REPUTATION MANAGEMENT MADE SIMPLE Part 1 - YOU AND YOUR REPUTATION

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT MADE SIMPLE

Part 1

YOU AND YOUR REPUTATION

By

VIKRAM KARVE

REPUTATION – DEFINITION AND MEANING

Your “Reputation” is your “Image” as “seen” by a “variety of persons”. 

This “variety of persons” is called “stakeholders”.

A “stakeholder” is any person who can “affect” or be “affected by” your reputation.

[We are talking about your reputation in the personal context. If we extend this discussion to the organisational context, and talk about organizational reputation,  a “stakeholder” need not be restricted to only a person but can include any “entity” (animate beings like humans as well as inanimate things like other organizations, government, society, country, world etc)]

Reputation is perception-based.

Your Reputation consists of perceptions – whether true or false – held by your Stakeholders about you.

Your reputation is made up of perceptions held by others about you.

Hence, you do not “own” your “reputation”.

Your reputation is “owned” by your “stakeholders”.

However, you can certainly “manage” your reputation by influencing perceptions of stakeholders.

HOW TO MANAGE YOUR REPUTATION

You can manage your reputation by controlling two things:

1. Your Behaviour

2. Your Communication Style

Merely “good behaviour” will not guarantee you a good reputation.

You must “effectively communicate” your “good behaviour” to your stakeholders.

That is why just behaving well but remaining silent may not be of much use as far as your reputation is concerned.

In fact, your “silence” may prove counterproductive, as in the absence of any communication from your side, stakeholder perceptions about you may be influenced by rumours and other external factors.

Also, your silence may cause a “vacuum of information” and lend credence to such rumours and damage your reputation.

That is why, as far as “reputation management” is concerned – SILENCE IS NOT GOLDEN

On the other hand, “goody-goody communication” without “matching good behaviour” will create a dissonance in the minds of stakeholders and this mismatch in perception can cause greater damage to your reputation than by remaining silent and communicating nothing.

This means that “genuine good behaviour” coupled with “honest transparent communication” will enhance your reputation.

Any attempts at fake behaviour, pretence, masquerade, mendacity, deception, cover up and misusing Public Relations Gimmicks and Image Management Techniques to manipulate communication may boomerang causing irreparable damage to your reputation.

MULTIPLE REPUTATIONS

Your overall reputation is made up of perceptions held by others about you by various stakeholders.

Thus, each stakeholder will have an “image” of you in his mind.

Hence, you will have multiple reputations and your overall reputation will be a symbiosis of these multiple reputations.

Luckily, things are not that complicated.

Various Stakeholders who influence your Reputation can be classified into three categories:

1. First-hand Observers or “Direct Experience” Stakeholders

2. Second-hand Observers or “Indirect Experience” Stakeholders

3. “Peripheral” External Observers or “Gossip and Grapevine” Stakeholders  

As an example, let us talk about “YOU” and “YOUR REPUTATION”.

Your close family, intimate friends and your immediate work colleagues who observe you first-hand and directly experience your behaviour comprise the first category.

Your neighbours and relatives and various persons who you come in contact with or who observe you socially, and at work, comprise the second category.

The third “peripheral” category comprises all the “gossip” rumours and hearsay about you – the dynamic mass of information floating all over about you, in the real world and in cyberspace.

It is this third “peripheral” category that can cause maximum damage to your reputation since it is here that unsubstantiated opinions are expressed without factual information and propagated throughout the grapevine network which is set abuzz with rumours and gossip.

Extending this “three-tier” paradigm in the organizational context, this “peripheral” category of stakeholders includes Media (both Mainstream and Social Media) and Web 2.0.

In today’s information technology driven wired world, whereas reputation management amongst direct and indirect stakeholders like employees, customers, affiliates, shareholders, investors et al is important, it is even more important “manage” your reputation in “peripheral” stakeholder domains, especially in the media and your online reputation, by communicating effectively.

CONCLUSION

Simply being good may not help you gain a good reputation.

You must “effectively communicate” your “good behaviour” to all your stakeholders.

Yes, though your reputation may be built on the foundation of your “goodness”, it is effective communication that is the key to reputation management.

To be Continued in Part 2 ... 

In Part 2 of this series of Reputation Management, I will discuss a recent case of unwarranted Reputation Damage caused to a “good” organisation due to ineffective communication.

VIKRAM KARVE
Copyright © Vikram Karve 2013
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work. 
© vikram karve., all rights reserved. 

