Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Working for a rupee a year?
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=149238
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Lee Iacocca worked for a dollar a year when the US government gave Chrysler a life-saving loan. Now that the IMF has given Pakistan a life-saving loan of $7.6 billion, would our MNAs, ministers, prime minister and president be willing to work for a-dollar-a-year?
The CEO of Japan Airlines rides public transport to work, eats in the company cafeteria, and cut his salary below that of his pilots as a personal response to the ongoing economic crunch. Now that our nation is in need of some serious belt-tightening, would our MNAs be willing to shun protocol, give up the expensive national assembly, the luxury residences, cars and perks provided at the expense of ordinary Pakistanis as a personal response to the financial crisis that our nation is going through? More important, since they have accomplished approximately zilch in six decades of Pakistan's existence, why should they reach into my wallet to fund their private jets and mass visits to the holy lands? I hate to point fingers because I know that will not help. And I know our problems cannot be wished or prayed away. But with nothing to show for their existence, our politicians should not show off. It hurts an ordinary Pakistani like me.
The response of our leaders will determine the fate of our nation. The current leadership has a historic opportunity -- they can either make history or become history.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Lee Iacocca worked for a dollar a year when the US government gave Chrysler a life-saving loan. Now that the IMF has given Pakistan a life-saving loan of $7.6 billion, would our MNAs, ministers, prime minister and president be willing to work for a-dollar-a-year?
The CEO of Japan Airlines rides public transport to work, eats in the company cafeteria, and cut his salary below that of his pilots as a personal response to the ongoing economic crunch. Now that our nation is in need of some serious belt-tightening, would our MNAs be willing to shun protocol, give up the expensive national assembly, the luxury residences, cars and perks provided at the expense of ordinary Pakistanis as a personal response to the financial crisis that our nation is going through? More important, since they have accomplished approximately zilch in six decades of Pakistan's existence, why should they reach into my wallet to fund their private jets and mass visits to the holy lands? I hate to point fingers because I know that will not help. And I know our problems cannot be wished or prayed away. But with nothing to show for their existence, our politicians should not show off. It hurts an ordinary Pakistani like me.
The response of our leaders will determine the fate of our nation. The current leadership has a historic opportunity -- they can either make history or become history.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
On University rankings / quality of education
http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.shtml?161093
The HEC recently launched university rankings and it led to a debate about the quality of higher education in Pakistan. But, how do we define quality education? And unless we do that, all efforts to improve will remain misguided, like a journey without a well-defined destination.
Educational quality is a difficult concept. The goal is to produce world-class graduates. Universities have to be geared up to do that. It takes a world-class university to produce a world-class graduate. The creation is a reflection of the creator and graduates are created by universities.
What makes MIT better at technical education? Universities` quality is based on the quality of teachers and students they can attract and retain. All else is just frivolous detail. MIT is better because it can attract, retain and develop the best brains for teaching and learning. A university would do well to gear its processes to this end.
Teaching and learning are highly creative processes and cannot be standardised beyond a certain limit. The problem facing our universities today is that they are not designed to handle world-class brains. These people, although belonging to one class, are highly individualised. No institution which cannot handle diversity of an intense kind, and which does not allow freedom, will be able to retain these people. Number one in Pakistan is almost as good or as bad as number 20.
So far, we have not been able to establish a list of recognised degree-awarding institutions. But we have rolled out university rankings.
Tayyab Rashid
The HEC recently launched university rankings and it led to a debate about the quality of higher education in Pakistan. But, how do we define quality education? And unless we do that, all efforts to improve will remain misguided, like a journey without a well-defined destination.
Educational quality is a difficult concept. The goal is to produce world-class graduates. Universities have to be geared up to do that. It takes a world-class university to produce a world-class graduate. The creation is a reflection of the creator and graduates are created by universities.
What makes MIT better at technical education? Universities` quality is based on the quality of teachers and students they can attract and retain. All else is just frivolous detail. MIT is better because it can attract, retain and develop the best brains for teaching and learning. A university would do well to gear its processes to this end.
Teaching and learning are highly creative processes and cannot be standardised beyond a certain limit. The problem facing our universities today is that they are not designed to handle world-class brains. These people, although belonging to one class, are highly individualised. No institution which cannot handle diversity of an intense kind, and which does not allow freedom, will be able to retain these people. Number one in Pakistan is almost as good or as bad as number 20.
So far, we have not been able to establish a list of recognised degree-awarding institutions. But we have rolled out university rankings.
Tayyab Rashid
Building Pakistan into Empire of the Mind
In a speech at Harvard University in 1943 Winston Churchill observed that “the empires of the future will be empires of the mind.”
Think about the sources of competitive advantage that companies and nations have.
With globalization, competition is global, capital is abundant, ideas are developed quickly and cheaply, and people are willing to change jobs often. Strategies are transparent: Even if you've got a smart strategy, others can simply copy it.
In that kind of environment, the competitive advantage is in execution. And its people and their quality that matters. That is infact the only thing.
This can provide the future direction and hope for Pakistan and Pakistanis.
Think about the sources of competitive advantage that companies and nations have.
With globalization, competition is global, capital is abundant, ideas are developed quickly and cheaply, and people are willing to change jobs often. Strategies are transparent: Even if you've got a smart strategy, others can simply copy it.
In that kind of environment, the competitive advantage is in execution. And its people and their quality that matters. That is infact the only thing.
This can provide the future direction and hope for Pakistan and Pakistanis.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Life
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting ‘GERONIMO!’ ”
—Bill McKenna, professional motorcycle racer
(Cycle magazine 02.1982)
—Bill McKenna, professional motorcycle racer
(Cycle magazine 02.1982)
United Brains of America
The U.S. economy is evolving from an industrial economy to a knowledge economy. It is the "United Brains of America" now instead of United States of America that will dominate the world stage. High paying work is knowledge work. That is not going anywhere.
It is in the interest of the U.S. if some countries stay in the agricultural age while others move on to the industrial age. These nations will continue to do the leg work, grabbing a bigger share of the low paying jobs.
Nike is a good example of this phenomenon. Their footballs and shoes are stitched all over the world but none of these manufacturers have the knowledge and brand power to ever threaten Nike's dominance of the market. The critical advantage is not in the factories but in the brains that make Nike.
Starbucks is another example of a knowledge company based on nations that are stuck in the agricultural age.
I am sure that policymakers in the U.S. know this, and the paranoia about the shifting of jobs overseas is intentionally created hype.
I hope the U.S. can retain the flexibility and the freedoms that make it so attractive for the brains of the world, sustaining the United Brains of America.
My submission at http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5570.html
It is in the interest of the U.S. if some countries stay in the agricultural age while others move on to the industrial age. These nations will continue to do the leg work, grabbing a bigger share of the low paying jobs.
Nike is a good example of this phenomenon. Their footballs and shoes are stitched all over the world but none of these manufacturers have the knowledge and brand power to ever threaten Nike's dominance of the market. The critical advantage is not in the factories but in the brains that make Nike.
Starbucks is another example of a knowledge company based on nations that are stuck in the agricultural age.
I am sure that policymakers in the U.S. know this, and the paranoia about the shifting of jobs overseas is intentionally created hype.
I hope the U.S. can retain the flexibility and the freedoms that make it so attractive for the brains of the world, sustaining the United Brains of America.
My submission at http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5570.html
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