In a World Economic Forum talk, Professor Sumantra Ghosal - the founding Dean of the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad - talked about the "Smell of the Workplace" as a metaphor to describe the need for creating a new context that enables employees to change their mindset from that of Constraint, Compliance, Control and Contract to that of Stretch, Discipline, Trust and Support.

Are Managers Really Necessary?

In the organisational context, LEADERSHIP appears more glamorous than the word MANAGEMENT. When it comes to a team whether small or large, we need to realise that the first requirement is to be an effective manager and then a leader. Why so? First and foremost, Managers are responsible for making sure that things are done properly. And while leaders may bring us vision, inspiration and challenge, these things count for nothing without the efficient implementation brought about by good management. To be a great manager, you must have an extensive set of skills, both hard and soft – from planning and delegation to communication and motivation. The skill set is so wide, and hence, for your long-term success, it's wise to analyse your skills in all areas of management – and then to challenge yourself to improve in all of these areas. So, a fundamental question that is unasked, but lingers in the mind often is, Are managers really necessary?

Patient Centered Pharma – Pipe Dream or Possible?

To me, patient centricity is as fascinating a concept as it is contradictory. It is fascinating because it puts power into the hands of the patient. And it is contradictory because pharma does not like giving away power over its messages or processes. Pharma has traditionally never enjoyed interaction and has depended on ‘pushing’ messages across rather than having ‘conversations’. It probably also explains why we make do with medical reps who are not the sharpest knives in the drawer and scarcely invest in sharpening them.