Feel Significant

By Naresh Choudhary, Camera Ayyappa BV

Jallikattu, Our failed politicians/administrators and over bearing judiciary

What has been happening these last few days in Tamil Nadu and by Tamilians spread around the country and the world is poignant in many ways, but has also left some of us giving a deeper thought than most of us who have done our bit by sending a tweet here or a forward there.

First things first, the protests on Marina beach in Chennai among many others, as i was discussing with my learned father in law and a very vocal, usually loud and agitated sister in law were and continue to be peaceful and look like the educated young have done it extremely responsibly. A lot of credit is due to everyone involved. Another important aspect is, fortunately the politicians while they have tried to get actively involved have not taken center stage yet.

I would leave the details to the experts on legal nuances of the matter in the courts, what i am intrigued by and deeply interested in is why does every thing have to go to the courts for a decision, especially when the matter concerns not 2 people or parties but an entire set of people who believe that Jallikattu is an integral part of their tradition and they all (well most) believe needs to continue. While there are arguments on if even outdated traditions need to continue, i am keeping away from that aspect here. When the time came people in the country have demonstrated that they can make amends and decide against traditions that don't make sense anymore and with education levels improving, exposure to cultures, people traveling around, things are bound to change.

Could our bureaucrats not have done enough by putting in place guidelines and rules for people to follow if safety, cruelty was the real issue here. Could our politicians not have acted in time with ordinances and whatever other mechanisms they have at their disposal and also if the bureaucrats failed, why did the political masters not take matters in their own hands?

More importantly when the courts across the country are reeling under unprecedented pressures of acting in time on millions of pending cases where in several cases peoples lives are at stake and justice clearly is delayed, if not denied, should the courts be spending their valuable time on all issues - Why couldn't the courts have dealt with this by forming a small work group to frame rules and leave the responsibility of running the sport/tradition to the people and the local administration.

There are far more bigger problems gripping us as a country, we all can focus on those to further the larger interests of the country and leave Jallikattu and other local traditions to where they belong...to the people in the local communities!

Star Trek, a computer that never got built and AI & ML

Growing up, Star Trek was my favorite TV show. The characters still come alive every time I think about the voyages of the Star Ship Enterprise and bring a twinkle in my eye! I remember a friend of mine actually managed to lead several of us kids into believing that we could build a similar computer that could “do things as per our wish”. Many months of collecting old boxes, buckets, waste material, iron roads, used circuit boards led to no outcome and we abandoned the effort on a summer afternoon after one of the parents found the kids surrounded by garbage and junk strewn all over the corner of our neighborhood.

Today a lot of what we saw in Star Trek is a reality, though I am still waiting for the day when I could just ask Scotty to beam me up – I know it’s only some years away when we could do interplanetary travel in no time.

Artificial Intelligence(AI) and Machine learning(ML) have led to a new phase where we have the ability to automate and let machines do tasks that earlier were done by humans. Cars can drive themselves based on the interactions they can have with objects around them, how to navigate a bump, what to do when another vehicle swirls into the lane etc. all the things that we as drivers have heck of a time managing and multi- tasking with, machines are today able to do it accurately where they can not only bring efficiency but also let humans focus on other important things – some of us still are debating what those other important things are going to be when this becomes mainstream!

AI and ML at its intersection, Infosys is doing this with earnest with our own platforms like IIP, Mana, IDP, IKP and others – things that required human intervention, human effort to do tasks are being taken over if not completely to a great extent by the platforms. Our partners have made significant investments in similar platforms – IBM’s Watson, Microsoft’s work on Azure Machine Learning etc. are in this space which is beginning to get quite crowded. These platforms are changing something fundamental – the way we deal with data, both by drawing insights as well as using those insights for decision making and taking actions based on the decisions, the whole nine yards, if you will. Dealing with data can pose several challenges given the complexity, variety and size of the data (Big Data would ring a bell!). The key is accessing all that data in the right manner, right format, at the right time, analyzing it to draw the right insights and doing this in a very short span of time. For example IBMs Watson can consume the equivalent of a million books per second, talk about the size of the data. The technical problems of ingesting data, working with it etc. are getting solved with innovative ways every single day and I am happy to share some of our teams have been part of some of the solutions here.

Machine learning has the ability to let machines learn without being explicitly programed! While the obvious use cases of Machine Learning are known and plenty, the fact that this can help us create smarter applications is what excites me the most. Google leverages Machine Learning to improve its search results and is used extensively as part of its search algorithms. A lot of these advances are driven by the work in the Open Source world, communities are creating new and innovative frameworks and products to solve some of the complex problems in this space. It is also coming at a fraction of a cost today, for example a slice of some of the best computing capabilities could now be easily affordable to even an amateur developer and therefore further democratizes the whole process of development where anyone with an idea can add on to what is already being done by others.

