Sunday 31 May 2015

Looking back at my 10 Years in Quantum

There are some magical numbers in life to remember & I definitely consider completing this nice milestone of 10 years as a Quantum’ite is something to cherish & brag about J. Not that it is going to change anything but certainly a Feel good factor. Sense of getting reborn into a new role was something worth as part of this whole experience.  I can keep writing this on-and-on but let me pause & appreciate the many good things that have happened…

·         Great Learning
·         Great People & Friends
·         Great Passion
·         New challenges everyday

For real, Ten years seems like a long time, especially in the Sales domain & in the IT industry.
Some people ask, "Did you ever imagine you'd spend 10 years at one company?" Others are more critical, "How could you work at one company for 10 years?"

Commencing with one office in Bangalore through a small team & expanding to Hyderabad, Chennai, Coimbatore & Kochi I’ve seen them all.
Leadership, overseeing, survey, estimation, quoting, vetting, tendering, execution, inspection, reporting, rising slowly rung by rung on the diet of hard work, laced with self-training and spiced with self-abnegation , selling and setting for quality and quantity, batting for growth and bowling for profit, it was a sage of incessant struggle – of being ever on toes, always on call and returning instant e-mail response, to keep ahead and to stay afloat in troublesome waters, surfing the waves of receding veterans and surging recruits.
Of course, there were promotions, better emoluments & perks, bonus to boost the ego & words of appreciation. Life went on even keel, with marriage, births, anniversaries, school admissions and so on. Logging often into the laptop & the Smart phone, now my ubiquitous companion. My family regards it as their arch rival for hogging my attention and affection. In spite of my frequent outstation duties and long hours of work schedule all these years, a warm welcome always awaits me back home. My parents, wife and daughters still wait to dine with me no matter how late. That is time divine, my happiest hour. May God bless them always.

Industry now is surplus with bright faces and fresh young minds and brands. But do they come more fit and eligible? I DOUBT. I’m game & game for more. On this day I announce my coming again.

A few people to thank at work & none more than Mr. Ajit Menon. I would want to call you SIR today. There are times when I wanted to call quits but you egged me on & thanks to you I see this day in Quantum. Thank you for being there always. You remain my inspiration!

Thanks Sharad, Nileshbhai, Sunil Nair, Cyrus Lentin, Rajesh Singh, Purwa Jain, Kolen Shah & many others for being a part of this wonderful journey

Proud to be a Quantum'ite

--Jitender

Friday 1 May 2015

Father & Daughter Relationship

Euripides, a greek poet said eons ago that to a father growing old, nothing is dearer than a daughter. Someday I’ll get there and so this post is dedicated to all such fathers of daughters and the girls themselves.
When we were expecting, we always prayed that we get a daughter. This was one of our many prayers that God answered & he did it twice. Thanks to the Almighty. Ever since they’ve come into our lives, life has been a roller coaster ride.  I may crib to high heavens about how much they trouble me and do not listen to me but each father-daughter bond is special and different. I know it’s not Father’s Day or Daughter’s Day or Family or whatever; it’s just a day I have chosen to express this.
The trigger to this of course was a lovely song I heard yesterday. The song is called “Laadki” from the India Coke Studio Season 4. The composers are Bollywood music duo Sachin-Jigar. This song features this young girl Tanishka (Sachin’s daughter), accomplished singers like Kirtidan Gadhvi – a known Gujrati folk singer and Rekha Bharadwaj – a name that needs no introduction.
The title of the song is a Gujarati word which means loved one (female). It is an extremely affectionate and loving way a father or an elder usually addresses a little girl. The song is a beautiful conversation between a father and his daughter and it spans the journey of a daughter from a little girl to a woman who is about to be married.
It starts with the young girl’s voice which says that she is her father’s loved one and no matter however much she may trouble him, she will always remain his loved one (Laadki) and that she will never leave him. It cuts to the time when the daughter has grown up and is about to get married, the father requests her to stay back for one more day and blesses her. The girl, a woman now, tells her father that wherever I may be I will always remain your ‘Laadki’.
There is so much soul in this song that it overwhelms me every time I hear it. Being a father of a daughter is indeed a special feeling which triumphs over a lot of other joys of life.
At a time when there is so much strife in this world of increasing violence towards women. This song brings love, hope and the feeling that yes someday everything will be just fine.
The link to this lovely song is here
Cheers,JayEss