Leadership style for Operational Excellence: Case study of HAL

Avionics Division, Hyderabad

Diwakar Sharma

Chief Manager (Planning)

Avionics Division, Hyderabad

1. Abstract
Purpose:
The purpose of this paper is to attribute the leadership style leading to
Operational Excellence and Superior performance of Avionics Division,
Hyderabad during the tenure of Shri Sunil Kumar as Head of Division
(2012-2017).
Design/methodology/approach:
For the present study data were collected using informal interview.
Sample included the top, middle, and senior-middle level officials of
Avionics Division, Hyderabad.
Findings:
Data were analysed using content analysis and descriptive statistics.
Findings indicated that the perceived leadership style of Head of Division
is transformational leadership. The transformational leadership style of
Head of Division has played a considerable role in bringing out a cultural
change in the Division towards Systematic & Holistic approach for
effective execution of operations leading to operational excellence and
heightened performance.
2. Back ground:
Shri Sunil Kumar was posted as General Manager of Avionics Division,
Hyderabad in July 2012 & was elevated to Executive Director (Hyd &
Korwa) in July 2015. He headed Avionics Division, Hyderabad & Korwa till
Sept 2017 before assuming the charge of Director (Operations).
During five years, Turnover of the Avionics Division, Hyderabad increased
by 82% from Rs.949 Crs in 2011-12 to Rs.1730 Crs in 2016-17; Profit
before Tax grew by more than 300%; 'Value added per employee'
increased by more than 100%. Besides this, modernization effected
during this period has also given a remarkable face-lift to Factory and
Township at Avionics Division, Hyderabad. During his tenure (2012-
2017) HAL, Hyderabad bagged various National & State level awards
including prestigious Raksha Mantri’s award for “Best Performing Division
of DPSUs” for two consecutive years 2013-14 & 2014-15.
3. Literature Review:
Leadership is not tantamount to management although they both share
some common characteristics. For instance, they are both concerned with
influence, working with people and meeting goals (Northouse, 2010).
However, the functions of management may be distinguished from those
of leadership. In particular, management is concerned with planning and
budgeting (e.g. setting timetables and allocating resources), organising
and staffing (e.g. establishing rules and procedures) and controlling and
problem solving (e.g. developing initiatives and generating solutions)
(Kotter, 1990; cited in Northouse, 2010). On the other hand, leadership
involves establishing a direction (e.g. creating a vision and establishing
strategies), aligning people with organisational goals (e.g. communicating
goals and seeking commitment) and motivating and inspiring people to
achieve organisational goals (e.g. empowering subordinates) (Kotter,
1990; cited in Northouse, 2010). Despite these differing functions, leaders
are also involved in planning and organising tasks in order to get the job
done (i.e. management function) and similarly managers are often
involved in helping groups achieve their goals (i.e. leadership function)
(Northouse, 2010). Leadership is the art and science of influencing,
motivating, inspiring, and transforming people (human resources)
towards achieving organizational goals. In 1994, two researchers Bernard
M. Bass & Avolio stated that there two types of leadership; Transactional
Leadership and Transformational Leadership. Transformational leadership
defines and articulates a vision and mission for the organization and
departments; this type of leadership style can transform the followers
towards higher performance. Transactional leadership focuses on
exchange of valued things (rewards) and how current needs of followers
can be fulfilled. To best describe the two types in the form of an example;
if you want to build a ship, don’t rile up the men to go to the forest to
gather wood, saw it, and nail the planks together (Transactional Leader).
Instead, inculcate in them the desire to explore the sea (Transformational
Leader).
Transformational leadership, according to Bass (1985), is defined as a
process in which a leader tried to increase followers’ awareness of what
was right and important and to motivate followers to perform “beyond
