I was looking forward to a relaxing and long Thanksgiving weekend. But what happened in Mumbai made it a very sad, sleepless and frustrating weekend. Sad - because many unfortunate and innocent people had to go through a terrible event. Sleepless - because the imagination of their experiences was gut wrenching. And frustrated - because of the indifferent attitude of the Indian Government over the years, which led to a situation where India could not confront the terrorists effectively or efficiently, and which leads to a situation where common people will not get straight answers from those that are supposedly accountable.
I live in the United States, but I am an Indian. I love both countries and I owe a lot to both of them. I have had the fortune of experiencing life in both these countries and observing how the political and public service systems work. And I was appalled to see the lack of even a half-decent infrastructure in India to deal with the attacks over the weekend. But what was more worrying was what happened after the seige was ended. The response, both verbal and actions, by several political "leaders" of the country made me wonder if life of a common citizen in India is valued at all.
First of all, my heart goes out to all those brave men who risked (and some who lost) their lives trying to respond to the attacks. I do not have words to express my respect for what they did. But seeing that they did not have the right gear to do their job, was unbelievable. India is not a poor country. There has been a significant flow of money into the country over the last decade. The least a Government can do, given the magnitude of terrorism we have been facing and the type of neighbor we have, is to equip our brave men with adequate gear to fight on a fair basis. On one hand, we had these terrorists who seemed well-trained and had ample ammunition. And on the other hand, we had people without even the right kind of life vests! Furthermore, the terrorists seemed like they were well-trained and were taught a strategy. It was sad to see that our personnel were just trying to fire tactically (even aimlessly at Nariman House), without any kind of strategy. It did not seem like we even had a single spokesperson/leader accountable for our response. And until today, we have not even figured out the exact number of attackers! It sounded like some of the attackers just fled the scene along with the hostages. Some of the hostages coming out of the hotels were talking to the media, saying that they were not stopped or questioned by the cops standing by! Anyway, if I start typing all my thoughts about it, this blog will run into several pages.
What happened after the weekend was tougher to swallow. The Chief Minister of the state visits the Taj hotel with his son. And his son takes a movie producer with him! The Chief Minister casually responded by saying that he took his son because he was curious to see the place. I just did not think the minister understood the gravity of the situation. Of course, his deputy had the audacity to call it a "small incident". Then comes the incident of Kerala's Chief Minister insulting the father of a slain commando. Can this guy even imagine how it might be for someone to have lost his only son? I wonder if these ministers care for anything other than the votes for their next election.
I saw that many ministers offered to resign (both in Delhi and in Mumbai), and some of them were accepted. I think these resignations are a convenient vehicle for them to leave the messy place they have created. I strongly believe that a minister's position (at whichever level) is a job with a LOT of responsibility. Heck, I would think of the same even at a municipal representative's level. People filling these roles need to understand the responsibility. I do not think that is the case with several of these ministers. They probably do not even understand the difference between "not doing a good job" and "doing a bad job". A bad job at that level is like committing a crime against the nation. These ministers are answerable for the bad jobs they did.
I read an article that said the funds that were given to Maharashtra police, were used up to buy luxury sedans for the senior officers. The same article also said the Deputy Chief Minster (the same guy who thought it was a small incident) has about twenty luxury cars provided by the Government. These things just do not make sense. As much advanced as India is, the basic human rights do not seem to exist. It seems like there are two species of lives. One - that of ministers and kingmakers. They are Gods and this species seems to be extremely important. Two - that of people who fought the terrorists and people who were killed by the terrorists. This species seems to be... just dispensable.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
It's that time of the year again
The trees are shedding leaves. The temperature has cooled down significantly over here in CT. The forecast says that it starts dipping into 50's (maximum) in a couple of days. I was on my deck in the afternoon and the sight of all the trees in my backyard, sporting all shades of colors between Red and Green, was B-E-A-Utiful. It reminded me of why I moved here from the city that never sleeps. It reminded me that this is my favorite time of the year! I just wish the work load was a little lighter, so that I could enjoy the weather a little more :-) On second thoughts, I guess it is a lot better to be busy than not, in this market!
Monday, October 6, 2008
Market Bailout, Business, etc.
Henry Paulson's bailout program hasn't impressed me at all. Let me just say that in principle, I am against any of those bailouts. I would rather chase those executives down and squeeze out the many millions they pocketed during their last days before the lights were shut off. And I do not believe $700B would suffice to bolster the economy. I hope I am wrong, but I am afraid I am right.
