.

Diff bet public & private sector

In recent years, many private banks in India have opened in India, promising better service levels to customers. In terms of nature of job, it is quite similar in private sector as well as public sector banks. You have to deal with customers and make sure you make a contribution to the growth of the bank. However, there are slight differences in public sector and private sector bank jobs. 1.difference of recruitment Public sector banks recruit mainly through bank exams and public notices. Private banks, on the other hand, prefer campus placements and referrals. For entry level jobs too, private banks usually go through campus placements. You would seldom find a public notice issued by a private bank for recruitments. 2.difference of vacancies Public sector banks go by the vacancy rules laid by the government. There is a certain portion of vacancies reserved for OBCs and SC/STs. There are no reservations in private sector banks. The reservations make it harder to find a job in a public sector bank. 3.difference in growth One of the banes of public sector banks is slow growth. If you get recruited at the entry level in a public sector bank, you would take forever to reach the higher levels. There are certain rules for promotion and salary is fixed according the level you are working at. Promotions in public sector banks are usually not done on merit, but other criteria laid down by the government.

On the other hand, growth can be fast and robust in a private sector bank job. In the private sector, you get promotions on merit, and if you are good, sky is the limit for you. 4.difference in working environment Largely, the working environment of private and public sector banks is the same. However, private sector banks are largely more competitive than the public sector banks, although that situation is changing fast. In a private sector bank, you usually have to meet tough targets, and adhere to the deadlines. You could be working longer hours very often in private sector banks in order to meet your targets and deadlines.

The environment is more relaxed in a public sector bank, but that by no means implies you do not have work in the public sector. 5.difference in pay scale Largely, the pay scale in private and public sector banks is the same. However, according to recent studies done on the field, it has been seen that public sector banks pay more compared to private sector banks, when the working hours are taken into consideration. However, since the growth in public sector banks can be slow, the advantage of higher pay scale is usually negated. As for the question, whether to work in a private sector or a public sector bank, the difference between both the sectors is fast diminishing. If you have a choice, go for a bank that offers opportunities for growth, which could be a public sector bank or a private sector bank too.

Active Listening
Hear What People are Really Saying
Listening is one of the most important skills you can have. How well you listen has a major impact on your job effectiveness, and on the quality of your relationships with others. We listen to obtain information. We listen to understand. We listen for enjoyment. We listen to learn.

Tip: Good communication skills require a high level of self-awareness. By understanding your personal style of communicating, you will go a long way towards creating good and lasting impressions with others.

Becoming an Active Listener

There are five key elements of active listening. They all help you ensure that you hear the other person, and that the other person knows you are hearing what they say.

1. Pay Attention
Give the speaker your undivided attention, and acknowledge the message. Recognize that non-verbal communication also "speaks" loudly. Look at the speaker directly. Put aside distracting thoughts. Don't mentally prepare a rebuttal! Avoid being distracted by environmental factors. For example, side conversations. "Listen" to the speaker's body language.

2. Show That You're Listening

Use your own body language and gestures to convey your attention. Nod occasionally. Smile and use other facial expressions. Note your posture and make sure it is open and inviting. Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like yes, and uh huh.

3. Provide Feedback
Our personal filters, assumptions, judgments, and beliefs can distort what we hear. As a listener, your role is to understand what is being said. This may require you to reflect what is being said and ask questions. Reflect what has been said by paraphrasing. "What I'm hearing is," and "Sounds like you are saying," are great ways to reflect back. Ask questions to clarify certain points. "What do you mean when you say." "Is this what you mean?" Summarize the speaker's comments periodically.

4. Defer Judgment
Interrupting is a waste of time. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of the message. Allow the speaker to finish each point before asking questions. Don't interrupt with counter arguments.

5. Respond Appropriately
Active listening is a model for respect and understanding. You are gaining information and perspective. You add nothing by attacking the speaker or otherwise putting him or her down. Be candid, open, and honest in your response. Assert your opinions respectfully. Treat the other person in a way that you think he or she would want to be treated.

Problem-Solving Skills Start Here!

iStockphoto/PerlAlexander

"Problems are only opportunities in work clothes." Henry Kaiser (American industrialist) Figure 1 The Simplex Process

Below, we outline the tools and strategies you can use for each stage of the problem-solving process. Enjoy exploring these stages!

