Introduction of CHANAKYA One of the greatest figures of wisdom and knowledge in the Indian history is Chanakya. He is estimated to have lived from 350 - 283 B.C. Chanakya is touted as the "Pioneer Economist of India". Chanakya was the adviser and Prime Mini Minist ster er of Empe Empero rorr Chan Chandr drag agup upta ta.. Chana Chanaky kyaa was was a professor at the University of Takshila (located in present day Pakistan) and was an expert in commerce, warfare, economics, etc. His famous works include Chanakya Neeti, Arthashastra and Neetishastra. Chana Chanaky kyaa is also also known known by the the name name of Kaut Kautil ilya ya and and Vishnugupta as is mentioned in his text. His famous work called Arthashastra is a classic example of statecraft and pol polit itic icss and is read read in Euro Europe pe even even toda today. y. It basi basica call lly y consist consistss of the princi principle pless of polit politics ics and how the state state works. An able ruler has to be a ruthless leader to make sure sure that that the state state works works smooth smoothly ly and effici efficient ently ly.. The legends associated with Chanakya are very interesting and provide a testimony of his greatness.
Legends: •
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When Chanakya was born he had a full set of teeth, which is a sign that he would become a king or an empe empero ror. r. But But sinc sincee he was was born born in a Brah Brahmi min n family, it was considered inappropriate. Thus, his teet teeth h were were brok broken en and and it was was pred predic icte ted d that that he would make another person a king and rule through him. Even as a child, Chanakya had the qualities of a born leader. His level of knowledge was beyond children of his age. Chana Chanaky kyaa was was thro thrown wn out of the the cour courtt of King King Nanda as he was a blunt man and spoke his mind clearly. Chanakya swore he would take revenge. Chanakya comes across Chandragupta as a young child. Even at that age, he was a born leader and showed the qualities of an able Emperor. He was the guiding force behind Chandragupta and the vital person who made him an able Emperor. Chanaky Chanakyaa adds adds poison poison in little little amount amountss daily daily in Chandragupta's food in order to make him immune to poison, lest some enemy tries to poison him. However Chandragupta was unaware about this and once gave a little food to his wife who was in the ninth month of pregnancy. She didn't survive but Chanakya cut open her belly and took out the baby. This This baby baby grew grew up to becom becomee an able able empe empero ror r nam named Bind Bindus usar ara. a. He had had a mini inister ster name named d Suba Subandh ndhu u who who did did not not like like Chana Chanaky kya. a. He told told Bindusara that Chanakya had killed his mother. With Withou outt asse assess ssin ing g fact facts, s, Bind Bindus usar araa conf confro ront nted ed Chanaky Chanakya. a. On knowin knowing g the whole story story,, he felt felt asha ashame med d at his his hast hasty y acti action onss and and begg begged ed for for for forgive givene nesss. He aske asked d Suban ubandh dhu u to go and and apologize and make Chanakya come back.
SIX STRATEGIES TO DEAL WITH COMPETITION
SANDHI
Sandhi means to get into the contract for peaceful running of business and not to harm each other. An organization should not indulge into any controversy because it affects the image image of the organi organizat zation ion.. While While enteri entering ng into into the agreement, the party should not include any of the clause which is not acceptable by the other party.
VIGRAHAM
Vigraham means WAR or COMPETITON, this strategy tell tellss that that ther theree shou should ld be comp compet etit itio ion n betw betwee een n the the organizations but these competition should not be unethical i.e one should upgrade the quality of his business to give competition but should not counter attack directly on the other party. Eg: Rin v/s Tide. Pepsi v/s Sprite.
ASANAM
ASANAM means waiting for proper time. A businessman should wait for the proper time to act upon the situations. Because doing right things at the wrong time is considered wrong. Taking the example of MC. DONALD’S, it was failed to build goodwill because MC. DONALD’S first started with non-veg non-veg foods which was not accepted by Indian people at that time.
SHARANAM
SHARANAM means providing shelter. As shelter is one of the basic need of human so as an organization it should pro provi vide de shel shelte terr to thei theirr empl employ oyee eess to moti motiva vate te them them toward towardss the work. work. Along Along with with shelt shelter, er, an organi organizat zation ion should should also also provid providee additio additional nal benefis benefis like like allowa allowances nces,, perks, bonus etc.
