Universal Truths

Last month I ordered some music CDs from a web-site. Nothing unusual or high-tech about that - these days one can do those things as a part of regular life, without being astonished at where we've reached in the pursuit of development and happiness as the 'civilised world' understands it. But there was something quite amazing about this particular instance, when I reflected a bit about it this morning.

The web-site I ordered from (www.musicabona.com) is an e-commerce extension of a music shop based in Prague in the Czech republic, and boasts a fine collection of Czech and Moravian folk music, among other genres. One of the CDs I got, is called "Ensemble Ambrosius - The Zappa Album", recorded by a Finnish band in Helsinki as a tribute to Frank Zappa. The instruments used are from the Baroque period (e.g., harpsichord, archlute, dulcimer, etc., some of which might be nearing extinction, in this techno age) and the content is all original Zappa compositions.

And this is what I was struck by while listening to it in my car this morning...

Here's a music aficionado from Mumbai, India who ordered from a Czech web-site, a recording of music originally composed by an irreverent, rebellious, genre-defying Californian, arranged for and played on archaic instruments by a bunch of young Finnish fans of his from Helsinki. Frankly, I was zapped, when I thought about it that way.

For those of my friends who are not familiar with Frank Zappa ... he's the sort of chap who'd define a composer as "... a guy who goes around forcing his will on unsuspecting air molecules, often with the assistance of unsuspecting musicians." May his soul rest in peace.

Some truths are truly universal. Music is one of them.

Portrait of an Organization as an Organism

About a year ago I was approached by a journalist representing a leading newspaper, working on a theme for their 'Appointments' section. She sounded brisk and business like on the phone and, in a very no-nonsense tone, urged me to respond, urgently, to a few questions she would mail me later. I did all that, dutifully, but sadly never saw any of it published in any section of any newspaper, and never heard from her again, to this day. (What is it with some people? Do they really think they are so important that they can be as ill-mannered as they like and it won't matter?) Anyway, now that I have my own blog, and haven't written in a while, I thought I'd reproduce that brief exchange from my records, dust it a bit, let it breathe and be read.

So here it is ...

Q.1 Listening / Sensing / Seeing (how important are these values to your organisation?)

Context: We are looking for new and novel ways to think about these topics. We need new language, new examples, fresh approaches to communicating these ideas.

Q.2 Where do you go to listen and sense new ideas / trends / innovations in their embryonic stage?

Q.3 In your organization, is this done individually or collectively as well?

Q.4 What personal practices, non-work related, have you found enhance your ability to sense new and fresh thinking?

A.1 A tight, well-knit organization operates like a multi-cellular organism. If its internal nervous system is good, it is able to perceive, process and paraphrase its environment far more effectively than an organism whose senses are duller and/or whose nervous system is impaired (in the case of an organization, read that as: not cohesive, not unified in the pursuit of a common goal, not deeply networked internally to pass messages clearly and without distortion). Listening, sensing, seeing ... is the beginning. In a dazzlingly bright and noisy world, teeming with life and bursting with energy, it is important to develop faculties that can process inputs as fast as they arrive; important to develop a taxonomy that is broad enough and deep enough to allow categorization of even the most bizarre and unusual perceptions and sensory stimuli; and important to retain balance in the wake of the tsunami of change. Organizations that do not have a sense about their environment are likely to be ‘engulfed and devoured’ (just as organisms that do not adapt to their environment are bound to fall prey to predators and become extinct).

A.2 We don’t need to go anywhere specific. There is no secret place where change emanates from or disruptions originate from. It is all around us. Electronic media in the new world - in Marshall MacLuhan's global village - surround us and engage our attention (in some cases intrusively so). It is difficult to tear oneself apart from the new media, to isolate oneself in a cocoon of seclusion (how far can you go, to get away from email, mobile connectivity, SMS and instant messaging?). You can run but you can't hide - not for long. On the other hand, it is easy to get distracted by trivia, fads and shiny baubles of ‘information’ ... tales told by idiots signifying nothing. Focus helps where senses distract. Deep within the organization's sanctum sanctorum, there must be an unwavering sense of direction underlying its vision of the future and its own role in it.

A.3 In the portrait of the 'together' organization as a multi-cellular organism, this is done by the cells whose raison d'être it is do to it (e.g., R&D, Marketing, Corporate Planning), as also by other cells that come into contact with the external environment, for whom this may not be a day job. In an organized structure this is institutionalized and works like a clock-work system – messages are quickly transmitted to wherever there is a need to know. In an evolving enterprise, this could be the happenstance whose serendipity sparks a move towards purposeful and planned recurrence. In a chaotic company, this could be done individually and/or collectively but may serve limited purpose. Ours is an evolving organization and is moving towards implementing mechanisms that observe, analyze and synthesize relevant environmental change information.

A.4 Networking with industry professionals, accessing current research from some of the best knowledge / research providers in the world, being on the subscription list of key trend spotting services and news updates. Also, working on expanding and refining my world-view i.e. improving my taxonomy for classifying and understanding the universe (this is best done by pondering – a habit that it gradually losing traction among most people in today’s temporally challenged era). Simultaneously learning to distance myself sufficiently from all preconceived notions, ideas, thoughts and feelings, so that every new input is seen with as few filters as possible, so as to understand its true import.

