BILL GEORGE – Authentic Leader of Leaders

INTRODUCTION

A number of the inspiring living leaders being profiled in this series are actually recommendations of Bill George, who in his life as a business leader and academic alike has become a cultivator of leaders and curator of leadership, a leader of leaders par excellence. As an internationally-recognized author, speaker, and teacher—after three decades of walking the talk as a C-level leader in Corporate America himself—this octogenarian not only keeps abreast with the daily news but skillfully brings out the leadership lessons and infringements therein, often publicly holding the feet of leaders to the fire like he recently did Meta’s founder Mark Zuckerberg.^[1] Perhaps this Harvard-taught and Harvard-teaching leader’s most endearing legacy will be fathering the whole field of Authentic Leadership.

 

GROWTH

Early Formation

Born William W. George in Muskegon, Michigan in the Midwestern United States of America (USA) on September 14, 1942. He grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan but saw opportunities elsewhere. George’s parents supported any career he wanted to pursue^[2] “even though his father, a Michigan business consultant, pressed his (frustrated) dreams of corporate leadership onto their only child.”^[3] Bill gained his values from his mother.^[4] He would later graduate with a Bachelor in Industrial and Systems Engineering (BSIE) with high honors from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1964.^[5] At Georgia Tech, George was a member of the Beta Psi chapter of the fraternity Sigma Chi. A couple of years later, as a Baker Scholar William George received a Master of Business Administration with high distinction from Harvard University, in 1966,^[6] way before most people had gotten wind of what an MBA was and an MBA-craze had begun.

Turn Outs and Turn Downs

Young George actually started out his work life serving in the U.S. Department of Defense, where he was Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)^[7]in Washington D.C. and later as Special Civilian Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy.^[8] William George began in government but would soon end up in the private sector, specifically in the corporate world.

Bill held a series of senior executive positions in Litton Industries (1970-78), primarily as president of Litton Microwave Cooking. In 1969, Litton Microwave Cooking Products, a division of Litton Industries, had hired George at age 27 as president and Chief Operating Officer (COO). He quickly got a jolt as he was packing his bags to move to Minneapolis. Over the radio he heard a warning. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared microwave ovens “might be hazardous to your health.” That crisis formed him as a leader, the kind of leader he has become. “I was not an expert in any aspect of the business, but in this crisis everyone looked to me for survival,” he wrote in Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value. “My skill was to pull together the right people and empower them to solve the problems, one at a time.”^[9]

As senior executive at Honeywell (1978-1989), Bill was President of Honeywell’s Space & Aviation Systems and President of Honeywell Europe. By the late 1980s, Bill George was a successful executive at Honeywell International. He was on the shortlist to be the next CEO. But he was miserable. George disliked the focus on turnarounds. Squeezing out expected quarterly numbers wore on him, too.^[10] “I really wanted to be working closely with customers and employees, but had prioritized impressing my bosses and Wall Street,” says George.^[11] Not only did Honeywell get the cold shoulder from George, he turned down offers to join medical device maker Medtronic three times. But the company, which was founded barely seven years after George’s own birth, both in the Midwest, did not give up. He accepted the fourth invitation to become President and COO in 1989, then became Chief Executive Officer (CEO) from 1991 to 2001; and finally bowed out as board chair (1996-2002).

Sometimes, how you start out is not how you turn out; starting this way or the other does not mean that’s how you’ll end. From hard core business about tough things like defense, microwave technology and space/aviation hardware, who could’ve predicted that where Bill will flourish most and earn a household name and global fame would be in the softer business of health, especially of the heart? “It was the best decision of my professional life,” he says of finally joining Medtronic. “I was excited to go to work with a group of talented people who were dedicated to the mission of alleviating pain, restoring health and extending life.”^[12] Bill was looking for purpose; and he had found it, now heading in the direction of his own True North.

My bet is that no one saw a life of academia coming after that ‘meteoric Medtronic’ adventure, becoming a professor at Harvard Business School in 2004. For what it’s worth, Bill’s 30 years in senior executive leadership in corporate America seems to have been spread over three ten-year blocks each at Litton, Honeywell and Medtronic, more or less.

 

SUCCESS

Bill George became a household name through health leadership, as a non-medic who clearly had a heart for human flourishing thus applied that passion and his smarts and endearing values to prospering the Minnesota-born company he led. Mr. George is “best known in Minnesota for his leadership role in the evolution of Medtronic, piloting the medical technology company through 13 years of outstanding growth as President and Chief Operating Officer (1989-91), Chief Executive Officer (1991-2001), and Chairman of the Board (1996-2002).”^[13] Under his leadership, Medtronic’s market capitalization grew from $1.1 billion to $60 billion, averaging 35% a year,^[14] all the while posting a “strong reputation by demonstrating ethical leadership and integrity.”^[15]

Having always been a stickler for purpose and long-term success, Bill is clear that even the whooping successful numbers above stemmed from staying true to purpose rather than an attempt to chase after profit or shareholder value. In a recent interview, he was noted as saying:

I went to Medtronic because it offered me a chance to restore people to full life. When I got there, it was a mid-size company with $750 million in revenue; now it’s $32 billion. But the important thing was not the size but how we helped people. Our metric was how many seconds go by before another person is restored by a Medtronic product. When I started, that number was 100 seconds. When I left, it was seven seconds. Today, it’s two per second. Now, that’s a metric everyone can relate to. They can’t relate to $2.61 a share. Shareholder value is an outcome. If we create great value for our customers, we will increase market share, we will enter new markets, and we will expand our business and business models. But workers on Medtronic’s heart-valve line want to ensure every product is perfect because they know human life is at stake.^[16]

Bill George is revered in the American Midwest for taking “a homegrown Minnesota company, Medtronic, and shepherd[ing] its rise through a remarkable decade of growth.”^[17] In his own books, Bill humbly but assertively speaks of strategic mergers in the 1990s he spearheaded that provided not only for global expansion of the company, but also a corresponding boom of innovation in medical devices, services and therapies that served to benefit more than 1.5 million patients per year suffering from cardiac disease and other serious illness.^[18]

Bill and the Academy

Growing up on a university campus as the son and grandson of professors, I used to marvel at how many professors in the business school had no business teaching business because they had never operated any businesses themselves. Bill George is the very antithesis of that aberration, having become a professor at Harvard Business School in 2004, after three solid decades of executive leadership actually doing business. During 2002-03, Mr. George was Professor of Leadership and Governance at IMD International and Ecole Polytechnique in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Executive-in-Residence at Yale School of Management.^[19]  William W. George, “an American businessman and academic” as he’s largely described in a nutshell now, was a Professor of Management Practice, and a Henry B. Arthur Fellow of Ethics at Harvard Business School^[20] until 2016. He has since been a Senior Fellow and now Executive Fellow at Harvard.
Bill believes, “We need to develop moral leaders who are authentic, compassionate, and driven by a sense of purpose.” He continues, “I have been critical of some business schools for training too many managers and not enough leaders and not talking about the values that matter. Do you have the courage to do the right thing?”^[21] There is a difference between management and leadership, Mr. George seems desirous of reminding us. In the famous words of the father and founder of modern Management, Peter Drucker, “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” Bill George is prophetic in the academy.

Literary Leadership

Behold Bill’s bibliography: Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value (2003), True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership (2007), True North Groups: A Powerful Path to Personal and Leadership Development (2008), Finding Your True North: A Personal Guide (2008), and 7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis (2009). In August 2015, George published the work that has been most defining of my own leadership in this decade, Discover Your True North, along with its companion workbook, The Discover Your True North Fieldbook:  A Personal Guide to Becoming an Authentic Leader. ^[22]His latest, seven years later, is a variant of the last, tailored to emerging leaders, True North: Leading Authentically in Today’s Workplace, Emerging Leader Edition published by John Wiley & Sons (August 2022). Later that same fall, in November, Bill George came out with True North Fieldbook, Emerging Leader Edition: The Emerging Leader’s Guide to Leading Authentically in Today’s Workplace.^[23]

Family Man

Bill George is big on family, as seen from his various social media posts as he does life with his spouse, and wider family, and has espoused in his book True North (2015), especially the chapter on “the integrated life.” He has been married to Penny Pilgram George, a psychologist-philanthropist, for half-a-century and they have two adult sons, Jeff and Jonathan. Together with their own wives, Renee Will and Jeannette Lager, the four children and their power parents constitute the board at the George Family Foundation, which we shall touch on in a subsequent next section. Today, the couple, who met in the nation’s capital while both were working for the Pentagon, have been married for 54 years and are exemplary champions of philanthropy.

