20. January 2008 by Amal.

Have we ever thought of our dream place to work? I am sure most of us will agree to following qualifiers as our dream place:

• Define your own working hours
• decide your own salary
• elect & select your own boss
• decide your annual business/work goals & objectives
• you have say in key strategic decisions
• compulsory off of three weeks
• No rules & policies
• major decisions are by consensus (which means senior mgmt have least say in critical decisions)
• You know how much your boss (and his/her boss…) is earning

Though we all will agree to above mentioned points, most of us will consider this a dream, unless we know about Semco. Yes, there is an organization ‘Semco’ in São Paulo, Brazil, which follows above mentioned principles.

Semco doesn’t have any organization rules & policies. You decide your salary while joining the company. You are offered blank offer letter, where you write your own salary. You decide your working hours. There are no receptionist. One who arrives late, sit at the reception desk. Bosses are selected/elected by subordinates. Critical decisions are taken by majority. Semco had to build new manufacturing plant, and they decided by majority, which was dominated by workers preference over senior management preference. Salaries are not kept secret. Any employee can walk-in to payroll department and inquire about salaries (be it CEO or boss or peer).

Yes, that is Semco, established by Antonio Semler in 60’s and taken to scalable heights by Ricardo semler 1980 onwards. Ricardo Semler has transformed Semco from a family established business to the ‘Semco’ which is known today.

Ricardo Semler has written ‘Maverick’, explaining the journey from hard-core centralize decision making company to real empowered, employees driven company. What it does to build companies run by employees, one which had sustained several economic downturn, recession and still remain in the business successfully. Also it explains, how a company can still be profitable and still run by employees in true sense. How in a unionized driven market, Semco has instill confidence in the employees such that there aren’t any union influence. Semler even went to the extent, establishing satellite companies (run by there ex-employees) as separate company.

Overall, a must read book for mid-level, top level executives, enterprenuers to understand at end of day its not only numbers matters. What matters most is how you build a company driven by employees, on trust, confidence. Where nobody is indispensable.

Few sites to be browsed upon for further readings:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardo_Semler
• http://www.inc.com/articles/2004/03/7dayweekend.html (Another book ‘7 day weekend’ by Ricardo Semler)
• http://www.team-wise.co.uk/resource/ricardo_semler_maverick.htm
• http://www.profitadvisors.com/maverick.shtml
• http://dpsinfo.com/essays/maverick.html
• Semco website: http://semco.locaweb.com.br/en/

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23. December 2007 by Amal.

Hi fellas,

Have read many books in the past abt work-life balance. However, this book by Virender Kapoor is real eye-opener. After initial 50 pages or so (once we overcome our inertia), I realized this is pretty much life of most working professionals who are trying to chase ‘pot of gold’ endlessly and putting our personal happiness at back-track. Book centrally revolves around few IIM/IIT grads and there so-called upward success trajectory in the corporate world to pursue there dreams and ignoring blissful personal time, there families, kids, parents, working in true workaholic manner. Trying to quickly reach top of the corporate world. In-fact book doesn’t discourage reaching top of the world, however it explains how to be there and still be happy family.

How to achieve nirvana in real-life essentially means living life to the fullest. This is about couple doing courtship together and then starting there marriage build on well laid principles, ethics and amazing connectivity. There-after getting lost in the roller-coaster ride, self-injected work pressure, continuously missing each other company, always ON in the corporate world, infidelity, ignoring the kid and trying to buy happiness by means of wealth and so on. Second part of the book explains abt connectivity of the couple and bringing them back to happiness, creating there joint space, finding rejoice and still pursue dreams..however message is when to apply brake and when to race is an individual choice and we need to make that choice. It explains indirectly abt common nuances like ‘Always ON’, ‘ workaholic’, ‘quality time’ and its effect on our day-in, day-out life. How simple trusted techniques of Yoga, pranayam, meditation can help us to achieve the balance. Over and above, a must read.

One of the key message for myself is to be more disciplined and work towards few of the fundamental yoga techniques. Hopefully, will able to do Amal

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