All that said, I am very worried about the current state of global economy. I lived through the technology market meltdown earlier this decade in this country. I wasn't too worried of it. I felt that the market was good for people with real talent, in spite of the market situation. But this current mess makes me worry a lot. Surprisingly, our company has been doing extremely well in these weeks of extreme uncertainty. I was worried at the end of Q3/beginning of Q4, but we have closed record revenues in the midst of all that is happening around us. But I can feel chills up my spine when I think of 2009. I think the job market going to get much worse. I think foreclosures and personal bankruptcies will soar. If I were in Detroit, I would consider moving out ASAP, as the auto industry will probably have its worst year. If oil starts trading in Euros, or if some of those OPEC nations unpeg their currency from USD, life in the US will become much tougher. So, even though my business is at a peak, I will just keep my fingers crossed, hope for the best and shy away from forecasting anything for the next 12 months.
All that said, I am very worried about the current state of global economy. I lived through the technology market meltdown earlier this decade in this country. I wasn't too worried of it. I felt that the market was good for people with real talent, in spite of the market situation. But this current mess makes me worry a lot. Surprisingly, our company has been doing extremely well in these weeks of extreme uncertainty. I was worried at the end of Q3/beginning of Q4, but we have closed record revenues in the midst of all that is happening around us. But I can feel chills up my spine when I think of 2009. I think the job market going to get much worse. I think foreclosures and personal bankruptcies will soar. If I were in Detroit, I would consider moving out ASAP, as the auto industry will probably have its worst year. If oil starts trading in Euros, or if some of those OPEC nations unpeg their currency from USD, life in the US will become much tougher. So, even though my business is at a peak, I will just keep my fingers crossed, hope for the best and shy away from forecasting anything for the next 12 months.
Economy and the local mall
We moved to CT from NYC in December 2006. We found that the local mall (Buckland Hills Mall) was a very nice, neat and reasonably crowded mall. It wasn't empty and wasn't as crowded as the NYC malls we were used to. We moved here during the winter months and the mall served as the primary destination almost whenever we ventured out in the evening. First of all, we found a newly opened outlet in the food court that served Indian and Thai food. We fell in love with it. We started going there so frequently that I befriended the guy that operated it. He was from Bangladesh and we used to chat up in Hindi. There were other places in the mall that also became attractions for my son. There was a Disney Shop with large characters on display. There was a pet store with lots of dogs, hamsters, birds, etc. Of course, there was a fountain too. And there was a candy shop that my son loved. There was a Minnie Moo Ice cream shop as well in the food court. There was a play area, but my son wasn't too interested in it.
Sometime last year, my friend from Bangladesh told me that his business was slow. I told him casually that it would pick up during winter. Little did I realize that he could not have survived until winter. One fine day, I saw that the shop had been closed for good. Very soon, I saw Minnie Moo shutting the door down. Even the large chain Arby's could not keep its shop open in the food court. These seemed alarming to me. And none of these spots had been taken up by any other merchant. Shortly thereafter, Mickey Mouse and his friends at the Disney Store were also forced out of the mall due to lack of business. I still used to take my son out there for a ride on the carousel and a brief stop at the pet shop. One fine day after a couple of months, I found out that the pet shop had been shut down overnight. My son felt very bad that the dogs were gone. Oh, the candy shop was gone long back too. And these are cases of just the shops we were interested in. There were many others that shut the door in the mall. Some of them were replaced by new stores, and some of them are still empty.
The last time I took my son for the carousel ride, the operator mentioned that they were closing down at 7 PM, instead of the regular 8 PM closure. I could only shake my head at how economy had affected my local mall. I felt really bad about it, but there was nothing I could do about it. Winter is right around the corner and I need to find other spots to entertain my son over the next 5-6 months! Because the only thing that now attracts my son to the local mall is the fountain that has stood as a witness to all these closures!
Sometime last year, my friend from Bangladesh told me that his business was slow. I told him casually that it would pick up during winter. Little did I realize that he could not have survived until winter. One fine day, I saw that the shop had been closed for good. Very soon, I saw Minnie Moo shutting the door down. Even the large chain Arby's could not keep its shop open in the food court. These seemed alarming to me. And none of these spots had been taken up by any other merchant. Shortly thereafter, Mickey Mouse and his friends at the Disney Store were also forced out of the mall due to lack of business. I still used to take my son out there for a ride on the carousel and a brief stop at the pet shop. One fine day after a couple of months, I found out that the pet shop had been shut down overnight. My son felt very bad that the dogs were gone. Oh, the candy shop was gone long back too. And these are cases of just the shops we were interested in. There were many others that shut the door in the mall. Some of them were replaced by new stores, and some of them are still empty.
