Bangladesh Corporate Blog

Don't drive the hujur away

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:30:00 +0000

I spent a considerable amount of my early teen days to cook up compelling and innovative stories to keep Lokman Hujur at bay. Awful I thought were those days when Hujur used to show up in lazy, hot, humid afternoons to teach me the Quran and how to pray properly. Lokman Hujur had a legacy of giving 'sohi koran shikkha' to many of my cousins, uncles etc. who, along with me, had spent some quality time in mugging up basic excerpts (suraas) to manage day to day prayer requirements. I also remember during my 16th birthday, my late Nanabhai presented me a blue-cover 'Shohoj Arbi Shikkha' (Easy Arabic Learning) language learning book fresh from New Market. He was my inspiration and mentor to ignite my interest in foreign languages. However, perhaps with one exception that of Arabic. Everytime Lokman Hujur and even Nanabhai used to portray and preach to me Arabic as the language to achieve divine guidance and licence to salvation, my teenage mind used to rebel relentlessly. After all, Hujurs and people who are good in Arabic are stereotyped of belonging to certain school of thoughts, doctrine and even their appearances and activities are also labelled unfortunately not in the intended way always.

I wish Lokman Hujur had made me realize early on that Arabic would turn out to be the 5th most widely spoken language of the world. I wish Nanabhai would have convinced me early on that learning Arabic as a foreign language might have some earthly benefits associated with it too, say a job at UN or somewhere in Dubai...may be my tender mind would have given in to the mere greed of earthly ambitions. Perhaps the desire to attain residential permit of Jannatul Ferdous with my Arabic language skills were too confusing for a teenager to comprehend. So I kept on ignoring their calls, I denied the urge to learn only to read a language like a parrot and understand nothing at all. I didn't see any glamour or element of coolness in learning it, unlike French, which is so well-branded. They arrange parties, they talk about art and culture and they are so happening. But Arabic? Why waste time dosto...molla hobi naki?? That was the thought.

So I look at the top 10 most widely spoken languages of the world now and wonder where does our comparative advantage lie as a nation. If we agree that manpower is single most best natural resource, then what exactly is their skill that sets them apart from the global competition? They are cheap labor perhaps, but does cheap mean good and all round quality too? Why not language? Mandarin, Hindi, English, Spanish, Arabic, Bangla, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, German, French..in that order. Think how many do you speak or understand? Even if you leave Mandarin aside for a while, doesn't it seem that we are pretty much familiar with all top 5 languages other than Spanish? Hindi...due to our neighbourly 'love' and culture vulturization, English is self-explanatory, Arabic due to our Hujurs and Nanabhais and finally Bangla is our mother-tongue and pride. So we are in a pretty good position to attain some sort of language dominance over others it seems.

Having an edge in foreign languages would give our semi-skilled, skilled, export-ready manpower great advantages and preferences in the global market. Alliance Francaise, Goethe Institut, even the reputed foreign language school in Dhaka university, never catered specifically to the need of the manpower market. Its only in the last 5 years that a number of schools have mushroomed around Dhaka city who claim (atleast) that they give certification courses in languages which are spoken in countries where Bangladeshi manpower is exported more often such as Malay for Malaysia, Korean for South Korea etc. No wonder our fellow countrymen learn it the hard way when they actually reach the foreign shores to chase their dollar (or riyal) dreams. With ornamental Bangladeshi diplomatic missions, absence of any legal cover and sub-standard living and working conditions, they also somehow 'manage and adjust' to all learning requirements, learning the host language is a small peanut in the ocean of miseries for them.

Its important to think and look again at what we already possess, rather than nag about things we are never supposed to have, as a nation. If manpower is our strength, proper foreign language training at home will be a small step in equipping them better to settle down in foreign territories. A change of perception at our language expertise and workforce, especially the young, is vital now.

In fine, I am sure that Arabic has its spiritual values and (heavenly) benefits of learning, but for those who oppose the idea for any such notions, the counter-argument (earthly benefit) is atleast worth pondering and considering. So learn any language that is spoken in the target country of business, it opens doors. By the way, please focus on Mandarin too, as I have heard it helps to give useful hints during bargaining with Chinese counterparts, also useful when they swear or say something silly, assuming that we know nothing at all what the ching-chung-chang they are talking about.

Variable Compensation Drives Performance

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 13:57:00 +0000

Guess which company was the world’s most innovative company in 2011? Yes, it is Apple, as determined by BusinessWeek and the Boston Consulting Group. Regardless of the measures considered, Apple and Google have consistently been at the top of the list of the most successful companies in the world. What are the secrets of their success? Among other factors, a performance based culture is the key driver for their accomplishments and common in both companies. Like most high performing companies, Apple and Google offer their people the opportunity to share in the success those people help create through variable compensation.

A few examples would illustrate the importance of variable compensation in high performing companies. Steve Jobs, the late CEO of Apple, drew an annual salary of $1 for 13 years. Wait, that $1 is not all! He earned billions of dollars through gains in stocks – he owned 5.5 million shares of Apple and share price of Apple skyrocketed with its superior performance. If Apple did not perform well and share price went down, he would have made just $1 annually. Next, Tim Cook, Apple’s current CEO, had a total compensation of $378 million in 2011 – only $900K of that (less than 0.25% of total) in cash salary and the rest in stock grant. Similarly, Eric Schmidt, the CEO of Google, had a fixed salary of $1 from 2004 through 2010; He is one of the few people to become billionaires based on stock options received as an employee. We can go on and on, but let us stop here. These few examples illustrate that top executives of the most successful companies are predominantly paid in the form of variable compensation – when performance of their companies rock, so do their personal worth. So far, we just established a correlation that the most successful companies have variable compensation pay structure, but the real question is, how does this pay structure help corporations drive performance?

Linking variable compensation of employees to the performance of the organization encourages certain behavior from employees that reinforces corporate objective. Among all different responsibilities, an employee is likely to devote more attention on the projects driving his/her target achievement. When employees are aligned with corporate objectives and are motivated to work hard, execution becomes easier & more efficient and financial benefits must follow.

Variable compensation also encourages employees to take responsibilities of their action – the characteristics of an owner. They understand that if they can deliver superior performance driving success for the company, they would be rewarded too. When employees take ownership of their projects, they take results personally and ‘walk the extra mile’ to ensure that targets are achieved.

Variable pay structure not only motivates employees because of the monetary value, but it also creates a sense of accomplishment which creates hunger among them for more success. Once employees get the taste of wining, they want to win more and work harder to continue the momentum – somewhat similar to winning games such as Cricket.

A well designed compensation structure attracts certain kinds of talent that is desirable by companies. Clear communication regarding compensation structure to the potential candidates allows for ‘self-selection’ by the applicants – this in turn, increase retention rate which reduces Human Resources costs related to training, recruiting etc. An example would illustrate the concept of ‘self-selection.’ Consider three compensation schemes - option 1: 100,000 (BDT) monthly salary with up to 15% bonus opportunity; option 2: 90,000 (BDT) per month with up to 40% bonus opportunity and option 3: 105,000 (BDT) per month with no bonus opportunity. As evident, if an individual is high achiever and prefers risk, he/she would prefer option 2, which offers less fixed salary, but has potential of the highest payoff (136,000 BDT). On the other hand, if an individual is looking for certainty and do not prefer risk at all, he/she would choose option 3, which offers the highest fixed salary (105,000), but no bonus and therefore no risks. Offering the right combination of fixed and variable compensation, a company can attract employee with right attitudes. When employees ‘self select’ the organization to work in, they are more likely to be culturally aligned and therefore low chances of turnover.

Variable compensation is prevalent in most companies across the globe. According to a survey by Hewitt Associates (now Aon), a global Human Capital consulting firm, more than 80% of the companies worldwide offered variable compensation in 2010. In Bangladesh, while most companies offer bonuses for religious festivals, only a handful has a variable compensation pay structure. Even in these companies, variable pay plans are not planned/implemented well - achievements are often discretionary to supervisor’s ratings and bonus do not vary as much with individual’s performance/efforts. To be competitive in the global marketplace, Bangladeshi firms need to integrate variable compensations structures – not because top successful companies have it, but because of the benefits it provides.

Variable compensation has been a great tool for most high performing companies to create a performance driven culture and therefore drive success. However, many companies also failed to reap the full potential of this pay structure due to poor implementation. It needs to be carefully designed, complemented by right organizational structure and aligned with corporate strategy. Different types of variable rewards needs to be offered at different level of management to balance long term strategic visions and short term objectives. Since this concept is not well understood and rather nonexistent in the corporate Bangladesh, the firms that want to pioneer should seek help from experts in this field. We hope that most companies of Bangladesh will recognize the benefits of pay for performance concept and implement it appropriately to become more efficient, successful and competitive in the global marketplace.

