tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53276061533829402802024-03-05T23:39:45.726+05:30Bitter-Sweet LifeA blog about experiences with Agile Development Methodology, ThoughtWorks, and Life in General..Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-88796211483182177142018-01-29T09:50:00.001+05:302018-01-29T09:50:32.901+05:30[Book Review] Scaling up - Rockefeller Habits 2.0<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://www.amazon.in/Scaling-Up-Companies-Rockefeller-Habits-ebook/dp/B00O5RR7QO" rel="nofollow noopener" style="background: 0px 0px transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; color: #827be9; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; touch-action: manipulation; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">This book</a><span> </span>has so much knowledge to offer that I might have to forego my resolution to keep my reviews short, I'll still try. My recent obsession is with understanding how companies can solve the scale problem and that's why I picked this up, I was also hoping it will offer some insights that could be applied at<span> </span><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/157356/" style="background: 0px 0px transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; color: #827be9; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; touch-action: manipulation; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">ThoughtWorks</a><span> </span>as we try to scale our unique culture.</div>
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<b>Warning:</b> This book is a marketing tool for <a href="https://gazelles.com/">Gazelles</a>, a management consulting firm that helps fledgling businesses scale up, and at times they have marketed their services subtly and on other occasions they have been quite upfront, that said, this book still offers a wealth of knowledge to draw from. </div>
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<strong style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Why read?</strong></div>
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The book is definitely worth a read since it offers frameworks to help managers align thought processes irrespective of the business they are operating, it also offers tangible tools that leaders can use to have a structured approach to manage high growth companies, and most importantly it offers examples (and context) that make concepts sticky and relatable. Another reason why I really liked this book is that it offers tons of good references of books and HBR (Harvard Business Review) articles to build deeper knowledge in specific areas (I hope to get through most of them in due course).</div>
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Most of the concepts and approaches that are shared in this book would seem common sense, but it’s mind-numbing to see so many large/small global organizations fail to implement them, mostly due to management lethargy/ineptitude. </div>
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<strong style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Key concepts that provoked my grey cells</strong></div>
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<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Continuous investment in training programs</em><span> </span>- The author/s spend a lot of time on the importance of hiring the right people and setting the right culture for teams to perform to potential. They also emphasize on investing continuously on upskilling your staff through meaningful training programs, something that most organizations tend to overlook.</li>
<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Cash is more important than profitability for a growing org</em><span> </span>- Cash flow is not something that naturally comes to our minds when we talk about performance, most of us tend to rely on the P&L statement and Balance sheets. In my view, the book lays down the right amount of emphasis on cash being a valid measure for success.</li>
<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Goal Alignment across the org</em><span> </span>- Does everyone in your organization understand and can articulate the BHAG® (Big Hairy Audacious Goal)? Have you formulated a short-term target for this quarter? Does everyone in the org know how they can contribute to this target?</li>
<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s your critical number?</em><span> </span>- If you get down to it then you should be able to define a critical number that helps each employee know how they are performing, there are interesting tools that have been shared in the book that can help your organization dig out that critical number.</li>
<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Great brands don’t try to please everyone</em><span> </span>- If you try to please everyone then its quite likely you will end up pleasing no one, the book talks through examples where organizations have targeted a fraction of the market and made sure that they service those clients well and these organizations are among the most profitable in their Industry.</li>
<li style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; margin: 2.4rem 0px 2.4rem 3.2rem; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Don’t be afraid to fire unreasonable clients</em><span> </span>- Building a strong team and fixing people issues can sometimes mean that you need to fire those “unreasonable” customers who drain out the positive energies from your employees.</li>
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Also, sharing some other quotes from the book that really resonated with me.</div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><em style="background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) none repeat scroll 0px 0px; border: 0px none; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px none currentcolor; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Coming up next: Review of "</em><a href="https://www.amazon.in/Five-Dysfunctions-Team-Patrick-Lencioni/dp/0787960756" rel="nofollow noopener" style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0px 0px; border: 0px none; box-sizing: inherit; color: #827be9; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; touch-action: manipulation; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank"><em style="background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) none repeat scroll 0px 0px; border: 0px none; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px none currentcolor; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Five Dysfunctions of a Team</em></a><em style="background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) none repeat scroll 0px 0px; border: 0px none; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px none currentcolor; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">"</em></span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-32019309867947705792018-01-10T10:00:00.001+05:302018-01-10T11:27:18.283+05:30[Book Review] Extreme Programming Explained by Kent Beck<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy: www.bookdepository.com</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">For the longest time I was really been intimidated by the term "Extreme Programming" (XP) because for me the words represented an extreme form of something that I had very little experience or knowledge*. That is the reason I had kept myself away from reading literature on this concept although teams at ThoughtWorks had been following the values of XP long before I joined the organization. I read this book to strengthen my understanding of the core concepts of XP and deliver the same via a workshop. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The <u>key takeaways</u> from the book was the emphasis on the core values of XP and the supporting role that the principles and practices play in successful adoption of this discipline. The book focuses on the "human" nature of software development and on the social dynamics (of mutual trust, respect, communication) that can make or break teams.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"values bring purpose to practices, practices bring accountability to values" <span style="font-size: x-small;">Beck, Kent. Extreme Programming Explained</span></i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">As a practitioner, I found a couple of perspectives thought-provoking:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Frequent pair rotation </b>(possibly multiple times a day!) - In practice, we have found this to be really challenging in projects where the code base grows over many years. Sharing context efficiently with all team members becomes fairly challenging.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Estimation in hours</b> - Having spent a long time trying to understand points based estimation and convincing team members & customers about its merits v/s the traditional approach of using time/hours it was a little disconcerting hearing the author talk about hour based estimation.</span></li>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Overall the book is a must read if you want to start the journey towards XP but if you have been a practitioner for a while you may feel that the author misses out on presenting detailed/indepth insights on some of the important topics. Even some of the anecdotes could have been more descriptive to keep the readers more engaged and to enhance their understanding of the concepts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">* I have no formal programming education, having completed my business degree specializing in Marketing & Finance. My primary role in my professional career spanning 10 years has been of a Business Analyst.</span></span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-6810431224664280922018-01-04T18:17:00.000+05:302018-01-04T18:35:32.166+05:30[Book Review] Freakonomics - The hidden side of everything!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1202.Freakonomics">This book</a> has been out there for a long time now and has been on my list of must reads forever, and I am really glad that I eventually got down to finishing it. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9P1X93-W3Y0N6Z4GyH2rktj0IMUMscYaAhKPDoGWT7UnZ8YbDg9OAKCBxQNvK8TUrzbo_8MROQ2qzINyK6cGJfhiIht82EXgkNFDowc6m_iPYSkvRIgkBx0UmldZVFtDefIyQaM9rIG3B/s1600/Freakonomics.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="1024" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9P1X93-W3Y0N6Z4GyH2rktj0IMUMscYaAhKPDoGWT7UnZ8YbDg9OAKCBxQNvK8TUrzbo_8MROQ2qzINyK6cGJfhiIht82EXgkNFDowc6m_iPYSkvRIgkBx0UmldZVFtDefIyQaM9rIG3B/s320/Freakonomics.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">For those who haven't picked it up as yet thinking that this would talk about complicated "economics" topics you might need to readjust that sentiment, this book is more about having a data oriented approach to understanding and solving real life problems. I also really enjoyed the insights that the authors brought about by analysing the available data. Actually, the really commendable bit is that they were able to get access to such a varied set of data.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><u>I really enjoyed</u> the analysis & interpretation that was offered for the sudden decline in crime rates in the US, the inner workings of gangs, and on what parenting approaches are likely to yield better results. I also liked the way the authors explained some basic concepts of statistics (variance), the examples used were simple and really hit home.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My <u>key takeaway</u> was that our perceptions can be really far away from the data driven reality and to suspend my judgement till there is hard data to back "well established" facts.</span></span><br />
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-88681295078517456422017-05-22T13:23:00.000+05:302017-05-22T16:53:54.668+05:30A Day in the Life of a Business Analyst at ThoughtWorks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: 15.333333015441895px; white-space: pre-wrap;">A really </span><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/rcarasco/" style="font-size: 15.333333015441895px; white-space: pre-wrap;">enterprising individual</a><span style="font-size: 15.333333015441895px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> got in touch with me a few weeks ago to help him understand the role of a Business Analyst, especially in the context of ThoughtWorks. He sent across a list of questions and I am posting them here along with my responses in the hope that other's might also find this helpful. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">About me: In case you were wondering why he felt I would be able to answer his questions :-). I have been playing the role of a Business Analyst in multiple client engagements over the last 12+ years. Here is a <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jagbir-lehl-92081b2/">link to my profile</a> for more context.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What was your typical day like when you started as a Business Analyst in ThoughtWorks?</span></span></h4>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My typical day starts with preparing the physical story wall for my project, so that when the team sign’s up for the tasks for the day there are stack ranked story cards for them to address.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then, we have the standup and team sign ups where the team shares any blockers they faced or are facing on their stories and any key lessons they picked up. If I have done a good job of explaining the business context of the stories in the backlog then the team sign-ups tends to be smooth and the team is able to sign-up for stories/tasks without much direction from my end.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You will notice that most of the activities are focussed at ensuring that we catch any issues upfront rather than later in the cycle, since the later they get caught the more costly it is to fix them, thereby accumulating waste which we want to limit as much as we can. The activities below occur on a daily basis in my world:</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Story kick-offs</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - When a dev pair (we follow </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pair_programming" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">pair programming</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in all our projects) picks up a new story for development it is my role to ensure that the pair understands the business context of the story and use as many visual means (workflows, wireframes, diagrams) as possible to ensure that this process is smooth. The quality analysts and feature owners (if any) are also mandatory participants in this activity. Generally, we invest around 15-20 mins in this activity for each story. </span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">BA volleyball</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Once a dev pair has completed a story from their end we conduct a BA volleyball which is essentially a validation exercise where the same individuals what kicked off the story come together and we run though the main acceptance criteria of the story. If we observe any issues of bugs then the feedback is passed right there to the dev pair who work on resolving this issue before the QA’s can pick it up for automation testing.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Backlog grooming</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Another continuous task for me is to ensure that the feature/story backlog is analysed and detailed enough to provide uninterrupted work for the dev pairs. I generally work 2 iterations ahead of the dev pairs and consciously avoid going more in the future since business priorities are ever evolving and I don’t want to focus my effort on something that might get de-prioritised.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Team huddles</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Since we do not perform low level design of our applications upfront, the team gets into quick (15-20 min) huddles next to the work area to discuss problems and agree on a common direction, my role in these discussions would be to provide business context and also answer any business related queries. I would excuse myself (or be excused) if the discussion is purely technical, this is decided on a case to case basis.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Customer interaction</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - I have daily catchups with my client counterpart, which is either a person in the role of a Business Analyst, Product Manager or direct user. These sessions are used to analyse the next set of features, continuously prioritise the backlog by evaluating/re-evaluating the value of a feature/story, and asking any open questions that may have popped up from the team or during my own analysis. We also use these sessions to review the stories that have been detailed by us to that we can get a sign-off and incorporate the feedback (if any) </span></li>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I also get involved in the below activities but these may not occur as often as the ones above.</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Prioritization & Business Context</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - I use the Iteration Planning Meetings (IPM) to ensure that the team understand the current state of the project and the next level or priorities. I also use this session to ensure that the team understands the business context of the upcoming stories. I generally own and drive this meeting.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Showcases</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Ideally, we should be showcasing each story directly to the main user group as and when they get developed, however, owing to the distributed setup that we tend to work in or unavailability of business teams from their regular activities we plan for these at the end of the showcase. It is my responsibility to ensure that we have the right audience for the showcase and the team follows a structured approach to the showcase. The actual showcase is run by the individual team members through volunteered signups, 1-2 folks from the team sign up for each showcase. </span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Retrospectives</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - This is again a shared responsibility but as a BA I take it upon myself to calling out when we have slipped up on this activity. The idea of this meeting is to have an open conversation about the areas of improvement and those actually going well so that we can improve as a group. You can learn more about retrospectives </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Agile-Retrospectives-Making-Pragmatic-Programmers/dp/0977616649" style="text-decoration: none;">here.</a></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What are the typical deliverables as a B.A?