Next Role- Spiderman

The news is that I'll be attending an induction program from next week for three weeks. It feels a bit weird to be inducted into the company after working here for a month. Anyways, it's good to know that I'll not be required to work for the next few weeks
This is the time for me to built a network with the others who will join this company on Monday. The contact network that a person develops plays a huge part in his/her success in a company. For MBAs it makes even more sense to know someone in each department and get to know what each department is upto. Lets see as to how much distance I can spread my webbing to.

Capital Punishment

The six men involved in the attack of the American center in Kolkata have been given death sentence. That reminds me of the discussions few years back on the correctness of imposing capital punishment. There were people who argued that death sentence is against morality and should be abolished. Thinking about it, all religions preach peace and are totally against taking lives. To my knowledge it is even part of the 10 commandments. So is this extreme form of punishment right? I, for one, believe that it is not wrong to hang a person when the lives of many will be saved by it. But looking at the other side of things does give a good point for discussion.
Countries like France, Italy and Spain have abolished human execution. There is a rumour that homicides are comparatively less in these countries than those where execution is still followed. Capital punishment was removed from the US legal systems for some time because hanging was considered brutal. The punishment came back with the introduction of lethal injections. I am not sure how non-brutal this is.
There is also the argument that hate grows hate and capital punishment creates more murderers. I don't know how it does, but it seems to be a fact that capital punishment is not acting as a deterrent to murders. There have been lot many movies where the villain says, "There is no extra punishment for the second murder". True, there will be no more an incentive to return to sanity. But when you hear incidents like a teen girl being raped by a policeman, or a massacre done by a group, do you really feel like giving them another chance?

The Confusing World of Acronyms

I was shocked to read the headline "HCL disinvestment should be put on hold" in here. After all, I was more familiar with "Hindustan Computers Limited" than "Hindustan Copper Limited". That reminded me of a person I met few years back. This person met couple of young men who introduced themselves as HP employees. Our friend thought that he was talking to couple of computer geeks from Hewlett-Packard until he found that the guys were actually from Hindustan Petroleum!!! Now that makes me wonder how companies can have similar acronyms, and on the first place, why should companies have big names? Why should a company have a 4-word name only to be shortened to 4 letters and confuse people?
Things get more confusing when the abbreviations are not just names, but technologies related to each other. If a person tells you that he is working on DWDM, will you take that to be "Dense Wave Division Multiplexing" or "Data Warehousing and Data Mining"? Is IP "Internet Protocol" or "Intellectual Property"? Is BIOS "Basic Input/Output System" or "Built-in Operating System"? Want to know something worse? In my new company I was asked on the first day if I am an MA. I was about to reply that I am an MBA, when I remembered that my appointment order had my designation as "Management Associate (MA)".
In my humble opinion (I couldn't write IMHO after cursing the acronyms so much), the acronyms are straining the listener's ears more than they are easing the speaker's voice. What do you think?

Birds Of Different Feather

This weekend I had the experience of being in the company of contrasting set of people on Saturday and Sunday. The friend with whom I went out on Saturday is a religious person and so we visited to the Mahalakshmi temple. On Sunday the group I went out with were a bunch of happy-go-lucky fellas. I went to a mall with them. After doing some window-shopping in the mall for sometime, the guys went to a bar. Yours truely, being in another wavelength, absconded to a veg. restaurant nearby. The company of people who are not in your frequency causes slight uncomfortableness for both parties. I'm not sure if I should continue this process of being in both worlds and still being in neither. Or maybe I should stop going out with people who booze. My guess is that I hurt them more by going out with them than by turning off the offer itself.

The Uglier Side

The headlines of all new channels and newspapers today have been made by the unfortunate Sabarmati Express accident. While getting to know more about the accident I found certain facts that stung me.
a) The accident occurred because the train was put on the wrong track. But aren't these track allocations done automatically? The answer is "yes". But unfortunately a signalman had disengaged the automatic inter-locking system (as said by the Western Railways General Manager). The lives of so many people have been changed by that person's single mistake.
b) We don't know what was done to the signalman. But we do know that the Sangh Parivar activists staged slogans against the railway minister Mr.Lalu Prasad Yadav, and that Mr.Yadav has demanded for the sacking of the Gujarat Chief Minister.
c) The locals in the accident area rescued many of the injured, but there were not much transport facilities to rush them to Vadodara
d) The darkness at the accident site hampered the rescue and relief operations. Rescue operations started only after daybreak. In the age when cricket matches and fashion shows are not hampered by darkness, the rescue of hundreds of people has been delayed by it.
I believe that it is worth thinking over the lack of development in places like these.

The Ideal Blog?

Think about it. What should a blog ideally contain?
Should the blog be -
1) an information-disseminating centre?
2) an online diary of a person?
3) an exhibition of the blogger's writing skills?
4) a place with light readings to refresh tired minds?

Maybe you people can tell me as to which one you would prefer.

