Friday, July 20, 2007
Of DJIA And Tai
DJIA is down 149.33 points (1.07%) as I write this and I am expecting at least 100 points rise in the BSE sensex on Monday.
Also expected is the ascent of the Tai and the fall of Mr. Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Poor man. He has friends across political outfits but cannot speak to spirits !
Also expected is the ascent of the Tai and the fall of Mr. Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Poor man. He has friends across political outfits but cannot speak to spirits !
Loss
The markets ended flat today. NSE at 4,566 (+3.95) and BSE at 15,566 (+15.42) today. But the loss on this 2oth day of July 2007 was big.
Today I lost a very nice colleague. A colleague who shall take off to a distant land to pursue her dreams and maybe her father's dreams too.
The young lady in question was too good for her age and experience. Hardly six months out of college, she turned out to be so dependable. So sincere and such a sweetheart. I am not sure how much I was able to influence her, but I shall never forget her for certain.
Manjiri, if you are reading this, take a bow !
Today I lost a very nice colleague. A colleague who shall take off to a distant land to pursue her dreams and maybe her father's dreams too.
The young lady in question was too good for her age and experience. Hardly six months out of college, she turned out to be so dependable. So sincere and such a sweetheart. I am not sure how much I was able to influence her, but I shall never forget her for certain.
Manjiri, if you are reading this, take a bow !
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Of Software "Tasters", Influential People, Flying Mamas & Papa's Darling Daughters
Scene I - Me on WWW
I have done this in the past for some good humor and I keep on doing this once in a while. I run a search on Orkut for all having Infosys in their profile. The idea is to find out about young people in my profession. I have a soft corner for Infy as I learnt my tricks there and thought highly of the young crowd who joined the place until I was around.
One gent has put "Software Taster" in his career skills. Then there is a testimonial written for a lady that reads something like "she is the most influential person in my life". Obviously the references are to software testing and some lady who has been the greatest influence in this guys life. Once again I am reminded of Basab and his claim about young techies in India.
Scene II - Me at Piramyd (TruMart)
I am shopping at TruMart on SB Road when I see a mama with a kid in tow. The kid is old enough to comprehend simple sentences. So? What is it about this mama and this kid? You find plenty of them at Piramyd!
Mama is wearing a black tee-shirt that has a smart message on the front. It reads:
"Avoid airport security. Fly nude."
Scene III - Me at Dominos Pizza outlet (flashback)
A cute kid and her warm n huge dad (a sardar with turban and beard) are playing a game while all of us wait for our takeaway pizza. The kid wants to take a short run-up and jump off from the plinth which is about 2 feet high. She is slightly worried if daddy dearest would be able to hold her in his arms when she takes off! "Papa aap pakadoge naa?" she asks and papa assures her.
After the first attempt she realises that papa would be there and she does an encore. Wish daddy dearest will always be there to break her fall when she grows up & takes off for other kind of flights.
I have done this in the past for some good humor and I keep on doing this once in a while. I run a search on Orkut for all having Infosys in their profile. The idea is to find out about young people in my profession. I have a soft corner for Infy as I learnt my tricks there and thought highly of the young crowd who joined the place until I was around.
One gent has put "Software Taster" in his career skills. Then there is a testimonial written for a lady that reads something like "she is the most influential person in my life". Obviously the references are to software testing and some lady who has been the greatest influence in this guys life. Once again I am reminded of Basab and his claim about young techies in India.
Scene II - Me at Piramyd (TruMart)
I am shopping at TruMart on SB Road when I see a mama with a kid in tow. The kid is old enough to comprehend simple sentences. So? What is it about this mama and this kid? You find plenty of them at Piramyd!
Mama is wearing a black tee-shirt that has a smart message on the front. It reads:
"Avoid airport security. Fly nude."
Scene III - Me at Dominos Pizza outlet (flashback)
A cute kid and her warm n huge dad (a sardar with turban and beard) are playing a game while all of us wait for our takeaway pizza. The kid wants to take a short run-up and jump off from the plinth which is about 2 feet high. She is slightly worried if daddy dearest would be able to hold her in his arms when she takes off! "Papa aap pakadoge naa?" she asks and papa assures her.
After the first attempt she realises that papa would be there and she does an encore. Wish daddy dearest will always be there to break her fall when she grows up & takes off for other kind of flights.
Their Cheese, My Cheese
Last night I started keying in a paper on the contractual aspects of setting up an India to India engagement between Indian IT service firms and India captives of US/ European firms. Something that I was closely involved with in my previous job and I suspect was one of the first few attempts in India. The paper was nearly done before I switched over to Orkut and my weblogs. But I was left with a couple of thoughts.
It has been a while (more than six months) since I did something that was intellectually challenging and professionally satisfying. All these six months I was involved in business development, resource mobilization and management of program and/or project objectives. Not that these activities are less challenging in themselves, but these were not the kind of challenges I am looking for. And when you end up doing something you do not enjoy, it is like pushin' shit uphill.
The second thought that crossed my mind was that maybe I am working with people who are less intense than me, or with people who have a different set of priorities.
I can understand that programmers and analysts who are too junior might have a different set of challenges and different priorities. Their immediate challenge might be to get the piece of software working and still manage to leave office in time enough to catch the latest movie they planned with their buddies & the dinner at a chic restaurant on high street. Good for them !
What worries me more are the priorities of peers & superiors. They seem to be in no hurry to get home in time for a movie or a dinner at some fancy eatery. They spend most of their times at their desks adding very little value to the firm and the industry. Their immediate priority seems to be to settle into a position, overseas for most of them, where they have a promised tenure and a decent sized crowd to manage. A promised tenure for the overseas candidates so that they can repatriate dollar savings back home and fund the purchase of that fancy row house. A decent sized crowd for the ones left in India so that they can stake their claim to the next big title and the next big cubicle. Their cheese !
It has been a while (more than six months) since I did something that was intellectually challenging and professionally satisfying. All these six months I was involved in business development, resource mobilization and management of program and/or project objectives. Not that these activities are less challenging in themselves, but these were not the kind of challenges I am looking for. And when you end up doing something you do not enjoy, it is like pushin' shit uphill.
The second thought that crossed my mind was that maybe I am working with people who are less intense than me, or with people who have a different set of priorities.
I can understand that programmers and analysts who are too junior might have a different set of challenges and different priorities. Their immediate challenge might be to get the piece of software working and still manage to leave office in time enough to catch the latest movie they planned with their buddies & the dinner at a chic restaurant on high street. Good for them !
What worries me more are the priorities of peers & superiors. They seem to be in no hurry to get home in time for a movie or a dinner at some fancy eatery. They spend most of their times at their desks adding very little value to the firm and the industry. Their immediate priority seems to be to settle into a position, overseas for most of them, where they have a promised tenure and a decent sized crowd to manage. A promised tenure for the overseas candidates so that they can repatriate dollar savings back home and fund the purchase of that fancy row house. A decent sized crowd for the ones left in India so that they can stake their claim to the next big title and the next big cubicle. Their cheese !
