Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders

© 2015 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S.Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. The use of this material is free provided copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in. This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Friday, 25 September 2026

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Is Drawing An Action Plan For New CEOs Essenti...

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Is Drawing An Action Plan For New CEOs Essenti...: When Tim Cook took over from Steve Jobs as the head of Apple, the expectations were higher, as his predecessor was a legendary innovator ...

Why Is Drawing An Action Plan For New CEOs Essential?—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—International Leadership Guru, The Father of “Soft Leadership” & 21st-Century Philosopher

When Tim Cook took over from Steve Jobs as the head of Apple, the expectations were higher, as his predecessor was a legendary innovator and leadership guru. When Jeff Immelt took over from Jack Welch as the head of General Electric, the expectations were higher, as Jack Welch was rated as one of the best corporate leaders in the world. It is a Herculean task for new CEOs to step into the shoes of CEOs, especially when their predecessors were legends. The job of a CEO is a highly challenging one. The position of a CEO appears to be easy and rosy for spectators, but it is not a cakewalk for participants. Although it is not a complicated one, it is tough to survive and succeed as a CEO in this cutthroat, competitive world.

CEOs who can make a solid first impression and deliver are destined for huge success. It is a great opportunity for these new CEOs to use this time to project an image—formal versus informal, hands-on versus hands-off. Hence, they must be careful during the first 100 days in office. The concept of the first 100 days in office is widely used in the world of politics. It is also known as the honeymoon period in some parts of the world. It is the period of 'make-or-break' for new CEOs. These are crucial and critical days, whether you are a chief executive or a politician. New CEOs must take precautionary measures during this honeymoon period to achieve leadership effectiveness and ensure organizational excellence and effectiveness.

A study shows that the most pressing challenges for CEOs are strategic alignment and speed of execution. Hence, new CEOs must address these issues earnestly during the first 100 days in office. If CEOs prove well initially, they succeed; otherwise, they fail miserably ultimately. All stakeholders refrain from criticism during this honeymoon period, as this is the grace time given for new CEOs to get adjusted and work at their own pace. The media will also refrain from criticism, but it observes everything under its microscope. Hence, the new CEOs must be careful to make use of this time wisely to connect with all stakeholders and create a great impression to survive and succeed in the corporate world.

Problems And Prospects For Insider And Outsider CEOs

Outsider CEOs encounter vastly different kinds of challenges vis-à-vis insider CEOs. Whether you are elevated internally as a CEO or hired externally as a CEO, you must take a series of action steps to achieve great success. If you are hired internally, you will have both merits and demerits. The merits include that you bring in your experience, your hands-on knowledge of the organization, and your already existing understanding of the pulse of the people and the organization. The demerits include a lack of experience as a CEO, and you have to get out of the perceptions of all stakeholders, which are challenging tasks. If you are hired as CEO externally, it takes time for you to understand the organization's climate and culture and get tuned to it, while the merit is that you are free from perceptions as people look at you on a clean slate.

A Blueprint For New CEOs

Do you want to do as the crowd does and struggle for a slice of life, or to bake your own pie and live on your own terms? If you want to bake your own pie and lead on your own terms as CEO, here is a blueprint for you:

The new CEOs must clearly focus on key areas aggressively. The crux of the issue here is how to spot the areas that need to be focused on. Hence, they must find out the key and core areas that need attention and energy and focus on them aggressively.

As a new CEO, you are always under the scanner of all stakeholders. Make sure that the first few days as CEO are highly organized and focused to create an everlasting impression as a successful CEO and leader.

The new CEOs must take lots of precautions to have clear-cut strategies and link them effectively with solid execution. At the same time, be cautious to present and project yourself professionally as a leader by blending your intelligence, trustworthiness, humaneness, courage, and discipline proportionately and judiciously. Also, blend your technical, business, and social acumen.

