1. Business Leadership in Turbulent
Times
IIMM Evening Session Ahmedabad
9th Aug 13
Ramesh Sangare, President &CEO
HR Services-Value Chain Solutions (India) Pvt. Ltd.
Ahmedabad Nagpur
2. What is turbulence?
Unusual phenomenon- in which,
• Speed is high
• Direction is confusing
• Destroying power very high
• Leaves its negative impact on a large scale and
for a longer time
And
• You are caught off-guard!
3. Business predictions……
• Can we really predict Business outcomes?
• Are those guaranteed?
• Are those predictive?
• Are those full-proof against all eventualities?
• Can we really learn from the past always?
• Can we fail with Best of the Strategic Plans and Intentions
and Best of the men and machines with us?
• Can we really always depend upon the artificial intelligence
for real life situations problems solutions?
• Are we becoming subservient to computing to basic human
capacities to analyse, understand, infer, internalize and
foresee?
4. What is the Strategic Move?
• Its planned visualization of events yet to occur
• With its inherent strengths and potentials
• With its threats and weaknesses
• With high probabilities and possibilities but not
guarantees
BUT WITH FULL FOCUS ON THE GOALS AND
UNFLINCHING FAITH IN ITS OUTCOME-
EMPERORS WITH STRATEGY ONLY RULED THE WORLD!-
Lao Tse- “Science of war” – 300 years BC
5. Saga of Human spirit and grit
Journey of human being from
• threats to security,
• discomfort to comforts,
• ignorance to knowledge,
• pain to pleasure,
• uncertainty to certainty,
• unknown to known,
• dark to light,
• poverty to prosperity and
• turbulence to stability!
6. Vulnerability- another side of coin of
stability-
In the face of turbulence-
• “Who moved my cheese?” phenomenon has hit
us!
• “Dream Americana” – Heap of cheese is missing
suddenly!
• Dreams, Hopes, Aspirations shattered overnight!
• Reactivity overtook Pro-activity!
• Push-button psyche in function!
7. What has really happened?-
Slow and Study wins the race
1950 to 1990 AD
8. Near Past: 1990 to 2005
The Change Impact
The rise of Service Sector, Intellectual property, reduction in trade
margins, Rise of Middle Class, De-listing of many SSI products,
downfall of Subsidy, hands of Bankers got stronger, The rise of
“white”…
Positive: Rise of new businesses with more business
opportunities, more flow of buyer’s as well as investor's money,
Distances became small, sustained rise in GDP…
Negative: More choices at customers, fierce competitions, Fighting
on price & quality simultaneously, Rise of salary bills, downfall of
margins, exclusivity reduced or gone, retaining of employees,
reduced product cycle…
9. Near Past: 2005 - July 2008
Now & Ahead
• The era which Changes fast – BOTH-WAYS – and will change faster
only.
– “The Speed of Trust”
– “The Game Changer”
– “Know How”
– “Hot Flat & Crowded”
11. What stage of Organization, you are
in…..
Stage of
• Embarkation
• Emulation or
• Emancipation
Leadership styles and strategies would vary from
stage to stage.
12. Reorientation & Reorganization
The FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES, let us re-look:
• What shall I do if we begin business today?
• Why are we in to business?
• Which of the customers need do we cater to and what unique
business proposition we bring for our customers?
• Or Why will a prospect select us?
– Price? – Quality (brand)? – Service?
• Are “WE” the choice if “WE” go to market to buy the same
product/service?
• Do we have the same Dream, Mission, Passion,
Hope, Aspirations and Killer’s Spirit?
• Or
• We are attitudinally tired out and low in spirit?
13. Reorienting & Reorganizing…..
• Effective and continuous Reaching out to the
Customers and the Creditors
• Expanding the tentacles to untried Market
Segments
Diversifying into allied products/services, which
requires marginal creativity
• Shaping up Attitudes and Behaviors in tune with
Pro-activity, Positivity, and Persistence with
staunch belief that there is light at the end of
tunnel.
• Courageous, Composed, Confident, Collaborative
and Creative Leadership Development at various
levels, starting at the top, of course!
14. Revisiting the Strategies……
• Is the situation really totally out of control?
• Do we really have the complete clarity of
perception of the turbulent situation?
• What is that we have really lost or likely to lose
further?
• Do we really know who, are our race horses with
deadly commitment?
• Do we really know who, which is the dead wood?
• Do we really know our Markets totally?
• Which are the market-segments, which we have
missed?
15. Revisiting the strategies…..
• Have we really used all possible options of
reaching out to the customers?
• Is the leadership showing panic, nervousness and
resorting to push-button psychology?
• Is the team suffering from lack of real team-
spirit?
• Are the steps taken so far have already started
demoralizing and dampening the fighting spirit of
the employees at various levels?
• Are we learning, unlearning and relearning
simultaneously from this episode?
• Are we really amenable to change?
16. Taking U-turn!......
• Learn to take U-turn while whole world is
wasting their time, energy and resources in
talking on Down-turn!
17. Business Leadership
• Must be visible through out the cross section of
an organization
• Must appear calm, composed and cool
• Must communicate, cooperate and coordinate
vital functions
• Must not be panic-stricken, fidgety and irritable
• Must avoid push-button psyche and behaviour
• Must be on ground-zero with customers,
suppliers and employees
• Must listen, observe and act with prudence.
18. Remember, turbulence is not here to
stay………
• There would always be a calm after
turbulence
• Believe that there would always light at the
end of a tunnel
• And World of Business is dynamic
process…not a static entity! And finally,
remember– Nobody can stop you except
yourself!