Prajna Capital - An Investment Guide

OFTEN, LEADERS ARE NOT sure how to balance soft leadership skills such as trust and communication with the more hard line leadership approaches (read: retrenchments, realignments, cost cutting) during tough times. Research indicates that the greater the stress an organiation is facing, the more important a leader’s soft-skills, especially communication skills become. Research has found that there are four important characteristics associated with leaders of the subcontinent, who were most successful in leading their organizations through transitions: Make Relationships a Priority: Especially in the subcontinent, companies are about people and relationships. Leaders cannot afford to become cynical or negative during times of turmoil. They cannot remain insensitive to employee needs or be seen as inaccessible. They are expected to be caring and empathetic, giving importance to relationships even during tough times. Maintain Constant Communication: During tough times, people are more vul...

LEADERSHIP? You? Isn’t that just for the top of the ‘food chain’? You just want an entry-level job, a promotion to the next rung, or to simply keep your job in tight times, right? In today’s world, you think to yourself, you’ll be lucky to get to a leadership position in the next five years. Wrong! If leadership is not the most overused and misunderstood word, then it certainly ranks in the top ten in today’s corporate corridors. It’s time to set the record straight. Leadership is not about title or position or being the decider, That’s positional authority. It’s not about knowing it all, creating a fearful atmosphere, or getting obedience from others even if that seems to be the everyday behaviour in your organisation. No, real leadership is about collaboration, asking questions that promote learning, and creating an atmosphere of innovation. And, real leadership is for everyone. Moreover, it can be honed with practice, but it starts internally and grows from there. My experienc...

HOW TO GROOM LEADERS, ICICI S T Y L E Take very deliberate, calculated decisions: Why did the directors take a very calculated decision—and a very risky one at that—to send Sanjoy Chatterjee, then all of 34, to head its subsidiary in UK? "We wanted some of the top performers to be internationalized. In the same way, Rajiv Sabharwal was given early exposure to rural—again, a very deliberate decision,” says Mr Ramkumar. Train people to take the heat: Dealing with stress and pressure are part of life at ICICI. The high performance culture starts at the board meetings itself, where executive directors are grilled by the entire board. And for most newcomers, this can be an unnerving experience. ICICI has now started simulated training for potential board members which gives them a real sense of an actual setting. Don't worry about going wrong on the calls you take: In judgement calls, the risk of going wrong cannot be eliminated. In case a person fails, there is no witch-hunting. I...

ICICI bank’s leadership in the industry is exemplary. But nothing to compare its ability to spot, groom and deploy leaders in-house. One-man show LISTEN to Mr Kamath as he recounts his original formula. “This entrepreneur was told you that have the support system of ICICI. You have a limited amount of capital. We will give you one good person whom you can pick. The rest of the team you will have to build and this is your business case. Detail your business case, build your team, tell me how you will execute, start executing, report to the board on that basis. Thereafter, move it to a management by-objective type of scenario—where objectives are very clearly set, keep meeting those performance targets. Keep ramping up these targets, if necessary, maybe course correcting the strategy as you go on.” The model was successful. “It allowed the young business heads to evolve into leaders because they took the entire stress of building those businesses and getting them into shape. In that proc...

ICICI bank’s leadership in the industry is exemplary. But nothing to compare its ability to spot, groom and deploy leaders in-house. IT SEEMED like a random move then. In 2002, Sanjoy Chatterjee, 33, an almost unknown face to the outside world, was assigned to head ICICI Bank's UK subsidiary. Asking a young and relative inexperienced executive to lead the bank's UK operations may have looked risky and reckless to many at that time. But late last year, when the bank rejigged its top brass, the plot began to fall in place. Chatterjee got elevated to lead its critical international business and corporate banking divisions. His elevation hints at two things: the bank's phenomenal talent screening process and its courage to bet on young and bright executives much ahead in their careers. Chief executive officer K V Kamath, 59, knows that that's the only way ICICI Bank will be able to maintain its edge and growth going forward. The average age of Indians will fall to 28 in the...

PICK YOUR BATTLES CAREFULLY CEOs who sell and negotiate successfully know that sometimes even the most valiant fight may not be worth the potential loss it entails. They know it’s up to them to assign value to the campaign they decide to take on or decline — not outside forces like sales vice-presidents or prospective customers. In other words, good CEOs are more likely to ‘walk’ when they sense there will be no alternative to a bad deal. They don’t negotiate a deal just to say they’ve negotiated something. LEAVE NO LOOSE ENDS Once they take on a negotiating project — or any project, for that matter, — CEOs ensure everything on the ‘hot list’ gets taken care of. They can’t afford to leave any loose ends at a negotiating session, and they commit to following through on all their commitments. You’ll want to do the same. KNOW WHEN TO ASK, NOT JUST WHAT TO ASK FOR Successful CEOs know that you can’t reap what you don’t sow. Their actions always seem to be in accordance with the ‘ebb and...

A leader has to show Curiosity . He has to listen to people outside the ‘Yes, sir’ crowd. He has to read voraciously, because the world is a complicated place. A leader has to be Creative , go out on a limb, be willing to try something different. You know, think outside the box. Leadership is all about managing change — whether you’re leading a company or leading a country. Things change, and you get creative. You adapt. A leader has to Communicate . I’m not talking about running off at the mouth or spouting sound bites. I’m talking about facing reality and telling the truth. Communication has to start with telling the truth, even when it may be painful. A leader has to be a person of Character — knowing the difference between right and wrong and having the guts to do the right thing. Abraham Lincoln once said, ‘‘If you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” A leader must have Courage . Swagger isn’t courage. Tough talk isn’t courage. Courage in the twenty-first century does...

INFLUENCING LEADERSHIP has taken on new meaning and greater challenges in the last decades. Influencing is a critical skill that must be mastered simply because we work with a multitude of people. There is no right way, nor is there only one way to influence others. In organisational life, influence is a key skill. It helps earn co-operation from colleagues, ensures your voice is heard and makes you a better leader. Remember that the real skill is learning how to influence through commitment, loyalty and trust, rather than through mere compliance or, at worst, coercion. Know what you want: Start with the end in mind. You must clearly know what the end state is and what outcome you desire. Then identify the key stakeholders who you need to influence. Try to discover as much as you can about them and where they are coming from by asking open-ended questions that will encourage them to talk. Learn more about yourself: A heightened sense of selfawareness and the effect you have on other ...

3 Cs for growth: Character, Competence, Commitment SUCCESS stems, in part, from the values, wants and needs that are interwoven within individuals and an organisation, and the ways in which the individuals and the organisations resolve the many differences and conflicts that are an ongoing part of every organisation in these diverse pursuits. Of course, one must be able to attract and retain the “best and brightest” people into an organisation in order to succeed. But, this is just the beginning. Purposes, missions and goals that stimulate and encourage people and organisations too are essential. Within each of these areas, there are differences and conflicts. For example, just in the issue of goals with a group, there are at least four areas of potential conflict: • The personal goals of the individual within the group, • The goals of the individual for the group and its goals, • The goals of the group itself within the corporation, and • The goals of the group for the corporation an...