The path less trodden

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: “So, even god has feet of clay.” That was an employee reproaching a boss for leaving the company. The ‘god’ referred to here is Subroto Bagchi, co-founder of MindTree, who was also its chief operating officer in the first eight years, and is now its gardener. Yet another sign of how often he has trodden the unusual, but as spectacularly successful paths to reach where he has from modest beginnings. Bagchi’s has been a rich life, lived to the hilt, opportunities taken, new paths trod, and experiences shared. Go Kiss the World, his mother’s advice and last word’s to him, initially started a welcome lecture for the class of 2006 at IIM Bangalore. The book traces his journey through different jobs, offices and professionsg. Note what the author takes away from each, something he hopes young professionals will perhaps emulate. The author explains the secrets of his success to Suman Tarafdar.

How easy has it been to hold a mirror to your own life?

It was not difficult for me to write about my father’s mental illness or my professional mistakes. Three things have clearly helped build comfort with openness. Working with people like Ashok Soota, working with global clients in the IT industry (it teaches you how candour is good for business) and finally my various stints in the US where I learnt how open communication makes that country great. Leaders, I believe, must be transparent. Organisations, societies and the nations at large get the message when leaders demonstrate comfort with their past and let you into their world.

Given its more personal nature, how was it different to write this book from The High Performance Entrepreneur?

The two are very different books: one is for people who want to create what I call “high performance enterprise”; the other is for people who want to treat their own professional life as if it were a high performance enterprise. In Go Kiss the World, I am also speaking to the budding professional from India’s hinterland — so, I have recreated my past so people can see it and feel comfortable enough to step into my world and then experience the lessons I have held forth. Go Kiss the World is tries to build a sense of time and space, it is more personal — I want my reader to feel I am speaking to her; I want her to feel that there is no one else in the room.

What have been the most memorable moments of your life to date?

There have been many, far too many to count. I do cherish my first parachute jump and having breakfast with Indira Gandhi when I was 17, my first day at work as a clerk in a government office, becoming Chief Executive of Wipro’s Global R&D, the formation of MindTree, the launch of High Performance Entrepreneur, I also have many memorable low-lows, some I have shared in Go Kiss the World.

“Leadership is all about personal character.” What are the most important characteristics of a leader?

I think the most important requirement is self-awareness. A leader who does not know who he is at his own core, is not comfortable with his own limitations and is not emotionally secure — is a danger to himself and a risk to his people. Next to self-awareness, is a sense of Vision. As Joel Barker says, leaders are people, whom others opt to follow to go someplace they would not go by themselves. The leader must create a vision community and help her people to get there. Getting there requires commitment to commitment and great resilience.

How crucial are introspection and humility in a leader’s character?

Without introspection and humility, there is no self-awareness.

If everyone cannot be an entrepreneur or even a leader, are the ones who are not missing out on something?

In Go Kiss the World, you will know about my parents — my father was not an entrepreneur — my mother was not what you would call a leader, she was just a homemaker. But both treated their own lives with a great sense of enterprise and lived very rare qualities of leadership — those became my stock-in-trade. So, there is far great dispersion of enterprise and leadership than meets the eye, I want my book to open people’s mind to look around and look within. I want them to treat their own life as an enterprise, to know that each one of us is CEO of Me Inc.

How challenging were the post 9/11 years for MindTree?

For a moment, it looked like tomorrow would not come. When it did come — as it must, we realised we were standing with a lot less people around us — that is because a lot of companies had gotten weeded out. We also felt, as a people, we were standing more bonded with each other. 9/11 taught a lot of people the value of adversity.

Where does the gardener meet the author, the entrepreneur, the manager, the family member?