iDAY DILIP 12i. ... ~ •• , ""'" BE ASKED

S TEVEN Fraser read the fax message as it rolled out of the machine. "We have discussed Tapas Roy's case amongst ourselves, with our legal advisors and HR director Maya Suri. We have also given due consideration to your feel· ings on the matter. However, we feel Roy's involvement

in the accident was marginal, unpremeditated and his subse· quent actions a result of panic. We feel it would be too harsh and unnecessary to terminate his service. The matter has been recorded in his personal dos,ler ... ."

Steven, the country manager of Pemento India, shook his head. "Very well, so be it., • he muttered, not entirely happy. Personally, he had nothing againat Roy, but the entire episode WilS fiaught With callousness and insensitivity, he felt.

Four months ago, Roy, a salesman with Pemento, had hitched a ride with a friend on his bike. Roy was attending to a sales call at Masjid Bunder in Mwnbai and since he was late for a post-lunch area review meeting. he jwnped on to a friend's bike to make it to Flora Fountain before 3 p.m. In the rush to get Roy to his office. the friend jumped a red light at Mohammed Ali Road and that was when he hit a pedestrian.

Intending to help the Lady, Roy got off the bike, but his friend sped off. Rattled and fearing mob fury, Roy got into a taxi and fled too, but not before the public got the cab number. The ladyL It turned out, was a school teacher whose husband was a lawyer; he filed a hit and run case.

Unable to find the bike rider, the police traced Roy through the cabby to the office ofPemento India and what followed was a nightmare. Roy claimed he did not know the person who drove the bike, that he had simply hitched a ilde. That did not wash with the police or the lawyer who threatened to file a case of negligence. Eventually Roy was forced to identify his friend.

Steven was hopping mad. anus is absurd," he yelled. "It is a matter of a serious human rights violation and at Pemento we take a serious view of these issues. Roy is guilty on two counts: one. neglecting to help an injured party when he was partly re· sponsible'for the injury, and two. lying that he didn't know the driver of the bike. Clearly, he will have to leave Pemento."

HR director Maya Suri tried hard to defend Roy. "There is no court proceeding against him; the law has declared that his re­sponsibility was minimal because he was not the driver. Roy simply happened to be there." said Maya. "Nonsense!" said Steven. "What view the law takes has nothing to do with human rights. That a responsible member of the company, on duty, acts in a manner not befitting the image of the company is the

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Issue. How can we taxe· a lenient view of ,his lying. of ignoring a pedestrian who has been hurt by the very friend he was riding with?lfhe coUld act thus to save himself; could he not similarly lie to the detriment of the company to benefit hlmseU? can we be seen as a co.~pany that protects such a person?"

"Steven, Roy is young and Ignorant.~ said Maya. "He ' lied' as you say, but that was because he panicked. He had intended to help the victim, but fearing public ire, he fled. This Is India. Steven, where mob fury Is unmitigated and lethal. Then again, Just because a friend was In the wrong does not make Roy an accomplice. Roy was In a fix and he was trying to manage it somehow. The fact that he came straight to the office and didn't disappear is proof enough of his honest intentions. To now say that Roy was also guilty of negligent behaviour appears unfair to me. We must stand by him."

~People must learn to accept responsibility even for their ig­norance and for their inability to act responsibly, • said Steven. "Social responsibility is an integral part of being a corporate-cit­izen." Maya had then ta~en up the matter with the board, whose verdict was no.,.v lytng ln print on Steven's table.

Steven shrugged his shoulders and put the. fax Into a tray. Looking up he saw Dlllp Khare, hls personal asslatant, standing· before him with a pile of papers. -omp, Roy stays, that's the board's decision," he said. "What do you tbinlct" ~It's best to for­give and forget.~ said DUip.

Steven considered the remark as he watched Oillp potter

At 26, Dillp was very ambitious with dreams of making it big. even to step into Steven's shoes if he could. So enamoured was he of Ste~en's styl_e 'and' demeanour that, within a few months, he took to growing a small French beard like his boss. Steven had no class biases, shared his cigars with DIUp and of· ten took him out to lunch at the various five=star restauranrs he dined at lt was St~en's desire to treat him ·as an equal, socially.

