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PERSONAL MANAGEMENT The View from the Top It isn't a crown of thorns. Nor a bed of feathers. Pressure, along with his mid-life crisis, ensures that the position of a CEO isn't exactly soothing. But the blues can be beaten. BT presents the guide to handling the hot seat for the successful CEO of You Inc.. By Roopa Pai High flying adored You've got there. Made the grade. Gained the swivel-chair in the corner-room. Achieved your wildest dreams. The path to which lies littered with the remains of cancelled holidays, broken promises to your family, hundreds of late nights, and thousands of forbidden cups of coffee. You should be happy, right? Right. But are you?
Yes... Well, sometimes. Surprisingly, the view from the top isn't always rosy. The burden of responsibility for the success, or failure, of any operation. The fact that the colleagues you superseded may harbour resentment. And the inescapable reality that you can no longer be part of the gang ensure that loneliness is, inextricably, linked with every CEO's worklife. But there are ways to beat the blues. BT spoke to the hi-fliers for the lowdown on how they do it at the top. You won't care if they love you Most CEOs agree that the worst of loneliness sets in when tough decisions must be taken-especially the ones that involve people. Says Deepak Mohla, 48, the Chief Executive (Corporate Strategy) of Modicorp, looking back at his tenure as the Business Head of the Rs 1,414-crore Escorts' Tractors Division: ''As a person at the top, you have sole access to information and, therefore, you are responsible for the implications of any decision. Not being able to discuss your reasons for arriving at a particular decision with the people it affects is the tough bit.'' Adds Anal Jain, 53, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Bangalore-based Linc Software Services (LSS): ''The worst part is to arrive at a decision that will affect people negatively. You may discuss the pros and cons, and both are always present, with your direct reportees till kingdom come, but, at the end of the day, you and you alone can-and have to-take the decision.'' Having no one to pass the buck on to is just one of the areas of CEO-loneliness. Explains Pradeep Bhargava, 49, the President and CEO of the Bangalore-based GE Lighting (India): ''If you have differences with one of your functional heads, you cannot discuss it with his peers, who, normally, would be your sounding-boards. Also, problems arise when, in a transnational environment, the international circuit does not relate with, or comprehend, local realities. In such a scenario, it's not prudent to discuss the frustration with your reportees.'' The worst is, whatever your doubts and insecurities, you can't afford to let them show. Shrugs David Gosling, 51, the President and Managing Director of Avon Beauty Products (India), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the $5.10-billion US-based Avon Products, rather matter-of-factly: ''People look to you for leadership. You can't let them down.''
What helps in these situations is having people to talk to who are not directly in your line of work, yet have some understanding of the situation. The family, therefore, cannot be part of this soul-searching; that is, unless you head a family business. Says K. Mahesh, 54, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Rs 59-crore Sundaram Brake Linings: ''It really helps to talk to my brothers, especially when I have to make a major change in the company.'' But what about the professional CEO? Says Subodh Bhargava, 56, the Chairman of the Rs 765-crore Eicher Group: ''The supervisory board of Eicher serves as my sounding-board.'' Others like lss' Jain and ge Lighting's Bhargava say that they cannot over-emphasise the benefits of having a peer group outside the company. And while Modicorp's Mohla still looks to two of his erstwhile bosses for a spot of occasional mentoring, Avon's Gosling prefers to unburden his soul to his boss, who, incidentally, has been that for the past 26 years. Another problem that cannot be wished away is that of maintaining relationships with the peers you have superseded on your way to getting where you are. Agrees Rajeev Bakshi, 41, the Managing Director of the Rs 346-crore Cadbury (India): ''The initial months pose problems, when relationships are redefined, and you learn to work with each other within the new framework. I handle it by being a thought-leader that people can look up to while, at the same time, being very sensitive to the situation they are in.'' Others, however, contend that since relationships at work are primarily based on respect-rather than affection-this is not a problem area. More often than not, the elevation to CEO comes hand-in-hand with a mid-life crisis. Says Reena Nath, 45, a counsellor at the Delhi-based counselling service, Sampark: ''The late 40s and early 50s are the tough years. Increased responsibilities at work are just one cause of stress. At this stage, one has adolescents at home, who need parental support and attention; parents who are ageing and, sometimes, ailing; and a definite reduction in libido. There are too many demands made on the individual.'' All of which can combine to produce depression, niggling self-doubt, and insecurity. Adds Nath, describing the achiever's predicament: ''He can't understand it. He has achieved everything he ever wanted to. Everyone looks up to him while he himself is at an all-time low. He snaps at his spouse, is no longer the supportive father, and is guilt-ridden about not doing enough for his parents'' The way to tackle this particular crisis, say psychologists, is to identify it. Acknowledge it, and, if it is really bad, go in for counselling. Sometimes, just talking about the problem can be cathartic.