</span></span></h4>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The following become the key deliverables that come as part of my job:</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">User stories</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Well analysed, with as many visual representations as possible and well rounded AC’s. Ideally these should always be peer reviewed if you have another BA on the team, you can refer to some tips on </span><a href="http://jusbeers.blogspot.in/2014/06/extreme-analysis-pairing-for-business.html" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">pairing for BA’s here</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Feature overview</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - I generally create a powerpoint deck or mindmap when I get into discussions with the business stakeholders to get more details on the next set of features to be picked up. This becomes a document of reference as we build on the feature and again having visual representations on this is key for structured discussions with business stakeholders.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">IPM/Showcase decks</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - When having iteration planning meetings or showcases with the customers I generally use a deck and this again becomes an important deliverable.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">What do you love and hate(if any) most about your job?</span></span></span></h4>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I love:</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Interacting with customers and solving the complex problems that they throw at us.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">To break down complex problems and present them in an easy to understand language/format.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Getting to dab into multiple business domains and understanding the modus operandi of different companies/business processes.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Working with high performing teams and watching people grow in their careers, and if I have a small contribution in their evolution then I am even more thrilled.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Being challenged by co-workers and them setting the bar higher for me on a continuous basis.</span></li>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I hate:</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When the project comes to the end of its lifecycle and the complex problems tend to come by once in awhile.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is it necessary that you know enterprise applications to be able to offer a solution to a problem? Or do you get help from others? Who?</span></span></h4>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Generally, the enterprise applications exist to support business processes, in my discussions with business stakeholders I try to focus my questions on the business processes rather than the systems. However, if I need to understand the enterprise systems since they are intrinsic to me solving the problem then I would get into understanding the system using the following approach:</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I would use the help from the key SME who knows about the system and then sit with them to get an overview.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I would also get myself access to a test environment where I can play around different scenarios to build my understanding.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I would document my questions and then approach the SME for answers.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I was wondering, what books, articles or courses helped you the most in preparing to be a Business Analyst?</span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(I've already read BABOK 2.0, and many articles online)</span></span></span></h4>
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<div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I think the general lessons I learnt in my MBA helped me a lot in understanding business contexts and keeping my focus in that area. Apart from this, I would recommend a few books which would hopefully help provoke some thoughts:</span></span></div>
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<li><a href="https://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/books/user-stories-applied" style="font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">User stories applied</span></span></a></li>
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<li><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Agile-Retrospectives-Making-Pragmatic-Programmers/dp/0977616649" style="font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Agile Retrospectives</span></span></a></li>
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<li><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Goal-Eliyahu-M-Goldratt/dp/8185984565/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454918304&sr=8-1&keywords=the+goal+by+eliyahu+goldratt" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Goal</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - I really liked this book since it explains a lot of important concepts of how work should flow in a very lucid manner.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Phoenix-Project-DevOps-Helping-Business/dp/0988262509/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454918452&sr=8-1&keywords=phoenix+project" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Phoenix Project</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - This is similar to 'the goal' but deals with concepts in the IT world and explains how a well-oiled IT set-up should look like for large enterprises, again explained in a very fun novel-like format.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Crucial-Conversations-Talking-Stakes-Second/dp/1259005216/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1454918667&sr=8-7&keywords=difficult+conversations" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - This book has helped me deal with conversations both in the personal and professional space. I recommend it to everyone! As a BA you are expected to keep the team and the customer in good humor and some of the tips in this book, practised over a period of time, will really help you deal with difficult situations.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.in/Lean-Startup-Innovation-Successful-Businesses/dp/0670921602/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454918955&sr=8-1&keywords=lean+startup+by+eric+ries" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lean start-up</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Developing new products or enhancing existing ones is becoming very different now and this books explains the techniques Product Managers are using to make decisions. It's important to understand this because as a BA you will be working closely with client Product managers or even in some situations playing the role of a product manager in the absence of one.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What type of work samples or portfolio should I be trying to develop as I try to move into this career?</span></span></h4>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Areas where you are solving complex business problems by using a mixture of systems and human thinking should help you make a case for moving into this career.</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What kind of exercises would you recommend that I can engage to better practice being a B.A?</span></span></h4>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;">Solving case studies that look to improve the business process for an organisation could help, also, presenting such case studies and their solutions in an easy to understand format will also help.</span></span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a case study for a Business Analyst, what is usually being asked as a deliverable?</span></span></h4>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is what I would look for:</span></span></div>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ability to ask questions to understand the complete breadth of the problem. (Who are your customers, how will you reach out to them, what is your revenue model, what is your differentiator, what is your budget, what backend systems/operations have you put in place, how soon do you want this to happen, what is the state of your current IT systems, how did you do this so far etc.)</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Based on the above the ability to break down the problem so that everyone is on the same page (draw it out or bring clarity in your speech)</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Provide a realistic solution or options based on the inputs you have received and also the ability to think on your feet it you see any constraints. </span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The solution is not the most important thing that is being judged, the structured approach that was taken to reach till the solution is generally the clincher. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is it necessary for me to learn Agile if I want to be a B.A in ThoughtWorks? </span></span></h4>
<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You need to understand the </span><a href="http://agilemanifesto.org/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">essence of agile</span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, but it is not important for you to be a seasoned practitioner, we understand that agile practices differ across various organisations and you will undergo training programs once you join to help you understand our brand of agile.</span></span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Is there anything you thought I'd ask that I didn't? Anything else you'd like to share?</b></span></span><br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I'll just share my thoughts on how the role has evolved for me over the last few years and what I believe this role is about:</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Central force</b> - In my view, a Business Analyst invariably tends to be the central force around whom the team revolves, and in self organizing teams they could also double up as a Project Manager, this means that you need to be on the top of you game at all times. You need to understand not only the stories and backlog but also be the one that can push the team in the right direction when the focus wavers, you need to take ownership when you feel that we are not continuously improving.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Build a Self organizing, high performing team</b> - If you are going to achieve a team goal it is important that there is collective ownership in the team and you need to ensure that the team members are continuously enhancing their skills. This requires you to set clear goals for folks on your team and helping them work through their feedback.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Make yourself redundant</b> - As a seasoned BA on a team I see my role as making myself redundant, which means that I am mentoring other BAs to take on the higher responsibilities and improving themselves. This is the only way I have figured out that I am going to elevate my learning and growth curve.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Continue to learn</b> - This is definitely cliched so I am not going to spend a lot of time one it but mention it here since this is the only way to remain relevant. I wish I could do better at this everyday!</span></li>
</ul>
<br /></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-83415636639094338912017-05-20T11:41:00.002+05:302017-05-22T16:54:55.855+05:30Cure for Shin Splints Pain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I enjoy my daily morning run for the perfect start it offers my day, but the recurring problem of <a href="https://runnersconnect.net/shin-splint-exercises/" target="_blank">shin splints</a> had almost forced me to give up. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQq_PxLA_dpL0YpxBShZqB05U3WKGlWVGiATYl99jVzbiDm74NpmbrxiP53OQz3voUyac_dJ-xnImRZOD2GzZUbix8UR8n8iRPDNMT2TuDxKWLGi-uy7qacZN9ItV61qSD43ZHWHyOOHwQ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2017-05-16+at+8.14.46+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQq_PxLA_dpL0YpxBShZqB05U3WKGlWVGiATYl99jVzbiDm74NpmbrxiP53OQz3voUyac_dJ-xnImRZOD2GzZUbix8UR8n8iRPDNMT2TuDxKWLGi-uy7qacZN9ItV61qSD43ZHWHyOOHwQ/s320/Screen+Shot+2017-05-16+at+8.14.46+PM.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If you google search "Shin splints pain" you will find a lot of information from relatively credible sources like webMD. However, most of the information that I came across on the internet did not really help, for instance one of the posts suggested that I run on soft running surfaces like grass, another suggested that I keep my posture absolutely straight during the run and land my foot on the front half of the foot. I persisted with these theories/recommendations for a while but none of them worked for me and the pain inevitably came back.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">WHAT WORKED?</span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of the <a href="https://runnersconnect.net/shin-splint-exercises/" target="_blank">reasons cited</a> for shin splints is weak calf and hip muscles due to which the strain caused by the foot hitting the ground falls directly on the shin (Tibia) muscles. I believe this to be true since I have even observed the difference between my calf muscles (size & shape) and of runners who don't suffer from this problem (can't observe hip muscles without being labeled as a pervert, so left that out😀) .The following routines have helped me so far in avoiding the pain from shin splints while still enjoying my morning run.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCR3NWGHaVUH1YqY8q97svLHPMUhacM3r1v38yu9JWj74wdH0Pa4hMt4nV4zYeHLE4BIlQTTBJyVqz7NPnzHtVzxpo54csYRl_QTsE6gZJGv2RoGfFAPqMMEQClgOQuIWcTnXPD0OKBOVD/s1600/Calf+stretch1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCR3NWGHaVUH1YqY8q97svLHPMUhacM3r1v38yu9JWj74wdH0Pa4hMt4nV4zYeHLE4BIlQTTBJyVqz7NPnzHtVzxpo54csYRl_QTsE6gZJGv2RoGfFAPqMMEQClgOQuIWcTnXPD0OKBOVD/s200/Calf+stretch1.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Calf stretch (30 sec, 2 reps each foot)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">WARM UP & WARM DOWN</span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ensure that you warm up before the run by doing the necessary stretches for your calf and hip muscles. The one that I do before and right after the run is to push the front half of my foot inwards and hold that for upto 30 seconds for each foot, I repeat this twice. I also stretch my hip and thigh muscles with some <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/the-body-shop/five-exercises-to-do-before-every-run/slide/1" target="_blank">easy stretch exercises</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Remember to repeat the same stretches once you are done with your run.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPk8P8twIObA9DEyMbOsIyg2ppfE8lZ5xHoM-HWM6kAToWmHmFh6UJna7CKRyW5uNlx8sV7BcXS15PuoFZogDeckE8sNHUJzPAJ1KKq2dVQgsAIUsVSS-eOsINB44UN8ODRI-t_6AU3Iub/s1600/Overall+stretch1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPk8P8twIObA9DEyMbOsIyg2ppfE8lZ5xHoM-HWM6kAToWmHmFh6UJna7CKRyW5uNlx8sV7BcXS15PuoFZogDeckE8sNHUJzPAJ1KKq2dVQgsAIUsVSS-eOsINB44UN8ODRI-t_6AU3Iub/s200/Overall+stretch1.png" width="131" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another stretch exercise (5 reps, <br />
breathe in when you stretch up <br />
and breathe out when touching toes)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">BUILDING CALF STRENGTH</span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In order to build calf strength I use the technique displayed in the video. All you need is a stair and some support to balance yourself during the exercise. I generally do 25 reps x 3 times for each foot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You can also do other variations to build calf strength like standing straight and raising your heels by supporting the weight on your toes and then resting back, try this while holding weights for better results.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8efLCOH390s/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8efLCOH390s?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">BUILDING HIP STRENGTH</span></h4>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuAjG67cq3Dte7kNpS0kQwHKM3tAXDY_1Ba7aAF3J5r2qP4h-0DCVHRBfzOpB4VwKwYOeFufaqg8iEUMRwK9bXV5qDiSlMHBWpn_EnDI4bk9h_SKG6PcYXn-COYMPcFKqQ9K9DJBW7zDd1/s1600/Leg+raise1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuAjG67cq3Dte7kNpS0kQwHKM3tAXDY_1Ba7aAF3J5r2qP4h-0DCVHRBfzOpB4VwKwYOeFufaqg8iEUMRwK9bXV5qDiSlMHBWpn_EnDI4bk9h_SKG6PcYXn-COYMPcFKqQ9K9DJBW7zDd1/s320/Leg+raise1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leg raises, hold for a brief second on top for better results</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In order to build hip strength I use a simple floor exercise described in the image below, it requires you to lay down on one side with one of your hands resting your head. Then raise the top leg as far towards the ceiling as you can and hold for a brief second before bringing it down. I generally do 25 reps * 2 times for each leg. Again there are multiple variations of this exercise and your can find some suggestions <a href="https://runnersconnect.net/shin-splint-exercises/">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">PRECAUTIONS</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As one goes through the above routines it is important to bear in mind the following:</span><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Don't do these strengthening exercises just before a run.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Do these strengthening exercises regularly (if not daily).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It takes time to build these muscles so don't rush into your run after a couple of days, I suggest atleast a weak of </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">strengthening before venturing for a run.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Once you resume running, build distance gradually.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Posture is really important, so keep you back straight (eyes focussed on the horizon) and always land on the front half of your foot.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Your muscles react better if they are trained regularly, so try to be regular, even a 20 min morning run can do wonders.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In a separate post I will share how I used a simple technique to shed 8 kilos over the last 6 months.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Note: I am not an expert, I am just sharing my experiences based on my specific conditions, you should ideally consult a physiotherapist or a sports medicine specialist before trying any of this.</span></i></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-71141056022804445202016-01-01T12:34:00.000+05:302017-05-22T16:55:57.277+05:30Looking beyond the Odd-Even Rule<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: right;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6gCtHKA0wYpnMX9sgn9ins8FBop_P_gOMuwOwza5YpIBW9p-WXQN6-3JnYmPac4EgTbykBR-uC1PAxEkK4S_kF-sbba6LSgWFzViWdz_8JTHlwRbXVKA9-__RrgkxCgyx7QOIHY_NszsZ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.28+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6gCtHKA0wYpnMX9sgn9ins8FBop_P_gOMuwOwza5YpIBW9p-WXQN6-3JnYmPac4EgTbykBR-uC1PAxEkK4S_kF-sbba6LSgWFzViWdz_8JTHlwRbXVKA9-__RrgkxCgyx7QOIHY_NszsZ/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.28+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