BY the end of 18 months, Steven had come to rely on Dilip compl~tely. He was Steven's means of coping with the hec­tic life that the Indian operation entailed. Now Dilip man­

aged a lot more independently, like collecungsales reports, col· lating them and e-mailing them to'Steven wherever he w.as. Or issuing print orders for new stationery, buying supplies and even deciding on-the supplier. Steven did not have the time, or the inclination, to look into such de taU. He had trained Dillp adequately so-that Dilip knew what was needed, anticipate them and exe­cute them as necessary. The odd query that ~e ~ctly to Steven from the market wa• emclently puaed on to the functionaries concerned for action. Pemento was now on the threshold of bigger things and the routine had to fall into place.

But Dilip's airs and his demeanour irked the managers. It was com·

.pOUNTRY, STEVEN HAD mon to see him, feet on MPLETELY. HE WAS the table. a cigar stuck

between rus lips. talkJng THE HECTIC LIFE on the phone when

Steven was not around. "A!!nl~HI..rn ENTAl LED. NOW At such moments if any

... m 1r1nr: fNDEPENDENTLY ! of the managers walked

® 1 In, Dillp would not cor-

.J.. ; rect his posture, but ges-'1 ture to the visitor to sit,

around the room putting away papers and files, pulling out which was rather unbe· folders. and setting the alarm for a meeting at 4.30 p.m. As he

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coming of an personal assis-put a post·lt sticker which read ·stockist Mathur' on the clock, tam, It was felt. Steven smiled. "What would I do without you, DUip?" he asked. Dillp's growing irreverence

Dillp was more than a-personal assistant. He did much - towards his seniors did not es· more 'than his job called for, which mean't managing the life of 1. cape Maya Suri 's eye. "When you rus boss too. When the Fmsers carne to India. it was Dilip who I are working w)th a senior petson like arranged their stay. accompanied them on shopping sprees [or ~- the country manager, your conduct linen and upholstery, cutlery and gadgets, even helped with comes under scrutiny. lt is very important their bouse lea5e, bought the car chosen by Mrs Fraser. organ- for you to be respectful and'courteous, no mat· !sed Its servicing, the petrol account. a driver ... ln short, he was ter what pr~ures you may be unde_r. · she had said the one person who had made their India posting manageable. to Dllip. "'For Instance,• she said, "I wouldn't walk into

Steven was enormously overworked. If he l'eft the work- Steven's room with a cigar stuck between my lips, a's you are place at 7. p.m., it was only to return to his study at 10 p.m. and now doing." Dlllp grinned and readily pulled the cigar off his slave away at market reports, plans, etc. Often he would call mouth and stubbed It out on the tloor. Dllip at 7 in the morning to dictate the tasks for the day. before Tough though she was, Maya !mew that Di\ip carried an ef~ he left for the plant. To make matters easy he had given Dllip a ficlent head on very young shoulders. At 26. he was like any cellular phone. Later in the day they would talk and check on youngster, full of cola and MTV and an attitude to match. But work done and new jobs to be done. when it came to work, Dilip was the personification of effi·

Dilip in tum managed Steven's deadlines, meetings. foUow- ciency and agility. ups on action plans etc. He was very efficient and Steven, who Three weeks-later something was brought to Maya's notice. had come to India wondering about the quality of assistance he Her assistant;who was examining the medical bills, noticed a might have, was relieved. He encouraged Dilip to study further discrepancy ln Qilip's bills. A doctor's bill for Rs 700 appeared to -a course in sales management-and promised him that rus have been altered- the number ' 7' was .actually a ' 1' which dream of getting into core operations would be fulfilled before was creatively changed to ' 7'. Of course, where the amount :was Steven left India. · written in words, the alteration was apparent

Maya decided to lnvestig!lte. Going up to the accountan~. she asked to see some printing bills for Steven's jops and found more evidence of hanley panlcy: a bill from a printer for visiting c~ds where the numbers had been changed, resulting in a pre­miUm of Rs 2, 100. The bill was handwritten and there was no telephone number of the printer. But a fading rubber stamp re-vealed the address. .

