Bala Prasanna joined IBM-International Business Machines Corporation in May 2005 as a technical/people manager. Mr. Prasanna began his career as an assistant professor in SUNY-State University of New York-Oswego in Computer Science department in 1981. He worked at AT&T-Bell Labs for over 20 years as member of technical staff, principal member of technical staff & technical/people manager. He earned his M.S. (Math) from Bangalore University, India & M.S. (Computer Science) from Southern Illinois University, IL. Mr. Prasanna has a passion for teaching and sharing his technical and non-technical knowledge. During his career at AT&T, he was involved with building real-time telecom network management systems to address network maintenance, provisioning & disaster recovery. As a part of AT&T's efforts supporting diversity & affirmative action, he was involved in teaching at Morgan State University in Towson, MD for over 15 years. Mr. Prasanna is currently involved in building software systems working with on-shore and off-shore teams. As a manager, he is active in many employee counseling and support organizations. Bala Prasanna is currently serving as the Chair of IEEE Region 1 New Jersey Coast Section. Prior to this he served in various positions within NJ Coast section as a volunteer officer since 1993. He is very proud of the value he brings to the organization individually and his influence on the team of volunteers at NJ Coast Section. Bala Prasanna is a senior member of IEEE. He has published and presented on software reliability engineering methodology in IEEE Communications. He has given presentations at many universities, IEEE Section Congress discussing the need and value of career & life management skills. Bala Prasanna is a recipient of IEEE Millennium and IEEE Region awards for his leadership contributions. * * * CAREER & LIFE MANAGEMENT SKILLS FOR SUCCESS Do you remember your grandmother's story about how the kingdom was lost, all because of a horseshoe nail? Great things in life can be accomplished through a series of simple and small things brought together. The importance of work/life balance cannot be overstated. The speaker discusses leadership, conflict resolution through negotiation, office politics, finances, self-management, networking, handling criticism, need for making right choices and volunteerism through anecdotes and interactive discussions. The goal of this presentation is to help you appreciate the shades of gray in Life and develop a state of mind to handle life events with a constructive and positive outlook. You should expect to see significant changes in your effectiveness if you embrace only a few pointers. * * * WORKING
IN 21ST CENTURY - ESSENTIAL SKILLS Workplace habits and expectations have changed significantly in the last few years. Surviving and thriving depends on your ability to grasp the broader picture and adopt while being aware and honing some essential skills. Topics of discussion include — handling a round-the-clock job; setting aside think place/think time regularly, training a back-up; playground vs. battleground attitude/aptitude; finding & developing sweet spot of issues for resolution; managing your boss (Yes), managing relationships(creating your angels), think as a manager; become aware of business control requirements of your employer ("I am just technical, don't bother me with bureaucratic processes/" will not cut any more!), metrics imperatives of modern businesses; handling personal vs. professional attitudes/opinions; some habits of successful people; talents vs. skills (recognize & use your talents — it is a gift you have), skills — train to acquire necessary skills; productivity — tracking and yearly increments(/like it or not/!), customer/vendor relationships); seeing or seeking comfort in spiritual or philosophical terms
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