admin, Author at GrowthSqapes

Posted on July 18, 2025 - 10:09 am by admin

Let T.A.R.A. guide you home

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the fiercest disruption that human civilization has experienced since the arrival of computers several decades ago.

When computers first arrived, there was considerable resistance, especially in unionised industries, driven by an inadvertent fear of losing livelihoods. After the industrial revolution, we had almost mastered the art of intertwining assembly lines with human brawn, and life felt balanced. But then computers changed everything. They sped up processes, condensed turnaround times, rendering many old skills to obsoletion. Slowly we evolved — learning to coexist with these machines. Over the last 50 years, we have figured out a way to move computers from sitting at our desks to fitting into our palms, until they became friends.

Today, however, we are caught in the throes of AI disruption – a lovechild of COVID and computers really. But it has hijacked our imagination. AI now feels larger than life and harder to predict than ever before.

A film that illustrates this beautifully is Her (released in 2013). The protagonist, overwhelmed by the emotional complexities that dating apps offer, brings home a software. This software forms a bodiless, soulful connection with him — one so deep that no other human connection compares. She becomes “the one,” missed only by the lack of a mortal touch.

This is how AI is manifesting around us much faster than we imagined. AI is learning to imitate Human Intelligence. Technology is transitioning from simply doing to essentially being.

AI is a colleague we fear who may be smarter than us. We are being displaced and replaced, pushed out from our comfortable positions and legacy knowledge, into an era whose boundaries feel like an elusive mirage, a storm whose eye is unknown.

So, what is happening to us as living, breathing, well-meaning souls? We, us – how do we feel? And how do we act? We experience fear of the unknown, a threat of survival.

Leaders are tasked with the role of navigating this transition for themselves and those that they have led. They face resistance, insecurity, they experience people’s experience of betrayal when tough decisions are being taken, such as – slower appraisals, job losses etc. The world is changing in ways we cannot fully comprehend. And as leaders, we have to explain this change to others. Do we feel inept, insufficient or limited in helping others navigate change, while still knowing that we are well-meaning individuals? Does our humanness feel more challenged than ever before? Possibly.

But we know for certain that we have something that AI does not: human emotions and our infinite capability to translate our emotional intelligence from our doing to our being.

And therein lies the infiniteness of my concept – T.A.R.A.

TARA, meaning star in Indian languages, holds many connotations in ancient and medieval cultures — a guiding light, a form of divinity, symbolising compassion and direction.

Let me use this as an acronym to explain the forces behind it that will help us to thrive as leaders. T.A.R.A stands for Trust. Accept. Resolve. Align.

Let us delve into why these are the most important in transforming our leadership journeys.

Trust – An essential quality — one that we often find either intrinsically present or conspicuously absent from individuals and organisations. When we do not trust others, can we say we truly trust ourselves?

In moments where we fear losing our position, feel overshadowed by someone more skilled, or threatened by replacement — are we operating from trust or insecurity?

Trust brings inner security. Calm leaders are able to trust themselves and their people and even in the eye of storm it helps them to include.

Emotional Intelligence begins here: developing trust in oneself, and extending it meaningfully to others.

Accept – Acceptance is the ability to process a situation and make composed decisions. It means navigating circumstances with awareness — not just of what’s happening outside, but of the inner struggles within ourselves and others. True acceptance is a boundary set by the self. It is intentional. Compliance, in contrast, operates within boundaries set by others. We fall in line — often activating survival mode. Compliance can feel like compromise. Acceptance does not. It allows us to move with resourcefulness, without slipping into victimhood.

Yet, acceptance – as a state of being — is difficult. We grow up in cultures steeped in rejection. From childhood to leadership, rejection lights up powerful emotional triggers. In response, we learn to either react or repress — both forms of coping that prevent deeper acceptance. When rejection is unprocessed, we lose the ability to accept ourselves — and, in turn, others.

As leaders, our challenge is to cultivate acceptance not as compliance or passivity, but as an active presence that makes dialogue and connection possible.

Resolve – What cannot be accepted needs to be resolved. Resolution is not just about finding a solution. It is deeper work. It requires presence, authenticity, compassion and dialogue. But often, we are so entangled in the aftermath of the stimulus that we forget to navigate toward resolution at all. Resolution is not about agreeing, but about processing with trust and acceptance.

Leaders struggle to resolve because we want to act on impulses. We do not resolve because we do not communicate. We do not communicate because we do not trust the process. We either react or avoid — fight or flight.

Resolution for leaders simply means breaking it down and detangling, uncomplicating, with empathy and with kindness. When misalignment happens, be the first to say, “Let’s talk this through.” Listen beyond words. In meetings, notice what’s not being said. Ask clarifying, feeling-oriented questions.

Align: Imagine an axis running through the centre of every being — an invisible line that holds us upright, grounds us, and guides our every movement – be it an individual or the collective (the organisation).

The balance of this axis determines how centred we are within ourselves. It is where our locus of control should lie. Alignment requires our wholeness — our ability to remain rooted in who we are, even as the world around us shifts.

When alignment becomes the center of a leader’s being, we make choices not out of survival, but from a place of clarity, purpose, and integrity. It is this alignment to our values, our truth, and our humanity, that allows us to move forward without losing ourselves.

Reconnect with your “why”: What kind of world are you helping create — with or without AI?

Activating EI-driven Leadership shifts in times of AI

In an era where AI feels threateningly whirlwind-like, let T.A.R.A. keep you centered.

T.A.R.A.	Shift from “Doing”	Shift into “Being”
Trust	Controlling, proving, fear state	Grounded in self-reliance, empowering others
Accept	Resisting, complying, impulses	Seeing clearly, embracing with openness
Resolve	Avoiding, blaming, anger	Engaging, processing, healing
Align	Hustling, reacting	Rooted, intentional, values-led, self-awareness

T.A.R.A. can act as your leadership compass and help build 1) resilience without resistance, 2) courage without aggression, 3) adaptability without losing identity, 4) groundedness in the face of abstraction.

Let’s get emotional, let’s bring our T.A.R.A home!

This blog has been by Sukanya Bhadra, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes

Strategic Organizational Transformation

Posted on June 20, 2025 - 11:02 am by admin

What and why needed?

Organizational transformation is the process of transforming and changing the existing organization structure, corporate culture and employee behavior to reap certain strategic business results. It is affected by visible action taken by organizational leaders to move from the present to the future in order to achieve a specific outcome or benefit or to respond to the changes in the VUCA world that may be adversely impacting the organization. This blog underlines the steps that can be taken to cause a successful transformation; written in the context of a real-life case pertaining to NWO, which is predominantly an upstream operator and asset owner, exploring and producing in the North Sea, Africa, and the Middle East.

When the price of a barrel of oil plunged by more than 80% the market dynamics had already changed. Nord-West Oelleitung GmbH (NWO) met the challenges of these new market conditions by implementing an extensive organisational restructuring and behavioural change programme. Implemented in a matter of months, this programme led to a new more agile organisation ready to react to industry changes and embrace new opportunities as they arise. NWO, puts the success of the programme down to one simple reason, “We had a plan and we stuck to it”. It might sound like a simplistic approach, but with over 700 employees affected and the business-critical implementation carried out in a matter of months, this simple tactic proved its worth.

