Quality # 10: As a Manager & Leader
Ask any modern CEO about the importance of management, leadership and communication to make men do things they did not wish to do initially. This is the essence of Management – the art of getting things done through people, efficiently and effectively. When it comes to that Lord Krishna comes out as one of the greatest Manager, the greatest planner and crisis Manager of all times.
He is a master strategist and tactful leader who adopts different leadership styles according to situation and people he has to deal with. But above all the manner in which he manages to brainwash Arjun and get him to do the job expected of him – is exemplanary. What is equally noteworthy is that unlike many CEOs today – he is not hands on – in the sense does not pick up weapons himself but instead makes his team perform their respective task. Isn’t this what management is not to do everything yourself but to get others to achieve their goals.
Controlling an army of 1.53 million soldiers and warriors of the Pandava Army to fight and win against a bigger army was not an easy task. But Lord Krishna’s Command and Control strategy was based on delegation of responsibility – under a unified command. The 1.53 million soldiers were divided in seven divisions each led by a Commander. They were controlled by a Supreme Commander who himself was guided by the Pandavas and Krishna. According to Management Guru Henry Fayol no team or organization can achieve desired results without appropriate allocation of role and team spirit. This is exactly what Lord Krishna’s role as a coordinators was to determine what Yudhishtir would do, where Arjun would be and what exactly Bhim would do at what stage of the battle.
Being God Lord Krishna could have accomplished everything himself singlehandedly and taken all the credit. But probably that’s what leadership all about not to hog the limelight yourself but to make everything a participatory task. A leader is not the one who walks, but the one who leads walking ahead of others.
(Concluded)