Brain-da yoghurt ban gaya!

Amidst so much of chaos and hustle bustle while I am busy attending customer query and clearing payments I see my manager  piercing through the crowd surrounding my desk and barks at me “ kyun madam mr. mahna ji ( ex-staff ) ka medical bill pass nai kiya abhi tak? (Mr. Mahna staring at me )

For a second blank, I wondered what bill whose bill? And who the hell is mahna? And then I recalled, it was Saturday afternoon when my assistant manager had handed it over to me and said keep it in your drawer we'll clear it on Monday! Before I could utter another word my manager found an opportunity to grumble on me yet again, "yaar aap kya karte hain kitne baar bola hai daraaj mein cheezein rakh ke bhool na jaaya karo! ( It’s the first time that I came across this work and absolutely didn’t know how to process it and my assistant manager was supposed to help me with it. ) I struggled to keep my raging blood in control, after a few minutes they both are on my desk again and  this time both are with a smirk on their faces to take me down!

Enough already, I kept aside my fears, and put my foot down to not tolerate this kind of behaviour  from them and with warning. My manager  wants everything to be done within seconds without any error and he expects everything perfect but he will not put even 1% effors to help you guide resolve issues or anything, on the other hand my assistant manager he will waste your hours for A:he’ll reply after you have asked at least 10 times the same question and B: when he would try to teach the concept  it will only confuse you more, instead! 
If I had anybody teach me anything good it was the clerical staff.

Coming back to putting my point about their behaviour , I told both of them you guys are in a rush to run after 6 pm and nobody is ready to stay back for not even for half an hour to help me finish work ( since am a newbie in the job) so either you guys stay back with me help finish work or don’t expect it to be finished by me.There was no way they wanted to stay up late so a blank expression on their faces was quite expected.

I so much loved the expression on their faces and Lol there was a customer watching the whole act and could not stop grinning, because he knew like almost all regular customers know that I am literally overburdened!

So much for the crap I was tired of hearing everyday ,I am happy to have put my fears aside and actually said my heart out.Now am sure that my manager would think twice before saying anything unreasonable to me.

I hope so!

There are many others out there struggling with even worse managers than mine but it is important to bridge the gap and the only way to do this is, put your fears aside and have a dialogue.

The Infamous Naukri

Its 30th September 2011 "The half yearly closing day", there is no public dealing. Clerical and sub staff come only for attendance and leave shortly after a cup of tea and chit chat; some for movies and some for good time with family and friends. The officers stay to struggle, endure and work mercilessly for the closing.
I took no time to waste and started with work to finish earliest i.e. by 7 pm. A hand stretches out to me with a letter. I look up, a tall guy dressed up as if heading for a  corporate meeting with a branded bag and huge branded watch flashing on his wrist. I go "Yes"? Him "Hi, I have been asked to report at this branch as a new Officer". The first thought that came to my mind "Push him out of the door and warn him runaway right now else you are doomed!"
An MBA in Retail and Marketing he thinks he landed himself a fine placement with a Public Sector Bank, ignored of the reality. Equipped with good interpersonal skills, a fine personality, good eloquence, it is pitiful that these well trained traits will only fade with time, like mine and many others. Gone are the days when Banks took customers and employees both for granted. While some efforts have continuously been made over the last couple of years to improve customer service nothing much has been done for employees except for adding more pressure. Years ago, banks were infamous for employee exploitation, and they still continue to be so. It would not be shocking if few years down the line a few public sector banks in our country start to tumble due to inadequate staff and the figures in red highlighting the balance sheets!
More and more efforts are being made by banks to leverage the use of Multimedia, Technology and Branding and et al to cope with the changing demography, but all in vain. The situation is more or less same since the internal functioning of the banks is stale. It reeks of inefficiency, corruption, mismanagement and power game.
There is no system as such to provide customer service that is why any customer entering the premises for the first time is perplexed and it is only after, he has been asked to contact the next guy and next until he reaches the first one again, is he attended! Most days the branches look like a fish market which makes me wonder is the new breed of MBA’s ready to work in a fish market like environment calling for more risks, more accountability with no employee protection or are the banks ready to give these brand laden kids a career and a work culture to be proud of?

P.S: There has no single day passed since my joining when I had not prepared myself mentally  before leaving for work and felt as if I am heading for a war and shall fight to return as a survivor at the end of day!