1. MANAGEMENT
Workplace
bullying
MOTIVATION
Boosting
self-esteem
INTERVIEW
Woman of
substance
Roshaneh Zafar
COVER STORY
BRIDGING THE
www.themanagertoday.com
LEADERSHIP
GAP

3. WISDOM CORNER
quotable quotes
FAITH CHALLENGE
No religious faith is loftier than When you get into a tight place
feeling ashamed of doing wrong and everything goes against
and bearing calamities patiently. you, till it seems as though you
n Hazrat Ali (A.S) could not hang on a minute
It's faith in something and en- longer, never give up then, for
thusiasm for something that that is just the place and time
makes a life worth living. Oliver that the tide will turn.
n Oliver Wendell Holmes n Harriet Beecher Stowe
ATTITUDE COMMITMENT
When one door of happiness Making your mark on the world
closes, another opens; but often is hard. If it were easy, everybody
we look so long at the closed would do it. But it's not. It takes
door that we do not see the one patience, it takes commitment,
which has been opened for us. and it comes with plenty of fail-
n Helen Keller ure along the way. The real test is
The pessimist complains about the not whether you avoid this fail-
wind; the optimist expects it to ure, because you won't. It’s
change; the realist adjusts the sails. whether you let it harden or
n William Arthur Ward shame you into inaction, or
whether you learn from it;
BELIEF whether you choose to persevere.
There are two ways to slide eas- n Barack Obama
ily through life: to believe every-
thing or to doubt everything; COURAGE
both ways save us from thinking. Courage is the ladder on which
n Alfred Korzybski all the other virtues mount.
To accomplish great things, we Clare Booth Luce
must not only act, but also dream; Courage is going from failure to
not only plan, but also believe. failure without losing enthusiasm.
n Anatole France n Winston Churchill
EXCELLENCE
FORGIVENESS The secret of joy in work is con-
Punish your servant, if he dis- tained in one word - excellence.
obeys Allah, but forgive his dis- To know how to do something
obedience to yourself. well is to enjoy it.
n Hazrat Ali (A.S) n Pearl S. Buck

4. EDITOR’S
NOTE
MAKING THE DIFFERENCE
W
With the blessings of Almighty Allah, the second issue of Manager Today
is in your hands right now. June has just begun; a month when mostly a
large part of corporate sector reviews its year-long policies, strategies, fi-
nancial statements and thus an annual report is made and presented to
the entrepreneurs and top managers. Indeed, it’s a hectic time of the year
as for the people who lead companies, organizations and various business
concerns; it appears as a showcasing time of their employees’ year-long
productive performance under their leadership, expertise and hard work.
No doubt, everyone loves to be appreciated for one’s productive contribu-
tion. But in the wake of current global financial crunch, managers are seen
Ijaz Nisar trying to sustain their products and services.
Editor-in-Chief But the dilemma with Pakistan is much severe as the country since its in-
& CEO Leading Edge
ception, has been facing leadership crisis in every sphere of life. Unfortu-
nately, our nation has not been able to produce real leaders so far and due
to the decades-long political instability, our economy is still lagging behind
despite being blessed with plenty of natural resources and human re-
source.
Keeping the crisis in mind, this issue’s cover story comprises the char-
acteristics of a true, sincere and competent leadership that our country re-
quires in this hour of need. Be it a top manager or leader in a business
hierarchy, the sooner these contemporary leaders adopt these traits the
better it will be for the future of their businesses and consequently for our
country. Our second article on the cover story represents Allama Iqbal’s
philosophy on leadership. His philosophy can be applied universally which
addresses the leadership problems of modern age. We are sure that this ar-
ticle will be inspirational to many of our readers. We also have included
three wonderful business leaders’ interviews in this issue. Get to know our
woman of substance Ms Roshaneh Zafar, Founder and President of Kashf
Foundation this month. Another interview of a dynamic personality, Mr
Ghazanfar Azzam, COO, Kashf Microfinance Bank appears on our Man-
ager’s interview pages while the unique perspective of Entrepreneur ,Mr
Farrukh Salim, CEO, Hush Puppies makes his interview a memorable one
for you all.
The rest of Manager Today’s content has been selected to address the ac-
tual issues faced by most of the managers these days. Workplace bullying,
anger management, ideas for recession proof businesses, a reflection on
succession planning, sales success, customer care, career counseling and
several other interesting and useful articles have been included. For your
delight, we have not missed to include a movie review besides a comment
on an interesting book in this issue. We hope you will appreciate our ef-
fort. Please keep us updated with your feedback and don’t miss the next
issue’s must-read cover story, ‘Emotional Intelligence Skills for Managers’.
Wish you a happy reading till next issue.

5. Mail
Box
et me avail the opportunity to pay spe- anager Today is a new idea to im- eing a student of HR, Manager
L cial thanks for publishing Manager
Today, a great supplement for the stu-
M part training and improve profes-
sional skills out of classroom. It is a
B Today is of great importance to me.
The way you are instilling a new soul in
dents of business studies. It’s a consider- sincere effort on your part to cover all HR people for the accomplishment of
able addition in library collection of the areas from leadership development to their personal & professional goals
Punjab University. marketing and sales development. It feels through your rich knowledge and experi-
Ch. Muhammad Hanif great to see that the area of human re- ence in this particular field is highly com-
Chief Librarian, Punjab University. source management and development mendable. I hope Manager Today will
---------------------------------------------- has been given prominence. It will surely keep us engaged and up to date with
he headquarters of Pakistan Civil Avi- help enhance the personnel as well as the core issues and latest develop-
T ation Authority is thankful for the com-
plementary copy of Manager Today. It’s
professional life of the readers. I would
love to be a regular reader of this maga-
ments in our field. Keep it up.
Anjum
truly Pakistan’s first magazine for the per- zine. Emergency Program Manager
sonal and professional development of Tariq Naseem Earthquake Response Program
our people. We appreciate your contribu- SVP/Head Establishment Abbottabad.
tion and services to HR field. The Bank of Khyber, Peshawar.
