Breaking the leadership ceiling: A coaching case study of a leader shifting from aggressive (functional) to humble (organizational) leadership by Pradip Shroff
“This leader from sales and marketing will not succeed as Group President of manufacturing”, Sinha said. Sinha was giving me his views, on Rahul’s leadership, as part of a 360-feedback interview. Rahul worked in the sales function of a giant chemical company for 25 years. Rahul was identified as a potential leader of the business unit. In this coaching case, I will share how an aggressive global head of sales transformed to become the humble head of manufacturing unit. All names have been changed to protect their identity.
Background of the coaching case
Rahul joined the chemical company 25 years ago after his graduation in engineering. The Indian company has plants in India and in several international locations. Company’s products are used as raw material by many industries around the world. Rahul was a top performer of the company. He worked as the Global head of sales for a number of years. Top leaders of the company saw Rahul as a high potential leader. They appointed Rahul as the Head of their oldest and largest manufacturing unit in rural India. This was part of his leadership development opportunities. The global head of operations (Srikant) and CHRO (Vishal) both knew me from my past assignments with them.
Srikant called me in for a meeting to discuss their requirements. Rahul and Vishal also joined the meeting at their manufacturing unit (GEM), which is spread on a 600-acre land. GEM has several plants and manufacturing plants of other SBUs: with its complex operations, the unit is also located in a backward area and is a major employer for the local people. The Unit head is the number one position at the location. Prior to our meeting Rahul was appointed as the unit head and Group President of the location a month earlier. His responsibility is to provide all of GEM with shared services from the common resources. Rahul is also responsible in managing the external stake holders like workmen union leaders, local community leaders, local and state level government officials and the regional politicians.
After setting out the background, they further explained about the cultural difference in Sales and Manufacturing functions. This location has its own unique culture. It is significantly different from a typically aggressive culture within a sales organization. As a head of Global Sales, your job is to meet people at the very top. You are dealing with highly qualified, highly competent people. It is a lot easier to deal with them intelligently. Manufacturing is a different world, where you have to slow down, be tactful and soft while dealing with people. His predecessor was from operations and had a good understanding of technology and people. They mentioned that the biggest challenge for Rahul is to embrace the culture of GEM.
We discussed my commercial terms and agreed on 8 coaching sessions, one interview based 360 in the beginning and one validation feedback before closing. We also agreed for one mid-term review and one final review with Srikant and Vishal as sponsors.
The Coaching journey
In the first session, Rahul expressed that he was feeling very stressed. “I had been in touch with the plant but never recognized the vastness of the new job. My predecessor was basically an operations man, who grew from plant supervisor to become the unit head. Everybody is looking at me with a suspicious eye”. The under current was ‘yeh sales wala eether nahi jamega’ (This salesperson will not be effective here). Rahul also mentioned that he could not sleep for the first three nights.
To connect and build rapport with him, I shared my business journey with him. I had moved from an Industrial business to a Medical business. I have gone through a similar situation and have heard similar comments. My predecessor had put in 35 years in the Medical business. He was well respected within and outside of the company. I offered to Rahul, “I will share with you how I successfully achieved higher sales and profit growth compared to my predecessor”. This connected with him, as he now felt very comfortable that his coach has gone through a similar experience and had been successful.
He was also more open and ready to begin exploring his self-awareness. I told Rahul that, I have learnt by reading research on positive psychology and from my own experience that it is very easy to manage any change when we use our strengths. We will begin by identifying his strengths from three different vantage points:
Recalling and discussing his success stories in his business life following the R R R formula. a) Reflect and Review to help us understand the factors that helped in his success.
b) Refresh to help us decide how he will continue to use them in the future to even get better results.Revealing his strengths using a simple psychometric test
Conducting an interview based 360 feedback with his peers, subordinates and bosses and I would ask them for their perspectives about Rahul’s strengths.
After providing a framework for our ongoing coaching engagement, we then discussed Rahul’s dreams and aspirations for GEM. GEM is the oldest among all other units of the company. Rahul summarized “I want to bring back the past glory of GEM. I want GEM to provide Globally best quality at a cost lower than the best without compromising on safety.”
