Mahindra Group empowers its managers to take risks
Pawan
Goenka's relatives believe his job as executive director at Mahindra
& Mahindra (M&M) is quite simple: "They think Anand
Mahindra tells me what to do every morning and I do it and go home.
That's the picture of a professional in the minds of the Marwari
community."
Truth be told, the picture wasn't off the mark in the command-and-control corporates of the past and it still persists in some organisations in the present. But the companies featured in ET's Best Places for Leaders listing know that restricting the executive's role to following orders is a colossal waste of resources.
M&M, for one, has broken out as one of the best places for leaders mainly on the basis of the high levels of empowerment it affords its people. "Empowerment means you have the freedom to explore, take risks. Leaders here are fully engaged in taking their initiatives forward. A lot of M&M growth initiatives come from people down the line, not from the top," says Goenka.
Much of the credit for this goes to group chairman Anand Mahindra, corporate India biggest tweeter, who is not only known for delegating power to his people, but also for praising them through his tweets whenever they do a good job.
For example, Goenka has always been recognised as the 'father of the Scorpio', the indigenously designed SUV that forever changed the way M&M functions, and his rise to the number two position in the organisation is held up as a stellar example of how to succeed in the organisation.
Hemant Sikka joined the M&M 15 years ago, after a 10 year stint with Maruti and he describes himself as part of M&M's 'Scorpio generation', a beneficiary of the changes the company went through after the success of its SUVs. He spent a year at Ssang Yong Motor Company, M&M's acquisition in Korea and he returned to Mumbai to take charge as chief purchasing officer, overseeing M&M's Rs 30,000 crore annual purchase budget.
"For a manufacturing company to have so much entrepreneurial spirit as M&M has is rare," he says. "Most manufacturing companies do not empower their people. But my experience is that when you are truly empowered, you will always make the right decisions."
Truth be told, the picture wasn't off the mark in the command-and-control corporates of the past and it still persists in some organisations in the present. But the companies featured in ET's Best Places for Leaders listing know that restricting the executive's role to following orders is a colossal waste of resources.
M&M, for one, has broken out as one of the best places for leaders mainly on the basis of the high levels of empowerment it affords its people. "Empowerment means you have the freedom to explore, take risks. Leaders here are fully engaged in taking their initiatives forward. A lot of M&M growth initiatives come from people down the line, not from the top," says Goenka.
Much of the credit for this goes to group chairman Anand Mahindra, corporate India biggest tweeter, who is not only known for delegating power to his people, but also for praising them through his tweets whenever they do a good job.
For example, Goenka has always been recognised as the 'father of the Scorpio', the indigenously designed SUV that forever changed the way M&M functions, and his rise to the number two position in the organisation is held up as a stellar example of how to succeed in the organisation.
Hemant Sikka joined the M&M 15 years ago, after a 10 year stint with Maruti and he describes himself as part of M&M's 'Scorpio generation', a beneficiary of the changes the company went through after the success of its SUVs. He spent a year at Ssang Yong Motor Company, M&M's acquisition in Korea and he returned to Mumbai to take charge as chief purchasing officer, overseeing M&M's Rs 30,000 crore annual purchase budget.
"For a manufacturing company to have so much entrepreneurial spirit as M&M has is rare," he says. "Most manufacturing companies do not empower their people. But my experience is that when you are truly empowered, you will always make the right decisions."
M&M
has operations in several countries, including China, Australia and
the USA, and it is trying to depute its star executives to these
places to give them global experience. But its harder than it sounds
and the company hasn't yet made it a necessary part of the career
plan.
"Our foreign operations are relatively new and we can't just export Indian talent to these places as we like — the local management might not like it," says Rajeev Dubey President - Group Human Resources (HR). "But globalisation is really about being open to different cultures and people. It is possible to gain such a mind-set right here in India."
When it's not always possible to take Mohammad to the mountain, M&M is bringing the mountain to Mohammad. The company's Global Recruits Program, for example, brings in college graduates from universities across the world for three year internships across the organisation, giving M&M's people a chance to interact with youngsters with very different thinking.
In the final analysis, Dubey believes the best company for leaders is one which is doing well and growing. Such a company will provide ample opportunities for challenging assignments to its young executives, thereby giving them a chance to learn, develop their potential and advance their careers. How can HR help in the process?
"We're the catalyst," says Dubey. "We can't tell Pawan Gonenka who he should promote as successor, but we can provide him the data he needs to make the decision. We're also creating a culture of coaching and mentoring that will help people fill gaps."
Setting people up to succeed by grooming them early is intrinsic to the best companies. Goenka, who was a research & development engineer for most of his early career, recalls his gradual shift to general management: "Anand told me of the plan to promote me to a CEO position a year ahead. In that period, I was sent to Harvard Business School for a top management course and then I was groomed by the previous CEO to take over his job. If you don't plan for an individual's success, you end up throwing him to wolves and he will fail."
The M-CARES Construct
An acronym for Mahindra career, alignment, recognition, empowerment, strive, M-CARES scores are used to measure engagement
"Our foreign operations are relatively new and we can't just export Indian talent to these places as we like — the local management might not like it," says Rajeev Dubey President - Group Human Resources (HR). "But globalisation is really about being open to different cultures and people. It is possible to gain such a mind-set right here in India."
When it's not always possible to take Mohammad to the mountain, M&M is bringing the mountain to Mohammad. The company's Global Recruits Program, for example, brings in college graduates from universities across the world for three year internships across the organisation, giving M&M's people a chance to interact with youngsters with very different thinking.
In the final analysis, Dubey believes the best company for leaders is one which is doing well and growing. Such a company will provide ample opportunities for challenging assignments to its young executives, thereby giving them a chance to learn, develop their potential and advance their careers. How can HR help in the process?
"We're the catalyst," says Dubey. "We can't tell Pawan Gonenka who he should promote as successor, but we can provide him the data he needs to make the decision. We're also creating a culture of coaching and mentoring that will help people fill gaps."
Setting people up to succeed by grooming them early is intrinsic to the best companies. Goenka, who was a research & development engineer for most of his early career, recalls his gradual shift to general management: "Anand told me of the plan to promote me to a CEO position a year ahead. In that period, I was sent to Harvard Business School for a top management course and then I was groomed by the previous CEO to take over his job. If you don't plan for an individual's success, you end up throwing him to wolves and he will fail."
The M-CARES Construct
An acronym for Mahindra career, alignment, recognition, empowerment, strive, M-CARES scores are used to measure engagement
Career:
Goal
setting & performance discussion; career growth and aspiration;
learning & development.
Alignment: Vision & value; commitment; camaraderie.
Recognition: Timely & appropriate; encourage to outperform ; learning from failures.
Empowerment: Communication; autonomy to innovate; accountability; collaborative work environment.
Strive: Walk the talk; work life balance; sustainability; wellness.
Alignment: Vision & value; commitment; camaraderie.
Recognition: Timely & appropriate; encourage to outperform ; learning from failures.
Empowerment: Communication; autonomy to innovate; accountability; collaborative work environment.
Strive: Walk the talk; work life balance; sustainability; wellness.
By Dibeyendu
Ganguly, CDET141003
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