From the beginning we were told that banking was part of the service sector. And it is also true that when we joined bank in early and mid 80s, service standards were pathetic to say the least. Passbooks would seldom get updated across the counter and simple banking transactions like withdrawal and deposit would take hours. However, with increase in customer awareness, proliferation of alternate banking channels and above all fierce competition, especially from new generation private sector banks, the customer service issues are now largely resolved and customer, in fact, is spoilt for choices

This has led to problem of a different sort. With customers using ATM, net banking and mobile app for routine transactions, they are not required to visit bank’s branch too often. However, for more unusual services such as address change, signatory change, change in mode of operation, re-KYC etc, visit to branch is usually not a fulfilling experience as most of these activities are moved to back offices and branches are not really aware of the requirements and procedures. When back offices find documents inadequate, there’s to and fro causing customer disenchantment.

Branches in fact have become more of sales outlets than service units. The branch staff carries target for selling bank’s own products as also third party products such as mutual funds and insurance. Transition to sales focus from service focus has, in a way, taken the customers back to pre technology and pre competition era of deficient service levels. But, as aforesaid, a customer being spoilt for choices changes his bank, leading to high customer attrition.

In a service industry, service must be the prime focus and cross selling a by product. A satisfied customer will shift all his business to a bank where he gets good service and in the process bank can meet its sale targets.

I am no Hindi Pandit, and whatever I am writing here is purely my interpretation.

15th August is our Independence Day, though in Hindi we call it Swadhinta Divas as also Swatantrata Divas. In English swadhinta is liberty and Swatantrata is freedom.

To my mind, while swatantrata gives us free hand or freedom to do anything, swadhinta indicates controlled freedom – not anyone else’s control but our self control ( swa adhin). It emphasises that freedom earned by us after a prolonged struggle is to be enjoyed but with some control. The way we go berserk on social media, during road rage, when someone professes a contrarian view et al are all instances of uncontrolled freedom, which seems to be posing a great risk to our social fabric.

Let’s cherish every moment with a free spirit, but awakened conscience so that independence earned due to sacrifices of our freedom fighters is preserved till eternity and we use it for the betterment of humanity.

Swadhinta is Liberty

Swatantrata is freedom

We enjoy both

Within India’s fiefdom.

But all rights come with obligations

And freedom with some controls

These controls vest with us only

And are therefore called self controls!

Happy Independence Day to all my readers!

When large number of companies start selling similar products, it becomes a matter of great fascination as to why people choose the product of Company A rather than companies B or C?

Of course, this is not a new topic and apart from third party analysts and opinion makers, companies themselves elaborately study their own strengths and weaknesses vis-a-vis their rivals and then take corrective steps to outshine the competition. The corrective steps could be anything – making packaging more attractive, relaunching the product, introducing its new variants or backing the product up with marketing blitzkrieg!

Now the question arises is what about banks? If we look at the product suite of all the large banks, it will look like a replica of each other with minor variations here and there! Almost all such banks have all the channels of delivery – branch network, self service kiosks, feet on street, mobile app, internet banking, UPI . Schedule of charges and freebies would not look much dissimilar, but for one not very large bank that has made everything free in its zeal to garner larger pie of market share. Earlier new generation private sector banks made a deep impact and weaned significant share from PSBs by extending good customer service. But with self service banking being preferred over a visit to the nearest branch, even service does not seem to be a differentiating factor. What then could be the factors that tilt a customer’s loyalty towards a particular bank.

To my mind, where relationship is given greater importance than sales, courtesy and helpfulness is ingrained in the staff as organisation culture and staff is happy, enthusiastic and pleasantly disposed, such organisations will leave behind those that are solely depending on aggression. Some aggression is required to give impetus to an organisation’s juggernaut to grow faster than market, but while this juggernaut is programmed at the top, it’s execution is at the field level and their inclusion into the organisation’s growth plan is absolutely must.

