The Perfectionist

I always loved perfect things, perfect actions, perfect work, perfect people. It was always a hellish experience for me to find something wrong and worry over that endlessly. All that has changed now with a few personal experiences where I couldn’t get what I wanted. Realising how important and enjoyable it was in appreciating the good things, has made me much more comfortable buying things. Those things which I would have never brought if perfection was the criteria to buy them.

As they say that to “err is human” and to expect “perfection” (the meaning of which itself has been subject to a lot of research and studies) is good but should not become a reason not to enjoy what we have or create. In most cases perfection is just what we perceive which might change from person to person.

Filed under: Life , Good Things, Human, People, Perfection

Time For New Rules In Test Cricket?

Though i am a fan of the Indian cricket team, I have to say that I really hate to see cricket matches especially test matches end without a result because of bad weather conditions. There should be a method to at least credit the team which has played well so that it can help improve its chance of winning a series if all the matches end in a draw.

In today’s match between India and England at Lords, England clearly outplayed the Indian team with the famed Indian batting line up of Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Ganguly and Laxman with no one being able to put up a decent score in the two innings. Rain gods have favoured the Indian team this time (it hurts more when India is denied a win because of bad weather conditions) from losing the match with only a wicket left.

There should be some kind of rule like the Duckworth Lewis method used in ODIs to decide the fate of matches which are drawn because of bad weather conditions. The method should at least allow the team which has played well to get a credit (probably by awarding points based on some parameters customised to suit test cricket) which can help it clinch the series if all the matches are drawn.

With the one day version of the cricket already becoming competitive with more stringent rules, its high time that even test cricket gets some new rules. This would not only increase the competition in the game but would add more pressure for teams to play win and not drag the match with defensive tactics. The new rules could help by:

• Awarding credits to the team which has played well based on its performance like number of runs scored, wickets lost, run rate etc
• Crediting the team which has played well over the other team
• Giving the audience more decisive results based on the teams performance
• Providing teams and bodies that manage the teams a better yardstick to measure their performance
• Allowing the teams to win the series in case of drawn matches
• Boosting the teams rating in the ICC Test Championship provided ICC considers the credits to award points to the teams

Let me know your thoughts on this.

Filed under: Blog, Cricket, India, Rants, Strategy , Cricket, Duckworth Lewis method, ICC Test Championship, ICC Test Rules, India, Indian Cricket Team, ODI, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Test Cricket, Test Cricket Rules

Google’s Gobbling Spree

There are a few companies like Google which can match its grown rate. Offering most of its products and services free of cost, Google still makes billions. Already having quite a lot of services and products and still adding to the list, Google looks hungry even now.

So what all things does Google have on offer?

• Search
• Blogs
• Videos
• Social Networking
• Digital Photo Management
• Document Creators
• Telecom, Wireless
• Internet

It has acquired more than 47 companies till date. This is in the period from 2001 to 2007. Google looks right on target to become a dominating force on the internet. It is making the right moves at the right time with the right business strategy to make most of what it is spending.

Google still generates a major chunk of its revenue from advertising. This might or might not be the major revenue stream in the coming years but will provide it with the necessary financial strength.

While it keeps giving nightmares to established companies in various sectors including, Software, Telecom and Media etc., Google still allows millions of people use its simple but powerful products and services for free.

Filed under: Blog, Business, Strategy, Technology , Blogs, Google, Google's Acquisitions, Googling, Microsoft, Netizens, Search, Social Networking, Strategy, Web Productivity

Cost of Food For One Week

It’s quite interesting to know what an average family consumes in a week and how much it costs them. Happened to watch this photo feature on Time.com

Though the feature is well spread out it should have come out well if they could target a more diverse sample that included families from the developing and under developed countries. Only two families in the entire feature actually do away with less than US$6 per week for their food.

Filed under: Food, Life , Cost of food, Countries, Families, Family, Food, Food for one week, Time.com, US, Week

Sales Vs Support

I had an interesting debate with one of my close friends who happens to lead and manage a big support function for a leading company in India. He had asked me “How do companies define sales and support functions in terms of performance review and rewards?”

It happened that my friend who handles a critical support function and one of his colleagues who works in the sales division joined the company at almost the same time. While the sales guy has already moved to the Assistant manager level my friend still is a senior executive. His point was what a company looks at when it promotes someone?

Here is a short profile of both of them.

• They had achieved similar targets which was a tough one and required some really good experience and excellent execution
• They had outperformed themselves and the expectations of the management

This is where the question arises.

• The sales guy has been promoted to assistant manger level and my friend who happens to handle the huge logistics operation ( the backbone of the company) has received a different appraisal

The question arises as to  how companies actually rate the performance of an employee.

• Is it in terms of new customers acquired (sales) or ability to retain existing customers (support)?
• Is it the amount of business someone brings in or the amount of business that the company realises because of the work done by the support staff?
• If the company thinks that its only sales that drives a company then it has to be remembered that for any company a sale would happen only when there is a sound support function existing in the company
• While the sales teams close deals it is the support teams which actually have to execute the orders in most of the cases—then doesn’t the company think that it also is an important function and division of the company
• Most importantly any company can grow only when it has the ability to retain its customers (assured and regular income to support its growth plans) and acquire new ones
• If sales gets you new customers, then in a majority of the cases customers choose the company based on how well the existing customers of the company have been provided support for the products or services
• In most cases it is the sales teams in companies that are given incentives for getting new business. This is quite a laudable effort towards improving the motivation levels of the sales guys, but what about other divisions?
• Does a sale happen without any other division of the company putting in their efforts?

Ultimately it is this step motherly treatment from most of the companies towards their support divisions which make them lose highly efficient talent whose efforts have not been acknowledged, rewarded or motivated.

Filed under: Blog, Business, Life, Motivation, People, Rants , Appraisal, Business, Customer Support, Customers, Employee Motivation, Employee Rewards, India, Performance Review, Promotions, Sales, Support