A POV

The one thing I never thought I needed to do in my life was to tell an accounts manager that they shouldn’t courier a Bearer’s Cheque.

I was wrong.

Ok. today was that kind of a day. Started as SNAFU progressed to FUBAR and ended approaching SNAFU again.. I should have stayed in bed.

It started the way Monday mornings usually start – with a list of things to be done. people to be met.

On my way to work I got a call from NS. The cheque – which i know had been cashed ten days ago – had not reached the vendor. You will tell me why don’t you use EFT – it doesn’t make sense to have one off vendors paid thro’ EFT – the paperwork to set it up is too much for a small business.

And, then began the fun – as my biz partner said -dhoondo dhoondo re – I called the bank. they sent off a mail to their clearing centre in Chennai.

Next step was to call up the Courier company … tried to read of the receipt. I have read doctors handwriting that read easier than the squiggle on the parchi.. How the hell do couriers know where to deliver ??

All this while dealing with an increasingly stressed vendor who was holidaying with her parents in the US. All of this while trying to appear calm. All of this while explaining the difference (for the nth ) time between TDS and service tax.

All of this, while missing a concert in honour of Bhimsen Joshi held today at 6 at Shanmukhananda Hall. sorry ML … really sorry.

It is getting sorted. That I am sure of. I will not let the impeding paperwork get me down.

And yes, the accounts person has been told that if he ever again sent a bearer’s cheque by courier again – the wrath of hell would be a cakewalk.

____________________________

I have always had the ‘housewife’ approach to accounts. catch the smallest detail and the larger ones will fall into place. Whenever I have set up projects or taken over running projects to bring them into line – the approach has been similar. Find out how much tea, coffee, water is being consumed. Find out how much fuel expenses are. Look at conveyance. Do this for 2 weeks and catch the discrepancies - the large things fall into place automatically. It is also about discipline. When people see that someone form  senior management has their beady little eye on details – people fall into line automatically.

Everything else follows from this basic mode of functioning. And, so that there are no surprises for any one concerned – all this is communicated on day 0. This give people a chance to leave and look for greener pastures.

Every company spends. I don’t have issues with spending. I have issues with waste. And I have serious issues with lack of integrity. I have sacked people who have fudged vouchers. Because the moment you let things slide and say it is only Rs.200 or Rs.25 or Rs.5 – the floodgates open to all sorts of silliness. Companies that fold up – unless they are News International – do so because they are so focussed on the big things that these small things trip them up. If even person fudges their vouchers, everyone around knows.  The result is either they emulate the behaviour or you have a demotivated staff that believes – rightly so -  that the management is stupid.

———————-

Strangely enough, the same goes for Government. The reason India is in a mess today is not because of CWG or 2G or any of the alphabet soup. It is in a mess because everyone most of us -have condoned all the little bribes and all the little leakages – till the whole thing has gotten to this giant level. If people were caught and sentanced – whether they took Rs.50 or Rs.5k or Rs.50k – and had to face the humiliation of being in prison  - you wouldn’t have a situation where people think they can get away with 50 lakhs or 50 crores or 500 crores or 5000 crores any figure you choose – my mind cannot compute beyond 100 crores.

Rules are not for the rule book. They are meant not just to tell the bad ‘we will get you’ – but also tell the good ‘you are right in being good’.

———————

KD got me a  zuiko digital 35 mm f3.5 macro . A photographer friend told me that once you shoot with a prime lens, you will fall in love with the depth of field and never want to shoot with a zoom again. I don’t know about the latter. Haven’t been about too much since I got the Prime. But, i do love the DoF.

My favourite pair of earrings place on my day planner and shot.
_____________________________

And today is Ashadi Ekadashi – I know a lot of people who hoped to be at Pandarpur – where Vithala sits with Rukmini. One day I will go.