YAANAM
YAANAM means acquiring new territories. es. An organi organizat zation ion should should always always think think about about acquir acquiring ing new business or to expand the existing business. As expanding of business will provide high profit as well as security, if one branc branch h is unab unable le to make make prof profit it then then othe otherr branc branch h which is running in profit can balance the balance sheet of the business.
DWAIDHI BHAAVA
DWAID DWAIDHI HI BHAAVA BHAAVA means means dual dual policy policy.. Resort Resorting ing to pea peace ce with with one one and and war war with with anot anothe herr is dual dual poli policy cy.. Acco Accorrding ding to thi this stra strattegy egy one one shoul hould d make ake good good relationship with one competitor and indulge into war with other other compet competito itor. r. Becaus Becausee if there there will will be any proble problem m going going to occu occurr in the the near near futu future re then then he shou should ld have have someone to help him for surviving in the market. Chanakya applied, practiced and succeeded in each of these strategies in dealing with Alexander, Nandas, Malayakethu and many other leaders. With the help of these strategies he assured victory.
Two books are attributed to Chanakya: Arthashastra Arthashastra and Nitishastra Nitishastra which is also known as Chanakya Niti. •
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The Arthashastra discusses monetary and fiscal poli cies, welfare, int intern ernati ational onal rel relati ations ons,, and war strategies in detail.
Nitishastra is a treatise on the ideal way of life, and shows Chanakya's in depth study of the Indian way of life.
SUTRAS AND THEIR RELEVANCE IN TODAY’S BUSINESS WORLD 1) "Learn from the mistakes of others... you can't live long enough to make them all yourselves!!"
One One of the the most most impor importa tant nt sutr sutraa whic which h is rele releva vant nt in toda today’ y’ss time time afte afterr the the Saty Satyam am epis episode ode.. All All the the seni senior or mana manage geme ment nt must must have have this this sutr sutraa on thei theirr deskt desktop ops. s. Business must be conducted in a ethical manner though the motive is profits. Maximization of profit must not be at the cost of cheating people and unethical trade practices. 2)"A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first."
Most of us would have experienced this in relation to our government services. You try to be transparent and open to the government officials. officials. If If you have broken the rules, rules, but the policeman favors the person who has violated the traffic rules and offers him a bribe. In the worldly life, survival is
of great importance. Every individual must be able to apply these rules for his livelihood and survival.
3)"Even if a snake is not poisonous, poisonous, it should pretend pretend to be venomous." -
A wise person will never get angry on himself and others, he will only show anger just like a mother does to her child. Similarly, in business if your competitors are ahead of you and a threat to your market share then ensure that your market marketing ing strate strategy gy is compet competiti itive ve enough enough to entice entice the customer and give the competition a tough fight.
4)"T 4)"The he bigg bigges estt guru guru-m -man antr tra a is: is: Neve Neverr shar sharee your your secrets with anybody. It will destroy you."
I am sure sure the the pate patent nt,, trad tradem emar ark k theo theory ry in busi busine ness ss originated from this sutra. That is the reason that many corporates today patent their inventions and protect their trademarks, logos and any developments in research. In business terms any new technological innovation can be monetised and if it has to saved from the competitor then it has to be patented. 5)"There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth
This This relati relations onship hip is so true true in today’ today’ss contex contextt where where a media company supports a particular political party. Or a political party is too friendly with a media channel. It’s a relationship of TRPs and reaches to a better voter base. The bitter truth is very evident by the media coverage. We are made fools by our very own people and media. Similar example is of freebies that are being offered by the retailers to clea clearr of thei theirr inve invent ntor ory. y. But huma human n bein beings gs keep keep on accumu accumulat lating ing loads loads of stuff stuff which which is not necessa necessary ry for them.
6)" Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, what the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find sati satisf sfac acto tory ry answ answer erss to thes thesee qu ques esti tion ons, s, go ahead."
Such a beautiful anecdote given by Chanakya on planning befor beforee proceed proceeding ing with with any kind kind of projec project. t. Create Create the objective and scope of the project clearly before proceeding for execution. More often projects are started with huge investments without a clear idea of their feasibility and success rate.