Masood-ur-Rehman ---------------------------------------------- orn and bought up in London, I have
G.M HR
Headquarters P lease accept my heartiest congratu-
lations on this great achievement of
B completed 18 years working in corpo-
rate world around three continents,
Civil Aviation Authority, Karachi. publishing such an enlightening educa- presently serving at the helm of Serena
---------------------------------------------- tional and supportive magazine. All the Hotels countrywide sales and marketing
felt great happiness to see the first topics I went through inspired me a lot efforts. As I walked into my office yester-
I issue of Manager Today. At last, the
need for establishing HR departments in
making me read the magazine thoroughly.
No doubt this magazine will enhance the
day I was greeted by a decent envelope.
Upon opening the package, I caught the
organizations is being recognized in Pak- professional skills. By introducing such an first glimpse of ‘Manager Today’. I must
istan. This realization will reshape the or- essential magazine you’ve fulfilled one of admit that my schedule did not allow me to
ganizational performance altogether. I the social responsibilities. I must thank read the entire contents, but I found it very
congratulate the whole team of the mag- you for your great efforts to bringing up hard to put the magazine down. What a
azine and wish them great success in the the middle managers helping them meet breath of fresh air! I felt obligated to ink my
venture. the upcoming challenges in their compa- feelings. I congratulate you in pioneering
S. Tanveer H. Kazmi, Manager (HR) nies. Wish you all the best. something that was really required in our
Murree Brewery Company Limited, Aneela Sameer,Manager Publicity, country. Please do convey my profound re-
Rawalpindi. Diamond Jumbolon, Johar Town, gards to every member of your team,
---------------------------------------------- Lahore. along with heartiest congratulations on
anager Today comprises very inter- ---------------------------------------------- producing such a wonderful product.
M esting and useful content, covering
all the issues and challenges of manage- P lease accept my heartiest congratu-
lations and best wishes on launching
Raja Nayer Zaman
Director of Sales
ment practices. Many congratulations on Manager Today. I feel honored to receive Serena Hotels, Faisalabad.
reaching this milestone. the first issue of such an outstanding ----------------------------------------------
Dr Mirza Dilshad Baig magazine.
Head Organizational Development Amir Faisal Hashmi
Management, HR Group Country Human Resource Manager INSPIRED?
Allied Bank, Karachi. The Coca-Cola Export Corporation MOTIVATED?
---------------------------------------------- Pakistan Branch. DID YOU LIKE WHAT
must appreciate the bold and timely ---------------------------------------------- YOU READ?
I endeavor you have undertaken. May
Almighty Allah helps and blesses you and T he magazine is fabulous and contains
tips to enhance personal and profes-
If you find ManagerToday inspirational for the
personal and professional development, do
your team with the best of health, pros- sional development. I wish you best of luck. inform us. You can also contribute with your
perity, peace and courage. May it becomes a success story very soon. articles, suggestions and recommendations at:
ijaznisar@gmail.com
Dr Shahid Mahmood Syed Zakir Hussain
editor@themanagertoday.com
Director Ph.D. Program Incharge Corporate HR Dept. www.themanagertoday.com
University of Central Punjab, Lahore. Descon Engineering Ltd., Lahore. Ph: 042 5792066
---------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------- Don’t forget to mention your
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6. A PROJECT OF LEADING EDGE TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
PCPB # 303-M
ManagerToday
CONTENTS
08
Bridging the
leadership gap
Compare the productivity and morale of a workforce that
is encouraged and supported in finding the rare work-
life balance with those of a dispirited workforce where
work-life balance is not a consideration. You’ll see the
12
difference. The approach ‘take no prisoners’ is a valued
management style which every great leader implements
in his/her organization
Iqbal on leadership
Qaht-ur-Rijal is an Urdu word that describes the absence or
14
rarity of men of caliber in a society. This ‘Qaht-ur-Rijal’ is one of
the basic causes of leadership crisis and decline of Muslim
Ummah
16
Workplace bullying
Job responsibilities are structured sets of problems
required to be solved persistently
Interview
20
In an economic downturn, scope for
microfinance institutions increases more:
Ghazanfaar Azzam
Are you shy? Confident? Impatient?
The first man had nothing but his instincts and
his body to communicate with. Perhaps those
were the first signs of body language
Editor-in-Chief Ijaz Nisar Managing Editor Shakil A. Chaudhary Editorial Advisor Shakeel Ahmed
Senior Editor Kahkashan Farooq Baig Editor Nabeela Malik Associate Editor Saba Kiani Art Director Faiz-ur-Rehman
Marketing Manager Munir Hussain Marketing Executive Sajjad Latif, Hassan Yaseen Operations Manager Muhammad Yasir
Sales Manager Haseeb Nisar Photographer Kamran Legal Advisor Muhammad Zulfiqar Ali Buttar

7. 24
Reflections on succession planning
Succession is more important than ever; it’s
also the most neglected responsibility of the
26
corporate boards
Boosting
self-esteem
30
Positive self-esteem in the workplace
nurtures creativity and healthy work
practices
Woman of substance
34
Trust your own self and also trust the people
around. There is no reason to doubt every
phenomenon
New rules for finding your path
Are you looking for the six rules that govern
38
career paths, wage levels and the nature of
managerial work in today’s post-corporate
world? Here we go
Interview
44
I would request our government to pay attention to
shoemaking industry because of great employment
opportunites it offer:
Farrukh Salim
An exemplary
educationist
48
The key to success and excellent
performance is that one should always be
producing results
One-minute customer
54
In a matter of 45 to 60 seconds, he managed
to bring forth small details of good customer
service
Healthy food practices
Although this term has not been commonly used to
describe health in years past, sustainable health is a
growing movement
Publisher Leading Edge Printer Naeem Qasim Printers Head Office PL-20 Siddiq Trade Centre, Main Boulevard, Gulberg II,
Lahore Tel: 042-5792066, 5817048 Email: info@themanagertoday.com Website: www.themanagertoday.com,
www.leadingedge.com.pk
Contributors Dr. SM Naqi, Maqbool Ahmed Babri (Max), Masood Ali Khan, Bakhtiar Khawaja, Saghir Ahmad, Sonia
Urooj, Wali Muhammad, Ghazanfar Azzam, Shahid Nafees, Muhammad Zaheer, Bilal Ilahi, Philip Lal

8. COVER STORY
IJAZ NISAR
Compare the
productivity and morale
of a workforce that is
encouraged and
supported in finding the
rare work-life balance
with those of a
dispirited workforce
where work-life balance
is not a consideration.
