If 2020-21 were the years that disrupted and revolutionised work, 2022 is when the ‘new normal’ got cemented and seeped into the DNA of organisations. 2022 is also the year when leaders crossed the rubicon into a new realm of thinking and acting on challenges and seizing opportunities. What can leaders expect in 2023?Which leadership behaviours are going to be crucial for their growth and success? How will leaders balance empathy and high performance, seed a strong culture, combat mental health challenges, drive inclusion, leverage technology in the year 2023.
To discuss this, we invited Satya Raghavan,Director, Marketing Partner, Google India for our final edition of the LinkedIn Live series The Leaders’ Cafe for 2022 for some crystal gazing and looking at leadership trends that will drive 2023.
Summary
- Building the people reservoir –
One of the biggest things that will dictate the coming decade is that every manager is actually now not just a line manager, but also a people manager. In that we might have actually created a reservoir of people development that was not happening earlier. - Building a coaching culture inside the org. –
There is an opportunity to actually find coaches within companies and tap into those skills. There are some people who would actually enjoy looking out for people and going that extra distance and there is an opportunity for HR managers to structure these programs - Building an inclusive culture –
Culture should not be viewed as static, but rather as constantly evolving and embracing new perspectives and people. There are more women in the workplace than ever before and that they make better managers and problem solvers. While building a company culture, it is important to maintain diversity, which is more multi-dimensional in India compared to the West. Satya emphasised the importance of fusing together different dimensions of diversity such as language, social background, and upbringing to build a sense of belongingness in the workplace. - Balancing empathy and high performance –
Satya suggests that it is important for individuals to step back from the pressure and demands of their work and take time to learn. He shares that the travel industry has begun to thrive again, but also that unpredictable situations will continue to arise in the future. He anticipates that companies will experience triple-digit growth in the coming years, but caution that this may lead to challenges in the future. He emphasizes the importance of finding a balance between high performance and empathy and suggests that the next few years will be a valuable time for learning.
Full Transcript
Gatik Chaujer:
All right, everyone. Welcome. Welcome. Welcome to The Leaders’ Cafe, our concluding event for 2022. I am excited, I am happy and I’m looking forward to this chat with a leader that I have enjoyed listening to over the last few years. I’d like to take a moment to quickly welcome Satya Raghavan from Google. Satya is a senior accomplished leader at Google with more than 20 years of experience. While in his role, he leads and heads marketing, I’ve personally experienced him to be somebody who’s extremely people oriented and very invested in developing people. And I say that’s out there because of our association with you being the sponsor for one of the women leadership programmes that we ran. And every time we’ve heard you speak, it’s just been such great insights that you’ve brought to the conversation.
Satya:
Yeah, thank you so much. I was very keen to do this, primarily because I’ve loved interacting with you, Sandra and everyone else at TransforMe. The programme that you refer to is the signature programme within Google called Evolve, where we are focusing on women managers, and future women leaders and how is it that we can train them? How is it that we can give them exposure to various perspectives and various different ways of growing themselves as leaders, and this is something that me and a few of my colleagues kind of put together last year, it’s in its second year, this year, and we did it in the thick of the pandemic. So it’s all virtual, and you know, people haven’t had the opportunity to meet each other. But this year, it’s become even better. We are back in our offices. And we are firmly on our way to ensuring that our talent has the best possible investment from Google to help them shape their careers. So yeah, it’s an absolute pleasure. I do enjoy the difference that TransforMe brings to the table. I have worked with a lot of companies who do a lot of capability building programmes but I liked the human touch that all of you brought to the table. So it’s a pleasure to do this.
I do enjoy the difference that TransforMe brings to the table. I have worked with a lot of companies who do a lot of capability building programmes but I liked the human touch that all of you brought to the table
On Building the Reservoir of People Development
Gatik –
Thanks so much, Satya. The way I was thinking we could do this it will be helpful to reflect on the past before you speak about the future.I’d love to hear from you what have been some of your key reflections from 2022, from a leadership perspective, what have been some things that have shaped leadership and shaped work in 2022?