Onboarding the right people:

To help them execute the plan, NWO brought in transformation consultants. The tight timeframe and extent of the changes led to the transformation team taking a bold approach to strategic change management. In addition to carefully planning and documenting a series of initiatives, including workshops and training sessions, they decided to use a pull model to allow time for support on an ad-hoc basis. Transformation Leader Dr Pete Harpum explains, “We started this programme with a very clear idea of the key processes and behaviours that the business needed. But we also knew that we couldn’t just take a training manual approach to a transformation of this size. We needed to incorporate flexibility to deal with the unpredictable issues we knew would emerge as the programme unfolded.”

This combination of a clear strategic plan plus scheduled and ad hoc support meant the strategic transformation programme was completed in a matter of months with visible benefits from the start. Furthermore, its success was underlined by the fact it was carried out with minimal impact on production and zero incidents.

Meticulous planning:

Planning the organisational transformation started and putting success measures in place is crucial to the success of the initiative. At NWO an internal team looked at the restructuring needed to achieve greater agility in delivering business critical projects while reducing operating costs. The resulting design of the new organisation was created around a strong matrix structure that aligned the new teams with a clearer focus on the business instead of being organised around functions. To handle the organisational change, NWO established a cross-functional Transformation Management Office (TMO) comprising of a secretariat, HR and the transformation consultants. Part of the TMO, Jane Smith was involved in the scoping of the strategic transformation and describes the changes as “incredibly sensitive” as they affected around 700 employees. “Some people were promoted, some demoted, people got new managers, new areas to work in. So it was all about finding the right operating processes and rhythm for the company,” she says.

Mapping the right skill:

Ensuring that the right job is mapped to the person who has the appropriate skill set is important to ensure the success of any change management initiative . Although they were brought in as external consultants, the transformation team worked as an integrated part of the TMO, located on site, and were able to complement the NWO team with their unique skills. “We used the skills of the transformation consultants but the process was still very much internally driven. This was definitely part of its success. No-one could say that we’d used consultants who didn’t understand our business. We knew which processes were necessary but not how people would react. This was where transformation specialists could help,” said Jane Smith. “Each consultant in the transformation team had a different profile and area of business expertise. It was a good opportunity for us to learn from them and take advantage of their key skills,” says Fred Brown, Head of HR at NWO.

Agility in management:

The VUCA world demands that the change is implemented before it becomes necessary to change again. Therefore, to avoid the insecurity and inefficiency that any transformation programme breeds, the process was fast and intense – lasting just a few months. All employees were presented with the case for change in their teams and then held individual meetings with their old, and in some cases new, managers to discuss questions, concerns and plans.

Once the transformation was underway, the benefits of the flexible approach to the change process taken by the consultants were clear. Any issues were spotted and managed in a timely manner before they escalated or became negative office gossip that could heighten insecurity. In many ways, this approach also pre-empted the resistance that is encountered when external consultants are involved in creating new organisational structures.

Managing stakeholders:

Transformation is driven by the key stakeholders, hence keeping them in one’s good books definitely helps. “The managers at NWO are highly professional dedicated individuals who have been hired because they can deliver. Therefore, they’re not the sort of people who think they need help. Our approach and presence on site as part of the team meant we could provide the coaching and role modelling they needed without putting it into a formal structure,” says Pete Harpum. It might sound like an unusual approach but this fluidity meant the transformation team could react as needed in a more dynamic way. “It probably appeared coincidental when we showed up at the coffee machine to talk to the individuals about what was going on. But for us, this was carefully thought about. Working closely with the TMO, we had already identified peoples’ specific sensitivities and had anticipated their needs,” explains Pete Harpum. “By having the transformation consultants on site, we could get change management support immediately and therefore we could adjust to what the organization needed,” says Fred Brown, Head of HR at NWO.

Building cohesive teams:

In addition to this ad-hoc individual support, the transformation team also facilitated a series of over fifty customised workshops in the areas, ranging from strategic thinking to culture change to leadership development. By focusing sessions on actual needs, the teams involved were able to create vision statements for their teams, clarify roles and responsibilities, identify team ground rules, establish efficient and value adding activities, and improve effectiveness of team meetings as well as identify opportunities in terms of strategic feasibility and cost reduction. “Again, we knew what we had to achieve and by not scripting each session down to a fine level of detail we could maintain our focus on the people and teams affected by the change and their actual needs. And it paid off. During one session, a team in the Sub Surface Function found savings of £80 million in one hour. This kind of initiative wouldn’t have happened had we had not let the workshop be led by the people involved,” says Pete Harpum.

Measuring success:

No transformation initiative can be called a success unless the success measures are achieved. Nine months down the line and the new organisational matrix structure was in place. 200 people switched jobs, managers and teams and the organisation had the agility required to face future challenges. Looking back, Jane Smith is pleased with the way people have embraced the new structure. The overall process was a success from a business perspective. Change was never easy but it has been well managed and during the process, NWO has managed to maintain stable production and reduce the number of incidents. The transformation project has been vital to the company. It was well executed as could be seen in the fact that production indicators actually increased, which had never happened in previous change management programmes.

GrowthSqapes offers multiple solutions in leading and managing change from diagnosis to implementation.

Why Homegrown Indian Organizations Need To Invest In Leadership Development

Posted on May 28, 2025 - 12:02 pm by admin

In India, what do the house of Ambanis, Birlas, Tatas, HCL, Godrej and Wipro have in common? They are all homegrown family business organizations. In the context of these business houses that have become the very fabric of India since the dawn of the Indian growth story, it’s important to reflect why homegrown family business organizations need to invest in leadership development.

Succession planning: in homegrown family businesses, leadership succession is often viewed as a simple “passing the baton” from one generation to the next. However, focusing solely on succession—merely identifying who takes over—without cultivating true leadership can be a potential pitfall that endangers the long-term viability of the business. The next generation may inherit control, but they may not always possess the skills, vision, or character required to lead. This is why developing leaders, not merely successors, is critical for the future success of any family-owned enterprise.

Building a leadership bench: a successor is someone who takes on the role of leadership—often due to bloodline, familial obligations, or company bylaws. However, being a leader requires much more than simply being the designated heir. A leader is someone who can inspire, motivate, and steer the business through changing landscapes, while fostering a shared vision among the entire family and the management team. To ensure continuity of business, family businesses must invest in leadership development programs to develop a pool of leaders who are adaptive, visionary, and capable of making decisions that not only preserve the legacy but also push the business forward.

Grooming the loyal, legacy managers: old time loyalists, the “old boys” who have grown the ranks to the managerial levels, need to be groomed in leadership skills. This is because, new young successors who are being groomed for more strategic roles in the organization, may, due to their new ways of thinking be in collision with “the old boys” of the organization, leading to a turf war due to which eventually the organization suffers. Developing the old boys will help in their longer-term retention.

