Idli, Orchid and Will Power
A BOOK REVIEW BY ME PUBLISHED IN THE MANAGEMENT JOURNAL "MANAGEMENT EDGE" BY INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH, NEW DELHI.
Title of the Book: Idli, Orchid and Will Power
*Price: Rs. 150/-
About the Author: Vithal Ventnkatesh Kamat is the owner of the hotel – The Orchid, the world’s highest environmental award winning ecotel [environment friendly hotel].
*Background: The book is an autobiography of an entrepreneur who has seen almost everything in his life that a person could possibly go through. It is a must read for anyone who wants to become an entrepreneur. It has all the lessons of management from HRM, Marketing and Entrepreneurship perspective. Most eye-catching feature of this book is the collection of anecdotes that the author shares in almost every chapter. Divided in almost 34 chapters, this book can also serve as a counseling guide for those who are struggling with their businesses. The only lacking part is the language, which is not lucid enough at times, but looking at what it offers, this is something one can easily afford to ignore. Every lesson of management can be learnt by this book…creativity, change management, hrm, marketing and so on.
*Summary: The book, with a wonderful story element, teaches all the aspects of management. The author shares his experiences. Starting with his family background and early yours of childhood, he narrates how his father, a hotelier, practiced the business with full ethics. Some experiences of his father are worth reading and reflect many good management practices. Then the author moves round the world which he calls apprenticeship. He goes to many countries and work under many hoteliers to know about how people in different countries run this business. This gives him versatile experience. Now, with the learning from his father and this apprenticeship, the author decides to open a four-star hotel. He purchases a hotel near an airport in Mumbai. The hotel does well, and then, he even further decides to go for a five-star hotel at the same premises. Turning this hotel into five-star hotel proves to be tough. It is so difficult for him to arrange for money that once he thinks to commit suicide! And like that is not enough, dirty game by his brother and for CA creates obstacles for him. And then, he narrates, how his patience, vision and creativity, family support help him fight all the odds ad establish one of the world’s best ecotel- The Orchid.
* Conclusion: In short, although the author has not specifically tried to write a typical book of management, it definitely has got a flair of management.
* Suggestions: 1. The language of the book is very typical at times, and if that can be made a bit more lucid, it will offer a better reading experience.
2. The start of the book is slow and so one has to keep patience before the real story starts.
Title of the Book: Idli, Orchid and Will Power
*Price: Rs. 150/-
About the Author: Vithal Ventnkatesh Kamat is the owner of the hotel – The Orchid, the world’s highest environmental award winning ecotel [environment friendly hotel].
*Background: The book is an autobiography of an entrepreneur who has seen almost everything in his life that a person could possibly go through. It is a must read for anyone who wants to become an entrepreneur. It has all the lessons of management from HRM, Marketing and Entrepreneurship perspective. Most eye-catching feature of this book is the collection of anecdotes that the author shares in almost every chapter. Divided in almost 34 chapters, this book can also serve as a counseling guide for those who are struggling with their businesses. The only lacking part is the language, which is not lucid enough at times, but looking at what it offers, this is something one can easily afford to ignore. Every lesson of management can be learnt by this book…creativity, change management, hrm, marketing and so on.
*Summary: The book, with a wonderful story element, teaches all the aspects of management. The author shares his experiences. Starting with his family background and early yours of childhood, he narrates how his father, a hotelier, practiced the business with full ethics. Some experiences of his father are worth reading and reflect many good management practices. Then the author moves round the world which he calls apprenticeship. He goes to many countries and work under many hoteliers to know about how people in different countries run this business. This gives him versatile experience. Now, with the learning from his father and this apprenticeship, the author decides to open a four-star hotel. He purchases a hotel near an airport in Mumbai. The hotel does well, and then, he even further decides to go for a five-star hotel at the same premises. Turning this hotel into five-star hotel proves to be tough. It is so difficult for him to arrange for money that once he thinks to commit suicide! And like that is not enough, dirty game by his brother and for CA creates obstacles for him. And then, he narrates, how his patience, vision and creativity, family support help him fight all the odds ad establish one of the world’s best ecotel- The Orchid.
* Conclusion: In short, although the author has not specifically tried to write a typical book of management, it definitely has got a flair of management.
* Suggestions: 1. The language of the book is very typical at times, and if that can be made a bit more lucid, it will offer a better reading experience.
2. The start of the book is slow and so one has to keep patience before the real story starts.
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