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COVER STORY
always conformed to this set of ethics
and easily stood up to public scru-
tiny. This personal credibility con-
tributed greatly to his success.
However, his high ethical standards
did not detract from his political
savvy and understanding of human
psychology. An example of this
would be that although he usually
had a calm disposition, he knew the
value of creating an uproar to gain
public support for his activism.
Kishinichand T Shahani mainly
wielded reverent power. People gen-
erally listened to him because they
identified with and admired him.
His reputation was a major asset in
his dealings. His arguments tended
to appeal to people’s emotions and
ethical standards rather than their
logic. This gave him real motivating
power to get his work done.
He believed in the maxim
“Knowledge is Power”. He con-
tinually tried to keep himself well
informed about business and other
affairs to remain one step above his
contemporaries. He also maintained
a strong network of friends. Most of
his friends were people with whom
he could share a mutually beneficial
relationship through the exchange of
help rendered.
His strong ethical standards created
enormous goodwill and when he
put his weight behind a cause it was
readily accepted by the rest of the
community. He had excellent com-
munication skills because he spoke
through the heart. His willingness to
take risks, and his belief in order to
get anywhere you have to be willing
to make mistakes along the way was
the attitude that helped him found
and build his empire.
His faith in his followers made them
feel they had to live up to his expec-
tations. He exercised daily and ate
healthy vegetarian food.
This gave him tireless energy that
helped him work much longer hours
than many people half his age.
I have written at length about my
father-in-law’s leadership style
because he was a classic example
of a conscious leader. He lead by
example without imposing his will
on others and since I worked closely
with him I am trying to emulate his
qualities.
What are your thoughts on creativ-
ity, collaboration and networking
within the business realm? Are these
factors essential and if they are to
what extent are they?
Creativity is the driving force behind
the success of a business. Every
business wants to stay ahead of its
competitors by keeping aware of
the latest trends or through innova-
tion. Creative thinking, ie dreaming
up new and unique ways of doing
things is a part of that process. This
creativity quotient matters enor-
mously to the success of any busi-
ness. Companies that actively foster
creative thinking outperform their
rivals in revenue growth, market
share and competitive leadership.
This is the reason why apart from
domain knowledge, we at TSCFM
teach our MBA students skills like
creative thinking, critical thinking,
problem solving skills and other soft
skills which make them employable.
Equally important is collaboration or
team work within companies.
Progressive companies are increas-
ingly realizing the value of collabo-
ration and looking for ways to foster
it within their teams, both traditional
and virtual.
Collaboration promotes self-anal-
ysis, makes you look at the bigger
picture, and results in problem
solving. It enhances employee
retention and job satisfaction and
improves employee efficiency.
LEAD | January 2018