The last time I took my son for the carousel ride, the operator mentioned that they were closing down at 7 PM, instead of the regular 8 PM closure. I could only shake my head at how economy had affected my local mall. I felt really bad about it, but there was nothing I could do about it. Winter is right around the corner and I need to find other spots to entertain my son over the next 5-6 months! Because the only thing that now attracts my son to the local mall is the fountain that has stood as a witness to all these closures!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
iPhone 3G
After staying away from the iPhone hype all these days, I decided to take the plunge. I switched from my favorite T-Mobile to AT&T and got an iPhone 3G last week. It is a nice phone. Luckily for me, the initial issues with 3G coverage had all been resolved by the time I bought my gadget. The initial usage was impressive. But very soon, I realized that iPhone 3G is like one of those movies where you see the trailer and you've seen all the good stuff in the movie. I guess I had higher expectations given the promos and ads. I settled down to accept what it had to offer and I liked it for being an easy-to-use, intuitive phone. Once I flew back home from San Francisco, I realized that the biggest advantage I got by switching to iPhon,e had actually nothing to do with iPhone itself! The last time I had checked, none of the cellphone providers had any kind of decent coverage where I live (and where I work). I guess AT&T has deployed new towers in the vicinity. I now have great 3G coverage at both home and work! That made it a sweet deal for me.
I am in the process of exploring App Store to sweeten up my phone. I have installed a few apps that I liked. I guess we can expect more applications to get to App Store in the coming months, and I am looking forward to that. While I like the instrument, I wish it had a few features that made the Blackberry very useful, like - Typeahead dialing. I also miss the weekly view of my calendar (linked to Exchange). Lastly, if I reply to an email using my iPhone, the "replied icon" does not show up on the Outlook Inbox pane. I am sure not many people would even have noticed the last two of these points. Apple has gone a long way in making this a cool toy for consumers. I just feel that it could have gone a little farther to ensure that no gaps were left for business users.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
New Car
Work has been hectic, with a lot of good stuff going on. While I have always intended to keep my blog active, I guess I have not had a chance to come up many interesting thoughts to write about.
Oh, I bought a new car. And a new camera. I always had an eye on Lexus RX350. But when the time came, I ended up thinking quite a bit about which car to buy. I drive a lot, and mostly alone. So, I figured I did not an 8-seater. I also could not justify driving a gas guzzler for hauling just 165 lbs of my weight. However, I wanted a car big enough that would not get sucked out of lane if an 18-wheeler whizzed by. Plus of course, I wanted some cool gadgets in the car. And finally, I did not want to pay a hefty price. I set out to find a good car with all these requirements in mind. After comparing Lexus, Acura, Toyota, Audi and Honda, I zeroed in on Honda Accord V-6 EX-L with Navigation. After negotiating with a couple of dealers, I ended up getting it about two weeks back. I could not have been happier with my decision. Here are some of the things I absolutely love about it:
Oh, I bought a new car. And a new camera. I always had an eye on Lexus RX350. But when the time came, I ended up thinking quite a bit about which car to buy. I drive a lot, and mostly alone. So, I figured I did not an 8-seater. I also could not justify driving a gas guzzler for hauling just 165 lbs of my weight. However, I wanted a car big enough that would not get sucked out of lane if an 18-wheeler whizzed by. Plus of course, I wanted some cool gadgets in the car. And finally, I did not want to pay a hefty price. I set out to find a good car with all these requirements in mind. After comparing Lexus, Acura, Toyota, Audi and Honda, I zeroed in on Honda Accord V-6 EX-L with Navigation. After negotiating with a couple of dealers, I ended up getting it about two weeks back. I could not have been happier with my decision. Here are some of the things I absolutely love about it:
- Beautiful Navigation System.
- WMA/MP3 capable, In-dash 6-CD Changer (and connectivity with an external music player as well). A fabulous sound system.
- Bluetooth connectivity for my phone. I do not need a headset anymore.
- Variable Cylinder Management - resulting in up to 34mpg on the highway.
- Very useful Trip Computer.
- And I think I am going to keep the XM subscription that came with it. There is one Bollywood channel that plays Hindi music pretty much all the time.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Loss of a friend
I first met James Mayfield towards the end of 1999, during the final weeks of my first programming stint at Prudential. He and I became good friends. I found him to be a straightforward, friendly, helpful and kind person. I maintained contact with him even after I left Prudential. It so happened that I went back there in 2002, for another consulting gig with the same group. He had become an employee and was well established at Pru. We reconnected as if we were never away. Marcel, James, Yin-Hong and I were regular lunch partners. He was affected by his layoff at Pru in 2003. He tried switching careers. I tried to help him as much as I could at that time. I heard from Marcel that he moved to NC to start a new career.
About 4-5 months back, I heard from Marcel that James had been diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. It was devastating. My wife told me that given the description and the details, James had no more than six months. I thought of traveling to NC to see him. But I did not know what I would say to him, and in what shape I would see him. I talked with Marcel and Yin-Hong. We all were very saddened by the news.
