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Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com
Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com
A
couple
of
years
later,
I
met
Ravi
in
an
external
event.
.
He
was
still
reeling
under
the
scars
of
his
past.
We
were
reflecting
on
what
went
wrong
why
did
it
not
work,
why
did
employee
morale
drop,
why
did
sales/margin
not
grow
as
expected
etc.?
It
was
a
million
dollar
question
in
his
mind.
Why
did
the
change
not
work?
Ravi
and
I
found
ourselves
a
comfortable
place
in
a
bar
and
continued
our
conversation
over
a
few
drinks.
He
drank
and
spoke;
I
chose
to
ask
questions
and
listen
instead
of
taking
a
drink.
Here
is
how
the
conversation
progressed.
Ravi
said,
I
was
doing
very
well
in
Unilever
successful
with
a
big
role.
I
was
itching
to
run
my
own
company.
The
opportunity
seemed
terrific.
SPARTA,
an
MNC
had
promise,
some
good
products
and
brands
in
its
stable,
a
laid-back
culture,
moved
slowly
but
had
incredible
potential.
They
got
a
new
CEO
globally;
Roddy
Lin
and
he
hired
me.
He
wanted
to
drive
this
company
in
India
out
of
the
woods
and
into
growth.
You
know
Unilever
at
that
time
was
growing
18%
YoY
and
this
company
was
growing
at
a
mere
6%
and
losing
market
share
in
all
key
product
categories.
So
I
asked
Ravi,
What
was
your
mandate?
Ravi:
I
was
told
they
wanted
to
shake
up
this
place.
Me:
What
do
you
mean
by
shake
up?
Ravi:
My
predecessor
was
an
old
hand.
He
had
been
around
for
25
years.
He
had
a
fixed
way
of
doing
things..
He
was
resistant
to
any
change.
They
wanted
a
new
man
at
the
helm.
They
wanted
me
to
take
a
hard
look
at
the
leadership,
assess
their
capability
and
determine
if
we
had
the
right
horses
in
the
stable.
They
were
not
sure
who
they
could
bet
on.
They
did
not
trust
my
predecessors
assessment
of
the
situation
and
the
leadership
team.
I
was
told
I
should
do
what
it
takes
to
grow
the
company
at
par
with
competitors,
which
means
6%
to
18%
annual
growth.
That
is
how
the
market
was
growing
at
that
time.
Me:
So
after
you
joined
what
was
your
assessment
of
the
situation
&
the
leadership?
Ravi:
I
found
that
in
most
cases
the
global
assessment
was
right.
The
company
was
truly
laid
back.
They
had
no
measures
around
performance.
Starting
with
manufacturing;
factory
productivity
was
low,
poor
quality
processes,
safety
standards
were
pathetic,
compliance
was
at
bare
minimum
standards
and
much
more.
I
was
concerned
that
with
these
standards,
scalability
of
output
will
be
a
big
challenge.
R&D
had
been
pumping
thousands
of
dollars
into
this
thing
and
nothing
had
come
out
in
the
last
five
years.
The
first
time
I
reviewed
R&D
work
and
results,
I
decided
to
shut
this
down
completely
as
it
wasnt
worth
the
money
we
poured
into
it.
There
were
positives
the
sales
engine
worked
well,
we
had
a
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strong
distribution
model
and
it
made
me
happy.
In
product
marketing
and
branding,
there
were
a
few
good
people
but
I
knew
we
had
to
invest
in
this
place.
Therefore,
I
did
invest
and
bring
in
some
good
people
from
Unilever.
Me:
So
what
was
your
plan?
How
did
you
think
about
the
change
you
wanted
to
see?
Ravi:
I
decided
to
approach
it
in
three
phases.
Phase
1
I
went
around
the
country
and
met
all
people.
I
reviewed
all
the
work
that
they
were
doing,
got
to
understand
their
issues
and
challenges.
I
also
used
the
opportunity
to
assess
people.
