MANAGEMENT

The verb manage comes from the Italian maneggiare (to handle — especially a horse),

which in turn derives from the Latin manus (hand). The French word mesnagement (later

ménagement) influenced the development in meaning of the English word management

in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Management in all business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting

people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives. Management comprises

planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling an organization (a

group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal.

Resourcing encompasses the deployment and manipulation of human resources, financial

resources, technological resources, and natural resources.

LEARNING

Webster’s Dictionary defines learning as “knowledge of skill acquired by instruction or

study; modification of a behavioral tendency by experience."

The greatest sources of inspiration are often found in the strangest places. Thus,

compliance management can take a lesson from lunchtime in Mumbai, where a 99.9999

accuracy rate in meal manufacturing and distribution offers a model of efficiency and

control for complex compliance processes.

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INTRODUCTION

Before cutting to the management mantras, let's understand a few facts about our

dabbawalas.

» President- Mr. Raghunath Dhondiba Medge

» Secretary- Mr. Gangaram Laksman Talekar

» Director(IT)- Mr. Manish Tripathi

FACT FILE

Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association (NMTBSA)

History : Started in 1880

Charitable trust : Registered in 1956

Avg. Literacy Rate : 8th Grade Schooling

Total area coverage : 60 Kms

Employee Strength : 5000

Number of Tiffin's : 2,00,000 Tiffin Boxes i.e. 4,00,000 transactions every day

Time taken : 3 hrs

Annual turnover : Rs.500 million (approx. 11 million dollar)

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MUMBAI DABBAWALA

Hungry kya? What would you like: pizza from the local Domino's (30 minute delivery)

or a fresh, hot meal from home? Most managers don't have a choice. It's either a packed

lunch or junk food grabbed from a fast food outlet. Unless you live in Mumbai, that is,

where some 5,000 small army of semi-literate lunch-box carriers, called "dabbawalas"

have built up a near-perfect record of service over the past 120 years since Mahatma

Gandhi was a 21-year-old law student, delivering home-cooked food to more than

200,000 people in the western Indian city Mumbai. Though the work sounds simple, it is

actually a highly specialized trade that is over a century old and which has become

integral to Mumbai's culture.

Four thousand five hundred semi-literate dabbawalas collect and deliver 175,000

packages within hours. What should we learn from this unique, simple and highly

efficient 120-year-old system?

During that colorful history, they have been courted by British royalty, lectured Microsoft

management, and have become a case study for major business schools, including

Harvard. The dabbawalas, part of the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association

(MTBSA), claim that during the organization's 120 years of operation, they have made

just one error in 16 million transactions.

That one acknowledged mistake took place in 2005, when Mumbai was lashed by heavy

rains and floods and a rookie dabbawala could not make one of his deliveries.

It's an error rate which surpasses the benchmark that blue-chip telecom and IT companies

like Motorola, Genpact, Wipro, Infosys and IBM have set for their products. The out-of-

the-box solutions of dabbawalas have captivated Britain's Prince Charles, who invited

two of them to his wedding with Camila Parker Bowles.

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They have also taught Virgin Atlantic supremo Sir Richard Branson a thing or two about

service with a smile. They are also proud to have avoided going on strike for the last 120

years, while producing near-zero carbon emissions. Not only providing a necessary and

recession-proof service -- even in tough economic times, people will always need lunch --

the dabbawalas are a cooperative that can boast a business record of reliability that would

have any operation salivating with envy.

Dabbawalas are in textbooks because a day in their life starts with braving Mumbai's

heat, humidity and peak-hour traffic, reaching the homes of students, entrepreneurs of

small businesses, managers, especially bank staff, and mill workers.

And now, their business style will be studied across India by high school students.

What's most amazing about their logistics is that they achieve very high quality with zero

documentation, no sophisticated technology for tracking the movement of the lunch

boxes and no motor vehicle for transport, other than the suburban train service, pushcarts

and bicycles.

Although the service remains essentially low-tech, with the barefoot delivery boys as the

prime movers, the dabbawalas have started to embrace technology, and now

MyDabbawalas.com is developing a software application through which the people of

Mumbai can order Dabba service online through internet. The order will be booked

online and Dabba will be picked up from your home and will be delivered to office in

time also booking is available for delivery through SMS. Mydabbawala.com has also

been added to allow for on-line booking, in order to keep up with the times. An on-line

poll on the web site ensures that customer feedback is given pride of place.

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WHO ARE THE DABBAWALAS?

Hiring is selective because dabbawalas are the descendants of soldiers of the legendary

Maharashtrian warrior-king Shivaji. Dabbawalas belong to the Malva caste, and arrive in

Mumbai from places like Rajgurunagar, Akola, Ambegaon, Junnar and Maashi. They

believe in employing people from our own community. So whenever there is a vacancy,

elders recommend a relative from their village.

Farming earns a pittance, compelling them to move to the city. And the tiffin service is a

business of repute since they are not working under anyone. It's their own business, they

are partners, and it confers a higher status in society. The average age of dabbawalas is 52

years and there is no retirement age. Many dabbawalas are third generation inheritance

of the business. Dabbawalas are literate only to the understanding of alphabets but they

earn more than many educated graduates

The proud owner of a BA (Hons) degree, Raghunath Megde, president of MTBSA, is a

rare graduate. He wanted to be a chartered accountant but couldn't complete the course

because of family problems. Of his three children, his daughter is a graduate working at

ICICI, one son is a dabbawala and the younger son is still studying.

Education till standard seven is a minimum prerequisite. According to Megde, "This

system accommodates those who didn't or couldn't finish their studies. It's obvious that

those who score good marks go for higher education and not to do this job, but we have

people who have studied up to standard twelve who couldn't find respectable jobs”.

Apart from commitment and dedication, each dabbawala, like any businessman, has to

bring some capital with him. The mini-mum investment is two bicycles (approximately

Rs 4,000), a wooden crate for the tiffins (Rs 500), at least one white cotton kurta-pyjama

(Rs 600), and Rs 20 for the trademark Gandhi topi.

5

HISTORY

Just like the saying goes, “Rome was not built in a day”. A similar philosophy could

perhaps be applied to the Dabbawala system and all its fame.

The roots of India's dabbawala system go back to the American Civil War. This conflict

cut Britain off from its American cotton supply, and the English were forced to look

elsewhere to fulfill the cotton needs of their booming textile industry. The cotton grown

in western India fulfilled Britain's needs, and in 1890, thousands of workers from the

rural areas surrounding the region's capitol, Mumbai, began pouring into the city.

Regional taste preferences, along with dietary laws dictated by the religious beliefs of the

cotton workers, were varied, and the British learned from a previous incident that

attempting to interfere with religious beliefs in India was a futile pursuit. The Sepoy

Rebellion, or the Great Mutiny of 1857, was India's first major uprising against the

British. It erupted when a rumor started that the cartridge wrappings of the new Enfield

rifles the British supplied to the Indian soldiers were greased with cow and pig fat. Since

the wrappers had to be bitten off and Hindus do not eat beef and Muslims abstain from

pork, it was perceived as an affront to both groups, who felt it was a British attempt to

undermine their religious beliefs.

Desperate to avoid another uprising, the British welcomed and encouraged the

establishment of the dabbawala system for the cotton workers. It enabled the employees'

loved ones from home to send them a warm lunch that complied with their religious

doctrines, as well as fulfilled regional cravings. The system helped the British avoid

conflicts and run a smooth operation.

The first attempt to unionize dabbawalas was made in 1930 by Mahadev Havji Bacche.

For any collective action to happen there must be some unfulfilled needs and wants, so

towards the end of the 19th century, Mumbai saw huge influx of migrants from various

parts of India, as lot of textile mills were getting established in and around Mumbai.

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These people came without their families, and at that point of time, there was also no

concept of canteens. Since working hours were very early, so they were also not able to

prepare food for themselves. As these people came from different parts of the country,

their food preferences were also different, but as a whole, they wanted fresh home-

cooked food.

Mahadev Bache, who himself was migrant and came to Mumbai looking for a job,

identified the need and thought of this mis-match in demand and supply as a good

opportunity. He was a born leader, as in the 19th century itself, he was able to foresee

opportunity in the food servicing business, and was also able to mobilize people to work

with him. He recruited youth from his village, but since his idea was so new at that point

of time, only youth with insufficient agricultural income came forward. He started the

operations in 1890 with a clear aim of providing fresh home-cooked food at reasonable

rates, and most importantly, according to the taste preferences of customers. With an

army of 20 dabbawalas and monthly charges of Rs. 2/- per month per customer, he

targeted mainly textile mill workers as his prospective customers. Mahadev Bache was a

great institutional builder and always led from the back to make dabbawalas self-reliant

and managed to bring out their entrepreneurial skills. Although, today he is no more, but

fundamentals of Mumbai Dabbawalas is so strong that it is commendable to see them

scaling new heights and getting accolades from all over the world.

"Nutan Tiffin Box Suppliers Charity Trust" became a charitable trust in 1956 and the

current employee strength is around 5000 dabbawalas. It serves as both the governing

body and charitable trust for the dabbawalas. Earnings per member are around Rs. 5000 -

Rs. 6000/- per month, and around 2, 00,000 tiffins gets handled on daily basis with

utmost punctuality. Cost of service is very reasonable at Rs. 300/- per month per

customer. Whatever be the external conditions, the customer will surely receive his/her

tiffin. Their efficiency is so high that they got the six sigma award, as their error rate is

only 1 in 16 million transactions. All of them belong to the same community - 'Maratha' -

and came from some 7-8 villages near Pune. Most of them are having agricultural lands

as their primary occupation.

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Although these people were not having any training in supply chain management, but

still their commitment and zeal made sure that Mumbai dabbawala kept on increasing its

customer base and won hearts of their loyal customers.

It promotes three fundamental principles: discipline, trust, and training. Each carrier pays

a monthly fee of 15 rupees--about 30 U.S. cents--to the trust. This payment instills in the

dabbawalas a sense of ownership, and is one of the reasons why, in the course of their

nearly 120-year-old history, there has never been a single strike.

