The late Devakanta Baruah, who was the Congress president just before the Emergency when Indira Gandhi was the prime minister, secured a place in history for perhaps the most quotable quote in Indian politics: “India is Indira, Indira is India.” Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu is also perhaps aiming to become a part of history books, if one goes by his remarks over the weekend that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is “God’s gift to India”, “messiah for the poor” and “the modifier whom the nation needs”. There are various theories doing the rounds for Mr Naidu’s over-the-top remarks, one of which suggested that his term in the Rajya Sabha is ending soon and he had to show off his loyalty to his supreme leader.
Mr Modi is of course no stranger to sycophancy. A few months ago, BJP Member of Parliament Vijay Goel likened him to Mahatma Gandhi, terming both as “saints of Sabarmati”. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju wrote on his Facebook page recently that Nostradamus had predicted that a man will rise to power in India in 2014 and rule till 2026. And then there were reports about a three-feet tall idol of Mr Modi installed inside a Shiva temple in Kaushambi district. It wasn’t a surprise that the idol was installed by a Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader who is also the priest of the temple.
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To be sure, Mr Modi or the late Mrs Gandhi cannot claim monopoly over sycophantic followers — the Thackerays enjoyed it, though Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha took it to a mega high. The biggest example of this sycophancy was when cabinet ministers were seen wiping their tears at the swearing-in ceremony when their leader was locked in a jail in Bengaluru.
But sycophancy is not the preserve of politicians alone — it’s all-pervasive and your workplace is hardly an exception. A popular “Devil’s Advocates” cartoon showed a well-dressed gentleman telling his companion while walking into the C-suite: “I started out as a yes-man, but I’ve evolved into a plucky devil’s advocate who always sides with the boss in the end.”
But make no mistake, sycophants can be the smartest people around as they seem to know exactly how to play the organisational structure — they can see who are the rising stars and the people to link their halos to. They don’t praise the boss directly since that may put him off. But they make sure that the word gets around and it finally reaches him/her. For a start, they identify people who are close to him and praise the boss for the way he has handled a crisis or the way he inspires the rank and file. This often works. After all, which boss will ignore a “silent” admirer? Some super-smart sycophants start with a contra-view during meetings with the boss. They raise a well-argued point that is diametrically opposite to what the boss is suggesting and then slowly come around to agree with the boss’ opinion.
They do this as that’s the only way out for them — after all, sycophancy is the only cover for the fact that they often have no idea what is going on or how to do their job. The insecurity comes from the fact that they know people below them are often better, informed and more competent.
It’s all too easy for corporate leaders to fall into this yes-man culture as it’s human nature to process only confirmatory feedback about your skills, and to go deaf to the counter-evidence. Also, surrounded with men who would crawl when asked to walk can be like being curled up with a warm blanket — a sort of cosy, comfort zone. But think about it — these people may make you feel good, but they are certainly not good for you as a leader. There are umpteen examples of corporate leaders who have been isolated from reality as they are being controlled by those who are feeding his perception — for all you know, that might be a highly distorted worldview. As a result, the yes-men around him derive greater powers over the organisations, often leading to a flight of the more deserving candidates.
The way out can be simple: leaders have to avoid the common temptation of punishing people for speaking up and telling things they don’t want to hear. The irony is that most of us hate leaders who fall into the trap of surrounding themselves with sycophants, but we fail to recognise when we ourselves are falling into the very same trap when we move into the corner office or any other leadership position. The choice before Mr Modi is clear.
Disclaimer: These are personal views of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of www.business-standard.com or the Business Standard newspaper
