Tuesday, November 24, 2015

The recruitment paradox - Why good people are difficult to find

The complaint that, "There is a tremendous shortage of skilled/qualified/good people" is heard all too frequently from those who are on the lookout for suitable people to employ. Yet, I see around me qualified people not getting the opportunities they deserve. The fault, as the saying goes, lies somewhere in between. The following true incident may provide some insight into this paradoxical situation.  
This story has its beginning in early 1999 when a front-line commercial bank in East Africa appointed a London based, globally reputed, executive placement firm to recruit a managing director and CEO for itself. Three applicants were short-listed. They were invited to visit East Africa separately, and individually meet the members of the board of the bank. One of the three, an American, was finally selected to head the bank. He assumed office in September 1999.
Within a fortnight of taking charge, an e-mail went out from his desk to everyone in the bank. The subject line read: “Stop the music”. In his message to all employees, the new managing director asked everyone to refrain from making new demands on him for decisions on one thing or another. Essentially - no new customers, no new business, no new advances, no new contacts, no new individual strategies and no new initiatives. He asked everyone to focus on first strengthening the foundation and gearing up its infrastructure before going out to build business. (Let me add here that the bank was not on fire. Its financials were sound; it was already running quite well when he joined the bank.)
Committees were formed to review, re-think, re-strategise, restructure, re-organise and re-build an uniform, focused corporate structure. Meetings were seen to be held every day, at almost every corner of the organization. One general manager was removed from heading operations to writing operation manuals. The HR manager was instructed to come up with a totally new HR policy document for the bank. Others were similarly engaged.
So it went on for months. “No isolated, ad-hoc new initiatives till we – as an organization - are ready in all respects” was the message that went out over and over again. In one instance, the treasury was pulled up for grabbing a simple inward remittance business of around a million dollars that came their way (who could blame them!). Reason? The bank was yet to finalise and formally approve its marketing and business policies. 
Business, income, and profitability plummeted. Months down the line the staff, the customers, and the market – everyone was confused. After drifting aimlessly for some time, senior executives began to leave. Finally, the board of the bank acted. The same board that had appointed him a little more than a year ago, asked him to resign.
What had gone wrong? Primarily, three things. One, the candidate did have banking experience, but that was gained only in highly developed countries – far removed from the environs of countries like Africa. Second, his banking experience was dated. For, he had been away from practical banking, working only as a consultant - attached to a number of consulting firms - for the last 20 years. Three, unfortunately for him and for the bank, he was just not able to take off the hat of a ‘consultant’ that he had been wearing for the past 20 years. He failed to see himself as the bank’s chief executive and the ship’s captain.
This begs the next question: Who had gone wrong? To start with, the executive search firm. The candidate had only himself and his experience to offer, which I am sure he did. It was actually the job of the recruiting agency, mandated by the bank concerned, to determine the candidate's suitability for the job. It failed in its duty to do so. The consulting agency’s failure - to select the person with the right profile and attitude - was further compounded by the bank’s board. It tried to select a CEO for the bank - without having a single person on its board with a minimal, or passing, knowledge of commercial banking. Even though the board members met the short-listed candidates face to face, it failed to appropriately evaluate the experience or the psychological profile of the candidates.
Thus, a top-rung executive search firm made a glaring error in discharging its obligations. On its part, the bank’s board also attempted to achieve something it was not equipped to do, or was capable of doing.
