Working Smart - 1

Over the years as we have transitioned from a traditional workplace with physical files to the networked environment with information being stored virtually. With numerous people working on projects from multiple locations, information cannot be kept on individual machines and needs to be saved on servers. Information needs to be accessible instantly and to everyone.

Most companies have IT protocols in place instructing people of the do’s and don’ts. But rarely will you find tips about how to work smart and these posts are all about working smart and having information at your fingertips. 

Finding that directory

A large part of my work is to update the various documents, reports, and registers that need to be maintained in a Project Management environment. I prefer to use a shortcut on my desktop with the link to the directory saved and I am ready to go. 

This way, I access the correct folder every time and I do’t have to remember the long path to the directory.  which more often than not would be nested several levels below your project folder. These links can then be safely saved on your desktop. 

If you have too many links – create a word document on your desktop and use the function available in word to hyperlink to your directory/directories and you will panic less when you need that information quickly.

Work Smart and share your experiences about Working Smart

Also Read:
Working Smart - 2 Save your files with a date
Working Smart - 3 Find that email

Immigration Blues – India

Having moved several countries since 2005, four countries and two continents, I am penning down my experiences with immigration authorities of various countries starting with India

ECR

An oddity with the Indian system of issuing passports is the famous ECR. This can pop up when you are checking in for your international flight out of the country for a job. If you are just visiting a friend, this may not be an issue.

What is ECR?

Bureau of Immigration states that,
As per the Emigration Act, 1983, Emigration Check Required (ECR) categories of Indian passport holders, require to obtain "Emigration Clearance" from the office of Protector of Emigrants (POE), Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs for going to following 18 countries.
United Arab Emirates (UAE), The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Malaysia, Libya, Jordan, Yemen, Sudan, Brunei, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Syria, Lebanon, Thailand, Iraq (emigration banned).
However , the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (Emigration Policy Division) have allowed ECR passport holders traveling abroad for purposes others than employment to leave the country on production of valid passport, valid visa and return ticket at the immigration counters at international airports in India w.e.f. 1st October 2007.
If the RPO has issued Indian passport either with endorsement of “Emigration Check Required” or no endorsement of “Emigration Check Required” in the passport, POE clearance is required only when there is “Emigration Check Required” endorsement in the passport.
It stands for Emigration check required. Its a well meaning check put into place by the Indian authorities to ensure that the droves of labourers who work in various countries are not cheated and are employed by genuine employers abroad.

When does this stamp appear on your passport?  

At the time of your passport application, if you have not presented your graduation certificate or you were still in the process of acquiring a degree, then the Indian authorities would have put this stamp on your passport. The authorities deem that you are likely to be conned by some unscrupulous tout who has lured you into a job with some sweet talk and promises.

What to do if you have ECR?

If you already have a job then follow the following steps before trying to board your flight otherwise you will be turned back from the check-in counter. No amount of talking or convincing the person will work.

1. Get a translation of your visa (if its not in English) from a Government approved translator. If you are in Delhi, then you could try the underground Palika Bazaar for the translators. At least, they were there in 2005 but could have moved
2. You will be required to present an affidavit which will say that you will not hold the Indian government responsible if something goes wrong with your job abroad.
3. Present both of these to the Protector of Emigration, Ministry of Overseas Indian affairs. Please refer to the POE offices for details

For more details please refer to the Bureau of Immigration website

In my next post I shall be writing about my experience with the various Indian embassies in the countries where I have worked.

Is politeness at work important?

Impossible deadlines, a mountain of deliverables and meagre resources – a reality of our times. Rudeness and bullying are a way of life. Especially if you work in a multicultural workplace where you have expats working for a living. The Gulf or the Middle East is once such region where you will encounter these situations.