Two weeks ago, I felt there was something wrong - we had not had an update from him/his family in a while. I urged Marcel to call. In two days, we got a call back. James had passed away the previous day. I did not know how to react when I heard the news. He was just 41. He had two small kids. Thinking about all that made me very uneasy. All the Pru memories started coming back to my mind. We had so much fun there and he was very much a part of all of it. I had not kept in touch with him over the last four years, but I suddenly missed him - badly. Now I really am short of words to express how exactly I feel about the loss.
James Mayfield - may your soul rest in peace. You were a good man. I am honored to have known you.
About 4-5 months back, I heard from Marcel that James had been diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. It was devastating. My wife told me that given the description and the details, James had no more than six months. I thought of traveling to NC to see him. But I did not know what I would say to him, and in what shape I would see him. I talked with Marcel and Yin-Hong. We all were very saddened by the news.
Two weeks ago, I felt there was something wrong - we had not had an update from him/his family in a while. I urged Marcel to call. In two days, we got a call back. James had passed away the previous day. I did not know how to react when I heard the news. He was just 41. He had two small kids. Thinking about all that made me very uneasy. All the Pru memories started coming back to my mind. We had so much fun there and he was very much a part of all of it. I had not kept in touch with him over the last four years, but I suddenly missed him - badly. Now I really am short of words to express how exactly I feel about the loss.
James Mayfield - may your soul rest in peace. You were a good man. I am honored to have known you.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
India Trip
Here is a summary of my notes and thoughts from the four days I spent in India this week.
IPL is the talk of the town (country, maybe). However, as much as I tried to like it, I failed to do so. Not that I got a lot of chances to watch the games. But whatever I watched, turned me off. The commercials were so intrusive that it was a challenge to see the action. I got frustrated and decided that IPL was not for me. It also does not help that I belong to the old school that loves test match Cricket.
Oh, I figured out the rules of traffic in Bangalore. It is really simple. The space that you occupy on the street is your rightful property. It is the duty of others on the street to go around you. It does not matter how you got to your space. It does not matter if you are moving in the right direction or opposite to the rest of the traffic. It does not matter even if you are parked side-on in the middle of the street! The same rules apply to the pedestrians. If you have managed to get on the street, it is the responsibility of the vehicles to find a way around you. Bottom line: I am very sure that my days as a driver in Bangalore are O-V-E-R. I used to be an aggressive driver that knew how to drive/ride in the city. But those days are long gone. Even the fact that I can drive in Manhattan is not sufficient to qualify me now as a driver in Bangalore!!!
What's with the cost of living? I've been away from India for so long that I do not even have an idea of prices in India. I bought two shaving cartridges. Cost me Rs. 212. Let us not even talk about food. My mind (and heart) is still living in those days when my friends and I used to frequent Kamat Yatrinivas. Each entree used to cost about 10 bucks. I do not think I can get a drop of water for 10 bucks now!
Everyone and his brother is talking about buying land and buildings. My Mom tried to tell me that I should buy a house in the next street (30x40 land with a duplex on it) for 95 lakhs. I refused, point blank. I cannot spend that kind of money on that kind of property. Also, I have figured over the last few years that I am no longer a city boy. Plus, the shortage of water in Bangalore scared me. You can have the land and the building you want. But what will you do if you do not get (or buy) enough water?
All said and done, I also discovered phir bhi my dil hai Hindustani (my heart is Indian). There were many magic moments: My son feeling so much at home with his cousins, meeting my folks, playing Cricket with a bunch of 10-yr olds on the street in front of my sister's house, my friend Madhu's Mom feeding me a plate load of Chicken, meeting my old friend Jaggi after 12 years and hugging him in the middle of St Marks Rd, eating Chaat on the streetside with my cousins and uncle, and many more. I go back there for five more days at the end of next week. I am looking forward to some more fun!
IPL is the talk of the town (country, maybe). However, as much as I tried to like it, I failed to do so. Not that I got a lot of chances to watch the games. But whatever I watched, turned me off. The commercials were so intrusive that it was a challenge to see the action. I got frustrated and decided that IPL was not for me. It also does not help that I belong to the old school that loves test match Cricket.
Oh, I figured out the rules of traffic in Bangalore. It is really simple. The space that you occupy on the street is your rightful property. It is the duty of others on the street to go around you. It does not matter how you got to your space. It does not matter if you are moving in the right direction or opposite to the rest of the traffic. It does not matter even if you are parked side-on in the middle of the street! The same rules apply to the pedestrians. If you have managed to get on the street, it is the responsibility of the vehicles to find a way around you. Bottom line: I am very sure that my days as a driver in Bangalore are O-V-E-R. I used to be an aggressive driver that knew how to drive/ride in the city. But those days are long gone. Even the fact that I can drive in Manhattan is not sufficient to qualify me now as a driver in Bangalore!!!