I generally stay away from politics, as I find the topic too complex and protagonists very biased and intolerant. Therefore, I have avoided writing on the recent unfortunate incidents of violence in parts of the country; unfortunate, because I always thought that in India of today, only growth and development and nothing else mattered. However, I feel constrained to refer back to something we have all grown up hearing:

ॐ  सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः
सर्वे सन्तु निरामयाः ।
सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु
मा कश्चिद्दुःखभाग्भवेत् ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

1: Om, May All be Happy,
2: May All be Free from Illness.
3: May All See what is Auspicious,
4: May no one Suffer.
5: Om Peace, Peace, Peace.

Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is a Sanskrit phrase found in Hindu texts such as the Maha Upanishad, which means “The World Is One Family”. Vedic tradition mentions “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” meaning all living beings on the earth are a family.

The above two are a shloka and a phrase that in nutshell embody our ethos. We wish for health, happiness, prosperity and peace for everyone and the word everyone is without any discrimination as highlighted in the phrase Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which asserts that all living beings on earth are one family. 

If the above are the guiding principles for us than how come we are seeing ever increasing discrimination, division and intolerance based on gender,  caste, religion, region, ethnicity, especially of late in this country. If the entire world family, then to begin with, let’s embrace all our country folks as one family, before even thinking of embracing the entire world or worldly creatures! 

India is making unparalleled progress in the fields of science, technology, space, infrastructure, medicine, defence and is already the fifth largest economy. But this growth has to be inclusive and should not be hampered by communal, ethnic or regional discords and atrocities on weaker sections of societies, including women. Our scriptures, religion, ethos- whatever you may call it, preaches and advocates peace, inclusivity, tolerance and above all compassion. That’s Indianness is all about – I would not use Hinduism because all other religions also advocate the same principles and inclusivity can only happen if everyone is willing to be included! 

This country is for all Indians. Our constitution provides equal opportunities to each one. It’s high time we get over the aforementioned narrow considerations and imbibe Indianness – an all encompassing spirit. Let peace prevail everywhere from Manipur to Haryana to West Bengal to Rajasthan. Violence under no pretext can be justified!

Violence is retrograde

It has no place in civil society;

The end result is devastating

Only poor and downtrodden suffer the atrocity.

Irrespective of place where it happens

Or the actors involved in its execution;

Ultimately it jams the wheels of progress

And pulls back a marching nation.

We can all coexist

In the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam

And there shall be peace everywhere

Removing from our midsts all the bunkum!

As top managers, we give directions from the top (it’s called top down approach as against the more democratic – bottoms up, both having their own merits and demerits) and that, in a manner of speaking, could be the right way to manage by looking at the macro issues rather than undertaking micro management. But, not many top managers, especially in the modern times, are going right up to the top from grassroots through organic time bound growth. Bosses who grow ftom grassroots to the top have usually handled, almost all, if not all the activities that happen in the organisation and are well versed with the challenges posed by each of such activities. For example, such a manager by virtue of his hands on experience on the shop floor would be well aware of the efforts involved and likely snags. Ditto the challenges in departments such as packaging, sales, recovery etc.

But managers of today are young, highly and pertinently qualified, very ambitious, in a hurry and open to accepting all the challenges. Obviously, they want to create deep impression of their contribution in a short span of time and to this end, they can go to any extent, including arriving at certain decisions that may not actually reflect true state of affairs.

The provocation for the above arose from a video I saw on social media, where a very prominent socialite and human rights activist, spoke about our passion or rather obsession for everything big – big plans, big changes ( transformation, the new byword for big change), big numbers- and in the process, we forget scale of what smallness means multiplied many times! There are workers, labourers, messengers, accountants, assistants, line managers, sitting on shop floor, in administrative offices, back offices, head offices etc forming the lifeline of the organisation, and if the management is not holistic, but focused only on balance sheet parameters and investors’ reaction than the effect of smallness multiplied many times can be deemed to be getting ignored. For all such managers and organisations, it will be good to remember the catchline or byword or mool mantra ( the basic tenet), as one may please to call it – Dinosaurs go extinct; small contributions multiplied many times over make the real big!

For long long time I have not enjoyed the test cricket, the way I enjoyed recently concluded five tests Ashes series. The way Australia won the first two matches and the manner in which England fought back in the last three matches was an ample demonstration of the fierce rivalry the two teams have! There were so many ups and downs, swings in favour of one team or the other, long partnerships and collapses and some spectacular individualistic performances that all added up to a great potpourri of sporting spectacle.

