Vol.1 | Issue 2 | October, 2008 A Quarterly Newsletter from Training Department, IFEN Rs. 5 TRIPLE TRACK October, 2008 : Pg 1 Dear Colleagues, We are happy to bring forth the second issue of TRIPLE How much do each of us WEIGH? TRACK. We hope you found the earlier issue interesting and useful. We encourage you to review the information we are putting together for you and give us your feedback. Markethics! The main focus will be on the principles of ethics, which construes a vital aspect of character – both for an individual as well as for an organisation. Mizaru-Kikazaru -Iwazaru Subconsciously, we all do appreciate that ethics is an integral part of our psyche. That is the reason why, we Teaching Right from Wrong seek honesty, integrity, responsibility and compliance in people we interact with. Hence, as the marketing arm of our organisation, it A School Called Life! becomes imperative for us to realise that our decisions impact not only ourselves, but also our customers, our colleagues and our organisation. Therefore, we should Shutter-bug always imbibe the principle of ‘Maketing with Ethics’. Abraham Lincoln once said, “When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad. That is my religion.” The fact is Gandhigiri Today we all want to feel good. This issue of Triple Track comprises features which deal with ethics. We are sure you will read and reflect upon the Test yourself ideas to make your lives more meaningful. We wish you all success and a happy festive season Face to Face ahead. Sanjay Ramchandani Points to Ponder From the initial years of A Quarterly Newsletter from Training Department, IFEN my career, I remember an Vol.1 | Issue 2 | October, 2008 interesting incident at one of the training programs I had attended. Our trainer was known for his penchant for creativity and innovation. He started off by holding up a gift voucher worth Rs.500 and asked, “Who would like this for himself?” Needless to say all 50 hands went up….in fact some of us put up both our hands! He seemed pleased with this reaction and then crumpled the voucher in his hand and asked, “Now, who still wants it?” We all knew that the gift voucher was still worth Rs.500, crumpled or not, so again all our hands went up in unison. He now seemed very pleased with our reaction and asked, “What if I do this?” Saying so he dropped the voucher on the floor and crushed it with his shoe. He picked up the crumpled, soiled voucher and once again asked, “Now in Editor this condition who would still want it?” Abhijit Bhattacharya For the third time our hands reached for the sky! Consulting Editor Then with a smile on his face, he said, “My friends, Ram Mohan Kota no matter what I did to this voucher, you still want it because its value did not come down. It is still worth Deputy Editors Rs. 500, isn’t it?” Vasanth Kumar Sangram Kesari Samal There was no doubt about that! P. N. Santosh Similarly, we too go through periods of troubles, sufferings, conflicts and uncomfortable circumstances. Editoral Team Making an indelible mark on my life, this incident made Padma Geetha me realize that, like the voucher spoken about above, we Sunitha Pathak all do have a choice – to devalue our lives by succumbing K. Sridhar Raj to the storms of suffering or retain our values by Design and Layout overcoming them bravely. Narwa Srinivas We must believe and live by the universal dimensions of life –trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and becoming a good citizen. Our character is built on these pillars – which are so aptly called the Pillars of Character. So colleagues, with the festive season round the corner, Printed at M/s. ICIT Software Center Pvt. Ltd., when most of us turn a new leaf in life, let us give character #1, Technocrat Industrial Estate, Balanagar ‘X’ a thought… Roads, Hyderabad - 500 037, Andhra Pradesh and published on behalf of the IFEN, My sincere and warm greetings for the season ahead. 52, Nagarjuna Hills, Punjagutta, Hyderabad - 500 082, Andhra Pradesh. ABHIJIT BHATTACHARYA Editor : Abhijit Bhattacharya TRIPLE TRACK October, 2008 : Pg 3 How much do each of us WEIGH? Santosh P N In today’s increasingly competitive, performance-driven The market today demands professionals. Hence earning business climate, regulations, code of professional an MBA degree is an expensive and tumultuous process. ethics and conventional business rules do not seem to be The cost of preparation for admission into a good adequate to make us ethical in our professional life. The B-School, admission fee, course and tuition fees, living most important thing today is to realise – what do each expenses and the cost of lost salaries, if taken together one of us stand for? Often this question is answered by will be in lakhs. These escalating costs have put forth a a single word – Values!! question – whether to pursue a degree in MBA is worth We as human beings are not handed over these set its weight in gold? of rules defining values during our birth. Rather, the Many a times, we answer this question by comparing entire life process and the happenings of life design the either the salaries or corporate ranks of MBAs with standards to be practiced. We derive ethical norms from those of graduates after five to ten years of experience. various sources like parents, family, friends, religion, While undertaking this exercise, another important culture, community and society as a whole. Most metric which gains importance is- to what extent are importantly, it is education that plays a significant role B-Schools creating ethical leaders? Will these leaders in developing the ethical values in us. As we grow and lead by examples in building a long term value in this mature in our personal and professional life, we start increasingly competitive and complex market? developing certain values. TRIPLE TRACK October, 2008 : Pg 4 Time and again, CEOs of leading conglomerates So, it is we, who have to decide our standards of life. emphasise on creating ethical managers. For the Neither the B-schools nor the organisations that employ B-Schools, therefore, it is of both strategic importance us have the responsibility of injecting the spirit of ethics and of academic imperative to create quality leaders. and morality in us. By virtue of education, knowledge On the other hand, the leaders of these conglomerates, and experience, we are aware of right or wrong. It is who offer astronomical salaries and hire these MBAs, only a matter of introspection and practice. We have to face an enormous challenge today i.e. professionalism think and innovate the ways to put ethics into practice. vis-à-vis ethics and morality. It’s for us to decide – What do each one of us stand for? Temptation of promotion and salary hike has affected loyalty resulting in frequent change of jobs. Today’s managers seem to be more task and profit oriented at the cost of humanity. This gives rise to the thought – Has the social responsibility lost its relevance in the midst of competition and profit maximisation? thics have always been the keystone of every action in What is going wrong? Are these B-Schools who EICFAI University. Giving our continuously speak of quality, not able to create and organisation its unique identity, our develop quality leaders? Have the organisations that strong belief in professional ethics employ them failed to foster the spirit of ethics into their continues to provide us with the professional life? Or have the individuals failed to derive impetus to move further in our quest the exact meaning of ethics in terms of professional and for perfection. personal gain? A unique feature in our programs, In this context, let us define what “Ethics” is? Simply put, both in the flexi-mode and the it is a set of standards, rules and guiding principles which full-time mode, is that Ethics is an governs ones conduct both in personal and professional integral part of some of them. In life. It defines right or wrong conduct. It’s more to do our continuing endeavor to make our with our conscience. It is central to the way we care, students aware and to trigger the and to the way we envision ourselves as professionals. thinking process in them, the study of professional ethics has been included. Realising the need for a re-think on the part of our intelligentsia and among academicians, on the relevance and the need for professional ethics in society today, the papers/subjects dealing with Ethics are mandatory and students have to pass in them in order to be awarded the degree/ diploma. While parents can’t dictate our morality, they are the Most of our programs aim to equip first to demonstrate ethical boundaries for us. They are students with an insight to ethics the first to instill a strong sense of right or wrong in through subjects which focus on us. We also imbibe many actions from friends and peer integrity, ethical behavior, professional groups. competence and independence, objectivity, public trust, etc. Religious beliefs have a unique impact on our morality. Spiritual laws give an established set of moral rules to Program curricula include business practice. It also promises rewards in afterlife which laws; judicial precedents and Indian motivates us to follow the spiritual system. and global regulatory environments. These are designed to provide students Culture and society influence our moral values with an understanding of vital issues to a large extent.