Book Review

What the CEO really wants from you

Leadership and Change Management
Prof. N.M. Agarwal



Team Members:
Niharika Mittal (1311179)
Y Visweswara Reddy (1311208)
Aditya Moses (1321020)





What the CEO really wants from you.
Why this book?
In the corporate literature world there are numerous books for leaders. These books are mainly focused
on the fundamentals of leadership and also on the characteristics of a leader. A majority of books in
popular management also talk about the skills required to be a good leader. This book takes an alternate
perspective and talks about what a young professional needs to inculcate to become a leader in the
future. It gives a fresh perspective for professionals such as us who are at the cusp of corporate life and
have aspirations for becoming leaders in the future. The book provides very simple yet effective ideas to
first become a good subordinate for the CEO which would lead to becoming a great leader in the future.
The book is based in an Indian context which makes it more easily comprehensible also the author has
used multiple case studies and example to illustrate the advice. The book has been written by R.
Gopalkrishnan, he is one of the directors of Tata Sons and has rich industry experience. He is also a
speaker on leadership and management and the book is a culmination of his experience in the
professional workspace.
In this competitive world of management we all want to become leaders as soon as we step out of
college but that is not always possible. Furthermore, being a leader means that the organization has
confidence and trust in our abilities to lead the organization. We have aspirations and to fulfill these
aspirations the book provides a feasible of growing in our career. It also elucidates that only IQ and EQ
are not sufficient to be successful. Managers also need practical knowledge to become successful.
The flow of thoughts
The central premise of the book is that any leader does not become a leader overnight. To become a
good leader one needs to initially be a good resource for the CEO and project the qualities that are
searched for in a good leader. The book is different in this sense since it makes leadership to be a
journey rather than a position that one lands on.
The author has initially discussed the journey that any professional needs to take on the path to
leadership. He has discussed the issues about problems that surface and what needs to be done in order
to solve them. This section sets the ground rules for the authors 4 A framework. This framework gives
the attributes that a leader needs to have in order to grow and become a successful leader. For this
review initially the core ideas of the book will be presented in a concise manner. This will be followed by
a discussion on the ideas that have been presented in the book and finally some of the advice that the
author has given through the book will be presented.
The core ideas
The journey from the known to the unknown
The author calls for an adaptive approach by a manager all through his or her career. He describes it in
several ways as one progress from an executive to a middle manager and on to senior leadership
positions. One dimension is the increasing complexity of problems and the unknown aspect of solutions,
as one navigates through ones career. In our early career we are confronted with known problems and
known solutions. In the early part of the career we are required to apply our knowledge to solve these
known problems. As we move to the next phase of our career we are faced with either unknown
problems or unknown solutions. In this phase we known one of the aspects only and we need to
increase our circle of influence to solve the problems that we face. In the last phase of our career we are
faced with unknown problems and unknown solutions the complexity in this phase is the highest and we
need to expand our circle of influence further to find solutions.
The other aspect is the circles of influence one has to adapt to .In the initial phases of ones career, the
problem and solution sets are relatively simple and the circle of influence is largely within ones own
team. Further down ones career, the problem and solution set gets more complex and the circle of
influence now widens to peers and colleagues in other departments. At the senior management levels
the degree of ambiguity and uncertainty is high and the circle of influence now goes beyond the
organization to include the government, civil rights groups, law enforcement agencies etc. A manager
needs to recognize these differing needs as he or she progresses in his or her career and learn to adapt
to the requirements.
The analogy used by the author is that of sailing. As we start sailing the water is calm and we know how
to navigate as we go further into the sea the water gets rough and we need to muster all possible
resources and skills to navigate these rough seas. The author has made a very valid observation in this
case the early phases of our career are smooth in which we should focus on delivering results and
building trust and networks in our organization. As we grow in our career we come face to face with
problems that we are not aware off and further we do not know how to tackle them in this case we
need to gather the skills and also collaborate. This is the first sign of leadership that we show in the
organization. Along this growth trajectory the author states that we need to showcase different
attributes. These attributes are the essentials required to grow to leadership positions and be successful
in these positions.
