A Leader's Vision

The vision of a leader and his team members is more like a cricket game. For that matter any sport that revolves around team games.

Coming back to cricket since it is the most viewed and followed in India, in one of the ODI series just prior to world cup, I remember instances that made breaking headline on every major newspaper. They alleged that the captain, vice-captain and top batsmen/bowlers were busy improving their individual scores and keeping their strike rate high. To mere onlookers like me who don't understand the nuances of the game, it was just a piece of news not affecting my routine. For cricket enthusiasts it was disaster and horror at its best - The Indian cricket team falling apart right before the world cup. Thousands of speculations catapulted from the performances each individual made. As for me, it later percolated to being dismayed of the fact that the team won't do that well in the world cup.

When I think of teams within organizations where each individual has an altogether different manifesto that would shine there profiles, it is the job of the leader to keep the team intact and all work on a shared purpose. However, not to forget, each one out there is just pampering one’s ego and inflating their pride with each task they accomplish. It’s like a check list being prepared to hit on the next opportunity.

I recently came across perception as a theory that involved leaders and followers. Every individual truly believes in being highly effective and efficient leaders, and that one is leading others. Whereas the reality says – very few are followers. A leader is not somebody denoted as one because of their place in the hierarchy of the organization. They are entrusted as one, when they lay out their vision for every initiative they are party to.

Yes, the team is constituted of different shades of people with varying personal and professional goals. Yes, today everybody is looking to anchor themselves in a Company to gain on the experience and exposure. Yes, one shouldn’t forget one’s interests to protect the future. But no, the leader without a sound vision and a fair enough idea of the path can dilute the peripheries of the team structure. Coming across people who advice to push on a work as long as one is adding weightage to their profile for a future employer if not the current one, would be less surprising. In an open forum, people don’t shy anymore to joke around the kind of grooming they require for professional growth. However, if the team is not held together, it’s not going to be long before team platforms are the nurturing training ground for a benefit to be reaped elsewhere.

I wonder at times, what difference can the leader make? They say, “People who decide they want to leave, will, at any cost. No amount of retaining tactics, compensation, benefits can do the wonder; as it’s all in the mind.” There are some people who have plans laid out for the next 10 years, some for the next 5 (a usual question asked during interviews), some for the coming year and still others who believe in the spontaneity of the situation. No doubt, each has a distinct style of working as long as they are being able to convert their goals. However, when it’s a team work, it’s not exactly about achieving the goal. It is about how able the leader was in transferring his ambitions down the team, how capable was he in showing the big picture that has been imagined, how good he has been in inspiring his team. A leader’s vision needs to touch every mind to the point of a possible belief and unimaginable passion. A game of cricket is not just won and forgotten; instead we have commentators scrutinizing every over and every catch, a misfield, sixer and umpires decision!  

They say, “if the boss is good, his methodologies are workable and attitude positive, it percolates down his team; whereas if he is lazy, driven by cheap tactics and doesn’t appreciate work others perform, it too percolates down his team.” Some leaders have a vision to create an impact stronger than basic hygiene factors, which bring about remarkable creativity and innovation within span of influence. While there are some, who force upon themselves a vision that makes their work a talk of the town and helps them build a market/brand value.

Now who among them sounds more convincing to a team member – somebody who plans to steadily improve the performance, places the batsmen in appropriate order keeping the middle order strong, works on a stable run rate, takes advantage of the power play overs and doesn’t allow strike rate impacted, since he wanted to be under every ball. Or somebody who is newly appointed and is playing to just look better than the predecessor or desires his batsmen to play and make two centuries without reading the context of the game just because the other team did so or is short sighted on the capabilities of his bowlers?