 

SIGNIFICANCE

Awards, Honours and Impact Platforms

Bill has received a truckload of awards and recognitions. These include  “Alumni Achievement Award” (Harvard Business School, 1997), “Executive of the Year” by the American Academy of Management in 2001, “Director of the Year” (National Association of Corporate Directors, 2001-02), “Legend in Leadership” by Yale University in  2002, “Lifetime Achievement Award” (Minnesota High Tech Association, 2003),  and “25 Most Influential Business People of the Last 25 Years” (PBS Nightly Business News, 2004).^[24]

Bill George was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2012 for applying engineering principles to manufacturing to advance health care. In April 2014, the Franklin Institute awarded him the Bower Award for Business Leadership. Bill received the Larry Foster Award for Integrity in Public Communication at the second annual Arthur W. Page Center Awards (2018) in New York City.^[25] Mr. George is a CNBC contributor and has made frequent appearances on television and radio. He has a string of honorary PhDs from Georgia Tech, Mayo Medical School, University of St. Thomas, Augsburg College and Bryant University.^[26]

Leadership in Governance

Giving back to society, for Bill, isn’t an afterthought or a post-retirement thing. Even “in the midst of his meteoric Medtronic years and continuing today, Bill George has maintained a focus on community service and philanthropy.”^[27] He has served on dozens of corporate, health care, and nonprofit boards in the state and nation, among them Minnesota Business Partnership, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Global Center for Leadership and Business Ethics, and the National Association of Corporate Directors. Mr. George has served as a director on the boards of Goldman Sachs, The Mayo Clinic, ExxonMobil, Novartis, Target Corporation and

Minnesota’s Destination Medical Center Corporation.  He is currently a trustee of World Economic Forum USA, and has served as board chair for Allina Health System, Abbott-Northwestern Hospital, United Way of the Greater Twin Cities, and Advamed.^[28]   He more recently joined the Advisory Council of CFK Africa.^[29]

Family Foundation

In 1994 Bill and Penny founded the George Family Foundation whose mission is to “foster wholeness in mind, body, spirit, and community by developing authentic leaders and supporting transformative programs serving the common good.”^[30] Their guiding philosophy is “We believe in sharing the blessings we have received and in celebrating the spiritual reciprocity that exists between donors and receivers working collaboratively to make the world a better place.”^[31] They fund causes pertaining to whole-person health and well-being (integrative medicine), education, authentic leadership development, social justice in community, spirituality and inner life, environment, and youth/nextgen development. For their inspiration, George cites a line from Winston Churchill: “We make a living by what we earn, we make a life by what we give.”^[32]

Gaining Authentic Traction

In academic literature, “authentic leadership” has found its own niche among other significant approaches and theories of leadership like servant leadership, transformational leadership, adaptive leadership, among others. And it is all traced back to George’s groundbreaking book in 2003 and his follow-up one with Peter Sims in 2007. As leadership guru Peter Northouse so succinctly states the case for this authentic leadership genre,

“In recent times, upheavals in society have energized a tremendous demand for authentic leadership.
The destruction on 9/11, corporate scandals at companies like WorldCom and Enron, “fake news,” and fears of foreign influence in presidential elections have all created anxiety and uncertainty. People feel apprehensive and insecure about what is going on around them, and as a result, they long for bona fide leadership they can trust and for leaders who are honest and good. People’s demands for trustworthy leadership make the study of authentic leadership timely and worthwhile.”^[33]

Even the February 2007 Harvard Business Review would also admit, in consonance with the Northouse notice above, that “The ongoing problems in business leadership over the past five years have underscored the need for a new kind of leader in the twenty-first century: the authentic leader.”^[34] Based on his three decade-long experience as a corporate executive and thorough interviews with an array of 125 successful C-level leaders from different racial, religious, national, and socioeconomic backgrounds to understand how leaders become and remain authentic,^[35] George discovered that authentic leaders know themselves, feel free to lead from their sense of purpose and core values and genuinely desire to serve others. Specifically, authentic leaders demonstrate these five basic characteristics: 1. Passion (Strong sense of purpose), 2. Behavior (strong values about the right thing to do), 3. Connectedness (trusting relationships with others), 4. Consistency (self-discipline and act on their values), and 5. Compassion (sensitive and empathetic to the plight of others).^[36]

This is purported to be “the largest leadership development study ever undertaken.”^[37] But Bill outdid himself when for the 2015 work, he and his team interviewed 220 leaders (nearly double) in business and nonprofits, and learned that people’s life stories—their crucibles—help them understand who they are. “People have to know who they are before they can make a difference in their professions,” George tells McKinsey in a podcast interview. ^[38]

Annually, Merriam-Webster determines the word of the year. We might as well say 2023 was Bill’s year for the word of the year 2023 was “authentic.” In an article that prescribed six reasons why it pays to be authentic, Inc. magazine first reminded all and sundry that “authentic” is “an overused buzzword that has lost its meaning, sure, but considering the current era of artificial intelligence and misinformation, where the distinction between what’s real and what’s fake has become increasingly ambiguous, it’s not a bad choice.”^[39]

The Authentic Leadership movement has included raising emerging leaders with that ethos. In the fall of 2022, George co-authored and published a new book, “True North: Leading Authentically in Today’s Workplace, Emerging Leader Edition” with Zach Clayton, a younger leader. The book, among others, identifies five different archetypes of bosses that you never want to become or work for, because they’ve lost their “true north” in some way.^[40]

In Others’ Words

From presidents of countries to presidents of companies, everyone has high praise for Bill’s life and leadership. Former US president Jimmy Carter once said of him, “Bill George reminds us that compassion and understanding are as important qualities for business leaders as dedication and resolve.”^[41] According to Kate Rubin of the Minnesota High Tech Association also, Mr. Bill George is “laser-beam focused. He exemplifies the leadership philosophy he teaches: to be guided by an inner compass, to know your strengths, to make it your business to be of service.”^[42]

While it is quite American to blow one’s own horn, what is exceptional is for Europeans to chip in in genuine praise, especially a Swiss: “Bill George may be as close as American executive ranks have come to producing a moral philosopher.” Those powerful words came from Rolf Dobelli, founder and curator of Zurich minds, a community of Switzerland’s distinguished thinkers, scientists, artists and entrepreneurs.^[43]

 

At PELÉ

During an interaction on LinkedIn a couple of years ago, Bill’s encouragement to me was: “Thank you Yaw, keep being the authentic leader that you are.” That went a long way to encourage our young firm and authentic leadership brand at Perbi Executive Leadership Education (PELÉ), where we pursue authentic and customised relationships and resources for C-level executives to grow personally, succeed professionally, and become significant societally. Whether in America or across the Atlantic in Africa, together with others of the Authentic Leadership tribe of Bill George, we hope to hone current C-level leadership as well as incubate a host of emerging C-suite executives.

 

CONCLUSION

Born, bred and blossoming in the American Midwest, this Midwest thoroughbred with two first names, or is it two last names rather?, also lives in the Twin cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul. William George has shone his light far beyond continental America through to Europe to the ends of the earth, literally. In fact, he is a strong proponent of Global Intelligence Quotient (GQ), in addition to the IQ one is born with and all the EQ one can get. That disposition alone puts him way past the average American who seems to think that America is at the centre of the universe.

Bill has walked the talk in corporate America and triumphed; now he’s talking the walk on the platform of the academy, especially championing Authentic Leadership with vision, understanding, courage, and adaptability (or VUCA 2.0) even in a volatile, ambiguous, complex and uncertain (VUCA) world. And with his scholarship, as he teaches the world at Harvard’s global campus and brings the nations thought leadership through his research and writing, even in his twilight years this Midwestern son shines bright and strong. He travels widely for speaking engagements related to his “True North” leadership initiatives. Meet the authentic leader of leaders, William (Bill) George, Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School, Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Medtronic, Bestselling Author and originator-thought leader in Authentic Leadership. Hail the cultivator of leaders and curator of leadership, an authentic leader of leaders par excellence.

^[1] Annika Kim Constantino. “Mark Zuckerberg is ‘continuing to derail’ Facebook, says Harvard expert: ‘He’s really lost his way’.” CNBC. September 12, 2022. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

I also personally witnessed him do this, and participated, in a real time discussion on his LinkedIn feed.

^[2] Investor’s Business Daily. “Legendary CEO Bill George Now Helps Others Find Their True North”. (2022-11-10) Investor’s Business Daily. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[3] Rohan Preston. Power couple Penny and Bill George believe in doing ‘a force of good in the world.’ Star Tribune. November 27, 2023. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[4] Ibid.

