How I Learnt to Say Thank You!

Back in late 70's while working for a multinational I learnt one of the most important lessons of my life. I was new to Pali Hill and was not very familiar with the culture there. While withdrawing cash from my bank one day, I thanked the gentleman behind the counter. As I was walking away while counting the money I heard a choking, gasping sound. I turned back and looked at person on the cash counter. He was an elderly, slim and fair person and his face was now deep red and tears were rolling down his cheeks. I thought he was having a heart attack and in that split second all sort of thoughts, and my training in first aid, flashed in my mind. On hurrying to the window I remember stammering "are you all right"? His reaction left me spellbound. He said, and I am quoting him, "I have been doing this work on this counter for the last 25 years and this is the first time someone has said thank you!"

This was the time when management was only something of administration and the business etiquettes lessons were not much heard of.

In the new millennium we have everything, management courses, highly trained professionals, beautiful technologies, employee development, engagement, customer driven businesses, but I am afraid still no thank you’s. We have modules that teach us to be a good team member, a good leader, a good visionary but I guess the most basic of all modules to be prepared is how to be a decent individual. I wish I knew what it takes to be a good individual but I think something's are well known across the management sphere and if I may be too generic anybody who uses emails. Remember people by name, smile when you pick up a phone, thank an individual etc etc. It's just that our deadlines at work and lifestyle pressures at home are too much so this set of information normally takes a backseat in our minds.

I have learnt that it is always easy to say thank you to everyone who has ever worked for you and it is simple too. Talk about cost effectiveness... it is the best way of cost cutting. Just thank everyone for their efforts, down to the lowest in the hierarchy. I am not saying it makes all the difference, but it certainly makes some. Try it.

Ratnakar Misra

VP, National HRD Network, Patna Chapter

(This was published in NHRDN Newsletter.)

Fire Prevention and Human Resource

[ Note- As far as possible we should take real examples to make a point, not some theories coming from another society with not much relevance to us in India where violence is seen everyday]

To know about fire prevention we should know about starting it. Basically you need 3 things

1. Something which will burn- solid, liquid or gas

2. Oxygen

3. Something to start the fire

In case you want to start a fire , first decide some reason e.g. heat or cooking. You have to first collect right type of wood, easy to burn, dry. Then you need something which can easily catch fire, select something which is simple, throwable after use, like a news paper, for taking the fire to the right place. And of course oxygen or air must be there.. Then you need a spark or a match stick. The paper will catch fire, you can put it under the wood and slowly it will start burning depending upon the type and quantity.

Fire prevention is keeping the three ingredients separate all the time. In case you have a fire then to extinguish it you can remove one of the elements. This is the basic fire fighting.

Good HR Management Practice is similar to a fire prevention system. Let’s have a look from the other end.

Now, if you want to start a strike, gherao, violence in hospitals or with police, burning a public service or transport system, protest against something etc you have to take the same steps depending upon the situation……..

1. Find a good reason with USP. People find various reasons; competitive unions, leader wants to develop into a politician, revenge, discrediting an senior person, taking credit(personnel department), and last in priority, concern for the people.
2. Collect the right type of material . Good efficient people generally do not like to go on strike or be violent. So collect a group who is not good at work, violent in nature, easily aroused, people not having enough work, some like to cause problems for management and co workers etc. Also get some experts in burning vehicles, it is a must these days.
3. Find some inflammable material. This can be things like grievance , imagined or otherwise, work stress , racism, perceived partiality, pay( it is seen that it is the well paid people who want more)etc.,
4. Make sure of availability of Oxygen without which no fire can start. It can be Poor Management practices(eg Non participative type, top has no time, middle not interested, juniors are clerical), Non Governance, VIP System, Law without Order, no participation or feedback system , poor communication, accident prone, family uncared for , health and safety ignored etc.
5. Now things are ready to explode. Just provide a spark. It generally comes from bloated ego’s of incompetent managers and can be anything, insult, words like get out, wrong language.(In one factory I greeted a foreman “ how are you ol’ chap” and he went away fuming , I had called him old, almost called a strike till workers told him to shut up!) Another factory had a history that one personnel manager, ex Army, belonging to a superior group took out his gun and shot a worker while discussing their problem. Many managers got killed that day and the matter was hushed up.