As Delhi braces itself for the implementation of the <a href="http://www.gizmodo.in/indiamodo/Everything-You-NeedTo-Know-About-Delhis-Odd-Even-Rule/articleshow/50364979.cms" target="_blank">Odd-Even rule</a> to help decongest the roads and bring down the extremely high levels of pollution in the city, it's also important to think about some of the other solutions that will help smoothen the flow of traffic.<br />
If you have driven (or have been driven) on any city in India you will agree that one of the main reasons for traffic jams (apart from the high number of vehicles on the road) is the complete lack of adherence to basic rules of driving like sticking to lanes, following traffic lights, etc. In my view if we are able to convince/coerce people to follow some of these simple rules then a lot of the traffic congestion can be eased. I derive this understanding from my visits to developed countries where people (including Indians) tend to follow the rule of law and that really eases the flow of traffic and eases the stress of driving on the roads.<br />
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How to get people to follow traffic rules?<br />
Fear of law. Period. That's how people in developed countries are kept in check, because they know that if they mess up, there is a high probability that they might be caught and penalized heavily.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEfZ5-0w9Sj4zH1Pv8ddxztI3ejR1bbFF1fZsoXFSm4FUQYqzzKAps1r8AEBcFhcxBLznQIp5SpK5o67CF-2sen6fjzn4zLI5RqioU9S3hec8LgXdg6-9AUoRztt9jORdfFTr5WOGA8it/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.16+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEfZ5-0w9Sj4zH1Pv8ddxztI3ejR1bbFF1fZsoXFSm4FUQYqzzKAps1r8AEBcFhcxBLznQIp5SpK5o67CF-2sen6fjzn4zLI5RqioU9S3hec8LgXdg6-9AUoRztt9jORdfFTr5WOGA8it/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.16+PM.png" width="320" /></a>I can hear you all saying "Well we all know that!" and "It's easier said than done", and although I may partly agree to your outbursts, I still believe it may not be difficult to implement this if we can cross the threshold of political and bureaucratic lethargy.<br />
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Here is the plan.<br />
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<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><b>Identify a few key junctions/points around the city</b> (and keep these a strict secret)</li>
<li><b>Install high resolution video cameras</b> that record the traffic movement and relay to a central server.</li>
<li><b>Create a team of 10-15 traffic officers</b> that pick a random time of the day and <b>analyze the footage</b> to identify offenders.</li>
<li><b>Send challans to the offenders</b> with photographic evidence, also use newspapers to highlight the offenders that were caught to further drill the point among others.</li>
</ol>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVr3VDb8A-BhvUREQP1CDlKyVIbEjIsL36pyfYtKDQ0ts2tbtbfa6oCYGSZ0IqPqcYS1TcNcPiEcc9cHqMnwzFrn8zQFuFCJty8BzIqSOxvtEH5OtVtrZKeveCaadBati22jKiC-jBQF5I/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.01+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVr3VDb8A-BhvUREQP1CDlKyVIbEjIsL36pyfYtKDQ0ts2tbtbfa6oCYGSZ0IqPqcYS1TcNcPiEcc9cHqMnwzFrn8zQFuFCJty8BzIqSOxvtEH5OtVtrZKeveCaadBati22jKiC-jBQF5I/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-01-01+at+12.11.01+PM.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The Plan"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
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<div>
What would it take to implement this?</div>
<div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>High resolution cameras</li>
<li>Storage space for the recorded footage</li>
<li>Video analysis software to go through the footage</li>
<li>Team of slightly tech savvy traffic officers</li>
<li>Software to record and generate challans (If one doesn't already exist)</li>
<li>Heavy fines for offenders.</li>
<li>Co-ordination among traffic and transport departments.</li>
<li>In case of Delhi, political will from Central (owns traffic police) & State (owns transport) govt.</li>
</ol>
<div>
There will be some hurdles in the way and I am sure we can iron them out to create a sense of fear of law. For instance, you might say:</div>
<div>
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<div>
"This is going to be really expensive"</div>
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[Response] Well, we can start small, maybe just with 15-20 key places for starters and then ramp up slowly. Cameras and storage space needed of this small number may not be cost inhibitive, if these places are kept a secret then even this small number may be enough to keep people guessing and instill the fear of law among people. Also, if this is successful the benefits may far outweigh the costs.</div>
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<div>
"It's going to be really time-consuming to review the footage"</div>
<div>
[Response] Not all the footage needs to be analyzed, the traffic officers can pick random periods every day and identify the offenders during that period, they don't need to analyze the footage for the entire day. Again, the idea is to instill fear that if you don't follow the law then you will be caught.</div>
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"How will you penalise out-of-town vehicles"</div>
<div>
[Response] This is something that I still haven't been able to work out. Does anyone have any suggestions?</div>
<div>
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<div>
"People may not pay for the challans/fines generated from an "automated process" and still keep driving around"</div>
<div>
[Response] - To begin with, publish the car numbers that have been issued fines on a website. Also, allow people to pay for these fines online. For any challan/fine that is unpaid for more than x days the fine amount is doubled and if it remains unpaid for an year then visit the address and impound the said vehicle, also you can enforce insurance companies to not issue insurance policies to such vehicles until their fines have been cleared.</div>
<div>
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<div>
This solution is not new and in all probability has been suggested by someone else, but I still think its worth trying in addition to the other initiatives that would help.</div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-87505848368171305402015-10-24T12:52:00.001+05:302017-05-22T16:56:31.256+05:30The 10 Year Itch!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In 10 years, the building has moved, the profs (quite a few)
have left, the hairlines have receded, and the beer bellies have flourished,
but the camaraderie has remained intact and so has the joy of exchanging tons
of those memorable stories.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What started as a casual conversation on a WhatsApp group
culminated in the 10 year reunion for the batch of 2003-05, obviously none of
this would have been possible without some very industrious batch mates and the
alumni office at GIM. Around 30 of us made it to Goa from all over the globe
with some of us coming from the US, Europe, and the Middle East to make this
reunion a grand success and help us relive those wonder years.</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGmtuA-yVLAOn6zwyhXIvy3N3h73TSYF1WpSKyUpawF1ZeoeqdILvVwJzYWyie-QSBRUeu-rPzg8ov6bF583bdlo7IDvEcLrFqEJFZ2s6uG_UscD9oCNx-uHLyfheqzjA8RWeFgddBZXg/s1600/20151003_152430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGmtuA-yVLAOn6zwyhXIvy3N3h73TSYF1WpSKyUpawF1ZeoeqdILvVwJzYWyie-QSBRUeu-rPzg8ov6bF583bdlo7IDvEcLrFqEJFZ2s6uG_UscD9oCNx-uHLyfheqzjA8RWeFgddBZXg/s320/20151003_152430.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just one of the breathtaking views from the new campus</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The reunion kick started with an informal get-together the
night before the main event at GIM, which followed the next day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Given the late night, it was amazing to see
that everyone was up and ready in the morning to take the longish ride from
Candolim to the new campus together. When the talk of moving to a new campus
was initiated a few years back we all thought that it would be really difficult
to find a location that can come close to the Ribandar campus, but the new
campus is not only located in one of the most scenic places in Goa but also
boasts of ultra modern facilities like centrally air-conditioned classrooms,
well-maintained hostel accommodation, in-campus faculty housing, a huge
auditorium, tennis and (indoor) badminton courts, a well equipped gymnasium,
and (my favorite) a huge swimming pool.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Prof. Parulekar also ran us through the other things that
have changed since we left campus. The batch size is now 240 as opposed to 110
in our days, we also have more than 50 full-time faculty to support this
growth. GIM is also involving itself more actively in the industry and picking
up consulting projects to supplement the brand. Probably the most impressive
initiative is the outreach into the local community through various touch
points and with an overall objective of sensitizing students to the lives of
the vast populace that is underprivileged. We all left from campus with the
overwhelming confidence that the institute is poised to take itself to greater
heights in the near future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The reunion rounded-off with a grand party in the evening
where we all got down and boogied like the clock had never moved. If your batch
is next in line for a re-union then, don’t think, just do it! I promise it will
be worth it! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>And again, a BIG THANK YOU to Divye Goel, Ajay Chopra, & Mohit Golcha for pulling us all together and to the folks at the GIM Alumni office for all their leg work. This wouldn't have been possible without you!</i></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTg-D_nMYtwKud3kLBKZ2jk9a-sw9BJU8zqmNjNY64-mX-v5LualoS324sl3vXjlOjBIhfup29-5yFgXGY9ELS6wvDjc6aFAKaAcuf9PvxQn8MoCRNQOUY8511CI-rctwnePO0aVQjgUP/s1600/20151017_181644.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTg-D_nMYtwKud3kLBKZ2jk9a-sw9BJU8zqmNjNY64-mX-v5LualoS324sl3vXjlOjBIhfup29-5yFgXGY9ELS6wvDjc6aFAKaAcuf9PvxQn8MoCRNQOUY8511CI-rctwnePO0aVQjgUP/s640/20151017_181644.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the faculty housing & beyond at the new campus</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRoE8BBd0jT4gTQnnVtlHVge8CTCDN6s0L-njqRUUyLD5qfDKGXlHhlvG6lIeiTngDcVKZ_sjqS7SYw4QPkOkMk6ONx4HnPije2yn0I3aqgr-vbrWEK3EuGXv-dSVceJp_Z6Z5jC7dYe9/s1600/Batch+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRoE8BBd0jT4gTQnnVtlHVge8CTCDN6s0L-njqRUUyLD5qfDKGXlHhlvG6lIeiTngDcVKZ_sjqS7SYw4QPkOkMk6ONx4HnPije2yn0I3aqgr-vbrWEK3EuGXv-dSVceJp_Z6Z5jC7dYe9/s640/Batch+photo.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The one's who made it!</td></tr>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-42979596936441746992015-04-06T09:54:00.001+05:302017-05-22T16:58:10.133+05:30The Most Important (yet ignored) Asset<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I learnt this lesson during my <a href="http://www.gim.ac.in/new/index.php" target="_blank">management course</a> and it immediately struck a chord and has always stuck on. The course was called "Services Management" and our professor used a simulation game to explain a very simple point about the services industry. In the simulation game we began with a set budget and the players had to invest that amount in various components like Marketing, Sales, Research & Development, Operations, Human Resources, etc so that the overall business could flourish. The traditional mindset is to create a stellar product and market it well, this should settle you as the winner. However, in a services-oriented business the players who invested smartly in their Human resources (a.k.a People) would end up on the winning side since happy and empowered employees will provide the clinching customer experience. In other words, "people" are the most important asset for a service-oriented business and how you invest in recruiting, training, rewarding, and empowering your employees will have a direct impact on your bottom & top line.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I know that this may not be a eureka moment for most of the readers and they would have read/heard this before, some may even argue that we are already following this, haven't you seen our Mission/Vision statement we have mentioned "employee satisfaction" in bold and even our tax friendly benefits structure should tell you how much we value our employees. Some others may also point out that they have a dedicated human resources department and also provide free cola and snacks in the pantry. What else do you want!!?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While doing the above is important, in today's workplace they are merely hygiene factors. On a day-to-day basis your people interact with their peers, managers and customers, and it is this environment that generally lacks the "people" focus it needs. Therefore, it's imperative that we continue to avoid the following pitfalls and foster the kind of environment that might end up being your <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unique_selling_proposition" target="_blank">USP</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before we begin this, the underlying assumption is that as an organization you have spent a considerable amount of time in hiring the "right" people i.e. people who possess the raw (or finished) ingredients suited for your business, and not just another "body" to fill the manpower targets.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx3UzCQkWVFejl-0B2OI6OEph2T1g9ImJAB-o6tz9-Ut0KXWCTihqT3kup-8zmkY4XioM1KX5Pa8y8hOeXsWHRLmv8HkoXpMnlRAJHiOYJ_z5cb_CofZFCfzSS1YBT85VlzgNo1mSjzUl9/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+8.43.59+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx3UzCQkWVFejl-0B2OI6OEph2T1g9ImJAB-o6tz9-Ut0KXWCTihqT3kup-8zmkY4XioM1KX5Pa8y8hOeXsWHRLmv8HkoXpMnlRAJHiOYJ_z5cb_CofZFCfzSS1YBT85VlzgNo1mSjzUl9/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+8.43.59+AM.png" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Stop treating people like a resource</b> - Technically, people are resources but are very different from the other resources that you would encounter in a traditional manufacturing scenario. They have ambitions, moods, personal issues, quirks etc. and all this needs to figure in our thinking especially when we take calls on planning their career paths and while staffing them on assignments. Moving people from one project to another cannot be played out like it does with machines on the shop floor of a manufacturing unit. Do that more often than once and you are playing with fire. Remember, if the person isn't happy or convinced about what he/she is getting into then it is more than likely that this will impact the manner in which they service the client. At ThoughtWorks, in order to ensure that we are addressing people's interests, we take inputs from people about the kind of software projects we should be targeting. This helps ensure that we atleast have a buy-in from (majority of) folks on the ground and moving across projects is not a big deal since each project has something unique to offer.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWbEIsJ5crr4XQ6EcbTOX3ZJqoBtOMgzlS9k3_vEhkz9wwzAe39cuxaeR34JBUgWi1x9jDOy7-2bD7a4n-T5A1wBkEwyFSgxvvr42KylDJ2h5R_p6YAPvXLClmMX4tWQoFO8zZy7R1kjBP/s1600/empowerment.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWbEIsJ5crr4XQ6EcbTOX3ZJqoBtOMgzlS9k3_vEhkz9wwzAe39cuxaeR34JBUgWi1x9jDOy7-2bD7a4n-T5A1wBkEwyFSgxvvr42KylDJ2h5R_p6YAPvXLClmMX4tWQoFO8zZy7R1kjBP/s1600/empowerment.png" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>"Empowerment" is the word</b> - Interacting with clients and across internal teams, employees need to feel empowered and trusted to bring out the best in them. Managers constantly feel the need to micro-manage people to fulfill the needs of the demanding customer, this creates further distrust and frustration in the team. If you have hired the right people then have the guts to trust and back them, and they will deliver whatever is within the realm of "possible" or maybe even beyond that. Yes, they might make the occasional mistake but the value of an employee that feels that he/she can take ownership will soon surpass any losses. The practice of constantly pushing people by offering superficial rewards might only work temporarily, in my experience the employees who feel trusted and empowered will get the job done and still be satisfied.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8DrlDKFfqFplqTo0NjRhpGTeOCT24BGyoUmEKnXsj0mAt0C1p4sU5CgsG_fbehAPvulYRl3s-_HfEGc8_Wye6aM64UVM9keQMSEoq5wGMEkzQzGedcCqil8HAivHqZf3voOOEBWZ_Lpy/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+8.58.34+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8DrlDKFfqFplqTo0NjRhpGTeOCT24BGyoUmEKnXsj0mAt0C1p4sU5CgsG_fbehAPvulYRl3s-_HfEGc8_Wye6aM64UVM9keQMSEoq5wGMEkzQzGedcCqil8HAivHqZf3voOOEBWZ_Lpy/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+8.58.34+AM.png" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>The World is "Flat"</b> - Flat hierarchies are not a new concept but even though a lot of companies have been able to move towards a flatter hierarchical structure and realize the benefits, there still are tons out there that enforce the almost military-like command and control structure. The only people who can actually change this are the senior level managers, but I guess if you have worked hard for so many years to climb the corporate ladder you want to feel privileged and you want to have your own office and you want people to address you as 'sir' (atleast on your face). No sir, sorry to have to tell you this but get your priceless *** out of that closed door office and sit where the rest of your folks sit. This one move in itself will send a very strong message to your people and further enforce the feeling of trust and empowerment that is key. It will also help you sense the pulse of the people without having to do meaningless point based employee satisfaction surveys every year. Use a meeting room for all the "closed" door discussions that you want to have.