On her way home that evening, Maya drove to the printer and met a Singhal who confirmed he had printed some cards for the company. She asked for a quotation for a set of250 cards and 1,000 letterheads; the figures were much lower than the amount men~ioned on the bill she had seen that noon. Maya looked around and felt that this was hardly the kind of printer her company was likely to use. ..

"What other work have you done for us?" she asked. "I will be doing a big fob this month for Dilip saab." he said.

'~dhow much is it worth?" she asked. "Difficult to say, but I suppose It will

be around Rs 15,000-20,000." "Have you quoted for it?" she

asked. · "Dilip saab said he would

decide. I have even left blank copies of my bills which he said he would fill himself," said the man.

As Maya probed more firmly and with author· ity, the story tumbled out. Dillp would btu as he decided and when the company paid, the printer was to return 40~ of the bill amount in ca:sh to Dillp and be assured of more jobs in the future.

Maya deciqed to men­tion her fears to Steven. He

was naturally very sur­prised. "No, no, it can't be, not

D_ilip. Not that boy. You may be making a mistake, or that printer

probably has a grouse again'St Dilip," he said. But when Mava mentioned the

medical bills. It was too much for Steven. "Good Lord!H he said. ''I wish this is not true."

But it was very true. Steven confronted Dilip. "Do you have anything to say about this?" he asked.

"!don't know what you are talking about," said Dilip. Maya, who until now had decided to keep the printer out, said: "The primer ~ells me you have blank bills which you flU ... •

"That's a lot of rubbish," said Dilip. "Why would 1 do any­thing like that?"

"That's what I thought too," said.Maya, ''but then I saw these bills for visiting cards and letterheads and felt that Rs 4,500 was far too expensive!" ·

·"That's· what I thought too, but the job was done and I de­cided not to use the printer again," liedDilip.

But Maya kept the pressure on. She mentioned the me9-jcal bills and other lapses and eventually Dilip confessed he was in dire_need of money. "It won'rhappen again," he promised.

For both Maya and Steven, Dilip's dishonesty was too much

to t~e. Later Maya Siild: "Dilip cannot stay with us any more, he will have to go."

Steven was half expecting that, yet he was taken aback by the finality of her words. "He is a young person, ambitious, as­piring to go places, stars in his eyes and sq full oflife. Does here-·· · , ally have to be sacked for this?" . .

"It Is certainly Improper to keep him on," replied Maya.

WHAT would we achieve?" asked Steven. "Understand what I am saying. We need to also take corrective steps for his . own sake.l am sure Dilip is mesmerised by the encnanting

world he is' trying to conquer. Can't we help hiin change? After aU-he is from a nice family, we' could help him move forward rather than get stuck with what I see as a moral problem, which· certainly can be overcome." .

Maya was taken aback by Steven's attitude. "How can we condone his actions?" she asked. • · . "L~?Dk at the situation, Maya," entreated Steven, confused

and·overwhelmedby what had happened. "The amount is t09 sm~ll, the. p~rson too young ... a junior who 'Is on a learning curve, not just professionally. but personally'too."

Maya was amazed. "Steven, this is an integrity issue and has nothing to do with seniority or the magnitude!"

"The issue certainly is of seniority and magnitllde," said Steven. "If a senior manager had defrauded the company, my stand would have been that he had the opportunity and there-

AFTER DILIP'S DISHONEST PRACTICES CAME TO . LIGHT, STEVEN WAS SHOCKED, BUT RELUCTANT TO LET HIM GO. "HE IS A YOUNG PERSON, AMBITIOUS AND SO FULL OF· LIFE. DOES HE HAVE TO BE SACKED FOR THIS?" HE -ASKED

sponsibility to act in an ethically proper manner. His seniority indicates that the company has spent a lot of time with him grooming him, imparting corporate values and also given him a chance to lead a noble life. And by virtue of his qualities he was given charge of a responsible portfolio for which he was ex­pecied to behave soundly and have mo_ral qualities. Therefore, when such a senior manager is found guilty of misdemeanour, there can be no doubt ·that he can't continue in the firm.

