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Acknowledgement

We are thankful to the Dhriiti team especially Mr Anirban Gupta, Ms Nidhi Arora, Mr Arindam

DasGupta and Mr Manabendra Pathak for giving us freedom and all the possible support and

encouragement.

We are grateful to Prof. Arvind Gupta for his inputs and invaluable guidance in an area in which

we knew practically nothing. We are also thankful to Assam and Delhi people for sustaining

interest and motivation throughout our nine weeks extensive OTS.

We are also thankful to IRMA for giving us the opportunity to study the organization and its

functionalities closely through interaction and observation during this period.

Amit Garg (25056)

Anant Jayant Natu (25058)

Bibhudutta Patra (25066)

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Executive SummaryProject Title: Understanding Organization

Organization: Dhriiti-The Courage Within

Reporting Officer: Mr. Arindam DasGupta, Ms Nidhi Arora

Faculty guide: Prof. Arvind Gupta

Project Title: Understanding OrganizationStudents Name: Amit Garg (25056), Anant Jayant Natu (25058), Bibhudutta Patra (25066)

Dhriiti-The Courage Within is a national level NGO which started its operation in December

2004 and it wants to become the most innovative and professional organization working in Indiafor the development of the small scale sector by creating a pool of next generation entrepreneur.

Objectives and scope of the study: The organizational understanding would encompass

understanding the present structure of the organization, its systems and procedures and work

culture of the organization and its future plans. We would be expected to provide organizationdevelopment inputs to the organization

Methodology and Sources of data: The primary sources of data were Personal interviews,

direct and indirect observations, Questionnaire administered on the employees and direct

interactions we had with the concerned NGO and the community. Secondary sources were thereports and Dhriiti website.

Major Findings: The structure of the organization is very fluid at the moment. The board ofdirectors consists of fourteen members all between the age-group of 24-30. Out of these, seven

are directly involved with the organization and others are giving consultancy as and when the

need arises. All these members hail from eight different states. The diversity of profession andinterests that is shared between them ensures that Dhriiti gets vital inputs right from designing of

website to improvement in machines. To achieve its mission Dhriiti had devised a multi-

dimensional strategy. There are two divisions out of three that are operational at the moment-

MEDM (which is into Arecanut leaf plate manufacturing cluster development) and the EDC(which is into spreading awareness about entrepreneurship through workshops and running

Chapters in educational institutions) whose work is overseen by their respective Directors. Thethird division- RFC has its operations temporarily suspended due to some technical snags with itscollaborators in Andhra Pradesh. The Executive Director sits at New Delhi and his main

function is to monitor the developments in these three divisions, get in touch with funding

agencies and explore new avenues for the future. The work culture is very informal andemployees work the way students work at any B-school, where what matters is the final output

and not the hours being put in. There is no fixed working hours but the employees set daily

targets for post lunch and pre lunch sessions. There are no fixed holidays and they work for

thirteen hours daily which may extend up to eighteen hours in case of some pressing deadline. Itlooks at each employee as a social entrepreneur; capable of generating his/her own ideas which

are scalable and profitable business propositions and implementing them. Dhriiti doesnt want to

be dependent on grant and wants to generate its own funds through consultancy in future.Recommendations: Dhriiti should recruit at least one more employee at its MEDM division.

Dhriiti has spread its operation over wide geographical limits-Delhi, Assam and AP. It should

concentrate only at Delhi, Assam and take up some minor consultancy projects (as source ofimmediate revenue). Dhriiti should cut cost in communication (internet & phone) by taking the

service directly on monthly rental basis and traveling expenses can be curtailed by opening its

site office close to community.

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Table of Contents1 OBJECTIVES OF STUDY .......................................................................................................... 7

2 METHODOLOGY ADOPTED ....................................................................................................73 BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF THE ORGANISATION ................................................7

4 CHRONOLOGICAL EVENTS ....................................................................................................9

5 MISSION: .................................................................................................................................... 96 VISION: ....................................................................................................................................... 9

7 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE ORGANIZATION ......................................................... 9

8 STAFF AND COMPENSATION PLAN ...................................................................................109 ORGANOGRAM ....................................................................................................................... 11

10 INPUT-OUTPUT MODEL FOR UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATION ...........................11

11 STRATEGY .............................................................................................................................15

12 STAKEHOLDERS: (Power, interest, accountability) ..............................................................1812.1 Board: .................................................................................................................................18

12.2 Beneficiary: ........................................................................................................................20

12.3 Funding Agency: ................................................................................................................20

