Do we know the Shoaib Akhtars of the world?

Yes, I know the Shoiab Akhtars of the world! Perhaps, at some point all of us have know them, worked with them, and tolerated their eccentricities. They are perhaps the most consummate professionals and perceived as an indispensable asset for an organization. At the same time they are also known to be a true curmudgeon and are vituperative towards the subordinates and colleagues alike. However, the management will overlook all the negative attributes just because they are perceived as a star performer who is supposed to take the organization forward towards the achievement of its goals. My question to the reader is whether an organization is justified in pampering the Shoaib Akhtars of the world or should it repudiate such characters?

In my opinion (based on my limited experience), such so called ‘Star Performers’ are known to have a deleterious effect on an organization. Let me elaborate my opinion by defining a paradigmatic Shoiab Akhtar that we encounter in our professional life. In a sales organization, a Shoaib Akhtar would consistently achieve/surpass his targets. He would crack all the big ticket accounts, make the maximum incentive, and demand the highest increment. He will negotiate the best discount for his customers, do away with maintaining the sales process, and always be late for work. Also, he will keep the HR on its toes as a result of his never ending demands of recognition; monetary and otherwise. On a lighter note, in all probability, his system password will be ‘iamthebest’.

So why would the Shoaib Akhtars of the professional world have a deleterious effect on an organization and its stakeholders? After all, they are star performers and maybe it is justified that are valued accordingly. At this point I will pose a question to you (the reader); in your professional experience, would you say that a Shoib Akhtar takes an organization forward towards the achievement of its goals? After all that is what an organization expects! Let me pose a few more questions that may strike a chord with you (the reader).

Q-1: How does a Shoaib Akhtar react to success?
A-1: In all probability, he belittles his subordinates and colleagues alike

Q-2: How does a Shoaib Akhtar react to an occasional failure?
A-2: In all probability, he blames others (his boss, subordinates, x-colleagues, unreasonable clients, etc) and everything else (the economy, the product/service, etc) rather than introspect.

Q-3: What does a Shoaib Akhtar do in case of a burnout?
A-3: In all probability he pollutes the office environment with his tantrums. He pulls down every upcoming star performer whom he would view as a threat, and badmouths the very top management and the HR organization that was desperate to appease him.

Q-4: What does a Shoaib Akhtar do when all avenues of blaming others are exhausted and he moves on to the next organization which considers itself ‘lucky’ to have hired a star performer?
A-4: He moves on with his baggage of frustrations and again badmouths his x-organization, x-boss, x-colleagues, amongst others.

To conclude, I will take a stand that it is prudent to let go of a star performer, no matter how brightly he shines. I was impressed by the PCB as it realized that Shoaib Akhtar is doing more harm than good to the team. He was not taking the Pakistani Cricket Team forward. The Shoaib Akhtars of the world are continually insolent and the world of cricket and indeed the professional world alike are better off without such characters!

No More Mr. Nice Guy!!!

Why we should thank the 4 Ms of India?Media, Middle Class, Movies, Money

The war, oops the series in Australia is coming to a close and the entire country is awaiting the denouement of the Harbhajan Singh vs. Andrew Symonds saga. Just when we thought that news channels were running out of controversies to help increase their TRP ratings, Symonds again obliged by taking on a teenager (Ishant Sharma). Hayden was not to be left behind and he too jumped in by calling Harbhajan Singh an ‘Obnoxious weed’. For those who do not follow cricket (I am sure you are not an Indian), I am not talking about WWF wrestlers engaging in one-upmanship. All this is happening in a sport that used to be called ‘The Gentleman’s Game’. The sport in question is cricket and the participants are Australia, where cricket is the National Sport, and India, where cricket is more than a religion.