For a new CEO who undertakes this challenging role, there are certain dos and don’ts to stand out from others. Here is a template containing action steps new CEOs must follow to create a positive impact in the minds of all stakeholders:

Understand various aspects of the company, including its vision and mission.
Meet all stakeholders to find out their expectations and aspirations. If you are an outsider CEO, you must travel widely to connect with them. Get the big picture right.
Speak less and listen more to list out three major changes you would like to bring out to improve the company's bottom line.
Be transparent to build trust among all stakeholders.
Don’t follow the strategies of your predecessor, as what worked for him/her might not work for you.
Conduct an organizational assessment after taking inputs from all sources. Create a CEO template within your mind that must be flexible to execute.
Craft your own vision and use diversified communication vehicles, including email, memos, videoconferences, and face-to-face meetings, to articulate it effectively.
Identify the priority areas to improve the company's bottom line. Create an action plan, dividing them into short-term and long-term goals.
Create a winning formula based on your recreated vision.
Be a team leader. Build a strong team, capitalizing on their strengths and engaging team members effectively.
Make sure that the employees are rightly placed in their roles and responsibilities to leverage their strengths. At times, good employees are wrongly placed in the organization. Spot and place them properly.
Integrate the informal and formal elements of the organization.
Align people, plans, and practices with organizational goals and objectives.
Encourage innovative ideas among employees.
Provide input to your employees regularly, guide them, and inspire them.
Anticipate both internal and external threats and create contingency plans accordingly to counter them effectively.
Reorganize business lines to enhance operational excellence.
Accelerate the pace, but don’t be in a hurry to cut costs quickly, as you will not be able to know where the real problems may lie.
Be flexible and customize your leadership style as per the company’s vision and mission and the people around you.
Seek early wins and build momentum.
Analyze how you like to be remembered ultimately. Do you want to be remembered as a soft or hard, flexible, or situational CEO, or a CEO with a blend of both task and people orientation? And create your own CEO brand accordingly to stand out from others.

Whether you become a new CEO of a company or a leader of an industry or political party, you must follow these steps meticulously to achieve your goals and objectives. Manage internal organizational dynamics and external environmental threats effectively. Take your feedback regularly to bring about behavioral changes within yourself. Learn lessons from your own experience and from the experience of others to enhance your leadership effectiveness and soar like an eagle.

A good CEO must be a judicious blend of strategy and execution, as well as a proportional blend of business, technical, and social acumen. Hence, the new chief executives must proportionally mix all these qualities; meet all stakeholders; listen to them; create a corporate culture connecting them on one common thread; build effective teams; craft their vision; articulate it effectively during the first 100 days in their office to achieve everlasting success in the corporate world.

Reference

http://www.amazon.com/21-Success-Sutras-Ceos-Rao/dp/162865290X

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“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Note: I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in bed for five months. My right hand has been numb and paralyzed. I am recovering. Thanks for empathizing with me. With gratitude. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFJrSRLHPUk&ab_channel=ProfessorM.S.Rao

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

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See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below. I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

This nonprofit blog will share Professor M.S. Rao’s passion and vision to develop one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please do not cut articles from my blog; redistribute them via email or post them online. The use of this material is free, as long as the copyright is acknowledged and a reference or link is provided to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com. Without permission, this material may not be sold, published, or used to offer business services to third parties.

Monday, 21 September 2026

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Staying True To Your Values Matters—Professor ...

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Staying True To Your Values Matters—Professor ...: “Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never—in nothing, great or small, large or petty—never give in, except to convictions...

Why Staying True To Your Values Matters—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—International Leadership Guru, The Father of “Soft Leadership” & 21st-Century Philosopher

“Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never—in nothing, great or small, large or petty—never give in, except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.” ―Winston Churchill, Never Give In!

Character and career are things that you should not put into somebody's hands. Character should be according to your convictions. And a career should be based on your passion.

A person who compromises on everything will never succeed in his life. S/he will not have any identity for herself/himself. The person who sticks to his principles and convictions through thick and thin will forever be remembered in the history of humankind.

Abraham Lincoln is remembered for his anti-slavery policies. Martin Luther King is remembered for his struggle for the equality of blacks along with whites through his non-violence methods. Mahatma Gandhi is also remembered for fighting for independence through truth and non-violence. All these three leaders never gave in despite assassination threats and ultimately were assassinated. Another leader, Nelson Mandela, is remembered for fighting against apartheid in South Africa. He never compromised and gave in despite being jailed for many years. What made them stand apart from others was not giving in.

