Ginger & Cardamom

You know going to office is an ordeal for me. I have always loved a line from Rachel Green when she talked about her life when she comes to know about how Ross like her and she goes to get him at the airport. She says, “When I saw him get off that plane with her, I really thought I hit rock bottom. But today, it's like there's rock bottom, then 50 feet of crap, then me”

I surprisingly think that my office follows a similar way of appreciation, every time I think I have managed a situation came out of the pit, it dugs up a deeper one pushes me in and says now come up. When I joined my work I thought I really loved it, I love it now too but 5 horrible setbacks they did to me-

1- Changing cities- You know when I was a kid, I used to be so jealous of people whose dad have transferrable jobs because they go to see new cities, new places. They had so many stories to tell. I was always stuck with same set of people and same old stories. When I grew up I also outgrew these idiotic sentiments. But somehow my company was listening and listening pretty well. They thought the perfect way to keep me happy was transfer me across 5 time in two years across 3 different cities (yaar itna to Mayawati bhi UP ke DMs ka nahi karati)

2- Office Timings- Well the place I hear from the veterans used to be a fun land where everyone was only bothered about how sincerely you completed your work and nothing else. But now we have some things called policies & directives in place. The bottom line due to them if I stay is office for less than 9.25 hours I get a leave deducted and if I stay more than it, it is expected. (yeh bhi koi insaaf hai meri salary bhi unke pass aur meri leave bhi unke paas jab chahe tab kaat lete hai :-()

3- The internet- this is a major irritant at my work place. I really hate websense. I am thinking that I should call a meeting of all the people who have been tortured by this F**KING morons sitting in San Diego, lets contribute buy the shares of the company and simply close it down. This would be one gift from us to the entire humanity. Some inventions shouldn’t have been done this damn software is one of them. Well you can read abt this nuisance in my office here as well.

4- Car Parking & Campus - We have a multilevel car parking of 10 Floors with a capacity exceeding 2000 cars. Now this parking is actually built in the corner and any workplace building is around 1 Km from it at least that too uphill while coming back. My one question why, Why this idiotic car place right in the center? Why you expect us to slog our backsides off and then actually fight an uphill battle on feet or cycles to reach our car and then drive 15-40 Kms to reach home. No when you recruited us, we never pledged our life to you.

5- Security- Now this is the latest Icing in the cake, they have reduced a lot many number of guards may be with an idea to cut costs. So essentially what happened today was there was a 2 Kms long line of cars while the remaining guards were struggling to check every care to let it in. Generally there are 15 guards passing around 12 cars at one time. Now this has been reduced to 7 which actually resulted in a huge waiting and I actually waited for 45 minutes to actually get to the Car Park and then another 15 mins to walk to my building.

I hope this damn recession ends and some sanity is restored in the work place. Otherwise one of my most admired corporations would turn into a hell hole which people would despise and loath.

I got a chance to attend a wedding after a long time. The last wedding before this one was way back in 2000 of my cousin. So when Varun, one of my very good friends from my school days, got married. Many of our teachers who had taught us during our school days were invited.

I was present with many of my friends from school days. We were standing in a group all the schoolmates when our teachers (surprisingly even a prime minister becomes an ex prime minister, a boss becomes an ex boss, even a girlfriend or wife becomes an ex girlfriend or wife. But a teacher always remains a teacher he/she is never an ex teacher may be because you can always learn something from him/her no matter how much you grow)

They saw us came to meet us, and it felt so good. But I had my Eureka moment when our teachers were trying to recognize us. Of course they didn’t remember most of our names (it’s been 10 years since we passed out and they would have taught us like 12-15 years back). My teachers saw me and they were like “Prateek, You were the computer whiz kid”. It felt so good when people who teach 500 students in a year and they remember you after so many years associating you with something which you really cared about. It was such a pleasant surprise that all of them recognized me, not because I was a brilliant student which obviously I never was. But because I had a passion for something and everyone in school knew that. The passion was computers, programming, hardware, software, anything related to technology. I used to bunk the games periods to sit back in the computer room, I know how weird it sounds but that use to be my craze for computer if not till late then at least till class 10^th when I got my own personal computer.

