Post on 19-Nov-2014
transcript
Introduction
Prince Charles is not the first person to show an interest in the
Dabbawala of Mumbai. In fact, the first time they actually shot to
international fame was when his compatriots at the BBC did a
documentary on them way back in the late 70s.
But it was in the 1990s, when management lexicon became a part of
daily life, that the interest in Dabbawalla’s, now synonymous with
Mumbai's blurringly fast life, grew.
Today, they are feted regularly and invited to lecture students of
business management. Corporate chiefs applaud them; management
gurus use them as models.
So what makes the Dabbawala so unique? And how do they work?
At the simplest, the Dabbawala deliver home-cooked meals to
individuals at their workplaces and return empty Tiffin boxes to homes
and, in some cases, caterers.
For this, they charge Rs 300 to Rs 350 that is $ 6-7, a month.
The workforce of the tiffin box suppliers trust, the cooperative body
that runs the system, is 5,000. Each tiffin box contains two or three
containers, often carrying traditional Indian fare -- rice, curry,
chapattis, and vegetables.
Housewives even send notes to their hubbies in these boxes.
The process begins early in the morning. Cooked food is picked up
from houses and caterers by Dabbawala taken to the nearest railway
station. There, the different tiffin boxes are sorted out for specific
destination stations and loaded on to large, rectangular trays
accordingly.
Each tray can hold up to 40 boxes. These trays then travel in local
trains down to various stations. At each station, there are another set
of dabbawalla’s who quickly take the dabbas meant to be distributed in
that area and push in dabbas meant for other stations.
A Mumbai local halts at a station for about 20 seconds or less and thus,
the Dabbawala have to work with precision and speed. During rush
hour, it's a nightmare. Ask anyone who has done time on Mumbai
locals.
At each station, the boxes are once more sorted for localities and
offices and taken there by handcarts or sometimes carried by
individuals. "We carry up to 35 kg for distances of a couple
of kilometers," points out Medge.
The boxes are placed in the offices' reception area by 12.30 pm and
are picked up from the same spot by the deliverer a couple of hours
later.
The whole process then starts again in the reverse. The boxes are
picked up from the offices, taken to the nearest station and sorted for
their journey home.
Forbes magazine gave this service its highest quality rating of Sigma 6,
which means that per million transactions, there is just an error of one.
The service runs every working day. "Every day, we deliver 175,000 to
200,000 lunch boxes," said Medge. "We use colours and code markings
to ensure faultless delivery."
These codes would baffle a cryptographer! But they make perfect
sense to the Dabbawala. The codes and colours indicate the place
from where a dabba is collected; the station where it must be unloaded
and the office it is to be delivered.
Explaining one part of the code, Medge said they use English alphabets
to mark out stations -- such as A for Andheri and Bo for Borivli.
The men who form part of the organisation are not employees. "If you
have employees, then you have unions and strikes," said Medge,
revealing his deep business acumen. "We are all shareholders in the
Trust and we thus share in the earnings."
On an average, a Dabbawala can make about Rs 3,000 to 5,000. The
Trust provides several services to its members, including schools for
the children and health care in emergencies.
What makes the Dabbawala an extremely tight-knit group is that they
all hail from the same region, Pune district in Maharashtra. "We all
come from the region east of the Sahyadri [Western Ghats], and
everyone who joins us is known to us," said Medge.
"If an outsider does join in, we initially employ him on a fixed salary,
and if in a couple of years he wins our trust, we may make him a
shareholder," added Medge.
Only a handful of the Trust members are not from the Pune region and
most of them are related to each other. They all share similar customs
and traditions and worship Vithoba of Pandharpur.
"In fact, today is Prabhodini Ekadashi, when yatras (pilgrimages) to
Pandharpur are made. So all our members will be fasting today,"
Medge explained.
Yet, while Vithoba is their presiding deity, their success is linked to the
Mumbai suburban train network. On those odd days when the railways
ground to a halt, the dabbas are not delivered.
But then, if Mumbai's locals aren't running, most Mumbaiites won't
reach their offices.
Why have they not tried a similar service in other cities?
"Mumbai's geography makes it unique," Medge points out. "It is a
longish city where residences are in the north and offices in the south,
so it makes our work simple. We tried a similar service in Delhi a few
years ago and it didn't work out; Delhi being a circular city, the
logistics were difficult."