Unfortunately, a few people lose so much for so little due to a dearth of principles and values in their lives. Sometimes it is also due to the dearth of tenacity and resilience. The initial enthusiasm for preserving principles fades away with the passage of time and the kind of experiences one undergoes during one’s lifetime. When people are subjected to severe trials and tribulations, they tend to shift gears away from principles, thereby giving in. Ultimately, the difference between an ordinary and extraordinary person is not giving in at any cost.

The road to conviction is not a bed of roses. In contrast, it is a bed of thorns. If it were easy, everybody would tread the path of convictions. What is required during the journey is faith, not fear. Don't have fear, but have faith in your abilities and capabilities. Only when faith overtakes fear can you wholeheartedly stick to your convictions and principles. When you are pretty sure that the path you are going is good and great, then this faith alone is sufficient for you to keep you on track. Lord Jesus was crucified on the cross as he did not compromise with his convictions.

Some people compromise a lot to sustain relationships. But it is not proper. Any relationship requires a kind of 'give and take' attitude, where there is a need for flexibility to maintain relationships. People need to strike the right balance between relationships and principles. It requires extraordinary courage to balance and sustain relationships with mutual dignity and self-respect.

Never compromise with your core values and beliefs. Core values are the basic pillars and the foundation of your personality. Core values can be compared with infrastructure, while superficial values can be compared with superstructure. There should not be any compromise on these fundamental principles. However, you may compromise on some superficial values. It all depends on the situation and occasion when to bend and blend your superficial values. As every man changes with the changing times, there is a need to change some of our values and principles superficially for the sake of survival.

Never Give In

Don't allow yourself to be browbeaten by others. Don't yield to pressures. Hold on to your guns firmly. Be a die-hard person. Face the fight and fight on to the finish. It does not matter who wins or loses at the end. But ultimately, what matters are the principles and values in waging the battle.

Don't allow others to override or dictate to you. It is your life, and you have to make decisions. Don't become a puppet in the hands of puppeteers. The day you become a puppet, you lose your independence, individuality, and originality and remain like any other average individual. Giving charge of your life to others is like insulting yourself. Never, never, and never compromise, even if it involves risking ridicule and rejection. Ultimately, it is not the destination but the journey towards life that matters in the end.

Share if you care!

“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

Substack: https://professormsrao.substack.com

X: http://twitter.com/professormsrao

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ProfessorMSRao

Meta: https://www.facebook.com/Professor-MS-Rao-451516514937414

See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below. I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

Saturday, 12 September 2026

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Does India Not Have Young Leaders?—Professor M...

Professor M. S. Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders : Why Does India Not Have Young Leaders?—Professor M...: Leadership is one of the key ingredients Indian youth need to develop to unlock and grow their potential. Enhancing leadership skills am...

Why Does India Not Have Young Leaders?—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—International Leadership Guru, The Father of “Soft Leadership” & 21st-Century Philosopher

Leadership is one of the key ingredients Indian youth need to develop to unlock and grow their potential. Enhancing leadership skills among the Indian youth is imperative for India to excel as a developed nation and also as a global superpower. There are various schools of thought on whether leaders are born or made. However, the book Emotional Intelligence, written by Daniel Goleman, cleared most of the controversies by substantiating that leadership is a skill rather than a talent that can be honed by training, observation, practice, and reading books. Hence, Indian youth can tap their potential and grow their leadership skills.

Leadership is not a badge of honor, but it is a job with responsibility. Leadership is not a title or designation, but it is an assignment to undertake and execute effectively. Leadership starts with example and ends with execution and along the way we need to emphasize ethics. There are various definitions of leadership. If you Google you will find so many hits for the terms leadership and leader. You will find several definitions of leadership. You will be amazed to know the importance accorded to these terms. However, we can precisely say Leadership is the ability to lead from the front. It is owning responsibility for failures and sharing benefits with others for success.

Youth Leaders and Examples Globally

Youth leadership is about youth undertaking leadership roles and responsibilities, thus donning the hats of leaders. It is all about acquiring knowledge, skills, abilities, competencies, and capabilities to excel as leaders at an early age. It involves fundamental, foundational, and formational ways of training and grooming Indian youth. Some teens and youth have leadership potential and spark. They exhibit their mindset, skill set, and toolset to demonstrate their leadership skills. When you look at educational institutions, we find few youth undertaking activities, as they have an urge to grow themselves as leaders.

