IT slow downs and dealing with on-bench situation- Part 1

Today read this article on Times of india, on the growing bench strength in the IT companies. Frankly, I wasn’t very surprised. Have been seeing this build all around for some time. Across the companies, where I know friends or relatives, things are slowing a bit. To put things in perspective, and give a clear idea, IT companies mainly depend on getting work (projects) from large business houses. Think about a simple situation. A chemist maintains all his finances in his books. Then his son, who Is studying computers, comes up with an idea. He creates a small excel sheet macro to have all the calculations done faster, more accurate and much more manageable. Similarly, he also writes small macros to help his father inventory all the drugs and mange other petty jobs. IT companies, too, work on the similar lines, just that they work on much larger scale. Majority of the services companies in india, do take any type of job, which the client requires them to. Starting from core development, to maintenance of the developed applications, enhancements to the applications from time to time and supporting the businesses run smoothly in terms of software issues, hardware scabilities etc. Primiarly, the larger companies run long term projects, tying up with client for longer and stronger relations. It works easier for everyone. Negotiating and bringing in new vendors isn’t good for business nor does it give them any tactical advantage. When economies are good, people are spending more money, business houses are making more money and competition is brewing. The competition drives them to find competitive edges. That also drives more investments towards their IT solution, which could help leverage that edge in the market. But when economies are down or there is nervousness due to global factor, like in today’s time, the same business houses become very cautious of their spending.  For your company, the project which you were hearing about, soon to start and may easily gulp down 50 resources now becomes a far dream. The only thing you hear is that there is a delay. Business houses, start looking to get maximum juice out of whatever number of people are already working for them. The timesheets become very important. Every additional hour is scrutinized. The work being planned is held upon. The pipeline freezes. They cut down their spending to bare bones, which could keep afloat. On the other side, IT companies do hiring based on some projections, depending on their projects in pipelines, prospects and strong leads. They also consider the lead time, which is time required by an individual to join the company and then get productive- essentially requiring you to learn about company’s process, project background etc. So when, the businesses slow down, all the hiring slows down as well. Essentially people who have been hired, due to a prospective project, are having not much to do, and are moved to ‘bench’. When I started my career, we often used to joke that being on bench means, you are made to sit on a bench, in a separate office, without having a computer to work with or pretty girls around. Partially true, apart from the fact, that ‘bench’ is not a physical bench but stands for the resource pool which companies have and there would be plenty of pretty girls who would be on ‘bench’ too. This resource pool, acts as a strong point for a company, when the going is great, but often can turn into a major liability when the road doesn’t look very good ahead. So who get impacted with slow-downs: Normally, not everyone would get impacted by the slow-down, though the ones who may be touched upon would be: People hunting for jobs in the market. The jobs may just suddenly disappear and it may look like an oasis in the hot sandy desert. People coming out of colleges. The on-campus jobs and offer letters and those booze parties, may be hung high n dry since the first thing companies do to manage themselves in tough times, is to slow down or stop completely on the incoming of more people. Common sense would tell you, that you don’t want to keep on-boarding people and rather want to see what you can do with the ones you already have. People working on a project, which are nearing their completion or get closed premature: The other set is of people, who have been working on a project is soon ending. In such a situation, rolling over to the next project may be a pain. Similarly, sometimes, a client may hang the current project until later. Both of these situations will yield out people, looking to move to the next project. So, if i have been able to make the point clear, the next big question is what do we do, when we are on bench. Please come back for Part-2 of this post, where i explain tips for making best use of your time on 'Bench'.

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Attending the phone interview- 5 tips for the first impression.