I look 10 years down the line I was the whiz kid on the block, a computer champ, a solid programmer.  Suddenly I work for one of the most reputed IT companies in the word; I have become an engineer & MBA by qualification and a consultant by designation. But in this whole gamut the passion for the computers stands lost and defeated. The fun of writing a code and see it almost working and then spending nights to debug to finally see it working as it should has dwindled in the glow of corporate ladder and hierarchy.

This is a very incoherent and lost post. Just trying to tell myself how life has changed and things have gone haywire in a meaningless tryst. 

BLOCKED

This post might sound like ranting but to me it seems what is actually bothering my thoughts since a long time. I seriously believe that a conversation could only lead to a thing like which happens so often in such renounced company.

Setting: The HR Guy, The Network Guy, The Employee in a deep discussion.

HR: I have joined this organization such a long time ago. I need something to show that I am useful or they will all know that I am just passing time.

NW: Ditto my case is still worse. At least employees are afraid of you. If they come to no I have no work I will be the first one packing my bags.

Emp: But why you are supposed to be pillars of organization. Why do we need to be afraid of you.

HR & NW: Shut Up!!!! You don’t know anything about organizations.

HR: We need to come up with some plan with which we can fake usefulness in the company.

Emp: But Why you need to fake you can actually work to increase the Productivity……….

HR: Productivity that is it. That’s what I will be doing.

Emp: yes, you can actually work to improve………

NW: Shut Up!!!! I have a brilliant idea which can address both of out concerns at once. We can block. Both will benefit

HR: Will do what?????

NW: We can block things it would hypothetically show that we have enhanced productivity.

HR: Sounds good not much effort eh is it ????

Emp: But….

NW (Excitedly): No just a little tweak in the firewall.

HR: Ok What all employees use Orkut

NW: Gtalk

Emp: No!!!!

HR: All other Chat clients.

NW: easy, flickr & blogs

Emp: No Way!!!!!

HR: lets block all.

Emp: What is the logic for doing it?

HR: Logic what is that?

Emp: But it won’t increase the productivity will it.

HR: I don’t want to increase it. I just want to show that I am doing it. Anyways they can’t measure it.

NW: HeeeeeeHowwwww (weird Laugh)

HR: Can’t we block the public email sites. The F***ing B*****Ds post resumes through them and also can we block job sites.

NW: Job sites is easy.

Emp: NO You can’t block Public Email Sites.

NW: But why you want to block it.

HR: If they won’t post resume it would reduce the attrition numbers in my tenure. At the end of the day numbers are all that matters.

Emp: You will never be able to do it. You can never justify it.

NW: Eureka!!! I can do it. Security issue, Enhanced security for the clients. Employees can transfer code and data through public email.

Emp: But no one does it, you know it. They don’t even bother about it where there are products being coded for millions of dollar like MS & Google.

NW: Who cares after all clients security is our first concern. Right (Winks to the HR)

HR: Promotion next quarter!!!!

1 Year in the System

I have completed one year in the system. The most interesting question in front of me right now is should I mourn or celebrate.

Interestingly a year before I used to be a focussed guy; with a planned life and now have a look-

• Who am I? An aspiring Business Development Executive or a Growing Supply Chain Consultant
• Where I am? Pune (My Base Location- total stay 3 weeks) or Hyderabad (I am here on a short term transfer for past 6 months)
• What am I doing? Preparing for sales roles or Getting billed for my company
• What is my area of Expertise? Marketing (My MBA Major) or Supply Chain Planning (My area of work)
  
• What am I learning? How to sell IT Services or Oracle ASCP
• Motivation? Organization's Policies or Self Respect for the work that bears my name
• Passion? IT Sales or Custom Components
  
• Parameters for best place to work? Productivity & Recognition or Gymnasiums & Fountains
• What drives me to work early on Monday Mornings? Awesome work that lies ahead or the parking space on the lower floor in the car park.
• Who is more important? Employees or the Buildings

A gesture more than 1000 Words

I always wondered about the actual disconnect which happens between the team working together like mine in a consultancy world. A lot of people I interact with, discuss things and together we work as a part of team. I have never met most of them personally for us the existence of each other is confined to a voice on the phone and the emails. The disconnect is further when it comes to the client whom the interaction is limited and very formal. The major challenge is how to get in sync with people. How to actually say how appreciative we are of each other and how we enjoy the discussions and perspectives arising for them. Amidst the lot of interaction which happens between us it is very difficult to convey the feelings of value of a team member. Often in the FMCG scenario it is done through parties outings. I was amazed by a way my client found out a way to say that how he valued out efforts. Me & few others from our project got this personalized note from director from the client side and signed by other stakeholders from the client and my company. It was something like this. It really made me feel that I was a part of the project and a huge team. Just wanted to thank everyone in the team for this.

