IT companies foray into technical education

The 115 crore campus that Cognizant is building in Chennai will also witness one of the biggest training centers for its staff. Infosys also announced its intentions to build one of the country's biggest training centers sometime back while revealing the company's investment plans in Chennai. That these IT majors are constantly seeking to strategically align with premier engineering institutions is no secret. The campus of today is bustling with activities - thanks to sponsors with big pockets; there is quiz, seminars, GDs not only among the final years. The quest to recieve endorsement and funds from corporates have forced most of the premier institutes to expose even first year students. The bottom line is that majority of these students are deprived of sufficient insight into future prospects with regard to any other field. The constant urge to outpace peers, both in getting placement in a company enjoying high brand equity and high pay package, has caused many students to overlook their core competence and undertake routine work in IT companies.

From an industry perspective, the top performing prospective is still elusive and even if he is available, he charges a premium. And, once in, what's the guarantee he/she will stay? With intense competition to "bond" with students even at the commencement of their course, the scope for companies seems to heading to a dead-end. There is also dearth for teachers who are industry ready and has the potential to impart lessons relevant to the industry. In such a scenario, days aren't far when an Infosys or Cognizant will begin a Software Engineering Academy. Or, there would be a crash course for students after XII say for 2 years, opening new vistas. The IT world is unpredictable...

Blindly emulating

I have gathered that this phenomenon is quite rampant in the industry. With peer pressure quite significantly high, the IT industry is witness to blind chase of best practices. Well, am not really talking about an organization's best practices but individual. The recent one I stumbled upon was the trend to be paranoid or pretend to be so. Well, that's the best and easy way to showcase you are hardworking, you're proactive and full of energy. Little does the person realize that his peers are intelligent and what works today the best is the smart way of working and not being paranoid.

Paranoia, apparently is a negative word. It could mean fear, suspicion, obsession etc. Excessive obsession is also not healthy, isn't it? Well, I met this chap who is in his mid thirties and was professing the need for professionals to be paranoid. Well, seeing his enthusiasm, I did fell for it. However, it was pretty much evident in the first day itself that it was all vapour ware - I mean the paranoid part. It was no work till late in the evening and some data entry job in the evening onwards. And, then there was tweaking up fonts, colours, aligning etc also that went took 2-3 hours. In all a perfect example of unscrupulous work and unproductive work atmosphere.

Unsustainable Ideas

I was reading about the Firefly - not the insect but the newest phone to tap the burgeoning cellular market. Considering that it targets the niche market of children within the age bracket of 8-12 and is designed to ensure safety and misuse, it certainly is a radical innovation or as they say disruptive innovation. Imagine a child who can reach his/her parents with the press of a button? And, no frills attached to disturb him or the class during lessons, ie, no texting, no MMS etc. It's a glorified toy or a stripped down cellular phone - depending on which side of the phone you belong.

There is a catch in categorising the firefly as a disruptive innovation. Some basic questions like how large is the market? Can it threaten incumbents? will provide the answer. Let us take the example of Nokia. How long does it take for Nokia to displace this emerging player. With no entry barrier at all, firefly cannot be termed as a disruptive innovation.

It's yet another PR ploy, with lot of ink shed on somebody's weird idea of making a quick buck.

The perfect global marketing case study

This is perhaps the best case study ever of a product well conceived for a global market, customized and packaged dexterously for mass appeal and implemented with aplomb. Am talking about the latest Harry Potter novel that's capturing reams of paper across the world. I was wondering why Indian publications were carrying a chinese photograph - children in Beijing queuing up early in the morning for a copy. I took a while to register the strategy - a clear PR strategy. My inquisitiveness let me to the web where in I also found out that there are Indian and Chinese characters in the novel. Is it a deliberate move from JK Rowling or a marketing/PR ploy. Further details on the marketing strategy very clearly indicates that it certainly is a PR ploy. Chinese photograph across publications, late night kids camp/programmes across various prominent bookstores across the world, contests etc all before and after the launch leads one to think that it is a clever PR spin for a mediocre novel.

Should Infy split

Considering the pace with which the company is growing and spreading its reach, a novice in business management would certainly believe it makes sense for the company to split so as to sustain its growth. More than 30,000 employees - all with lofty dreams. How do you cater to their aspirations? Clash of egos, team split, unethical demenours all ensue as a result of the increasing flab. Why? The chase for prominence, especially professionals who have experienced the potential from close quarters, will eventually bring down the empire. Signs of the same are largely evident with some of the heavy-weights throwing the towel. History is laden with such stories. The chase for prominence had led many kings and wannabe emperors forget their kith and kin.

Infy and some of its competitors, I would like to believe, are increasingly gaining weight with absolutely no signs of ever trimming down. The perfect example of such blind growth can be extracted from the Indian cricket team.Saurav Ganguly now ducks most of the deliveries, gets hit often - why? His pursuit to prominence has made him rigid whereas a Sehwag who is relatively new to the field shows blind aggression - hit it or get out, that seems to be his motto. An organization has to be flexible internally as well as externally to derive the impetus to grow. Most of the top tier IT companies here are losing the same.

This world and the attitude of inhabitants here reminds me of sheep mentality. One does and everyone follows. Have been mulling over this for a long time and the only reason for this that flashed across my mind is the fact that there aren't enough skilled talent available in the market. Take for instance an organization with over 250 professionals - my bet is that majority of them wouldn't even know to write clean codes. They just hang around seeking guidance from the clever ones who have mastered Google for help on varied topics - codes being a small portion. From what I gathered, only 25% of the employees are self reliant, innovative and business savvy. Well, one needs to know the customer's business to extend help through lines and reams of codes, right?

Nasscom seems to be going beyond the big boys clutches, atleast the organization is trying to free itself from the lobby. Or, it is perhaps the pressure from the industry to do something useful for the members. They are strategically aligning with industry bodies like AICTE and administering certifications that could possibly transform the industry's fate in terms of getting right talent that stay. Better late than never. What is also alarming is the dissonance between tier 1, 2 and 3 companies. Take the revenue figures and the companies that fall under categories. Am told there aren't many 500 crore companies. There apparently is a wide number of companies with an annual turn over of nearly 100 crores struggling to sustain growth and still worse a helluva lot of them with less than 20 crores in revenues gradually slipping into red. What this implies is that in the long run, the big ones will make a global impact - handful of them. The rest will bite the dust leaving lakhs out of work.

The mothered word -strategy

It has been a few days since I heard the word strategy. More than a month since I heard it since I moved to a new assignent where the otherwise overused term seems conspicuously absent. There has been strategic advice, strategic decisions, strategic differentiators, strategically focused, strategic partners...and a lot more stretching till the washroom. Quite a few people I know go berserk the moment they hear strategy - and begin an unending intellectualisation rhetoric that reminds me of the ordeal of being in an enclosed room with the motor running. It's pretty common to do strategy presentation these days at the drop of a hat - well, when you have nothing else, your mind works like a factory - some people call it strategic thinking and converts the same into a ppt and shoves into some poor souls. The person who initiated the word stategy must be feeling absolutely thrilled for I heard a 3rd grade kid shouting to his friends to place the ball strategically. Well, to say the least I was startled, stuttering for a few seconds and almost collapsed. This kid could grow up and potentially kill a lot of people strategically.

The self proclaimed consultants utters this word at least a 1000 times - well, I certainly don't want to be one. For me, strategy is a practical WOW idea. Deploying resources efficiently to implement it forms part of the strategy. Ensuring it gets implemented is the end. Period.