The dabbawallah service began way back in 1890, when Mumbai was a
much smaller city. "At that time, migration of workers to the city had
just begun and they wanted home-made food at their workplaces.
Mumbai is a city with people from all over India, but the South Indians
want their food, while the Gujaratis want their food. Our service began
to fill this growing need," said Medge.
Today, the service delivers not just homemade food but also picks up
food from caterers and delivers them to offices. But Medge said that
food from caterers are still a small segment of the total operation.
"Most people want to eat homemade food in the offices," he said.
As long as the Dabbawalaservice is there, Mumbaikars alone in the
world would have the option of eating homemade food in office without
the bother of having to carry a cumbersome lunchbox.
Planning
CODING
The origin of the dabbawalla’s a hundred years odd ago was as a
service of Tiffin
carriage for the Parsi population. Soon, more and more people moved
into the city and the
dabbawalla’s had to cater to people of various religions. The suburbs
kept going further
and the patrons list kept getting longer. More and more carriers were
pressed into service
and soon, there was a clash in functioning styles of various groups.
The number of tiffins increased for the dabbawalla’s as the days
passed on. As every
Tiffin box had to be carried to and fro mapping each box to its carrier
was crucial or else
it would lead to chaos. For this the dabbawalla’s started tying strings
or wires or threads
to their boxes. But soon these methods were inadequate as the
number of tiffins grew
exceptionally. Thus the need for a new form of coding came up, which
could be
understood by the illiterate dabbawalla’s and was inexpensive.
Hence, in the 1970’s a senior member in Raghunath Medge’s family
decided to
implement a new system where all the box codes and markings were
uniform for the
dabbawalla’s. This system would cater to any number of tiffins no
matter the growth in
additions. This was an ingenious creation. It served as a common
code for the
dabbawalla’s which was easy to decipher.
That was the most important thing to remember while creating the
codes. The
Dabbawalla’s, being illiterate should be able to understand it and
explain it with ease to
new comers and outsiders.
This coding system eventually stood the test of time and proved
extensible. With coding
in place, there was enough scope to factor in new developments like
adding new
dabbawalla’s or new office blocks or new sources and destinations.
The new system depends on common protocols, a typical Indian
approach to versatile
distribution. Each tiff in containing the food has, number of codes in
alphabets and
numbers on its top which identify the following:
1. The code allotted to each dabbawalla in a group that picks up the
Tiffin form a
particular area or suburb.
2. The code of the origin station, which is usually one of the suburbs on
western,
central or harbour lines.
3. The code for destination, which is Churchgate, CST or any other
commercial area.
4. The code of the dabbawalla in the destination area who handles the
Tiffin there
5. The code for the location or office building in the destination area
6. The floor or the room in that building
Besides these that are displays on the top of the dabba there is also a
difference in the colour of paints or chalk that they use to write the
codes. Different groups will have different colour cod written on the top
of the dabba so that the Tiffin belonging to a group remains distinct.
This is necessary because there is usually more than just one group
present at each station. The destination codes will be the same for all
groups at the same station. This makes it difficult to distinguish their
tiffins, so the simplest way of bringing the distinctions that is required
is by coding with different colours. This is a simple and
easy way of differentiating the codes which is also easy to understand
for the illiterate dabbawalla’s. The maximum number of colour used
in this system is 7.
Incidentally each group of dabbawalla’s must also carry coloured
pencils or chalks so that
they can write the codes if they have been erased or are difficult to
interpret.
Obviously, each and every dabbawalla must know the coding system
very well and must
also know all the dabba’s in his group with respect to the origin and
destination
Let, us know look at a few examples of these codes on the tiffins to
better understand the
system and what it all denotes:
We can now separate each element that is written on the Tiffin cover
or top forr
understanding what it means. Let us follow the pattern anti-clockwise:-
VP – The first thing on the Tiffin is the code for the originating station.
This is the station
from where the dabbawalla picks up the Tiffin in the morning. In this
case, VP denotes
Vile Parle. The area under this station will include Juhu and also J.V.P.D
scheme since
this is the only station, which is nearest. Even if the dabbawalla goes to
the most interior
parts like in Juhu, it will not be mentioned in the coding simply because
the dabbawalla’s
are just concerned about the respective railway stations.
