Sourav Ganguly :A Case Study in Leadership

Twelve Most important Achievements Of Sourav Ganguly As a Captain Of The Indian Cricket Team
1. When he took over the captaincy after the match-fixing expose in 2000, he quickly proved to be a tough, intuitive and uncompromising leader. It was a very tough time both for the Indian cricket and Sourav taking over as captain.. Sourav was appointed as captain when Sachin Tendulkar, shocked everyone by stepping down from his captaincy after Indias disastrous tour Down Under in 1999. As vice captain to Tendulkar, Sourav was the most obvious choice. But he went on to win the series against South Africa 3-2. Not just that, the BCCI imposed a ban on the former captain Mohammed Azharuddin and all-rounder Ajay Jadeja, Then the stalwarts in the team. 2. The Lagaan Comes Back Home was the headlines of a national daily when Sourav led the team to victory in the Nat west trophy in 2002.Chasing a target of 326 seemed impossible but was achieved by Team India in an unprecedented fashion ,and who can forget the shirt waving exercise in the balcony of Lords: The Mecca Of Cricket. This Win Further resolved his ability as a leader. 3. Beating Pakistan in tests in Pakistan in 2004.This was undisputedly one of the most glorifying moments in his captaincy. 4. Again, beating Pakistan in Pakistan in ODIS in 2004. This is a feat which was not achieved by any of his predecessors before him. 5. Leading the team to victory at the historic test match at the Eden Gardens against the mighty Australians to halt Steve Waughs Final Frontier after being made to follow on .The world saw the emergence of VERY VERY SPECIAL LAXMAN to complete the tally of the Famous Five. Not just that , In that

match itself, for the first time in the history of Indian Cricket ,an Indian Bowler in the form of Harbhajan Shingh took a hattrick in a test match. 6. The Historic series against Australia ended in Chennai with another win against Australia . The series ended in Indias Favour with a scoreline of 2-1.This marked the emergence of DADAGIRI. 7. Promotion of young guns in the team was another aspect of Dadas captaincy. The current Indian team has many players who were brought into the team by DADA. Players like Yuvraj, Dhoni, Harbhajan, Irfan, Sehwag and Zaheer were some his key instruments in team building TEAM INDIA. 8. He, till date is the most successful Indian Captain with 21 test wins as a captain and with a success rate of 42%. A feat unparalleled by any other Indian Captain. 9. He led Team India to the Final of the world Cup in 2003 after a gap of 20 years. Although, the team lost, people could see an emergence of a force which can stand up to the mighty Australians. But, If the team had won the match on the 23rd of March 2003, Sourav would have remained the undisputed Champion of Indian Cricket. 10. During the 2003 World Cup, The Indian Team had an enviable track record of 8 successive wins which is quite extraordinary. 11. His natural ability as a leader comes to light, when we notice that his ability to handle seniors and greats like Sachin, Dravid, Laxman, and Kumble without any problems. Leadership comes naturally to him. Under Sourav's leadership, India got back to the winning habit which the team had forgotten in the past. 12. But unlike his predecessors his most important trait as a leader was that he was Impartial, Non-parochial and always pushed his players to perform better.

TEN

MOST

COMMON

TRAITS

OF

SUCCESSFUL MANAGER
1) An Eye For Talent- It should be one of the most valuable aspects of a manager. To recruit the best person for the job. This is also vital for every organization in the business sense as well. Having the right person at the right time at the right place can make all the difference. In Souravs case it was all the same because he always promoted the best guy for the position in the team and not someone based on his religion, caste or state he belongs to. 2) Competency People would always follow someone who is as competent as them or if not, more than them. But it does not mean that one has to be an expert in every field of his/her organization ,but needs to demonstrate ample competence levels .Also in the Indian Team , Dada was always referred to as a bowler with a golden arm. If he could not do anything with the bat he always came up with a vital breakthrough for the team with the ball. This showcases his competence as an all-rounder. 3) Honesty In todays modern competitive world, this has become a major trait of a successful manager in view of scandals. Also, managers need to display their honesty to their counterparts/peers in order to win their appreciation. When Sourav was the captain he was always honest in his appraisals for his players. He preferred Harbhajan over Kumble as he was a better performer in ODIs. However, against Pakistan he preferred Kumble due to his better track record against them .We come to know this from the fact that, the only match in the 2003 World Cup played by Kumble was against Pakistan in the super sixes. 4) Nurturing Talent This trait is vital for every manager and organization. Managers need to groom their people and help them develop skills vital for the success of their organization. When Sourav was the captain, his persistence on Dravid to hone up his skills as a wicketkeeper helped him not just to play an extra batsman/bowler but also won many a matches for India, until the advent of MSD.