What is interesting is to see how all this continues to change the way we work in our day to day lives. What would a typical team member’s or manager’s work day look like when some of these advances are available to every one of us as basic productivity tools in our work space. Do we even need to come to office to access these. Do we need to be driven to the office by humans. Do we need to write programs any more. Do we just explain the problem in simple English to our digital assistant (Siri, Cortana …though my own experience with Cortana tells me that it thinks of me as someone deeply interested in negative, crime related news stories and in the early days used to spam me with those and only those…) and by the time we are back from the lunch break, it has already solved the problem for us or done the task that we gave. These and many more possibilities lay in front of us today, the more we dive into the future, the better it looks to me! 

This teachers day the 10 lessons from teachers and mentors...

While gyaan (Knowledge) is not the most revered word amongst many today since it largely has a connotation of a boring lecture, unwanted sermon to the reluctant. This teachers day, I spent time thinking about my “Teachers and Mentors” and what I learned from them. The list is long as there are many who have helped shape my thinking and approach to things on not only how I work but to some extent also how I live. All this has happened through the knowledge (gyaan) that was absorbed directly or indirectly and therefore the importance of gyaan cannot be underestimated. While a lot of learnings have come from individuals and institutions there are also learnings from things like sports that demonstrated the unfailing characteristics of how a team is always above the individual and the ability to be down but not out.

Here are some of the things that I have learned from my teachers and mentors over the years:-

1.       Right Values as a foundation

o   Values form the building blocks and provide for a sound foundation to build up on and there for are far more important for sustained success than anything else. In fact longevity in a career and an organization can be built on top of a foundation of shared values that match well for both the individual as well as the organization. Organizations like Infosys have been built on this very foundation.

2.       Think Big, Experiment and create a vision for others to follow

o   Seldom have incremental things enthralled people to put their all into it. The important aspect is to see that there is enough directional validation and move rapidly to create an aspirational view of the future. People like to see the big picture and then follow through to achieve it. While course corrections happen along the way as you feverishly and passionately experiment, it’s important that there is a vision created for everyone to see right up front and there is tangible movement towards the end goal consistently.

3.       Challenge the limits

o   Hindsight is 20/20 or so goes the saying. There are enough tales of regret where people have failed to live up to their potential and capabilities and many a times it was just the reluctance to try their best, try harder, challenge themselves and give it their best shot. Success and failure may be out of our control but putting our best effort and constantly challenging ourselves to do the best is definitely in the individuals hands and can never come in the way or be allowed to be put under a question mark.

4.       Do it and learn it for ever

o   This was one of my earliest lessons, whatever I read and heard, it was always insisted that we try things out on our own. In the manufacturing world, it meant standing in front of a machine that had cylinders with temperatures in excess of 120 degrees and in our world it means for some of us zero distance to code, clients etc. The best way to learn something is to get in to it and do it, if something does not kill, it may be worth trying after all!

5.       Invest in good people even when constrained

o   Our biggest asset is our people and I never have had doubts about this another early learning. The most important investment therefore is on people – good people. It also means having fast and effective processes to identify, nurture and invest on the right talent by challenging them to push themselves towards the shared aspirations and goals.

6.       Be the change

o   Quite often what we expect from our teams is not what we ourselves commit and follow, this could be simple operational things like being on time, submitting reports, timesheets to more tactical and strategic things like picking up a new focus area that is business relevant each cycle. It’s important to not only talk but also walk the talk ourselves before we expect others to follow.

7.       Build strong networks

o   In the knowledge economy investments are made and deals are done based on references and the network that you are in, it can’t be more compelling in our times. It’s important to have the right connect and this does not remain restricted to leadership roles anymore, today an architect or a developer would benefit equally from the network as much as anyone else in the leadership roles.

8.       Have no room for negativity

o   Negative thoughts and the impact they create can be devastating to the individuals personal health, wellbeing and overall growth. It also saps a lot of energy from everyone around. It’s therefore important to have a positive frame of mind irrespective of the situation and also ensure that you have good number of positive people around. Try and stay away from skeptics, gossip mongers and negative folks as much as possible, it can be one of the best things you can do to yourselves.

9.       Create a culture of improvement

o   Each year (every couple of quarters if possible) try and pick up an area for improvement either on the personal front or on the professional front. I have personally benefited from this over the past few years, I have been able to improve my work life (became an early riser), my communication (especially presentation skills), writing ability and several others. It’s important to invest in our own selves and continue the process of learning through simple and effective goals for improvement.

10.   Compassion for social causes and helping others

o   Our bond to the roots and the society around us is what keeps us grounded and it’s important that as we grow in our careers and as humans we do our bit for the society. It need not always be through donating money, while that is the easiest for most of us to do and there is no harm if we want to start that way, but stay focused on causes that matter and contribute in any small way that you can through your expertise, effort as a volunteer, donations etc.

Like many of you, my early influencers include my teachers and professors, cousins and friends who through their talk and actions inspired me to not only challenge myself but also be at it in spite of failures. Once I joined the work force, the early influences came from managers who had tremendous knowledge of their craft and specialization but were always willing to share voluntarily and that made a lot of difference. Today the learnings come from all round 360 degrees, our managers and leaders continue to influence, at the same time there are new people that bring something strong and credible to the table that influences one and the takeaways are powerful enough to ignore at your own peril. Last but not the least, not to forget some of our family members who aren’t behind in what they teach us every single day.