NB:

No part of this Blog may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Blog Author Vikram Karve who holds the copyright.

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2013. All Rights Reserved

Did you like reading this blog post?
I am sure you will like all the 27 stories in my book  COCKTAIL an anthology of Short Fiction.
To order your COCKTAIL please click any of the links below:
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http://www.indiaplaza.in/cocktail-vikram-karve/books/9788191091847.htm
http://www.apkpublishers.com/books/short-stories/cocktail-by-vikram-karve.html
COCKTAIL ebook
If you prefer reading ebooks on Kindle or your ebook reader, please order Cocktail E-book by clicking the links below:
AMAZON
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005MGERZ6
SMASHWORDS
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/87925

Foodie Book:  Appetite for a Stroll
If your are a Foodie you will like my book of Food Adventures APPETITE FOR A STROLL. Do order a copy from FLIPKART:
http://www.flipkart.com/appetite-stroll-vikram-karve/8190690094-gw23f9mr2o

About Vikram Karve

A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer and blogger. Educated at IIT Delhi, IIT (BHU) Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures (2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and an anthology of short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a number of fiction short stories and creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional  and academic research papers in journals and edited in-house journals and magazines for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for 15 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing and blogging. Vikram Karve lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts.

Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com
Professional Profile Vikram Karve: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve
Vikram Karve Facebook Page:  https://www.facebook.com/vikramkarve
Vikram Karve Creative Writing Blog: http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com/blog/posts.htm
Email: vikramwamankarve@gmail.com

Twitter: @vikramkarve

      

© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

GRIEVANCE MANAGEMENT

GRIEVANCE MANAGEMENT

SEVEN ATTRIBUTES OF AN EFFECTIVE GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL SYSTEM

By

VIKRAM KARVE

A good grievance redressal mechanism is a sine qua non of a well-designed and functional Human Resource (HR) Management System.

In order to be successful, a grievance redressal system must possess seven attributes:

SEVEN ATTRIBUTES OF AN EFFECTIVE GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL SYSTEM

1. SIMPLICITY

It must be a procedurally simple mechanism which is easy to use by every employee across the board.

It is best to have a simple form or an online drop down menu where an employee can effortlessly submit a grievance or complaint as he wishes to offline or online or even by SMS callback.

As one of my bosses used to say about grievance management:

“Don’t ask people to pour their hearts out and write long-winded sob-stories and essays – just give them a simple form to fill.”

Yes, a well-designed form can encapsulate the problem more objectively and avoid communications mismatches.

2. ACCESSIBILITY

All employees must have easy access to the mechanism and it should be quick and simple to lodge a grievance.

In earlier days, before the IT Boom and prior to the advent of Internet, there used to be cards or forms which could be filled up and put in easily accessible drop boxes which were located all over the workplace, canteens and shop-floors.

Nowadays, it can be an online system must be easily accessible 24/7 to all employees from their workplace and their homes as well.

If an employee has a grievance she (or he) must know where and how to submit it and the procedure must be fast and easy.

3. EFFECTIVENESS

The grievance redressal mechanism must be effective.

The system must work (and be seen to work) and there must be proper monitoring, follow-up and feedback to the employees and all concerned about the status and processing of the complaint.

The grievance redressal procedure must ensure that it is made unambiguously and clearly evident to all employees that there is an honest and transparent effort to resolve all grievances in a fair and just manner.

4. EFFICIENCY and PROMPTNESS

The redressal of grievances and resolution of complaints must be done promptly and speedily in an efficient manner within stipulated time frames so that employees develop faith in the system.

Remember – justice delayed is justice denied.

5. RESPONSIVENESS

The grievance redressal mechanism must be user-friendly and sensitive to the special needs of the employees.

It must be gender sensitized, culturally consonant and in harmony with the prevailing environment.

Most importantly, it must be modern and technologically savvy and in sync with contemporary times.

Whatever the nature of the grievance or complaint, it must not be trivialized.

Grievances must be treated with utmost empathy and this fact must be evident to all the employees.

There must constant two-way communication between the senior management and the complainant. 

Sometimes a proactive approach is highly appreciated by employees as it nips grievances in the bud.

An impression must be made on employees that all grievances are taken seriously, treated sympathetically and handled with genuine earnestness with the objective of resolving them amicably, speedily and to the entire satisfaction of all concerned.

6. NON-VINDICTIVE

An employee must be able to submit a complaint or grievance for redressal without fear of retribution from higher management.

