Introduction

Corporate life has certainly changed over the years. If you think of corporate life
over the past few decades, images of dull, stodgy people in grey suits may come to
mind. But before we can get into that, some background is in order, to set the
stage.

Setting the stage:

If you lead a corporate life, you are, by definition, employed by a corporation. By

corporation, typically we mean a larger organization, but certainly smaller
businesses qualify–we are really trying to differentiate between start-ups and non-
start-ups, since those working at start-ups tend to see themselves as distinctly “non-
corporate”.

You are normally on salary, but may be eligible for overtime. You report to one or
possible a number of managers, who are responsible for your day-to-day and
longer-term goals and activities, and who may manage you very closely, or from a
great distance. The corporation has policies that dictate your eligibility for pay
increases, bonuses, and amount of vacation time, benefits, and other perks.

Your time at work is often filled up with meetings, conference calls, email (lots of
email), and some other stuff you get done from time to time (also known as “real
work”). Beyond the office, you may have family commitments, perhaps a hobby or
two, a good old bunch of friends, and, of course, TV and the Internet to round out
your day. That leaves a few hours for sleep, weekends to recharge, and a handful
of vacation days to really recharge.

All of this keeps you quite busy.  The days go by in a blur, which turn into weeks,
months, and eventually years.  While you know you’re getting a lot of “stuff”
done, you’re not always sure about how much you are really accomplishing; at
least not something that really matters to you.

Responsibilities:

Every company or business usually starts out with its own set agenda, which
differs from business to business. A lot of businesses exist simply to make money.
There are others who seriously wish to provide a needed service to a community or
to the world.
Each of these businesses has a corporate responsibility to the public, its
shareholders and the world it trades in. In its most basic terms, corporate
responsibility can come down to the ethics of a business.

Today, however, corporate responsibility has to take into account the world that we
live in on a much wider scale.

Business etiquette:

Corporate life has its own rules. The business etiquette is very important part of
these rules as the ignorance of these might affect you adversely.

For example:

o How do you dress?

o How do we write e-mails?

 o Shaking hands

o Grooming

o Communicate and Interact with others during official events

This leads to success or a failure in whatever we are trying to do, from a small
thing as negotiating for our grocery to a critical thing as meeting key clients,
achieving our career goals and ambition.

Bitter Side of
Corporate Life

Professional approach at the cost of values:

Today everyone is aware of how the rules are laid by corporate companies. Let’s
consider the utmost basic rule of punctuality, an employee who is late for his work
even by a few minutes has to pay for ever delay for his work. No reasons are
entertained and no excuses are accepted. In this bid to remain punctual, a common
man forgets or we can see neglects his basic responsibilities (ethics we can say).
For understanding this in a better way, we can take into account the most occurred
example. If a person is on his way to his work, he is already in hurry and on his
way to office he witnesses an accident. His values push him to help the person who
met with an accident, to give me first aid or to take him to the nearest hospital but
as he is already late, he has to be Professional (as no excuses are accepted) he
behaves as if he has not seen anything happen and goes to his work.

Well, from this it’s clear that at the cost of his values he is being professional. And
this is one of the bitterest sides of corporate culture. This is making common
people immune to pain of others, which affects the society adversely.

Health:
From the surveys that we have taken, and all the case studies that we have done,
health was the side which was most talked about. Corporate sectors consist of
Banks, BPOs, KPOs, MNCs, etc. This means the company has to run day and
night, that implies they have employees who work during day shift and others who
work during night.

Let us first consider the case of people who work in night shifts. As we are not
naturally designed to work nights shift work will mess with your sleep patterns.
Poor sleeping habits have been linked to mental health problems, cancer, common
colds, depression, diabetes, obesity and strokes. There may be more money in shift
work but there are also risks.

One study conducted last year showed that working night shifts makes you three
times as likely to suffer from heart disease. Another study from 2000 revealed that
a lack of sleep causes as many car accidents as too much alcohol with 45,000 Brits
either seriously injured or killed as a result of driver tiredness.

This is not the end; Most studies have concentrated on linking breast cancer with
what cancer researchers call the "light-at-night" effect on the body's hormones, and
they have consistently found that shift-workers have a higher risk of developing
breast cancer than women who work regular daytime hours - on average around a
48% higher risk.

Scientists believe that this is because of the effects of shift work on the body's
production of the so-called "hormone of darkness", melatonin. If your night time is
spent in artificial light (even dim artificial light) your brain stops churning out
melatonin.

So, the Danish government has just begun compensating women who have
developed breast cancer after years of working nights.