Mentoring: a mentoring approach focuses on developing the leadership talent, not just managing the succession. It helps shape young men and women from the family to embrace core values such as integrity and hard work, while also ensuring they are mindful of their stewardship role. It’s not enough for them to step into leadership positions merely by virtue of bloodline. Mentoring guides them to become true leaders—individuals who are driven by purpose, who can make informed decisions, and who understand the weight of the legacy they carry. By emphasizing this mindset, they can be helped in making them move beyond being just successors and encourage them to adopt the responsibility and vision necessary for long-term success.

Building Emotional Intelligence: And this is a long-term term ongoing intervention. Young successors need to be coached, mentored, and handheld on what they perceive as their perceived strengths and areas of development. They would be required to make decisions under pressure, and hence, their emotional capacities and being intelligent about them & to be calm under pressure would be tested.

Understanding & navigating change: India is an amalgamation of many mini-Indias. A leader who is groomed for more strategic roles needs to understand the larger context of India, a country that wants everything within a budget and of world-class quality. A deeper understanding of the view from the top, and keeping both ears to the ground, is what would make leaders transition and take the organization to the next level. Further, change has been the new normal for the longest time. Leaders who can’t see the anticipated change coming and are not groomed to be ahead of the curve will not be able to lead an organization for a long time. With the millennials and the Gen Z taking over critical roles in the organization, it makes a lot of sense for organizations to look at their development from a strategic standpoint and not just a tick-the-box activity. Last but not least important, while AI and technological advances are being a great enabler, it has also threatened to take away a lot of jobs. Organizations led by able leaders who have the foresight and the vision to change the organization will thrive if they stay invested in their overall development.

Modern family businesses face unique challenges that make leadership development especially important. These include balancing family dynamics with business performance, navigating succession planning, and maintaining long-term vision across generations. Without strong leadership, the family business can become a victim of internal conflicts, a failure to adapt to changing markets, or the erosion of family unity.

A Harvard Business Review study found that family businesses that emphasize leadership development across generations outperform those that do not. Yet, in many cases, family business leaders often focus on the short-term goal of identifying a successor, neglecting the need for a strategic and intentional leadership development process. The costs of overlooking leadership development are steep: mismanagement, missed opportunities, and eventually the demise of the business.

This blog has been written by Rupender Khaira, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes.

DE&I Fatigue: Why Inclusion Cannot Be Allowed To Fade

Posted on May 6, 2025 - 5:58 am by admin

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) has been pivotal to organizational strategies over the past decade, striving to counteract historical exclusion and systemic biases. It set out to ensure equal opportunities for all, regardless of gender, race, identity, or ability.

However, within corporate settings today, there’s a growing sense of “DE&I fatigue.”

Alarmingly, even men who have supported inclusivity are now expressing concerns that DE&I undermines merit. This reflects complex issues organizations face: has DE&I shifted to being a checkbox, rather than a living, breathing value?

Who Did We Champion Under DE&I?

DE&I aimed to address and close deep systemic gaps, making workplaces inclusive for all. Traditionally, companies have thrived on homogeneity.

With DE&I formalization, the focus expanded to include:

Women facing gender bias in the workplace
Diverse gender identities fighting discrimination
Various racial and marginalized communities lacking equal opportunities
Individuals with physical and mental disabilities often underestimated
Neurodivergent people needing understanding and accommodation

Then Why is Fatigue Setting In?

DE&I fostered inclusion and rebalanced opportunity access, yet in striving to meet quotas, priorities got skewed.

The Unseen Casualties — The Forgotten Loyalists

Millennial CIS men, who had previously championed diversity, started to feel overlooked. They faced uncertainty in the “new order,” where their well-intended support made them feel taken for granted. Their loyalty seemed undervalued when because of forced diversity hiring, their bosses bore down on their growth paths. When loyalty is ignored and merit is dismissed for box-checking, organizations risk losing not just people, but commitment and morale.

Forced DE&I Hiring and promotion decisions

Adding DE&I hiring mandates complicated hiring by design. Problems arose as companies struggled to find candidates meeting all criteria – while regular candidates applied for a certain job, the HR reached out to specific women candidates to fill the position and many times made compromises on certain qualifiers to ensure that they filled the seat. This lowered quality in hiring led to leaders seeing DE&I as an undue burden on operational efficiency and performance.

Reassigning Roles Without Appropriate Context

Instead of creating more opportunities, some organizations simply reshuffled existing roles, leading to reduced opportunities for their otherwise well-performing employees. For example, a senior CIS male leader saw his role diminished to nearly one-tenth to improve DE&I portfolio, thereby stirring resentment instead of fostering true inclusion.

Overall, leaders have felt forced to meet quotas in hiring, training, and appraising DE&I candidates over traditional hiring, apart from the fact that it has caused a disruption to a world obsessed with linear, bottom-line growth! Therefore, when someone important directs to cancel DE&I altogether, leaders easily follow suit.

Should We Let Sleeping Dogs Lie?

Let’s admit that cutting DE&I is the easiest way to maximize short-term profits. Inclusion, by definition, takes effort, time, and sometimes, a little bit of mess before clarity emerges.

Anything that requires deep reflection or slows down capital progress, becomes questionable and easy to discard.

The truth is, that our system was designed to exclude — this started with the education system. So even before, solving for the inclusion challenge in labour force, a bigger issue is creating an inclusive education system.

Unless DE&I remains intentional, exclusion will always be the default mode.

Axe inclusion and boardrooms will be filled with men in grey suits; culture fit would mean “someone like us” always and forever; racial minorities will be tokenised or excluded; women will go back to sacrificing careers for homecare – unseen and unheard – because possibly they didn’t “lean in enough”; Transgender individuals will be pushed back to begging for identity and dignity. In short, many people will be considered “too complicated to hire.”

The Indian Context

India, culturally inclusive yet needing reminders from structured Western systems, must refine DE&I strategies. Despite some Western countries retreating from DE&I, India can continue to leverage its diverse talent and social inclusion values for economic growth.

Successful cases, though fewer, demonstrate inclusion’s role in socio-economic progress. The TATA Harrier manufacturing unit is an all-women shop. The TATAs are one of the largest industrial houses in India, who have also exhibited a strong value of social responsibility. Their message was to invest in a successful inclusion case.

Charting a Path Forward: Beyond Fatigue

Remember that implementing inclusion needs investment, intention and sustained leadership values. To truly embody inclusion, organizations must move past mere checkbox strategies. Leadership development programs are of help here.

