R.A.T.A.N Leadership: Embracing Resilience, Accountability, Trust, Action, and Nurturust, Action, Nurture.

What Constitutes a Modern Leader?

When you hear the word leader what does it make you think of? Visionary? Innovator? Or someone who helps to lift others when climbing the hills of life? Ratan Tata, a name identified with such qualities, created his legacy with values more comprehensive than the boardrooms. While he was not one to make grand declarations, he implemented the R.A.T.A.N framework: Resilience, Accountability, Trust, Action, and Nurture. This acronym aptly captures his message and advice to future leaders.

It is time to provide more details about these values and discuss how they influenced the experience of Ratan Tata and can influence your path.

1.Resilience: The Ability to Bounce Back

• Ratan Tata was determined when he had endured the most humongous setbacks but was not shaken. Of all these, perhaps the most telling was the Tata Nano project. The failure stories of the Nano are quite apparent; from its marketing strategy to the consumer perception of the vehicle. Nonetheless, Tata remained quite steadfast about his dream of providing means of affordable transport to millions of people.

• Instead of perceiving the Nano as an outright failure, Tata considered the debacle as a positive experience and said, “I don’t believe in making right decisions. I take decisions and make them right”. His persistence made difficulties into learning experiences which is a clear and strong indication that the word ‘failure’ only exists in the dictionary between the words ‘f’ and ‘ail’ when you cease to attempt.

2.Accountability:Own Every Decision

• Ratan Tata was very receptive when it came to matters concerning him, he accepted full responsibility for his conduct whether they yielded positive outcomes or not. His leadership after 26/ 11 Mumbai attacks is an example of effective crisis management. After the terror attack was carried out on the hotel owned by the Tata Group, Ratan Tata wasted no time in making sure that his employees and the families of the victims were well taken care of. The company spent their own money on medical bills, education for children, and personal pleading with the victims of the disaster, showing how responsible for the welfare of others this company was in a time of the biggest crisis.

• Employment responsibility, as envisaged by Tata, also transcends selfishness; it entails taking responsibility for the people and the environment you are responsible for. Are you willing to accept full accountability for the people you are in a position to lead?

3. Trust:The Pillar of Lasting Leadership.

• Trust forms the basis of Ratan Tata’s leadership. To illustrate this, the story of the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover is one for the record. There was skepticism when in 2008 Tata Group bought the luxury car brands from Ford, especially on how the Indian organization would handle the great British automobile brands. However, to the existing teams, Tata provided confidence in their ability to complete the work and retained their investment to further develop them. The result? The company not only came back to profitability under the ownership of Tata but also strengthened.

• This act of trust represented the ethos of great leadership that targets building confidence by rewarding people due to the qualities that set them apart in society.

4. Action:Leading by Example

• Most of the time, Ratan Tata focused more on practising what he had said rather than speaking a lot. It was in the context of never making empty statements but in the process of going out in a steady march towards the formulation of long-term objectives. While at the helm of Tata Motors, he managed to introduce the Tata Indica, the first domestically produced passenger car in India, going up against severe competition from international car manufacturers. This project was much more than a car; it was the Indian spirit, courage, and pride.

• The young leaders will learn that actions will always trump words and that even minor changes will bring about monumental changes.

5.Nurture:People Development Over Emphasise Business Income.

• Ratan Tata was deeply convinced that developing people and the future generations of leaders was as important as making profits. The most impressive, perhaps, is the values-based leadership program that he has developed as the Tata Group’s initiative to foster the next generation of leaders who are sensitive to the responsibilities that come with stewardship.

• Mentoring young talents,and establishing opportunities for young businesspeople–Tata has become the epitome of a nurturing approach to development. This focus on people over profit is evident in all the Tata businesses through the Corporate Social Responsibility section, or from the fact that this conglomerate has been considered one of the world’s most ethical.

• Are you as a leader more concerned with the future generation of talents or is talent management just a means to an end?

  Continuing the R.A.T.A.N Tradition

  Resilience.Accountability.Trust.Action.Nurture.The leadership style of Ratan Tata reflects on each of these five traits and they are all relevant for modern leaders and business people. Therefore, to follow in his footsteps is to continue to choose values over greed, individuals over stockholders, and creativity over conformity.

• The road to greatness is never smooth, but with the principles guiding the move as highlighted by Ratan Tata, every challenge is an opportunity to create a better future.

Blog Title : R.A.T.A.N Leadership: Embracing Resilience, Accountability, Trust, Action, and Nurturust, Action, Nurture.