Wednesday, January 25, 2006

HR Conference Promo on CNBC TV18

Folks!

do watch out for the the 5th National HR Conference's (@XLRI, Jan 28-29, 2006) promo on CNBC TV18 that starts today.

After the conference, CNBC will also be giving a 30 miinute exclusive coverage to the event.

ciao
madhukar

Wikipedia Entry Cleanup on XLRI

The XLRI entry on Wikipedia reads more like a brochure than an article written in the true Wikipedia spirit. I have tried my bit in adding some more info but would really like someone to rewrite it so it looks like a balanced article.

I unsuccessfully tried adding an "info box" (see revision: 14:56, 22 January 2006). The code should look what I've pasted below. You can see the info boxes on Harvard http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard or Drexel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drexel_University. Can someone knowledgeable please add the infobox, thanks.

Also, I trust all of you not to put in any vanity entries in to the article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Vanity_page).

Thanks & regards,

Kuru

Request for "Entry Level HR Competency Survey" - madhukar

Dear folks!

Need 3-4 minutes of your time.

As a part of the upcoming the 5th National HR Conference (Jan 28-29,'06) - and (which is also) as a part of our efforts to refocus our HR courses to make them more relevant - we are trying to assess the Entry Level Competencies/Capabilities required by young HR professionals during their initial years in the job.

I am writing to you with a request to participate in this online survey (12 competencies to be rated on a 4-point scale - that's all).

Please click on "any of the following 4 urls" to give your response (there are 4 URLs because the site allows for only 100 responses)

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=336391684258

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=316121696808

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=784431696812

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=905691696854

Please also pass this on to any of your HR colleagues, who can find time to resond to the survey.

Needless to say, I will share the findings with all

Thanks a ton for your time

ciao
madhukar
=========================
Dr Madhukar Shukla
Professor (OB & Strategic Management)
XLRI
Jamshedpur (India) 831001

Monday, January 23, 2006

BodhiTree featured in Jammag

bodhiTree has been featured on the latest JAM
Magazine. read the interview at http://www.jammag.com/rock/show_rock.php?article_id=66

Going. Places.

Jish
bass | bodhiTree
XLer 2006

George Zacharias (82 BMD) now Managing Director of Yahoo India

Global internet company Yahoo Inc has appointed George Zacharias as managing director of Yahoo India, with effect from January 30, 2006.


George Zacharias (82 BMD)

He would be based in Bangalore and work with the head of Yahoo's global software development center Venkat Panchapakesan to draw on those resources and build a stronger India-focused product organisation, it added.

Zacharias moves to Yahoo! from Sify, where he was President and Chief Operating Officer since 2000. Prior to joining Sify, Zacharias had spent 16 years in a variety of sales, marketing and export assignments at Madura Coats in Bangalore. In 1997, he was appointed President of Mad

Full Story

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Article about Jamshedpur and Tata Steel

An enlightening article about Jamshedpur and Tata Steel, by Suhel Seth, a columnist for "The Asian Age" newspaper.

--------------------------------

I visited Jamshedpur over the weekend to see for myself an India that is fast disappearing despite all the wolf-cries of people like Narayanamurthy and his ilk. It is one thing to talk and quite another to do and I am delighted to tell you that Ratan Tata has kept alive the legacy of perhaps Indias finest industrialist J.N. Tata. Something that some people doubted when Ratan took over the House of the Tatas but in hindsight, the best thing to have happened to the Tatas is unquestionably Ratan. I was amazed to see the extent of corporate philanthropy and this is no exaggeration.

For the breed that talks about corporate social responsibility and talks about the role of corporate India, a visit to Jamshedpur is a must. Go there and see the amount of money they pump into keeping the town going; see the smiling faces of workers in a region known for industrial unrest; see the standard of living in a city that is almost isolated from the mess in the rest of the country.

This is not meant to be a puff piece. I have nothing to do with Tata Steel, but I strongly believe the message of hope and the message of goodness that they are spreading is worth sharing. The fact that you do have companies in India which look at workers as human beings and who do not blow their software trumpet of having changed lives. In fact, I asked Mr Muthurman, the managing director, as to why he was so quiet about all they had done and all he could offer in return was a smile wrapped in humility, which said it all. They have done so much more since I last visited Jamshedpur, which was in 1992. The town has obviously got busier but the values thankfully haven't changed. The food is still as amazing as it always was and I gorged, as I would normally do. I visited the plant and the last time I did that was with Russi Mody.

But the plant this time was gleaming and far from what it used to be.
Greener and cleaner and a tribute to environment management. You could have been in the mountains. Such was the quality of air I inhaled! There was no belching smoke; no tired faces and so many more women workers, even on the shop floor. This is true gender equality and not the kind that is often espoused at seminars organised by angry activists. I met so many old friends. Most of them have aged but not grown old. There was a spring in the air which came from a certain calmness which has always been the hallmark of Jamshedpur and something I savoured for a full two days.