^[5] “Official website biography”. Archived from the original on 2017-04-04. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[6] Ibid.

^[7] Investor’s Business Daily. “Legendary CEO Bill George Now Helps Others Find Their True North”. (2022-11-10) Investor’s Business Daily. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[8] He shares this in his books I’ve read. Also public knowledge on his official website and others like Harvard’s.

^[9] Investor’s Business Daily. “Legendary CEO Bill George Now Helps Others Find Their True North”. (2022-11-10) Investor’s Business Daily. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[10] Ibid.

^[11] Ibid.

^[12] Ibid.

^[13] Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. How has he Transformed the Scene? Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. (Last retrieved February 29, 2024)

^[14] Charlie Rose biography Archived October 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[15] Jonathan McVerry. Page Center honoring George, Ifill and Onoda at annual awards dinner”. Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, PennState. January 4, 2018. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[16] Carolyn Dewar. “Leading with authenticity: A Conversation with Bill George. McKinsey & Company. www.mckinsey.com. Last retrieved  March 1, 2024.

^[17] Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. How has he Transformed the Scene? Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. (Last retrieved February 29, 2024)

^[18] See his books: Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value (2003), True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership (2007), Finding Your True North: A Personal Guide (2008) etc.

^[19] “Official website biography”. Archived from the original on 2017-04-04. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[20] “Harvard Business School faculty page”. Archived from the original on 2007-12-06. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[21] Carolyn Dewar. “Leading with authenticity: A Conversation with Bill George.” McKinsey & Company. www.mckinsey.com. Last retrieved  March 1, 2024.

^[22] “Official website biography”. Archived from the original on 2017-04-04. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[23] Wikipedia. Bill George (Businessman). Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[24] Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. How has he Transformed the Scene? Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. (Last retrieved February 29, 2024)

^[25] Jonathan McVerry. Page Center honoring George, Ifill and Onoda at annual awards dinner”. Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, PennState. January 4, 2018. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[26] Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. How has he Transformed the Scene? Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. Last retrieved February 29, 2024.

^[27] Ibid.

^[28] Ibid.

^[29] Meet Our Team | Staff, Board, and Advisory Council”. CFK Africa. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[30] George Family Foundation. Mission & Guiding Philosophy. (last accessed February 29, 2024)

^[31] Ibid.

^[32] Ibid.

^[33] Peter Northouse. 2019. Leadership: Theory and Practice (8th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 197.

^[34] Bill George, Peter Sims, Andrew N McLean, and Diana Mayer. Discovering Your Authentic Leadership. Harvard Business Review. February 2007. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[35] Ibid.

^[36] Bill George. 2003. Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the secrets to Creating Lasting Value. John Wiley & Sons.

^[37] Bill George, Peter Sims, Andrew N McLean, and Diana Mayer. Discovering Your Authentic Leadership. Harvard Business Review. February 2007. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[38] Carolyn Dewar. “Leading with authenticity: A Conversation with Bill George. McKinsey & Company. www.mckinsey.com. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.

^[39] Marcel Schwantes. Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year Is the Best So Far for Improving Your Leadership. Inc. Nov 29, 2023 (last accessed February 29, 2023)

^[40] Anna Kim Constantino. “Harvard expert: The 5 types of bosses you never want to work for—or become.” CNBC. September 9, 2022. Last retrieved March 1, 2024.  

^[41] Jimmy Carter’s commendation of Bill George’s True North book. See Audible.com.

^[42] Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. How has he Transformed the Scene? Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame. (Last retrieved February 29, 2024)

^[43] Ibid.

50 Inspiring Living Leaders

This 50 Inspiring Living Leaders series highlights current influencers who are succeeding in leadership, integrity, family or entrepreneurship in whatever field and exhibit most, if not all, of our values of PELÉ. We value people, growth, particularity, excellence, success, authenticity and significance. These stories are largely written in terms of growth, success and significance in leadership, integrity, family and  entrepreneurship. While we do our best to receive personal references about each leader, most of our research and writing is based on literature review of publicly-available information. As authorities in leadership, we are fully aware that there is no such thing as a perfect leader, and leaders may have their flaws, but we choose to celebrate these inspiring living leaders for their achievements outlined in our series. Having said that, should you happen to have any incontrovertible evidence that any of our featured leaders does not fit our bill of an authentic leader, please write to us at info@perbiexecutive.com. Our vision at PELÉ is a flourishing global ecosystem of authentic leaders characterised by healthy growth, holistic success and lasting significance.

 

BERNARD AVLE – The Relevant Voice of Reason.

INTRODUCTION

Affectionately just called “Bernard,” even two decades ago Bernardino Avle was already an inspiring emerging African leader. Bernard is “a passionate Ghanaian who believes in Africa”^[1] and is desirous “to use multimedia tools and platforms to tell African stories.”^[2] Those who have just come to know him in the last ten or so years as a no-nonsense, no holds barred, say-it-as-it-is, voice of reason on Accra’s Citi 97.3 Mhz frequency amidst the cacophony of patronising personalities and parochial politics can be aptly described as only “latter day saints.” Welcome then, to the man of the hour, the relevant voice of reason.

Way back in 2005, Bernard was one of 15 Inspiring Young People this author penned about and published in his first (and only) volume with that title. At the time, Bernard was “the youngest of all breakfast show presenters in the nation.”^[3] Bizarrely, nearly two decades later, he still is among the youngest and arguably the best. While some of the other 15 ‘inspiring young people’ have not lived up to the promising trajectory displayed in their youth, Bernard, au contraire, has even surpassed expectations. No doubt.

Today, Mr. Bernard Avle is a broadcast journalist on both radio and TV, General Manager at Citi FM and Citi TV of Omni Media, public speaker, event MC and international conference facilitator par excellence. And for most people, it is his ability to speak truth to power, ask hard questions of leaders, analyze trending issues deeply, reason in real time and keep the feet of authorities to the fire that make him stand head and shoulders above the rest. No one, no matter how great, mighty or connected, has Bernard in their back pocket.

 

GROWTH

Christened Bernardino Koku Avle by a certain erstwhile Chief Research Analyst with the Community Health Department of the University of Ghana Medical School and his then postmistress wife, Koku had been born to them on a quiet Wednesday morning, 20^th May, 1981.  Bernard(ino) is the seventh of eight children, some half siblings.^[4]

Legon Thoroughbred

Until his graduate education in the UK (2008-2009) as a Chevening Scholar^[5] at the Warwick Business School, where he obtained his MBA in Marketing, all of Bernard’s education had been in Legon; specifically in or around the University of Ghana (UG). His father’s employment with UG explains how he commenced his basic education at the University Primary & Junior Secondary School (JSS), on the Legon campus of UG. After his JSS graduation, young Master Avle went on to study General Arts, a combination of Elective Mathematics, Economics and Geography, barely a couple of miles down the street from UG, right next door at Presec (Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary). He would then return to the UG campus in June 2001 till June 2004, as a student in the revered (or is it feared?) Departments of Economics.

First Class, A++ Student

Goals are key to any achievement in life.  Bernardino set himself a goal to get a First Class at UG. And he did! On 12^th March 2005, Bernard Avle was one of the few who graduated from UG with a First Class honours B.A. degree in Economics (and a Geography minor).^[6] Remember, it’s ‘dreaded’ Economics we’re talking about here. Bernardino typifies what this author has called an “A++” tertiary education for the last two decades.  The “A+” is for academics, and the extra and/or co-curricular activities comprise the extra plus. Bernard made his A+, a First Class in no less a subject than Economics, and had the extra plus in leadership, broadcasting, politics, spiritual matters etc.  “The chain of awards Legon Hall feted him with in the 2003/4 academic year alone included Student Personality of the Year, Award for Exceptional Contribution to the Hall and Academic Excellence Award.”^[7]

Interestingly, Bernard reveals the secret underpinning this First Class as an intentionally formed goal “specifically to prove to skeptics and even critics who believed that anybody involved in as many extra-curricular activities (as he was) on campus would automatically have mediocre academic grades.  He was bent on demystifying an almost entrenched and calcified myth.”^[8]

“Born to Lead,” Indeed

Bernard Avle, “who seems quiet from a distance, has consistently displayed such a high leadership acumen in several spheres of life: broadcasting, politics, academia and the spiritual.”^[9]  Even two decades ago, this leadership skill was duly recognized with a certificate in Leadership and Liberty by the Institute of Economic Affairs, Ghana.

