Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Thursday 21 June 2018

3 Meter by 3 Meter ? And vertically too ?





Amazon wants to deliver , no matter whether you are on top of a mountain , middle of a dense jungle or living in deserts of Kutchh  !



Here is proof ( of its intention ) :




 




Extract :


Amazon India is now looking to strengthen its logistics capabilities with geo-tagging and new age technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning


Reportedly, the company is trying to map the entire country through geo-tags to create efficiencies in its delivery network. It is further working on a technology to get around the challenge of unstructured addresses in the country.


With the help of AI and ML, Amazon will extract different entities related to an address such as flat number, building number, building name, street name, the locality, the city, etc.


Based on the entry by the customer, the address is given a score of high or low in case critical inputs are missing. The customer is then prompted to help with more information.




Context :



Here is what I wrote to www.What3words.com , on 22 April 2018 :




Dear Chloe,


Many thanks for your prompt response

Here is a question :

As far as I can make out , your system is two-dimensional ( surface area based )

How can it be improvised to track / locate properties located 1000 ft above the ground level , in a multi-storied building ? ( 3 dimensions )

On each floor of a residential or commercial building , there are apartments / offices , belonging to different owners

Local governments ( eg; Municipal Corporations of towns / cities ) , do assign / allot an ID ( alpha-numeric digit number ) to such properties to keep track and collect property taxes . This results in a large number of local databases , each differently designed / accessed . Quite often, these are paper-based !

But there is no CENTRAL / COMMON DATABASE of all the properties ( not merely land parcels ) in a country, which can be accessed by different government agencies from any city

At least in India , this ( lack of a CENTRAL / COMMON DATABASE of apartments – offices etc ) has become a BIG issue since billions of dollars’ worth of properties are purchased with BLACK MONEY , in the names of non-existent persons !

Indian Government is looking for a solution where each and every property is given a UNIQUE ID and also linked with Unique “ Aadhar Numbers (https://uidai.gov.in/) “ already issued to over 1200 MILLION persons over the past 4 years

Do you think your system could provide a fool-proof solution ?

In this connection , you might want to look up :
------------------------------------------------------------
#Aadhar #Property #Benami



-------------------------------------------------------
#BenamiProperty #Bitcoin #BlackMoney


Nami or Benami ? Why Differentiate ?


-------------------------------------------
Warm Regards,
Hemen Parekh



Here is what Chloe replied :



Chloe Day (what3words Support)
Feb 20, 15:18 GMT


Dear Hemen,


Most postal or address systems only work in 2D (e.g. ZIP codes or postal codes in the UK). These always need additional information to specify height: e.g. Flat 6, 5th floor, 12 Lonsdale Road.


With a 3 word address, we recommend a similar approach, e.g. Flat 6, 5th floor, index.home.raft 


In terms of indoor addressing, what3words covers all locations in 2D, but the supporting technology (indoor positioning, indoor mapping, indoor navigation) is not yet widespread enough for there to be any great benefit of specifying a point with height included.


However, if and when height becomes helpful to specify, we have various options for including this information with the 3 word address.


Thank you for the information on
India's search for an addressing solution - I'll pass it on to our sales team.


All best wishes,

Chloe

what3words support



I would not be surprised if Amazon offers to buy out What3Words , considering what Chloe wrote to me ( below ) :





Chloe Day (what3words Support)


Feb 19, 13:40 GMT


Dear Hemen,

Thank you for your email. We are still finalising our
Hindi map, and it should be released quite soon.

Thanks again for getting in touch!




Chloe Day (what3words Support)

Apr 23, 10:07 BST

Dear Hemen,

Thank you for passing this on! 

We are working on several more Indian languages at the moment. Hopefully they will all help with adoption in India.


All best wishes,

Chloe


22  June  2018


Wednesday 20 June 2018

Job Description : an Obsolete Document ?





Dear Headhunters  /  Recruiters  :



Like most of you , there was a time when I too insisted that a client provide a “ Job Description “ for the position to be filled


Then , gradually I realized the following :


*    Most client companies found it difficult to write down a JD ( Job Description )


*    When they did manage , it was rather vague and too general


*    Some HR managers ( of client companies ) were in love with latest jargon !


*    JDs read like “ Motherhood is Good “ – with which none can quarrel !