Who do you think are the key influencers in your life and how have they influenced you? Do drop a note and I will be happy to discuss with you.

Failures, Problem Solving and an honest effort!

While we often talk about successes and failures, I started to think if and when I have experienced a real feeling of failure! It was difficult to get any remembrance of such a feeling!

 

Before you jump with your guns aimed at me, believe me I have gone thru more than my share of problems in both personal and professional life (e.g. trying to improve my communication, picking up a new methodology etc.).

 

The only reason why in spite of having several failures and some mega ones at times, this feeling of failure does not come in is because of some key aspects that are ingrained in several of us. The attribute of problem solving and the ability to put an honest effort on everything that we are involved in!

 

Fixing things, finding solutions rather than focusing on the obstacles is an important element of problem solving. An analytical mind that is so crucial for the  role of a software engineer irrespective of the function that we contribute in, plays a part too.

 

For me the approach to problem solving was best summed by none other than Albert Einstein, when he said “If I were given one hour to save the planet, I would spend 59 minutes defining the problem and one minute resolving it”. There cannot be a better way to summarize the importance of understanding the problem and then going on to solve it.

 

There are various strategies for problem solving, one or more are used amongst a list of several like abstraction, analogy, hypothesis testing, root cause, divide and conquer etc. The key here is to have an aptitude for structured thinking and an approach that allows one to attack the problem in different ways.

 

The second is well and truly a personal trait that many of us are able to demonstrate when we are focused on or are passionate about something that we want to achieve. The challenge is to be able to repeat this in a consistent manner on many more things that one is working on and the results become dramatically different. This is also driven by the environment, the culture in which one finds oneself either at work or in their personal sphere.

 

An environment where there is all round excellence, there are a vast majority of colleagues who are putting in an honest effort, the ability to seek support and keep at it is much more. A high performance work ethic revolves around this peer buddy mechanism to bring the right level of application from each individual and therefore better all round results.

 

Where this honest effort becomes crucial is when things don’t go right, when the outcomes take longer than expected, when the results are not in line with the expectations. It helps reinforce the thought process that one needs to keep trying different problem solving strategies and the outcomes will begin to appear favorable. It allows the person the benefit of not getting bogged down easily and therefore letting one to ask oneself if they are continuing to put in their best effort each day. The peer buddy mechanism then plays its part perfectly well here. The feeling that one is putting their best effort each day is extremely empowering, it provides a great deal of confidence and further enhances chances of success.

 

So there goes, focus on the problems at hand, understand the problem, apply one or more of the strategies for problem solving and see to it that you are putting in your best effort, each day, consistently!

Great Customer Service...

While reading this wonderful story again about how Sainsbury changed the name of their bread from Tiger bread to Giraffe bread based on feedback apparently from a 3.5 year young customer, it occurred to me, we as a team do several things that go on to define how we treat our internal and external customers and partners. <more about the Sainsbury story here>.

 

There are many such stories about organizations like Ritz Carlton and other small, medium and large enterprises going that extra mile to make the customers feel special. In majority of the cases, one could almost see a pattern of no real investments or $ spent but just a little amount of situational awareness, quick decision making, acknowledging the problems and doing what it takes to solve the problem on part of the people involved.

 

As a unit our vision clearly articulates the importance of being a "respected partner", while a good deal of this respect comes through demonstration of clear thought process, knowledge and content on the relevant topics and the ability to apply these in the context of the business problems, a large part of it is also about how we deal with our customers (internal as well as external).

 

Sound customer service largely emanates from the most important enabler at an individual level and that is empowerment. The more empowered we feel the more we can do as individuals for our customers. The decision making is faster, the decisions are made with the customer at the core of it, the alignment of goals/objectives is then well and truly complete and comprehensive.

 

In our roles, each one of us has contributions to make from the perspective of how our customers feel about the interactions they have with us. Our contributions can range from being able to direct our teams to taking specific actions on the ground, all intended to make our customers feel delighted and see value in several ways like:-

1.       Being proactive to make the customer feel we are as eager as them to get them the solution

2.       Making efforts to understand the problem at hand, get the big picture and evolve the value dimension

3.       Being aware of the timelines to get to the solution, since it will impact the customer or their business

4.       Reaching out to our network for solutions, believe me we seldom encounter "new" problems!

5.       Ensuring relevance of the solution, reviews and quick feedback are a good way to see things are on track

6.       Involving ourselves in taking the solution forward…Practice, don't just preach!

7.       …

 

There are more ways that each one of us practice every single working day. I am sure the most important stakeholder – our customer, does not get those vow moments just like that. There is a great deal of hard work, meticulous planning and individual effort that goes into making it happen. While we continue to enhance our processes, tools and techniques, people need an equal amount of attention as a key to creating these vow moments, not as a one off but an ongoing behavior. The culture then is an outcome of repeated successes and definite processes that are part of the work ethic and peoples habits.

