We’ve put together the fourth edition of 42.0 – Warren Buffett 42.0. This is a set of 42 quotes by Buffett selected by us after going through a set of books and all the articles where he’s been quoted. This compilation was put together a couple of weeks ago and there hasn’t been a day when I haven’t revisited the quotes.

We’ve been getting some fantastic inputs on our GetSatisfaction Community. Here are some changes we’ve made over the last few days based on these inputs. So do keep sending in your suggestions. We’re listening.

Idea: Home Link for Navigation, Feedback from Rishi Wadhwa – We’ve implemented it!

Hi, it would be great if their can be Home Link in the Header for better and easy Navigation. I hope team workosaur will take my suggestion.
- Rishi Wadhwa

Thanks Rishi. I just implemented it as soon as I read your suggestion. You can check workosaur.com now and you’ll see a Home link in the Header.
- Company Response

Problem: LinkedIn button on Job Details Page, Feedback from Santosh Shetty and Yash Asher – We’ve solved it!

I have noticed a LinkedIn button on the job details page next to the company name. However, I doubt any of the people would know that the button stands for LinkedIn. Either you need to remove it or change the button or put in an explanation.
- Santosh Shetty

apart from the fact that noone would understand that there is a linkedin button, I don’t think it makes sense to have this on the job details page. you are encouraging visitor not to apply thru your site and instead apply thru linkedin. so i think it best to have linkedin message after the visitor finishes uploading his resume.
- Yash Asher

Santosh you made a very valid point and I just needed someone to tell me about it. So I’ve actually gotten rid of the button from the Job Details page. In fact, I have done exactly as suggested by Yash. So once somebody applies to a particular job then the success message that follows also has a line that tells the user that they may find it useful to check their Linkedin network for connections in the organization to which they have applied. And they are asked to click the LI button to check. This addresses it.
- Company Response

Idea: Apply Now button below Applicant Count, Feedback from Santosh Shetty – We’ve implemented it!

On the Job Listings page, you’ve displayed number of applicants. Shouldn’t the Apply to this Company link/button be right below this than at the bottom of the job description. I believe that this small change will increase the number of applicants.
- Santosh Shetty

I implemented your suggestion albeit with a twist. Like in the case of the comment count on a blog post being linked the comment form, I have linked the applicant count to the job application form. Also it becomes apparent that it is a link because the colour of the word ‘applicant’ and ‘applicants’ is blue. I personally think this is a more aesthetic solution as I need not clutter the applicant count area with more text. Thanks again for your inputs.
- Company Response

This post is in continuation of a series that is categorized as Drucker Weekly.

The Spirit of an Organization

It’s the abilities, not the disabilities, that count.

Scribble:
From my past, I have learnt that even 2 hours per day spent doing the really important tasks is enough to get the job done. The only reason I have been able to carry on with workosaur.com as a one-person business is because I have focused on what is absolutely essential. I make good use of the time at my disposal. Had I been thinking that there are a 100 other things that I could have done with a larger team size, I would have failed. Self-pity is for losers.

The Function of Management Is to Produce Results

Above all management is responsible for producing results.

Scribble:
The title of this lesson says it all. Though one tends to look at results inside-out, it is also important to look at results outside-in. My audience does not come to because I earn profits. They come to me because my product/service serves a particular purpose in their life. That is the outside-in result which should then lead to economic benefits.

Society of Performing Organizations

By their fruits ye shall know them.

Scribble:
Workosaur.com does not exist for its own sake or because it can make money. It serves a function to the society i.e. it exists only because it helps people find jobs.

Profit’s Function

Today’s profitable business will become tomorrow’s white elephant.

Scribble:
Innovate. And always watch out for opportunities to reinvent existing businesses – like what Google has done with the browser and with Gmail and with Wave.

Avnish who maintains A Common Fan’s Sports Diary – my favourite sports blog – has launched a section called Sports Quotient (SQ). On SQ, you’ll find posts which are too short to be called an article and a tad too long to be called a tweet. These articles make for nice conversations and are strongly recommended to those who, apart from having a great IQ and EQ, would also like to boost their SQ.

I hated Tom Peters back at IIM-L. But then, it all makes sense now.

This post is in continuation of The Weekly Drucker Classroom #1.

