Great topic anushree and thanks guys for your perspectives. Apologies if you feel that this response appears to take a different track!!

Starting with what RK said Love, recognition and praise address the emotional faculty of the individual and Money and time appeal to the tangible faculty. Time equals money and in that context Tangible faculties can be classified under financial domain. Tangible faculties as i see it is more Rationally driven... Now Sex- could be emotional or physical which could be a case where mind over rides values... As i see it, there is a third faculty which is intellectually driven that can get people to cross mountains. So a challenging job or problem is the third domain that drives/motivates people to do what they do. The mix of emotional, intellectual and the financial domains varies from person to person. Identifying,rewarding and recognising is an art.

If we werent created to be alone from a spiritual domain we should rather appreciate collectivism than individual recognition. All the sharing and caring is not about collectivism it is just ego gratification. Leadership therefore is a question of what governs what is it mind over values, emotion over values or values over mind and emotion. There is always a constant tension brewing between these three and that influences leadership styles.

Now,If we are to look at the leadership styles of the west and east, west is more individualistic and east is more pluralistic. So national culture has a role in defining styles of leadership. In India we try to balance the styles of west and east but in a competitive climate Individualism takes over collectivism. If we move further to countries like Japan or Korea its collectivism that dominates individualism. So there is a national culture, individual culture(governed by individual values) and group culture that influences leadership style.

Leadership style is also influenced by internal and external focus. Customers, competitors and shareholders influence external and employee/stake holders govern internal focus. Taking a page from the current crisis, share holder focus has led to value erosion. So if we assume a linear scale here share holder focus would be the bottom of the scale above which would be stake holder focus. Focus on customers, competitors and employees would then take the highest level

At the simplistic level, there is a cultural element (3 forces), there is a individual element(3 forces) and then you have the organisations focus (3 elements). So we end up having a 3X3X3, which makes it very interesting. Now if we go back to the styles of leadership and ways to motivate, reward and recognise we can come up with a more dynamic approach. An interesting exercise would therefore be to map styles mentioned by my esteemed friends on that 3X3X3.

In my humble opinion if we assume things in absolutes then we end up piegon holing styles of leadership. Absolutes mean this or that and there are no grey areas. We as individual always operate in shades of grey. If that is the case why should leadership be any different.

Hey Jagan

If you are an experienced professional MBA just helps u give a name to all the frameworks and methodologies that you have been using in your professional life.. Now does it add value: Yes it does... It is not the degree but the collective interactions and understanding resulting out of multiple perspectives that add value. From a professional standpoint, if you are early on in your career then may be it might help. if you are in India its better to have an MBA from XLRI, TISS. In UK we have the Chartered Institute of Professional Development.. THey offer programs that help you master the elements of HR and CIPD has amazing reputation... That said it would be better to garner some experience before you jump to do a MBA. However, my advice to you would be to get a complete business experience even if you want to come into HR. Mechanisation and automation of HR has resulted in a process centric focus and many a times HR professionals enforce processes without being aware of the business implications. HR has in fact lost the human touch factor as a result... If you want to know more read Mckinsey and Mercer surveys conducted in the HR space... I have seen many HR professionals flourish in their role(s) because of their overall experience. This is something that I have noticed only in India... Many of my esteemed colleagues in Europe would disagree to what i am about to say next: In Europe HR has and is ruled by people who have taken the CIPD route...But taking that route alone would not help a HR professional to shine through in business. How many HR professionals are in board positions realistically? If we look at FTSE 350 i can say 3 people and none have come through the CIPD route...

So, if you want to be accepted as a serious player in business by leaders you need to be aligned to business needs and your HR policies should reflect that.. Then a MBA could help you add value... if you are on the contrary divorced from reality then no qualification can help you earn respect!!!

what sort of case studies do you need... u looking at specific areas or is ti strategic?

Hi Rajesh

A very good attempt.. Stress is definitely going to rule the roost when things turn from bad to worse. Toxic behaviours and toxic communication at the work place will become common things when people try to cling on to thier jobs and want to outsmart people who they see as threat to their existence. The limitation as i see it is stress is not only from work related or behaviour related or physiology related. It is a combination of all these that manifests as stress. I am sure we will see stress management clinic's/ centres in india throbbing with clients(patients).

When you want to stop something, say if you are shy and you dont want to be shy then you try to become not something - Not shy,not afraid, not worried, not negative. But the very act on not being something reemphasises your belief systems that something is wrong with you and that is the reason you are trying not to be that... So do not stop negative thoughts. Let them be, as the more you resist the more it will persist.

Well Rajesh if you think Indians are lazy, wait till you meet the British nd the french and oh yes the siesta loving spanish... Indians are seen as hardworking, committed and driven here in Europe and in the US. Its so easy to not appreciate what we have and mock about one or two things about what we dont have. When you step out of your cocoon, you realise how bad things are outside and how much you take things for granted...

Example: you can get a demand draft made in a bank for no fee or minimal fee in india in a couple of hours. In UK most of the banks take three working days to produce a draft and they charge you atleast 1.6% for that.If you want it the same day and only HSBC and Barclays offer this service you pay another set fee for that service.

