Professionals at Work

A few years ago I fell quite ill and was in the Incentive Care Unit (ICU) for a few days. After my discharge from the ICU, my situation had deteriorated compared to what it was before I was admitted. However, somehow, miraculously, I recovered. My doctor must have been surprised, but to my chagrin, he told me quite as a matter of fact that he had given up on me and was glad to see me alive and kicking. All the while I had been under the impression that medical professionals struggled to save lives!

Fast forward a few years and my parents and I were in the consulting room of a leading cardiologist, to discuss my father’s health. Admittedly nothing was serious and it was a routine check up, yet I was disgusted when the doctor deemed it fit to attend to a call (in the time that we were paying for) to argue about his fee not being paid. He glanced at the reports while on the phone and dismissed them. Of the time that we were there, there was little satisfaction of having been heard. Needless to say we have never been to that specialist ever again.

These are but two incidents that I have had first hand experience of and I am sure they are not the first or the last. We have all at some stage or the other read about the controversies surrounding drug formulation and clinical trials. Many of us have suffered an impact of negligent medical care. Many authors have widely written about malpractices in hospitals. Medical profession is the one entrusted with the lives of the world, unfortunately it is these lives that have become guinea pigs today in the hands of their own trustees.

Another profession entrusted with the shaping up of lives is that of education and it is rather sad to see that globally, the face of education is blemished with greed and incompetence. I have attended a dozen educational institutes (as a student), in varied parts of the world, and yet to my dismay there are very few teachers that I can remember making an impression on me. The one person that I do remember to date is my geography teacher in grade ten, Mrs Jaya Rajagopalan. Teaching for her was not a need, it was not a profession; teaching was her desire and her passion. Her engaging classes not only taught the class the lesson that the curriculum warranted, but she also showed us the way to become good human beings and women of substance. It was entirely her doing that even a restless student like me, who preferred analytical subjects, started taking a keen interest in geography. In fact she highlighted the analytical nature of the subject which had previously been hidden from the front view.

In stark contrast to Mrs Rajagopalan, I have had teachers criticising their mothers-in-law during lecture times or teachers who have had such little hold on their subjects that their lectures have flown out of the window even before hitting the ears of the class or teachers who have outrageously flirted with students during class. A number of these teachers are still teaching and that too in institutions of good repute. From the primary to the tertiary, the standard of education is falling and it is no surprise that a number of parents are opting for home schooling, especially in the west. For those who can afford, education comes at a premium, sometimes necessitating two incomes to support the household. Quality education should be the right of every child but apparently the economics ridden world seems to disagree.

Who should one turn to if one has suffered the ills of the medical profession? Who should one look to fight for ones right to education? While the simple answer would seem to be a legal professional, unfortunately even in that arena, there is little respite. Counsel and solicitors hesitate in taking challenging cases, scared of tarnishing their career record or in fear of standing against an opposing counsel they dare not irk. Even if some do take up cases, the client is serviced based on the interest of her lawyer and not her own. So when justice via the court of law becomes a near impossibility, there are people who seek justice in spite of the court.

With limited educational opportunities, the avenues to earn a living also constrict. With frugal earnings, access to medical care becomes restricted. With low incomes and poor health, incidences of crime increase. And then with limited legal support to set the wrong to right the increase in crimes is not a rationale surprise. So whether it is economics or it is ethics, in my view there needs to be the return of professionalism in the three fields of service mentioned. Otherwise equality, peace and harmony in the world will just remain dreams for the population at large.

Use and Abuse

I started my career in investment banking with a team that comprised of very intelligent and amicable professionals. The atmosphere was atypical to an investment bank – hard work and the will to succeed were complemented by camaraderie. Soon that changed. Reasons were varied. Discontent grew and I moved on. I landed in a place that propagated the philosophy of “eat what you kill”. The team lacked the very concept of “team work”. It was an eye opening experience and provoked me to consider the importance of principles and integrity at work. After a while I could not sustain working in a team where everyone was working in isolation, pretending to be someone while in reality they were someone else. I could not judge my self worth by the deals that I did or gloat about who I cut out of competition. Hence it was time once again to move on. I was made an offer by an organization which was led by someone who embodies ethics and human values. I did not think twice and grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

In the last couple of years my endeavor has been to help establish the business practice I set out to, to the best of my abilities. Managing expectations of the various stake holders involved has been challenging. Yet the one key lesson I have learnt is that integrity, honesty and hard work do bring results. It takes time but the results do come through. It is not just where my efforts are concerned, but I have seen that senior colleagues have earned success and fame because of their humility and dedication to hard work. However, at the same time I have encountered people who forge relationships because they have a motive. Some have been blatant enough to suggest that their only reason in being nice to professional partners is to accomplish a goal. Once their motive is attained, either they start to become complacent or begin to ignore the other faction. On the other hand, if their purpose is not realized, they drop the person concerned like a hot potato in absolutely no time.

So where do principles, integrity, honesty and professionalism stand in today’s corporate world? In the guise of strategy we often tend to compromise the underlying concepts of ethics and trust. Recently, I came across a deal that was very successfully concluded by a peer house. The client was elated that in the current market conditions they had been able to raise tens of millions of dollars. However, what is unknown to the jubilant corporate is that what they were made to believe as market feedback, was in reality their advisor’s strategy. Acknowledging that the client’s expectation on valuation was unrealistic, the broker went to investors with half the valuation. Investors were requested not to mention this valuation to the client and in return were assured that the deal would come to market at the reduced valuation. After the first round of marketing, the company was informed that there was significant investor interest albeit at a much lower valuation. The deal was then announced (read “leaked”) to the media by someone other than the corporate. That meant a face saving exercise had to be done. At a significantly lower valuation and a much higher dilution for the founders, the deal was closed. The shares listed and trading commenced. The fee has been earned and the client has the money. However, is this is the right approach?

There have been other instances that I have witnessed where no stone has been left unturned in trying to win business. Attempts have been made to woo clients with unrealistic terms which have later been reversed citing market conditions. Services have been offered which are not mentionable on a public platform. Box seats have been reserved at soccer world cup and cricket world cup. Back stabbing is not something that is a surprise element any more. Crossing Chinese walls without compliance consent has also become quite common in some places it seems. And yes, men have tried to court women just to grow their own P&L (if women have attempted the same I am unaware of it). We are soon beginning to use any means to achieve our capitalistic aims. It is almost as if the law of the jungle reigns supreme in the territory of intelligent human beings.

I am not preaching here. I am all for strategizing and for healthy competition. In fact I thrive in an environment which reeks of pressure, stress and deadlines. I do like to bask in the glory of a deal well executed. I am questioning our measures and our ways. How far should we go in abusing our resources? How low can we stoop in using people’s trust and generosity? Will we able to sustain business with such means? I am not sure. They say what goes round comes round. So should we really not have the patience and give integrity, honesty, humility and professionalism a chance?