"But in the case ofDilip, I see two things: he is young and as such inexperienced in the ways of the world;, he is stiU learning about the need for sound conduct and the need for ethical be­haviour. Besides, he is beginning his career, on the learning curve, which covers not onlv functional skills but ethical skills as well. Therefore, we should give him a chance."

But Maya felt his retention .would be seen as· overlooking' · an impropriety and not as· forgiv~i1ess' which in any case was out of place in an organisation. Were organisatipns tci now dab­ble in reforming people. when their sole purpose was business?

And this was the same Steven who had argued ceaseJessly over Roy's misdemeanour, insisting he had no place in the or·. ganisation. Yet now. Steven was seeking-lighter treatment for an obviously dishonest Dilip, felt Maya.

"I am not condoning what Dllip has done." said Steven. "but I can also see his other side-he is hardworking and effi­cient. I am keen to rescue Dilip from the abyss of dishonesty."

Steven felt that sac!<lng a pers!)n from his job could damage

his career and life. Should a company exercise such a right irre­sponsibly, he asked. "He has always done a great job and been• an example of efficiency. What has happened npw is an aberra­tion. What is our social or corporate responsibility in this situa­tion 1 Declare he is a bad egg and sack tUm, or do we say, okay he was dlsh~nest, but we are going to help hitn out of what could become a serious behavioural issue?•

Hlfllet him go, l will be setting a precedent whereby I will not be able to challenge any integrityissue in the future with ctedibWtyor authority,• said Maya.

•Not at all," said Steven. ~You must challenge and question each Integrity Issue whenever it crops up. But lam also saying that every time It occurs we mwt contribute to reform."

"Steven, at the end of the day, we are running a business in. the expectation that our people will act witjl respo~ibility and integrity.lfl have a doubt about even five people in my organi­satiol), whether I like it or not, it will be reflected in my behav­iourwith them. And it will be impossible to work with them as a team. For, each time I as~ them to do something, I will find my­self triple-checking their. motives and actions. I will not be able to ensure-their committnent ~at Is to stop a person who ra­tionalises wrong behaviour once from repeating it? So. I have a problem. And If my team realises that the consequence is only going to be counselling. there will ~e havoc! How am I.then to talce action against persons who travel economy and charge business class fares? Or even a peon who takes Rs 10 for an er­rand? If the organisation is seen as one that does not punish dishonest behaviour, it will become corrupt. Then what?"

DID we punish Roy's misdemeanour?" asked Steven. "Why wasn't that an integrity issue? Please do not think I am be­ing biased. I really am trying to understand what your rea­

soning is," he said honestly, "Was it because Dilip's actions are quantifiable in money terms wtille Roy's is not? Why was Roy's dishoneaty different, Maya?" he asked.

"Stealing is different from what happened to Roy," ex­plained Maya. "Stealing or defrauding has a certain planning and deliberation attached to it. If you get away with it once, the chances are high that you will repeat it. Which is what Dilip did. He played with bills not once but thrice. But Roy is going to be doubly careful that he does not get into the same situation. What happened to him was an accident, there was no premed­itation. There was not even the intention to hurt."

"But Roy lied too, remember?• said Steven. ~He said he did not know the person who gave him a ride·on the bike." ·

"Let's face it Steven, it is not my bwiness to be a watchdog of integrity in the manner you are saying. In Dilip's case, there has been a deviation from accepted behaviour, or behaviour ex­pected of a person holdi-ng a job such as his. Roy's situation was not' on the job'. The maximum I am willing to do is not give him a bad certificate. If it is reform that you are seeking, we could ask him to resign rather than sack him."

Steven thought for a while. Then he said: "In doing so are you being fair and honest to the next organisation that he will join? Now what happens tq,your ethics? You know what will happen? Angered by the whole episode, he will go to another organisation and say he left Pemento because Steven and May~ were terrible people to work with." ·

Maya, as head ofHR, was in a dilemma. Should Pemento sack Dilip or reform him? As far as she saw it, what Dilip did was blatantly dishonest and age had nothing to do with it. It was~ integrity issue. And it had to do with misdemeanour on the job. Dilip was handling a very senior manager's portfolio and the derived -authority and power such a position gave him was abwed, she felt •