E – This is the code for the dabbawalla who is picking up the Tiffin from
its origin or
home. In this case, the dabbawalla with the code of ‘E’ will be a part of
the group
distinguished by the colour code ‘RED’. In many instances, the code
will be the initial of
the name of the dabbawalla. This is one of the elements that can be
changed during the
course of time if the dabbawalla for that particular customer changes.
3 – This is the code for the destination area. This may not necessarily
be restricted to a
station only. For instance, the Churchgate is allotted number codes
from 1-10. Number 11
is allotted to marine lines, 12 to Charni road and so on. In this
example, the number 3 is
allotted to the area between flora fountain and cross Maidan area.
Other prime locations
would include Nariman Point, stock exchange, Ballard pier, RBI etc.
9 – VS – 12
9 – This is the code number for the dabbawalla who delivers the Tiffin
to the destination
office from Churchgate station. This is the dabbawalla who is
responsible for delivering it
to the respective office and picking it up after the lunch hours. He is a
part of another
group from the one he worked with at the originating station. Thus, in
most cases, each
dabbawalla will be a part of more than one group for sure, one at the
origin and one at the
destination.
VS - This code denotes the exact location or more likely, the building’s
initial in the area
that falls under Churchgate station. In this case, it is VSNL building. VS
being the initial
for the building is unique and therefore, creates no confusion
whatsoever for the
dabbawalla’s. Office buildings around southern Mumbai are very
popular and hence, easy to comprehend when given in codes. Other
examples would be ‘M’ for Mittal Towers,
‘R’ for RBI, ‘MC’ for Maker Chambers and so on.
12 – finally, the last code among the three codes that form the right
side of the top of the
dabba is the floor on the building (VSNL) or the room number in case of
buildings with
large number of rooms on each floor. Such an example would be Stock
Exchange, RBI
and BMC etc.
The Nutan trust is the apex body representing the dabbawalla’s. It is
trim hierarchy with
three tiers:
THE GOVERNING COUNCIL
THE MUKKADAMS OR TEAM LEADERS
THE DABBAWALLA’S THEMSELVES
THE GOVERNING COUNCIL
The Governing Council is a 13 member body, for which elections are
held once every 5
years. The committee works on the guidelines of the ‘Cooperatives
Societies Act’. With
Mr. Raghunath D. Medge as the president, the committee includes the
vice president,
General Secretary, Treasurer and 9 Directors.
The president of Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Charity Trust and
Association
heads the association followed by the Vice President, both of them are
responsible for
taking monthly meetings, checking bank accounts and solving
problems of the members.
This is followed by the General Secretary who looks into the daily
matters of the
Association like drafting letters, Making Vouchers, Collecting Rs. 15 as
a fee of the Trust
etc. then the treasurer who looks into the accounts of the Trust. The 9
directors in all help
the president in decision-making and also the smooth functioning of
the Trust.
There are no internal disputes that can lead to unrest in the
organization. This great
coordination enables great work efficiency and simpler decision
making. A simple reason
why the organization can sustain with its trim structure is because
each dabbawalla is an
individual businessman.
THE MUKADAM’S
A Mukadam is the team leader for a group of 25-30 group members.
Although his key
responsibility is sorting the tiffins, he plays a crucial role in settling
disputes, maintaining
records of payments and receipts of members of his group and getting
new clientele.
Another Key function of a Mukadam is to ensure consumer satisfaction.
He is generally
chosen as the leader on the basis of his experience and skill.
THE DABBAWALLA’S
Each dabbawala is a businessman himself. Therefore, each one has to
find out his own
way to maximize a sustainable business. The system has adopted the
Strategic Business
Units (SBU) concept way before it was even introduced by Peter
Drucker. The entire
system is highly decentralized.
The dabbawalla’s operate in groups of roughly 15-25 members each
carrying
around 30-35 tiffins. However there are dabbawalla’s that operate
individually
too. Around 120 groups are registered. All groups are independent of
each other
as far as money matters are concerned.
Each group is responsible to generate money for all its needs and
day to day
functioning. The rationale of developing such a system is to improve
the
competitiveness of the system. This system has adopted the Strategic
Business
Unit (SBU) concept, way before it was introduced by Peter Drucker.
