4 ms·

Is this how most VCs think?

2 points by cvs268 11y ago

cvs268 11y ago
TL;DR: A VC shares his positive experience when he saved his commute time by offering 3x fare if the auto-rickshaw driver can get him to his office faster than usual. Nice write-up. But i'm more interested in what happens next? 1. In return for your 3x fare, can he deliver consistent savings everytime? 2. How would you react when one day, despite your 3x offer, the optimised-for-time routing takes longer than the shortest-path that you would follow in your car? 3. Will the 3x fare continue to have the same motivational effect after 6months of this arrangement? 4. Did throwing money at a problem actually solve it? Or did it promote an inefficient solution (3x fare) and stifle actual innovation(remote-work facility)?
- iolothebard 11y ago
  Seems the driver solved it for him, he takes the same route now and makes it to work more quickly.
  - cvs268 11y ago
    Hmmm... Apparently. So effectively an "expert consultant" was brought in to "streamline" the workflow. And the one-time investment paid rich dividends. Interesting... :-) Q5. So in your experience, how true is the analogy in IT companies? Does hiring an external consultant to improve the workflow often result in actual "process improvements" for the better?...
    - iolothebard 11y ago
      If you hire the right person and actually implement what they're showing as improvements. It's why I left my current job. Hired me as IT Director. I fixed all the nonsense development (cowboy) and got everything going the right direction. The owner doesn't give a shit, he just overloaded all the IT processes I setup and we're back to where we were almost. Since I put in my notice, the developers have gone back to the old hacking shit together way. So yes, a consultant (or anyone) given the ability to streamline workflow can fix something. Now will that work going forward, only time will tell due to all the external pressures/factors that go into both the scenario in the post and in any IT dept I've ever worked in.
- kapad 11y ago
  I really don't think auto drivers are dumb about there business, and this seems like a great way to solve a problem that I too face. If you can remember and retrace the route, it does seem like a one time investment with a great ROI. What I don't understand is that in Bangalore auto drivers are known to break traffic rules blatantly, and in a lot of cases, cops ignore these infractions. If I were to try and break to same traffic rules driving a private car, no way a cop would ignore the offence and let me go.

2 points by cvs268 11y ago

TL;DR: A VC shares his positive experience when he saved his commute time by offering 3x fare if the auto-rickshaw driver can get him to his office faster than usual. Nice write-up. But i'm more interested in what happens next? 1. In return for your 3x fare, can he deliver consistent savings everytime? 2. How would you react when one day, despite your 3x offer, the optimised-for-time routing takes longer than the shortest-path that you would follow in your car? 3. Will the 3x fare continue to have the same motivational effect after 6months of this arrangement? 4. Did throwing money at a problem actually solve it? Or did it promote an inefficient solution (3x fare) and stifle actual innovation(remote-work facility)?

iolothebard 11y ago
Seems the driver solved it for him, he takes the same route now and makes it to work more quickly.
- cvs268 11y ago
  Hmmm... Apparently. So effectively an "expert consultant" was brought in to "streamline" the workflow. And the one-time investment paid rich dividends. Interesting... :-) Q5. So in your experience, how true is the analogy in IT companies? Does hiring an external consultant to improve the workflow often result in actual "process improvements" for the better?...
  - iolothebard 11y ago
    If you hire the right person and actually implement what they're showing as improvements. It's why I left my current job. Hired me as IT Director. I fixed all the nonsense development (cowboy) and got everything going the right direction. The owner doesn't give a shit, he just overloaded all the IT processes I setup and we're back to where we were almost. Since I put in my notice, the developers have gone back to the old hacking shit together way. So yes, a consultant (or anyone) given the ability to streamline workflow can fix something. Now will that work going forward, only time will tell due to all the external pressures/factors that go into both the scenario in the post and in any IT dept I've ever worked in.
kapad 11y ago
I really don't think auto drivers are dumb about there business, and this seems like a great way to solve a problem that I too face. If you can remember and retrace the route, it does seem like a one time investment with a great ROI. What I don't understand is that in Bangalore auto drivers are known to break traffic rules blatantly, and in a lot of cases, cops ignore these infractions. If I were to try and break to same traffic rules driving a private car, no way a cop would ignore the offence and let me go.