Step 1: Find the Problem)

Some problems are very obvious, however others are not so easily identified. As part of an effective problem-solving process, you need to look actively for problems even when things seem to be running fine. Proactive problem solving helps you avoid emergencies and allows you to be calm and in control when issues arise. These techniques can help you do this: PEST Analysis helps you pick up changes to your environment that you should be paying attention to. Make sure too that you're watching changes in customer needs and market dynamics, and that you're monitoring trends that are relevant to your industry. Risk Analysis helps you identify significant business risks. Failure Modes and Effects Analysis helps you identify possible points of failure in your business process, so that you can fix these before problems arise. After Action Reviews help you scan recent performance to identify things that can be done better in the future. Where you have several problems to solve, our articles on Prioritization andPareto Analysis help you think about which ones you should focus on first.

Step 2: Find the Facts

After identifying a potential problem, you need information. What factors contribute to the problem? Who is involved with it? What solutions have been tried before? What do others think about the problem? If you move forward to find a solution too quickly, you risk relying on imperfect information that's based on assumptions and limited perspectives, so make sure that you research the problem thoroughly.

Step 3: Define the Problem

Now that you understand the problem, define it clearly and completely. Writing a clear problem definition forces you to establish specific boundaries for the problem. This keeps the scope from growing too large, and it helps you stay focused on the main issues. A great tool to use at this stage is CATWOE. With this process, you analyze potential problems by looking at them from six perspectives, those of its Customers; Actors (people within the organization); the Transformation, or business process; the World-view, or top-down view of what's going on; the Owner; and the wider organizational Environment. By looking at a situation from these perspectives, you can open your mind and come to a much sharper and more comprehensive definition of the problem. Cause and Effect Analysis is another good tool to use here, as it helps you think about the many different factors that can contribute to a problem. This helps you separate the symptoms of a problem from its fundamental causes.

Step 4: Find Ideas

With a clear problem definition, start generating ideas for a solution. The key here is to be flexible in the way you approach a problem. You want to be able to see it from as many perspectives as possible. Looking for patterns or common elements in different parts of the problem can sometimes help. You can also use metaphorsand analogies to help analyze the problem, discover similarities to other issues, and think of solutions based on those similarities. Traditional brainstorming and reverse brainstorming are very useful here. By taking the time to generate a range of creative solutions to the problem, you'll significantly increase the likelihood that you'll find the best possible solution, not just a semi-adequate one. Where appropriate, involve people with different viewpoints to expand the volume of ideas generated.

Step 5: Select and Evaluate

After finding ideas, you'll have many options that must be evaluated. It's tempting at this stage to charge in and start discarding ideas immediately. However, if you do this without first determining the criteria for a good solution, you risk rejecting an alternative that has real potential. Decide what elements are needed for a realistic and practical solution, and think about the criteria you'll use to choose between potential solutions. Paired Comparison Analysis, Grid Analysis and Risk Analysis are useful techniques here, as are many of the specialist resources available within the Mind Tools Decision-Making section. Enjoy exploring these!

Step 6: Plan
You might think that choosing a solution is the end of a problem-solving process. In fact, it's simply the start of the next phase in problem solving: implementation. This involves lots of planning and preparation. If you haven't already developed a full Risk Analysis in the evaluation phase, do so now. It's important to know what to be prepared for as you begin to roll out your proposed solution. The type of planning that you need to do depends on the size of the implementation project that you need to set up. For small projects, all you'll often need are Action Plans that outline who will do what, when, and how. Larger projects need more sophisticated approaches - you'll find out more about these in the Mind Tools Project Management and Planning Techniques section. And for projects that affect many other people, you'll need to think about Change Management as well. Here, it can be useful to conduct an Impact Analysis to help you identify potential resistance as well as alert you to problems you may not have anticipated. Force Field Analysis will also help you uncover the various pressures for and against your proposed solution. Once you've done the detailed planning, it can also be useful at this stage to make a final Go/No-Go Decision, making sure that it's actually worth going ahead with the selected option.

Step 7: Sell the Idea

As part of the planning process, you must convince other stakeholders that your solution is the best one. You'll likely meet with resistance, so before you try to sell your idea, make sure you've considered all the consequences. As you begin communicating your plan, listen to what people say, and make changes as necessary. The better the overall solution meets everyone's needs, the greater its positive impact will be! For more tips on selling your idea, read our article on Creating a Value Proposition and use our Sell Your Idea Bite-Sized Training session.

Step 8: Act
Finally, once you've convinced your key stakeholders that your proposed solution is worth running with, you can move on to the implementation stage. This is the exciting and rewarding part of problem solving, which makes the whole process seem worthwhile. This action stage is an end, but it's also a beginning: once you've completed your implementation, it's time to move into the next cycle of problem solving by returning to the scanning stage. By doing this, you'll continue improving your organization as you move into the future.