In the association’s code or ethics, no dabbawalla is allowed to
undercut or
outsmart the other. However groups can coordinate among themselves
to get new
clients. This is the uniqueness of this competitive collaboration. There
is unity at
the delivery end, which leads to perfect cutting-edge performance by
each
dabbawalla.
Some groups also have this understanding that when any one of the
members gets
a new Tiffin business, he treats the others on that day. This is an
informal gesture
of course and there is no compulsion.
Another remarkable advantage of this group system is that there is
a backup
system for absentees. If any member abstains from duty on a certain
day, another
member will always be there to collect and deliver the tiffins on the
absentees’
behalf. “We work like a cricket team; if any of the members gets
injured we have
a substitute for him. Like any team we have a substitute player in our
group” says
Raghunath Medge.
As far as social activities are concerned, each group of the individual
systems
contributes Rs. 50 per member for the yearly pooja that is held in their
area.
Each group is financially self-sufficient. Each group pools in the
collections,
distributes and equally shares the monthly spoils amounting to Rs.
5000 to Rs.
6000 per person.
E.g. If there is a group of 10 members with varying individual monthly
incomes
that range from 3000 to 7000 adding upto a total of 40000, then the
collections are
pooled together and then divided equally among all members. Thus,
each member
will eventually get Rs. 4000 per month in that group. Out of these, Rs.
15 per
person goes towards the mandal as welfare fund of the trust.
WHO IS THE DABBAWALLA?
The dabbawalla’s were a homogenous group in many ways. Its
members, traditionally
male, hailed from the same geographical region – known as Mavla –
located east of the
Sahyadri near Pune, and they spoke the same language (Marathi).
They shared similar
customs and traditions, such as gathering together for a week every
April for a festival in
their hometown. They wore the same dress, a loose white dhoti shirt,
cotton pyjamas and
their trademark white oval cap.
All of these combined to form a distinct local identity for the
dabbawalla’s. They were
easily recognized even in the busiest of locations. Pedestrians and
commuters yielded to
the dabbawalla’s in order not to interfere with their service delivery.
Seemingly always in
a rush the dabbawalla’s were known for their reliability and work ethic.
They ascribed to
the traditional Indian belief that “work is workshop”. Averaging 55
years in age,
dabbawalla’s were typically lean, active and physically fit. While the
minimum level of
education was Grade 7 most never got past Grade 8 schooling.
Each dabbawalla earned a monthly income between Rs.5000 and
6000. Out of this
income each dabbawalla was responsible for paying:
Rs.120 for monthly railway pass that allowed them unlimited access
to Mumbai’s
railways.
Rs.60 for the maintenance of the bicycle or the push cart and
The compulsory monthly contribution of Rs.15 to the Trust.
“It is a good earning for a semi-literate by Indian standards,” observed
Medge.
"Farming earns a pittance, compelling us to move to the city. And the
Tiffin service is a
business of repute since we are not working under anyone. It's our own
business, we are
partners, it confers a higher status in society," says Sambhaji, another
dabbawala. "We
earn more than many padha-likha (educated) graduates," says
Khengle.
Each new recruit would undergo an apprenticeship for 2 years and a
fixed remuneration
of Rs.2000 per month. Each apprentice was then required to purchase
a delivery route
before being admitted as a dabbawalla. The price was the route was
fixed as a ratio for
the average monthly earnings of the group at 1:7. For instance, most
groups’ monthly
earnings were approximately Rs.1, 40,000, so the apprentice was
expected to deposit
Rs.20, 000 for a delivery route. This money went to the Shared Capital
of the Trust and
would be returned to the dabbawalla upon retirement. Once admitted,
the dabbawalla was
guaranteed a monthly income and a job for life.
INTRODUCTION OF A NEW MEMBER:
The village address and other details are taken and then the
membership to the
association and bank is granted.
Two guarantors from the group are required. Usually, they are the
senior members
of the group.
The new member is paid a fixed amount of Rs. 2000 for the first 6-7
months till
he is completely trained for handling his own business. (These people
are from the
villages and therefore take considerable time in adjusting to the city
life and
systems).
Lastly, when joining the group, the new comer has to contribute to
the capital of
the association in a 1:7 ratio of the group's average monthly earnings.
