Spirituality in Management: A paradigm shift in Ethics, Values and Corporate Governance

Preamble

Hassled CEOs have no other option but to keep issuing guidelines from one quarter to the next without fail. Much in tandem, every quarter, a new corporate scam hits the headlines. The precise regularity with which skeletons keep tumbling out of corporate closets at frequent intervals would put the atomic clocks on our planet to shame.

When it comes to perpetrating a fraud on unsuspecting stakeholders, human ingenuity has never been found wanting. If America had Enron and Lehman Brothers, UK had Barclays. If Norway had Nortel, Portugal had Banco Espirito Santo. If Switzerland had UBS, Germany had Volkswagen. India has had Satyam and Punjab National Bank. She has also earned the dubious distinction of improving upon its Ease of Emigration rank for defaulting high net worth individuals in the recent past.

No industry could lay a specific claim on such man-made disasters. Be it banking, insurance, mining, automobiles, liquor, energy, commodities, IT or real estate, all have set examples of devious plans to deceive their stakeholders, whether of the gullible kind or the colluding kind.

Human greed and avarice are obviously the root cause. The sheer pleasure derived by a minority in making some extra gains at the cost of a silent majority apparently has a sense of gratification which surpasses all else.

A business environment of this nature needs leaders and managers who have nerves of chilled steel and a disposition backed by a high degree of inner resilience. A deep commitment to values and ethics in business. A premium on fairness and transparency in all kinds of deals. A long-term view of sustainable success, as opposed to a fly-by-night approach to decision-making. A constant connection with one’s inner self. In short, they need to have a high Spiritual Quotient.

A two-day workshop at Pondicherry University

The Department of Management Studies of Pondicherry University, in collaboration with Sri Aurobindo Centre for Advanced Research (SACAR), recently conducted a two-day workshop, highlighting the manner in which aspiring managers can work on an inner transformation and achieve unparalleled satisfaction and growth in their careers, whether as professionals or as individuals.

In his keynote address, Dr Ananda Reddy, Director, SACAR, highlighted the challenge the leaders and managers of today face: that of following values and ethics in business, of imbibing the principles of corporate governance in their decision-making, and the need for being aware of the potential of spiritual consciousness as a solution to the problems they face.

Organizations are made up of human beings. Thus, the mantle of transforming corporates falls squarely on the young and strong shoulders of individual leaders and managers. This alone can lead to a meaningful evolution in the manner in which organizations function. By being an important part of society at large, such organizations set high standards and spearhead social evolution.

The need of the day is to view the management process through a new lens – that of the Four Pillars of Harmony, Strength, Perfection and Wisdom. This new paradigm of Management goes beyond the self-centred ‘I and Me’ approach of Western models. Rather, it focuses on the overall good, espousing a ‘We and Us’ approach, which is more holistic in nature. This new paradigm is based on ancient Indian wisdom and can help leaders and managers to deal with corporate affairs more effectively and efficiently.

The new paradigm of Integral Management

Yours truly provided to the participants an overview of the Four Pillars of Integral Management, backed by real life examples from the business world.

The challenges of maintaining Harmony were brought up, as also the need for a higher Spiritual Quotient. Use of planned disharmony in the market place, as evidenced by the disruptive entry of Reliance Jio in the telecom sector and that of Patanjali in the FMCG sector, was mentioned.

The need to deploy Strength for the overall good was substantiated by the case of Tata Trusts. The abuse of corporate muscle power was brought out by quoting the case of Erin Brockovich, who spearheaded the campaign to secure substantial relief for those who suffered at the hands of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company of California in 1993.

The development of hybrid cars and several product recalls were cited as examples of dynamic Wisdom in company’s policies. The need to build brand equity was discussed, so was the role of intuition in decision-making. The story of how the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore came up based on the singular initiative of Sir Jamsetji Tata (1839-1904) was narrated.

Participants were exhorted to give up the culture of mediocrity and strive for Perfection in all their actions. Example of Apple products and Rolls Royce cars were cited.