At the end of our first session together, we agreed on our homework.
I handed over a journal to Rahul and asked him to write his learnings and as his homework, to recall success stories from his past career.
I also asked Rahul to take the VIA 24 Character strength (https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/) and down load the free report.
I interviewed his subordinates from sales, subordinates from manufacturing, unit heads of other manufacturing locations and his immediate boss Srikant and compiled my findings. This further helped me understand his leadership style and his challenges in working with the new culture drawing from his Sales subordinates who knew him for a long time and the expectations of his new subordinates. In interviews with his fellow manufacturing unit heads, I decided to add a further question to my usual questions (See footnote for my typical questions). I asked them to give me their advice for Rahul “How to be successful in running this unit?”
At our second session, we reviewed our homework and started by discussing some more of his past success stories. We then discussed his VIA 24 Character strength report. Rahul was very well aware of his strengths and weaknesses. He is very good in execution, able to quickly measure the impact of an issue in money terms, focused on results, very good in follow up, can quickly grasp a new subject, and a good problem solver. However, all these strengths also result in him being in an attacking mode all the time. He is impatient. He gets angry whenever he sees an under performance and he tends to humiliate such people in front of others. With this now out in the open, I then presented him with the gift of truth (360 feedback report). The Gift of Truth had valuable suggestions received from his peers.
Key suggestions highlighted in the Gift of Truth reports were:
a) Be a role model leader. Correct rough edges and everything will be OK
b) Know and understand people and plant operations
c) Change from functional focus to organization focus
d) Manage external stake holders
It was also clear to me that Rahul has been a good manger and he will have to become a good leader to lead the manufacturing. With this additional information, and support, we decided that his homework was:
Observe people doing the right thing and give them warm appreciation. Where possible make appreciation in public. Express gratitude when someone helps you.
Whenever you notice someone not performing to your expectations, pause and avoid immediate reaction. Say I want to understand your difficulties, let us meet in my office.
Every day in the evening reflect on day’s interactions with the people. Note down when you felt happy and when you felt unhappy. Recall the dialogue and think what could have been a better way to deal with that situation.
Review Via 24 and Gift of truth and write down three most important behaviors that when changed will make the biggest impact to your journey to become a leader that people will love.
In the third session, Rahul reported that he has increased giving appreciation. He reflected on the difference it made when he shared more of their successes and good work. He mentioned, “I have started looking at the positive contribution of people and that this has reduced my finding mistakes made by people.” He could see happiness on the face of the person and others who were present when he gave appreciation. Observing the positive impacts from giving appreciation to others, he identified that he would like to work on:
a) Managing stress due to sudden /un anticipated surprise development somewhere in the plant.
b) Managing emotional reaction (anger) in case of stressful situation.
We once again reviewed Gift of Truth report and agreed on following broad areas to work on:
o Manage stress causing situations
o Manage emotional response
o Build warm relationship with people
o Develop a long-term vision and plan to make it
o Journal actions taken
o Self-assessment by Reflect Review and Refresh
o Seek periodic feedback from others
I asked him to define stress as he learnt in engineering. He promptly said, “Stress = Force/ Area”. I then asked him, “What can you do to minimize your stress?” After pondering on the question, he soon realized that his stress will reduce if he increased the area. “I can reduce the load if I can distribute/ diffuse by involving the team in resolving”. This was a big Aha moment for him!
He continued, “I can now convert my lack of knowledge as an opportunity. I will tell people that since I am new in this location, I will learn from you. You can analyze the problem better than me. You recommend a solution to your problem and explain the logic for your selection. I will add my suggestions, where I can, or else we will go by what you recommend.”
We then made his action plan:
Empower the heads of each department to directly report to Rahul:
a. Discuss with the leaders a plan to empower them and how they should inform Rahul on the decisions they plan to take,
b. Every weekly meeting can start with discussing the “Right way of information sharing” appreciating the persons who have done it.
c. Give appropriate feedback to individuals. Follow the golden rule – Appreciate in public, a critic in private.Work with HR and develop a plan for training, reward, and recognition for all employees.
