How Conferences, Conventions or Conclaves Get Organized in Reality?

Organizing any conference, convention or conclave involves several interesting facets.

There is much more to it than what the facade of the marketing messages that go out will make you think is the case.

The organizers typically serve the same dish on the same old, but cleaned yet again, plate.

Generally, the same standard phrase is used every time.

Attending this event is a great opportunity.

As if there is nothing better to do than attending that event.

Very funny.

And quite ridiculous.

The exact way in which the above is conveyed will be different though.

And that's a big relief.

You will also often hear other statements too.

• you will get a chance to showcase your work
• you will get to listen to the gurus
• you will get to learn from others
• you will enhance your professional network
• And blah, blah, blah and what not.

There are several facets that would, however, strike you bluntly and conspicuously, when you analyse the organization of the conferences, conventions or conclaves!

Here are some of the interesting facets which are admittedly quite concerning too.

Money Smells Good

The main objective of the organizers behind the event is to generate revenues. 

Whatever the subject be, cash is always king. 

That's right.

Bang on. 

Remember, organizing events is akin to doing business. 

The primary driver for organizations and bodies that organize events is to earn revenues.

It is an important part of their business model.

Even the not-for-profit organizations and bodies suffer from the same greed and are desperately interested in generating surplus funds.

The learning aspect is important but that's not the reason any event gets organized. 

The real hidden agenda is to make money.

Jury Knows Not Much

Getting jury in case the event requires that is done in an interesting manner.

Generally, those known to the members of the organizing committee are roped in.

Their appropriateness and competency are no big deal.

If they are even remotely related to the event's topic and are available, they are excellent choices.

The jury members would typically have good things to say related to their own learning and experience being a jury.

The real hidden agenda is to get the kick from seen as an expert by others irrespective of the level of expertise.

Lofty Folks Rule

The lofty folks are those key people who are generally the founder and co-founders and will be there in almost all events.

So how they can be missed out in a conference, convention or conclave?

They will have speaking slots and will talk some non-sense in the name of sharing gyan.

These self-styled gurus and loyalist-proclaimed gurus will share mundane and arcane ideas full of complete fluff and gas.

These people rule their little knitted world. 

The lofty folks talk about lofty ideas and lofty things.

The real hidden agenda is to feed their inflated egos and to feel on top of the world.

Loyal Stooges Dance

The core people in the organizing committee are long timers and loyalists of the key people who matter in the organization or body which is organizing the event. 

The core people in the affiliated bodies are "more loyal than the king" and will lie prostrate and dance as asked by the lofty folks. 

They will call the lofty folks in even those events where their presence is not really needed. 

Other than the lofty folks, the core people and some outsiders in such organisations, the overall participation in the events may be quite dismal.

The loyalists in the primary organization and affiliated bodies like chapters, etc. will be in complete awe of these self-styled and loyalist-proclaimed gurus.

The loyal stooges show that they are committed volunteers for a larger cause and next in line to join the lofty folks.

The real hidden agenda is that they want to use their visibility in external forums for getting recognised in their own organizations.

In addition, there are some of the loyal stooges who are like mercenaries.

These folks are typically trainers and consultants.

Their real hidden agenda is to showcase themselves as experts to the delegates and try to garner some more business subsequently.

Ring Master Controls Circus

The ring master is a special character who is in awe of the lofty folks.

He is the selected one, selected carefully based on his servility and loyalty to the lofty folks!

After all he gets his salary from them.

He seems to be the one who controls the circus.

He is the declared ringmaster but is the joker in the circus.

He does funny and stupid things.

He works in the background and gets many things done without much transparency.

He is also part of the loyal stooges’ group.

Any word from the lofty folks or loyal stooges is taken up by him without any communication or information.

He is driven by whimsical notions like we have the target to have one event every month.

However, he has a rudimentary approach to doing things.

While some events will be in conceptualization phase and some in execution phase he would conveniently forget (or rather lacks the competence to understand) that all this should happen as part of an overall plan.

The ring master is also the chief loyal stooge and is there to feel important and justify his existence in that organization or body.

His real hidden agenda is to serve his masters, the lofty folks, with complete loyalty and ensure continuity of his pay.

