Blog: Minding the Tree ?

Wednesday, 20 March 2019

Minding the Tree ?

For past 3 days, newspapers are full of reports / articles / debates and interviews re the planned takeover of Mindtree by L&T

In one report, founders / promoters have expressed fears about the possible mismatch between the cultures of Mindtree and L&T

I have no clue about the culture of Mindtree, but having worked in L&T for over 30 years ( 1959-1990 ), I have a fair idea of L&T culture

Question :

How can one delve deep into the “ Minds “ of the employees ( Trees ? ) of L&T, in order to unravel the nature of that culture ?

Answer :

Search for hidden clues in what they might have written about L&T .

One such source ( although somewhat superficial ) could be :

https://www.glassdoor.co.in/Reviews/Larsen-and-Toubro-Reviews-E41782.htm

But those keen for a deeper understanding would want to go through :

http://hcplntstory.blogspot.com/2016/03/ramesh-d-grover.html

These are 51 essays ( ? ) written by ex-L&T employees , - each narrating an “ incidence “ that happened around them , while working for L&T

Through use of certain words / phrases , each of these “ real life incidence “ tells a story about L&T Culture

In the following tabulation, I have summarized a few of those narratives , listing the words used by those ex-employee writers and the corresponding “ L&T Culture “

I urge Mindtree founders / promoters and employees , to take out a few minutes to read all the 51 articles , to allay their fears of any perceived “ mismatch “ of the two cultures

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Narrative Title	Contributing Employee	Words found	L&T Culture described
Ramesh D Grover	H R Shenoy	please , giving birth to an organization and nourishing it , smile, freshness, gem of human beings, solving problems, helping,	Helping colleagues, Collaboration , Friendliness
Office Stationary & Reimbursement	KN	controls and restrictions, art of bypassing control	Love for details, Cost Consciousness, Tendency to control small expenses
Meeting Larsen and Toubro, in person	M Subramanian	he fired me for washing my hands well before the shift time, “You also look out for this person before leaving the bus.” a car was arranged to drop me at Kurla Station, all the machines in working condition, if I am somebody it is due my employment with L&T / proud of	Easy accessibility to Top Management , Loyalty, Pride of Association, Concern for personal problems of Employees Recognition of an employee's contribution to Company's growth Shop-floor Discipline
Forward	A Y Divekar	suggesting corrections, not wanting to apply a brake his career development, That earned him deserved respect,	Suggest - express freely to bosses Concern for development of subordinates Acknowledging contribution of a colleague or a subordinate
Then & Now	Arvind Rao	uniform clad , following road rules, write all important communications using duplicate or triplicate books and carbon paper, no job was ever complete till the paperwork was done own up to mistakes, burning midnight oil, always answered on first ring, time for others, knew our colleagues littlest pains, shared the jubilations of everyone’s achievements, met socially and formally and generally got a lot more done in less time, one big happy family with healthy rivalry, ethics and values dearly upheld, people who could do the work of four –	Hard working High ethics and values Family feeling Performance pressure Sharing triumphs and tribulations High level of Efficiency Prompt response Long working hours Admission of mistakes Emphasis on last mile - no loose ends Respect for rules
A Soft Landing in L&T	K Narsaiah	We were offered lunch in the canteen, He told me to hop in, That happened to be my best innings	Concern for candidates
The English Teacher	Nattu Aravindakshan Jairam	he never liked big gathering and wasting time. but there was one spelling mitake, perfection, purity and rigour, gracious, complimented me and acknowledged my evolving skills.	Perfection Love for details Grace Acknowledging Merits in others Complimenting on achievements
Never Ending Learning	A M Rao	not a dot out off place would be tolerated, crisply worded, grammatically correct English, tucking away every paper subject-wise, date-wise, we used to practice cataloguing and filing in neat chronological, alphabetical and physical order ! remembering spelling, grammar and basic courtesies,	Courteous Communication Love for details Systematic System Orientation Methodical Emphasis on correctness Intolerance for sloppyness
Collect, Store and Recall	Kodam Narsaiah	efficient and successful , neatly dressed	To be always presentable and smart-looking Premium on Efficiency Penchant to succeed
L&T Works , OK	R K Seth	visionary leadership, where only L&T-ites' children were allowed to get admission. company-wide launch TQM, giving me opportunity, TQM initiatives	Vision for future " Forever learning " attitude Willingness to experiment Emphasis on continuous training Providing opportunities to Employees Concern for children of Employees
Leadership Qualities	Rishikesh Joshi	HHL set it as tradition, going through shop floors, The tradition still continues, Great leaders set great traditions which become part of culture...	Leadership qualities Setting traditions Mixing with employees