I wake up in the morning, the start of a new day. Unknown to me, at some time during the night, the day has changed. I have adapted to this change subconsciously – I knew this change was going to happen. Monday would turn into Tuesday and I at some level in my mind, I have accounted for my approach to this day. However, certain tasks during my day undergo a change. I find that there is no electricity in the morning – I will not have hot water for a bath. Oops! I have to change my system to brace for the cold water on a chilly morning in Bengaluru. Leaving for work later, I find that the road near a traffic signal has been dug up for repairs. I have to change my route again to be able to reach the office. I have adapted to these little differences in my daily routine, sure. How could I adopt to bigger changes happening around
Author: mithunhebbar
Honesty – a casualty?
Honesty is the first aspect that builds trust between colleagues at the work place. While I insist on honesty being paramount, it is quite remarkable to see how it stands to be one of the most compromised values that one holds. At the risk of being pessimistic about values, I do believe that honesty becomes a by-stander when it pressure is on and the delivery of products are at risk. Far too often have I seen honesty about the product quality, about timelines and processes being fudged underneath words. The power of a word is more powerful than a sword, as the cliche goes. True enough. Meetings and written exchanges between people are powerful reminders of this cliche. Of course, as a “realist”, circumventing honesty at a sufficiently high level is termed as strategy. So it is a strategic move when India does not discuss the CTBT treaty (if I remember correctly) in public while it is being signed. It
Quality and gamification?
Ensuring that the product we build meets the high standards expected by customers is an ever lasting goal for every product that has ever been designed and sold. Shipping a product on time with quality is a goal that becomes challenging one way or another. There is pressure from the customers, market place, stakeholders, etc. at all times that clouds decision making at key moments when the product comes close to delivery. For example, the cook who has to rush into the next house (customer awaits) can allocate only one hour for cooking at the current house (customer). Some dishes can take longer to cook. Regardless, short cuts are found – the gas is turned on high, the vegetables are cut in large pieces and eventually, the food is not cooked completely as time perceived by him/ her runs out. Quality of the food becomes a casualty in the face of pressure of timely delivery. The same principle applies to
BBMP Gamification
The current system in Bangalore – splitting the city into multiple wards with a BBMP office in each ward works very well in terms of distributing the span of control. I believe that competition helps improve performance. Usain Bolt would not be training hard and running at his peak if he were not challenged by his competitors. Even in the corporate world, competition breeds innovation and superior performance. Google out-thought Microsoft in the early 2000s much like Microsoft out thought its competition in the 1980s and 90s. The challenge in our case study is to inculcate a feeling of pride and competition between the BBMP wards. Taking off from the gamification example in my previous blog post, I think that BBMP wards should be players in a different sort of game. One in which they are graded on their key performance indicators and this system should be visible to all citizens. Each ward in-charge is accountable for the results that
Gamification of road building process – 1
After a long time, I return to Gamification – a topic that is close to my heart given the potential that this simple tool has, to improve business processes and work for social good and welfare. This post will be split into 3 parts. In this part, I will talk about the game system and some of the benefits that it will bring about to the contractors/ players. In the second part, I will delve into the other part of the game involving the government and the competition and rewards that the gamified system can bring. Finally, in the 3rd part, we will take a look at how the quality of the work can be reinforced and maintained at a high standard using game concepts. In Bangalore, as in many cities across India, a major problem exists in the quality of the roads. Every year, the monsoon rains brings with it cheer for us citizens along with despair for commuters
Mithun's Musings 