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𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗗𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗿𝘁𝗵: 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮’𝘀 𝗗𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄 ♻
Today, India is discussing two (2) different news. The Union Cabinet, chaired by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) scheme for offshore wind energy projects at a total outlay of Rs. 7453 Crores, including an outlay of Rs. 6853 Crores for installation and commissioning of 1 GW of offshore wind energy projects (500 MW each off the coast of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu), and grant of Rs. 600 Crores for up-gradation of two ports to meet logistics requirements for offshore wind energy projects. The successful commissioning of these offshore wind projects will produce renewable electricity of about 3.72 billion units annually, which will result in the annual reduction of 2.98 million tons of CO2 equivalent emission for a period of 25 years.
Earlier today, the Hon’ble PM inaugurated the new campus of Nalanda University at Rajgir in Bihar, close to its ancient remnants. He also planted a sapling as he inaugurated the campus. The inauguration ceremony was attended by several distinguished individuals, including heads of missions from 17 countries. The campus is designed as a ‘Net Zero’ Green Campus, making it self-sustaining with the help of solar plants, domestic and drinking water treatment plants, a water recycling plant for reusing wastewater, 100 acres of water bodies, and numerous other environment-friendly facilities.
The common thread in both the news illustrated above, is the focus on a bright future for the people – education and environment – technology being an enabler. Contemplating these events of hope, the sight of a thermal power plant emitting harmful gases to the environment flashed, captured while visiting the city of Jhansi, more than a decade ago on an official assignment. It again reminds us of an urgent need to take urgent steps to abate the harmful impacts of the pollution by fossil by implementing suitable De-SOx or FGD, Decarbonisation measures, etc.
Incidentally, June 18 is a day of remembrance for Jhansi (and Bharat), famous for being the princely state whose legendaryQueen Laxmi Bai, dressed as a man, got killed in the combat while leading the war for independence against the British empire 166 years ago. Some believe that the Rani (Queen) did not want the British forces to capture her body and told hermit to burn it. She, among others, inspired generations of freedom fighters whose resolute struggles led to India’s independence.
The contemporary challenges facing us are diverse, and we, the society and our leadership, must strive for a sustainable habitat, cleaner air, and healthy living conditions for progenies. This will be our real tribute the ‘Rani’ 👸
Credits to Owners
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Manager with the Team – A Fire Breathing Dragon 🐉
Indian team beat Australian team in World Cup Men’s Cricket match yesterday, October 8, 2023. It was a convincing win, and the scoreboard would illustrate it did see exciting moments the game is known for. It was no surprise, and the odds were equal for win or lose. More than a decade in history, a match against Australia used to be a big thing. We have read and heard several editorials and commentators that Indian team lacks the ‘Killer Instinct’ Australians were especially famous for.
The scenario changed with the legendary captain Sourav Ganguly – the ‘Dada’ of Indian cricket. He instilled a champion mentality, nurtured young talent, and transformed the Indian Cricket team in his captaincy into a formidable force to reckon with at the world stage. The Natwest Trophy Triumph of 2002 and Dada’s iconic T-shirt celebration at Lords against England team is recorded in history.
In a similar context, the biography on Elon Musk published in September ’23 mentions about non-suitability of Parag Agarwal as CEO of Twitter (now renamed as ‘X’). “What Twitter needs is a fire-breathing dragon and Parag is not that,” Elon Musk told Walter Isaacson after his meeting with Parag in March 2022. Musk termed Parag as “a really nice guy” and quipped that managers should not aim to be liked. We can debate on what a manager should be or not, leader versus manager traits, etc. It also depends on the organizational and cultural requirements and many other aspects of team building, survival & transformational needs, agency problem between executives and owners etc.
Whatever be the case, a manager with the team, must be A-Fire-Breathing-Dragon. In the mythological stories, a-fire-breathing-dragon has been a symbol of power, strength, good fortune, fear, & destruction. The dragons are believed to possess magical powers and they are revered in some cultures (Chinese) and feared in some (European). Irrespective of their place in cultural milieu of various geographies, the dragons are go-getter and possess the ‘killer-instinct’ we just talked about.
It is right that the managers need not aim to be liked; rather they are required to become an example of getting the things done for realizing the organizational objectives. Manager and the team are one in the pursuit of the goal.
