Management Lesson~ from the Bhagavad Gita B MAHADEVAN IISc
Introduction Modern management practices and training,
we have hardly made significant progress in addressing some of the vexing
theories developed during the last 150 issues. These include, among others,
dealing years, ever since the industrial organizations with people around
us, understanding what of the West began to get established. It is a
popular belief that globally renowned corporations adopt best practices and
manage their organizations very well. Against this backdrop consider the
following statistics about how to motivate oneself, doing one's work in the
most efficient manner, making leaders for 'high performance' organizations
and creating organizations that can live long. On the other hand, we often
notice that there is a disconnect between organizations that are managed
according to a between quality of life at large and work life. study made
in 1997. In his book, The Living We also have serious issues about
sustenance Company, Genus mentioned that most large and apparently
successful corporations are profoundly unhealthy. According to the study,
the average life expectancy of Fortune 500 companies was 40-50 years.
One-third of firms and the environment in the long run. Given this state of
affairs, it indeed impels one to look for alternative paradigms for better
management practices. The goal of this article is to stimulate thinking in
the minds of companies listed in Fortune 500 in 1970 of management
researchers and practitioners vanished by 1983and 40%of all newly created
the enormous potential that ancient Indian companies lasted less than
10years. Such a high rate of infant mortality of organizations point to
primitive stages of management that we are in today. If we conduct a survey
of managers of modern corporations we may infer that managers in these
organizations experience stress, struggle for power and control, cynicism
and a work environment that stifles rather than releases human imagination,
energy and commitment. We will explore some aspects of these from one of
the sacred spiritual texts of ancient times, viz., Shrimad Bhagavad Gita-a
text for spiritual progress and self-realization. Through this article we
do not hazard to undermine the primary objective of this holy text nor do
we advocate a self-study mode leading to some of the management lessons
that one can derive.
The sacred texts are to be studied first under the guidance of a
competent and spiritually evolved guru. We may later contemplate on the
multitude of ideas that texts offer after this initial training. We merely
point to the endless list of benefits that the text offers to a management
practitioner and illustrate it by culling out some ideas that one may find
very useful to apply. A Compendium of Management Lessons In simple terms,
management is a body of knowledge that enables entities to deal with a
multitude of situations involving people, process and the environment, to
ensure work is done efficiently to deliver goods and services useful to the
society. Good management must result in greater satisfaction for all
stakeholders. If we carefully study the Gita, we infer that the central
issue is all about doing work (karma yoga), in the most efficient manner.
The cardinal principles of ['right to work'] and logical explanations
leading to the proclamation that ['yoga is skill in action'] laid out in
chapter 2 of the Gita and the concept of life: ['sacrifice'] laid out in
chapter 3 of the Gita amply demonstrate that the fundamental requirements
of good management are contained in the Gita. Gita offers a framework for
stimulating high levels of motivation. Otherwise, how can one explain the
magic transformation that Arjuna has gone through from a state of fear,
mental agony and hair-raising experience to one of waging a war against a
battery of most credible and competent) leaders in the society and
eventually winning the war.
A careful study of Gita from this perspective will lead us to
important principles that managers must inherit to create rightful and long
living organizations. Such a study will help us discover certain aspects of
high performing organizations and may provide vital clues for alternative
paradigms of management. I Alternative Paradigms from Gita Notion of time
One of the pressing problems that modern organizations face arise out of
their notion of time. Modern organizations suffer from extreme levels of
'short termism.' Software companies in India provide what is known as
quarter-on-quarter guidance. In simple terms what it means is that they
inform the market players and their stakeholders what can be expected of
them in the next quarter. Invariably they project a positive outcome
quarter after quarter and in order to meet these guidelines they engage in
a variety of activities that create stress, and a short-term oriented
approach to managing business. This invariably brings negative results in
the long run.
For instance, to cut costs and show impressive results, it is
customary in several organizations to slash training budgets and
expenditure on Research and Development (R & D). Clearly, this will make
the organization less equipped for the future. Unfortunately, a series of
short terms never makes a long term for any organization. While some have
understood this aspect they have not been able to change the way they work
and take decisions that are consistent with this requirement. In the
Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna's first lesson to Arjuna is to train his mind to
the notion of time that is essentially long term (Chapter 2, Slokas 11-13).
A good understanding of this helps managers to feel less pressurized of
performance targets in the short run and instead develop some conviction to
engage in activities and decisions that seek to create a balance between
short term and long term. Change management becomes easier as they develop
comfort in the fact that people come and go and good principles and ideas
must remain and drive choices in organizations. They will also begin to
realize that whenever they face complicated and apparently insurmountable
problems, one way to broad-base the problem and search for acceptable
solutions is to revisit the notion of time. Performance Metrics and
Assessment The biggest constraint for modern management is the mindset
towards performance metrics and assessment. Modern management practices
approach this issue in the context of a world of duality. It works in two
stages. In the first stage, the dual perspectives are first established.