You must be thinking then people who work for day shifts are free from all these
diseases, well it’s not really so. The entire work in any corporate sector in today’s
world is completely dependent on computer. Working on computers for long hours
lead to many health problems, such as,

 Eye diseases

Prolonged computer use could be linked to glaucoma, especially among

those who are short-sighted. Our eyes are very badly affected by how long
you stare at that bright screen. We stop blinking and start staring which
makes our eyes strain and dry out.
 Bad Posture

Bad posture is enemy number one. Check your posture now! You should be
able to reach the keyboard and mouse whilst bending your elbows at 90
degrees, with your shoulders relaxed. If you are stretching, this could cause
problems. Your back should be straight and the top of the monitor should
be just below eye level. If your monitor is to the left or right of your
keyboard you are putting strain on your neck. Long periods of time at the
computer while blogging, working or reading often leads to pain in the
lumbar region of the back. Neck and shoulder problems also result from
poor seating and the poor organization of equipment on the desk.

 Hurting Hands

Your hand and wrist ache after working at the computer all day, and
they sometimes start feeling numb. It is really important to give your
fingers, wrists and hands a break from resting on the keyboard all day.
  Computer Stress Injuries

Many people suffer from structural problems related to the physical

stress of sitting incorrectly, or for too long in front of their computers.
So there are chances you’ve experienced a fair amount of computer
stress, from minor frustrations here and there to a virtual visit to
computer hell. High levels of stress can kill you, don’t make mistakes!
Highly stressful workers have a higher risk of developing heart diseases
and even cancer. So make sure that you can manage your stress.

Utmost importance to Profit:

“Profit” that is all the corporate companies think about. Any person would think
about making most profit out of his work, and that is good. But what is bad is that
it is not the matter of profit-making that is under challenge now, but the manner of
profit-making. By this we mean, making profit is good but making profit at the
cost of some else’s life is sin!

You might think who would cost someone else’s life for profit. Well then you can
take into consideration the “BHOPAL TRAGEDY”. This was such an accident
which took away the life of many innocent people for no fault of theirs but because
of the hunger which the company had for profit.
 The below figure shows, the reason behind such a tragedy

Materialism:
When one gets too much of something, he tries to misuse it. This was very well
depicted in the famous story “Imp and the Crust” written by Leo Tolstoy. Well, this
is appropriate in our case too. The corporate companies give high packages;
employees get habituated to spend more as they get promoted to next level. In this
race to earn more and more they spend more time on their work than required. This
draws them more towards materialistic life rather than self-satisfying life.
Neglecting their responsibilities towards their families, no spiritual commitment,
and towards material things.

Today, majority of people work in corporate sectors. The stress level among
people is high only because they are never satisfied which what they have and
what they have achieved, this may also
lead to depression. And such
depressions are not only bad for an
individual but even to his family as they
too get affected.

One of the people whom we

interviewed had said “‘there has been
an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about.” This shows
that though knowing that he is not on right path he can’t do anything about it. This
shows how a human becomes unknowingly self-destructive due to his desires to
get materialistic pleasures.

Corporate social irresponsibility’s:

Customers are the end users of a company's goods and services. They are possibly
the largest stakeholder group that can be greatly affected by corporate social
irresponsibility.   They depend on businesses to meet their expectations, and
businesses depend on them to bring them revenue.   When customers place a value
on a company's goods and services, they trust that the business will give them what
they are paying for.   If the company does not perform to customers' expectations,
they will place a reputation on the company, and possibly spread that reputation
amongst other customers of that same company.  

An example of how a customer can be

affected by corporate social
irresponsibility is the Odwalla Inc. e.coli
outbreak. In 1996, there were many bottles
of apple juice infected with bacteria that
was manufactured by Odwalla Inc. Nearly
sixty-six individuals were infected with the
bacteria and there was one death of a
sixteen month old girl.

However, corporate social responsibility is

becoming a key initiative and an essential tool in the growth of multinational
corporations and the development of third world countries throughout the globe.

Inferiority complex:
 65 Inferiority complex
70
56 is the most faced
60
problem by the
50
35 employer’s under
40
28 26 corporate system.
30
Meeting between
20 two different classes
10 of people causes the
0
delhi bangalore hyderbad chennai mumbai
situation called
inferiority. This
mostly happens to the fresher’s, who are fresh to that job and feels inferior from
their seniors.

Security:
Security issues major concern for women.