It is at times such as this that our city lives seem so meaningless.
Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata had created an edifice that is today a robust company and it is not about profits and about valuation. It is not about who becomes a millionaire and who doesnt'. It is about getting the job done with dignity and respect keeping the age-old values intact and this is what I learnt.

I jokingly asked someone as to whether they ever thought of joining an Infosys or a Wipro and pat came the reply: "We are not interested in becoming crorepatis but in making others crorepatis."

Which is exactly what the Tatas have done for years in and around Jamshedpur. Very few people know that Jamshedpur has been selected as a UN Global Compact City, edging out the other nominee from India, Bangalore.
Selected because of the quality of life, because of the conditions of sanitation and roads and welfare. If this is not a tribute to industrial India, then what is? Today, Indian needs several Jamshedpurs but it also needs this Jamshedpur to be given its fair due, its recognition. I am tired of campus visits being publicised to the Infosys and the Wipros of the world. Modern India is being built in Jamshedpur as we speak. An India built on the strength of core convictions and nothing was more apparent about that than the experiment with truth and reality that Tata Steel is conducting at Pipla.

Forty-eight tribal girls (yes, tribal girls who these corrupt and evil politicians only talk about but do nothing for) are being educated through a residential program over nine months. I went to visit them and I spoke to them in a language that they have just learnt: Bengali. Eight weeks ago, they could only speak in Sainthali, their local dialect. But today, they are brimming with a confidence that will bring tears to your eyes. It did to mine.

One of them has just been selected to represent Jharkand in the state archery competition. They have their own womens football team and whats more they are now fond of education. It is a passion and not a burden. This was possible because I guess people like Ratan Tata and Muthurman havent sold their souls to some business management drivel, which tells us that we must only do business and nothing else. The fact that not one Tata executive has been touched by the Naxalites in that area talks about the social respect that the Tatas have earned.

The Tatas do not need this piece to be praised and lauded. My intent is to share the larger picture that we so often miss in the haze of the slime and sleaze that politics imparts. My submission to those who use phrases such as "feel-good" and "India Shining" is first visit Jamshedpur to understand what it all means. See Tata Steel in action to know what companies can do if they wish to. And what corporate India needs to do. Murli Manohar Joshi would be better off seeing what Tata Steel has done by creating the Xavier Institute of Tribal Education rather than by proffering excuses for the imbroglio in the IIMs. This is where the Advanis and Vajpayees need to pay homage. Not to all the Sai Babas and the Hugging saints that they are so busy with. India is changing inspite o I couldn't have spent a more humane and wonderful weekend. Jamshedpur is an eye-opener and a role model, which should be made mandatory for replication. I saw corporate India actually participate in basic nation-building, for when these tribal girls go back to their villages, they will return with knowledge that will truly be life-altering.

Corporate India can do it but most of the time is willing to shy away. For those corporate leaders who are happier winning awards and being interviewed on their choice of clothes, my advise is visit Tata Steel, spend some days at Jamshedpur and see a nation's transformation. That is true service and true nationalism.

Tata Steel will celebrate 100 years of existence in 2007. It won't be just a milestone in this company's history. It will be a milestone, to my mind of corporate transparency and generosity in this country. It is indeed fitting that Ratan Tata today heads a group which has people who are committed to nation-building than just building inflluence and power. JRD must be smiling wherever he is. And so must Jamsetji Nusserwanji. These people today, have literally climbed every last blue mountain. And continue to do so with vigour and passion. Thank god for the Tatas!

BodhiTree - band website

bodhiTree has its presence online - click
http://www.soundclick.com/bodhitree

Requires sign-up but that's relatively painless and can let you
download all three tracks now recorded.

Jish
bass, bodhiTree

Maxi-Fair & Finax Mela @ XLRI (Jan 22nd, 2006)

am writing to appraise - and invite - you to the two XL event that will be happening this month on Jan 22nd, 2006 - the traditional Maxi Fair and the Finax Mela.

The Maxi Fair does not require an introduction.. since this will be its 27th avatar.