Harmony and Collaboration

Professor Kisholoy Gupta, an accomplished international trainer in Management Sciences, based in Bangalore, invited the participants to play some games to demonstrate the role and importance of Harmony and to experience a freedom of expression, so one could feel free and happy, and therefore, work more productively.

Ms Padma Asokan, who manages Omeon Solutions, a global software company in Chennai, explained the need and mechanics of achieving Harmony in organizations.

The core of any organization being love and harmony, managers can improve their contribution by achieving a balance between their inner and outer selves.

Managements need to enable harmony at different levels. At the infrastructure level, care needs to be taken of tools, office layouts, work station design, and rest and recuperation facilities. The top person is the DNA of the company’s culture and thereby enables organizational harmony. Operational harmony is achieved through teams which aim to achieve success in whatever they choose to do. Smooth communication, whether vertical or horizontal, ensures better harmony across an organization. Treating employees with respect and dignity and innovative HR policies ensure a high degree of motivation at all levels.

Order and cleanliness attract all stakeholders to a business. Waste reduction, productivity improvement and minimal friction are the key benefits one derives.

The highest form of harmony results from conflict resolution of values across individuals, departments and profit centers. Managements keen to achieve a state of sustainable corporate harmony counsel their employees to cleanse their minds of such negative emotions as anger, hatred, passion, lust, delusion and pride.

The Strength of Self-belief

Professor Kisholoy Gupta conducted some practical exercises to make the participants aware of the importance of the Strength of being impartial and objective and “stepping-back” before taking any decision.

Mr Ganesh Babu, a strategic thinker and a coach extraordinaire based at Pondicherry, touched upon the importance of self perception, self-control and a belief in one’s own abilities. By quoting examples of several spiritual stalwarts in the fields of business as well as in spirituality, he demonstrated that it was their belief in themselves and their unique capabilities that led them to scale great heights and become the leading lights of humanity, inspiring one and all.

An individual manager’s values and beliefs shape his attitude. These, in turn, determine his feelings and behaviour, making him what he is. The power that he exercises is often derived from his beliefs. By reviewing one’s belief systems, one can enjoy greater power over one’s actions and circumstances, thereby enhancing one’s efficiency and effectiveness.

A manager can increase his Strength manifold by:

-Basing his decisions on empathy and respect towards others;

-Refusing to accept anything below standard, treating all tasks as Divine work and, thus, striving for perfection;

-Dealing with Materialistic Resources in a firm and polite manner.

Perfection in Management

Professor Kisholoy Gupta conducted a series of practical exercises of making quality products, thereby driving home the relevance of Perfection in management.

Dr Sridarshan Kaundinya, having had cross-functional experience in such companies as GE, Indus and TCS, and presently based in Bangalore, explained the manner in which Perfection gets practiced in the industry. The need to go for quality levels far beyond Six Sigma, like in aircraft engines where a failure could directly lead to loss of precious human lives, was touched upon.

Perfection is not only about having an intuitive power to accuracy but also about an unfailing attitude of fulfilling commitment, of being unscrupulous, unsleeping, indefatigable, and touching every detail, and of organizational execution and achieving an unfailing exactitude of result.

The Power of Wisdom in Values

By way of a warm-up exercise on Wisdom, participants were invited to describe the lines along which the city of Pondicherry should develop in another decade or so. Brighter minds at the workshop came up with some lofty and pragmatic goals for the city planners and administrators.

Dr Narendra Joshi, an eminent educationist from Mumbai, who has also worked on the interface between Artificial Intelligence and Spirituality, described Wisdom as comprising vision, wideness of understanding, and as a result, an endless compassion and patience for the time needed to effectuate and implement the intention of the Supreme in the manifestation.

He stated that it is not uncertainty alone that has paralyzed CEOs today. Many find it difficult to reinvent their corporations rapidly enough to cope with new technologies, demographic shifts, and consumption trends. They’re unable to develop truly global organizations that can operate effortlessly across borders. Above all, leaders find it tough to ensure that their people adhere to values and ethics.

The prevailing principles in business make employees ask, “What’s in it for me?” Missing are those that would make them think, “What’s good, right, and just for everyone?”