5) Meritocracy- This is perhaps the most important trait of a successful manager. Managers need to promote people based on merit and only on merit. Sourav too always did the same . 6) Forward Looking A manager with this trait in his/her attitude can always lead his/her organization or people from a difficult situation to a comfortable position. Sourav in 2003, having lost the world Cup to Australia, came back strongly to defeat Pakistan in Pakistan in both ODIs and Tests in 2004. 7) Awe Inspiring People always love to be inspired and follow an inspirational leader who can take them to greater heights. Sourav too was inspirational either with his performance or with his words on and off the field. 8) Insistence for Continued Performance This is one quality which sets apart managers from others .The objective here is to perform day in and day out. For example in Laxmans case, he came into the one day squad after his historic performance at the Eden Gardens in 2001 but could not cement his place in the team because of his performance. 9) Emotional Intelligence In Todays modern competitive world, this trait has become the deciding factor between a good manager and an excellent manager. An excellent manager will always respond to people in a way they want him/her to. Sourav always did the same and the prime example of this is his waving of the shirt violently from the balcony of Lords in 2002 to Andrew Flintoff. 10) Challenge Organizational protocol Every leader must have the zeal to challenge existing organizational protocol for the good .This not only strengthens his capabilities as a leader but also as a commoner. Furthermore, Sourav to a very large extent handpicked his team defying SET selection procedures often leading to discontent in the board.

SIX IMPORTANT LEADERSHIP TRAITS OF SOURAV GANAULY

1) Indifference To Criticism Gangly always took decisions which he felt right without caring for the critics sake. It is perhaps this indifference to criticism that led to his omission from the team. 2) No personal Insecurity Sourav felt that every young player should play two years of domestic cricket before being selected for international assignments. He also said that every newcomer should be given at least five games to prove himself. Perhaps, he being at a receiving end of a raw deal that threatened to ruin his international cricket career enabled Sourav to understand the insecurities of other newcomers in the team better than his predecessors. Sourav backed the youngsters in the team tremendously and thus, gained the love of his teammates. 3) Visionary- His vision was to win the world cup for India and indeed came very very close to win one after a gap on 20 years. 4) Preference for Match Winners - He relinquished himself, to make the space for the opening slot to accommodate Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. Ganguly will most be remembered though for having forged a winning unit from a bunch of talented boys. 5) Emotional Intelligence He as a captain always believed in replying on the face and responding in an appropriate fashion. Again, the prime example of this is his waving of the shirt violently from the balcony of Lords in 2002 to Andrew Flintoff. 6) Nurturing Talent- He always wanted his players to develop skills for their and the teams betterment. For example, He along with Sachin helped Harbhajan and Zaheer hone up their batting skills which in the future has helped India save many matches from the Jaws of Defeat. Similarly, When Sourav was the captain, his persistence on Dravid hone up his skills as a wicketkeeper helped him not just to play an extra batsman/bowler but also won many a matches for India, until the advent of MSD.

Can Sourav Ganguly teach Managers about leading from the Front? What and failures?
There are primarily 3 basic aspects which we learn from Sourav from his Illustrious Carrier which are stated briefly in the following :1) He was prone to experimentation. He promoted himself to the opening slot and along with Sachin form the best ODIs opening partnership in the history of the game . This showcases his ability to shoulder responsibility. An openers job is a specialists job and he took over the responsibility to display his Flamboyant Panache as a southpaw. 2) He always provided vital breakthroughs with his golden arm. He became the first player in the history of the game to receive 5 consecutive Man of the Match awards in one-dayers ,in a series, in the Sahara 1997 Cup, which s a world record till date . He also won the Man of the Series. 3) Again, due to the lack of form he dropped himself from the opening slot to accommodate Sehwag who was a more attacking player than him, showcases that he was an honest leader and is ready to make corrections for betterment of the team. Future Leaders and entrepreneurs can learn a lot from Sourav .His unprecedented Knack for experimentation, Indifference to criticism, an eye for talent, his Vision and not to mention his extraordinary EQ can make every leader stand up and notice. If someone can accommodate few of the above mentioned qualities as we see in Sourav, they can make a whole world of difference to their respective organizations.

can the

leaders in businesses learn from his successes

Every leader succeeds and fails depending on the situation he or she is working under !!
We do agree with the statement because of the fact that success can always be measured in any field by performance. Also, since success is dependent on the performance it also incorporates the performance of the other individuals in the group/team, simply because Business is also about teamwork. Therefore , the acceptance of the leader by his/her team, the internal and external forces which directly/indirectly affect the business/task, the performance of his colleagues and peers are responsible for the success of the leader.

Do all leaders have a Shelf Life ?

Every leader brings with him/her certain ideas, concepts and theories which are pertinent to the current working scenario. However , the only constant is change. Therefore, what is contemporary now might be obsolete in future .Therefore every leader must change his/her outlook based on the business requirements. However, those leaders who dont incorporate these changes fade away only to be replaced by a more contemporary one . All these facts remind us of the fact that all leaders do have a shelf life.

Three (3) important quotes of Sourav Ganguly relevant to Todays Management Profession
I. II. III. Now or Never - On having reached the finals of the 2003 World Cup reflects his Visionary attitude. I have to make this boy play for India On seeing Dhoni for the first time in a domestic match. This reflects his Eye for talent. I never try to make right Decision, but I make a decision and make work right.- On winning a test match. This reflects his attitude of Indifference to criticism.