12.4 Employees: ........................................................................................................................2013 RESOURCE MOBILIZATIONS: ............................................................................................21

14 MONITORING AND EVALUATION: ...................................................................................2115 DIMENSIONS OF ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE: ......................................................21

15.1 Complexity .........................................................................................................................22

15.1.1 Horizontal Differentiation ..........................................................................................2215.1.2 Vertical Differentiation ...............................................................................................22

15.1.3 Spatial differentiation ..................................................................................................22

15.2 Formalization .....................................................................................................................23

15.3 Centralization ....................................................................................................................2316 TECHNOLOGY PERSPECTIVE: ...........................................................................................23

17 ENVIRONMENT PERSPECTIVE ..........................................................................................2418 LEADERSHIP .........................................................................................................................2419 RELATIONSHIP WITH GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL PARTIES .............................25

20 NETWORKING: ...................................................................................................................... 25

21 MODE OF INFORMATION: ...................................................................................................2622 SCALING UP: .........................................................................................................................26

23 WITHDRAWAL STRATEGY: ................................................................................................27

24 OUR LEARNINGS FROM OU ...............................................................................................28

References..29

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List of tables

Table 1: Chronological listing of events

Table 2: Timeline for the future projects

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List of figures

Figure 1: Organogram

Figure 2: Input- Output Model for Organizational Understanding

Figure 3: Strategy Diagram

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List of Abbreviations

MEDM Micro Enterprises Development and Management

RFC Research and Facilitation Center

EDC Entrepreneurship Development Cell

GVT Gramin Vikas Trust

SME- Small and Medium Enterprises

DIC- District industries Centre

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1 OBJECTIVES OF STUDY

To develop an understanding of the organization, its structure and operations and learn

about its plans and strategies for growth.

To understand how an organization comes into existence, how it grows, adapts to the

environment and absorbs changes and sustains itself.

To understand the interface between the organization and its external environment

2 METHODOLOGY ADOPTED

Primary Sources

Day to day observations.

Formal and Informal discussions with Dhriiti members

Secondary Sources

Pamphlets and documents of workshops

Dhriiti web site

Scope and Limitations

Study confined to Delhi and Barpeta regions.

Since organization is new, many formal documents like annul reports etc. were not

available

Major part of study is based on the discussion with members of the organization.

3 BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF THE ORGANISATION

From the development of business to the business of development, i.e. achieving the

development through setting up of viable business propositions. This happens to be the

underlining philosophy of the employees at Dhriiti. At Dhriiti each employee is seen as an

entrepreneurin his own right.

Dhriiti is materialization of the dream, nurtured by Arindam and Anirban, day in and day out for

almost three years. It was mid-2001 when Arindam was working with CII and Anirban with an

NGO in Delhi. Both were roommates and close friends and had known each other since they

were classmates in Jamshedpur. They both had a deep urge to start something of their own. This

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desire had its root in Arindams love for freedom which made a nine to five job nothing less than

an anathema and Anirbans leftist leanings, which pulled him to work for social problems. So,

both were looking for an opportunity to give a direction to this deep but unhinged desire. For

both Arindam and Anirban it came in the form of selection in IRMA and XIMB respectively.

Arindam had an interest in the food-processing sector. He had seen tonnes and tonnes of

tomatoes rotting and being sold at pay dirt prices in his native state Jharkand. The wastage and

the distress selling that he saw were compelling/disturbing enough to convince him to do

something about it. His zeal to work on this issue rubbed on his friends, most of whom hailed

from either Bihar or Jharkhand. Arindam saw to it that most of the projects they did at IRMA

were related to the food processing industry.

On passing out of IRMA he joined EDI and was given a posting in Guwahati. There he was

supposed to be in charge of monitoring the Micro-enterprises up by the individuals who were

given training at the various programs conducted by EDI. This stint gave him few months of

experience and insight into the life of the North East.

Dhriirti got formally registered in December 2004 under the societies act XXI. Before the

registration groundwork for Arecanut Leaf plate project was completed. Pilot unit for Arecanut

Leaf Plate was established in February2005.

For any organization teamwork is the most important aspect. Teamwork demands total

subjugation of personal ego for something collective and exalted. This condition can be achieved

within people who know each other well and are friends. Arindam believes that friendship needs

to be taken to a next level where friends become peer professionals.