7)"As 7)"As soon soon as the fear fear appro approac aches hes near, near, attac attack k and and destroy it."
We all all have have fear fear in some some form form or the the othe other. r. Fear Fear of speaking in public, fear of heights etc. Slowly and steadily we need to work on our way to fearlessness individually and professionally also. Some companies also do not come out in open fearing that they may lose business or their manpower would be captured. However, this fear has to be removed by empowering people within the company and creating a good professional reputation for the business.
8)"The world's biggest power is the youth and beauty of a woman."
In India currently our population is 50 % youth and this is the best best tim time to get get the the yout youth h to vot vote and and get get good good leade leaders rshi hip p in the the count country ry.. Today Today’s ’s yout youth h has has a glob global al outlook and is willing to take lot of responsibility for the country. Many of them run their own service projects and NGOs dealing with specific social and rural issues. Woman empowerment has also helped women seek better careers
and professions which was just a dream in the past. Women are born leaders.
9)"Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest." -Chanakya
If you look this sutra in the Indian concept it could be said as “KARMA KARO PHAL KI CHINTA MAT KARO” if one works hard or sincerely and if the result comes even negative then also one will be happy because atleast he tried and learnt something which will help him h im in future.
10)"The fragrance fragrance of flowers spreads spreads only in the dire direct ctio ion n of the the wind wind.. Bu Butt the the good goodne ness ss of a person spreads in all direction." - Chanakya
This This sutr sutraa is appli applica cabl blee to all all the the peop people le who who devot devotee themselves in the strive of the poor and the needy and empower people in all ways. In our current times Mata Amritanandamayi, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Baba Ramdev etc are doing good social service and empowering the globe help helpin ing g in peace peace effo effort rts, s, bett better erme ment nt of heal health th,, stre stress ss management. If any organization does CSR for good cause, it will help them to create good image in the minds of the people.
11) "A man is great by deeds, not by birth." Chanakya The other day I had got a forward asking me to remember the last 10 Nobel Prize winners. With great difficulty I could manage 2 names. But when i was asked to name the people who put a smile on my face, who could help me in troubled times, I could easily list 5 names. Every person has immense potential and it just needs to blossom. It is not necessary that all big brands and big organization are good, but someti sometimes mes small small organi organizat zation ionss are also also memora memorable ble because of their good deed towards their share holders, competitors, customers, etc.
12) "Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everyw everywhere here.. Educ Educatio ation n beats beats the beauty beauty and the youth." -Chanakya
The need of the hour in India is the education of the rural youth, children and women. We will pave our way for success if we empower the rural public. They are more action oriented and need direction. Only Youth can empower youth and You, so let each one of us take responsibilities in whatever way possible. An organization should take an initiative to teach the youth of rural area, as an activity of their CSR.
CHANAKYA’S SEVENPILLARS OF BUSINESSES “Swamya, Amatya, Janapada, Durga, Kosha, Danda, Mitra-Shatru” 1. SW SWAM AMII (Th (Thee Lea Leade der) r)::
He is the captain. He is the man who leads the organisation. In today’s corporate world we call him the director / CEO etc. Without him we will lose direction. Qualities of SWAMI (The Leader) under (6.1.3):
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Intel ntelli lige genc ncee and and spir pirit
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Give Given n to seei seeing ng elde elderrs
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Truthful in speech
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Not br break eaking pr promise
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Grateful
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Desirous of of tr training
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Easily appr appro oacha chable
2. AMATYA AMATYA – The The minist minister er (The (The manag manager): er):
The man who runs the show.The second person in-charge of an organisation. He is also the person whom you can depend upon in your absence. He is the man who is always in action. Qualities of AMATYA (The Minister /Manager):
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Desire to to le learn
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Retention
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Thro Throug ugh h und under erst stan andi ding ng
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Intentness on on tr truth
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Able to lead an army
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Sweet in speech (Bridge between management and staff / labour) JAN JANAPAD APADA A
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The coun countr try y
(You (Yourr
market):
Your Your area area of oper operat atio ion. n. You You basi basica call lly y dominate this territory and would like to keep your monopoly in this segment. Qualities of JANAPADA -The country (Your market):
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Stro Strong ng pos posit itio ion n in cent center er and and fro front ntie iers rs
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Capab Capable le of of sust sustai aini ning ng in in time time of dist distre ress ss (Globalisation)
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Easy to pr protect
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Provi Providi ding ng exc excel elle lent nt mea means ns of of livel livelih ihood ood (cash flow)
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Capa Capabl blee of bea beari ring ng tax taxes es and and fin fines es
4. DURG DURGA A – Forti Fortifie fied d city city (The (The hea head d office):
Your control tower. This is from where your central administrative work is done. Qualities of DURGA – Fortified city (The head office):
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Char harming (pe (peaceful)
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Benef Benefic icia iall to to men men (em (empl ploy oyee eess and and sel self) f)
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Staff de devote oted to to wo work
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Men lo loyal and Hone onest
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KOSHA – The treasury:
It is the backbone of any business. A strong and well managed treasury is the heart or any organisation.