Work out a plan to share, his own knowledge on applications and importance of the products to customers, to shop supervisors.
Visit shop floors and ask the shop supervisors to teach him the manufacturing process of that shop. He will also ask them their plans to improve, safety, quality and reduce cost.
Form a team make a plan to bring back the pride of working at GEM
Continue writing Happy stories and appreciations given.
By our 4th session, Rahul talked about his recent happy stories. His senior leaders were very happy that he decided to trust them and supported their decisions. This not only reduced his own stress, it also created time for himself. He used this time to conduct training programmes on applications of their product. This increased respect for him and he established a personal connect with junior level team. The most exciting was Rahul visiting the shop floor to learn from the shop supervisors. Rahul’s visit resulted in improved housekeeping and cleanliness in that area. Supervisors refreshed their knowledge. Supervisors focused on safety, quality and cost reduction ideas.
After our fourth session, we had a midcourse review with Srikant and Vishal. Srikant had recently visited GEM. He was extremely happy to see motivated leadership team. He also mentioned a significant improvement in housekeeping throughout GEM. He suggested that Rahul can invite major customers to visit GEM and Rahul can ask senior leaders from manufacturing and quality assurance to visit customers. Vishal was also happy about training initiatives started by Rahul.
Rahul continued worked on his action plan and month after month he covered all the shops he needed to learn from and teach too. He implemented suggestions made by his boss Srikant. And in our subsequent sessions Rahul also developed his plan to connect with local community leaders.
Conclusion and Results.
I did a validation study after the 7th session. I spoke to several of his peers and subordinates. My open question was “Tell me what ‘Delta’ changes you have observed, in the last 7 months, in Rahul’s leadership style”. The validation study report was presented to Rahul along with Srikant and Vishal in the last session. Highlights from the study are:
Rahul has got a good grip of technical aspect and external stakeholder in a relatively short time
Rahul has established a good command over his people.
Rahul has now got a good grip of GEM.
There is clearly a big and visible change.
Everyone works as a team.
He has moved very fast
Overall he is leading GEM with great humility.
Srikant and Vishal also commented on how they saw a transformational change in Rahul’s leadership style, and how coaching had exceeded all their expectations.
My own reflection and learning:
I presented myself as a trusted and experienced friend. Once I shared my personal experience of transition from Industrial business to medical business, Rahul was very comfortable.
Rahul was very open to experimenting with ideas developed during sessions. And I was always available to him as sounding board. He could share any of his experiences as he implemented action plan. I was like a catalyst. I gave him a comparable story that then ignited a chain of thoughts in his mind to consider.
Rahul’s decision to go to each shop and learn from shop supervisors was pivotal in this coaching programme. This showed his willingness to be humble and accept his lack of knowledge. His personal visit resulted in increased enthusiasm to show case achievements and pride.
Connect with Pradip Shroff on Linkedin
Pradip is a certified CEO Coach based in Mumbai, India. In last 9 years as CEO Coach, He has completed 55 Senior level Executive coaching assignments. He has done 4 Leadership Team coaching Programs. He has guided 30 Coach Interns of PG program in Executive coaching.
Pradip Shroff brings over 40 years of business experience, with 25 years at CEO level. He brings a strong business acumen and strategic thinking. He is very analytical and innovative in developing solutions. Pradip uses his corporate experience in his coaching assignment. He is a Case author in CFI's book "Are you ready for the corner office”.
Foot note: These are my typical questions for conversation.
What do you like most about XXXXX
What are his/her outstanding qualities you admire most?Is there anything you dis like about him?
What in your opinion are his strength? Why do you believe so? Examples.
What in your opinion is his weakness? Examples?
What is one behavior that he should stop doing? In the context of his/her personal/professional development & growth what should he pay attention to?
What is one thing that he is not doing and will gain a lot by starting? What is the ONE thing he/she should change immediately?
When you hear XXXXX name what are the top of mind words that come to your mind, spontaneously?