Focus on structural change, not just numbers — If your leadership team doesn’t reflect diversity, ask why — and then build pipelines and mentorship, not just lateral hires.
Educate, engage & repeat — Bring everyone into the conversation. Don’t make the mistake of excluding one group to include the other. Help CIS men, senior leaders, and existing employees set and achieve their goals through continued mentoring and positive engagement. Create programs that help to remove systemic biases
Foster psychological safety — Hiring a diverse team is one thing. Making sure they feel safe, valued, and heard is another – and these are the real game-changers that will encourage a culture of true inclusion.
Reward merit, allyship, and loyalty alike — This is the most important. Don’t ignore those who have stood up for inclusion all along. They are your best partners to make real change. Help them to grow
Define new and customized developmental plans – Measure & recognize the value that individuals bring to the system. Regroup
Remove Optical Disparity About DE&I

Often, DE&I was wrongly equated with increasing female hires, ignoring other crucial aspects like race and disability. This narrow perspective weakens DE&I’s effectiveness, turning efforts into a numbers game.

Yes, DE&I fatigue is real. But it’s not a sign to stop — it’s a sign to evolve. To move from compliance to compassion, from numbers to narratives, from fatigue to fulfillment.

Because when everyone has a seat at the table, we all eat better.

This article has been written by Sukanya Bhadra, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes.

Motivating The Sales Force

Posted on April 18, 2025 - 12:03 pm by admin

In any organization, the sales force is the one that is directly responsible for contributing to the revenue of the organization. Hence, the sales managers continuously look for newer and novel ways to keep them motivated. Competent managers treat their sales force like class of kids (metaphorically speaking) that demands different styles of attention and management. That’s because just like kids, some sales professionals have greater ability, competency and internal drive than others. If we categorize the sales professionals, we get 4 categories namely Drifters, Strugglers, Troublers and Stars, who are all motivated by different factors. On an average, any sales force has a clear majority of “Drifters” and “Strugglers”, a small but elite group of “Stars” and a group of “Troublers” . A judicious sales manager uses different ways to motivate each group and thereby move the performance curve of the team upwards.

Written below is the name of the category and suggested ways to motivate that category.

Stars:

People that are highly motivated and skilled and are always achieving their targets are called Stars. They are highly skilled through training and experience. They have high achievement orientation quotient. Stars are an asset for any sales organization. They need lot of contact and attention from the manager and genuine praise saying ‘good job’ which go a long way in maintaining the motivation of these valuable assets. Bringing variety into the job for them and using their skill and experience to produce special projects or benefit other members in the team, aspirational incentive plans and over achievement bonuses are some ways that will also have a positive effect on prolonging their motivation.

Drifters:

Drifters are people who are highly skilled but their motivation has worn out lately. Often these are your star performers who have slipped down the other side of the slope. This is a potential nightmare any sales manager can face. When the motivation of Drifters decreases, so does the application of their skills. But this is not the only damage that they do. Their de-motivation and negativity, if left unchecked, spreads to other members of the team. Drifters need to be given direction. They need to be managed positively to return them to a motivated state. The objectiveis to re-focus upon them as a person to uncover the cause or source of their de-motivation. Coaching is an essential tool in achieving this. Once uncovered, these issues have to be addressed as positively as possible

Strugglers:

Strugglers have low skill but high motivation. They might be a new recruit, from inside or outside the business. They’ve got a brand new and exciting job. They are new talent on the road all set to build a sales career and enjoy all the rewards that it brings. They are very keen; very motivated. But they struggle with the skill to make their energy reap the necessary fruits. Strugglers need to be channelled. They need to be positively challenged and driven to increase skill to maintain motivation. If the skills do not develop the motivation will eventually die. As a result, they will slip backwards and could become Troublers. Pace-setting goals, targets and bonuses have been found to motivate Strugglers by keeping them enthusiastic and fore seeking of genuine praise earned via the achievement of targets and development of skills.

Troublers:

Troublers suffer from both low motivation and low skill. A typical example of this might be a person who was moved into a sales role from an administrative position as part of an overall business restructuring and has not been trained in sales. It could also be a case of a person who is demotivated and unwilling to move up the skill and will curve. Troublers need to be given clear directions. They need to be driven to increase skill and rewarded when they show willingness to perform. Problems need clearly defined Standards of Performance/KPIs (SOPs/KPIs) within which they need to work. A carrot and stick approach also works.

This blog has been written by Meena Murugappan, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes.

Successful Leadership Development

Posted on April 2, 2025 - 4:59 am by admin

We live in times of constant change; times where long-established notions are constantly being challenged and replaced with newer ones. One such notion around leadership is – Leaders are born, not made. Innate talent is no longer the only parameter that qualifies one to eventually grow as a leader. Today, a systematic approach of talent and skill development has transformed several individuals with the willingness to learn, into excellent leaders. This system is deployed in the form of leadership development interventions.

Let’s look at some statistics published by leading leadership development organizations, suggesting the need of leadership development

More than 77 % of organizations report that leadership is lacking, and while that is a big number it should not come as a surprise given that 10,000 Baby Boomers retire every single day.
At the same time, 83% of businesses say it’s important to develop leaders at all levels. Yet less than 5% of companies have implemented leadership development across all levels.

Half of the respondents said their companies lacked sufficient leadership talent, and 47 % predicted there would be a shortage of leadership or executive-level skills in the future.

The question thus arises is: what is required for the success of such development interventions? Leadership Development programs rely on some key factors for their success, which act as the key pillars. Those are as follows:

Buy-In From Top Management – A successful leadership intervention should have its strategy and business value aligned with the organization’s strategy and business goals for it to have the acceptance of the top management. A program not aligned with the organizational vision, mission, values and business goals would fail to deliver any real measurable positive business impact.

Contextually Apt To Enable Learning Transfer & Retention – The program should be designed according to the organizational context where the learning has to be applied. An intervention would fail if its learning cannot be transferred to the workplace and applied for a successful learning transfer and retention.

Application-Based & Measurable – A successful leadership intervention should be application-based by design so that the learning comes in a practical hands-on manner rather than just a conceptual understanding. This would enable better development of the participants as future leaders. Moreover, the intervention results should be measurable in the form of concrete business impact. An intervention that’s not measurable cannot be said to be successful or unsuccessful, just on the basis of the participant reaction it generates, because then its focus would end up staying limited to generating a favorable participant experience.

Favourable Individual Attitude & Ownership Towards Learning And Change – For an intervention to be successful the participants should have a favourable attitude and ownership towards learning and change. They should not feel it to be a forced upon process; they should rather feel encouraged and supported while being proactive about their learning and development journey, and take ownership for it. A resistance or lack of desire towards learning and the accompanying change can prove a bane for the most well designed and implemented leadership development intervention.

Adaptable According To The Changing Scenario–Existing in a VUCA environment change is the only constant. Keeping this in mind, leadership development interventions need to be futuristic in nature. This means that not only should it aim to develop the leaders to meet the current business challenges but also the ones that may arise in the future. This would enhance the relevance and business impact of the leadership development intervention making it more effective.

Developmental In Nature–The aim of any leadership development program should be to develop the leaders as a whole in a gradual and continual manner. An intervention designed as a quick fix is bound to fail. Unlike a management development program, a leadership development program is not a task-oriented intervention; it is rather a continual process of building the overall capability of the individual as a business leader. Moreover, the program should be customizable to the specific individual in accordance with where s/he is in their leadership development journey.