It is essential to encourage youth to undertake leadership assignments in their educational institutions so that they find it comfortable in their post-college life. When we look at several political leaders, most of them were active in their college life. It provided a launching pad to test their leadership skills and abilities. It provided enough confidence and equipped me with ammunition to take on the challenges in the later part. In India, youth leadership is synonymous with Swami Vivekananda, as he is the symbol of youth leadership, and the government of India celebrates Youth Day as a mark of respect for this legend.

Most of the Indian youth are not interested in politics, as politics is riddled with a lot of corruption and there are politicians with criminal records. However, Indian youth should take a relook at the current political scenario, enter politics, and must clean the system of the mess. Youth leaders who are driven by ambition and who are driven by values and morals must come forward to cleanse the system, replace the existing criminals, and provide a new direction to build a greater and stronger India. At times, Indian youth claim that they don't get opportunities to enter into politics. The reality is that opportunities are not provided, but they need to be grabbed to make a difference in the quality of the political system in India.

Globally, young leaders like Theodore Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, and John Major have changed the global equations by undertaking leadership positions at a young age. Historically, Alexander the Great was a young and charismatic leader who achieved everything at the age of 32 by conquering the world. India also had young leaders such as Adisankaracharya and Swami Vivekananda who influenced the world through their leadership.

Cultivating Leadership Qualities

It indeed takes a ton of raw material ore to produce an ounce of leadership material. Indian youth have leadership material and talent, but they don't know how to unlock and excel as leaders. We need leadership trainers and educators to spot and groom them as leaders. We also need motivated Michelangelos to turn raw youth talent into leadership potential, as it is well known that Michelangelo turned a block of marble into the breathtakingly beautiful Pieta.

Youth must listen to audio tapes of global leadership gurus, especially their body language and their presentation style, to bring behavioral changes in their leadership styles. In addition, they must also read good books on leadership and the biographies and autobiographies of great leaders to emulate the pain and suffering they have undergone and the struggles and sacrifices they have made. The process of leadership is highly challenging and painful, but worth emulating because there is no meaning to life when we don't contribute anything to people and don't pass on anything to the next generation. Youth must also set their visions clearly and move on. They must conduct a SWOT analysis, where SWOT is the acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. After considering their strengths and weaknesses, they must capitalize on their strengths and look at the ways and means to overcome their weaknesses.

Learning leadership is like learning to swim. Mere reading books doesn't help in learning to swim. One has to get into the water to learn to swim. Similarly, merely reading books doesn't make people leaders. What you need to do is get into action by developing emotional intelligence because emotional intelligence is one of the important ingredients of effective leadership. You cannot become a crack shot unless you lose some ammunition. You need to learn several lessons by falling and failing and by bouncing back with resilience to cultivate leadership qualities.

Indian youth can also take a few role models for cultivating leadership qualities. Visualization techniques help in building leadership abilities. As the battle is won twice, first in mind and then in real life, leadership qualities need to be built in the mind first to apply in real life to excel as effective leaders. Above all, they must learn leadership lessons from the experience of other leaders who have made mistakes in their lives, as a wise person learns from the experience of others while a foolish person learns from his/her own experience.

Youth must learn that leadership is not for the fainthearted but for the brave-hearted. Leadership involves a lot of struggles and sacrifices. It consumes a lot of time. It involves both bouquets and brickbats. They must learn to take both praise and criticism in their stride. This is the essential ingredient of leadership.

Parents and educators have a crucial role to play in grooming students as leaders.

The Old Must Pave the Way for Youth

The future of India lies solely in the hands of the youth, who can add dynamism, innovation, and a fresh lease of life to every area of activity through their insights and ideas. The old must pave the way for youth. Most of the Indian politicians are old with old mindsets and thoughts. Most of the time, it proves to be counterproductive as they are not able to explore and experiment with new ways and means of solving several problems. I applaud Indian youth for their keen insights and ideas. Most of them are ambitious and driven. They are ready to undertake leadership positions. Most of the young people who are coming out of educational institutions are quick thinkers, learners, conceptually agile, comfortable with models and numbers, and able to diagnose complicated situations through their ingenuity. They often show keen insights into several problems through their out-of-the-box attitude and approach.

Share if you care!

“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html