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFjcrE0o5Tod1iDfF1F3LboUR2ApOh3l3AJHnWhGsU-mtvocrnn4g4FkZpPl5S6QdaW1zfynig6r6iciymcUkU5pbSlZY1Lt0rvVmGrcPE4ljrzgwfR8dBwbO-wIXXrOAV25ujCln8K7K/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+9.20.05+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFjcrE0o5Tod1iDfF1F3LboUR2ApOh3l3AJHnWhGsU-mtvocrnn4g4FkZpPl5S6QdaW1zfynig6r6iciymcUkU5pbSlZY1Lt0rvVmGrcPE4ljrzgwfR8dBwbO-wIXXrOAV25ujCln8K7K/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-04-04+at+9.20.05+AM.png" width="249" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Why are people leaving?</b> - Don't fool yourself to think that people are leaving just because they want to start their own venture or because you just couldn't offer a higher salary package. <a href="http://humanresources.about.com/od/resigning-from-your-job/a/top-10-reasons-employees-quit-their-job.htm" target="_blank">Bad managers and short-sighted people practices are still a big reason for people quitting, whereas compensation is the last reason most people leave.</a> Is that true for your firm too?</span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-5914750673708300692014-07-20T12:47:00.001+05:302018-01-24T12:27:09.090+05:30Why Palestinians need your Support?!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ok, so I am not a Palestinian or a muslim, but that doesn't stop me from being human or a global citizen and that is why I write this piece. Would I expect the same kind of support from the international community if fate and so-called international super powers had given my nation a raw deal? The answer is a "yes". </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4RXbvDJi0sppjFaLoMeCIS05eIBqTKi12iihITDVBCQuWkn2QQHPOpkq0mtMfipum2_r4cRA1TGaDAYYpZKOuD6RBxhkLJp3yHWhUIWPtwUen0TGqTGQaEXSIR9cY8dSiok8RHvMlTip/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-20+at+11.46.26+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4RXbvDJi0sppjFaLoMeCIS05eIBqTKi12iihITDVBCQuWkn2QQHPOpkq0mtMfipum2_r4cRA1TGaDAYYpZKOuD6RBxhkLJp3yHWhUIWPtwUen0TGqTGQaEXSIR9cY8dSiok8RHvMlTip/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-20+at+11.46.26+AM.png" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The disturbing fact is that most international commentators and journalists don't talk about history of the conflict and the fact that the Palestinians were the inhabitants of the land which is now called Israel and were removed from their lands forcefully and with little or no compensation and now have to live in inhuman conditions. They also don't make any reference to the role played by the US in "UN-levelling" the playing field, and the fact that this entire mess is the handiwork of the UK. The Britishers (in their right minds) thought that the best way to bring justice to one set of people was to enforce injustice on another set, something that was doomed to fail from the outset.</span><br />
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/wms0b4zwvuQ?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The fact is also that rockets are being fired by Hamas into the Israeli territory and that is wrong. Period. The only lasting solution to this or any other conflict can be a peaceful one, where all the concerned parties sit on the negotiation table. However, meaningful negotiations are not possible when the 2 parties that are participating are not "equals". </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Palestinians have no military might and absolutely no support from the UN or any other country. The Palestinians have made multiple representations on the atrocities that have been inflicted upon them, but all have been vetoed by Israel's supporters. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the other hand we have a military heavyweight like Israel that is fully supported by the US, UK and other countries. The other countries have supported Israel through their silence and to safeguard their selfish interests. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9DRLE5odE6CBg5eU_LBD5DDj_4MsALaVzqc4aNAzV5mUbh3U6tuAxmI57Tk4xDUvbmmpMcJh0ObZp9QHh4ytTZD4FJ14ZWzbcxMmaq0BIDYDMtwZ94M-fCOQ38q-ztfusNJ1hZt2-BFe/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-20+at+11.51.14+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="60" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9DRLE5odE6CBg5eU_LBD5DDj_4MsALaVzqc4aNAzV5mUbh3U6tuAxmI57Tk4xDUvbmmpMcJh0ObZp9QHh4ytTZD4FJ14ZWzbcxMmaq0BIDYDMtwZ94M-fCOQ38q-ztfusNJ1hZt2-BFe/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-20+at+11.51.14+AM.png" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Still not convinced? Then let's try an analogy that's closer to us, would we call any retaliatory action from Tibetans (using covert guerilla tactics) on China as "terrorism"?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What if China decided to take over Arunachal Pradesh and the </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">only way for India to defend itself against China's might was to launch covert guerrilla strikes? Who would you blame in these conditions? If your answer is that you blame India/Tibet, then I guess there is nothing more to say...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>In Conclusion:</i> It doesn't matter if we support Israel or Palestine, what's important is that as global citizens we build the right perspective on such important issues and the historic facts, and not go by everything that the international media feeds us as "current affairs". </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>The embedded video presents some historic insight into the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. If that one is too long for you then maybe <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=682855851805542&set=vb.518947111529751&type=2&theater" target="_blank">this shorter version</a> will help get some perspective.</i></span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-55631324482933804472014-06-23T09:38:00.002+05:302018-01-24T12:27:29.259+05:30EXTREME ANALYSIS - Pairing for Business Analysts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifjNtx3A1R7t1vjdtjWVN4vO63GI-uOsbxHzDQ4A5E-s5X2ClDwi08f1XiGrsjgRG35zg8Gv5e2lzU24E_eSRO4Qo0OB7gKf7BSHf61mW-UJ3LTqcR19CVj3Mf_S2mhaMfJkFWpeIKb6kM/s1600/Pair_Programming.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifjNtx3A1R7t1vjdtjWVN4vO63GI-uOsbxHzDQ4A5E-s5X2ClDwi08f1XiGrsjgRG35zg8Gv5e2lzU24E_eSRO4Qo0OB7gKf7BSHf61mW-UJ3LTqcR19CVj3Mf_S2mhaMfJkFWpeIKb6kM/s1600/Pair_Programming.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Extreme Analysis in action</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pair programming has been used by software developers in most progressive software companies to help churn out quality products and to ensure that context is shared across the teams. For the uninitiated, <a href="http://www.extremeprogramming.org/rules/pair.html" target="_blank">traditional pair programming</a> (in short) is a practice where 2 programmers work on developing a piece of software functionality in tandem. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This practice helps improve code quality since you have 2 sets of eyes and brains trying to solve the problem and as one person writes the code, the other continuously reviews it, thereby eliminating the need to have separate code review sessions. Also, if the pair has worked efficiently </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">then </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">any mistakes in design have been caught upfront, thereby eliminating any waste caused by defects which would have been discovered at a later stage. This concept has mostly been applied to the working of software developers and other roles have not quite adapted it, as yet.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u><i>Why is this important? -</i></u> Business Analysts (in general) are used to working in an individual capacity since most team's have a single BA, and a lot of analysts find it hard to work with other analysts in an amicable manner. My guess is that since there is a dearth of opportunities to work with other's, the skills to work with others does not get the opportunity to blossom.</span><br />
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<span style="color: orange; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Business Analysts, User Experience (UX) Analysts, Project Managers, and (to a lesser degree) Quality Analysts are used to working alone, and may need to work out how to deal with situations where they too need to <b>collaborate</b> among the community, and deliver.”</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /> My primary role is of a Business Analyst, and I had wanted to share my experiences <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="6b23e2f1-365c-4339-9c01-6fa6caaaae0e" id="5c33f1fa-b463-4e45-87e8-8580dc5b91ce">on</span> the projects that I executed at <a href="http://www.thoughtworks.com/" target="_blank">ThoughtWorks</a>, where I was able to pair with the other BAs with some level of success. This piece is my attempt to not only share some of those lessons and experiences, but hopefully also generate some healthy debate/discussions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><u>The Basics</u></b></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before we go into any specifics of how to pair as Business Analysts we need to first get some basics right. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBB_KdIVBrxRljryh6RhsVdParFt-LzmNsib3MUdToF0vVgxK50QdxQ7lVY6J9xeXZCWarnZgRkJnJ3QhZpX8PtT9MJ9rSA93k0L6kywc1811D-kyV2ACkRYrxQ7BndtMNyQ_qvk5OPbh/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-23+at+9.22.13+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBB_KdIVBrxRljryh6RhsVdParFt-LzmNsib3MUdToF0vVgxK50QdxQ7lVY6J9xeXZCWarnZgRkJnJ3QhZpX8PtT9MJ9rSA93k0L6kywc1811D-kyV2ACkRYrxQ7BndtMNyQ_qvk5OPbh/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-23+at+9.22.13+AM.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Any successful working relationship needs to have these elements at the core, the absence of these will render any attempt at pairing to be futile.</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Commitment to work <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="161f24fd-de9b-45e7-9ed9-6ae4097f0076" id="0d48295b-4589-4629-896f-84c034c6fda9">from</span> the individuals in question</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mutual Respect</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Equal sharing of tasks and responsibilities</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leverage on each others strengths and work around the rough edges.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willingness to take feedback from each other and work towards improvement</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Helping each other through personal time-offs by temporarily taking ownership of tasks</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ability to share a laugh and work through stressful situations</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Personal Hygiene, since the expectation is for both to sit in reasonably close proximity to each other, personal hygiene will be an important factor. :-P</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><u>Pairing Practices</u></b></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When we look at Business analysis in an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agile_management" target="_blank">agile project</a> the following tasks would generally have to be undertaken on a day-to-day basis. I hope to tie the practices we used and make my case for "EXTREME ANALYSIS".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Daily Sign-ups -</b> The day generally starts with a stand-up where the entire team participates and thereafter programmers, quality analyst and Business analysts sign-up for their tasks. <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="090c04ac-8510-4e03-a57e-848ef65f97fe" id="ce45862d-7b12-4d68-afbc-f2dffeb8afcb">Its</span> important that the BAs get together and list down the tasks that they intend to pick during the course of the day and sign-up for them based on an equal distribution.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This activity is important since there can be multiple things (other than story detailing) that need to be addressed during the day like responding to emails sent by the customer, escalating blockers, reviewing <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="f61c9955-2220-4056-acb9-61e48178eace" id="095c9e52-ba1b-4063-979f-4cd1de864dd4">analysed</span> stories etc. And these tasks need to be identified and responded to as a team.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><u>Tools/Practices:</u></i> When the BAs are co-located then it makes sense to sit next to each other and <u>list the tasks</u> on a notebook or <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="9b4584d6-63ea-4f44-b340-11637c46fa1b" id="8d0f0304-f257-418c-84c0-171860532d3c">stickies</span> and striking them off as they get done. However, when the BAs are working in different <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="53af66e8-21aa-4fac-a1ca-b2c688b5939a" id="63096afd-4968-4c42-86ae-8a5dfb4a8a2e">timezones</span> (or geographies) then apart from a 15-30 min daily catch-up the sign-ups can be managed via a lightweight task list manager like <a href="https://trello.com/" target="_blank">Trello</a>. Its web-based, free to use, and simple as hell.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Story Detailing -</b> This is the most significant task that BAs undertake and pairing here can help to set a mutually agreed direction that the BA detailing the story can take. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u><i>Tools/Practices:</i></u> The tool being used here is the most effective one <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="8bfbfe7c-5e37-4253-af1f-072b882f6057" id="ab5b26b7-8165-43a3-a772-6bc0d4409cee">i.e.</span> conversations. The BA who has taken the ownership of a feature will <u>explain in brief the approach</u> that he/she plans to take and solicit inputs from the other BAs. This ensures that context is shared and also helps build a better story right <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="ffb58854-ca5e-4031-a9e8-de57791efe5f" id="27eaefb4-21ae-410d-9c30-0d023f5cfd8d">upfront</span> (fail fast).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Story Review (Internal) -</b> In Extreme Programming, programmers use peer review to ensure that the coding practices are being followed. Keeping in mind the same principles, Business Analysts should get their stories reviewed by another set of eyes just to make sure that all the bases are covered.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u><i>Tools/Practices:</i></u> Ensuring that all stories </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(especially the complex ones)</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> are <u>peer reviewed by <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="3172b3be-787d-45a1-a953-530429437401" id="6fa268c3-646e-4a3c-b329-a77ddecba0f3">atleast</span></u><u> one Business Analyst</u> to capture any obvious omissions/errors.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Story Review (with Customer) -</b> Stories need to be signed-off by customers before they can be picked up by programmers and these meetings can be managed better if you work as a team. If the BAs have followed the earlier steps they will take a uniform message and present a unified voice to the customer. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u><i>Tools/Practices:</i></u> <u>Having feature <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="809e7e10-f5fc-441f-82e3-f08b754cc681" id="fb473901-9ca9-4791-aa5b-630f23c49d50">kick-offs</span></u>, where as a team you present the outline of the requirement and get <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="809e7e10-f5fc-441f-82e3-f08b754cc681" id="7664d8a0-835b-4192-9f59-88c18702b84f">inputs</span> from the customer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Iteration Planning -</b> The stories that need to be picked in the forthcoming iterations need to be planned and communicated to the customer. <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="08f14251-6287-4d62-993e-291463434c59" id="10fa1d5b-17cb-4596-84b1-586ba44c0f5c">Its</span> important that this activity takes into account the dependencies and priorities that are associated with the stories and features.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><u>Tools/Practices:</u></i> <u>Rotate the responsibility of creating the iteration plan</u> among the BAs and then review the plan that has been set forth as a team. <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="05f2bcba-467e-4b7b-b578-90c00ccf53ed" id="49c27a70-c987-4ecd-b46b-d0918f96800b">Again this</span> helps get inputs from a larger group and in the absence of one of the BAs the others can take over the Iteration planning meeting with the team and/or customer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Difficult conversations -</b> When we talk about <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="019e72fa-dbea-44a4-96a6-5b91f5ebfa26" id="894501b7-4af2-4b55-8258-33ee57fc729a">scope</span> and prioritization with customers there is always the possibility of conversations turning hostile, especially if the team is set-up in the <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="019e72fa-dbea-44a4-96a6-5b91f5ebfa26" id="b27b8370-c2f5-4fb0-9456-dac6959dc4bb">onsite</span>-offshore model. Added to this is the fact that customers can be very direct, demanding and (sometimes) just plain uncooperative. All this could lead to frustrating conversations which can test the BA's patience, communication, and negotiation skills.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><u>Tools/Practices:</u></i> If one of the BA's is feeling particularly frustrated and bogged down by the conversations and not able to respond in a calm and composed manner, which is a perfectly natural feeling to have in such tense situations (Maybe it's just not their day). The other BA should have the ability to sense this and attempt to bring the calmness and logic back into the conversations. This obviously means that the BA who is not able to respond in a calm manner should back-off and let the other BA lead the discussion this time around. Good teamwork requires people to understand the personality (and mood) of their colleagues and support them adequately.</span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-85871981632718007402014-06-02T11:24:00.000+05:302017-05-22T17:03:42.726+05:30Women Empowerment: Moving Beyond Lip Service<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Almost all progressive new age organisations and their leaders would publicly support higher participation from women in their workplace, some even boasting how women have occupied senior management positions in their company. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /> Generally this boils down to a 3 month paid leave on maternity, additional security during late night drops, and a few "women groups/forums". Although all this is welcome and much needed, there still is a need to up the ante when it comes to actual Women Empowerment. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In my view ThoughtWorks has tried to change the game through the following initiatives and as we try to continuously improve and innovate I am sure there will be more such attempts in the future.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Target 50% women hires during campus placements - </b>ThoughtWorks has set itself a target of fulfilling 50% of their annual campus hires with women. This is done without compromising quality and without ignoring an equally capable male candidate. How? By targeting women only colleges and holding focused recruitment drives.<br />
