Project Management lessons from Cricket

Winning of Cricket World Cup 2011 by Dhonis team would be the most cherished world cup ever. Indians celebrated the day as second Diwali. However it did not sustain for long as the start of IPL made people to move on making it shortest duration celebration. Before these memories fade, lets see what we can learn from this most celebrated game in India. In fact an ODI Cricket Match is very much similar to a fast track Project Execution. You can consider every ball a day in the project. Some day you hit a 4 or 6 and celebrate, other day, lose a wicket by facing a disappointing meeting or unhappy stakeholder. Your star performer hit a six and next ball you see his wicket, he tenders his resignation make you to scratch your head. If we see cricket closely, we can draw numerous lessons for managing our project better than ever.

Its a teamwork
The final has made it simple to explain that only that team wins in which all players work together as team. Team wins even when stars do not perform. No star irrespective of how great he is, cannot perform in every match however when you are in knockout round, team has to win every match. Sachin, a star and greatest player in the world today, is there in the team for 20 years but he tasted the World Cup now. When stars play, they give win to the team but when team plays, it gives consistent wins. Indians consistent performance in last 4 years made them to rise to No.1 in Test and No.2 in ODI. Rely only on individual performance and you never reach this stage. Stars are important but teamwork is even more. Dhoni quoted after semi final with Pakistan There have been some individual performances, but everybody contributed in bits and pieces. We have been backing each other to make everybody feels wanted in the team. I am happy to see Nehra and Raina perform under pressure.

Captain means the most

Lets look back and review all world cups since 1975. When Clive Lloyd was leading West Indies, it was full of dangerous pacers other teams feared to face. Has West Indies stopped developing pacers? No but they did not get another Clive Lloyd. Kapil Dev changed the way Indian team was approaching World Cup or in true sense ODIs. Alan Border and Imran Khan brought the cup when nobody predicted that they would reach even semi final. Arjun Rantunga was known for nothing but captaincy who did the same for Sri Lanka what Kapil Dev did for India. This story can be long and long when we discuss about Steve Waugh or Ponting. One thing you may observer common in all these success stories, when these captains were leading, teams were flourishing. Same team with all great performers stopped performing like winners when these captains moved out of captaincy. We can take example of Indian team which is consistently performing for last 4 years since Dhoni has taken over as captain and reaching to No.1 position winning 20-20 and now the world cup. What these captains are doing differently that make an ordinary player to perform extra ordinary. Yes, stars are famous for their extra ordinary performance but when these captains lead the team, they create an environment of oneness and synergy in which every player feel himself valuable, stretch beyond their capabilities and perform extra ordinary. If we see this all from a project point of view, it is the project manager who is most important in bringing success to the team. You have seen some great captains and some woeful ones, captains that made the job look easy and other captains that made a complete dog's dinner of the role.

The success formula

Lets see what these captains have done differently. As the memories of World Cup 2011 are fresh and can be recalled easily, we continue looking at Dhoni what he is doing differently that makes Indian team to give consistent performance. You may find all these captains remain cool on the field and do not panic in tough situation, they accept the mistake in public and say they need to work upon, they even comment on team members who did not go as per plan. You may find when match goes tough, many captains start talking to the bawler almost on every ball (I am only mentioning when team is fielding as during batting captains actions are not visible), spend time to rearranging the field frequently however you might have observed Dhoni hardly doing any of this. In fact this is true to other wining captains as well but Dhonis actions would be fresh in your mind.