PRINCIPLES OF DABBAWALA

Shakti aur bhakti (Power and Belief in God)

I trust man only coz I trust in god

Work is worship

Annadan is mahadan ( giving food is greatest job)

Serving people is serving God

Unity is power time is money

Descendents of dabbawala were warriors in the army of Shivaji Maharaj

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APPROACH

Zero % fuel

Zero % investment

Zero % modern technology

Zero % Disputes

99.9999% performance

100 % Customer Satisfaction

Disciplines:

No Alcohol Drinking during business hours

Wearing White Cap during business hours

Carry Identity Cards

Women:

Mrs. Bhikhubai of Kandivali

Mrs. Anandibai of Borivali

Mrs. Parvatabai of Karale (Ghatkopar)

Mrs. Laxmibai Bagade of Santa Cruz

Latest marketing strategy

Marketing pamphlets in the “Dabba”

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ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

Its organizational structure is as follows:

GROUPS

(120)

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PRESIDENT

Raghunath D.Medge

VICE PRESIDENT

Sambhaji G. Medge

GENERAL SECRETARY

Gangaram L.Talekar

TREASURER

Damodar Pingle

DIRECTORS

(9)

MUKADAM 1

Dabbawala 1

MUKADAM n

Dabbawala n Dabbawala 1 Dabbawala n

COMPETITIVE COLLABORATION

MTBSA is a remarkably flat organisation with just three tiers: the governing council

(president, vice president, general secretary, treasurer and nine directors), the Mukadams

and the dabbawalas. Its first office was at Grant Road. Today it has offices near most

railway stations.

Here nobody is an employer and none are employees. Each dabbawala considers himself

a shareholder and entrepreneur.

Surprisingly MTBSA is a fairly recent entity: the service is believed to have started in the

1880s but officially registered itself only in 1968. Growth in membership is organic and

dependent on market conditions.

This decentralized organisation assumed its current form in 1970, the most recent date of

restructuring. Dabbawalas are divided into sub-groups of fifteen to 25, each supervised

by four Mukadams. Experienced old-timers, the Mukadams are familiar with the colors

and codings used in the complex logistics process.

Their key responsibility is sorting tiffins but they play a critical role in resolving disputes;

maintaining records of receipts and payments; acquiring new customers; and training

junior dabbawalas on handling new customers on their first day.

Each group is financially independent but coordinates with others for deliveries: the

service could not exist otherwise. The process is competitive at the customers' end and

united at the delivery end.

Each group is also responsible for day-to-day functioning. And, more important, there is

no organizational structure, managerial layers or explicit control mechanisms. The

rationale behind the business model is to push internal competitiveness, which means that

the four Vile Parle groups vie with each other to acquire new customers.

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BUILDING A CLIENTELE

The range of customers includes students (both college and school), entrepreneurs of

small businesses, managers, especially bank staff, and mill workers.

They generally tend to be middle-class citizens who, for reasons of economy, hygiene,

caste and dietary restrictions or simply because they prefer whole-some food from their

kitchen, rely on the dabbawala to deliver a home cooked mid-day meal.

New customers are generally acquired through referrals. Some are solicited by

dabbawalas on railway platforms. Addresses are passed on to the dabbawala operating in

the specific area, who then visits the customer to finalize arrangements. Today customers

can also log onto the website www.webrishi.com to access the service.

Service charges vary from Rs 150 to Rs 300 per tiffin per month, depending on location

and collection time. Money is collected in the first week of every month and remitted to

the mukadam on the first Sunday. He then divides the money equally among members of

that group. It is assumed that one dabbawala can handle not more than 30-35 customers

given that each tiffin weighs around 2 kgs. And this is the benchmark that every group

tries to achieve.

Typically, a twenty member group has 675 customers and earns Rs 100,000 per month

which is divided equally even if one dabbawala has 40 customers while another has 30.

Groups compete with each other, but members within a group do not. Its common sense,

points out one dabbawala.

One dabbawala could collect 40 tiffins in the same time that it takes another to collect 30.

From his earnings of between Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000, every dabbawala contributes Rs15

per month to the association. The amount is utilized for the community's upliftment,

loans and marriage halls at concessional rates. All problems are usually resolved by

association officials whose ruling is binding.

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Meetings are held in the office on the 15th of every month at the Dadar. During these

meetings, particular emphasis is paid to customer service. If tiffin is lost or stolen, an

investigation is promptly instituted. Customers are allowed to deduct costs from any

dabbawala found guilty of such a charge.

If a customer complains of poor service, the association can shift the customer's account

to another dabbawala. No dabbawala is allowed to undercut another.

Before looking into internal disputes, the association charges a token Rs 100 to ensure

that only genuinely aggrieved members interested in a solution come to it with their

problems, and the officials' time is not wasted on petty bickering.

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WORKING OF DABBAWALA

Error Rate : 1 in 16 million transactions

Six Sigma performance (99.999999)

Technological Backup : Nil

Cost of service : Rs. 300/month ($ 6.00/month)

Standard price for all (Weight, Distance, Space)

Rs. 36 Cr. Turnover approx. [6000*12*5000=360000000 i.e. Rs. 36 crore p.a.]

“No strike” record as each one a share holder

Earnings : 5000 to 6000 pomp

Diwali bonus: One month’s from customers.

At 19,373 persons per square kilometer, Mumbai is India's most densely populated city

with a huge flow of traffic. Because of this, lengthy commutes to workplaces are

common, with many workers traveling by train.

Instead of going home for lunch or paying for a meal in a café, many office workers have

a cooked meal sent by a caterer who delivers it to them as well, essentially cooking and

delivering the meal in lunch boxes and then having the lunch boxes collected and re-sent

the next day. The meal is cooked in the morning and sent in lunch boxes carried by

dabbawalas, who have a complex association and hierarchy across the city

How has MTBSA managed to survive through these tumultuous years? The answer lies

in a twin process that combines competitive collaboration between team members with a

high level of technical efficiency in logistics management. It works like this...

At 9am every morning A collecting dabbawala, usually on bicycle, collects dabbas from

homes or, more often, from the dabba makers (who actually cook the food), which are

loaded onto trolleys and pushed to a railway station. The dabbas have some sort of

distinguishing mark on them, such as a color or symbol (most dabbawalas are illiterate).

14

The dabbawala then takes them to a designated sorting place, where he and other

collecting dabbawalas sort (and sometimes bundle) the lunch boxes into groups. The

grouped boxes are put in the coaches of trains, with markings to identify the destination

of the box (usually there is a designated car for the boxes). The markings include the rail

station to unload the boxes and the building address where the box has to be delivered. At

each station, boxes are handed over to a local dabbawala. The meals are then delivered—

99.9999% of the time, to the right address. The empty boxes, after lunch, are again

collected and sent back to the respective houses. And now one can even order through the

Internet.

Now, let’s see their daily time table for this whole process:

10:34-11:20 am - This time period is actually the journey time. The dabbawalas load the

wooden crates filled with tiffins onto the luggage or goods compartment in the train.

Generally, they choose to occupy the last compartment of the train.

11:20 – 12:30 pm - At this stage, the unloading takes place at the destination station • Re-

arrangement of tiffins takes place as per the destination area and destination building.

In particular areas with high density of customers, a special crate is dedicated to the area.

This crate carries 150 tiffins and is driven by 3-4 dabbawalas!

1:15 – 2:00 pm - Here on begins the collection process where the dabbawalas have to

pick up the tiffins from the offices where they had delivered almost an hour ago.

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Return journey:-

2:00 – 2:30 pm - The group members meet for the segregation as per the destination

suburb.

2:48 – 3:30 pm - The return journey by train where the group finally meets up after the

day’s routine of dispatching and collecting from various destination offices. Usually,

since it is more of a pleasant journey compared to the earlier part of the day, the

dabbawalas lighten up the moment with merry making, joking around and singing.

3:30 – 4:00 pm - This is the stage where the final sorting and dispatch takes place. The

group meets up at origin station and they finally sort out the tiffins as per the origin area.

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CODING SYSTEM

In olden days since the expanse of Mumbai was limited, the colour of thread determined the

station where Tiffin was to be delivered at – Red for Naigaum, Green for Girgaum, and White

for Gamdevi etc. Mumbai expanded. Western, Central and Harbour routes came into existence.

The customer base expanded too. Revised coding was done with paint. Existing coding system

was developed in 1974 to ensure error free delivery mechanism. There are approx. 70 stations

on Western, Central and Habour lines. At each station a group/team is formed of which a

specific number serve as substitutes while others active members. Half the team collects

dabbas from east side of the station and other half from west side of the station. Each team is

depicted by a specific colour. Each active dabbawala in a team, is numbered alphabetically as

‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, and depending area from where he collects Tiffin - i.e. closest to station and

thereon. The residence station e.g. Vile Parle is abbreviated as ‘VLP’ on the top centre of the

dabba. The destination station is represented numerically from 1, 2, 3… Within the reach of the

destination station, sub sections are also represented numerically e.g. since the expanse of

Churchgate station is vast, 1 – 10 numbers have been allotted to these regions (1 for

Churchgate, 2 for Ballard Pier, 3 for Nariman Point, 6 for CST, 10 for Gateway of India), 11 for

Marine Lines, 12 for Charni Road. The destination station is represented at the centre of the

dabbas. All members of team gather at station at 10.15 a.m. and sort the dabbas as per the

destination station. e.g. 3 for Nariman Point from Vile Parle are sorted in a basket and carried

by one dabbawalas in the suburban train heading to that destination. Likewise, the other team

member will carry all the other dabbas for other destination, e.g. 11 for Marine Lines.

For delivery, the coding has been carried out in different colour. The person who carries the

dabbas is again given a specific numeric number e.g. 9. The building and the floor at which the

dabba is to be delivered is also abbreviated and listed next to delivery man’s number. E.g.

Dabba for Express Tower, 12th Floor, to be delivered by dabbawala No.9 is represented as

9EX12 at the centre of the dabba. The dabbas are delivered at respective destination at 12.30

p.m. and empty dabbas are recollected at 1.30 p.m. Each dabbawalas carries a marker pen,

should in case the coding is washed out. Each dabbawala’s route for pick-up and delivery

remains unchanged for at least 6 – 7 years.

