A video to remember!

 No words ..only gratitude ..and a big Thank You!

                            

Adapting to AI Evolution

 I had a fantastic experience sharing insights on "Adapting to AI Evolution" with over 100 enthusiastic students at IEEE & MEA Engineering College! We explored the core concepts of AI, its history and impact, and discussed key components such as machine learning, neural networks, and data science. We also covered the challenges faced by newcomers in the field and essential skills and strategies for thriving in AI. A big thank you to the IEEE & MEA coordinators and Professor Rahul for organizing this event. Looking forward to more opportunities to engage and support the next generation of AI professionals!

 Its a hattrick!  3 speeches in a row! 3 best speaker awards! 

1st speech title - What's in a name?  2nd Title : Ethically  now the 3rd Title is Jump!

Jump Sathya Jump.  (I actually jumped)

Thank you TMOD, did as you have asked I Jumped! Now will you ask me to sing as well?

Before you do ….let me sing a rhyme or probably recite it…I tried hard to impress the little

kids around me with this..I have failed many a time ! but never gave up!

Here I go again ……come on and unmute and sing along!

5 little monkeys jumping on the bed

1 fell down and broke their head

Mumma called the Dr. and the Dr. said

No more monkeys jumping on the bed.

Fellow Toastmasters and Dear Guests

We Crawl, We Stand, We Walk & We Run. and Sometimes We Jump,

Jump over obstacles , Jump over hurdles….We Jump in Joy ..like Virat too! (The Ind vs Pak ICC game was to begin)

Jumping is associated with sports …..like long jump, high jump, like they hop skip and jump!

High Jump as a sport was very fascinating for me in childhood and it still is

While I still remember my friends, seniors at school would just compete to get the medal in

High Jump so that they get the individual award in sports since High Jump would be the only

differentiator. I wasn’t good at High Jump at all …..this did not stop me from learning about the sport.

Being an avid quizzer,… did read about the sport, the winners, the records and off course the

rules … I’m sure hardly anyone cared about the records and winners…here I was…

One thing that I could never forget was who won the gold medal in the Mexico Olympics in

1968………… Any guesses anyone ??? Yes it’s a quiz question… Dick Fosbury yes he won the gold for high jump! Now let me tell you that’s not his claim

for fame! So you may ask what was it then?

In high jump till 1968 and for many years later…..jumpers used to jump over the bar with leg

first and then followed with their body and head…… we call it the straight jump…

What Fosbury did was he would run in angle towards the high jump bar and would go with

his head first followed by his back and legs……..This was unique and weird but he still was

successful ….. This is known as the Fosbury Flop …yes Fosbury Flop and not Flip!

With this I learnt in life we have many challenges, some of the challenges are daunting

too….remember try to do the different or the unusual that may help you to overcome the

challenge… Don’t fear and off course Practice and trying new things could help! Like The Fosbury Flop!

High Jump is a unique sport ….you must be wondering why! Let me tell you its uniqueness

A jumper gets 3 chances to jump over the bar! If one does , the bar is raised …and again gets 3 chances… till there are a few people left say

4 or 5 …then 3 then 2 and finally there is 1….. remember the winner is declared only when the winner fails to jump the raised bar!

You aren't a winner until you have failed.

This will help you to stay humble and also strive for excellence,

Aren't we scared of failure. Champions are comfortable with failure …

Yes it is okay to fail and it is not the end of the world.

So its important to believe in your ability to Jump and over come …After every success you

raise the bar… Remember the Fosbury Flop !; You are not a winner until you have failed!

So Sathya Jump back to your seat ! Thank you!

Accountability & why it matters!

 Accountability is a noun which means "the state of being accountable, liable, or answerable" as per the dictionary definition. Does "Accountability" & "Responsibility" mean the same?. Well, there are differences and one of the main difference is "Responsibility" can be shared, however  "Accountability" cannot be."Responsibility" is when somebody says " I have given you a task and you are responsible for the delivery of the task". 

On similar note "Accountability" is the sense of ownership of the outcome beyond the task like the result.In today's context, there is a concept of "Shared  Accountability" is when all team members are responsible for team outcomes, not just the leader or manager, typically in an ideal "Agile" team. The culture of "Accountability" is important as people become problem solvers and the problem are opportunities for learning. The focus is on "What is Wrong" rather than "Who is" is more important. I must say this culture emphasizes more based on fact finding rather that fault finding. Trust & Cooperation  go a long way with the intent  to take calculated risks and freely innovate with the future in mind.

So to create a "culture of accountability"  is  everyone's responsibility. Lack of accountability does lead to low  team morale, lower levels of trust and teams becoming less engaged. Its important to make accountability a habit. In a culture of responsibility, yes individuals do feel motivated to work to complete the task at hand rather than the outcome. I don't want to complicate it by adding an element of fear in this.

One of the "Accountability" frameworks I have used in the past is called the RACI Matrix :

Responsible: Individuals who are responsible for completing the task at hand.

Accountable: Individual who is ultimately accountable for the completion of the task or deliverable. 

Consulted: These individuals are typically the subject-matter experts on the task at hand. 

Informed: Individuals who are kept informed of progress at each stage of the project and usually done in the form of one-way communication.

There are so many benefits of this matrix, but would like to mention it does establish clear lines of communication and does  reduce duplication of efforts.

"A culture of Accountability" drives "Effective Leadership", It starts with values of "Honesty", the ability to say "I'm Sorry" voluntarily, seeking inputs from all in a bid to ensure things go well in the future and ensuring in being responsible rather than avoiding "Responsibility".

Even though I write about "Accountability" here as a Leader there is a fine balance between "Accountability" and "Responsibility" that one as a  leader should strike a right balance of.

Stay tuned for more thoughts!