Saturday, January 10, 2009

The Satyam Fiasco : The HDFC Angle

Just when things were not going right at Satyam, Satyamites got another shocker, a rather more embarrassing one. All HDFC credit card holders got their purchasing limits revised, automatically, and reduced by drastic levels.

For instance : A fellow Satyamite with a limit of Rs. 50,000 got an SMS from HDFC stating that his credit limit is revised to Rs. 2,000 with immediate effect! Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 2,000! You can't even book a frikkin air ticket on that card!

On calling up the customer care, he was hit in the place that hurts the most.
Satyamite : Hi! I have just received a message stating that my card's credit limit is revised from 50,000 to 2,000. What is the reason?
Call Centre Guy : Sir, you are right. This is a result of an exclusive policy that we have adopted for Satyam employees!

Sunofabitch! True, when a ship sinks, it is the rats that run the first. And a rat HDFC has turned out to be! This colleague of mine had been using the card for at least 2 years, without missing out on payments. Now this is the way that HDFC rewards loyalty.

Never in my life, would I go for an HDFC Credit Card or Account. Never!
It is just disgusting to hear something like that!

The Satyam Fiasco : CBI Enquiry; Funds Diverted to Maytas

My suspicion and belief that the profits from Satyam were diverted to Maytas were confirmed when TOI reported a huge trail leading to the siphoning off of funds. I has mentioned in my earlier post that diversion of funds to Maytas was highly possible. The same sentiment was shared by many in the financial circles as well.

The AP Government will as for 'forensic auditing' of Satyam accounts, and thus, bring the CBI in picture. I hope the process doesn;t get caught in the legal time-warp that Indian judicial system is so notorious for.

And as for the Save Raju mails, I doubt they will stop. I doubt that the stupid freaks at my office would have a change of heart and realise that they have been taken for a ride. I know, that the miniscule brained masses at Satyam would still revere Raju as a demi-god. 

Just watch this space, I'm sure my fellow Satyamites would not betray their feudal-age reverence of the 'job-doling-Raju'.

The Satyam Fiasco : CFO Arrested

The CFO, V. Srinivasan had to take time out from being 'at home', and be arrested for the fraud. He, amongst the battery of co-conspirators would be answerable to the investors, the shareholders and the employees. Raju's statement that he alone was responsible for the fiasco is like saying that Hitler was responsible for the genocides, and that his deputies had no idea that they were targeting the Jews. 
And the worst thing is that the people are believing it as well.

Mr. Raju's parting letter portrayed him as a saint. 'The Maytas deal was the last attempt to set the record straight'. My colleagues are intrigued by his generosity.
Guys, wake up! He did this to save his own sorry ass! He knew that his greed had led him to this state, and he had to do something desperately to cover up the gaping hole in the books. We wouldn't be facing this situation had the company guidance taken a hit for 3-4 quarters on the trot! After filling the gaps, the company could have come out stronger and better! But that was not to be.

I am not surprised if the investigations reveal that money was diverted to Maytas and other entities.

Accountability was missing at every step!

I would urge the new board to bring in a high level of transparency. If a subordinate sees that the billing rates are being fudged beyond limits, the cat must come out the bag.

The Satyam Fiasco - Rajus Arrested

So, the brothers were finally arrested. At their convenience, if I must say. But, better late than never.
But there are questions galore.

Why is Ram Mynampati, the right hand man of Raju, at helm of affairs?
Where is V. Srinivasan, the CFO? (Ram's answer : At home)
What lies in store for the employees of Satyam?

The Satyam Fiasco : The Ass-Licking

One of the numerous SMSs sent by my office-mates:
(Non-verbatim) All of us, the Satyamites, should stand together and work for the company. We should put in pur best efforts and maintain the highest levels of work ethics. Pray for Raju...

I stand by the thoughts in the SMSs above, but not entirely! Work must go on. That is for sure. And there should not be a case where the client feels that the work quality has gone down. I, for one, am putting in my 10 hours into the job.
But I can't digest the last line. Pray for Raju...? What for?
The people have to realise that it's the company that has provided them with jobs, not this person you are idolizing. Why must I pray for him? Did he think of me when inflating the records? Did he think of me when he was minting money by the millions? Why in the whole fucking world must I pray for him?