That means
that the new entrant must contribute Rs.5000 as capital if his group's-
average
monthly earnings are Rs.35000.
There is a belief in religious neutrality and therefore, people of all
castes are
welcome to join, nevertheless, most of the dabbawalla’s still remain
Maharashtrians and a small proportion is Rajasthanis.
WOMAN IN BUSINESS
Working shoulder to shoulder with the men are the female folk,
affectionately called
"Moushi". If woman can work as engine drivers, bus drivers or as senior
executives in the
corporate world, there is nothing that can stop them from working in
this profession too.
Although there are just two women compared to male dabbawalla’s
numbering around
4,500 they are for certain. One of these women works with her
husband in this profession
and then at the end of the day also carries out the household chores.
With such a hard life
for twenty years, she feels pride to own her own house.
The other member carries 18 tiffins everyday!! Her husband had
returned to the village
after succumbing to hardships of Mumbai life. But she went on in this
city and is now
earning her livelihood owing to this profession. Thus, the dabbawalla
association ensures
that woman too get their equal right for contributing to their family’s or
individual
incomes.
The quintessential aspect of this organization is that nobody is an
employer and none are
employees. Each dabbawalla is a businessman by himself and they all
are ‘partners’. The
association just facilitates the coordination among these small groups.
This is also a
characteristic of logistical operations where co-ordination among
various factors of
production and operation is of prime importance.
The annual turnover of this business is Rs. 50 Crores!!
Woman in business
Mrs. Bhikhubai of Kandivali
Mrs. Anandibai of Borivali
Mrs. Parvatabai of Karale (Ghatkopar)
Mrs. Laxmibai Bagade of Santa Cruz
Staffing:-
Just like old times, recruitment is essentially done
through word of mouth and from neighbouring towns
and villages in western Maharashtra including Junnar,
Ambegaon, Khed, Maval, Mulshi, Akola,
Rajgurunagar, etc.
The recruitment policy is such that even before a
new recruit leaves his hometown for Mumbai, his
area of operation and remuneration are decided.
The whole system operates as a loose cooperative,
and with customer satisfaction levels so high, there’s
little need for a rigid operating structure. The
essence lies in its simplicity.
LeadingThe Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association is
a streamlined 120-year-old
organization with 4,500 semi-literate members
providing a quality door-to-door service to a large
and loyal customer base. The Trust was responsible
for managing the overall meal delivery system. it
worked in close co-ordination with the Mumbai Tiffin
Box Suppliers Association, a forum that provided
opportunities for social interactions among the
dabbawalla’s and the Dakkhan Mavle Sahakari
Patpedhi, a credit union that catered to the financial
needs of individual dabbawalla’s by providing
personal loans. Given its charitable trust status, the
Trust was also involved in community initiatives by
providing free food and accommodation to low-
income families at some pilgrimages centres.
The Trust had a three-tier structure Executive
Committee, Mukadams and dabbawalla’s.
Under this structure, the basic operating unit was the
team. Each team, which comprised
between five and eight dabbawalla’s, was headed by
a Mukadam. Having risen from the
ranks of the dabbawalla’s, a Mukadam’s primary
daily responsibility involved the sorting
of the dabba’s. However as team leader the
Mukadam performed several administrative
tasks that included maintaining records of client
payments, arbitrating disputes between
dabbawalla’s and customers, and apprentice
training. The Mukadam was also in charge of
acquiring new clients for the team and managing
customer satisfaction. New customers
purchased their dabba’s from the dabbawalla’s when
service was commenced. Dabba’s
were typically replaced at cost to the customer once
every two years. Seven to eight Mukadams
aggregated their efforts and constituted a profit
centre, each profit centre was referred to as a
“group.” There were about 120 groups in total.
While each group was managed autonomously, its
members stepped in without hesitation to
help other groups in dealing with emergencies such
as dabbawalla absenteeism. Monthly group
maintenance costs totalled Rs.35000/, covering the
maintenance of the bicycles, push carts and wooden
boxes the dabbawalla’s used in their daily deliveries.
The 13 members of the Executive Committee, which
was elected by the general body every 5 years,
coordinated the activities of the various work groups.
