Thursday, October 12, 2006

Land of Penguins (Corporate Culture)

forwarded by bhayi

A Peacock in the Land
of Penguins

Adapted from a book by

BJ Gallagher Hateley & Warren H. Schmidt






There once was a time,
in the not so distant past,
when penguins ruled many lands
in the Sea of Organisations.

These penguins were not always wise,
they were not always popular,
but they were always in charge.






The top management wore the same outlook in their distinctive black and white suits.

They believed that uniformity is
the way to do things;
Uniformity is Unity.






On the other hand, worker birds wore colours and outfits that reflected their work and lifestyles.






Birds who aspired to move up
the corporate ladder were encouraged
to adopt the penguins’ code of conduct
and wear the penguin suits.

They learn the penguin stride and
follow the example of their leaders.






One day, Perry the peacock joined
the Land of Penguins.


He was loud, colourful and
full of new ideas.


Although he was different,
the penguins were impressed by his new ideas. They felt that he has real Penguin Potential.






Initially, everyone was happy.

The penguins were pleased
with their new recruit.

Perry was creative and
he brought in good results.
=






However, as time went by,
the penguins began to murmur against Perry.

He was too loud, too colourful
and had too many new ideas
that intruded the penguins’ comfort zone.

Too colourful

Too Loud!

Too many

new ideas!

We are NOT

comfortable!






Perry was also unhappy.
The penguins tried to turn him into a penguin.

He was told to “try to be like the rest of us,
wear a penguin suit”.

Both parties were unhappy.

Be like us!

Wear a penguin

suit!

Leave me alone...






We see this story unfolds
in many organisations today.

Creativity and innovation are seen to be
“a breath of fresh air” in many organisations.

Many “Perrys” are recruited for their creativity. Yet, along the way, their creativity is stifled by
the need to conform to the norm.






Other than penguins and peacocks,
there are also pigeons who are
peacemakers in the office,

Sparrows who try to be neutral
so as to keep a low profile or


Ostriches who choose to
bury their heads in the sand.

There will always be Penguins and Peacocks in any organisations.






Peacocks bring in varieties
and new ideas,
But, the stability provided by
the penguins must not be ignored.




Penguins,
being the backbone of the organisation,
need to recognise that
diversity can exist in an organisation
if there is acceptance and trust.






When we learn to appreciate
one another’s differences,
we become more willing to listen,
more open to new ideas and
more eager to grow.

Birds of different feathers
can work together in harmony.


The End...

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Wednesday, October 04, 2006

No Check Payments Please

Sent by Bhayi

A very wealthy man, old and desperately ill, summons to his bedside his three closest advisors: his doctor, his priest, and his lawyer. '-I know, -' he says, 'they say 'you can't take it with you.' But who knows? Suppose they're mistaken. I'd like to have something with me, just in case. So I am giving each of you an envelope containing one hundred thousand dollars and I would be grateful if at my funeral you would put the envelopes in my coffin, so that if it turns out that it's useful, I'll have something.' They each agree to carry out his wish. Sure enough, after just a few weeks, the old man passes away. At his funeral, each of the three advisors is seen slipping something into the coffin. After the burial, as the three are walking away together, the doctor turns to the other two and says, '-Friends, I have a confession to make. As you know, at the hospital we are desperate because of the cutbacks in funding. Our CAT SCAN machine broke down and we haven't be able to get a new one. So, I took $20, 000 of our friend's money for a new CAT SCAN and put the rest in the coffin as he asked.-'

At this the priest says, '-I, too have a confession to make. As you know, our church is simply overwhelmed by the problem of the homeless. The needs keep increasing and we have nowhere to turn. So I took $50, 000 from the envelope for our homeless fund and put the rest in the coffin as our friend requested.-'

Fixing the other two in his gaze, the lawyer says '-I am astonished and deeply disappointed that you would treat so casually our solemn undertaking to our friend. I want you to know that I placed in his coffin my personal check for the full one hundred thousand dollars.-'

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Sunday, October 01, 2006

Exciting Period

Exciting period
A kindergarten class had a homework assignment to find out about something exciting and relate it to the class the next day. When the time came to present what they'd found, the first little boy walked up to the front of the class made a small white dot on the blackboard and sat back down. Puzzled, the teacher asked him just what it was.

"It's a period," said the little boy.

"Well, I can see that," she said, "but what is so exciting about a period?"

"Damned if I know," said the little boy, "but this morning my sister was missing one, Daddy had a heart attack, Mommy fainted, and the man next door shot himself."

(forwarded by bhayi)

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