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4 CHRONOLOGICALEVENTS

Activity Date Location

Dhriiti Conception October 2004 Delhi

Preliminary Groundwork

for Arecanut Project

November 2004 Assam

MSSRF Study Formal November 2004 Tamil Nadu

Registration of Dhriiti December 2004 Delhi

Planning & Module

Development

January 2005 Delhi

Arecanut Leaf Plate

Manufacturing Cluster

February 2005 Assam

Entrepreneurs of

Tomorrow Programme

May 2005 Delhi

Table: 1

5 MISSION:

To stimulate a culture and attitude of enterprises and entrepreneurship for transformations of

thought into action and create a chain of sustainable, efficient and competitive micro enterprisesleading towards better condition of life and living.

The idea behind the above mission is to promote small enterprises without depending upon the

government for jobs.

6 VISION:

To be the most innovative and professional organization working in India for the development of

the small scale sector by creating a pool of next generation entrepreneurs, promotion and

development of micro enterprises and increases the efficiency of the existing small scale sector.

They will cater to the needs of the existing enterprises by intervening directly and indirectly

through consultancy.

7 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE ORGANIZATION

They have set up time framed goals department wise in the following way:

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EDC (entrepreneurship development cell)

To introduce "Entrepreneurship" as a career option to School and College students.

To cover 50 institutions and train 1000 students in 3 years.

Entrepreneurship promotion activity to spread over 5 states in 3 years.

The conversion percentage of trainees to entrepreneurs to be 60% over a 10 year period.

MEDM (Micro Enterprise Development & Management)

To set up 100 micro enterprises (both manufacturing and services) in generating

livelihood for 2000 people in 3 years.

To set up 2 clusters of micro enterprises in 2 different states in 3 years.

To build a network of grassroots level organizations, government and non-government

agencies all over India to protect and promote SMEs over a period of 5 years.

RFC (Research and facilitation cell)

To engage in 150 consultancy assignments for the promotion and development of micro

enterprises in 3 year

8 STAFF AND COMPENSATION PLAN

Barely eight months have passed at the time of writing this report since the inception of Dhriiti.

So naturally staff strength is very small. There are five professionals- Arindam Dasgupta, Subba

Reddy and Manabendra Pathak at Barpeta and Nidhi Arora and Anirban Gupta at New Delhi.

There remuneration is Rs.10,000 per month. All these professionals are MBAs expect

Manabendra, who is a Mechanical engineer. There is one semi-professional who works as a field

officer in the areca nut project at Barpeta. His name is Gyanendra and is a native of Assam. He

gets a pay of Rs.5,000 per month. Then there are two unit level workers in Barpeta, who workfor local NGOs and are not the direct employees of Dhriiti. They get paid Rs.1800 per month.

Finally there are two employees of the pilot unit at Barpeta. One of them gets paid Rs.1200 and

the other Rs.600 per month.

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9 ORGANOGRAM

Figure 1

10 INPUT-OUTPUT MODEL FOR UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATION

Executive Director

(Anirban Gupta)

Director EDC

(Nidhi Arora)Director MEDM

(Arindam Dasgupta)

Director RFC

(Anirban Gupta)

Project Officer(Arecanut Projrects)

Project Officer

Unit Level Workers (2)

(Arecanut Project)Field Officer

(Arecanut Project)

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Figure 2

Inputs:

Dhriiti sees the main input as the entrepreneurial spirit. Be it any of the three divisions, the basic

input that goes into the system at Dhriiti is this spirit. The various forms of this spirit can be seen

as:

Receptive and fertile minds of school and college going youth in case of EDC

Unemployed youth and SMEs in need of reviving their operations in case of MEDM

The output of MEDM and EDC divisions in case of RFC

It is interesting to note here that the outputs from the EDC and MEDM divisions will be

crystallized in form of learnings and used as an input to RFC. This shall be processed and used

in preparing a body of cases which will be helpful in providing research and facilitation to the

SMEs and institutions promoting SMEs.

Processes:

The various processes taking place in Dhriiti can be listed as follows:

INPUTS

TRANSFORMATION

PROCESS

OUTPUTSINPUTS

TRANSFORMATION

PROCESS

OUTPUTS

Environment

System

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EDC:

Sensitizing the students to the concept of entrepreneurship by holding introductory

workshops.

create a network of such chapters throughout the country

basic training on behavioral skills required to be an entrepreneur

provide the students with an understanding about various functional areas like

Marketing, Human Resource, Finance, Quality etc. to be able to run an enterprise

MEDM:

Project Feasibility

Capacity Building Production Management

Supply Chain Management

Marketing

The division also intends to set up clusters of cottage industries with their own marketing

federations in different geographical locations. The enterprises will be set up with the

sustainability objective in mind so that they are able to continue the business after our

withdrawal.