The Fall and Rise of "Jack"

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 05 Aug 2012 18:04:00 +0000

"Jack of all trades, master of none."

I dunno about others but I literally grew up on that. I guess that's customary for all army brats. The military life has the smell of standardization in just about everything. While in uniform, one is put through every imaginable crisis and stress rising up the chain of command. Which in turn makes the men weather ready and somewhat multi-functional.

But then economy prospered and we liberalized. We moved out of the disciplinary ways of life dubbing it medieval and anti-intellectual. Our careers thrived with specializations, the mastering of a specific skill seemed to make all the difference. In fact from the days of Civil Service or Military Service being the foremost prestigious professions, we progressed to Private Service as the chosen one.

Capitalism happened. And like many times before this, we took a ride with the flow.

Born in the 80's in Bangladesh meant you were exposed to the last of these legendary Jacks. The cream of the society, the so-called intellectuals served the government (which in turn served the people, I guess) and remained the most elusive career option. Back in those days, BCS (Bangladesh Civil Service) exam used to be the greatest test of one's intellectual and practical abilities. A test of life. The decision maker of your future.

Like every other economy in the world, ours also flourished with private entrepreneurs and industries. However unlike the good economies, the public sector undertakings went on a gradual decline. Soon "groom wanted" ads in the classifieds stopped mentioning Army Officer or BCS Cadre as preferred professions. Police and Customs emerged as the career choice for the dishonest.

And most ironically paisa took over prestige.

Multinational and local conglomerates were now the employer of choice.
A new age of professionals had begun.

Computer Science, Applied Physics, Engineering were the kind of majors every talented high-schooler was aiming for. All of a sudden, Bangladesh was a bustling economy full of science grads. It was all merry and everyone was awaiting a happy ending.

Not to be.

The curse of capitalism stuck again. The need of generalization was back with a bang. In came the mother of all degrees (apparently), the one degree that MacGyver wanted for himself, BBA. The game was back in even grounds again. Specialists were only good for R&D but who will fill up the rest of the departments.Thus the need of Jacks was alive again.

I consider myself lucky to be in the bridging generation where both specialization and standardization of senior degrees could exist in parallel. But as the companies grow and quality of education deteriorates, its only the Jacks who are filling up all the blanks in the sentence.

I am a BBA graduate myself. It wasn't a degree out of passion or interest. I consider it as a visa-free entry in the modern economy. Now that I look back, the more purer forms of education seems more enlightening and intriguing than ever before. The likes of Archeology, Economics, History, Psychology or even Zoology (which I totally sucked at) had more to offer than a degree that's comparable to a marriage license.

This article also appears at http://sabihspeaks.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-fall-and-rise-of-jack/

10-Point check for Customer Service : Part II

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:25:00 +0000

You might be interested to read part I before proceeding to read this section of the write-up.

Point 6: Is your customer service personnel trained to handle complains?

Complain handling is traditionally seen as the most important concern for the customer service department. Effective handling of customer complains could open up new opportunities for sustaining a long term customer relationship. As already noted earlier, the opportunity of emotional bonding with customers is best served not when customers are happy, but when something goes wrong and unhappy customers show up or call for redressal. However, handling complain is not an easy task since customers vary by expectations and nature of problems could also have variety in itself. Simply knowing rules of engagement and a printed manual with lists of problems and solutions are not what we are talking about. Complain handling goes beyond the boundary of a printed manual. It is about empathy- an essential part of service executives ‘ personality- it is about connecting and communicating while putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes.

Point 7: Do your customer service personnel stay calm with irritating customers?

Not all customers behave well while interacting with service executives, specifically in situations when things go wrong and they expect the kind of redressal that might not be allowable by the company. This type of behavior, sometimes, might be based on legitimate claims from customers’ part. Having said that, it is not service executives’ job to match their behavior with that of customers! In many cases, even trained executives can cross the line and get involved in an argument with customers. Once an angry customer shouted to an executive, saying that she feels sorry for him because he could not find a better job rather than to work for this lousy company! Ok, it seems like a comment (or insult) at personal level, which is inappropriate per se. However, despite how inappropriate the customers’ comments are, learning to stay calm and helpful is the ultimate test for customer service executives’ career. Letting customers to vent out anger is a way to cool down the situation at end.

Point 8: Are your customer services executives trained NOT to assume?

Assuming customer’s problem before completely listening to it, is another problem that arises out of so called printed “service manual” that is usually provided during training session for service executives. Every customer problem should be treated uniquely, addressing it to the point by carefully listening to it. Stop assuming, start listening – that is the key in understanding customers here.

Point 9: Do your customer service department “follow-up” with customers?

After getting a lead, or closing a sale, or handling a complain – we often assume that things are running alright now. In many instances, this is not right. A sales lead must be followed up, a sales must be traced to customers and see if things are alright with him/her, a well-handled complain must be followed up to see if the customer needs further help or not. This is something that most customers are not expecting, thus opening up an opportunity to delight them with their decisions to buy or for contacting the service department.

Point 10: Are your customer service executives happy with the company they work for?

You cannot expect to pass all the previous 9 tests if the last test fails you. Customer service executives are your internal customers. A group of unhappy internal customers cannot make external customers happy. The job satisfaction may not only flow from competitive compensation packages, but also from the external prestige and excellence that your product commands in the market. A poorly designed product with minimal branding effort will automatically fetch in a lot of complains. Who does want to listen to complains (and more complains) all day long, feeling the pain of faking a smile and keep saying sorry to address aggrieved customers? Of course, some of them will keep acting and faking to keep the job, but most will keep looking for places elsewhere, resulting in increase of employee turnover at the end.

This routine check of your customer service department will not only ensure a smooth running of your service engine, but also would prevent it from breaking apart that might necessitate expensive repair later on.

10-Point check for Customer Service : Part I

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 30 Jun 2012 05:43:00 +0000

As customers, we traditionally understood "customer service" as a department inside an organization that dealt in things that went wrong after customer had purchased anything. Your cellphone bill seems overstated, ok, then call customer service. The new dress that you bought need to be exchanged for a different size, ok, then walk up to the customer service with receipt within a stipulated time. Your refrigerator may require some repairs. If it is still within the warranty period, call customer service to send a mechanic. This is how the concept of customer service has been understood by customers and practiced by companies.

In this new era of hyper competition, we need to redo the whole concept and practices of customer service. While theoretical discourses are plenty, the implementation of these concepts is still meager in reality. Here is a 10-point check to run in your customer service process:

Point 1: Is your customer service making a first impression?

Customer service performs its functions in three time stages: before, during, and after a purchase is being made. In the first step, see if your customer service is prompt enough to answer the phone or greet customers when they enter the floor. There are many companies who publicize phone numbers and then when you call, nobody answers! There are sales centers where nobody greets you when you enter their floor. In its redesigned retail outlets, Apple has introduced a front-door person who greets customers when customers enter the floor, and then the front-person claps and congratulates customers when they leave with their new purchases. First impression can be long-lasting, it might even change the perception of customers about your organization.

Point 2: Is your customer service trained to be courteous and honest?

Courtesy costs nothing, but buys everything. This old adage is quite applicable to customer service. Consistency and courtesy create a bond between customers and the company. Courteous service is applicable even when dealing with angry customers. Ironically, the opportunity of emotional bonding with customers is best served not when customers are happy, but when something goes wrong and unhappy customers walk in the store with their sleeves up the elbow! Effective handling of such customers by making them happy will make them leave the store with a smile on their faces. Definitely, you have added someone to the list of your loyal customers. Honesty is another dimension that must be practiced all the time. Do not rush your customers to sales, even at the expense of your honesty. Many times, it is possible to trick customers into sales by hiding facts or convincing him/her about the need of the item you are selling. In the long run, customers understand this trick when it is too late for them. It does not win your business in customers’ minds in the long run. Thinking customers fool is a foolish idea.

Point 3: Is your customer service adding value through information exchange?

Answering right questions with right answers is extremely important. This exchange of information requires knowledge. It is important to update customer service personnel about product knowledge so that they can answer customer queries and worries. This knowledge should not only cover basic information that most customers would look for, but also unusual information like sources of ingredients, ethnic value preferences, safety issues, health issues etc.

Point 4: Are your customer service personnel trained to be a trainer?

In some industries, e.g., electronics retailing, providing information to customers may not be enough. Your sales personnel may well assume the role of customer trainer. A lot of after-sales issues can be resolved even before they occur if customers can be trained during the sale process. Apple stores usually have a set-up area where employees help customers set their gadgets ready for use.

Point 5: Is your customer service aware of warranty issues and fine prints?