There is no doubt that this is challenging and a tough ask from all involved, especially if you consider the dwindling number of women in software. But the intent (to enable 50% of the population) is there and the team has worked really hard to attain this goal.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>In-office day care -</b> A very significant number of women are forced to give up their careers to support and raise their children. Mostly this is due to lack of a support system (nuclear families), lack of good quality and reliable day care options, or the overwhelming feeling of guilt about leaving your child in their most vulnerable and cute phase. In my opinion it is this guilt which either comes from the family or is self-inflicted, that leads to most women choosing to stay at home.<br />
In an attempt to enable its employees (men or women) and quell the guilt, ThoughtWorks Bangalore office offers in office day care facilities to employees. <a href="http://www.thoughtworks.com/insights/blog/childcare-work-solutions-working-parents" target="_blank">I'll let the expert let you know more about this (click the link).</a><br />
Although other offices don't have a dedicated day care facility (as yet) they have always allowed parents to bring in their young ones along with a nanny if they are very young. The offices also have a small children room to help parents. Personally I am rooting for a day care facility to be set-up in my home office of Gurgaon as well, so that I can spend more time with my daughter (guilt free!). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><a href="http://www.thoughtworks.com/insights/blog/bringing-technical-women-back-work" target="_blank">Must read about another initiative "Vapasi" being run at ThoughtWorks to bring technical women back to work.</a></i></span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-78195719266078349092014-05-27T16:20:00.000+05:302018-01-24T12:28:15.001+05:30An Open Letter to Fellow AAPtards<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dear fellow AAPtards (incl. Shazia, Capt. Gopinath etc.),</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So we tried our best and we gave the current political setup a run for its money, however we didn't get the desired results. Did we expect BJP and Congress to just roll over and die, especially with so much at stake? We all knew that this was going to be a fight for the long haul and we could only hope to make inroads through continuous efforts and sacrifices. Think of this via another example, Coke and Pepsi are the dominant players in the Cola market, they have the money, resources and people's loyalty. Do you think you can introduce a new (arguably better) product as an alternative and hope to rule the market in a couple of years? Well, we all know the logical answer to that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We also have recognised that there are a plethora of lessons that need to be learnt and strategies altered without sacrificing our core values. But most of you are wondering if this movement remains valid and does it hold any significance anymore. I firmly believe that it does and here's my take on it:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Viable alternative</b> - Although the number of seats that we won across the country in our first effort does not justify this, but after the stellar performance in the Delhi polls the BJP and Congress realised that they need to bring their A-game if they want to remain relevant, and they fought really hard (especially BJP). Delhi taught them a lesson that they can't take people for granted, and obviously AAP could have done a better job of communicating their exit, but still the impact was telling. As the Congress and RaGa (hopefully) become irrelevant, it's important that we maintain the threat and force the market leaders to continue improving, being transparent, being connected to the people on the ground, and make systemic changes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhse_dfYOk5XO6Qw-BPfZ9_CITu4UHRI9MUgPbYsaXUD1sxeeUAub0lrq34BeJiPtpyZEwWc3Axn0vX0DBqizHyNOD5SdUpTrUdMm179LFa_GVDUX15ZEcxNCrKOBzNxXYiRzT3eUKWc64Y/s1600/MLK_quote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="119" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhse_dfYOk5XO6Qw-BPfZ9_CITu4UHRI9MUgPbYsaXUD1sxeeUAub0lrq34BeJiPtpyZEwWc3Axn0vX0DBqizHyNOD5SdUpTrUdMm179LFa_GVDUX15ZEcxNCrKOBzNxXYiRzT3eUKWc64Y/s1600/MLK_quote.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Focus on our core agenda</b> - AAP as a political alternative came into existence to CLEAN UP POLITICS. This should continue to be our focus and all our messaging should be targeted around this. Will the BJP (having a clear majority) bring police reforms, judicial reforms, a strong lokpal structure, electoral reforms, political parties under RTI, concepts of swaraj etc? Only time will tell, and if they don't then we are back in the mix and if they do then AAP doesn't need to exist and that should be the happiest day for all of us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>The Road Ahead</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXFZrL-M_FRIe-tOzCKOdoTld9kvjoZ1jNxKxeZj7cV6bOxicD8oT1K_JOy0C4c7G5lrXNm7rDeAfrWdnUDhCfc7EwgS0lPIXKHPS7I02bqj605JE2VqUZIzl0K-mhX_uPEhtdksj7pAZ/s1600/mohalla+sabha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXFZrL-M_FRIe-tOzCKOdoTld9kvjoZ1jNxKxeZj7cV6bOxicD8oT1K_JOy0C4c7G5lrXNm7rDeAfrWdnUDhCfc7EwgS0lPIXKHPS7I02bqj605JE2VqUZIzl0K-mhX_uPEhtdksj7pAZ/s1600/mohalla+sabha.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Mohalla Sabha - Let's bring power to the people.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There is no doubt that with the BJP bringing their A-game we need to revamp our strategy and target our energies on making a significant impact during the upcoming legislative elections in Haryana, Delhi, and Maharashtra. Again there is no guarantee that we will make significant inroads in all/any of the state assemblies, but if we truly believe that our message is true and our path is right, then we MUST CONTINUE irrespective of the setbacks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Your Sincerely,</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jagbir (a.k.a. AAPtard)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>P.S. - Are you are upset with me using the word 'AAPtard', which has been primarily used to demean people in some way? Well don't be, I use this word because for me it means that as an individual I am brain locked in the principles that will lead to a corruption free India, where we can hold our leaders accountable and build a system that serves all classes of citizens (rich or poor).</i></span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-14231002089035123612014-04-06T08:47:00.000+05:302018-01-24T12:28:45.109+05:30VOLUNTEERING FOR A DREAM I BELIEVE IN!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After having shed <a href="http://jusbeers.blogspot.in/2014/04/a-visit-to-aam-aadmi-partys-office.html" target="_blank">all my inhibitions</a> and getting enrolled as an "on-the-ground" volunteer for the <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/" target="_blank">Aam Aadmi Party</a> I thought I'll share my experiences of the first couple of days.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spreading the word</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjI-ohG1vcdZGZUyzmoon0M6s94VLSvfE0_gbpvKKNs08p3sDe3pLVqzjy8qnW0GdJas1xUZQ6BWef6x7-6ifySinUr3sckrOPKPvVAjvwVgqxBhMGOEpUQ6pGvnOD-9QlSmU46Y4l76n_/s1600/AAP_Jansabha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjI-ohG1vcdZGZUyzmoon0M6s94VLSvfE0_gbpvKKNs08p3sDe3pLVqzjy8qnW0GdJas1xUZQ6BWef6x7-6ifySinUr3sckrOPKPvVAjvwVgqxBhMGOEpUQ6pGvnOD-9QlSmU46Y4l76n_/s1600/AAP_Jansabha.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy:<br />
https://twitter.com/Parasmaniji/status/307896433892274178</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As soon as I reach the office I am tasked to a team that will try and reach out to the people on the road by distributing <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/aap-manifesto-2014" target="_blank">"I want Swaraj"</a> topis (caps), badges, and putting posters on auto-rickshaws. Its not the glorified job that one would imagine, but in my view its the best place to be since that's when you can truly gauge the support of the people and the "AAP Wave". Majority of the people on the road are extremely enthusiastic in their support and as passionate as we are, I say this because, auto drivers come around voluntarily to get the posters fixed on their rickshaws (without a penny being paid or being asked - a little hard to believe), people on the road stopping by and asking how can they <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/volunteer-zone" target="_blank">volunteer and lend support.</a> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am not sure about the "Intellectuals" but the common people on the roads connect with the party's message on honesty and clean governance and are extending their full support. This sort of response generates the energy that makes one forget natures elements of rain, heat, cold and work tirelessly towards spreading the message.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhR_syGpl9EprvYkjdSkdK60L1J9pm6adzub0QCoxfAtRFsO7tK8rJjq8SKp4bg9AIcDEdjgycnhAb0XU2JXZNUoUzKt6Wa8hZ5RJmiGhZKwIRt-4oeJCSfGZ7n3_yqLteiwIbmF_L3pG/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-06+at+8.31.42+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="82" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhR_syGpl9EprvYkjdSkdK60L1J9pm6adzub0QCoxfAtRFsO7tK8rJjq8SKp4bg9AIcDEdjgycnhAb0XU2JXZNUoUzKt6Wa8hZ5RJmiGhZKwIRt-4oeJCSfGZ7n3_yqLteiwIbmF_L3pG/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-06+at+8.31.42+AM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />There are roughly 70000 auto-rickshaws in Delhi and my team working in the East Delhi constituency have covered over 300 of these vehicles and we would have distributed more than 3000 caps in the last 2 days. There are many other teams working round-the-clock in the region, trying to spread the word. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the campaigning efforts in Delhi coming to a close the next set of responsibilities include assuming the role of a polling agent and facilitating the spreading of the message on the D-Day. I am game.... and if you are too then <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/volunteer-zone" target="_blank">sign up TODAY.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Is </b>baar <b>NoMo....di Sarkaar </b><i>(This time we don't want Modi)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There is no doubt that there is a sprinkling of support for Modi and a couple of folks have come up to me and repeated "Is baar Modi Sarkaar" <i>(We want Modi). </i>My short but courteous reply to them is "No sir! you mean, Is baar phir <a href="https://www.facebook.com/maheshmurthy/posts/10152336836482138" target="_blank">Ambani Sarkaar</a>!".</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">AAP ki "topi"</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVmBghb3Ksh0zdPI7JN6d8UOoJ63h_VvaWwdBmDR_Zpm5CFUKiy8rpCB_vUcy_VLPAzU5dRcZbxozxpWzaNiWLdmGTnR56S_-yJfgUbxxNwGjrBENGHPq2mobftYl_6EvDaL-xlfh8v3_a/s1600/AAP_topi.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVmBghb3Ksh0zdPI7JN6d8UOoJ63h_VvaWwdBmDR_Zpm5CFUKiy8rpCB_vUcy_VLPAzU5dRcZbxozxpWzaNiWLdmGTnR56S_-yJfgUbxxNwGjrBENGHPq2mobftYl_6EvDaL-xlfh8v3_a/s1600/AAP_topi.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image Courtesy: http://www.veooz.com/</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ok, so the "I want Swaraj" topi may not be the coolest accessory that you may have worn, but it was never meant to be. It represents a message that joins us all together across classes, across religions, and cuts across our personal biases (demons) and no amount of money can buy you that piece of clothing. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In Conclusion</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The idea of this piece is not to proclaim my achievements, the message is simple, if you truly believe in an idea then give it all you can, because "NO ONE CAN STOP AN IDEA WHOSE TIME HAS COME".</span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-13608779749623505412014-04-01T09:43:00.000+05:302018-01-24T12:29:08.109+05:30A visit to the Aam Aadmi Party's office<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have always been a passive and reluctant onlooker in most scenarios, seldom willing to inconvenience myself, especially if I didn't see any material benefit arising from taking any initiative or maybe in some cases I was afraid of he perception that others may develop of me. This thought process has evolved over the last few years thanks mostly to the principles I have learnt at <a href="http://www.thoughtworks.com/" target="_blank">ThoughtWorks</a>, and in this particular case my influencer has been <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/navendushirali" target="_blank">Navendu Shirali</a> (my batchmate from <a href="http://www.gim.ac.in/" target="_blank">Goa Institute of Management</a>).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the last 3 odd years I watched the Anna movement and Aam Aadmi Party from the sidelines hoping to be part of these movements but reluctant to get down to brass tacks. Most of my support or involvement was by the easiest way possible i.e. sharing statuses on social platforms and making some insignificant donations. However, after a lot of introspection I finally took the initiative and walked into their Pandav Nagar office to sign up and help them in any way I can.</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfaE94iyrW73oX-42DJeko28hvmsH45oyRjnfejPxGRmSLUR93-1oCPUN_HhLIIIWdVEls6U4xaPJq184Qnlcp2msHBmQmhrmoHgaQJv3kTgRIIbkHPAA_pIiwCMwjCDn1aJzFI3AOtUI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+9.41.11+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfaE94iyrW73oX-42DJeko28hvmsH45oyRjnfejPxGRmSLUR93-1oCPUN_HhLIIIWdVEls6U4xaPJq184Qnlcp2msHBmQmhrmoHgaQJv3kTgRIIbkHPAA_pIiwCMwjCDn1aJzFI3AOtUI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+9.41.11+AM.png" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>What I experienced?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The office is in a nondescript location probably on rent or loan from a volunteer. As you walk to the first floor the first thing that you will notice is that the stairwell has clear signs requesting visitors/residents not to spit on the corners put up by the party.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The office itself is bustling with energy and volunteers were either getting logistics ready for a house to house visit, huddled in a cubicle to plan the next Jansabha or roadshow, or c</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">oordinating booth management activities for the D-day.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The walls were lined with chart papers and white boards consisting of information on work assignments, allocations and action items, the energy in the room was palpable and made me feel as if I was missing out on something and I need to be a part of this ....right now! The crowd was mixed (in terms of age) and consisted mostly of educated middle class folks like myself. The interactions among the group seemed very professional and cordial, very similar to the environment that you and me experience in our corporate lives.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>What I signed up for?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I met Mr. Gyankumar Pandey (a mild mannered and cordial individual) who asked me some basic information about my work and constituency and then briefly explained the tasks where I could help with in the coming days. So I volunteered to help over the coming weekend and on the day of voting in Delhi. I also expressed my interest in helping AAP with putting in place practices which help in continuous learning and improvement and help building a strong and long lasting organizational culture. This brought Shalini into the picture, she drives the organizational development initiative at AAP and informed me that the party did hold a lessons learnt exercise across its offices in Delhi after the assembly polls, and would be looking to do the same post the Lok Sabha election. She looked forward to my involvement during that time and listed my contact details in a Google spreadsheet.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>In conclusion:</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I came out of the office even more reassured and pumped then when I entered it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I generally hear a lot of people say that AAP should do this or Arvind Kejriwal should have (not) done that or that they believed in the movement at the start but no longer believe in it..... All I have to say is that history gives us a few opportunities to make things right and when that time comes, don't be like me, the person who sat in a corner reluctant and afraid just happy taking the easy way out. Stand up, get involved, take the initiative and work towards making that change as AAP has done and BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE.</span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-11564972199500416672013-09-24T09:45:00.001+05:302018-01-24T12:29:27.397+05:30AAM AADMI PARTY - THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the Delhi Assembly Elections and the General Elections just around the corner its natural to get political and to evaluate the options at hand. Given that <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/" target="_blank">Aam Aadmi Party</a> is planning to contest the Delhi elections in November and have negligible presence on the National scene, I'll try to keep this thread focussed on the latter.<br />
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I, like most people supported the cause that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Hazare" target="_blank">Anna</a> highlighted through his push for the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Lokpal_Bill" target="_blank"> Jan Lokpal bill</a> and firmly believed that given the rot that has set into the political space in this country the only way to clean it up would be to get into politics and show people that there is a clean and honest way to conduct business (oops... politics). Therefore my support to the AAP came about quite naturally.<br />