In the last article, I discussed about some of the tips, which could be key for attending interviews and making that very important first impression. This time I would cover the tips for making that first impression while taking the phone interview.
Please understand that communication itself has so many aspects to it that we could be learning forever. On top of that, with the changing world, where so much of business happens over the media-be it email, phones, video conferences, it’s not only exciting but also challenging to convey your point, exactly as you want to.
Follow these tips for a successful first impression while attending the phone interview.
1. Keep time: I recently was to interview a candidate. When I called her over the phone she seemed to have taken by surprise. She seemingly lost track of the interview timings and ended up apologizing. Being on a tighter schedule, we didn’t mind and continued interviewing other scheduled candidates. Fortunately, the next candidate suited perfect for the job, and we didn’t require calling this forgetful candidate. Please don’t make these mistakes. The job markets may be booming during great times, but still there is no reason to be unprofessional enough. Always ensure that whatever time you confirm, you also request an email confirmation for the same, and then do everything possible (alarms, add to to-do list) not to miss the opportunity. If at the last minute, you are trapped with some meeting, make an effort and inform the other company about it.
2. Find a suitable place: In continuation to the above point, find a suitable place where you would not be disturbed. There isn’t anything worse than your boss dropping on you while you are negotiating your fatter pay cheque. If you are taking the interview during office hours, see if you can move to a calm place where you can concentrate on the interview rather than bother about the surroundings. Be there 5 minutes before and find yourself a comfortable spot.
3. Plan and prepare: The planning aspect would still be the same, even though you may be attending the interview over the phone. Read everything about the job and the company. Also, since you are on your own, you can also keep a copy of your resume for your reference during the interview.  If you sense that the interview could run for longer, have the phone charged before the interview, and see if you would be more comfortable, by using hands-free/headsets for the conversation.
4. Smile & your voice: This is the most important tip I think I can give. First, do practice to smile while you respond. You don’t have to do it for every line you speak, but see if you can make it a way of your speaking. The other person may not be able to see you, but boy; smile is something which can be literally seen from the other side of the phone. It has a definite positive effect during phone conversations.

Also, while speaking over the phone, try and speak a little slow. The communication lag, sometime bad network or noise on either ends could make some of the conversation unclear. You would want the other person to hear every single clearly for maxing benefit. Also, ask politely, if the interviewer has been finding the voice quality fine, just in case you sense that the interviewer hasn’t either understood your point, or didn’t respond the way you wanted.
5. Confidence: Lastly, be confident about your interview. You may not know every single thing, but confidence comes from accepting the facts, and open to learning and feedback. At the end of the interview, see if you can get some feedback. Don’t push the interviewer, but do ask politely. Remember, if the telephonic round goes satisfactorily, then the next step would be person interview, so be optimistic.

Share here, what other tips would make it more effective, while attending telephonic interviews. I would love to hear more on this from you!

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Acing personal interviews-First impression: 5 tips

All of us have heard the clichéd and overly stated ‘First impression, is the last impression’ statement. People in the corporate world, who understood, swear by it and go to extra lengths to fall in line with the adage. People, who haven’t, well, are still confused between, the very fine lines, which separate them from success at times.
The job interviews are such an occasion in every professionals career, be it an entry level college grad or a seasoned professional. How many times it has happen to you that the interview went extremely well, you felt super positive and were almost expecting a return call in few hours from the HR team, congratulating and extending you the fat hike cheque. The phone never rang back.
I would cover lot of aspects for facing interviews and how to ace those. For starters, Here are 5 tips to ensure, that the first impression, sure works in your favor.
1. Dressing appropriately: This is the most beaten down point as I see. It might have been mentioned so many times that I didn’t want to write much. But I would still do, since I realize too, that this is still the least understood point. I would write in detail about importance of dressing well for the occasion, but few quick tips for now.
Do not do a overdose of colors. Keep the tones & palette low. Save the reds or bright for some other day. For interviews, contrasts like dark trousers with light tone shirts work well. Power dressing can be kept for executive rounds or as you get opportunity further. Do give equal thought and value to the role you are applying for, hence dress appropriately. Wearing a tie or sporting a jacket, always goes well, but ensure that the combinations are not overpowering. In Indian context, where the weather is normally warm, as long as you are not appearing for a senior executive position, a decent jacket with formal clothing, would always work well.Even a crisp shirt with trouser is just fine as well.
NOTE: Do research about the dress code of the organization, which should give you a better idea of kind of person who would drop on the other side. Consider that while planning too.
Ultimately, understand the reason why dressing has importance of that level. If you are appearing for a business oriented role (say a business consultant) in a large consulting firm, if communicates about how would you present yourself to a partner or a client later. Dressing also gives the impression how well would you settle with the company and how do you carry yourself on important occasions. Hence, please pay importance to this aspect, as much as you do to other aspects, for the interview.


