site, facebook group seeking Justice, organized candle light vigils, asked questions of the media and created a lot of pressure on the administration to do something and put who-ever is responsible behind bars. A lot of people have joined this movement even though they do not know the victims? They feel for the cause and want to help out as much as they can.

Seeing 200 people on the streets of Gurgaon, and 25000 + people on our virtual site fighting for justice, makes me feel proud of this community…

But as the case is heating up, and we are In the middle of all this; suddenly I am feeling a sense of apprehension, Am I safe? Will I be targeted? Is it Ok for me to speak to the media? Should I not participate in this movement ? People are beseeching us to be careful and be aware of the ramification/s of what we are doing; not be naive or get carried away in the emotions …I have heard this statement three times in the last two days – “We are tax paying, law abiding, god fearing citizens”, but should that make us strong or weak ?????? ”

What is this fear ? Who am I scared of? What can be the worst?

Does this fear give me a license to stay quiet and hide in the throes of our bouregious existence?

As a tax paying, god fearing, law abiding citizen.. is it not my right to help those who need our assistance at a time of dire need?

Am I excused by just posting on facebook, commenting on the administration and crying out Hulla Bol on my laptop?

Again what is the worst that can happen to me? Die… but dont’t we all have to die some day… I can get killed by some one speeding on NH8, or during a robbery in the middle of the night or because of a lifestyle disease..

And then I realized how many stupid times a day we used the word “I” or “me”. In fact, probably all I ever do was think about myself. And how lame is that when there are millions and billions of people who need our help.

As this quote exemplifies ; Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all.

I saw a post this morning ; BMW Accident; pregnant woman; intellectual friends; media and internet outrage – Verdict – BlockBuster ; Maruti 800, man standing on the street, no eye witness – flop show.

My friend…. I understand that for every BMW hit and run, there are probably several cases that bite the dust every day; however I believe, my charity starts with one. Even if we can get Justice in this one case…. we will be better off than not doing anything at all.

What is common between Will Smith and Dublin?

Interesting question. This is not meant to be a research on Smith’s roots or family ties to Dublin. 

This story begins as I was prepping for my trip to Dublin. I had been invited as a speaker at the CIPD – in Ireland. The Dates had been planned in April – May for a conference scheduled in June. I was excited to have been chosen to speak on the topic. Well volunteered not chosen…! My team started pulling together the slides, we changed the story line several times, the team patiently worked with me to make those changes, each time i had a whim

As we came closer to the event date, I think I was nervous, new city, new people and a conference where not 10-20 people were landing up but close to 100 expecting me to give them Enlightenment, Gyan, Teach them things that they may know or not know. We will have Consultants, HR Leaders and a lot of mid-level HR and Learning executives. Hmm…well I was all nerves.

19th June, the D Day – the team in Dublin had strategically planned for multiple iterations of the delivering the same content to audiences within the firm, senior leaders; HR people; Consulting members; our Analytics Team in Dublin. By noon, i was getting into the flow, yet there was something missing. What was it?

I googled Analytics on the World Wide Web, to see If i will get something interesting to share. The first was the definition of Analytics by Oxford dictionary; and a lot of hits focusing on how different fields use Analytics, and the one that caught my eye was Will Smith.

How can a Holly wood actor use Analytics? Seriously. So this is what i got which blew me away. Will Smith before he became this big timer, used to appear in a sitcom called Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. I am not sure how many of you have seen that show. Many of the actors of that show came later to SNL (Saturday Night Live) and some became stars like Smith. Now coming back to the point; Smith wanted to make movies; and not just anything; but make money. So he and his manager went out and studied the top 10 highest grossing movies of all times. Well, interesting facts ;

a) 10 out of 10 had special effects
b) 9 out of 10 had special effects and outer space creatures
And 8 out 10 had special effects, outer space creatures and a love story.

Well, Well, and the rest is history. If you see many of the recent movies Independence Day, the Men in Black franchise, IRobot, Hancock. Even Hancock made 600$ Mn plus. The coolest part was choosing what to analyze. He asked the right questions – well, kind of actor do i want to be; a romantic lead, maybe imitate what Tom Cruise and Hanks were doing in those days; do i want to be Oscar actor, be recognized for Oscar winning screenplays. He chose to do movies that made $$$$ and he achieved that goal.

I ended up using this story as an opening for my session. People laughed, and yes ladies and gentlemen that was a winner. A topic that can be dry as a blade of grass, turned out to be funny, and kept people engaged and asking the right kind of questions.

The show was over, and we were eager to eat, drink and celebrate. Will Smith had once again saved the day.

A mistake today saves nine tomorrow...

It has been a busy week, busier than usual… Emails, Meetings , Community Events and Airports. As I sit today to write this blog, I was faced with what some call a “Writers Block”.


As I started to ponder over topics to share, an event stood out in my mind, a story that reminded me, that regardless of how big or small, the mistake is.. it has a way of changing your outlook and teaching you new lessons.

About the time when I started work; I was asked by my supervisor to help streamline the New hire onboarding process. As a new comer, into the 3rd month of my job, i was excited about handling this process. One of my tasks amongst many was to ensure all our new employees got their Access cards within 2 weeks of joining the office. Seems surreal today, but there was a time when it took 2-3 weeks to get an access card.

To ensure that this happens, every week, we circulated an employee list with the status of the card to All the employees. We then waited in the Employee Cafe to hand out the cards. Seems absolutely simple, right ! Well… One August afternoon in 2000, I did this exercise and waited for Eligible Employees to turn up. Suddenly my colleague came running into the Cafe and said, “Geetha, what have you done”. I still can hear those words ringing sometime in my head.

A minute of two later, my Supervisor asked me to come into his Office, and I realized “What I had done”. I had circulated the card eligible employee list along with salary information... OH no !

I had tears in my eyes, and had vision of being fired from my first job ever. Head in shame, walking back home. Well, melodramatic, but give it up Geetha. I ended up working there for four more years with the same Boss, yep ! All he said , “Geetha, be more careful".  He also asked us to fixed the root cause of the issue, I should have not had access in the first place.

For weeks to come, I expected repercussions, but my Boss knew that I had learnt a lesson – Check your emails before you hit the ‘send’ button. Even now, I read my mails at least 3-4 times before sending them out, to ensure that the information is appropriate and accurate. – Sometimes ask others to review before we send an important memo out.

You know what, A mistake is OK, as long as you have learnt something from it.