tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post7710064610320871327..comments2023-08-25T17:30:36.937+05:30Comments on Business Musings: When what happens at work becomes a life and death affairRameshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-52215694088255951092009-10-07T04:12:02.643+05:302009-10-07T04:12:02.643+05:30@Wagon R - Actually many companies do display grea...@Wagon R - Actually many companies do display great maturity in such things. I actually think its a shade better in India. But when the pressure of business gets to people unreasonably, sometimes crazy stuff happen.<br /><br />@Deepa - Stress at work is sometimes high, but its no different from the normal stresses of life. The extreme step is never warranted. But the normal stresses get multiplied manifold in difficult times such as this. A major trigger is massive job losses.<br /><br />@kiwi - Trust you to present the other side of the coin brilliantly. Of course, the manager is a squashed from all sides. I know what you went through, but you did all that with grace and care. That's all I am arguing for. And I equally press for managers to be supported through this as well - I know that firing somebody is the shittiest job on earth.<br /><br />@exkalibur - You make a very valid point. Maybe expectations are too much and result in big discontinuities. And equally true that what is extreme pressure in some societies may be normal stuff in others. After seeing school children in South Korea, I am willing to accept that the word stress must not be in the dictionary in any other country.<br /><br />@thoughtful train - How wonderfully put in inimitable thoughtful train style. The soft bed is what is needed.Rameshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-86839530216487159782009-10-07T04:04:29.555+05:302009-10-07T04:04:29.555+05:30@AJCL - Sad indeed. whatever happens, the extreme ...@AJCL - Sad indeed. whatever happens, the extreme step is unwarranted and yet people do it.<br /><br />@DA - Completely agree. The onus is on each one of us to be more humane - its not the law which can do this.<br /><br />@Sandhya - Beautiful statement - you may not be able to give the individual what he wants but need to give him what he can accept. Sums it up perfectly<br /><br />@Sri - Oh yes we are sometimes fragile and must own up to indivdual responsibility. But sometimes when you are older, vulnerable and lose your job with a family to support, its really really tough.<br /><br />@athivas. Absolutely - business and emotion can coexist. Business is just another field of human endeavour and the same positive and negative sides of humans manifest themselves there too. This is a sad story, but equally there are millions of hearwarming stories in business.Rameshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-74631833794405968942009-10-07T02:55:13.441+05:302009-10-07T02:55:13.441+05:30Everyone falls - no doubt about it. But if one fal...Everyone falls - no doubt about it. But if one falls on a soft bed, one can get up and go on to do better things than fall on a hard surface and shatter. In times of trouble, we should atleast have the sense to go look for our soft bed. <br /><br />And yes, its time we have had more humane bosses around.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-15318824755672639022009-10-07T00:37:47.761+05:302009-10-07T00:37:47.761+05:30I think the basic problem is related to unrealisti...I think the basic problem is related to unrealistic expectations and rates of growth. As a society we should settle for a responsible and sustainable rate of growth / profits / returns. We all have to be aware of the social costs. Having said that, I think the french demanding a 35 hr work week while many asian societies working a lot more is bound to have its repurcussions. It is the survival of the fittest, theory of natural selection at work all over again..exkalibur666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-54613569454425679782009-10-06T22:53:34.392+05:302009-10-06T22:53:34.392+05:30Do we live to work or work to live? While the Fran...Do we live to work or work to live? While the France Telecom story is indeed sad, look at it from the manager's perspective - so many stakeholders expectations to meet - His/her Board/ shareholders want to maximize returns,employees want certainty (which is incredibly difficult in trying times) the Govt wants every i dotted and t crossed in 'disestablishment' of jobs process and finally the manager's own rational vs. emotional battle. Having been a part of atleast 5 restructures (with one on the wrong side!) the sadness of seeing your team go from a manager's perspective is incredibly difficult to describe. Have a heart for those seemingly heartless monster managers who administer these restructures!kiwiblokenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-65211207918938202992009-10-06T22:20:09.685+05:302009-10-06T22:20:09.685+05:30In fact, such incidents occur as a result of work ...In fact, such incidents occur as a result of work pressures as well. In one of the top ranking IT companies in India, a guy had killed his old parents and himself over some heated agruement, after returning home from office. In this incident however, I would agree with Srivats, as to how fragile we have become!<br /><br />Coming back to your blog, there is so much more that can be done and should be done! Compassion is never out of place, anywhere!Deepahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16149267172223745802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-85923392610942230082009-10-06T18:56:35.368+05:302009-10-06T18:56:35.368+05:30Very few (we can number the companies in India) co...Very few (we can number the companies in India) companies have this element of human touch to such tough decisions. As Athivas pointed out above, business and emotion can never co-exist. In today's competitive world you have to be on top of things to be there in the top rankings. I share the view of having a human touch to such tough decision and make sure that the management carry the people's sentiments to a larger extent towards the exit period.Swamyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08098152588587590030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-63402752352761924992009-10-06T10:53:35.862+05:302009-10-06T10:53:35.862+05:30That is a real real sad story!!
I have a serious ...That is a real real sad story!!<br /><br />I have a serious doubt, Ramesh: Can business and emotion co-exist? If so, how much can each other tolerate one another??Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-35492164943862440482009-10-06T10:23:48.265+05:302009-10-06T10:23:48.265+05:30Thats incredibly sad story for sure, but on the ot...Thats incredibly sad story for sure, but on the other hand it also shows how fragile we have become. I completely agree with your view about taking soft manners on hard decisions, yet the responsibility of life depends on the individual as well isnt ? may be the company can promote the wellbeing and strong mind set or whatever program they can offer to creat more powerful willed employees.srihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05163300976131007175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-46014286343367716012009-10-06T10:18:30.488+05:302009-10-06T10:18:30.488+05:30Restructuring is a part of an evolution of any org...Restructuring is a part of an evolution of any organization. But then, the human element in the restructuring is very essential. when the office i was working for closed down, and i was part of the restructuring team, every individual had a story to tell, every heart had a unfulfilled aspiration. there is definitely disatisfaction in every restructuring. there is a reconciliation process which both the company and the employee has to go through. but then it is very important to handle this very sensitively and with a human touch. you may not be able to give the individual what he wants but need to give him what he can accept.Sandhya Sriramnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-88285310310156931452009-10-06T09:54:01.402+05:302009-10-06T09:54:01.402+05:30While the France Telecom case sounds particularly ...While the France Telecom case sounds particularly egregious this is a wake up call for all companies. At our university, they increase the number of psychologists and help lines round the clock during exam week to help student cope with the sudden increase in stress and so institutionalizing such professional help at times of extreme stress may be one way to deal with it. But then maybe it is also time for all of us to take individual responsibility to treat people with the compassion that we'd want shown to us - the boss, the coworker, the wife, the brother, the friend, all of us... and while you highlight some particularly distressing outcomes, people are going through a lot these days and we should not forget to be just more human - unfortunately that's not something that can be made into law.DAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4740849900073154554.post-63718581205304191472009-10-06T09:48:35.627+05:302009-10-06T09:48:35.627+05:30this was one of the most shocking and saddest piec...this was one of the most shocking and saddest pieces ofnews i read in recent times.. and i wondered just what drove these people to throw away a life for a company that obviously did not care much about them.. u r right when u say, some hard decisions need to be conveyed in the right way..A journey called Lifehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09957576311383232506noreply@blogger.com