 

I am certain you have your own customer service stories, several of these would rank and rate amongst the best in the world. Do respond with those details and post the stories that can go on to inspire us all!

Is there too much technology right now?

While I frequently write and speak about technology and the manner in which it has helped improve things in several aspects of our lives, there are things that I feel also could be tagged as negatives arising out of either a wrong or an unwise adoption of it.

While communication technology and devices, including smart phones have created near unlimited options for us to stay connected, collaborate and keep ourselves and others up to date on the latest, these could also mean some forms of distractions when one is really required to focus hard on the task at hand.

Do you ever feel the urge to often check for new incoming mails on your email? Do you often get “ping’ed” by colleagues on the messenger or communicator while you are in the middle of something important? Do you often feel it necessary to respond to these chat requests even though you are in another call?

The distractions can be of several kind and could have a clear impact on work especially those days and times when you are trying to close on something important. It could lead to meetings being ineffective, where while someone is making important points, few attendees are busy checking their Blackberry’s and iPhones for the latest new arrivals on their mail or even tweeting the most recent updates to one and all!

In this context one small piece of news caught my attention few days back, where a restaurant in LA is giving 5% discount on the bill for those who agree to keep their phones and digital devices away at the door[Los Angeles Times].

Something for us to give a thought at the workplace too, are there too many of these distractions creeping in to hold people from having meaningful conversations, bringing in the right amount of attention and focus?

The NEXT Quality professional

The NEXT Quality professional

I wrote on “Traits of the Newage Software Quality Professional” for an ASQ blog back in 2007. I had touched upon several aspects that were crucial elements in the evolution of the Quality role in Software. I felt it was necessary to revisit this since much water has flown under the bridge since 2007. Technology has changed for good as predicted by many, businesses are thinking on different paradigms, the world is a different place altogether and changing rapidly, business models are being re aligned, economies are under pressure for a while now and no one knows exactly when we might be back amidst the good old days.

The role of the Quality professional and the expectations from the role too have undergone significant changes and while we lead in some of these aspects there are other areas that we need to speed up on.

The NEXT Quality professional, as I would like to call one would have to demonstrate an apt understanding of Business, People, Processes, Technology & Management. While specialization would always cater to specifics the normal Quality professional would be required to demonstrate skills and competencies in the 5 categories mentioned above.

Business must necessarily drive the process and therefore I put this as the first category on the list just to emphasize the importance of the role business has to play in the entire process game. Here are the skills and competencies that the NEXT Quality professional would be required to demonstrate today, to stay in the hunt.

Business drives the process…

·         There is a great deal of difficulty CxO’s have with the dwindling understanding of folks down the line on matters of business. It’s crucial to understand the objectives of the organization you are part of – a B2C organization would have a different model than a B2B organization, but nevertheless its objectives need to be understood by the Quality professional. The NEXT Quality professional will not only understand the objectives of the organization well but also articulate initiatives to strengthen these and impact these objectives in a positive manner. For example, if growth is a priority for your organization you need to focus on highlighting value paradigms, differentiators to your sales teams more actively than remaining hidden in the backroom focusing on purely on operations.

·         Even more important is to understand the business of one of your organization’s most important stakeholders – Your customer! Understanding of the clients business would ensure the NEXT Quality professional is able to guide and provide consultation to the project/account teams with a clear view of client relevance.

·         With a clear understanding of the Domain and Operations, the NEXT Quality professional would be in a position to carry out improvements in existing processes thereby improving organization efficiency and effectiveness. Suffice to say some of these initiatives could be transformational and would need sponsorship from the CxO level leadership.

People First…Always

·         A large part of the NEXT Quality professionals work would involve interacting with people across levels in the hierarchy and horizontal roles that cut across functions and groups. The extent of collaboration required would be of the highest order and a clear focus on people as a Quality strategy is a must. Collaboration would largely be a means to achieve greater connect with clients, sales and delivery teams, enabler functions, vendors etc. to ensure sustained client value assurance. People connect would ensure the NEXT Quality professional is able to manage Diverse, multicultural and geographically distributed teams as a matter of routine.

·         A related aspect of people connect is the ability to listen, gather inputs, analyze feedback and plough it back into the processes. The NEXT Quality professional would be in a position to slice and dice information associated with inputs, strengthen listening mechanisms with various stakeholders and use it as a competitive advantage.

Processes, Models & Frameworks are the building blocks…

·         A sound foundation of standards, frameworks and models is crucial to have an understanding of the inner workings of specific and generic practices that are an essential starting point. This understanding ensures the NEXT Quality professional is able to use the know how to adequately tailor and customize processes to deliver the desired value.

·         The NEXT Quality professional would not only focus on the theoretical aspects of process definitions as process groups are often involved in, but would need to usher in a more practical perspective with the right blend of process steps automated with the right tools. The understanding of best of breed tools would enable the NEXT Quality professional to bring in true innovations in the process steps.