Practical wisdom, according to several studies, is experiential knowledge that enables people to make ethically sound judgements. It is similar to the Japanese concept of Toku—a virtue that leads a person to pursue the common good and moral excellence as a way of life. It is also akin to the Indian concept of Yukta, which connotes “just right” or “appropriate.”

One way of describing Wisdom is to have the ability to see the trees and the forest at the same time. With meditation and an inner connection with oneself, this can be cultivated.

Going beyond CSR

Mr. N Harihara Subramanian, a passionate Social Worker involving and supporting many Projects and a founder and promoter of the Indian Institute of Governance (IIG), Chennai, delivered the Valedictory Address.

He exhorted the participants to propel their organisations beyond traditional norms of Corporate Social Responsibility, and work for the overall benefit of the communities surrounding them.

Proceedings summarized

Dr Ananda Reddy, Director, SACAR, summed up the proceedings of the workshop. He reiterated the need to train young managers not only based on the Western models of management, but also to draw deeply from the wisdom contained in Indian scriptures. This alone could lead to businesses which work for the overall good of the society.

Workshop Design, Execution and Coordination

The workshop was designed to develop the inner capabilities of students as future managers in terms of the aforesaid Four Pillars of Harmony, Strength, Wisdom and Perfection.

The event was chaired by Dr. G. Anjaneyaswamy, Professor and Dean, School of Management, Pondicherry University. In his concluding remarks, he appreciated the unique contents of the workshop and expressed a hope that the Department of Management Studies may like to have the same incorporated into the formal syllabus of a regular MBA course at Pondicherry University.

The Inaugural Session was chaired by Professor K C S Rao, Head, Department of Banking Technology, School of Management, Pondicherry University.

The Convener of the workshop was Dr. R. Chitra Sivasubramanian, Professor & Head, Department of Management Studies (DMS), Pondicherry University.

The entire event was coordinated by Dr. B. Rajeswari, Assistant Professor, and Dr. R. Venkatesakumar, Assiociate Professor, DMS, School of Management, Pondicherry University. Dr Shruti Bidwaikar was the main coordinator from Sri Aurobindo Centre for Advanced Research (SACAR), Pondicherry.

The Road Ahead

Businesses with a futuristic vision need managers who are not only tech-savvy but also situation-savvy, adept at handling stressful challenges with ease and aplomb.

SACAR is open to the prospect of conducting similar workshops in commercial organizations as also at management institutes of repute, whether for the students or for the faculty.

For institutes interested in incorporating the content in their regular management courses, a draft syllabus has also been prepared under the guidance of Professor G P Rao, who, after retiring from Madurai Kamaraj University in 1997, has devoted himself to the mission of spreading human values in organizations, through his NGO, SPANDAN.

(Related Posts:

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/spirituality-in-management

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2015/10/06/managerial-perfection-notes-from-a-seminar-at-pondicherry-india

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/03/26/harmony-in-management-a-seminar-at-pondicherry-india

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/08/30/power-in-management-a-seminar-at-puducherry-india

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/the-element-of-wisdom-in-management-a-seminar-at-pondicherry)

 

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Improving the Employability Quotient of Indian youth by leveraging the unique strengths of the Distance Learning Mode

(This post is dedicated to my mother, who earned her BA degree from the Department of Correspondence Courses of Delhi University in the year 1972. In the same year, I completed my B.Sc. Honours in Physics from Hansraj College, Delhi University, through the regular classroom method.)

Synopsis

The future of Distance Education can be bright and rosy only if it aims to improve the Employability Quotient of those who subscribe to this stream of knowledge. Given the challenges it faces from traditional class-room learning and from the emerging realm of open on-line learning, there is a strong need to reinvent and reinvigorate the content being offered by it.

The mode of distance education therefore faces a twin challenge. One, proving itself superior to the traditional class-room learning. Two, that of being one-up on the open on-line content on offer to the youth of today, thanks to advances in technology.

