December 2008 - Posts - On The Job

December 2008 - Posts

Jobs: the worst of 2008 and the best of 2009

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
The son, a fresh grad picked up from college looked pretty smug to see that his company, an FMCG, figured in a sector that is likely to beat the recession. He also realized he was part of a lucky batch that saw campus recruitments at the graduate level. Not one to let the poor boy breathe easy in that brief moment of reckoning, being the mother that...

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A greeting card from a business associate

Posted by Aparna Kalra at 
Here's a greeting card my father's Swedish professional associate sent to him: It is cute and it conveys information about that country. To top that, it contains information about a scientist and his discovery. There is no better way to educate an entire generation. Do you think the Indian government/ private companies can come out with cards...

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Accountants recession-proof?

Posted by Poornima Mohandas at 
If there's one institute that says it's not worried about placements next year it is the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). "Our placements should not be affected by the economic meltdown because accountants are always needed," says Ved Jain, President at ICAI. Nevertheless the institute is taking no chances. It is...

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Of managing families and organizations

Posted by Rajeshwari Sharma at 
I almost had a feeling of déjà vu when I was speaking to chief executive officers who admitted that employees often know better about wastages in the organization than executives at the top. Many years ago, in 1988 to be precise, my maternal grandfather rebuked my uncle when he tried to hush my aunt when she was trying to suggest ways to reduce expense...

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Why can't we queue up straight?

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
Queues can be snaking but they are meant to be in a single file. Have been asking myself this for quite a while as to why we can't do something as simple as that? We are great at making multiple queues and we usually just bundle up as an unruly bunch of uncivilized ruffians. Making a single file and waiting for our turn is something we last did...

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What does it take to nurture a fifth generation employee?

Posted by Taru Bahl at 
On a recent visit to Tata Steel in Jamshedpur I was told there are homes where infants are being groomed to join the company, making them fifth generation employees. In fact all the people whom I met - and these were vice president level, had completed upwards of 20 years in the group. Lateral movement allowed many to shift location, city, department...

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Why do government offices look the way they do...

Posted by Aparna Kalra at 
Most beat reporters cannot escape visiting government-run offices. There is something soul-killing about them -- the standard green Godrej almirahs, chipped tea cups, slovenly furniture, check curtains, and a stale smell hanging in the air. The offices haven't changed since R K Laxman drew them so caustically though India is now a liberalised, growing...

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Will I get placed?

Posted by Poornima Mohandas at 
Students passing out in 2009 have it the worst as companies *** foot over hiring. IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management) are stealing our jobs, a student from SIBM (Symbiosis Institute of Business Management) and we in turn are taking jobs from schools that are below us in the pecking order. With the most alluring Wall Street jobs having vaporised ...

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