In many industries, after sales service is a great value proposition. There where comes a good amount of fine prints that even many customer service executive might not be aware of. As a result, customers might later be surprised and feel like “Oh no, I did not know that!” This feeling of being tricked and fool creates dissatisfaction which cannot be corrected by customer service by going beyond company policy. As a customer service personnel, you may feel sorry for the customer, but your hands are tied because you would have to act within the boundary of the warranty policy. That is why, odds are in your favor if you provide this information beforehand.

(to be continued)

Hartal and traffic free - work from home

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 May 2012 10:24:00 +0000

Does your company allow you to work from home? Given the fact the spoilticians (spoilt politicians) are determined to make ‘hartal’ part and parcel of life in the country, may be human resource department in your company will need to review existing policies to encourage and allow employees to work from home if required. Other than hartals, think about the snarling traffic or even any emergency family issues which will require you to stay back at home. Rather than taking a day off or calling sick falsely, it would be nice if your company introduces flexible policies to accommodate familial and social realities. In the end of the day, what is more important is getting agreed outputs from employees as part of their job contract – physical presence in the office premises is required but the job should be done and can be done from any location, if technology, infrastructure and rules are in place.

Working from home too much has its own risks – either you end up working too much as the boundaries between work and family life is blurred or you can totally become a scumbag and start misusing your flexible arrangements. Although one of the reasons I preferred to go to work in one of my jobs in Bangladesh as early in the morning as possible was due to the fact that there was a massive generator at work and it was all air-conditioned. So work or no work – I could stay away from the terrible Dhaka summer, nice and cosy in the office cabins – no power cuts, no heat and humidity. You can always argue that what is the point of staying at home and work via laptop/internet if there are so many powercuts, unreliable net connection and all the usual complains? Well, no easy response to this though, but there is for sure a trade off between travelling for 2 hours to reach work, wasting valuable economic times due to hartal – and staying at home to get the same jobs done via easy technologies – as and when required. HR managers welcome to shed some light on the topic.

তাক ধুম তাক ধুম বাজাও বাংলাদেশের ঢোল !

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 07 May 2012 22:50:00 +0000

I had the great privilege of taking part in the recent Liveperson Aspire 2012 conference held in Vinopolis near London Bridge in London. In the agenda there was a music session in the end which didn’t leave much for imagination at first as I was thinking that this must be some sort of a live performance of some sort. From all my previous experiences of attending training sessions in Bangladesh and even in the UK – usually anything to do with music always ended up someone or some group of musicians performing live music, song etc. while the crowd mingled around. Sometimes they ended up taking group photos , dinner or heading straight to pub (in UK).

What I experienced in this conference completely took me by surprise and I was left amused by the innovation in the way they linked music with team building and to rejuvenate participants after a long day of seminars and workshops. When we returned to the main hall in the concluding session we found hand drums neatly kept under our tables with multi-coloured sticks on the tables. Four African guys took the stage while playing their Afro-beats and the audience figuring out what was going on. They went from one beat to another varying their tempo, while one of them started signalling us to take up our individual instruments and join in the fun. We removed our rings and wrist-watches from our hands and started beating the drum in unison with the four drummers. After a while they asked us to take up the sticks in our hands and instructed those who had sticks of a certain colour to play a certain rhythm. So while say those who got drum sticks of red colour kept playing their assigned beat, another group who got sticks of green colour were instructed to play another beat. We realised that there were sticks of seven colours actually capable of generating seven basic notes of music. So when all the seven groups started playing their specific rhythm it turned out to an amazing music so nice, so upbeat and so synchronized. We were left excited having discovered that we were actually part of a massive orchestra of around 150 people present at the same time and it was surreal.

After a serious drumming session of around 45 minutes, the folks from Drum Café described how different teams joined hands in creating a perfect rhythm, how all those carrying sticks of a certain colour felt so much in sync as they were playing the same beat – pretty much how members work in a team and when multiple teams work together towards a common goal – in this case ‘music’. And true that our hands were sore with beating a drum with bare hands and then with the stick on the palm, all this could be symbolised to the hard work and pain that an individual puts in a team as his/her role. It was great to realize how music, rhythm and beats can lift up the mood and how de-stressed one can feel after having created the sounds off the drum together.

I don’t have exact information on the market size of the training industry in Bangladesh, but I can imagine that with the population we have and the growth we are getting into, training companies are mushrooming with providing services from teaching English to corporate team building sessions all year round. We still haven’t been able to link the music heritage we have in Bangladesh to how it can be actually used in the business context to build teams, motivate and enlighten team members and all those involved in producing one company vision. I hope training gurus in Bangladesh take note of Drum Café and think of improvising it in the context of our rich folk heritage to have differentiation and impact in the team building events for our businesses.

Calling your community of customers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 05 May 2012 10:25:00 +0000

What do you call the community of customers who use your product and services? True that may be you can take a step back and ask yourself whether you nurture a community of customers in the first place or not, may be you are focusing so much on treating every customer as unique individuals that you are moving your sight away from the combined whole – a community. I think the trick lies in striking a balance so that your customers feel to be treated as a unique person with unique needs and requirements from your business but at the same time can feel part of a bigger community of users with whom they can share their experience of using your services and products.

I am sure you are aware that Lady Gaga fondly calls her fans and followers as ‘Little Monsters’ whereas Justin Bieber has labelled his army of mostly teenage girls as ‘Beliebers’. May be the kind of business you are in, you don’t need to label the community of your customers as anything at all. But do give it a thought whether it would make any business sense of branding the community of your loyal users with a name or identity with which they can easily connect to and more importantly feel very proud about it to the extent that they will happily share your business accolade to their peers, friends and families.

Again, if you are producing Pran products, don’t end up calling the community of consumers ‘Prani’, likewise don’t call all who subscribe to Grameenphone as ‘Grameen’ only – there is no harm to be creative and relevant. But yes, in my opinion I still call those who use Robi as Robiuls as I humbly don’t like the name for a telecom operator. Well again that is my personal and may be partial opinion. But coming back to the main proposition - try treating your customers as a community at times, then think of certain rituals that they can follow during certain times of the year and feel part of something bigger than their usual self.

A Commoner's City

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:08:00 +0000

I have been called many things. From a snob, a flaunt, a narcissist to a bundle of talent, the list is quite long. I myself started a few jargon from time to time. Geek, madman, poor man's genius son, puny, helpless and what not. But nothing in the lines of being a responsible citizen or social change agent. And I'd prefer it like that.

Today's story isn't much about being thoughtful of the world around me, but more of the take of a common man. Over time as our knowledge and wealth has prospered, the basics of immersing ourselves into new ideas (much like a sponge) has gone missing. I'll try and shed some light on such a burning issue in today's piece.

Dhaka, the city of dreams for many Bangladeshis has been inhabited by people for over thousand years now. With over 16 million people, its not only the 9th largest megacity in the world but also the heart of Bangladesh. Commercial hub, administrative capital, epicenter of culture and education progression, defense headquarters, most connected city; I mean all of those description apply to a single city. I mean who doesn't like the being the center of attention, but I believe she can live without a bit of it or at least broaden the horizon to let more in.

You see in the city I currently live in is a city within a city. Yes, you read it right. And I am not trying to describe a floating cruise-liner or the latest Airbus A380. Gurgaon is an extension of Delhi but still a city with its own pros and cons. While Delhi is about a rich legacy and colors of life; Gurgaon is the more posh business hub with upscale gated communities. Like I had mentioned earlier, Gurgaon is nothing but a part of greater Delhi or as they coin it National Capital Region (NCR). The smart Indians took the seven cities of Delhi to the next level by forming the largest urban agglomeration by area and second largest by population.

Confused? Well its nothing but multiple urban centers served by a single city hub (in layman's terms). Other examples in this concept include Sao Paolo, Tokyo and New York-Newark. In fact India has two other cities who have flourished in the same manner, Mumbai and Kolkata. This practice of distribution is not only a very practical solution to the growing metropolises but also the right way forward.

Imagine Dhaka in 2020, when it will be a city of (perhaps) 20 million people with nothing but unplanned urbanization that too with questionable actions (filling low-lands).

I am not an urbanization expert, not am I a policymaker. I have no background in the fields of sociology, architecture or anything that can help conceive the idea of a unified city. But in the past few weeks of traversing through the different cities of Delhi, one thing made absolute sense to me. Something that the policymakers should have done back in the 80's. Something that could have at least made Dhaka a lil' more livable as a city. Something that could have saved some wetlands and blessed us with more greenery.

Its time we start looking at our dear capital as a union of cities.

