The slender volume relates Srinivasan's experiences starting out under his father's tutelage as a chartered accountant, India's equivalent to a CPA. He describes his workplace observations of managers and employees and links them to the "Thirukural," which he calls a treatise on the art of living. Written by Tamil poet Thiruvallur sometime between 300 and 100 B.C., the text� which Srinivasan relates to modern management practices�consists of 133 chapters with 10 kurals, or poetic couplets, each.

Srinivasan thus joins the ranks of authors who find lessons for today's managers in seemingly exotic sources. Other such books include "Sun Tzu and the Art of Business: Six Strategic Principles for Managers" by Mark McNeilly, and "Sun Tzu Strategies for Selling: How to Use The Art of War to Build Lifelong Customer Relationships" by Gerald A. Michaelson and Steven W. Michaelson.

Citing a passage from the "Thirukural," Srinivasan offers a recognizable remedy for managing an organization or company that grows weak and incapable of surviving on its own. "When the territory of the king or the market share of a company declines leading to a fear in the mind of the king that he will not be able to survive the opponent/competition, it is better for him to submit to an alliance with a stronger king." � Kural 680

Some self-explanatory precepts should already be part of any manager's tool kit. In a chapter on organizing, the poet advises, "Never trust men without testing them; and after testing them, give each one of them the work for which they are fit." � Kural 509

"These kurals talk about the danger of entrusting work to somebody without trying them out," says Srinivasan. "When hiring a new recruit, we generally have a testing period."

Parts of the book depart from ancient Indian wisdom. Srinivasan includes points from contemporary works such as "Monday Morning Leadership" by David Cottrell and "Jack Welch and the 4E's of Leadership" by Jeffrey Krames. He follows these excerpts with portions of the "Thirukural" like this one describing the qualities of a leader: "Alertness, learning and quickness of decision are the three virtues that are necessary for a prince."� Kural 382