Abhijit Bhaduri’s Blog

I write about careers, skills and the world of work. The cartoons and sketches are mine.

Alphabetica - a Book Review

This allegorical tale features the letters of the alphabet as ‘characters’ living on the planet ‘Typewriter’ and in a country called ‘Alphabetica’. With the consonants being the majority and vowels the minority, the book takes a deep dive into the majoritarianism of the world.

17/05/19 17/05/19

Unethical behavior of a colleague - should I report it?

I have been working abroad as an IT specialist for 20 years. Under my stewardship, one of the projects, which was outsourced to an Indian company, faced some delays. Blaming me unfairly for the delay, a co-worker accused me of being racially biased & not protecting the interest of my organization. I was very upset with his accusation and it led to a heated altercation. ... wait there is more to it.

18/04/19 18/04/19

I fought with my boss. Now what?

I was being repeatedly challenged to fix a higher target by my boss two levels my senior. Unable to take it beyond a point, I let off some steam and things turned unpleasant between us. This happened in an open office meeting. I now feel awkward facing him. He hasn’t spoken to me since the incident and my immediate superior has refused to intervene. How should I break the ice and maintain continuity at work?

03/02/19 03/02/19

When Machines Begin to Learn Your Moods

Amazon has filed a patent that makes it possible to interpret users’ emotions and feelings. By analyzing the pitch and volume of speaker commands Alexa will respond to the user’s “feelings”. This could be a huge leap for ecommerce. But this also leaves you more vulnerable. Understanding emotions and moods helps build trust even with machines.