Many public sector units (PSUs) are great places to work for all the wrong reasons. Employees are fussed over while not being expected to work productively. The one PSU on our list, Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), is there for the right reasons. ''I don't think our people are happy because we are a PSU. They are happy because of the way we operate," says S. Behuria, chairman and managing director.

BPCL operates differently because of its heritage. It was once the subsidiary of multinational Burmah Shell; it is now owned by the government (though it may be privatised soon). The MNC genes seem to dominate the PSU ones. "We don't have a babu culture,'' says S.A. Narayan, director (HR). This is reflected in the openness. "I can walk into my GM's room and give him my thoughts,'' says an executive. "We cut across protocol lines. If I need something, I know who's doing it, I ring him up,'' says Behuria.

If it was becoming bureaucratic in the 1980s, the deregulation of the petroleum sector and competition have reinforced the MNC values. Four years ago, BPCL undertook an organisational restructuring which gave more freedom to people on the field. Territory managers in retail can award jobs up to Rs 2 crore or take action against errant dealers today.

Then, the implementation of an ERP system and redeployment of the people who subsequently became redundant unleashed a lot of energy for innovation, which is showcased in an ideas forum. BPCL has also introduced an incentive scheme which will offer differential compensation for strong performance. The message: if you do well, you will get more money. That's not standard practice at your average PSU.