I mean its common sense to combine the areas around Dhaka under a common entity and broaden the scope of urbanization in a planned manner. There are so many who are living in Savar and Narayanganj already, why not make them satellite cities of Dhaka and spread the population density thin across the territory. A bigger Dhaka would call for better public transportation and significant change in mindset, but all that's possible if only the right policymakers are in place.

If our dear government can plan an airport as far as km off the city, how difficult can it be to bring together the 25km radius around Dhaka under a common entity? I was looking it up in Google Maps and surprisingly even to my untrained eyes, it was very much a possibility. If Old Delhi could graduate to New Delhi, why can't Jahangir Nagar or Sonargaon be a part of Dhaka megacity.

I am not a man who dictates any influence in anything the people's government does, but I am at least a common man who sees beyond the bureaucracy.

To add to my stupidity, I even went on to play with shapes and maps to see whether I envision a reality!

what it is vs. what it could be

Where does your boss sit?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 09:40:00 +0000

Have you ever thought how it impacts the way you sit in an office floor? More importantly, have you ever noticed how our line managers/bosses are seated relative to other staff and how it conveys certain work place cultures? Traditionally in almost all the companies that I have worked in or visited in Bangladesh are really effective in making clear by way of artefacts, physical boundaries, glass walls, bigger and more comfortable chairs (often wrapped with clean towels) – who the boss around is. There is this invisible space that is being created by virtue of various furniture and demarcations to establish the work place hierarchy. But to what extent that influences the culture that you have in your company? More importantly I am not sure how many companies in Bangladesh take up office interior designing as a professional service and to what extent they consult companies on the setups of office spaces and links to company culture that it nurtures.

I have worked in office environments where my immediate line manager used to sit next to me, his line manager just opposite where he used to sit and his one next to his right – all just on either sides of a low partition, not exactly a cubicle. You may argue that line managers need certain privacy when they discuss confidential matters or when they need to entertain important business visitors. But imagine that for all these concerns – you will ideally have dedicated spaces allocated in your office – a private meeting room, confernece call center etc. I have found that by removing any physical boundaries between you and your high-up colleagues, the artificial distance is removed and transparency, exchange of tacit knowledge and work relationship is increased.

So next time you are planning to revamp your office set up, think about the culture you want your company to nurture. If you want to be clear about who the boss is and impose a certain degree of distance between you and your employees – go ahead lock up yourself in a private air-conditioned cabin, glass wall or not, order a comfy, bigger, chair and place two or more smaller ones on the other side of your mega desk – so as to be explicit that you have climbed higher up in the organogram to deserve entetaining guests at your desk. Otherwise if you want relationships between employees to be fluid and transparent – remove what is not required. It does not mean that you will be casting the eye of the Big Brother all the time around other people’s monitor to see if they are Facebooking or not – ideally that would mean that either you or your staff doesn’t have much to do in any case and the problem lies elsewhere.

Rohim Chacha Calling

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 15:39:00 +0000

What started out as a US Army recruitment poster for the two World Wars, ended up being "the most famous poster in the world." Yes, I am talking about none else but the venerable Uncle Sam.

The poster went on to stamp an identity which personified the US Government whole-heartedly. The obvious nature of dictating terms, the relentless pursuit of self-serving objectives and the frequent yet unnecessary agression in world politics... all can be drawn up from this one-the-face visual.
When they want it, they would leave no stone unturned to get it! They are, and will be America!!!

But as always, the beginning of my stories are hardly in relation to the body. Its sole purpose of existence is to get you to the body :p

With the growing number of GPA-5 achievers and declining number of Science students, the dynamics of the talent pool in Bangladesh is changing fast. The traditional employment behemoths are facing the heat and their efforts to recover lost ground is quite apparent.

Take the military service for example. In a country like ours, throughout history (after Pakistani occupation) a career in the military has always been perceived an excellent choice. From giving their daughters hand in in marriage to buying their used cars, army men are just respected, trusted and admired unquestionably. I've experienced it first-hand. After all my dad served in the Army :p

Money turned out to be the root of this evil, too. As exposure to capitalism and materialism increased, students leaned more towards a business degree than the traditionally respected science. Back in Class 9, a friend of mine (after being disallowed in the science section) had said, "Study science and become and engineer, only to come and work for the company I run/own". It didn't matter back then, but fifteen years down the line... I thank the Almighty, my parents and myself for taking the timely decision to switch over to business studies in grad school. I did try to follow my father's footsteps into the armed forces, but thankfully that wasn't to be.

Traditionally a military career drew interest from the middle-class of Bangladesh. The social status, the modest pay, the countless facilities and overall a stable life was all they sought. And a career with the armed forces, more than made up for it. Although rising inflation and exposure to a better lifestyle was covered for by UN Missions/Appointments; by the mid 90's the mindset was in a downward spiral nonetheless. From an esteemed employer, Bangladesh Armed Forces had become the destination for the less-privileged talents.

As the number of applicants kept falling, there was the obvious dip in quality of officers the academies were producing. Garbage going in, wasn't producing anything but garbage itself.

The brand Bangladesh Army was going down...

Fortunately some "Smart Alec" General came up with the idea of mass communication aka. brand building (another child of capitalism). An order is an order, and in the military the best thing people do is echoing the words "Yes, Sir. Alright Sir".

Their idea of attracting the Saving Private Ryan, Full Metal Jacket, Platoon, Commando and Rambo fans into the army came to life with the "Join Bangladesh Army" campaign. The first of its kind. A brilliant work by the amazing Amitabh Reza and his crew at Half Stop Down.

The Army went on to complete the full circle with the launch of its own flashy website.

I guess, Army wasn't the only force feeling the heat as the Navy soon followed suit in launching their version of the brand awareness campaign. "Join Bangladesh Navy" was directed and produced by Gazi Shubhro and his team at Red Dot.

Theirs too had a website to ensure proper web presence. As I browsed along for more on Bangladesh Armed Forces, I cam across a rather interesting one. Interesting because of the recent history of the force. The site belonged to Bangladesh Border Guards (BGB).

After the Pilkhana Carnage and public knowledge of their heinous acts during the mutiny, I wonder what can they do to earn back the trust of fellow countrymen; let alone being the place you send your kid to get enlisted.

Perhaps a deshi version of Uncle Sam can be the solution.
Perhaps a platform we can all connect to...

Perhaps our very own Rohim Chacha!

I will vouch and ideate for one for sure.
Who else?

I am the prophet of Underground Meerkating

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:19:00 +0000

My name is Hitler, Prophet Hitler 420. No it is not like Bond, James Bond 007. My numbers 420 are module codes taught in Left-Right University, a prominent and first ever private university of Bangladesh. Today in this sermon, I want to tell you about a pilgrimage called Underground Meerkating Summit which is the best thing that I have done in recent times and which is the best thing you will ever attend in your meerkating career. Read on.

If you already haven’t red my preachings on how to be a good meerkat during your university days, I urge you to close your browser right now and go back to your study table to know more about my preaching about God - the King Customer. I am sure you can recall that there were many other wise men during my time, but I can assure you that I was wiser than them and hence ‘O you souls of Bengal, thou shalt converth into meinen religionen’…nevermind what that means. If you also don’t know what meerkats are what meerkating is, go fly a kite next to river Buriganga, don’t hang around here.

Times are changing and so am I. I am practicing what I had preached long time ago, when your fathers and mothers red my bible in their churches. I am diversifying. As a meerkat, I am out to dig newer holes and Bangladesh seems to be the perfectly fertile country to dig the new role of Underground Meerkats. Don’t get me wrong, I did think about India first, but those buggers are too good, or that is what they think. Rather than inviting me to their dens and dungeons, they had started exporting their brown and oily haired meerkats to our own dens in the West can you believe it? So don’t be surprised to see their meerkats creating a lot of noise in a place where it was all about us and more of me. But hey, that is what you guys were taught on ‘threats from substitutes’ remember? But more tragically, this whole rise of internet has ‘lowered the barrier to entry’ for a lot of new prophets. And sadly enough, everybody has started to claim themselves to be the last messenger from God. I strongly resented this sudden empowerment of every Tom, Dick, Harry, Anil, Manish, etc. But hey, I am clever remember? So I decided to diversify and look for ‘new regions’ to ‘develop my product/service’, remember module 304 in 1992?

Hence I am here in your den with a bang in Bang La Dash. As I said, rather than landing in India, Indians have landed in my den and I didn’t want to go to Pakistan as I thought they might kill me in charge of blasphemy, remember I am a prophet too? So the hosts of the Bangla Den managed to bring them over from other countries for the latest Mecca of Meerkating of which I am the Pope who is not on dope.

