MODERN LEADERSHIP

From Sampath’s Desk:

 

MODERN LEADERSHIP 

 

In the present cut-throat global competitive business era, one needs to ponder whether yesteryear’s work culture would any longer fit the bill and cut the ice? Since much water had flown under the bridge and with speedy mind-boggling changes being the current trend, it is necessary we transformed ourselves - our attitude and our approach. Unless you adapt and adopt yourselves accordingly, you will be thrown out of gear and kept at bay away from the zone of reckoning.

 

A customer approaching the seller for the purchase of goods/services is fast becoming a thing of the past. Delivery of goods/services at customers' doorsteps is the current norm. We must change from a merely transactional approach to a relationship approach if we are to establish an enduring relationship with the clientele. In fact, relationship-building is the fundamental and essential part of the functions of any organization, more so for a modern corporate. In order to achieve a ‘win-win’ situation with the customers, the organization needs to have effective interfaces and efficient touch-points. Especially in the service sector, if a customer has a hitch with any one of the links in the chain and if it were to remain unresolved, it will tarnish the name and fame of the entire organization and the brand image. Hence leadership and teamwork assume importance.

 

In an era where technology changes just by the turn of the day, things get outdated very soon and a new trendy scenario gets ushered in with every passing day. Bear in mind, success lies in earning a wide and committed customer base with an enduring relationship rather than merely registering sales.

 

Leadership refers to those acts of continually impacting and positively influencing the behaviour and performance of the team members towards the most enthusiastic of common goals and objectives of the team/organization, and inspiring people by leader’s charisma, dynamism, knowledge inputs, tact, passion to lead, right attitude, appropriate approach, application of mind, amiable behaviour, cordial conduct, diffusing warmth and friendliness, and other wide range of attractive and impressive leadership traits. With the whole world now shrinking into a global knowledge and economy village, thanks to MNCs, Pan-World business majors, multi-product manufacturers, the advent of supply chains and solutions, and online shopping destinations that are dealing with diverse cross-sections of people all over the world from varied backgrounds - the global leaders - as they are known today - should, as a rule, be more dynamic, holistic, futuristic, embracive, flexible, motivating, and inspiring.

A leader is a representative of his team members and an appropriate counselor. He encourages teamwork and team spirit, uses his power and caliber appropriately to make the team successful in its endeavours, and does time management effectively, both of his own and that of his team. He also leads and manages his team from the front. A manager may or may not be a leader, but a leader is necessarily a good manager. Leadership is a process of continually exerting inter-personal influence – a perennial managerial exercise of energizing people into giving their best performance and higher outputs and gains to the organization. After all, financial success is the be-all and end-all corporate goal. Here, the catalysts are - hard work, focussed attention, quality improvement, quantitative push, service with empathy, crystallization of innovative ideas, and characteristic perseverance in an endless spiral. Leadership rests on the ability to make things bode well for his team and the organization as against the simple formal authority of a Manager. No doubt, a manager does things right, but a leader dares to be different and does the right things and also make others follow suit.

 

Success is not a destination; rather it is a long journey we must constantly pursue in the path of excellence. Here, there is no resting place either. Continuous effort is often more important than the outcome itself. Constant vigilance, review, re-orientation, energized and renewed efforts, re-evaluation, and catching up with the trendy norms and parameters are the prerequisites. High quality is the essential yardstick. Success – make it a habit, practice, and the norm.

 

Leader enjoys the confidence of his followers by virtue of the excellent qualities he possesses and exhibits. Leaders don’t flourish in a vacuum. A leader brings life into a group, promotes concerted actions, and motivates the team towards expected targets and goals. Leadership is something a person does and not something he has. Leadership is something that gradually grows, consolidates, emerges, and finally achieves through a well-supportive team around.

 

A manager is both a producer and a consumer. Whereas a successful Manager who consumes less and produces more is an asset, the one who does the opposite is a liability to the organization. Modern Manager has to change his role – from a Commander to a Coach, Manager to a Mentor, Director to a Delegator, and lastly, from one demanding respect to one commanding respect. He is also a facilitator and upholder of self-respect of all in his team and the organization at large. 

 

Reward a good work rather than punish a bad one. Reward the superior performance of individuals and appreciate, and help mediocre members to better their performance." After all, the deepest human craving is to get recognition and appreciation. In fact, that will be an impetus for the worker to reach greater heights in performance invoking appreciation from the superiors. Even the smallest of good work done rightly deserves recognition. Mere social acknowledgments like ‘thanks’, ‘good work’, ‘excellent job’, ‘well done’, etc. do impress a worker.

 

Leadership techniques like reinforcement of team resources, motivation, task-design, and syllogistic reasoning have positive effects. A leader uses his collocation skills to drive home his points more efficiently and forcefully with a positive outcome.

 

Management skills based on creative thinking, positive empowering beliefs and motivational approach do pay dividends in the key managerial functions like planning, organization, coordination, direction and control.

 

Healthy management practice is to win employee/team loyalty through proper counseling and guidance and taking comprehensively realistic steps. A successful leader has to assess, analyze and exploit what he has got, how to create wealth out of it, and how much, even making the best out of the worst at times? The leader has to deploy his 'mantra' (strategy) and 'tantra' (trick and magic) quite well.

 

(R.SAMPATH)

29/1/2021