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Let us now look at an example of these codes on the tiffins to better understand the

system and what it all denotes

VLP : Vile Parle (Suburb in Mumbai)

9E12 : Code for Dabbawallas at Destination

E : Express Towers (Bldg. Name)

12 : Floor No.

E : Code for Dabbawallas at Residential station.

3 : Code for Destination station (E.g. Nariman Point)

Few more codes of dabbawalas are:

11 - CHURCHGATE

12 - MARINE LINES

13 - GRANT ROAD,

14 - BOMBAY CENTRAL

15 - LOWER PAREL

16 - DADAR (WEST)

17 - DADAR (EAST)

18 - ANDHERI (EAST, WEST)

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DABBAWALA METHODOLOGY

"Error is horror". In the event of a dabbawala meeting with an accident en route,

alternative arrangements are made to deliver the lunchboxes. For example, in a group

of 30 dabbawalas catering to an area, five people act as redundant members; it is

these members who take on the responsibility of delivering the dabbas in case of any

untoward happenings.

The dabbawalas must be extremely disciplined. Consuming alcohol while on duty

attracts a fine of Rs 1,000. Unwarranted absenteeism is not tolerated and is treated

with a similar fine.

Every dabbawala gets a weekly off, usually on Sunday.

The Gandhi cap serves as a potent symbol of identification in the crowded railway

stations. Not wearing the cap attracts a fine of Rs.25. In fact, Richard Branson, the

maverick businessman who is never shy to promote him and the Virgin brand, donned

a Gandhi topi and dhoti (the dabbawalas' signature dress code), during the launch of

Virgin's inaugural flights to Mumbai.

Their work revolves around a few beliefs - the most important ones of which are

sticking to time and believing that work is worship. "Annadan is mahadan (giving

food is the greatest charity). The dabbawalas have a strong belief in god. People -

after all, they are creations of god. They worship god by ensuring that people get to

eat their food on time.

There are no specific selection criteria like age, sex or religion; however, there has

never been a female dabbawala. The antecedents of the candidates are thoroughly

verified and a new employee is taken into the fold for six-month probation. After that

period, the employment is regularized with a salary of Rs 5,000 a month.

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It is interesting to note there are no retirement age, and any person can work till he is

fit enough to carry on the tasks required of him.

Economic analysis

Everyone who works within this system is treated as an equal. Regardless of a

dabbawala's function, everyone gets paid about 2-4,000 rupees per month. More than

175,000-200,000 lunches get moved every day by an estimated 4,500-5,000 dabbawalas,

all with an extremely small nominal fee and with utmost punctuality. According to a

recent survey, there is only one mistake in every 6,000,000 deliveries. The American

business magazine Forbes gave a Six Sigma performance rating for the precision of

dabbawalas.

The BBC has produced a documentary on Dabbawalas, and Prince Charles, during his

visit to India, visited them (he had to fit in with their schedule, since their timing was too

precise to permit any flexibility). Owing to the tremendous publicity, some of the

dabbawalas were invited to give guest lectures in top business schools of India, which is

very unusual. Most remarkably, the success of the dabbawala trade has involved no

modern technology. The main reason for their popularity could be the Indian people's

aversion to fast food outlets and their love of home-made food.

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DABBAWALAS GO HIGH-TECH

For over a century they delivered hot lunch in packages to thousands of Bombay's

working people with almost faultless efficiency without the help of information

technology. But now Mumbai’s ubiquitous Dabbawalas lunch deliverymen have realized

that they need to go high-tech, not only to expand their business but also for their social

security.

Dabbawalas (literally tiffin box carriers) in local parlance have finally started their own

Web site and a text messaging order taking system that enables them to bag orders real

time instead of depending on secondary sources like references or word-of-mouth.

"The world is moving ahead on technology," said Gangaram Talekar, 61, the Hindi-

speaking secretary of the Association, "and we have to move with times too. So we

decided to take advantage of technology to expand our business."

Talekar, who has been a Dabbawala for 40 years, admits that he has never operated a

computer and doesn't know the language of text messaging "that well. I can just read the

name, address and the telephone number of the sender in an SMS (short messaging

service)," he says. "But I know that to grow and make our lives secure we must use

technology."

According to Forbes the Dabbawalas work with 99.999999 percent accuracy. But besides

the accuracy rating, the Dabbawala supply-chain system has also attracted interests from

global educational institutions and think tanks for its complexity.

In fact, some even say that the Dabbawalas work like the Internet. Just like the Internet,

where voice or data files are sliced into tiny packets with their own coded addresses that

are then ferried in bursts, independent of other packets and possibly taking different

routes, across the world, the Dabbawalas too work with packets in a similar manner.

Even the dabbawala’s are earning a lot of fame yet these Dabbawalas have remained

poor. "Nowhere in the world would you find a lunch delivery service that costs as little as

$9 a month," says Talekar.

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The charges for this complex delivery system have remained dirt-cheap ever since its

inception and still the maximum rate that a Dabbawala charges (depending on the

distance carried) is about $11 a month.

Which is why technology is needed to improve their lives, says Manish Tripathy, the

chief information officer who looks after the Association's technology functions. "No

doubt a major driver for establishing a Web-based and mobile phone ordering system was

the need for a central ordering facility where one can call for a Dabbawala's service by

just hitting the Web site or through an SMS” says Tripathy, "but the other equally

important driving force was to expand business."

Until recently business has come just through word-of-mouth or from contacts made in

local railway stations. "But ever since we introduced the SMS-based ordering service we

have been getting about 15 new orders every day," said Tripathy.

The Web site (www.mydabbawala.com) has also enabled the association to solicit

donations and sell merchandise, the proceeds of which go towards creation of a social

security fund to pay for the Dabbawalas' life and medical insurances. "The use of IT

would not stop there," says Tripathy, "we would be stretching its use soon to enable the

Dabbawalas to add additional lines of business." According to him the next plan is to

gear the Dabbawalas with the ability to sell groceries and other daily necessities, the

orders of which could be taken through their mobile phones.

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ACHEIVEMENTS

Harvard Business School has produced a case study of the dabbawalas, urging its

students to learn from the organisation, which relies entirely on human endeavour and

employs no technology.

“People study management books and then practice. They practiced first and have now

become case studies…”

In 1998, Forbes Global magazine conducted a quality assurance study on the

Dabbawalas' operations and gave it a Six Sigma efficiency rating of 99.999999; the

Dabbawalas made one error in six million transactions.

In 1998, two Dutch filmmakers, Jascha De Wilde and Chris Relleke made a

documentary called 'Dabbawalas, Mumbai's unique lunch service'.

In July 2001, The Christian Science Monitor, an international newspaper published

from Boston, Mass., USA, covered the Dabbawalas in an article called 'Fastest Food:

It's Big Mac vs. Bombay's dabbawalas'.

In 2002, Jonathan Harley, a reporter, did a story on the Dabbawalas with the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). In 2003, BBC also aired a program on

the Dabbawalas, which was part of a series on unique businesses of the world.

In 2003, Paul S. Goodman and Denise Rousseau, both faculties at the Graduate

School of Industrial Administration of Carnegie Mellon University, made their first

full-length documentary called 'The Dabbawalas'. Instead of asking how knowledge

in developing countries can help less developed countries, this film focuses on how

developed countries can learn from less developed countries".

Was invited for the Terra Madre World meeting of food communities from October

20th to 23rd, 2004.

23

They were part of the “Community of Cooked Food distributors from Mumbai”.

Dabbawala’s were given ISO 9001:2000 for excellence in services.

Certificate accredited by “ The Joint Accredition System of Australia and New

Zealand” (JASANZ)

The Dabbawalas were invited to speak CII for conference held in Bangalore, IIML,

IIMA, CII Cochin, CII Delhi, Dr. Reddy’s Lab Foundation Hyderabad, SCMHRD

Pune, SCMHRD Nasik, Sadahana – Pune, Rotary Club – Bangalore, NIQR at

Chennai

Participated in “Deal Ya No Deal Contest” by Sony Entertainment Television

Invited for marriage of Hon. Prince Charles of England on 9th April, 2005

They earned recognition from the Guinness Book of World Records and Ripley's

Believe It Or Not.

Documentaries made by : BBC ,UTV, MTV, Zee TV, Aaj Tak, TV Today, Sahara

Samay, Star TV, CNBC TV 18, CNN, Sony TV, TV Tokyo, NDTV.

Case study made by : ICFAI Press Hyderabad & Bangalore, Richard Ivey School of

Business – Canada, Also, Included in a subject in Graduate School of Journalism

University of California, Berkeley

The men who transport lunch boxes have been a subject of study for management

gurus like CK Prahalad and schools like Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and

those in the American Ivy League.

24

The Royal visit: Recently, the dabbawala’s had royal campaign at Churchgate station.

The Prince of Wales himself had visited them when he came down to Mumbai. He

took keen interest in their way of functioning, expressed surprise at their efficiency

and was struck with awe when he was told that they didn’t employ any technology.

The prince was presented a small memento, accompanied with a garland, a Gandhi

topi and a trophy by the dabbawalas. This is the letter given by Prince Charles to

dabbawala.

25

Prince Charles and Many Others with Dabbawalas

Prince Charles was to get married. He was instrumental in getting dabbawalas recognition,

prestige, facilitation and awards. Dabbawala Association out of gratitude decided to send a

reasonable gift. But the question was funding for such gift which keeps esteem of the Country

high. This concern pronounced by the media. ‘Begani Shaadi Mein Abdullah Deewana’ came

true then. Practically everyone volunteered to contribute. Dr. Pawan Agarwal contributed

Puneri Peta Saree worth Rs.10,000/- , the turban makers and exporters from Pune contributed a

turban worth Rs.12,000/-, Kolhapuri chappal exporters contributed in kind, jewellers

contributed mangal sutra, kangan and other jewellery. Practically the entire registered office

was stacked with gifts. The question was how to send these to UK. The Courier Agent

volunteered to transport and deliver gifts free of charge. Queen Elizabeth was moved with this

gesture and invited dabbawalas for the Prince Charles’s wedding. British Deputy High

Commission arranged for the passport and visas. Indian official carrier - Air India facilitated

travel - free of cost. Shri Ratan Tata whose restaurant is near the Buckingham Palace facilitated

the dabbawalas’ stay at London, return journey and made local arrangements as well. Shri

Amitabh Bachchan was guest at the same restaurant. Dabbawalas never had the occasion in

Mumbai to meet with Mr. Bachchan and therefore expressed their desire to shake hands with

him at least at Prince Charles wedding. To our disbelief, we were told that only three

representatives from India have been invited at the wedding, of these 2 were the dabbawalas

and the third was Royal Highness Queen of Rajasthan Smt. Padmini Devi. The dabbawalas

were overwhelmed with the warmth. At the reception, Queen Elizabeth expressed desire to

know about the logistics supply chain management by the dabbawalas. Smt. Padmini Devi

herself volunteered to interpret the interaction between dabbawalas and Queen Elizabeth.

