In his globally acclaimed book “Quest for Exceptional Leadership: Mirage to Reality”, Ravi Chaudry deplores the leadership vacuum that pervades the world but also invites us to re-discover the leadership traits that lie dormant within.

Ravi, a former CEO of the Tata Group, is now a strategy consultant to corporations, governments and civil society, a mentor to CEOs and corporate boards, an author, a public intellectual, and a Fellow of the World Business Academy (a network of global thought leaders that represent some of the best and brightest men and women shaping today’s landscape).

In his globally acclaimed book “Quest for Exceptional Leadership: Mirage to Reality”, he deplores the leadership vacuum that pervades the world, but also invites us to re-discover the leadership traits that lie dormant within. In the complex post-COVID world, these will be more relevant and needed than ever.

KEY TAKE-AWAYS

  • The current environment is more than volatile: it is dangerous. But historically, major calamities have the potential to result in the emergence of a better world through improved collaboration and focussed efforts.
  • However, this requires both patience and becoming fully aware of the new reality, and a preparedness to face it.
  • Learning is not enough what is needed is the capacity to change – perhaps one of the biggest leadership challenges of today.
  • To change fundamentally requires a readiness to set aside (even forget) past practices and ways of doing things – the more successful and powerful an individual (inherent characteristics of leaders) the more difficult it is for them to do this.
  • It is now incumbent on leaders to adopt a “720°” vision for the future – judging their decisions (business or political) not only from their own point of view but from the perspective of all those who stand to be impacted by them.
  • A more inclusive perspective is conducive to a style of leadership characterized by greater compassion and transparency, both of which favour a collaborative approach.
  • If the 20 000 leaders of the 20 000 biggest companies of the world decide to work with transparency, this would put an end to lobbying.