expectation”. Bass & Avolio (1997) indicated that transformational leaders
usually display their behaviours associate with four characteristics as
follow:
Idealised Influence is described when a leader is being a role model for
his/her followers and encouraging the followers to share common visions
and goals by providing a clear vision and a strong sense of purpose.
Inspirational Motivation represents behaviours when a leader tries to
express the importance of desired goals in simple ways, communicates
high level of expectations and provides followers with work that is
meaningful and challenging. Intellectual Stimulation refers to leaders who
challenge their followers’ ideas and values for solving problems.
Individualised Consideration refers to leaders who spend more time
teaching and coaching followers by treating followers based on individual
basic.
In contrast to transformational leadership, transactional leadership was
mainly based on contingent reinforcement. Three components of
transactional leadership were identified. Contingent Reward refers to an
exchange of rewards between leaders and followers in which effort is
rewarded by providing rewards for good performance or threats and
disciplines for poor performance. The leader who relies heavily on
Management-by-Exception (Passive) intervenes with his or her group only
when procedures and standards for accomplishing tasks are not met. In
contrast, Management by- Exception (Active) leaders are characterised as
monitors who detect mistakes. The last leadership behaviour is Laissez-
faire or non-leadership that exhibits when leaders avoid clarifying
expectations, addressing conflicts, and making decision.
Transformational leaders were on average more highly positively
correlated with their subordinates’ satisfaction, extra effort, and
effectiveness when compared with transactional and laissez-faire leaders
and thus described by different authors to have a high relationship with
leadership success (see e.g. Kirkbride, 2006; Ingram, 1997; Medley and
Larochelle, 1995).
4. Research Design:
The research design consists of an extensive review of initiatives
undertaken by Shri Sunil Kumar. Interviews were conducted with top,
middle, and senior-middle level officials who had day to day interaction
with Shri Sunil Kumar and who were closely associated with him in the
change-initiates. It is a descriptive study involving one case organisation.
The study investigated the leadership traits & change initiatives leading to
operational excellence.
It is assumed that there is no one organisation in India that is unique in
terms of leadership style. Nevertheless, through the examination of this
one Division of a Public Sector Unit an exemplar leadership style was
extrapolated.
5. Process:
Qualitative data collection method and procedure was adopted for the
data collection.
The review and monitoring systems followed by Shri Sunil Kumar were
studied. In-depth interviews with key people in the organisation were
held. Responses were collected using the semi structured interview
technique. On the basis of extensive review of seminal literature on
leadership theme and organizational climate and performance, broad
questions were developed and as and when required, probe questions
were also asked to understand the views shared by the interviewees.
Interviewers covered all the broad questions in the designated interview
schedule with each respondent and respondents were encouraged to
follow their own thought-process.
6. Findings:
The findings of the research are divided into two categories,
6.1. Belief system leading to Operational Excellence: Analysis of the
formats developed for review and monitoring that were persistently
followed during his tenure points towards the following underlying belief
system that has transformed the work culture of the Division:
 Identification of all the requirements for completion of any
activity is the key for successful completion of that activity.
 Plan for any operation or project should be iterative based on
requirement identified during execution and to be formulated
after thorough analysis and identification of all the known factors
and issues whether major or trivial.
 Once plan gets finalized, execution should focus on resolving all