Is it any wonder, therefore, that we hear a never-ending lament about perennial shortage of ‘the right people’? Most employers, unfortunately, expect ‘the right people’ to be available ‘off-the-shelf’ – tailor made, custom built, ready-to-use, able to ‘hit the ground running’. That is rarely the case – even with senior executives. However, for argument’s sake, even if we agree for a moment that candidates were like ready-to-eat, pre-cooked food (any thought about who was supposed to do the ‘pre-cooking’?), my experience tells me that the fault lies more with those who are directly involved with the recruitment game. In reality, good people – yes, the ‘right ones’ - are available, in sufficient numbers too. Most of us do not know how to find them. 
Take the case of the placement agencies. Ideally speaking, on getting an assignment to fill up a vacancy, the agency ought to first do its homework well. Among other things, it should strive to understand the organization and its work culture, its style of management, performance parameters, how success is measured within the organization, the job profile, the profile of the person most suited for the job, the career path, etc. For, these issues are of great importance to the prospective candidate, and hence, to the organization, if the marriage is to be a success.
Another error that most placement consultants and personnel managers commit is in not spending some time and effort to build up a ‘candidate profile’. What sort of people are they really looking for? What attitude does the position demand? They fail to realize that the attitudes of people at various positions differ widely – from one organization to another, from one position to another. For example, does the organization need an opening batsman or a middle order player? Even for the opening batsman – would he be playing in a test match or in one-dayers? Their styles and requirements will, no doubt, differ.
Unfortunately, majority of the placement consultants turn out to be only ‘head hunters’, literally. Like the one in the story that I began this article with, the ‘head-hunters’ believe that their business is only about pulling people out of one job and placing him in another, and pocketing the search fee. They do not do the home work that is essential in this kind of business. Accountability is, therefore, virtually non-existent.
Another area that does not get its due attention is the proper analysis of CVs received. Here too, those responsible fail badly. We read tomes on how to write effective CVs. Never once have I heard about developing the skills required to properly ‘read’ (i.e. interpret) a CV. The HR Manager, the personnel manager, or the consultant in charge of the client portfolio in a placement agency – they generally delegate the responsibility to sort out and short-list candidates to a junior staff who, more often than not, is ill-equipped to do the job. He has little idea about the requirements of the job, the required profile of the candidate, or is short on the skills required to separate the wheat from the chaff. For all one knows, a good candidate could get the short-shrift at this stage itself. I have seen it happen far too many times to be convinced otherwise. 
There are a number of search firms who claim to be sector specific. But rarely do they have on their rolls top level, highly experienced professionals who are simultaneously skilled in the art of ‘reading’ CVs, and in interviewing potential recruits for a specialized position. Do these professionals ever do the short-listing themselves? During interviews, do the head-hunters look for only the minimum fit, or for the best possible candidate – and no compromises? At what stage do the placement consultants begin to look for other attributes in the candidates, viz. their IQ, their EQ (emotional quotient), their ability to work in a team environment, that fire in the belly, originality, latent leadership qualities, and so on? At what stage does the Personnel/HR manager or the functional head get involved?
One must realize that almost everyone pays a price for any wrong selection. The person so recruited, once already destabilized, would eventually end up being back in the market, job hunting. In consequence, the manpower planning, and hence the growth process of the organization, would simultaneously suffer a serious setback too. The after-effect of a ‘sack’ is never pleasant for the people within the organization, the organization itself, or the person directly affected. The one who escapes relatively unscathed is the placement consultant. I have rarely seen them assume a share of the responsibility and offer to compensate the organization (not to speak of the victim of a misjudged recruitment) in one way or another.
Till the recruitment process is toned up, the people responsible for manpower selection, within and outside the organization, do their homework properly and with sincerity, approach each placement with the seriousness it deserves, the gulf between the vast pool of talent still going untapped and organizations perennially in search of the ‘right people’, will never be bridged.

