Thrift

I was at a conclave of CEOs and heard the CEO of Wipro speak. He talked of how his company is recruiting trainees all over the world but first flying them down to India so that they can spend the first year in a village working with an NGO to implement projects. He said that NGOs are typically cash strapped and they find out ways to live within their means. He said that this was the best training that Wipro's trainees could get because they would get lessons on thrift.

My thoughts went back to my dad who always said that a Rupee saved is equivalent of earning two Rupees because the former was in your control. He taught me the basics of thrift. How to live within your means rather than finding ways to spend and then trying to figure out how to earn to match the spends.

I have seen many companies invest and expand, hire people and find that the cost structure has suddenly become very high. They, then, figure out ways to scale up and if that does not work out, start scaling down. How many times have you faced a situation where travel is frozen or hiring is frozen or there is a layoff of people.  All this is because, we do not follow the principles of thrift when plan expansion. Thrift is all about spending carefully or managing your self in a way that your future spends match the future flows of income. It is about valuing every Rupee or Dollar that you have in hand and figuring out what is the best use of it.

"Industry, thrift and self-control are not sought because they create wealth, but because they create character", says Calvin Coolidge. This is absolutely correct as thrift is all about self-discipline. Thrift is not about seeking out the best bargain that is available. As Sydney Carroll says, "A bargain ain't a bargain, unless it is something you need." Thrift is all about self-restraint and steadfastness to weigh all expenditure and savings. It is about being able to divert your resources to what is meaningful to you.

When you are managing an organization, thrift is essential so that you prioritize resources. However, this can cause problems as people do not know why you spend on certain things and don't on others. These "others" may be the things that some people in the organization want. As in everything else, communication is key to thrift. You need to communicate appropriately across the various levels in the organization as to what you want achieved and why you are directing your spends the way you are doing so. That helps level set people's expectations and also improves employee and customer satisfaction.

Many years ago, I was invited to an all-employee meeting of a company. This was a new company set up in the outskirts of the city and was going through its initial year of start up pains and pangs of growth because business was coming in. So, they were continuously hiring but the work load was far too high. As the Managing Director addressed the team, he spoke of the vision and the goals/targets. During question hour, someone asked him if he would consider providing transport facilities to employees as this office was in the outskirts and public transport was not great. To which the MD responded,"Our company is not in the business of transport".

I was surprised at that response. This MD was a fantastic person. He was thrifty. He respected money and resources and used it carefully. So, a statement like this from him surprised me.I still believe that the communication could have been done better. He could have explained the situation the company was in and that it could not afford providing transport facilities at that point in time. He could have ended stating that he understands the lack of public transport but is not in a position to help as he needs to manage his resources to meet the needs.  Actually, this is exactly what he wanted to convey but ended up stating something else. So, what you convey and how you convey it also becomes essential for employees to understand why you are doing whatever it is that you are doing.

Being frugal or thrifty does not mean cheap. It is about being wise in the way you spend and how you reduce waste. As you reduce waste, you find out new ways to save and invest. It brings about self-discipline and restraint in whatever you do. You start looking at things differently. You enjoy and simple things in life. Most importantly, you channelize your resources in to things that matter to you in life.

Punches, Counter-punches, Communication and Development

Its a blistering hot summer in India this time....and guess what, it is not just the Sun that is providing this heat!!! It is election time and all politicians are at their best....I am following the campaigning, the strategies and tactics used by various political parties, the punches and the counter-punches, the possible poll alliances and also the various pre-poll surveys that are taking place. It is absolute fun time. The largest democracy in the world is going in to voting season.

After years of neglect, various roads have got paved in Bangalore. Not sure where the money came in now as the Government has been complaining that there is no money....election time is always magic at its best!!!

While it is good to watch and listen to the theatrics and the various punches and counter-punches that politicians throw at each other, the pre-poll survey shows that most people are worried about inflation, the lack of job creation, lack of growth and development, corruption and the impact all of this is having on their day to day lives. They want to vote for someone who is decisive and someone who will lead the country towards better growth and provide better job opportunities and livelihoods to the millions of Indians who are struggling for a decent living.

I was thinking through as to why the people returned Dr.Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister with a better majority in 2009. His first innings (2004-2009) was good but not great. However, he had managed to capture the imaginations of millions of Indians - promising them a new style of growth for the economy, a breakaway model for employment generation and why inclusive growth was essential. The Indians loved it. He has delivered to some extent on some of these. However, these have been overshadowed by the lack of decision making, the corruption scandals that have broken out, the fact that India has not grown fast enough, galloping inflation and, of course, the total lack of governance. One more issue that has affected the government is the existence of 2 power centres - the Government and the Political Party itself. The Congress Party is, by nature, risk averse. So, they constrained the Government from making bold moves. Contrast this to the same Congress Party in 1992 when the then Prime Minister (Mr.Narasimha Rao) had the same issue during the first year, but managed to distance himself from the Party and arguably managed one of the best performing Governments in the history of India. Whichever party wins, the new Prime Minister will have the same problem and has to learn to negotiate this well. Negotiating skills will need to be sharpened. The ability to carry a large team along will be needed. The ability to strategize the change the country will be essential. A new kind and style of leadership will be needed - someone who is brave, willing to take risks, is decisive, willing to change the country, negotiate and ensure that the interests of the people come before those of the Political Party that he/she is part of.

There are 100 million first time voters in India this time. And what do they want? I was watching few TV Channels interviewing some of these first time voters....and there was a resounding blow to every politician - they were not interested in voting based on caste/religion/social background or age. They wanted to vote for someone who stood for development of the nation. Someone who will create jobs in the new economy. Someone who can bring inflation levels down. Someone who has the society in mind rather than his or her personal bank account. This was music to my ears....

The other fact that got my attention was how were political parties trying to reach out to these 100 million new voters and other younger voters in the semi-urban and urban areas. It was all about Facebook, Twitter and various other Social Media channels. Technology is all pervasive. The Political Parties not using these channels effectively were failing to communicate adequately. This was coming out clearly in the Surveys.

Various leaders in the current Congress Government have complained that the hard work done by them over the last 10 years has not been communicated well at all. In every profession, Communication is the essence and a key ingredient to success. Customers must know what has been done and what is getting done. The same is true for a Government too...in fact, more important in a democracy like India. Politicians have to go back to the voter every 5 years. So, communication is key and should be used as a strategic weapon...not a tool. The leaders who have been complaining about the lack of communication by the current Congress Government are absolutely correct. The Government has done various things but at the end of the day people judge you by the outcome. If the outcomes are higher inflation, slower growth, massive corruption and lack of decision making and combined with poor communication, then, it is a recipe for disaster. People have not heard the Prime Minister come out and speak effectively on various matters that have impacted the country over these last 5 years. This lack of communication from the Leadership of the Nation is sad.

While the punches and the counter punches are of great entertainment value, they serve more as interesting commercial breaks in a more serious drama enfolding. What people really want are bold and decisive leadership, jobs, growth of the economy, reduced prices, no corruption and lesser interference from the government in the day to day lives of the individual. I hope that the new Government is more focused on these aspects and the people of this country.