Guys, open your eyes! This guy has fucked you in the behind! He could have filled the 'gap in the books'. But he did not. Why? Because he would have 'lost the control of the company and a takeover would have been imminent'.
You are eulogizing a person whose greed has made you insecure about your jobs! I reiterate, it is the organization that gave you the job, not that guy!
For God's sake, come out of the feudal mentality that gives a demi-god status to the owner of the company! Have some self-respect! You are here because you have it in you.

Numerous mails end with 'Save Raju'. Bull-shit! absolute crap! 
One of the guys had written : 'I was fortunate enough to meet him during my ELTP (training) days. He is a very soft spoken person and cannot commit such a crime'.
Wow! I mean, how naive could you be, mate! Jack-the-Ripper was also soft spoken! (I admit, inappropriate comparison)

Guys, stop the ass-licking, please. I feel like being slapped in the face whenever I read a Save Raju plea.


Thursday, January 8, 2009

The Satyam Fiasco : Mud-slinging

"We will not touch tainted company like Satyam", said Mr. N R Narayanamurthy.
With due respect sir, it is common knowledge that cooking the books is the proverbial "Rabbit in the Magician's hat". Everyone knows that it's there, but they are still awed when the rabbit appears. Acting dumb and fool is human nature. 

We all know that all companies indulge in this practice and it would be unwise to point finger in such a derogatory manner at a competitor who did not turn out to be a diligent magician.

Mr. Murthy, had all the corporate czars been as pure as the water from the holy Ganges, as your statement portrays you as, there would not have been a necessity to have the PWCs and the E&Ys of the world at all. It is human to err.

I am not defending the erstwhile Chairman of my current employer, but as a responsible and self-respecting Satyam employee, I am disgusted by the level of allegation that you have made. I have the highest respect for you, but I had never expected that you would also take to 'gully-style-lingo".

It is common knowledge that Infosys misses it's guidance every 8th or 9th quarter. This is known as the 'filling the gaps' exercise. Take the hit for 2-3 quarters, and clean up the books. And it is commendable the way this has been done by your organisation to protect investor interests.

The person at the helm of our corporate affairs did not fill up those gaps and ended up with a crate-ful of eggs in the face and the places that you don't want the eggs to hit.

Reiterating my point of view, we must refrain from mud-slinging and ostracizing an Organization on the whole. An organization makes an individual, not the other way round, when you have grown to 50,000+ associates.

Mr. Murthy, I expected you to reply to the situation by setting up higher standards of corporate governance at your esteemed organization. (not lickin :P). 

For pointers, maybe you should have communicated to your employees beforehand, that their swipe-in, swipe-out details would come back to haunt them after 2 quarters

Corporate Governance. Poses challenges, Mr. Murthy, doesn't it?

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

The Satyam Fiasco

The world is abuzz with news of startling revelations by Satyam Computer Services Chairman, B. Ramalinga Raju, pertaining to the cooked-up books of the fourth largest IT company in India.
The repercussions are horrible, by pessimist standards, and awesome, by optimist viewpoint.

Pessimist
1. Zero value, overnight
2. Tarnished image
3. Exodus of clients to other IT companies
4. Future of 45000 employees (its not 53000, they had 'forced' almost 8000 employees to resign)

Optimist
1. Dead-wood managers to be shown door in case of a takeover
2. Worthy employees would finally have a say
3. Professionalism by elimination of regionalism (ya ya, u can screw me on that, but it is existent in huge proportions), in case of a take-over
4. Amazing human capital would not be lost for the greed of a few

The issues
1. Why would another company 'touch' a tarnished company like Satyam?
2. What is the fair price for a buyout, considering the fact that the whole company was built up on space-ship-loads of lies?
3. If the human capital leaves, and so do the clients, what is left to buy?

Why am I writing this?
A. I am a Satyam employee, hardly a year into the organization. I have been the hardest hit. My future is bleak. I have credit card debt. I have a personal loan to re-pay. My total liability : Huge!
Wish I could cook the books to 'fill the minute gap'.