Qualities of KOSHA – The treasury:
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Acqui Acquire red d lawf lawful ully ly by by ance ancest stor orss and and onese oneself lf (expand)
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One that that can can with withst stan and d calam calamit ity y (Ins (Insur uranc ance) e)
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One Even Even whe when n ther theree is no inc incom omee for for long long time time
6. DAND DANDA A – The The arm army y (You (Yourr team team): ):
The army consists of your team members. Those who are ready to fight for you. Your salesmen, your accountant, your driver all of them add to you team. Qualities of DANDA – The army (your team):
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Obedient
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Not Not disa disapp ppoi oint nted ed dur durin ing g marc marche hess
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Able Able to put put up with with trou troubl bles es
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Has foug fought ht many many batt battle less (exp (exper erie ienc nce) e)
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Ski Skilled lled in war war and and wea weapo pons ns
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No sepa separa rate te int inter eres estt (no (no side side com commi miss ssio ions ns))
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MITRA - The ally (friend / consultant):
He is the one whom you can depend upon for all your problems. A friend in need is a friend in deed.
SHATRU – The enemy:
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He brin brings gs out out the the best best in you you
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The The sleepi sleeping ng gian giantt will will awake awaken n (Kumb (Kumbha haka karn rna) a)
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Tast Tastee of fis fish h is bet bette terr whic which h swim swimss hard harder er
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Chal Challe leng nges es make makess you you stro strong ng
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Swimmi Swimming ng coac coach h - Push Push in in wate waterr to to lear learn n swimm swimming ing
MANAGEMENT LESSONS GIVEN BY CHANAKYA Throughout history, wars have left an indelible mark on human human psyc psyche. he. Seri Seriou ouss debat debates es have have been been held held on the the morality of and the strategic necessity for war. And yet, like every dark cloud that has a silver lining, wars too at times leave a society wiser. India is no stranger to wars. And there are many lessons to be learnt from each of those battl battles es -- manage managemen mentt lessons lessons,, to be precis precise. e. Here Here we prese present nt the third third in a series series of articl articles es on managem management ent lesson lessonss drawn drawn from from Indian Indian histor history. y. This This one picks picks out mana manage geme ment nt gems gems from from the the role role of the the redo redoub ubta tabl blee Chanakya in the rise of the Mauyra empire. Rise of the Maurya empire: Role of Chanakya (circa 320 BC) Chanakya was also known as Kautilya and Vishnugupta. He wrote Arthashastra, the ancient Indian political thesis. There are several stories on Chanakya. One of them goes like this: Alexander's invasion of western India, circa 326 BC, led to polit politica icall turmoi turmoill that that provoke provoked d Chanak Chanakya, ya, a renowned teacher of Takshila, to sew up a coalition to take on the Greek forces.He tried to convince many kings, but none agreed to his plans. Finally, he came to Patliputra, the capital of Magadha, ruled by the powerful Nanda dynasty. He went to their palace and found ten golden thrones. Nine were for the Nanda princes and their father, and the tenth was was for for the the most most lear learne ned d pers person on.. Chan Chanak akya ya quie quietl tly y occupied it. When the princes came back, they asked him to vacate the seat, but Chanakya didn't and demanded a debate to prove his supremacy. The Nandas rejected the debate demand and did did not not give give him him any any posi positi tion on..Lesson: Even Even thou though gh Chanakya was reputed and famous in Takshila, it does not mean he would be famous in Patliputra too. So his asking for the debate is justified to prove his worth. Similarly, a high performer' in one team or company needs to prove his wort worth h in a new new envi enviro ronm nmen entt to gain gain the the sam same tag. ag.