Looked at from the perspective of an employer, when a candidate is being considered to be hired, she needs to not only overcome the barrier of a weaker perception of the distance education mode but also demonstrate her superior depth of applied knowledge. The unique strength that such a candidate brings to the table is possibly that of her prior working experience. It also shows that the candidate has the grit and determination necessary to complete the academic criteria of a course, even while handling a career and other mundane responsibilities of life.

In terms of credibility, on-line courses rank a poor third as of now. But the possibility of these catching up and making HR managers sitting up and taking notice of its contemporary and dynamic nature cannot be ruled out in the very near future.

How does the distance learning mode reinvigorate itself? The key lies in understanding the industry requirements and in incorporating the same to redesign the content on offer. Irrespective of the subject, contact programs which offer workshops on body language, communication skills and in building up self-confidence can help. In some cases, elementary IT skills could add value to a student’s marketability. In others, a crash course in a specific foreign language could perhaps help the candidate bag a dream assignment.

Customer is said to be the king. In the case of distance learning, the customer is the prospective student. If the focus is on improving her Employability Quotient based on the skill-gap felt by the industry, the mode of distance learning would improve upon its unique place in the education-mix on offer to the aspiring youth of today.

What the industry looks for

For any business, hiring is a critical activity. One, the person being recruited also brings in a set of attitudes, beliefs and value systems into the organization. These need to be matched with the core values and the culture of the organization. Two, the skills being brought to the table by the candidate have to be assessed realistically, so the person does not prove to be a misfit. Three, the kind of experience and its relevance to the assignment on hand needs to be evaluated. Four, the qualifications need to be checked, so the organization does not end up hiring either an over-qualified or an under-qualified person.

A premium on values

Attitudes, beliefs and values get formed from an early stage of one’s life. Hence, it would be naïve to assume that formal education at the higher level could play a role in shaping up the same. Yet, some steps could indeed be taken. Management lessons from literature and Indian scriptures, if made a part of the curriculum, would surely reinforce the learning of a career aspirant. Case studies which focus on the values that some brands stand for, such as Tatas and Siemens, could demonstrate the importance of fairness in business dealings. Likewise, details of corporate scandals could drive home the point that excessive greed leads to commercial ruin. Examples such as Satyam and Lehman Brothers readily come to one’s mind.

Skilling the young

Skill sets which a candidate is expected to possess obviously vary from assignment to assignment. In most cases, jobs of a technical nature need higher proficiency in the relevant technical domain. However, depending upon the candidate’s aptitude, skills can also be imparted on the job. For instance, a shoe factory can hire an engineering graduate engineer from any discipline and mould her according to their internal requirements.

For jobs of a non-technical nature, particularly those which fall in the realm of marketing, customer service, procurement, and the like, soft skills carry a much higher weightage. Skills in communication, leadership, collaboration, teamwork, analytics, adaptability and planning assume higher importance.
Evaluating experience

With a clear tendency amongst candidates to overstate their career accomplishments and emoluments, recruiters often have to dig deep to ferret out the truth. Often, past employers need to be contacted so as to ascertain the facts. Successes being quoted by a job seeker need to be seen in the context of the business environment in which the same are said to have been accomplished. The recruiter also needs to evaluate if the success was a team effort or an individual one.

Detailed questioning during the course of a personal interview alone enables the hiring person to understand the nuances of the range and depth of experience of a person.

The knowledge matrix

Often, one is aghast to find that a post-graduate in commerce cannot clarify as to on which side of the balance sheet the profit figure should appear. In such a case, a recruiter has to check her enthusiasm and not proceed to ask as to why it should appear on the ‘Liabilities’ side.

Our learning outcomes happen to be weak on conceptual clarity but excel at promoting rote and memory enhancement. Alas, such is the legacy of Lord Macaulay that we continue to follow till this day!

Unless one is hiring for a research and development slot or for an assignment which is highly technical in nature, one does not look for top grades and academic accomplishments. Grades may not be too good a measure of a candidate’s Intelligence Quotient but do show the capacity to work hard and the propensity to reproduce in an examination hall what has been taught in the classroom.

Pedigree does matter, though. Academic institutions have an image which invariably influences the learning outcomes, and thence, the value attached to a candidate’s qualifications.

