To Bee or Not to Bee

As I watched t.v. last night, was pleasantly surprised by the extensive coverage given to the missing bees' and the resultant impact on farmers and food supply. Both 60 Minutes (CBS- "What's with the bees") and PBS ("Nature: Silence of the Bees") ran stories. Finally the media is waking up to this important mystery.

However, the cynical side of me said it was a coordinated PR ploy executed by the makers of Jerry Seinfeld's "Bee Movie" (in theaters Nov 2) - let's get those stories about the bees' going so that there is more audience interest in the movie. No sweat, as long as a good cause is served.


Well, those of you who are avid readers of this blog know that we covered the story much earlier : Of Butterflies and Storms

The most poignant part of the story was the clip about Chinese farmers manually pollinating their fruit trees using a contraption made from chicken feathers. If I remember the stats right, it took them a few days to complete what bees can do in minutes.

Seems like we have not heard the last of this story yet. Bee right back..........

Of Bobby Jindal, Religion and the US electorate

Bobby Jindal recently became the first Indian-American to be elected the Governor of a US State. A remarkable achievement indeed. More remarkable is the age at which he has achieved it (36 years) and the state he has achieved it in (Louisiana - highly conservative,bottom of the rankings on most developmental indices, minuscule Indian-American population) .

Most news commentaries on his achievement have elaborated on the fact that he converted to the Roman-Catholic faith very early in life. They somehow seemed to imply that though he was Indian-American , he was a Roman Catholic and that made him more acceptable, more mainstream. Louisiana is a majority Roman-Catholic state.One would have thought that pledging one's soul to the Pope was not a prerequisite to getting elected. However it is a reminder of the extent to which faith and religion play a role in American politics.

Would be quite an uphill climb for the likes of Mitt Romney (Mormon), Hillary Clinton (woman), Barack Obama (African American) in the presidential races. Kennedy(Catholic) had broken the hold of the WASP(White Anglo Saxon Protestant) male but now it seems like WASE (White Anglo Saxon Evangelical) male is the profile that calls the shots.

But then I may be proven wrong. And I hope I will, because the ideals on which this country is founded -"Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" are too visionary to be shackled by sex, race or religion.

Ever wanted to quiz a Nobel Laureate?

Ever wanted to quiz a Nobel Laureate? Now's your chance. Submit your question to one or more of this year's Laureates, and the most interesting ones will be posed to the Laureates who are participating in "Nobel Minds", an SVT/BBC World TV programme that will be aired in December, or who will feature in a special Q&A article that will appear on this website after the Nobel Prize ceremonies.

The link is here http://nobelprize.org/prog/php/ask_a_laureate/

Cytotron : A cure for Arthritis ??

Very rarely does one come across news items about technology/inventions from the developing world sweeping across the globe. I have recently come across one such invention which can potentially revolutionise the way Arthritis is treated and can potentially alleviate the pain and suffering of millions.

The device is called a Cytotron™(http://www.cytotron.com/) . It uses Rotational Field Quantum Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (RFQMR) for regenerative and degenerative tissue engineering and repair.

As per the inventor- Dr. Rajah Vijay Kumar "The Cytotron™ is now being used for treating diseases like Osteoarthritis and Cancer. The treatment modality is non-invasive, painless and free from side effects. In the Clinical studies it has been demonstrated that Cytotron™ is very effective in curing certain conditions such as a damaged knee by regenerating the cartilage tissue in Osteoarthritis or stopping and reversing the growth of a tumor in cancer."

The technology has been developed by the Centre for Advanced Research and Development (CARD), a division of Scalene Cybernetics in Bangalore, India(http://www.scaleneasiapacific.com/cytotron.html) .

More details at : http://www.cytotrontreatment.com/

I have not heard much about this technology in the US media and am not aware of how far the inventors have progressed in getting FDA approvals. That would be a big first step before it can enter mainstream medicine in the US.