Technology at the core…

·         Technology today is at the center of several innovations and as an industry we are both involved in creating some of these innovations as well as leveraging few others for our competitive advantage. The NEXT Quality professional would not only have adequate understanding of the technology but would also be able to leverage it to enhance the effectiveness of various initiatives and programs for larger organization success.

·         The NEXT Quality professional would use Technology as an Enabler for driving key decisions and building new process innovations that are centered on the technology core. Tools and Technology then would work as glue for the methodology to unleash its impact across a wider base including employees, clients, vendors etc.

Management – Self as well as for others…

·         Management is a core skill for a Quality professional. The NEXT Quality professional would not only utilize this skill to the fullest extent but would specialize in certain dimensions that are going to play a vital role in the larger organization success. The NEXT Quality professional would be a Change Agent exemplar! Someone who has the ability to conceptualize, plan, organize and orchestrate large scale improvements across accounts/projects/businesses. These would encompass initiatives that cut across domain, technology, process and people.

·         A significant dimension of Leadership is the ability to not only do things for you but also help others do things for themselves. This sort of enabling people in the near environment would mean the NEXT Quality professional has to involve in large scale trainings and development sessions that would influence not only the way people work but also the way people think about concepts, processes and paradigms.

·         Knowledge being the foundation for the success of the NEXT Quality professional, Knowledge management would play a vital role in terms of determining new capabilities, faster better and cheaper ways to enhance these capabilities and also scale up the ability to do this in a repeatable manner across large number of people distributed across the globe.

The question to ask today is - Are you the NEXT quality professional that every organization is seeking to induct?

If yes, you have a wonderful future ahead of you and it’s filled with opportunities of extreme learning, experiences in value creation and tasks that enrich yourself as an individual. If no, you still have time, it’s never too late to prepare for the future. Remember, if you can’t invent the future, you could at least prepare for what someone else is going to invent. Think Apple, they did not invent the type face fonts, mouse, user interface, portable music player, PC etc. they just used existing innovations better than others.

Let us brace ourselves for the journey ahead to be the NEXT Quality professional!

©Naresh Choudhary

Women's Day - Women Rule - Every day, Everywhere & Every time

The fact that women rule is evident every day, everywhere and every time. In my case for example, I was supposed to write this blog yesterday evening/night. Two women who rule my life did not desire so and there you go I had to scribble this today morning in 10 minutes between 2 update meetings with the team!

I look around and am filled with admiration for the talent and application that women around me demonstrate day in and day out. They are masters when it comes to multitasking – several of my women colleagues have to juggle multiple responsibilities and the ease with which they manage to do this without ever losing focus is not only commendable but also something worth emulating.

They can listen better than their male counterparts – several examples come to mind where women managers around me have shown tremendous patience and listening skills to put another colleague to ease in tough situations.

There are many situations @ work that require one to look for alternatives and options, I have always found women colleagues far more open to new suggestions and options and this I believe is a wonderful trait that can help one thrive in today’s tough times.

Impact and outcome are amongst my more commonly used words, they mean a lot in today’s business environment, I find women a lot more focused on the impact and outcome of their initiatives and this is something they are able to demonstrate without having to try hard.

I associate a proactive approach with the basic tenets of professionalism, a large number of my women colleagues are able to demonstrate pro-activeness in a manner that would make it seem like its second nature to them.

Being well organized and having a plan in place is many a times as good as getting half the work done, even before you begin! Our women colleagues have a tendency to look at every task, assignment and plan ahead and organize things upfront and that helps them get ahead even before the task is begun.

A strong character and will are fundamental for success today. Several of my women colleagues, demonstrate both with ease and stand out for their mental strength & toughness.

I could go on and on, but must stop here, there are few women colleagues waiting for me in the room next door for my next meeting, I got to go – Women rule…let there be no doubt! J

Happy New Year 2012

Here's wishing you all a very Happy, Healthy, Safe & Prosperous New Year 2012!

Live and Let Live! Have Fun! Be Yourself! Be a Good Human Being!

"People who don't feel significant, rarely make significant contributions" - Mark Sanborn

“People who don't feel significant, rarely make significant contributions” - Mark Sanborn

This quote by Mark Sanborn has made an indelible impression on my mind. I write this with the realization that I see the quote being not only meaningful but also providing visibility into things that we see around us practically every single day.

I have always found individuals who are proud of what they do, their role, the work they do and the group and unit they belong to. Invariably these are also individuals who think of themselves as significant, as important.

On the other hand there are individuals who are not so proud, they want to keep under wraps the work they do, they are not very keen talking about their real role, they do not seem readily willing to disclose the team and the unit they are part of. One part of me thinks this is simply a shy individual, another sees an individual who is not confident about himself/herself, someone who is not very sure about the work they do, someone who does not “like” to be associated with the team and the unit.

