Modren Education Divine Manifestation...h-h

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MODERN EDUCATION'S DIVINE MANIFESTATION

…Blending the Ancient with the New

 

 

A Tale from a Tough World

“It was not even nine months since I had completed my MBA when I was deputed to Jalgaon District Milk Producers Co-operative Milk Union Ltd. as Head of Sales and Marketing functions. It was a very heady feeling to lead a group of 30-35 people,†says Jasti Vamsee Krishna. Vamsee was sent to Jalgoan in Maharashtra state by the National Diary Development Board to head the Marketing wing – the most dreaded in the Milk Unions. It was indeed heady because apart from working hours stretching from early morning to late-nights, he now had to manage a team of people who were the toughest nuts to crack in the organisation – the leaders of workers’ unions and other heavyweights. In fact, being posted in the marketing wing was always considered a disincentive. “I was told that heading the marketing wing was one of the nightmares and one should avoid the posting as far as possible,†Vamsee says. “The leaders of almost all the unions were

in my wing. Most of the rival union leaders would be reporting to me. When I entered the office for the first time, I was welcomed with stern stares from them. I knew I was the most unwelcome addition there.â€

 

 

 

 

 

Before Vamsee realised what was happening, his office door flung open and with lightning speed, somebody barged into his chamber. The much feared short and stout firebrand was right in front of him. Courtesies like asking for permission to see an officer, listening civilly to what the boss says, etc., were not for him. Whatever he did – whether right or wrong – was the perfect way to go about in life. He was the rule. He had proved this a million times.

“What is my work?†he ordered in a brusque voice in his abrasive Hindi while holding out his relieving order. Vamsee was absolutely clueless. It was like a scene from a horror movie.

Unaware of his posting and with completely no idea of what kind of task to assign to an employee of his nature, Vamsee politely asked him to wait outside for a few minutes, which the hot-headed leader fortunately obliged. Vamsee then began his homework. He called his deputy to comprehend the situation and discuss what work could be allotted to him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A confrontation can easily spiral out of control

Recalling his deputy’s caution, Vamsee says, “I received my first ever shocking advice from him. He told me, ‘Sir, do not give him any assignment. Just send him back to the Personnel Department. We cannot handle him. He will be a big bag of trouble and this marketing section will become a mess if we have him here.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Making decisions with a calm mind

 

 

 

But Vamsee did not heed his deputy’s advice. Instead, he asked for the personnel file of the union leader. Sitting outside, the union leader’s malicious temper only got worse when he saw his file being taken into the room. Vamsee quickly scanned the file. It was full of memos and reprimands, though he had performed his job on many occasions. After a few silent moments with himself, Vamsee called the union leader in. The man was like an incensed tiger who had already sensed danger and was about to pounce. He surmised he was not going to get any assignment and was ready for combat.

As soon as he got in, he blurted out, “So you have seen my file. You know all about me. You do not have any work for me, right? I know all you managers. Systematically you people have tortured me for years now…..†He went on. There was no break. He had been transferred four times in the last sixteen months. Nobody wanted him. Finally, he said, “I know your decision. I know what you people think. Shall I go back then?†He was anger and frustration personified.

Vamsee absorbed all the fury. He was as calm as he could be. After he exhausted his grievances and grouses and all his fiery waves had subsided, Vamsee gently persuaded him to take a seat and offered him water. Then, in a concerned tone, he asked, “Are you willing to work with me?†The fifty plus union leader was completely taken aback. “Your personnel records are perfectly fine with me,†Vamsee continued. “You have always delivered when it mattered. I have absolutely no question about your capabilities. Regarding other behavioural aspects of your personality, they are very subjective and I do not want to go by what others have said. To me, you are a very competent person. Tell me, will you work with me? What is the work you think you can do to the best of your ability?â€

In his decades of association with the company, not a single officer had ever spoken to him so endearingly. Like a tiger that had completely surrendered, he said, “I would do any job that you give me, sir.†As much as Vamsee was shocked earlier by his ferocity now he was moved by his vulnerability. Vamsee then explained to him that he had recently been deputed to the unit and once he settled down in his new job, he would give him a suitable offer. The union leader left his office an antithesis of his former self. But before he left, he impressed upon Vamsee that he was basically a good-natured man.

