Business & Economy July, 2008
One of the most widely discussed & debated terms, with many definitions already existing, ‘Leadership’ continues to be an intriguing topic. As a student & practitioner of Leadership, I have tried to observe, read about & learn from the ways, behaviours, thoughts & styles of many Great Leaders. In my quest to learn more about Leadership, before being able to comment on Good Leadership, I checked how Oxford Dictionary treats the subject. Lead is described as ‘show the way, esp by going in front; guide or take by holding, pulling etc.’. A Leader then, is ‘a person who Leads’ & Leadership is the ‘ability to be a Leader’.
What then, is ‘Good’ Leadership ? Fundamentally, at the most basic level, the element of ‘going in front’ is an essential requirement to be fulfilled. A Leader is also expected to have, depending on the field of operation, Business, Functional or Domain knowledge, specific to the area of operation. A good definition of Leadership that I came across is ‘A Leader is someone you choose to follow, because you know that he/she can take you where you want to go, but cannot go alone’. This definition goes beyond just ‘subject expertise’ & ‘going in front’, to highlighting ‘choice’ & ‘desired direction’ on behalf of the followers as well ….. It allows for a conscious human being to make an active choice & to determine his/her future direction….. so much a part of The Indian Ethos !! The question then is about options available to be able to make a choice, rather than having to choose from whatever is available.
However, talking of Good Leadership, there is also the concept of ‘Situational’ Leadership. According to this, the approach should be changed depending on the context or situation. An approach valid in one situation, may not be valid in another. So, a slightly broader view, encompassing more variables is proposed. Now what is the context that is generally kept in mind when choosing a Leadership approach ? Very often, even when this is followed, the context remains very narrow ….. confined to one circumstantial dimension only i.e. a variation in approach/action just based on situations & events or maybe depending on who the Leader is or what geography or domain he/she is involved in. Leadership should look at a much wider context ….. social, economic, psychological, physical ….. a holistic systems approach. A Bangalore city prospering in IT ignores the context of infrastructure or social inconvenience that maybe building up due to another variable that gets totally left out of the equation. While Delhi booms in real estate & infrastructure, social stress, intolerance, crime & road rage create a bulge and distortion of the picture at another place.
Good Leadership, at the cutting edge, is Life itself !! Like in life, a Dynamic Balance of various aspects has to be maintained ….. between yin & yang, masculinity & feminity. Good Leadership needs to attain a balance between social, economic, physical & psychological variables. In most situations we see one dimensional excellence at the cost of various other dimensions. The result is a time bomb ticking somewhere else. Depending on which area one is responsible for, one would maximise indices depicting performance in that dimension, sweeping the dust out from ‘my house’ onto ‘the neighbour’s front yard’. This does not really ensure a healthy, all round effort. Inflation & other pressures build up as a result of ignored variables, not built into the equation. A chain is as strong as the weakest link …..
In the corporate world, to some extent ‘The Balanced Scorecard’ approach deals with such a situation, though not fully. Alongwith stakeholders’ financial interests, it encourages measurement on the people, customers & process dimensions as well ….. definitely an approach in the right direction, but still needs broadening of the scope to include impact on society, environment & nature.
There is tremendous ‘Energy’ in India today, both quantitatively & qualitatively. A billion plus people, half of them below 20 years of age, growing opportunities, developing economy, increasing aspirations !! What is needed is a holistic approach to make sure that this phenomenal social, physical, psychic energy produces the best results in a multidimensional Indian ecosystem. Neglecting any one dimension is like ‘leakage’ of energy from that ‘weakest’ point in the nuclear reactor ….. !! Balanced, well rounded development, ensuring that social, economic, psychological, physical & environmental interests are in a Dynamic Equilibrium is the challenge in India today. Such a balance will ensure ‘Ananda Tandava’, which India has taught the world over ages.
Alignment of a billion ‘charged ions’ in a Laser Head, needs application of a high voltage of Leadership Qualities of Truth, Integrity, Ethics, Humility, Inner Strength, Transcending of Self & Passion ….. And once it happens it can LEAD to a Highly Powerful Laser Beam ….. !! However, leaving a weak spot, an unattended to variable, can LEAD to leakage of uncontrolled high energy into the Indian environment ….. causing damage or a lost opportunity. Let’s hope that we see A Dynamic Equilibrium leading to A Celebration of Life in the India of tomorrow !!
J.P.Singh
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