So
I
met
the
factory
and
supply
chain
leadership,
the
sales
and
marketing
teams,
distributors
and
retailers,
my
own
Management
Committee
(MC)
and
spent
around
three
months
doing
just
this.
Phase
2
I
shared
my
vision
and
growth
strategy
for
the
company
and
aligned
my
global
CEO
and
his
team
to
my
thinking.
I
recommended
shutting
India
R&D
and
leverage
global
R&D
to
drive
innovation
in
both
product
and
packaging.
He
agreed.
I
also
shared
my
vision
and
growth
strategy
with
my
MC.
Phase
3
I
identified
people
who
might
be
challenged
in
executing
my
vision
&
strategy
and
decided
to
change
them.
Me:
So,
Ravi
did
you
execute
on
your
plan?
Ravi:
Yes,
I
did
to
the
hilt.
I
had
a
plan,
worked
hard
at
it
and
we
made
a
lot
of
progress.
Me:
How
was
the
progress?
How
did
you
achieve
the
growth
results
like
sales,
market
share
etc.?
Ravi:
We
did
reasonably
well,
grew
5%
in
the
first
year
but
bounced
back
to
8%
in
second
year.
We
did
six
product
launches
in
just
2
years,
the
last
time
the
company
had
a
new
product
launch
was
10
years
ago.
My
global
stakeholders
should
have
been
thrilled.
They
could
never
achieve
any
of
this
with
my
predecessor
for
the
last
decade.
Our
profits
margins
continued
to
be
strong.
I
improved
our
net
margin
from
12%
to
16%.
We
made
the
highest
profits
ever.
I
brought
in
some
good
leadership
talent
from
outside
and
we
had
lots
of
people
change
in
manufacturing
and
supply
chain.
More
than
50%
of
the
organization
was
tenured
less
than
two
years
with
us.
From
a
slow
lethargic
set
up
with
old
fashioned
people,
we
had
a
bunch
of
young
and
bright
talent.
I
made
that
happen.
They
saw
promise
in
my
story
my
vision
&
strategy.
Me:
So
what
went
wrong?
Ravi:
My
global
CEO
said
I
had
not
achieved
what
I
set
out
to
do?
I
had
promised
him
18%
sales
growth,
but
we
did
5%
and
8%
over
2
years.
He
wasnt
satisfied.
In
his
view,
I
missed
my
target.
How
can
growth
happen
overnight?
It
would
take
4-5
years
for
us
to
get
there?
We
were
on
track.
He
said
my
MC
was
not
happy
with
my
style.
They
thought
I
was
going
too
fast
and
not
consulting
them
enough.
Come
on,
I
hired
half
this
team!
They
knew
my
vision
and
strategy,
they
agreed
in
our
MC
meeting.
We
were
losing
share
did
we
expect
the
customer
to
wait
for
us
longer?
The
third
reason
I
was
told
that
the
employee
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satisfaction
scores
went
down.
This
shocked
me
completely.
I
raised
the
compensation
costs
by
24%,
hired
smart
people
and
I
just
cant
get
to
understand
why
would
people
be
unhappy?
My
reflection:
It
was
then
that
it
struck
me,
Ravi
was
such
a
smart
guy,
high
achiever,
had
the
right
ideas,
great
intent
but
the
best
of
people
could
have
blind
spots.
Me:
How
committed
was
Roddy
Lin
(your
global
CEO)
and
his
team
on
your
vision
&
strategy
for
India?
Ravi:
Oh..,
Roddy
said,
it
is
for
me
to
decide
and
drive
India.
Me:
You
have
not
answered
my
question
Ravi?
Was
he
committed
to
your
vision
&
strategy?
Ravi:
I
think
he
was
committed,
why
do
you
ask?
Me:
Thats
okay
Ravi.
What
is
your
reflection
now
if
Roddy
was
committed?
Further,
my
next
question
is
how
committed
was
your
MC
on
your
Vision
&
strategy?
Ravi:
They
were
over-awed
when
they
saw
it?