What's with the cost of living? I've been away from India for so long that I do not even have an idea of prices in India. I bought two shaving cartridges. Cost me Rs. 212. Let us not even talk about food. My mind (and heart) is still living in those days when my friends and I used to frequent Kamat Yatrinivas. Each entree used to cost about 10 bucks. I do not think I can get a drop of water for 10 bucks now!
Everyone and his brother is talking about buying land and buildings. My Mom tried to tell me that I should buy a house in the next street (30x40 land with a duplex on it) for 95 lakhs. I refused, point blank. I cannot spend that kind of money on that kind of property. Also, I have figured over the last few years that I am no longer a city boy. Plus, the shortage of water in Bangalore scared me. You can have the land and the building you want. But what will you do if you do not get (or buy) enough water?
All said and done, I also discovered phir bhi my dil hai Hindustani (my heart is Indian). There were many magic moments: My son feeling so much at home with his cousins, meeting my folks, playing Cricket with a bunch of 10-yr olds on the street in front of my sister's house, my friend Madhu's Mom feeding me a plate load of Chicken, meeting my old friend Jaggi after 12 years and hugging him in the middle of St Marks Rd, eating Chaat on the streetside with my cousins and uncle, and many more. I go back there for five more days at the end of next week. I am looking forward to some more fun!
14-hour Flight
Yes, indeed. I flew non-stop from Newark, NJ to Bombay last week. And I flew back a different route, this time flying for 13+ hours from Dubai to New York. When I booked those flights, I did not know what to expect. My wife was worried about how my son would handle the 14 hour trip to Bombay. But I figured after these two flights that this is the best way to travel betwen India and the US. I guess the layovers in Europe really used to interrupt the passengers in the middle of their sleep, in both diections. The long flights allow people to sleep through their normal cycles, and wake up a couple of hours before landing. My son proved that theory of mine, by being a happy camper throughout the flight. I am not much of a sleeper, especially in flights. However, I found myself totally fresh when I reached the destination on both occasions.
Oh, I almost forgot. The aircrafts used for these long flights were very new. And they had really nice entertainment options, including an on-demand library of over a hundred movies.
Travel between US and India has gotten so better that I think the world has shrunk a litte more!
Oh, I almost forgot. The aircrafts used for these long flights were very new. And they had really nice entertainment options, including an on-demand library of over a hundred movies.
Travel between US and India has gotten so better that I think the world has shrunk a litte more!
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Jamaica, Yeah Mon!
I just returned from a week-long vacaton in Negril, Jamaica. I was at Riu Negril, on an all-inclusive package for a week. It was time and money well spent.
The beach in the resort was fabulous. It was the bay part of the island, where the waves were calm. We went snorkeling off the beach and had a great time. My wife, brother and I spotted a wide sting ray and a reasonably large starfish, among other things. Of the seven days, I guess we spent a good part of five days on the beach.
The food at the resort was reasonably good. Since it was an all-inclusive package, all food and drinks were covered in the package price. I lost count of pina coladas (virgin, of course) that I had during the week. There was a lot of meat, but they also had a decent number of veggie options for the likes of my wife and I. When we went out, we were surprised to find a very good Indian restaurant in Ocho Rios.
We ventured out only twice, given the safety concerns. One of the trips was to Ocho Rios/Dunn's River Falls. The river cascades down the rocks by about 1000 ft. They have a guided tour through the river, up the rocks, against the cascading water. It was a thrilling experience to go up the river in that fashion. I had initially wanted to take my son with me as the climb looked relatively easy, but am happy that I did not. It was quite a risky climb afterall. In fact, if it was in the US, I do not think such a climb would be allowed for public. I guess you'd have to sign a number of legal disclaimers and own up all the risk before embarking on such a climb :-)
We also went to Rick's Cafe, which was touted to be one of the top ten spots in the world to view sunsets. I wasn't too impressed by the sunset, but was very impressed by the location of the restaurant. Our taxi driver on both the trips - Ransford O'Neil Samuels, became a good friend of ours (especially my son).
Overall, I liked the place and wouldn't mind going back there. It was a very refreshing trip. I will post some of the pictures soon.
Our return journey was highly inconvenient and uncomfortable, thanks mainly to United Airlines and the Montego Bay airport. But we made it back alright. Now I have a week and a half of local travel and hectic work, followed by more travel - this time to India for four days.
The beach in the resort was fabulous. It was the bay part of the island, where the waves were calm. We went snorkeling off the beach and had a great time. My wife, brother and I spotted a wide sting ray and a reasonably large starfish, among other things. Of the seven days, I guess we spent a good part of five days on the beach.
The food at the resort was reasonably good. Since it was an all-inclusive package, all food and drinks were covered in the package price. I lost count of pina coladas (virgin, of course) that I had during the week. There was a lot of meat, but they also had a decent number of veggie options for the likes of my wife and I. When we went out, we were surprised to find a very good Indian restaurant in Ocho Rios.