Mr. Medge said that subsequent to the catastrophe of heavy flood in Mumbai on July 26, 2005,

Prince Charles wrote a letter expressing his concern and grief over the loss of lives and

property. Even after terror attacks in Mumbai last year, Prince Charles sent an email enquiring

the welfare of the dabbawalas in Mumbai. None of the Indian politicians have ever cared or

sent sympathetic notes but Prince Charles always cared. Dabbawalas are genuinely moved by

this gesture of Royal Prince.

26

On return to India, Shri Richard Branson, Chairman, Virgin Atlantic called upon dabbawalas.

He travelled in the luggage compartment. The whole episode was covered by the press and

media. He expressed his desire to click couple of photographs with the dabbawalas such that

these could be positioned in his offices across the world citing examples of excellence,

commitment and dedication for his own staff to follow.

The film ‘Mumbaicha Dabbewala’ is under production and hope it will be nominated to Oscars

and shall win award too. The book on dabbawalas was released by the Chief Minister of

Maharashtra, Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh on September 15, 2006. He too, was asked to come at

the Churchgate station to release the publication. Precise appointment of half an hour between

2.00 and 2.30 p.m. was fixed. He himself announced at the meeting that as Chief Minister he

has attended several meetings and functions but was always delayed. It was only for this

occasion that he managed to reach ahead of time. Humorously, Shri Deshmukh said that

politicians put caps on each others’ head but the dabbawalas wear their own caps and complete

their duties with full dedication.

A personal visit by the crown prince is no small event. The government never took notice of

them before that. Years ago, the public used to tease them as ghatis, which means uncultured

chaps. How many would read the magazines in which their stories were featured?

All this helped the dabbawalas to increase their business. The business went up along with

respect for what they do and how they do it.

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TOP 10 REASONS FOR USING DABBAWALAS SERVICES 

1. Home made food is best for health and because health is wealth. Outside junk

foods may take your life and makes you sick. Home made food keeps your

doctors bill down and there are fewer absences from office due to poor health. In

fact bad food is the reason #1 of all the diseases.

2. Home made food is cheaper. When you use Dabbawala's services to deliver your

home cooked food to your office you are actually saving your hard earned

pennies. The delivery charge of Rs 250 - 300 per month is very nominal and

reasonable. Its simple maths.

3. Do you not love your mother or wife and like to eat food made by her?

4. Even if there is no one at home to cook food for you, Dabbawalas can deliver you

good quality home like lunch through many restaurants. They have quality

restaurants all over Mumbai where cheap and best quality food is prepared which

is delivered at your office or home through Dabbawala Channel.

5. Safety - The Local train of Mumbai are always much crowed and it is very tough

to take even small luggage during peak times. There are instances where the

person's hand got hurt or broken and ones belongings destroyed while traveling

during peak time. People leave from their home at about 8 - 9 PM which is peak

time and it’s not possible to carry Tiffin during this time and Even the food is not

ready by this time. By using their services you are getting hot food safely deliver

in your office.

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6. Dabbawalas give reliable services and their performance and accuracy match six

sigma standards. You must be sure that your home cooked food reaches in time.

7. The Dabbawalas never go on strike.

8. By taking their services you are proving direct employment to 5000+ Dabbawalas

and many of their dependent families. You are actually helping them.

9. Dabbawalas are an icon in their own sense and famous world over for their

efficiency and by taking their services you are being part of India's image

building.

10. Dabbawalas are from the remote villages of Maharashtra and mostly uneducated.

They regularly organize bhajan and kirtans and spread the essence of Marathi

culture, goodwill and oneness of India. Being a part of Dabbawalas, you are

actually nurturing Marathi culture.

29

THE MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVE

SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths:

• Simplicity in organization with Innovative service

• Coordination, team spirit, & time management

• Low operation cost

• Customer satisfaction

• Low Attrition Rate

Weaknesses:

• High dependability on local trains

• Funds for the association

• Limited Access to Education

Opportunities

• Wide range publicity

• Operational cost is low

• Catering

Threats

• Indirect competition is being faced from caterers like maharaja community

• Indirect threats from fast foods and hotels

• Change in timings

• Company transport

• Ticket restaurant

30

MICHAEL PORTER'S FIVE FORCES THEORY

From this, I deduced that dabbawalas are a prime example of management guru Michael

Porter's Five Forces Theory at work. Porter's theories, which are the basis for classical

management principles, define the scope and nature of competition a company faces to

attain leadership. Surprisingly, the dabbawalas are following these very principles in spite

of their ignorance of the same.

These are as follows:

i. Threat of new entrants: According to Porter, the threat new entrants are dangerous to

any organisation as it can take away the market share the organisation enjoys. Started in

1880, the experience curve of the 125-year-old dabbawala service serves as a huge entry

31

barrier for potential competitors. Besides, it would be difficult to replicate this supply

chain network that uses Mumbai's jam-packed local trains as its backbone.

ii. Current competition: Porter's five forces theory states that strategy is determined by a

unique combination of activities that deliver a different value proposition than

competitors or the same value proposition in a better way. The dabbawalas do face

competition from fast food joints as well as office canteens. However, since neither of

these serve home food, the dabbawalas' core offering remains unchallenged. They have

also tied up with many catering services and hotels to cater to the vast number of office

goers.

iii. Bargaining power of buyers: The delivery rates of the dabbawalas are so nominal

(about Rs 300 per month) that one simply wouldn't bargain any further. Also, their

current monopoly negates any scope of bargaining on the part of their customers. Thus,

we encounter a perfect win-win combination for the customers as well as the dabbawalas.

iv. Bargaining power of sellers: The dabbawalas use minimum infrastructure and

practically no technology, hence they are not dependent on suppliers. Since they are a

service-oriented organisation, they are not dependent on sellers to buy their product.

Hence, sellers do not assume any prominence as would be the case in a product-oriented

company. The strategy map framework in Porter's theory allows companies to identify

and link together the critical internal processes and human, information and organisation

capital that deliver the value proposition differently or better. Human capital is the

greatest driving force in the dabbawala community; as a result, they are not dependent on

suppliers or technology, thus negating the seller's power in the equation.

v. Threat of a new substitute product or service: As substitutes to home cooked food

are not seen as a viable alternative in the Indian scenario, the threat to the dabbawala

service is not an issue at least in the foreseeable future. This gives them a leeway to

probably expand their already existing network into newer cities as demand increases in

these places as well. So, will these people next target the other metros in India? Only time

will tell.

32

HR PRACTICES OF DABBAWALA

• Flat organization: There is no hierarchy in the organization. There are only three

layers, the first layer is top management, second is governing bodies, and third is

dabbawalas themselves.

• No hire and fire rule: A dabbawala is never fired until and unless he does something

wrong. He can work as long as he is capable of working. There is no such ‘hire and

fire rule’. Hiring is selective because dabbawalas are the descendants of soldiers of

the legendary Maharashtrian warrior-king Shivaji. Hiring is done on the basis of

recommendations by the dabbawalas, so whenever there is a vacancy, elders

recommend a relative from their village.

• Community based Recruitment: The recruitment of dabbawala is not on the basis

of their educational qualification or their experience rather it is on the basis of their

community. They believe in employing people from our own community. All the

dabbawalas belong to the same community of the Malva caste.

• Sharing common beliefs, values, and ethics: They have their own principles and

values of working which is strictly followed by all the dabbawalas irrespective of

their position or gender.

• Following of strict dress code: During the duty hours i.e. from 9 am – 4 pm all the

dabbawalas are in their common dress which is white kurta and white pajama with a

white topi. There is a reason for them to wear there dress when they are at their work

because it makes easier for people to recognize them especially traffic police so that

they can let them go without stopping them at signal or for any other reason.

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• Loyalty & trust is their monopoly: The monopoly of dabbawalas is because of their

customer’s loyalty and their trust on them. Earlier people used to send messages in

their dabbas to ensure that their dabba reaches safely without any kind of cheating,

but now the situation has changed. Dabbawala delivers to the same customer year

after year who instills a sense of familiarity and loyalty. In the absence of this trust

and responsibility developed over a long period of time, the customer relationship is

sacrificed.

• Training provided to the new joinees: It is the responsibility of each Mukadam to

train the new joinee in his group. Here, the new joinee is first told what is he

supposed to do and later is sent for practical training wherein, he send with another

dabbawala to see how they work.

• Owner + Employee are the designation of each: Each dabbawala is not only an

employee in the organization but also the owner i.e. the stake holder in the company.

This motivates the dabbawala work as they don’t work under anyone and also they

consider themselves as entrepreneurs.

• Meetings to discuss issues: The president or the vice-president is responsible for

conducting monthly meetings, checking the bank accounts and solving the problems

of members. The general secretary handles daily matters of the trust, the association

correspondence, collecting the trust fee (15) from members and looks after all other

administration matters. The treasurer maintains the accounts of the trust. The Director

helps the president in decision-making and in smooth functioning of the trust. If there

are any disputes about the overall functioning, they are resolved by the governing

council.

• Dabbawalas have great sense of satisfaction, motivation, involvement and

dedication and have successfully managed to implement the tiffin supply logistics

into actual practice. While others talk about retention of employees, it is a record that

34

no dabbawalas till date has left the Association. Dabbawala takes no leave without

prior notice. Failure of submitting such notice, attracts penalty of Rs.1000/-. There

has been no instance of strike.