The Outsiders Observe

These people are misfits in that organization or body.

They join the organization or body based on genuine passion and love for the subject.

They participate in organizing events like conference, convention or conclave so that they can contribute in some manner.

But very quickly, they get disillusioned with the hypocrisy and hollowness of the lofty folks, the loyal stooges and the circus ring master.

The lofty folks have a hidden agenda.

The loyal stooges have a hidden agenda.

The circus ringmaster has a hidden agenda.

The jury members have a hidden agenda,

The body or organization conducting the conference, convention or conclave also a hidden agenda.

The outsider doesn't have any.

He simply watches.

And chuckles at what is going on around him.

He is amused at the circus he has become a part of.

Over time, he starts enjoying it.

Over time, he feels at ease with the lofty folks, loyal stooges and the ring master.

He gets to know soon that he is not part of organizing a small c - conference, convention or conclave.

He is a part of the big C - the Circus being run in the name of not only that conference, convention or conclave but also that body or organization itself!

And there are many more conferences, conventions or conclaves to come.

He knows circuses are meant to be observed with an amusing outlook.

And also enjoyed for its comedians and their comical acts!

The next conference, convention or conclave is not far away.

So better chuckle.

And have a great time.

The Curse of Long Service Awards in Lala Companies is but a Grim Reminder

Completing several years at a stretch while working with the same organization is generally viewed as a milestone of sorts by any employee.

Most, if not all, organizations recognize their employees for long association by giving out long service awards.

Award for completing 3 years, 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years and even more are quite common and popular in the corporate world.

However, from the standpoint of career growth, whether getting long service award is really an achievement or not is a matter of debate.

If you are working in a professional company, then there are high chances that this milestone will be an achievement too.

And if you have worked with a high degree of passion and diligence, you will see some career growth.

However, if you are working in a lala company, then the story is going to be entirely different.

An employee may have stayed very long in a lala company simply because she had no other option.

In several cases, an employee in such companies will end up becoming "unemployable".

And would not be competent enough to get another job outside in another organization.

In fact, the employee might have gotten herself into a cookie jar which is about to get empty.

She may now be the proverbial rat in the rat race with additional complications:

• She has crossed the point of no return in her career and her speed is so high that aborting take-off is no longer an option available to her
• She is also fast approaching the end of the runway of her career and she is rapidly running out on the length of the runway!
• She will eventually be reaching a position where she can't get anything outside and she can't leave, and hence, she is totally stuck.

So, she will gradually accumulate years.

First, she will get 3 years’ service completion award.

Then 5 years’ service completion award.

And then 10 years’ service completion award.

And then also some more.

This will go on and on till she retires, or the company shuts down or the lala company owners shunt her out unceremoniously.

Getting long service award in a lala company is nothing less than a grim reminder.

Grim reminder about the fact that:

• Your career is stuck and there is no scope for any further real professional growth
• You will need to tolerate the lala and his stooges for several more years to come
• You are now totally unemployable and need to hold on strongly to what you are doing
• You are in a precarious situation as far as attaining financial freedom is concerned
• You are going to live for some more time at the mercy of the lala and his stooges

That way, long service awards are like a curse.

The funny thing is, you need to react to them with forced happiness.

You might get into a meeting with the top lalas and his stooges where everyone congratulates you.

You say thanks for the wishes and all.

However, you are not happy.

Not at all.

You have no choice either.

You show you are happy.

You have no choice on that either.

And even if unwillingly, you have to become a part of the drama played out in the name of longevity and loyalty.

That’s the true hallmark of a lala company.

Longevity and loyalty only matter.

Drama around longevity and loyalty matter the most.

That’s a sad thing.

But that’s what it is.

Take it or leave it.

You collect the award even as you look at it not as an award.

It is nothing short of a curse.

The curse which is but a grim reminder.

You also realize you are stuck and you not getting out or going anywhere.

You gather yourself.

And you get ready and mentally prerpared for the next one.

For the next long service award.

For a bigger curse.

And a bigger grim reminder the next time. 

Big Bs You Should Avoid

How you carry yourself and how you conduct your affairs is an important attribute of your overall personality.

