Book Review  ^{123    15}   

Published: Aug 29, 2019
Updated: Aug 29, 2019

Ego-dumping lessons for CEOs

The general axiom/ saying that it is always much easier to get to the top or ascend the peak than to remain in that same position for quite some time is very much true in the case of CEOs and corporates. It is very common to observe that top-rated companies find it difficult to retain the number one position year after year and, for some reason or the other, they slip to lower positions. Why does this have to happen? Or, to put it differently, if a company falls to a lower position, is it purely related to the CEO’s performance? Or, if the company does exceedingly well, does all the credit go to its leader alone?

The answers to the above queries can be found in the book under review. Author R. Gopalakrishnan, an ex-director of Tata Sons and Hindustan Lever (HUL), also well-known for his earlier noted work, ‘The Case of the Bonsai Manager’, and currently a corporate adviser in a leading private firm, has analysed threadbare the ‘software challenges’ faced these days by top executives/ CEOs. He has also shared rare insights gained through his long association of managing a variety of concerns in the Tata group. He strongly feels that great business leaders continue to excel not merely due to their skills but also by their ability to connect with others, using emotional competencies like empathy and self-awareness in good measure.

‘DERAILER’ FACTOR

A derailer is just a factor – lack of emotional capability. Lack of this quality in a leader can derail his leadership forever. The author has listed from his experiences a few major derailers such as ‘know all maladies’, parallax misjudgment, indispensability, distrust of others and disconnected relationships. However, the last one is a ‘serious disorder’ and, if found to fester in a leader for long, there could be adverse consequences. While there is no magic or specific formula to mitigate one’s derailers, the author has thoughtfully laid out some strategies to lessen their impact. They are: having a Clementine mirror, departing/quitting gracefully, changing one’s lenses and leading with empathy. He asserts that “all persons, including managers, are prone to exaggerate their strengths and play down their weaknesses/drawbacks.” It is this drawback that holds them from having a fair introspection done of their ‘real’ strong points. In this regard, he suggests that leaders should develop the trait of being a ‘good and attentive listener’ and always have a mirror which would reveal their true behaviour. Termed ‘Clementine Mirror’ after Lady Churchill’s famous letters to her husband, Sir Winston Churchill, where she warns of his weaknesses in wielding absolute authority over the nation, the author refers to the imperative need for periodically looking at a mirror or having a fair introspection over one’s strengths to succeed in life.

Coming to the case studies, only Indian studies are taken up here for having a better connectivity with the readers. The author points out how Ramesh Sarin, CEO of Voltas, had to leave his post before his term ended and says that it was more due to ideological clashes with Tobaccowala, who was in real control of the firm. The ex-ITC chief, Sarin, could not adjust to the ideas of his predecessor. He did not, in short, share or have a common vision for the growth of the company and decided to depart gracefully. Likewise, Vishal Shikka at Infosys abruptly moved out of the firm when he found that he just could not get along with the principal founder of the firm, Narayana Murthy. Here, Shikka had to go as he found his ego clashing with that of its founder and he, perhaps, overestimated his strengths and overlooked his weaknesses.

In a befitting manner, the author has concluded his analysis by having an ‘Epilogue’ at the end, wherein he brings out the case of a German business leader, Thomas Middelhoff. After a successful innings at Bertelsmann, a top German media firm, he joined a leading retailing firm, where he was found guilty of misusing company funds and jailed for a few years on charges of embezzlement and tax frauds. On coming out of jail, he gave an interview to the ‘Financial Times’ of London. The author quotes a passage of his which is truly revealing as to what traits a top executive should ideally possess. “I was out of touch with reality and thought that certain rules do not apply to me. Ability brings you to the top, but character keeps you there...” “Admitting the key flaw in my character of constantly craving for public attention and affirmation, I felt that I have been carried away by narcissism and hedonism. ……….” “I learnt very late a lot about humility and emotions.” Gopalakrishnan emphatically adds that every business leader has to learn from Thomas’s experiences. The sooner he does, it would be better both for the company and himself.

While what he has said is nothing new or unknown, the manner of putting it succinctly and in a very convincing manner is what matters as this goes a long way in impressing the lay reader. And this is what the author has done in a brilliant way. The book is thus a telling commentary on the present-day CEOs and how they need to be more humble in their attitude, give up their false sense of ego/prestige on all matters and always keep the interests of the company in the forefront. It is, indeed, a well thought-out and meaningful exercise on how executives should ‘behave’ so that they could continue their full term and not have to quit midway. The book is strongly recommended reading for all top executives and would-be CEOs.

V. Raghuraman