The crowd participation was enthusiastic and all days were almost houseful with the knowledgeable spectators cheering every good moment. Weather was perfect, but for an occasional rain ( actually during the third test rain played spoilsport) and pitches supported both – batters as well as bowlers!

Australia might have retained the urn containing the Ashes, but the closing moment went to England. A veteran of 167 tests with a haul of 605 wickets in a career spanning over more than 17 years, 37 years old maverick Stuart Broad called it a day, retiring from all forms of cricket. And his retirement was something that he as well as cricket lovers would cherish for long long time. Not only did he score a six of the last ball he faced as a batter, he also took wicket on the last bowl he bowled, ending his long glorious career on a high note, winning the test for England.

And though I knew Broad as a great bowler, watching him bowl in this Ashes series, has made him my all time favourite. Every time his captain called upon him, he didn’t disappoint. His attitude, gait, body language had the effect of recharging the team spirit. His aging legs seemed to be untiring and feet having springs. And what a gracious manner in which he bade adieu to the great game of cricket! What made the event even more gracious was the honour given by him to fellow player Moin Ali, who also played his last game.

His fitness, unbridled enthusiasm, deep knowledge of the rivals’ weaknesses all added up to make Broad one of the “All time greats.”Jimmy Anderson may play more cricket at 41 and take his tally past the magical figure of 700 wickets, but his long time colleague Broad will always be remembered as an enigma that only Broad could have been!

Let’s wish Broad all the best for his next innings – a slight misnomer for a retired cricketer who has already played so many innings, but a befitting sobriquet nevertheless!

My previous blog on Syed Mohd Irfan received widespread and rave reviews and this encouraged me to write a follow up blog on him.

As I explore more episodes of Guftagu on YouTube, more enamoured I get of his suave manner, polished language and searching yet non intrusive style of interviewing his guests. And whether such guests are big time celebrities or not so well known TV and Bollywood actors and directors, his interest in his subjects and intensity in his manners remain unaffected. The questions are never frivolous or meant to evoke sensationalism of any sort. He just explores the life’s milestones of the interviewee in a chronological and logical manner. In fact, I get a feeling that Wikipedia on popular celebrities could have been an outcome of their interviews by Irfan and once you watch a few episodes, you will realise what I mean!

He takes you back to the times of unhurried, sensible, heart to heart conversations, a genre that’s non existent in today’s times of everything hurried. My only worry or should I say regret is that Irfan’s very presence and possible availability is not being put to use by popular commercial media. Though google tells me that he has revived his popular series in the same name, albeit slightly different spelling “Guftugu” on YouTube channel of Rekhta foundation ( I am yet to see any episode of his this innings), a person of his caliber and impeccability definitely needs a more popular and widely watched platform to create a bigger impact.

Please join me in wishing all the best to Syed Mohd Irfan or as simply known by his single name Irfan.

मै लाल सिंह साहब को बहुत वर्षों से जानता। उनका कोमल हदय, मधुर वाणी, ऊँचे विचारों ने सदैव सबका दिल जीता है। उनकी यात्रा आसान नहीं थी। हम सब निजी क्षेत्र में कार्यरत लोगों का यही अनुभव है । ऐसे मे हमेशा अपना दिमाग़ ठंडा रखना, बड़ों का सदैव सम्मान करना, छोटों को प्यार से समझाना और हर समस्या का सही निवारण करना लाल सिंह जी की ताक़त रही हैं । एक बार मेंने उन्हें हंस कर कहा था- “ आप में इतनी करुणा, प्रेम भाव, समानूभूति, सेवा भाव इत्यादि गुण है- आप को तो राजनीति में जाना चाहिए, क्योंकि इस देश को ऐसे लोगों की ज़रूरत है ।” सौभाग्य से मेरी भविष्यवाणी सच हो गई है और लाल सिंह जी का राजनीति के क्षेत्र में पदार्पण हो गया है । जैसा की ऊपर लिखा है, उनमें एक सक्षम राजनीतिज्ञ के गुण मौजूद हैं। सच तो यह है कि वह एक जन्मजात नेता (born leader)है । मेरी ये कामना है और ईश्वर से प्रार्थना है कि लाल सिंह जी ने जो बीड़ा उठाया है उसमें भरपूर सफलता मिले और इस देश को जनकलयाण हेतु एक अच्छा नेता मिले!