There are some personal traits that you should always avoid.

Interestingly, these attributes start with the same letter B!

These Big Bs are to be strictly avoided if you want people to like you.

Remember, on their own, no one would tolerate or accept these Big Bs.

Here is the list of the Big Bs you should avoid, always.

• Bulldoze
• Bully
• Bargain
• Blackmail
• Badger

And here is what they mean and what they indicate about your personal traits.

Bulldoze:

• clear (ground) or destroy (buildings, trees, etc.) with a bulldozer
• This is the tendency to not let others express their views and thoughts and impose your whims and fancies on them. 

Bully: 

• seek to harm, intimidate, or coerce someone perceived as vulnerable
• This is the tendency to try to dominate others and make them feel intimidated of you so that they fall in line and follow your instructions.

Bargain: 

• negotiate the terms and conditions of a transaction or an agreement between two or more parties as to what each party will do for the other
• This is the tendency to make someone follow your wish by offering them some temptations by evoking their weakness for something.

Blackmail: 

• the action of demanding payment or another benefit from someone in return for not revealing compromising or damaging information about them
• This is the tendency to force someone to follow your instructions by creating a situation where that person is left with no choice but to obey you.

Badger: 

• repeatedly ask (someone) to do something; pester
• This is the tendency to bug and bother someone by asking them the same thing again, and again and yet again.

Where Coterie Rules, Only Loyalty and Egos Matter, Not Competency and Merit

Many companies are infested with the coterie culture.

There is a small group of "yes sir" folks who are stooges of the top man.

They form a spider-web full of and stinking badly of secrecy, conspiracy, conceit and insecurity.

Spider-Web of Coterie Culture

These people share secretive interests and agendas, especially one that is exclusive of other people.

This set of idiotic dogs form an evil syndicate to propagate and promote one-upmanship in accordance with the directions of their master.

The master checks on the loyalty quotient by very often throwing the ball away, lifting the dirty ring finger and saying, "go, fetch". 

The stooges try like buffoons to outrun each other to get the ball back to their common master.

These selected stooges are trained to remain that way.

Some of them think they are too smart for their own boots.

But easily forget that a dog doesn't need a boot!

This inner circle of stooges carries huge egos and thinks of themselves as privileged lot.

It is quite ironical that the top man and stooges talk as if they are fair and genuine.

A little scratching of the top surface brings up the dirty insides of the inner circle.

The stooges send stupid and utterly non-sensical e-mails.

This coterie creates artificial reporting lines in the organization where only loyalty and egos matter.

Not competency and merit.

Not at all.

Nada.

They create roles and titles and designations and what not to perpetuate the system of idiocy they have put together in the circus they call company!

Professional management thrives in and creates a professional organization.

Similarly, professional organization promotes and creates a professional management.

They together create a professional culture.

But in a company infested with comical stooges, the first, unfortunate casualty is professionalism.

And out of the door goes professional culture.

What you get at the end is a Lala organization.

Irony is, this inner circle thrives by maintaining an air of exclusivity due to their closeness to the centre of power in the organization.

They, in a very sickening manner, regard themselves as elitist and defend their untenable and vulnerable position by being secretive.

They write stupid e-mails.

In such a company competency and merit means a zilch.

In such a company titles, designation and even roles means nothing.

They are simply adornments on the dirty walls of the organization.

They form a dirty circle, an evil group of people with shared agendas, interests and acquaintances.

This dirty inner circle pretends to be an exclusive group close to the centre of power in the organization, and is viewed elitist and secretive, in a completely evil sense.

These people are a part of the clique, a small close-knit group of egotists and loyalists who do not allow others to join them.

This set of people is merely a crowd linked by a common hidden evil agenda or interest.

It is more like a gang of imbeciles and evil retards who regularly associate together.

 

In reality, everyone knows they these people are like a pack of wild hyenas, who don't know how to really hunt but stay together to scavenge in a group.

They show as if they are part of the crew but are part of a tribal clan or a dirty club.

Sometimes they come across as a secret sect due to their unprofessional beliefs and actions which can be regarded as non-transparent, unfair and even dangerous.

These people are in the same camp and support the same top dog collectively.

