Are you a Good Manager?

Preamble
My earlier submission on how to take off on a gradient evoked some interesting responses, from friends and ex-colleagues to whom I’d sent its URL from the e-HT. Here’s another one such set of exchanges…

Response #1
SKG, Driving and CEO’s need not at all be compatible! The only driving the CEO’s need to do is to drive their employees round the bend!! I know many CEO’s who have two drivers per car - one from 12 noon to 12 midnight and the other from 12 midnight to 12 noon. There is no knowing when the CEO has to rush out somewhere, e.g. to the airport to catch a plane to New York at two hours’ notice. His driving ability will not do him a fat lot of good under such circumstances - he is probably better off learning flying!! – Jeh.

My reaction
Jeh - thanks for the reaction. I guess it just depends on the context of a country one is talking about. Lemme elaborate…

Some years ago, mid-’80s to be precise, I took upon myself the task of teaching my 2-teenage daughters as to how to drive correctly, for what they’d learn off a local driving school with a permanent driving licence to boot was any thing but appalling.

In the process, I ended up writing a book of sorts, titled ‘Around the World in 80-days without a Flat Tyre’ (free e-copies of its draft available on request). The whole idea was to teach the girls how to take the bull by the horns, without getting hurt or hurting others in the process. They were made to read the proof of it independently, ostensibly to correct howlers but with an ultimate intention of getting some funda’s of a car into their heads.

Little wonder then, that the so called ‘book’ remains in a draft form till date, tho’ both manage to drive reasonably well 20+ years later/today - with some crashes in their respective driving cv’s. Its opening line of the chapter on ‘driving correctly’ goes like this…

“Prof. Peter Drucker is reported to have once remarked to a distinguished gathering of Business Managers from all over the world, that give me a ride in your car with yourself at the wheel and I will tell you what kind of a Manager you are”.

This statement to me conveys a lot of meaning. As on closer introspection, the way you drive and maintain your car, no matter whether provided by the employers or funded out of your own resources, speaks volumes of your attitude towards life in general and your managerial skills in particular. After all, a car responds to your commands, your road side manners and their consequences, whether pleasurable or otherwise, are entirely of your own making.

How well you maintain it to give you a reliable and uninterrupted service also indicates how well you run your business, by way of preventive measures to forestall unpleasant situations. Before one can effectively maintain and satisfactorily drive a car without inconveniencing oneself and others around him, it is but natural that one understands how exactly a car works - like trying to understand the intricacies of your business which you are expected to steer to satisfaction.

So, where does that leave us Jeh?! Money or corporate perks may be able to get you double shift drivers but not much above the ground in dear Peter’s esteem!

Counter reaction
Good point SKG, noted. Jeh.

Response #2
Bahut sahi darshaya hai aapne. In fact in Mumbai when I gave my driving test [having driven our Ambi exactly for 4 days prior to the test] the guy asked me to take off on a slope after a stop and had to do the same stuff without a handbrake as the Ambi’s hardly had any…. to boot ours had a slipping clutch too but I managed quite well. The guy finally asked me how long I had been driving as my temp license was only 3-mths old. He would not believe that it was only a week since I had started! In hindsight, I should not have mentioned the 1-week bit. But still 99% of the guys cannot take off smoothly on a slope even if they use the HB, and most times they are in the wrong gear as well – Cyrus.M.

My reaction
As far as driving goes Cyrus, it’s well said that either you have it in you or you don’t. I’ve seen highly successful Co. Directors/CEO’s making a complete Ass of themselves under such conditions :-0)

Counter reaction
With due respect to all the CEO’s SKG, I still stand by Prof. Drucker’s logic. I have applied it myself on some of my colleagues without letting them know of my intent and every time it comes up trumps. Cheers Cyrus.