You’ll see the difference.
The approach ‘take no
prisoners’ is a valued
management style
which every great
leader implements in
his/her organization
leadership
Bridging the
8 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009
gap in pakistan

9. akistan is a country of di-
P
we can see a trickle down effect of their does what is the motive of the organi-
chotomies and contradictions, an traits and good policies in effect in an zation’s existence, its purpose, its rea-
enigma in South Asia. At first organization. We must keep in mind son for being there, etc. These leaders
glance, Pakistan should be at the fore- that our employees are not only work- invest in building a focused and value-
front, a leader amongst its fellow coun- ers like machines but they are humans based demographic-driven organization
tries. According to the World Bank as well. We need leaders who believe from top to bottom.
report, “Pakistan today is South Asia’s and embody the true concept of leader- We need leaders who communicate
most open economy.” However, despite ship. They must reflect from the lan- proficiently with the people of their or-
her apparent strong economic and so- guage they use and their actions must ganization the clientele and the masses
cial indicators, things are not as positive show that leadership is a matter of how keeping in mind the frame of reference
as they appear. things should be done. It’s not about of their target audience. Such leaders
We have sufficient natural resources tackling things only after the situation when they communicate are heard by
and more than sufficient human capital. becomes worse. It’s the stature and their audience. Each and every word of
So what do we need actually? We need their communication is valued and ap-
good leaders at all levels, especially at preciated. No doubt, the effective use of
the organizational and national levels as Bringing hope and language is one of the most important
it’s the leaders’ vision that matters the unity within the skills a leader of future outlook should
most for a country or an organization. be perfect in. His one word, one sen-
All of us face the challenge of leading
organizations, tence or one paragraph all must be con-
in an era of discontinuity and ambiguity enterprises and necting, helping, inspiring, and being
far greater than it was 10 or 20 years different sectors will heard by the people on large scale.
ago. All of us should try to be prescient create an overall We need leaders who are masters in
in a rapidly changing world as we try to the art of listening, who practice the
peer into the future for better planning positive impact. rule of thinking first and speaking in the
and maximum benefits. By now we Leaders possessing last. Leaders who are healers and uni-
should be wise enough to idealize the such a dynamic fiers listen to employees complaints
qualities of the people who can lead us peacefully, build consensus, appreciate
against the backdrop of the current sit-
personality traits are differences, find common concepts,
uations of our times and the challenges necessary to solve the common language, and common
ahead. problems and meet the ground to create harmony among em-
As we come closer to the fiscal year ployees of his/her organization.
of 2009-2010, which qualities do we
challenges of our time. We need leaders who in their own
need in our leaders now more than We do have leaders but lives try to keep a good work-life balance
ever? Whatever the organization or the these necessary traits and make this balance a reality in the
sector is, I propose that this is the high are lacking in them. lives of their people as well. It may ap-
time when our masses need real lead- pear as an unrealistic ideal in today’s
ers who nurture and live according to tough work environment but it’s quite
the high values of life, capable enough to character of the leader that determines workable. Compare the productivity and
unify people and heal the hurts of those the performance and results. morale of a workforce that is encour-
who have been oppressed since incep- We need leaders who firmly believe in aged and supported in finding this rare
tion of this country. Bringing hope and the idea of considering employees as work-life balance with those of a dispir-
unity within the organizations, enter- the greatest asset of an organization, ited workforce where work-life balance
prises and different sectors will create and they must demonstrate this belief is not a consideration. You’ll see the dif-
an overall positive impact. Leaders pos- by their policies thus making it a reality, ference. The approach ‘take no prison-
sessing such a dynamic personality not a slogan. These leaders build a richly ers’ is a valued management style which
traits are necessary to solve the prob- diverse organization through powerful every great leader implements in
lems and meet the challenges of our representation of their beliefs at every his/her organization.
time. We do have leaders but these nec- level. They have a realization of the enor- Most importantly, we need leaders
essary traits are lacking in them. mous opportunities that rapidly chang- who share success widely while accept-
Furthermore, we need such strong ing demographics present in a society. ing responsibility of shortfalls and fail-
leaders who can become role models We need leaders who help clarify the ures. Such leaders have made strict
for the people playing the second lead at concept and language of the ultimate standards of evaluating their own per-
every level of an enterprise. Only then mission of an organization: whatever it formance, fully knowing that their
www.themanagertoday.com June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 9

10. COVER STORY
language, behavior and actions are eval- novations even if it is not out of thin air. Leaders in companies, corporations,
uated against their self-proclaimed val- However, leading creative people in this banks, industries, academic institutions
ues and principles. age of diverse work arrangements and and the government have already cho-
What is the secret to building a great electronic relationships require from sen to follow the unusual people who
organization? How do you sustain con- leaders themselves to be significantly in- can revive and restore vitality and op-
sistent growth, profits, loyal clientele, will- novative. The secret, I believe, lies in how portunity in their relative fields. Once a
ing employees, unique contribution and individual leaders in variety of settings leader commits to a new way of dealing
service in an uncertain economy that can make room for people with unusual and with creative people, the process can be
literally change overnight? And how do creative abilities and temporarily become defined quickly. It can be called a search
you build a culture of commitment and followers themselves. for beneficial surprise. Traditional edu-
performance when the notion of loyalty Creative persons stand out from the cation does not prepare us for this.
on the part of customers, employees, rest of us. Somehow, their contributions Though familiarity with technology helps
and employers seems like a quaint affect large groups and move organiza- us deal with such a search, all the tech-
anachronism? tions towards improvement. I call them: nology in the world will not help us dis-
The answer lies only within these two ‘explorationists’ (the most creative peo- covering the knowledge of ideas,
words: be yourself. ple in an organization). Yet they function experiments, failures, and successes
That is both a simple yet extremely dif- for the most part, being outside or away that we will be requiring on advent of a
ficult goal. It means spending lesser time from their organizations. They work in all venture.
by benchmarking a best practice and kinds of places: in cafes, airports, at If we want to find new sources and per-
spending of extra time for building an or- home and they benefit from their unusual spectives, there come two questions
which, if thoughtfully considered, are
likely to yield good results. The first looks
at innovation from a leader’s point of view
The things that will destroy us are while the second arises from the view of
knowledge without character, creative persons.
worship without sacrifice, politics A leader will be careful about measur-
without principles and leadership ing the contributions of creative persons.