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As I have gone about to share and propagate AAP's agenda across various forums, a lot of people have debated the good, the bad and the ugly and given below are my interpretations of those conversations:<br />
<br /><b>Why join politics? Why can't you make a difference from outside?</b> - Kejriwal and the others could have continued to support Anna, why did they have to join politics, maybe they just wanted to join politics in the first place and used Anna as a stepping stone. <b>My Thoughts</b> - Ever since I saw the movie <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuva" target="_blank">"Yuva"</a> I was convinced that <u>the only way to see change is to be the change</u>, especially if we talk about the political space in the country. When Anna was protesting on the Ram Leela grounds to exert pressure on the parliamentarians for enacting the Jan Lokpal bill, almost every politician was asking them to join politics. Well I applaud the AAP for calling their bluff and putting the efforts that none of us can dare to.<br /><br />
<b>What's stopping them from turning corrupt once they gain power?</b> - This is the most common argument that one seems to hear and who can blame us, we have been cheated, ignored, and robbed by all politicians (the exceptions are few and almost negligible). We all consider 'politics' as a dirty word, no one in their sane mind wants to be associated with it, let alone take part in it. <b>My thoughts </b>- The AAP has set some clear guidelines and rules for its functioning including an <a href="http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/page/internal-lokpal" target="_blank">internal Lokpal</a>. They even set some very clear guidelines and a <a href="http://delhi.aamaadmiparty.org/news/candidate-selection-process-delhi-elections-2013-english-version" target="_blank">rigorous interview process</a> to select its <a href="http://delhi.aamaadmiparty.org/Delhi-Elections-2013/CandidateList" target="_blank">candidates</a> from all the constituencies. This is the most logical thing to do for any political party that has an intention of being honest and still almost none of them have even thought of trying this.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEfhTlcVooHpiUION6NPDy-mcl9_vR_KRiqNDycLA3PtAz_QbnPfYMiPrQ1C_w8CoUoEFEclVy2YbJ0RzAgM0VAzUgvUXSZBqFybvDIVRC_39bCq5yi8GMVoyBPRq0AsEfUUb4V-ovJ_n-/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-09-21+at+7.08.30+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEfhTlcVooHpiUION6NPDy-mcl9_vR_KRiqNDycLA3PtAz_QbnPfYMiPrQ1C_w8CoUoEFEclVy2YbJ0RzAgM0VAzUgvUXSZBqFybvDIVRC_39bCq5yi8GMVoyBPRq0AsEfUUb4V-ovJ_n-/s400/Screen+Shot+2013-09-21+at+7.08.30+PM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>They'll never be able to gain a majority, why have a hung assembly. </b>- They are really new in the political space with no real roots, sure they might win a couple of seats but don't kid yourself to believe that they will have a majority. Actually they might do more harm than good by creating a hung assembly. <b>My Thoughts</b> - The AAP has been around for less than a year and in this short time they have been able to generate the kind of buzz that is hard to ignore and shows that they have a lot of support. However, even I agree that it would be extremely difficult for them to get a majority in Delhi. The reason I would still support them is that (hung assembly or not) there is tremendous value if they can win some seats because it will force the other political parties to think differently and hopefully improve their internal processes.<br />
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<b>Anna seems clean but I am not sure about this <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arvind_Kejriwal" target="_blank">Kejriwal</a> fellow and his ilk. </b>- Anna Hazare has a clean image but I don't like this Kejriwal. He has a very arrogant personality and always seems to be finding faults in others. Also, weren't there some investigations against him? <b>My Thoughts</b> - Whenever someone tries to challenge the political class, they put everything at their disposal (the police, tax officials, media, CBI, CID etc) to dig out dirt against you and if that fails then they cook up stuff that just isn't there. The point is that if you dig long and hard enough you can find dirt about anyone (and I mean ANYONE). In any case, even with all their resources they have not been able to prove anything against Kejriwal. Also, we don't really need to worry about Arvind Kejriwal and his personality, what we should look at instead is that he has taken a very difficult challenge which would benefit us in the long-term. He has set up a party with the right guiding principles which has involved people from the grass roots and if they continuously try to improve themselves by doing meaningful <a href="http://www.retrospectives.com/" target="_blank">retrospectives</a> then they will get better in the long term.<br />
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<b>Politics is more about just corruption, what is their stand on some of the other issues?</b> - AAP has built their entire campaign around eradicating corruption but running this country is more than just handling corruption, so what's their take on some of the other issues plaguing this country. <b>My Thoughts</b> - This is one of the points that concerns me as well since I think their stand on some of the other issues are not very clear. However, if AAP can do nothing else but bring us some relief from corruption then their involvement is worth its weight in gold (at current inflated prices). Also, I think we all will agree that there is no shortage of good policies in the country but the problem is with their implementation, which is lacking due to administrative lethargy and corruption.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.retrospectives.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="76" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiGjRg-IPNsusVS-aizitQKVIO0sKpBJorhNkrC4i79KdJ0zVQRo8HrZIjj_NIHKcfy2bxWw9eSwWWUGGY1Mr-M2hjeEFkeloAx0jxsNEPZE6xaDPNG6ynIKrQu6HYz1BF8kg8WUNqXhJB/s640/Screen+Shot+2013-09-24+at+9.26.34+AM.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-8284956242393226842013-07-14T09:25:00.000+05:302018-01-24T12:29:50.025+05:30Why I liked "Bhag Milkha Bhag"?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Don't worry, I don't intend to spoil any surprises from the movie.... So you can read on fearlessly. Just saw the movie and wanted to share the aspects that really moved me. </span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Fine Portrayal of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikh" target="_blank">Sikhs</a></b> - 99% of bollywood movies use Sikhs as fillers in comic sequences and hardly ever do we get to see the other more human (or normal) side of Sikhs. Although there is nothing wrong or inaccurate with the larger than life portrayal of Sikhs that we generally get to see but most people have not seen anything else and that in my view is not fair. The only other movie that seemed to touch a "different" vein was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadar:_Ek_Prem_Katha" target="_blank">Gadar</a> but that was too mainstream to bring out any refreshing aspect about Sikhs. In Gadar, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunny_Deol" target="_blank">Sunny Deol</a> did something unreal by pulling a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_pump" target="_blank">hand pump</a> out of the ground and in this story you have a very human <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milkha_Singh" target="_blank">Milkha Singh</a> doing something unreal in real life. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikZj2VDmaOloszAwpC2Asnzb-A-538EUwobOgpqMJrmUW6sz6pdxVVZmDxTEf5FKuxht98ecyri6N3fMoy0MqbhJkoDOrVGpalx9GBz01aZ41sD26_NlwP9axzo-HYnPv1BED71eqKYyhz/s1600/Bhaag_Milkha_Bhaag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikZj2VDmaOloszAwpC2Asnzb-A-538EUwobOgpqMJrmUW6sz6pdxVVZmDxTEf5FKuxht98ecyri6N3fMoy0MqbhJkoDOrVGpalx9GBz01aZ41sD26_NlwP9axzo-HYnPv1BED71eqKYyhz/s320/Bhaag_Milkha_Bhaag.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image courtesy: http://www.indianexpress.com/</span></td></tr>
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<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Don't forget his achievements</b> - We all probably read the reference of the "Flying Sikh" in our text books but if you were an average student like myself then you probably never understood what <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milkha_Singh" target="_blank">achievements</a> got him that title. And even if you are well read and can repeat all the 77 races that he won, you'll find it really tough to imagine the inhuman effort that needs to be invested to break a world record. I did a bit of athletics in school (ran 800 & 1500 mtrs) and the effort it took just to better my own timing was so overwhelming that I believed only a divine intervention would help. Probably that's what explains Milkha Singh's extraordinary achievements. </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are a lot of other good things about the movie like how Farhan Akhtar totally looked the part and probably motivated a lot of us to renew our gym memberships and not to forget the old <br />India Pakistan rivalry which always gets us Indians going. <br />However, I only wanted to elaborate on the things that really stood out for me. In essence, I suggest that you watch the movie as an honor to the legend and that in itself should be reason enough. </span><br />
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-54235417620645444712013-06-26T16:03:00.000+05:302018-07-16T19:35:10.156+05:30The Lateral's guide to the ThoughtWorks Way<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since the time I started blogging I wanted to do a piece on my ThoughtWorks journey but had to put those thoughts to rest once I read <a href="http://www.thekua.com/atwork/2010/03/six-years-at-thoughtworks/" target="_blank">Pat Kua's piece</a>. (It's a tough act to follow). So I thought I'll try to put something with a slightly different twist.</span><br />
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I came to ThoughtWorks (TW) after spending 5 years with the likes of the Satyam's and Wipro's and with the strong belief that all IT companies are the same and there is absolutely no hope to find a satisfactory work environment.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have been with TW for almost 3 years and it took the best part of that time to get acquainted and finally inducted into the culture and I am LOVING IT. </span><br />
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The thoughts shared below are from my perspective and though these could apply to laterals or freshers my experiences may resound more with the former.<span style="color: orange;"><b> </b></span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to be challenged</b></span> - If you come from one of the typical IT companies you might be used to sharing your thoughts with developers or testers and getting an acceptance with minimal or no questions asked. That's not what you'll get here and be prepared to be challenged about your suggestions and decisions whether you are an MD, Delivery Manager, Customer or any other role.<b><span style="color: orange;"> </span></b></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Be ready to stand up for what you think is right</span></b> - If you believe that you have the right opinion then don't be afraid to share it (even if it opposes your tech lead/manger) but be ready to back it up with some relevant points because I would hate to take you back to point no. 1.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Be ready to share your thoughts, expertise and experience</span></b> - We believe that knowledge grows through effective sharing so be prepared to be urged and nudged to share your experiences on a project or in life <a href="http://www.thoughtworks.com/events" target="_blank">within or outside the company</a>. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to be heard</b></span> - The thing I love most about ThoughtWorks is the freedom I have to express my thoughts and opinions without fear of rebuke or reprimand. The only caveat to this would be to ensure that these thoughts/opinions don't offend any community or individual.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Get involved or get out </b></span>- This may sound harsh but there comes a time when you will need to shed your baggage and take a really deep dive into the culture. If you don't, then eventually you'll get fed up and leave.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to own and drive</b></span> - If you are passionate about something and are willing to back it up with hard work and commitment then you will get all the possible support from TWers including the management. There are many examples of this within TW, the <a href="http://join.thoughtworks.com/step" target="_blank">STEP program</a> definitely comes to mind.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Be ready to innovate</span></b> - There is always a different and in many cases better way of carrying out tasks and you need to keep yourself abreast with the latest and continously think about questioning the status quo.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to Introspect and accept</b></span> - Following the principles of continuous improvement at TW we try to look back at our performances and think about the things that went well and those that didn't so that we can identify the areas to work on and improve ourselves.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be patient</b></span> - You've probably spent many years learning the wrong way and it will take some time before you truly adapt to the 'ThoughtWorks Way', so be patient.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to think beyond the pay check</b></span> - This is probably the hardest one to get around and many TWers find this a hard pill to swallow. However, the logic is simple, we want people who are really passionate about what they do or want to achieve and money is not the only thing that gets their motor running. In the end we all work for money but if that's the ONLY thing that motivates you then this may not be the place you'll hang around for too long. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvNYfaFGDu3JtxUnqv3bOeCpnpzri-9YNHGDDMN6R1OSCi2lodR5m_Alju0aXI36VQ3X2k___mY7AKgakbIF0hDhVy5x2gfhxl2J36gqhqO1OwZ5e06vdXNiCMfiYl3oE9qYH6URwo35M2/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-06-27+at+10.06.37+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvNYfaFGDu3JtxUnqv3bOeCpnpzri-9YNHGDDMN6R1OSCi2lodR5m_Alju0aXI36VQ3X2k___mY7AKgakbIF0hDhVy5x2gfhxl2J36gqhqO1OwZ5e06vdXNiCMfiYl3oE9qYH6URwo35M2/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-06-27+at+10.06.37+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Be ready to start at the bottom</b></span> - It would be really hard for a lateral hire to take a senior or management role and expect to get immersed in the TW way without getting an opportunity to work closely with one (or multiple) of the project teams and experience the madness first hand. Don't let go of this experience since its probably the only way to quicken the learning curve.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Fortune 500's are overrated </b></span>- We work with the more known brands in the world, but are always more than willing to solve the real life problems for the lesser fortunate. The learnings (via innovative thinking) and experience that you would derive from building a solution that helps children from war ravaged territories reunite with their guardians is immense.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Be ready to put on weight </span></b>- In between all the team outings, ice cream meter redemptions and an over stuffed pantry its literally impossible to avoid putting on a few (too many) pounds.<br />The team outings (apart from the food and fun) are the best way to build lasting bonds with your team, so don't miss out. This also seems like the appropriate time for me to market <a href="http://jusbeers.blogspot.in/2012/08/why-so-seriousssss-ly-overweight.html" target="_blank">my blog about weight management.</a> :-P</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>We are not laid back</b></span> - A couple of people looking to join TW have told me that they believe TW is a "laid back" company. Yes, we don't take life as seriously as a lot of people do and that's just because we're a happier bunch but by no means are we laid back. And if that's the impressions that you are going to carry then you are in for a big surprise.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>We all did the best with the knowledge, expertise and time</b></span> - We speak our minds and share our thoughts but we always keep the following principle in mind.</span><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , "geneva" , "swiss" ,; font-size: xx-small;"><i><b>"Regardless
of what we discover, we understand and truly believe that everyone did
the best job they could, given what they knew at the time, their skills
and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand."</b></i></span></blockquote>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-67538867595159352642013-05-25T11:45:00.002+05:302013-05-25T12:01:47.783+05:30Ban IPL, it Sponsors Terrorism<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is not just an eye catching headline, I put it up there since I honestly believe it to be true.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Most of us have been angered, disgusted, felt cheated (and I can go on on the emotions) etc with the news of the latest betting racket. However, unless you (and me) stop watching the IPL (Indian Punters league) there is no scope for a positive impact on Indian cricket and possibly other sports in India.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXcMbXioTi3zdkaZQ9GcDA5o734l28QhbSQD5qPMbmHDlea3j5F5BD9PPgfbbhixeEKyDQwjyek1IMnjhtPyE9MaGSfo1mmEW7EWqajlYh4Fs3bEQCGqwAscyxIcijjrK86cATxVLuaMKf/s1600/Mumbai_blast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXcMbXioTi3zdkaZQ9GcDA5o734l28QhbSQD5qPMbmHDlea3j5F5BD9PPgfbbhixeEKyDQwjyek1IMnjhtPyE9MaGSfo1mmEW7EWqajlYh4Fs3bEQCGqwAscyxIcijjrK86cATxVLuaMKf/s320/Mumbai_blast.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy: www.liveindia.com</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It may be a radical view but in my opinion people involved in betting and IPL are sponsoring terrorism and need to be dealt with in the strongest terms. After all where do you think Dawood and his gang (the main beneficiaries of betting) are investing their money? They finance the ISI and terrorist groups for assistance and protection.... (Obviously you've forgotten their role in the 1993 Mumbai blasts.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Just remember the next time you watch an IPL match (or the India team play a cricket match) you are probably financing a plot to take out someone dear to you.... Unless obviously the world turns around and we are able to ensure transparency in Indian cricket. Don't dismiss this as a rant from a cricket hater, I'm a religious follower.... if you still don't believe me just ask my wife.</span><br />
