Page 29 - Sept-2020-Issue

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for General Motors is good for is left in better shape for them.
America.' JRD thinks the other leaders are movers of Fourthly, Leadership in business
way round. 'What is good for is living by these ideals and lead-
India is good for Tatas'. As a result people, mobilizers of ing by example. Fifthly, in to-
of lack of university education, opinion. emperors rule, day’s world the only constant is
JRD had to rely on self-education. Change. Leaders must, therefore,
He said, 'If I have any merit, it is but leaders motivate. as anticipate Change, drive it, make
getting on with individuals ac- Disraeli said, 'We govern it acceptable to all stakeholders,
cording to their ways and charac- men by words.' When one and turn threats into opportuni-
teristics. In fifty years I have dealt ties through their Vision and their
with a hundred top directors and does not have strength Action.
I got on with all of them. At times within, one cannot earn The man who made Telco was
it involves suppressing yourself. Sumant Moolgaokar. In the coun-
It is painful but necessary. To be respect and respect is try where the attitude of many
a leader you have to lead human absolutely essential for is to tolerate slipshod work say-
being with affection.' Once while ing chalta hai (it passes), he ex-
responding to a Calcutta edu- lasting leadership. Hence, pected and obtained standards
cationist, JRD Tata summarized leaders never stop learning. of excellence and precision and
guiding principles which have passed it down the line to manag-
kindled his path and career as Henry ford once said, ers, supervisors and workers. To
follows:- 'anyone who stops learning Sumant Moolgaokar perfection
• That nothing worthwhile is is old, whether at twenty was a goal, never quite reached
ever achieved without deep but always sought after. He had
thought and hard work; or eighty'. leadership is an eye for the scarcest resource
• That one must think for one- a journey of discovery. of all talent; and he could bring
self and never accept at their there are strategies to be out the best in his team. No one
face value slogans and catch worked under him: everyone
phrases to which, unfortunate- gleaned; mantras to be worked with him. He could mo-
ly, our people are too easily internalized and inspiration tivate the workforce to the pitch
susceptible; where they became emotionally
to be borrowed. involved in the company they
• That one must forever strive for served. He could galvanize them
excellence, or even perfection, into action and make the job ex-
in any task however small, and of business leadership that he has citing for each one of them. This
never be satisfied with the sec- believed in and tried to live by: was the secret of his spectacular
ond best; Firstly, the primary aim of indus- success in Telco. With him as the
• That no success or achievement try should not be to make money. head of the organization, every
in material terms is worthwhile The aim should be to serve cus- worker was made to feel that he
unless it serves the needs or tomers and other stakeholders was not merely a cog in a big ma-
interests of the country and its the result would be make money. chine; he was not attending to a
people and is achieved by fair And pursuing excellence would forge or a furnace but was help-
and honest means; enable it to create even more ing to build and advance a great
• That good human relations not wealth. Secondly, the wealth thus industrial enterprise, to erect a
only bring great personal re- created should be made available national monument. There is a
wards but are essential to the for the benefit of the community belief in our country, he said,
success of any enterprise. and the Nation. Thirdly, in the ‘that our culture and our char-
creation of wealth, care must be acter cannot allow our people to
Dr. J J Irani, former Director, Tata taken to not only protect the en- attain consistently high standards
Sons Ltd. & former Managing vironment but enhance it so that and shoddiness and carelessness
Director of Tata Iron & Steel Co. this world, which, as they say, we is our God-given ways of life. But
Ltd. once outline five basic tenets have borrowed from our children, if with faith in them, you ask our

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