Recently, the murder of woman television journalist Soumya Vishwanathan,

who was shot dead in south Delhi while returning home after a night shift sent
ripples in the city. However, it was not unprecedented. Most working women
across India feel insecure about their safety, especially during night shifts.

According to a survey by Assoc ham Social Development Foundation (ASDF)

about 53% working women feel insecure, especially during night shifts in all major
hubs of economic activity across the country. Most of them are employed in the
BPO/ITeS, hospitality, civil aviation, medical and textile space, all of which come
under corporate world.

The assessment was carried out revealing that 48% of women who are engaged in
the small-scale sector are extremely worried about their safety and nearly 26% in
the medium sector and 23% in the large-scale establishments are scared to step out
after the sun sets.

Survey carried out amongst women working in night shifts

Multiple Personality Disorder:

MPD is a disorder that most people suffer from. It is a psychological sickness,

where the people affected with, have multiple personalities. This is mostly the case
in corporate companies. In an instance, there was an article in Deccan Chronicle,
dated August 12th, 2010,
which showcases MPD’s
effect. G. Amit, who has
been working in a BPO for
the past 4 years, said he was
a victim of MPD. Usually,
before starting work at a
corporate company they are
trained and are given
nicknames, i.e. names that
are usually easy to
pronounce and to be
understood.

G. Amit was given one such name. He was given the name Bob Spaulding, by his
superiors. He was to use this name while attending calls. This led to a great
confusion in his life. Even after his shift would end, he would still be in the
character of ‘BOB’. His family members were more that concerned about his well-
being. He would have to be taught his name all over again. Amit was confused for
a while and would then re-collect what his actual name was. This is the impact that
his work had on him.
 Amit is just one example, out of hundreds of MPD. He was open and willing to
share his experience, and we consider that honorable.

Case studies

Mr. Isaac Kakileti:

Mr. Isaac Kakileti is a Sr. Customer Resolution

Expert at DELL Interaction, located at Hi-tech city,
in the Logistics Department. He has been part of the
company for 5 years. Every year taught him a new
lesson, and every lesson has an experience behind it.
After years of experience in various fields, Mr.
Isaac, was brought into the corporate environment.
Although, the pay is good, Mr. Isaac puts into the
spotlight, a few disadvantages of being in the corporate world.

 Misunderstandings between the trainer and the fresher:

In the starting, during the training period, he went through a lot. There
were many misunderstandings between the trainer and himself. He wasn’t
given a chance to express himself or to clear the air between the trainer and
himself. Mr. Isaac Kakileti went through utter discomfort during this time.
 Health:

Mr. Isaac shared with us how work at corporate offices has a toll on a
person’s health. Especially night shifts, as they totally disturb the human
body system. Night shifts forces people working in corporate offices to stay
awake, when they should actually be sleeping. Mr. Isaac was very much
affected by his life being switched into a different scenario, where he had to
be awake during the nights. It took him a very long time to adjust to the
circumstances.

Mr. Isaac was more concerned about his health, which was deteriorating. He
would have constant headaches, due to the fact that he had to sit in front of
the computer for about 8-9 hours. Not only that, but he had shooting pains
up and down his spine, as he had to sit in one place throughout his shift.

He also shared how he put on weight, due to the fact that he was getting no
exercise at all by sitting in front of the computer and sleeping after his shift
is over.

Mr. Isaac also felt that his eyes being strained, as he would be constantly in
front of the computer, for many hours at a stretch. These problems
concerned his family even more, who didn’t get to see him at all.

 Strict conditions:

Corporate offices maintain a strict environment and everyone who work in

these companies must follow them, at any cost. First of all, there is a dress
code, which permits them to wear only certain type of clothes. Secondly,
they are not allowed with their mobiles into the office, so that they wouldn’t
be distracted from their work. This disabled Mr. Isaac from communicating
with his family while he was at work. The third and the last norm he had to
 follow, was to wait for his fellow colleagues to finish their shift, until he
could a ride home, i.e. after his shift was over. Even though he would finish
his work early, he would have to wait for his colleagues to finish their work
and only then would he be able to come home, as the transportation was
common for all.

 Inability of the corporate office to choose the right people:

Corporate companies now-a-days recruit people based on their performance

in their graduate courses. They may sometimes make mistakes in selecting
the right people of the job. So, this led to the fact that they would recruit
people, they thought would be helpful, but they turned out to be ineligible
for the job.

There would be no particular experience for the fresher’s, whom they would
select. This leads to jobs undone and workload increasing for the others who
work in that company.