Chana Chanaky kyaa was was prepa prepare red d to face face it. it. But But he could could try try a different approach for the desired result. In the corporate worl world, d, refe referr rral al play playss a majo majorr role role in hiri hiring ng key seni senior or employees. If any of the key ministers of the Nandas had referred or introduced him, he might have got the position.
Image: Alexander the Great Chanakya did not vacate the golden seat, and the Nanda princes physically pulled him down. During this process, a lock of his hair got ruffled up. At this moment, Chanakya took a vow to redo the hair only after defeating the Nandas. They were about to punish him with the death sentence, but one of the ministers prevailed upon the princes to forgive him. Chanakya went out of Magadha and met Chandragupta, who was waiting for him.There are many stories on how Chanakya first met Chandragupta, but one thin thing g was was clea clear: r: Chan Chanak akya ya coul could d sens sensee the the inhe inhere rent nt qualities in Chandragupta and trained him as he wanted to build an empire by making him the king who could protect India from the Greek invasion.
Lesson: Fearlessnes Fearlessness, s, perseveranc perseverancee and patience patience are the
key attributes of any leader. This helps in setting lofty goals and fuels the determination to achieve them by executing agai agains nstt the the well well-l -lai aid-o d-out ut plan plan.. Anot Anothe herr great great qual qualit ity y exhibited by the leader is in spotting talents and grooming them to take bigger challenges.
Image: Chandragupta Maurya Empire Chanakya's first step was to sneak in a spy to keep a watch on the Nandas' inner circle. He knew one Jeevasiddhi, who was was inte intell llig igen entt and and coul could d do the the job. job. Chan Chanak akya ya told told Jeevasidhi about some of the secrets of the palace learnt from Chandragupta who had heard about these from his father father.Th .They ey sent sent Jeevas Jeevasidd iddhi hi to the palace palace.. Jeevas Jeevasidd iddhi hi convi convinc nced ed the the Nanda Nandass that that he poss posses esse sed d super superna natu tura rall powers by narrating the secrets hidden in the palace. The Nandas started leaning on him and consulting him before making any major decision. Slowly, he became a part of their coterie. Lesson: A background check is required for most hires, but a detailed one is a must for senior positions to ensure right
fit. At a very senior level, where information regarding
tender, bid, intellectual property and other trade secrets is invo involv lved ed,, comp compan any y must must take take step stepss to prot protec ectt it. it. Many Many compan companies ies ask people people to sign sign the non-dis non-disclo closur suree agreement and, at times, activate special clauses restraining them from joining rival or competing companies for a few years. Image: Nanda Dynasty Empire Meanwhi Meanwhile, le, Chandr Chandragup agupta ta starte started d helpin helping g the people people of Magadha. His popularity started soaring. This acted as a threat to Nandas. The Nandas had an intelligent minister in Amat Amaty ya Raks Raksha hasa sa.. He advi advise sed d the the Nand Nandas as to kill kill Chandr Chandragup agupta. ta. Jeevas Jeevasidh idhii learnt learnt of the plan plan and helped helped Chandragupta Chandragupta escape.Chanak escape.Chanakya ya encouraged encouraged Chandragupta Chandragupta to take over the Magadha throne. Chandragupta networked with people and built the Mauryan army. Most of them were were people people disill disillusi usioned oned and unhappy unhappy with with the Nanda Nanda rule. rule. Chanaky Chanakyaa and Chandr Chandragup agupta ta Maurya Maurya announc announced ed a bat battl tlee plan plan and and ensu ensure red d that that the the Nanda Nanda army army coul could d be diverted to reach a distant battlefield to fight the Mauryan army. In the meantime, a civil war erupted in Magadha. Chanakya manoeuvered popular support for Chandragupta and the Nandas were uprooted without any fight. Lesson: A peaceful handover to the new management is desirable as it saves the company from infighting that could weaken it. It would be faster and fruitful to scale new heights from a stable company rather than a wrecked one. It
helped Maurya kings to reach new heights faster not only due to their great leadership skills, but also due to peaceful transition.
