The Hindu Business Line : Teamwork redefined

The company employs a program called the ‘12 behaviours,’ informs Russell E. Palmer in Ultimate Leadership ( www.pearsoned.co.in). Honeywell recruits people from around the world, but ensures that they fit the 12 behaviours best; also, during the annual appraisal process, everyone gets measured on those 12 behaviours, describes Palmer.

‘Teamwork’ is one of the behaviours. An overused word, you may fret, but the company defines it in a specific way: “If an issue is being discussed, it is incumbent upon team members to speak up and express their opinion and to make sure that their point of view is heard.”

You cannot just expect that people will speak up willingly, explains a quote of David M. Cote, the CEO, cited in the book. “It is not just a cultural issue; it is also a personal issue. Extroverted people tend to speak up, and introverted people do not; and unless called on specifically they may not speak up at all.” And what is the duty of the team leader? To make a decision, insists Cote. “He or she cannot just sit there and wait for consensus.”

Cote cautions against stereotyping cultures and countries. “In the UK, we had to move a plant from one location to another, and we decided to offer packages to people who agreed to move,” he narrates, in an example mentioned in the book.

“Cote was warned not to expect a high response because ‘nobody moves in the UK.’ Cote asked the local Honeywell executives, ‘How do you know if you don’t offer the packages? Why don’t you make the offer and see what happens?’”

When the offer was made, Honeywell’s British executives were astonished to see that large numbers of people accepted the packages and agreed to move, continues Palmer.

Compulsory read.

Users can add value

Using systems designed and programmed by IT (information technology) specialists, ‘user’ is someone who uses what is given and no more; and we have become used to treating users with an element of disdain, bemoans Peter Wheatcroft in World Class IT Service Delivery ( www.vivagroupindia.com).

“This is unfortunate, because users are actually people who have less scope for engagement with the IT organisation and therefore least to lose from being obnoxious when something goes wrong,” he adds.

“Users are amorphous, unseen and unknown and often treated by IT as generic problems, sitting in a helpdesk queue awaiting their turn to be served.”

So much so, when the user is connected, he or she is usually managed under a regime of minimum time spent on the problem and a solution offered on a least-cost basis, applying the Pareto principle, the author writes, quite empathetically.

“Many companies regard helpdesks as a necessity but not a value-adding part of the IT organisation, which is a shame because a good helpdesk will add much to both the perception of service quality and the reality of service delivery, which is important for any service-oriented organisation.”

Hard-hitting messages.

IP potential

Your family doctor monitors a serious health condition while you are at home. Your home and cars are maintained over IP (Internet Protocol), and your appliances are remotely serviced by the manufacturer. You can open a new project site by deploying a significant number of sensors to improve security, optimise energy consumption, and effectively track assets.

These are some of the ‘what if’ scenarios that Patrick Grossetete, Ciprian Popoviciu and Fred Wettling paint in Global IPv6 Strategies ( www.ciscopress.com). Despite all the developments of the past decades, with today’s deployments, we have barely scratched the surface of possibilities offered by IP, the authors say.

At the national level, they speak of possibilities such as pollution monitoring and energy conservation through the use of sensors. “Imagine if a modern military could be made more efficient by the extensive use of sensors to track biohazards, receive and send imagery from different sources, and more seamlessly communicate and collaborate between services and coalitions to achieve peacekeeping missions. Imagine if citizens could vote and express positions on policies securely from home and government agencies could better communicate with them remotely.”

IP version 6 or IPv6 offers enough addressing resources to meet the needs of the most ambitious projects, the most extensive services and the largest infrastructures, the authors assure. “IPv6 is a mature protocol and its integration is under way.”

Prescribed study for the tech hungry.

The LOFT effect

What is behind the success of business intelligence projects? ‘The LOFT effect,’ answers Cindi Howson in Successful Business Intelligence: Secrets to Making BI a Killer App ( www.tatamcgrawhill.com). She explains the acronym as luck, opportunity, frustration, and threat.

“The funny thing about luck is that you never really know if a positive outcome truly arises from luck or if it is from fortuitous timing and exceptional insight,” the author observes.

Talking about opportunity, she says the requirements may not be well known when a new opportunity presents itself. “Creativity and exploration are necessary ingredients to unlock these business opportunities and fulfil those visions.”

Frustration can come in many forms, cautions Howson. For instance, it can show as the inability to answer simple questions, or corner you into a situation of being held accountable for things without the right tools to do a job well, or push you to be managing blindly without facts to support the decisions!

“When companies first embark on business intelligence, a frequent starting point is to address the biggest pains. Sometimes the degree of frustration has to reach a boiling point before business intelligence becomes a priority.”

Threats that propel a company to more successfully leverage business intelligence often come from forces beyond the company’s control, says Howson.

She gives the example of Continental Airlines, which had gone through two bankruptcies. “There is nothing like the threat of another bankruptcy to spur a business into profound change…”

Extremely educative.

Tailpiece

“The reason why I don’t use a stylus for my cell-phone is…”

“Because you tend to lose it?”

“No, I tend to use it as a toothpick too!”

dmurali@thehindu.co.in

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