For example, all actions and outcomes are first classified using a
framework of duality; good Vs bad, desirable Vs undesirable, performer Vs
non performer, belongs to my camp Vs opposite camp, positive Vs negative
and so on. Based on these, expectations are set that pertain only to the
positive aspects of this world of duality. At the second stage, the
managers begin to develop a false notion that only good things are going to
happen. In modern management practice, it is a bad thing to expect negative
outcomes in this scheme of duality. Consequently, they develop no skills to
expect negative outcomes, to understand why these happen and evolve no
methods to face these. This is clearly unrealistic. In the absence of
these, managers develop needless tension, experience stress in their work
place, deal with their subordinates in non-managerial and at times
unprofessional ways and even carry these negative emotions and stress back
home and spoil their family life as well.
One of the greatest contributions of the Bhagavad Gita is to develop
a good understanding of the risks of living in this contrived world of
duality and equipping the managers to rise above the plane of duality. Shri
Krishna had devoted much time on this critical aspect of managing the world
of duality. In chapter 2 verse 14 he urges Arjuna to learn to tolerate the
ups and downs that characterizes the world of duality. Later in chapter 2
verse 48 he proclaims that developing a sense of equanimity begets a
composed and a complete personality (~ which is a quintessential attribute
for a leader/manager. In several chapters he revisits the notion of sense
of equanimity and reminds Arjuna of the virtues of it2• Slokas 24 and 25 in
chapter 14provide in a nutshell all the important attributes pertaining to
the world of duality that a leader/manager must possess to be successful in
his/her work place. If managers can develop a sense of equanimity as
indicated in the Gita, the quality of leadership will dramatically improve
and so will the quality of management. Work and Efficiency Perhaps the most
profound insight that the Bhagavad Gita offers to managers in modern
corporations is the definition of work and efficiency. The definition of
work presents itself as a paradoxical and often an unacceptable idea to an
uninformed and casual reader of the Gita. It is important to note here that
many verses in Chapter 2 and the following chapters of the Gita build2 on
this central idea and therefore it requires a good understanding in its
totality. It requires deep contemplation and guidance of a guru to
understand the concept. There are four aspects to the definition of work
that Shri Krishna articulates: (a) The doer has the right to work (b) The
doer has no control on outcomes/ fruits of action (c) The doer has,no
control on the root causes of the fruits of action (d) There is no choice
to revel in inaction Explaining the fourth component of this definition is
easier. On seeing the first three components, one may come to the
conclusion that one may rather choose not to engage in work. Krishna has
ruled out this option.
In chapter 3 he also explains why the so-called state of inaction
does not exist in reality. Managers will revolt at the idea of doing work
but having no desire and/ or control on outcomes. However, we do not
realize that during our lifetime there have been several occasions when we
indeed practiced this virtue. Is it not common for us that when we do good
work, we tend to say 'I was lost in the work'? What do we mean by getting
lost in the work? It merely means we ceased to look for outcomes and fruits
of action during those moments of time. Simply extending this logic, we can
easily conclude that the l1f concept simply enables us to get lost in the
work forever and enjoy doing it. There are other important reasons for
managers to actively consider practicing this idea. Some of them are as
follows: nowadays, such behavioural patterns have the potential not only to
destroy individuals but also institutions. Results and outcomes are a
matter of future and work is a matter of present. Therefore, with excessive
result orientation one tends to escape the dynamics of 'present' and after'
future'. The Take Away Based on these illustrations from the Gita, managers
can take away some simple yet powerful lessons. Developing a good sense of
neutrality is an important prerequisite for discharging one's work very
effectively. This may appear like a simple idea. However, it requires deep
contemplation of this idea and a conviction of its usefulness. Only out of
such a conviction can one generate new behavioural patterns consistent with
this idea. The current dominant paradigm 'I must enjoy fruits of
action-else no work' will generate enormous amounts of wasteful effort.
Embracing the overarching principle of karma yoga will have to be
the alternative paradigm for improving Too much of result orientation
breeds a sense of flare and discomfort as several of us are wary of
failures. Moreover, a desire to have control on fruits of action will
invariably force us to focus on genus instead of means. Because of this,
process orientation will give way for result orientation. Getting results
somehow will dominate an individual's behaviour. As we see the quality of
management in organizations. If managers can take these two important
lessons from the Gita, we can not only build an alternative paradigm of
management but also succeed reasonably in the practice of management. That
can be the greatest tribute we can offer to the sacred text of Bhagavad
Gita. May Lord Krishna bestow his divine blessings on us to achieve this
goal.
K Rajaram IRS 18 10 25
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