An important thing to remember that fire is universal, it starts in the same way in overdeveloped countries, under developed countries, whatever their dress, language etc. But the effectiveness of Fire Prevention principle applied to people has to take into account the Organization, Culture, History, Traditions, Management Practices etc

Unassuming Leadership

Among many types of leaders, this type is important but generally gets neglected. The reason is that they perform better than others, specially in unusual, difficult situations or emergencies.

It is easy to find them. Go to any place where an emergency situation is there, major breakdown, strike about to erupt, train accident, fire in factory, belly landing of aircraft etc. You will find someone doing the work, rescuing, getting them out, using the fire equipment etc as if it was routine.

They keep their cool, don’t wait for instructions, take the initiative, organize things. They give simple instructions to people who automatically follow them, do successfully what is needed, and is generally the last to leave the drowning ship. They even make the thing look simple. And importantly, do not claim anything special, only “did my job”. Only people with deep knowledge can appreciate the work done.

They are not liked, as in normal times others are rated high, the good presentation wala’s, the glib talkers etc. HR also cannot do much as their performance evaluation is not built around unusual conditions.

Bhopal gas tragedy could have been avoided if he was around. He was possibly removed by the management due to poor presentation skills.

Let us give them their due, like those in the Taj Hotel attack. Catch the natural leaders, train them and give them more responsibilities. They are important.

Ratnakar Misra
Patna Chapter, NHRDN, www.National HRD.org

Nurturing Talent- Union Leader

Nurturing Talent- Union Leader

He was one of my sincere and efficient workers. But I found him getting involved in union activities. That worried me; I called him to my office one day. I told him that I have worked with Union leaders and they have a very tough life. You have to be prepared if you want to be involved. Please consider the four points I tell you, take your time over that and if you still want to go ahead kindly come and see me after 4 days.

1. You will not have any time for family; will not see them for days
2. You will be hunted - me, personnel dept and even police.
3. Your pay will reduce- overtime, bonus etc
4. Be prepared for violence, stone throwing etc

He came to see me after 4 days and said that he has considered the points, but he is under pressure from all and he would like to help in these troubled times. His family and young kid will get help from his brothers. Then I told him to take care of the next 4 points,

1. You will work on job assigned in a visible place like in front of my office
2. There will not be any discussions, meetings in work place
3. When you have to meet workers, you will tell the time away from duty to your supervisor for information to time office.
4. When you are called by senior management or Personnel, make sure they authorize your attendance for that time; otherwise there will be trouble later.
All the best and you can come to me for any help if required.

He stuck to the deal, was highly regarded by all and set an example.

Ratnakar Misra

VP, National HRD Network, Patna Chapter

(This was published in NHRDN Newsletter.)

Training and Chanan Singh

It was early seventies, I was in Rourkela Steel Plant (SAIL), and our personnel department had just decided to send promoted foremen also for management training.

Foremen were generally promotees from highly skilled technicians and chargehands or engineers like us. The then culture demanded that they have great technical and language skills, like cursing fluently ( I was a total misfit for the steel industry that way. It was according to some, the TISCO syndrome).
Chanan Singh was one of the best I have come across.
He was sent for 2 weeks training and when he came back we discussed the training provided. He was positive, unusual for hard core technical chaps.
On the 3rd day after his return, one of my fitters came to my room and whispered to me in confidence, that Chanan Singh had not gone for training but for a medical check up and he is suffering from something serious.
On the 5th day another fitter came and whispered to me that there are very serious rumours on the shop floor, that he is suffering from cancer and is not going to live long.
Now things were getting worrying and I decided to investigate. I started to talk to all and to get a feed back how such rumours had spread. I learnt that he has suddenly changed. Looks worried, does not talk much, does not shout in his usual way and is not even cursing! During work and interactions I also observed these things. And wondered what had changed him. Sometimes such changes come about when they get married but he was a married person of long standing.
Then It dawned on me that it was the training!
This needed counselling, not a commom word those days. I planned my approach and called him to my office. We had tea and a long discussion. I told him that training is one thing, you pick up what you need, but getting work done is another. Specially in Steel Plants. None of the people who were lecturing have ever actually got work done, and definitely not by tough Coke Ovens labour. And apart from things like knowledge, skills, leadership etc. tough language is also needed for getting work done. You may have taken the training too seriously.
I saw that he was catching the hint. He was now nodding his head.
I watched him as he walked out of my office after the session, from my door. Within a minute he saw a one of his workers loitering around and let him have it. Since he had a lot of pent up emotions, he did a great job, as usual. I relaxed and went back to my table.

Two days later the first fitter came and told me that Chanan Singh has now appears to have got cured and is now normal and back to his confident ways. Our work is now going on smoothly!