As a successful leadership program is critical to fill the leadership gaps in any organization, an intervention designed keeping the above aspects in mind would inevitably be a success thereby delivering a positive business impact via some vectors such as low turnover; higher productivity; higher motivation, better engagement and commitment levels; greater alignment to the business goals, and high creativity& innovation to name a few.

GrowthSqapes follows a diagnostics-based leadership development approach and curates leadership development programs in India and Asia for top organizations.

This blog has been written by Namita Singh, Consultant & Project Manager with GrowthSqapes.

Fostering Solid Teams: Gen Z Employees x Millennial Bosses

Posted on March 21, 2025 - 5:32 am by admin

Ross was excited when a new group of MBA graduates joined as interns. Ross, now on the right side of 40, has been with ABC Corporation for the last 15 years. He has always worked his way up through hard work and commitment to goals. He has always taken people along, loved mentoring young professionals, helping them to transition from college to becoming thorough professionals in about 6 months. Ross could boast of having brought up many generations of new hires through training, mentoring, and handholding. Ross also felt lucky to have worked under tough but fair bosses who had pushed him to reach his highest potential, and Ross in turn has done the same for his teams. Always.

After a period of working as an individual contributor during COVID, Ross has finally been assigned a new team. He was super-excited and warmly welcomed the new hires, briefing them on how “things run here.”

But soon, something started to feel off.

These interns seemed not to respect office timings, seemed to intentionally violate deadlines while prioritizing personal time, and felt entitled to leaves – often the reason for the leaves seemed unclear beyond “I am not feeling well”.

Ross quickly realised that he had to spend more time explaining the work – and for three months he did that. Until increasingly it felt easier to just do it all by himself. The harder Ross tried to set boundaries, the more these noobs seemed to slip away.

One day, he assigned a critical project to Mel, outlining tasks, deadlines, and quality expectations. She quickly told Ross that she understood, though she showed little enthusiasm. Ross told her to check in if she faced any issues.

As the deadline approached, Ross discovered—too late—that the work was barely half done. Despite his check-ins, when Mel had quietly insisted she was fine, we were barely where we needed to be. The client meeting was in an hour – Ross was barely able to control his inner hysteria. Mel broke down, simply told him that she will come back after a break in an hour, because she was not feeling well.

Sounds familiar? Welcome to the modern cold corporate warzone between millennial bosses and Gen Z hires.

As the Millennials are reaching the leadership roles they have hustled for, their professional aspirations are being disrupted by a bunch of “casual” and “entitled” youngsters who seem outrageously audacious in their asking for personal space, time boundaries and feeling emotionally well. These youngsters do not seem to have loyalty or commitment, nor the resilience to withstand the tough love that the millennials grew up with.

So what does one need to do if two groups on either end of 180 degrees in their values are to be supported to work together to be able to co-create and achieve shared growth.

Adoption of new culture strategies by organizations

Here are some strategic recommendations for organizations that can be considered to resolve this conundrum.

Start developing them much before hiring – organizations must integrate well with educational institutions, and develop outside-the-textbook leadership journeys for students who are to become professionals. Design longer internship programs that start sooner than later in their curriculum. Start in middle school if possible!

Hire based on soft skills and actual impactful work done – Instead of traditional interview methods, ask candidates to present their work to test their sensitivity to some of the most important values that your company needs. Topics that excite them beyond the textbook. Assess autonomy, collaboration style, and adaptability during hiring.

Embed work ethic & professionalism training for Gen Z – Some important new training avenues can be on managing ambiguity, meeting professional expectations, and self-directed problem-solving, taking feedback, understanding constructive communication methods.

Invest in continued leadership journeys for Millennials – Offer workshops on coaching-based leadership rather than old-school authoritative models. Equip managers with skills in empathy-driven management, trust-based, psychological safety, and real-time feedback methods.

Growthqapes’ tools such as the Self Emotional Quotient Assessment Profilers (SEQAP) help leaders to unravel their emotional own styles that enable them to develop as better people leaders.

Develop a training pool comprising of Gen Zs – Imagine Gen Zs teaching us technology, communication, mental health and safety! It would be the quickest way to Gen Z inclusion as a part of your organization’s growth story.
Dispel myths, discourage silence, dissuade from stereotyping – Workplaces and social media are abuzz with the two groups stereotyping each other. It is exciting for everyone to see the impact of their work in a meaningful way. The goal is to get everyone to perform at their highest potential, not for them to simply comply. Remove unnecessary compliance complications. Create a positive performance language that dispels myths and prevents stereotyping.
Addressing feelings is important to close the ‘distance’

In this case of Ross & Mel, it is so easy for them to turn their backs on each other. What Mel perhaps was not able to mention to Ross was how terrified she was of the outcome of failing the deadline. What Ross was not able to share with Mel was how vulnerable he felt in the face of a failed deadline. Each not being able to share their feelings authentically and fearlessly pushed them into resorting to their coping mechanisms – anger for Ross, and distance for Mel.

If vulnerabilities are openly discussed, it often creates the much needed space for collaboration, long-term safety and growth for all.

In the end, to highlight that Gen Zs are here to stay, and they have had “entitlements” growing up is something that we cannot wish away. But the Gen Zs are not the dispassionate people that they are made out to be. The onus lies on the organizations and the leaders to navigate this change. Gen Zs need constant check-ins, tangible coaching, and real-time constructive feedback, not hierarchy, not criticism, not constant reporting, and not traditional bosses who infantilize. They need to be able to trust you to be able to open up. They need to see you as someone who has their back – which sometimes does mean extra work initially. Investment in leadership development programs for Millennial bosses help them overcome the challenges they face.

The need is to rethink organizational structures that have flatter hierarchies, but many times more coaches and “buddies” as leaders whom the Gen Zs can trust.

It is not a piece of cake – but if the resilient millennials cannot, who can!

This blog has been written by Sukanya Bhadra, an Associate Partner with Growthsqapes

The Benefits Of Collaboration At Workplace

Posted on February 25, 2025 - 10:37 am by admin

Collaboration in the workplace is a powerful tool that can significantly enhance productivity, innovation, and job satisfaction. In today’s dynamic and fast-paced business environment, organizations are increasingly recognizing the importance of collaboration as a means to achieve collective goals and drive success.

A Deloitte study found that 73% of employees who engage in collaborative work report improved performance, while 60% say it sparks their innovation. This clearly shows that teamwork & collaboration are factors that directly contribute to individual and team success. There is also mounting evidence which points that the cost of poor collaboration is measurable, and it’s staggering. That’s the reason why more and more organizations are investing in leadership development programs.

Let’s first try and look at a viable definition of what collaboration is:

Plainly speaking, collaboration is a process when a team works together and combines their skills and expertise. They might do this to solve a problem, brainstorm new ideas, or produce something innovative.

When teams or coworkers are able to collaborate successfully, they can often develop better ideas and solutions than they might have alone. You may work with one person to collaborate or collaborate with a large team. Working with others often enables you to see new perspectives or navigate challenging projects more effectively.

