HOW does one react to a leader who affectionately hugs an employeeon the shop floor and doubles the latter's happiness by expressing appreciation for a small suggestion made by him? Or better still, one who cares to ask an employee who is back at work after an operation, how he felt, promising him all help in getting the maximum medical re-imbursement? It just happens that this leader is the Chief Executive Officer of the strategic business unit of a manufacturing organisation. On at least two occasions so far, this author has been witness to this kind of personalised, influential leadership, practised to perfection by CEOs. This brand of CEOs can be safely called — to borrow the title of a Hindi movie or quote from Mr P. Chidambaram's last year's budget speech - Main Hoon Na (meaning, "I am here, why do you worry") CEOs.

Very rich in emotional intelligence, such leaders offer hope, infuse enthusiasm and exhibit dynamism of a very tall order. And, most importantly, they practise what they preach. Their enthusiasm always has a positive effect on employees. If one were to look for famous examples of this brand of CEOs, one would have to peep into history to find out what Mr V. Krishnamoorthy did to employees in BHEL, SAIL and Maruti Udyog; Mr V. Kurien of Amul fame is also widely credited with infusing more or less the same style of leadership.

What makes these CEOs so special is that they focus on people; there is a continuous quest to reach out to the employee and his/her family. They do reprimand shoddy or poor quality work, but this is strictly issue-based. The CEO forgets it the moment corrective action is taken. If any mistake happens by sheer oversight, they openly and profusely apologise for their wrong judgment. They instantly reward merit and recognise the potential of people.

However, their experience in human relations does not make them visionaries. But they have the ability to see the big picture in everything they manage. Their brilliant quality of tapping and nurturing human talent builds credibility.

"Main Hoon Na" CEOs are wonderful people managers. Nevertheless, they do at times become more emotional than others. However, such reactions are temporary, and often help to bring out a child-like curiosity that leads to out-of-the-box thinking.

They believe in succession planning and invest a lot of time and effort to put it to work. Since their influence on the senior management team is extremely positive, the employees of the organisation internalise and exhibit all the good qualities of such CEOs. And the organisation stands to gain in the bargain.

A.B. Sivakumar

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu Business Line