Return on assets has become a Baal in
without integrity Quaid-i-Azam too many organizations. All things cannot
and must not be quantified. Financial and
legal matters are truly important but
they do not lie at the heart of our future.
ganization where personality counts as relationships with the organizations they Resist the urge to structure all things
much as quality and reliability. It also join. They often have odd reporting rela- alike.
means cultivating an ability to embrace tionships but somehow they instinctively We also need to keep in mind that mov-
paradox. insert themselves into organizations ing up in the hierarchy does not confer
Shakespeare in King Lear tells us that wherever they are needed. competence or wisdom. The discern-
nothing comes from nothing. So do sci- The changes and innovations they bring ment and judgment necessary to evalu-
entists, for that matter. Everything in this about are often more like giant leaps ate true innovation, to doom or give life
world exists already; whatever seems than the small steps most of us experi- to good design or breakthroughs in tech-
new is only something old re-arranged. ence frequently. They think of the world nology lie with people trained in those
So how do we explain innovation? in larger terms. They work for institu- fields.
Innovation is a form of change. Though, tions or societies or culture or greater Creative persons come in all shapes,
our culture welcomes change to some ideas for mass effect, not for individuals. sizes, and fields: from graphic design and
extent, but people proposing it, as you Their creativity comes from the novel architecture to software design and
might expect, often run into barriers. As connections they establish between their human resource. The best are volun-
our society has become more complex work and personal and professional ex- teers. They can find work almost every-
we find important segments of it becom- periences and observations. They are where and they gauge the quality of their
ing larger, more structured, more bu- usually curious and look for a field where leaders as a way of deciding where they
reaucratic, less nimble and less they can satiate that curiosity. Leaders will contribute. Leaders make it possible
hospitable to non-conformists and peo- can work to bring these special and cre- for creative persons to make something
ple of unusual ideas. Leaders can help ative people forth to have an impact upon out of nothing---nothing, that is, but ex-
these unusual people bring forth their in- the efforts of a group. pressions of themselves. n
10 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009 www.themanagertoday.com

11. 1.
PASSION No trait is
6.
INNER PEACE The most
more noticeable in the top successful leaders ap-
business leaders than the pear to be least stressed.
passion they share for their poli- They are composed, self-assured,
cies and their companies. Quite and more in harmony than most
simply, they love what they do. of the managers.
2.
INTELLIGENCE AND
7.
CAPITALIZING ON
CLARITY OF MIND FORMATIVE EARLY LIFE
Most successful business EXPERIENCES The study
leaders are highly intelligent. Some found that these leaders believe in
of their intelligence is clearly the the idea of capitalizing on their
kind of raw intellectual horse- formative, early life experiences.
power that is innate. However, They believe as people cannot de-
equally as important as their na- cide who their parents are, what
tive smarts is their ability to make order they are born in, or what
the complex seem simple. economic stratum they grow up in
3.
GREAT COMMUNICA- but they indeed can control what
TION SKILLS One of the they make out of their early life ex-
common traits among perience.
the 50 business leaders identified
8.
STRONG FAMILY LIFE
by this study is ability to communi- Comparatively, the di-
cate well. best business leaders ef- vorce rate among man-
fectively explain business agers is higher. However, it is
fundamentals, strategy, alterna- almost zero in case of top class
tives and a course of action in business leaders. Many of these
ways that tap the employees’ leaders cite their intelligent efforts
sense of understanding. to balance a strong family life with
4.
HIGH ENERGY LEVEL their work and most importantly
On an average, the world- the quality of objective advice they
class business leaders get from an intelligent spouse as
work more than 65 hours a week. key ingredients in their success.
The line between their work and
9.
POSITIVE ATTITUDE As
private life is more blurry. The a general rule, these peo-
physical strain of developing strat- ple tend to look at chal-
egy, forging consensus, making de- lenges as opportunities and seek
cisions, building a management to make the best out of difficult sit-
team, dealing with regulators, uations. Their outlook and commit-
communicating with institutional ment to capitalizing rather than
investors, lobbying the govern- punishing mistakes help give em-
ment, traveling – all that require ployees a sense of responsibility.
an enormous amount of stamina
10.
FOCUS ON DOING
I
t is an interesting question for many academicians, that seem to be not so enormous THE RIGHT
consultants and practitioners of management that to these leaders as they enjoy high THINGS The great
whether the successful business leaders possess dis- energy level sprouting out of their business leaders achieve their re-
tinct personality traits or simply they are like other man- innate ceaseless enthusiasm. sults by focusing on the right
agers, maybe with more drive for achievement and luckier
5.
EGOS IN CHECK When things throughout the day that in-
than others. If they possess distinct traits, how distinct are you are the ultimate boss, clude:
they and whether is there any commonality in the person- it is tempting to take credit • living with integrity and leading
ality traits of business leaders across the world? Based on for the success of your organization. by example.
the study of 50 top world-class business leaders, Thomas In contrast, the best of business • developing a winning strategy or
Neft and James Citrin clarified many of these issues. They leaders are humans of small egos. a big idea.
found the best of world business leaders possess some Being quite humble about what they • building a great management
distinct traits and there is commonality in these traits have accomplished, they give credit team.
across the business leaders. They also identified ten traits of hard work, good timing, a healthy • inspiring employees to achieve
these leaders seemed to hold in common and presented dose of luck to the efforts of all staff greatness.
them in their book titled Lessons from the Top, published in members and colleagues for the • creating a flexible but responsi-
2001. These ten traits are: success. ble organization. n
www.themanagertoday.com June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 11

12. COVER STORY
ON LEADERSHIP SHAHID NAFEES
The writer is a senior training manager in Bank Alfalah
Qaht-ur-Rijal is an Urdu word that describes the absence or rarity of
men of caliber in a society. This ‘Qaht-ur-Rijal’ is one of the
basic causes of leadership crisis and decline of Muslim Ummah. Leadership crisis is also re-
sponsible for institutional or national decline.
