Two Books

What is the best way to escape reality?
I have found 2 ways. One is to hit the bottle and second to read classics. Nowadays I am doing both vigorously. Sometimes both together. And these are my sweetest times at this point of my life.

To Kill A Mockingbird
I had read about this book for years now in other books and columns. Finally I was able to lay my hands on this book in my favourite library. It is a un-put-downable book, start to finish you have to read. Harper Lee is a master story teller. I would like to nominate this book as one of the all time American Classics. Book interests me not because of the story-line, but because of the narrative. It is a class apart. Not for a second I felt Harper Lee is selling innocense. Though there is less plot involving Legal profession, it is still considered as a legal thriller. For me Atticus Finch is not the hero, as usually made in reviews and by other people - Scout is my hero.

It is a must read for all book lovers and for people like me who want to escape from reality in these recession times.

White Tiger
For the Mailbox of Arvind Adiga
India's Under Belly exposer
Mumbai, India

From the mail box of one of the India's Honest Entrepreneur
Bangalore, India

Subject: Four worst things I did with your money making entrepreneurship - White Tiger

First: As soon as I read in papers White Tiger had won the Booker prize I orderded the book online. Book got delivered to my office as it is my correspondence address for most of my communication. Why did I do this? - My honest thinking that a born Kannadiga can write good books and so I shelled out my money.

Second: Ususally nobody bothers about my correspondence, but this time when I opened the package my female colleague was next to my table and I asked her whether she wants to read it. She said yes and she took it home. When she returned back the book I asked her did you like it? she did not answer affirmatively. She just nodded. I did not understand then what this was about. Today I repent suggesting your book to her.

Third: I started reading your book - that too as soon as I finished To Kill A Mockingbird.

Mr. Adiga, I read few interviews of yours reffering great authors who helped to change England and France. You really are either very naive or you got a nerve of steel to even mention these great names. Please read your book once. Mr. Adiga believe me you will convulse and throw up continously ... even in your dreams. Classics from Dickens or Gorky have society's under belly themes and charecters. But they are protrayed in a class apart.

Not even in your dreams your book comes nearer to being a critique of our society. Your book seems to have only one purpose... namely, to put words to your nasty fantasys. Mr. Adiga your book is nothing but a third rated bed time fantasy book to your chosen brethern of convent educated high schoolers. As soon as they grow even they up will remeber the bad taste your book leaves once somebody reads it.

Of course in India there are contrasts. There is not 2 but many Indias. One more author did try to describe India as area of darkness. He came back again after 25 years and wrote about million mutinies.

India is made up of Entrepreneurs - Honest or Dishonest. These are the guys who keep India going. You meet them at every nook and corner of India. These guys like me come from India's under belly. But we are proud of our honet efforts. For most of us aspirations are not to become rich class, but to make something in life.

They call writing is an art form. I suggest you to take a crash course on Gorky and Dickens and then come back and think about writing.

Write something which even your mother feels comfortable to read. Whether you are exposing under belly or bottoms. It can be done when you the craft of story telling in you.

I feel like disowning you as a Kannadiga.

Fourth: As I have paid for this book, I will struggle and finish reading your book even though it is a pain in the a** to even read one more page.

Mr. Adiga, Happy making money exposing under bellys and bottoms.

Runaway brides

For years I have been wondering how can army generals motivate the army and take them right into the mouth of death. Some of he wars have been waged for years. And this is happening for many a millennia. What are these generals made up of. Surely this is not done by rule alone. No rule in any book can make a man accept death happily as if it was his destination.


It is very intriguing. I have been running the current company for almost 5 years now and I still have the problem of runaway brides. Seriously it hurts but I have no solution for this.


This company is a honest attempt not just to make a living but also to prove to myself and to the world that we are something. With all our limitations we can achieve extraordinary results. History is full of such instances.


Am I upto the mark... to make history. ... Only time knows the answer.


Let runaway brides keep running......

Way to go Forward

Few days back my colleague asked me with a worried face "when will market recover, when will we see happy days". Instinctively I told him I am not bothered. Enough of dependance on external factors. Way ahead is as simple as what we can do now or what we will do now. Nothing great lies either in market upturn or down turn. That is how we need to prepare ourselves.