Key Points
Problem solving is an exceptionally important workplace skill. Being a competent and confident problem solver will create many opportunities for you. By using a well-developed model like Simplex for solving problems, you can approach the process systematically, and be comfortable that the decisions you make are solid. Given the unpredictable nature of problems, it's very reassuring to know that, by following a structured plan, you've done everything you can to resolve the problem to the best of your abilit

Decision-Making Techniques
How to Make Better Decisions
Decision making is an essential leadership skill. If you can learn how to make timely, well-considered decisions, then you can lead your team to well-deserved success. If, however, you make poor decisions, your time as a leader will be brutally short. The 40+ techniques explained in this section help you to make the best decisions possible with the information available. These tools help you map out the likely consequences of decisions, balance different factors, and choose the best courses of action to take. Start by taking our How Good is Your Decision Making? self-test, and then explore different decision making tools in detail. In particular, take a look at our sections onChoosing Between Options, and Deciding Whether to Go Ahead. The Browse by Category box will help you target specific skills, while you can look through the list below to find interesting topics.

What is your body language communicating?

Top 10 Nonverbal Communication Tips Improve Your Nonverbal Communication Skills With These Tips Good communication skills can help you in both your personal and professional life. The following top ten tips for nonverbal communication can help you learn to read the nonverbal signals of other people and enhance your own ability to communicate effectively. This nonverbal language will affect how we act and react to others, and how they react to us. . 1. Pay Attention to Nonverbal Signals People can communicate information in numerous ways; so pay attention to things like eye contact, 5gestures, 7posture, body movements, and tone of voice. All of these signals can convey important information that isn't put into words. By paying closer attention to other people's unspoken behaviors, you will improve your own ability to communicate nonverbally. 2. Look for Incongruent Behaviors If someone's words do not match their nonverbal behaviors, you should pay careful attention. . Research has shown that when words fail to match up with nonverbal signals, people tend to ignore what has been said and focus instead on unspoken expressions of moods, thoughts, and emotions. 3. Concentrate on Your Tone of Voice When Speaking Your tone of voice can convey a wealth of information, ranging from enthusiasm to disinterest to anger. Start noticing how your tone of voice affects how others respond to you and try using tone of voice to emphasize ideas that you want to communicate. For example, if you want to show genuine interest in something, express your enthusiasm by using an animated tone of voice. 4. Use Good Eye Contact When people fail to look others in the eye, it can seem as if they are evading or trying to hide something. On the other hand, too much 3eye contact can seem confrontational or intimidating. While eye contact is an important part of communication, it's important to remember that good eye contact does not mean staring fixedly into someone's eyes. 5. Ask Questions About Nonverbal Signals If you are confused about another person's nonverbal signals, don't be afraid to ask questions. A good idea is to repeat back your interpretation of what has been said and ask for clarification. 6. Use Signals to Make Communication More Effective and Meaningful Remember that verbal and nonverbal communication work together to convey a message. You can improve your spoken communication by using body language that reinforces and supports what you are saying. This can be especially useful when making presentations or when speaking to a large group of people.

7. Look at Signals as a Group A single gesture can mean any number of things, or maybe even nothing at all. The key to accurately reading nonverbal behavior is to look for groups of signals that reinforce a common point. If you place too much emphasis on just one signal out of many, you might come to an inaccurate conclusion about what a person is trying to communicate. 8. Consider Context When you are communicating with others, always consider the situation and the context in which the communication occurs. Some situations require more formal behaviors that might be interpreted very differently in any other setting. If you are trying to improve your own nonverbal communication, concentrate on ways to make your signals match the level of formality necessitated by the situation. 9. Be Aware That Signals Can be Misread According to some, a firm handshake indicates a strong personality while a weak handshake is taken as a lack of fortitude. This example illustrates an important point about the possibility of misreading nonverbal signals. A limp handshake might actually indicate something else entirely, such as arthritis. Always remember to look for groups of behavior. A person's overall demeanor is far more telling than a single gesture viewed in isolation. 10. Practice, Practice, Practice Some people just seem to have a knack for using nonverbal communication effectively and correctly interpreting signals from others. These people are often described as being able to "read people." In reality, you can build this skill by paying careful attention to nonverbal behavior and practicing different types of nonverbal communication with others. By noticing nonverbal behavior and practicing your own skills, you can dramatically improve your communication abilities.

Types of Nonverbal Communication 8 Major Nonverbal Beahviors 1. Facial Expression

Facial expressions are responsible for a huge proportion of nonverbal communication. Consider how much information can be conveyed with a smile or a frown. While nonverbal communication and behavior can vary dramatically between cultures, the facial expressions for happiness, sadness, anger and fear are similar throughout the world.