RFC:

Right now, after the shelving of the project in Vizag there are no processes that are taking place.

But when, fully operational it will be the centre for following processes:

Under Research and Analysis: Case Study Development, Impact Assessment, Feasibility

Study, Cost-Benefit analysis, PRA and Participatory Learning Appraisal (PLA)

Financial services like Accounting, Cost control, investment advice, Fund Management,

Taxation consultancy, Audit Linkages etc.

Operation management functions like Production Systems Management, Inventory

Management, Supply Chain Management, Quality management

Market services like Market Research, Brand Building, Product Management,

Advertising Management

Business Plan Development and Proposal Writing

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IT services like NGO Listing, Product Listing, MIS and Database Management

Training and Capacity building

Outputs:

For Dhriiti the final output will be Entrepreneurs who are able to set up sustainable business

enterprises and SMEs that are thriving.

Environment:

The environment for Dhriiti constitutes of the financial institutions, the Government, the labour

force, suppliers and customers. Being in a politically and socially volatile state of Assam, the

influence of Environment is even more pronounced in case of Dhriiti. Dhriiti at this stage is very

much dependent on grants from the funding agencies to carry out its operation. But release of

grant is subject to many factors. For e.g. a grant sanction to Dhriiti was stopped recently because

of the non-compliance of the donee to the FCRA.

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11 STRATEGY

Figure 3

To achieve the mission, Dhriiti has devised a multi dimensional strategy. The operation has been

divided into three divisions:

First, there is entrepreneurship development cell (EDC), which will build the capacity of young

students so that they can be future entrepreneurs. Second division is Micro Enterprise

Development and Management (MEDM), which collaborates with grassroots level organization

in setting up sustainable enterprises. It also acts as a training ground for enhancing the skills of

potential entrepreneurs. Third being Research and Facilitation Cell, this provides value added

services to existing SMEs and other promoting organizations.

Entrepreneurship Development Cell (EDC)

Dhriiti

EDC

Enabling

Agency

School/

CollegesNFERural

MEDM RFC

NGOs

CommunityStudents

Market

Potential

Entreprene

ur

SME

s

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Dhriiti as an organization understands the importance of instilling the culture of entrepreneurship

among todays youth. Thus Dhriiti will introduce entrepreneurship as a career option to the high

school and college students and develop that culture in them. It is in this direction that Dhriiti

aims to set up an Entrepreneurship Development Cell comprising school and college students

and experts from different functional areas. EDC aims to draw out the following learning curve

for its student members.

1. Awareness: this includes sensitizing the students to the concept of entrepreneurship by

holding introductory workshops.

2. Soft skill training: after the student is familiar with the idea of entrepreneurship, he will

be given some basic training on behavioral skills required to be an entrepreneur. The

aim would be to hone the existing skills already present in the students.

3. Functional Training: to be able to run an enterprise, a person should be familiar with

the functions related to a business. EDC will provide the students with an understanding

various functional areas like marketing, human resource, finance and quality etc

4. Practical training: to reinforce the learning provided during the above modules,

students will e attached with he projects being implemented under the MEDM where

they will be involved in various activities of SME development.

5. Project preparation: all the learning from the above mentioned modules over a period

of time would then be utilized for preparation of a project document which wouldessentially be a comprehensive business plans. Dhriiti would be mentoring individuals

in creation of effective and implement able business Plans

Micro enterprises Development and management (MEDM)

Micro finance activities have spread all over India and some agencies are running very good

micro finance programmes. But very few agencies have been able to go beyond that and set up

commercially sustainable micro enterprises. Dhriiti intends to complement and build upon the

efforts of such agencies by acting as a lateral agency networking with various NGOs and

grassroots level organizations to promote and develop Small and Micro Enterprises. The

enterprises may include both manufacturing and service based activities. This division will

provide complete end-to-end solutions in setting up small-scale units at the community level

with the help of the above-mentioned network. Some of the activities to be undertaken are as

follows:

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Project Feasibility

Capacity Building

Production Management

Supply Chain Management Marketing

Research & Development

The division also intends to set up clusters of cottage industries with their own marketing

federations in different geographical locations. The enterprises will be set up with the

sustainability objective in mind so that they are able to continue the business after our

withdrawal.