As a leader-broadcaster with the university FM station on campus, Radio Univers, he even acted as News editor from May to August 2003, a leadership role which involved managing a newsroom crew of over 15 student volunteer journalists, overseeing news search, editing, reporting and casting.  He was also a trainer of nouveau fresher volunteer broadcasters.  In the 2003/4 academic year, Bernard was actually the Student Coordinator for Radio Univers.^[10] These, on hindset, were apt preparatory simulations for his role today as a broadcast journalist cum General Manager at one of Ghana’s most influential radio stations, Citi FM.

Politically, Bernard served as Junior Common Room Secretary of Legon Hall (2002/3) and was a member of the Student Representative Council’s General Assembly the following academic year.^[11]  It is noted in 15 Inspiring Young People Volume 1 how “as an academic leader he was Class Representative for his Economics Class in Level 300, during which same period he was a spiritual leader of the Legon Pentecostals Union (General Secretary) and served on the University of Ghana’s Chaplaincy Board.”^[12] So whichever way you look at it, Bernard was born, it seems, to lead…and in every field of endeavour he finds himself in.

 

SUCCESS

In 2017, Bernard Avle became Ghana;s Journalist of the Year, an award conferred by the Ghana Journalism Association (GJA). This was a well-deserved recognition of Mr. Avle’s commitment to personal excellence in broadcast journalism as well as solid leadership in that space. Since the Law of Consistency is a prerequisite to the Law of Success, it isn’t any wonder that for consistently being on radio since 2001, from the university’s Univers to the city’s Citi, Bernard had done his proverbial 10,000 hours and had become a broadcasting genius.^[13]

Broadcast Bloom to Boom

Bernard joined Radio Univers, the University of Ghana’s FM station, as a freshman and stayed the course throughout his entire four-year sojourn on Legon Campus, while many moved in and out.^[14] “For the entire period in question he hosted Exposition (a Christian talk show), Campus Exclusive (a student magazine programme) and was an ombudsman News Reporter.  From 2003, Bernard also took up the challenge of hosting View Point, a current affairs programme.^[15] Now he’s graduated to host the riveting Point of View on Citi TV too, unveiling a ‘baby face’ he used to hide behind radio. Even for his final year project work he was thinking about broadcasting: A Cost Benefit Analysis of an Expansion of Radio Univers.^[16]

Bernardino is an all-rounder but has laser acuity “on issues on technology, business & economics, good governance and social development, with his distinctive mark of a well-researched approach to any area of discussion, which translates into the piercing and relevant questions that he treats his guests to.”^[17]

One-Eyed Focus

After discovering and falling in love with the media, Bernard has looked nowhere else. He knew he was leaving campus radio to continue a career in radio at Citi FM. There was virtually no hiatus and certainly no doubt. He started out with the Citi FM news crew from July to December, 2004 and got the break to serve his first Citi breakfast on air that December as a 23-year old youth!^[18] The rest, as they say, is history.

“What do you love about broadcasting in general and the breakfast show in particular?” this writer inquired. According to Sir Bernardino, “Broadcasting has placed a privileged onus on me to play a leading part in the ongoing democratic experience, which is being spearheaded by an increasingly robust, probing, and pluralistic media.  Hosting the Citi Breakfast Show has given me the unique opportunity to be part of the mornings of many Ghanaians to ask relevant questions on the behalf of a perceptive audience.”^[19] Within four years of producing and presenting the Citi Breakfast Show, Mr. Avle had grown the audience base by over 500 per cent!^[20]

A typical day for Bernard begins at dawn: 4 am!  By 6 am the Citi Breakfast Show commences and lasts for four hectic hours. Bernard not only has planning and production for the next day to think about, but also managerial and leadership duties as General Manager. Then there’s TV—Point of View—that ends deep at night. Factor in Accra traffic, to and fro, and you can do his sleep math.

Family Fortunes

Bernard even found love, again, on the University of Ghana premises. Bernard met Justine at a YouthPower! Conference organized by The HuD Group at the Great Hall of UG in October 2005. Bernard and Justine grew very fond of each other and tied the knot in 2011. Sadly, Justine, who really manned the domestic front to release Bernard to soar for God and country, kicked the bucket one fateful August evening in 2022.^[21] Their union was blessed with five children, four boys and a girl.^[22]

The Cost of Success

It hasn’t been all rosy. Well, even roses have thorns. Beyond the wicked blow of being a relatively young widower, Bernardino has his critics. We might even say there are those who loathe him to the same extent people love him. When he lost his wife, some of the most egregious comments that surfaced were stupefying. But Bernard isn’t a target just because he stands tall today; even before he would rise, the attacks came in fast and ferociously.

In a section of the 15 Inspiring Young People that was titled ‘Choking on Breakfast,’  Mr. Avle shared how when he set off in the commercial world of radio, “The bad reviews I initially got from industry analysts were almost crushing.  Sometimes their expectations of me were rather high and in my opinion unfair. These were coupled with criticisms that sometimes left me feeling inadequate.”^[23] He admitted, “Hosting a breakfast show requires one to be eclectic in outlook, intense in commitment and consistent in delivery. Developing these traits come at a cost. My spiritual relationship with the Lord suffered initially.  How I got through? He was patient with me.”^[24]

 

SIGNIFICANCE

Awards and honors

The awards Bernard and his Citi Breakfast show have garnered include BBC Africa Radio Awards Interactive/Talk Show of the Year (2007) and two other continental awards, Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) Radio Programme of the Year for both 2013 and 2015, Ghana Journalists Association Journalist of the Year (2017), Ghana Journalists Association Best Radio Morning Show (2017 and 2018) and the Ghana Journalists Association Best (English) Radio Station (2018).

During his tenure as Operations Manager at Citi/Omni Media (Nov 2009-Nov 2013), Citi Eyewitness News was adjudged CIMG Radio Programme of the year (2011) while Citi FM’s newsroom won the Innovative Newsroom Award at the 16th Telkom Highway Africa Media Awards in South Africa (2012).

Bernardino Koku Avle has been a Fellow of The African Leadership Initiative West Africa (ALI) and the Aspen Global Leadership Network (AGLN) since 2015. Being Ghana’s journalist of the year is probably the one award that most consolidated the young man’s towering presence on the Ghanaian media landscape, cementing the influence of this voice of reason. It is no accident that this 2017 award followed impressive feats moderating the 2016 Presidential Encounter (presidential debate) and the one four years prior which was history-making with the first ever appearance of a sitting Ghanaian president.^[25]

Growing Other Leaders

Mr. Avle is also a member of the governing council of the Global Marketing Network in Ghana. As a founding director of iJourno Africa, he trains and creates opportunities for participants to practise citizen journalism and equip them with tools to cover local issues. Almost as a way of paying back his indebtedness to The HuD Group for facilitating his finding of a virtuous wife, Bernard serves on the Ghana board, inspiring and empowering holistic emerging leadership development in Africa (and  beyond). He likes to tell the youth, who he regularly mentors on various speaking platforms in Ghana, “Think like a man of action. Act like a man of thought.”^[26]

As a man who seeks to multiply himself, Bernard conceptually developed and successfully  implemented a $90,000 project to recruit, train and deploy up to 200 Citizen Journalists to cover Ghana’s 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary elections. Two years prior, he had done similarly with a $80,000 one to train 30 Citizen Journalists from 10 regions in Ghana.^[27] Other innovative social impact projects to raise emerging media leaders have included a UNICEF “Voices of the Future” one.

Gallantry against Galamsey and other Gains

Illegal small scale mining in Ghana has gotten out of hand, making nonsense of both the law and law enforcement in addition to wrecking havoc on Ghana’s water bodies, flora and fauna. In 2017, Bernard Avle together with Citi FM launched a gallant campaign against galamsey^[28] for which the Ghana Chamber of Mines awarded him and his show “for vigorously promoting environmentally responsible mining in Ghana through objective and analytical reportage.”^[29] The citation further read, “Your relentless campaign against the upsurge of illegal mining and its consequent destruction of major water bodies in Ghana is admirable and worth emulating.”

He is also “currently spearheading national campaign against lawlessness on our roads, dubbed “War against Indiscipline.”^[30] Between last year and now, Bernardino has been campaigning to raise money to support the Lower Volta flood victims of the Akosombo dam spillage, not only offering immediate relief and timely health interventions but also building permanent shelters for the displaced.^[31] Bernard serves on the board of the Citi FM Foundation.

 

 

At PELÉ

“Our problems are becoming bigger and our [leaders] are becoming smaller. It’s a tragedy,”^[32] says Mr. Avle. At Perbi Executive Leadership Education (PELÉ), where authentic and customised relationships and resources are offered to C-level executives to grow personally, succeed professionally, and become significant societally, we have conscripted this relevant voice of reason as a consultant in media and general leadership development at PELÉ. Together we hope to hone current C-level leadership as well as incubate a host of emerging C-suite executives.

