What makes Dubai special?

Posted on May 23, 2013 by

It’s not the bewildering array of man-made tourist attractions, impressive though many of them are. It’s not the economic success either, astonishing though that is, particularly for a city without any hydrocarbon or mineral assets.

What makes Dubai really special is the ethnic and cultural diversity; it is said that people from over 200 countries call Dubai home, and they bring with them all that is unique about their home countries.

Yesterday night, for instance, I felt like ordering in dinner. Options? I could call in Thai, Japanese, Arabic, Turkish, Iranian, Pakistani, Ethiopian, Russian and a dozen odd cuisines from different parts of India. If I was prepared to drive a bit, then another 20 or so cuisines were available to me. Where else can you get such wonderful diversity?

Day before, six people came to see one of my apartments which had fallen vacant. Where were they from? A Gujarati girl who doesn’t speak a word of Gujarati and in fact has never been to India; an Arab girl who spoke with a distinctive American twang (she is American and has lived most of her life in the States); a Kenyan lady who sells industrial machinery for a Finnish company; a Jordanian fitness instructor with a drop-dead gorgeous Ukrainian girl-friend; an Indian who was fluent in an Indian language I had never heard of (Dhundari, spoken in Northern Rajasthan) and a Pakistani who was more British than any Brit I have ever met.

Has any city in history been like Dubai? Not to the best of knowledge. Maybe Cordoba a long long time ago, maybe Salonica, Izmir, Beirut and Alexandria in the previous century. At some point in their history, these cities have shared the traits of modern Dubai – they were thriving business hubs with traders and businessmen from many parts of the world.

But diversity on Dubai’s scale, packed into a small geography, that makes Dubai really special. It’s a shame though that so many of us stay confined to our own ethnic groups. A bit of effort and there’s a fascinating world waiting to be discovered, right here in Dubai.

Posted in Business, Dubai | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Sharpening your skills: whose job is it?

Posted on May 22, 2013 by

It’s the employer who benefits from well-skilled employees so it’s in their interest to invest in training, right? Wrong.

Yes, companies should invest a lot in training and the good one’s do. But the internet has become a great leveler of knowledge. The amount of learning available online, presented by first-rate teachers and business practitioners, is mind-boggling.

Want to become a better public speaker? Plenty of courses on YouTube. Want to write better presentations or simply write better? The best in the world can teach you. How about entertaining in a multi-cultural context? No problem, plenty of experts online to tell you how to go about it. How does one build a strategy or a business plan? Learn from Harvard or Stanford or any other Ivy League university.

In an environment rich with learning opportunities, the burden (of learning) shifts to the employee. 15 years ago, even 10, it was fair to expect companies to provide learning and training. Not any more. Yes, your company has a responsibility but there’s so much more you can do on your own. After all, it is your career and your life.

Here’s a simple way of approaching self-learning:

  1. Fix quarterly learning goals for yourself. Focus on acquiring a new skill or sharpening an existing skill, every quarter.
  2. Identify the learning material. A few hours on Google and you can find loads of knowledge; if anything you’ll be spoilt for choice.
  3. Develop measurement criteria for yourself. If you can’t measure your progress, you won’t know whether you are getting better. Measurement is not easy to figure out but Google should be able to help you.
  4. Consult an empathetic (and intelligent) senior. In your company or outside, it doesn’t matter. Discuss the goals, the learning material and the measurement system. Refine these in light of feedback and then get cracking.

How much time should you spend on self-learning? Four hours a week will give you the equivalent of one month a year. Imagine, one month in a first-rate university! Over a 10 year period, you can become really good at five or six new skills. These skills (and the habit of self-learning) will differentiate you from your peers/competitors and really propel your career.

Is it easy finding four hours a week? Not at all, because these hours will have to come from your sleep and leisure time. Good luck in your learning journey.

Posted in Business, Jobs, Worklife | Tagged , | Leave a comment

How do you know it is time to quit a job?

Posted on May 21, 2013 by

In yesterday’s blog post I have argued that a bad job is no reason for quitting a job, that in fact one can learn a lot from it. So when should you consider leaving a job? Two perspectives can help you figure out if the time is right.

  1. The opportunity perspective: It’s possible a new job may present you a terrific opportunity. This could be a new geography you have always wanted to be in, it could be the chance to work in a great company, with a great bunch of people or it could just be loads of more money. When this happens, spot the opportunity and don’t hesitate. Jump and take the plunge. Remember it has to be one of the following:
    • A geography (market/country) you have dreamed about.
    • A great company or a great team in a good company.
    • Lots of money (at least 50% more than current income)
  2. The learning perspective: The opportunity perspective is exactly what it sounds like, it is opportunistic. While there is nothing wrong with it, it is not a strategic approach to building one’s own brand. A better way of looking at it is what I call the ‘learning perspective‘. Strong learning opportunities (or lack of learning in the current job) are good reasons to leave a job. Ask yourself one question at the end of every month – did I learn something new this month? If the answer is no for six months in a row, it’s time to consider change.

Good luck in your job.