 Customer Problems:

If the customer is not happy with the product that was sold to them, then
they in turn take their frustration out on the employees of the company. The
employees must tolerate all that the customers throw at them, because of the
fact that they are the ‘customers’. This was a major problem that Mr. Isaac
witnessed in his company. The customers are oblivious to the hard work of
the employees and take them for granted.

If the goods or products are damaged, then the employee has to pay. For
every good that is damaged, there will be a fine incurred on the company
and the company has to pay the price. Therefore, the employees have to
suffer.

Thus, Mr. Isaac Kakileti expressed his concerns and his complains about the
corporate life.
Ms. Jyothirmayee:

Ms. Jyothirmayee is currently working as a lecturer

at the Swami Vivekananda Institute of Technology,
located at Secunderabad. She has been working as a
lecturer for the past 3 years and is more than happy
with her life. Before she landed a job as a lecturer,
she was too roped into the corporate world, which
she politely turned down.

After Ms. Jyothirmayee finished her graduation (B.Tech), she was inclined towards
working for an MNC. She was more than thrilled when she was invited for a 3-
month training program held by IBM. For those 3 months that she was training,
she learnt about the corporate environment and how they run.

During the training period, they were given projects, which had to submit within a
given deadline and no further extensions would be given. This leads to frustration,
which Ms. Jyothirmayee couldn’t handle.

She also complained

about the risk to
health while
working for
corporate companies.
There would be
so much tension,
stress and strain in
that
environment. The pressure levels were so high that she decided it would be best to
opt out of the corporate world and settled for an easy job as a lecturer. She was
very much concerned about her safety, as they were a lot of transportation
problems. There was no security for women and no proper arrangements were
made to make women in that company feel comfortable and safe. The security
system was not trustworthy enough.

The employees in these corporate companies are not granted a lot of leaves. They
are to work even on holidays, i.e. on religious occasions and even national
occasions. As, most companies work mainly on outsourcing from various countries
abroad, therefore, employees are granted leave only when these countries enjoy
their holidays. Thus, the employees are deprived of holidays.

She faced difficulty in understanding the sophisticated language that her superiors
were using, and hence couldn’t follow everything that had to be done. She was
pestered with the wrong remarks that her fellow colleagues spread about her,
which were only false accusations, without any real proof.

Thus, Ms. Jyothirmayee found her job as a lecturer more soothing than being in
the corporate world.

Mr. Lokesh:

Mr. Lokesh works in corporate sector and is basically from North India. He is
mainly into Spoken English institute - Russell’s. And he even works in a corporate
company at Banjara Hills.

The problems which he faces in the corporate world are mostly same as problems
faced with Mr. Isaac and Miss. Kiranmayee, apart from these he faces two main
problems:
Firstly, home sick, well they get holidays only according to the occasions of U.S.A
but not India due to which he faces a problems and feels home sick as he will not
be able to go to his home town to celebrate the festivals and other occasions.

Second is security. While the working women are worried about their very own
safety, Mr. Lokesh too is worried about security but not the security for personal
being. But he feels insecure for his job, since in corporate company they can fire
you anytime. This is not the case with government employees. In this aspect,
corporate companies have the bitterest side. This has been Cleary portrayed at the
time of recession and the unemployment cause due to it.

Bibliography

The key source for information has been Internet and various Blogs:

http://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/67464.html by DCMA
http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Corporate-Culture/137917 by DCMA
http://www.exampleessays.com/viewpaper/74554.html by DCMA
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferiority_complex by Wikipedia

And beautiful clip arts are downloaded from:

http://www.clipart.com/en/

Apart from Internet we had referred books:

Author : Alessio M.Pacces

Book : The Law and Economics of Corporate Governance: Changing

Perspective
Author : Jonathan Macey

Book : Corporate Governance: Promises Kept, Promises Broken

Author : Margaret M.Blair and Mark J.Roe, Editors

Book : Employees and Corporate Governance

And Case studies were based on our own survey.

Acknowledgement

We are very much thankful to everyone who all supported us to complete our
project effectively and moreover on time.

We are equally grateful to Ms. Joythirmyeer, Mr. Isaac Kakileti, and Mr. Lokesh
for cooperating with us. Who gave us moral support and guided us in different
matters regarding the topic. They had been very kind and patient while suggesting
us the outlines of the topic
Last but not the least; we would like to thank our English lecturer MEENAKSHI
DHONDI who helped us in choosing the topic, guiding us throughout our project
and always encouraging us.

Thanking you.

Ramu Boya, Ramya Mogili, Revanth Prasad, Ritu Agarwal, Sadhana Priyanka.