Research and Facilitation Cell (RFC):

The RFC intends to provide services that shall encompass all components of business cycle and

development of Small and Micro Enterprises. It will include services for all stakeholders in

different capacities, to enhance their potentialities in the activities they undertake, so that they

can become a force to reckon with in this competitive world. The Dhriiti team will envisage

providing the following services:

Feasibility study

Impact assessment

Training and capacity building

Project management

Market Research/ Social Research

Marketing services

Financial services

Operation management

Media and public relations

Information technology

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12 STAKEHOLDERS: (Power, interest, accountability)

12.1 Board:

Dhriiti board consists of fourteen members. They have the following academic qualifications

Anirban Gupta He is an economics graduate from Kirori Mal College and an MBA with

specialization in rural management from Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar worked

with Development Alternatives under the Leaders of Tomorrow programme. He has had a

years grass root level experience with FODRA, an NGO functioning in northeast Delhi.

Arindam DasGupta He is a commerce graduate from Shri Ram College of commerce and

MBA with specialization in Rural Management from Institute of Rural Management, Anand. He

worked with Entrepreneurships Development of India (EDI), Ahmedabad and also had a years

experience with the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), New Delhi.

Manabendra Pathak He is a mechanical engineer from Jorhat Engineering College, Assam

and has worked with PRADAN Purulia Team for the last 3 years. He has been involved in

implementation of different livelihoods project in Jharkhand and West Bengal.

Nidhi Arora She is a commerce graduate from Lady Shriram College and MBA with

specialization in Finance and Human Resource Management from Xavier Institute of

management, Bhubaneswar. Worked with GE India as part of the financial management

programme. Delhi. Now she is full time founder member of Dhriiti.

Pranay Shah Singh He has completed his masters in English from Delhi university. Presently

working with International School of Media and Entertainment Studies (ISOMES) as faculty in

Communicative English & Media management and as programme coordinator. He has been

involved with the institution since inception.

NIdhi Prabha Tiwari She has done his masters in economics from Lucknow University and

MBA with specialization in Rural Management from Institute of Rural Management, Anand,

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worked as camp office manager for three years with Gujarat State Disaster Management

Authority (Government of Gujarat). Presently she is part of East Delhi task force.

T Sunder Raman He is an MBA with specialization in Rural Management from Xavier

Institute of management, Bhubaneswar. Currently working with Birla Sunlife Insurance as

Regional Manager (rural), South India. He has five years prior experience with Hindustan Levers

Limited (HLL), Titan watches and Andhra dairy.

Manish Kumar He is a commerce graduate from Sriram College of Commerce and currently

pursuing charted accountancy course. Has been working with A.F Ferguson and Co. He had a

work experience for three years in the field of auditing (both for corporate entities and non

government organizations), taxation, and management consultancy and business advisory

services.

Jeevan Arackal He is an economics graduate from Kerala University and currently pursuing

MBA with specialization in Rural management from Xavier Institute of Management,

Bhubaneswar.

Anshul Garg He is a commerce graduate from Sriram College of Commerce and currently

pursuing Masters in Computer application from Institute of Management Technology,

Ghaziabad. He had a experience with Spectra Mind, as Technical Support Associate.

Kanupriya Khaitan He is a statistics graduate and MBA with specialization in Marketing

from Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar. Presently working with Wep Peripherals, a

former group company in the sales and marketing department. She is also involved with export

business.

Shubhodeepto Ray He has completed his masters in English from Delhi University and

currently pursuing MA sociology from Delhi School of Economics.

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Vikas Khandelwala He is a engineer from Regional Engineering College, Surat and an MBA

with specialization in Marketing from Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar. Presently

he is working with Samsung India, in the sales and marketing department.

12.2 Beneficiary:

The organization is just seven months old. Though it has not achieved any visible success, but

the way and pace at which they are working at, they will soon see the success. So far during our

OTS the beneficiaries are school and college students in Delhi and villagers in Barpeta district of

Assam. It will gradually expand to different school and college students, other district of Assam.

Now they are venturing upon the feasibility study of a handloom cluster in Barpeta district of

Assam. So very shortly weavers of Assam are coming under the beneficiaries of Dhriiti. Apartfrom they are also exploring other avenues like herbal products, fruits and vegetable retailing and

processing industry, eco tourism.

12.3 Funding Agency:

FWWB (Friends for Womens World Banking) is the sole donor to Dhriiti. Dhriiti got six lakh

rupees for establishing a pilot unit and raw material bank for Areca nut leaf plate with conditions

that everywhere women should be employed. So they used fund to establish Areca nut

disposable plate manufacturing unit in Barpeta district. They are now at the experimental stage

and capitalizing the technical know-how. After it is full proofed, they will transfer this

technology to the villagers of Barpeta.