A candidate who has undergone a standard classroom process gets taken more seriously than one who has been through the distance education mode. However, the advantage of the latter is that the candidate is likely to have a better Emotional Quotient, especially if she has been pursuing a career as well. This improves the adaptability of the employee and indicates better chances of success on the job.

Distance Education: Unique Selling Propositions

The stream of distance education offers several Unique Selling Propositions.

One, the seeker of knowledge is free of the tyranny of the classroom. No more for her the drudgery of listening to endless uninspiring lectures. There is no emphasis on fixed duration, fixed content dosage of a repetitive kind.

Two, a vast majority of those who opt for this stream are already pursuing either a career or another full-time educational endeavour. Upon successful completion, they bring much higher value to a prospective employer.

Three, prior practical experience brings in a level of maturity which helps the aspirant to shore up her Emotional Quotient, besides adding value to her knowledge base. From the point of view of the employer, this is a great value add.

Four, by shifting from the one-size-fits-all modules to flexible and segmented offerings to a career aspirant, the distance mode has the potential of surpassing the learning outcomes of traditional classroom learning as well as those of on-line learning.

When tyranny begets tyranny

Despite these unique features, employers have an in-built bias in favour of the products of the traditional classroom system.

This bias is rooted in the belief that those who have undergone the traditional process have followed a discipline of fixed timings and withstood the boredom which goes with repetitiveness. On the other hand, those who have undergone the distance education mode are perceived to have merely wasted their time in worthless pursuits rather than focusing on academic enrichment of their lives.

Managements often believe that employees have to be physically available to them for a certain duration in the day and have to fall in line with the overall discipline of reporting times and a singular absence of check-out times. It is believed that to young ones, all work becomes routine and boring after some time. So, a candidate who has already undergone a possibly boring process might survive better and longer within the organization!

Such mundane considerations end up tilting the recruitment windmills in favour of those who have undergone a classroom stream of regular education. In other words, managements which believe in tyrannical practices at the work place end up reposing their trust and faith in hapless candidates who happen to be the products of yet another tyrannical system.

However, with the focus in the economy shifting from manufacturing to services, work-from-home is becoming a buzz word. This is happening also due to the personality traits of the millenials who are joining the work force, as also due to better availability of internet and connectivity. Better prospects are surely ahead for the stream of distance education.

Distance Education: Challenges

Being an important sub-set of the entire education eco-system, the challenges faced by the Distance Education mode are essentially the same as the ones being faced by the overall education system. Admittedly, there are finer differences which make this mode more susceptible to disruptive changes in the society at large.

The onslaught of technology

The rapid pace at which technology is changing is making the tasks of education and skill development tougher. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is capable of taking on the tasks which require analytical skills. Capgemini, the consulting major, recently decided to replace 40% of its work done by its resource management group with IBM’s cognitive computing system, Watson. This shows that it is just not mechanical or repetitive jobs that are at risk.

Some crystal gazing

By 2025, almost 70% of India’s population is expected to be in the working age group. By then, thanks to AI and robotics, a large chunk of India’s present knowledge economy would have shrunk. As the contours of the new economy emerge, the country’s collective strength would get determined by world-class education. It would no longer be enough to have commerce and engineering students who can write codes. India would need thousands of research scholars who would be capable of critical thought. This work has to start today.

Augmenting ability, not merely certifying it

It is hoped that the forthcoming new educational policy of the country would suitably address the upcoming challenges of the 21st century. This policy needs to focus on enhancing cognitive skills, capacities for critical thinking and innovation. A robust foundation for the future can only be laid by gearing up all streams of education, including that of distance education, to augment cognitive skills and promote out-of-the-box thinking at all levels. Innovation, and research and development need to emerge as the primary goals of the higher education system. The focus of skill development needs to shift to augmenting the ability rather than remaining confined to the task of merely certifying skills.

The three Rs – reading, writing, arithmetic – must continue to form the core of education. Students who learn these must also learn to question and criticize, to think afresh and come up with new paradigms. They can then end up extending AI, rather than just succumbing to its growing prowess.

