THE
NEED
At the international
level the world is faced with many problems involving trade, security
and defence, regional conflicts, growing terrorism, disparity between
the interests of the highly developed countries and the others.
In India there
is a great deficit in the national budget, an oversized bureaucracy,
increasing violence and deterioration of law and order, problems of
education, illiteracy and juvenile delinquency, conflicts between
states, castes, creeds, and religions groups, a loss of significance
in daily lives and a great drop in moral and ethical values. It would
be hard to affirm that India is contributing significantly to the
prosperity of mankind and to the development of the world.
Many solutions
have been tried - political, social, economic and religious. But nothing
seems to have worked. Most of them have been based on western models.
The solution that India has to find for herself has to be founded
on her own peculiar genius and ethos.
Obviously we have
to work in several directions as the problem is complex. But one field
which is going to play an important role in the future is the field
of Management, because our sucess will depend a great deal on the
ability of the managers to perform.
Several hundreds
of books are written every year on the principles and practices of
management. Many more are written on reasons for success or failures
of corporations around the world. Hundreds of seminars and workshops
are held in every nook and corner of the globe debating management
issues. There exist a large number of management schools educating
young people on the basic principles of management. Thousands of companies
spend billions of dollars on holding management workshops for different
levels of managers within their organisations.
All these books
and seminars are founded on various principles and observations. Most
of these emanate from the United States of America. Most of the case
studies too are about American corporations. In India, our curriculae
in management schools has followed primarily the American structure.
Our students are expected to absorb the American principles and practices
and apply them to a totally different set of problems and cultural
backgrounds.
Japan too faced
this problem and tried to develop an indigenous model. It was dramatically
successful in the first few decades after the war. But recently the
system has come under tremendous strain mainly because the Japanese
corporations continued to be predominantly western in their approach.
In India there
is now an increasing awareness and effort by a few business corporations,
management scholars and consultants to discover and create our very
own principles based on the Indian ethos and rooted in Indian history,
mythology and spirituality. This will enable our young managers to
bring meaningful solutions to India's problems. For our solutions
have to be in sync with the psyche of the Indian people and meet with
their needs and aspirations.
And then perhaps
India will also be able to make a meaningful contribution to management
issues and problems arising all over the world.
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THE
APPROACH
Never before has
man lived in such a state of perpetual stress, of immediate success
threatened by imminent failure. This is because there has been an
immense outer growth without a commensurate inner development. We
are confronted with an evolutionary crisis between what man is and
what he can be. And the key to the problem is to be found within man
himself. This has been the approach of India down the ages.
The art and science
of modern Management is a delicate balancing of the unpredictable,
volatile and living human element with the mechanised precision of
technology. Modern industrial and commercial organisations have attained
a high level of mastery in managing the technological component of
organisations. But it is in dealing with and harnessing the human
element that the modern manager finds the greatest difficulty. Innumerable
theories, systems and strategies for managing "human resources" in
organisations are offered, tried, tested, experimented and practised
with various degrees of success, but none of them seems to have solved
the problem of "human resources development" with any decisive completeness.
It is in this
field of "man-management" that Indian spiritual philosophy and psychology
can provide the modern manager with a deep, penetrating and holistic
insight into the human dimensions of an organisation. This does not
mean that the spiritual approach has nothing to offer in other aspects
of management. There are many valuable insights of spiritual sciences,
which can provide a new and alternative system of transforming attitudes
and values in the management of non-human inputs also like materials,
capital, energy, technology and in the management of time.
For, a modern
industrial-commercial organisation is a miniature world in itself
and represents, in a small scale, all the different problems, potentialities
and facets of the contemporary human society, the dynamics of social
relations, play of human psychology, clash of politics, government
controls, creativity of human consciousness, dilemmas of human development,
lure and power of money and position, problems of environmental preservation
and energy conservation, and the difficulties of managing the breathtaking
pace of environmental changes and technological progress. The solutions
to these problems and the full manifestation of the potentialities
depend to a great extent on the quality of management. This implies
that any breakthrough in the theory and practice of management is
bound to have repercussions for the progress and well-being of the
entire human community.
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ACTIVITIES
The primary goal
of SAFIM is to carry out research in the field of Business Management
so as to develop a holistic insight into the human factor of an organization.
With Indian spiritual philosophy and psychology as a base we aim to
develop, demonstrate, and validate new and alternative systems of
transforming attitudes and values. The management of non-human inputs
such as materials, capital, energy, and technology, as well as the
management of time, will also be reviewed.
Publications
These
new approaches is assessed and refined before being published for
the benefit of students, research scholars and practising managers.
In this endeavour, we have already published a few books and many
research articles. These articles are published mostly in reputed
professional journals like Journal of Human Values, IIM, Calcutta,
Chartered Secretary, Chartered Accountant, Quarterly Bulletin of the
Association of Consulting Civil Engineers (India), Vilakshan, Journal
of Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar. Our free e-journal,
“Fourth Dimension Inc. – Towards Integral Management”
URL: http://fdi.sriaurobindosociety.org.in
is also an expression of this quest for a new paradigm in business,
an integral management based on a deeper vision and action to synthesize
the spiritual and the material.
Conferences and Seminars
One
of the activities of SAFIM is organising conferences and seminars
to inform and discuss the various issues related to the higher evolution
of Management. This will help to develop active links with individuals,
voluntary groups and organizations, academic and professional institutions,
and industrial and business organizations in the country and abroad,
whose thoughts and actions are similarly inclined.
Workshops
and Training Programmes
SAFIM
draws upon the best of western management skills and technology, but
looks at the various issues from an Indian perspective and with deeper
values. It is pertinent to point out here that unless an individual
learns to manage himself, he cannot manage others or the environment.
Our efforts thus seek to help managers to develop and express fully
their inner potential. Thus the basic aim of SAFIM's workshops, training
and Management Development Programmes is not to be merely theoretical
but to present very practical approaches and solutions. It endeavours
to offer a solid foundation for the gradual building up of one's inner
being as well as effectiveness of the outer actions.
Therefore
the scope of SAFIM's management workshops and training programmes
includes various activities to enrich the participant and equip him
to deal effectively with real life situations of stress and strain.
For instance managers will also be exposed to Indian culture, music,
meditation and spiritual thoughts. They will learn simple yogasanas
and breathing exercises, proper diet and lifestyle routines. In short,
any process that will enhance their health and fitness at all levels,
including an exposure to alternative disciplines of medicine, which
have minimum side effects, yet help in dealing with any ailment.
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LOCATION
AND FACILITIES
Sri Aurobindo
Foundation For Integral Management will be situated near the sea-shore
about 6km. from Pondicherry in Tamil Nadu. The architecture, the landscaping
and the entire environment will be conductive to creating peace of
mind for maximum creativity and assimilation.
The complex will
have a main Conference Hall, fully equipped with the latest facilities
and audio-visual equipment including carousel projectors, TVs/VCRs/LCDs/Film
Projectors etc. The hall will be able to seat 300 persons at a time
with possibilities of dividing the hall into work areas for 30 to
50 persons. There will also be smaller rooms for break-out sessions.
A special emphasis
will be laid on a healthy life-style. There will be 70 fully furnished
residential rooms for the participants and the faculty, a fitness
centre with a modern gym, a canteen serving wholesome food, a library
and a meditation hall. There will also be an audiotorium to stage
cultural and musical programmes.
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