12.4 Employees:

Currently in MEDM division there is three employees. One is field officer; two are in productionunits (pilot unit). In other divisions (RFC, EDC) Dhriiti has not employed any one so far. With

the existing resources and man power they are able to mange their business successfully. In

future they might recruit depending upon the expansion of the work and availability of resources.

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13 RESOURCE MOBILIZATIONS:

Financial resources: they are getting an interest free loan from FWWB for setting up pilot

unit and raw material bank

Human resources; two founder members are currently working Delhi. So far they are ableto mange the assigned work and resources successfully. In Barpeta district Assam also

two founding members are working along with three employed persons. To speed up

their work, Dhriiti has been collaborating with two other local NGOs GVT and SUS.

With mutual agreement of the collaboration one employee from each NGO will work for

Dhriiti.

14 MONITORING AND EVALUATION:

Though the Organization is pretty new, they have not devised any solid monitoring mechanism

for the employees. But they have weekly MIS system for founder members. Every founding

member is required to fill up the pre defined questionnaire. Every other can access those. In the

questionnaire one of the questions is fix target for advance one month so. Accordingly the

concerned founder fix how he or she is going to approach to reach the target by breaking whole

time into number of weeks, while implementing what the problem they are facing and at last

what is the feed back are covered in the MIS system as well. So everyone in the founding

member is well conversant with others activity in this way. The style of work is self motivating

and self driven but not others driven. They are very keen about the feed back. Just because of

lack of experience of the founding members, they do not know precisely what is right or wrong.

They are inviting comment from others and trying to incorporate in their system quickly if it is

good for Dhriiti.

15 DIMENSIONS OF ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE:

The organisation can be analyzed on the basis of dimensions of organisation structure

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15.1 Complexity

15.1.1 Horizontal Differentiation

Horizontal differentiation means the degree of differentiation between units based on the

orientation of members, the nature of the tasks they perform, and their education and training. In

Dhriitis case almost all the members are professionally qualified, but the nature of the tasks

performed by them differs. While Anirban and Nidhi are taking care of EDC division, Arindam

and Manab are looking after MEDM division. But within a division all employees have the

freedom to perform their work albeit, nature of work was not too different. The tasks are

basically done on ad hoc basis as the organization is new and the tasks are not well defined. So

we can say that the organisation is low on horizontal differentiation.

15.1.2 Vertical Differentiation

Very low degree of vertical differentiation exists in Dhriiti. Though there is an executive director

and two directors of MEDM and EDC but all the decisions are taken by rigorous brainstorming

among the members of Dhriiti and final decision is taken by consensus only. As it is in a new

organisation all the concerned members are involved in decision making. Executive director

takes care of coordination between units but Director of EDC and MEDM division have

autonomy to take decisions regarding their divisions activities. There is no employee under

Director EDC and only 2 levels are there under the Director MEDM. Even in these two levels

project officer has full autonomy to take decisions and only unit level workers and field officers

are given directions by them. So we can say that there exists very low degree of vertical

differentiation in Dhriiti.

15.1.3 Spatial differentiation

Spatial differentiation refers to the degree to which the location of an organizations offices,

plant and personnel are dispersed geographically. Dhriitis operations are taking place in Delhi

and Assam. In each of these places it is running different kinds of project. So Dhriiti is spatially

differentiated if we see organisation as a whole. But its operations at individual units are not

scattered till now as MEDM activities are limited to Assam and EDC activities are limited to

Delhi only.

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15.2 Formalization

Refers to the degree to which jobs within the organisation are standardized. But in Dhriiti, no

standardization of jobs is there. Members have significant autonomy in their work, but final

decision is taken by consensus. There are no written rules, procedures, instructions and

communications. But with the passage of time some degree of formalization has set in. Each

employee has to fill in weekly MIS report detailing the activities he has performed through out

the week.

15.3 Centralization

Can be described as the degree to which the formal authority to make discretionary choices is

concentrated in an individual, unit or level (usually high in the organisation), thus permitting

employees (usually low in the organisation) minimum input into their work.

But in Dhriiti all the employees have high degree of autonomy; executive director can not take

decision without conveying it to other members. There are not many levels in the organisation; it

respects innovative and creative ideas that can be given by any employee, so there is very low

degree of centralization.

16 TECHNOLOGY PERSPECTIVE:

If we analyse the technology used in Dhriiti according to the Perrows Technology classification,

it falls in the non-routine category. This is because; non-routine technologies are characterized

by tasks which have high variability and difficult-to-analyse problems. At Dhriiti, as job is no at

all routinised, each day new challenges are being thrown in. Moreover processes can not be

routinised also because Dhriitis learning curve is growing fastest at the moment. It is learning

with every project and trying to implement the knowledge thus gained in upcoming ventures.

