Download - Siemens Pakistan

Excursion Trip to Countryside Chalet
By: Naukhez Arslan
A short but a much needed break was
provided, when A&D Division, announced
an overnight excursion trip to a resort
named Countryside Chalet for its
employees.
Buses were scheduled to leave Siemens
Industrial Complex around 5:30 pm in the
evening. It was a fine evening excellent
for an outdoor trip. The resort is situated
in the pastures of Malir Cantonment about
12 kilometers from the Super Highway toll
plaza, near Dumba Goth. Upon nearing
our destination, we were greeted by
numerous sign boards of the resort, as if
welcoming us to our humble abode for
the night.
Upon reaching the place, we were
astounded by the scenic ambiance of the
resort. The resort as its name implied, was
surely a breath of fresh air, a place made
for relaxation and an appropriate
destination for taking time off from one’s
busy lifestyle and schedule.
The place was by all means a true blend
of tradition and natural beauty. It had high
mud walls which projected an image of a
village. The rooms were comfortable by
any standards. Privacy was very much
stressed in the construction of these
rooms. Each portrayed a rural look and
furnished with all the necessary modern
facilities and not to mention surrounded
by abundant greenery.
Refreshments were served immediately
since we were all starving after our long
bus journey. After a diet of Samosas,
Patties, Cakes and Fruits the contingent
proceeded to cricket ground for a flood lit
cricket tournament. Four teams were
formed namely: Khamba XI, Tiger XI,
Chirand XI and Khaleefa XI. The cricket
commenced which went on for a couple
of hours. Chirand XI emerged as the
winners of a four, six over- match
tournament against Khamba XI in a tense
and a nail biting finish.
Highlight of the day occurred in the very
first match between Khamba XI and Tiger
XI. Mr. Umair, who is the senior most
employee in the BU- Gensets, ran to field
the ball for Khamba XI. He made a full
length dive like the one with which Rhodes
ran Inzamam out in the 1992 World Cup,
only that Mr.Umair fell a few feet short
from the ball. This provided a hilarious
break for the spectators, as they all sank
to the ground laughing and clapped in
appreciation of this true display of
sportsmanship. Dinner was served to the
exhausted and hungry “cricketers” and
their families as
they all had
worked a huge
appetite.
Rumbling
stomachs were
finally laid to
rest as all
present ate
heartily. Dinner
no doubt, was
a complete
treat that
satisfied the longing taste buds of the
“athletes”, as they scrumptiously ate their
food and went on for another helping.
After the dinner, the families left for their
respective homes and the remaining
people got their hands on what ever they
could find to amuse
themselves. Some went for a night time
walk, as it was drizzling, some went into
the game room
which offered
games like,
caremboard,
pool, snooker,
table soccer,
table tennis
and the
traditional
dabbu. That
kept us
occupied for
hours. Some
enthusiasts
went into the pool and played all sorts of
makeshift water sports while some
practiced their swimming. Some, were
content on watching television in their
rooms. Some, preferred to just sit in the
pool and talk the night away. Very few, I
must say called
it a night and
retired to their
rooms.
In the morning,
we were served
with a hearty
breakfast of
halwapoori.
After the
breakfast
everyone bid
farewell and
headed home tired though but with happy
memories and no regrets whatsoever after
enjoying such a wonderful and picturesque
place.
10 keys of business leadership skills
by: Sana Nasri, MT
Here are 10 key business leadership skills
you’ll need to succeed as a leader:
1. Lead By Example
You can’t be an aloof leader, someone
that’s never around and incapable of
getting your hands dirty. One of the best
ways to lead is by example - pitching in
where needed, lending a helping hand,
and making sure that the work you do is
clearly understood by your team.
2. Passion
A leader without passion isn’t a leader.
He’s a paper pusher. Or a taskmaster.…
Passion drives a lot, and you can inspire
so much in others through your own
passion and enthusiasm.
3. Be Organized
A disorganized leader isn’t leading; he’s
chasing his own tail. Disorganization
breeds nothing but more disorganization.
If you’re frazzled and messy, your team
will be too. When you’re organized you’ll
be much more productive and so will be
everyone else.
4. Delegate. You can’t do
everything
A great leader needs to be able to delegate
effectively. The key to delegating
successfully is giving employees
ownership of the work you assign them.
They can’t just feel like they own the work,
they really have to.
5. Take Ownership and
Responsibility
Although you’ve just delegated work and
truly given your team ownership, you also
have to take ownership and responsibility
at all times. Your team has to know you’ll
be there for them through the good and
the bad times. That doesn’t mean you
absolve people from making mistakes or
ignore bad work/effort, but it does mean
you take responsibility for the big picture.
6. Communicate Effectively
Everyone knows great leaders have to be
great communicators. But there are
certain points of communication that
many people forget. For example, it’s
critical that you communicate to
employees how their work matters in the
bigger picture. Are they just a part, or
does their work truly make a difference?
It’s appreciation.
Communicating success is also something
leaders forget to do. People need
affirmation. They want to know they did
a good job. You have to tell them.
Insecure leaders will often ramble;
uninterested leaders cut things off too
quickly. While praising or commenting,
be precise, specific and concise. Get to
the point.
7. Be Brave and
Honest
Cowardly leaders will shy away
from any number of situations
that crop up regularly when
running a team. The project your
team has worked on for 6
months just got shelved. Now
what? Or you have to talk to
someone about their lack of
effort recently. Do you ignore
the problem? Or maybe it’s time
to take your product into a new market.
Do you hobble forward, scared and
nervous, or do you grab the market by
the throat? Leaders are brave.
And honest. Tell it like it is. You have to
learn how to present things to your team
in an honest but balanced manner.
8. Great Listener
A huge part of being a great
communicator is being a great listener. If
all you want to do is talk, you’re not a
leader. Keeping people motivated means
listening to them, asking them questions,
understanding their issues.
9. Know Your People
You have to know your people. You don’t
have to be best friends or even socialize
outside work, but you do have to know
what makes them tick. You need to know
something about their personal lives
because their lives outside work matter.
Their lives outside work drive a great deal
of their success (or lack of it) at work.
Keep track of simple things: birthdays,
marriages, children, etc. The more you
know your people the more common
ground you’re likely to find, the more you’ll
be able to connect.
10. Be a Follower
Great leaders are followers too. If you’re
a leader without following, you’re a
dictator. And as fun as that sounds… Being
a leader-follower means finding value in
your team, getting inspired by your team,
encouraging your team to communicate,
brainstorm and be open.
Very few people are great leaders
overnight. It takes time and practice. As
long as you’re open about learning along
the way and working with your team on
leadership versus dictating to them, most
people will be happy to go on the journey
with you. And without getting too mushy,
here are some great
quotes on leadership:
“Don’t tell people how to
do things, tell them what
to do and let them surprise
you with their results.” -
George S. Patto
“The very essence of
leadership is that you have
to have vision. You can’t
blow an uncertain
trumpet.” - Theodore M.
Hesburg.
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