the issues without bifurcation based on urgency and importance
as oversight of non-urgent and non-important issue has potential
to makes them urgent and important.
 Proactive, holistic and systematic approach.
 Pragmatic way of problem solving, wherein long-term solutions
were initiated alongside short-term measures taken to overcome
the problem quickly. This helped in rectification of anomalies in
prevalent work practices to make them conducive to long term
health of the organization.
 Passion for System improvement using IT as enabler.
 Putting in place sustainable review and monitoring mechanisms
and relentlessly following the same.
 Directing efforts towards execution of tasks after detailed
analysis of various constraints and resolving these through
focused action and sustained thrust.
6.2. Factors related to Leadership: Leadership traits that were
behind the belief system and effective execution of plans.
Content analysis method (Glaser and Strauss, 1967) was used to analyse
the collected qualitative data. Two layers of content analysis: a
systematic analysis of the manifest content contained in the verbatim of
each respondent, followed by a more interpretive analysis of the latent
content was conducted to analyse interview data. In manifest content
analysis, the transcripts emerged out of interviews were read carefully
and distinct “thought-units” or concepts related to leadership and
organizational climate were identified and listed separately (Lee, 1999;
Miles and Huberman, 1984; Strauss and Corbin, 1994). A thought unit or
concept constituted a word, a phrase or a sentence, but each thought-unit
represented a distinct and separate thought or concept. These thought-
units were then organized into emergent categories that were
conceptually similar to each other and different from other thought-units.
These emergent thought-units are listed below:
i. Is hardworking and enthusiastic about the assignments
ii. Remembers a person’s name even if he/she meets them for a
short time
iii. Asks for regular updates and makes sure things are on track
iv. Is both tough and polite
v. Is open to criticisms on self
vi. Encourages to solve problems independently
vii. Tries to help improve the shortcomings of subordinates
viii. Gives credit to the one who deserves or performs
ix. Is sensitive to subordinate’s personal needs
x. Shows tremendous amount of faith in the ability of the
subordinates
xi. Is punctual
xii. Works with a smile
xiii. Listens with patience
xiv. Makes every member feel that he/she is an important member of
the unit
xv. Ensures that subordinates get all possible support for fulfilling
the assigned tasks.
xvi. Makes relationships with the subordinates that extend beyond
the boundaries of workplace
xvii. Shows the bigger picture and how it is related to individual’s
tasks
xviii. Is concerned about future of subordinates
xix. Plans in advance for the worst possible outcomes
xx. Is clear in his/her thoughts and actions
xxi. Is the epitome of confidence, whatever the situation
xxii. Is persistent in achieving the targets
xxiii. Has the courage to take bold decisions and stick to them
xxiv. Makes people question the assumptions they make, for even the
simplest of things
xxv. Respects processes and systems but does not consider them as
unbendable when interest of the organization is at stake
xxvi. Influences subordinates to not to be selfish, but to think about
others’ discomfort
xxvii. Humble and down to earth person
xxviii. Extremely approachable and connected person
xxix. Calm and composed temperament, humility, hard work and
positive approach
xxx. He trusts people to deliver and does not micro manage
xxxi. People feel so empowered that they actually feel like rising up to
his expectations
xxxii. He works so hard that people working with him do not have any
choice but to work hard themselves
 xxxiii. Empowerment and involvement was dovetailed with close
monitoring, review and analysis
xxxiv. Mentor and coach
xxxv. Is a man of words
xxxvi. Empowering and supportive
xxxvii. Result focussed
xxxviii. Ability to identify the aptitude of subordinate and tap the same
for organizational interest
7. Data Analysis:
Leadership behaviour emerged out of the interview are classified with
reference to leadership styles of "the Multifactor Leadership
Questionnaire" (MLQ Form 5X).

