Continuing our global working video competition ‘meet the judges’ posts, offering a deeper insight into why we chose our expert panel of judges and what they’re looking for. Today: DR. VINAY RAJ MENON

Dr Vinay Raj Menon

Can you introduce yourself to readers in one sentence, please:

I am: a good natured, focused, results-driven professional keen to make a difference in whatever I do with a passion to share my knowledge and experience with my team members and youngsters joining a big global multi-cultural organization like ours.

What persuaded you to agree to judge the global working video competition?

I have worked closely with Global Integration over the past 12 months and have been very impressed with their philosophy, methodology and the courses they deliver.

I have also personally attended some of the sessions and have benefited from the learning. So, when the proposal came to be a judge for this competition, I gladly agreed for three reasons:
a. I wanted to give back something in a small way to Global Integration for being a true partner with us
b. I wanted to use this opportunity to share my experience on ‘working globally’ being a judge and evaluating various entries
c. To learn from the various entries and expand my knowledge base on cultural diversity.

What’s been your own experience of global working?

I have had the wonderful opportunity to work in a truly global company – today, we at Cognizant are in five different continents, have 50 different development centers (across 15 cities and nine different countries) across the globe – and I have had the opportunity to visit and experience diverse cultures.

Today, I also manage a distributed team (based out of North America, Argentina and India) servicing our associates across North America, Argentina, Brazil, UK, Continental Europe and India and it has been a wonderful experience thus far.

What will you be looking for in the entries you judge?

I am interested in the truly global nature of today’s workforce, cultural diversity, the drivers that motivate teams to stay continuously engaged, and how cultural diversity challenges are overcome.

Ed: We think it only fair to add about Vinay that he’s also very modest about his achievements in Cognizant where he spurred the Cognizant Academy outside of India.

Previous meet the judges posts: T.H. Ong

Nov 08 2011

Power struggles in a matrix organization require control mechanisms

Today we continue the ‘Matrix Monday’ series, recommending on-line reading resources on matrix management . Please do contact us, either through the website or using the comments box below, to suggest submissions of your own. We’ll share on Twitter using the hastag #matmo.

This week we look at Changing Power Balance in Matrix organisations: A thesis, by Nursen Saracoglu (Faculty of Business, The University of Technology, Sydney, January 2009)

This paper relates to a published thesis. It asserts that in a matrix organization, where pressures may come from multiple authorities, effective power balancing s necessary for improved performance within the project team and organization.

Patterns of power relations configured by a change to the matrix structure have an impact on effectiveness. In order to examine the issue of changing power balance in matrix organizations, the research looked at the validity of political theories of organizations in major international companies with matrix structures.

Saracoglu’s particular focus includes identifying key factors behind the strategic decision in international companies to change the corporate organizational structure to a matrix structure, the weaknesses and strengths of these matrix structures for subsequent organizational performance, the effects of transition to matrix structure on organizational performance, and the factors used to maintain a power balance between divisions.

Read the rest of this entry »

Nov 07 2011

TH Ong, VP, Global Integration

With interest in our global working video competition running high around the globe, today’s post is the start of a series of ‘meet the judges’ posts, offering a deeper insight into why we chose our expert panel of judges and what they’re looking for. First in series: T.H.Ong

Can you introduce yourself to readers  in one sentence, please

I’m a citizen of the world who’s had a nomadic life and career.

 What persuaded you to agree to judge the global working video competition?

I believe I was invited to provide a further global perspective to the judging panel. It will be fun.

What’s been your own experience of global working?

Ethnically Chinese, I was raised in Singapore and lived most of my adult life in the USA.

All of my working ‘lives’  have involved regional and global roles within global companies.

What will you most be looking for in the entries you judge?

I’ll be looking for impact, originality, relevance and universality.

Further details  of the video competition can be found on this site’s  global working video competition pages

Nov 04 2011

Today sees the first ‘Matrix Monday’ on the Global Integration blog.  There is nowhere near enough good material on matrix management available, so that we thought we’d start to share some of the available resources we find, and hope others will do the same – contact us to suggest submissions. We’ll share on Twitter using the hastag #matmo.

The first in this series of article summaries is Matrix management: recipe for chaos? When it works, it works well. When it doesn’t, it’s a fast track to disaster. The strengths of the model appeal to many corporations today, but not all are suited for a matrix structure, by Rita E. Numerof, Michael N. Abrams (Copyright 2002 Directors and Boards), submitted for Matrix Monday by Global Integration CEO, Kevan Hall.

This  short article  introduces matrix management: when the matrix structure should be employed, what its drawbacks are, and the creation of a successful matrix.

The authors summarise three key drivers in evaluating when a matrix is suitable for use:

- complexity of products and services to be delivered

- the customer demand for integrated services

- what organisational pressures exist to reduce cost.

Read the rest of this entry »

Oct 31 2011

Most followers of this blog will be well aware that we have a ‘bit of thing’ about meetings, trying to make them both useful and productive.