2. Gestures Deliberate movements and signals are an important way to communicate meaning without words. Common gestures include waving, pointing, and using fingers to indicate numeric amounts. Other gestures are arbitrary and related to culture. 3. Paralinguistics Paralinguistics refers to vocal communication that is separate from actual language. This includes factors such as tone of voice, loudness, inflection and pitch. Consider the powerful effect that tone of voice can have on the meaning of a sentence. When said in a strong tone of voice, listeners might interpret approval and enthusiasm. The same words said in a hesitant tone of voice might convey disapproval and a lack of interest. 5. Proxemics People often refer to their need for "personal space," which is also an important type of nonverbal communication. The amount of distance we need and the amount of space we perceive as belonging to us is influenced by a number of factors including social norms, situational factors, personality characteristics and level of familiarity. For example, the amount of personal space needed when having a casual conversation with another person usually varies between 18 inches to four feet. On the other hand, the personal distance needed when speaking to a crowd of people is around 10 to 12 feet. 6. Eye Gaze Looking, staring and blinking can also be important nonverbal behaviors. When people encounter people or things that they like, the rate of blinking increases and pupils dilate. Looking at another person can indicate a range of emotions, including hostility, interest and attraction.

7. Haptics Communicating through touch is another important nonverbal behavior. There has been a substantial amount of research on the importance of touch in infancy and early childhood. Touch can be used to communicate affection, familiarity, sympathy and other emotions. 8. Appearance Our choice of color, clothing, hairstyles and other factors affecting appearance are also considered a means of nonverbal communication. different colors can evoke different moods. Appearance can also alter physiological reactions, judgments and interpretations. Just think of all the subtle judgements you quickly make about someone based on his or her appearance. These first impressions are important, which is why experts suggest that job seekers dress appropriately for interviews with potential employers.

Nonverbal Communication in the Workplace Basic Definition of Workplace and Interpersonal Nonverbal Communication Body language: The way a person sits; stands; moves arms, hands, and feet; other subtle movements. Eye contact: Eye contact is also used to convey interest and emotions, and to promote rapport with the receiver of the message. It is also used to feign interest, mislead, and fake interest. Tone of voice and other aspects of paralinguistics:Paralinguistics is vocal communication separate from the actual words used and includes such factors as inflection, pitch, pacing, pauses, and loudness. It is a form of nonverbal communication which is useful for telephone and in-person interaction.

 Touch: Touch is a powerful method of nonverbal communication. A pat on the

back, a hug, a person reaching out to touch your hand in sympathy communicates with or without accompanying words. Quotations About Nonverbal Communication

The human body is the best picture of the human soul. --Ludwig Wittgenstein
The limits of my language means the limits of my world. --Ludwig Wittgenstein Using body language effectively means not only communicating with others, but also learning more about yourself.

There can be many challenges

that an HR manager has to face:

# Managing Change: As the organiations are going Global this is one problem faced by many organisations of manging the change in the organisation and how to make people acquanted with the changes. # Work Culture: Due to acquisition and mergers taking place it becomes important for the HR Manager to develop the work culture. # Ethics and Values: In the times when we are getting more professional and narcissist, it is very important to have Ethics and values to be in place which also in the long run decides the sustainability of the organisation. # Managing low attrition rate: More competition also adds to high attrition. Now here is the opportunity for the HR manager to play safe and introduce good retention strategies. # Balancing work and personal life: Huge responsibility is on the shoulder of an HR Manager to create a balance between the work life and personal life by flexi work hours, paternity leaves( Yes it is what most companies are starting) and vacations are some of the options in hand. # Stress and Conflict: Long working hours, target pressures, high competition etc adds stress and conflicts in the Organisation. It is the duty of an HR Manager to have proper responses to the stress and conflict before it causes damage to someones' personality. # Consultative approach: Developing continuous dialogue, open communication, participative decision making is very important for implementing consultative approach. It is an HR Manager who can facilitate such approach to procure participative and democratic culture. # Restructuring Organisation: As the trend is changing so the organisation structure. The organisation are getting more flatter and simpler.