A
few
walked
up
to
me
and
said,
this
is
the
best
strategy
they
have
ever
seen
in
their
careers.
Me:
Were
they
committed
or
were
they
over-awed
with
YOUR
strategy?
Ravi:
Why
do
you
ask
that
question?
I
thought
they
were
committed?
Me:
You
said
you
went
around
the
country
meeting
people
and
sharing
your
thinking?
Did
your
MC
also
do
the
same?
Ravi:
eh..
Not
really.
I
guess
they
left
that
job
to
me
Me:
Who
did
you
work
with
to
make
your
decisions
around
people,
Organization
changes
etc.?
Ravi:
Ah..,
I
knew
exactly
what
I
wanted
to
do.
A
few
of
us
from
the
MC
like
my
Marketing
and
Sales
Leads
worked
with
me
in
defining
these
changes.
Many
others
you
know
were
the
old
timers,
who
did
not
quite
understand
what
I
was
trying
to
do.
Besides,
they
were
always
questioning
and
cautioning
me.
Me:
Did
you
ever
consult
Amitabh,
your
HR
Lead?
I
think
he
was
not
an
old
timer.
He
had
joined
a
few
months
prior
to
you.
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Ravi: I did try to talk to him, but he sounded more of an old timer than the actual old timers. He was really an old school guy. He would often insist we move more cautiously. While he was one guy who voiced strong support to my vision and strategy, he often questioned my decisions on people. He often came to me with feedback from my team. He would never tell me who? He seemed to be leading crib sessions and people tended to gravitate to him. They seemed to like him. He was a nice guy, probably. He would come and play that all back on me. Me: So what did you do? Ravi: I fired Amitabh and got myself another HR guy. Later when I was asked to go and I was completely down and out, Amitabh got to know and he called me and spoke with me. He was so professional and had no hard feelings on what I did to him. He spoke so nicely to me. He was so concerned about me and inquired about my well being. His graciousness really touched my heart. I Me: That was nice of Amitabh. Long pause, for a few minutes. Ravi was in deep reflection, his face had dropped, I could see emotions building and wrinkles showing on his face. After a few minutes of total silence Ravi: . oh GOD what a jerk I have been! Me: Why would you say that? Ravi: I guess to start with I got it all wrong. Roddy Lin probably did not share my vision. Me: Why would you say that? Ravi: Oh, okay. I guess I shared my global CEOs vision and had my own vision for India aligned to his. I think he agreed with my vision and purpose. What I realize is that, he did not approve the way I executed it? Me: Okay, what about the execution did he not approve of? Ravi: My intention was good. I had nothing against anyone, especially the old timers. I just wanted to get the job done and make all of us successful. I still believe I had a compelling vision for India and we were on the right track. If I had 3 more years, I would have turned this place around. What I did wrong was I did not rally enough support for my vision. I thrust it on people around me. I should have been patient & worked with my MC to co-create the vision as a shared vision and not my vision. It might have worked better.
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Me:
What
I
am
hearing
you
say,
Ravi
is
that
you
have
got
some
new
insights
into
a
situation
that
has
been
bothering
you
for
years
now.
You
could
have
led
the
team
with
a
shared
vision
and
not
just
your
vision!!
I
would
like
to
acknowledge
you
Ravi,
for
your
courage
to
self-reflect
and
gain
this
deep
insight.
You
also
mentioned
you
were
not
against
the
old
timers?
In
hindsight,
did
your
actions
match
your
intent?
Ravi:
I
think
I
know
I
know
it
now.
Since
I
was
biased
in
my
view
of
the
old
timers,
I
saw
them
more
as
road
blocks
than
someone
who
could
enable
my
vision.
Probably
Amitabh
was
right.
He
used
to
keep
saying,
turn
around
a
few
old
timers
who
have
high
credibility
in
the
organization
and
make
them
advocates
of
your
vision..
I
was
impatient,
a
man
in
a
hurry.
I
had
set
my
own
timelines
for
success.