The obnoxious cell comprising of the stooges in such companies is a small group forming a nucleus of unprofessional activity, typically a secret, subversive one.

These folks act like a caucus where they form a dirty group within an organization which meets independently in secret to discuss the trivia.

Caucus is supposed to discuss the strategy or tactics.

But the stooges are totally incompetent to discuss such things.

What they are good at, and very unfortunately, is spreading an air of exclusivity about themselves.

What they are also good at is spreading the message of their false sense of fake superiority in the organization.

And what they are also good at is creating a toxic and obnoxious environment in the circus which they proudly call as a company.

Essentially, these folks are toxic by nature.

They create a spider-web of toxicity.

And in the end, they create a toxic culture.

 

Untimely Death by Suicide of a Young and Talented Outsider

Just a few days ago, a young and talented actor in the Indian film industry died by suicide.

This untimely death is apparently a case of an outsider quitting the game of life after getting deeply hurt and frustrated by the dirty politics of the "insider club".

The Outsider versus the Insider Club

His death is not only untimely but also a wake-up call for every industry and every organization.

Every organization and every industry has its rules.

Unfortunaterly, most of the important rules that truly matter always remain unspoken and unwritten.

One of them happens to be the ill-treatment, subtle or otherwise, of the outsiders.

There is this "insider club" whose membership is strictly restricted to the previleged ones.

There is a secret pact between insiders, who are the high and the mighty and the well-connected in the game!

Those who are well-connected get access to exciting opportunities and offers from the other insiders in that organziation and also that industry.

The well-connected get their first work related break and subsequent chances also quite easily without much sweat and much effort.

Eventually, the insiders become self-appointed gatekeepers and very consciously and maliciously ererct a formidable barrier for the outsiders.

The way outsiders are treated by the insiders reeks of the insiders' blatant hyprocrisy, discrimination, shallowness and arrogance.

Some organizations are infected more with this kind of sick and toxic culture.

The head of such an organization and those in the "insider club" try to create the fake facade of the organization as one big happy family.

But beneath the shining facade there are deep cracks and gaping holes.

Ultimately, it’s each to their own.

And outsiders are under constant threat for their very survival.

When you work in such an organization you know your future is at the whim of the top dog there, the proverbial ringmaster of the circus that organization actually is.

Most outsiders keep on struggling but survive and stay alive.

Some outsiders are able to withstand the discrimination and humilation and are able to make a mark for themselves.

And that happens despite the fact that the sharks of the "insider club" in such an organization try their best to stop the outsiders from moving up the ladder.

Some of the outsiders not only survive and succeed but move very high up to become an insider.

And unfortunately, they end up joining the "insider club" and start doing the exact bad things they vehemently hated when they were not a part of it.

But, come what may, some outsiders never become insiders. 

They are simply shown around the inside, and howsoever talented and deserving they migt be, they are never offered a seat on the high table.

So somtimes, it is possible that an outsider might say, "enough is enough".

And they decide to "quit" the game of work they are engaged in, which is better.

Or at times, the game of life itself, which, from a philosophical, moral and ethical standpoint, is not really a good thing to do.

It hard to say whethere dying by choice through suicide is an act of strength or an act of weakness.

What is not hard to say is that the culture and work environment which led to that is certainly a sick and toxic one.

The person who has departed will never come back.

It is also true that those who were instrumental in creating a sick and toxic culture and work environment for the departed person will also not be there forever.

They will also need to depart one day.

And that day is not as far away as they think it might be.

It could be the next week.

Or the next day,

Or maybe the very next hour.

So they ought to be ready.

The famous English proverb "you reap what you sow " may or may not come true.

And the "insider club" may never get the punishment for their acts.

The departed may never get poettic justice for what happended to him and why he chose to depart the way he did or was perhaps forced to go that way.

However, those in the "insider club" will carry a stained conscience to their death-bed if that means anything.

There are many more "outsiders" out there who are struggling and still managing to survive.

God bless them and given them the stength and hope to carry on.

God bless the departed too, those outsiders who chose to quite.

May their soul rest in peace.

God bless those in the "insider club" also for they too shall pass.

And when the time comes, may their souls rest in peace too!