The employee must have no fear of reprisal from those who he is complaining against even if they are his seniors.

Checks and balances must be put in place in order to ensure that there is absolutely no victimization or harassment of the employee who is submitting a grievance or making a complaint and whistle-blowers must be protected.

The system must be absolutely non-punitive and there must not be the slightest perception or even a shred of doubt in the mind of the employees that they will be “punished” for making a complaint.

7. FAIR JUST and TRANSPARENT SYSTEM

The grievance redressal mechanism must function without fear or favour.

There must be total transparency in the procedure and justice must be done and justice must also seen to be done in a free and fair manner. 

A good Human Resource Management System is Just Fair and Transparent.

While the 7 points given above are in the context of Human Resource Management Systems, I feel that all these 7 aspects are equally applicable to Grievance Handling Systems pertaining to Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Consumer Affairs, Public Relations, Client Service Organizations and the Service Industry.

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2013

Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work. 

© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

Did you like this article?

I am sure you will like the 27 short stories from my recently published anthology of Short Fiction COCKTAIL
To order your COCKTAIL please click any of the links below:
http://www.flipkart.com/cocktail-vikram-karve-short-stories-book-8191091844?affid=nme
http://www.indiaplaza.in/cocktail-vikram-karve/books/9788191091847.htm
http://www.apkpublishers.com/books/short-stories/cocktail-by-vikram-karve.html

COCKTAIL ebook

If you prefer reading ebooks on Kindle or your ebook reader, please order Cocktail E-book by clicking the links below:
AMAZON
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005MGERZ6
SMASHWORDS
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/87925

Foodie Book:  Appetite for a Stroll
If your are a Foodie you will like my book of Food Adventures APPETITE FOR A STROLL. Do order a copy from FLIPKART:
http://www.flipkart.com/appetite-stroll-vikram-karve/8190690094-gw23f9mr2o

About Vikram Karve

A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer and blogger. Educated at IIT Delhi, IIT (BHU) Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures (2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and an anthology of short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a number of fiction short stories and creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional  and academic research papers in journals and edited in-house journals and magazines for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for 15 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing and blogging. Vikram Karve lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts.

Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com
Professional Profile Vikram Karve: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve
Vikram Karve Facebook Page:  https://www.facebook.com/vikramkarve
Vikram Karve Creative Writing Blog: http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com/blog/posts.htm
Email: vikramwamankarve@gmail.com

      

© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

 

BE WHO YOU ARE and SAY WHAT YOU FEEL

ATTITUDE


“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

attributed to Dr. Seuss

Some say this is a paraphrasing of a statement by Bernard Baruch: “I never bother about that. Those who matter don't mind, and those who mind don't matter”

Be that as it may, what is important is the message in the quote.

EVENT MANAGEMENT - Business and Academic Events

EVENT MANAGEMENT

A Primer

By

VIKRAM KARVE

Part 1

We may classify events can in a few broad categories based on their purpose and objective: 

1.  Leisure Events  [leisure, sport, music, recreation]
2.  Cultural Events [ceremonial, religious, art, heritage, and folklore]
3.  Personal Events [weddings, birthdays, anniversaries]
4.  Organisational Events [commercial, political, charitable, sales, product launch, trade fairs, shows, road shows etc]
5.  Academic Events [ conferences, workshops, seminars, symposium, unconference]

In this first part of the article, let us focus on Academic Events, since that’s what I am most conversant with, having been a teacher and training manager for most part of my career, and having participated in, actively presenting papers and passively as delegate, and also organised many Conferences, Seminars, Workshops, Symposia et al.

Of course, I have organized and participated in many other types of events as well, and may write about it subsequently.

The two main stakeholders in an academic event are the organisers and the participants or delegates.

From the academic point of view the Organisers view the event as one-way communication, a gathering where they impart information to the attendees. Of course, there may be other commercial and career ambition motives as well!.

The Delegates may look at the event from different points of view – there are a number of reasons why persons attend academic events like conferences: learning experience, enjoyment, professional networking, seeking peer group approval and prestige [by presenting their research papers], as a perk or reward for good performance etc.

Conference: A meeting of individuals or representatives of various bodies for the purpose of discussing and/or acting on topics of common interest or theme. A conference is a large event, lasting several days and attracting a large number of delegates. Typically a conference may attract more than a thousand delegates.