Image: Chandragupta Maurya It was a monumental monumental task to build an efficient efficient government government for Chandragupta Maurya. Chanakya convinced Rakshasa to continue to be the minister of Chandragupta by sharing his grand vision of fighting against the invasi invasion. on.Chan Chandra dragup gupta ta was able able to levera leverage ge Raksha Rakshasa' sa'ss excellent excellent skills skills in administer administering ing the kingdom. kingdom. Chanakya Chanakya assumed the position of an elder statesman. One need needss to perfo perform rm and show show resu result ltss to be Lesson: One considered as a key resource. Key people are always in demand, but more so during organisation's transformation.People are the main asset. Their knowledge and expertise can provide a big leap to any activity. They shou should ld be reta retain ined ed.. Mana Manage gers rs shou should ld not not be bias biased ed in working with high performers' even if they used to work with with their their advers adversari aries es in the past, past, provid provided ed the person person maintains maintains loyalty loyalty and confidentia confidentiality lity.Top .Top performers performers are attrac attracted ted by lofty lofty vision visions/g s/goal oalss and are willin willing g to face face difficult challenges.
Image: A Magadha dynasty period sculpture while while servin serving g Chandr Chandragu agupta pta Maurya, Maurya, Chanaky Chanakyaa starte started d adding small amounts of poison in his food so that he could get get immu immune ne to it and and woul would d surv surviv ivee any any atte attemp mpts ts at poison poisoning ing.On .Onee day, day, his queen, queen, Durdha, Durdha, shared shared the food food with the Emperor while she was pregnant. She died and Chana Chanaky kyaa extr extric icat ated ed the the baby baby from from the the womb womb.. A drop drop (bindu in Sanskrit) of poison had got into the foetus, and hence Chanakya named him Bindusara. Bindusara would go on to become a great king, and his son, Ashoka, would emerge as one of the greatest emperors. Chanakya had a political adversary called Subandhu, who was was in the the cour courtt of Bind Bindus usar ara. a. He kept kept look lookin ing g for for opportunity to defame Chanakya in the eyes on Bindusara. On finding the right occasion, he mentioned to the king that Chank Chankay ayaa had had kill killed ed his his moth mother er.. Howe Howeve ver, r, the the bigg bigger er question that remains is: why did the Maurya kings keep Suba Suband ndhu hu when when his his envy envy towar towards ds Chana Chanaky kyaa was was well well known? Lesson: In a healthy organisation, diversified and divergent views can exist. One needs to have people with great skills who can deliver better results results by having a good team work and right division of work. Peer pressure helps in extracting
best from the people, but it should be managed well to avoi avoid d dest destru ruct ctiv ivee peer peer rela relati tion onsh ship ip.. If team team work work is becoming difficult, the leader should clearly identify roles based on strengths and in such a way that there is minimal overlap to avoid conflict. Team with high performers helps in better results and also cushions attrition.
Image: Teh Sanchi Stupa I which was built by Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, son of Bindusara Bindusara became angry with Chankaya. On knowing this, Chanakya walked out of the city, donated all his wealth and sat sat on a fast fast.. When When Bindu Bindusa sara ra lear learnt nt the the trut truth, h, he felt felt ashamed and asked Subandhu to apologise to Chanakya.Suba Chanakya.Subandhu ndhu hatched a plan to meet him and asked him to forgive him. But secretly, he set Chanakya's abode on fire. Chanakya was killed in the fire. Lesson: The important lesson here is a long-standing ally and staunch supporter of the Maurya empire was mistrusted by the king without understanding the complete picture. A vital resource like Chanakya was lost due to this lack of trust.Managers should demonstrate maturity by having an honest one-on-one with the employee and listening to the other side of the story with an open mind before taking any
drastic step. It takes time to build the trust, but it takes a moment to destroy it.