Posted in Business, Jobs, Worklife | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Why a bad job may actually be good for you?

Posted on May 20, 2013 by

The three most common reason’s for wanting to quit a job are:

  1. I don’t enjoy my work
  2. I am not fairly rewarded
  3. My boss doesn’t support me

Throughout your working life, one of the above three reasons will apply to you, if not two of them. All work can get tedious and seem like a chore. Often, we think we are not adequately appreciated/rewarded for what we do. As to the boss? Well, less said about this specie, the better.

So what does one do? Switching jobs will not help, because the same three reasons will reappear sooner or later. Talking to your peers in other companies will not help because they will almost always paint a rosy picture of their job and how they are doing.

Now let’s say the worst case happens with you. All three reasons at the same time. The job sucks, you are not appreciated and the boss is a monster. So now should you quit? My advice would be a firm ‘NO’ for nothing is a better teacher than adversity.

In any job, there are periods of monotony and boredom. They teach us perseverance. Most high achievers are seldom happy with the rewards and recognition they get. A healthy ego and unhappiness with compensation go hand in hand. And what can one learn from a really lousy boss? Why, management of seniors. When you become a CEO, half your time will go in managing people higher up, the shareholders. So get used to it early!

Is it possible to luck out and to get all three reasons/factors to work in your favor? Imagine – you love the work, the boss is a dream come true and the money is wow. Can this really happen? Of course it can. People after all do win the Lotto!

Posted in Jobs, Worklife | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

“My Klout score is 63,” said the candidate

Posted on May 19, 2013 by

I had noticed it on the candidate’s cv, a Klout score of 63. I hastily pulled out the job description. No mention of a minimum Klout score there. When  I pointed this out to the candidate, he said most clients want to know the Klout score, particularly for digital marketing jobs. Higher the better, and 63 is darned good, he pointed out.

The Klout score is a measure of one’s online influence and the algorithm apparently looks at 400 parameters. The marketing logic is that companies should be particularly sensitive to high Klout customers. Presumably they are the one’s who can do the most damage to a brand’s reputation in social media; conversely, their recommendation will carry a lot of weight.

There must be something wrong with the algorithm because till recently Justin Bieber had a higher Klout score than Barack Obama. Political gridlock in Washington notwithstanding, surely the President of the most powerful country on the planet has more influence than a teen singer.

My understanding of Klout is that it largely measures how active and well-connected you are on social media networks? And that’s not necessarily a good thing from a job perspective. Somebody who spends a few hours a day on Facebook, Twitter and the like can’t possibly be a desirable candidate for any company.

I pointed this out to the candidate and advised him to steer clear of Klout in the interview. What’s your Klout score, he asked, while leaving? We checked on Klout and it was a lowly 48. “It takes time, not to worry,” he told me consolingly.

I spoke with him the day after the interview. He was ecstatic, the interview was perfect. Did the client ask about Klout? They did and they were most impressed, 63 after all is not everyone’s cup of tea. Perhaps I need to focus on moving my score northwards. Maybe there is something to it.

A week later I got the client’s feedback. They were hiring someone else. They really liked Mr. Klout, thought he was quite good, but the concern was maybe he spends too much time on Facebook.

Posted in Dubai, Humor, Jobs, Social media | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Why Google Glass?

Posted on May 18, 2013 by

In this short talk, Sergey Brin (co-founder of Google) explains the vision behind Glass and it starts by asking a very simple question – how are we supposed to interact with the world? By looking at a screen, as we do now, or can it be done in a more natural, intuitive way? Google’s answer is Glass, a wearable computer that brings the screen right to your field of vision. Companies will figure out wearable computing in many different ways, and therein lies a battle most fascinating for the future of tech.

Posted in Innovation, Internet, Technology | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

10 most innovative cities in the world

Posted on May 17, 2013 by

The Innovation Cities program measures the potential of 445 cities around the world as innovation economies. The classification is based on 162 city indicators; apart from giving bragging rights, the rankings (and the analysis that accompanies them) are a useful tool for city planners. Top 10 cities for 2012-13 are:

  1. Boston
  2. New York
  3. Vienna
  4. San Francisco Bay Area
  5. Paris
  6. Munich
  7. London
  8. Copenhagen
  9. Amsterdam
  10. Seattle

Vienna is the surprise inclusion for me; I’ve always thought of it as a sleepy little town of baroque architecture and classical music.

Some other interesting rankings: Singapore is at 30, Dubai at 34, Abu Dhabi at 68 and Mumbai at 108. The rankings are also available by region.

Top 5 in Asia are:

  1. Hong Kong
  2. Melbourne
  3. Sydney
  4. Seoul
  5. Tokyo.

Notice that Singapore doesn’t make it to the top 5 in Asia on innovation (it is number 7) even though it tops on so many indicators.

In this part of the world (mid east, Africa, Central Asia and Eastern Europe) the top 5 are:

  1. Dubai
  2. Abu Dhabi
  3. Cape Town
  4. Kiev
  5. Lviv

Not bad for a small country (UAE) that came into existence in the early 1970′s.

Posted in Economy, Innovation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment