Beating Retreat or taking stock

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It’s been a long time since my last post. One can say that I was running out of ideas or possibly thinking less. Well, looks like all the assumptions are going true at this time. But once again, thanks to an old mate who reminded me of the “Beating Retreat” ceremony performed by the Indian Armed Forces at Raisina Hills, better known as the front of the Rashtrapati Bhawan (President’s house).

“Beating Retreat” ceremony was initially instituted by the King James II of England (James VII of Scotland) ordering the patrolling troops to return to their base castle with drum rolls, parading through the streets. This order was later improvised over the years to suit the need of the times. Yet, the central idea of the ceremony remained – return of the patrolling troops to base camp and deployment of new unit in its place.

Though an English ceremony, this is now practiced by most of the commonwealth countries today. The ceremonial celebrations may have changed due to the place, people or time. In India, beating retreat is celebrated three days after the republic day, denoting the end of republic day celebrations. The armed forces troops – military, navy and airforce – are then ordered to return to their bases, after having participated in the Republic Day celebrations.

In a way, this is an important business phenomenon. Consider this as a manager deploying his resources to achieve a task, and reviewing their performance periodically. Having learnt from the performance and gauging the challenges faced during the execution, an effective manager redeploys a new set of resources. This helps rejuvenating the exhausted resources and provides efficiency in the task execution. Look around, isn’t this a daily procedure we all go through whether or not we are in military? If you or your managers are not performing this exercise, you are missing out on your resources and execution ability. Exhaustion lowers the morale and reduces one’s ability to perform. At the same time, poor knowledge of current affairs is harmful while making decisions. Thus, information technology plays an important role in decision making.

Taking a step towards the beliefs, I consider Vishnu as the supreme manager and a great leader. Observe him carefully – he has four hands. And in each of his hands he holds an instrument playing an important role –

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1.        Conch (Shankh) – The conch is used to blow and make sound. With this sound, he makes sure that his voice is heard and he beckons every one of his followers to himself.

2.        Rotating wheel (Sudarshan Chakra) – The rotating wheel reminds of the 360 degree view that he has and demands from everyone. The chakra is also a symbol for review for what has been done in every perspective.

3.        Lotus (Kamal / Pushp) – The lotus flower is a prize or a gift to everyone who has followed the principles and has done well.

4.        Mace (Gada) – The mace is for those who haven’t been good followers or have done good deeds. Both mace and lotus are the outcomes of the review performed by Vishnu himself.

Always remember, reviewing a deed is as important as executing it. Without a review or an introspection, one is never allowing for the corrective action and hence a chance for improvement. No answer is always right. No situation is always the same. Think always as the parameters always change. There are never any absolutes.

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