The uniqueness of this event this time is that this time the Maxi and the Finance Society (FINAX) are organising this together. To introduce the FINAX initiative:

"The National Investors’ Meet will be organised under the guidance of Investor Education Protection Fund(IEPF) of the Government of India. Various financial intermediaries will interact with retail investors of Jamshedpur in an effort to spread awareness about investment options and the safeguards inherent in them. The financial intermediaries like Banks, stock broking firms, mutual fund houses, insurance companies etc. will set up exhibhits and kiosks through which information will be provided to the visitors. It is hoped that this Meet will help clear up a lot of misconceptions regarding financial markets and also get feedback to the intermediaries on their products."

for more details, please contact:

MAXI:
Sujot Malhotra [sujotm.06@astra.xlri.ac.in]
and
FINAX:
Akshay Gupta [b04069@astra.xlri.ac.in]

We have another event - the 5th National HR Conference - coming up on 28th-29th Jan..I will be spamming your mailbox on that in couple of days;0)

ciao
madhukar
=========================
Dr Madhukar Shukla
Professor (OB & Strategic Management)

Sunday, January 08, 2006

Zubin Mody (93 PMIR): The New Head (HR) of IndusInd Bank

IndusInd Bank appoints Zubin Mody Senior VP-HR
[Hindu BusinessLine, January 5th, 2006]



MUMBAI: IndusInd Bank announced the appointment of Mr Zubin Mody as its Senior Vice President, Human Resources.

Mr Mody will be responsible for the entire HR function of the Bank, IndusInd said in a release here. Mr Mody was earlier with ICICI Lombard as Head HR and had also worked for FMCG brands such as Marico Industries and Heinz India. - PTI

Thursday, January 05, 2006

5th National HR Conference @ XLRI (Jan 28-29, 2006)

Folks!

I am writing to inform you about the 5th National HR Conference that we
are organising at XLRI (Jan 28-29, 2006).

The theme of the conference is based on the our sensing - and which got
vindicated by the response we got from the practicing HR professionals
- that the HR field has changed and transformed very fast -in content
and context - over last few years. The demands on HR - and the
competencies to meet them - have have also radically changed.... and
apparently they are not same across the industries. This change has also
created a sort of disconnect among

1. the skills/ competencies that industry expects HR professionals to
have,
2. the expectations that the young HR professionals have about their
role, and
3. how the B-Schools prepare them to meet the needs of the reality.

The 5th National HR Conference: Crafting the Future of HR aims to create
an interactive platform - a Working Conference (using Open Space
methodology, like the last conference) for industy-acadmia-HR to
deliberate on this disconnect, find the gaps and to build ways to bridge
this gap...

The announcement below describes how the design will unfold - the pix
are from the 4th National HR Conference

I am happy to inform that the response from the seasoned HR
professionals, to the theme and design, has been very very encouraging,
with the the following having already confirmed their participation in
the event:

- Niladri Roy, Program Director (Corporate HR), Aditya Birla Group
- Anita Ramachandran, CEO, Cerebrus Consulting
- PK Saha, Head (HR), CESC
- Adil Malia, Director (HR), Coca Cola
- Bhaskar Das, Head (HR), Cognizant Technologies
- Chand Narayan, Vice President (HR), CNBC TV18
- NS Rajan, Director (Human Capital Services), Ernst & Young
- P Dwarakanath, Director (HR), Glaxo SmithKline Consumer Healthcare
- Smita Anand, Consulting Head (India), Hewitt Associates
- Soumitra Das, VP (HR), Hewlett Packard
- Sujit Baksi, President, Lehman Brothers
- R Vidyasagar, Director (HR), Philips Software
- Mohinish Sinha, Head (HR Consulting), PwC
- Nandita Gurjar, Head (HR), Progeon/ Infosys
- S Varadarajan, Head (HR), Raman Roy Associates
- Pallab Bandopadhyay, President (HR), Scandent Group
- Satish Pradhan, Exec VP (Group HR), Tata Sons
- Dr Ganesh Shermon, Professor & Management Consultant, UnivCanada

I am also happy to inform that CNBC TV18 has offered to be our Media
Partner for this event and will give an exclusive coverage to the event.

For any information, please write to us at:
hrconference@xlri.ac.in

ciao
madhukar

an Open-Space Summit on
Crafting the Future of HR
(Jan 28-29, 2006)



An Invitation


A Conference with a Difference

Most conferences are organized with outlined agenda, specified topics,
and fixed speakers...
...and, therefore, promote participants’ learning through listening and
absorbing.

In contrast, The 5th National HR Conference is designed as a working
conference,
...and aims to shift from a speaker-centred to a participant-centred
learning environment.

Why a Working Conference?

In the last, HYPERLINK
"http://www.geocities.com/madhukar_shukla/hrconf/hrconfluence.html"The
4th National HR Conference: HR Confluence (Dec 2003) , we had
experimented with an interactive "working conference" design, and had
discovered that such a conference format:
HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2c1.2.jpg"

* facilitates learning by actively involving the participants in
collectively solving real, live problems, which are of their interest
and concern,


* leverages the rich experience and competence available in the
participants’ community to address real challenges, issues and
opportunities facing the HR profession, and help learning from each
other, and


* results in relevant and concrete “take-home” learning (solutions
and options) for the participants, which can be implemented.