Leadership aims at harnessing the potential of people, creating synergy and building effective
teams. It is the driving force that synergizes the masses and determines their place in con-
temporary history of nations or institutions. For leaders, it is their steadfastness and ability to
actualize and use the hidden talent of people that determines their own stature.
A society is never devoid of people of wisdom and leadership qualities but they fail to break the
mold or to bring about any material change because either they are few in numbers or they
themselves lack something somewhere. All eminent authors who have written books on Lead-
ership and similar topics provide good amount of insight into such shortcomings. Here, I would
12 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009
www.themanagertoday.com

13. like to dwell on the subject from purely ori- Creating that type of ‘Yaqeen’ may not be work environment.
ental & poetic perspective. easy but with commitment and right ap- B) Element of excellence:
Maulana Altaf Hussain Hali in his Mu- proach, this is something achievable as i. That his objectives in life are not
saddas and Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal in well as inevitable. mean or ordinary.
his Shikwa and Jawab-e-Shikwa have beau- 2. Amal Paiham mean ‘perpetual strug- ii. He is high-looking and is focused on
tifully highlighted the reasons of such gle’. It suggests that: something big and worthwhile.
paucity of leadership that has ultimately re- e. We should never be complacent. iii. He does not involve himself in small
sulted into decline of Muslim Ummah. In- Not even when we have achieved talk, small thinking and trivialities.
depth study of these two poems gives us a our goals. C) Element of virtue:
comprehensive reformatory plan in situa- f. We should always stay proactive i. He is a man of virtue.
tions of distress like that of ours. I recom- and shun passivity. ii. He himself enjoys self-esteem and
mend to the readers to study these poems g. We should not remain inactive, cares about the esteem and re-
and find out for themselves the plan that is naïve or dull. spect of others.
thought-provoking as well as interesting. No doubt that thinking, especially this iii. Obstacles in his way cannot diffuse
There are two famous verses of Allama right thinking is very important in deter- his passion.
Iqbal in which he describes the essential el- mining the direction and goals but nothing 5. Sukhan Dilnawaz: In literal sense
ements of leadership. Missing out these el- can be achieved merely by thinking. It is al- ‘sukhan’ means conversation or talk
ements will bring us nothing but ‘leadership ways action that transforms the societies but we know now that the ways to talk
crisis. and brings about change. are diverse and multiple. This phrase
In one of his verses he says, 3. Muhabbat Fatah-e-Alam: Fatah-e-Alam therefore includes all types of commu-
“Nigah Buland, Sukhan Dilnawaz, Jaan is described as an adjective of Muhab- nication. Dilnawaz means beautiful, at-
Pur Soz, bat- ‘the love’. It means that love and af- tractive or appealing. Iqbal most
Yehi hai Rakht-e-Safar Mir-e-Karwan ke fection, and similar good feelings are probably has picked up this phrase
liey” such a strong quality that they can win from Quranic words of ‘Qooloo Linnas-
At another place he says, over the whole world. It is love and care e-Husna’. It means when you commu-
“Yaqeen Mohkam, Amal Paiham, Mo- shown for others that wins their nicate with people, do it beautifully (and
habbat Fateh-e-Alam, hearts. So the third element of this artfully). This attribute of Mir-e-
Jehad-e-Zindagani mein hain yeh Mardon recipe is love, care and compassion for Karwan or leader makes it imperative
ki Shamsheeren” others. This is how we can win over on leaders to learn the art of commu-
Taking cue from these two verses we find other people and create win-win situa- nication. He should communicate with
six elements that help us in meeting the tions. others in a way that is appealing, beau-
challenge of leadership crisis. It suggests We know that humility breeds love and tiful and interesting.
developing the right traits in ourselves as arrogance breeds hate. That is why arro- 6. Jaan Pur Soz: In Iqbal’s poetry ‘Soz’
well as in those whom we can influence. gant people always infuse hate amongst means ‘Ishq’ that includes passion and
Stephen Covey has given the world an ex- others and humility results into feeling of compassion. He strongly believes that
cellent book on 7 Habits of the most influ- love and attachment. it is the dearth of passion, compassion
ential people. I wonder if following this set of 4 Nigah Buland: This is a very compre- and dearth of Ishq that has done a hor-
six elements of leadership highlighted in hensive phrase that encompasses: rendous damage to Muslim Ummah.
these two verses carries any less weight. A) Element of being a visionary: Ishq and Janoon for Iqbal, mean doing
1. Yaqeen Mohkam means an unflinching i. That a person has a vision of the ul- something with highest degree of zeal
belief. This includes: timate of his endeavors. and enthusiasm; to put heart and soul
a. Having ‘Self-belief’ ii. That he sees himself and his or- in something. He believes that unless
b. Developing ‘Trust’ ganization at an appropriate level in we put our hearts and souls, unless we
c. Believing in Values and inculcating a short-term and at a relatively far- work with Ishq and Janoon we cannot
a Value-based Culture ther future. achieve our goals of personal and in-
d. Having ‘Faith’ in Allah and things or- iii. That he enjoys clarity of thought stitutional excellence.
dained by Him. about all his ideas, efforts, mission It is time for us to find out where we are
Impossible things become possible when and strategy. losing ground with respect to these at-
‘Yaqeen’ comes into action. To me, the two iv. That he is focused and this focus tributes essential for our personalities
main problems in our personality are that does not dilute at any stage of his and that of our leaders. Excellence,
we do not believe: neither in ourselves nor endeavors. whether it is personal or institutional or
in others. We can call it a state of ‘Trust The concept of being visionary also national, will be a far cry if we fail to ac-
Deficit’. Yaqeen Mohkam can certainly and means that he has the ability to foresee the quire these leadership characteristics de-
most effectively counter this ‘trust deficit’. opportunities and threats that lie at his fined by Iqbal. n
June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 13
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14. MANAGEMENT
imilar problems clustered under a have victimized a succession of employ-
WALI MUHAMMAD
The writer is an Islamabad-based
corporate trainer
S variety of designations constitute
the functional hierarchy of an or-
ganization. The meekest of employees to
ees. Their vainglorious self-perpetuating
manners cause devastating blows to the
organizations' talent pool and gnaw at its
the CEO, all human resources strive to very ability to achieve its cherished goals.
deal with their given share of problems. Bullying is a repeated pattern of pro-
Their individual success rates determine voked, unwelcoming, hostile behavior that
the extent of entire organizational output. intentionally inflicts or attempts to inflict in-
Facing the ad infinitum performance jury, insult, hurt, humiliation or discomfort.