Image courtesy of imagerymajestic at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

When you are under pressure - always - to deliver against impossible deadlines, its difficult to be polite with your juniors.
Scenario 1
"Just do as I say and I don't care how you do it - I need it by tomorrow" How often have you said this to your juniors or people who report to you? If this sounds like you in a stressful situation then you are just setting yourself up for a disaster. You may get your stuff sent to you on time but chances are that it may not be great quality or full of mistakes as it has been completed more out of fear than a sense of ownership of the deliverable. You have successfully passed on your stress to the person who is performing in fear rather than a sense of ownership.
Let's replace this by an alternative
Scenario 2
"Look, there is this issue with the deliverable that has gone to the client. There are a few mistakes that should have been picked up but we could not do it at the time. I need to know what is the best possible time frame we can do this correctly and send it out. I appreciate your current workload but this needs to be done as soon as possible. When do you think we can send this out?”
Chances are your junior will really appreciate your politeness and may even surprise you by turning it around in record time – even quicker than you anticipated in Scenario 1. In the first scenario you have unthinkingly transferred the stress without inspiring ownership. You have also ascribed blame and fault to the person indirectly. In scenario 2 you are seeking an answer as a leader rather than seeking to transfer the blame. “We” is the operative word here and a team spirit is established. More often than not, you may just hear the words – “I will do this right away because you have shown me the respect and are asking politely”
Its easy to be a bully at work by being inconsiderate and thinking you are the only responsible person around. That is never the case. Assign responsibility and allow people to take ownership.

Some images of Revit work - Classical French Renaissance facade study Part 1

See the second part of this post

Sustainability what it means to me.. 3 of n

Old Notebooks

As a school going boy, the empty pages in the notebooks at the end of the year were removed carefully and assembled in a stack. Several such notebooks yielded some significant amount of ruled paper which then got carefully bound with a thread and ended up as a rough note book for the next school year.  

When I started doing this for my daughter, twenty years later, she was reprimanded by her teacher to use a new notebook for her rough work.  What has changed from the past? Is it just a fad or fashion to be called sustainable but not practice it from the core?

Image courtesy bplanet / FreeDigitalphotos.net

Computer stationery

In the times when I was a tenth grader, computers were a luxury and PC's did not exist. They required large rooms and were a source of envy for most. Printers were huge and they used reams and reams of perforated paper for the output - (the monitors as we know then today also did not exist.) The backs of these papers were blank and the printed side was ruled. It could have been other way around but I cannot recollect now. Dad would bring these home after the computer department would be finished with these printouts and they were "raddi" or waste for them and Dad would collect them from office and I would practice my math sums on them.

To this day, I insist that the prints taken from the printers today are at least used on both the sides before they are discarded as there is at least a 50% saving on the paper consumption. Down the line this saves trees and forests.

Printing

I remember the day I bought my first printer twenty years back. Since then, I have always been conscious of how and when to print. One of the more “sustainable” ways that I use is

• Use the other blank side of printed paper.
• If you are just printing for reading, try printing two pages on the same page. This way you actually end up saving much more than 50% but I won’t bother you with the math.
• Use refilled cartridges for your everyday printing. I know the printer companies are going to frown on this but then it is more sustainable as the cartridges don’t end up in a trash can and someone gets a job refilling your cartridges and you get a cheaper print.

Sustainabilty is not a fashion or a plaque on a building, its a way of life and an attitude

Sustainibility - What it means to me.. Part 2 of n

I have often had people look at me weirdly when I use the unused blank side of a paper which has been printed. In my opinion its a perfectly justifiable use of paper for sketches or making small notes. This attitude has been with me since my teenage years.
In this post I am going to write about the Indian attitude towards "Paper" in general and how we have been traditionally sustainable - long before the email signatures of today "Do you need to print this?"
The first part of this series is here.

Newspaper

As a child, I remember there was a special place in the house where all the old newspapers were accumulated for a whole month. Bhaiyyaji would come at the end of every month with his usual sing-song voice calling out - "paassti -paper". Pasti - is a vernacular gujarati word meaning "waste paper".  He would have a fixed rate per kilogram for English and a slightly lower rate for the vernacular - gujarati papers. Probably the english newspapers used a different quality of paper.