Anything you may like to add…
Be more polite as you grow in life!
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Around a decade ago, I got into an argument with my superior over whether to follow an instruction which was strictly not in my area of responsibility. If i remember correctly, perhaps, it pertained to preparing a document which otherwise should have been prepared by another department. The difference of opinion led to a heated argument between the two of us and I got a very nuanced and polite response: “I will do it if you don’t, as I have committed to our superior.”
For a while, I felt like a victory. The moment later, I realized the blasphemous act I had just committed by not only not accepting to do the task but to raise my voice at the epitome of politeness the person he was. Realizing it, I went to his chamber where he started to prepare the document.
I apologized for my uncourteous demeanour and offered to finish the task as needed.
The piece of advice I received at that moment changed the course of my life thereafter. He said: “Be more polite as you grow in life.”
I will always remember that one incident and the lesson learned. I try to follow the advice of being polite as ‘universal truth’ and not pollute my mind with whatever success I got.
What are some effective conflict resolution techniques for general managers? ✏️
Managers are basically desired to get the task managed by the people they work with. It is obvious to have conflicts in the workplace – be it between the colleagues, different departments, between customer-vendor and so on.
We are aware of the most common set of negotiation strategies in conflict resolution, known as the Thomas-Kilmann model.
Let us discuss the ‘ABCDE’ of the commonly used conflict management techniques by the business managers as deliberated below:
1. Accommodate: Many times, vendors comply with the demand of customer, thus accommodate the requirements if not significant in nature and ensure conflict does not arise.
2. Balance: Sometimes, it is important to give equal weightage to both the parties and both might be correct in their viewpoints. In such a situation, both parties compromise on their respective stand.
3. Compete: Not a very sought-after method, but managers use it to get the work done. It may result in one party giving up on its stand might not be a happy situation.
4. Defer: If a clear resolution is not in sight or the parties need time to cool off, avoiding any conflict for the time being is a better option. Critics can call this an Ostrich approach as well. Remember, we can cross the bridge when it comes.
5. Engage: A win-win situation wherein the conflicting parties resolve to achieve a bigger goal by collaborating. A reporting manager and her subordinate can collaborate to deliver faster results and get appreciation together.
What is your suggested technique?
🎯 I believe in Myself, Not in Your Opinions
Just came across a news article stating opinion of Nick Allan, CEO of firm Control Risks, reproduced as: “Companies considering India as an investment destination are concerned over long-term outlook of the India-China relationship, besides factors such as competitiveness, the Centre-state polity, societal conflicts, short-term infrastructure and skill availability.”
It reminded me of an anecdotal experience from around 2018 of a discussion with a company from an Asian country for a Product having application in Flue Gas Desulphurization. The company had a limited range of offerings. When asked for the sequence of product development, they said that it was in licensing arrangement (seems, gone sour later) with a European company. Incidentally, we had earlier received a firm denial from the same European company that they did not want to share the technology to anyone.
It is not uncommon for companies from Americas & Europe, the so-called ‘developed’ world, to remain skeptical about their partnerships especially regarding sharing technology with the companies from the global south countries. There may be reasons for such skepticisms, but I would like to state here that India does provide adequate platform to overseas companies for protecting their techno-commercial interests. Resolutions of Cairn Energy, Vodafone disputes and recent historic agreement between Air India and Boeing for 200 aircrafts, showcase India’s evolving regulatory framework and reemphasis for global trust on contracts with Indian businesses.
Recently, in a report published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), India has moved up to 10th rank in terms of business environment for 2023-27, from the 14th rank in 2018-22. It is a continuous process and shall remain so for India’s transition to a mature market from emerging one.
India needs global investments to boost her manufacturing & technological industry for uplifting living standard of over 1.3 billion population -need of the hour -given the importance companies accord to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). United Nations’ chief has also said recently: “The SDGs need a global rescue plan.” Industrialized nations must do their part.
Nevertheless, it is also important that Indian companies must also join hands in exploring new advancements not only in terms of operations but also for the research and development. MOUs and Partnerships agreements entered by and among Indian Public Sector companies like BHEL, Coal India, ONGC, NLC, IGL, NTPC, NPCIL etc. to embark on a journey exploring applications of the emerging & critical technologies. ‘REVO’, is one such example wherein two Indian auto majors Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra are collaborating for the development and production of Electric Vehicles (EV). UPI is our pride and hope to see the list growing bigger and better.
