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Executive Interviews: Interview with Harish Bijoor on Management Guru
October 2010
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By Dr. Nagendra V Chowdary
sits the
Management Guru. She has reached
the state of self-actualization in many
ways. This is a person who has her
ideas in action. Ideas proven and
ideas that are delivering results for
corporations. That’s the way I would
define these three terms and segregate
each one of them.
Not every Management Thinker
becomes a Thought Leader. And not
every thought leader becomes a
Management Guru. And every step
takes time and market effort. Your
ideas need to be embraced by
corporations and the people who run
them at every level for you to become
a Management Guru. The power of
your ideas in terms of their ability to deliver corporate profits,
sustainability and social,
environmental and moral acceptance
take you to this ultimate status and
the core silo of being a Management
Guru. Where do I stand? Very
humbly in the middle silo of being a
Thought Leader possibly. Will I
remain here or move on? Only the
businesses that use my ideas can tell
me that. Let's wait and watch the
environment as it pans out. In the
meanwhile, like Johnny Walker, I
keep walking....
Who according to you have been
some of the global management gurus
who have redefined the discipline
and practice of management?
The first big name is really Peter
Drucker as far as I am concerned. He
did it first and he did it decisively for
corporations in a struggle in the early
days. And then there is Tom Peters.
The Late C K Prahlad then. These
would be my top three for now.
At times, even the CEOs get voted
as the world’s best management
gurus. For instance, in The Thinkers
50 - 2007 list, produced by Suntop
Media in association with Skillsoft,
Bill Gates, Alan Greenspan, Thomas J
Peters, Jack Welch, Richard Branson
were in the top ten list. The others
(Michael E Porter, Gary Hamel, Jim
Collins) were typical academicians
who, with their research and
writings, had profound effect on the
way companies managed their giant
enterprises? Noticeably amongst the
career executives, Jack Welch, Tom
Peters continued to have influence
even after a few years of their
reckoning. Micahel E Porter who was
No. 1 in the list in 2004 has slipped to
No.4 in 2007 list. What therefore
explains the enduring power of a
management guru?
The enduring power of a
Management Guru lies in the
enduring power of his/her ideas.
Ideas rule. Ideas make businesses
tick. Ideas make money. And ideas
normally change. One big idea that
remains forever is a very difficult one.
Amidst all this, Management Gurus
are often remembered for the
definitions they give to the line of
work they represent. This is the
academic peg that retains a forever-tag
to most Management Gurus. To that
extent Al Ries and Jack Trout will be
remembered for their definition of
Positioning. CK Prahalad will be
remembered most prominently for
defining the concept of the Bottom of
the Pyramid! I hope to be remembered
for my definition of a brand: The
brand is a Thought. A thought that
lives in people's minds! Other
thinkers often build their theories on
and around these basic definitions.
At times, these thinkers move on
from the outer silo to the inner and
then to the core silo pretty fast and
emerge as fast-paced Management
Gurus that impact positively on
businesses. The enduring power of a
Management Guru therefore lies in
the enduring value of the definitions
they bring to the party, the enduring
power of their ideas and indeed the
enduring power of the businesses
their ideas support and help prosper.
1.
The Multi-Branding Strategy Case Study
2. ICMR
Case Collection
3.
Case Study Volumes
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