Celebrating Diwali, the MyGov way!

A young, creative organization like MyGov (www.mygov.in) needs constant inspiration and innovation to be on the top of its game. With an average age of 32, MyGov has a start-up archetype in its DNA, with team members working hard almost every day of the week to fulfill the purpose for which the organization was created – citizen engagement, public policy communication and robust partnership with other government agencies, ministries and departments to further their mandates. We have worked hard to be recognized within the formidable organizations that populate the Government of India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, despite being the youngest organization in its fold.

Working through its team of digital artists – graphic designers and video creators and editors – complemented by researchers, content writers, analysts and partnership professionals, MyGov has steadily built a formidable reputation in the social media space and is a much sought-after partner for government agencies who would like to enhance their citizen and stakeholder outreach. Through the reach of its social media handles, website (with a subscriber base in excess of 20 million now!), quizzes, blogs and contests, MyGov continues to break new ground daily in cyber space.

As MyGov completed 7 years of its existence in August this year, an exercise in introspection led it to be aware of the perils of siloisation – different teams and verticals operating in isolation, in their own areas of specialization – that could impact the collaborative culture that MyGov sought to foster. Silos, or comfortable zones of specialized teams that interacted with a limited number of team members and excluded other organic components of an organization, are the bane of modern establishments. The isolation that the pandemic-induced work from home regime brought upon team members also contributed to deepening the possibility of the emergence of such silos. MyGov wanted to nip this in the bud. Hence, the Chintan Shivir. It was not new, since MyGov’s CEO, Mr. Abhishek Singh, actively promotes thought-leadership and mini strategy meetings. It was first, however, as a Diwali celebration!

In the Chintan Shivir, MyGov decided to set the template for strategic collaboration in the team through games, activities, exercises, music, dance and laughter, all powerful tools of people engagement, self-reflection and organizational awareness. We worked with our partner for the Shivir, FocusU, to bring to our prime asset – our people – the opportunity to engage with each other with an immediacy that would have an organization-wide impact. Led by our CEO, Mr. Abhishek Singh, who participated in planning and participating in every detail of the Shivir, we worked out the participation and the seating of the organization with a focus on collaboration among the various functions and verticals within the organization and chose the activities by our Shivir partner to advance that aim.

And, FocusU rose to the challenge! Starting with their energizers, the creation of waves of energy within the room, to themed games, they aced the requirement. The first activity they did was called The Roller Coaster Challenge. Teams seated across 12 tables were given material to construct a roller coaster, a tall challenge at the best of times, with plastic pipes, colorful confetti material, adhesive tape, old newspapers, tennis balls and some toy trees, among other such things. The challenge was not just one of engineering, but also aesthetics; not just resources, but also imagination. In some of the tables, some members of MyGov team were meeting each other for the first time, especially those who had joined the organization during the WFH covid times, so there was the additional factor of knowing and trusting team members to deliver the goods. At the end of the activity, all 12 teams had produced models of roller-coasters and shown that the models could work. As one team member put it, you have to understand the problem first; the rest then falls into place. It is a learning that will stay with participants in the Shivir for a long, long time.

The other activity FocusU did was called The Pixel Challenge. Teams, 12 in number, were given smaller pieces of a larger picture to paint, with myriad colors and the understanding that their painting would contribute to the larger picture. They worked with bright colors and their creativity on their small canvas, size 2 feet by 2 feet and eventually saw it fit with other paintings, created by the 11 other teams, to add up to a larger painting that was complete in itself. The larger completed painting took everyone’s breath away. It was a powerful illustration of the way in which individuals and teams contribute in their seemingly separate ways to achieving the larger organizational purpose. And, it was delivered without lectures, notes and PPTs.

The Chintan Shivir delivered learning in the best possible way for the team at MyGov (average age 32 years) by letting them co-create, co-opt and collaborate. It left them energized and more aware than ever before of how teams function and optimize delivery. It happened just the way we had dreamt of. What better way to celebrate the Festival of Lights! Happy Diwali everyone!

(Views expressed are the author's