CEO / YOUTH SPECIAL........... THE YOUNG AND THE AMBITIOUS

 THE YOUNG AND THE AMBITIOUS

Young CEOs face unique challenges and preconceived notions from stakeholders

    Time was when a grave demeanour, salt and pepper hair and rimmed spectacles were characteristic of most CEOs in India Inc. Today, 30-somethings have revolutionised India’s corporate sphere with their generation Y mindsets and liberated leadership styles.
>> KEY CHALLENGES
All CEOs face the challenge of winning over their peers, subordinates and external stakeholders. But younger CEOs have certain unique hurdles to overcome. “One clear challenge that a younger, more tech-savvy CEO finds is that of technology adoption. Usually, a younger person brings a completely different approach to problem-solving and wants to use the brightest and latest technologies to improve efficiencies and reporting; and sometimes, there is resistance to that change,” says Suchit Bachalli, 34, vice president, Unilog Content Solutions, a global technology and services company. “One of the key challenges that young CEOs face is to not only visibly demonstrate high levels of leadership credibility and capability; but also be seen as being credible by the external environment that he/she operates in. Expectations and scale of influence and impact are high in such roles and that itself can be overwhelming. Balancing personal ambition with the realities of the market-place can also be challenging for most leaders,” opines Anu Zachariah, 39, head - consulting, Development Dimensions International (DDI).
    Youth is a double-edged sword, with the pendulum swinging either way depending on the domain you’re operating in. “The primary challenge any young CEO would face is scepticism. Everyone, including your colleagues and clients, will wonder why the reins of the company would be given to someone so young. Youth is an advantage if you are in an emerging, a technology-oriented domain like e-commerce or social media. However, youth can also be perceived as a lack of experience and that can set you back if you are in a domain that values tradition and tenure,” says Gaurav Vohra, 34, co-founder, Jigsaw Academy, which provides training in the field of analytics.
>> LEADERSHIP STYLES
The leadership style one adopts is very much influenced by one’s experiences and beliefs. It goes without saying that younger CEOs tend to innovate much more than their older counterparts. “Younger CEOs usually have a passionate and an idealistic pursuit to chase their goals, even while struggling to manage the constantly evolving issues of an organisation. This ability of being a ‘self-starter’ and accepting whatever is dealt to them helps them navigate through the troughs and
crests of their management responsibilities. Also, I believe young CEOs create flat organisational structures,” says Faisal Husain, 38, founder and CEO, Synechron, an IT services company. “Young CEOs are at a natural advantage, especially in technology-intensive industries. Their strong technological understanding, higher appetite for risk and nimble decision-making can often be the differentiating factors between the company’s success or failure. They are also able to infuse energy into the system and mould their teams into becoming ‘go-getters’ to achieve seemingly difficult tasks,” suggests Dippak Khurana, 39, CEO and co-founder, Vserv.mobi, a global mobile advertising company.
    Reacting speedily and efficiently to unforeseen circumstances may come easier to younger CEOs. “Each CEO has his or her own personal style of management. There is no ‘auto-pilot mode’ available in a high-growth company. You engage with challenges headon; and strategic plans are built around your strengths, not weaknesses. While good management skills can be acquired, good management instinct is probably in-built. But, at the end of the day, you have to agree with your fifth grade teacher – there is no substitute for hard work,” avers Bachalli.
>> STAKEHOLDER PERCEPTION
Traditionally, seniority has been associated with a corresponding ascent in age. As a result, younger CEOs sometimes have the additional task of proving that they are capable of handling the complexities that come with the position. “The imagery of youth carries with it, its own expectations. You are expected to be ‘raring to go’ 24x7; you are expected to be energetic after a five-hour call. You need to have an open door policy and speak to people, even when you are facing a delivery deadline. But most of all, a young CEO has to ‘lend a little faith.’ We need to build a set of values, which will help tomorrow’s entrepreneurs learn accountability, manage teams with integrity, learn how to forge ahead in the face of setback and realise their dreams,” says Pritha Choudhuri, 35, CEO, Analytics Quotient, which provides analytics-powered insights and technology-driven solutions. “Youth and responsibility are seen as a dangerous combination. Stakeholders’ perceptions are coloured by their own biases. However, the general sentiment is overwhelmingly positive. Of course, there are many cases when you can see very clearly that youth is going to be a disadvantage. But overall, people react well to a young CEO,” remarks Vohra.
    Even if stakeholders’ perceptions are based on erroneous assumptions, it is upto the CEO to win over their trust and confidence. “In a typical environment, stakeholders perceive a young CEO as bold, impatient and focused on driving change. Hence, inspiring trust and confidence amongst various constituents would be critical. Leaders would need to articulate the vision and strategic direction,” advises Zachariah.
    Age and experience may go hand-in-hand in most cases but in today’s fastpaced milieu, young CEOs are becoming increasingly common and perceptions are also undergoing a sea change as conventional notions get challenged.

 Ankita Shreeram  ET130625