There is a reason why Bang La Dash should be seen into positive limelight from a meerkating perspective. These guys are good, don’t get me wrong. Its just that they are either over-confident when they don’t have any reason to be or they are almost always under-confident when their own prowess and ‘core competence’ is just too strong to miss by. But you know what, they need some foreign and big-brotherly pat on the back from time to time, to give them the assurance that they are doing ok. Hence I am here to tell them what they pretty much know already and have thought about 10 years ago. You know they lack people to look forward to – statesman, leaders, celebrities, business brands – Yes the meerkat of poverty – ‘You-‘N’-US’ made it to the Oscars, sorry Nobel and the other meerkat got to be called a ‘Sir’ by that old woman of England. Who cares? Note that the best produce of this place had traditionally been jute, garments, manpower, immigrants, and poverty. So as a new meerkat, ‘o my followers, carry the banners of poverty, women, climate change, MDG’ – anything cuts across themes you know. Put some ingredients of meerkating there, and voila! You have a new chapter in my bible to go gaga over. Refrain from Lady Gaga though.

So these people are good, they know that vaguely. But they need reasons and occasions to boost and update their status from time to time – status as in personal and on their Facebook too. Like every foreigner chased by street kids and eager to being photographed, my den will provide them with the same excitement and status to be photographed with me. Please don’t forget that you read my religious book and hopefully you passed without copying during your monk days. So come with your latest ipads, power suits and sharp eyes and bushy tails. Mingle with other meerkats who are carrying that ‘oh so smart’ looks as if they are enlightened with what they are unravelling. I hope from the audience they don’t use that stupid Google to actually find out ‘secret preaching of God’ all by themselves which will make us look really lame. As I said earlier, this stupid internet has erupted in a plethora of too many new prophets of all colors and shape. I have written volumes of religious scripts, attended pilgrimages I can’t even remember now. What have they done? Bunch of miscreants thinking they can change the Meerkat Religion with the help of God Google? Even if they can, we will delay the process as much as we can, as long as the onus of power, innovation, growth doesn’t shift to this part of the world from ours. Remember, it will be hard to sell anywhere that Jesus was actually Indian, so brown and all. As long as the myths hold, why not milk cash out of it?

Remember the 80-20 rule? I realise that 20% of people who are in my den in Bang La Dash are those who actually show up in 80% of such pilgrimages anywhere and everywhere. These 20% are the most influential who can have a great influence on the remaining 80%. And I am sure together we can dig bigger and deeper holes in this country until we find out new gas, coal or gold may be. In the process, these 20% will make sure that the remaining 80% continue to follow the great religion of meerkats, without asking too many questions, without challenging the great figures who had sprayed…sorry spread the message of models and meerkats and who will make sure that Bang La meerkats are kept in the audience as much as possible. It will be really shocking to see them taking over our dens like their Indi neighbours say 20 years from now.

Disclaimer - No meerkat was exploited, killed, bullied, impersonified during the shooting of this post. If you think so, you are a non-believer.

An MBA - More 'Bout Attitude - than anything else

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 11:09:00 +0000

I took part recently in the MBA Advisory Group of my previous university where we discussed with alumni and staff on how to reposition the MBA to new students and potential employers. There I again realised a belief I always hold in relation to MBA is that this degree is more of an attitude than a piece of paper.

I think there are three variables working in a triangular relation that make a good MBA holder stand out from an extra ordinary one. They are - institution/environment, your own talent and external perceptions.

If for example you naturally have some business acumen, entrepreneurial, with superior presentation, analytical and people handling skills and you happen to get a degree from IBA or NSU, chances are high that employers may have a better perception towards your capabilities or potentials. So all your three variables in the MBA triangle are strong and in your favour. If however you turn out to be basically an airhead with a lot of intellectual glamour but little or no flesh underneath, your institute's perception in the eyes of external parties like employers, your parents, friends, girlfriend can still save the day. Infact a strong institution has the power to teach a donkey how to run faster than other donkeys. However it can't still turn donkeys to horses as pure donkeys will not be able to figure out which race is for horses and which ones are for them. Worst is when you are planning to do an MBA and if you lack the talent or attitude and at the same time don't have the degree from a prestigious institute. I believe that if you have the right attitude between your eyes then you can always compensate not studying in IBA with a degree from 'left-right university' (one of any directional universities in Bangladesh will do). However even an MBA from Top B-school cant guarantee your long lasting success if you lack the basic attitude of an MBA.

An MBA is not a prerequisite to succeed as an entrepreneur or a business leader. An attitude to succeed, innovate, initiate definitely are. Cultivate these first, a degree can follow later. There are too many examples in Bangladesh and abroad where businesses have been established and succeeded by people who didn't have any formal business education but had some basic attitude naturally or gained over time - all of which are attempted to be taught in a typical MBA course. So having the right attitude is important, then turn that into action.

the blur!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:11:00 +0000

I always enjoyed writing something or the other. It never really had to be about something. At times they made sense, mostly didn't. But it really wasn't an issue, cause I thoroughly enjoyed the WRITING part!

Opposed to popular belief, productivity in terms of coming up with original content went up once I had started my career. Although a career in "servicing" in an advertising agency is not deemed creative, the company and its core services surely is. Even the well acclaimed and universally accepted creative ego is "creative" in nature, though it differs greatly from person to person with a greater scope!!!

Through the peaks and troughs of my career, I've kept my blog as something very cynical, delicate and mostly personal. If anything, over the years I've become so obsessed with "quality writing" that a thousand inspirations come and go, yet nothing ever gets posted. This pursuit of excellence has cost me no less than a dozen pieces in the past few years. And when you consider, I've barely managed to write forty odd pieces in last five years... that's just about two years hard work down the drain.

As the stressmeter intensifies... at work and at home, the crazier side of you starts taking a hit as well. As many peers and pundits of advertising keep pointing out (without a fail, every time), the fun of an industry where passion fuels productivity runs out as you mature to realize the value of money.

M O N E Y all of a sudden smells sweeter than honey. You regret how it ever was the root of all evil. And as for the so unique yet so sensitive, broad-minded creative side of you; all that matters is the Bangla saying "pete khele pithe shoy" (if your needs are fulfilled, the work never matters)!!!

Forget your family or the nagging wife, on a lazy weekend when you cannot afford the La-Z-Boy chair to enjoy The Godfather in high-definition, the blur between passion and reality is ever widening.

And I wonder, who will have the last laugh?

Soft talks about SoftExpo2012

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 23:10:00 +0000

Anderson: Rob how are you? What’s new?

Robertson: Busy times mate, I am travelling again, this time to Bangladesh next week.

Anderson: Bangla what? And why? What’s happening down there?

Robertson: Bangladesh. They’ve got a software expo coming up next week, supposedly their biggest and getting bigger every year…

Anderson: Software expo? In Bangladesh? I thought they are still exporting what you and I are wearing and a lot of human beings all around the world to build buildings…but software? What drags you in this new thing?

Robertson: That has changed long time ago my friend. This Softexpo thing is going to change a lot of my assumptions too, so I thought why not be there in person to find out.

Anderson: Good then, I know a lot people in Bangalore, they can show you around the companies that can do the thing for you.

Robertson: I am not going to Bangalore, it is Bangladesh, its next to India – a small country, but seem to have some speciality in what they are doing in IT.

Anderson: Oh shit yes I used to think they are one and all the same thing, this Bangla Bangalore thingie…never mind. But why don’t you still stick to the Indian and Vietnamese guys who had been taking care of your back office programming?

Robertson: They’ve done what they were asked to do. But they have climbed up the ladder a bit too much may be. They still do a good job and the cost is OK. But I think the guys in Bangladesh can do a better quality job with the same price. And I somehow liked them when I spoke to them at one of their trade fairs recently…so…

Anderson: Honestly mate, I don’t think they can do the selling as good as some of their competitors in their region. Also, I am not very sure about their infrastructure and all..you know…floods, power cuts, their politics etc. Moreover what we keep reading in the news…you know…wonder if they should stick to what they are good at…curries may be? Hahahaha…(evil grin)

Robertson: Sorry mate, that is what you and I think….are made to think..by what we read…the way it is fed to us….we are businessmen….don’t eat the crap…and rely on the Sun always….if you happen to read that only that is…Bangladesh I think has grown beyond the narrow alleys of Bricklane as we see them…and it does get overshadowed from time to time with bad news, bad weather and bigger bullies around it…but you need to dig deeper to get gold. So I am going to do the digging myself by being there, to listen to what their folks have to say, see their upcoming talents, know more about their offers first hand. I have done my homework by going through their websites, documents and success stories. I need to meet real people now.

Anderson: Well, hats off to your courage mate, make sure you take mosquito repellents and your own booze. I guess I will stick with companies where you get the job done where the fundamentals are very strong – infrastructure, government support, a bit of social life etc. you know….a bit of Bollywood too.

