Kumar Mangalam Birla

KUMAR BIRLA SHARES 9 LESSONS

Transformation is about turning aspirations into reality, converting setbacks into opportunities. Transformation, to me, is the end result of a highly energized process that combines human ingenuity with its indomitable spirit to make new things happen and create value

Kumar Mangalam Birla out of experience and sharp perception says that transformational process can be so absorbing that often its lessons reveal themselves long after its implementation. After heading the group’s journey over nearly a decade, he believed that they have changed in some very fundamental ways. He shares his 9 big lessons with us:

Lesson 1: For the organizations which are at the helm of change, to manage transformational process should take into consideration two major areas; one is the management of manage time effectively because an organization in a state of flux throws up many more demands on your time as compared to one in a steady state and second area is that of energy management because the process of change can be rather exhausting, both physically and mentally, and requires sustained levels of high energy over a prolonged period of time. Leadership all levels is necessary rather than only at the top level. This articulates people with exciting vision of future. So the first lesson has been that the process of change is perhaps 90% about leadership and only 10% about managing.

Lesson 2: Company for the first time in 1996, introduced rising Sun as the corporate identity, which simply would serve as corporate logo. Surprisingly the impact of the symbol was so powerful and strong. The lesson we learned is that symbolism can and does have a positive effect.
The Company for the first time in 1996, introduced rising Sun as the corporate identity, which simply would serve as corporate logo. Surprisingly the impact of the symbol was so powerful and strong. The lesson we learned is that symbolism can and does have a positive effect.
The learning was quite striking. The Rising Sun, in a strategic way, was the first positive step in process of change. The rising sun acted as a charismatic leader and brought different parts of the group together at the time of emotional turmoil. It also helped to reenergize and optimize people and get started on the path of change and served as a rallying point for the organization.

Lesson 3: The most important area to be addressed in any transformation or change process is communication, communication and more better and fast communication. Communication is the key for all things to happen. The process of communication can be boosted up by using technology. It is very important to customize the communication because it has to reach huge number of different audience within the organization and should be understood in right context, in the way it was intended.
So, the third takeaway was that, when you succeed in the process of transformation or change, it is because of your communication has worked.

Lesson 4: Most of the organizations believe that people of higher hierarchical levels and high performance are only important players in change process.
But, Kumar Mangalam Birla says, of course top people are important in change process, but the bulk of the organization are people who make the day-to-day, month-to-month, quarter-to-quarter things happen. Their role in the process of change is critical. 70% of any organization is made up of people who follow the rules, who keep it moving ahead at a steady pace. You cannot have everyone setting the rules. We need people who follow the rules, people who may not contribute in a significant way intellectually, but who are happy to implement the rules diligently
These are people who are often less visible but who to a significant extent make the organization what it is. So, it owe it to this mass to keep them motivated, to recognize their contribution which very often gets overshadowed by the performance of the 'stars’. The fourth lesson learned is for sustaining the transformation, you need to engage and recognize this quiet majority.

Lesson 5: The importance of heterogeneous composition in the organizations, bringing in people from organizations with different cultures, who have different skill sets, though difficult to lead, so long as they all bond with the basic values of your work place; can significantly improve the quality of constructive dissent and the quality of decision making, particularly in a period of rapid change
The fifth lesson is, moving away from homogeneity or creating a climate that embraces different cultures and keeping the organization rooted in its core values, can be a productive exercise and a useful catalyst in the change process.

Lesson 6: Learning is the most crucial thing to analyze our failures. We do this not merely to not repeat the same mistakes, but equally to showcase success. Showcasing success inspires, motivates, and has a ripple impact which cannot be accounted for numerically, but has hugely positive, qualitative returns. Showcasing success and applauding, is critical. It creates a surround sound that says we can do it, an ambience of an organization in celebration and the impact of it can be quite astounding.
Aditya Birla Group created a platform, called the Aditya Birla Awards, where team achievements across the organization are recognized every year. The genesis of these awards is that each one of us needs some-thing to be inspired by, more so, when we are being stretched in all directions in the process of metamorphosis. It is in recognition of individual stars, the sterling performers are important; it is the creating of star teams across the organization that is most critical. In fact, they can be disruptive instead of being productive.

Lesson 7: A considerable part of the change in our case reflects shifts in geography as well as a rapid pace of mergers and acquisitions. The result is that the organization is faced with the challenge of having to integrate with a culture that is foreign to it and practices it has been unexposed to. I have to say that our long-standing presence overseas and the exposure it brought with it, has made the task of adapting to different cultures a lot easier. All the same, an attitude of willingness to learn and assimilate from different cultures is an absolute must.

Lesson 8: Tracking organizational health has become an institutionalized process for us and has paid immense dividends. So, the learning on this front has been that seeking feedback in an institutionalized way and acting on it is a huge positive in the process of change, simply because you cannot set a problem right until it is correctly diagnosed. Year after year, teams have worked with exactitude, attacking the specific problems of each unit in a way that involves people from across the organization. We have relied heavily on the organizational health study methodology. For us the Organizational Health Survey is the barometer of the 'happiness at work' index in the group. The underlying philosophy is that whilst it is the duty of the management to ensure that the company is a good employer, the responsibility for ensuring that it is a great place to work in is shared across the length and breadth of the organization.

Lesson 9: Today, every organization puts a premium on speed. In a process of transformation however, one learning that stands out for us is that it is only infinite and indefinite patience that brings immediate results. Different parts of the organization respond differently to the change stimuli. It is unrealistic to expect the transformation process to take off at the same pace throughout.
Internalizing the process of change takes its own course however fast one might wish to push it through. There is no getting away from it and therefore there is no substitute for consistency. It is sustaining the organization’s will power and stamina through that last mile that very often makes or breaks the process of change. So, the ninth take away has been that one must guard against falling a prey to the 'last mile exhaustion' in the journey of change.