Event-driven - a few thoughts

Event-driven - a few thoughts

Aniruddha Sarkar

22 September 2022

It was 1986 end. We visited an Iron and Steel PSU Major's Marketing Company Head at his Kolkata Head Quarters.

We were proposing a Satellite based Private Voice cum Data Network for their entire organization including all the Regional, Divisional, and Branch Sales Offices and all the stockyards scattered all over the country.

One of our consultants, Dr. P. Srivastava, was elaborating on the efficacy of a satellite communications-based wide area network for #business #communications.

Suddenly, this Marketing Head pressed his #buzzer.

Everyone halted.

An ardali came rushing. This boss told him something. Then again the Boss waived for Dr. Srivastava to resume. This Cal-Tech-trained Scholar was taken aback. However, he resumed.

Again there was another buzz. Another set of funny things happened.

Within an allotted time slot of half an hour, Dr. Srivastava could hardly speak for ten minutes.

After this episode, our team left for Delhi.

We finally submitted a blueprint in a year's time. Within a few years, this #network was #installed.

All these years I was wondering what happened to this #buzzerman.

Why he had a compulsion to interrupt a planned presentation to a twenty-plus audience too often?

Was he trying to prove that he was the all-powerful boss?

Later, in the industry, I could see a lot of #eventdriven activities.

Suddenly some top boss would raise an alarm. Every senior would start gathering data from their juniors. For a few hours, there would be no business activity across all regions.

Then, one senior fellow would collate those numbers. He in turn would pull up all regional heads for noncompliance. Then, finally, a report shall move to the super boss, the #buzzerman.

Such bosses sometimes #kill #several #productive #personhours to satisfy a #trivial #requirement. Such ad-hoc requirements can not be satisfied by the ERP system.

When someone may ask why,

the ERP administrator may say, nobody asked us to generate such a report.

The question is,

Does the super boss believe in #adhocism?

Probably yes.

Now, look around further. You may find a #common #pattern in our everyday life.

Take an example:

Mr. ABC had planned x y z activities at home for the next day, which is a weekend.

Suddenly, the next morning, a call lands on his phone. It is from his boss PQR.

Apparently, there is a #firefighting #scenario in his project.

The MD's office has received a #complaint from the #customer.

ABC rushes to the office. He also calls all his project team members.

At the office, a point-wise explanation of customer's issues is prepared.

Next, the conference call starts. Experts from other regions also join.

The experts dissect questions and the answers from the group.

A follow-up plan of action is prepared.

Later, in the meeting, the team is asked to proceed to the site and operate from there.

ABC comes back home, exhausted and down.

Now, his plans for the next several weeks go for a toss.

Like this, there are scores of examples where the #customer #presses the #buzzer, and the service provider dances to his tunes.

In real life, there may be an #unpredictable #disruption, something like a wildcat strike, a sudden outage of power, stoppage of water supply, unpredictable disruption of transportation, etc., that impacts us badly.

Then, in recent times, we underwent another mega buzz, COVID-19, that disrupted everything.

World over, we ran out of medical supplies, like oxygen masks and an uninterrupted supply of oxygen.

We had also seen the unequal distribution of vaccines.

We also learned that the wealthy and the privileged nations were not always benevolent in sharing resources.

The event-driven culture of satisfying the boss continues.

The approach is:

Always show up your face to the boss as a #miracle #troubleshooter.

Take care of the recent buzz from the boss, and then go to sleep until the next buzz from the boss.

#Build #dependency.

Do not plan ahead, do not organize.

Within the Government also, always look up to what the President or the Prime Minister says.

Then chase that. Do immediate troubleshooting. Be a #national #hero.

Your team down the line shall follow the same route.

Is there anyone who says,

Hey, ignore the triggers, and stick to the plan. Deliver the results on time.

Did anyone say,

USA Military pull-out from Afghanistan could have been #planned and #handled #better.

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