The Four As
The author has used four As to describe the competency set and behaviors required of a successful
manager. These As are Accomplishment, Affability, Advocacy and Authenticity. Briefly here is what he
has to say of the four As
Accomplishment
While this seems simple enough most managers make the mistake of thinking that all the doing is at
the executive levels and their role is to be the thinkers. Results are required to demonstrate
competence and skill. A good leader is able to show that he or she is able to deliver results to all
problems. Accomplishing set goals and objectives elevates a person in the eyes of the top management
and instills a confidence that this person can achieve what has been set out for him or her. This will lead
to bigger responsibilities and growth.
Coordinating and enabling execution is something that managers often miss out on. Also getting results
needs influencing other interdependent departments which requires skills that a manager must have.
Coordinating also implies that a manager is able to increase his or her circle of influence. This is a
requirement as we move along our career path. Getting results when complexity increases helps people
establish themselves as leaders in the organization. The first step in becoming a leader is to instill
commitment in the followers and trust in the top management this can be achieved only through
accomplishing results.
Affability
Some of the synonyms of affability is warmth, friendliness, and good nature. Managers need to
convince, cajole, coerce and even crucify people in the course of striving for results. It is a skill that
needs to be learned and practiced to perfection. The affable manager knows how to disagree without
being disagreeable; how to separate rival views from his own feelings or opinions about the rival and
how to listen carefully with an open mind and yet be focused and single minded. The two attributes of
accomplishment and affability are not mutually exclusive neither are they sufficient.
Accomplishment requires that a leader is able to get results from the team. In this case being affable will
allow for trust to be built in the leader-follower relationship. An open and transparent culture will allow
for more efficient working; furthermore, being affable will allow a leader to connect with each person in
the team and motivate them using the appropriate tools. It is also important that rival views are read
and given merit when due. It is often seen that rival views are not considered even if they have merit
and often personal views take precedence. Being affable does not mean agreeing to every view and
opinion but it does imply that even if there is disagreement it is done with tact. Saying no while being
sensitive and not de-motivating is an attribute that a good leader needs to cultivate.
Advocacy
In the words of the author In the early stages of ones career, you are the recipient of instructions and
the effects of power. You accept them by adapting. You realize that the boss expects you to exercise
your leadership on the people who report to you and make sure that things get done. In the middle
management phase, you find the need to influence people without their directly reporting to you. In the
senior and leadership roles, you may exercise no control over people you need to influence. This is the
manner in which your skills of advocacy develop.
Advocacy is being able to influence others about your ideas and opinions. It is very important that these
views are advocate which implies that you hear the other side as well. Many times young leaders try to
force their views which can easily lead to conflicts. The dynamics of any relationship at work is
dependent on the intensity of conflict to some degree conflict is good but unhealthy levels of conflict
will lead to the relationship being destroyed. It is also important that we advocate views that we are
convinced about and consider to be appropriate. Advocating passionately views of team members
without showing accomplishment give a feeling of unionism. A good leader is able to show
accomplishment and then advocate changes this makes the idea easier to accept since the leader has
already shown results.
Authenticity
Once again in the words of the author It is the perception of who you are and what you stand for that
produces followership. Followership is used here not in a hierarchical sense but in an egalitarian sense.
It is the voluntary desire or inclination among followers to follow a person, emotionally and physically.
In order to gather a followership it is important to be authentic in actions and words. What it implies is
you should not promise something that you cannot deliver. It also means that we should back up what
we ideate with actions.
It is also necessary that all interactions with people lower down and higher up are authentic. This will
instill a sense of trust and will allow the circle of influence to grow. A good leader needs to collaborate
with multiple functions, departments, organizations, etc a leader who is perceived to be authentic will
find cooperation easier. In order to accomplish the objectives that have been set it is important that the
followers are also motivated to accomplish the set goal and working for a authentic leader will generate
this feeling.
