Todays question will be about the changes and developments in India right now. The man behind the question (because there’s evidently only men) is no other than Ron Pompei the founder of branding and arkitekt bureaue Pompei A.D, most known for his approach and philosophy on design.
-Will India be able to learn from the missteps of the west regarding ecology and education?
-Will they recognize earlier in their economic and social development that material recourses are finite yet human resources, creativity, innovation and expression are infinite?
-Will India achieve a true global conscious that recognizes the unique contribution of all cultures?
When writing this it becomes very clear that India is part of a greater system, usually called the world. Because of this it’s hard to look at the things happening in India as separate, rather there contribute to the movement of the world, as well as the changes around influences India.
With a population as big as the Indian there’s of course a lot of knowledge and a lot of wisdom within the borders. A lot of people are highly educated and knows as much about today’s business world and the social development as we do in the west. Therefore this development is far from the one the west has bee through.
Still this conscious is only implemented among few and the big difference is that it’s a total lack of it on the street, when in the west people are very aware in general the common man here do miss that knowledge.
And there’s also the fact that all development has to take its own course and I believe there will always be rocks to stumble upon and gain experience from.
The greatest difference between the ongoing changes here is that these people have the knowledge gained from the missteps of the west as well as the right ones taken. With this in mind this society won’t have to do the same mistakes done by the west but instead there will be other. To totally avoid missteps will be impossible and we should remember that earlier missteps were needed for the western development.
There’s also the difference between learning from observation of other and learning through experience. Some things will have to happen even though the knowledge to avoid them do exist.
Still, India has a huge lead in the way that development methods and technical solutions already been invented and is available to support both social change and new business.
After taking your questions in consideration I believe answer them all would make this a very shallow and diffuse text. So rather than it all in one generalised answer I will give you some examples of the ongoing changes and developments.
Whether India in those changes manage to, avoid the missteps of the vest, form a global conscience and/or see the different use of resources remains a question. I’d like to mirror this thought back to you since my picture only captures what’s essential in my world and my knowledge in this area is far too limited to take me beyond what I can see.
EDUCATION
“When I was doing an MBA I initially chose to specialise in human recourses. But I was mocked as a wimp, sissy and knucklehead. So, I switched to marketing.
A nation’s desire to develop, and a individual’s need to succeed, often focus them on acquiring hard skills. That’s why our government favours technical institutes over liberal arts universities and our graduates choose finance, marketing and engineering over HR, design and research.
It’s mission, not money, that drives most successful countries, companies and managers.”
Jehangir S Pocha, editor Busiess World India
SYSTEMS
Traditionally India companies have had a higher level of tolerance for ambiguity, whereas their counterparts in North America and Europe are used to well-structured systems with lots of transparency and clarity. Indian companies tend to adopt the “we will take it as it comes” stance, which does not go down to well with those being acquired, further causing cultural disturbance.
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
While companies have to accept that it’s not possible to stop people from shifting jobs, they are learning to bleed without hurting. Organisations are tapping, consolidating and preserving the knowledge that employees bring and add during their tenure. It’s a trend called knowledge management and is fast catching on with the knowledge managers.
The knowledge of KM has been around for over two decades in European and Scandinavian companies, which first identified the perils of losing knowledge within the system, most are mistaking KM merely an information technology offshoot. There is a clear disconnect of what knowledge management means and what the companies has understood it as.
BUSINESS CULTURE
It’s estimated that 98 percent of companies in India operate conventional offices, leaving only the rest to experiment with flexible locations and hours.
Yet technology drives this change. Instant messaging and video conferencing assign valuable projects to talented people to prefer working out of their homes. “With the help of technology, our productivity is not affected, as employees can work from their homes yet attend to personal needs, for which they would earlier taken leave.
EMPLOYEES
Respect and credibility are today more important than authority and power. Employees today look for work that not only makes remunerative sense but also gives them a sense of purpose, of achievement, of contribution and of leaving a legacy of work well done and values well lived.
Examples taken from discusions in the magazine Business World India