 

CONCLUSION

Bernardino Koku Avle was born to broadcast; he landed in 1981 to lead. From being a First Class graduate to serving first class food for thought as breakfast on air, consistency has been Mr. Avle’s forte right into his forties. Come next year, Deo volente, Bernard would have been running the same Citi Breakfast Show for twenty years, two decades! Apart from the Law of Consistency at work in his story, is also the Law of Process. Bernard did not just appear on the national scene in a day; he had been preparing himself daily for years on campus. From campus radio to city radio, and now Citi TV as well, Bernard has succeeded at both working in and on media, a feat few broadcast journalists are able to achieve. For many prominent figures on air, an elevation to managerial or leadership roles has meant, unfortunately, being promoted to fail. Even one of his nation and generation’s finest, Bernard Avle, gets his (un)fair share of criticism and takes it in his stride. Ghana’s presidential debate moderator and national award-winning journalist, together with his cutting-edge Citi/Omni media tribe, are reshaping the African narrative, in word and by deed. A relevant voice of reason indeed.

^[1] CitiTVonline. Bernard Avle. Retrieved February 16, 2024.

^[2] Bernadino Koku Avle. Curriculum Vitae shared with the author on January 25, 2024.

^[3] Yaw Perbi. 2005. 15 Inspiring Young People. Volume 1. First Edition. Accra. Ghana: NEOpublishing, pg. 55.

^[4] Ibid, pg. 55.

^[5] “Launch of Chevening Alumni Ghana Association – News articles – GOV.UK”. Government of United Kingdom. Retrieved February 7, 2024.

^[6] Yaw Perbi. 2005. 15 Inspiring Young People. Volume 1. First Edition. Accra. Ghana: NEOpublishing, pg. 57.

^[7] Ibid.

^[8] Ibd.

^[9] Ibid, 56.

^[10] Ibid.

^[11] Ibid.

^[12] Ibid.

^[13] A notion from Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers that 10,000 hours of practice is what it takes to become a genius in a field

^[14] Ibid, 57.

^[15] Ibid.

^[16] Ibid.

^[17] “20 under 40: Bernardino Koku Avle – Business World Ghana”. Business World Ghana. 9 March 2015. Last retrieved February 9, 2024.

^[18] Yaw Perbi. 2005. 15 Inspiring Young People. Volume 1. First Edition. Accra. Ghana: NEOpublishing, pg. 58.

^[19] Ibid.

^[20] Bernadino Koku Avle. Curriculum Vitae shared with the author on January 25, 2024.

^[21] “Bernard Avle Loses Wife Justine Avle | AmeyawDebrah.com”. 2022-08-04. Retrieved Feb 16, 2024.

^[22] MyNewsGH (2022-08-04). “BREAKING News: Citi FM’s Bernard Avle loses wife Justine Avle”. MyNewsGh. Retrieved February 16, 2024.

^[23] Yaw Perbi. 2005. 15 Inspiring Young People. Volume 1. First Edition. Accra. Ghana: NEOpublishing, pg. 60.

^[24] Ibid.

^[25] Bernadino Koku Avle. Curriculum Vitae shared with the author on January 25, 2024.

^[26] Yaw Perbi. 2005. 15 Inspiring Young People. Volume 1. First Edition. Accra. Ghana: NEOpublishing, pg. 60.

^[27] Bernadino Koku Avle. Curriculum Vitae shared with the author on January 25, 2024.

^[28] “Citi FM launches #StopGalamseyNow campaign”. Citi 97.3 FM – Relevant Radio. Always. 2017-04-03. Retrieved February 16, 2024.

^[29] Allotey, Godwin Akweiteh (2016-11-26). “Citi Breakfast Show honoured at Ghana Mining Awards”. Ghana News. Retrieved February 16, 2024.

^[30] Bernadino Koku Avle. Curriculum Vitae shared with the author on January 25, 2024.

^[31] Abigail Arthur. #Relief4LowerVolta: Citi FM/Citi TV supports flood victims, organizes health screening in affected areas. www.citinewsroom.com. Last retrieved February 17, 2024.

^[32] Modern Ghana. Modern Ghana vignette of quotes.  www.modernghana.com. Last retrieved February 16, 2024.

 

 

50 Inspiring Living Leaders

This 50 Inspiring Living Leaders series highlights current influencers who are succeeding in leadership, integrity, family or entrepreneurship in whatever field and exhibit most, if not all, of our values of PELÉ. We value people, growth, particularity, excellence, success, authenticity and significance. These stories are largely written in terms of growth, success and significance in leadership, integrity, family and  entrepreneurship. While we do our best to receive personal references about each leader, most of our research and writing is based on literature review of publicly-available information. As authorities in leadership, we are fully aware that there is no such thing as a perfect leader, and leaders may have their flaws, but we choose to celebrate these inspiring living leaders for their achievements outlined in our series. Having said that, should you happen to have any incontrovertible evidence that any of our featured leaders does not fit our bill of an authentic leader, please write to us at info@perbiexecutive.com. Our vision at PELÉ is a flourishing global ecosystem of authentic leaders characterised by healthy growth, holistic success and lasting significance.

INDRA NOOYI – The Business Leader and Strategic Thinker Who Transformed PepsiCo

“No business can ever truly succeed in a society that fails.” ― Indra Nooyi

INTRODUCTION

Indra Nooyi shattered the glass ceiling with her rise to become the first woman of colour and immigrant to run a Fortune 50 company.^[1] Her achievements at PepsiCo have marked her out as an outstanding strategist and leader. She spent twenty-four years at PepsiCo and is credited with growing the American multinational food and beverages company’s net revenue by more than eighty percent during her tenure as CEO.  Her initiatives strengthened PepsiCo’s commitment to environment sustainability and  improved the healthiness of its food offerings. In June 2023, Forbes estimated Nooyi’s net worth at $350 million.^[2]

Nooyi’s amazing journey from Madras in southern India to the zenith of the corporate world in the United States is one that inspires many. 

GROWTH

Roots in India

Indira K. Nooyi was born on 28^th October 1955 in Madras (now called Chennai) in the south of India to a close and devout Hindu family.  She has an elder sister and a younger brother. Indra describes her family as a ‘traditional family living in a multigenerational home’ and although they were not wealthy, they lived comfortably and had invaluable stability^[3].  Her family was ‘supremely focused on education’ and so were keen on educating the women in the family, something that was uncommon in mid-twentieth century India.  

Her mother, Shantha, instilled in Indra and her elder sister, Chandrika, respect for their teachers, admonishing them to revere their teachers as ‘gods’. Indra recounts that often at the dinner table, Shantha “would ask us to write a speech about what we would do if we were president, chief minister, or prime minister – every day would be a different world leader she’d ask us to play”. ³

Indra had her secondary education at Holy Angels Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School, a few kilometres from her home and then proceeded to Madras Christian College (MCC) from where she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics in 1974.  She played guitar in an all-girl rock band and was an avid cricket player too.  After a tough admission process, Indra began an MBA at the Indian Institute of Management in Calcutta (IIM Calcutta) in August 1974. She was pushed towards IIM Calcutta partly by her sister, Chandrika, who having spent her days at Holy Angels and MCC with Indra did not want Indra following her to Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad (IIM Ahmedabad). “I need a break from you – don’t you dare apply to IIM Ahmedabad!” Chandrinka had warned Indra.³

After graduating from IIM Calcutta, Indra worked with Mettur Beardsell, a textile firm owned by a UK-based company, Tootal, and then subsequently with Johnson & Johnson’s Bombay (Mumbai) office. At Johnson & Johnson, she took on the difficult challenge of marketing Johnson and Johnson’s Stayfree brand of sanitary pads. This was particularly difficult in the late 1970s India when such a product was not advertised and many retailers were reluctant to stock them.^[4]

A Shade of Difference

When her sister, Chandrika, decided to leave Madras for IIM – Ahmedabad, their parents had been reluctant to allow an unmarried woman to travel that far for studies and were insistent on her marrying before leaving for college. Their mother had declared that she would fast until death if Chandrika was allowed to leave for Ahmedabad. Their grandfather’s intervention saved the situation. In many ways Chandrika was a trailblazer for Indra – her attendance of the distant IIM Ahmedabad paved the way for less resistance to Indra’s decision to attend IIM Calcutta. In August 1978, at age 23, Indra was leaving unmarried to study in a place thousands of miles away. This was not an easy decision as she recalls in the Financial Times January 2004 edition: “It was unheard of for a good, conservative, south Indian Brahmin girl to do this. It would make her an absolutely unmarriageable commodity after that.” ⁴

After reading an article titled ‘A Shade of Difference’ in the September 1976 edition of the Newsweek magazine, Indra felt the article was speaking to her. She wanted a life in global business – a different shade of what she was doing at that moment. The article was about Yale University’s new business school. In 1978, Indra gained admission to Yale School of Management in the United States to pursue a Master’s degree in Public and Private Management.

