Consultants Everywhere...

About a decade back, if any one used a word "Consultancy" or "Consultant", it usually meant a highly respectable and select few organizations or in short the Big5/6/7 or niche consulting firms. Joining a consulting firm used to be highest priority for any MBA grad.

Today, it is the most "mis-used" word and practice. Wherever, in whichever project you see, there are consultants and most of them abusing the worthy practice by either using Microsoft's powerful "Copy & Paste" technique or just writing whatever is dictated by the OEMs/influencers. A company picks up a consulting assignment of writing a solution document/ RFP/vendor selection for a client without even an iota of domain experience.

What is end-result of this, a project in a mess from the begining itself. Recently in one of the prestigious project because of complete incompetence of the consultant, the total bids received were in access of 30!!! and that too ranging from the top most MNC firm to a small (and probably loss making too) domestic IT firm. The client was furious but helpless. The reason for such disaster, consultant's inability to understand the project, domain and put together a PQ that can eliminate weeds and pick-up only the fruit-bearing plants.

In fact the mistake is not that of any consulting firm but the clients themselves, as they are not looking out for well reputed firms for consulting firms but picking up consultants who are either cheap (hmm...cost wise!) or can be tamed to write whatever client wants to get written.

I am quite glad with recent initiative of DIT, MCIT of creating template DPR/ RFPs that will be used by the consultants to customize it as per the state's specific requirement, so only 20% changes, 80% standardized. This leaves very little aberation in the system. We still can recall the multiple formats of tenders that came across the country in the last 3 years, finally vendors can breathe easy.

I think, the time has come to move on from a "un-audited" consulting services to "audited" consuling services regime. Every consulting assignment by all the consultants should be assessed by a 3rd party in terms of openness, clarity, objectiveness, transparency, compliance with rules/ law and above all relevance with the Project. Any consulting firm found violating the rules should be banned for couple of years from all government/psu projects. Also, it should be made mandatory that all the consulting firms be registered/ empaneled with a regulatory authority and they should comply with minimum standards
- Availability of resources with experience in domain/ technology/ process
- Infrastructure
- Training & Development
- Specific Approach & Methodology
- All Project Managers/ Delivery Managers should be PMP certified
etc.

Yes, this would definitely mean that mom & pop consulting companies will either shutdown or become more mature and comply with requirements and the big firms will create much better compliances for its team's so that they don't end up getting penalised.

This will create a clean environment, much speedier project execution and hence better services to citizens.

Obamanomics...

It's been just couple of weeks, since he became President of USA but he has already started to show the impact & change that he was talking about all the while during the presidential campaign.

The massive bailout package, the health sector improvement, softening on the mortgages etc.
But the best was about his vocal outcry on the massive bonuses and salaries taken by the top executives of the troubled companies. In fact, every person impacted by this turmoil will agree with Obama and find the act of these executives not just shameful but disgusting.

The same set of people who are responsible for making this historical mess continue to enjoy even when there are thousands of layoffs on a daily basis. I am further pained by the fact that one of them is an Indian - CEO of Citibank that is the worst performer. With a pay packet for US$215M, he is earning more than some of the IT companies earning as an YoY revenues, they have shown extreme inability, incompetence and lack of appreciation to their government.

I think, the idea to cap the salaries of all these CEOs less than that of the payout of the President's salary is great idea but needs to be implemented globally because many of these companies can get these greedy and selfish top executives into another friendly nations and make them operate from there.

In fact, the solutions lies in the corporate governance and applicability of the same cross board with everyone. We have seen, employees and middle and junior level under heavy stress to follow guidelines but at the top, it is freedom from every single rule. I have seen CEO/ CFOs sending/ calling employees to cut travel costs (even if the travel is important) but they fly in and out on a daily basis and that too first class.

Gone are the days, when the top management used to be the role-models for juniors but in this new world of greed, corruption and "me-first and me-only" world, we are left with a bankrupt top management in terms of values, culture, leadership, competence and governance.