2. Being Punctual: I have taken many interviews so far, and some, where after I got into the interview room at the scheduled team, the HR team apologies and informs that the candidate hasn’t come in yet. And, I walked back to my place. Another 15 mins, and the HR team sheepishly requests me to take up the candidate, who has just reached after fighting traffic outside. With importance to hiring, and also thoughts of another meeting starting in next 15 mins, I get back to the interview room, half-heartedly. The candidate, smiles, chuckles and then casually apologizes and puts it on the traffic. Very usual sight!
Personally, this is an extremely bad habit, and shows poorly on your professional traits. Pay extreme attention to the timings. Find out the venue a day or enough time before and be there half-n-hour before. If it’s an unknown part of the city, start early. If you know the time you need drive to the interview during rush-hour, start earlier. Do whatever it takes, but always respect time. If not yours, others. These are the things which add to your initial impression. In the situation above, think about the interest levels I would have, when I would have started talking to this candidate. Why would a company want to hire a person, who reaches to a client meeting late, or doesn’t value time? In an adverse situation, if you are stuck, make sure to call the company and inform them about your delays in reaching the spot.


3. Being Prepared: From what I have learnt, Interviews, business meetings, sales pitches, proposal, are all about being prepared. Preparedness brings clarity to thoughts, and the personality shows up as much more confident. While going for the interview, read everything you possibly can, about the company you are applying to, their management, their product lines or line of business, some of their top clients, see if they have been in news recently and what for. Also spend some time and read the job description again. Think through those. If you are applying for a 1-up position then prepare for sighting examples on how you can relate your experiences from past to your ability to take up challenging profiles. Make couple of copies of your profile and keep alongside. See, if the interviewing company asked for a printed copy of the invite, if so, print it and keep it ready.


4. Confidence-how to have truckloads of it: I have often met people, who speak very loudly and make so many hand gestures while speaking, that I am left surprised at times. I have also learnt that people have notions that speaking louder, shows that one as confident individual.  At the end of the interview, I have to come out and catch up a coffee and Saridon, or better so, at times, I have requested people to calm down and bring their volume down.
Confidence doesn’t come from speaking loud or doing weird things. Confidence comes from knowledge and preparation. Confidence comes from, not being worried about the outcome. Confidence comes from accepting yourself, and preparing to leverage the best of what you have. As mentioned above, prepare for the interview and prepare for the meeting. Be hands-on with whichever technology of area you work with. Refresh you basics, think about simple examples which could help illustrate concepts. Prepare about, what does the job demands, for which you are applying. Study all the facts and details. Also, know the capabilities which you want to build, and be clear with those. Have a plan for yourself, and think about your learning curve.
Your preparedness would show up in your personality. You would be much more relaxed, brighter and confident.


5. Eye contacts & Smile: Having a positive eye contact plays a large role in the meetings. Some people have eyes which are trying to grill the other person, as if trying to look through them. On the other hand, some people never want to make an eye contact as if they just peeed in their pants, or there were meeting a dreaded criminal. All of this sometimes makes me wonder, do people even think about the importance of these gestures. Maintaining an eye contact, can tell a lot about your personality. Having a positive eye contact is normally when you maintain eye contact for few seconds, blink and continually engage pleasantly. Remember, positive eye contact, shows you as a positive personality with confidence, whereas shying from eye contact, projects you as a person with low self-esteem or worried about something.  Practice and prepare by using the mirror technique and see how you do.
The other thing is to have a pleasant smile on your face. Not the one which makes the interviewer think there is something wrong with you, but rather gives a feel, ‘I am good and confident and I was looking forward to talking to you’. Some people, come with such a face, as if they are shouldering all the loads of this world. Leave that notion at home. Everyone is overworked in today’s corporate world. Everyone likes to be around people, who still can smile and laugh and move on. Hence, don’t forget to wear your smile.
So, which are the other aspects, which could add to the first impression aspect, which attending interviews.
You may say that most of the interviews these days start with telephonic rounds, which are followed by personal interactions. What does one require to make that first impression which taking telephonic interviews!
Keep coming back for more!

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