 

 

 

 

 

A few days passed, and Vamsee gave him some simple daily tasks which the past-middle age union leader performed quite well. During February 1999, Vamsee’s organisation faced many difficulties in logistics. There was a new problem every day. Midnight was when the dispatch dock of his unit had to perform certain important operations and no one was willing to work during those unearthly hours. It was a job that brought no credit to the employees for the work done or for the efforts made. If the assignment was forced upon someone, he always did a half-hearted job and for Vamsee it often meant sleepless nights. At a loss to find a solution, Vamsee suddenly thought of the union leader. He called for him and asked, “Are you willing to take this job?†He made it clear that he was assigning him the job purely because he had complete trust in him and felt he was competent to handle the crucial operation. The late hours of the work were not

meant to victimise him.

The union leader was immediately game for it and what he said next left Vamsee bowled over. “Sir, till now, any person who has spoken to me in this organisation has always assumed that I am a troublemaker. No one respects me or my abilities and I am always looked upon as a liability – the sooner you get rid of him the better. You are the first one to talk to me in such a friendly and obliging way. I will definitely do this task for youâ€. Vamsee’s peers warned him of the grave risks of entrusting the responsibility of such a crucial operation to a rebel, but Vamsee stuck to his decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Building trust through communication

From then on, what happened became part of the company’s folklore. The old but experienced employee took charge of logistics, analysed the whole operation, suggested out-of-the-box ideas, convinced Vamsee about his new methods, and in a short time brought sweeping changes to the whole operation. The system evolved by him continues even today. This union leader is now looked upon by the management of the company as a valuable asset. He has all the support he needs to further improve the company’s operations. Vamsee Krishna, according to the top management, had performed a miracle. Special acknowledgements flooded in from the head of the institution.

Henceforth, whenever unions and management were at the negotiation table, rather than heated exchanges there was now a conscious effort from both parties to come to amicable solutions. When Vamsee moved to Hyderabad to work for a different organisation (Reliance Industries Ltd.), the union leader made a special visit to Hyderabad just to meet his previous boss and convey his gratitude. Even now, be it Diwali or the New Year, he never forgets to call Vamsee and offer a warm ‘Happy Diwali, Sir’, ‘Happy New Year, Sir’, ‘How are you doing?’

Isn’t this heartening?

That was Vamsee’s story; now let’s go to another account. This one is about Vidyadhar, again in the corporate world, but in an altogether different setting.

“Live and Let Liveâ€

“It was the final negotiation for a bid that our company had put in for providing soundproofing equipment for a large genset (power generator) room for one of India 's most prominent home-grown IT giants. Our company was short listed as being technically best suited for the job. The price was the only criterion that was against us,†narrates Vidyadhar, Director of Lotus Energy Systems based in Bangalore.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holding on to his Philosohy of Work

 

 

“In keeping with the internal standards set for ourselves,†he continues, “we had prepared a detailed costing and had to draw a line where it became unviable. The Purchase Officer was saying that they would like to give us the order but, he said, "You will have to come up with a price that is twenty-five percent lower or we will be forced to give the project to your competitor." Pulling out my costing sheet, I went through the items that we had proposed in the absence of a detailed technical specification one by one and explained the repercussions on the performance if this element was removed from the proposal and these were the cost components, overheads and this was our margin.â€

The officer went through the list in great detail. "Your explanations and working sheets appear impeccable, but how is it that your competitor has given a written assurance stating that the performance will be the same as yours at the thirty percent lower price?" Vidyadhar stated, “I can only comment on what we submitted and would like to reserve my comments on someone else's proposal."

He pointedly asked me, ‘Will you stick by your proposal or can you look into it once again and drop the price?’ I replied, ‘We need this job to survive, but we cannot trim the scope to give you a lower project cost. To do so, we would have to offer a substandard solution and then pray that things work out somehow.’ As a final rejoinder, I said, ‘I believe I have given you the best solution possible and at the best price I can offer it at. Beyond this, it is totally your prerogative.’

 

 

 

 

The Purchase Officer became reflective for a few seconds and then asked curiously, ‘What is your philosophy in negotiation?’ I didn't quite know what to make of it or what to say. So I said the first thing that came to mind – Do your best and leave the rest, if it has to happen, it will. That is our philosophy. ‘And if it means that you lost the order?’ he queried. I said by reflex, Dharmo Rakshathi Rakshitha (Righteousness Protects the Righteous). He stood up signalling that the meeting was over. But before he left, pumping my hand, he said, ‘That is exactly what our Chief Mentor said many years ago when he had the biggest deal for our company from a multinational account before him across the negotiation table. Don't worry about this job, stick to your philosophy and it will ultimately pay off.’