</div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-40930468585747653852013-02-18T10:00:00.000+05:302018-01-24T12:30:12.533+05:30The Roy effect <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have been with ThoughtWorks for a little over 2 years and in the many conversations and introspections surrounding the "secret ingredient" of ThoughtWorks, we have concluded that it has been the people who work at ThoughtWorks that have been the driving force. This obviously is true (why would I disagree with this appreciation which also includes me) and the pain and sacrifices that we make in hiring the "right" folks and the efforts we put in to give our best to our customers has played a very important role in making ThoughtWorks what it is. However, there is another element in the mix that deserves a lot of credit for making ThoughtWorks a truly unique organization, an organization that we all are proud to be part of, and that is our founder and chairman Roy Singham. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoa3qhc84u_8fKcpB1CsoF5hQ84_UlBesItvQ9M2jS17dZ2RmsuLRmyIgyTrlhn7I45wnMtBUSyyQ5pZUvRwrV61tqEvnYsXFz0yxkPYLWDhMSioV-BDHpe_s6pWokzJ04lnjoRwZtUqu_/s1600/SinghamRoyPhoto_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoa3qhc84u_8fKcpB1CsoF5hQ84_UlBesItvQ9M2jS17dZ2RmsuLRmyIgyTrlhn7I45wnMtBUSyyQ5pZUvRwrV61tqEvnYsXFz0yxkPYLWDhMSioV-BDHpe_s6pWokzJ04lnjoRwZtUqu_/s1600/SinghamRoyPhoto_0.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Roy Singham</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
It is again obvious that he in his role as founder and chairman has been instrumental in shaping this organization but I truly appreciated his contributions when I reflected back on what he shared during his recent visit to the Gurgaon office. Mind you, I am not a person who gets swayed very easily and the thoughts that follow have accumulated over the last couple of years hearing and observing Roy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Roy's ability to articulate his thoughts and beliefs and his passion and energy are enough to stir the human inside you. It's quite difficult to walk out from one of his sessions and not question your own thoughts and beliefs (some of which you may have nurtured for many years).<br />
Roy has always been very passionate and vocal about our contributions to the underprivileged across the globe and has been actively involved in helping out on issues ranging from women and children health in the African subcontinent to the systematic oppression from the power hungry politicians and capitalists across the globe. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
Most of us within ThoughtWorks have heard him on these issues, the interesting part for me is that I have recently realized the vision that he brings to the business and operations of ThoughtWorks. To share a few examples, during his talk where he also shared the roadmap for the coming year he talked about the following:</span><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Diversify -</b> Diversifying the business (geographically) is by no means a radical thought but one that has been around for a long time and practiced by many organizations. However, in the context of ThoughtWorks and how we hire and engage with our customers (a separate subject on its own) it takes courage to diversify into new territories especially if the new locations are in underdeveloped/developing nations of Africa, Asia and South America.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Write-offs are not bad -</b> Majority of businesses would target zero write-offs, its natural to expect payment for your services and avoid any form of losses like the plague. As an organization we strive to deliver our best and fulfill our commitments to our customers but we also want to make sure that every once in a while we make a bet on a customer who has an ambitious idea and help it take shape. Its a bet that we need to take and till the time we are able to control our losses we would have gained a lesson that success can never impart.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Tackle incompetence not the ability to generate numbers - </b>Businesses are run and measured on the Monthly/quarterly/annual revenues and profits they are able to generate. We at ThoughtWorks also care about how we are performing and whether we are running a healthy and sustainable business, but do we only need numbers to measure that? If we hire the right people and are able to motivate and engage them then numbers tend to loose their significance.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUO2AdXK3KfPuBYzkVf06j1EjJ9uHotHBY0QHTWBohHTu7hGxshPKugnmt5mbVeL7WqXLe_YTrPjhJ6UplACvZ_nB2lUj1Sq_Z_uTjDnIaQT5ecVzqxxBFBWC08zhSFDkffAWDiqnKuQBt/s1600/Roy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUO2AdXK3KfPuBYzkVf06j1EjJ9uHotHBY0QHTWBohHTu7hGxshPKugnmt5mbVeL7WqXLe_YTrPjhJ6UplACvZ_nB2lUj1Sq_Z_uTjDnIaQT5ecVzqxxBFBWC08zhSFDkffAWDiqnKuQBt/s320/Roy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Roy Singham</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The examples that I shared above are just a few of many that underline Roy's role in making ThoughtWorks what it is. Also, I do realize that most of these points are debatable and we can't be sure of their long-term effectiveness, but what I do realize is that I feel privileged to have been a part of this journey, whatever the end result.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now, considering that ThoughtWorks aims to be a 100 year organization the one part that does bother me a bit and was the original motivation about writing this piece, is the future. Do we have someone who can uphold the same principles and bring a similar vision, passion, energy and clarity of thought?</span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-45876911916394331862013-01-08T10:31:00.001+05:302017-05-22T17:12:21.757+05:30Who's line is it anyway?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are many things wrong about the policing system in India but the one that baffles and frustrates me the most is the constant squabbling over (police station) jurisdiction. This problem may seem overstated or incomprehensible for people who have been fortunate enough to NOT need police assistance in our country. However, this is the single most irritating aspect of policing in India since it occurs at the initial touch point when one calls the police helpline for assistance. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The police are not so much concerned about the incident, its seriousness or the type of assistance required than by the jurisdiction where this incident has occurred. The worst part is that if you tell them the location they still won't be able to single out the police station and will not hesitate in asking your opinion about which police station the incident comes under.</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxNj6xj2X9de86uW9UyOjmyLo-heByCmQ-nrodV1g8IeowSn8uJvE6HCE2HpCdZ1Qjlo_pLaHBFAbiJX0N9Za9LludQwnKINEgloAFtL5h7JAxPyrqg9hrn3j1f-0wl5BO8h3WEUagiIM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-01-08+at+10.15.28+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxNj6xj2X9de86uW9UyOjmyLo-heByCmQ-nrodV1g8IeowSn8uJvE6HCE2HpCdZ1Qjlo_pLaHBFAbiJX0N9Za9LludQwnKINEgloAFtL5h7JAxPyrqg9hrn3j1f-0wl5BO8h3WEUagiIM/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-01-08+at+10.15.28+AM.png" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
My frustrations come from the belief that had been ingrained in my conscious mind (via movies, tv shows, tax receipts paid to the govt. etc) that whenever a police helpline is contacted and the location and incident spelled out, the closest available police van/s will be dispatched to help out or investigate.<br />
No one ever told me that there could be a significant delay in helping me because the incident that I witnessed or was affected by happened be in a area which fell in an apparent no man's land.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
This was also one of the many shortcomings that were highlighted in the Delhi police's response to the victims of the recent gang rape case in Delhi as well as the case of a TOI reporter who was harassed by an auto rickshaw driver who refused to take the reporter to her destination during the evening hours.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I know that there are many problems that are bigger and probably need more attention, but in my view this should be a quick and easy one to implement and something that could enhance the customer experience at the first touch point.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Also, I am convinced that there are simple and cost effective technology based solutions using smart phones and/or tablets that can be used to increase accountability and effectiveness of the police force in atleast the major cities. Any ideas/thoughts?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-25582147809315632582012-08-15T22:07:00.004+05:302018-01-24T12:30:31.975+05:30Why so seriousssss-ly overweight???<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I write this piece as a very gnawing feeling consumes my mental peace. The realization is that I need to shed atleast 10 kgs of pure and unadulterated flab. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This flab is a result of a combination of reasons like a crappy metabolism which is further deccelerated by age, the sedentary lifestyle of the working class and my inability to resist a tall drink and an inviting buffet.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I believe quite a few us ride in a similar <i>bloat</i> and are sufficiently bothered about it. However, the troubling bit is that there is a big group of people thats not even bothered about the extra pouches of flab hanging from various angles. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4XMNWr2D5w2FaCNrJCNaRhjyEpUzu_TZlZTNaG7T29J8K4XEAg_XgU4SCBYArevzzCH0Nkbfp4nOnuRw_wE4sH4qNTYaLh-Qatc9826opR93Zdyq2SkUCRqBRh8K6xfkDWXeIP9TN4w1/s1600/Blog3.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4XMNWr2D5w2FaCNrJCNaRhjyEpUzu_TZlZTNaG7T29J8K4XEAg_XgU4SCBYArevzzCH0Nkbfp4nOnuRw_wE4sH4qNTYaLh-Qatc9826opR93Zdyq2SkUCRqBRh8K6xfkDWXeIP9TN4w1/s200/Blog3.PNG" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />I guess we need to tackle these 2 categories separately and that is what I will try to do in the following sections. But before I begin I guess I need to clear the air on why I am writing this. The reason is that (believe it or not) I am really concerned about the collective health of the working class of the nation and also because I believe that a healthy body is absolutely essential for a healthy mind. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b>For the motivated souls</b></span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The people who are really bothered the problem is that not enough of us take the necessary steps needed to rectify this and get back in shape (round is a shape but not the one we are aiming for) and the <u>reason cited is the lack of time due to work pressures or in some cases the lack of motivation</u>.
The first problem of lack of time due to elongated work hours is a complicated one because in my view it includes an element of lack of motivation which is under our control but also because some people are busy due to the roles that they have been entrusted.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>Some solutions</u></span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">No. 1: Pick 45 mins in a day</span></b></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The key to following this rule/guideline is ensuring discipline, you may waver for a day or two but you need to ensure that you take out 45 mins in a day whether its early in the morning or late in the evening. Trust me its not much to ask for and you can easily achieve it by sacrificing that extra hour of mindless TV at night.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>No. 2: Pick a sport</b> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enrolling in a gym is good but doing drab and repetitive exercises in a gym can easily demotivate an individual. A good way to keep ones self motivated is to pick a sport (tennis, soccer, squash, basketball are some options) and to play that on a regular basis. Its not easy in a country like ours where cricket has ruined our minds ad our fitness but if you are able to get a group of motivated souls together then this can be your key to fitness. </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>No. 3: Have a small home gym</b> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVKp-SIkuG4hyphenhyphengySk1wGSYD6SmCMuXxRbNdj5vaJoLDOxnJNe8SOfKA-S6qKGUsXWSWHCUBkfXTHWrSKY__DPvjNoU16AonbJK2IdHLHFxGuv11TmfDuMaHjQiZuRY_s1tw6FAMjesvv0/s1600/Blog1.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="88" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVKp-SIkuG4hyphenhyphengySk1wGSYD6SmCMuXxRbNdj5vaJoLDOxnJNe8SOfKA-S6qKGUsXWSWHCUBkfXTHWrSKY__DPvjNoU16AonbJK2IdHLHFxGuv11TmfDuMaHjQiZuRY_s1tw6FAMjesvv0/s200/Blog1.PNG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All you need to get this set up is a skipping rope, a couple of dumbbells, a floor mat, instructional videos (for aerobics, yoga etc) freely available on the net and if possible a exercise cycle. I suggest this coz a lot of times we hesitate to take membership of a gym because we are not sure if we will be able to use it regularly. Having a small home gym will atleast ensure that whenever you do have the time and motivation you can use this small investment and attack those flabs. </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>No. 4: Motivate others around you</b> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This may sound ridiculous but in my view this is probably the most important since if you don't get the other buggers out of office you probably are never going to be able to get out yourself. The only thing that I can say with 100% surety is that the benefits of those 45-60 mins of exercise are definitely going to increase your productivity and offset any loss of time from people leaving for home on-time. <i>(What do you think I am trying to do)</i></span></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>No. 5: Remove the guilt</b></span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU-sR74PhJDTBUH3ugmPDYK2zSgJS2cHE7HOVd4lAIKNe1HtZCE2Fqo6v7qWTbHGhD5B8fgBt05_psFOHZLqlA0SYJTzfHd_g32C_2hpg4ur0-jifz32k4JLa7EMZUtXxIXohwQ8EfZTaP/s1600/Blog2.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="99" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU-sR74PhJDTBUH3ugmPDYK2zSgJS2cHE7HOVd4lAIKNe1HtZCE2Fqo6v7qWTbHGhD5B8fgBt05_psFOHZLqlA0SYJTzfHd_g32C_2hpg4ur0-jifz32k4JLa7EMZUtXxIXohwQ8EfZTaP/s200/Blog2.PNG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Most of us tend to think that spending time on improving their individual fitness is a selfish act. On the contrary, the benefits of a fit body and mind don't only benefit the individual but everyone around them and especially the organizations they work for. Unfortunately most organizations dont outwardly support individuals efforts to get fit, probably because they are run by individuals who fall in the category mentioned below.</span></blockquote>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The 7 benefits of regular exercise</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is the tricky bunch of people to handle and to be honest I don't really have a lot to offer to them in the form of advice. Although, what I can offer is a snapshot of benefits copied from <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise/HQ01676" target="_blank">here</a>. If you still aren't convinced then probably you should take another look at benefit number 6. --></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Happy exercising..</span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-57725109146246325732012-06-15T09:21:00.002+05:302013-04-26T16:06:15.456+05:30How to make a Terrorist - 101<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is a course being taught at the Indian Parliament and its many subsidiaries (nearly all the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidhan_Sabha" target="_blank">Vidhan Sabhas</a>) since our so called Independence. Most of us city dwellers generally read about this stuff as conspiracy theories and dismiss them since it doesn't directly affect our deadline driven lives. </span><br />
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I was among the many who find it hard to fathom why someone would take to arms. All this changed in a hurry when I got a 'crash' course in "How to make a Terrorist - 101".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I was on my way back from a nice little vacation at a little known hillstation called <a href="http://chakratasnowview.com/" target="_blank">Chakrata</a>. Having done some very basic research we found another route back home to Delhi which promised to be shorter by 50 km.</span><br />
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Route:</b> The route is on State highway 57 and starts from a small town called Herbertpur.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>Herbertpur - Behat - Saharanpur - Tajpur - Baraut - Bagpat</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The first 50 km on the road were like a dream and I almost patted myself on the back for my excellent Googling skills but before I could handout the prizes I hit the first pothole and then the next and the next and so on. It seemed the American army had unleashed a barrage of </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napalms" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Napalms</a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> on the entire stretch of 240 odd kilometers and infact the road had craters rather than potholes. On hindsight I should have turned back but something inside me kept telling me that the craters would magically vanish and be replaced by something we humans call a road. The stupid voice got me to the point of no return and soon there was no turning back. </span><br />
