August 30, 2017

Six Qualities Winners Share

Winners are a rare breed. We look up to them. We admire them and their achievements. But in reality, winners are not different from you and me. Each one of us has the same qualities that are needed to win. We do not leverage it often enough.If you think about the times when you have been extremely successful (or failed badly), you would have demonstrated the same six qualities that winners demonstrate. The six qualities are common to every winner.

August 25, 2017

Humane Layoffs

Layoffs hurt. They hurt even more when companies do it paying scant attention to the financial and emotional trauma that a job loss is bound to cause. They also spark furious backlashes, hurting the corporate brand and resulting in a catastrophic loss of trust. A case in point could be Tech Mahindra, India's leading information technology (IT) company and part of the $19 billion Mahindra Group. Right now, its management is facing allegations of large-scale and illegal retrenchment of its employees in Hyderabad. Earlier, too, the company came under fire when the audio clip of a termination call went viral. In that audio clip, the company's human resource (HR) executive was heard asking an employee to resign by 10 a.m. the next day or face termination. The employee kept pleading for a reasonable notice period or a discussion but was told there could be no room for 'flexibility'.My take for Business Today dated Sep 10, 2017

August 3, 2017

The reality of Augmented Reality

While Pokémon Go may have been the best marketing campaign for AR, we are only scratching the surface. The possibilities are endless. So don’t let your enthusiasm die down. The roller coaster has just started its journey.

July 29, 2017

Why 2 Pizza Teams Work Better

A smaller team helps improve execution. Amazon’s stock has risen more than 36 percent this year. If you had invested $1,000 in Amazon in July 2002 — and had held onto your shares — that money would be worth $83,000 today. In real terms it would be $61,000. Can all this be attributed only to 2 Pizza teams or is there something more.

July 13, 2017

Drones

Laws are boundaries that we draw to keep us safe and protected. When people follow traffic rules, people are unharmed by vehicles. The boundaries of knowledge also expand when innovators challenge these rules and laws. Innovation necessarily happens in the fringes. Sometimes when the laws become hindrances, the hub of innovations shifts to other spots. For drones that innovation hub seems to be Africa.

June 28, 2017

Can we sell our data for a living

The data we generate is then used to craft algorithms that can predict our next move. That is the basis of all the nudges we get as we shop. “Those who bought X also bought Y” is the algorithm trying to figure out your next move. The algorithms are always trying to second guess you — till the time you give up controls of your life to the algorithm. Then why not make a living by selling this data that is ours.

June 18, 2017

How You Can Protect Your Social Media Reputation

There is no delete button on the internet. Your friends get to see your party photos -so can the rest of the world. Every now and then hackers break open the locks and run away with your data. This has happened to every major site. So what you post on the net is for the world to see - even your employers. What can you do? Plenty.

May 25, 2017

How to run HR like an Amazon Bookstore

HR was all about creating one set of rules then apply to every employee. Today employees expect a customized experience when they go to work for any employer. The process of creating an individualized experience is dependent on the unique identifiers we have for an individual. While most corporations have still stayed on with gender options being limited to three at best, Facebook offers 71 gender options to UK users. That allows them the ability to target ads more specifically. Facebook allowed people to type in whatever they wanted to describe their gender and from that data set created more categories. Amazon can be the best model for your HR department.

April 25, 2017

Digital Human Resources: The Haves & Will-Not

Finding gaps in the readiness of a candidate for the next role can be done by using AI. Imagine using an AI platform to let the system analyze your readiness for the role you wish to take. Then provides a recommendation of the way to build the gap. There are already AI driven coaching tools that can be used to change the talent management process in organizations. Artificial Intelligence lies at the intersection of big data, machine learning and robotics. HR can leverage AI to truly impact business outcomes.