The Dabbawala Association has laid down very stringent rules for its employees, which

can surprise even the largest corporate sectors in the country. This is one of the reasons

for its existence despite the advent of many fast food joints and canteens services. And as

these new competitions do not offer home made food, the dabbawalas have an advantage.

Some of the rules are as follows:

1. The dabbawalas must be extremely disciplined. Consuming alcohol while on duty

attracts a fine of Rs 1,000. Unwarranted absenteeism is not tolerated and is treated with a

similar fine.

2. In the event of a dabbawala meeting with an accident en route, alternative

arrangements are made to deliver the lunch boxes. For example, in a group of 30

dabbawallas catering to an area, five people act as redundant members; it is these

members who take on the responsibility of delivering the dabbas in case of any untoward

happenings.

3. The Gandhi cap serves as a potent symbol of identification in the crowded railway

stations. Not wearing the cap attracts a fine of Rs 25.

4. There are no specific selection criteria like age, sex or religion. The antecedents of the

candidates are thoroughly verified and a new employee is taken into the fold for six-

month probation.

5. It is interesting to note there is no retirement age, and any person can work till he is fit

enough to carry on the tasks required of him.

35

SUCCESS FACTORS

"It is a model of managerial and organizational simplicity."

- C. K. Prahalad

The various awards (Six Sigma, Guinness Book, etc.) and invitations (from IIM-A, CII,

etc.) which dabbawalas have received over the years are testimony to their hard work and

commitment to serve the community.

The three-point formula which the organization owes its success to is of Discipline, Code

of Conduct and Hard Work. Perhaps the only thing that differentiates the ‘Mumbai

Dabbawalas’ from other organizations is the utmost importance they give to customer

satisfaction.

The success of India's dabbawala system has impressed executives of Fortune 500

companies and leaders of some of the world's most prestigious universities, not to

mention Richard Branson and Prince Charles--who invited the head of the system to his

recent wedding. CEOs the world over travel to India to learn about this 120-year-old

organization that thrives in the fast-paced, modern world of Mumbai by relying on

nothing more, or perhaps nothing less, than customer loyalty born of the dabbawalas'

uncompromising commitment to teamwork, trust, and impeccable service. Teamwork,

discipline, dedication and time management are their main assets.

Employee

It is the passion and devotion towards work which drive the dabbawalas; else they

couldn’t have read the address in English, being illiterate. A sense of company ownership

may be one reason for the unparalleled success of the dabbawalas, but other factors also

play fundamental roles in the system's impressive achievements. Dabbawala recruitment

36

is achieved through word of mouth, with most of the workers coming from the rural areas

of Western Maharashtra.

One component contributing to success is a collective agenda among workers who share

the same branch of the Hindu religion, the same language--Marathi-and strong social,

familial and regional bonds with each other and their customers. A dabbawala frequently

works for decades, and when he decides to retire, he prevents service interruption by

securing a replacement from the same region before his departure. Another key to success

is that the dabbawala delivers to the same customer year after year who instills a sense of

familiarity and loyalty. In the absence of this trust and responsibility developed over a

long period of time, the customer relationship is sacrificed.

Each dabbawala functions under the umbrella of a creed that might also explain why the

system is such a triumph. A few important rules include: "Time Is Money, Unity Is

Power"; "No Excuses: Duty First"; "Error is Horror"; and perhaps most fundamentally in

the context of their mission, "The family that eats together stays together." The final rule

not only applies to the customer in Mumbai, but also to the dabbawalas, who share lunch

with each other every day.

The dabbawala service costs each customer about 325 rupees--$7 U.S.-a month. Eighty-

five percent of the dabbawala 5,000-member-strong work force is illiterate and the rest

are educated through 8th grade. As a dabbawala believes, "We are a very simple people,

but that does not hinder our success. We are an uneducated people, but we are able to do

such good work that we have been given the Six Sigma designation." Every dabbawala

earns approximately $125 a month, which is enough to support his entire family. He is

also given the incentive to expand his clientele base by distributing pamphlets to potential

customers. The dabbawala earns a commission each time he successfully registers a new

client for the service.

37

Success in the absence of fuel, technology or investments

In a frenetic world where the terms "Supply Chain Management” and "Network

Solutions" are typically used to describe the functions of high-tech Fortune 500

Companies, the dabbawala system is considered by many to be one of the most well

organized businesses in the world. Its supply chain's features include the use of no fuel,

modern technology or investments, and a nearly unheard of 100% customer satisfaction

rating. The respected leaders who flock to Mumbai to learn from the dabbawalas

recognize their system as one of the most impressive examples of network management

in the world. Harvard Business School has produced a case study of the dabbawalas,

urging its students to learn from the organization, which relies entirely on human

Endeavour and employs no technology. For Paul Goodman, a professor of organizational

psychology at Carnegie Mellon University who has made a documentary on the

dabbawalas, this is one of the critical aspects of their appeal to Western management

thinkers. “Most of our modern business education is about analytic models, technology

and efficient business practices,” he says. The dabbawalas, by contrast, focus more on

“human and social ingenuity”, he says. The dabbawalas were practicing impeccable time

management techniques and implementing successful networking practices long before

these terms came into vogue in the corporate world. Without any technological backup

and logistical support, the dabbawalas perform day-in and day-out with utmost precision,

highlighting the reason why the organization is the only one in India and the second in

the world to have got the elusive ‘6 Sigma’ rating.

As a result, their organization was given a Six Sigma designation, an international award

granted to companies that have a record of only one mistake per one million deliveries.

Typically bestowed upon the world's most successful multinational corporations, the

honor means little to the dabbawalas. As far as the dabbawala system is concerned, the

Six Sigma has no relevance. Our aim is to serve our customer and make them happy.

Nothing else matters.

38

A few years ago the website www.mydabbawala.com was created, which enables

customers to register online for service. Prior to that, any person outside of Mumbai was

not able to contact their people, but now they are on the internet and anyone can contact

them. The introduction of modern technology does not seem to be discouraging the long-

time customers who appreciate the traditional qualities of the Mumbai Tiffin Box

Carriers Association. The internet encourages new customers to register for the service,

and with a yearly growth rate of 5-10% and annual revenue of $10 million dollars,

Mumbai's dabbawala system shows no sign of slowing down.

Customer’s satisfaction

The dabbawala system exists in other parts of India, but nowhere else is it as successful

as it is in Mumbai. Factors contributing to its success in Mumbai include the existence of

a comprehensive railway system; the substantial distance between the commuters and

their homes; a large population to serve; and most importantly, the dedication of the

dabbawala. Their motives remain steadfast in spite of the introduction of modern

technology and the attention of some of the world's most successful corporations.

Their aim is to serve to their customer. We see their customer as a god, and when they are

delivering food to the customer, it is like they have offered their prayers to God.

According to them “if you treat your customer like a god when you are with them, you

will be so delighted, and the rewards will come to you.

The dabbawalas provide quality door-to-door service to a large and loyal customer base.

When asked if he has any advice for chefs, a dabbawala replies in his characteristically

humble manner: "I am a very simple person so I don't have any right to give any message

because they are very qualified people. But the message I would like to give them is treat

your customer like a god when you are with them and you will be so delighted. Each and

every chef has the responsibility to serve their guest the highest quality food so that the

customer is rewarded, because happiness in your life will come when you see the delight

on the face of your customer."

39

The customer service, whether of mobile phone or washing machine companies, cable

operators, or any others, is expensive, time consuming and not very dependable. Any

company providing service to its customers that sincerely believes the customer is God

will make its service delivery dependable. In so doing, it will win customer loyalty.

Guided by the principle that customer satisfaction is the underlying goal governing the

entire operation, the dabbawala system has been a success in India for over a century.

Dabbawalas might be a simple man, but it seems there is profound wisdom to be found in

their advice.

"A man may be a pessimistic determinist before lunch and an optimistic believer in the

will's freedom after it." ALDOUS HUXLEY

Control

1. Their main beliefs are:

• Work is worship,

• Customer is God,

• Time is money, and

• Unity is power

2. They have zero fuel, zero modern technology, zero investment, zero disputes, and 100

percent customer satisfaction.

3. They must wear their uniform, must report on time, must respect customers and

always carry identification cards.

4. Decisions are made instantly without meetings and conventions.

This case offers various lessons on controlling complex processes efficiently with a small

error rate. Even in this technology driven world, the Dabbawalas are rendering an

excellent service with the help of a brilliant supply chain.

40

Having studied all this, one would be surprised to know that the company having such a

high degree of respect worldwide is yet to be acknowledged by the government of its

own country.

Organizational structure and working style

Talking about the organization structure and working style, as we know that for better

communication between top management and employees, the institution must not have

tall vertical hierarchy. So Mumbai dabbawalas follow the flat structure with only 3 layers

for better communication between top management and dabbawalas. The first layer is top

management, second is governing body, and third is dabbawalas themselves. Instead of

following top down approach, they follow the bottom up approach. Dabbawalas have

high degree of faith in the organization, and it is also one important factor that top

management never indulges in any wrong activities.

Although attrition rate is almost nil, but still if some dabbawala leaves the organization

for some or the other reason, than he always finds his replacement, so that work does not

get disrupted. It is not a written rule, but they are following it for generations, as they feel

that they have some responsibility towards organization. It is quite understandable that

members will play an active role in institution building, if benefits which they derive far

exceed the costs. So here dabbawalas are getting a decent salary of around Rs. 5000 - Rs.

6000/- per month, bonus every year, and the organization is investing part of its surplus

in building fixed assets like schools and temples in their villages.

Motivation of employees

This entire framework depends on teamwork, cooperation and meticulous timing, as even

if a single dabbawala takes leave without informing in advance, than it may jeopardize

the operations for the whole day. Organization promotes both healthy competition as well

as cooperation among members.

41

They have 2-3 dabbawala groups in each operation area like Dadar or Churchgate and

tiffin collection is group-wise, but transportation is shared with other groups.

Competition is only up to collection of tiffins, and none of the group indulges into the

cross-cutting of the customers. At the end of the year, profit is shared equally within each

group after deducting expenses, irrespective of how many customers are there in each

group.