A few months' old newspapers would get you the money for about half month's worth of subscription money. But that was never the point. The newspapers ended up getting recycled in various ways. 

The neighbourhood retailer would probable buy the old newspapers from the bhaiyyaji and the old newspapers would end up as wrapping paper for your monthly rations which you would purchase from him. 

These wrapping papers also ended up being recycled ! Mom would carefully unwrap them and empty the contents into a steel container with a lid (dabba) and remove the creases from the paper and store them separately. These would then emerge from the storage place when the veggies were being peeled or the poha or flour was being dehusked to gather the waste remains. Only then would these land up in the waste bin. 

This became a system year after year and a routine to be followed. Bargaining with the raddiwallah bhaiyyaji became a passion and a pastime. It rarely yielded more than 50 paise more than the rate but it was definitely no mean achievement.

Another use for  the newspapers that was quite common, was to use them as shelf liners or backing sheets. These helped in absorbing the moisture and probably the smell of ink from the newspaper kept the insects away. The shelf lining was changed every few months and it used to be fun to read the old news and reminisce the past. We still follow this inf our home wherever we go. I get teased by my colleagues when I take the old newspapers from them for such insignificant uses. In my city in India, this tradition has now been modernised and one can have your old newspapers picked up at a pre decided price. Talk about being conveniently sustainable!!

More on paper in the next post

10. Entertain the team with emails written in (im)proper English

Image courtesy rakratchada torsap / Freedigitalphotos.net

As the last post in the series 10 (un)common mistakes to avoid in Project Management, I conclude the series with this post. here are some lines extracted from emails written. The lines have not been modified and I will leave it to the reader to interpret some of the meanings. If this becomes impossible or if you end up doubling in laughter or both, go to the end of the post where I have put in some hints about the lines. I have highlighted the faux pas in bold and italics. Some of them are really priceless nuggets. Have fun

1. … let us give pleasure to the client …
   
2. I don't what you to advice or work on any problem......
   
3. If [Person] what any information from your end or what your input for any …...
   
4. Let's discusses in detail when we come there......
   
5. I thought much , now can a they say the submission is on [day of the week] . All the tender which you see in [Place], they is no fixed date for submission. Anyways we will submit the same on [Date] .
   
6. I don't what you to work on your …....
   
7. How whats the problem …...
   
8. we have haired him has [Designation]. I what him to do that...
   
9. he what's [Place] team to make a ….
   
10. I what this to be done before …..
    
11. they what Engineers full time....
    
12. Please advice , so that we don't what 100 idea in between. I what every one.....
    
13. Please note - Team is busy with Project can waste time in training every day. Let's do it once and close it asap.

Hints

• For the first one read pleasure as pressure
• Read what as want
• Now and how are interchangeable
• they and there are interchangeable

Links to the previous posts
9. Don’t govern by threats
8. Support the team on the Ground
7. Provide Mission Critical information to the Project Team
6. Resource appropriately
5. How to (not) do your budget in five easy steps
4. Read the contract you just signed
3. Don't promise the impossible in a ridiculous timeframe
2. How (not) to win a contract
1. New Business Areas

9. Don’t govern by threats

Image courtesy Stockimages / Freedigitalphotos.net

As a cherry on the cake, complete the circle by threatening employees by a variety of threats and bully them into submission. Completely politicise the working atmosphere by turning each employee against the other and follow through by asking each employee to “report” about the others privately. Although these may be stone age tactics, these are used effectively by managers in dealing with a new and superbly qualified professional team. 

International organisations world over recognise bullying to be detrimental to the work process. Some of the signs of bullying are :

• Micromanagement at all stages of the work process hamper the flow of the work and indirectly question the integrity of the employees. This effectively reduces an experienced employee to a rookie who needs to ask for instructions at every stage
• Intruding privacy with phone calls at odd hours and clear threats to answer emails received on hand held devices within minutes of receiving them. Not answering phone calls or emails would lead to a “dressing down” in front of other employees – another clear bullying tactic.
• Displaying intimidating behaviour about specific employees in front of other employees in their absence by threatening to fire them – incessantly and constantly.
• Constantly deflecting requests for personal time off which is contractually due to the employee thereby traumatising employees.