Don't look down, it's a long long way to fall... Don't, but do come down from your ivory tower ever so often. And let your reportees, both direct and indirect, gather there too. If you don't, you could miss out on the real reaction in your office to you and your style of management. Chuckles Jain: ''Your jokes are always laughed at, and animated conversations taper off when you enter the room. That's inevitable. But that also means you must make a conscious effort to get to know what they really think.'' How do you do that? Consultants reckon there are two ways. Says Bhaskar Sambamurthy, 30, a partner in the Delhi-based executive search firm, Crosshair: ''You could either create your own grapevine-cultivate eyes and ears, as it were-and there are always a lot of people who hope to ingratiate themselves with you by doing just that. The other option is to foster a transparent system, and encourage an atmosphere of dissent without fear.'' Agrees Bharat 'Barry' Garg, 48, Director (India), Case India, the liaison office of the $6-billion construction and agricultural equipment major, Case Corporation: ''I've always believed that an open-door policy-not just in word, but in practice-is the way to control the grapevine. Developing a coterie of yes-men, on the other hand, can be self-defeating.'' Another way to get the buzz? Have the mountain go to Mohammed. Says Sundaram's Mahesh: ''I walk the plant on a regular basis, talking to the workers. Sometimes, you have to probe a bit, and tease the truth out of them. That is possible only if you are in contact with them.'' Agrees Eicher's Bhargava: ''You have to be in touch first-hand with people at the various locations, and the interaction has to be both formal and informal.'' Counsels Mohla: ''Keep tabs on how often your reportees challenge your thinking. If they seldom do it, there is something wrong. Maybe you are perceived as not being receptive to dissent.'' And Cadbury's Bakshi says that his barometer are the outputs-both tangible and intangible-that are produced as a result of the decisions that he takes. Of course, all of them also swear by the efficacy of a formal annual system of appraisal. There are no mysteries now Do CEOs feel that this is the end of the road, and, therefore, feel uneasy about having nothing left to achieve? Not true, is the resounding response to this one. Laughs Gosling: ''I am not the CEO of Unilever! If I were, maybe I'd seriously worry about what came next. Each time I am promoted, I seem to get a more grandiose designation, a bigger pay-packet, and more work than I used to have!'' Agree Jain and Mohla: ''There is always something you can do better than you are doing just now. The trick lies in creating challenges for yourself.'' Adds ge Lighting's Bhargava, on a more philosophical note: ''In personal or corporate life, there is no final stop, or moksha. There is always one more destination worth pursuing, and your whole lifetime is ahead of, not behind, you.'' High flying adored What about the loneliness that anyone on top of the pyramid must experience in more work-a-day areas like lunchtime? There is a problem there. Sighs Mohla: ''All of us love cribbing. I miss not being able to do it any more.'' But these are mere asides. All CEOs love their jobs, are happy they have got where they are, and rather philosophical about the inevitable downsides. Shrugs Mahesh: ''That's par for the course. That's what you're paid for.'' Adds Bakshi: ''You wouldn't have been here in the first place if you didn't have the ability to cope with whatever the job was going to throw at you.'' Others echo similar sentiments. And their feelings are, perhaps, best encapsulated in Evita's retort to her critics: I was slap in the right place That might well be the CEO's song. After all, only confidence can beat the blues of being lonely at the top. |
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