On another front, as my friend Ajay Singhal who brought this invention to my attention points out " India has come a long way.. from supplying manpower to do the cybercoolie work to Basic Research in cutting edge technology in Medicine. It sure feels nice! "

Latest Update (Nov 23, 2010): Cytotron: Exciting New Development

Today, customers are last in line

My blog readers : You always get to read it first. My blog article : Customer Service : Quo Vadis got published in the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle today. I had to tweak it a little to get it down to the 450 words limit and it got a new title . Here's the published version :

Today, customers are last in line
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071008/OPINION02/710080349/1039/OPINION

Deepak Seth Guest essayist
(October 8, 2007) — As the leaves begin to turn, the first Christmas trees have started making their way into area stores. The Big Holiday Shopping season is surely round the corner.
What lies in store for the customer? The last year can be described as an "annus horribilis" as far as customer experience is concerned. Long lines, airplanes stranded on the tarmac, numerous recalls ranging from toys to hamburger patties. Why is it that, when there have been tremendous advancements in technology, logistics, communication and others, there has been a steady decline in the quality of "customer experience"?

First, the pendulum has swung too far in corporate America's drive toward enhanced productivity (revenue per employee). Now, it seems to have reached the stage where increase in productivity is being accompanied by a decline in the quality of customer experience.

Second, many companies seem to have outsourced their responsibility for the health of their brands, in addition to outsourcing the manufacture of their products. It is easy to blame other countries for shoddy workmanship or hazardous components. However, the customer is paying good U.S. money to a good U.S. company for what he or she perceives to be a good product.

What can corporate America do to enhance the customer experience?

• Develop, monitor and report on standardized measures of customer experience. "What's measured, gets managed." These measures in addition to the other indices like profitability; productivity, etc., would be true indicators of the corporate health and viability. Declining customer experience measures for a company with high profitability would be a sure indicator that the good times are not going to last long.
• Consolidate all "customer experience"-related functions under a high-powered Chief Customer Officer. This officer can be tasked to be the voice of the customer at the board level. This new role would ensure that the voice of the customer does not get lost.
• Take firm control of the supply chain process. Retain ownership of establishing and enforcing the design, manufacture and product quality standards irrespective of where the products are made.

Maybe it's time for all companies to reiterate this customer-focused pledge, coming from a person very few would recognize as a management guru, Mohandas Gandhi: "Customers are the most important visitors on our premises. They are not dependent on us. We are dependent on them. They are not an interruption of our work. They are the purpose of it. They are not outsiders to our business. They are part of it. We are not doing them a favor by serving them. They are doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so."

Board of Contributor members advise the Editorial Board and write occasional columns.

Games Indians Play: Why We Are the Way We Are

An interesting and sometimes scathing, self-introspective look at "Indians" by an Indian,V. Raghunathan . Some may call it supercilious and others self-flagellating, but there are no doubts that it is controversial and thought-provoking.

Comments like this are sure to raise a few hackles : Privately, Indians are reasonably smart -- in fact, we are as smart as anybody else -- but publicly we are dumb. Our ability to understand the need for cooperation is very low. We believe that cooperation and selfishness cannot go together -- which is not true. We also tend to be very fatalistic in our outlook. We give excuses such as, "What can I do alone? Everybody else is looking out for himself, so why shouldn't I?"

But then, a little introspection and self-criticism shouldn't hurt.

An interview with the author published at IndiaKnowledge@Wharton :

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/india/article.cfm?articleid=4222


In his book Games Indians Play: Why We Are the Way We Are, V. Raghunathan writes about a farmer whose corn won top awards year after year. When a reporter asked about the secret of his success, the farmer attributed it to the fact that he shared his corn with his neighbors. Why, the reporter wondered, would the farmer want to share his seed when those neighbors also competed with him for the prize? The farmer's reply was, "The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grew inferior corn, cross-pollination would steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors do the same."