What are the benefits:

1.New Ideas

One of the most common benefits of collaboration is its ability to expose individuals/ teams to new ideas. People who working on a project for a long time are often less able to see creative solutions the way someone unrelated or new to the project might. Those team members can share thoughts with one another and develop interesting new solutions and approaches, by asking for the opinions of others.

1. Enhanced Problem Solving

One of the primary advantages of collaboration is its ability to enhance problem-solving. When individuals from different backgrounds, departments, or areas of expertise come together, they bring diverse perspectives and insights to the table. This diversity leads to more creative and effective solutions to challenges.

3. Enhanced Communication Skills

Regular and effective collaboration in the workplace helps individuals hone their communication skills. Effective communication is crucial for expressing ideas clearly, resolving conflicts, and ensuring that everyone is on the same page. Working with diverse teams fosters the development of both verbal and non-verbal communication skills, as individuals learn to convey their thoughts in ways that others can understand and respond to.

4. Better Relationships and Teamwork

Collaboration helps foster strong interpersonal relationships in the workplace. When employees work closely together on projects, they build trust, respect, and a sense of camaraderie. These positive relationships are essential for creating a supportive and cohesive work environment. Teams that collaborate well are more likely to support one another, share knowledge, and offer assistance when needed.

5.Efficiency and Productivity

Collaboration can lead to greater efficiency and productivity in the workplace. When people work together, tasks can be divided according to each individual’s strengths, allowing the team to accomplish more in less time. By sharing responsibilities, employees can leverage their skills to focus on specific aspects of a project while relying on others to handle different components. This division of labor helps streamline workflows and reduces the likelihood of duplication of efforts.

6. More Fun @Work

Working with a team of like-minded people is often more fun and invigorating than working alone. When involved in collaborating with others, team members can share ideas, demonstrate new techniques to one another and ask each other for advice. Research shows that teamwork can often foster a sense of community and make an assignment feel more rewarding.

7. Better Decision-Making

Collaborative decision-making processes tend to be more thorough and well-informed. When multiple people contribute to the decision-making process, the resulting decisions are often more robust, as different viewpoints and expertise are considered. This leads to more informed choices that take into account a wider range of factors, reducing the risk of mistakes or missed opportunities.

9. Stronger Organizational Culture

Finally, fostering collaboration within the workplace strengthens the overall organizational culture. Companies that encourage collaboration create environments where open communication, mutual respect, and shared goals are prioritized. This collaborative culture not only boosts productivity and innovation but also helps attract top talent who are eager to work in a team-oriented and supportive environment.

Conclusion

In conclusion, collaboration in the workplace is essential for creating a dynamic, innovative, and productive environment. The benefits of working together, from enhanced problem-solving and increased creativity to stronger relationships and improved efficiency, are numerous and far-reaching. Organizations that embrace collaboration tend to foster a positive work culture, boost employee satisfaction, and improve overall performance. As businesses continue to evolve, collaboration will remain a key factor in achieving success, driving growth, and adapting to the challenges of the future. Progressive organizations understand the importance of the same and invest in leadership development programs that build a collaborative mindset and related skills.

This blog has been written by Rupender Singh Khaira, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes

Critical Skills For Today’s Sales Leaders

Posted on February 5, 2025 - 11:32 am by admin

Today’s environment is marked by some major macro trends which is driving the need for sales leaders to change the way they lead their teams. These forces also mean that they need to refocus and reskill themselves to make themselves future-ready to take on the challenges ahead

Technological Disruptions
- Economic and Geo-Political Uncertainty
- Rapid changes in customer tastes and preferences
- Intensifying competition
- Changes in Work Team and Culture

Here are some of the most critical skills that will equip today’s sales leaders to be successful whether they manage teams for Consultative Selling, Key Account Management, Channel Management etc.

Strategic vision and data-driven execution

Clarity and alignment across the team and the supporting internal ecosystems with the strategy and goals. Setting SMART goals which are aligned to the organization’s goals and objectives. Setting up KPIs and efficient processes for measuring and monitoring the results with adaptive strategies for agile course corrections, as and when needed.

Being able to identify trends and patterns from the analysis of data and following a practice of data-driven decision-making is critical. Team needs to know the “why” to relate to the “what” and “how”. The team needs to be communicated clearly the strategic impact of the insights and interpretations from the data analysis. Today, people value purpose-filled environments. It is important that the sales leader creates a shared vision for the team that goes beyond the operational activities to link the goals and objectives to a larger context like improving lives, lifestyles or fulfilling a social purpose.

Hiring, team-building expertise and mentorship

Hiring the right talent is fundamental. It should be based on organisation culture fit and knowledge, skills and mindset requirements for the role to ensure retention. Having a growth mindset, intrinsic motivation to excel and resilience as well as relevant experience and track in employment history are also important.

Team-building expertise: This is the area where the sales leader needs to be adequately compassionate while remaining pragmatic and focused on results. Adopting an adaptive leadership style to manage different performance categories. Using a coaching style to identify strengths and improvement areas, get alignment between your and team member’s skills, goals and aspirations and to generate wilful commitment to achieve greater heights is important. Here again, flexibility is important to ensure your team is more inclusive and has diverse strengths that gives you the edge in the market.

Getting and giving feedback: Research shows that sales leaders are more interested in giving feedback than receiving it. Since you are not directly involved in the day-to-day operations, the best way to gauge the effectiveness of your strategies is by actively seeking feedback from your sales team particularly on a) your expertise in utilising sales tools and processes b) usefulness of your coaching and mentoring sessions and c) the realistic achievement of sales targets e.g. what would help you to achieve your targets or overcoming the roadblocks for getting more sales closures

Tech-savviness and operational efficiency

Most organisations are now equipped with some CRM software. The skill lies in how best one can leverage the data to get meaningful insights. The strategic utilization of AI tools is gaining increased significance as it allows sales leaders to identify patterns and optimize sales strategies for optimum effectiveness.

Sales leaders need to focus on efficiency by optimising processes/ reducing inefficiencies & streamlining operations. Even a minor change to a key process can lead you and your sales team from failure to success. For example, you might drop one low-value responsibility from your team member or provide him with a simple one-page dashboard of your overall strategic plan.

Customer-centric innovation-adoption

The rules of the game are ever-changing. Keeping yourself updated on the business growth drivers, market dynamics, latest product / service developments, customer trends and behaviour is critical. Leaders should be close to customers to conduct research, analyse customer data and actively seek feedback from customers. Customers need quick and effective solutions to address their problems and pain points now and strategic innovations to meet their requirements for the future. Today’s sales leaders need to be agile, adaptive, realistic and solution oriented.

Driving accountability and empowerment: Sharing your leadership responsibilities with your team members and empowering your team to take decisions is an effective method to not only reserve your precious time and efforts but also to:

● Drive mutual accountability, enhance ownership and conformity

● Build important delegation skills

● Learn more about your team and groom future leaders

“When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” — Simon Sinek

One of the best ways to empower your team is to involve them in the process. Find out what additional roles and responsibilities they feel would be helpful to take on. Some may be good at data collection & analysis, some others in coordinating meetings and group tasks while some others in strategizing and planning.