Satya –
Yeah, absolutely. I’m glad to speak about this. And again, let me take a few steps back and actually go back to 2019, which is when we were all getting ready for this magnificent decade to come, which is starting in the 2020s in that sense, but our best laid plans didn’t exactly work out because of the pandemic. All of us suddenly, around the month of March 2020, were really faced with this decision called working from home. And there are entire industries where people actually work from home. And they’re supremely productive. But a whole lot of industries just didn’t know what to do. And it was like the biggest challenge we are possibly going to face in the next few years is what we’ve gone through in the last two years. And I think we all surprised ourselves. And we discovered that it is possible. In some cases, and in some industries like ours, we realised that we actually ended up being even more productive. But we also discovered that there’s a flip side to being super productive, which is, you know, sometimes you don’t know when to stop in the evening. Because everything seems to be, you know, one continuum in that sense. So I think midway into 2020, we realise that, okay, we are productive, but it looks like we need to start thinking a little bit more about our well being, we all started thinking not just about health, but also about wellbeing. In that process, one of the biggest things a lot of people discovered is that earlier the construct was that, you know, human resources, or the people team was the one who took care of your well being. But during the pandemic, I think every manager, right, every line manager, every marketing manager, every production manager realised that, no, actually, they are the Human Resources Manager for their team. And a whole lot of people suddenly, you know, started to develop a muscle that was otherwise pretty dormant. At Google, People Development is actually a core OKR of every manager. So while we have a fantastic human resources team, and a People Operations team, and so on, every manager has always been using that muscle. So I think, I think at Google, it gives us an opportunity to flex that muscle even more. Because suddenly, we were thinking about more dimensions than ever before. And, you know, how do we make our managers even more capable? How do we impart training to them? And that’s how we connected and you know, we did the entire programme during the pandemic. So I think one of the biggest things that I feel will dictate the coming decade is that every manager is actually now not just a line manager, but also a people manager. And in that I feel that we might have actually created a reservoir of people development that was not happening earlier. We will always look at it as something that we would outsource. But I feel having done that for a couple of years, a whole lot of people are going to realise that hey that’s something that comes to us a whole lot naturally. My dad would always tell me that only the wearer of the shoe knows where it bites. As the line manager, you are the one who knows your team the best. You’re the one who knows what skills one member of your team needs most. So my message would be, you know, exercise that muscle, you know, take on people development as an OKR, whether you’re a line manager, or whether you’re a human resources manager, I feel it’s good, that there’s gonna be so many more eyes on, you know, the newer generation, and they’re gonna get skills and capability development from many different perspectives now.
So I think one of the biggest things that I feel will dictate the coming decade is that every manager is actually now not just a line manager, but also a people manager. And in that I feel that we might have actually created a reservoir of people development that was not happening earlier
Gatik –
I love what you said. That’s so true. And as you think of managers and leaders, obviously we’re the best people to know where the pain points of our people are. And I think that’s so powerful. And I think one thing that I’m taking away from what you said in the first one, is that the the analogy of that reservoir that you said that has been built, I think that’s so powerful, because if in the last one or two years organisations and people, managers and leaders have started flexing that muscle, then in a way organisations have created that reservoir. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]My only hope and fear is that people realise that that reservoir exists and continue to utilise those skills as the world changes again and don’t fall back to the old normal.
Satya –
And I think the opportunity now is to structure that people reservoir. For example, you would have always heard about people, you know, maybe at slightly higher levels of management, seeking external coaches. But now, I think the opportunity is to actually create coaches within companies and tap into those skills. I mean there are some people who would actually enjoy looking out for people and going that extra distance. And they will actually make for very good coaches. So as an HR manager or an HR leader, the opportunities to then structure programmes within your organisation and draw on the best of the folks who are willing to give that extra time, willing to go the extra mile, and actually let them become coaches for the rest. And that also developed a whole lot of other skills in the coach itself. So I think it’s a win-win situation in that sense. Now’s the time to structure a whole lot of these things.
On nurturing stronger human connections to build effective teams
Gatik –
Yeah, Ilike what you said because as we speak to some of our clients as well, during these leadership interventions with them, we do coaching with more and more organisations now. And it’s actually quite interesting, more and more organisations now want their leaders to be more involved in the journeys than ever before. Because I think to your point, they’ve realised that that’s a reservoir that exists. And we’ve got to leverage it as internal coaching programmes, mentoring programmes, so on and so forth.
And if he were to just take a pause and say, Alright, let’s sit here, and let’s do some crystal ball gazing here. And as you look at 2023, what is it that you are most excited about specifically in the space of leadership? When you sit here and you look at 2023, from the Google lens, from your leadership lens? What is it that you’re most excited about? I’m curious to know that now.
Satya –
Yeah, I think one of the other things that really happened in the pandemic was exactly what we’re doing right now. This conversation is going to be watched by more people, than if we had done it in a closed room setting. The kind of technology that we all know how to access, whatever platform you’re using, allows you to actually reach so many more people, right. So I think that’s one thing, which I feel will multiply that reservoir of coaching that you can do.