As for any collective action to succeed, there must be some binding agents, and here each

Dabbawala is share-holder of the organization, just like the Amul Cooperative Model,

and it acts as a motivation for the dabbawalas to perform efficiently for the long term

growth of the organization. By making them share-holders, the organization has not

witnessed even a single strike in 100 years. Also, since they belong to same community

and are from known villages, they directly or indirectly know each other and follow the

same customs and traditions.

Competition

Success of any institution lies in the fact that it must provide win-win situation for both

buyers and sellers. Hence, dabbawalas have kept the delivery rates so nominal (about Rs.

300 per month) that one simply wouldn't bargain any further. It provides very

competitive rates to the house-wives who prepare fresh food for them to carry every

morning, and also offer plethora of benefits to the dabbawalas. To ward off any

competition from external world, Mumbai dabbawalas use the tactic of enhancing their

services regularly, and recently, they started taking online orders through Internet. It

never went outside the experience of its people and kept increasing its business in

Mumbai only, as all dabbawalas are from the nearby region only and know the city and

customers quite well.

42

Team work and time management

The entire system depends on teamwork and meticulous timing. Tiffins are collected

from homes between 7.00 am and 9.00 am, and taken to the nearest railway station. At

various intermediary stations, they are hauled onto platforms and sorted out for area-wise

distribution, so that single tiffin could change hands three to four times in the course of

its daily journey.

At Mumbai's downtown stations, the last link in the chain, a final relay of dabbawalas fan

out to the tiffins' destined bellies. Lunch hour over, the whole process moves into reverse

and the tiffins return to suburban homes by 6.00 pm.

To better understand the complex sorting process, let's take an example. At Vile Parle

Station, there are four groups of dabbawalas, each has twenty members and each member

services 40 customers. That makes 3,200 tiffins in all. These 3,200 tiffins are collected by

9.00 am, reach the station and are sorted according to their destinations by 10.00 am

when the 'Dabbawala Special' train arrives.

The railway provides sorting areas on platforms as well as special compartments on trains

traveling south between 10.00 am and 11.30 am.

During the journey, these 80 dabbawalas regroup according to the number of tiffins to be

delivered in a particular area, and not according to the groups they actually belong to. If

150 tiffins are to be delivered in the Grant Road Station area, then four people are

assigned to that station, keeping in mind one person can carry no more than 35-40 tiffins.

During the earlier sorting process, each dabbawala would have concentrated on locating

only those 40 tiffins under his charge, wherever they come from, and this specialisation

makes the entire system efficient and error-free. Typically it takes about ten to fifteen

minutes to search, assemble and arrange 40 tiffins onto a crate, and by 12.30 pm they are

delivered to offices.

43

It is an excellent collaboration between deliverables and group effort. No single

dabbawala will succeed in achieving his target without the co-operation of his group and

chain. They have a system where if a member is absent, other members or a substitute

takes care of his work. It’s like a cricket team. The field is demarcated between players

according to the need of the game. However the overlaps are managed depending on the

flow of the game, not on the territorial considerations. Occasional mixing takes place, but

that is accidental and that is given in a game.

It requires a mindset of shared responsibilities, and the principle of not allowing the team

performance to drop.

In a way, MTBSA's system is like the Internet. The Internet relies on a concept called

packet switching. In packet switched networks, voice or data files are sliced into tiny

sachets, each with its own coded address which directs its routing.

These packets are then ferried in bursts, independent of other packets and possibly taking

different routes, across the country or the world, and re-assembled at their destination.

Packet switching maximizes network density, but there is a downside: your packets

intermingle with other packets and if the network is overburdened, packets can collide

with others, even get misdirected or lost in cyberspace, and almost certainly not arrive on

time.

Association with big companies

It is rightly said “If the commitment is there then qualification can be built.”

Leading brands in India—in an effort to increase their own brands' outreach and goodwill

within the local consumer marketplace—have started exploring synergies with the

dabbawalas. Microsoft, for example, used the dabbawalas to promote its Windows

package for a campaign called “Asli PC,” meaning “Genuine PC.” Microsoft could not

44

have found a better channel in Mumbai for reinforcing the value of authenticity

associated with its brand.

Media conglomerates and financial and telecom service providers have also used the

dabbawalas as agents for direct marketing. Airtel, India’s leading telecom provider, used

the network of dabbawalas to deliver and promote handsets, new connections, and pre-

paid user cards.

According to the Trust’s President, these campaigns have been successful because “The

dabbawalas are a brand that is synonymous with trust and commitment. I believe this is

the reason why most reputed organizations like to associate with us.” For instance, in a

gesture that underscores the trust and credibility that these workers carry on their

shoulders, the Mumbai State owned Corporation Bank appointed the dabbawalas as its

brand ambassadors and entrusted them with the task of account opening activities.

Furthermore, Reliance, one of India's top most companies, recently used them to promote

its Reliance Power IPO.

Firms, both Indian and foreign are similarly curious to know the success factors of

dabbawala. Tata, Coca-Cola and Daimler have all invited dabbawalas to explain their

model to managers. Last month it was the turn of delegates at an accountancy conference

in Dubai. There are even plans within the organisation to create a consulting business.

The dabbawalas, who receive the same pay, are also seen as paragons of “bottom up”

social entrepreneurship. C.K. Prahalad, also known as management guru, who is a

professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, says they show how a

home-grown business can help lift workers.

Indeed, this is considerable acclaim and brand muscle for an organization that has only

recently learned to a create website in order to keep pace with the changing world. But

for the dabbawalas, nothing seems impossible.

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WHAT TO LEARN FROM DABBAWALA?

A “dabba,” in local Indian parlance, is a lunch box or tiffin with home cooked food; the

person who delivers it is called the “dabbawala.” The name, however, has long lost its

generic connotation and is associated with one of the most innovative organizations

worldwide in supply chain management: the dabbawalas. With a fan club that includes

Prince Charles and Richard Branson, the dabbawalas are a brand to reckon with. What

started as a service during the British colonial rule has evolved into a brand that

symbolizes low cost innovation, teamwork, and brilliance in operational efficiency.

As management students, there is a lot that I learnt from this project. It is, like the

organization, deceptively simple.

The belief that technology is indispensable to solve complex problems is shattered.

FMCGs and other industries can learn a lot from the simple supply chain logistics and

efficient reverse logistics (transfer of empty lunch boxes to the source location).

According to the dabbawalas when they can do it by hand, why use a machine? Two

principles are involved: One, the cost to the customer must not unnecessarily

increase, which would have happened if they installed computers. Second, while we

can learn computer operations sufficient for their requirements, why displace the

available labour?

The concept of multi-level coding (colour coding on the lunch boxes for

identification) and reverse logistics can be implemented in industries as diverse as

soft drinks (where logistics becomes an important aspect, transporting the filled

bottles to retailers and collecting empty bottles back to the plants), pharmaceuticals

and other FMCG areas. For example, can the bar coding mechanism (a computerized

format) which is prevalent and expensive, be simplified with just colour/number

coding? In small and medium scale organizations where bar coding systems would

require a lot of resources, these systems can prove to be very efficient and cost

effective. Moreover, the dependence on technology could be drastically reduced.

46

The learning’s for a working executive are enormous too. Managers and executives

alike spend a lot of their valuable time learning various concepts in people and time

management. Newer mechanisms like Customer Relationship Management, etc, have

been developed to assist executives in the same. But, in the midst of implementing

technology and IT, basic principles in people management, sustainable relationship

development and customer satisfaction have lost their meaning. Our friendly

dabbawalas are a perfect example of an important principle of both business and

management -- the thirst to serve customers in a simple yet effective fashion without

falling into the technology trap. This is an aspect which needs to be re-learnt and

implemented in any organization today. For Paul Goodman, a professor of

organizational psychology at Carnegie Mellon University who has made a

documentary on the dabbawalas, this is one of the critical aspects of their appeal to

Western management thinkers. “Most of our modern business education is about

analytic models, technology and efficient business practices,” he says. The

dabbawalas, by contrast, focus more on “human and social ingenuity”, he says.

Human capital is the greatest driving force in the dabbawala community; as a result,

they are not dependent on suppliers or technology, thus negating the seller's power in

the equation. For example, in a group of 30 dabbawalas catering to an area, five

people act as redundant members; it is these members who take on the

responsibility of delivering the dabbas in case of any untoward happenings. Our

friendly dabbawalas are a perfect example of an important principle of both business

and management -- the thirst to serve customers in a simple yet effective fashion

without falling into the technology trap.

After the railway strike of 1975—which caused huge losses to the dabbawalas—the

organization realized the importance of abolishing the employer-employee

relationship and instead put in place a structure where every worker is a shareholder.

So today, part of the goodwill and mindshare that the dabbawala brand enjoys can be

attributed to their ideology of inclusive growth—what branding industry

professionals commonly refer to as "living the brand."

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The dabbawalas have never carried out self-branding exercises via advertisements or

promotions to build their brand. The credibility associated with the brand has largely

been acquired through word of mouth and buzz (again, this was never part of a formal

strategy) because of their high standards of legendary customer service.

One very obvious lesson to learn from dabbawalas is the time management. They

work with minute precision to get that three hour space for business in the morning.

They have to manage within the strict timetables of railways and offices. They have

created a world record in time management. Also all eatables, even hose that are

refrigerated, have a certain shelf life. Similarly, in retaining the freshness of home-

cooked food, temperature plays an important role. They deliver the food within time,

approximately 3-4 hours from time of cooking.

Another thing to learn from dabbawala’s is the way they get satisfaction. Even in a

situation with no choice, they have the freedom to think anew. Then what do they get

in the bargain? According to them everything is not assessed monetarily. Greater

physical effort tires them but they get the satisfaction that they have not saddled the

customer with avoidable costs. The added bonus for them is that they sleep sounder!

A small change in their working has led to multiple satisfactions because the

customer is not only satisfied, he is happy. The business value to the customer is

efficient service at a bearable cost. They have not created any pollution or congestion

in the city, so the public is happy. They do not cause accidents or take out protest

marches to fulfill their demands. No special police force is deployed to manage them.

When they see this pluristic satisfaction of theirs, they naturally feel more than happy.

They have enhanced their skills, management techniques and approach to the

objective of their enterprise. This has given them better results and greater customer

satisfaction.