Similarly there are no-clear cut answers to the problems and more often than not they are solved

by simple heuristics or hit and try methodology. For e.g. in case of areca nut leaf plate

manufacturing one main irritant was the fungus problem. Many solutions were sought but none

yielded an effective result. Finally it was only after the visit to South India that the source of the

problem could be found out.

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17 ENVIRONMENT PERSPECTIVE

As Dhriiti is a very new organisation it has to see the effects on the environment of it. But in

spite of being new its arecanut project has caught momentum and it will influence the

environment surely.If we analyze it from Duncans three dimensional models we see that for Dhriiti, the

environment is low in capacity as it is a new organisation, it doesnt have abundant resources

which can buffer the organisation in times of scarcity, there is very less leeway for mistakes.

Environment is dynamic for it as it might change its processes and strategies of EDC activities

from school to school, though it has prepared course module, it could further change it according

to the requirements and fitness of the schools. Similarly in arecanut projects it may change its

collection procedure for leafs etc. The environment is complex also for it as there may be new

players might conduct same type of business. As environment is low in capacity, is dynamic and

high in complexity we can say that Dhriiti has organic structure.

18 LEADERSHIP

Dhriiti is being steered by young professionals who are extremely motivated to make Dhriiti one

of the premier organizations in entrepreneurship training and consultancy. Since the number of

employees is still less, leadership essentially means being able to articulate the vision and

mission of Dhriiti to external parties and actively seeking new partnerships with the community

or the funding agencies.

In Arindam one can see a production-oriented leader as he emphasizes the technical or task

aspects of the job. He heads the MEDM division and a project Officer, one field coordinator and

two field level workers work under him. Apart from this he has to stay in touch with various

funding agencies and Government departments to ensure a steady flow of funds for the project

and to spread awareness about Dhriiti and its work.

In all this he leads from the front. His energy and passion for the project is shard by Manab, the

project Officer. Manab is a native of Assam and this puts him in a better position vis--vis

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Arindam in dealing with the field workers and the community. But the final decision on all

matters rests with Arindam.

19 RELATIONSHIP WITH GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL PARTIES

Dhriiti is still in its infant stage and it still doesnt have an engagement with the current political

dispensation in Assam i.e. Congress. But the mandate that Dhriiti has set for itself has brought it

in the social mainstream of atleast the Barpeta town and the northern blocks of the district.

Unemployment amongst youth is one of the gravest problems in Assam and the very fact that it

is working on entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment, has helped Dhriiti in being

quickly noticed by the administration.

In the process of starting the project unit, Dhriiti had close encounters with the government

machinery in Assam. There is corruption at every level of administration. Nothing moves-from

getting a clearance from the DIC to getting an electricity connection, unless greased with bribe.

Giving and taking bribes has become an accepted norm.

Though the scales of operations at the Delhi office are comparable to those in Barpeta office,

Dhriitti is more visible in Barpeta than in Delhi. If Dhriirti is able to do something substantial in

Barpeta it can easily form good links with the local district administration and with passing of

time even with the state governments.

20 NETWORKING:

Dhriiti has got good networks in the organizations were fellow B-school mates are working. For

e.g. the presence of IRMA graduates at FWWB has helped Dhriiti in putting its case much more

effectively then it would have otherwise. Moreover the fact that Dhriiti comprises of

professionals educated at top B-schools of the country, gives it a good leverage in terms of

getting a favourable response.

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Similarly, there is a case where Dhriirti could network with ASOME, an NGO headed by an

IRMAn, in promoting leaf plate manufacturing amongst the SHG Shoksokha block of Barpeta.

21 MODE OF INFORMATION:

The information between the Delhi office and the Barpeta office is conveyed through internet

and telephone. Arindam and Anirban make it a point to talk to each other atleast once in two

days where they could share information and discuss about developments. It is no surprise, given

the frequency of interactions between them that the expenses incurred over communication

happen to be one of the main concerns of Dhriiti. Reports and other visual and audio data are

transferred through internet.

In the Barpeta office, the field officer apprises the Director about the developments in person.

Once in a month, Arindam visits the villages himself to see the progress of work. There is no one

working under the Director- EDC and Director-RFC. Pranay, member of the Board and one of

the active members, works in close coordination with Nidhi, Director-EDC.

