Connecting the dots…
“Men may come and men may go, but I go on forever”.. rings a bell? You’d be wondering why this reference, well I happened to come across an EPIC definition in the Company Law book (obviously analogous to the former statement. Here’s how it goes:-
Perpetual Succession: “A Company i in the form of perpetual succession i.e. the members may come and go but the company will be in a state of continuity.”
This got me thinking, it’s really strange from where one derives inspiration from and finally puts it to use. Quoting from my learned professor: “Mein kisi bhi cheez ko seekhta kahin se hoon aur apply kahin aur karta hoon” it sure draws parallels from the book “The Goal” where the protagonist applies a situation dealt with in mountaineering to the problem he faces within the plant.
Come to think of it, the data and information that finally combine to derive us some positive benefit is knowledge. So, what’d one say on improvisation? Is that a mere take on the entire process of learning and application of knowledge or just the primary sens of it in entirety?
I reckon its a bit of both. There’s always a trade-off between what you are provided with, what you want to learn and finally what you assimilate. Picture this: A sieve is used to filter the tea leaves from the concoction of milk, water etc. to finally give you tea. Implying the fact that, its not always necessary to assimilate everything.. there are times when it is important to look at the finer print, read between the lines et al, however it is even more important to figure out the gist and have a key take away in the form of a crux.. a vital “eye on detail” for the “managers to be”
You’d be wondering what’s this all got to do with life in SIMS? Well, to begin with it has EVERYTHING to do with here. For instance: with the 14 odd subjects (give or take 4) the immense amount of information is in abundance. There are always a couple of subjects that could actually be just 1, however it’s beneficial in the sense that one can easily apply one element of subject A into the constituents of subject B. Eg: Product Management-we are conveniently discussing a case on Guanxi and the supply chain approach in China: pertaining to products, the risks involved and the like. (Chinese work on the principle of mutual trust, not in lieu of a contract per se). The very next lecture of Materials Management: we are discussing distribution systems and warehousing.
What’s the connect? Well a plenty, in my perspective: While in India not many work on mutual trust (its kinda difficult, given the fact that corruption seems to delve deep in every nook and corner of the system); yet the business of diamonds in Gujarat follows and works completely on the same phenomenon, from the verbal commitment to the distribution to the delivery. So when someone’s looking for a supplier who is willing to be bound in a form of a contract, its not important that they WILL definitely deliver. The guarantee can never be taken into account.
So how does one know where to begin and end? In my opinion its a matter of just reminiscing the childhood game of joining the dots..once the larger picture is clear, that’s where you stop.
PS: Merry Christmas 🙂