Meeting the challenges head-on

The feature of contact classes is a crucial one inasmuch as it gives the students a first-hand feel of the subject and the teacher an opportunity to engage in a direct interaction with the knowledge seeker. The image of the institute gets burnished. So does the quality of skills being imparted.

Enriching the contact element

The approach in future needs to be to enrich this feature even further. Tie ups with local professionals who are adept at imparting the kind of skills the industry looks for is a sure way to be one-up on the on-line courses. Students can obviously be given a basket of courses to choose from. Additional fee can be charged from those who wish to also take up an intensive communication or leadership course.

Another way to enrich this feature is to make management games, case studies and role-playing as essential elements of contact classes. An internship with a local business, under the guidance of a faculty member, can help the student hone her industrial skills and also add value to her curriculum vitae.

Segmented and specialized offerings

For those taking up courses related to travel and hospitality management, foreign language courses can be offered on an optional basis. Visits to local businesses and an apprenticeship with these could improve the Employability Quotient in a significant manner.

Quite a few vocational skills can be brought under the domain of distance education. This would be a great value add to the employment eco-system. Elementary IT skills, if imparted as a part of the academic offering, can surely help.

Adaptive learning: a flexible way forward

Adaptive learning views attainment of competency as its central goal, the duration of learning being

Squatting Scribe

largely irrelevant. It recognizes that each knowledge seeker is unique and needs a tailor-made basket of courses which, if completed successfully, would make her a productive member of the society. Admittedly, this necessitates a common entry-level screening, which is simple and which gauges the capabilities of the incoming students at the entry-level and then offers them a route which makes them reach their career goals in the shortest possible time.

An industry interface

Distance education institutions which offer career counseling services and have full-time placement executives on board have a definite edge over those who neglect this vital last-mile connectivity

between the employers and the prospective employees.

By adding video sessions covering chats on important subjects with industry leaders, placement officers can add much value to the overall learning of the students. This is especially true of management courses where practical experience matters much more than the knowledge of theoretical formulae and concepts.

The need to reinvent distance education

Albert Einstein famously quipped that insanity is the act of doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. By that yardstick, if educationists persist in their belief that continuing with the traditional paradigm of distance education would be a panacea for India’s deepening youth skill crisis, it would amount to insanity!

The need of the hour is to reinvigorate and reinvent this crucial stream of education. A new paradigm needs to emerge. This paradigm needs to be based on the challenges of the 21st century. By substantially enriching the learning process alone can one hope to see India capitalizing on its demographic dividend. We are perhaps about to miss the bus already. The time to bring about this change starts now.

(A paper presented at the National Conference on Distance Education in India: Emerging Challenges and Prospects, organized by the Directorate of Distance Education, Pondicherry University, Pondicherry, India, on September 8th and 9th, 2016)

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‘Harmony in Management’: A seminar at Pondicherry, India

The Indian view of the discipline of management speaks of four pillars of Integral Management – Wisdom, Power, Harmony and Perfection. Of these, Harmony stands out as a key enabler for CEOs and business leaders to achieve their goals.

An individual manager can improve his/her effectiveness by ensuring harmony and balance within oneself – between his/her inner thoughts and outer actions and between the mind and soul.

Large corporations and owners of the family businesses have to ensure that harmony prevails within the various arms of the organisation. The latter have to ensure that there is a clear succession plan in place, so that no disharmony is created at any stage. Maintaining a harmonious liaison with the financial institutions and the regulatory agencies is a key concern for many MSMEs.

Much like musicians in an orchestra, managers have to move in tandem with each other so as to create a symphony. A harmonious working inevitably leads to ‘synergy’, a term often used in the realm of management.

From a strategic point of view, operations have to be so conducted as to remain in harmony with the environment and the society at large.

A cordial relationship between the organization and its distributors allows a Marketing Manager to sleep peacefully.

A Finance Manager has to ensure the right balance between cost controls being implemented and the efficiency of departments which are affected by the same.

A Production Manager has to maintain harmony between his supervisors and workmen. He not only needs to deliver finished goods on a target date but also within the cost limits specified.

