October 2008 - Posts - On The Job

October 2008 - Posts

Our country is burning

Posted by S. Mitra Kalita at 
I have made these calls before. "Dharani Khura ," I'll address my most all-knowing (read nosy) uncle. " Sap thikey aseh ?" Is everything okay? A few weeks ago, they asked the same of me when Delhi burned--a series of calculated bombings across our city. Today, it was my turn, mostly to curse the phone when all the lines jammed...

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This also happens in India

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
My run-down Santro is shared between the elder son and me and being the good Indian mum, whenever he makes a request, I am quick to relinquish my chauffeur driven comfort and take an auto instead. Our office being right in the middle of Delhi's busy Connaught Place area, means getting an empty auto is never an issue but getting one to agree to take...

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Flash is the name of the game, happy diwali!

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
“How can you not play cards in the Diwali month?” asked a young colleague who was introduced to a card playing group a week ago and is now hopelessly “addicted”. As the last rays of the sun go down, she starts looking frantically at her mobile, waiting for a message that will intimate her about where that evening’s card session is going to take place...

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A day at a BPO walk-in: wasted call?

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
My sprightly 70-year old father is just not the cribbing sort. But one thing that he does tend to feel a bit sore about is Indian recruiters’ penchant for ignoring resumes sent by ‘seniors’. Inspite of skillfully juggling three assignments, he still subscribes to Employment News and religiously goes through job supplements of national dailies. He even...

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Infoscians crib for pay

Posted by Poornima Mohandas at 
Infosys is a great place to work say many an Infoscian. And definitely the sprawling campuses can seduce anyone and what's more the company actually spends money to get employee motivation up . Many people enter the firm straight from campus, work in India for two years and look to go abroad. If going overseas doesn't work they start looking...

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17 years in a company? Gosh, that's so old fashioned!

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
Last weekend I was at an HR conference where a complete session was devoted to "I am 26, do not count on me to stay in this company". It told you what you already know – how the earplug and G-chat generation puts the grasshopper to shame as it hops, skips and jumps from one job to the next, all for a few extra rupees and perks. However, in...

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Expats in the kitchen

Posted by Aruna Viswanatha at 
After a Mint story last week reporting that employers would now have to contribute to the provident fund on behalf of foreign employees, I wondered how this might affect all the international restaurants that have opened up in Delhi in recent months, touting (expensive) expat chefs as a big draw. Hotels have often brought in chefs from abroad with the...

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The yellow jacket as symbol of a woman scorned

Posted by S. Mitra Kalita at 
The first day the cameras focused on the angry and tearful women in their smart uniforms, I remarked to a colleague that the yellow jacket was about to become a symbol. Of dreams deferred, hopes dashed, an industry knocked down, of the worst yet to come. Sure enough, last year when Jet Airways' new uniforms debuted, the blogosphere was abuzz with...

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In these fast times

Posted by S. Mitra Kalita at 
So I am sure you all want to know? Did I or didn't I? (Check out today's column to see what I am talking about.) As of noon, neither my husband nor I have had anything to eat. But we promised to call the other if we do. So it's a sort-of-fast. We are following my mother-in-law's advice (and that of the woman quoted at the end of the...

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Correspondence in first year, DU campus in second

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
If you have lived in Delhi you would know what it means to get into Delhi University. And you don't even have to be a hyper ventilating, stressed out parent with a child in a Board year (Class XII) to experience that palpable level of anxiety. You just have to be an average newspaper reader to know how the build-up to the college admission process...

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Thank heavens, I didn't personalize my workstation

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
When informal witty mails from the business head to bring order to the madness that existed on table tops did not bring desired results, a creative HR announcement came in the shape of a competition for the best kept workstation with tempting cash coupons as prizes. Printouts of power point presentations (often incomprehensible), pens (that never work...

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Twiddling your fingers on the bench?

Posted by Poornima Mohandas at 
One day at a time: the diary of an employee on the bench was fun to write, hopefully to read as well. Here’s a more sober side of being on the bench in a tech company. -What to do when on the bench? The day you get on the bench find out who the resource management group head is. He is the person in charge of allocating people to projects. Take him out...

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… But Hari Sadu commands more respect

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
You wouldn't ever want to work for Hari Sadu (the character made famous in the naukri.com advertisement). Not even if he showered you with freebies and perks. "H for Hitler, A for arrogant, R for rascal..." is the kind of boss you'd like to permanently erase from memory, but is invariably top recall whenever you bump into old colleagues...

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Missing my Amrikan Durga Puja...

Posted by S. Mitra Kalita at 
I never thought I'd see the day when I'd move to India, find myself in my favourite festive season ... and missing the US. Here's why: We NRIs have mastered the art of being conveniently religious. So we worship on Sundays, force our kids into Hindu and Hindi classes on Saturdays and schedule aartis and anjalis on nonworking days. This week...

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looking for a recession proof skill? Sell wedding clothes

Posted by Aruna Viswanatha at 
My sister is getting married next summer, but since she lives in the U.S. and I'm the only family member in India, I'm the one doing most of the shopping. I've spent months going to sari shops in Delhi and invitation printers in Bangalore. I've scoured Hyderabad for matching bangles, and visited and revisited tailors to stitch blouses...

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