Management and Ramayana II

Being a management student we are expected to read management books and what the modern day management gurus has to say. Although I don’t have a long list of management books I’ve read to boast about or huge number of gurus I’ve listened to, but till date I have not found one book which is full of management lessons as much as in Ramayana.

In an earlier post ‘Proof of Life’ we already talked about how things written in the Ramayana are facts which holds true even now, thousands years after it was written; and in ‘Management and Ramayana’ some of the important management lessons it holds were discussed. Taking the conversation forward, let us see what else Ramayana has in store for us.

Lord Ram showed all the qualities of a good manager, one of which was the recognition he gave to his coworkers. He never hesitated in appreciating his subordinates, congratulated them for their good work and showed his gratitude. After the war with Ravana got over, he asked Vibhishan to reward all the ‘Vanar Sena’ for the hard work they did.

Whenever we talk about management, recognition and appreciation of the work done by the team are two things which a good manager should never ignore. The hard work should not go unnoticed and the worker should be completely satisfied when it is about recognizing his work. It is believed that recognition of the work is the best motivation a manager can give to his subordinates in order to increase their output and maintain their zeal for work.

Lord Ram also gave huge importance to communication, both with his subordinates and with others as well. He never underestimated the power of dialogues, negotiations and communication, while solving his problems patiently; a virtue missing in many managers.

At the time of procuring passage from ‘Samundra Dev’ in order to cross the sea, Lord Ram’s first choice was dialogue, when ‘Samundra Dev’ didn’t responded he resorted to ‘plan-B’ i.e. use of force. Also with his army ready to march to battle, before attacking Lanka, Lord Ram sent Angad to Ravana for one last dialogue and final attempt to negotiations.

It is a classic example of taking negotiations to the last moment in order to solve a problem with an alternative plan ready if negotiations fail. Many modern day organizations fail because they act too quickly without exploring the idea of dialogue and negotiations. More often than not they invite unnecessary trouble just because they don’t give negotiations due importance. A good manager should never underestimate the productivity and utility of good dialogue and negotiations; but should also be ready with a backup plan in case they fail. 

Lack of communication is one reason for the misunderstandings and lack of productivity in modern day organizations. A good manager should clearly outline what and how he wants to be done. Clear instructions are very important for the workers to reach desired goals.

When the search for Sita began, Sughriv divided his army in teams and explicitly told each teams as to where they have to go and what all places they should look. Also he sent a major portion of his army along with Sri Hanuman [his best man] to the South as he knew this is where Ravana will be found; showed his fore sightedness, planning and management skills.

Ramayana, Gita and Mahabharat, all are filled with management examples, which all might sound to be very petty. But believe me these petty lessons are what we are taught in some or the other way during our management learning. These small things make big difference in the organization.