Strategy & Discipline Execution

Strategy! Yes it is the strategy. They all give a lot of emphasis on strategy. Not only they devise a strategy off the field around which the entire match script would revolve for their team but also ensure that all team members play according to the strategy on the field. They analyze the risk and action for the same and expect team members to behave in the same manner. Dhoni mentioned during a press meet I never predict what will happen in cricket. We believe in each other and we believe in the process. When you have a strategy, everyone in the team has understood the strategy and their role, actions are planned and you allow team members to take charge of their action/role, you can relax and stay cool as each one knows what to do and they are empowered to do it. Something goes here and there does not bother you as team knows how to correct the course. You need to watch out if results are not as expected and bring appropriate change in actions and plan. You remain relaxed as the strategy does not change and therefore actions from most of team members does not change until there is a gross mismatch between expectations and results which rarely happen. Dhoni said after the semi final that he misjudged the behavior of the pitch so the decision of taking extra seamers (Nehra) in place of spinner (Ashwin) was wrong. This did not change the strategy of how to take on Pakistan but change in the plan how to use extra fast bawler and how to maximize 2 spinners or introduce an unusual bawler. Dhoni said after the match "The wicket got slower as the game progressed. The pitch was turning and it was difficult to rotate the strike freely. We read the wicket wrongly and played three seamers, but they bowled really well. We did not have to use an extra bowler today. It was tough rotating the bowlers, but we always knew that if a bowler conceded too many runs we could fall back on our part timers like Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli or maybe Sachin Tendulkar,". In the final Sreesanth could not control and keep giving runs made Dhoni to change his bawling spells with little success. When India lost the third wicket, Dhoni prefer to come on the ground before Yuvraj and that proved to be the right decision. Discipline Execution of strategy is as important as the strategy itself. If team members do not follow the strategy or process, results will be unpredictable and it is as good as you dont have any strategy. You may observe annoyance on the face of these captains when they see any of the team members is not following what was already discussed. In the final, when two times Dhoni and Yuvraj got confusion over taking run and had a narrow escape, the annoyance was clearly seen on Dhonis face for taking unnecessary risk at that point of time. Last year when Indian Team lost a match, Dhoni made a statement during press conference that looks like some team members are confused with what they need to do on the ground.

Facilitate
When you have a strategy and team has actions according to it, what as a captain you do. You empower the team and facilitate by bring support, removing hurdles, making team to cherish the success and learn from failures. Dhoni took the world cup and give it to the team and thereafter Cup was in every hand except Dhoni. The team was taking Sachin on the shoulders celebrating around as they won the world cup for Sachin. Team was taking Garry Kristen around on shoulders thanking him for his contribution but where was Dhoni. Normally teams take captain on the shoulders around but this team was different. Instead of pressing team to win, you help team by showing confidence, and help learning from mistake and keep the morale high. India did not perform on expectation during league matches but Dhoni was even positive mention that he and his team have to learn from defeat from South Africa and tie with England. He said before the quarter final started The results could prove blessings in disguise for India. It was a good learning for all of us. It's not only about how well you started in the game or how long you dominated. Unless you finish off well, you cannot say you have won a game. It was good that India's mistakes had come in the league phase rather than the knockout phase. We will take what we have learned into the knockout stages and hopefully we won't repeat those mistakes. Allow your team to take decisions and make mistakes in early phase and you play a supportive role so that they can learn from their mistake and do not repeat them later in critical phase.

Focus on Strengths & Optimize Resources

Did you hear comments from experts about Indian bawling? One of the weakest! Cannot make Indian team to win Cup!! etc. etc. But still Indians won the cup. Now you may not hear these comments but no doubt Indian bawling was weaker comparing to other teams. Now Dhoni has two options either cries that he does not have good resources (great bawlers) similar to what project managers keep crying most of the time or use the available resources to the best, which he did. He exploited the best betting line up but he also made sure that bawlers do not

heed to experts comments and do not get demoralized. Every success is cherished and every failure is analyzed by the TEAM. In 20-20 World Cup presentation ceremony, Dhoni looked at Ravi Shashtri and said I remember you called us underdogs and so we have won the cup for you. He converted the criticism into power to win. On the other side in 2009 Twenty20 World Cup when Dhoni was targeted with question after question after India's exit from the tournament, he maintained a calm assurance and dignity knowing that the team had not performed well, but did not slur any team mates. Instead of giving excuses for lack of best resources, it is better to perform with whatever resources a PM has to his disposal. Dhoni ensure that pressure of success should be decreased as much possible so that people can perform without fear. Dhoni said before start of World cup We take pressure as an added responsibility. We will stick to the basics and prepare well. We have the potential to do well in the tournament. For a change we will not be the underdogs,