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I covered the entire distance at an average speed of 10-20 km per hour and my darlings (car ....and wife) screamed and grunted at each hurdle. It was so mentally and physically draining that halfway down the road I lost patience and had to ask my wife to take over the wheel. So what's the big deal in that, well given my confidence in her driving abilities and the love for my car this was a BIG DEAL. I could go on without pause to try and explain how bad the road was but I am going to end this bit by stating that it would have been better if there were no road at all.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But this blog is not about me or my insignificant existence, its about the people living in the many villages and towns that we crossed on the way (and there are many on this route in the heartland of UP, the most populous region in the country). Its about the torture that they have been subjected to by the administration of the state and the entire country. The few hours on that road made me want to gun down everyone even remotely responsible for its current state and I can only imagine what someone who has to endure this day in and day out would be willing to do. A simple thing like a drive to work or school or to the farmers market could rearrange your skeletal structure. What if someone you knew or loved fell ill and needed urgent medical attention and wasn't able to get help in time due to the state of the road. Wouldn't that enrage you to no end? </span><br />
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The interesting thing to notice is that there is a very sizeable population of the Muslim community that reside on this stretch and suffer as a consequence. It would be so easy to convince a youth living in this area that this country discriminates against Muslims. If you factor in the number of youth that would reside in this 240 km stretch its enough to create a small army of jehadis and if you factor in the sorry state of roads in the other remote areas of the country and remove the community aspect (lack of basic infrastructure pisses off everyone equally) then we probably have the equivalent of the Pakistani army residing right here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Will this ever change? What can I do to change this other than vote and pay my taxes honestly? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I don't have the answer to these but do know that this course and its advanced levels will continue to be taught at the democratic institutions of our country, while we struggle to get a hold of our deadlines....</span><br />
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-45597192544732069242012-04-19T17:49:00.006+05:302020-09-15T06:16:11.478+05:30The 10 Traits of a Bad Manager<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">The "Bad Manager" strikes again!!!</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">Its like the flu, we all have experienced it and no matter how hard you try you can never be totally immune.</span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><br /></span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">The Bad Manager award is given away to individuals in managerial/leadership positions displaying the traits discussed below and not to any particular designation. So you can be a project manager, product manager, general manager, division manager, delivery manager etc. and well, sir/madam you are a disease if you:</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>1. Avoid transparency</b> - Some managers avoid transparency like the plague, they will hold back information or even mis-inform as an attempt to hide their incompetence. </span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>2. Make false promises </b>- Not much to be said here, I guess we all have been sold an assignment by such managers which turns out to be quite different once you get on the ground or interact with the customer and by then its too late.</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>3. Think MBA'S are ppt factories</b> - This unfortunately is a trait I have noticed and experienced even in managers who are generally good. In my view a presentation has a two fold purpose, it is used to highlight the key points of the idea being conveyed and to also serve as a electronic cue card for the presenter. To ensure the flow and delivery of the presentation is consistent and engaging the person who is actually supposed to deliver the message should actually create it. The most compelling or convincing presentations that I have delivered have been the ones that I have created on my own. The reason being that I owned the content and the flow of the presentation and was able to visualize what can be said to support the text. </span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>4. Make and push suggestions without understanding the problem</b> - Well making suggestions is fine but pushing them is definitely not, especially when you don't understand or have not experienced the problems being faced by the team or the individual.</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>5. Are too conservative while appreciating a job well done</b> - In my view managers tend to display this trait since they think that if I appreciate his/her efforts that will mean that I directly or indirectly raise their salary expectations as well. Money is not the only thing that people work for, some of us actually believe or atleast take pride in whatever we do and a unhindered appreciation goes a long way in motivating an individual even if in your view the person had just "met expectations".</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>6. Push all the hard decisions and conversations to subordinates </b>- Don't get me wrong here I do believe that the team should be involved in any hard decisions that need to me made. What makes me uncomfortable is that most of these hard discussions are due to the faulty decisions that were taken by managers even before the team was formed and in the end the team is usually left to defend these decisions on their own.</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>7. Have an unpleasant or unstable personality</b> - A manager is looked upon in a lot of situations as a leader who will guide you and motivate you through his/her actions. Someone who you can approach with your problems and not return from that meeting with 10 other problems. Therefore its very important that a manager has a personality that exuberates pleasant and (mentally) stable vibes.</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>8. Lack clarity of thought </b>- The "brain wave" from lousy managers tends to be devoid in clarity and detail. A presentation needs to be made and you are shoved a vague and usually bad idea which even after multiple efforts from your end never seems to match his/her "genius".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: times;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>9. Expect more than you yourself are willing or capable of doing</b> - As a manager/leader you need to lead by example if you want to stand any chance of earning your subordinates respect. Anything lesser is unacceptable.</span><br /></span>
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<b><span style="font-family: times;">10. Ignore inputs from the team on the ground</span></b><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><span style="font-family: times;"> </span>- As a manager/leader your people are your asset with their ears closely to the ground and if they are feeding you information based on their day to day interactions and observations, then its your responsibility as a leader to understand the concerns and communicate more closely with the team to reach a solution. More often than not bad leaders will ignore these suggestions and form their opinions on their pre-conceived notions.</span><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">These have been some of my observations over the last few years working with some good and mostly terrible managers. Also, this takes into consideration that managers most often than not are faced with tough decisions and as all humans are bound to falter. I guess the challenge for a manager lies in being able to identify and avoid these symptoms, and personally speaking the even bigger challenge lies in being able to avoid these symptoms whenever I am cursed to be a Manager.</span><br /><br /></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-76450115103682370192012-03-22T09:10:00.002+05:302013-04-26T16:05:28.091+05:30Oh Tiger...Where art Thou??<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">They say that the lessons of life are best learnt the hard way... And our trip to Ranthambore churned out more learnings than we were prepared to handle.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Having had our fill of the mountains we decided to head towards the sandy forests of Ranthambore in search of the elusive Tiger. I am not a big fan of the desert but was motivated by the experience of an acquaintance who met Sher Singh up close. I got the heebie jeebies just recalling his experience and it seemed too tempting to resist.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><u>The First Mistake</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Having missed a couple of opportunities for getaways on long weekends me and the Mrs decided that we couldn't miss the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holi" target="_blank">holi</a> opportunity. Having never tried travelling on holi and having spent the last 6 odd years in the South of the country where holi is (almost) irrelevant I wasn't really prepared for what awaited us. We were warned upfront by people (my dad will be nodding furiously if/when he reads this) but the bookings had been done and we had decided to start our journey at the unearthly hour of 4 am in order to avoid any incidents. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We felt safe and had an uneventful journey till around 10 am after which the fun started. As soon as we crossed one of the toll plazas on the state highway we found a roadblock manned by a team of youngsters armed with flimsy looking sticks. Since I had never experienced something like this earlier and was accompanied by 2 ladies, I was alarmed and decided to turn back to the toll booth 500 mtrs in the opposite direction where I had noticed a police jeep. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The cops were unhelpful and/or in cahoots with the Holi mafia and we were asked to register a complaint with the area police station who would then send another jeep. They too were kind enough to remind me of the mistake of venturing out on Holi (Dad! stop shaking your head). After waiting for a 10 minute eternity we were met by another <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikh" target="_blank">Sikh</a> couple who were travelling to Ranthambore with their 3 teen-aged daughters (and you thought I had it bad). There were other folks who were travelling on that day as well but they were the only ones who cared enough to stop. The couple and their caravan were coming from Jaipur and told us that they had crossed many such Holi toll booths along the way and a mere 20 bucks will get us through them. That gave us confidence and we followed them all the way to our destination crossing roughly 30 such Holi toll booths.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was the Sikh gentleman's calm and tactful behavior while dealing with these groups that comforted us and honestly speaking this was something I can definitely learn and implement.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learnt:</b> In the end we got to our destination safely, however given the mood of the folks on the roadblocks and my short-tempered nature anything could have happen. This is a mistake I am not likely to repeat in a hurry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><u>The Second Mistake</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This happened on the way back from Ranthambore when we were speeding down a empty stretch of the highway and noticed a mini traffic jam at a distance. A bit of questioning informed us that there had been an accident and the villagers had blocked the road. Since the jam seems a little ominous we followed a person who seemed to know a parallel road running through the fields. The road was one of those very narrow lanes which separates one farm from another and are mostly (or only) meant for tractors. Anyway everything seemed to be going smoothly when a moments lapse of concentration (I was trying to see the traffic buildup on the highway) led the entire left side of the car into a mini ditch. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It wasn't a totally lost cause since we were going really slowly on a really bumpy road but my Precious was stuck deep and I was nearly on the verge of tears. The partial saving grace was that we went down in front of a villager's house and he was able to summon a group of 10-12 youngsters who actually lifted the not so light <a href="http://www.marutidzire.com/" target="_blank">Swift dzire</a> from the ditch and onto the so called road. The real sigh of relief came when the car started and moved ahead without any signs of damage to the axel. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One set of villagers lead us into the ditch (I played my part in it as well) and another set of villagers got us out. We offered them money in return for their help but they furiously refused to accept. By the time we negotiated the rest of the village road and got back onto tarred roads the highway had been cleared but the thought of being the idiot in that village had not quite cleared.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learnt:</b> Stay on the ROAD and Keep your eyes on it at all times.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_U1VHyJ7-Ru7Digl2wrQwCSUuvmZKyIGuEF697QA1MqFU0QvOgXFLdtqFjIATZRZYs-u_rYtKo6pyb7c54laMh4pEGi45OfTGdtddkNbhWLTnM_gDUbCgB8HUkEHzRAhPuLOvafFH-3zV/s1600/64313_10150680852441812_788381811_9684874_1549315239_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_U1VHyJ7-Ru7Digl2wrQwCSUuvmZKyIGuEF697QA1MqFU0QvOgXFLdtqFjIATZRZYs-u_rYtKo6pyb7c54laMh4pEGi45OfTGdtddkNbhWLTnM_gDUbCgB8HUkEHzRAhPuLOvafFH-3zV/s320/64313_10150680852441812_788381811_9684874_1549315239_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dude!! but where is the friggin Tiger in all of this. I guess if you have been reading till now that is exactly what you are thinking.... aren't you? Well we did see the Tiger and we did have a relaxing time while we were there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>The Place -</b> Rantambore National park is located about 15 kms from the small town of Sawai Madhopur. The city area has nothing much to offer and seems pretty backward even though there are quite a few foreigners who come to catch a glimpse of he sun and Sher Singh. Mostly locals tend to stare at you as if you have landed from a different planet. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>The Hotel -</b> We stayed at Raj palace resorts which is located at the outskirts of Sawai Madhopur. The hotel had a very nice garden and the rooms were really classy for the 1600 a night that we paid. The hotel has a decent sized swimming pool as well and being a water baby I was really thrilled. The crowd was a good mixture of families like ours from Delhi and other neighboring cities with a generous helpings of foreigners. The only sore point of the hotel was the food they only serve buffets for all meals which are (very) excessively priced. We had most of our meals outside the restaurant since we as usual wanted to enjoy the local cuisine of dal baati churma etc. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>The Safari - </b>We took the early morning safari and weren't really prepared for the biting cold that was waiting for us. So if you decide to go in the winters then...... All the best. Living in concrete jungles we city dwellers generally get really fascinated by even the most common of animals or birds. And the park has a large amount of peacocks, wild boar, spotted deers, sambhar etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Among the more exotic kinds we saw the kingfisher, herons, blue bull, crocodiles, and baby crocodiles.
The tiger was elusive during the safari, although we came close to crossing paths on a couple of occasions. We did see the tiger that afternoon when we visited the Rantambore fort, the road to the fort goes from within the park and that is when Sheru was kind enough to show us his posterior. He was lazing below a bush just 10 feet away from the road and as a consequence there was a sizeable queue of paparazzi's trying to get a piece of the action, apparently Sheru's behind was as popular as JLO's. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>The Route - </b>We referred the blog from <a href="http://www.ghumakkar.com/2009/03/12/delhi-ranthambore-road-review/" target="_blank">Ghumakkar</a> and used route 1 on our way there and route 2 on our way back. Its a little difficult to catch route 2 on your way out of Delhi unless you know your way around Daruheda.
Our experience on route 2 was marginally better due to lesser traffic and better roads. <a href="http://www.ghumakkar.com/2009/03/12/delhi-ranthambore-road-review/" target="_blank">For details on the routes refer the blog.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In conclusion, the travelling spirit was shaken but still lived on to travel another day.</span></div>
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Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5327606153382940280.post-57292706626402337042012-03-22T08:05:00.001+05:302018-01-24T12:31:16.795+05:30The Adventures of Deputy Dawg<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Courtesy: www.hilarious-pictures.com</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I met Deputy Dawg on the metro headed towards connaught place. I did not notice him enter but could not miss his sprawled body on the floor of the ladies compartment. He was a shepherd from Germany recruited by the <a href="http://cisf.nic.in/" target="_blank">CISF</a> to sniff out the baddies. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As I noticed him lying there I wondered if his passing out had anything to do with the frequent and deadly flatulence by metro commuters. I mean he was OUT!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He was accompanied by a human colleague and once the train reached CS (one of the busier stations) a swift command from the human and Deputy Dawg literally jumped to his feet quicker than Usain Bolt taking off for the 100 mtr dash. (hahaha) Sorry can't control myself when I am reminded of the reactions that his sudden awakening elicited from the already petrified women.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not only had deputy Dawg woken up but was keen and raring to go at the first hint of a command from the lesser human. Once the train moved from the station the human barked another command and Deputy sprawled himself on the ground as swiftly as he had woken up. He fell close to the feet of the women occupying the 2 seaters next to the door, their expressions seemed to suggest that they soiled themselves a wee bit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I bid adieu to Deputy Dawg after a couple of stops but wasn't able to forget the discipline, obedience, agility and enthusiasm that he displayed. This blog is a very small tribute to all you Deputy Dawg's out there (sniff sniff bow wow).</span></div>
Jagbir Lehlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258499313268065484noreply@blogger.com0