May Lord Ganesha’s blessings always be with us. Happy Vinayak Chaturthi!
Image: Braj Singh
Learning Every Moment in Life – Happy Teacher’s Day 🙏
I start by bowing down to everyone who has taught me to strive to be a better person through the journey of life. This started with my parents. It was a privilege and blessing to be born in a joint family and learning gained. Then, it was siblings and friends in school and college, peers, colleagues, superiors, juniors, and everyone I came across while discharging my professional and personal duty over the years.
Not to forget, the ultimate teacher of modern times… Google… which we always turn toward when in doubt.
There is always a coveted position for the spouse Swati Singh and then the wonderful kids, who continually give lessons and my last post was for amazing learning from them.
Feebly, I remember to have participated in a singing contest during school days in the ‘Independence Day’ celebrations and I chose to sing a song. On the day of the event, I don’t remember if I could complete the song or not; but unfortunately, the musicians could not match my rhythm. That day, I decided to not trouble any musician again and changed my track permanently.
Incidentally, 20 days later, during the Teacher’s Day celebration, I won ‘Second’ prize in Essay Recital competition on the life of second President of our country Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. This led me to consider doing similar stuff and that’s why you see occasional posts and articles on this platform. I am still trying to improvise on the same every day and seek your guidance and feedback.
We celebrate Teacher’s Day on September 5 every year since 1962, the birthday of Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. On this auspicious day, I join every student in paying homage to ‘the Teacher’ Dr. Radhakrishnan, who was equally distinguished as a philosopher, and statesman and would always be remembered as India’s most renowned academics on comparative religion and philosophy and for introducing Indian philosophy to the West, bridging the gap between both the cultures. His life-journey transpired across many generations and spanned over colonial as well as independent India i.e., Bharat.
Please share your learning, as well…
🔨 Feeling Devastated – Consider it Just A ‘Prank’ and Move On 🚀
After a joyful vacation in a coastal city in western India, we were returning to Delhi. At the airport, my 5-year-old daughter, in her quintessential style, stumbled near a toy shop and demanded a seemingly costly box. Not that I am an extreme miser, but still hesitated to buy one and strenuously tried to persuade her by offering to buy a better toy of her choice in Noida. Furious with my refusal to accede to her demand, she labelled me as the worst daddy in this world immediately. Obviously, I felt devastated… 😉
Feeling embarrassed over my performance assessment as the worst daddy and with a heavy heart burdened with the label (but smiling inside), moved a few yards, and located another miscellaneous shop. To prove myself to be a good father, I offered to buy something, and she immediately zeroed in at a kid’s necklace and we purchased the same. To balance things, got another stuff for the elder one as well. We then moved to the departure gate and occupied the available seats. I was sitting silently beside my cutie pie.
In the hope to get some appreciation for my splendid performance in the second attempt, I opened the wrap and got the necklace ready for her to wear and we discovered a wristlet as well. Feeling ecstatic, my daughter changed her previous assessment of mine and rated me as the best daddy in this world. Pleasantly surprised with the sudden change in my appraisal, I asked her that just a while ago she considered me the worst and now the best. The simplest and cutest answer I received from her is the key message for us – the wise adults – to overcome any adverse situation in life and felt worthy of sharing and hence, this post.
She told me that her hurling the ‘worst’ daddy jibe was just a ‘prank’ the way I used to do with her saying ‘it’s a monkey’ when I pat her teasingly.
It was another life lesson learnt in that cute moment with the innocent but crystal-clear thought of how to negotiate with tough situations in life. The little angel’s teaching is for grownups like us to shrug off the worst thrown at us and not get disheartened.
Consider it merely a ‘prank’ and move on to look for the next achievement.
We must strive to perform better than before, but this must not impact on our mental health. What do you think?
Collaborating: Conflict Strategies for Nice People
In 1958 Martin Luther King Jr. published “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story” expressing: “…the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people…”
This was true then and is true now and in the context of our discussion about workplace conflict. A ‘nice’ person valuing friendly relations with colleagues who never picks a fight, might be just as responsible for group dysfunction as her more combative teammates. Conflict is uncomfortable, but it is the source of true innovation and also a critical process in identifying and mitigating risks.