Robertson: I am not a tourist Anders, I am a businessman and I want to reduce my cost but get quality job done. I want to give these guys a try and I will let you know how it goes. How about that? When we speak next, my bottom line may be in a better shape than yours….literally and in both meanings.

Lionel Messi and scoring goals with your CV

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:41:00 +0000

Imagine if Lionel Messi will ever have the misfortune to apply for a job through bdjobs.com what would be key strength of this CV? If you and I are singing from the same hymn sheet then we are right to say that it will be number of goals that he has scored throughout his career as the world’s best footballer.

Same goes for your CV too. The more CVs I receive and get asked by people I know for a quick glance makes me want to reiterate the fact that what you have achieved in your previous work experiences is more important than what you have actually done, the processes you have followed to achieve those results. In other words, results in a CV stand out than mere blabbering about processes and description of your role.

Coming back to Messi, may be it is of less importance how many games he appeared in or may be how many times he helped setup a goal which got scored by his teammates in Barcelona or Argentina. Even less important would be how many times Messi appeared in the avatar of an accidental defender and helped prevent a sure shot goal by the opponent team. What matters in the end of the day and what mesmerises us about him is his uncanny ability to hit the net time and again. It is true that Messi could not have reached his pinnacle of glory without the support of his fellow team mates, the failure of the opponent defenders and sometimes may be just luck. Same goes for you in the work place too – you cannot achieve results or success, personal or even company’s – without the combined effort of your team. But keep in mind you will still not apply for jobs with a CV of your team, your CV is yours only and you will have to strike that balance between what you have achieved as an individual and how effective you are as part of a team.

So if you are new to your job, once the dusts of excitement settle down, figure out your attribution to a great product or service launch, or to a great cost saving or to an important process change. Don’t become dazed by the day to day job processes so much that your CV will read like a worker’s CV rather than an achiever’s. If not clear, discuss with your manager to seek help to set clear, measurable and attributable results which you can claim to be because of you.

Messi keeps winning Golden Boots because he scores the most, even if sometimes his team ends up losing a match. If the company you work for fails and if it is greatly because of you – you will also get a golden boot up your backside. However if you are a performer and achiever and your company fails because of various reasons beyond your sole control, you can atleast hope for the red card to be not shown to you.

So next time you are sitting down in front of your computer to edit your CV for the next job application – think like Messi, think about scoring goals. Don’t think about playing a good game of football only.

Talent Haat

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:26:00 +0000

Where's my haat?

Thanks to my dad's overly hopping career (unlike the majority who's reading this) I've had the privilege to experience what the gram bangla'r haat is, first hand. From the Sunday haats in my village home to other weekly haats in various towns across Bangladesh, they have always been appealing in their own ways. Its a must visit for all who cherishes the famed picturesque Bangladesh. Since that day is not far when we might actually have to re-live the haat experience through word of mouth alone.

But I am not a policymaker nor am I the golden son of the soil who stands up to a "haat bachao" movement. If anything, I am the geek who resorts to a blogging platform and power of words to use haats to get reader's attention to my demeaning diary.

To us, the masses... the aspiration to go digital by 2021 was an ambitious dream by the Government. But a good dream, indeed. I mean at least through that our policymakers and citizens could at least go to sleep knowing in the dream world lies the next Matrix or Tron :p A place where anything and everything is possible and nobody takes NO for an answer. You can learn and unlearn everything... and you are truly the master of your own destiny (there goes my effort to not sound blasphemous). The fact that a skilled technician or a honed business manager is just a skill that needs to be downloaded into your system (aka. the brain) makes anyone and everyone a talent of choice. There would be no LinkedIn, no books like Winning Job Interviews or Boost Your Interview IQ, no suits with matching shoes and ties... in short, no showmanship at all! But as reality stands today... Digital Bangladesh is a mirage that's as dreamy as The Grid in Tron. And the case with talent pool in Bangladesh is not much different either.

The story goes like this... about a decade back every time my dad brought in "koi" fish, my mom cooked a delicacy. It wasn't a regular occurrence since "koi" was comparatively expensive a fish and if anything took considerable effort to cook and eat. Now-a-days "koi" is widely available, significantly cheaper (time value) and also better looking (whitish as opposed to darkish). Yet the whole family looks at "koi" as just another fish and looks for delicacies elsewhere. The bottom line is quite simple - the delicacy is now in abundance, but its no more a delicacy at all. The cost of making "koi" an affordable fish through farming bombed! Sure people can and will buy more and more "koi" fish every passing day, but not with half the admiration they had a few years back.

The talent haat in Bangladesh sings the same lullaby as well. Back in 20th century we admired and aspired to be a graduate, then if lucky a postgraduate. Today our aspiration (if any) is in the league of MPhil and PhD. While there was a dearth of talent back then, the talent were actually talented. If a job circular got 200 applicants, you could safely have a desired pool of 20 candidates amongst them. Whereas with better education system and higher literacy rates if there are 200 applicants today, chances are only 2 will fit the bill. The point remains quite straight forward, one that I have stood up for ages. With an increase in quantity, there has been a decrease in quality!!!

My father took me to haats because they had all the traditional delicacies that one couldn't find in city markets. From a 20 kg "bowal" fish to 20 kinds of "shaaks", they just had a different offering all together. We can make a million sites like monster.com or bdjobs.com, but the quality of people plying those are nothing better than the widely available "koi" fish of today. And that my friend, is where we stand!

Happy new year of customisation dear customers!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 21:55:00 +0000

A very happy, prosperous, fruitful and personalised new year for you dear readers! Yes, did you notice that? It is all going to be about personalisation and customisation of your choices as a consumer, that is what I predict and sincerely hope for 2012. If the Times magazine can dedicate the cover page for the person of the year to the 'Protester', what holds us back from claiming business products and services exactly the way we want them to be? Remember technology is bringing down barriers and mobile phones are small devices with big powers in our hands, so don't be shy to consume a product or service from a business in Bangladesh the way it suits you, your family and your needs.

Hell with economies of scale, if I am going to spend my money on your product and services, I very well demand it to be as per my name on it, to suit my moods and needs - on demand ! Otherwise, I am just a click away to tell the whole world what your business is truly is all about. Happy new year 2012!

How to Globalize your Market - Guest blog by Carolyn Knight

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:53:00 +0000

Carolyn Knight is based in Austin, Texas, USA and blogs for Blog Content Guild

As a growing nation, we should be constantly thinking about ways to innovate, progress, and evolve our economies, both personal and national. You can execute flawless inventory management, make revenue, and overall maintain a successful business, but without evolution, your company will eventually die out. That’s why it’s important to establish a global mindset and seek out global opportunities. We live in a global economy and to keep up with the rest of the world, we have to think globally. Here are some considerations you should take when thinking about going global:

- Establish a strong online presence: Create a website that you believe in--one that is aesthetically pleasing, simple, accessible, and direct. When creating a website, you may want to refer to these considerations, as described in our post, “To have a website or a Facebook page?”

- Make documents and websites accessible in major languages: This may be tough, but you have to make sure that your website is accessible in major languages, so that those of other cultures can reach out to you for business. You can also look into SEO, or search engine optimization, as a way to drive traffic to your website.

- Keep in trend: Keep connections all over the world and maintain research of other companies, industries, and business trends. This could mean subscribing to foreign news, global news, or global business magazines.

Overall, if you begin to think about your industry as not just local, but global as well, you will stay ahead of the curve and, ultimately, maintain a successful business.

Can you select all (CTRL+A) to be a Bangladeshi adult?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:20:00 +0000

Yes surprise surprise! We have an adult only post for the first time on this blog. Please make sure you are more than 18 years old and take no offence, personally, emotionally, religiously, spiritually, socially by reading the content that follows. If you think you may be disturbed in any way, shape or form please discontinue reading and close this window now. (But I know chances are very high you will keep on reading). The text of this post is intentionally blanked out to respect our social values and preference for clandestinity, shyness, hypocrisy - whatever suits you. Assuming you are an adult and know how to select all text, only then you will be able to read on.

Very interesting debate was opened up in a management training I attended some years ago. Young male and female Bangladeshi executives were chit-chatting one of the evenings after a gruelling day of training when surprisingly the topic turned towards the situation of Bangladeshi adult industry. Whether or not something like this ever existed, or exists, the taboos surrounding sexuality, sex education, adult literature, movies, religious and social values, business ethics and all this range of topics came up one by one. After the initial light-hearted jokes were settled in relation to growing years in high school, college and after paying sincere homage and gratitude to Professor Roshomoy Gupto (Google it yourself if you are dull, I am not providing link to him as I am at work and results might show up something weird) the conversation focused on whether or not there are any opportunities in adult industry in Bangladesh. Interestingly the female participant expressed her experiences from dealing with different types of approaches - visual, physical, emotional – by different men from all walks of her social milieu in Bangladesh throughout ther growing years – both at work and home. So she was hell bent with the perception that like any other country and any other place – as long there is men – adult industry will be a hot cake, pun intended and men will continue to be like men. She also added some not so good adjectives to describe men in general and their tendencies.

