• Identify your hot buttons

  Be alert to the types of situations that put you on the burner. Is it waiting in a long queue at the departmental store or being put on hold by the customer service person from your bank? As far as possible, stay away from situations that trigger an impulsive and unpleasant reaction, especially while you are at work or just before you get to the office. You may realize that the real reason you are angry with traffic is because of your inability to start from home on time. Wake up early instead.


• Be prepared

  Anticipating and planning a positive reaction will help defuse your anger before the situation gets to you. For instance, if you don't like questions interrupting your presentation, plan how you will handle interruptions. You could give out an FAQ leaflet at the start of the presentation or ask the audience to e-mail questions to you for an elaborate response. Create a back-up plan for the possibility of a technical glitch freezing your PowerPoint presentation. For instance, you could have an overhead projector and some transparencies or hand-outs.
  
  If it's a performance review meeting you are attending, have some accomplishments ready to offset any negative feedback, so you don't respond in anger. The bottom-line: Be on the offensive.


• Clarify before reacting

  We sometimes misunderstand the other person and react impulsively. Is your boss asking what time you arrived because he's keeping an eye on you or is it because he was also stuck in a traffic jam? Ask a lot of questions before jumping to conclusions. If need be, repeat what the other person just said. This ensures you understand the comment and gives your colleague or client the opportunity to clarify any miscommunication.


• Don't throw tantrums

  In the age of team work, a 'head-heavy' attitude will get you labeled as the spoilt brat in the office. Learn to be more accommodating. The 'my way or the highway' approach will not get you any points. If your idea has been overruled by the boss or ridiculed, talk to him and understand his/her perspective rather than losing your temper. If you are dealing with nasty colleagues who keep shooting you down, smile and behave in a cordial manner.


• Don't call or e-mail when upset

  Wait before writing a strong emotional e-mail or phone call. Never disrespect others, even if you're right. The angry mail you sent three months ago may make a surprise appearance at the performance appraisal meeting. Hold that strong e-mail or letter until the next day and re-read it. Ask someone to proof-read any correspondence you think may be construed as surly, condescending or rude.


• Be ready to say "I am sorry"

  If you end up erupting in a meeting, criticize a colleague's work or make ill-timed comments that you regret, how can you bounce back? Apologize immediately to the targeted person and to everyone around. Don't offer a long justification about work pressure or the misunderstanding. Just say "I should not have reacted that way and I am sorry". This will show that you are professional and will reflect positively on your character.

TCS, Wipro hiring US pros to drive growth
IANS[ THURSDAY, JUNE 28, 2007 11:10:55 AM]

WASHINGTON: Call it reverse outsourcing or local talent hunting, but high-tech Indian firms say they have been hiring Americans as part of their long-term growth strategy.

Officials at companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's largest outsourcing firm, and Wipro Technologies, another major Indian technology provider, say this has nothing to do with periodic outcries that Indians are taking away jobs from Americans.

"This is not something new. We have had US citizens as employees for quite a number of years," said Michael Mccabe, TCS' director corporate communications for North America.

He noted that the North American market continues to achieve and drive offshore movement with it, contributing $2 billion to the company's $4.3 billion revenue in the fiscal ended March 2007.

"All our efforts are geared towards serving our customers in the best way possible and ensuring that they continue to experience certainty in our ability to deliver the results we promise," he said.

"We are likely the most diverse of the Indian IT firms. At the end of this last fiscal year, we had close to 10 per cent non-Indian nationals as employees," Mccabe said, noting that their number had risen from 3.5 per cent in 2005 to 6.5 per cent in 2006.

"They play a variety of roles at the company from sales to consulting to IT services to marketing and communications," Mccabe said, citing his own example.

Shortage of engineers hurting US
AGENCIES[ MONDAY, JUNE 25, 2007 08:08:06 PM]

NEW YORK: Business Objects SA Chief Executive Officer John Schwarz said a dearth of skilled labor in the US and Europe is pushing software development and technology startups to India and China. ``We do not graduate enough engineers here in North America or Europe to meet current demand,'' Schwarz, 56, said in an interview in Vancouver.

``We have had to start development labs in India and China to compensate.'' Business Objects, the world's largest maker of software to track corporate databases, spent $161.4 million on research and development last year, or 15 per cent of sales.

The company's development centers include Bangalore in India and Shanghai. The company, based in the Paris suburb of Levallois-Perret, has a strategy of buying startup technology companies to add to its software, Schwarz said. The lack of engineers in the US means startups will move to China and India to benefit from the available skilled labor, he said.

``Venture capitalists are going to move offshore because that's where the skills are,'' Schwarz said in the June 14 interview. ``So in the future, my expectation is that acquisitions will move to Asia.

It's not happening yet but the trends are there.'' Indian companies ``have until now focused on outsourcing- services jobs but the Chinese have begun to build actual home- grown software,'' the executive said. ``There are some interesting technology startups in China.'' Schwarz said none of the Chinese startups are ``in our domain just yet,'' but he expects that to happen in three to five years.

TCS in 10 most profitable companies list
Tuesday, June 26, 2007 (05:42:39)

NEW DELHI: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been ranked among the leading global IT companies by global magazine Business Week, besides being the only Indian entity to be listed among the world's top 10 profitable firms. Business Week in its '2007 Information Technology 100 listing' has placed TCS on 23rd position among world's leading IT companies.

TCS was the only Indian company ranked among the top 10 most profitable companies with a return on equity of 46 per cent, a TCS release said in New Delhi. According to Business Week, ever since TCS went public in 2004, the Mumbai-based company has been on a tear. It's growing rapidly with 41 per cent rise in revenues to USD 4.3 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31.

Of all of the Indian tech-services outfits, TCS has the largest network of delivery centers outside of India. In Latin America alone it employs more than 5,000 people, most of them locals, and it just announced a new service delivery centre in Mexico. TCS CEO and MD S Ramadorai said: "TCS is focused on delivering the best results for our global customers. This recognition from Business Week is testament that our dedication to customers is helping to fuel our global growth and success. (PTI)

 
Compiled by : Prasad & Dorababu