After graduating from Yale in 1980, Nooyi worked with the Boston Consulting Group for six years managing international corporate strategy projects.^[5]  From 1986 to 1990, she worked with telecommunications company Motorola, serving as Vice-President and Director of Corporate Strategy and Planning. She subsequently worked for power and automations company, ASEA Brown Boveri, as Senior Vice President for Strategy and Strategic Marketing.

 

SUCCESS

Leading PepsiCo

Nooyi sees the fundamental role of leaders as looking for ways to shape the decades ahead and helping others accept the discomfort of disruptions to the status quo.³ She demonstrated this leadership at PepsiCo.

Her journey with PepsiCo began in March 1994 as Senior Vice-President of Corporate Strategy and Planning overseeing major restructurings during her first years. She played a major role in PepsiCo’s acquisition of Tropicana Products in July 1998 and its merger with Quaker Oats Company in 2001.^[6] 

She rose through the ranks at PepsiCo serving as Senior Vice-President, Corporate Strategy and Development; Senior Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer; President and Chief Financial Officer; Member, Board of Directors, responsible for Corporate functions. Indra Nooyi was appointed President and CEO in August 2006 and Chairman in 2007.

To reposition PepsiCo for success in the decades ahead, Nooyi introduced her guiding strategy, Performance with Purpose (PwP). She introduced PwP to rethink PepsiCo to provide consumers with healthier products and to promote environmental sustainability.^[7] PwP was aimed at delivering excellent financial performance and three important goals: Nourish humanity and communities, Replenish the environment and Cherish the people at PepsiCo (Nourish. Replenish. Cherish.).

PwP tested the resolve of Nooyi as she faced resistance from some of the shareholders of PepsiCo but she remained resolute and it defined her leadership of PepsiCo. PwP influenced major decisions as well as minor decisions. For example, to show that she cherished the workers at PepsiCo, she wrote hundreds of personalised letters and notes over ten years to the parents of senior executives thanking them for raising their children well to become excellent workers at PepsiCo. She sent similar ‘Thank You’ notes to the spouses of her direct reports.

PwP influenced major decisions such as redirecting the company from junk foods to more healthier foods.^[8] PepsiCo reduced the sugar content in its products and also ended the use of trans fats. It introduced recyclable packaging and new processes to reduce water consumption.^[9] In 2012, PepsiCo won the Stockholm Industry Water Award for conserving nearly 16 billion litres of water in 2011.^[10]

Nooyi is renowned for her strategic thinking and is credited with growing the revenue of PepsiCo’s from $35 billion in 2006, when she became CEO, to $63.5 billion by 2017.^[11] The market capitalisation of PepsiCo rose by $57 billion dollars between 2006 and 2018, when she stepped down. She is also praised for mainstreaming design thinking at PepsiCo to drive innovation in the company^[12].

The many initiatives implemented by Nooyi at PepsiCo were hugely successful and the company continues to benefit from them years after her exit – she shaped the decades ahead. Her achievements have made her a celebrated business leader.

In an interview with Morgan Stanley in 2023, Nooyi advised business leaders that “You don’t inherit leadership. You earn the stripes to be a leader. Leaders have to inspire everyone in the organisation to follow them.”^[13] Indra earned the stripes with her achievements at PepsiCo and has a global following.

 The Value of Family

Nooyi sees family as a powerful source of human strength and has often touted the family she created with her husband, Raj Nooyi, as her proudest achievement. Indra was introduced to Raj by an Indian friend and after a few weeks of dating, they decided to get married. After four decades of marriage, Raj and Nooyi still debate who broached the subject of marriage. Raj and Indra have two daughters, Preetha and Tara.

Before joining PepsiCo in 1994, Nooyi had in direct conversations with Jack Welch rejected job offers from  GE (General Electric) because the offers were going to require her to move away from her family. She rejected an offer from the agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology giant, Monsanto, for the same reason. Nooyi chose to join PepsiCo in part because its headquarters was close to her home and it would take her fifteen minutes to drive to her home, and to her children’s school, from the office.

Indra in her autobiography – My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future – recounts an occasion where her mother reminded her of the paramountcy of family and her role in it. She had just been informed of the decision to appoint her as President of PepsiCo and she drove home eager to tell her family. She was however met on arrival by her mother ordering her to go out and get milk. When upon her return she complained about her mother not being interested in hearing about her appointment as President of PepsiCo, her mother replied, “You may be the president or whatever of PepsiCo, but when you come home, you are a wife and a mother and a daughter. Nobody can take your place.  So, you leave that crown in the garage.” ³

The importance of family and providing the right conditions for work-life balance underpinned many of the major decisions she took as CEO. It also drives her efforts to find solutions to the work-life conundrum. The family support structure – mother, uncles, aunts and in-laws – she had around her allowed her to work full-time. These family members supported with the care of her daughters.^[14]

 

SIGNIFICANCE

Achieving Work-Life Balance

As a trail blazer for women at the very top, Indra has been a strong advocate for the creation of the right work environment to promote women’s financial independence and security.^[15] She has been rallying businesses and governments to provide conditions that allow families to thrive.^[16] In her view, companies need to see child care and elder care as business issues.^[17] In order to create a healthy work-life balance, she has proposed a three-pronged approach focusing on paid leave, flexibility and predictability, and care.^[18]

She has campaigned for a minimum twelve weeks paid maternity leave for mothers (primary caregivers) and eight weeks paid paternity leave to be made available across the United States.  She has been pushing for the extension of paid leave to workers caring for sick family members. Indra is a beneficiary of these paid leaves. In January 1983, she was granted a 6-month paid leave by the Boston Consulting Group to enable her return to India to care for her ailing father. She ended up taking only three months but credits the gesture as saving her career as she did not have to choose between family and career. In her own words, “In many ways, it’s only when you have experienced this benefit yourself that you can truly realise its critical importance.” ³

The second prong focuses on providing workers with work flexibility—including opportunities to work remotely—and predictability in work schedules, especially for shift workers.

The third prong concerns the provision of quality, safe and affordable care infrastructure for children and the elderly. Again, Indra exemplified this at PepsiCo by resisting scepticism to spend $2 million to retrofit a floor at PepsiCo’s headquarters into a childcare facility, PepStart.^[19]

Community Service

Since Nooyi’s retirement from PepsiCo‘s board in 2019, she has been focusing her efforts and attention on community service. For her it is no longer about “achieving anything. It’s about giving back—as so much was given to me—to my community, the state, the country.” ¹

In 2019, Nooyi was appointed co-director of Connecticut Economic Resource Centre to help improve the state’s economic development strategy. Nooyi and fellow Yale graduate Dr. Albert Ko were chosen to represent Connecticut on a six-state body  in the U.S. tasked with designing a plan for the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.^[20]  In 2021, Indra and her husband Raj Nooyi donated $3 million dollars to Yale School of Public Health (YSPH) to establish the Raj and Indra Nooyi Professor of Public Health to help position YSPH as an international leader in public health science.^[21] She has made several donations to Yale and is one of her  alma mater’s largest alumni donors.

She was the co-chair of AdvanceCT, a Connecticut based non-profit organisation, from 2019 to 2021.^[22] She joined the board of Amazon in 2019.^[23] Nooyi also joined the Board of the International Cricket Council as its first independent female director in June 2018.^[24]

 Recognition and Awards

Indra Nooyi has received numerous awards and recognitions over the years. She was elected to the Fellowship of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2008^[25] and was elected chairperson of the U.S. – India Business Council in January 2008. In 2009, she was named CEO of the Year by the Global Supply Chain Leaders Group and was named every year from 2008 to 2017 on Forbes’ list of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.^[26] She was winner of Academy of International Business (AIB)’s The International Executive of the Year award in 2016.^[27] In 2021, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in the U.S.^[28]  In 2019, Indra was honoured with a portrait at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.^[29]

She has received honorary doctorate degrees from many universities including her alma mater (Yale University),^[30] New York University^[31], Duke University^[32] and University of Warwick^[33].