My mind then goes back to performance – which is at the heart of it all! Can such an individual who is not confident, not sure, does not like to be associated with the team and the unit be able to accomplish something substantial? With the kinds of expectations and the fact that these are also ever increasing, Can such individuals understand these goals and expectations and exceed them through their passion, hard work, determination and a go-getter attitude? Seems like a task, but in my experience it would be extremely difficult and in majority of the cases the results would be failure to perform at par.

Would these individuals who are not so proud….etc. never perform well? Not really, these individuals are also those that are amongst the once most scared and this fear makes them perform at par. But this performance would be in areas where one is seeking performance for compliance, someone who has to stick to a routine, follow a standard work pattern etc. When it comes to creating something innovative, questioning the status quo, changing things the way they have happened in the past, taking risks, taking the lead, these individuals would ideally have a very tough time. The cynicism that stitches around oneself when one is not proud of what they do, would stifle away the initiative that is required to do these things.

If we notice the pattern of things that have worked well around us and those that have fizzled out or haven’t had expected success, we could clearly notice this difference. These are also insights one needs to carry while one begins a new initiative or hires individuals for specific roles.

One advantage we have in our teams is that we largely have people of the first kind, those who are proud of what they do, sure about themselves and confident about the things that they wish to accomplish! No wonder then that we should see a lot more success in the days to come!

Be a proud Quality professional, take pride in what you do and do not hesitate to talk about your role and work with the confidence that it deserves the next time you meet someone!

My name is Naresh Choudhary, I Head the Tools Group and I am part of the Quality and Prodcutivity Unit @ Infosys Ltd.

What can professionals in Quality learn from Steve Jobs & Apple!

Most of us are aware of the life and Times of Steve Jobs, amongst one of the most influential minds of our times. Last week, like millions who paid their respects, I tweeted and blogged on Steve and the impact he has had.

A thought that there are several lessons we could learn from the way Steve Jobs made decisions, in particular the Quality community could gain from the Jobs and Apple insights. Here goes.

• Imagine and Create the Future:-
• There aren’t too many better examples of this than Jobs. The Innovations that Jobs and team created were things that one could never ever accomplish through Client Surveys, Market Research etc. [am not suggesting these are not required, but they have their own purpose of helping understand what clients need and they serve that purpose well]. Jobs imagined and more importantly created these things taking a big leap ahead of the rest of the competition. All this with the client in mind all the time!
• For us this means along with looking at current conventional models and frameworks, imagining what can be and attempting to create the future state with the client in mind – both internal customers and external clients. This applies to all the services and offerings that we are currently engaged in, are creating and are planning to create in the near term.

• Style and Design make a lot of difference
• I am sure all Apple products have their own share of issues and these issues have at times surfaced with the larger client base, but one thing that keep these products creating the impact that they are known to create is the fact that design, form and style is absolutely amazing. The client experience of using these products is something that oozes with great usability and design.
• For us it means again keeping the client central to what we do, at the same time paying enough and more attention to things like usability, design that go on to differentiate a good product from an average and an great product from a good one. Process designs, definitions, system design etc. all can be made better and user friendly if they are created with the client in mind – in our case the project and project teams rather than us.

•  Speed is important, timing is crucial too
• We all like to move fast, but along with the speed and agility that Jobs and team have shown, they were also masters of timing. The skill required here is quite contrary to that of “speed”, it requires waiting for the right moment and Jobs and team used timing very well. It means they understood when was  the right time for the product to make an entry, get the mind share and also create a positive impact for the organization. It also meant they were prepared to make the move and therefore had done all the preparation in advance to be able to leverage and seize the moment.
• For us who are in the game of change management, this could mean an important lesson. Timing here, especially in our context also refers to the way we plan, organize and then implement the proposed changes. While speed and agility in the manner in which we design, define, create and implement the processes is important, timing is crucial too. For example, if the process/process changes are launched at a time when the particular offering is taking shape and getting into the market, it creates a far more positive outcome for everyone involved including our internal customers than say waiting for a long period of time and then launching a process for the offering – both speed and timing play a big role.

• We’re all marketers now!!!
• When I first read this McKinsey article in July 2011, I was kind of thinking of 2 instances one a person I know who would not stop selling his wares even if confronted with the most challenging of conditions, second the more refined and fine-tuned approach that Jobs and team have taken at Apple. The famed Apple product launches are an amazing example of how the drama unfolds for the product and the setting where the features are unveiled. The other important aspect of marketing is to be truthful to the product and the brand promise, Apple seldom makes promises about the product that the product actually does not do or possess.
• A great process should promise and more importantly deliver an improvement in capability for the organization. The gap between this promise and the actual delivery is what marketing cannot and should not try to bridge but if at all there is a gap, Engineering should bridge that gap and not marketing. This is an important lesson because I find many people assuming and asking if we can launch a campaign (marketing!) to ensure better deployment (selling!). Well a product first needs to fulfill the brand and the product promise and then good marketing helps, else we are staring at trouble for the future! More importantly understanding and segmenting customers is important not simply from the point of view of their differentiated needs, but also to ensure you don’t get overawed by the segmentation and continue to offer something for all the segments you cater to – DM, DH, PM, SE etc…