आएँ हम सब मिलकर उनकी सफलता की कामना करें ।

Read a beautiful article about male friendship. It says that the problem of men having either very few or absolutely no friends at all has become very severe post Covid.

In an office situation, the men would bond over lunch at office and occasional post office hours binge comprising drinks and dinner. Covid, however, forced everyone to work from home, making offices unoccupied and forlorn places. Even though Covid has subsided, return to office is only partial, and offices are nowhere booming with people like in the past.

However, the main focus of the article is sustainability of the male friendship especially in the old age, when office colleagues are no longer at hand and old friends are either incapacitated or no longer existent! The article has a beautifully nuanced anecdote, where two lonely men in immediate neighbourhood would sit idly and look at each other, without caring to make an effort to know each other, leave apart forging a friendship. The anecdote ends on a tragic note with the surviving neighbour looking at the ambulance carrying the dead body of the other, leaving him worried about his own fate!

The author of the article suggests that middle and old aged men need to avoid loneliness by pursuing hobbies and hanging out with buddies for occasional game of poker ( just quoting the author; it could be anything from cards to Ludo to golf to table tennis) and drinks that would provide a person a happy diversion from solitude, loneliness and inactivity. The article specifically stresses about the need for men to socialise as women are inherently more outgoing type, prone to networking. Women also bare their hearts more readily to fellow women, whereas men hate to be seen as emotionally fragile even amongst best of buddies.

The article also touches upon cross sexual friendship, which is not quite relevant in our milieu, as even in western society, the issue of sexual relation in such friendships is quite pronounced.

The article fascinated me deeply as I related to it almost in totality. A bit of solitude has indeed set in post retirement though I must confess that I have traveled quite a bit, have a like minded spouse who shares quite a few common interests and have many friends – my erstwhile colleagues and others! I am also a member of two groups – one comprising my school mates and other my batchmates who joined my previous organisation along with me and with whom I bonded during extended training programmes. However, both these groups are virtual in nature, with interactions limited to social media and occasional phone call as members are spread all over. But with advancing age, interactions on such group are only likely to come down and engagements fewer. My wife has her own company and engagements and cannot be always available to cut my solitude. The need, therefore, is to bond more with a group having similar interests, hobbies, passions and compassion for one another. Solitude can lead to accelerated aging and depression that could ultimately cause other age related ailments.

I treat this article as a wake up call for all those who are just lazing out after their active professional life and that too all by themselves. Let’s reach out, meet people, enjoy occasional binge, travel , pursue a passion and avoid solitude and depression.

I am lucky to be receiving the thoughts expressed by the great Mahatria every morning, courtesy an old friend, who’s an ardent follower of the great man. What makes Mahatria stand out among the hordes of godmen all over the place is precisely this fact that he neither claims himself to be a godman, nor does he promise any miracles to his followers. He works for the betterment of our lives based on the knowledge vested in our scriptures that he interprets in easy to follow manner. His latest thought has touched my heart that says-

In the entirety of Universe, there is nobody like you. You are the only one of your kind. You are uniquely different. You are unique, you are rare, you are original, you are masterpiece – Master’s piece.

I found this thought’s immediate relevance to my current area of interest that’s centred around management practices. This reaffirms what I have been arguing in series of my earlier posts- not everyone is equally brilliant, efficient, intelligent, sharp or hardworking. Each one of us is unique and we bring to table certain strengths that only we can bring. The onus is on the organisation and its decision makers to assess that particular feature of one’s personality and deploy him or her in an appropriate role accordingly. This can to a large extent settle the issue of employee dissatisfaction and in turn, the problem of attrition that’s currently assuming humongous proportions, at least in certain organisations.

I have in the past shared gems of wisdom from Mahatria’s discourses as shared by my above mentioned friend and observed the relevance of his thoughts in our day to day lives.

Let’s not get overawed and overwhelmed by the success stories of others, which can be constructively used to draw inspiration at best. Each one is unique, capable of making our own story that can inspire others, because each one of us is uniquely crafted masterpiece – Master’s piece!