Sonia Gandhi is an Italian-born Indian politician and the President of the Indian National Congress, one of the major

political parties of India. She is the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi.

Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi is an Indian-born American business executive. She is the current Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo, the second largest food & beverage business in the world (by net revenue).

It says something for Sonia Gandhi's tenacity and will power that she has reached the top in a strange country. A country that does not speak her language, is a world apart from her culture, and has entirely different social values and work ethics.
She has become the longest serving Congress party member (over 10 years). When her husband died on that fateful day on 21st may, 1991 leaving her shattered, she had two kids from whom she could hardly seek solace. It was rather the other way round. That she stood the test of times and came out with flying colors is no small feat. Here is what we gather about her leadership qualities from her amazing ability to lead the ruling party.

It has to be conceded that the Congress culture saw in her a stop-gap arrangement ready-made leader. It came to pass soon that she was here to stay and not about to go away, leaving the field open for others waiting in the wing. Undoubtedly, there were distracting elements within and outside the Congress. The opposition cried hoarse about dynastic policy which, had true angst and desperation written all over. In the Congress itself, voices were heard to mutter the impracticality of having a foreign citizen as the head of the party.

Overcoming these real obstacles would not have been easy, were it not for the state of despair the party was in at the time. The party did not have a central leader to look up to. The morale of the party workers was down in the dumps. A much needed rejuvenation was instantly provided by Sonia Gandhi. Being elected as an MP was easy and she became the opposition leader.

In 2004, the BJP wrongly believed its own slogan of "India shining" to be true and projected India almost as if it was a prosperous country. Sonia Gandhi, on the other hand, had her feet firmly on the ground. She electioneered throughout the country extensively, identifying herself with aam aadmi.

When she was offered the post of prime minister on the platter, she weighed the pros and cons and decided against accepting it, choosing instead to lead the party. The top economist Manmohan Singh was made the PM. An important laws enacted on her initiative was the national Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme which provided succor for the poor of the country. Work for 100 days to the rural poor was guaranteed. Right to Information Act became a law by her insistence. Any citizen could get any information concerning the activities of the government by requesting for it.

This Sonia Gandhi, a novice in 1991 is a seasoned politician providing a good leadership and hope for her party.

I do not want to sound like a male chauvinist pig but the reality is that women are just not given enough space to move about in the corporate world, in fact not even elbow room. So, in this male dominated world, for a woman to find her own space and leave behind all men and to reach the very top requires a very high degree of tenacity. Which our Indra has in ample measures. And, an Indian to boot!

The posts she holds besides being the Chairperson and the CEO of Pepsico, a very American institution read like something out a story book. She holds a membership in the Foundation board of the World Economic forum. International Rescue Committee also her name in its roll. The Board of Trustees of Eisenhower fellowships is an organization where she is a member. What is noteworthy is that she is on the board of Lincoln Center for the Performing arts. That in deed shows her caliber in being not just a person steeped in corporate culture but as someone who is equally good at life's good things like arts.

Wall street journal and the Forbes magazine have both named her as one of the most powerful women in business in the world. Time magazine went one step ahead and put her in the top place as number one influential woman in the world. Hard figures reveal that her leadership has caused Pepsico to achieve double the sales after she took over in 2000.

Indra believes in competence. Unless you are an expert in your chosen field, you will get nowhere. You will be known only if you become an expert. In anything, take a decision weighing everything for and against it. Once you have decided, never waver from it. You should send out the message that you are courageous and confident enough to say what is believed to be right by you.

The way you communicate carries a lot of weight. In fact, your communication skills will be in the forefront of your leadership qualities. Indra is all for surrounding herself with mentors. She believes in listening to the mentors' advice and suggestions and incorporate the goods points in what she does. She is not the one to veer away even a little from her moral compass. You must have strength to hold to what you know to be morally right, no matter what.

It is not enough to plan development assignments and make arrangements to implement them. Strategic building of skills and talent is necessary. An enterprising mindset is called for in this. Succession has to be taken into account at every stage. The experience as necessitated by the particular post needs to be in place. The plan for succession has to include the process as to how it should be done. Once the experience and skill are identified, the people most suitable for the assignment are to be entrusted with the task.

She names five skills that she believes are the hallmarks of a good leaders: Competence. You must be an expert in your function or area of expertise. You will become known for that. Take a Stand. You must be known for your courage and confidence to act and say what you believe is right. Communication Skills. Communication skills are critical. You can never over-invest in them. Coaching. Surround yourself with good mentors. Listen. Learn. Your mentor is a major force. Your Moral Compass. Have the strength and courage to do whats morally right, not whats expedient. Your moral compass must be your true north.

On building leaders she says: We are building talent with an enterprise mind set. We strategically build sills for key talent through carefully planned developmental assignments.
Succession planning is also critical. Our succession planning process is designed to identify the kinds of experiences our leaders need. Once identified, we put people in assignments that enable them to build those skill sets.

Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. Peter F. Drucker A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. John C Maxwell I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles but today it means getting along with people Indira Gandhi