LEADERSHIP STRATEGY
IF YOU WANT PEOPLE TO THINK BIGGER , THEY NEED TO FEEL COMFORTABLE MAKING MISTAKES
Chairman in 2015 ,” says Alardhi . “ Our assets under management ( AUM ) have quintupled and we now have offices in nine countries offering a full range of investment opportunities . We have transformed ourselves as individuals and as a firm .” That transformation was essential , he says , identifying Investcorp ’ s hurdles as stagnation and silos .
“ The 2008 financial crisis and the 2009- 2010 Eurozone debt debacle had put the firm on the ropes . While it had mostly recovered to US $ 9 billion AUM , the experience had scarred people and made them overly cautious ,” says Alardhi .
“ The firm hadn ’ t grown in seven years . People lacked the confidence and courage to challenge the status quo . My concern was the mentality that protecting the status quo had created . Stagnation spawns silos , and silos in turn reinforce stagnation .
“ When people are trapped in silos , they look inward , rather than outward . They don ’ t share information and ideas across administrative lines . They can ’ t benefit from the knowledge others have amassed . They don ’ t have a sense of what the company as a whole stands for , let alone how their work aligns with the company ’ s greater goals . They can ’ t see the big picture .”
Painting that big picture would be Alardhi ’ s mission , as it is for any successful leader . What made his approach more impressive was the fact that he was new to the investment world . So what is his secret ? “ If you want people to think bigger , they need to feel comfortable making mistakes ,” he says . “ Otherwise , they will wait for you to think for them . That ’ s the worst outcome for everyone .
“ We need to set people up for success . It ’ s the leader ’ s responsibility to keep an eye on how people develop and to give them the flexibility and opportunity to move , both vertically and horizontally .
“ A very important caveat is that when someone messes up , it ’ s crucial to understand the reasons . Was it something within their control or did external factors influence
48 January 2024