Job responsibilities are
challenge of modern day competitive envi- Targeted, persistent bullying, most often
structured sets of problems ronment “workplace bullying” appears as a progresses to the ultimate painful conse-
required to be solved black hole in an organization and gulps its quence of perpetual state of depression,
persistently human resources' ability to perform ef- serious social, family and health hazards
fectively. Many dysfunctional companies for the victim.
Workplace can be traced back to chronic bullies who,
under the guise of tough management,
From the physical hounding in the school
yards, workplace bullying goes psychologi-
Bullying
14 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009
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15. cal, occurring in situations of real or per- Classical tactics for a victim's undermin- Juniors for them are only to be seen not
ceived imbalance of power. It can be a dif- ing include not providing a clear job de- heard.
ference in personality – one person more scription (a deliberate strategy to make Workplace bullying is definitely a no-win
dominant than the other, command of lan- the role unclear), devaluation of role by tak- situation. It is not only damaging for the
guage – one person with a sharper ing away important and interesting tasks employees being bullied and their families
tongue and quicker wit than the other. Psy- replaced with menial tasks. but the business bears its cost through in-
chological bullies deploy tactics of mali- Threats of dismissal are typical at Asian creased leave and tardiness, reduced effi-
cious teasing, name-calling, hurtful organizational scene, where the organiza- ciency and productivity, low morale and
personal remarks, and cunning deflation tion itself bullies its employees. high turnover.
of competence by strategies such as iso- Behavioral repertoire of bullies cuts Good intentions are obviously not
lation, humiliation, excessive supervision across a variety of patterns. They may be enough to escape this quagmire. Suc-
and denial of employee rights. differentiated accordingly. cessful man is one who finds out what is
The situation is insidiously convoluted on Some mastering the blame game, are the matter with the business before his
the domestic organizational scene, blem- experts at conjuring thoughtful and caring competitors do. Prevention is any organi-
ished by little awareness and practice of public appearances. They are calculating, zation's best strategy against bullying. This
employee rights, scanty legislation and scheming and deceitful deep down. Suf- can be achieved through a three prong
diminutive law enforcement. Victims keep fering from narcissistic self-love and con- strategy.
suffering in silence for the fear of losing vinced of their exalted abilities, they blame FIRST STEP is drafting an anti bullying
their jobs. Bullies thrive on the victims' ex- everyone but themselves for their mis- policy that clearly spells out bullying be-
tended insecurities. takes. Even their victims are charmed by haviors. Every member of staff must be
Bullying usually starts slowly and then es- their nice manners. ‘I was thinking about provided with a copy and the policy should
calates rapidly. Hallmark of a bully is double you’ is their favorite sentence before deliv- be updated regularly.
bind communication - where the verbal ering devastating criticism to their victims. SECOND STEP adequate mechanisms
content of the message does not coincide
with the body language or two conflicting As I entered boss's office, he sat there with manager
ideas about the same subject are pack- of administration department. I thought maybe it was
aged in an apparently coherent verbal
message - all to confuse the victim. Addi-
not the right time to be around, so I said, "I may come later".
tional signs are extensive use of negative But he insisted, I should tell him about my progress. As I
body language such as eye rolling, eyebrow began, he quickly picked up small gaps and started spitting
lifting, heavy sighs, finger gestures, shoul- fire right away. I felt I was made to go naked in public. Next
der shrugging and arm movements. Bul- day he told me that such lessons will help me progress in
lies get away with their conduct by making
victims feel, it's their fault.
my career. (A victim)
Nitpicking - finding out constant small
faults in victim's work with a flagrant dis-
regard of any achievements is one of the Opportunistic bullies are extremely ca- must be drawn to report the bullying be-
favorite strategies of bullies. Their con- reer-oriented and if anything comes in havior. This may include nominating a con-
stant unjustified criticism eventually con- their way they use every ploy to eliminate it. tact person for reporting, a system of
vinces victims that they are no good. They are highly competitive and manipu- mediation, investigation and sanctions be-
Belittling tactics are also some sure late circumstances to achieve their ends. cause policy does no good unless enforced
ways to devastate victims. Self-preserving bullies are insecure, properly.
Isolation is being ignored, ostracized and loyal only to the agenda of personal sur- THIRD STEP is compulsory training for
given the silent treatment during the team vival. Utmost authority orientation is their managers, human resource staff dealing
meetings while offering less lee way or flex- cornerstone. They go any length to ap- with bullying complaints, the contact peo-
ibility to the victim. pease their superiors though absolutely ple and all the general staff. Training must
Systematic incapacitation is extreme flip side of coin to subordinates. In the adequately address the intricacies of as-
level of manipulation where the victim is in- name of system they bash their juniors sertive communication skills required to
tentionally excluded from essential infor- with no holds barred and hate to see any become an effective team player rather
mation, or misinformed of the workplace initiative coming from them. This simply than a starving slave runner.
developments, called upon in meetings at provokes their internalized insecurity that Even the bullies just like their victims may
odd times, issued written complaints, and they relieve by searching and advertising become valuable human resources; they
communicated through sticky notes, in- their constituents' weaknesses and find- must be identified and helped before they
stead of personal meetings. ing creative ways of demeaning them. bring the organization to a grinding halt. n
June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 15
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16. INTERVIEW
NABEELA MALIK
In an economic downturn, scope
for microfinance institutions
increases more:
–GHAZANFAR AZZAM
Those persons in the government who do have an
understanding of capital generation and realise that
microfinance plays a pivotal role in economic and social
development of any country, they encourage it
Q Please give an introduction of
your academic profile and the
beginning of your professional career.
nies in our trainings. It proved very suc-
cessful as this exercise gave our employ-
ees a fair chance of sharing their
I did graduation in Commerce from Pre- knowledge and experience with trainees
miere College, Karachi and joined Habib coming from other institutions.