Traffic woes of Bangalore

I think, I am nth person or probably even the last person to write/ talk about the traffic woes of Bangalore. I also read/ know several of those, infact some of them are extremely innovative e.g. separate lanes for autorickshaws, even/odd numbered vehicles will be allowed on alternate days, use public transport, use alternate routes, different timings for offices (e.g. 7am - 4pm), companies incentivizing employees who come early, car-pooling etc. But have we seen any improvement?

In my view, we have to understand the problem better to give a solution. Problem is not autorickshaws, office timings etc. but the problem lies in 3 simple things
a) Lack of roads or space to expand roads
b) Highly heterogenous vehicle traffic and a majority of vehicles are 2-wheelers
c) No traffic regulation

The solution is also simple but requires a tough traffic police, intelligent administrative system, cooperative society and genuine effort from politicians.
These solutions are
a) majority of area in Bangalore is owned by Army and Airforce units, these installations need to moved outside of city and area has to be freed up for optimal utilization of resources. This will increase the area available for development by at least 80%
b) All new layouts should compulsorily have elevated flyovers and speedways - pre-designed
c) Separate lanes for 2-wheelers and this should be strictly implemented. This will avoid the choke at major junctions most of the times.
d) Whether it is bmtc, ksrtc, autorickshow etc. or any other vehicle, anyone who violates the traffic should be penalized and the license should be on hold for 3 months after 3 offences. We have extremely poor respect to traffic rules especially the BMTC buses and autorickshaws.
e) Trucks etc. shouldn't be allowed anywhere in the city including the outer ring road between 6am and 10pm. This will reduce the congestion by at least 40% on every road.

As a responsible bangaloreans we should all respect the traffic rules, if it is red light then it means STOP, it doesnt mean that we can jump it if there is no traffic coming! Zebra crossing is for pedestrians NOT for yours and mine car/ bike! Honking is avoidable all the time.

Just a thought, why we all become human when we are in USA/ Singapore or any other country where as we loose our human behaviour when we are in India.

Problems are human therefore the solution needs to be human-based only.

Satyam Saga ...IT Companies pandora's box

Last one-month around, we are all getting over-doses of Satyam Saga. This makes me wonder, is Satyam a one-off case? Or is it something like one of our Government Scams, that appear once every quarter, we enjoy them to the fullest every time thinking that it is another NEW and INNOVATIVE one, forget about it after a quarter and move on....
Why we hear all bad news as coincidence during the recession time that companies are firing employees as part of their Background Verification Process (of employees who are on the payroll for last 3+ years!!!), or for performance or for involving in fudging the medical bills etc. We read all those news items with great interest and discuss them during our breakout sessions.

But seriously, do we have several other Satyams hidden away? Several MNCs worldwide have a policy not to invest in real estate and only to build campuses in leased accommodations. Where as if I just look at our domestic peers, most of the IT MNCs who have benefited from the bug of Y2K have either investment in real-estate or forced state governments to dole out rich agricultural land or prime land at throw away prices to them to build campuses....and they are darlings of every state government.
Actually in last one-year, IT companies abandoning a state for the lack of land allotment by the state government is in the news rather than IT companies making investments in the eGovernance sector at their own cost. Why don't we audit the reasons for dolling out tax-free environment, land at throw-away prices etc. by various governments to various IT Companies?
I think, we are used to the smell of rotten rat, when we ourselves are sitting on the pile of garbage.
Un-doubtedly there are several big and small satyam's around us. Some of them inflate their balance sheets, some of them bribe their way to top, some of them cajole governments to decrease their cost-structures, many flirt with various levels of bureaucracy and political levels to get business...
How true it is when we come out of the B-Schools and are told that...what lies ahead is the Business Jungle, where only the fittest survive...
I salute the rare few fit companies who are still herbivores in this jungle.