1. Charisma: While this is a trait associated more with politicians, India has seen its fair share of charismatic bureaucrats and military generals. Who can forget the inimitable Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, known as much for his flair as for his generalship, which eventually won India the Bangladesh war in 1971? But do others exude similar charisma? If yes, why don't we ever get to see that part of them? For one, Manekshaw had become a public figure even while he was in service, unlike most government officials, for whom anonymity is the norm, at least till they reach secretarial position. Yet, within their departmental domains, the likes of Verghese Kurien and TN Seshan held great moral sway over their subordinates.
2. Ability to build the right team: This is perhaps one of the most significant character traits of any leader, more so one who works in a government department or corporation. The traditional interpretation of the welfare state model requires the government to overlook merit and efficiency practically at every step of the process of governance--from induction of employees to implementation of schemes and projects. All administrators, without exception, have been aided by a few good men who have steadfastly stood behind their leader in good times and bad. The most recent example is of E Sreedharan, who, without a highly disciplined and motivated crack team of some of the most technically competent railway personnel, could have built neither the Konkan Railways project nor the Delhi Metro, literally from scratch.
3. Foresight: A leader necessarily has to have the ability to work toward a scenario months, years or even decades into the future. This becomes even more pertinent in the case of the government as it is mandated to undertake and implement such schemes or enter such businesses where the gestation period may be measured in terms of decades. This further entails the ability to take tough, even seemingly ruthless decisions in the larger interest of the issue at hand. Moreover, institutionalizing processes that stand the test of time and can be replicable is also extremely essential.
4. Forthrightness and dexterity: The bane of most government processes is their circuitous nature. The government, both in its internal processes and while dealing with the public, takes forever to conceptualize and then to implement processes. If a person in executive authority can cut through the red tape and simplify execution and implementation, while not breaking any rules, his job becomes that much easier, especially in a governmental context. It cannot be emphasized enough that if a leader takes longer than required to take a critical decision, the organization suffers.
5. Perseverance: This is a classic recipe for success in any situation, and leadership in the government is no different. Policy implementation and administration are the primary functions of the state, yet affecting policy changes can not only take ages, but is also fraught with dangers that can derail it at every stage. In such a scenario, it becomes important that the concerned department or public sector unit (PSU), under its leader, perseveres to wade through all challenges to see the process through to fruition. From Sukumar Sen to MS Swaminathan and now to E Sreedharan, this trait that has been characteristic of all such bureaucrats and administrators who have seen projects through.
6. Integrity: To put it simply: a dishonest man simply cannot be a leader of men, so this becomes the fundamental trait of anyone who truly leads. It goes without saying that those bureaucrats and administrators have unblemished service records when they are handed over such critical work. Sure, some like KPS Gill and Verghese Kurien have gone on to court controversy, but rarely for the job that gave them much deserved fame.
7. Ability to think out of the box: If a leader has to solve a problem or create something anew, he cannot tread on the beaten path. This also includes challenging dogmas and worn out traditions and the ability to question, analyze and, if required, debunk one's own ideas. Novelty is the name of the game. Governments are usually saddled with people who have archaic and therefore potentially unproductive ideas which stall processes.
8. Political backing at the top: The executive and administrative head of a private company almost always becomes the final decision-making authority in so far as his department or organization is concerned. In the government, however, the bureaucrat or administrator is answerable to the political executive and so it becomes pertinent that his ideas are in perfect harmony with those of the political executive. In fact, it cannot be any other way as the political executive is answerable to the legislature and therefore to the public. In case a disagreement between the political executive and the bureaucrat cannot be resolved, either the former almost always prevails or the latter bows out—with the notable exception of TN Seshan.
9. Ability to see that all change is incremental: Revolutions happen, but quite by chance. No leader can truly assert that he set out to revolutionize his field of work. All sensible people in positions of leadership look at affecting incremental change with the assumption that such changes will add up to more than the sum of their parts.
10. Control and delegation: Almost always, delegation is touted, and legitimately at that, as one of the most desirable qualities of a leader. Yet, the most pertinent question that every leader almost always has to grapple with, is, "when and how much to delegate, and to whom?" Now whereas a private sector company can pick and choose employees to work on specific projects, the government has to almost always make do with employees who have secured "permanent" cadre positions on the basis of an open competitive exam. Therefore, it becomes difficult to pick specific people out, thereby leaving an executive head with a "best-fit" scenario.
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written by Calvin Klein Men's Belts, December 21, 2010
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