Driver carefully, Meeting is with MD not Yam Raj !
Driver carefully, Meeting
is with MD not Yam Raj !
Despite the daily
onslaughts of e-mails, phone calls and memos and recent invention of WhatsApp -
where the data and images are quickly transferred within a fraction of second
subject to the availability of net work - meetings are still one of the most
effective ways that people share and exchange information, get feedback, plan,
collaborate and make important decisions for their organizations.
The meetings at the
root as well as top level are more important and if done well, they can also be
great for building morale and sales in production houses.
I had observed that
meetings are part of service for discussions over finalizing the plans. Sometimes, these are called with lengthy
agenda which could never be discussed in two-three hours meetings. Moreover, the information asked is already
with the headquarter office but they hardly take any trouble to tabulate them
to update the data.
I recollect that once
a meeting was arranged to discuss the issue of providing more staff to the
Reconciliation Cell established in the Accounts Department. To my surprise, the head of the department
before allowing to have discussions over the issue over a meeting, asked the
officer to first come up with a noting that your existing staff is inefficient
which required creation of Reconciliation Cell so that we may first initiate
action against them. And the meeting was
never organized during my more than decades’ stay at the headquarters.
But the incident of
attending an emergent meeting in 80s is unforgettable. The issue of disposal of damage of wheat
stocks stored on the open plinths, due to shortage of covered cap storage, was
so sensitive when I happen to accompany my boss
to attend the meeting at Chandigarh at dot ten in the morning. In those days, the technology was not so
advanced that the information could be tabulated and prints are taken out. Each ‘babu’ has to update the data manually
and get it typed for presentation. Anyhow, all the required information and
data was made available by using the pressure tactics of attending the meeting.
Each district was
provided with a jeep for touring and attending meetings with a driver. The driver was told about attending the
meeting on time. But on way to the
journey, I observed that the driver was little conscious than our journeys in
the past. He was driving at high speed
and we had been saved twice hitting the opposite vehicle.
Regardless of having
read that defensive driving might seem dull but safety should be paramount
consideration on the road but reaching on time at the meeting by us was also
equally important. I too had told the
driver that drive in queue and drive at a distance is the only road safety
mantra as the accident takes place with a decision in a fraction of second.
Anyhow, we reached on
time for the meeting and back home safe.
I cannot forget the words of the boss advising the driver in a casual
talk so that he may not mind - “Data Ram, drive carefully, I had to attend the
meeting with the Managing Director (MD) and not Yam Raj (YR)”. But
the words of boss are ringing in my ears
for years.
harish.monga.969
