Deb Dutta

Technology Executive and Mentor for Leadership Development, Workplace Readiness and Personal Branding

Mar 17

Reach for the Sky…Get the Mango!

Telecom Service Providers will be big buyers of networking technology for the next 7-10 years. The evolution of the phone into a device for email, instant messaging, games, social networking and music or video means that the payloads that emit from the phones and run through the invisible pipes that connect to other phones are also changing. My organization, Brocade, builds these network pipes and we are transforming this industry through massive innovation!!! In the beginning of 2011, I hired a sales leader to drive our Service Provider business. He joined us with capability, passion, and a commitment to succeed! As this leader settled in, I suggested that he organize a team boot-camp, set some priorities, build team spirit and go after this burgeoning marketplace!

He agreed and asked me if I could kick off the two-day session and speak briefly to his team. Unfortunately I was on a business trip on the day but nevertheless agreed to speak over video-conference. Just before I headed out to the airport the previous day, I called the leader and his next level managers for a quick chat on what they were planning to accomplish in the boot-camp. They gave me a run down and the agenda was quite comprehensive. Then I asked the leader what near term goal he had for his team to accomplish during the two-day session… Continue reading »

Mar 04

Guts and Glory – The Success Recipe

Leadership 1 Comment »

Share|

Daniel Soh is an old friend of mine in the executive search business. Over the years, he gave up the hopes of placing me within the burgeoning Asian technology sector as I was focused on building my business at Brocade. As time went by, we switched our association from being a ‘headhunter’ and ‘client’ to being good friends and trusted advisers. We met a couple weeks ago to discuss an article he was writing for one of his internal publications and he asked for my views on what it takes to build a successful organization.

Over the last 10 years Asia Pacific has grown in stature as a strategic and significant market for Brocade. We rapidly grew revenue, share, people, footprint and infrastructure. To respond to Daniel’s question, I cannot concoct a panacea that will deliver surefire results for every organization – I wish I could!

My formula for success is more a blend of many small thoughts and practices coupled with incredible execution. After persistent probing from Daniel on what the driving factors for this transformation were, I put my mind to work. I realized that the transformation rode on a set of common and consistent principles that most people are aware of but honestly lack the guts or even the desire to practice. No doubt ‘Success’ is a limited membership club!

Continue reading »

Tagged with: Asia • Business • Courage • Employee Retention • Growth • Success • Talent • vision

Aug 24

Driving Organization Vision – Keep Visors & Shades on!!

Case Studies, Leadership 1 Comment »

Share|

Organization, department and even team Visions are hugely instrumental in providing guidance and momentum, even passion and excitement to operating teams! A Vision can range from a GRAND organization wide shift to a FOCUSED department initiative for revenue growth, expense optimization or new business development.

The principle of unfolding the Vision will be the same – the scale will vary. If many chefs in a kitchen or many surgeons in a surgery concern you – then you get a good feel of what too many Visionaries or Visions can be for a smaller team or even for an organization.

Leadership with a Vision

Ability to conceive and build a Vision is a specific capability, not a general skill and does not even need to be one! Translating the Vision into specific short term measurable goals and actions, then laying out the implementation path is another competency. Thereafter, leading and participating in the implementation of the Vision & delivering predictable results is the third mutually exclusive competency.

Tagged with: Focus • Leadership • Traits • vision • Visionary Leadership

Jun 02

In Need of an Inspiration…

Case Studies 25 Comments »

Share|

In one of my recent intercontinental flights, I happened to watch Clint Eastwood’s Invictus. I have since etched in my mind this memorable exchange between Matt Damon’s Francois Pienaar character, the captain of Springboks rugby team and President Nelson Mandela, brilliantly played by Morgan Freeman. President Mandela invites Pienaar for tea after a dismal performance by the Springbok’s against England one year ahead of the Rugby World Cup. He asks Pienaar, “What is your philosophy of leadership. How do you inspire your team to do their best”. Pienaar, the natural leader says, “I lead by example. I do not expect my team to do anything that I am not prepared to do myself.” President Mandela keeps probing, “How could your team be made to do better than what they think they can do? Perhaps it is through inspiration … by inspiring each individual to greatness where nothing less will do – by using the work and success of others. To build our nation we need to exceed our own expectations.”

President Mandela delivers ‘the inspiration’ to Pienaar in the form of a Victorian poem he had read while in prison. Francois Pienaar and his team respond to the President’s challenge by winning the World Cup for South Africa! President Mandela uses the same inspiration to stand tall, extract a nation from the throes of post apartheid infighting and transform it into a developed nation of equal opportunity for people irrespective of cast, color or creed! Both individuals demonstrate incredible Continue reading »