The Committee, which undertook all major decisions
for the trust and worked on the principles specified
in the Cooperative Societies Act, met on the 15th of
each month. Operational issues typically dominated
each meetings agenda. Examples of such issues
included disputes with the Mumbai city railways over
dabbawalla’s not carrying their monthly passes or
the ID issued to them by the Trust, and with the city
police when dabbawalla’s parked their push carts or
bicycles where parking was not permitted. Annually
there were few reports of lost or stolen dabba’s. In
such instances clients were reimbursed by the
individual Dabbawalla’s or given a free dabba.
Controlling
RULES AND POLICIES
An important feature of the dabbawalla’s service is
customer satisfaction.
In cases of theft or loss of a Tiffin-box, if any carrier
is found guilty then the client is allowed to deduct
the costs from the dabbawalla's charges for the
subsequent month. If a client receives improper
services by any dabbawalla, for which a complaint
has been made to the association; that particular
Dabbawala will be directed to end his services with
that client and another Dabbawala will be
allotted to the client. In this manner, no future
disputes between that client and the dabbawalla will
arise and with the allocation of another Dabbawala in
his place, the client will also receive continuous and
efficient service. Thus leading to greater customer
satisfaction.
The association also has the responsibility of
handling all the internal disputes.
Apart from discouraging undercutting between two
dabbawalla’s, the association has to handle all kinds
of disputes arising between two dabbawalla’s. For
this reason, the association charges Rs. 100-200/-
before looking into the complaint.
This is done to ensure that the official’s time is not
wasted on any petty disputes.
A meeting is convened on the 15th of every month at
the Dadar office where all the committee members
assemble and all complaints and disputes arc heard
and resolved. The dabbawalla’s are not supposed to
take any major decisions and are
not supposed to claim any amount arising out of a
dispute until the actual dispute matter is brought
forward in front of everyone during the monthly
meet.
Each Tiffin carrier has to pay Rs. 15 to the union
every month. This money accumulates and helps as
aid in celebrating and funding their festival at various
locations in Maharashtra. This is a social activity of
the association since the dabbawalla’s get proper
accommodation whenever they go to these places.
(Unfortunately, there are a lot of Dabbawalla’s who
don’t pay this contribution at all.)
In the association’s code of ethics, no dabbawala is
allowed to undercut another.
As far as possible, coordination among groups is
encouraged so that undercutting
doesn’t lead to disputes.
The whole dabbawalla’s union takes a one week
break every year in the month of
March when they all go to Ambegaon for their annual
village festival. This is
called the ‘Bhairavnath Maharaj Utsav'. This is a
welcome break from the hectic
day-to-day routine that the dabbawalla’s follow. All
customers are informed much
in advance about this period when the dabbawalla’s
will collectively remain
absent from duty. This is the individual dabbawala's
responsibility to
communicate with the clients and in order to
authenticate the reason for the leave;
the association also circulates notices for customers
along with each carrier.
Wearing the traditional white cap is very
important. It is the only integral symbol
of the dabbawala’. If a dabbawala is caught not
wearing the cap. He will be fined
Rs.30 when spotted by the officials.
Each dabbawalla is allowed to carry a maximum of
35 Tiffin boxes. If the number
is more than 35, then the excess tiffins need to be
carried by another carrier.
In the long historical relationship with Mumbai city,
the dabbawalla’s have one
major unattended demand. The union has constantly
requested the Railways to
reserve one goods compartment for them during
peak hours but they have not
been adhered to. Bu tit is an unwritten rule that
people are not to load the
particular goods compartment occupied by
dabbawalla’s for their goods. Meaning
between 10:00 and 11:30 am and 15:00 to 16:30
hours commuters are generally
are not supposed to board the goods compartment
occupied by the dabbawalla’s.
In fact, until the 1970s, the particular compartment
read something like this
“Reserved for Tiffin carriers”. But with growing
number of commuters and more
and more demand for better service and space, this
reservation has been
discontinued.
Every dabbawala has to handle his own expenses.
Handcart and Bicycle
maintenance. Railway pass, luggage pass and all
other contributions and fees.
They can also opt for the loan from the Union at
around 5% p.a. which is lower
than market rate of in interest. The union also runs a
small co-operative bank in
order to help the dabbawalla’s and the community as
a whole. The dabbawalla’s
belong to a large community and hence, it is a part
of the association‘s social
commitment to help achieve the upliftment of the
community.