Fostering collaboration across departments like marketing, technical/ engineering, product management, supply chain and customer service has become critically important. Breaking down silos and aligning everyone toward shared objectives strengthens overall sales efforts. A team that works cohesively—with the right cross-functional support spells success in today’s scenario. Today’s sales leaders need to increasingly manage internal stakeholders and get their buy-in and support to for flawless and smooth execution of their sales strategy which is so critical for success.

GrowthSqapes offers sales training programs for the sales leaders to develop and sharpen their skills to the current demands of the market.

This article has been written by Sandip Mitra, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes.

Beyond the Conventional: Leadership Development as Organizational Evolution

Posted on January 10, 2025 - 9:51 am by admin

In a world where change is the only constant, leadership is the stabilizing force that guides organizations through uncertainty. Yet leadership is often perceived as inherent, something that cannot be nurtured or cultivated. This perception has become one of the greatest missteps in organizational development. Leadership is not just a trait; it’s a process—a process that can and should be deliberately developed.

Key Elements to Consider in Leadership Development

Self-Awareness

Leadership begins with self-awareness. Individuals must understand their strengths, weaknesses, values, and emotional triggers. Self-aware leaders can better manage their behaviours, align themselves with the organizational vision, and build authentic relationships. Tools like the Johari Window or 360-degree feedback can help promote self-awareness by offering insights from multiple perspectives.

Learning Agility

Leaders today must possess learning agility—the ability to learn from experiences and apply that learning to new situations. In a world of constant change, leaders need to adapt quickly, unlearn outdated habits, and embrace new ways of thinking. This involves developing critical thinking, curiosity, and the willingness to challenge assumptions.

Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

Emotional intelligence (EQ) is foundational to leadership. Leaders with high EQ can empathize, build strong interpersonal relationships, and manage their own emotions under pressure. Daniel Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence Framework emphasizes self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills as crucial components for effective leadership.

Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Skills

Leadership often involves making difficult decisions. Leaders must develop the ability to assess complex problems, analyze potential solutions, and make decisions under uncertainty. Providing real-world scenarios and allowing emerging leaders to make decisions, even in controlled environments, helps hone these skills.

Visionary Thinking

Leaders are not just managers of the present but architects of the future. A leader’s ability to craft a compelling vision and inspire others to follow is essential for long-term success. This involves setting a clear direction and aligning team efforts with organizational goals.

Mentorship and Coaching

Leadership development isn’t a solitary journey. Access to mentors or coaches provides invaluable guidance. Mentors offer wisdom based on experience, while coaches help individuals explore their solutions and reflect on their leadership style. This dual support system is critical for ongoing development.

Ethical Leadership and Values Alignment

At the core of leadership is the responsibility to uphold ethical behavior and align personal values with organizational ethics. Leaders must lead with integrity, fairness, and accountability. They set the tone for the organizational culture, shaping the ethical environment within which others operate.

Succession Planning and Long-Term Leadership Development

Developing leaders should not be a short-term fix but part of a long-term strategy. The process must be tied to the broader organizational goals of succession planning. This ensures a continuous pipeline of leaders who are ready to step into new roles as the organization evolves.

The Process of Developing Leaders

Developing leaders within an organization isn’t just about preparing individuals for higher responsibilities. It’s about fostering a mindset that aligns personal growth with the organizational mission. Research from McKinsey’s Global Survey on Leadership shows that companies with vital leadership development programs outperform their peers by 20% in financial performance. This underscores that leadership is a strategic advantage, not merely an operational necessity.

The development of organizational leaders requires more than just training programs or coaching sessions. It involves a deliberate and well-structured process that integrates the organization’s strategic goals with individual growth. The process should be holistic, combining learning, experience, feedback, and reflection.

The leadership development process should be both strategic and flexible, designed to meet the evolving needs of both individuals and the organization. Below is a possible structured approach to guide leadership development:

Identify Leadership Needs

Every organization has unique leadership needs, depending on its size, industry, and strategic direction. The first step is to conduct an “organizational assessment” to understand the leadership capabilities required at various levels.

Leadership Competency Framework

Develop a “leadership competency model” that outlines the behaviors, skills, and attributes required for leadership success in your organization. Competency frameworks provide clarity on leadership expectations and serve as a reference for development efforts.

Assess Current Leadership Potential

Use tools such as 360-degree feedback, psychometric tests, and leadership assessments to evaluate the current potential of individuals within the organization. This will help identify those with leadership promise and areas for development.

Create Individualized Development Plans

Each leader’s journey is unique. Based on the assessments, develop personalized development plans focusing on their specific growth areas. These plans should include a combination of formal learning (courses, certifications), experiential learning (on-the-job challenges), and mentoring or coaching.

Implement Leadership Development Programs

Design and implement multi-faceted leadership programs that cover essential leadership skills. This could include:

Workshops & Seminars
Experiential Learning
Mentorship and Coaching

Real-Time Feedback and Continuous Learning

Create a feedback-rich environment where emerging leaders receive real-time feedback on their performance. Leadership development is not a one-time event; it requires continuous learning and reflection. Encourage leaders to seek feedback, reflect on their experiences, and adjust their leadership approach.

Monitor Progress and Measure Outcomes

Leadership development must be measured for effectiveness. Use leadership metrics to track progress, such as improved team performance, higher engagement scores, and increased readiness for promotion. Adjust the development programs based on the insights gained from these metrics.

Align with Succession Planning

Ensure leadership development is integrated with the organization’s succession planning strategy. The goal is to develop leaders and ensure a sustainable pipeline of future leaders who can step into key roles when needed. This step involves regularly reviewing talent pipelines, identifying high-potential individuals, and ensuring they are on track for succession.

From Leadership Development to Organizational Growth: A Holistic View

What sets exceptional organizations apart isn’t just their financial performance or market share—it’s their ability to grow organically from within. Leadership development acts as the linchpin between individual growth and organizational advancement.

Take the General Electric (GE) model under Jack Welch’s leadership, where leadership development was integral to the business strategy. Welch once said, “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” This perspective resulted in GE being one of the most consistently successful companies globally for decades.

Today’s leadership development and leadership training must focus on more than just today’s needs. It must equip leaders with the resilience to navigate future challenges. Leaders of tomorrow will require high emotional intelligence, systems thinking, and adaptability to new technologies like AI and data-driven decision-making. The rapid pace of transformation in the business landscape demands leaders who can anticipate change rather than react to it.

Leadership development isn’t about filling vacancies. It’s about creating a leadership ethos synonymous with the organization’s identity. In this way, leadership doesn’t just live at the top; it permeates every level, making the organization adaptive, innovative, and resilient.

GrowthSqapes offers top quality leadership development programs in India and Asia.

This blog has been written by Sanjay Gupta, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes.

Overcoming Barriers To Succession Planning

Posted on December 4, 2024 - 8:45 am by admin

The strategic process of identifying and developing internal candidates to fill key organizational roles to ensure business continuity and competent leadership in the face of role transitions, exits or unforeseen events. Succession planning is relevant to all companies, however large or small.

