Why are Indians preferred as Global Leaders?

It was almost a month ago when newspapers were flooded with the list of Indians who were successfully leading global multinational giants. Surprisingly, the number was more than a dozen. The occasion was the Hyderabad-born and brought up Satya Nadella being crowned as the new CEO of Microsoft, the world leader in the software market. This indirectly meant that an Indian has now occupied the most influential position in the software sector. 

The story is similar in the other sectors too. PepsiCo and Reckitt Benckiser, the two most prominent players of the FMCG sector are led by Indians. Talking about Banking, the two biggest banks - Deutsche Bank is led by Anshu Jain, while Mumbai-born Vikram Pandit was the Ex-CEO of Citibank. The world’s largest producer of liquor, Diageo Spirits which includes brands like Johnny Walker, Smirnoff, Baileys and Captain Morgan is led by the Hyderabad-born Ivan Menezes.

Above all, the news which majorly drew my attention was of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal being a potential Presidential candidate for US Election 2016. So, a person of Indian origin is likely to be the candidate for the world’s most powerful position, President of United States.

So why are Indians preferred as global leaders over others? Like many of you, I wondered. I thought over it for a few days, researched and then I could connect the dots. I came up with the following reasons:

1    1)  Indians are inclined towards building meaningful relationships with subordinates. The traditional Indian businesses fostered a strong emotional bond between superiors and subordinates. There was a feeling that the company genuinely cares for its employees. This provided a strong bond of loyalty that went beyond financial rewards.

2     2)   Indians are family-oriented. As they start working, they realize that they have a family to support. They become responsible. A middle-aged Indian has to look after his wife, children, their future as well as take care of his old parents who have sacrificed a lot for him.Hence, they do not tend to exploit their power and position. They set the right role model for all the employees.

3     3)    Indians are considered to be men of principle. They are well nurtured and cultured by their parents. Values are inculcated in them since birth. Hence, they tend to be more trustworthy and are less likely to indulge in frauds.

4     4)   Indians are money-minded. They think before spending every penny. They follow the right equation for investing and saving. Hence an Indian being in the topmost position, manages the finances optimally and avoids unnecessary expenditure.

5     5)   Indians are much more humble as compared to the Native Americans or Europeans. They have a natural gesture of respecting others. Hence, they can work in good co-ordination with the Board of Directors, Stakeholders, Owners and other Senior Authorities.

6     6)   Indians are brought up in a diverse atmosphere. A Hindu lad goes to a Convent School, plays in the Muslim neighbourhood and falls in love with a Parsi girl. Hence, they are able to relate to different cultures, religions and people. They can quickly adjust and adapt to any habitat.

7     7)   The extremely competitive education scenario in India prepares every individual to be hard-working and ambitious. At a very young age, the kid is a part of the academic race, where everyone tries to be better than the other. This develops the innate quality of hardwork and dedication which stays with him forever.

8     8)   Lastly, India is a country with the largest youth population in the world, which also means the largest workforce. And according to recent trends, everyone dreams of working with a multinational company. So, when Indians lead these MNCs, it creates an aspiration amongst the youth to be a part of the same company and step into his/her shoe in the future.  Also typically, Indians would be more comfortable and attracted to working for a company led by an Indian.

These were few of the primary reasons to answer the question. Many of these reasons maybe because Indians are really good at what they do, and traditionally have innate leadership qualities in them. But we cannot deny the fact that there is a selfish interest of the Americans and Europeans. They are eyeing on the massive educated Indian workforce. But looking at the positive side of it, more and more Indians are rising to power. India is going global in the true sense. And the day isn’t far, when the world will be dominated by Indian leaders.