Me:
Whose
success
Ravi,
yours
or
the
companys?
Ravi:
My
global
CEO
had
not
set
out
any
time
lines
for
the
change;
I
was
the
one
who
was
anxious
to
make
the
change
happen
faster
than
what
people
around
me
were
ready
for.
I
did
not
take
people
around
me
along
and
build
a
compelling
case
for
change
which
included
their
interests.
Me:
I
hear
you
state
another
insight
Ravi,
compelling
case
for
change
&
others
interests.
How
are
you
feeling
now
Ravi?
Ravi:
I
am
feeling
much
better.
This
conversation
is
working
for
me.
I
love
it.
Me:
Great.
Did
you
consider
looking
around
and
evaluating
who
around
you
in
your
MC
&
beyond
could
have
been
your
partners
in
enabling
your
vision
for
the
company?
Ravi:
I
actually
wrote
most
of
them
off.
I
recall
Amitabh
bringing
me
something
like
this
on
a
piece
of
paper
suggesting
an
approach
to
include
a
few
old
timers
who
he
thought
could
be
leveraged.
He
felt
they
were
key
stakeholders
who
could
enable
the
vision
&
strategy.
I
did
not
heed
his
advice.
Me:
So..?
Ravi:
I
missed
an
opportunity
to
include
key
stakeholders
who
would
have
enabled
the
change
I
wanted
to
bring
about.
Me:
You
said
earlier
that
you
replaced
many
of
them
with
your
new
hires.
Did
these
new
hires
embrace
your
vision?
Ravi:
I
think
they
did,
but
they
struggled
to
influence
their
teams.
In
hindsight
the
old
timers
might
have
done
a
better
job
if
only
I
had
listened
to
Amitabhs
advice
and
been
a
bit
more
patient
with
myself
&
people
around
me.
Me:
Hmm
Ravi
in
your
admission
you
have
shared
that
you
did
a
few
things
well.
I
heard
from
you
that
you
probably
missed
a
few
key
aspects,
but
you
did
communicate
your
vision
&
need
for
change
across
the
Org.
You
talked
to
people
&
reached
out
widely
in
the
Organization.
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Ravi: Thanks Anand. Over the last few years, I have been living in some kind of self-pity. This conversation has helped me look at this episode differently and I think there is terrific learning as I now move on from here. As a leader if I had a trusted advisor, I might have been better off. I realize I made a mistake. As I reflect on this conversation with Ravi, I gained some interesting insights & learning from this conversation as a coach. I noticed how little I spoke in this conversation. Most of the time, it was Ravi who was sharing his thoughts and feelings. I noticed the power in asking short but relevant questions. When a deep sense of reflection hits the clients awareness, it is a difficult moment for the client. I noticed just being there and demonstrating empathy enabled Ravi to continue to share his thoughts & feelings. I had worked with Ravi in SPARTA but in this entire conversation I kept my judgment about Ravi and his tenure as a leader out of the frame. Suspending judgment and listening to the client was a powerful learning for me as a coach. Also acknowledging Ravi at times on what he did or was doing well made a difference to him, while he was feeling overwhelmed during the conversation.
Besides, coming to the topic of Change, as a professional I have had the honor of working with many great leaders and have learnt so much from their experiences. They are respected professionals, high achievers, people with great vision, lots of passion and drive, they may appear to have their follies, but you know what, they are human after all. The issue here is not if Ravi is a great leader, even if he failed in this one company he still is a great leader. A big question that continues to plague me even today is Change - Whose Job is it? People often walk up to me and talk about what does not work in the company - issues, challenges, how things should be different, what processes are missing etc.? The only question I ask them what are you doing about it? Somewhere deep within, one of learning is that Change is everyones job. It is not that of the CEO alone. The CEO may appear to be the visible face of it, may lead it, may advocate it, build a case for it etc However, each one of us needs to stand up and be counted. As Mahatma Gandhi said, we have to be
By
M.
Anand
Bhaskar
******
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