The people at the “bottom” of the pyramid treated me with the same respect and affection as always.
The interesting insight for me was that the higher in the organization you go, this “human” aspect declines. Once fired, you discover your friends and the integral qualities of those who worked with you. Yes, there is the office to clear out and a final settlement to be agreed on, but I am in no mood to go to Bombay House for this. I find a new proposition for Starbucks that never occurred to me previously: a place for unemployed managers, all dressed in suits, with nowhere to go. The following morning, what to do? Well, a bit lost, and ready at 8:30, instead of the usual 8:00, I head for my morning Starbucks coffee. My four-member team, I am less concerned about as they are enormously talented and familiar enough with the group to land on their feet. Quickly, I shoot off a text message to a colleague with a plea to take charge of this venture. What is going to happen to them? They joined on my word that we were going to make this a core capability of the group. My first thoughts go to the 70+ people I had accumulated in the Big Data team over the past year. I realize that I am unemployed for the first time since the age of 18. It is something that has happened to many, and there are entire reality shows on TV built around the theme “You are fired!” But, still nothing prepares you for this. I query does this mean I do not need to show up tomorrow morning? Receive an affirmative reply.
He informs me: “it is my unpleasant duty to say your services are no longer required”. At 9:00 pm, I get a call from a colleague with whom I had worked very closely and got along famously as we were often on the same side of arguments. I let the organizers know that I will skip the dinner that follows.īack in my apartment trying to get information from the company with little success. My head jerks – what? But I am on a panel, so keep answering the questions but signal to the facilitator that we need to wrap this up early.
Suddenly, a colleague comes and whispers in my ear that Chairman Cyrus Mistry has been asked to step down. The theme was big data, and since I led this group wide initiative by setting up a new company focussed on data analytics, the participants were quizzing me on its potential.
Last Monday, I was on a panel in front of 100+ young students and managers who were participating in a competition that Tata sponsors annually called TBLA. I need something, give me something wonderful”Īs someone who almost opted to become a professional DJ, it’s fortunate that my favourite song of this year is Love and Hate by Michael Kiwanuka, with the lyrics above. “Calling all the people here to see the show
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