Teams need conflict to function effectively. Conflict allows the team to come to terms with difficult situations, synthesize diverse perspectives, and make sure solutions are well thought-out. The secret of having healthy conflict and maintaining your self-image as a nice person is all in the mindset and the delivery.
The article provides a few tips on improving the delivery by anyone in her role of adding value to the team not in how often you agree, but in how often you add unique value.
1. Use “and,” not “but.”: Invite and engage teammates in problem-solving, which is inherently collaborative instead of combative. Try seeking more points of view instead of taking ‘my way or highway’ route.
2. Use hypotheticals: Being contradicted does not feel very good. Instead, ask about assumed situations and get teammates to imagine. Try to jointly explore different scenarios to reach an agreement.
3. Ask about the impact: Directing a few open-ended questions to your teammate is also useful as it is considered open to ideas and being curious about the right approach.
4. Discuss the underlying issue: It is akin to Covey’s 5th habit (in a series of 7 habits) of highly effective people, seeking to understand first, before making yourself understood. It helps the situation move toward an amicable resolution. Many conflicts on a team spiral out of control because the parties involved aren’t on the same page.
5. Ask for help: Own the misunderstanding and seek team opinion. If something is really surprising to you, say so. A frivolous idea can be examined with a series of genuine, open questions to help steer the plan in the desired direction.
Conflict – presenting a different point of view even when it is uncomfortable – is critical to team effectiveness. Diversity of thinking on a team is the source of innovation and growth. It is also the path to identifying and mitigating risks. Use one of these techniques to make it a little easier, rather than shying away from conflicts.
The alternative is withholding your concerns, taking them up outside of the team, and slowly eroding trust and credibility. That’s not nice!
addition in an article by Liane Davey
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Constructive Feedback – A Prerequisite for Excellence
निंदक नियरे राखिए, ऑंगन कुटी छवाय। बिन पानी, साबुन बिना, निर्मल करे सुभाय।। — Kabir Das
Kabir Das, a 15th century Indian mystic poet and saint, emphasized the role of ‘critic’ in the development of human being. He states that we should invite our critic whose criticism guides us to work on the areas of improvement by the self only, without any external influence. Taking a cue from the great saying of Kabir Das, constructive criticism by mentor works as a feedback for the students and must be taken in the positive spirit only for self-development and not as an offence.
It is mentor’s responsibility to make her student better than before. Some of the points important for the students to note and internalize can be discussed as below:
-First Deserve, then Desire: There is nothing wrong in desiring anything, howsoever, impossible it may appear. It is, however, imperative to first work on the self to be ready for the same. Just wishful thinking would not take us any far. A concrete foundation is required to build a invincible fort of excellence. Dreams do not have any expiry date and we must have the courage to invest in our own self to improve.
-Life is about Celebration, not Regret: As is said, we must look at life with positivity and just a sphere of endless struggle. Life is all about success, failure, rejoice, sorrow, triumph, celebration and so on. Go with the flow, learn new skills and try to make it better every next moment. Our attempt should be to win over the difficult situations with a tact and have plan B for every plan A. Mentor’s words and experiences do come handy in such situations.
John C. Maxwell rightly says: “It’s said that a wise person learns from his mistakes. A wiser one learns from others’ mistakes. But the wisest person of all learns from others’ successes.” This must be our mantra in life.
-Competency is required along with Eligibility: A perfect blend of talent, interest and of course, with the needed opportunity is a sure recipe for anyone to achieve excellence in life. Many times, it is seen that students (and senior professionals as well) get frustrated when they do not get through a job. It is important to work on improving the competency. The world is a realistic place and achieving success is relative to our peers and competitors.
गुरु कुम्हार शिष कुंभ है, गढि गढि काढैं खोट। अंतर हाथ सहार दै, बाहर बाहै चोट।। — Kabir Das
Another gem of Kabir just illustrated, lays down the role of Guru (Mentor), who like the Potter, carves the best out of her mentee (Pot) by curing the flaws of the disciple with utmost care by developing her with inner strength while critiquing (pounding the pot) from outside.
This summarizes the essence of the relationship between Mentor & Mentee. Look forward to constructive criticism…
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Rajesh Ranjan's Weblog 