Over the years, I have been studying, with interest and care, the interface between percept and precept, and have been trying to keep that interplay area clean. My goal is to reach a stage where the observed is taken a priori and assimilated into the system of thought and belief without the observer altering the observed, or distorting the observation to suit existing beliefs. Quite often, taking in observations a priori leads to intense questioning – sometimes radically so. The fear that some of these questions may challenge the foundations of one’s understanding of the world, is what prevents true assimilation, and the search for truth is once again thwarted. True seekers are not afraid of the truth. Their mind is without fear, and head held high. They will not accept compromises nor will they allow their minds, no matter how clever, to fool themselves.

The Ontology of Quality

For some time now, I've been pondering the notion of Quality in the light of the fact that Indian providers of IT / Enabled Services have achieved more in the area of assessment and certification, compared to their competitors from the Western world.

From a historical perspective, in order to compete in the Western markets and make a credible claim to be ‘world-class’, there was (obviously) a need for non-Western hemisphere based aspirants to prove that they were, at the very least, on par with the established incumbents in those markets. Clearly, the stamp of approval from a first-world certification authority provided the basis to qualify as a competitive bidder in international RFPs. In comparison, first-world service providers had been around for several decades (some even over a century old), with a sound track record and a classy reputation carefully and painstakingly built over time. Their CXOs were part of the same ‘old boy’ networks as their customers’ CXOs. This was the club that players from emerging markets wanted admittance into, and quality certification was their ticket.

What may not be so obvious is the subtle but important difference in the understanding of Quality in what has traditionally been a market-driven economy (where the Customer is, and has always been, king) and the understanding of Quality in what has traditionally been a controlled economy and has only recently begun to enjoy the fruits of liberalisation (where customer-centric strategies are seen as revolutionary new ideas). In materialistic America, for example, where existence has always preceded essence, the concept of Quality is superseded by (and defined by) the concept of Customer Satisfaction, and subsumed within it. If you have someone buying from you and paying you, it means you're doing a good job with whatever it is that you’re selling. Obviously, they had a choice - you always have a competitor, even if it is nobody. And they chose you. Ergo you are good. Methodology frameworks and the need for established processes, standards, testing, measurement, benchmarking etc. are seen as academic pursuits of the more intellectually-minded geeks in the engineering / production / delivery functions, by a seemingly benevolent and indulgent business-minded leadership, for whom the ultimate test is out there in the market, where a valiant sales force battles tough bids and wins. More business, more repeat business (especially by beating competition) and not necessarily certification, is proof of good quality.

In spiritual India, on the contrary, where essence has always preceded existence, Quality (like nirvana) tends to be an ideal, to be pursued as an end in itself. Practitioners and managers in this environment may ignore or even oppose customer requests, citing the need to comply with ‘our own internal’ standards. I've always found it ironical that we understand servility and servitude, but not service. It is more important for us to be warm and friendly to our customers than to provide efficient service (as opposed to the Western world, where people are generally cold and business-like but strive to provide good service). To be fair, such markets are fighting hard to overcome legacy issues such as state-owned monopolies, government control through a draconian regulatory framework (especially when it comes to foreign trade), a socialistic mind-set where profit is sometimes a bad word, a culture of collusion among players who ought to have been competitors, and, to top it all, a business mind-set shaped by the economics of scarcity – where the Supplier ruled, and customers queued up only to be put on a waiting list. Even today, the attitude of a dominant player in these parts, towards a local customer, would be: “I am big. I am certified to kingdom come. I cater to a global clientele and get paid in dollars. If you are not happy with me, it’s your problem”.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that it is all about balancing Customer Satisfaction with Quality, where the two are not necessarily coincidental. If demands of mature customers and pressure from competition do not drive evolution and growth, then the internal pursuit of excellence should. Whatever it is, the bar needs to be raised. Constantly.

Apropos allowing truth to prevail ...

I continue to be amazed by the blatant double-speak that people indulge in, and in a strange way, the world encourages. Whatever happened to the search for truth? I guess people don't want to go there any more - it's not exciting enough! It is one thing to learn to deal with ambiguity and uncertainty and paradox. But I missed that part when they taught us to live a lie. Taught us secretly, of course: no one ever used those words. But the world quietly allows such people to succeed, and actively encourages it or at the very least looks the other way. Which in fact proves the point: say "say what you do; do what you say" but do "say what you need to say; do what you need to do". Yup I got it, boss. Too late to change the twists and turns in my double helix, but will try and inject some of this into the kids.

Sadly, these days it is being seen as prudish to embrace virtue (in the form of integrity, for example) and condemn lack of character. In fact these very phrases seem to have developed an archaic ring, in a time when we worship gloss. And if this sounds like a lament for old school values that are dead and gone, think again. These are some of the principles that have kept the world spinning. But then who cares? Whose lie is it anyway ...

Welcome!

Welcome all ye fellow travellers who pass through this space at this time! Come leave your unique imprint chez moi. Share your experiences and your insights. Start conversations about important stuff (e.g., what is important and what isn't?) or about strange magical things. Nothing is too trivial or inane, else the world wouldn't have been.