We ventured out only twice, given the safety concerns. One of the trips was to Ocho Rios/Dunn's River Falls. The river cascades down the rocks by about 1000 ft. They have a guided tour through the river, up the rocks, against the cascading water. It was a thrilling experience to go up the river in that fashion. I had initially wanted to take my son with me as the climb looked relatively easy, but am happy that I did not. It was quite a risky climb afterall. In fact, if it was in the US, I do not think such a climb would be allowed for public. I guess you'd have to sign a number of legal disclaimers and own up all the risk before embarking on such a climb :-)
We also went to Rick's Cafe, which was touted to be one of the top ten spots in the world to view sunsets. I wasn't too impressed by the sunset, but was very impressed by the location of the restaurant. Our taxi driver on both the trips - Ransford O'Neil Samuels, became a good friend of ours (especially my son).
Overall, I liked the place and wouldn't mind going back there. It was a very refreshing trip. I will post some of the pictures soon.
Our return journey was highly inconvenient and uncomfortable, thanks mainly to United Airlines and the Montego Bay airport. But we made it back alright. Now I have a week and a half of local travel and hectic work, followed by more travel - this time to India for four days.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Product Development
I was associated with a product development venture about 10 years back, in the capacity of a technical lead. I worked my rear off, and we built what we believed was a very good product. The main client liked it. But some internal political wars resulted in budget being taken away from the product implementation. Soon after that, our disheartened company shelved the development efforts. It was a heart breaker, after coming so close to success. During the course of that effort, I realized that the satisfaction of developing a successful product is very different from successfully delivering a project. The joy of conceptualizing something, expanding on it, architecting it technically, designing it, developing it, presenting it to potential clients effectively, and successfully implementing it - can be extremely satisfying and rewarding.
We decided to venture into product development about two-and-a-half years ago. I liked the idea. The team in India started working on it. I helped them with some of the key topics initially, but my involvement was minimal after that. My work has been limited to just being the investor.
We got the product to a demonstrable state only in Q4 of 2007. And this is not an inexpensive product meant for consumes, but is an enterprise class business solution for broker dealers. This is something intended to be able to be used by thousands of users on an ASP basis, to be able to house extremely sensitive financial information and reconcile hundreds of thousands of transactions every night. Late last year, we decided to start the product demonstrations. We got an opportunity to respond to an RFP from a Fortune 100 financial services company, alongside four other firms. One of the firms (the incumbent) is a company with billions of dollars in revenue. There were other two large firms with several existing clients. We had a great demo lasting a full day. Subsequently, I started having several offline discussions with the potential client. The client decided to visit our office in CT. The day-long session went well, during which we discussed several technical aspects of the product. This was followed by a data center visit for security purposes.
In spite of all these positive signs, I was cautious. I have been doing this business long enough to understand that we cannot celebrate until the ink dries on the contract. Finally, I was called to be informed verbally that our product had been selected by this company! It was a great moment for me personally, and for the company. This is a huge, landmark win for us. After all the investmet of time, effort (and money, of course), we had landed a huge brand name as our first big client. We are going through the contract reviews now, and are expecting the begin the implementation process in the first week of April. And we are making strong progress with a few other firms, where we have shown the product. Coupled with our last month's win of a multi-year services deal with one of the largest health insurance companies in the US, this has set us up really well for 2008. Not a single day goes by, without some kind of bad news flashing all over the media. In such a situation, I am hopeful that these deals will help us weather the storm strongly, and may even be able to keep up with our growth rate! For now, I am just enoying the immense satisfaction of being part of the team that succeeded against odds in this deal.
We decided to venture into product development about two-and-a-half years ago. I liked the idea. The team in India started working on it. I helped them with some of the key topics initially, but my involvement was minimal after that. My work has been limited to just being the investor.
We got the product to a demonstrable state only in Q4 of 2007. And this is not an inexpensive product meant for consumes, but is an enterprise class business solution for broker dealers. This is something intended to be able to be used by thousands of users on an ASP basis, to be able to house extremely sensitive financial information and reconcile hundreds of thousands of transactions every night. Late last year, we decided to start the product demonstrations. We got an opportunity to respond to an RFP from a Fortune 100 financial services company, alongside four other firms. One of the firms (the incumbent) is a company with billions of dollars in revenue. There were other two large firms with several existing clients. We had a great demo lasting a full day. Subsequently, I started having several offline discussions with the potential client. The client decided to visit our office in CT. The day-long session went well, during which we discussed several technical aspects of the product. This was followed by a data center visit for security purposes.
