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Business News/ Companies / People/  'Millennials will resent hierarchy if we don’t change'
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'Millennials will resent hierarchy if we don’t change'

India has a huge talent base. Often, this talent does not get its place on stage because of non-performance issues like pedigree and parochialism

D. Shivakumar, group executive president (corporate strategy and business) of Aditya Birla Group.Premium
D. Shivakumar, group executive president (corporate strategy and business) of Aditya Birla Group.

With the end of the year just weeks away, Mint invites thought leaders, entrepreneurs and heads of companies to share their vision for the next decade. D. Shivakumar, group executive president (corporate strategy and business) of Aditya Birla Group, discusses five ideas for the future with Shuchi Bansal, and says that India will always be a ‘work-in-progress country’.

IMPROVE TRAINING FOR TEACHERS

Innovations like midday meals got 96.5% of rural children out of farm labour and into schools. But now we need a different quality of pedagogy. We have to train teachers better and improve the quality of pedagogy if we want future generations to be curious, future-ready and lifelong learners. We must pay our teachers well and promote deserving ones. Teachers are role models and can inspire generations.

BREAK DOWN SOCIAL HIERARCHY

The power distance, or the way power is distributed and how people accept social hierarchy, is high in India. Leaders are seen as unapproachable and lacking humility. India is the world’s millennial capital; millennials will resent this hierarchy and, hence, leaders have to change. Leaders must challenge their people to bring in new ideas and not challenge them into silence at the table.

PEOPLE CHANGE, PACTS SHOULDN’T

India has the most number of listed companies in the world. Hence, it is crucial for us to lead in board governance. India will be an economic super power by 2030 and if we want to be trusted and be good partners, we have to strengthen institutions and governance. Contracts cannot change because people change. Enforcement of contracts will help us plan better and focus our efforts on execution.

PERFORMANCE WILL WIN OVER PEDIGREE

India has a huge talent base. Often, this talent does not get its place on stage because of non-performance issues like pedigree and parochialism. This decade will see a change. The Indian cricket team is a good example of a performance system taking over a pedigree system. The IPL is the talent market that changed it. Most organizations and institutions must do the same in the next decade.

NEED A FREE MEDIA THAT’S INDEPENDENT

When I say free, I also mean frank and independent. The business model of the media is being disrupted by online behaviour. Until the media finds a business model, it will be a challenge to be free and independent. The coming decade will throw up many complex issues, and we will be challenged to seek answers. Having an independent media with values will help the country.

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Published: 09 Dec 2019, 11:35 PM IST
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