The Hindu Business Line : Indian management thinking goes global

Indian managers are going global, especially as the world continues to flatten and, in the process, are taking along with them their distinctly Indian management style and "philosophy". This is a trend that is now being closely observed by global leaders and management thinkers. With the globalisation of Indian managers, the spiritual dimension of balancing the yin-yang of professional and personal lives is coming to the attention of management thinkers and business school professors, a trend that a Business Week article called `Karma Capitalism'. (Business Week Special Report, October 30, 2006)

Globalisation of Indian managers is not restricted to the much hyped software services arena where project managers and programmers routinely crisscross the globe. Stories of Indian-born managers breaking through the glass ceiling in multinational organisations — Pepsi's Indra Nooyi or Rajat Gupta at McKinsey — are almost routine news. What is more significant is the next chapter in the evolution of Indian managers, taking Indian corporations global. Examples in several sectors abound, whether it is managers from Tata Steel plotting the multi-billion dollar growth of a `made in India' global steel conglomerate with the takeover of Corus or that of executives from Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd aspiring to take on global pharmaceutical giants by patenting Indian drugs and fighting for a niche in the global generic drugs segment.

Brain drain

Export of Indian management philosophy perhaps started with the "brain drain" generation a few decades ago when Indian technologists and graduates would routinely aspire to migrate to the West seeking rewards and a `better life' in return for their skills and talent. The generation of technologists, doctors and professors that migrated to the US in the 1960s and 1970s imported a part of the management `culture' along with aspects of their Indian values, rituals and spiritualism.

Western business leaders are taking note of the ability of Indian managers and business leaders to maintain a work-life balance, even while effortlessly assimilating into the global melting pot. Also noticeable is the yearning for the spiritual side among migrant managers. For many, a few minutes of worship, meditation or reflection helps get a sense of mooring in a fast changing world.

It is obvious to most observers that `Indian philosophy' is not a uniform theme, and although the term is interchangeably used with that of `Hindu philosophy', religion is just one part of the thinking. Similarly, Indian management philosophy has very little to do with Hindu philosophy and religion. This said, a theme that seems to permeate across a cross-section of Indian managers and leaders is the quest for a "broader purpose" for life and work. In a sense, it is a conviction that executives should be motivated by broader goals than just making money for themselves and their companies. Case in point is the recent feature on Ratan Tata by The Economist magazine (`The shy architect', January 11, 2007) where the author says Tata "does not seem to be motivated by money, and talks constantly about fairness and doing the right thing," and goes on to quote Tata saying "I want to be able to go to bed at night and say that I haven't hurt anybody."

Now, isn't this exactly the kind of viewpoint that leaders in scandal-ridden corporate America and the West are trying hard to reflect on?

Monetary Goals

While up-and-coming managers may find the urge to make money a key motivator, many of their peers are beginning to wonder if there is something beyond just monetary goals. Western managers, who have for a generation or two been blindly followed the mantra of "maximising shareholder wealth at any cost" are beginning to see the futility of just following better Return on Investment (ROI), perhaps looking to take a leaf out of Ram Charan's viewpoint. Ram Charan, a coach to CEOs including General Electric's Jeffrey R. Immelt, has preached on how good leaders are selfless, take initiative and focus on their duty rather than obsess over financial gain. He has been quoted as stating that it is important "to put purpose before self. This is absolutely applicable to corporate leadership today."

The introspective nature of Indian management philosophy is gaining prominence. As the Business Week article added: "While it used to be hip in management circles to quote from the sixth century B.C. Chinese classic The Art of War, the trendy ancient Eastern text today is the more introspective Bhagavad Gita."

It is interesting how Indian-born academics, strategists and management gurus in the West have caught on to this trend, living and demonstrating it to western managers. The Business Week article, quotes Dipak C. Jain, dean of the Kellogg School observing: "When senior executives come to Kellogg, Wharton, Harvard, or (Dartmouth's) Tuck, they are exposed to Indian values that are reflected in the way we think and articulate."

It is anyone's guess if this new-found interest in Indian management philosophy is a passing fad or a trend towards "inclusive capitalism," as management guru C. K Prahalad calls it. While some wonder if a stakeholder-focused approach will replace the dictum of "maximise shareholder wealth" of corporate America, one thing is certain — as Indian managers go global, this is not the last one will hear of the Indian management philosophy.

(The writer is an executive with a tier-1 software services company and is currently based in North America. He is the author of a book on globalisation titled Offshoring IT Services: A Framework for Managing Outsourced Projects)

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