 

CONCLUSION

Indra Nooyi’s journey to the pinnacle of corporate America and her accomplishments at the top is one of the most remarkable stories about overcoming challenges with hard work and determination, no matter one’s origins. It is one that motivates many to strive for success in work and family life. When Nooyi stepped down as CEO of PepsiCo in 2018, after 24 years, she shared with staff some of the lessons that had guided her throughout her career. These lessons are worth repeating and are summarised below:^[34]

• Always have a clear, compelling vision for what you want to accomplish
• Focus on the short-term and the long-term
• Bring people along with you
• Be a good listener
• Be a lifelong student
• Think hard about time–make the most of your days.

 

[1] https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-on-books/author-talks-indra-nooyi-on-leadership-life-and-crafting-a-better-future retrieved 29th January 2024

[2] https://www.forbes.com/profile/indra-nooyi/?sh=66b9d4be5d6f retrieved 29th January 2024

[3] Nooyi, Indra. My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future. New York, Penguin, 2021

[4]  Encyclopedia of World Biography “Indra Nooyi Biography’’ https://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2004-Ko-Pr/Nooyi-Indra.html retrieved 29th January 2024

[5] https://www.weforum.org/people/indra-nooyi/ retrieved 29th January 2024

[6] Tempest Lynsey “ How Indra Nooyi changed the face of PepsiCo” World Finance https://www.worldfinance.com/special-reports/how-indra-nooyi-changed-the-face-of-pepsico retrieved 30th January 2024

[7] https://www.bcg.com/publications/2010/indra-nooyi-performance-purpose  retrieved 29th January 2024

[8] Novak, David (September 12, 2018). “Follow Indra Nooyi’s example: Be a leader people want to follow”. www.cnbc.com. Retrieved January 30, 2024. 

[9] https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/departing-pepsico-ceo-indra-nooyi-did-it-her-way  retrieved 29th January 2024

[10] https://siwi.org/latest/pepsico-receives-the-2012-stockholm-industry-water-award/ retrieved 30th January 2024

[11] https://www.ismworld.org/events/conferences-and-events/annual-conference/indra-nooyi/ retrieved 29th January 2024

[12] https://hbr.org/2015/09/how-indra-nooyi-turned-design-thinking-into-strategy  retrieved 29th January 2024

[13] https://www.morganstanley.com/articles/indra-nooyi-next-generation-leaders retrieved 29th January 2024

[14] Burke, Louise. “How I made $290 million while raising two children” The Telegraph 3^rd October 2021

[15] Indra Nooyi: The Indian executive who broke the glass ceiling in corporate America”. The Economic Times. August 7, 2018

[16] https://www.rolandberger.com/en/Insights/Publications/Indra-Nooyi-on-having-a-career-and-a-family.html retrieved 29th January 2024

[17] https://www.fuqua.duke.edu/duke-fuqua-insights/indra-nooyi-former-pepsico-ceo-says-families-should-be-central-designing-future  retrieved 30th January 2024

[18] https://www.marketplace.org/2021/09/28/former-pepsico-ceo-indra-nooyi-on-the-work-and-family-conundrum/  retrieved 30th January 2024

[19] https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/in-the-news/ex-pepsi-ceo-indra-nooyi-childcare/  retrieved 30th January 2024

[20] https://ctmirror.org/2020/04/13/cuomo-says-ne-governors-to-cautiously-ease-covid-19-restrictions/ retrieved 30th January 2024

[21] https://ysph.yale.edu/about-school-of-public-health/charitable-opportunities/donors-make-a-difference/the-raj-and-indra-nooyi-professor-of-public-health/  retrieved 30th January 2024

[22] https://www.hartfordbusiness.com/article/nooyi-smith-stepping-down-as-co-chairs-of-advancect-successors-named retrieved 30th January 2024

[23] https://ir.aboutamazon.com/officers-and-directors/person-details/default.aspx?ItemId=e5f7858e-89c5-4615-9236-295b354ef354 retrieved 30th January 2024

[24] https://highereducationplus.com/indira-nooyi-to-be-the-first-female-director-of-icc/ retrieved on 30th January 2024

[25] https://www.amacad.org/person/indra-nooyi retrieved 28th January 2024

[26] https://www.forbes.com/profile/indra-nooyi/?sh=45e404ce5d6f retrieved on 30th January 2024

[27] “International Executive of the Year Award”. Academy of International Business (AIB). Retrieved 30^th January 2024

[28] https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/indra-nooyi-2/ retrieved 31^st January 2024

[29] https://npg.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.2019.4 retrieved 31st January 2024

[30] https://som.yale.edu/news/2019/05/indra-nooyi-80-presented-with-honorary-doctorate-at-yale-commencement retrieved on 30th January 2024

[31] https://www.nyu.edu/about/news-publications/news/2008/may/indra_krishnamurthy_nooyi.html retrieved on 28th January 2024

[32] https://today.duke.edu/2009/01/honorary.html retrieved on 30th January 2024

[33] https://warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/olympics_weirdstones_pepsi/ retrieved on 28th January 2024

[34] https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/10/parting-words-as-i-step-down-as-ceo/ retrieved on 30th January 2024

50 Inspiring Living Leaders

This 50 Inspiring Living Leaders series highlights current influencers who are succeeding in leadership, integrity, family or entrepreneurship in whatever field and exhibit most, if not all, of our values of PELÉ. We value people, growth, particularity, excellence, success, authenticity and significance. These stories are largely written in terms of growth, success and significance in leadership, integrity, family and  entrepreneurship. While we do our best to receive personal references about each leader, most of our research and writing is based on literature review of publicly-available information. As authorities in leadership, we are fully aware that there is no such thing as a perfect leader, and leaders may have their flaws, but we choose to celebrate these inspiring living leaders for their achievements outlined in our series. Having said that, should you happen to have any incontrovertible evidence that any of our featured leaders does not fit our bill of an authentic leader, please write to us at info@perbiexecutive.com. Our vision at PELÉ is a flourishing global ecosystem of authentic leaders characterised by healthy growth, holistic success and lasting significance.

 

Goals Are Not Dead; You Are, Without Them.

Wow! Thank God for 2023! It’s still a relatively new year and I have been hearing a lot of people say, “I do not make new year resolutions anymore.” Similarly others confess, “I have stopped goal-setting.” Do not make that mistake. Let me tell you why.

First of all, this may sound cliché, but it is true: “if you aim at nothing you will hit it.” Goal setting is a timeless, universal law. It’s a principle. I am of the Covey school of thought that principles and values are not the same because you can choose to value principles or not. That’s your business; but you won’t be spared the consequences of breaking an eternal law.

To illustrate this for those in Ghana presently, because the government is inundated with debt and is at the brink of defaulting in paying coupons and principals of domestic bonds they have instituted a Domestic Debt Exchange programme that is making nonsense of people’s savings and investments. Don’t forget that usually government bonds are so low in risk that investment advisors are often tempted to call them “risk free.” Consequently, I’ve come across people arguing—and you can’t blame them—vehemently inquiring, “What is the point of saving? We should have just spent our monies and enjoyed ourselves.”

But be wary: you cannot determine right laws to rule your life by just based on a one-off, unusual, unfortunate incident. What is going on in Ghana is rare (perhaps only Argentines, Zimbabweans and Jamaicans would understand); totally abnormal. So, one cannot refute the importance of savings and investments, which is a timeless, universal law (principle) just because one bad government has gone broke. In the same way, the fact that you have set goals in the past and it hasn’t worked out for you (or others) does not mean goal-setting doesn’t work.

Let me give you five things (a point per finger) to think about:

 

(1) GOALS MUST BE SET RIGHT

In the first place, are you setting the goals right? And are you setting the right goals? Are your goals specific? If not, they are not going to work. You can’t seize what you can see. Your goal cannot be fuzzy. Then, is it a stretch goal? Many of us will only get up and run after what really challenges us. Is your goal measurable, qualitatively or quantitatively? If not, one cannot keep score and one sees no point in running around in circles. Is it attainable, realistic? If it isn’t, you won’t even start when you know there is no winning, there’s no point venturing.

How about relevant? If it doesn’t really matter immensely to you, you are not going to live by it, let alone die for it. The goal must be right. If it isn’t important to your life purpose, that you won’t thrive without it or survive without it, you aren’t really going to pursue it. Are your goals time-bound? Whether it is a weekly, monthly, quarterly or annual goal, it not only defines clear parameters but also creates a sense of urgency knowing that one doesn’t have ‘forever’ to accomplish it.