I have also stopped asking God - "where is my f**kin bail out"


Focus is now on "Build From Within". Build on our strengths. Build future not looking at external factors. What we learn in adversity and how we tackle it is what we are. What we prove now matters.


It is not that there will be a day of recokning, but it matters to set this right. Get the right attitude - Devil may care...... we will win. When the effects of this cruel conditions are assuaged, we will be sitting on pile of wealth called experience and satisfaction.


Until then if we want happines, it is better to switch on "Happy Days" movie on your DVD and enojy along with a drink and your mate. That is exactly what I did yesterday..... Sunday.

are we near the BOTTOM

are we near the bottom?


Is this the end of tunnel.... I dont have answers. I have survived till today.... what is in store for tomorrow? ... I have reached a inflection point where I have stopped worrying.


Purandaradasa's song comes to my mind and I keep singing it to myself for reassurance:
"Aadaddella Olithe ayithu, Namma Sridharana Sevege Sadhana Sampath ayithu"
Except for my positive thinking nothing else keeps me going.


Enterprise Matrix owes its survival to its TEAM and Clients who reassured me that they are with me during the time of crisis.


My team took extreme measures voluntarily to cut cash out flow. All of them took salary cuts and top of it they are taking home only 50% of the current salaries. It is realy difficult to live in Bangalore with the salary I have been paying them for the last few months. But they are with me. More than that, they understand me and want to support me during the crisis. Few telephones are gone... birthday parties are gone....


I salute my team from the bottom of my heart.


Some of our clients are in constant touch with us. Even though not much recruitment is happening. When ever I meet them, they have been reassuring me that they are with me. They have given me HOPE. Which is the most important thing in life. Without hope you are as good as dead.


Enterprise Matrix is indebted to its clients and we thank them sincerely.


Do I see light at the end of the tunnel?.... I guess I see a glimer.... glimer of hope not exactly light.... but that is enough to carry on. Come what may.....

Redundancy

What Internal factors have contributed for our predicament?


I am breaking my head, where did we go wrong. What wrong decisions did we take. One major issue I overlooked was - Retaining Cash. As with most of the start-ups, I guess I expanded rapidly without balancing receivables. In the event of market down turn, what determines one's survival is how much cash you have on hand. During good market, as everybody I believed in continuity of business.


Most important issue which Indian IT industry is facing today is to reduce redundancy. Redundancy concept is operational need in a good market. But in a bad market it is the major contributor for down fall. This is why today every company is reducing head count, realigning project resources.


Today I received a call from one of the leading IT company HR. This person wanted my suggestion whether to go ahead with annual reviews or not. Should they do selective reviews. And how does that effect the rest of the team. This person wanted to know how everybody else is doing. A typical HR challenge.


Like everybody, we had excess staff (per head revenues was less), excess infra (higher over head costs), more focus on existing clients (no client base expansion). These are very real operational issues. As well as management experience issues.


Couple these things with market down turn and huge payable (business loss and capital costs) we are doomed.


Question is how to attain balance in this bad market?

Why this Blog

Like all good or bad things happening late to me or I do it late in my life, this blog is also overdue by months. Today I am at cross roads. My recruitment business is on the verge of colapse. I am out of my wits to make it turn around.

Conventional wisdom gives a thumb rule, ABCD for success:
A - Attitude
B - Belief
C - Conviction
D - Dare

When all the above are challenged every minute of your life, you are at crisis point. Everything what I have believed or lived for till today is challenged. I am going through the pain of decision taking every second now. I don't know what is in future for me. I guess this blog will be a sort of relief for my brain.

Few years back, TVS Motors came up with big advertisements, both print and out door. Ad proclaimed - "They don't teach you in B-School how to turn around a company. We have successfully done it" ... something like that. TVS guys had just turned arround their company from a loss making unit to profitable one in just 1.5 years time. They were very proud.

It is true, there are no courses which helps you to turn around your business. We have to self learn and succeed.

This blog is about my feelings, thought process, Issues I face while I struggle to keep my business afloat. This will be my dairy of day to day blows which I receive and what I do to it.

And of course about beautifull business called recruitment in general.

I intend to update this blog at least once every day.

Your valuable comments are always welcome!