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Changing with time. They are able to build this business because they also changed

with times. The previous generation didn’t run as fast as the current, because in those

days the trains didn’t run as fast as today. The momentum in Mumbai has gone sky

high in the last 30 years. They increased their speed to cope with the increase in the

speed of trains. They formed more groups as the load increased, changed their

collection and coding systems. And they did this willingly.

One more important lesson to learn from these dabbawalas is that the success of any

organization is not only lies in having sophisticated employees or technology or

organization structure.

Some of the simple and interesting aspects of their success which can be learnt by many

organizations are:

1. They have not put any ads ever, as it “serves genuine needs of people”.

2. In any business there are two challenges: figure out how to solve a business problem

for a large customer base; and how to get employees to serve the customer.

3. The boxes are color coded to ensure the code can be understood even by illiterate

people.

4. All 5000 dabbawalas are shareholders of the system. 635 of them are senior

employees, but there is no hierarchy. The revenue of rupees 50 crore is shared among the

5000 dabbawalas.

* Each dabbawala does 35 collections, 35 deliveries, and returns 35 empty tiffin boxes.

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* Every team of 20-25 is headed by a group leader. The executive committee has five

members.

* President also works as Dabbawala, travels with them, shares with them.

* They have not had a single “strike” in more than a hundred years.

5. All of them come from a single sect from remote villages around Mumbai; everyone

has “same DNA”. Synergy and cooperation is very high as it is a “single DNA

organization”. Everyone is a Marathi, they are made from the same cloth, speak the same

language, everyone's lunch is the same, everyone's god is the same. So there's a high

degree or coordination and commitment.

Their new enemy is time - their goal is to reach the right dabba at the right time. The

three hours of commute to the office is the “war time”.

6. One reason they are successful is they are “suitably” educated. Majority has not

studied beyond class 8.

7. They have zero fuel, zero modern technology, zero investment, zero disputes, six nine

(99.9999%) performance, and 100 percent customer satisfaction.

8. In any supply chain, collection of objects is first and most important step.

* If someone delays (giving the dabba on time) 3 times, “we stop serving them”.

* He mentioned the management learning - abandon bad customers. “Current recession

started due to serving bad customers”!

9. Dabbawala minus discipline ‘is zero’. They must wear white cap in business hours,

must report to duty on time, respect customers, and carry identification cards”

10. People know the consequences of their mistakes, i.e. how the customer suffers.

11. Instant decisions are taken on the spot. There’s a mini government meeting every

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month to help, guide, and to resolve differences

The most enduring lesson that one can learn is to put the customer ahead of

everything else. It is said that when Prince Charles expressed a desire to meet them

during his visit in 2003, the dabbawalas requested him to schedule the meeting such

that it did not interfere with their mid-day delivery timings.

Simulating thoughts of dabbawalas

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1. Food prepared with affection at home provides divine contentment.

2. If you change just enough you achieve embracive happiness.

3. When you move beyond the fear of new entrants and competition; you feel free

with belief in God that he will provide new customers.

4. Search what is durable in times of major change; it provides the wildest of

business opportunities.

5. Decentralise to empower and deliver with excellence; ensure that the cost of

change is least to the customer.

6. Savour the old but enjoy the changing.

7. The harder you hold on loyalty to the old customers with dependable delivery

service, it provides lasting business.

8. Lifelong devotional commitment to timely deliverables brings royal recognition

and increase in business.

9. At the prince’s wedding, According to the dabbawalas when they can do it by

hand, why use a machine? Two principles are involved: One, the cost to the

customer must not unnecessarily increase, which would have happened if they

installed computers. Second, while we can learn computer operations sufficient

for their requirements, why displace the available labour?

10. The success secret of any business is to make its service segment humane.

ANSWERS BY DABBAWALAS

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1) Is the opening of multinational fast food chains in Mumbai a threat to dabbawalas?

As long as there is a husband who loves his wife and his homemade food, we will be

there without any threat.

2) As we all know that the dabbawalas are not much educated. So, isn’t the educational

qualification of the dabbawalas a problem?

Maybe 15 percent of us reach Class 8. More than that and we will start having problems.

Educated people have many questions - why, how - which can act as hindrances in our

strictly time-based trade," he said, adding that disputes within dabbawalas, if any, were

resolved on the spot.

"Our workers just have the basic knowledge of alphabets and numerals which help them

write and understand the codes on the tiffin boxes."

3) What are the major features of the dabbawala’s supply chain management?

Zero percent reliance on fuel, zero percent use of modern technology, zero percent

investment, zero percent disputes, 99.99 percent performance rate and 100 percent

customer satisfaction.

4) What is the most important motivating factor for the dabbawalas?

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"Every dabbawala is a stakeholder in the system. That is the single most motivating

factor. Nobody is an employee. Which is why there has not been a single record of strike

in our business," he said.

5) Is their any security given to the employees or their family members?

Expansion of the network of dabbawalas is limited; however, the extra revenue from

associations with the likes of Airtel, lectures and media operations goes to the Dabbawala

Foundation, a social security fund for the dabbawalas and their families, a well as a

means to buy new carts for bicycles.

A board of directors is made up of around five senior dabbawalas who in their dotage

don't have to carry the lunch boxes until they kick the can, but are on hand to resolve any

disputes.

6) Taking into consideration the Mumbai’s traffic and few more factors, how do the

dabbawalas manage to do their work on time?

"Time, is the first thing any dabbawala has to stick to if he has to succeed in the trade."

There are around 5,000 dabbawalas in Mumbai today delivering around 200,000 tiffin-

boxes amounting to 400,000 transactions every day - first delivering the tiffin boxes and

then delivering the empty boxes back home.

Every dabbawala has to report for duty at their designated locations at precisely 9:30 a.m.

From then on, their work starts. For three hours - "We call this war time" - the

dabbawalas work in a high pressure environment in traffic-congested Mumbai as they

move dabbas on foot, carts and local trains to deliver the food to their customers across

various places in India's commercial capital.

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We ensure that all our customers too stick to time. A dabbawala waits at a household to

collect a dabba for half-a-minute to two minutes and not more. A housewife may delay in

handing over a dabba for a day or two and not more than that.

After all, her delaying one dabba will mean delaying thousands of dabbas across the

system, which means thousands of people will not get their food on time

On the other end, if the office worker cannot have his lunch on time, then he has to keep

two dabbas so that our dabbawala can bring back the previous day's empty dabba. That

usually happens with a new employee when the boss loads them with so much work that

they don't have time for lunch

For three hours, the dabbawalas work on war footing to cover around 60-70 km so that

their customers get their lunch on time.

Since our pushcarts move slowly in comparison to other vehicles, we ourselves also

create obstacles. In the beginning, when we tried to cross the road when the traffic signal

was red or amber, the police objected. We had to plead with them to allow us to walk

through, so that we do not cause accidents or roadblocks in the fast traffic during green

signals. Appreciating this perspective and knowing our sincerity in delivering food, the

police allowed us to run, or can say, they ignored their running. We exploited this space,

which benefited all. The police do not allow such crossing to pedestrians or other

pushcarts of vendors.

Red lights, traffic jams, pedestrian crossings cannot stop us. Even policemen in Mumbai

let us go when they see our trademark white cap.

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7) Is there any problem which dabbawala is facing?

We are facing the most serious challenges to their business, unlike ever before in the past.

Our business model is completely dependant on the people who prefer to eat home food

over outside food. As preparation of home food is itself in a decline due to working of

both the husband and wife their business is going on a steady downward path with no

hope of recovery in the near future. Another problem we face is that the younger

generation wants to get education and do jobs requiring less menial effort. So they find it

difficult to get more dabbawala.

True successful management (not necessarily six sigma) consists of the ability of

forecasting and identification of future challenges/problems and adapting your business

accordingly, in time. We are aware of this problem (maybe because of decrease in

dabbas) and so are looking at alternate sources of income.

8) What are these alternate sources of income?

One way which we had thought of was looking to having a presence in other cities like

Pune, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad as well.

However our business model is very heavily dependent on the cheap, fast and reliable

transport provided by a local train service. Hence we had very limited options like Delhi,

Chennai and Kolkata only.

As of now I guess other option we are thinking of is offering consultancy services to

management institutions. But I seriously doubt how much consultancy we can give since

we are neither educated nor we have any idea about various management jargons. And

also we have only one business model and it is successful only in particular conditions

and particular places because of which no big business is going to give it much thought or

importance.

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9) How do you settle complaints and grievances between dabbawalas?

The group leader, called Mukadam, sorts them out. The president or vice-president of the

Association looks into issues that are not resolved by the Mukadam or issues between

Mukadam and the group.

10) How do you see the future of your organization?

Future can be bright if the above mentioned problem can be solved and in order to solve

this problem we joining our hands with different restaurants from where we can pack

food and give to our customers who are not able to get home food due to any reason.

By finding a way through the network of unmapable Mumbai streets and latterly

discovering ways in which to tap into new revenue streams the dabbawalas appear future-

proof, their unique system more than capable standing up to and economic downturn or

personal changes in taste.

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MY LEARNINGS

Some collaborative ideas of one of the most envious business perfection model from

India. I am sure other countries also have something similar to boast as this but I still

consider this very unique. I am sure that this can also allow us all to get more

inspirational opportunities at our respective homes or even at work place for that matter

of fact. That’s also interesting to note that all organizations boast of Knowledge

management which is something no one wants to share since their dependability from the

organization reduces over a period of time. The reason being very humane – Why lose

the strategic advantage acquired over a period of time? But this is highly impressive and

inspirational.

A lot has already been said about the supply chain management systems used by the

Mumbai Dabbawalas. They have received global applause and are featured as case

studies in B School books. However, what I learnt was not just management fundas but

lessons that I will cherish all my life. Since these lessons impacted me greatly. My

ambition being to be HR manager in a big company, this project has helped me a lot to

understand the basic necessities of HR personnel. Apart from career-making tips, I learnt

life-changing tips on honesty, commitment, stress management, humility, discipline, and

HR and time management. During the various challenges in life, I am sure that the values

followed by the dabbawalas will give strength to rise above the toughest odds.

