Seven leadership takeaways from Mr.L.P.Godse’s (GM, Kakri) speech on NCL Foundation Day celebrations at Kakri Project

There is so much we learn by observing.
There is so much we learn by reading in between the lines.

Everyone at every moment  is a new lesson.
Same person at different moments- a new lesson.
Different persons at same moment- a new lesson.

Lessons might be good or bad.  But learning isn’t.
Learning is learning. There can not be an adjective to learning.

This is an article about my takeaways from Mr.L.P.Godse’s (GM Kakri) speech on NCL Foundation Day celebrations at Project Kakri. Watching and listening to GM Kakri was enriching. I got a mix bag of lessons- some related to public speaking and some related to life. And definitely; all good lessons.

Prologue-Paying tribute to coal martyrs, hoisting of Coal India flag and reading out CMD’s message are three things  every project here in NCL follows invariably.

Now, the takeaways—

1.Taking off shoes is customary only during paying tribute to coal martyrs at Amar Shaheed Smarak. But Mr.L.P.Godse, GM Kakri carries the gesture through flag hoisting as well.

This was a classic example of value congruence. According to Industrial and organizational psychology (I-O Psychology); those who behave in a way that is consistent with the highest values they espouse in their life are the ones who are most devoted to their work. This metaphor carries over into life as well. Appearance of values on surface is as important as espousing them deep down in heart.

Takeaway- Value congruence show up with pride. Invokes emulation in others.

2. During flag hoisting, Mr.Godse pulls flag strings, the flag gets wide open and everyone claps. But maybe there was more he wanted out of it. He wanted the flag not just to lay open but to wave. For this, he keeps tweaking the strings. Tries again. And again. Keeps iterating. Focuses sharply on flag until it starts waving in the breeze. Pictures are self explanatory.

And that moment when flag starts waving..Magical.

Takeaway– Eyeing for details calls for patient iterations.

3. In first-of-its-kind-practice, Mr. Godse decided to read CMD’s message all by himself thus breaking a 30 year old trend and setting a new one.

Historically, it is always a person other than Project Head who reads out Chairman/CMD’s message on Foundation Day celebration of CIL/NCL. But GM Kakri charted into a new territory and read CMD’s message. This enabled audience to connect better due to prevalence of higher logic—Project Chief sharing Company Chief’s message.

The takeway- Leaders are trendsetters.

4. According to an article published in Harvard Business Review, getting the assignment of credit right is important to everyone.  It is a driver of high performance.  In his address, GM Kakri works out perfect assignment of credits.

He attributes better monsoon preparation this year to the teams of Operations, E&M and Excavation. On the other hand he makes a brave move of appreciating-by-name when he mentions Mr.R.L.Singh for equipments.

Takeaway- Leaders  give  credits. Leaders  refer performers  by name. 

5. Speeches and messages invariably need to be backed by facts. But a message loaded with plain facts hinders audience engagement. According to a research featured on a leading website, the engagement rate of audience increases three times when speaker converts numbers into mathematics–like speaking in terms of fractions, percentages or any mathematical functions.  So making it more palatable is all what is required.

Mr.Godse crafts a compelling message when he talks about sales price of coal. He mentions last year price, current year price and then the percentage increase. He meticulously attributes increase in sales price to better coal quality. Bang! Again. Magic of another mathematical tool- function.  His words get embedded in cerebral space and following visualization is achieved. 

The takeaway-  A good speech enables audience to not just listen but visualize message.

6. At the very outset, GM Kakri emphasizes on removing OB. He clearly states that with coal bench exposed and ready to be mined, we are halfway through. This indicates clarity of objective—the OB removal, the exposure.

He then talks about extension of Kakri OCP for five years and establishes its connection with coal production targets set by Government of India. Now, if we visualize this as a mind map, we can sense our strategic position in the coal ecosystem.

Takeaway- Clarity of objective and clarity of one’s strategic position is a prerequisite for reaching organisational goals.  

7. Mr.L.P.Godse talks about his tenure of 3 months as Chief of Project Kakri. He mentions his visits to different establishments of the Project and accepts that there are certain loopholes. He expresses his concern over poor road conditions (light vehicle road) as one major loophole that needs urgent plugging.

He reposes  trust in Team Kakri. And suggests everyone is capable of making a positive impact.

Takeaway-  Acceptance of problems is the first step towards solving them.