Skip to main content

Gresham's law in IT


f you had studied economics as an undergraduate you would have certainly come across ' 'Gresham's law'. A reigning queen of England of the victorian times distressed as she was that her subjects were using debased and mutilated coins, ordered fresh supply from the mint. But shw saw no change in the preference of her subjects. A nobleman and financier in her court by the name Lord Gresham proferred an explanation thus “Bad coins drive good coins out of circulation”. People simply hoarded the newly minted coins and used only the debased ones. This observation of Lord Gresham came to be known as ' Gresham's Law'.

Most 'Laws of economics' , being merely codified common sense, find applicability in other areas. For example, often during water-cooler conversations in IT companies, you will get to hear Project Managers distressing over not being able to find right-skilled associates for their Project. This is in spite of thousands being recruited and several more thousands being trained continuously. But a keener look into the problem will show the Gresham's law in operation. Not all Projects and not all stages of a Project require associates of advanced skills. But the Project Managers and Program Managers hold on to skilled associates like they cling to their dear lives. They do not let go of them, often employing them on mundane tasks that are befitting lesser skilled associates. The reasons for the PMs' behaviour are varied. It is sometimes the effect of 'past experience' or their anticipation of deeper relationships and more oppurtinities with the same account. You can also trace this behaviour to an insecure Project manager wanting the cover of more experienced and skilled associates around him, like a prostate braveheart in a hunting trip asking all those who are afraid of the tiger lie down on him!

If you see from the overall organizational point of view, this is a tragedy as neither the associate concerned nor the organizational is benefitted. This hoarding means that 'Bad associates drive good associates out of cirulation' which is in effect 'Gresham's Law'.

Smart associates will see a lesson here. Even if  you do not become a 'Bad coin' yourself , do not become indispensable to your Project Manager and gather moss.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Washing Machine - Short Story by Sujatha

The maid had not turned up again today.  Her husband was immersed in the newspaper as usual.  Even the phone ringing at the most inconvenient moments __ when she was preparing the omelet for swetha, ironing her school uniforms or somebody knocking at the door, did not seem to have any effect on him. “It is for you”, she said. “Say I am not there”. “I am not used to starting the day with lies” “There is no auspicious time for lying, Savithri”, he said. There was again a knock at the door. He deigned to look who it was. It was the man who bought old newspapers.  “Newspaper Fellow”, he announced, reverting to bury his head into the papers. Everything had to revolve around her. “Not today”, she was speaking to the man at the door, “Had I not asked for your wife to come for work”. “She is already working in 6 other houses”, “might come from the first of next month after she gives up on one of these houses”. “First of next month?” How will I manage till th...
6 comments
Read more

Know thy neighbour

How would you deal with a country that holds a gun to its head as it negotiates with the world? How would you engage with a neighbour whose elite are bent upon creating chaos in their own country out of spite? This is one ring-side view you never wished for.   More on it later.   How things to came to such a pass?   It is a long story. When Pakistani intellectuals discuss their descent, you are reminded of Atticus's children in the Harper Lee's famous 'To Kill a Mocking Bird'.    Some say it all started with Musharraf   joining the Bush's   war on terror, some say it is the fallout of   Zia-Ul-Haq's 11 year rule , his deadly embrace   of US and his wholesale import of Saudi Wahhabism, still others say it was inevitable when even the most charismatic and powerful civilian ruler aka Z.A Bhutto had to play to the Islamic gallery to stay in power, some even go as far back as   the days of Objective Resolution when Liaquat Ali Khan propose...
Post a Comment
Read more

Chair - Story by Ki Rajanarayanan

How could you call a house without a chair a home? So it struck all of us in the house the same time. This issue was immediately placed on the agenda for family discussion. Just the day before we had a family friend visiting us. He was a sub-judge and as our luck would he have it, he came not dressed in Veshti and Shirt but fully suited and booted. All we had in our house was a three-legged stool, which was itself just three-fourth of a foot high. Our grandmother used to sit on it when she whipped curd. Since our grandmother was a little 'broad at the bottom' our grandfather had asked the carpenter to make it a little broader than usual. For want of any alternative we had requested his good self to take his seat on this three-legged affair. The sub-judge himself was a little thick-set; that caused him to place one hand on the edge of the stool before setting himself down on it . The problem with the stool was that if the weight fell on it not in line with...
Post a Comment
Read more