December 13, 2009

The Reporting Incident.


It was a Monday morning, forecast calls showed up in a bright red circle in Sachin's diary.It was the same routine every week, view, review,question and fire.Many quarters ago he had just for once let his defenses down after posting smashing results,and shared with Ananth," you know when the old gramophone sounds like K.L Sehgal while it actually played Lata , you know it s time to give the gramophone a keying up.You needed some keying up, and see the results - you are the MVP-most valuable player across the department today Ananth."blurted a half drunk Sachin.

Ananth , a typical middle class south Indian boy, his eyes would defy the sharpness of his mind.People often mistook him to be an artist.His middle class life mean't he would spend the better part of his day travelling on a public transport.Somewhere in his eyes,there was a hidden american dream lurking in some corner..."someday ,I 'll get there" he sighed as he prepared his sales forecast for the quarter.

Sachin,was very well networked,being a local in the city for generations, it seemed almost everyone knew him,wherever he went.A keen eye on the business and strong networking always helped him clinch deals even from the most stubborn customers.A very sharp tongue and an ego to boot,his other side was evident only when his team missed their numbers.
On one such Q4, being the end of the fiscal, and numbers not coming in there was reason to get worried.Sachin was furious as some of the other team members had missed their forecast.He was counting on Ananth to get him home.He had worked very closely with him to get the CraftTech deal.Now it was showtime. Ananth had to close and collect the deal.

The clock was ticking faster than usual.Sachin was back at office, and organizing his final deals.When he last checked his watch it was 7PM.Most customer offices would now be closed.But no sign of Ananth.Sachin was beginning to get impatient.Ananth had to report to him the moment CraftTech signed the deal.He didn't...yet.
Another hour of agonizing wait goes by no sign of Ananth Ved or as his cellphone address book would say AV.He was desperate to see AV calling.But that was not to be.Sachin finally broke the code he'd set for himself, and the team, never to call while on a customer visit.

His cell phone showed AV dialling….dialling….dialling…voice mail. “you’ve reached the right number at the wrong time, so please leave a message and your number, I will call you back.Anant.” Beep. Sachin had completely lost his patience by then.” What the hell do you think you are? VP or the owner? Why haven’t you reported back to me? Call me back NOW” growled an irate Sachin and banged the table while disconnecting the phone.

Sachin reopened his eyes to see te HR manager looking at him with a surprised look.”is everything ok Mr.Bhandarkar?....err Sachin is there anything wrong with the contract?””we have made sure all your clauses have been taken care of, in fact I had to get special approval from our senior management in the US.” Said the HR manager with a sense of big accomplishment.
With trembling hands and a choked throat, he signed the offer letter,which made him the new Director for Business Development, co –signed by Ananth Ved, SVP CraftTech Inc. USA.

12 comments:

  1. That was quite a twist in the tale... !!

    ReplyDelete
  2. wow! interesting story.

    It's my first visit to your blog and I am having a good time here.

    Loved the recipe of the scrambled eggs posted in your sidebar. great idea to name your blog, "Scrambled egg"

    Keep up the good work. Hope to stay in touch.

    Cheers!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. @ Roshmi thanks am glad you liked it.

    @ Chatterbox - welcome, and thank you for your kind words.

    ReplyDelete
  4. wow....nice twist...many e-mail forwards also have similar theme...keep scrolling down and at the end u have the twist in the tale.....

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes you are right , I think some forwards are really cool.:-)
    am glad you liked it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for the visit. And yes, I have become quite irregular of late.

    Nice work here, the build-up was really nice. I mean, this is what actually happens,especially at the end of the fourth quarter :)
    And the switch at the end too was a true reflection of what happens these days.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow! Really nice. I liked your nonviolent thriller. :D

    ReplyDelete
  8. @Sujoy - am glad you liked it.

    @Ketan - thanks - I guess the mind is the biggest mystery isntit?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow.. that was some twist:)..

    this also goes to show how some innocent act or gesture can be misinterpreted and cause trouble..

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow.. that was some twist:)..

    this also goes to show how some innocent act or gesture can be misinterpreted and cause trouble..

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks Nikki and welcome to Scrambled egg..

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks Nikki and welcome to Scrambled egg..

    ReplyDelete

Say it only if you mean it -

Sands of time

The scorching sun follows me Hot dunes burn my feet I know you are waiting for me As I leave the last oasis. A grain of sand tears my skin T...