Friday, November 13, 2015

A few steps to better video

The digital era brought about a sea change in the way we did things. Among others, it has seriously influenced the art and craft of photography. When digital photography came, a storm ensued. The battle was essentially between the analogue methods, the film rolls against digital techniques. It was the same when polyvinyl records had to make way for compact disks. Transition was not easy to accept, but technological development finally won the day.

Major change has taken place in the way we capture still or moving images. Still cameras have not changed much outwardly in their shape, size or weight. The change is more evident in movie or video cameras. The compact, light-weight video cameras practically rule the world of amateur photography. No tourist leaves home without a camera that can shoot stills or videos or both. With the changing times, the compact digital cameras are now under serious threat from the mobile phone cameras.

High degree of automation have ensured that– notwithstanding the photographer’s skills, or the lack of it – the end result from still cameras is (automatically) of quite high quality. This does not, however, extend to videos. For videos, it is still mind over matter. Shooting a good quality video demands a certain level of skill without which the final product is no better than that by a child with a Handycam (it’s in danger of becoming a generic term). Moving images follow a language that differs from how still images are shot. Remember that you are using an audio-visual medium. The grammar is altogether different.

Holiday or marriage videos, or of children having fun or on the stage, would be much more satisfying if a few simple rules for shooting video are kept in mind. Here are only a few suggestions, in no particular order of importance (they all are!). Here goes:

1)     Your camera has no brain. Humans see with their mind’s eye. The brain plays a significant role here in how we see things. The wide angle that the eyes can cover without distortion cannot be matched by the small lenses or the tiny CCDs of the hand-held, low cost video cameras. These shortcomings must, therefore, be overcome in other ways.
2)     Tell a story: The sequence of shots when strung together should tell a story. All stories, however brief or lengthy, have a beginning, middle and an ending. So plan ahead every shot. Think of the story in your mind and shoot accordingly. Even if you create the story on the editing table, you must have the footage to edit in the first place. So, don’t shoot first and think afterwards.
3)     Don’t use the camera to search for scenes: Do not use your video camera, while it is still in ‘record’ mode, to move rapidly from one object to another, looking for what to shoot next. Instead, let your eyes do the search-and-locate what to shoot. Even if you are going to edit it out later, it’s a waste of time, energy and opportunity. Use your mind and your eyes instead.
4)     Select your shot with care. Whether it’s a stage show or a travel video, first select carefully the scene that you wish to capture. Zoom in or out till you have the scene just the way you want it for being viewed by people later. Plan where to start the shot, when and where to end it, and what it is to show in between.
5)     Avoid long takes. People want to see action. The mind will keep waiting to see what happens next. Each shot must take the story forward, bit by bit. If nothing happens for too long, the viewer will get bored. For shooting churches, towers or palaces – objects that do not move – frame your shot just the way you want it, aim and hold the camera rock-steady, switch on ‘record’, count up to six seconds, switch off. Repeat the process for all non-moving objects. For us amateurs, short is sweet. Long, lingering slow-mo shots are for top directors. So, keep it short for now.
6)     Avoid rapid camera movement. While shooting stage shows, for example, the temptation is to try and capture as much of the action as possible. The camera ends up flitting from performer to performer, zooming in or out, giving the viewer hardly enough time to absorb any particular scene well enough before the scene changes, sometimes all too quickly and all too often.
Once again, avoid this by selecting your shots with care. Selecting a strategic place to place your tripod can help in better coverage. Without any shake of the camera, follow the performer as he or she moves on the stage. Zoom out very carefully, very slowly, very smoothly when you want to capture all the performers together, Then zoom in, once again very slowly, on to the performer you want to capture next. Move smoothly with the performer, holding him or her steady in the frame of your video camera.
7)     Give leading space. Once again, the mind plays an active role here. So, when the actor or performer moves from left to right, 2/3 of the frame in front of the moving person should be empty. Similarly, when the actor moves from right to left, make sure that he is positioned within the right 1/3 of your camera frame, not on the extreme left end of the camera frame. The space in front of him, in the direction of his movement, must be empty. Give him/her space to move towards.
8)     Do not pan. A perfect panning shot needs oodles of patience, and a rock-steady hand. Having a tripod or a monopod around helps. If the whole scene looks too beautiful for words, take a long shot (for six seconds max, remember?) to capture the whole scene. Next, break down the scene into smaller segments in your mind. Select the scenes that you want your friends back home to enjoy, frame it mid-range or close-up, switch on ‘record’ mode (for six seconds). Switch off and move to the next scene.
9)     Do not zoom. Sounds strange? But it’s true! Zooming, like panning, too needs plenty of patience, a steady hand, but serves no practical purpose. A 40X zoom is sure to test the patience of your viewer. So, avoid zooms, except when the camera is switched off. Use the zoom button to frame your shot exactly the way you wish, before you switch to the ‘record’ mode, or after you have switched it off, never during recording. Use zooms to bring distant objects closer, like when shooting animals or birds in the wild.
10)  Remember the lighting and the angle: Insufficient light, light behind the subject, light source directly in front of your camera lens, the sun directly overhead on a clear, bright day – these do not help your cause. Analyse your shots to understand how to get the best out of the available natural or the artificial lights. Select the angles of your subject accordingly.

Good books are available in the market on video shooting techniques. The internet, too, is a rich source of helpful hints. Read up as much as you can if you do not want your acquaintances to make excuses to slip away whenever you want to show them your videos. Remember, anything worth doing at all, is worth doing well.

I have found great joy in shooting still and video. But I found even greater joy when I learned (on my own) how to edit my videos. It opened up a whole new creative world for me. In fact, learning to edit improved my video shooting skills. Nowadays, I am eager to travel more just so that I can use my cameras, remain unobtrusive while taking my time to get the shots I am looking for, stitch them into a final video presentation, adding captions and some background music, and share with my family and friends. It’s a creative process, and extremely satisfying. 

If you have read this to the end, you are obviously as interested in photography as I am. I wish you all the best. Enjoy, and have lots of fun!