Long after the series is over and the contretemps over Harbhajan Singh, Andrew Symonds and the use of the word ‘Monkey’ on the cricket field is resolved in the minds of the players involved (it has already been resolved by the ICC), Indians will look back with pride that the incident marked a change in the way the world looks at us. As Indians we have unfortunately been suffering from inferiority complex, low self-esteem and worst, slave mentality. In past tours the Indian Team members would act as ‘Mr. Nice Guy’ when confronted with verbal abuse/sledging, it affected a billion viewers. A non response to an abuse/sledge would affect the spirit of the entire country as it almost felt like the Asian countries were a part of the repressive regime of ICC. Indians will continue to exalt its heroes but there has been a veritable rise in dissent against the non-Asian cricketing nations as there was no platform to vent. The media was not as strong around 10 years back as it is now. The Indian commentators of the stature of Harsha Bhogle and even the legend and voice of Indian cricket, Sunil Gavaskar, were subservient to the west as they determined their employability. As a result the country had to swallow its pride and that left scars on the spirit of every Indian.

Today, the tirade of how the Australians have tarnished the sport is flashed on every news channel in India. The young Indian cricketers have taken the Australians head on and have not been shy to give it back to them in kind. So what has brought about this refreshing change of attitude? Is it the growing importance of India in the Global scenario? Maybe because BCCI brings in the maximum amount of revenue for the ICC and therefore has the muscle to dictate terms? Or is it that finally our pride has been hurt enough that any self respecting human being will react? Or did Bollywood (with movies such as ‘Chak De India’) knowingly/unknowingly infuse a killer instinct that was so lacking amongst the Indians? The fact is that it is a combination of all of these.

They say that Indians are over doing it and are becoming ‘an arrogant lot’ as a result of the money muscle of the BCCI. They do not shy from pointing to the records of Indian players who have been booked the maximum number of times by the match referee. The fact about records or for that matter any report that gets generated is that the output is solely based on the input. The match referees have ignored incidents where Australian cricketers have sledged, indulged in excessive appealing, and shown dissent with impunity. It is extremely galling to watch incidents such as the one involving Glenn McGrath and Sarwan where McGrath almost physically abused the West Indian batsman, and get away without even getting reprimanded. The cacophony caused when Shane Warne (for that matter Damien Fleming, Glen McGrath, and the list goes on and on) used to appeal and audacity of the manner in which they showed their disgust with impunity and actually get away with it is a clear indicator of the fact that it is not a level playing field when an Asian side squares up against the Australian side and to a lesser extent the South African side. Contrast that with the Indians where Sehwag and Ganguly get booked for excessive appealing that was no where close to the pitch of the likes of Shane Warne and you will get the picture. The Symonds vs. Sharma incident where Symonds clearly provoked Sharma to which Sharma reacted only resulted in a fine for Sharma. Symond not only went unpunished but also feigned innocence.

If one would have the time and the resources to review every match that has been recorded till date, one will find that the number of offenses for which the Australians were not booked far exceeds any other team to have played competitive cricket over the same period of time. Maybe the cash rich BCCI or for that matter one of the media houses will finance a study that will highlight this claim. I am sure that the media channels will look upon this as an opportunity to gain credibility amongst the Indian viewers and voice their sentiments backed by tangible numbers. I am equally confident that the BCCI will never support such a study as that may affect their relationship with CA (Cricket Australia) and they need the Australians for the IPL. For those who read between the lines, it was evident that the BCCI never intended to be as aggressive in supporting the Indian players over the Bhajji vs. Symonds issue and but for the media and the poise and class of Anil Kumble, BCCI would have ignored this and Indians would have once again swallowed their pride.

To conclude, we should thank the Indian media, the Indian Middle class (mostly responsible for the growth of Indian Economy to its current status), Indian Movies, and BCCI’s Money for relieving us of the agony of swallowing our pride each time WWC (White World of Cricket) attempts to put us down.

We are a proud nation and should refuse to be treated as lackeys!

This entry was posted on Friday, February 29th, 2008 (I migrated from blog.co.in)