The ideas surrounded around a bilingual adult magazine, in both Bangla and English, to have a little bit of everything for the Bangladeshi adult market, more specifically the male readers. Topics could include fashion, health issues, sex education, personal problems, and most certainly pictures of Bangladeshi women in appearances enough to raise readers’ mercury levels. It was at this point that the issue of business ethics and social values in Bangladesh took a crucial turn. Should you start a business just for making money at the cost of your social norms and values? On the other hand, some argued that when men in Bangladesh are already groomed and trained on the natural instincts of life - previously via print materials and friends and now via internet – then what is the harm in calling a spade a spade and in spitting out the most natural thing of being a human? One interesting remark was made by a participant that Bangladeshi male readers would be so curious and overwhelmed to see Bangladeshi young women in compromising photo shoots or raunchy stories that they will want to dig down deeper by finding out who she is, where she studies/works, her family history, address etc. etc. Being a small place with too many people who know each other, this might cause social stigma and may lead to models being marginalised in public.

The conclusion of the adda was that even if there are business opportunities in this domestic adult male market in Bangladesh, we should stick to being socially hypocrite at the cost of holding up our social norms, values, ethics, family, religion etc. As for ‘special male needs’ we have historically relied on foreign materials and have preferred to be clandestine about it – so lets continue that. As long as life is moving on , our women are wrapped up, covered up and we are having kids – why bother about a Bangladeshi adult magazine?

Creative poetry image taken from http://shafiur.i-edit.net/?cat=7

Jolkona - how micro-donations can lead to macro impacts

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 11:36:00 +0000

In a country where we have 26,000+ NGOs, it is always expected that innovative solutions to alleviating poverty will come from within the country first rather than only from foreign aid, foreign know-how and foreign goodwill. If necessity is the mother of all inventions, then it has really produced inventions such as micro-credit and luminaries like Dr. Yunus and Sir Abed. While it is appreciated what esteemed individuals like these have contributed to the world and to the fight against poverty, let us also look around and see what a relatively younger generation, with less grey hair than Yunus-Abed, is doing in relation to fundraising, poverty alleviation and technology. Jolkona Foundation is such an organisation which I have been following for a while now.

Assuming you have checked out what they are all about, let me delve straight into my thoughts about their venture.

The Bangla link

With due respect to the globalised team they have, we can take pride in the fact that even the very naming of the organisation implies (jolkona, meaning water drops in Bangla) that even micro-donations can have positive impact on people’s lives. So firstly I liked the name that it is in authentic Bangla. Then from the team profile you can realise that it is made of innovative, energetic American citizens, a few of whom may have links to Bangladesh through family and got inspired to get involved in alleviating poverty with the help of technology. So I liked the fact that their source of inspiration was pretty clear too.

The Kiva link

What I am still trying to figure out is how different they are in terms of what they do from the likes of Kiva, which has set some sort of precedence in this field of one-to-one donations and impact tracking via technology. Honestly I didn’t have the time to compare and contrast these two, may be any team member from Jolkona will be able to elaborate why someone or who should choose them over Kiva.

Bringing the innovation home

May be the environment in the US is more conducive to help nourish such noble ideas, I wonder how Jolkona could replicate the same with the domestic fundraising scenario inside Bangladesh. Most of 26,000 NGOs are one way or the other, dependent on foreign aid, from governments, foundations or high value individuals. But I still believe that in a country of 160 million, there is enough depth in the combined pocket of the population to donate in tiny amounts for micro causes within Bangladesh. Key reason why I never donate to the majority of these 26,000 is because I don’t trust them and I am convinced that they want to get richer through the business of poverty. But if I ever come across any appealing initiative which ensures full transparency, appeals to the youth, is trendy and shows impact clearly, I will not think twice to donate tiny amounts via SMS on a monthly basis.

So the point is I think the domestic fundraising scenario in Bangladesh badly needs some make over and I think initiatives like Jolkona could explore opportunities to help improve this situation. Making young school kids wear yellow t-shirts and selling roses in busy traffic junctions in Dhaka is certainly a fundraising effort worth appreciating, but only on the Children’s Day may be. How do we make it sustainable day after day? With the exponential growth of mobile phones in Bangladesh and local remittance services like bKash on the rise, I get a feeling that Jolkona could explore using this infrastructure to make it easier for the young Bangladeshis to help their fellow citizens. One word of caution though – any good thing can get spoilt fast in Bangladesh, so you might have to be careful for other 26,000 copy cats who can set up hotlines for SMS donations overnight and make the scenario really messy and untrustworthy again.

Dhaka Tweetup and Bloggers Meetup Featuring Mark Hillary with ITC and BASIS

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Anwar (SEOPPCSMM.com)) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:53:00 +0000

Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) and International Trade Centre (ITC) jointly organizing the first ever Tweetup for bloggers, microbloggers, and tweeters in Bangladesh featuring Mark Hillary. This might turn out to be a great event for all bloggers and tweeters in Bangladesh.

About Mark Hillary

Mark Hillary is a British Blogger running his IT Research Company in São Paulo, Brazil. Being a part of the generation when Brazil was a developing country, he has been widely experienced in technology, outsourcing, and globalization. He blogs for Reuters and the Huffington Post from UK.

Mark has authored a new book on Twitter Features Interviews, which includes case studies that includes many social media elites - including David Cameron, the British Prime Minister. He is shortlisted as the "Blogger of the year" by Computer Weekly, UK's leading technology magazine. However, the results for "Blogger of the year" will be announced on November 29th. So, you have the opportunity of voting for him now at http://bit.ly/markcw.

BTW, Mark is also a music blogger. He is the founder of the popularly known regular tweetups in London, called the "Ealing Tweetup". Feel free to look at this video on Ealing Tweetup in London:

About the Tweetup

Here is the link to the tweetup, where you can find details: http://linkd.in/uWuIan
@ November 29, 2011 at 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

The aim of the #dhakatu tweetup (the hashtag used for Twitter promotion) is not about Mark talk talking about blogging. Rather, it is an event for tweeters and bloggers in Bangladesh to get together, to swap ideas, to discuss IT issues in Bangladesh, and to get wide community of bloggers involved from BASIS - representing the IT service companies.

But feel free to talk to Mark about blogging too! Mark is visiting Dhaka as part of a mission run by the UN and International Trade Centre (ITC) called NTF-II. Mark is a guest of BASIS during his stay.

Check these links for more information on the wider programme of work:

NTF-II http://www.intracen.org/projects/ntf-ii/
BASIS: http://www.basis.org.bd/
UN-ITC: http://www.intracen.org/

TWEETUP VENUE:
Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS)
BDBL Bhaban (5th Floor - West)
12 Kawran Bazar, Dhaka -1215
Phone: +880 2 8151196; 8144708-09

Event Organizer:
Mark Hillary
CEO at IT Decisions
Globalisation Author and Blogger for HuffPo, Reuters, and the London 2012 Olympics
LinkedIn: http://j.mp/markhillary

What else to do in a Barista in Dhaka?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:45:00 +0000

Pretty much like aggressively growing mushrooms, I was not surprised to see Barista coffee shops in happening locations in Dhaka. Having walked into the shops in Uttara and Gulshan on two different occasions, it reminded me of my good old days of under-graduate studies in Delhi, India, when hanging out in Baristas with my yaars during 2000-2003 was a cool thing to do. Other than the great coffee experience and checking out coffee lovers of the fairer sex, there were also that acoustic guitar waiting patiently round the corner for a gentle strum, board-games such as chess and Scrabble for people to play and pass away their time sipping over great blends of coffee.

I wonder why I only found guitars in the Barista outlets in Dhaka. There were no board games made available. Is it because that the Barista franchisers think that the Bangladeshi customers should only be limited to doing a karaoke-harikiri of themselves at their premises and limit the damages? Or is it because they are convinced that the coffee sippers in Bangladesh don’t have the required level of grey matter of being able to handle a game of chess? Or may be it is because they think neither the Bangladeshi wanna-be upclass customers have the basic level of English skills to play Scrabble inside Barista shops? The final assumption is that local market research must have advised them not to keep loose board games on the premises, as coffee loving customers may be in so much love with Barista and everything about it that they might walk away with the chess board and Scrabble when they leave. So why take risk? Neither they have the brain to play chess nor can they think in English – so make them sip our coffee and let them strike a few out of tune chords while we charge 200 taka for the beans.