The counselling was a success. Another problem solved!

Ratnakar Misra

VP, National HRD Network, Patna Chapter

(This was published in NHRDN Newsletter.)

Counselling Newly Weds

It was Oktoberfest Club Night. My recently married friend was drunk. His sweet little wife, coming from a conservative family a few months back had never seen anything like this. Now it was time to head home. She refused to go with him, kept saying I will go with bhaiya (ie. me). He kept saying she has to go with him. It was tending to get violent. So I told her to go with him I will follow closely. She finally agreed.

Reaching home, my friend, with my help, reached the divan and fell down, fast asleep. I asked the shocked wife to remove his shoe and belt. And let him sleep, he will be ok in the morning. Give him coffee or tea when he wakes up. Please lock the door and relax when I go, and get a good sleep. And don’t fight in the morning. Pretend nothing happened.

She learnt fast. In another club night, she came to me and started getting angry with me. I have seen you enter the bar 4 times and you came every time with drinks. How can you do that? I told her that I take coke without rum but I get it from the bar so that people think I am taking rum. I do it for PR. Let me see, and she took the glass and tasted it. Oh, she said it is just coke. She never doubted me again. I told her not to tell anyone, it is a question of my reputation.

After all, there are responsibilities of a teetotaler.

Ratnakar Misra

Colvin College Memories- Kaha Gaye Wo Din?

The old little boys school, Mrs Jordan, Mrs. Shukla, Kale Saheb, 7 tiles, Gend Tadi......Ravindra Mohan was the best , Vijay Shahi was a little one but growing.....

Then promoted to big school, cricket , hockey, all shocked that I did 10 lenths on my first visit to the swimming pool, giving full marks to Ajanta house...good swimmer Anil Chandra , he learnt in Gomti, I in Ganga....

Won all races, jumps, etc in D category, got a prize for the most improved athlete of the year( sense of humour prevailed, one of the prize books was Lolita), promoted to C group to end my athletics career forever.... So hostelers could prevail....

Watched Simran Singh make 160 runs against Lucknow University, he was 12 th. man in one of India test Matches. Watched Oppu Sen, who was the only batsman to later to stand upto the west Indian Bowlers. Then Ashok Mishra became College Captain, full colours, half colours blazers......

Annual day..... Once the 2 boys who escorted the Governor in NCC uniform , one of them went missing, I was called in in emergency,( my life story, only remembered in emergencies.) and successfully performed with Anand Pal, s/o Shri Yashpalji, the writer!

Safder, the fast bowler, Ram Naresh Singh the athlete, Johri all my friends...

Playing hockey with KD Singh Babu....

Test match .. saw Fazal Mahmood, .. Haneef, Dattu Phatkar, Polly Umrigar, GS Ramchand, Subhas Gupte....

Saw Ramanathan Krishnan win all India universities title tennis in the university....

Brajendra Prasad Bajpayi reading poems, making fun of me, Misir Kare ghisir ghisir Laiya none chabai, ta kothe par se gir pade, MISRAIN CHILLAIN ! ....all the kids waited with baited breath for the last part. Must have been fun thinking about a misrain at that age!

Jawed Akhtar and Vedantist Kiran Shankar Chaturvedi.... when the prof was delayed they would take classes. Jawed would sing kaan me sone ki bali hai.........as only he can!

NCC while marching left right left right , another sound used to come from Vivek Pathak- Kukur Bilar Kukur Bilar.....

Then came High School and again things changed. Forever.

We were playing, below the office when Prof Upadhyaya called me and congratulated me for my good marks. He appeared shocked. I did not know my marks then. Then I learnt that I had come first and passed with credit, only second person in the history of Colvin.

Some of my old friends, bacause of this, refused to talk to me, or play. I had become intelligent suddenly. So made new friends, Ashok Shrivastava, Rajiva Tandon, Rajiva Ratnashah, all geniouses!

Ansari Saheb's chaprasi came to the chemical lab and told me that the Principle saheb has called you. In todays parlance it was like getting the pink slip. Shivering I went to the office , first time in my life. He looked at me and said oh your are Ratnakar Misra , but I have only seen you playing!

As per standards I became a Mechanical Engineer and that ended my simple life......