The second thing really is that I feel, during the pandemic, whenever we would do this kind of conversation, virtually, we’re using a background screen today. But otherwise, you actually were able to see into the other person’s life. Right? In that sense, you were actually transported into their living room. In that sense, you became intimately aware of sometimes the kind of settings, they were in their families. I mean, there were so many instances when my daughter would, you know, come in, you know, sit literally on my lap and chat with somebody in my team and things like that. So I feel we got to know each other a lot better. Again that allows us to think about people very differently and know so much more about them. We often hear that as a manager, you should know the birthdays and the names of all the children. But suddenly, you knew that, right, you didn’t have to make an effort. They were right in front of you. So I feel that now that we’ve kind of come back, our conversations are actually a lot more interesting. Because people know who you are, and people know where you’re at. And people know where you’ve come from, a whole lot of people actually moved to their native places. So suddenly, you actually got to see where they were actually where they grew up. So I mean, I am fascinated by all of those things. And I feel that that’s just made us better teams. Now that we’ve come back, we are able to empathise with each other a lot more. So yeah, I feel that I’m excited for what technology can do. And I’m excited for what, you know, human connections, and stronger human connections can do for the future.
We often hear that as a manager, you should know the birthdays and the names of all the children. But suddenly, you knew that, right, you didn’t have to make an effort. They were right in front of you. So I feel that now that we’ve kind of come back, our conversations are actually a lot more interesting. Because people know who you are, and people know where you’re at. And people know where you’ve come from, a whole lot of people actually moved to their native places. So suddenly, you actually got to see where they were actually where they grew up. I feel that I’m excited for what technology can do. And I’m excited for what, you know, human connections, and stronger human connections can do for the future.
Inclusion at Work - On Nurturing Belongingness in 2023
Gatik –
Yeah, I think that’s all up to you. I think somebody had shared this with Sandra once, that when we do these things, virtually, it’s literally like, I’m inviting you into my house. You know, and we’ve literally invited so many people to our houses. And yeah, I think leaders have understood the context of people better.
The other side of that is we see a lot of organisations talk about, maybe they’re struggling, maybe they’re not, but they talk a lot about the focus on belongingness.
And I think that’s become increasingly an important thing, right, from diversity to inclusion to a sense of belongingness. And this is just spinning off from what you said. While the future and technology is going to enable that and you’re excited about how technology can build. But how do you see belongingness? Or the focus on belongingness? In the year 2023? What role do you see leaders playing there?
Satya –
So you know, we saw this in the first part of the year in 2022. It was, I think, around May, when we all decided that, you know, will start coming back to work, and we started doing it in a hybrid manner. And till date at Google, you know, we are coming in three days of the week, and working from home the other two days, because a whole lot of operational things that happened during the pandemic, you know, some people moved to different cities, and you know, all of that is still coming back, right?
So I feel these six to 12 months are actually very important in reestablishing whatever culture you had in the past. But necessarily, reimagining culture is not just what existed in the past. But, you know, adding to it, and letting it transform a little bit more. I feel that is an important challenge for all leaders, whether you’re the CEO or the manager. I think we have to figure we have to, we have to allow for the fact that this was a difficult period, and people changed, and people evolved, and now they’re coming back. So it’s going to be a little more difficult. So how do you then create that sense of belonging, and I feel that that the enabler for belonging is actually culture in that sense. And at Google, there’s a lot of emphasis on not just culture, but what we call culture add, where, you know, as we hire new people, How can their culture add to existing culture, right? I think as leaders, we should not think about culture as being static, but culture as being, you know, enveloping and always, you know, growing and embracing, whatever newer people bring. So, and when I say newer people, it’s also people who are coming in with perhaps a different perspective now in their minds, having gone through the last couple of years, in that sense. So I think culture is fundamental, allowing that culture to, you know, envelope and grow is then even more important, right.
And I think one of the things that all of us should think about, in today’s day and age, even harder, is that there are elements, like diversity, are elements like equity, or elements like inclusivity.
Reimagining culture is not just what existed in the past. But, you know, adding to it, and letting it transform a little bit more. I feel that is an important challenge for all leaders, whether you’re the CEO or the manager. I think as leaders, we should not think about culture as being static, but culture as being, you know, enveloping and always, you know, growing and embracing, whatever newer people bring. So, and when I say newer people, it’s also people who are coming in with perhaps a different perspective now in their minds, having gone through the last couple of years, in that sense. So I think culture is fundamental, allowing that culture to, you know, envelope and grow is then even more important, right.