And the Courage is the ultimate word

Previous wining captains come together for a promotional event and they all hailed Dhoni for his courageous and bold decisions The fact that Dhoni admitted to having misread the pitch and as a result, kept Ashwin out of the final XI, shows that he is brave. It is sign of a courageous captain, hailed Imran, Lloyd (Clive) found that Dhoni was just above everyone else (when it came to captaincy). He is bold and loves to take on challenges. Kapil, all admiration for Dhoni, said, Don't judge his captaincy on whether he wins the World Cup or not. He is already one of the best Indian captains. Border hailed Dhoni's brave decisions and said, Like Ponting, he is bold and I like that. Dhoni surprised everyone and came out to bat at number 5, ahead of Yuvraj Singh, the player of the tournament. It was a decision that could have made or broke Dhoni. If he would have gone early and India collapsed to defeat, there would be no hiding place for him to save his face. But we all saw a champions inning. It was a risky decision by Dhoni or better say a masterstroke. Ultimately it is courage and power to take decision what makes all the difference. Everything else comes second to the courage. Wars are not won by army, it is won by political will and bold decisions. Games are not won by fantastic players on your side, they are won by captains boldness and courageous decisions.

The Management Lessons from Indias World Cup Win!

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For a change, as expected India has emerged as world champions in Cricket World Cup 2011. This was not the first time India went in as favorites to lift the cup. They were slated to win the Reliance world cup in 1987 before they were swept of by Gouch and Getting in semifinals. They entered the finals in South Africa in

2003. But they first got Gilchrist-ed, then Ponting-ed and Mcgrath-ed. So what was so different in 2011? Was it is because of Gary Kirsten the coach? Was it their inspirational coach Mike Horn? What did team India do differently than other teams? It is very well said that when the players reach the level of representing India at highest level, the coach is cant really teach them more skills. His main job is the leverage the strengths of all existing players to overcome the conditions and the competition. Gary Kirsten did that really well. He did work closely with MSD, did not try to hog the limelight, worked with all senior players and created a cohesive unit. He backed match winners although they were out of form and Yuvi responded with 4 man-of-the-match and man-of theseries-award. Inspirational coach Mike Horn was a great addition. According to recent interview by Yuvraj Singh he taught the team that their hunger for winning has to be higher than their fear of losing. He ensured that the unit is hungry for wins. To my mind, all these things were great preparation work but this was not the reason for success. Let me put it this way all these were necessary conditions but not sufficient ones. Indian team won because of application of all these things. I learnt some lessons about management from this great win. Lesson 1 : Perform when it matters Due to the peculiar structure of the world cup, there were only 3 matches that mattered. Quarter finals, Semi finals and Finals. Out of top 8 teams in the world, on a given day any team could beat another team so it was a question of winning these 3 games. In Super league matches, South Africa had a spotless record but they choked in the match that mattered. On the other hand, Indias position in league was unconvincing, but they peaked at right time to win these 3 games to take home the cup. In corporate world, we see 2 types of people. Those always work hard and are consistent and those who may not be as consistent but peak at the right time. It might be hard for the type 1 people to maintain their consistency and failure at wrong moment could get their entire efforts down the drain. The conclusion for me is no matter what you do Perform when it matters. Lesson 2 : You cant fight competition weakness with your weakness In World cup final, both India and Sri Lanka decided to spring surprises on each other. India included Sreesanth in place of Aswin and Sri Lanka flew in Randiv who was not in the original squad and played him ahead of Mendis. In both cases, both the teams opted surprise inclusion over performance. In the end, both moves had failed. Sreesanth was the most expensive bowler for India and Randiv went wicketless when he was supposed to break the back of Indian middle order. Perhaps, inclusion of Mendis would have altered the result for Sri Lanka. Or perhaps inclusion of Aswin would be have helped India to restrict Sri Lanka to a more reasonable total. But both teams go carried away in surprise the competition. In corporate world, we are trying to outsmart out competitors all the time. On many occasions, one may design strategies which are focused on competition weakness but they may not necessarily be their areas of strength. They may drift into their area of weakness while targeting theirs. One needs to ensure that we are fighting competitors weakness by ones strength. There is a need to ensure that inadvertently, the battle is not drifting into their areas of weakness. Lesson 3 : In moments of crisis, Leading from front is the best option Two matches standout from the leadership stand point. Pakistan Vs India, Semifinal match. Indian bowlers were chipping away the wickets and pressure was building on Pakistan. Shahid Afridi still invokes fear in Indian minds, if not the players at least the spectators. But he was not just coming out to bat. He promoted Abdul Razaq to bat ahead of him. He claimed he was out of form and wanted to give a chance to players who had better chance of success. Fair enough. But it did not work. Now consider final match between India and Sri Lanka. Yuvraj Singh was slated to bat at no. 4. He was in top form; with 4 man of the match awards under his belt he was super high on confidence. MS Dhoni, the captain, on the other hand had failed consistently with the bat in that series. He was neither in best of his form nor confidence. But he walked out ahead of Yuvraj. The only reason was he wanted to lead from front. He wanted to send a strong message to