My guess is that most people would say that the blog should contain the blogger's thoughts/ insights on anything under the sun. But that's too global. The question to be addressed is, "What is it under the sun that the blogger should write about?"
When I started this blog I used to write only poems. Then some of my readers opined that poems should be interspersed with prose to make them better readings. As a true student of CRM (Customer Relationship Management), I catered to my readers' requirement and starting writing prose. I wrote generally about college life and a bit of my personal life. Feeling that it was getting personal, I started writing about my viewpoints on some of the events happening around. That was the time when I received he least comments in my blog. May be I was commenting on things that my readers couldn't comment on Currently I am not sure what I am writing on - I just write anything that I can think of at the moment I start writing. So, what should an ideal blog really be?

Noble Profession

An article in a friend's blog reminded me of a desire that I had years back. There was a time when I wanted to be a teacher. I have always loved the concept of imparting knowledge, though I'm not sure how much I got imparted I have loved to give presentations in both under-graduation and post-graduation classes. I'm not sure on how to express the feeling that I get during a presentation. The closest comparison could be the pleasure that an actor derives through acting.
Coming back to reality, I did have an option to get into the teaching profession. When I had completed my engineering, I was offered the chance of becoming a lecturer. But then, I also got an offer from an MNC that was paying about 4 times more. I had interest in teaching, but not the unconditional passion that people are supposed to exhibit over their desires. I took the option that most money-minded "normal" people would have taken. But I have no regrets. I loved my job with the MNC.
My interest in teaching was rekindled when I joined post-graduation. I wished to become a professor till I got to know the requirements to become one (a doctorate) and the pay package disbursed. Call me money-minded or opportunistic, but here I am back in an IT firm.

Mumbai safar and suffering ;)

Just the other day I had written about loneliness, and that's something I didn't get to feel the whole weekend. I took a little bit of initiative and arranged for a meeting of my classmates who are currently in Mumbai. When I met them on Saturday evening they looked shocked and asked "yeh kya haal bana rakka he?", "kuch lethe kyon nehi?". No, I did not go in any weird attire. It was just the tiredness of the whole day that was showing on me. If you are thinking that I would have been tired of working, then you are wrong again. Imagine a tortoise coil revolving in front of you err... I mean, I'll take you to the flashback of the happenings of the earlier half of Saturday.
I had no plans for Saturday morning till some of my friends (college juniors) called me out. I joined in their plans for roaming around in the city. We split into 2 auto-rickshaws in the Bandra station and decided to meet in the "Linking road". Then started the "hide and seek" game. Actually, it was more like a "lost and found" game After roaming around the Linking road trying in vain to find the other group we entered a Benetton showroom and asked the other group to come to that place. The other group and few other friends arrived just in time for us to leave the showroom gracefully. The showroom employees might have shown us the way out if we had stayed for a few more minutes
After the not-so-great trip to Bandra, I met my classmates in Marine lines to receive the responses stated earlier (yes, the flashback is over). This time the group had some Mumbai-ites making things far simpler. They took us to "The Gateway of India" and then to a movie. "Hitch" is a very humorous movie and it made sure that the day ended with happiness for me.

Loners and Movers

I have been in Mumbai for the past 2 weeks and I'm yet to venture to any place outside my apartment and office. That should give an indication of the kind of person that I am. I generally like to be in home watching TV, chatting with someone, or just reading. Believe me, I spent more than 2 hours everyday in crosswords in the time gap between college and work. When I entered my flat in Mumbai the first thing to catch my attention was the television in the flat. "That takes care of my spare time", I told myself. But as always there is a twist to every tale.
The cable television didn't work yesterday and my roommates were working late in office. All of a sudden I felt a huge silence around me. I've got nothing to do. I'm too tired of reading documents in office, and so the novel in hand wasn't making any impression in my brain. I had washed all my clothes just the previous day, so even that work wasn't there. For the first time in Mumbai I missed both my college friends and my family. In college I had the 24*7 internet connection and the table tennis and badminton courts to consume my excessive time. At home, well, time somehow just flew away. I don't think I do anything substantial at home, but never felt bored. But everything is different now.
I had a gentle walk around my apartment yesterday as I had nothing else to do. It does feel great to inhale some fresh air. Guess I'll add this to my daily routine.

Puththaandu NalvazhthukkaL

Anaivarukkum en ulam kaninda tamizh puththaandu nalvazhthukkaL

The above line means "Happy Tamil New Year". After coming to Mumbai, I speak in Tamil only with my parents over phone. So the Tamil New Year is definitely a day to remember and cherish the language that I have always loved. I used to participate in most of the Tamil oratory contests in school though without much success. In fact I still believe that the school I studied in, is one of the best to learn the language.
Many forms of Tamil have existed mainly based on geographical variations like Madurai Tamil, Thirunelveli Tamil, and Kovai Tamil. But with the modernisation of so many things, Tamil has also undergone modifications and we now find lots of English words in Tamil. I am not asking people to call keyboard, mouse and software in Tamil. But then they should atleast know the simple words. There are lots who don't know the Tamil words for Tea, Pant, computer etc. You know what is worse? Many of my friends wish Tamil New Year in English!!!