Goodbye Colvin

Ratnakar Misra

Training The Taxi Driver

Training the Taxi Driver

Whether it is the discourteous Delhiwala, the shrewd Mumbaikar or the incorrigible Punewala, (I rate a city by its taxi drivers) the training needs are always there! Some do not know the road, some pretend not to, all of them using ingenuity to reach your pocket. I always tell them about courtesy, helping foreigners, language to be used etc. Technically it is known as a “captive audience”, the driver cannot jump out till we reach the destination and is forced to hear me out. I explain why only this country says “Atithi devo bhav” and the reason behind it.

One enterprising chap in Mumbai asked me the way. This they ask to study you, and to know how much you are aware of the city and how he can move you around in circles before reaching (I have always believed that some books on psychology ought to be written by taxi drivers and pickpockets). I told him that you are the taxi driver, not me. You are supposed to know the roads, the places where police checking is going on, where there is a traffic jam etc. I know all the roads of Mumbai and but I have trust in you. I have trusted you with my life when I sit in your taxi hoping that you will not have a major accident. If I can trust you with my life, I can also trust you with the route. He was very happy, “sir, very few people talk to us like that!”

Hope he is still doing a good job.

Ratnakar Misra

VP, National HRD Network, Patna Chapter, www.nationalhrd.org.in

(This was published in NHRDN Newsletter.)

Mentoring the Unmentorable

Till HRD brings to India the work culture of Japan or a system like The UK, where plumbers can get more emoluments than an Oxford Don; dealing with technical experts can be difficult. They have the expertise and leadership qualities, etc. but the direction can be wrong! One way is to use their ego (they have plenty of that), deflate it first, and then push the rest to good use! Without wasting time looking for a Harvard Case Study, or calling in an expert or consultant!

Take the case of Merry Mason, name changed. He was a good mason; but as my predecessor had told me, had not done any work for many years and substitutes it beautifully with problems and excuses. He dropped in to see me on the second day of my taking over the work shop. He talked big about himself, about how he had worked with the earlier GM, Director etc. and how he had trained them. I gave him time to think that he had me impressed. Then I told him it was so nice to meet a good mason like him, and that you have such a nice watch. He immediately started talking about how he got it, etc. (blah, blah !)Then I asked him what time it was. He said 10:30. Then I asked him what time his shift started. He said 8 am. He started feeling that something was not going right. I felt it was time to twist the knife. I asked him to show me his hand. He showed, as if I was a palmist. It was clean. I asked him, how is it possible that an able mason like him is wearing a watch at work, has clean hands indicating that he had not even touched his tools since morning! He visibly shrunk, now looked sheepish.
I called his supervisor and it was agreed that he will work hard to finish commitments, ensuring quality.
I fuelled his ego by asking his opinion etc occasionally. He became a good chap.

I did not mind the joke doing the rounds that I was allergic to clean hands!

Black Hole, Sorry, Black Money Discovered!

Things got jittery when a simple yoga teacher threatened to go on fast for getting back black money home from Swiss Banks etc, and the Colonial period rusted iron frame of India's Governance, rattled. A small part of the structure fell down on a file which had a black tape, as against the normal red tape. This was a closely guarded black money file.

Immediate action was required, top went into huddle, and every one became active, and 3 committees were set up.

- To study money comes in how many colours.

- How do they paint the money black.

- Where do they get the black paint from.

All have been instructed to submit their report within 30 years.

We wait for the developments.

Cribbing Pays

Cribbing Pays – and How

You find them in offices, factories, everywhere and are almost always an HR concern. There are many varieties, the hard working cribber, the non working one, the part time cribber etc. Some of them are highly creative and find something to crib about even in difficult situations. They believe in the old theory that the wheel that cribs the most gets the lubricant. But times have changed and those bearings just get replaced. I consider them as a feed back system. And very important, like the "abominable no man", the accounts guy.

This happened to me once. I reached my hotel in Pune late in the evening. I was commissioning a factory, and when I entered my room, I was shocked. There were flowers, cakes, fruits, welcome signs etc. I thought I had entered the wrong room. The reception told that it is my room only, he has no idea but you can check with the morning staff, when they come, why it is like that.

The morning staff were frank. They said “Sir you are staying with us for the last eight days and you have not complained once”. We get many people from your multinational and all of them do only one thing, crib, about anything, room, tea, food, service etc. So the staff decided to say thanks to you “Sir”.

I felt happy and that hotel now had a loyal customer!

I like cribbers.

Ratnakar Misra

Vice President, Patna Chapter, National HRD Network, www.nationalhrd.org.in

Director , Cell for Consumer Education and Advocacy, Jago Grahak Jago