From Command to Empathy
Using EQ in the Age of Disruption
What is the connection between empathy and leadership?
How does emotional enablement help to meet business goals?
Can an empathetic approach to management improve employee productivity amidst increased stress levels, competitiveness and longer working hours?
Does the onus of creating an emotionally mature company culture lie only with top management?
FROM COMMAND TO EMPATHY ADDRESSES THESE AND OTHER IMPORTANT QUESTIONS, CENTERED ON WHAT MATTERS THE MOST – THE HUMAN DIMENSION.
Suman and Avik bring a symphony of their experience and in-depth research to produce a masterpiece. I took away many lessons from the book. The one that lasts in my memory is about the tool kit of - Being mindful, being realistic, being reflective, and being empathetic. This can be a text book for next-generation leadership which combines Effectiveness with Empathy.”
— Mohandoss T. CEO CompassMet Consulting, ex-SVP, Fidelity Investments
Salient Points:
→ From Command To Empathy, Using EQ in the Age of Disruption, authored by Avik Chanda and Suman Ghose, was published by HarperCollins India December, 2017.
→ The book has received rave reviews and was on Amazon Best Reads List in April 2018. See below for Praise for the book, Customer Reviews and Press coverage.
→ This is the most important business book in recent times to address the need for Emotional Intelligence in the Indian workplace.
→ The book includes research, personal experiences, case studies, self-scoring exercises and assessments.
→ EQ being an indispensable element in all aspects of business, the learnings from the book are equally relevant across all age and grade-groups - students pursuing business studies, millennials, managers and senior leaders.
Synopsis:
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As the world witnesses higher levels of globalization, technological disruption and transient customer needs, organizations are struggling to keep pace with the change. Coupled with that, the workforce is increasingly dominated by millennials who seek purpose and empathy – a phenomenon top management grapples with. Most employers’ understanding of this change is restricted and traditional strategies used to address challenges often overlook the human element.
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What is the connection between empathy and leadership? Can an empathetic approach to our relationships at the workplace help us achieve more? Does the onus of creating and sustaining a supportive culture lie only with management? There is an urgent need to move away from traditional command-and-control style of management towards an organizational culture that is inclusive, which fosters trust and focuses on employee empowerment.
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Avik Chanda and Suman Ghose draw from real-life examples and their deep industry experience, as well as research on organizational behaviour and neuroscience, to arrive at a framework of EQ suited to the Indian workplace. From Command to Empathy demonstrates how to inculcate and use emotional maturity in workplace situations, with the help of anecdotes, case studies, questionnaires and self-scoring exercises, to enable readers achieve both professional & personal goals.
Author Profiles
Avik Chanda holds a graduation degree in Economics from Presidency College, Kolkata and a Masters from the Delhi School of Economics. He started his career in journalism and then moved on to management consulting. He has spent over two decades working with Fortune 500 companies, as part of his tenure at PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte. He has a successful track record of playing key organizational and leadership roles, with a focus on technology implementation, competency building and business development. Presently, Avik works as an independent consultant, advisor and trainer. He has a solo exhibition of paintings and his poetry has appeared in over 20 international literary journals and anthologies, including Orbis, Aesthetica, Stride Magazine & Queen’s Quarterly. Avik’s debut novel, Anchor, was published in 2015 by HarperCollins, to wide critical acclaim nationally. Avik is a regular feature at literary meets and book festivals, and his forthcoming book is a biography.
Suman Ghose holds an engineering degree from Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur & an MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He has over two decades of corporate work experience having worked in some of the world’s top multinational companies such as Cadbury’s, Intel, Philips and PricewaterhouseCoopers. His experience spans areas of Competency Development, Practice Building, Program Management, ERP Consulting, Business Consulting & Logistics. Suman is co-founder of Inroads Leadership Development (www.inroads.co.in), which equips organizations to achieve great performance and meaningful growth by building critical leadership skills. Suman is qualified as a Coach from Erickson Coaching International, ICF accredited Coach training program. His rich corporate background, coupled with his passion for teaching and interest in neuroscience-based holistic wellness, enable him to guide people towards self-mastery and high-performance mindset.
How do I know if I will like this book?
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Do you remember saying something hurtful to a loved one in the heat of an argument, only to regret it later? Or held back being fully honest with a friend, fearing it’d ruin your friendship? Have you fallen prey to road rage, told yourself that you wouldn’t repeat the same mistake, and then gone ahead and done it again?
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At work, have you wanted to speak to a colleague about his rude behaviour, but stopped yourself because the other person might not take it well? Do you feel your equation with your team members leaves something to be desired? Do you wish you had a few colleagues whom you trusted implicitly and could reach out to without any apprehension, during difficult times?
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As a leader, do you believe you are quite approachable – and yet your team members don’t necessarily share that view? Do you get the feeling that you steered a meeting well but found out later that the participants thought otherwise? Have you felt that your department’s stretch target, instead of motivating your team, has instead had the opposite effect?
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At a purely personal level, are you living true to yourself? Are you achieving your goals? Do you have clearly defined goals or are they more of a wish-list? Do you struggle to respond when asked what your key strengths and weaknesses are?
IF SOME OF THESE SCENARIOS RESONATE WITH YOU,
THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU.
Praise for "From Command to Empathy":
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‘A timely book… should be a companion for leaders as well as their team members’ - Deb Deep Sengupta, President and MD, SAP India
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‘From Command to Empathy is essential reading for employees and their leaders.’ - Manish Sabharwal, Board Member, Reserve Bank of India & CEO, TeamLease
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“[The book] will provide a direction to the younger generation of future CEOs on how to bring in a culture that combines heart and the mind.” - Harish Hande, Chairman, SELCO India, Ramon Magsaysay award winner and chosen by Business Today as one of the "21 young leaders for India’s 21st century"
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"An essential book for our times!" - Hitesh Oberoi – Co-Promoter, MD and CEO, Naukri
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"One of the best books I have read on bringing EQ into the workplace." - Prasad Kaipa, CEO Coach, Board Member, Indian School of Business, co-author of “From Smart to Wise“, TEDx Speaker
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"If one practices a fraction of what is being read, will see a sea change in their work life and personal life. - S V Nathan, Chief Talent Officer, Deloitte India
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"Provides us with insights about how to get the best from people and organizations.” - Sourav Mukherji, Dean and Professor of Organization Behaviour, IIM Bangalore
Customer Reviews
Average rating is 4.9 out of 5 stars on Amazon.
For details, click here.
Press Coverage
YourStory.com: EQ Series
Part 1 - The Need for Emotional Intelligence. Click here to read
Part 2 - How a company's success hinges on its emotional enablement. Click here to read
Interviews
Workshops
The authors hold talks and workshops around the book. These are highly experiential in nature, where participants can internalize what is Emotional Intelligence, articulate the importance of it, understand the barriers to EQ and learn practical tips on how to enhance EQ on an ongoing basis, all while having fun.
Some Workshop clients:
Citibank
SBI
Nasscom
Webel
IIM Bangalore
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Candid Marketing
Myra Business School
IFIM Business School
