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Corporate trainer Vinay Kapoor on why a programme that aims at adding soul to organisations isn’t at all impractical
Nazia Khan

Vinay Kapoor makes it a point to stress on real time experiences, as opposed to abstract conc-epts. The Dubai-based corporate programme trainer, who was in Oman recently to conduct the first APEX (Achieving Personal Excellence) course here, believes that the effectiveness of the sessions exists in practical understanding. “I could tell you that the water in a glass is cold or I could just request you to drink the glass of water.” If that sounds too simplistic, it’s probably because a natural order is what the course strives to achieve.

The course, developed by the International Association for Human Values and the Art of Living Foundation, aims at dealing with the pressures facing individual employees through healing breathing techniques and guided meditation, among other processes. The course has been conducted in over 500 organisations worldwide, including IBM, NASA, and the World Bank. According to Kapoor, the core principles of the course, which is just about a year and a half old in the Middle East, are accessible across corporate environments. “At the end of the day, any growing organisation with global aspirations is interested not just in numbers but also in the people who are responsible for bringing in those numbers. By creating an environment where teamwork will prevail, the programme adds soul and value to the organisation.”

Considering that the demands made on individuals are often higher than their capacity, the course has three core areas – perception, observation and communication – that it aims at improving. “If your external perception is accurate, then your internal nervous system is relaxed, and so your communication is more focused. Basically, these are the tools most executives need at the corporate level to achieve their ambitions.”

A former investment banker who worked with Citigroup and Merrill Lynch, Kapoor has, in his one-year plus stint as a trainer, observed closely the anxiety that clouds executives. “Uncertainty is very high in this part of the world, because you have limited job contracts.” The way around this is to develop personal skills, over and above professional skills.

At the end of the five-day APEX course, which is conducted offsite to promote out-of-the-box thinking, there are follow-ups to maintain the momentum achieved. Kapoor describes the conclusion of the programme as the beginning of a relationship. “We are in regular touch with individuals and the organisation as a whole. Most of the techniques that the participants learn are very practical and involve daily practice of about 25 minutes. The follow-ups are in addition to this.”

There are no contradictions between human values and the corporate culture, as this teacher, who enjoyed his career in investment banking, sees it. “What I’m doing now involves contributing to a larger community. It gives me a broader purpose in life and I feel a higher level of cont-entment today.” Much like what the APEX course aims at giving its participants, he says.