And oh! an essential part of what would be considered setting goals right and setting right goals would be to write/type them down. Many people underestimate the power of converting a metaphysical thought or idea into a physical one on paper or a device, grounding it on firma terra.

 

(2) NOTHING WORKS, REALLY

People set goals, even if they are done right and they are the right goals, go to sleep and then turn round to blame goal setting for not working. Remember, nothing works unless you work it. Even a car won’t work unless you work it, let alone things like marriage. Nothing works unless you work it, buddy. Of course goals don’t work; only people do! Are you working your goals, working on your goals, working out your goals?

 

(3) HOW ABOUT YOU YOURSELF?

But the third thing, apart from these first absolutely important duo above, is working on yourself! I keep repeating myself like a broken record and how key it is that the person at the centre of the goal-setting process grows in order to goal. So with every goal one sets, it is helpful to ask oneself: how/where do I need to grow in order to achieve this goal? There’s no successful working out goals if one doesn’t work on the person(s) whose goals they are.

 

(4) KEEPING TABS

If you’re like me, you may do all the above but just don’t make the time to periodically review how things are going with your goals. I tend to ‘go go go’ and not make the time to sit down on my blessed assurance to evaluate. Many times, it is in evaluating weekly, monthly or quarterly that one realizes things that need to be urgently adjusted or attended to in order for the goal to be hit. Imagine a pilot that doesn’t often do any course correction, they wouldn’t end up where they intended when they set out. These days there are instruments that automatically do the constant monitoring and course correction hence the plane can be left on autopilot. Until such autopilot instruments are invented for life itself, remember there is no way round the management cycle: planning (goal-setting right), implementation (working on yourself and working out your goals) and evaluation.

 

(5) GOT ACCOUNTABILITY?

A lot of us have no accountability. What are the structures you are putting in place to ensure you live by these goals? Don’t forget, as one professor says, human beings have an incredible capacity to deceive ourselves and that’s why l highly recommend that every one of you gets a coach. I have a coach, I have more than one coach. Get a coach, even if it means paying them. They would help you keep inspired and accountable; helping you keep your integrity to yourself and your goals until they are achieved.

You may also join a Mastermind this year, to find a group of goal-setters-go-getters who can keep each other motivated and mutually accountable. At YAW PERBI we will have Personal Growth, Family Foundations and Financial Whizzdom masterminds this year.

 

NO OBITUARIES IN 2023, PLEASE

So with just these five points, might you now have an idea why new year resolutions and goal setting in the past haven’t worked for you? Are you sincerely able to check all these boxes: (1) setting goals right and setting right goals, (2) working out your goals, (3) working on yourself, (4) keeping track by periodically evaluating and (5) getting accountability?

Neither goals nor goal setting is dead; rather you are, without them. Align your life and leadership with the timeless, universal laws of the universe. Don’t hurt yourself by kicking against the pricks. Goals and goal setting are not ancient landmarks you can remove and succeed. You will achieve nothing in 2023 without goals and you will have no one but yourself to blame—because you aimed at nothing, and hit it.

 

Not Investing in Yourself in Hard Times Doesn’t Make Things Any Better.

Hello! It’s a new year and guess what? It’s a blank cheque and we’ve got to grow to be able to meet our goals. I like to say, you’ve got to grow to goal. In other words, you’ve got to move from who you are today to what you could be in order to score your goals.

My YP Team and I know these are tough economic times and people are scrambling to make ends meet but I can tell you one thing for sure: your refusing to grow or not investing in your personal growth is not going to make things any better. In fact, your guarantee that you are going to come out of this time is actually investing in your personal development and professional growth today.

So, I greatly encourage and highly recommend that you to sign up for this year’s 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth Mastermind. Every year we’ve hosted a cohort, these people have moved, grown! People have changed in their lives. People have literally moved into their own homes, moved countries, moved jobs… Why? Because when you make a move, you grow; and when you grow, you move!

 

 

So, sign up today! Sign up now, right here. Even if for some reason you do not have all the money and you want to make an arrangement, we would be flexible because we know times are hard but we want you to grow. After all, if all of us grow, all of us can succeed together. Put in the investment NOW!

I have done that many times, signing up to grow when things have been hard, and I’ve reaped a harvest in the drought. If you know anything about investing then you are aware that we invest all the time–in good times and not-so-good times, when the market is up and when it is down. I would have never owned properties in Canada and the United States if I hadn’t put in nearly $20,000 in learning. I wouldn’t have been a John C. Maxwell Certified Coach if I didn’t put in some $10,000 about 10 years ago. Within months I had used the knowledge, skills and toolkit to recoup all the money back and more!

Guys, it costs something to get something. So, invest in your personal development and professional development today. Sign up for the Growth Mastermind. It’s not a matter of whether or not it will won’t work,  it does–without fail. Don’t throw your hands up in the air saying, “I don’t have the money. ”  No! Rather ask yourself, “how can I get the investment required because I need this to grow?” Let’s make it work. Yes we can! Yes we will!

Here’s to your growth, success and significance in 2023! Make the move here.

THE THING ABOUT MASTERMINDS | The ’15 Invaluable Laws of Growth’ Mastermind

What do you think you’re capable of accomplishing within the next 12 months? What if I told you you could be more and do better than what you’re thinking through the sheer power a mastermind group?

 

SO WHAT ARE MASTERMINDS?

A mastermind group (often shortened to just ‘masterminds’) is a peer-to-peer mentoring group used to help members learn together, solve problems, birth new ideas and gain clarity with input and advice from the other group members. The concept was coined in 1925 by author Napoleon Hill in his book The Law of Success, and described in more detail in his 1937 book Think and Grow Rich. As iron sharpens iron, mastermind groups are great in holding each other accountable for the goals and outcomes each member comes up with themselves.

With time mastermind groups have also come to mean, as we say at the John Maxwell Team, “a gathering of like-minded people who desire to focus on and achieve their goals through the study of a specific set of information and or material usually from one specific book or author.”

 

THE MYSTERY OF MASTERMINDS

This is a mystery Napoleon Hill discovered but which I have experienced too, that when two people get together, they somehow create a third, invisible mind whose power is greater than the sum of the first two minds—a MASTERMIND. Where two or more come together, ‘magic’ happens.

 

WHY ARE WE RUNNING A MASTERMIND AT THE DAWN OF A NEW YEAR?

Every new year is a blank cheque. Life will give you what you write on it. Especially coming after a 2020 pandemic year, starting 2021 with a group of fellow keeners who want to grow, flourish and succeed is the best positive peer pressure you can give yourself. And again right at the start of the year because as an executive education company, YAW PERBI’s value proposition is exponential growth within the first 90 days of 2021 and successes before the year is over.

 

WHAT WILL A PERSON GET FROM JOINING?

For this particular January-February mastermind, we will be going through each of the 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth and honestly responding to poignant questions that will catalyse our growth and set us up for success.

Each week we will pre-read two chapters of the book and meet every Sunday for 8 weeks to share stimulating insights, vulnerably ask questions and honestly respond, and carve out challenging assignments that will facilitate our exponential growth within the first 90 days of 2021 and success in 2020.

 

 

A SECRET SAUCE

Remember my first two questions at the beginning of this blog? First, What do you think you’re capable of accomplishing within the next 12 months? And then: What if I told you you could be more and do better than what you’re thinking through the sheer power a mastermind group? Either way, there’s a reason you are not there yet. In order to succeed, you will need to GROW! Then comes yet another question (questions are a coach’s best friend): Who are you going to travel with for inspiration, mutual encouragement and accountability to get there?

The secret to masterminds working is in the synergy it creates (as explained in the ‘mystery’ above), the loving accountability environment it creates (what you claim is your goal/outcome is taken seriously and you are lovingly held to account) and the Law of Modeling, which itself is the thirteenth law of growth we’ll be studying. The Law says: It’s Hard to Improve When you Have No One but Yourself to Follow. While all of this can happen in a one-on-one coaching relationship the amazing cross-coaching, multi-layered mentoring is phenomenal in a serious group of, say a dozen, people!

 

WHY ONLY 15 PEOPLE MAX?

So on January 3rd, join a mastermind group of 15 of us walk through ‘The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth’ together for the early 60 days in 2021. Our mission at YAW PERBI Executive Education is to offer authentic and customized relationships and resources for your growth, success and significance and that is a major reason why this is being tailored to only 15 executives.

 

HOW DO YOU JOIN?

Visit this link on this website to sign up or write to info@yawperbi.com TODAY. A 20% early bird discount applies from now till 30th December, 2020. I’m committed to your growth, success and significance. Are you? How do you intend to succeed without growing first?