opposition about his intentions. In retrospect, this turned out to be the master move. He had such a calming influence on Gambhir who played knock of his life. He could also control the situation with some on the spot decision making about run rates, which bowlers to take on which bowlers to let go. This made all the difference in the end. Empowering the team, leading from the back are becoming buzz words in Corporate world. Leaders who get things done from the team are considered better than those who do it themselves. Becoming disposable is considered to be the best style of management. The lesson for me is, even if that is your ultimate goal, watch out for crisis. In moments for crisis, leading from front is your best options. That increases your chances of success and even if you dont win, the team respects you more.

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Managerial lessons from India's World Cup triumph

The recent Cricket World Cup triumph in Mumbai led to celebrations all over India. This is a great achievement after a long wait of 28 years and there are many managerial lessons to be learnt from this victory. I mention the more important one's below. Clear goals, backed by detailed preparation and execution: Gary Kirsten said that,way back in October 2008, the BCCI and team members set for themselves the goal to lift the World Cup. Nothing unique about this of course, and I am sure we set ourselves the same goal in all the World Cups in the intervening 24 years; I am also sure that other countries also set themselves the same goals for 2011. So what was different for India this time? From what I can infer, the differences were:

- Clear plans over the long haul covering many steps: how to identify talent, how to groom them, how to prepare them etc. Importantly, there must have been good internal communication with 'Shareholders' as to these plans, and consequently, the 'Shareholders' were prepared to extend support and wait for results, allowing for a patient approach. -Focused execution of these plans. The foundation for good execution was laid by credible leadership (more details below), and a merit based approach to team selection. On the latter, some examples: Yuvraj Singh was dropped when he lost form; similarly, Irfan Pathan, who had been pivotal in previous campaigns was also dropped. Thus, the team management did not hesitate to demand performance from all and drop those who did not meet the bill. Leadership: The incredible sight of Indian players carrying Gary Kisrten on their shoulders at the end of the World Cup finals said a lot about how the team members felt about their coach. But rewind to 2007. A BBC report stated that Gary signed on but had reservations about the attitude of the players. Keep in mind also that he had never been the coach for any team, leave alone an international side. Add to that the legacy of a failed relationship with the previous coach Greg Chappell and the dismal failure of the 2007 World Cup outing -- Gary had a tough job, but was outstandingly successful. Reports say he "created self belief amongst the team members", and clearly he also created a cohesive team. Dhoni also played a significant role in these outcomes, and to have the right understanding, let us consider the leadership insights from Gary and Dhoni separately. So what did Gary actually do or not do to achieve these results? Role clarity: Gary seemed to have clarity on his role. An article in Mumbai Mirror ( 'Gary on Coach' by Amit Gupta) puts it simply "He