Wednesday, November 04, 2015

What is ‘negotiation’, and why it must stay in the UCP

Introduction
There is no formal announcement from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) as of date, no preparatory move, no action at all on this front. No matter. The brainstorming has begun in right earnest! Intensive discussions are taking place on what changes are desirable in the next version of the Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP), an ICC publication that lays down the rules for the operation of documentary letters of credit (LC). This article examines only a few of the proposals that have been put forward in recent times.

The proposals
The suggestions are to:
a)     delete all references to drafts from the UCP
b)    merge the UCP with ISBP
c)     make the ISBP and the ICC Banking Commission Opinions available through the electronic medium to all (if it must be so, at an affordable price)
d)    purge ‘negotiation’ from the UCP and the ISBP.

Drafts
The angst against drafts is understandable. It emanates primarily from  (contd....)


[The complete article is available in the book 'Beyond Trade Finance', published on 13-Apr-2021 by Notion Press, and available at https://notionpress.com/read/beyond-trade-finance or at https://www.amazon.in/dp/1638508666]





[1] Some random thoughts on the UCP, LC Monitor-Trade Services Update, Special Edition, January 2011 and Negotiation and the law of contracts, DC Insight, Vol. 16, No. 2, April-June 2010.

Sunday, November 01, 2015

Time to bid good-bye to bank drafts?[1]


Most of us are familiar with negotiable instruments such as cheques, bank drafts (demand drafts or DDs) and payment orders (PO). These are instruments of payment. The difference among these traditional payment instruments is marginal. Generally speaking, a cheque is issued by an account holder on the branch of the bank where the account is maintained. In the case of a bank draft, the account holder (drawer, issuer) is that branch of the bank itself – drawing on another branch of the same bank. For payment orders, the account holder is also the branch of the bank, but drawing on itself. If one wishes to acquire a bank draft or a PO, one would have to first pay an equivalent amount (plus bank charges, if any) to the issuing bank. The DD or PO is issued against the amount received from its customer, the purchaser. The face value of the instrument is thus locked and secured till the payee claims the amount.

Drafts serve a very useful purpose for the transfer of funds within a country. (It’s to be noted that what generally are termed as foreign currency ‘drafts’ are in fact cheques.) Drafts, being physical instrument unlike telegraphic transfers, take a little longer, but are a very reliable and secure mode available to the common man. Depending on the geographical distance that separates the purchaser from the beneficiary, the purchaser may request for either a DD or a PO (also called banker’s cheque or cashier’s cheque) from the issuing bank.
From the point of view of the payee or the beneficiary, a cheque carries the maximum element of risk or uncertainty of payment. Drafts or POs, on the other hand, offer a high degree of safety because both the drawer and the drawee themselves are banks; the face value is also locked till claimed through the banking system. Precisely for these reasons institutions and organisations invariably stipulate that payments to them were to be made only through the means of bank drafts. For obvious reasons, personal cheques are not acceptable. Apart from the time it takes for any of these instruments to travel from the purchaser to the beneficiary, receipt of actual funds must be processed through the inter-bank fund settlement mechanism called ‘clearing’.

With the advent of centralised (or, core) banking in India, the rules of the game have changed. Among the multitude of developments, nearly all cheques nowadays bear a legend to the effect, ‘Payable at par at all our branches in India’, ‘Payable at par at all branches of xxx bank’ etc. Internally, the reconciliation process has become very much simpler. Yet, whether a cheque, a draft or a PO, the clearing system and the consequent delay are still unavoidable.

Development in technology, communication, the advent of centralised processing and ‘at par’ instruments are just a few signs of the times. It’s a fact that drafts and payment orders as payment instruments offer very similar degrees of security to the payee. Yet, the institutions continue to demand only drafts as the most preferred mode for receiving payment. May be the time has come for the commercial banks to seriously consider merging the draft and the banker’s cheque to create a single instrument of payment. Organisations should simultaneously wean themselves away from drafts, and ask only for banker’s cheques from the public, if not for direct credit to their accounts by electronic fund transfer. Paperless remittances should be the way to go.

In the interim, whether local or outstation, instead of DD or PO, why shouldn’t a cheque marked ‘payable at par’ be acceptable as payment? Both must necessarily be settled through the local clearing mechanism, taking the same amount of time! A DD or a banker’s cheque offers only marginally more comfort over cheques. But none of them is good enough (or safe enough) till actual credit of funds to the payee’s account. The change in the mind-set could translate in to savings in terms of bank charges, time and trouble to procure these instruments from banks.




[1] Posted on LinkedIn on 26 October 2015.