Settling with Marketing

Seems I'm settling down decently in Mumbai. I am getting used to the new routines here. Have been thinking about starting cooking. But then, I do think about a lot of things. The distance between thoughts and actions are sometimes pretty large. Maybe I should bridge the gap by starting off with cornflakes and noodles
Yesterday I got my second project in my new job. They asked me if I can work on 2 projects simultaneously, and I was too enthusiastic to say "no". This new project is pure marketing. In another unrelated incident (got influenced by watching too much of news channels), my juniors from college came yesterday with a certificate stating that I came first in a marketing contest @ IIM-I. Talk about coincidences!!!!
Or maybe I should talk about the irony. Afterall, I specialized in finance and systems!!!

Shy The Evil

The IIMs recently took the decision not to participate in the B-school surveys conducted by certain magazines. This is based on the fact that some of the magazines manipulate the ratings. In this regard I read the response of a reader in the "Business Standard". The reader has said that the IIMs have shown their arrogance by ignoring the ratings, and they should start participating again in the rankings. Either, this reader belongs to a second rung B-school, or, he does not know what he is talking about. Will you participate in a contest knowing that the results are manipulated? If yes, then my dear sir, you need a doctor.
People who notice these ratings carefully would be awed at the fact that some of the little known B-schools (?) make it above the well established B-schools, not just some of the IIMs. If you tend to contemplate that this could be the truth, then you might do well to ask the opinion of an MBA aspirant. Afterall, who better to vouch for the B-schools than the people who bet their lives over it? How many aspirants would dare to think beyond the IIMs if they get an IIM seat? No one dares; people just console with a second tier B-school once they fail to get into an IIM.
I recently heard about the head of a B-school that is always in front when it comes to questioning the IIM system. This person, as I heard it, was in the first batch to pass out of his dad's college in both graduation and post-graduation. Even he did his doctorate only after it was introduced in his dad's college!!! Now the guy is regarded as a management guru, thanks to the immense brand building that the people around him have done.
Maybe the IIMs must come out of their ignorance and post some questions back at the credentials of these people.

P.S. I posted this blog on friday by mail. It didn't work then!!!

Blog Through Mail

For all my readers who visited my blog over the past week, I'm sorry that I wasn't able to update it. I somehow am not able to publish new blogs from the blogger website. So here goes, my first blog through mail.
Hope it works ;)

Into the new frontier

I am not sure if I have had this long a vacation till date. It's been couple of months since college ended, and it feels just like yesterday. Now its time to enter the unknown frontier - my first job after post-graduation. Though most of my classmates are still enjoying their vacation, I guess I'll be better off gaining some experience, and also making some money ;) The other guys from my college who have got into the same company will be joining only next month as that's when the actual induction is to start. But then, having done my summers in the same firm, my boss feels that I can start work immediately!!!

The only sore thing about my new job is leaving the cozy comfort of home. Work will be in Mumbai for now, and, if things go as planned, I'll get tranferred to the Bangalore center in about an year. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good career ahead, and for getting the time and internet access to continue blogging ;)

Experiences of a 6(+) footer

Let me continue from where I left in the previous blog. The travelling difficulties of a 6 footer. As I mentioned in the previous blog, if you are more than 6 foot tall, then you cannot stand in a bus as your head keeps bumping into the hand-rails. Also, you cannot sit because your legs wouldn't fit in the space provided. Well then, what to do? Adapting is the key my dear people. I am now used to sitting diagonally in the seat so that my legs have more room. It’s only a small bit of extra space, which is mostly insufficient. But then, the pain does subside with every centimeter of extra space.
The travails are less in train journeys. It is quite funny to hear people complain about less space to sleep when they get the side berths. Think about the misery of those who wouldn't even fit in the normal berths!!! But when you don't fit even in normal beds, what’s there to complain about train berths? In one of the journeys last week (check the previous blog), I made the mistake of stretching my legs once while sleeping. A policeman, who was passing by, hit my foot with his protruding rifle. What can I say? When you are couple of inches more than six foot, you should learn to keep your legs curled in.
From land travel to air travel. I only wish that flights had some extra space for the tall people in the economy class. I can't forget a 10-hour travel where I had hoped to move around once in a while to give some relaxation to my legs. But then, the guy next to me had other ideas. He slept the minute he occupied his seat and thus blocked my way to the aisle.
Given all these flip sides, I would still prefer to be what I am. The disadvantages are only minor aberrations to the 'perks' of being tall. The attention you get; the advantages in sports; the ease of getting spotted in a crowd..... Even in my pilgrimage last week, I couldn't help sporting a grin when I noticed the difficulty faced by people in trying to have a glance at the Lord in the temples. With the 7+ foot statue of the Lord smiling in front of me, it just occurred, BEING TALL IS COOL.