In INDORE PLUS (Sunday, March 7, 2010) – a supplement circulated with the Times of India and the Economic Times in Indore and adjoining cities
STATE BANK OF INDIA IS ORGANISING A SERIES OF SELF-DISCOVERY AND TRANSFORMATION INTERVENTIONS CALLED 'CITIZEN-SBI', TOUCHING LIVES OF 200,000 PLUS EMPLOYEES, 135 MILLION PLUS CUSTOMERS AND THE ENTIRE INDIAN ECONOMY. INDORE PLUS GAINS PERSPECTIVE ON THE PROGRAMME AND HOW THESE NEW ENLIGHTENED CITIZENS CAN CONTRIBUTE POSITIVELY IN ALL SPHERES OF LIFE.
A Citizen Movement is spanning across the State Bank of India with Citizen-SBI initiative. The focus is not on banking profits. The focus of this project is to transform the bank into a platform that provides inner fulfillment to its employees and tries to transform the communities around by going beyond institutional and personal success. Already 1,82,133 employees of SBI and more than 50 per cent of State Bank of Indore employees have undergone the citizenship orientation programme with imbibed basic values of positive contribution at home, workplace and society. It is a two year long intervention with "the power to change lies within all of us" being the basic affirmation of the programme.
BACKGROUND RESEARCH
Citizen-SBI idea was inspired from the writings and talks by Swami Ranganathanand, spiritual guru of Ramakrishna Mission. He spoke of enlightened citizenship as a 'state of living' where our inner being flows in our functional roles, transforming the quality and motivation of work. Stirred with this thought, O.P. Bhatt, Chairman, SBI, envisaged paralleling such learning for employees in coordination with training designer, Srinivas, CEO and founder, Illumine Knowledge Resources. After few pilot tests in Hyderabad and Gurgaon, the project was modified as per initial feedback and a refined version was launched on September 1, 2009.
THE INTERVENTIONS
The project has four stages, the first of which is the Citizen Orientation programme, a two-day workshop, to help employees assimilate the basic 'ideal of citizenship'. It helps recognize 'what do I do' and 'who am I" to establish an equilibrium among measures of fulfillment via a tree with inner fruits (patience, wisdom, perseverance) and outer fruits (prestige, status, money). Second stage is the Customer Fulfillment programme to bring out a shift from instruction-seeking behaviour to solution-seeking behaviour. The third Market Engagement programme extends the ideal of citizenship to community level by redefining the way we engage with the market. Finally, the Citizenship Enablement programme ensures sustainability of Citizen-SBI by the top management of the bank as senior management citizenship. While the first intervention is in full run, the other modules will effectuate with the Customer Fulfillment module inception.
THE OUTCOME
The end result of Citizen-SBI would facilitate people operate from a 'citizen state of mind' achieved by practicing enlightened self-interest (expansion of self) and consciously seeking deeper fulfillment through one's duties.
SBI-CITIZENS SPEAK:
CHANGE IN SOCIAL DYNAMICS
If the quality of interface between people at the bank and customers changes, it is going to have some kind of cascading effect. If it happens to one person, it is big gain; if it happens to one hundred persons, it is a huge gain; if it happens to two hundred thousand people in the organization, it will change the social dynamics of India because these two hundred thousand people interact with one hundred forty million customers.
O.P. Bhatt, Chairman, State Bank of India
ENHANCED SERVICE ATTITUDE WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Citizen-SBI is not about bank and business, it is an awakening of the 'self' of a person. I sincerely believe that cadre is immaterial in touching someone's life. Every single individual has the capacity to make a difference, and these small contributions can refine the society at the national-level. The most noteworthy facet of this programme is learning 'to go beyond', to look beyond material achievements, to surpass the rule book, and appreciate others for their out-of-the-league efforts.
Soundara Kumar, Managing Director, State Bank of Indore
CITIZENSHIP AS A WAY OF LIFE
I am a daily witness to employees imbibing the ideal, realizing value in it and taking the first step in practicing citizenship which is by no means an easy thing to do. I have myself evolved as a human being.
Jagat Singh Bisht, AGM (Training) and Intervention Leader Citizen-SBI
TRAINING BASED ON EQUALITY
We don't impose principles or thoughts on them. The idea is to impart a vision to fill gaps in their inner self, leading to self-realisation in a sublime way. Training is imparted on equality principle at human, potential and fulfillment levels.
Harina, Facilitator, Citizen-SBI
REBIRTH OF THE INNER-SELF
As a recipient of this training, mindset compass acted most powerful for me, helping me explore new things about myself. It's what I already had in me; the programme made me arise with it. Citizen-SBI is, in true sense, 'rebirth' for me.
Saimah Khan, P.O., SBI
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