The lessons I learnt are:

Utmost dependence on Human Capital

The most vital link in this chain of food delivery is human capital. The procedures could

have been laid down over a century ago, but it is the implementation of the procedures

that makes the system work. The Mumbai dabbawalas propagate that correct amount of

human dependence can yield amazing results.

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Honesty and Integrity

The threads of integrity and honesty hold the dabbawalas together. Though it is lunchtime

for dabbawalas also, the aroma wafting from the dabbas has never tempted them.

Overcoming a basic instinct like hunger is possible only because of strong roots in a

culture that encourages truthfulness and integrity.

Discipline and Time Management

The dabbawalas operate on the Chanakya system of Sama-Dama-Danda-Bhed for the

errant members. This ensures that the errant member stays within the system. Secondly,

they are extremely particular about time and realize the value of every second in the

value chain. So much so that when Prince Charles wanted to meet them, they gave him a

precise time slot so that the thousands others would not have to skip their lunch.

Pride towards their work

The dabbawalas take their role as 'Annadatas' very seriously. For them, the delivery of

tiffins is much beyond a job – it means quelling the hunger that strikes the customer when

lunch hour approaches. And so they move about their mission briskly with a smile,

making sure they are never late.

Recruitment policies and manpower management

Over the years, the dabbawalas has become a growing community of busy delivery-men

who carry out their work with honesty and commitment. This is because each person in

the value chain is selected very carefully and with due recommendation only. The

implication of the word 'recommendation' is different from the common parlance – the

referrer assumes responsibility for the incumbent's conduct throughout the working life.

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Complete Contentment

There was an unseen halo of positive vibrations around the members who delivered the

talk. The glow on their faces came from complete contentment with their lives. They

seemed as if they possessed all the happiness and riches in life. 'Be contented in what you

have' is the principle that governs their life. This is particularly surprising because the

members earn not more than 5-6 thousand a month and lead a very hard life compared to

most of us. Still there was not even an iota of stress on their faces – quite contrary to

many others who earn much more than them.

Simplicity is bliss

The working of dabbawala is simple which can be understood easily by their employees.

Look at the simple coding system. High quality with very little technology involved.

Notice one dabbawala saying, “Our computer is our head…”

Having the right person on board

Having the right person on board is sometimes better than a smart person on board. The

head of this organization Mr. Mahadev Bache is not even 12th pass. You don’t always

need MBAs to deliver 99.9999% reliability

Forget the management mumbo-jumbo

I’ve met a lot of organizations who want to become “lean”, “six-sigma”, or “leading

edge”. Well, what is the good if you can’t satisfy your customers and make profit? Don’t

confuse means with ends. Most business organizations exist to deliver high-quality

products/services to customers, and make good profits. Sometimes you can extend it to

nurturing employees and benefiting society. Being lean or leading-edge should not be the

goal; it only helps you get to the destination.

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Musical Meditation

The dabbawalas belong to a sect called Warkari that regularly chants songs of praise to

the Lord. Their daily bhajans sessions seem to play an important role in relieving the

day's stress. They truly embody a living where one looks beyond materialistic earnings

and serves with commitment for a cause.

Sustained success will lead to fame

The dabbawalas believe in doing their work properly and have been ensuring that the

'zero error' flag is held high. The one thing that emerged very strongly is that they

continue to do their work without thinking about any gain. Maybe that's why success and

popularity is chasing them.

I do not know about others, but I could not help thinking about these humble angels all

night. Is it not strange that though the Mumbai Dabbawalas have been operating since

1890 and it is only recently that you and I have noticed them? If the Dabbawalas had not

received due recognition from Prince Charles, Harvard and C K Pralhad would there be

packed audiences to listen to their talk? The answer is obvious. Why does one need a

phoren certificate to appreciate local goodness? I think we need to look around and

discover many noble s-ouls like the Mumbai Dabbawalas. These souls may not have

received the limelight yet, but continue to carry out their work quietly. If one develops a

keen eye to notice positives, one can achieve success in every Endeavour.

CONCLUSION

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In each themes of dabbawala, there is a coherent philosophy, an architecture of values

that sustains a durable business at the low end of the technological structure. Its very

simple because it is innovative. Innovation at the highest level is converting values into

knowledge and sellable products. It is the inclusive thinking of dabbawalas that connects

with peoples desires at the existential level.

The dabbawalas have matched the complexity of modern transport systems by providing

customers with effective service. They sought simplicity over sophistication, echoing

Gandhi’s philosophy.

A dabawala’s white pyjama, shirt and Gandhi cap arouse feelings of sympathy for the

struggle for existence in a megalopolis like Mumbai.

The elements of design in the organization are values and awareness of one’s strengths

and limitations. The central value is ‘teamwork=network =cooperation”. Skill

enhancement is achieved by improving individual speed. That’s innovation infused with

genuine concern for customers.

They have a definable identity and an ancient set of values within their organization.

They have internalized the value statements. Their behavior embodies it, and conveys the

values to the world.

The interesting point to note is that all this is done without a designated CEO. Many of

our seers made innovations in interpreting the meaning, message, methods and

techniques of internalizing the spirit of the Vedas in service of humanity.

Humanity has a good record of innovations in science and technology but not in service.

The cry is for effective and authentic service at affordable cost in all facets of life. This is

62

more our need than the west’s, because we have so many people in the poor and lower

middle class. The dabbawalas have been innovative in sustaining an age old business.

They retained their values but embraced the change wisely. Their value creation

dynamics improved their efficiency when they started sprinting.

Vision is the art of seeing the possible. There is a cultural substratum firmly rooted in the

teaching of Marathis saints, like Dnyaneshwar, Tukaram, and others. The scriptures say:

Charaiveti, Charaiveti (move on, move on). The lesser the contact with earth, the greater

is the contact with heaven. When dabbawalas are on their daily seven hour walks, their

contact totally immerses them in the ‘work is worship’ matrix; this embodies perfect time

management.

It is also drawn from the traditional epics like Mahabharata, Ramayana, and local

folklore. They devoutly carry the palkhi (palanquin) of traditional wisdom. They have

therefore been able to maintain a high level of satisfaction and morale.

They walk the talk without a shred of doubt about anything. That’s their strength. Didn’t

someone say’ “Strong values of hard work, spiritual faith, and service will take you a

long way?”

Zig Ziglar in ‘See you at the Top’ said:

You can have every thing in life if you will just help others to get what they want

Jim Collins said said in ‘Built to Last’ –

Values matter, they build organizations that last

This applies to the Tata’s also. The house of Tata Recently, Narayana Murthy said,

“Technology is about reducing cost, improving productivity, and bringing comfort to the

people”. Who needs that more than the poor?

The world management guru late Peter Drucker once propounded the central concept of

his management philosophy: People were an organization’s most valuable asset.

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Management deals with their values, their growth and development, social structure, the

community, and even with their spiritual values. Values are the pillars of socially

conscious sound business houses. The businessmen who build such organisations of

excellence remain faithful to their values in action.

The difference between ordinary and socially conscious businessmen is the attitude they

show about passing on the cost to the customer. In effect, the dabbawalas fulfill a societal

need by using high technology to increase their productivity and provide customer

satisfaction with minimal cost escalation. This is a unique service to all the classes alike.

No discrimination; economic, social, cast, religion, or gender!

They have only four ladies in 5000. They have no objection to having more, but the

ladies don’t come because of the heavy work load and hardship involved. The four who

have joined are doing work that they can manage.

Charles Handy recently said-

Success means being totally at ease with your self. The happiest people in the world are

those who are most content with themselves.

The whole philosophy of dabbawalas about work and life is based on contentment. Look

at the words-manage-men-t and content-ment-t. Consider the‘t’ to stand for technology

and time; what remains is men managing contents.

If actions are synergistic with thoughts, the work flow is managed smoothly. If we

manage ourselves well enough with the holistic flow, we are contented.

It is written in Gita-

Sukh dukhhe samea krutva

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Labha labho jaya jayo II

It means, gain or loss, victory or defeat, whatever, take a balanced view, maintain

equipoise.

The dabbawalas are from an agricultural background. We say we have had five

revolutions, agricultural industrial, technological, information, and knowledge. The sixth

is not revolution; it is revelation, ‘wisdom’.

And we are learning it from semi-literate people with an agrarian background. The wheel

of knowledge is coming full circle! At the same time let us not belittle our knowledge

base. We are able to understand the patterns in their thought processes, design

alternatives, and learn quickly the essentials that we can replicate.

The philosophy is promisingly secular, productivity oriented, and humane. Its USP,

which I like, is cost consciousness for customers, and moderation in behaviors. They

have lived in harmony n the cosmopolitan ambience of Mumbai while retaining their own

cultural ethos. Their choices are elegant and healing, because they have not violently

disturbed the ecology of self, family and community.

Dabbawalas have also fulfilled their social responsibilities by building four Dharamshalas

in Maharashtra, in Bhimshankar in 1930, Aalandi in 1950, Jejuri in 1984, and Pandharpur

in 2000. The facilities are given on nominal charges to public for social and religious

functions. They continue to raise funds for such charity work and manage their activities

with responsible commitment.

The business model is replicable, gives the basics. One would need these basics if one

wanted to replicate the model. The values however are imitable in quite a few service set-

ups within organizations if the decision makers look “out of window”.

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Dabbawalas do not overanalyze things and complicate matters. You have an open mind.

Overanalyses lead to verbosity and overstatements. That does not help to establish

understanding.

Understatement is a better option. If you understate a case you have better chances of

establishing understanding. Tactically underplaying your point of view conveys humility

instead of aggression. In eastern cultures it has better chances for striking deal.

Let me end with one interesting story - one large shipping company from Europe came to

study their process, and traveled in the local train from Virar to Churchgate station to

experience the action. Finally, they asked, how is it that with all our technology, we

manage to lose large shipments, but here, with so simple process and technology, you

achieve six-sigma. They responded, “Our commitment”.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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WEBSITES:

www.mydabbawala.org

www.triarchypress.com

www.slideshare.net

www.nitie.edu

www.wikipedia.org

REFERENCE BOOKS:

Dabawalas – by Shrinivas Pandit

Mumbai dabbawalas- An entrepreneurial success story

Operations management

Limca book of records

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