“We expectantly waited for the officer’s response. Two days passed and we found out that we had lost the job. It was a sick feeling in the gut and a major blow to our company. We were shattered. We did a lot of brainstorming and soul searching after that: Did we do something wrong? Is it wise to be so rigid in a fiercely competitive world? Are we being hard headed instead of being smart and hardnosed? These conflicts kept whirring within.

“Then, a year or so later, something very interesting happened. Out of the blue we got a call from the same Purchase Officer asking us to come in the next day. He didn't even mention what it was about – it was just a terse message – ‘Come tomorrow at 11:30.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Righteousness protects the righteous

We went there. ‘We sat across the same table a year ago,’ the Officer said. ‘I have not forgotten that day and that is the reason I called you.’ He then showed us a plan for a TV broadcast studio and asked, ‘Can you do the acoustics for this project for us?’ I said, ‘We haven't done something like this before.’ ‘But can you do it?’ he asked again. He seemed eager to deal with us. I said, “Yesâ€.

“After a lot of homework, we put our bid in two days later. Not even two hours after sending in our proposal, we were faxed the Purchase Order. We were dazed. Wow! No negotiation called for. It was unbelievable. And then we got another terse message – ‘Start work immediately!’

“How did all this happen? A few weeks later I ran into the Purchase Officer on site and after thanking him for the contract asked, ‘How is it that there were no negotiations this time around?’ With the benign disposition of a spiritual seeker, he said, ‘The last time around I learned a difficult lesson the hard way. That has changed my philosophy of negotiation. Instead of “Live and Let Dieâ€, now I believe in “Live and Let Live.â€

“From that day on, we have done a great deal of work for the facilities infrastructure of this one company across the country without ever having to sit across the negotiation table again.†Vidyadhar concludes his scintillating story. There is a rare sense of fulfilment in his being. His persistence with his beliefs had ultimately paid off.

Sri Venkatesh Prasad, who is currently the CEO and Director of Trayee Impex Pvt. Ltd., has a similar story to narrate.

Respect and Reward

Venkatesh, in his previous work assignment, was given independent charge of a loss-making unit in the business group and was assigned the task of reviving it. He was also given a free hand to change any of the staff so as to turn it around and attain profitability.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Swami's students stand out in society

 

 

At the end of two and half years, Venkatesh says, “We had turned profitable, repaid all the outstanding loans to banks and had declared a dividend for the first time in two decades. To cap it off, we had a very healthy bank balance. Throughout this phase, I did not change any of the staff or the workers.†So how did he achieve this feat? Venkatesh gives a revealing instance.

“One of the key personnel I was involved with was an accountant who was over sixty. He had retired from service but I asked him to continue in order to help me tide over the crisis. I valued his experience and treated him with a lot of respect. I trusted his ability in spite of his age.†But at the same time, from an organisational point of view, Venkatesh ensured that a second line was in place and that the older man’s presence did not discourage the young employees, so the company was in no way disadvantaged. One evening, months later after the company had its turn around, when Venkatesh was sitting across from the accountant’s desk, the older man stunned him to silence when he said, “Sir, thank you very muchâ€. There was a smile of satisfaction on his face and continued, “You have behaved in this way because you are a Baba studentâ€. Venkatesh

was dumbstruck. “In all those years, I never mentioned to any of the staff in the unit about my academic background or Swami. I was amazed. I didn’t know how to respond.â€

“This university must be distinct from the rest and attain a unique status†- Baba

 

 

 

 

Yes, Venkatesh was a Baba student and that is the common thread that runs through all the stories narrated above. Like Venkatesh, Vidyadhar and Vamsee too were beacons of light from the same glorious edifice of learning – the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning.

One score and five years ago when Bhagavan Baba unfurled this model Institute to the world on the eve of His fifty-sixth Birthday, addressing the mammoth assembly on that momentous morning, He said,

 

“You are aware that there are now 108 universities in India. This University is the 109th, one more than that traditional total. May all the universities succeed and serve the country well. But this university must be distinct from the rest and attain a unique status.â€

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why another University Ram ChuganiKobe, Japan