# Globalisation: Companies are going global due to which the workforce diversity is increasing. Managing these people with different religious, cultural, moral background is a challenging task for the HR Managers in 21st Century. Introduction: The HR Managers of today may find it difficult because of the rapidly changing business environment and therefore they should update their knowledge and skills by looking at the organization's need and objectives. The HRM challenges are 1. Managing the Vision: Vision of the organization provides the direction to business strategy and helps managers to evaluate management practices and make decisions. So vision management becomes the integral part of Man management in future. 2. Internal environment: Creating an environment which is responsive to external changes, providing satisfaction to the employees and sustaining through culture and systems is a challenging task. 3. Changing Industrial Relations: Both the workers and managers has to be managed by the same HRM Philosophy and this is a daunting task for the managers. 4. Building Organizational capability: Even in the adverse circumstances the employees have to be made to live in psychological state of readiness to continually change. 5. Job Design & Organizational structure: Instead of depending on foreign concepts we need to focus on understanding the job, technology and the people involved in carrying out the tasks. 6. Managing the large work force: Management of large workforce poses the biggest problem as the workers are conscious of their rights. 7. Psycho-Social environment: Nowadays employees participation required not only in performing job but also in democratizing and humanizing the institution. 8. Employee Satisfaction: Managers should be aware of techniques to motivate their employees so that their higher level needs can be satisfied. 9. Modern technology:

There will be an unemployment due to modern technology and this could be corrected by assessing manpower needs and finding alternate employment. 10. Computerized Information System: This is revolutionary in managerial decision making and is having impact on coordination in the organization. 11. Legal environment: To meet the changes in legal environment, adjustments have to be made to the maximum utilization of human resources. 12. Managing Human Relations: As the workforce comprises of both educated and uneducated, managing the relations will be of great challenge. Conclusion: In spite of all the problems HR Managers are able to overcome all these problems with the support of management and employees. In the current business world managing employees are becoming complex task and this can be handled effectively only by our great HR Leaders.

Some of the major challenges which HR faces in India today are discussed hereunder.

Managing globalization: It is important for an HR Manager to study people management

practices before implementing new practices which are global in nature. It has become a challenge for the HR to educate its workforce on how globalization can be leveraged and how an individual employee benefits or is affected by it. Instead of thrusting new practices upon them, it is ideal to study the existing practices which are in place.

Developing leadership skills: It is not just about knowledge, experience and expertise it is
also about developing the right soft skills to give shape to the future leaders. Since the global economic and industrial scenario is very volatile and dynamic, what is required now is a skill set in the workforce which distinguishes them as team leaders.

Managing change: Change management is the call of the day with big organizations
integrating Six Sigma methodologies in their businesses. Change management defines the response of the business to the changing external and internal environment. The industrial growth scenario in India demands that there should be change brought about within all factions of the industry. But there are internal and external forces which resist the change. It is a huge challenge to influence the resisting forces with the organization, manage internal conflicts, motivate them to embrace change and implement the changes.

Developing work ethics: With back to back slumps in the global economy, India has not
remained unscathed. Employee morals and loyalty are being tested in a businesss day to the day functioning. It has become very important to re-instill cultural values, loyalty, respect for the weak and elderly, and infuse qualities like empathy, charity, austerity, team spirits, ethics and bonding in the workforce.

 Retaining Talent: Yes, this is one of the major challenges which HRM faces today. Poaching
and cut-throat competition has given an impetus to high remuneration to the deserving. People have gained exposure and their yearning to rise is sees them changing loyalty and organizations very frequently. This is especially observed in the IT and ITES sector. To manage low attrition rates and retain talent has become a mammoth hurdle which all organizations want to cross in order to reach their goals.

Managing fast changing technological trends: Most large and medium scale organizations
today prefer to be technologically oriented. The technological trends in todays global scenario are fast changing. Educating the human resource about these changes, upgrading their knowledge and motivating them to learn, absorb and come out of their comfort zones is a great challenge faced by many organizations.

Developing Accountability: With the advent of Six Sigma methodologies, organizations

have lowered their tolerance levels for mistakes, errors and delays. It is a challenge which HRM in India is facing like its global counterparts. It is not easy to train people to shoulder responsibility.

Managing workforce stress and employment relations: HR is the face of an organization.

It hires and fires employees and if the HR of an organization is not emphatic towards its workforce it does not help in employment relations. This factor is fast becoming a challenge for HRM especially in sectors like hospitality, IT and allied support services, media and entertainment.

Managing inter-functional conflict: Earlier it was the friction between different levels of an
organization and now the new emerging challenge for the HR is to manage inter-functional conflict within an organization. With organizational restructuring becoming common in the past few years, disputes and friction between different functions has been on the rise.

Managing workplace diversity: With globalization and Indias economy changing gears to
accelerate growth, organizations hire as well depend on a people from different countries, cultures and ethnicity. To manage the diverse workforce who have fairly diverse physiological and the psychological influences, is also a huge challenge for the HR in the emerging Indian economy. This is not an exhaustive list of some of the challenges of HR in India which includes many other factors like retrenchment and downsizing specifically in the BPO and finance sectors, managing knowledge workers, occupational shifts, trade unionism in the public sector and manufacturing sector, limited exposure and research in the field of human resource management and limited training resources to handle.