• Never underestimate the importance of Learning
• As all of us are aware, there have been failures at Apple as well, products have not worked as expected, things have gone haywire with features, defective pieces etc. The important part is Apple has always been able to bounce back and this I believe is a must have trait for a successful corporation. Jobs personally has always been known to apply learning’s from the past to get his products to become better – the type face fonts, the mouse etc. are vibrant and noteworthy examples. Apple has demonstrated its ability to learn from the past and integrate the lessons learned into making the products better.
• Any Quality process follows the approach of PDCA/ETVX/ADLI or something on these lines, it essentially means that we are continuously looking at aspects in the process that can be improved and integrated back. The importance of this is a direct impact since an improvement in the processes provides a larger, scalable improvement in the organization capability and this no business can grow without!
• Open up to new developments
• Apple was always able to ride the waves of new trends, developments. Many of the things that Jobs and Apple went on to create, were actually not invented at Apple. They just created “better”, “superior” and “client focused” solutions from existing or emerging technologies that put them steps ahead of others. This, they were able to do by a relentless focus on observing, thinking through and absorbing new trends and changes and riding on the waves relatively early.
• In our world, where client requirements continue to change and change rapidly, the challenges of keeping pace with new developments is always staring us in the eye! We need to take the Apple approach of creating a way in which we understand the trends in new processes and models early, leverage it for bettering our offerings and do not ignore the trends assuming that we are better than the others. Complacency and rigid attitude to new and upcoming trends could be big factor that could derail successful enterprises in the future.

• Hold your own against pressures
• Failures create a lot of pressure, but success creates if not more an equal amount of pressure as well. Jobs and Apple have seen both and therefore both the kinds of pressures – Of success and failures. They were able to withstand these pressures, do what was right and come out with the kind of consistent success that they have demonstrated over the years.
• Most of us face these pressures from our internal clients, our teams, partners etc. The pressures create a decision window where one way leads to a path that is easier, treaded by many, more comfortable and convenient, the other path is a tougher one, least treaded, uncomfortable. As change agents we need to be willing to take the path least treaded, once we know that it is the RIGHT thing and for the long term benefit of the organization. Let us not back off, but demonstrate courage!

These are my personal views, send in your responses if you have any thoughts to share, will be more than happy to discuss.

Steve Jobs - What a Life! RIP...

Most of us are trained to look at things in a conventional mould!

When it comes to launching new products, initiatives, businesses the tried and tested approaches are to study the market, study consumer behaviours, understand what the consumers want and then create an offering that can satisfy these!

In comes Steve Jobs, who decides what consumers should be getting sitting in Cupertino! All the world laps up whatever is on offer from Jobs in a manner and way unheard of in the history of products. All of it without the conventional market research, surveys etc.

You are an inspiration to many all over the world and thank you for everything that you have created!

Rest in Peace - Mr. Jobs!

Is the Apple iPhone strategy flawed? - Let me know your views...

I am trained to plan, think long term and have a more rounded view of things with the big picture in mind. This training has stood me good for some years now, but there is still a chance that I may be a bit off the track here, nevertheless!
The top 4 platforms that everyone seems to agree upon as the more popular ones are Android, iPhone, Blackberry and Windows. Of these 4 platforms, at least 2 are more or less proprietary and supported by individual organizations – Apple & RIM. Windows has been trying to take a more open view of things and has been trying to extend its footprint, but the marquee names in the mobile devices world haven’t yet embraced Windows with open arms, at least the numbers do seem to suggest so.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/26/android-powered-56-percent-of-smartphones-sold-in-the-last-3-mon/

[Last 3 months, 56% of smartphones sold were on Android, Apple – 28%, Blackberry – 9% & Others – 6%]
What RIM’s Blackberry experienced early on is what I believe Apple – iPhone is currently experiencing in terms of consistently increasing sales revenues and a largely uncontested market share. But in the long term as competition heats up, would Apple be in a position to compete with say something like Android which is not one organization, one model but tens of organizations and hundreds of models sold by many providers. As far as conventional wisdom goes, the odds are definitely stacked against Apple, but like has been in the past we just need to wait and watch. Would Apple be in a position to shake up the humungous growth in the spread of Android as a platform? Should Apple really look at proliferation of its technologies to more partners and to the rest of the ecosystem that can help make it a multi organization, multi model sort of platform? What are the lesson’s Microsoft is learning from all of this?
My training tells me Apple could be given a run for its money and eventually brought down by something like Android. Time will tell though. If I am proven wrong, blame it on my training, beware my trainers are watching…err… reading.