Autonomy in Knowledge Work

Knowledge workers should be given autonomy and should be held accountable. Once they have defined their goals, they should be allowed to chart their work plans, and they must take responsibility for results.

Scribble:
Here’s my three month work-plan:
1. What am I going to work on? a. Content – Updation of the already existing sections (Industry Tracker, Coffee with the CEO, Workplace Tools, Business Quiz, Drucker Weekly) + Introduction of 2 Modules (BoHBR, 64Qs) & Newsletter. b. Social Media Marketing – full-functionality Facebook Page, Linkedin Groups, Twitter, Slideshare & Scribd. c. Monetization Plan 1 – VAS.
2. What results can be expected for which I can be held accountable? a. Improvements in metrics – Traffic, Time spent, Number of ‘fit’ resumes per job .  b. 10+ Paid Clients for MP1 – VAS in 1st month.

The New Corporation’s Persona

In the Next Society’s corporation, top management will be the company. Everything else can be outsourced.

Scribble:
The areas that I should be focusing on while building Workosaur.com are: Direction/Planning/Strategy, Values/Principles, Structure/Relationships/Alliances/Partnerships/JVs, Research/Design/Innovation. As far as possible I shall try and outsource everything else. In fact, I’ve been inspired by this thought right from the start and so far have stuck to it.

Management and Theology

Management always deals with the nature of Man, and with Good and Evil.

Scribble:
Always remember that you are dealing with people and each human being has his/her own motives – good and bad – that drive his/her actions. Align their individual motive with yours and you’ll do well.

Practice Comes First

Decision makers need to factor into their present decisions the “future that has already happened.” In most cases, theory does not precede practice.

Scribble:
As discussed in Classroom #1, the rise in Social Recruiting, the importance of one’s Google Resume and Employer Branding are currently at the fringe but will shape the online recruitment industry – slowly but surely. Some other points that are of importance to me:
i. Old models like those of Vault.com are no longer viable given the amount of free content at one’s disposal.
ii. Most senior professionals will soon have smart phones with 3G access.
iii. Monster vs SimplyHired

Management and the Liberal Arts

Management is a liberal art. Liberal = Deals with knowledge, self-knowledge, wisdom, leadership. Art = Deals with practice and application.

Scribble:
The important ideas don’t necessarily come from the same sphere of work. It’s important to dabble with your other interests no matter how unrelated it may be from your business. Also, refer to that most insightful Charles Munger speech.

The Managerial Attitude

The management of people should be the first and foremost concern of operating managements, rather than the management of things and techniques. Human resources are almost always underutilized.

Scribble:
Unifying philosophy is important. Every person must see his role in relation to the group or product as a whole.

In most cases, customers dial into call centers when they have a complaint and wish to speak to an executive. Unfortunately, when you dial in, the recorded voice always gives you every other option that exists before you can finally reach an executive. In all the cases I know, complaints always correspond to one of 6/7/8/9 on your phone keypad. So you have to wait till the end of the recorded voice message to finally get through to an executive.

In case of Tata Sky, they first ask you to either dial 1 for English or dial 2 for Hindi. I chose 1 for English. This was followed by another menu to identify if I was an existing customer or a new customer. Then came a long list of items – dial 1 for account balance, 2 for recharge, 3 for additional packages, 4 to purchase a showcase event; and finally Technical Support comes in at 5. After dialing 5, you need to wait for another 10 minutes – listening to different Tata Sky offers – before someone attends your call. Finally, when you get through, you are greeted in Hindi no matter what option you may have chosen initially. Frustrating isn’t it?

These systems are designed for poor customer experiences. Anybody who is calling in to complain is already unhappy with the service. Shouldn’t companies be trying to serve them quickly? Why not have Technical Support or Complaint Registration as the first option in the menu? Having it in the end ensures it is the last straw that leads to an angry customer.

Sanjeev Mohanty (LI) is the Managing Director (India) for Benetton India Pvt Ltd (South Asia & South East Asia Pacific). His has been a remarkable journey – a non-MBA who started off as an Executive Merchandiser in Tirupur and turned CEO in ten years. His story is inspirational and proof that one does not need an MBA degree from an elite b-school to rise up the corporate ladder. The workosaur team caught up with Sanjeev and sought his words of wisdom for our readers. Read it here.