You fall ill and you go to the doctor, he or she is only available between 8 to 5 and beyond that you need to go to the hospital and depending on the ailment the waiting time varies. It takes 3 to 4 weeks for you to get a tooth removed here thats the average. The quality of service is good but then, you appreciate it because you have been made to wait for it...

Its easy to say indians are lazy. How many work in govt offices? the percentage is minimal and using that as a sample to generalise indians are lazy is totally flawed...

Interesting topic,

I am conducting a research on this form of network with a prof in Harvard to identify why people want to connect this way... From our research we have the following to offer

People with more than 500 plus connections tend to use them as a way to demonstrate their networking capability online and it ends there. No real leverage results out of the relationship. People with a Zillion contacts are invariably recruitment consultants who want to maintain a wide and a deep database for their initiatives. So, that explains the numbers

A research conducted by one of the IVY league universities that people can effectively manage and maintain 150 people in their network. Yes, 150... Now the 150 people are the one with whom you can go out have a beer, know their families they know you and you are comfortable interacting or interrupting at any given point of time. Meaning these are the guys you are available to help you at the other end of the phone... When you look at your list, you will be surprised by how near or far you are from that number.. I cant remember which paper, will try and find it and post it if i get hold of it.. Guess Dementia is setting in...Sigh... When i read this i thought nah! and when i went and looked at the list i was surprised to note that many people have been there on the network bcos, they were friends friends who wanted me to be part of your network, Someone whose profile struck a chord, some one who you knew, someone who sent a mass invite and ofcourse loads of recruiters... I have made it a point to send a mail to anyone who connects with me as to what i can offer and what they want and vice versa. If people cant be bothered to respond, they arent serious...So they are time wasters... Networking is about effectiveness not efficiency..

Going back to the research you have two forms of networkers, social & online. Put that in a two by two with low & high scale for the two by two... Now rank people who you know in this... YOu will be surprised to note that you would have populated more on the social or the physical form of networking...which goes to show, just online interaction is not enough. You need a catalyst and forums like these act as one. However, for you to leverage the actual power of networking you need to be in touch atleast a phone call to generate a positive functional relationship... I would be interested to see how many of you can actually boast of more than 150 connections...

Regarding people looking for speaking engagement comment... I strongly believe that this is a age of individual branding and people are trying to establish themselves as specialists in a certain field. As a result they try to speak in conferences, write articles, blog etc in that area. Nothing wrong with that as we need to learn from these guys as to how they are positoning themselves...So even without saying something we still learn something from them..

The rudderless boats do my job for me guys... I would be wary of them... why would you want to praise me for something stupid... These people as i see it want to boast they are part of your network, if you are established person, that makes them sound more credible isnt it.. I call them rudderless boats bcos when you get in touch with them they sound so wishy washy speak with a lots of hmms and ummms... I would stay a mile away as they are time wasters. These are people who can always and will always look at you with awe but cant contribute anything... Networking is a two way street. You cant be a giver or a taker always... Cleanse these profiles if you have to from your list...

In an age where not know how but know who matters you are better off screening the persons profile before accepting the invite..

In a network scenario you have to have knowledge exchange, intellectual brainstorming and in a forum like this help understand problems and challenges that people face globally and transfer that learning to the local scenario..

Would love to hear what people think...

Sampath,

In case you guys are organising a meet, would be happy to contribute through weblink on some topics in HR... BTW did you go through the proposal? Look forward to talking to you..


Best

Q4 - Day1 , Day2, Day3

On a serious note:
We all need to that service isnt it? Sometimes we all get stuck in the same dimension and become so oblivious to our environment, we always forget the obvious. So, a fresh perspective to reveal what we knew but werent ready to take on board always helps. In addition to that a consultant cant add value to any situation if he or she doesnt get the picture in the organisation. When we are ill we know it and need a doctor to treat us for that. We go to the doctor and tell how we feel. Similarly if an organisation is sick then we call in a consultant..Why should it be different when you meet a consultant?

From an epistemological perspective:
Fantastic frameworks and or strategies that worked globally wouldnt take off if the solutions are adopted than being adapted. In that context he or she has to build something from the understanding of the situation from that organisations context. So, they create something out of something everyone knew. A good consultant however would innovate solutions that build on something every one know or knew but add a twist through their insights and experience. Very rarely do you come across consultant who create something out nothing... A very rare breed.. I should say...

From a lighter perspective:
A medical doctor, an engineer, and a management consultant were arguing about what was the oldest profession in the world. The doctor started "Well, in the Bible, it says that God created Eve from a rib taken from Adam’s body. This must have required surgery, and so I can claim with a high degree of confidence that mine is the oldest profession in the world." The engineer responded, and said, "But earlier in the book of Genesis, it states that God created the order of the heavens and the earth from out of the chaos. This was the first and certainly the most impressive application of civil engineering. Therefore, dear doctor, you are wrong: mine is surely the oldest profession in the world." The management consultant leaned back in his chair, smiled, and then said confidently, "Ah, but who do you think created the chaos?"