WORK WISE
"Plan, focus and devise strategy before you hit the road"

Punctuality, honesty and sincerity towards work are qualities I value. I like workers who are progressive in their outlook, stick to deadlines, possess networking skills and the ability to build upon relationships, are self-motivated and are self-starters, says K.P.S. Channi, Deputy Vice-President, Lord Krishna Bank, Chandigarh

"I dislike workers who don't have the willingness to learn or even re-learn, who are shirkers, lack initiative and have to be prodded for every little task.

"Patience and perseverance are qualities I've imbibed from my bosses over the years. Plan, focus and strategise before you hit the road — these are the mantras I picked up from my mentor in the field of banking. As a boss, I believe that my team should function as a close-knit and cohesive unit but at the same time, each member should be given space to perform and grow.

"When I moved from a public sector bank to manage a private bank in the mid-1990s, I faced a great challenge — that of generating the high level of trust that nationalized banks enjoyed among the public and building upon it. As the local head of one of the new- generation corporate banks, I faced the enormous responsibility of establishing a base in Chandigarh, and of attracting customers who till then only had faith in sarkari banks.

"I turned this big challenge of my career into my biggest success. It involved a good deal of marketing skills to carve a niche in a competitive market. My strategy was to highlight the strengths of our bank and convince people about the high quality of service that we could provide."