Barriers to Succession Planning

Defense mechanisms: The succession planning process in organizations primarily fails because it triggers unconscious psychodynamic process of fear at whatever level it is attempted. The senior leaders fear that their position will go away and that their authority will be diluted should the succession planning process become effective, and a succession really emerges. Whereas consciously all seniors support and tend to comply with the process, unconsciously they indulge in actions that hinders the process.
Bad Science: Often, even if there is spirited commitment to succession planning, the process adopted has flows. Typical flows are (a) poor alignment of competence to future business requirements (b) flawed process of assessment of potential talent (c) the development process being casual all-size-fits-all and non-scientific checklist of training programs & (d) poor development effectiveness evaluation and obvious corollary of the barriers of succession planning could also be a flawed potential assessment and leadership development process.

Overcoming the Barriers to Succession

It is appreciated across boards and executive teams that succession planning is critical for growth and sustainability of organizations. Yet it faces un-seen barriers that hinders its effectiveness. The barriers to succession planning have many faces and thus a multifaceted approach is essential to overcome them.

Firstly, the board and top management must realize the truth i.e. commitment drives succession. Top level executives must exhibit visible prioritization towards succession planning and contribute towards it by integrating smaller steps to succession into their daily leadership style behavior. It is essential that the top leadership makes the communication very clear about the significance of succession planning towards the organization’s growth and sustainability and thus align the juniors towards this objective.

Secondly, the top management must cultivate an organizational climate that values succession, development, and mentorship as crucial. This is best done by them when they communicate to people and attempt to allay the unconscious fears down the line about being replaced. Leaders must indulge in an encourage open and free discussions about future career pathing and role opportunities building trust and transparency.

Thirdly, addressing the various unconscious psychodynamic resistance to any change is of utmost importance. This is best achieved by demonstrating the direct beneficial outcomes of the succession planning process and here in, sharing success stories and appreciating exemplars works the best. Furthermore, it is seen that organizations that have seen successful succession planning are those organizations which involve their employees and make them parties to the concept, design, and implementation of the succession planning process. The reasons are obvious; involvement enhances engagement and thus reduces resistance.

Finally, technology and data analytics must be leveraged to make the succession planning process objective. Competency assessment tools, assessment development centers run by experts and not amateurs, rigorous progress tracking and never taking eye of the larger business context usually provides valuable insights to ensure that right roles have the right candidates identified and developed at the right time to make the organization future ready.

To conclude, overcoming the barriers towards succession planning necessitates top leaders to be strategic, inclusive systematic and technology oriented. These orientation principles when adhered to, the top management can ensure that the organization has an effective succession planning process that gives leadership and talent continuity at critical levels for organizational sustainability.

This blog has been written by Satyakki Bhattacharjee, Managing Partner at GrowthSqapes.

Understanding Succession Planning

Posted on October 29, 2024 - 9:43 am by admin

Finding a successor for a critical role has been the focus since generations of organized governance across longitudes of time. Stories of succession have been reaching us since dynastic succession of empires until the recent public debate on who would succeed Rahul Dravid as Head Coach of Indian Cricket team. That someone needs to be brought in when the existing role holder vacates is well recognized by leaders and board of most organizations. Yet, succession planning still appears to be a struggle all around the organized world. Executive succession planning especially, is no different. Though, it has become a buzz word in almost every board, there seems to be mystery around how effective it is or how to go about it effectively.

Understanding Succession Planning

Succession planning is about risk mitigation. The risk here is something that the organization can barely afford to ignore-the talent risk. Executive succession planning may be defined as awareness, recognition and forecasting of talent separation events for critical roles of the organization and implementing preventive mitigating steps to ensure that such talent separation does not interrupt business performance. The principle that companies are ‘going concern’ philosophically sustains the business beyond a foreseeable future. However, to remain on the going continuum philosophically, companies need to be seen and run as organizations that excel operationally.

Benefits of Succession Planning

Organization switch do not have a dedicated process of succession planning seem to be governed more by adhocism than by a professionally planned approach, particularly so if it is in the domine of talent management. Succession planning is about making the organization ready with a future pipeline of successors of all critical roles to avoid any talent gap in the event of a sudden talent separation. This is an established robust process of identifying and developing talent who possess the required skills, knowledge, and attitudinal dimensions to take up the roles whenever the situation demands. Any robust succession planning process is aligned to the organizations strategic business goals. The organization thus continuously focuses upon institutional capacity building by individual capability building. The focus is not only on the headcount of who succeeds whom, but also on what competencies currently exist and what competencies would be required for a role, in future. When such a succession planning process in organizations are regularly assessed in terms of the organization’s longtime strategic goals, the succession planning becomes more effective.

The biggest benefit of succession planning is the organization itself. Succession planning prevents drainage of institutional knowledge facilitates and promotes internal leadership development, resulting in capability building and thus mitigates risks by way of sudden talent lose.

Methods of Succession Planning

Through a scientific and systematic method of assessing the current talent bank and developing potential future leaders on the competency gaps organizations can ensure that they remain on a sustainable path of talent management, making the organization immune to dynamics to ever-uncertain talent environment in business. However, worldly realities are different. At a very broad level, organizations can be categorized as Family Owned -Family Run and Family Owned-Professionally run. For most family -owned businesses key successors at critical roles are family members, typically, the son or a daughter irrespective of the competencies. In such cases, the succession plan follows the unquestionable principle of heirship and descendants’ inheritance. This is mostly seen in financial operations of family businesses. Over 28% of leaders in finance department of companies with revenues more than 10 billion says that their organization do not have formal succession planning process for CFOs (Deloitte report, 2024). Nonetheless, some family-owned businesses chose to be professionally run and they, even for top-level critical roles adopt the process of succession planning.

A comprehensive succession planning process consists of the following steps:

Identifying Key Positions: Determine which roles are crucial for organizational success and continuity.
Assessing Job Requirements: Understand the skills, experience, and attributes needed for each key role.
Identifying Potential Successors: Recognize employees with the skills, knowledge, and potential to fill these key positions. Assessment Centres are a great way to do the same.
Building Competencies: Develop the necessary skills and competencies in potential successors to prepare them for future roles. A robust leadership development program helps in building competencies.
Evaluating Progress: Regularly assess the effectiveness of the succession planning process and make adjustments as needed to ensure readiness and alignment with organizational goals.

Most organizations can mitigate risks by identifying and developing a pipeline of talented leaders and key employees. This will not only keep the business running and keep employees engaged and loyal, it will also drive long-term organizational success even if challenges exist. However, it is noteworthy that, organizations that prioritize succession planning and use professionals’ expertise are better prepared to navigate change. They are also able to adapt to market demands better and thrive in a competitive business world.

With strong frameworks and a history of successful past work, GrowthSqapes is best suited to be your partner in succession planning.

This blog has been written by Satyakki Bhattacharjee, Managing Partner in GrowthSqapes.

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