Wednesday, April 28, 2010

New Accounting Standard to build trust

Come 1st April 2011, the Indian corporate world would move over to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Many European nations have already migrated to the new system and US too is working out modalities to converge GAAP into IFRS.
The SMEs in India however have been exempted from adopting IFRS because of the huge cost involved in migrating to the new system, the corporates can benefit especially those wooing foreign investors and seeking capital from abroad.
One of the fundamental impact of implementation of IFRS in India, according to experts, is the restoration of trust in companies' financial statements amongst investors and other stakeholders. Looking at the Satyam episode and various other financial irregularities, indeed the greatest challenge before the corporates is to come clean and be transparent in their financial reportings to their stakeholders.
It augurs well for the Indian investors and shareholders but the challenge for PR practitioners in the corporate sectors would be to educate and inform them about the changes and what changes it entails in terms of reporting.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Golden Triangle: The science of being human

I feel humbled to receive the national Golden Triangle Award from the Global Forum for Public Relations, one organisation that added spiritual dimension to the practice of public relations. I have always considered public relations the highest form of practice that not only strengthens the bonds between an organisation and its stake-holders but, in its truest form, helps the organisation to be truthful and honest in its own work place and ethical in operation to rise upto the expectations of its all stakeholders.
A public relations practitioner fully informed and conscious of ethical practice norms, can help organisations achieve success and leadership by adding spiritual dimensions. An organisation imbibing the Golden Triangle principle can create more positive bonding with its stakeholders, create an environment of peace within, and attain leadership in its area of expertise by following spiritual norms.
As a PR practitioner, spirituality is the most essential segment of one's life that helps one discover one's own potential and reach out to its clients/organisation with utmost powerful communication solutions.
Spirituality, as is normally believed, is not about religion. It is not about any rituals. Being spiritual is being human.
Two researchers, Martsolf and Mickley defining spirituality wrote that it is all about "perceiving the meaning of life, values that are to be addressed, appreciating the transcendent nature of life."
In today's world where the professionalism requires knowledge and skills, the ethics help in making the right decision based on ethical principles and predefined code of conduct, while the spirituality generates the inner power to have holistic view of every action that impacts the people or the stakeholders.
This triumvirate elements squarely jell with the Public Relations practice, which is all about creating relationships. Relationships are always strong, lasting and true, when these are based on the foundation of truth and honesty. And this practice of being truthful, being ethical and being considerate to others happens only by bringing about the change within ourselves. This internal transformation begins by following the spiritual path...that alone can show us, the human beings, the science of being human.

Tourism is more than a business or just an economic activity

What do you mean by tourism? I often wonder at the word ‘tourism’; perhaps the only business or vocation which has ‘ism’ prefixed to it....