The Theme: Crafting the Future of HR
As the groundwork for designing this event, we wrote/talked to more than
100 HR professionals from across different industries, and from
academia. We shared the tentative design with them and asked them about
the key HR challenges, issues and opportunities facing them as
professionals.

HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p3a.jpg"Their
feedback vindicated our sensing: that the HR field is changing and
transforming very fast in India. The demands of HR - and the
competencies to meet them - have radically changed during last few
years, both in content and context. They also vary widely across the
industries.

These changes have also created a dysfuntional disconnect among
HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/disconnect1.0.jpg"

* the skills and competencies that industry expects HR
professionals to have,


* the expectations that the young HR professionals have about
their role, and


* the focus of the academia to HR profession and professionals to
meet the imperatives of the new reality.

This conference is an interactive platform for the industry, HR
professionals and academics to collectively identify, address and bridge
these disconnects... and help...

*



...Crafting the Future of HR
HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/Logo.jpg"


The Design: How Will it Unfold

The design of the HR Conference is based on HYPERLINK
"http://www.openspaceworld.org/"Harrison Owen’s Open Space Technology,
which allows each participant to choose and identify a theme/topic, and
work with others who have similar concerns.


HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2a2.jpg"HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2a1.0.jpg"
The Circle
* The community starts the Open Space with a moderately
facilitated meeting in a large conference room.

* Participants propose and take up leadership/sponsorship to work
on issues and live problems, about which they are passionate, and for
which they would take up the responsibility.

* No one (not no one) is in-chargeHYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/4a.0.jpg"


HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2b1.jpg"HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2b2.jpg"

The Marketplace
* Themes for which there are “sponsors” in the community, are
identified and displayed.

* Participants sign up for the themes and issues, which interest
them most.

* Discussions and negotiations take place to decide the scope and
focus of work and outcomes.

* People with common interests form the groups.




HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/market.jpg"



HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2c2.jpg"HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2c3.jpg"
The Breakout Groups


* Groups – formed around common concerns - breakout into syndicate
forums.

* “Sponsors” lead/facilitate the discussions on the issue selected
by the group.

* The groups generate solutions, alternatives and approaches to
tackle the issues.





HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/group45.0.jpg"



HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2d1.0.jpg"HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/p2d2.1.jpg"
Consolidation & Presentation
* The proceedings of each group are documented, so that they can
be made available to all members of the community.

* Groups make presentations to the community – and inputs from
other members and the panel are added to their report.

* Documentations from all groups – as well as the inputs - are
compiled as “proceedings”, and shared with the community.




The Take-Home Outcome

* A set of solutions and alternatives to apply on live HR issues, which
you are facing in your professional life.
* Learning about the issues, which concern the HR professionals across
industry and academia.
* A network of HR professionals who have similar concerns and
problems as you have – and who are willing to share their ideas and
experiences with you… even after the HR Conference is over

HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/strip.jpg"

Registration Details

HYPERLINK
"http://www.geocities.com/madhukar_shukla/hrconf/RegistrationForm.doc"Do
wnload Registration Form


Registration

The Conference will start at 9:30am on January 28th, and will conclude
at 4:00pm on January 29th, 2006. The registration of participants will
start from 8:45am onwards).


Nomination Fee

Corporate Participants:
Residential: Rs. 7,500/- (twin-sharing basis)
Non-Residential: Rs. 6,000/-

Academic Participants:
Residential: Rs. 5,000/- (twin-sharing basis)
Non-Residential: Rs. 3,500/-


HYPERLINK
"http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/1600/MDP%201.0.jpg"
* The institute provides comfortable air-conditioned rooms. However,
since there are limited number of rooms, the residential facilities will
be made available only on first-come first-serve basis.

HYPERLINK "http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/507/157/200/MDP2.0.jpg"

* The Residential Participants can check in at the MDP Residence on
January 27th (Evening). Please plan your return latest by January 30th
(morning).



Your nomination should reach us by January 14th, 2006. Please send your
nominations on the Registration Form (HYPERLINK
"http://www.geocities.com/madhukar_shukla/hrconf/RegistrationForm.doc"cl
ick to download) along with Nomination Fee to the following:
(NOTE: Bank Draft/ Cheques should be drawn in favour of XLRI Jamshedpur)

Prof Madhukar Shukla
Conference Coordinator
The 5th National HR Conference: Crafting the Future of HR
XLRI
CH Area (East)
Jamshedpur 831 001
Ph: 0657 – 2225506 (extn. 300)
Fax: 0657 – 2227814
Email: hrconference [at] xlri.ac.in

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