Page 71 - Forbes India (December 2015)

Q What leadership principles vision. It is really about values, I do on many subjects; so I listen
would you try to pass on to and inculcating them in your to them. Integrity is also critical
the next generation? employees. I am humble enough to leadership, so I believe there
Leadership is also about setting to realise that there are many must always be alignment between
a purpose for the organisation, a people who know much more than what you think, say and do.

‘Leadership means Inspiring One’s Team’

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw
Chairperson & MD, Biocon Ltd

Q How do you lead from the front?
I think most founders and
entrepreneurs are hands-on people
who know their business very well,
and most entrepreneurs have the
ability to inspire people, get them
excited and share in the vision. Most
entrepreneurs have this skill of
leading from the front by showing
people how to work and proving
to them that these ideas do work.

Q What is your leadership style?
My leadership style is that of a
scientist. It is about getting people Q What are the most markets that do not accept them
excited about science. It’s also about important qualities needed and technologies that fail. But
making sure I go out and practice in a startup entrepreneur? one just has to analyse these
what I preach—the strategy, the One needs to have an absolute sense failures and work to fix them.
philosophy, the value system that of purpose, commitment, passion and
I told you about. I have always belief in the undertaking. Of course it Q What were the most difficult
spoken to my colleagues about how is challenging, but one believes in it problems when you started Biocon?
different we can be—and should so totally that there is the willingness My credibility has always been the
be—in the marketplace and how to face all odds—and those odds are biggest challenge. How credible
I don’t want to be imitated nor about failure, about the risks taken and was I as a young woman of 25,
should we imitate what others are doing whatever it takes to succeed. trying to start a biotech company?
doing. So, leading from the front How credible was I in the eyes of
is about facing challenges and Q There must have been bankers who were debating whether
failures, and making sure you are failures in your own journey. to lend to such a project? And how
part of that problem-solving team. What kept you going? credible was I as a businessperson?
I have had many, many failures in Overcoming these challenges
Q How did you develop this style? my life, and I think it is failure that infused more confidence in me.
I started doing things that were quite helps you learn and become stronger.
different, unique. I became really It gives you much more knowledge Q What is the most
confident when I went to Australia. about the way you are building important takeaway for you,
Here I was, a young woman going your success. So I think you need to having come this far?
abroad for the first time on my own. leverage failure to build success. It is to believe in what you are doing;
I was the only woman in my class, if you do that, then everything will
and I was doing something in a man’s Q Can you give some examples? become much simpler and clearer.
world: I was studying brewing. It Failure is inherent in a technology Gunjan Jain is an author, with her first book
was a different ecosystem to be in such as biotech. One is bound to ‘She Walks She Leads’ due for release
and a singular opportunity to excel. have products that do not work, in April 2016

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