A session is an unbroken period within a conference; theplenary session is a session at which all delegates are present. The “Graveyard Shift” is the session immediately after lunch when most delegates are likely to feel drowsy, siesta and nap off. A poster session affords opportunity for authors of papers which are not actually presented in the conference to display posters, summaries and abstracts of their papers to delegates and stand by to discuss and answer questions. This is held during conference session breaks outside the main conference hall in the foyers and adjacent lobbies.

Convention: A convention, or congress, is a gathering of greater importance than a conference, much larger in size, with a few thousand participants, with a formal agenda and programme, with the aim of formulating policy.

Seminar: A seminar is a small to medium sized event with the number of delegates ranging from 20/30 to around 100/200. Seminars are compact one or two day events designed to educate and inform delegates of the subject(s) of interest and discuss issues of common concern.

Symposium: A symposium is a Seminar where only a single topic or subject is discussed in an informal way encouraging inter-delegate-speaker communication and debate.

Colloquium: In a colloquium one or more experts or eminent academicians deliver lectures on a subject followed by a question and answer session. A colloquium is purely academic in nature.

Workshop: A workshop is a small gathering of delegates to discuss and exchange ideas on specific topics or to solve particular problems. It is like a symposium but more formal in nature.

Meeting: A meeting is a much smaller event, maybe involving a few executives or invitees, discussing business or a precise agenda.

Information Flow: In a symposium and workshop the flow of information is between all the participants, delegates and speakers; whereas in a seminar and colloquium the flow of information is primarily one-way from the speakers to the audience. Of course, in a meeting there is more of presentation, deliberation and discussion with the aim of collective consensus and decision-making.

Clinic: A clinic is a meeting of a select group of persons with common interests, confronting and discussing real-life situations and problems, organised for the purpose of diagnosing, analysing and seeking solutions to specific problems.

Unconference: An “unconference” is a facilitated, participant-driven face-to-face conference centred on a theme or purpose.

At traditional conferences, the most productive moments often occur during informal networking, tête-à-tête and discussions between the formal sessions, in tea and lunch breaks and in the evenings – that is what an unconference aims to achieve.

The cardinal premise of an “unconference” is that there are no spectators and that everyone is a participant.

This sets the stage for everyone to actively contribute and is another factor in making this event so unique.

The idea of “unconference” probably emanated from the Fundamental Law of Conventional Conferences: “The sum of the expertise of the people in the audience is greater than the sum of expertise of the people on stage.”

The aim of an unconference is to break the barrier between the audience and the speakers on the podium. Members of the audience and participants write topics they're interested in on boards, consolidate the topics, and then break into discussion groups.

At traditional conferences, the most productive moments often occur during informal networking, tête-à-tête and discussions between the formal sessions, in tea and lunch breaks and in the evenings – that is what unconferences aim to achieve.

With the advent of the internet and increasing virtual interaction, meetings, conferencing, networking and modern forms of “formal” and “informal” web-based communication and learning technologies, the concept of “unconferencing” is more attractive than traditional conferences of the “old mould” type.

So how does one plan and organise such academic events?

There are so many aspects and factors to be considered – topic, venue, dates, programme, speakers, papers, delegates, technology, communication, budget, accommodation, food, entertainment, PR, promotion, publication, sponsorship, commercial aspects, check-off lists… I’ll end here now… more on this and about other types of events later on my blog.

To be continued...

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2011
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

Did you like this article?

I am sure you will like the 27 stories in COCKTAIL

To order your COCKTAIL please click any of the links below:

http://www.flipkart.com/cocktail-vikram-karve-short-stories-book-8191091844?affid=nme

http://www.indiaplaza.in/cocktail-vikram-karve/books/9788191091847.htm

http://www.apkpublishers.com/books/short-stories/cocktail-by-vikram-karve.html

About Vikram Karve 

A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer. Educated at IIT Delhi, ITBHU Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures(2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a number of fiction short stories, creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional research papers in journals and edited in-house journals for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for almost 14 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing. Vikram lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts. 

Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com

Professional Profile Vikram Karve: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

Vikram Karve Facebook Page:  https://www.facebook.com/vikramkarve

Vikram Karve Creative Writing Blog: http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com/blog/posts.htm

Email: vikramkarve@sify.com          

vikramkarve@gmail.com 

Fiction Short Stories Book

COCKTAIL : Short Stories about Relationships By VIKRAM KARVE

Foodie Book:  Appetite for a Stroll

http://www.flipkart.com/appetite-stroll-vikram-karve/8190690094-gw23f9mr2o 

© vikram karve., all rights reserved.