MBNQA & India Governments response to Anna Hazare's movement

Being familiar (only familiar, there are Gurus who would review this more tactfully ) with Business Excellence frameworks like MBNQA. It was natural that repeat telecasts on several different TV channels on how the government botched up the opportunity to take the matter to closure when it comes to the arrest, offer to release, negotiation et al with respect to the anti-corruption crusade. Since MBNQA or any other Business excellence framework for that matter looks into how an organization identifies its customers and stakeholders, works closely with these including employees/work force, leveraging processes, measurements, systems & planning using a leadership driven approach to achieve the desired results. A different weightage on each of these highlighted items provides a balanced focus through the approach, deployment, results, learning & improvements across the organization.
When assessors assess a business with the MBNQA criteria they are very clear on the 4 broad patterns of scoring. Reacting to problems gives you anywhere between 0-25% of the score, early systematic approach gives 30-45%, aligned approach gives 50-65% while an integrated approach could give you 70-100% of the score.

If we analyze the Indian government’s response to the entire Anna Hazare episode, one would be able to clearly cancel out the last 3 patterns of scoring and focus on the 1st pattern i.e. 0-25% - reacting to problems. As an establishment that is supposed to provide for good governance and is supposed to be looking at the long term and short term welfare of its customers and stakeholders (read PEOPLE) scoring so poorly on the MBNQA criteria brings basic issues to the foreground.

Does this organization understand its target customers, customer groups(read PEOPLE) and market segments? Does it have sane and unbiased listening mechanisms in between 2 elections that are 5 years apart? Does it have mechanisms to anticipate the decisions of the customers(read PEOPLE) and their importance/value? Does it have the ability to use the feedback from the customers(read PEOPLE) and ensure their needs are satisfied? Does it have mechanisms to create/recreate new relationships?
There are many questions like these that come to the fore and this is just one of the 7 categories! If someone from the government reads this and wants help, I know exactly the kind of people who can help.
Believe me they would be more than willing to help

The Indian Cricket team - # 1 in the world?

While most of the people would want me to not draw the conclusion as yet, but being an impatient man that i am , i feel its not too early to say and write this. The Indian cricket team over the past 3 weeks has demonstrated that it can barely stand up to strong opposition on the field of play. The sad part has not been the defeats, but the manner in which these defeats have come and also the fact that there has barely been a fight back.

A team that prides itself in being different than the Indian teams of the 90's and the early part of the last decade could hardly live up to it. The big names were hardly able to make an impact, the batsmen who are known to hold the best of the records were struggling and looking a sorry figure in front of the bowlers.

The questions then is this Indian cricket team the worlds no 1 team in tests largely because of 2-3 individuals whose failures is costing the team now? Time to think? May be we should not be celebrating after all!

Why would Apple Sue Samsung

Recent report on the net that has caught attention is on the new of Samsung being sued by Apple.

One time partners (vendor-supplier) it seems like something gone wrong in the short term since Samsung was the one manufacturing the chips that went into the iphone and the ipad.

My fast...

My fast in support of Anna Hazare and his cause against corruption! Watch the video for the message!

Anna Hazare's fast against corrupt

I am often reminded of my innocent days as a young class X student, when i decided to go to the tahsildar office to get my domicile certificate. For some reason my mostly encouraging father was against the idea of me going alone and kept insisting that he would go and get the certificate himself when he finds time. I still wanted to go on my own and see that i fill the forms and get the certificate in time, so decided to go alone. To my horror the kind of elaborate arrangement that i found in the place, well entrenched and systemically processized was unbelievable. There was a price for everything, if you wanted something with in a day, you had to pay a certain price. The prices varied with the service, all this under the nose of the District Administration. I felt my growing up well and truly began that day, subsequently many such incidents made me cringe and pity, some times feel frustrated, many a times had arguments, at times got abused in return for asking questions.

I can relate to the feeling of frustration that Anna Hazare is reflecting through his fast, just that his patience and demeanor are not the same as me. I am an ordinary guy, who has a day job to do to be able to support his family, who can only log on and post a write up on the net, but cannot stand up to it beyond his own sphere of influence. For many of us now this is institutionalized since my recent experience of buying and registering my house let me in to a well kept secret, i was asked to pay legal charges by my builder, that at least in part i am sure were anything but legal charges and most likely meant to grease the palms of some fat bureaucrat and in turn support a shameless local politician. I respect you a great deal, keep the movement going, may be one of the days, some one like me would be able to join, till then i will do my best, will write about it, tell others about the movement and make my small contribution. Jai Ho!

Sir. SACHIN TENDULKAR..Take a bow!

India won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 on the night of April 02nd 2011, the scenes around were something that most of us would not be able to forget for the rest of our lives! The excitement was palpable and the celebrations gave us a sense of glory and most people felt good about the achievement especially considering the muck that we have gotten used to seeing around us courtesy our politicians, administrators.

A scene that made itself unforgettable for me was that of Sachin being carried by his team mates on their shoulders around the stadium. It was the reflection of true respect and love for a team member and a senior pro in the game. For a person who has achieved so much in a competitive team sport to have the kind of relationship he has been able to have with his team members and others at large is commendable and reflects the attitude, passion and human element of the great Sachin Tendulkar. Take a bow Mr. Tendulkar, you just added another admirer to the list of millions you already had!