Indispensable

Although I consider the tactics of how HSBC cuts that 3000 jobs in Hong Kong horrible, it is why the old lion chooses firing people as the strategy being catastrophic.

Their attitude is simple: No one is indispensable.

In other words, they (believe they) could always hire another lot during the next economic upturn and our local market needs expansion. To them, employers to a company is no different from the finger disc or portable CD player of their laptop computer - when there is a port, you can always plug-and-play.

But, the traditional teaching of no one is indispensable is in itself outdated. The modern school of thought is everyone is indispensable. This motto is particularly important for business of which the success hinges on person-to-person interaction - or a team of professional and dedicated workers.

And, banking is a typical example.

Unfortunately that's difficult to be understood by someone brought up from treasury and capital trading.

PS. The best example "business" that one should emphasize everyone is indispensable is - you know what - the health care system.

When I was a trainee, I used to say, despite they were brought up as physicians, administrators could never take good care of our patients because they did ward round to the bed (number), but not the patient. Now, I come to realize there is also no way to improve our patient care if administrators consider doctors as headcounts on the duty list.