Stringing the ideas
The 4 attributes that have discussed namely accomplishment, affability, advocacy and authenticity are
not mutually exclusive. Further, it can be argued that the four attributes cannot stand alone and need to
be used simultaneously at different phases in the career. In the initial stage of the career when both the
problems and solutions are known accomplishment is the most essential attribute. Accomplishing the
goals and objectives will allow for a sense of trust and confidence to be imbibed and this will pave the
way for more responsibility to be given. As we move to the next phase of the career wherein the
complexity increases and the increased complexity leads to collaborating with others in order to
accomplish the goals that have been set. In this phase along with accomplishment being affable is
required. Being affable will allow the leader to grow the circle of influence and extract support from
others. As we move further in our career the complexity increases further and in this case we also need
to inculcate the attribute of advocacy. As we have to deal with organizations and groups that may be
outside our organizational boundaries it becomes important that we are able to advocate ideas and
opinions. During all the phases in the career it is important that we are authentic in our interactions,
words and actions. Without being authentic a leader will not be perceived as trust-worthy and will not
be able to extract performance from his or her followers. It is important to note that during all the
phases adaption is important but the adaption process needs to be seen as a sequential increase in
attributes.
The framework provided in the book is very practical in nature. However, the issue of learning has not
been discussed in detail. We believe that different competencies and knowledge will be required at each
phase and this would imply that to be a successful leader a person needs to upgrade on a regular basis.
Furthermore, the book also fails to address the preconceptions that a person may have. These
preconceptions will have a bearing on the decision making process. Also they will have a bearing on the
way a person will deal with others. On the other hand, the ideas that have been purposed by the author
are very important for a leader and the book provides good advice on what a good leader needs to do.
Learning from the book
Keep physically fit because it is linked to emotional fitness
The author has stressed the importance of being physically and mentally fit. It an important lesson
because to be an effective leader one needs to first lead oneself. Staying fit is a way of projecting ones
believe in self.
Accept uncertainty and ambiguity as natural to the workplace
Complexity is a part of life. There are times when solutions are not known. There may be cases when
identification of the problem is difficult. In this case being determined and working to remove the
ambiguity is a characteristic of a good leader.
Confront reality
A good leader should be able to face problems. A good leader must be able to take responsibility and
should be accountable for the actions taken. When the results are good the leader needs to share credit
where due.
You are paid to solve problems
Organizations want leaders who solve problems and take the organization to the next frontier. Thinking
about solutions is not what an organization needs. The implementation of solutions is often ignored by
people who want to be leaders. But a good leader is able to deliver results this is what motivates teams
and always the organization to have confidence in an individual.
Learn from your and others mistakes
We all make mistakes but what is important that the same mistakes are not repeated and the mistakes
that have been made are used as learning opportunities to grow intellectually.
Develop the capacity to bounce back after near-death
Resilience is a virtue for a leader. When the ship is surrounded by fog and darkness it is the leaders
responsibility to steer the ship in the right direction. Decisions are not always simple and sometimes
hard choices need to be made. A good leader is able to do the easy things but more importantly a good
leader is able to take the tough decisions and steer the organizations towards greener pastures.
Enjoy what you do and do what you enjoy
Passion is required to accomplish goals. A passionate leader is able to share his or her vision of the
future with his or her followers this vision is what will drive people to accomplish goals. Without a
shared vision the followers will not be motivated and more importantly they will lose faith in the leader.
Conclusion
The book is a great insight into what the CEO really looks for in young professionals to become future
leaders. The 4 A framework that has been proposed should be all those who want to be leaders in the
future. The framework develops oneself and also can be utilized to motivate others. The advice that the
author has given with respect to career growth is one that will resonate with a lot of people in the
professional workspace. We would recommend the book to all those who aspire to be leaders in the
future.