Since the organization has been in existence for only eight months now, no training programs or

personnel exchange programs have been conducted.

22 SCALING UP:

Dhriiti has a broad vision that supports its strategy to scale up its operation over a period of time.

Choosing areca nut leaf plate manufacturing as their maiden project is rooted in both serendipity

and some thought. The thought part of it is that, unlike the businesses such as Poultry, or service

shops (puncture making, provision store shop etc.), leaf plate manufacturing has the potential of

being scaled up to the district level or even to the state level.

The time line below clearly shows the ambitious plans that Dhriiti has in the pipeline. Out of

these it has already started the baseline survey for the Handloom cluster Barpeta districts. For the

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development of handlooms as a viable business proposition Dhriiti will work with the agencies

in the existing set up and provide marketing help.

Activity Date Location

Handloom and Handicraft Project August 2005 AssamVegetable Retailing & Processing Project December 2005 Jharkhand

Eco Tourism Project February 2006 Orissa/Andhra

Expansion of Arecanut Project March 2006 Assam

Herbal Products Manufacturing Cluster April 2006 Uttaranchal

Expansion of EDC April 2006 W. Bengal/Jharkhand

Table: 2

Dhriiti did a Case Study for M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) of the

Sevankarayanpatty Paper and Board Unit run by Jansi Rani SHG promoted by MSSRF in

Dindigul District of Tamil Nadu. The objective of the study was to understand and position the

issues leading to lack of profitability of the Sevanakarayanpatty Paper and Board making unit

and provide probable solutions. Subsequent to this, Dhriiti undertook a project of reviving a sick

unit of Hand-made paper in Vizag. The idea was to implement the learnings acquired during the

MSSRF case study to this project. Unfortunately the project did not run its full course owing to

some technical problems with the collaborating agency-DRDA.

For Dhriiti the biggest tool for scaling its operations up is to implement the expertise and

knowledge acquired in one project to another and keep moving forth in this manner. It believes

that in future most of its revenues will com from the consultancy projects it undertakes.

23 WITHDRAWAL STRATEGY:

Dhriiti hasnt thought of withdrawal strategy in the conventional sense as can be expected. It has

barely started operations and it would be too early to devise such a strategy. Moreover it is riding

on the tide of extreme activity and is yet to exercise caution and think in terms of exit strategies.

Dhriiti believes that if a development organization truly believes in the development of the

community it must be prepared to withdraw itself from the community. During the phase of

interaction between the community and organization any help that is extended should be

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enabling in nature. Collaborations between the community and Dhriiti should at no point of

time degenerate into a dependency syndrome.

24 OUR LEARNINGS FROM OU

We developed some deep insights into the functioning of new organization.

1. Most NGOs receive funding from big and reputed funding agencies only after a

minimum of three years of operation. But Dhriiti has been granted the funds by FWWB

even though it is only seven months old. The main reason for its success is being

persistent with its effort and having strong faith in itself

2. Academic pedigree matters a great deal for new organizations. It assuages collaborators

fears about the credibility of the people in the organization. The fact that most of the

professionals from Dhriiti hail from prestigious B-schools makes life easier for Dhriiti.

3. The pioneers of an organization have a profound bearing on the direction that the

organization takes. Their ideology acts as a driving force. In Dhriiti, the pioneers see

Development as a business and believe that social welfare is possible only through setting

small but sustainable business enterprises.

4. Just as a baby is born out of a foetus, an organization is born out of a dream. This dream

is a seed which demands nurturing. The dream is born out of a founders behavioral traits

like aspirations, ambitions and motivations. These in turn are formed by the social

grooming of the founder. Dhriiti was the result of a dream seen by Arindam and Anirban,

day in and day out, for more than two years. The dream became an integral part of their

lives and they channelised their resources towards its realization.

5. A stitch in time saves nine: An organization must know when to withdraw from a project,

rather then uselessly expend its resources on projects that hold no promise of value

addition. Dhriiti was quick to withdraw from the project on hand made paper in Vizag

after it faced problems with Velugu.

6. Organizations evolve over a period of time. It may so happen that in few years time an

organization finds itself doing something which it had not thought about at the time of

inception. To avoid this kind of disorientation, organizations have to keep their mission

and vision as broad as possible.

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References

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1. Robbins, Stephen P. Organizational Behavior, Prentice Hall of India,

New Delhi, 20032. Robbins, Stephen P. Organizational Theory, Prentice Hall of India,

New Delhi, 2003

3. www.Dhriiti.org
http://www.dhriiti.org/http://www.dhriiti.org/

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