Recently, I came across a rather disgusting offshore outsourcing model which is nothing more than a rip-off scam.  Interestingly enough the scam is being pulled off by a company which is trading publically in its home country and has ties with major software services firms in the U.S. as well.  If you look at this company and its representatives, you would be willing to just jump at them and cut a deal.   Please note that not all offshore outsourcing companies are like this.  I have had some good experiences as well.  So this is how this scam works (anyone interested in making money by unethical means is more than welcome to copy this - just remeber: Shame on You! )  :

No, its not Steve Jobs.  No, it is not any of the google founders eitehr.  It is Larry Ellison. Thas is correct.  Even I was surprised when I saw that.   But that is what this weekend's Barron's front page says.  They have named him the smartest man in the Silicon valley not only because of his company Oracle's leaderhip in databases and enterprises but also becuase of the way he has improved Oracle's operating margins and cash flow.  The author of the article is also very bullish on the stock.  Do I agree?  Yes!

So with simple classifieds without any advertisements and a .org domain name, Craigslist has been brilliant enough to fool the common man  that it is a non-profit site.  You will learn that it is a for profit business if you dig through their FAQ.    But what most of the people don't know is that the job listings they actually see are paid posts and in some cities real estate posts as well.  Still not convinced that Craigslist is corporate?  How about their latest lawsuits with eBay?  If you are still not convinced then lets take a quick look at Wikipedia's Craigslist page.
According to this page "The company does not formally disclose financial or ownership information. Analysts and commentators have reported varying figures for its annual revenue, ranging from $10 million in 2004, $20 million in 2005, and $25 million in 2006 to possibly $150 million in 2007. It is believed to be owned principally by Newmark, Buckmaster, and eBay (the three board members). eBay owns approximately 25%, and Newmark is believed to own the largest stake."  Not bad for a company with only 25 employees.
Sure, the simplicity of Craigslist may make you feel like comparing Newmark with Gandhi or Mother Teresa.  But the truth is that the latter two gave up everything for their cause.  But Mr. Newmark is milking it big.  Even Facebook is not making this kind of profit.
Moral of the story:  Learn how to screw the consumer ;)

While reading HBR, I came across an article by Deepak Malhotra, a Harvard Business Professor and Author of the book Negotiation Genius. The article is called "When Winning Is Everything".  The article discusses that the primal urge to win and be very competitive can limit and severely impact our rational decision making.   Bidding wars can lead businesses into making decisions which may not be beneficial to them.  The author uses Boston Scientific's acquisition of Guidant as one of the examples.  The article also discusses how organizations can manage what the author called "Competitive Arousal" to create a winning situation without any negative impacts.

If you carefully read the article and understand the concepts, you can apply the same to your personal lives and jobs.  Happy Reading!

Who will eat my birthday cake?  Would it be Clinton or Obama?  I know whoever it is, will be eating it 3,000 miles away :)