So we simply had to share this video when we found it. Enjoy!

Oct 27 2011

The judges for the Global Integration ‘global working’ video competition have been announced. They are:

Jae H. Park,  a professor of Industrial and Organizational Psychology at Yeungnam University, Korea. He has worldwide educational credentials, and consults for, and trains, internationally for many ‘blue chip’ organizations.

US based Dr Vinay RajMenon, a senior manager, learning and levelopment, at Cognizant Technology Solutions (a leading provider of information technology, consulting, and business process outsourcing services, dedicated to helping the world’s leading companies build stronger businesses).

Our student representative, Alan Hall, a second Year Management & Marketing Student.

And last, but not least, TH Ong and Kevan Hall of Global Integration.

You can find out more about them on the competition pages ‘About the judges’, and as we interview them over the coming weeks:

Oct 27 2011

We reported recently that our consultant Phil Stockbridge was running a marathon for charity last weekend.

Phil apparently hobbled around the following day with stiff thighs, but once he’d recovered he let us know that he completed the run in two hours, 17 minutes – eight minutes improved on March.

Congratulations Phil, who, with his running partner, raised almost $650 (£400) for chosen charity, Acorns.

Phil Stockbridge with running partner Sarah who "was brilliant at getting me over the finishing line"

Oct 26 2011

It’s here at last!

After weeks of planning, developing, sharing, we’re here and the Global Integration video competition is launched. And very fine it is too!

We’re always sharing our ideas on global working, whether it’s about matrix organizations, cross cultural issues, management issues, self-management issues – all of those things that make modern day working in complex organizations a mix of pleasure and pain.

But our consultancy and training is around challenging old management ideas, about thinking openly and helping our customers to tap into their own thoughts and ideas to become more efficient.

So it made sense to offer up a prize to stimulate thoughts and conversations to anyone who has something to say, be they students just starting out on their working lives, or CEOs  at the top of their game.

For us, this a brave experiment: most video competitions often result in very few entries, but we hope we’ve kept it simple enough for everyone to enjoy – whether it’s creating videos, viewing videos, voting for the ones you like. And we’re open to entries from anywhere in the world, groups or individuals.

CEO Kevan Hall has put up a cash prize of $15,000 (£10,000 or 12,000 Euros) which is study fees, a luxury holiday or start up cash, depending on which way you look at it. It really is about the thought, not the production values, and is open to anyone (or groups), anywhere. So do share the details – there are even posters on the competition web pages for downloading and sharing with your favourite club, society or educational establishment.

You can take a peek, here: http://www.global-integration.com/video-competition/. Or follow it on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/videocompetition.

And if you’re entering a video, good luck!

Oct 24 2011

Rangoli of Diyas, the traditional way of lighting the nights in India's biggest festival - Diwali.

Amongst other workplace issues facing people working and managing in complex, international organizations, Global Integration trains and consults on cross cultural awareness in the workplace. This week: Diwali.

Diwali (also called Devali   or Deepavali)  - the ‘festival of lights’ – falls later this week. It’s an important festival for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, and is a national holiday in many countries. Diwali is celebrated differently by different people, albeit with some common themes.

It’s a fantastic festival of light, and small lanterns are filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil and the finding of ‘inner light’ – new clothes are donned and sweets shared. The five day festival embraces financial wellbeing, thanksgiving, the triumph of good over evil, benevolence, remembrance and, importantly, family. In rural communities it is often associated with the harvest as well.

Traditions vary from region to region, but it’s safe to say that it’s culturally, religiously and personally significant for participants, with colourful outer manifestations – bathing, anointing, fireworks, lamps, food, dance, gifts – being matched, for many, with deep spiritual meaning – the tying off of old ends and new beginnings. Many avoid meat and alcohol over the period.

Read the rest of this entry »

Oct 24 2011

A dilemma posed by Kevan Hall, CEO of Global Integration

I watched a presentation last week about the billions of questions around the world that are now asked of Google.  It asked the question “Who did we ask ‘BG’ – Before Google?”

It’s an interesting question.  Has the availability of fast answers to our questions changed the questions we ask?  Has it given us a different way of thinking and different expectations of getting an answer?

It reminded me of a discussion we had years ago in a strategy session.  Our R&D director asked a very complex series of questions as a follow-up to a proposal that he clearly didn’t particularly like.  The professor who was facilitating the discussion asked him a great question – “What would you do differently if you knew the answer to that question?”  When the R&D director was unable really to answer this, he said “Well let’s not bother asking it.”

Are there questions nowadays that we shouldn’t bother asking?  Do we have access to too much information?

It is well established that if we have too much information and choice, we may be unable to make a reasonable decision at all.  In the future, do we need the capability to ask and answer more questions, or does that need to be balanced with the ability to disconnect, to focus and to ignore unnecessary distractions and data, so we can actually get our work done?

Readers may also be interested in the Global Integration podcast, A Lack of Communication, You Must be Joking!

Oct 21 2011