Bank Limited (HBL) as a probationer offi- With passage of time, our trainings be-
cer. Banking appealed to me much but a came very popular among different com-
feeling of incomplete education remained panies. Many banks became our regular
with me even being on the job. So I ap- clients including Bank of America, City
peared in professional exams and com- Bank, Faysal Bank and Indo-Swiss Bank.
pleted DIBP. Seeing my interest in teaching
and training, I was invited to the HR training
institute of HBL in Peshawar which I joined
immediately.
Q Please share with us the fac-
tors you focused on to excel in
your profession?
There I along with others started con- Although I was working successfully, I
tacting private corporate sector. It was the started feeling lack of experience of inter-
time when private banks were again being national level because the people I was in-
nationalised and training was absolutely a teracting with had vast exposure of
new institution. At start, we could find only international companies and banking.
ten to fifteen nominations from our own Thus, I applied for Chevening Scholarship
bank. Getting a good number of trainees and also the American Fulbright Program;
proved really difficult. Thus, we started invit- luckily, I was shortlisted for both scholar-
ing other banks and multinational compa- ships. On my own discretion, I went for the
16 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009
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17. Mr. GHAZANFAR AZZAM
Chief Operating Officer at Kashf Microfinance Bank, sports a dy-
namic personality. In a career spread over 22 years, this Ful-
bright-Hubert Humphrey fellow has worked for four leading
Pakistani banks including Habib Bank Limited, Union Bank (now
Standard Chartered Bank, Pakistan), Bank Alfalah and Prime
Bank (now part of Royal Bank of Scotland, Pakistan). He has held
senior positions in many international institutions; served as “Fi-
nancial Sector Specialist” for a Chicago-based institution, Shore
Bank International in Pakistan on a USAID funded WHAM project
aimed at building and strengthening Small Business lending ca-
pacity in Pakistani financial institutions. He is an experienced
banker in retail and consumer banking, small business lending,
sales force management, training and development. His key skills
are strategic planning, leading teams, setting up new lines of busi-
ness, establishing & managing projects and mentoring & devel-
opment of staff. Mr. Azzam keeps an inspiring work and personal
life balance. His approach towards life and its challenges is quite
down to earth.
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18. INTERVIEW
American scholarship as it was better
being the unique opportunity offering new
developments. So I went to Pennsylvania
State University and completed two se-
mesters and some courses on HR, Lead-
ership and Management. That scholarship
program gave me a great exposure. They
arranged a World Bank seminar on global
finance in Washington DC and we were
given access to the capital market of New
York. Last in the program was the option
of working with an American bank for four
months. They asked me if I was interested
in any bank, I gave them three names in-
cluding Citi Bank and ABN Amro. The re-
sponse of ABN Amro was the best, it
offered me to work at it’s headquarter in
Chicago. Thus, I ended up my scholarship
with ABN Amro in Chicago for four
months. After completing my scholarship,
I had to decide whether to return to my
own country or to build my career in Amer-
ica.
We have 18 branches in
operation at present and
Q When and how did you shift to
microfinance banking?
Being with the Shore Bank, I actually
Meanwhile, a very nice and senior col- by the end of 2009, this came to know about microfinance banking
league of mine, Mr. Bakhtiar Khawaja, now while being in the commercial banking, I
Head of the Learning and Development de- count will raise up to 32 could never understand microfinance as
partment of Bank Alfalah contacted me branches while within most of the bankers from commercial
and insisted me to join Bank Alfalah (then banking do not understand it because of its
an emerging bank in Karachi) if I wanted to
five years Kashf Bank will totally different methodology, mindset and
come back to Pakistan.. I came back to become a hundred market.
Pakistan and joined Bank Alfalah as the branches network It relates to the smallest consumers at
training manager. the grass root level while commercial bank-
In 2002, I rejoined Prime Bank’s busi- InshAllah. We also hope ing deals with large groups. I came to know
ness side. By that time, the State Bank of to fetch one million about microfinance through discussions of
Pakistan had started recognizing Small the international consultants who used to
and Medium Enterprises, we also set up
savers to our bank within talk about the activities of microfinance in-
SME as a special line of business as it was five years. We are also stitutions all over the world like the per-
a very important area of finance. I served planning to reach up to formance of Grameen Foundation
as the country head of consumer banking Bangladesh, Grameen Foundation USA, ac-
and as the regional head of Prime Bank as 500 thousand tivities of microfinance in Latin America
well. microfinance borrowers and the performance of microfinance
In 2005, acquisitions and mergers of banks in Indonesia etc. All their stories
banks got started. At that time I came to
in the same time period taught me a lot about microfinance bank-
know about a Chicago-based institution, ing in real terms.
Shore Bank International. They were as-
signed a three-year SME and Microfinance
Sector Development project in Pakistan.
They declared a position of a financial sec- During that time, I got many chances to
Q So did this knowledge of mi-
crofinance banking pave your
way to the Kashf Microfinance Bank?
tor specialist, requiring a Pakistani having a work with Standard Chartered Bank, Na- Yes, indeed it was the time when I came
good knowledge of the industry and the tional Bank of Pakistan and Union Bank’s across Kashf Foundation and its services
ability to communicate with the Pakistani Kisan Card product. We also conducted in the field of microfinance. I met Roshaneh
industry. They selected me and I worked many trainings and community awareness Zafar, President of Kashf Foundation in fo-
with them for around two-and-a-half year. programs. rums on microfinance. Roshaneh was of
18 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009 www.themanagertoday.com

19. Most of the bankers from commercial banking do not
understand microfinance banking because of its
totally different methodology, mindset and market
We have 18 branches in operation at any country, they encourage it.
present and by the end of 2009, this But on the other hand, some negative
count will raise up to 32 branches while elements are trying to distort the image
within five years Kashf Bank will become and performance of microfinance as they
a hundred branches network InshaAllah. encourage the culture of non-refunding
We also hope to fetch one million savers loans to the banks but anyhow, we are try-
to our bank within five years. We are also ing to cope with these challenges and cre-
planning to reach up to 500 thousand mi- ating maximum awareness among our
crofinance borrowers in the same time people and customers.
period.
Q What are the challenges
faced by the bank right now?
