A Dream Position in Retail Education and Corporate Training Sector: 'Chief Belief Officer'

We have heard of CEOs and CFOs and even CTOs who look after Technology domain. But we came across a very rare designation at the Future Group (of the Big Bazaar and Pantaloons fame which holds the most dominant position in Indian retail industry) - Chief Belief Officer or CBO. The position is held by Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik. A renowned Leadership Consultant, Dr. Devdutt uses mythological anecdotes to drive his point home, whether it is related to retail education or other corporate lesson, to his audience in India.

An exclusive interview of Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik - the Chief Belief Officer of the Future Group - only at Shiksha.com!

Shiksha: Tell us something about yourself.

Dev: After doing MBBS, I pursued medical marketing and communication. I have 14 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and health care industry with organizations such as Sanofi Aventis and Apollo Health Care. I had a brief stint as Business Advisor with Ernst & Young too. Mythology was my passion. It was there that the idea of using anecdotes from mythology to derive lessons for retail professionals and corporate leaders evolved. Advertising professionals used to seek my help to decode subliminal messages in advertisements and my perspectives and views which were based on mythology used to get most attention. Then, Mr. Kishore Biyani, the Group CEO of the Future Group, offered me the post of Chief Belief Officer.

I have penned a few books too, such as:

• 7 secrets from Hindu calendar art (Westland)
• Book of Ram (Penguin India)
• Jaya: an illustrated retelling of the Mahabharata (Penguin, India)
• Myth=Mithya: A Handbook of Hindu Mythology (Penguin, India)

I also write following columns in news papers:

• DevLok in Sunday Mid-day, Mumbai
• Management Mythos in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times
• Mythos in First City Magazine, New Delhi

CNBC did a series on my work ‘Reclaiming Mythology for Management' too. Besides, I offer my services as a storyteller, leadership coach, and culture consultant to corporations and NGOs like Star TV, World Gold Council, and Nestle India.

Shiksha: What does Mythology has to do with Retail Education or Corporate Training?

Dev: We believe in 3-B model, which means that Business depends on two things - Behaviour and Beliefs. Behaviour is tangible and measurable. Hence, managers find it easier to focus on it. They reward employees who conform to certain specified and unspecified behaviour patterns and penalize them who do not conform to it. However, large parts of our life are governed by our beliefs, values, ethics, and motives. They might be intangible and immeasurable but they certainly make the difference between a successful retail professional and an unsuccessful one.

Shiksha: What makes you so popular?

Dev: I questioned the basics of business fundamentals that were prevalent in the power circles. I think Indians are too much dependent on Western templates set for them. From education system we follow to legal setups and accounting practices, we follow whatever the West is doing. But Indians are different in many ways. Mr. Biyani and I realized that customization may be the key to be effective in Indian retail markets.

Good understanding of Indian mythology opens you up to decoding Indian sentiments. In India, we breathe diversity. We are comfortable with things that are unpredictable. I am here to figure out the subliminal changes that can make huge difference to our shopping experience as Indians.
I advocate nothing. I just question assumptions of our management theories and put forth alternate ways of looking at the same problem.

Shiksha: Do you think a study in Humanities may be able to equip students better for career opportunities that require people skills and open-ended approaches, like customer servicing or managing employer-employee relationships?

Dev: No, not necessarily but it does help as it makes you think in more emotional and cultural ways and not like an engineer.

Shiksha: I hear at the Future Group, the crux of Retail Education is that Retail is a Religion. What are the core concepts of this philosophy?

Dev: We believe that the ‘Customer is God' which means he has infinite capacity. This customer can be Internal or External Customer. External customer is the Buyer. A person who buys one shirt today can buy four tomorrow. Similarly, we come across Internal Customers in most spaces, where ‘Boss is God' or ‘Process is God'. We must keep in mind that the person who is in front office today can be the Vice President of a process 10 years later. Such things do happen in real life and it is our belief that gives us the strength to achieve it.

Shiksha: For the retail professionals, what are the attributes that define:

Who are young and in top management and those who never rise,
People who deliver more results and people who never outshine others,
People who have inspired most number of people to achieve their best and bosses who are most criticized?

Dev: There are no formulas when it comes to human beings. This is what I preach. Everyone is an individual and needs to be handled differently. If you want to join retail industry, irrespective of your level, your focus should always be ‘what the customer REALLY wants from a shop'.

Shiksha: What advice do you have for the students who are going to opt for retail education programs or management courses?

Dev: Every student should ask "Why do I drag my feet to college when education is apparently for my own good? Am I going for education or certification?" It is the answer to this question that would define whether the idea of opting for the program is good for them or not.

Keep visiting this page over the next few weeks for some interesting discussions on retail education and the innovative way in which Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik is contributing to the field.

Source: Ruchi Shrimali (Shiksha Team)

Date: 23^rd June, 2011