Workforce Management a la Balinese
In Bali, almost everyday you can a find a ceremony or two are held, in an auspicious or lucky day thousands of ceremonies are held all over the islands. These ceremonies cannot just be prepared in a day or two, many workforces and work hours are devoted for the preparation of these ceremonies. These massive workforces and work hours are usually managed based on gender system.
In preparation of the ceremony, there are some task that are usually tackled by women and some works that are usually done by men. Women usually prepare the offerings that are made from coconut leaves that are woven or plaited which is known as jejaitan; women also prepare the rice cakes and other snacks for the offerings. As for men, they usually prepares all requirements in relation with bamboo such as the structures and containers for the offerings, various sticks for various kind of satay and other bamboo products which are used in the ceremony. Dishes for the ceremony are also men’s prerogative. The cooking activities for the preparation of the dishes for the ceremony is known as mebat is the main task of Balinese men in preparation of the ceremony.
This gender-based job description has been going for centuries; it considered inappropriate for men to make woven coconut leaves offerings and making structures or containers of offerings from bamboo considered improper to be done by women. However men usually help in picking the coconut leaves or getting the materials which are needed by women in making the offering while women usually provide some help in making the dishes or mebat.
This workforce management is the recipe of countless successful ceremonies that have been held for centuries.