In spite of all these positive signs, I was cautious. I have been doing this business long enough to understand that we cannot celebrate until the ink dries on the contract. Finally, I was called to be informed verbally that our product had been selected by this company! It was a great moment for me personally, and for the company. This is a huge, landmark win for us. After all the investmet of time, effort (and money, of course), we had landed a huge brand name as our first big client. We are going through the contract reviews now, and are expecting the begin the implementation process in the first week of April. And we are making strong progress with a few other firms, where we have shown the product. Coupled with our last month's win of a multi-year services deal with one of the largest health insurance companies in the US, this has set us up really well for 2008. Not a single day goes by, without some kind of bad news flashing all over the media. In such a situation, I am hopeful that these deals will help us weather the storm strongly, and may even be able to keep up with our growth rate! For now, I am just enoying the immense satisfaction of being part of the team that succeeded against odds in this deal.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Skiing
There was a sense of immense satisfaction when I learned how to ride a bicycle. It was a very pleasing moment, and I can remember the wide smile that was pasted on my face for quite a while. I felt like telling everyone that I could ride a bicycle, at last.
I did not expect to have a similar experience after all these years. After my good share of falling and rolling down the snowy slopes, I managed to ski today! It was a real nice experience. And it was just like how I learned cycling. All of a sudden, it seemed so natural. It was as if a switch turned on somewhere, and I started skiing comfortably. I felt like a little kid, trying to tell everyone that I could ski, after all! I took the lift back to the top of the hill a 5-6 times and tried a few more maneuvers, as I was very comfortable with my speed control and balance. I am now hoping to go back at least one more time to the ski resort, before the season is over.
I did not expect to have a similar experience after all these years. After my good share of falling and rolling down the snowy slopes, I managed to ski today! It was a real nice experience. And it was just like how I learned cycling. All of a sudden, it seemed so natural. It was as if a switch turned on somewhere, and I started skiing comfortably. I felt like a little kid, trying to tell everyone that I could ski, after all! I took the lift back to the top of the hill a 5-6 times and tried a few more maneuvers, as I was very comfortable with my speed control and balance. I am now hoping to go back at least one more time to the ski resort, before the season is over.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Pursuit of Happyness
I had a chance to watch a few movies over the last couple of weeks. Most of it was regular, routine stuff. Lucky Number Slevin stood out a bit. Number 23 was ridiculously crazy. Breach was decent. And I loved The Pursuit of Happyness. It was a very good movie (based on the real life of an entrepreneur). Will Smith was fabulous, I thought. I would recommend it highly.
While I am on the topic of movies, here are some of my favorites:
The Patriot
The Majestic
The Green Mile
The Shawshank Redemption
Dave
While I am on the topic of movies, here are some of my favorites:
The Patriot
The Majestic
The Green Mile
The Shawshank Redemption
Dave
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Happiest Birthday!!!
To add to it all, my wife and son had made a framed drawing declaring me the best Dad, ever! That goes on the wall of my office tomorrow :-)
Gary turns 50 next month and my brother turns 40 in a couple of years. I had told my wife that I wanted to arrange surprise parties for these two events. But I guess I will now have to do something really different to surprise them!
Gary turns 50 next month and my brother turns 40 in a couple of years. I had told my wife that I wanted to arrange surprise parties for these two events. But I guess I will now have to do something really different to surprise them!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Baltimore Airport
I have been traveling a lot more than I want, in the recent weeks. And I happened to have a short layover at the BWI airport in Baltimore, yesterday. In general, airports tend to have extremely limited number of power outlets that can be accessed by travelers. I usually walk around all over the terminal, and end up sitting on the floor in some remote corner, to be able to charge my laptop. I also get forced to use my laptop's powersaver mode to conserve battery life, straining my eyes to see the dimly lit screen (and it is another big topic that Windows Vista drains batteries within minutes). Anyway, BWI was such a refreshing experience. It had these table-like structures all over the terminal, with 16 power outlets in each of them. And each of those tables had four USB power outlets as well! Pretty much each gate had one such table. My cell phone badly needed some juice and I was only too happy to be at BWI! I hope rest of the airports in the US (and abroad) learn from BWI!
Monday, January 21, 2008
Skiing
I had tried skiing once, last year. I ended up rolling down the slopes, more than skiing down the slopes. I was lucky to avoid injuries, but was beaten up pretty bad. My son is two years old now, and will be ready to take skiing lessons next season. I really want to be able to ski with him, rather than just hand him off to an instructor. So, I decided to give it another shot last week. To my own surprise, I had much better control this time and did very well, though on an easier slope. I was encouraged enough to buy my own set of gear on my way back. I return to the slopes tomorrow, hoping to go on to an intermediate slope!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Sydney Cricket Test
Everyone and his brother is writing/calling/discussing about the Sydney cricket test (and the aftermath). I have strong feelings about many aspects of that game. I spent a lot of time last night reading up many blogs and articles about it. I will just link some of the articles where I found the author's opinion coincided with mine, instead of typing up all my frustrations! However, I felt I wanted to describe the following couple of points:
1. Mike Procter's "judgment"
Mike went ahead and pronounced Harbhajan Singh guilty of racism. And there has been a tremendous amount of pressure on him to explain the basis of his decision. He has not been able to show any thread of evidence, whatsoever, beyond a couple of "witnesses". And these witnesses are the same blokes whose overall credibility has a big asterisk next to it. He also had a couple of Indian players saying exactly the opposite. And one of these Indians (Tendulkar) is respected worldwide for his integrity. Let us keep the asterisks and the respect aside for a minute. Aussies were the accusers in this case and the Indians were the accused. When there was absolutely no evidence (at least none that has been disclosed so far), how can the judge just believe the accuser and rule the accused guilty? And after all this, he dares to say that he was "convinced beyond reasonable doubts" that Harbhajan Singh was guilty. What happened to the concept of "innocent until proven guilty"?
