Abhijit Bhaduri’s Blog
I write about careers in the AI Economy and about the world of work. The sketchnotes are my own.
Freshworks IPO and Co-Innovation
With business models being in a state of flux, the businesses have no choice but to become digital. That means breaking apart the current model and simplifying the customer’s experience. Simplification adds speed.
The Experience Economy - II
To get the top 1% talent, the candidate experience has to be designed to attract the top 1%. These are people who are chased by head-hunters. You can't hire them. They have to want to work for you. Experiences create a pull that we cannot resist.
Photos, pin codes, Vani Kola and h2h - Issue No 33
Training, Talent and Tech along with the growth of 4 Vs is creating the base for Pin-code based jobs for India. It is the moment for the Next Billion.
Papa CJ on comedy, careers and ROTI
On 1 Jan 2021 I invited standup comedian PapaCJ for a live chat. What follows is much more than a simple Q&A
Types, Fonts, Rifts and Charts
Pro tip: After you make the charts, pause to annotate them. Think of them as a whisper in the ear of the decision maker.
Watermelons, book covers & 4 year olds
Old timers in every organisation resent the big bucks that their employer is willing to pay when they bring in external hires. It is much more effective to invest in growing your own talent.
Earners-learners & rejection
Most people underestimate the value of likability in their career. When you make a mistake, people are likely to give you a second chance if they like you. Else they will pull out a rule book and tell you why you have not done what you must.
That Bond Has Changed Forever
The Man With A Golden Gun beat a retreat. In a year that has seen millions of deaths, he decided he will only live twice (in theatres and small screens) in 2021. I will take a bet that James Bond will appear on the small screen for more viewers than the cinema. 2020 is no time to die. 2021 is unlikely to be different. COVID-19 has been the biggest Market Shaper of all times.
The Eshna Kutty Interview
Eshna Kutty woke up one morning in September to learn that the world was looking for her. This is the video that had crashed the Net. I spoke to her to understand what made her suddenly hit the spotlight. This 'overnight sensation' has been preparing for this moment for the past ten years.
Employer brands, benchmarking and writing
If you’re a morning person, you should do your analytical work early when you’re at peak alertness; your routine tasks around lunchtime in your trough; and your creative work in the late afternoon or evening when you’re more likely to do nonlinear thinking. The reverse holds true if you are a night owl.
Can culture be benchmarked?
I was once talking to the founder of a startup who wanted to build the culture of Google in his firm. He wanted to benchmark the ‘best practices’ of Google’s culture of innovation and that is how he implemented this policy in his 50-person startup. Every employee in that tiny startup had to work on a personal project. Two months later a few employees came to the founder and asked for permission to work from home so that they could work together undisturbed on a secret project they had come up with.
Talent, mentors & 'No Rules Rules'
Can you find a virtual mentor even as you are locked up at home? That is what elite universities provide - great teachers and great mentors. Does that justify the premium they are paid? If you are NOT from an elite institute, is there any way you can compete? Yes, and it is something you can do today.
Abhijit's Sketchnotes No 15
A personal brand is the degree of trust others have in your ability to do what you say. That happens when others say what you do.
How to better engage in the new world of online learning
Online learning is going to be the way for great content to be distributed more efficiently. But it needs to be supplemented by high dosage coaching in small groups. The ability to build great content that engages the learner; facilitators who understand the new media and the corporate culture that values learning is at the heart of this new world.
Abhijit's Sketchnotes No 14
Being a team leader very often means transitioning from being an individual contributor to a people manager’s role. That often comes with a salary bump and a career path that gets more attention everywhere. Doing well as an individual contributor has no bearing on how well the person does as a people manager.
Your personal brand is an insurance policy
The impact of these three forces pales in comparison to the impact of Covid-19 in the job market. Millions of people have lost their jobs. People realize that their business card can no longer borrow the brand value of their employer. Even if the employer provides outplacement services (like RiseSmart) to the impacted employee, without a strong personal brand, the person is just another resume in the pile. Without a personal brand, an individual gets lost among the 650 million people on LinkedIn.