I feel there are, there are so many more women in the workplace now than ever before. And I have always maintained that, that women actually make for much better managers, right. I’m putting it out there. Women also make for much better problem solvers in that sense. So I feel that you know, as you’re building culture, however, you also may make sure that you know, you maintain great diversity and diversity is a concept that has come down from the West, I would say right, but I think there it also tends to be slightly more uni dimensional. In India, diversity is actually multi dimensional, right? We have people who speak different languages, who come from different strata of society or different upbringings, right. So all of that, I feel is what we it’s gonna be very important in this decade, to kind of fuse together and build belongingness using all of these dimensions.
Gatik –
And I love I know we started the conversation from belongingness. Coming back to you so that I really connected with this one thing that you said that in the future, and even now, we need to stop seeing culture as being static. And connected to that, of course, you spoke about the need, you feel is going to continue in 2023, the focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. And we heard your views around women being better managers and better problem solvers. And I connect with that. But I’m just curious, is there an anecdote behind that?
Satya –
My mother ran a large team. And I’ve always seen the way in which she would manage her people. So in a lot of ways. You know, I saw an experienced woman manager at a very young age in my life. Most of us probably meet women managers when we are in our 20s in that sense, but to me, it was, it was not a new thing, when I started working in that sense, because I’d seen my mom do it for about, you know, 30 odd years. I even remember a time when there was a lockdown in her factory. So she moved her entire team to our house. So they were like, 30 people parked in our house for like, three months. To me, that’s a great example of problem solving. Work has to happen, no factory. So hey, get them home, right and make things happen. So I started from a very young age in that sense. My earliest manager, when I started working, was a woman leader. And I learned so many things from her. There were two startups that I’ve done in my life. And at both times, my co-founders were women. So in that sense, I have been very lucky to learn from some amazing people in that sense, and I’ve seen them very closely. So I know I know it when I say it.
On nurturing stronger human connections to build effective teams
Gatik –
Yeah, Ilike what you said because as we speak to some of our clients as well, during these leadership interventions with them, we do coaching with more and more organisations now. And it’s actually quite interesting, more and more organisations now want their leaders to be more involved in the journeys than ever before. Because I think to your point, they’ve realised that that’s a reservoir that exists. And we’ve got to leverage it as internal coaching programmes, mentoring programmes, so on and so forth.
And if he were to just take a pause and say, Alright, let’s sit here, and let’s do some crystal ball gazing here. And as you look at 2023, what is it that you are most excited about specifically in the space of leadership? When you sit here and you look at 2023, from the Google lens, from your leadership lens? What is it that you’re most excited about? I’m curious to know that now.
Satya –
Yeah, I think one of the other things that really happened in the pandemic was exactly what we’re doing right now. This conversation is going to be watched by more people, than if we had done it in a closed room setting. The kind of technology that we all know how to access, whatever platform you’re using, allows you to actually reach so many more people, right. So I think that’s one thing, which I feel will multiply that reservoir of coaching that you can do.
The second thing really is that I feel, during the pandemic, whenever we would do this kind of conversation, virtually, we’re using a background screen today. But otherwise, you actually were able to see into the other person’s life. Right? In that sense, you were actually transported into their living room. In that sense, you became intimately aware of sometimes the kind of settings, they were in their families. I mean, there were so many instances when my daughter would, you know, come in, you know, sit literally on my lap and chat with somebody in my team and things like that. So I feel we got to know each other a lot better. Again that allows us to think about people very differently and know so much more about them. We often hear that as a manager, you should know the birthdays and the names of all the children. But suddenly, you knew that, right, you didn’t have to make an effort. They were right in front of you. So I feel that now that we’ve kind of come back, our conversations are actually a lot more interesting. Because people know who you are, and people know where you’re at. And people know where you’ve come from, a whole lot of people actually moved to their native places. So suddenly, you actually got to see where they were actually where they grew up. So I mean, I am fascinated by all of those things. And I feel that that’s just made us better teams. Now that we’ve come back, we are able to empathise with each other a lot more. So yeah, I feel that I’m excited for what technology can do. And I’m excited for what, you know, human connections, and stronger human connections can do for the future.
We often hear that as a manager, you should know the birthdays and the names of all the children. But suddenly, you knew that, right, you didn’t have to make an effort. They were right in front of you. So I feel that now that we’ve kind of come back, our conversations are actually a lot more interesting. Because people know who you are, and people know where you’re at. And people know where you’ve come from, a whole lot of people actually moved to their native places. So suddenly, you actually got to see where they were actually where they grew up. I feel that I’m excited for what technology can do. And I’m excited for what, you know, human connections, and stronger human connections can do for the future.