7.1. Individualized Consideration – the degree to which the leader

attends to each follower's needs, acts as a mentor or coach to the
follower and listens to the follower's concerns and needs. The leader gives
empathy and support, keeps communication open and places challenges
before the followers. This also encompasses the need for respect and
celebrates the individual contribution that each follower can make to the
team. The followers have a will and aspirations for self-development and
have intrinsic motivation for their tasks.
i. Remembers a person’s name even if he/she meets them for a short
time
ii. Tries to help improve the shortcomings of subordinates
iii. Is sensitive to subordinate’s personal needs
iv. Works with a smile
v. Listens with patience
vi. Makes every member feel that he/she is an important member of
the unit
vii. Makes relationships with the subordinates that extend beyond the
boundaries of workplace
viii. Extremely approachable and connected person
ix. Mentor and coach
x. Influences subordinates to not to be selfish, but to think about
others’ discomfort
7.2. Intellectual Stimulation – The degree, to which the leader
challenges assumptions, takes risks and solicits followers' ideas. Leaders
with this style stimulate and encourage creativity in their followers. They
nurture and develop people who think independently. For such a leader,
learning is a value and unexpected situations are seen as opportunities to
learn. The followers ask questions, think deeply about things and figure
out better ways to execute their tasks.
i. Encourages to solve problems independently
ii. Shows tremendous amount of faith in the ability of the subordinates
iii. Ensures that subordinates get all possible support for fulfilling the
assigned tasks.
 iv. Makes people question the assumptions they make, for even the
simplest of things
v. Ability to identify the aptitude of subordinate and tap the same for
organizational interest
vi. He trusts people to deliver and does not micro manage
vii. Is concerned about future of subordinates
7.3. Inspirational Motivation – the degree to which the leader
articulates a vision that is appealing and inspiring to followers. Leaders
with inspirational motivation challenge followers with high standards,
communicate optimism about future goals, and provide meaning for the
task at hand. Followers need to have a strong sense of purpose if they are
to be motivated to act. Purpose and meaning provide the energy that
drives a group forward. The visionary aspects of leadership are supported
by communication skills that make the vision understandable, precise,
powerful and engaging. The followers are willing to invest more effort in
their tasks; they are encouraged and optimistic about the future and
believe in their abilities.
i. People feel so empowered that they actually feel like rising up to his
expectations
ii. Shows the bigger picture and how it is related to individual’s tasks
iii. Is clear in his/her thoughts and actions
iv. Empowerment and involvement was dovetailed with close
monitoring, review and analysis
v. Empowering and supportive
vi. Respects processes and systems but does not consider them as
unbendable when interest of the organization is at stake
7.4. Idealized Influence – Provides a role model for high ethical
behaviour, instils pride, gains respect and trust. Goes beyond self-
interest for the good of the group and considers the moral and ethical
consequences of decisions.
i. Humble and down to earth person
ii. Calm and composed temperament, humility, hard work and positive
approach
iii. Is hardworking and enthusiastic about the assignments
iv. Is punctual
v. Is open to criticisms on self
vi. Is the epitome of confidence, whatever the situation
vii. Is persistent in achieving the targets
viii. Has the courage to take bold decisions and stick to them
ix. He works so hard that people working with him do not have any
choice but to work hard themselves
x. Is a man of words
xi. Asks for regular updates and makes sure things are on track
xii. Is both tough and polite
xiii. Plans in advance for the worst possible outcomes
7.5. Contingent Reward-
Make clear what one can expect to receive when performance goals
are achieved.
i. Result focussed
ii. Gives credit to the one who deserves or performs
7.6. Management by Exception: keep track of all mistakes & wait for
things to go wrong before taking action.
Nil instead tries to help improve the shortcomings of subordinates
7.7. Laissez- Faire: Avoids making decisions
Nil

From the above classification it emerges that the leadership style of Shri
Sunil Kumar is transactional by virtue of following characteristics:
a. Change agent
b. Courageous
c. Belief in people
d. Value driven
e. Lifelong learner
f. Ability to deal with complexity, ambiguity and uncertainty
g. Visionary
h. Proactive, holistic and systematic approach
i. Risk Manager

8. Conclusion:
On the basis of this case study it concludes that leadership in the public
sector is very much important as it does not only influence the job
performance and satisfaction of employees, but also how government and
public agencies perform. From the above study we can say that leadership
is critical to good public governance, including good planning, execution,
efficiency, transparency and accountability. Today‘s public sector leaders
are being asked to function with fewer resources and continually find new
ways to tackle challenges. Public sector leaders also face different
challenges than in the private sector, and perhaps call on different
competencies. From the case it can be concluded that Shri Sunil Kumar‘s
transformational leadership skill, ability to plan meticulously, problem
solving ability, execution skills, people friendly attitude, persistence and
his value statement helped Avionics Division, Hyderabad in bringing out a
cultural change towards Systematic & Holistic approach for effective
execution of operations leading to operational excellence and heightened
performance.
With this background, a conceptual/theoretical framework has been
proposed to be followed in other Divisions of HAL (Figure 1).
 Meticulous
Planning

Risk Management

Proactive, holistic
and systematic
approach
Transformational Operational
Leadership Pragmatic way of Excellence
problem solving

Continual system
improvement
using IT as
enabler
Sustainable
review and
monitoring
mechanisms

Figure 1. Proposed conceptual/theoretical framework:

Transformational leadership for operational excellence

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Leadership Research” West View Press, Oxford.
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Questionnaire: Technical Report, Mind Garden, Redwood City, CA.
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Manual for the multifactor leadership questionnaire, CA, Mind Garden.
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public sector. International Journal of Public Sector Management Vol.
19(4) , 293–315.
7. Asha Bhandarker and Snigdha Rai (2015) “Positive transformational
leadership: case study of an Indian public sector bank” Asia-Pacific
Journal of Business Administration
8. Dr C. Bhussun [Sunny] Ramsurrun (2015) “A Case Study
Transformational Leadership Within a Manufacturing firm in Australia