Q In the wake of current eco-
nomic crunch, do you think
that your bank will be able to establish
the opinion that Kashf Foundation had ac- I think the greatest challenge is the lack more branches and grow at a high
quired the potential of establishing a mi- of understanding of microfinance among pace?
crofinance bank. Being well-experienced our people. Our commercial banks and Economic downturn definitely affects
in this field, I was offered to join the ven- bankers do not understand it in real all institutions in a country, it affects us
ture. I agreed and in 2007, we started terms. Another point is that as microfi- as well but if we assess the microfinance
formal steps of establishing the bank. nance consists of very small loans and institution, we find it in a direct relation-
Kashf Foundation had nearly 0.3 million borrowings, it deals with meagre ship with the low income community as
borrowers at that time. We thought of amounts thus its operating cost is very microfinance banks always deal with the
converting them into savers because the high. low income groups. So, in an economic
foundation could not make savings which For instance, if in commercial banking downturn, scope for microfinance insti-
could only be done through a bank. one person makes a portfolio of 500 mil- tutions increases more, its unfortunate
In the total investment for the estab- lion, the same will be done by a hundred but a fact that the market of microfi-
lishment of the bank, Kashf contributed customers in the microfinance banking nance expands further as poverty in-
51% while the remaining 49% was con- so its operating cost ratio becomes high. creases.
tributed by participants including IFC, the However, if the law and order situation
World Bank group, Shore Bank,
Women’s World Banking, (a New-York
based institution) and also a Dutch group
Q Is the Government of Pak-
istan helping and promoting
microfinance banking?
worsens in a country then it creates
problems and affects the performance of
microfinance banking. Incidents like riots
of social investors. Yes, the Government of Pakistan un- and strikes affect our institution also.
We applied for a licence from the SBP. derstands its value and usefulness. The
It went through our business plan, evalu-
ated our team and issued the licence to
us within a record time of seven to eight
government made a policy for the micro-
finance institutions, formed a law, en-
forced Microfinance Act 2001, created
Q
success?
Would you like to tell our
readers the secret of your
weeks. Khushali Bank and offered five-year debt Practically speaking, there is no short-
Thus, on October 27, 2008 Kashf Mi- holidays to the microfinance banks to cut to success, but the factors leading to
crofinance Bank became operational with help and encourage people to get bene- it include commitment to your goals, ded-
18 lending branches. fits from its services. Thus, those persons ication and hard work to achieve excel-
in the government who do have an un- lence. The golden principles read in
Q Please tell us about the
strategic plan of expansion
for Kashf Microfinance Bank?
derstanding of capital generation and re-
alise that microfinance plays a pivotal role
in economic and social development of
theory must be trusted upon and prac-
ticed sincerely, only this belief and sincere
hard work will lead to success. n
www.themanagertoday.com June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 19

20. COMMUNICATION
Are you shy? CONFIDENT? IMPATIENT?
The first man had nothing but his
instincts and his body to
communicate with. Perhaps those
were the first signs of body language.
Communication has come a long way
now. So, does the body still
communicate?
20 MANAGER TODAY | June - July 2009 www.themanagertoday.com

21. SONIA UROOJ
The writer is a communication trainer and consultant
he world would be in utter hands in front of the face is a hostile ges-
chaos without effective ture while clenched hands held down on the A thumbs-up sign in many parts of the
communication. History talks table is an authoritative gesture. world means ‘it is good’.
about sign languages. Drawings Well, if at all there is another part of the
and inscriptions that were used body that displays a range of emotions, it is
as the means of communica- the human eye.
tion. The most commonly used Generally, excitement and happiness tend
and understood language is body language to dilate the pupils four times their original
which transcend all boundaries and region size and anger contracts them. These
and cultural aspects. sharply contracted pupils have given rise to
However, unlike other languages, body lan- terms like ‘snake eyes’, ‘evil eyes’ or beady
guage can sometimes communicate un- little eyes’. It may be easy to hide your inner
knowingly. The trick lies in reading the signs thoughts by hiding your hands but the same
right and understanding them. According cannot be said about the eyes.
to psychologists, there are many other ge- There are two ways in which you can gaze
netic, learned and cultural signals through at a person, namely ‘the business gaze’ and Shaking the fist means ‘I am angry’. Its
which we communicate. ‘the intimate gaze’. For that assume the for- a threat of aggression.
Some of the most basic and common mation of an imaginary triangle on every-
communication gestures include the smile, one’s head. The triangle has its vertices at
when we are happy; the frown, when we are the two eyes and a point on the person’s Unlike other languages,
angry and tears, when we are sad. forehead. When conversing with a person, body language can
The palms of a person talk much based if the gaze is focused on this triangle it is
on their positioning during a conversation. called ‘business gaze’. This is a formal style sometimes communicate
The open palm gesture has often been as- of using the eyes and talking to the person unknowingly. The trick lies
sociated with truth, honesty, allegiance and looking him straight in the eye. If this gaze in reading the signs right
submission. During normal conversation, shifts below the triangle at the nose, mouth
open palms (open upwards) indicate how and the neck, then it seems ‘the intimate
and understanding them.
the speaker is trying to impose his honesty gaze’, meant for casual or informal conver- According to
with another person. In a conversation sations. psychologists, there are
where the speaker is slowly opening up and All these concepts of body language
revealing facts, his palms come out open teach us one thing—every gesture repre-
many other genetic,
upwards slowly throughout the conversa- sents a positive or a negative trait. One of learned and cultural
tion. This is a completely unconscious ges- the most common gestures is the signals through which we
ture implying that the person is telling the crossed arms before the chest. This is communicate
truth. On the other hand, an unaware liar generally viewed as a defensive gesture
will have his palms concealed, hidden in a and represent a barrier to block un-
pocket or folded behind him in an effort to wanted elements from invading your per-
hold back the truth. Palms can also reveal sonal space. Another negative gesture is
nervousness when they are sweaty or the hand to face gesture. When some-
shaky. Other signs of nervousness include body is lying, he is bound to cover his
knuckle cracking and clenching of fists. mouth or start rubbing the area below his
Again, clenched fists come as a result of nose. Small children often tend to clap
anger and vengeance. Generally, clenched their hands over their mouth when they
hands are a sign of confidence. Clenched see or do something that they should not
www.themanagertoday.com June - July 2009 | MANAGER TODAY 21