We commend Shashi Sinha for fostering a culture of trust, creativity, and accountability
Established in 2022 to recognise significant achievers who are shaping the future of business and leadership in India, Pragati Leadership’s Inspiring and Successful Leadership Awards move to a focus on exceptional individuals across businesses this year. A thought leader in the space, and a trusted provider of cultural transformation training, CEO training programs, culture of management coaching, and more, Pragati brings a unique, nuanced philosophy to the space. Our paradigm is based on a quadruple bottom line, encompassing Purpose, People, Planet, and Profit. Thus, we look to recognise leaders who are able to drive a strategic vision, empower and inspire their teams, and benefit the greater good of the world while delivering on rigorous business targets.
Each year, we are privileged to have our winners selected by a panel of experts with deep knowledge and experience in the upper echelons of the challenging world of leadership.
Among the winners in the Emerging Business Leader category, as selected by our jury, is Shashi Sinha, CBO of Laqshya Media Group, a leading advertising agency focusing particularly on the outdoor, events and digital spaces, and operation in India, the Middle East, and Sri Lanka. A product of IIT Mumbai, Mr. Sinha was recognised for empowering leadership that breaks hierarchical barriers, fostering creativity, accountability and a culture of trust within teams.
Reflecting on Leadership Lessons and Lifelong Learning
Receiving his award, Sinha reflected, ‘it has been a long career already, and getting an emerging leadership award shows you that there is a long runway still ahead of you, so thank you for that!’ Mr. Sinha reminisced on how he was introduced to Pragati’s work by a professor at IIT who highlighted Pragati’s ability to Indianize management concepts. Noting that most management theories were conceptualized in the West, he said ‘in India, one of the tenets of our approach is holism, we don’t have an emphasis on the individual. If I tell you my name is Shashi, you would still look at me, mouth agape, until I tell you my name is Shashi Sinha, and I give you enough information to assign me to a category. So, making leadership ideas work in this context requires specific insights and abilities.’
The Power of Imitation and Originality in Leadership
Mr. Sinha went on to say, ‘as Susan Blackmore says in the book The Meme Machine, the gene is the smallest unit of inheritance passed on from a parent to a child and similarly a meme is the smallest unit of knowledge passed on from one individual to another. Leadership is also a body of knowledge which gets transferred from person to person. At this moment when my leadership skills are being recognised, I am grateful to the individuals whose leadership skills and abilities have helped me to become what I am today. Susan Blackmore also says that the greatest gift given to human beings is the power of imitation, and even more important, the power of being imperfect imitators. This imperfection of imitation gives rise to what is called originality.’
Learning from Mentors
He went on to share some of the lessons from leaders he has worked with that have stuck with him. ‘A leader should have an objective viewpoint, and not be swayed by the prevailing emotional atmosphere. A leader should also be a voracious reader; as a mentor of mine said, ‘jo deepak khud nahi jal raha hai, dosray deepak ko kya jalayega’ (how can a lamp that is not lit, light up other lamps?). He went on to say, ‘a leader is someone who is a jack of all trades, and a master of one. A leader’s real duty is to be interested in their people – the success of your people should be your only agenda. Lastly, impossible is nothing. A leader’s job is to convert half-chances into sure things. These are all lessons from my own mentors that I have tried to practice.’
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