*    Interview questions based on such JD, got same answer from all candidates ;

      “ Of course, I am well versed in that area “






Following is an example of a client-provided JD for the position of  HR Director :




*  Provide strategic and operational human resource advice / guidance



*  Ability to steer the human resource function / act as the key catalyst for change



*  Work closely with HR team to provide strong business partnering



*  Build consultative relationship with all stakeholders to create an environment of
   excellence and continuous improvement in a high growth environment



*  Champion the talent and organizational development strategies and practices
    focussing on organizational change , talent acquisition , assessment, career
    development and succession planning



*  Employee engagement through sustained HR interventions



*  Benchmark HR practices of the organization with the industry standards



*  Demonstrate strong and visible support of the organization’s values thereby ensuring
    HR creates a visible impact



*  Perform all tasks in accordance with established regulatory compliance and safety
   Requirements





See , what I mean  ?





IS THERE A BETTER ALTERNATIVE  ?



Yes – and that is to replace a JD with , what I call , a “ Performance Expectation “[ PE ]



After all , as an organization , our client has  “ problems “ which he expects a successful candidate to be able to “ solve “ – and within 4 / 6 / 12 months ( of course, using only ethical means ! )



For any given position , we should be able to define such “ EXPECTATIONS “ in a quantified manner and be able to measure these in an undisputable way



Take a look at the following  few  examples [ Can you expand this list ?  ]  :



·      

Employee Turnover ratio


·      Ave length ( time ) of employee tenure


·     Rate of retention {  No joined / No stayed } for a given period


·     Ave time ( in present cadre ) before getting promoted to next higher cadre


·     Percentage Absenteeism


·     Number of Grievances / per 100 employee ( and ave time for disposal )


·     Timely completion of Annual Performance Appraisal exercise


·     Number of Training Sessions / persons trained


·     Terminations / Disciplinary Actions


·     Recruitment Cost per hire and Time taken to hire


·     HR Dept Employee cost as a percentage of Total Employee Cost


·     Employee cost / Sales Turnover


·     Employee Cost / Operating Profit


·     Employee Productivity ( No of Man Hours per physical Unit of Produce )


·     Computerization / Automation of HR processes


·     Days lost due to Strike / Go Slow


·     Percentage of Overtime






All of these may not be relevant for our client’s situation. Then there can be others



In the first instance , we the head-hunters , should ourselves , prepare a shortlist ( as shown above ) and show it to our client for addition / deletion



If our client company’s,  “ Operational figures / Annual Report / Balance Sheet ( with all the annexures ) “are available for the past 3 years, then it would be highly desirable to get hold of these and calculate these ratios  to the extent possible and plot the “ trend “ graphically



[ alternatively , client could be requested to compile this on his own and give to us ]



Then show it to client and request him to :


·     Select those which he considers of high priority and where he expects the HR
       Director to bring   about improvement

·     Quantify the “ measurable “ amount of improvement ( and time period within
       which , it should happen )



Then present this paper to the potential candidates and ask :



This is what our client expects by way of achievement , from the executive who gets appointed.



How confident ( Absolutely / Reasonably / Doubtful ) , are you to meet our client’s “ Performance Expectations “ ?




Refer :









http://hcpreports.blogspot.com/2018/03/software-architecture-for-online-jobs.html




Following link gives some targets for HR Director




Do read this report :


“ Hiring managers’ top three priorities are all focused on quality: the right skills & culture fit, future performance, and retention. 





“ The HR function has also had to redesign itself to deliver at scale. It has also had to revisit its roles and embrace technology to deliver consistent results.


The demand is for HR to impact business performance in a more sustainable and strategic fashion. "








LIMITATIONS :


The “ selection process “ described above has the limitation that we are solely depending upon the candidate’s own “ Self Declaration “ ( as to his ability to meet the Performance Expectations of our client ) . What we need is some historical “ evidence “ 



MY  SUGGESTION  :


Ask the shortlisted candidates to bring with them, a tabulation showing such actualPerformance Ratios “ for the past 3 years for his current employer company  !


{  If he has not stuck to his current job for 3 years , do not call for interview !  }



If readers have any ideas re this, please do write to me :  hcp@RecruitGuru.com



Also , do let me know if you have a better / bigger list of “ Performance Expectations





21  June  2018