2. Umpiring
Pretty much everyone would agree that Geoffrey Boycott's granny would have done a much better job than Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson (combined) in this match. Aussie public has been gracious in acknowledging it. There has been a generous outpour of support and sympathy for the Indian team. Aussies have also been gracious enough to deplore their own team and their own captain for their behavior throughout (and at the end of) the match. However, a small section of them have said that umpiring in the Indian sub-continent used to be biased 20 years back, and hence Indians should not really cry when decisions go against them. I agree that umpires used to be biased in that age. However, can you punish the current generation because of what their grand dads did?! Given that racism used to be prevalent in Australia a few generations back, can racism be justified now against them? Can we use the same logic and call the whole "Bhajji episode" a non-issue and move on?
Here are links to a few articles that coincided with my line of thinking. There were more, but I cannot find them now!
Why Ricky Ponting should be banned - I really like this!
Justice, not world domination
Open your eyes, Ricky
1. Mike Procter's "judgment"
Mike went ahead and pronounced Harbhajan Singh guilty of racism. And there has been a tremendous amount of pressure on him to explain the basis of his decision. He has not been able to show any thread of evidence, whatsoever, beyond a couple of "witnesses". And these witnesses are the same blokes whose overall credibility has a big asterisk next to it. He also had a couple of Indian players saying exactly the opposite. And one of these Indians (Tendulkar) is respected worldwide for his integrity. Let us keep the asterisks and the respect aside for a minute. Aussies were the accusers in this case and the Indians were the accused. When there was absolutely no evidence (at least none that has been disclosed so far), how can the judge just believe the accuser and rule the accused guilty? And after all this, he dares to say that he was "convinced beyond reasonable doubts" that Harbhajan Singh was guilty. What happened to the concept of "innocent until proven guilty"?
2. Umpiring
Pretty much everyone would agree that Geoffrey Boycott's granny would have done a much better job than Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson (combined) in this match. Aussie public has been gracious in acknowledging it. There has been a generous outpour of support and sympathy for the Indian team. Aussies have also been gracious enough to deplore their own team and their own captain for their behavior throughout (and at the end of) the match. However, a small section of them have said that umpiring in the Indian sub-continent used to be biased 20 years back, and hence Indians should not really cry when decisions go against them. I agree that umpires used to be biased in that age. However, can you punish the current generation because of what their grand dads did?! Given that racism used to be prevalent in Australia a few generations back, can racism be justified now against them? Can we use the same logic and call the whole "Bhajji episode" a non-issue and move on?
Here are links to a few articles that coincided with my line of thinking. There were more, but I cannot find them now!
Why Ricky Ponting should be banned - I really like this!
Justice, not world domination
Open your eyes, Ricky
Starbucks
Starbucks market cap has tumbled by about 50% over the last year. Their chairman came back to take up the CEO position in an attempt to reverse the trend. I am surprised that they cannot figure out the reasons for the lack of sales. Their prices have been steadily going up over the last few years. It costs five bucks now to get a good coffee there! And you have to explicitly ask for no-foam coffee to get a decent volume of Latte. If not, you get half cup of Latte topped with half cup of foam! Call me a penny-pincher, but I hate to pay for foam!
Having said that, I have always loved their coffee. They just worked themselves into a brand image where they come across as unaffordable for the majority of masses. On the other hand, Dunkin' Donuts has been growing steadily and is expanding beyond its northeast stronghold. Dunkin' coffee is decent enough and the prices are much lower than those of Starbucks. I guess I have grown to like the Dunkin' flavor over the last couple of years. Or, maybe I am just getting used to the life in New England!
Having said that, I have always loved their coffee. They just worked themselves into a brand image where they come across as unaffordable for the majority of masses. On the other hand, Dunkin' Donuts has been growing steadily and is expanding beyond its northeast stronghold. Dunkin' coffee is decent enough and the prices are much lower than those of Starbucks. I guess I have grown to like the Dunkin' flavor over the last couple of years. Or, maybe I am just getting used to the life in New England!
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