did not try to coach them but instead helped them understand their game better". Given that players in a national team have all in a sense scaled the peak, the role of a coach is to make them understand and use their strengths and address their weaknesses. Building trust: To make the team cohesive, trust each other and him was one of his greatest achievements. That he has a high EQ is a given (after all he managed the BCCI and the complexities of Indian cricket without getting singed!), but what behaviours led to this outcome? My inference is that he stuck to the basics of trust building: demonstrating his commitment to the cause,being professional in executing his role of helping them to play better, clear in his expectations, being open and approachable, and avoiding divide and rule thus making the team cohesive .The fact that he did not shoot his mouth off and was happy to be in the background also helped his cause. Training : 'This Indian team developed self belief' is the constant refrain. This required focus and training and for this purpose, Gary brought people he believed in, all South Africans, in critical roles -- Paddy Upton for mental conditioning, Mike Horn the SA explorer for the motivational talks. Dhoni, in an equally important leadership role especially on the field also had a vital role to play. Taking risks, consulting and listening before taking the final decision, accepting responsibility for wrong decisions without any fear -- all these traits are that required of any manager in a leadership role.
Beware of the trap of success: Success tends to make all of us paper over the cracks and overlook the weaknesses. After all we won the World Cup did we not? And this is the risk. For example, our bowling remain a weakness; when one of the TV channels kept asking 'Isn't India now the best team in the world?' to many ex cricketers of repute, they politely pointed out that they victory was in favourable sub continent circumstances and that our bowling definitely is not the best and requires attention.

Truth is that success can become a serious deterrent to further learning and I have shared Bill Ford's comments on this issue in an earlier blog. This is true for an individual manager, Company or for the Indian cricket team. And the more the hysteria following the success, the greater the trap that we lose substance. This then are the key learnings for me from the World Cup. I think that I personally will benefit a lot from pondering further on the Gary Kirsten and his success story as a coach !

Lessons from Cricket World Cup: How to Train Champions

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[Editor's Note: Jolly Josephis an Expert Author with EmployWise. He is currently the Managing Director of Kernox Learning Systems Pvt. Ltd. An organization training and learning consultancy that enables organizations to integrate the hard and soft dimensions of work, and to effectively manage the technical and social challenges of implementing complex projects. You can follow Jolly @jjonline.] Gary Kirsten coached the Indian cricket team to victory in the ICC World Cup 2011. He did what his coach, Duncan Fletcher had done for him when Gary was still a novice. Gary said about his coach: "He made me believe I was good enough to play for Western Province. Until then I'd never thought about it seriously. Gary made the Indian cricket team believe that they were good enough to lift the World Cup. In the process he also made a group of good players into a great team. Commenting about the victory, Gary wrote on his website: Every single member of Team India did their part in achieving this victory. The side has now shown how successful they can be when pulling together as a team. Winning is a lot about the power of emotions channeled in the right direction. Mistrust drains off emotional energy. Mistrust makes everyone a loser. Trust makes it easy for people to focus their energy on making their best contributions. Team members can sincerely appreciate one another only in a trusting relationship. Trust releases the best in people. Gary created trust. His work ethics earned the respect and trust of all the team members, support staff and BCCI officials. Becoming a champion starts with a desire to be the best that one can be. The specific goal follows thereafter. Gary created an atmosphere where the team members really started believing that it was possible to be the best cricket team in the world. That belief comes with a discovery of ones own potential. That is what a true coach like Gary enables. One becomes a champion by being on a constant exploration to see whats just beyond the limit. Becoming a champion is an exercise in risk-taking. It has many things in common with participating in adventure sports, going on an exploration into an unknown territory, starting a new business venture and leading a business in uncertain times.