That Indians often fail to act like this farmer is the principal theme of Raghunathan's book. Using examples as varied as their tendency to drive through red lights to their failure to protect the environment, Raghunathan argues that Indians often act in ways that focus on winning immediate gains at the expense of long-term benefits. What makes Raghunathan's approach unusual is that his argument isn't a moral diatribe: He employs game theory -- a branch of mathematics -- and related concepts, such as the prisoner's dilemma, to present his case. A former professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad, Raghunathan in 2001 was named president of the ING Vyasya Bank. He now works for the GMR Group as managing director of GMR Industries, the group's agri-business division, and CEO of the GMR Varalakshmi Foundation. Raghunathan also teaches game theory and behavioral economics at the University of Bocconi in Italy. To relax, he repairs mechanical clocks.

Customer Experience: Quo Vadis ?

As the leaves begin to change colors the first Christmas Trees have started making their way into area stores. A sure indication that the big holiday shopping season is round the corner. What lies in store for the customer? The last year can be described as an "annus horribilis" as far as customer experience is concerned. Long lines at stores, airplanes stranded on the tarmac, numerous recalls ranging from spinach to toys to hamburger patties. Why is it so that when there have been tremendous advancements in technology, logistics, communication etc, there has been a steady decline in the quality of "customer experience"?

Firstly, the pendulum has swung too far in corporate America's drive towards enhanced productivity (revenue per employee). Now, it seems to have reached the stage where increase in productivity is being accompanied by a decline in the quality of customer experience. Unfortunately, while productivity can be easily measured and is reported in financial statements, no effective way has yet been determined to measure or report on the quality of the customer experience. And everyone knows the adage "What's measured, gets managed". Most companies use customer complaints as an indirect indicator of the quality of the customer experience, but that is reactive rather than proactive (akin to bolting the stable doors after the horse has escaped.). Also, periodic customer satisfaction surveys are carried out, however there is no standard methodology of factoring their results in the financial reporting of the company the way other indicators of performance are.

Secondly, many companies seem to have outsourced their responsibility for the health of their brands, in addition to outsourcing the manufacture of their products. It is easy to blame other countries for shoddy workmanship or hazardous components. However, the customer is paying good US money for what he or she perceives to be a good product to a good US company. The US Company has to own the responsibility of maintaining manufacturing and product standards irrespective of where they are manufactured. They also need to ensure that quality standards are met. Products also need to be designed for US requirements. Lately many companies are behaving like importing agents, simply importing whatever is made elsewhere, having it packaged with their own brand label and distributing it to the retailers’ shelf.

These factors have been accompanied by an increase in customer awareness. The customer is becoming more demanding and discerning; and rightfully so. Also, government regulators have become increasingly vigilant following the "rather safe than sorry" approach.

What can corporate America do to enhance the customer experience in the days to come?

• Develop, monitor and report on standardized measures of customer experience. This would require industry associations and accounting authorities to arrive on a consensus on what those measures need to be for the various sectors. These measures in addition to the normal indicators of corporate health like profitability; productivity etc would be true indicators of the corporate health and viability. Declining customer experience measures for a company with high profitability would be sure indicator that the good times are not going to last long.
• Most companies have Chief Financial Officers and Chief People Officers, maybe it's time to consolidate all "customer experience" related functions viz. Complaint Handling, Satisfaction Surveys, Post complaint audit, Customer Research etc. under a high powered Chief Customer Officer. This Officer can be tasked to be the voice of the customer at the board level. This new role would ensure that the voice of the customer does not get lost in the pressures of meeting Sales or Production targets as they can sometimes do if the customer experience related functions lie scattered within the Sales or Manufacturing groups.
• Take firm control of the supply chain process. Be responsible for establishing and enforcing the design, manufacture and product quality standards irrespective of where the products are made. Xenophobic diatribes cannot substitute for the responsibility of being custodians of the brand health.

After all did they not use to say "Customer is King/Queen"? Though Royalty may be a relic now, the Customer still needs to be placed on a high pedestal. Maybe it's time to reiterate this customer focused pledge from a person , very few would recognize as a management guru, Mohandas Gandhi , " A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption of our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider to our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so."