Then & Now

A conversation with a very close friend, made me realize this. I know a lot of you would be aware of this, and a fact of the matter is even I know this but do I actually understand this. One thing which I think Indians, especially the young professionals who are getting exorbitant sounding salaries, need to learn from the America and Americans is the concept of debt in the economy. One thing which we learned from our parents was ‘Utne Paon Pasariye Jitni Chadar hoye’ (One should not spread his legs beyond the bed spread.) which actually means that one should not spend more than his available means.

However now around me, I see people with multiple credit cards total credit limits whooping in excess of there entire months or may be six months salary. To add toppings on this cake almost every second day I get calls on my phone I hear (not so sweet, decline in quality of call center talent is evident) voices who are willing to give me personal loans for foreign holidays, for buying diamond necklace for my ex-girlfriend with whom I broke up with almost a year ago and even for a third honeymoon when I am waiting for the first one to happen. With all this comes a temptation, a temptation to indulge now and pay for it later.

However the confidence of a high figure salary might just turn into over confidence with the cost of things which I enjoyed in a period of 15 years have changed.

1- I had a Samurai Video Game console which cost 3000 in 1996 now for the same I would like to have an X-Box which costs me 19000.

2- Whenever I used to eat out 10 years ago a Paneer Sabzi used to cost 30 bucks for a plate now it does 180 bucks.

3- We were proud owner of a Maruti 800 for which my dad always got laurels and was sign that he was well to do. These days I hardly see anyone flaunting something less than 1000000 in values. The zeroes can be added to the back of prices in a fashion similar to v’s in front of VIPs

4- The coffee I drank in 1999 was Nescafe and it made 100 cups for 50 bucks now my single cup in Barista costs me more than 50 bucks.

5- The usual rent for a 1100 sq ft house in 1995 used to be 1000-1200 bucks and now I am paying 15000

6- Previously a vacation used to be a train journey, sleeper class now the decision is tough do we fly Indigo or Jet.

7- I got my first computer in 1998 that was meager P1 processor based system with 32 MB RAM & 1 GB with a price tag of 55000 now I use a Centrino duo with 1 GB RAM and 60 HDD which cost rs 55000 (no wonder I love the computer and IT industry)

8- Treat used to be 27 bucks Vanilla Ice cream 1L brick now it Baskin Robbins or Gourmet Gelato with 65 buck for a single scoop (I don’t even know how many L is one scoop may be .1 )

9- Fuels used to be half of what they are right now.

10- Affairs used to be in love letters on 75 paise inland which ensured privacy. Last thing I would like to discuss is my phone bills when I had a girl friend to talk to.

So now I get more money and I spend more money so everyone makes more money. Anything to be very happy about arrgghh…. I don’t think so

workfrust, originally uploaded by guptaprats.

was going through a blog where I came across the idea of representing the idiosyncrasies of life in a pictorial form. Did something on the same lines. Hope you people like it. :-)

Benched: Learning from Supply Chain and IT

Now that I am getting into shoes of my new job of being a Fun(ctional) Con-Sultan-t. Its high time I should write something about it. I deal with Supply Chain Management in my work are so I found it the most appropriate to write something about it. The post has been a result of my thought process during I spent two long weeks on the bench. So here I go about my learning from Supply Chain Management and an IT Organization-

1- People = Resource/Raw Material

4- Resource Transfers= Move orders

5- Onsite= Interorganization Inventory Transfer

6- Billable Resource on a Project= Sale of Goods

7- Compensation= Cost of Goods Sold (Direct)

8- Buffer Resource on a Project- ATP (available to promise)

9- Cubicle of the Resource= Locator

10- Daily Attendance- Physical Counting

11- Appraisal- Work in Process

12- Head hunters, B-Schools, Engg Colleges- Vendors