Gary brought in Paddy Upton to be the mental conditioning coach for the Indian team. Paddy has Masters degree in Sport Medicine and Executive Coaching and has ample experience as founder and director of companies. He enjoys wind surfing in his spare time. His spiritual pursuit is rooted in Indian philosophy. In an interview with Sriram Veera in 2008 Paddy said, I have gone outside of sports into business, philosophy, theology, spirituality and taken the best of all of them and see how this works in sports. Just the right profile to help a team deal with their issues in a holistic manner. Central to the duos coaching philosophy was that caring for the firm was very important. In other words, team members would have to really play for the team. Another major change was from prescriptive coaching to a style where individuals take individual responsibility. Neil Manthorp, the South African writer and broadcaster wrote: players would not be told what to do. Instead, they would be told to find out through hard work and self-analysis what form of practice and preparation worked best for them, and then utilise the coaching staff to help them do it. Gary and Paddy together set up a coaching program with clear objectives. It was not just an exercise in techniques. They invested themselves for the team. There is a power that flows and inspires your team to give their best when they see that you are passionate about what you do. They made hard work into an enjoyable thing for everyone involved. That is a key to getting high performance. During the press conference before the final match, team captain M.S. Dhoni said: "Well, irrespective of what the result is I am very proud of the team that I have got. .... Each and every individual is very special ..." Clearly, team captain Dhoni has learned what it means to be a leader. Players dont become great just by winning, but by winning well. They become great by transforming themselves into better human beings, who value winning together. That is the lesson that the Indian cricket team and their coachesGary and Paddywould teach us.

Leadership lessons from Cricket World Cup Semi Final 2011

Yesterdays semi-finals clearly spelled out the leadership qualities of captain of the Indian cricket team MS Dhoni that helped team India win the match. Some of these qualities are: 1. Making the right fitment -Sachin & Sehwag as opening batsmen and Harbhajan as crucial bowler. 2. Pre-empting the opponents move giving slow balls to Pakistan Captain Afridi so that his shot could be caught. 3. Making strategic moves to tackle the situation with efficacy. 4. Giving every team-player a fair chance to show case his talent. 5. Giving timely feedback. 6. Expecting the unexpected and fighting it out-that's how the match could take a positive turn. 7. Believing that teams synergistic performance is above the individuals performance. 8. Playing a fair game- Ashish Nehra asked the umpire to recheck his decision of catch which didnt actually happen. 9. Staying undeterred and composed even under tremendous pressure. 10.Taking accountability for the teams performance-good or bad, not just making the team accountable.

Taking these lessons from our captain,

Management lessons from Indias world cup success

Filed under: General JJ @ 12:15 pm

Since India won the cricket world cup there has been a flury of articles talking about what one can learn from this Victory. Here is a me too attempt by me

1. Nothing succeeds like success. Just because a team is successful, people will start attributing lot of positives to it, sometimes ones it doesnt actually deserve

2. It doesnt matter how strong you are, what matters is how weak your opposition is 2003 finalist Indian team was much stronger than current world cup team. But it had a formidable opposition in the then world beating Australian team. Show me a single team in current world cup which could match prowess of 2003 Aussie team

3. Playing for country doesnt motivate people as much as playing for an individual Remember team was playing to win this world cup for Sachin Tendulkar. Thats what got people like Yuvraj, Bhajji fired up as they were directly benefited by Sachins support and wisdom.

4. Manage expectations, if they are becoming too high, set them to lower levels India started as strong favorites, then people lost faith during league phase. So Indian team entered knock out phase with considerably lower levels of expectation

5. Dont give a damn about what experts say, go by your gut feel You are in the middle of situation, you are the one feeling the heat. Screw the arm chair strategists sitting in AC rooms. Go by what you feel is right. If you are right, you will become a legend if you fail you are doomed either ways

6. In a team, be close to average, if your brilliant you will never get due credit Look at Tendulkar, when India wins its teams victory. When India looses its because of Tendulkars selfishness. This is a genuises curse when surrounded by average performers.

7. Dont work on perfecting your strengths work on improving your weakness If we look overall, its improvement in Indias fielding and bowling that gave us good results during

knock out phase. Our batting didnt really improve that much between league and knock out. But results were very different

8. Management lessons are nonsense One can derive management lessons from typically any event in world. Most of these lessons are useless. They are taught in B-Schools which have a very bad track record of producing good managers(forget about entrepreneurs) we wish team India all the very best for the finals.