On Marketing Trends in 2023
Gatik –
You also lead marketing. That’s one of the spaces that you’re in and curious to hear what’s within that? How do you see marketing? What top three to three recommendations for leaders?
Satya –
As a marketer, let’s say you’re a brand manager, CMO for your particular product. Most people, most marketers, were very comfortable with the intersection of creative and media.
So the marketers job was okay, I needed to know my customer, I needed to figure out the best medium, or media to reach them. And I need to come up with the best creative to make that happen. But what has happened in the last two or three years, even more, is I feel that it’s no longer just two boxes, marketers should think about at least four boxes. One box is good old media and you know, whether it’s digital or television or whatever, the other box is your creative. The third and fourth boxes are very interesting. One is a technology box. And the other is a content box. I’ve created a new word at the Quadri section, or you know, the intersection of all of these four boxes is where you know, all the magic can happen for your customer. Suddenly, marketers know that if they start playing with two, three or four of those boxes, they will realise that your ability to actually solve a problem for your consumer improves. We’re pretty much at a tipping point. Marketers are perhaps never the most tech savvy in that sense. But increasingly, the whole lot of marketers have realised that and it’s such a simple thing to understand. It’s not even, you know, rocket science in that sense. It’s just simple technology in that sense. And when they put all of these four boxes together, they’re actually creating a beautiful space in the middle where they’re able to really efficiently innovatively reach out to their customers. And earn not just drive not just a lot of sales, but also earn a lot more goodwill. So I feel that the Quadri section of these four boxes, which is media, technology, creative and content is actually pretty much redefining the way marketing will happen in the future.
I feel that the Quadri section of these four boxes, which is media, technology, creative and content, is actually pretty much redefining the way marketing will happen in the future.
On Building A Culture of Learning From Failure
Gatik –
I love that. Can you share how leaders in Google perceive failures when products don’t do well?
Satya –
I think that’s a great question just how our failure is dealt with.
In the olden days, it was never apparent that a product failed. We all knew when the product was successful because that’s the only thing that you saw on the shelves in that sense. But given how technology and businesses have grown, companies like Google, and a whole lot of other companies are putting products out there. Successes and failures are evident today. So I think we’re living in a very interesting time. So as a leader, what that means is that you have to treat every product launch, every product in every the lifecycle of a product as a way to constantly learn. A failure today is actually teaching you a lot more than a success will. Creating a culture where failure actually teaches you and makes you a better team, or a better person is, I think, very important for a leader. And, that’s something that I have observed a whole lot of tech companies do very well. They don’t say that, Oh, that product failed, and you’re fired, right? That’s the worst thing you can do. Why? Because all that learning is then fired, right? You’re essentially firing all that learning. So how do you make sure that you’re able to get teams to understand what is the true meaning of failure is what as a leader you ought to be doing.
Creating a culture where failure actually teaches you and makes you a better team, or a better person is, I think, very important for a leader. That’s something that I have observed a whole lot of tech companies do very well. They don’t say that, Oh, that product failed, and you’re fired, right? That’s the worst thing you can do. Why? Because all that learning is then fired, right? You’re essentially firing all that learning
Gatik –
Yeah, I think there’s this very interesting. I think this has been a fabulous chat. I’ve enjoyed every moment of this. I’ve been waiting to ask you this is really around, you know, with everything happening again, sitting here, crystal ball gazing. What are the top two or three specific leadership behaviours that you feel will become crucial for leaders in 2023?
Satya –
I’m just going to reiterate some of the things that I said. I think one, being long on your people and your business. I feel it is very important for this decade.
India as a country is going to be a lot more exposed to what is happening around the world as we go down the years and the decades in that sense. Creating a culture where you can go long on your people and long on your business becomes very important. And the second thing really, is how do you create a culture that embraces diversity, embraces inclusivity that, you know, builds an equitable growth organisation for your entire company, it’s just some time, it’s just something that every leader has to consciously invest in. So go along, and think of culture as something that will keep expanding over time. And let’s just not be too hard on ourselves. Let’s learn from our mistakes. Let’s step off that treadmill for a bit. Spend more time with your people and get to know them a little bit more. And then great work will happen there.
Gatik –
That’s beautiful. Really nicely summed up. So thanks once again, Satya for making time and joining us for this Leader’s Cafe Trendspotting 2023
