Sri Sathya Sai proposes Three Business Approaches for a Values-Based Manager: Part 1



1. Quality


In Indian culture, a great deal of importance is given to righteousness. Business must be carried out with righteousness. Of course, profit margins must also be considered to reasonable percentages. No businessperson will enter into business without considering profits. Business is established basically with a motive to earn money. But then, as the demand for products and subsequently their sale rises, so does the desire for possessing them. This is not correct. Desire, once installed, will only ascend but never descend or fluctuate. However the price of the product must not be hiked, just because there is a greater demand for the product. Conversely, just because the product is not in demand, the price must not be slashed. However, under all circumstances, irrespective of the fluctuation in demand, the quality of goods and services must be consistently maintained.  When quality is not compromised upon, not only does it lend value to our life, but also does some good for the country.

People must understand that there are three important management levels in business organisations: higher, middle and lower levels. Even when you are at the lower level, you should not compromise on quality. By focussing on quality (with respect to products as well as work-ethic), you will slowly but steadily progress to higher levels. The manager keeps everything under his control. He handles the major part of public relations and also manages inter-personal employee relations. With such work load, if he still craves for more control and power, he may obtain it, but then he may suffer from work overload and become stressed. At this point of time he will slowly start delegating responsibilities to those whom he trusts. Hence, one must conduct oneself in a way that attracts the attention and the confidence of the superiors. The management of business is entirely based upon character and trust. One must demonstrate commitment in practice of these two qualities. 

2. Fair Competition


It is desirable that the competition among people and organisations is with respect to quality, prices and durability of the products and services. People must understand that competition is healthy only as long as quality is not sacrificed to gain price advantage. It is unfortunate that in today’s market, majority of business organisations are hardly concerned about quality, but focuse primarily on quantity. When substandard products are introduced into the market, their value and demand drops. One must carefully analyse the situation and then strike a balance between price and quality. One must consider carefully the following issues:
1. Whether the market is going to attach any value to the utility and quality of products?
2. Would a product be of any use to the consumer? 
3. Do the customers get attracted to the product on impulse or on careful scrutiny? 

Business organisations must concentrate on producing those goods that will be of good use to the society at large. When volume of production increases, the cost of production automatically decreases owing to economies of scale. Therefore, a manager must look into all these aspects and function accordingly.




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