Author: Padma Rajeswari

At the outset, I would like to thank you for stopping by my Blog. I believe that there is nothing right or wrong in this world. What’s right in this moment and context may be wrong in another moment and context. This belief has inspired me to name my blog ‘Perspectives’. Perspectives is a platform for me to share my experiences, thoughts and perspectives on various subjects. You may have a different point of view. I look forward to hearing them, these are the triggers for rich and deep conversations. On personal front, I live in Mumbai, India. I love to read; Somerset Maugham and Nevil Shute are my favorite authors. My favorite books are The Razor’s Edge, Mrs. Craddock, Chequer Board and Gone with the Wind. I am thankful to my father who inculcated the habit of reading in me early on. I am also passionate about traveling, I have been to most parts of India and to several countries across the globe. On professional front, I work in Human Resources function. Over two and half decades, I have worked across multiple industries and cultures. I focus on Leadership Development, Talent Management, Visioning and Culture, Large-scale change, Employee Listening & Engagement, Employee Well-being, Inclusive work culture, HR effectiveness, Behavior and Mind-set shifts through sustained interventions I currently lead Organization Effectiveness Function for Aditya Birla Group, a $44.3 billion conglomerate with 120000 employees across 35 countries. I sincerely hope that you will enjoy reading my blog. I look forward to your thoughts and suggestions. Thank you!

Titanic ignored 5-6 iceberg warnings – why?

What can we learn from it?Titanic stuck an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean on the fateful night of 14 April 1942. The ship’s wireless operators received multiple warning messages about icebergs from six other ships in the region. The messages started flowing in from 9 am on 14 April, including … Continue reading Titanic ignored 5-6 iceberg warnings – why? →

What makes good people managers stand out?

Few weeks back, I had a coaching conversation with a colleague. He had joined the corporate world 5 years back; for the first time in his career was faced with a difficult peoplemanager . He was angry, frustrated, sad, irritated... a potpourri of emotions, unfortunately all negative!I respect this colleague, his capabilities and was anguished … Continue reading What makes good people managers stand out? →

Confidence or Competence

Imagine God appears before you and says, “I am happy with you my child, I want to bless you. I can bless you either with ‘confidence’ or ‘competence’, you can choose one.”What would you choose? competence or confidence ?Confidence is the belief in own abilities and judgement. It’s all about positive self-perception and self-assurance.Competence is … Continue reading Confidence or Competence →

Celebrating Failures – Really?

We often hear this phrase… when we are trying to build a culture of experimentation in organizations.It’s time to question this phrase, especially given how much and how often it is used.Let me challenge you before going ahead.What’s your association with the word CELEBRATION?-       Popping a bottle of champagne-       Coming together with dance, music, good food and … Continue reading Celebrating Failures – Really? →

Rethinking Performance Appraisal

Let’s look at the experience of two friends – Sam and Sonia – management graduates working in the same organization, but in different functions.Being the first performance appraisal, both are anxious. They exchange notes, boost each other’s morale and decide to catch up later.Here’s a glimpse of Sam’s conversation with his manager.They first discuss each … Continue reading Rethinking Performance Appraisal →