Harmony between management and employees is essential for a smooth run of the business. So is the harmony between employees at different levels of hierarchy and between employees of different age groups.

At the personal level, the owner of a family business has to ensure that a harmonious succession plan is in place. An individual manager can improve her effectiveness by ensuring there is harmony between her inner thoughts and outer actions.

At a one-day seminar on “Harmony in Management” organized by SACAR on the 20^th of March, 2016, speakers from a wide spectrum of managerial expertise addressed the participants on the need for, and the ways to achieve, harmony in operations.

Dr. G. Natchiar, co-founder, Emeritus, Director Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai, the chief guest, stressed upon the importance of the Vision and Mission of an organization. She not only spoke about the “Aravind Eye Model” but also shared with those present,the innovative HR policies of Aravind Eye Care. Dr. Natchiar highlighted the frugal aspect of her organization which enables it to continue to offer affordable eye care to people of India and bring about harmony in its operations. She detailed the steps taken to improve the productivity of doctors, thereby making the operations cost-effective and the institution becoming a role model for similar health care providers in other parts of the world.

Dr. Ananda Reddy, the Director of SACAR, elaborated upon the four essential components of Harmony ― Collaboration, Goodwill, Benevolence and Tolerance. These alone enable organizations to work and progress smoothly. Management education in India needs to be re-engineered to impart training in these components as well, so as to make it more holistic and in tune with the times.

Mr. B. R. Babu, IAS, Secretary Welfare, Government of Puducherry, shared with the participants his experiences of bringing about industrial harmony in public sector undertakings. He highlighted the need for managers to take ownership of their tasks and fulfill those within the ambit of the law.

Prof. Sibnath Deb, Prof. of Psychology and Director Incharge of the Directorate of Distance Education, Pondicherry University, elaborated upon the psychological aspects of inter-personal relationships which alone contribute towards bringing about harmony and happiness in one’s personal life.

Yours truly spoke about ways of establishing harmony at work. I touched upon the manner in which challenges faced by managers from customers, suppliers, personnel, superiors, peers and subordinates could be successfully met.

Mr. Ganesh Babu, Director of “Winning Minds”, emphasized the importance of harmonizing oneself first. He stressed upon the fact that performance of CEOs is evaluated based on not only the results they achieve but also the quality of relationships they have with other stakeholders in their organizations.

Ms. Uma Prajapati, Director of Upasana, Auroville, spoke of the inner call of a professional designer and the satisfaction gained when serving the community around a business. She highlighted her singular achievement of creating Tsunamika, a tiny doll, which brought about a positive change in the lives of women affected by the 2004 tsunami.

Prof. Kisholoy Gupta conducted an interactive group discussion which led the participants to articulate their major takeaways from the day-long event and also imparted the value of appreciating others.

Dr. Arvind Gupta, Assistant Director, Directorate of Distance Education, Pondicherry University, coordinated the entire event. His back up support was invaluable in the planning as well as the hosting of the entire event.

Dr.Shruti Bidwaikar, Assistant Director, SACAR, summed up the proceedings and offered a vote of thanks.

The seminar received an overwhelming response from participants coming from various walks of life, like government officials, management educationists, corporate executives, businessmen, Aurovillians, entrepreneurs and students.

The Integral Management Group of SACAR had already covered the facet of Perfection during September 2015. The next event, focusing on the facet of Power, is planned to be hosted during August, 2016.

(http://www.bienveillance-entreprise.fr/entreprise-2/la-bienveillance-ou-lharmonie-dans-le-management-chez-les-dirigeants-indiens)

(Press coverage by The Hindu:

http://googleweblight.com/?lite_url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/puducherry/harmony-in-management-builds-a-successful-team/article8408054.ece&ei=o_mBYHhC&lc=en-IN&s=1&m=225&host=www.google.co.in&ts=1459225799&sig=APY536zzDjXkqVeszf8Ya9EQqwJnWp7JFg)

(Related Posts:

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2015/10/06/managerial-perfection-notes-from-a-seminar-at-pondicherry-india

https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2015/03/17/an-inner-approach-to-leadership-and-management-note-on-a-seminar)

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