Take a Bow, Albert John !

The story I just read makes me to hasten to compliment Albert John and The Taj Group of Hotels on their exemplary service.

The Taj Group, part of the Tata empire, has 77 hotels in 52 destinations in 12 countries in 5 continents.

Albert John is not the CEO of the Taj Group. Read about him yourself in an experience written by Joe Sharkey in the International Herald Tribune.

Take a bow, Albert John.

Advertisement

Good & Great Bosses

What makes bosses highly successful? What do you like best in your boss?

Leigh Buchanan, Editor at large at Inc.– the Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs has a nice article on Good & Great Bosses. She presents her list of universal habits of great bosses.

In keeping with the theme, I commented : Good bosses want the moon. Great bosses set challenging yet realistic expectations.Good bosses have one distinct style. Great bosses know how to flex.

Breaking into a male Bastion

The Indian state of Gujarat is well known for the business accumen of its people. It has spawned thousands of entrepreneurs world wide.

A few months ago an unprecedented event took place. Paru Jaykrishna, 63 , became the first lady President of the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce & Industry. breaking into a traditionally male bastion.

This event marks, says the Economic Times , the coming of age of the Indian women entrepreneur.

Anil Bhardwaj, secretary general, Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME), “When it comes to success, they are as good as men, if not better.” Bhardwaj estimates women entrepreneurs at a tenth of the Indian entrepreneur universe — currently there are 1.3 million SSIs and 9.1 million registered SMEs — in India, with the percentage growing every year.

It is heartening to see an increasingly large number of women taking to entrepreneurship in different vocations/lines of business. It makes them self-sufficient, economically stronger and gives them a sense of achievement.

Ah, the old days ! Alumni Associations

There is a sense of pride and camaraderie in being a member of an alumni association. Our XLRI alumni associations has been very active with branches all over India. I am a past President of the Bangalore branch of the XL Alumni Association.

Meetings and get togethers are an opportunity to network and reminiscence of the old days. Gives you a chance to catch up with old friends and make new ones. Every batch firmly believes their times were the best. Stories over the years become legends. As the years go by it is not possible to “connect” with everyone. I may not know the present faculty just as recent batches would only have heard of, hopefully with awe, those who taught me like Fr. McGrath, Fr. Tome et al.

I read with interest an article in The Boston Globe which speaks of lacklustre interest in alumni associations in some US campuses. Just 3 percent of graduates of the University of Massachusett’s Amherst campus belong to the alumni association. The national average among 85 universities surveyed last year is a membership rate of 18 percent, but that figure is higher at many public state universities. Penn State’s alumni association, for example, boasts a membership of 34 percent. The University of Michigan draws 25 percent, and Texas garners 20 percent. At Iowa State University, which UMass officials identify as a peer school, 19 percent of the alums are dues-paying members.

What’s your take on the value of alum. associations?