Jokes apart, I think there are innovative new ways to attract new custom to your retail outlets, especially if it is a lounge, coffee shop or even a restaurant. So other than you going to Barista and playing guitar or listening to people you don’t know playing guitar – imagine how it would sound if Barista could arrange ‘free guitar lessons’ for those who are interested or first 20 enthusiasts in one of their outlets near your neighbourhood? Similarly, there could be ‘free language learning sessions’, ‘CV writing’, ‘Presentation skills’, or anything which would have cost you money to go find elsewhere. During times when Bangladesh is fast becoming a western economy in terms of price inflation, anything related to ‘freemium’ should be most welcome, don’t you think so? It is very likely that if you are able to position your lounge or coffee shop as a place where young Bangladeshis don’t idle away and burn their cash sipping coffee and talking shit, you can very well start inviting a fresh new bunch of potential customers inside your premises who would not have otherwise bothered to find out what your business is all about.

This is nothing entirely new as there are numerous examples of restaurants and lounges in Bangladesh and around the world where you have live entertainment (singing, belly dancing, theatre) as you dine and drink. However, rather than being the passive recipient of entertainment which is sometimes charged as a premium on top of your food bill, wouldn’t it be nice to be actually able to learn a new skill in the same premises where we used to just hang out, chat, drink and do nothing else much earlier?

Why Mahfuz Anam's job is easy?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 11:15:00 +0000

In a bid to encourage me to learn better English, my late grandfather used to urge me to read the Daily Star on a regular basis from when I was as young as 15. So having read the leading English daily of Bangladesh for an ardent 17 years, I have now realised that the job of the editor Mr. Mahfuz Anam has been very easy – almost tantamount to a walk in the park (Ramna, Chandrima etc.). A few hypotheses to support my assumptions are here.

Use of copy-paste, find-replace

I am sure the Daily Star editor makes use of these computer functions since their establishment in 1991. It seems that nothing much have changed to report differently regarding the following issues from 1991 till 2011. So what Mahfuz Sir does is simply have a cycle of these stories to appear on his prestigious daily on a programmed basis, changing the names of actor involved, dates, locations as they happen–

Political accusations and counter accusations by Bangladeshi polishitians*,
Allegations of corruptions, election riggings
Highway road accidents, people being killed on roads
Capsizing of launches, ferries,
Indian border guards killing Bangladeshis on a retail basis
Bangladeshi cricket team posting success every 5 years, taking pride in glorious defeats in between
Stock market nose-diving, being manipulated
Power cuts, price inflation, pollution, traffic jams in Dhaka
Happy cross-firing by RAB bhais
Plight of Bangladesh manpower abroad
Bangladesh exception delight (Bangladeshis climbing mountains, winning Nobel prizes, returning money from New York cabs, increased remittances, garments export etc.)

It is an assumption that these patterns of news are ready-made and appear ever since Mahfuz Sir have been reporting us the facts through his newspaper. It is also assumed that Mr. Mahfuz Anam uses a custom-made software called Eternal Bangla news 2.0 to automatically replace BNP with Awami League every 5 years, to refresh dates, locations dynamically across all the above identified general themes on Bangladesh.

Special slot for foreign news

There are arrangements in place with Reuters, AFP and the like so that international news comes in and gets printed in the Daily Star as they happen. It is assumed that this could be one area where Mahfuz Anam could spend some of his editorial skills to cipher out the good from the bad, the interesting from the dull and boring. So much is changing and improving in the world, so he must be kept busy informing his readers of the same.

Jokes apart, I think what Daily Star has been doing since its inception is a great service to us readers and to the nation as a whole. I just feel how frustrating it could be at times for them to keep reporting the same gloomy news on a few topics of our concern over and over again. I wish Mahfuz Sir becomes Sir Mahfuz one day and makes us proud.

*Polishitians (Poly-shit-ians : Bangladeshi politicians who produce a lot of shit through their words and works)

Four 'how cow' business tips for this Eid

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 10:38:00 +0000

Eid Mubarak! Now that the major part of day’s Qurbani related activities are done- it is time to reflect on a few ‘how cow’ business tips which could have been really interesting to realise as a run up to Eid ul Azha –as it is celebrated in Bangladesh.

#1 Let it not go to waste

In my opinion, waste management, environmental and recycling services should be next big business in Bangladesh where to both make money and preserve the nature at the same time. Having a few trips around Dhaka in a few cattle markets and noticing the immeasurable shit being literally wasted – both at the ‘haat’ premises and during the walking from the ‘haat’ to home – is really a big waste. Since all the ‘haats’ being built as a run up to Eid ul Azha are make-shifts, little planning could have made sure to have some sort of a raised platform to keep the cattle to safely dispose cattle waste, accumulate them or drain them to a storage for turning into compost or natural fertiliser, bio-fuel etc. Cows shit and pee everyday and everywhere – not only in the ‘haats’ before Eid – but this massive gathering of this livestock is very rare and annual in Bangladesh which could be better planned to make the best use of natural resources, waste and environment. Any private sector initiative should tie up with city corporations to explore this option from next year.

#2 Avoiding the bloodbath in the streets

Many of us get used to seeing flowing blood and dying animals in the name of sacrifice right in front of our crammed houses in the equally crammed narrow alleys of our towns. In a city like Dhaka where even human children have no or few places left to play around and grow naturally, having any mercy at all to cows and goats sound very unrealistic. Still for the sake of it, designated slaughter-houses would have been a better option in this relation. Yes may be it could have come up with costs, queuing up and token numbers to know when your cattle would be qurbani-ed, but it would have really taken the holy sacrifice away from our dirty streets to a clean and designated location. In this regard, even mobile slaughter vans could be another option – where your cattle would be ‘uploaded’, sacrificed in your presence by the van’s designated hujur – and you could have taken away the meat for distribution in clean, transparent, recyclable bags. If they can do these in the birthplace of Islam, wonder why we can’t follow our Wahhabi oil rich brothers.

#3 Growing the love before letting it go

One of the key ingredients that go missing from Eid ul Azha in Bangladesh is the fondness that was supposed to grow towards the cattle before it was given up in the name of the Almighty. Again due to scarcity of space in the cities in Bangladesh, we can’t even think of rearing an animal in our garages for months. So we prefer to sacrifice our money (black and white) instead of the love during this Eid and focus on the meat feast rather than on the actual teachings in this relation. Wonder if a website could be setup called ‘lovemycow.com’ which will connect would be potential buyers in the city with their preferred cattle still in the growing phase in remote villages in Bangladesh. It is a bit like kiva.org for Eid ul Azha actually. The site could share regular photos of the cattle, children could even visit the cattle from time to time and there should be an agreement that the buyer would buy this off the vendor at a prefixed price before Eid.

To add more emotion to the human-animal relationship before severing it in the name of God – you can also ‘name’ your cattle. Other than the secondary market of knives, mats, wooden boards, fodder – you can think of ready-made nameplates for your cow/goat bearing names such as ‘tyagi titumeer’, ‘allahr bolidaan’, ‘amar bondhu’, ‘goru guru’, ‘hamba mia’ etc. – all of which make your heart melt a bit more as you will be sacrificing not a generic ‘cow’ but your pet who had a name called ‘hamba mia’ whom you had known for a while. Hope you will feel the sacrifice before embarking on the meat feast – or rather stay away from it altogether and focus on distributing to poor only.

Finally to pre-empt frequent interrogations by passersby about the price of your cattle – you can produce generic responses as signboards and stick it to the cattle’s body so that you don’t exhaust yourself responding the same thing over and over again. Examples could be –

‘Dam jante chahiya lojja diben na’ (দাম জানতে চাহিয়া লজ্জা দিবেন না )

‘Ihar dam __ taka, ekhon chup thaken’ (ইহার দাম ___ টাকা, এখন চুপ থাকেন )

‘Dam diya kam ki?’ (দাম দিয়া কাম কি? )

#4 Country roads, take me home, to the place, where I belong

One of the major painstaking processes after finally having bought a cow/goat is to walk it back home from the ‘haat’. If your home is pretty far away from the ‘haat’ then the whole walking journey back home with your new friend can be really tiresome. I wonder if cattle can be ferried from outside Dhaka to different ‘haats’ in the city, then what stops it from ferrying them around from ‘haat’ to ‘haat’ or from ‘haats’ to different city routes via pickups or mini-trucks called ‘cow ferries’? Like bus routes for humans, cattle routes could be established for a day or two before the Eid so that both you and your cattle could be spared of the long walk home – the roads could also be spared from the long shit marks.