CEO’s and egg laying crocodile

Crocodiles lay only eggs. Should we admire a crocodile by describing it to be a very big aquatic reptile, can live in land and water, is a very powerful predator, lives for several long years, has ever growing teeth etc., or should we criticize and laugh at it by seeing the fact that despite all the above envious qualities, still it lays only eggs and cannot deliver baby crocodiles?

Although, crocodiles are amazing animals with several admiring qualities, but indeed they are oviparous or egg laying animals. Oviparous behaviour is considered biologically, more precisely from the developmental biology angle, primitive. By just taking this quality in isolation, can we ever call this gigantic animal, primitive?

The biological classification of primitive and evolved group of animals has only very limited scope for extrapolation. Hence the biological definitions should not be stretched beyond a point. This piece of advice is very essential for all the people in the corporate world than for the scientists.

The CEO’s in many corporate may be like a crocodile in their strength, strategy and success plan. They also know how to sail the corporate through all adversities like how a crocodile can live both in water and land.

But, like crocodiles, these CEO’s may not have great caring attitude towards people in the corporate. They can give only very ‘crude’ and ‘hard’ tasks to people to implement. These CEO’s also give limitless ideas and tasks to people like how a female crocodile lays large number of eggs. The mother crocodiles although check the eggs but offer no care to them.

When the eggs hatch out, the mother crocodile shift only a very few baby crocodiles to water and rest of them either have to find the way to water or must fall prey to their predators.

Many corporate may find such CEO’s as an asset but quite contrary to the philosophy of the corporate, the employees find them to be primitive, have no work knowledge and are like ‘just an egg laying crocodile’ as none of their suggestions and tasks are workable. Even if it has to be put into practice, one has to wait the entire incubation period to see any sign of life like how if one has to rear a baby crocodile has to wait till the eggs to hatch out.

The issue is two fold. The corporate has a reason to have ‘crocodile’ like CEO’s. They only see the strength of such people and they need only such strength to run the show. But, other people in the corporate become judgmental about such CEO’s and their role definition.

Corporate has a reason and so are the people. The wise entrepreneurs wisely ‘use’ such CEO’s for running the business and refrains them from running the people. However scary and strong a crocodile may be, no one engage a crocodile to guard a heard of sheep.

The corporate leaders and the entrepreneurs must understand the distinctions between the ‘corporate needs’ and ‘people’s need’ and must play the cards accordingly. To have such wisdom, one has to be an avid learner of nature.

Indeed, crocodiles like people can head your business to great success through their vision and strength. But only with people, corporate can celebrate its success. Hence one must realize that the business success not lies only in the vision or its strength but also in the people. Balance the both, their lies the art of success.

Dr S Ranganathan, Director, ClinRise Derma Pvt., Ltd., Chennai