To top it all, none of these “rules” are available in the company rule book or available from the Human Resource department.  The employee has little or no choice but to fall in line with the bullying tactics of the boss. The employee can

• Establish ground rules and areas to allow the “micromanagement” to slowly metamorphose to a stage where it becomes redundant or even stupid
• Gradually and firmly, establish the limits of office time and private family time.
• For the intimidating behaviour, the employees could unite against such behaviour and stand up to the bully. After all, one can’t “fire” the team all at once.
• For the requests of leave, if it is clearly due and official, the employees should stand up for their rights. Eventually, the bully will back down.

In the tenth and concluding post, look forward to an entertaining piece on email writing. Links to the previous posts are below

8. Support the team on the Ground
7. Provide Mission Critical information to the Project Team
6. Resource appropriately
5. How to (not) do your budget in five easy steps
4. Read the contract you just signed
3. Don't promise the impossible in a ridiculous timeframe
2. How (not) to win a contract
1. New Business Areas

8. Support the team on the Ground

Image courtesy:  africa / Freedigitalphotos.net

Mistakes happen. Sometimes several of them at once or in a sequence. The team on the ground, under most circumstances at least has the strong support from the core team which is experienced and has encountered many such difficult project situations. Not So.
The core team is busy with other projects or is simply interested in churning out the monthly invoices to protect the bottom lines and manage salaries of the team. Support and advice in the form of a conference call can become difficult to organise.  In strictly hierchical firms, independent decisions by project teams are vigourously controlled where the project delivery becomes a risk.
Looking back at such situations, one could:

• Draw up clear protocols for raising project related issues all the way to the top of the hierarchy of the firm. Even top management including owners should remain accessible for project related issues. The access can of course be controlled and monitored so as to involve them in only crucial issues.
• Regular contact with the project team in forms of conference calls or meetings.
• If meetings or calls do not become possible, regular reports should be scrutinised and advice given for crucial, unanswered issues

In the next post, I shall be discussing the ninth point in the series – Don’t govern by threats.
Links to the previous posts
7. Provide Mission Critical information to the Project Team
6. Resource appropriately
5. How to (not) do your budget in five easy steps
4. Read the contract you just signed
3. Don't promise the impossible in a ridiculous timeframe
2. How (not) to win a contract
1. New Business Areas

7. Provide Mission critical information to the project team

Image courtesy Stuart Miles / Freedigitalphotos.net

After all the mistakes listed so far, an employee would definitely expect to start the project with all the critical and important information necessary for the project. Not likely. The team who has put together the project does not deem it necessary that the Project delivery team has all the critical information required for the timely delivery of the project. This is often due to lack of trust while passing on the information and mistaking the delivery team to be a an adversary rather than an important part of the project delivery process. When members of the team come from several different cultures, countries and time zones this often becomes a major problem to the delivery of the project.
Important milestones in the contracts are missed consistently because of this lack of communication. This affects the overall project delivery and in some serious cases this has led to the entire contract being terminated and the teams of the stakeholders entering into arbitration. This is a messy, time consuming affair which can be avoided.
Simply put,

• Communicate with your team about the key milestones of the projects
• Ensure that the team is “on the same page” and everyone is not following their own agendas.
• Communication protocols should be clearly established especially when teams from various nationalities, cultures, educational backgrounds and disparity of ages is coming together to deliver the projects in countries of the Middle East or Africa. This becomes critical when people are working across several time zones at once.

In the next post you can look forward to Support your team on the Ground.
Links to previous posts
6. Resource appropriately
5. How to (not) do your budget in five easy steps
4. Read the contract you just signed
3. Don't promise the impossible in a ridiculous timeframe
2. How (not) to win a contract
1. New Business Areas