Lessons that Universities do not teach

Rohantha ATHUKORALA

When graduation time comes annually of our alma mater - The Chartered Institute of Marketing, it sure is emotionally tough as invariably a youngster calls to inform that one has won a World Prize or a Sri Lankan Prize or that one is graduating to begin life in the real world of business and marketing.

It gives a sense of pride for us professionals who dedicate their weekends to build the industry. But lately I find that with the change of syllabi to assignment based the time pressure is becoming tough to handle.

However tough it is on time, to me personally the words of success of a youngster, sure beats the multi-million dollar business ventures that I have been able to secure for the country/business. It even beats the key strategic policy decisions that I get involved in at national level which sometimes change the course of lives of thousands of Sri Lankans.

Whenever I meet with my colleagues who dedicate the weekends to train these youngsters the one ethos that gets discussed is that it's all about giving some thing back to the country, what the profession has given us. I also have a holy grail that whenever we achieve something outstanding in our lives, we have a duty to develop someone else who can become better in the future.

When I reflect back at the joys of success to me, it has not been the business achievements or the key positions I have held in society or the share of media that I have occupied but how I helped youngsters to become better than me and how I have been able to change people's lives. Let me share some of the most memorable moments that I have experienced moulding careers and lives of youngsters.

Hence I have themed it 'Lessons that universities do not teach'.

Past failures

I remember once a particular youngster mentioning to me that he had failed his A' levels but I had been awarded Sri Lanka schools colours for sports and had also been the Head Prefect at college.

Looking back at my own life the circumstances were quite similar and the only piece of advice I could offer him was to forget past failures as they have very little impact to the future provided one can focus ruthlessly on the task ahead. I also told him that he must move from interest to passion and it is only in this way that one can become the best in the country. Over time, I saw this youngster's dedication and focus to studying and his strong involvement at group work at break out sessions during classes.

He went on to win the Sri Lanka prize that I lectured, then he joined Unilever in Brand Marketing and got promoted in the business. Subsequently he got pushed up to an internal secondment to the Pakistani business and the last I heard was that he has taken over a regional role in the Unilever business of Singapore.

The lesson for life: Past failures do not determine your future success. It's all about the sacrifices you make to master your chosen talent and make it one's passion that will determine your success. Do not get distracted in life's journey due to public opinion. Public opinion is like a mirage. As soon as you get closer to it, it fades away.

Overcome deficiencies

When Michael Phelps won his first gold at the Beijing Olympics I remember watching this moment on TV. He went and hugged his mother and there was a buzz on why this strong bond that was exhibited.

It was later that the truth emerged. The reason for this deep affection to his mum was because at the age of nine years Michael was diagnosed with a weakness called attention deficit disorder. This reduces significantly ones power of concentration.

However, with years of training under the guidance of the mother (who was incidentally a single parent) the deficiency was overcome and he went to become one of the greatest athletes that the modern Olympics has ever seen.

A student had an acute stammer that hindered the ability of interacting with the others effectively in class. In fact, given that marketing is a social discipline, I wondered at one time if he will ever make it in the competitive world of marketing. But with practice, he overcame this limitation and went on to get an 'A grade' at his exam and today, he is a Senior Brand Manager for a top 10 power brand in the country.

The lesson for life: Identify your weakness early in your life and work towards correcting it with absolute ruthlessness. Any weakness can be corrected through constant application but this requires discipline.

Take drastic changes

I remember once a smart hotel school graduate came to study marketing and I wondered why she wanted to study marketing given that she was working for a top hotel chain in Sri Lanka. She went on to win the Sri Lankan prize for a subject I taught and then she joined a leading City hotel where she changed the culture of the total hotel and won the Best City Hotel in the country consecutively.

The last I got to know was that she is to be appointed as the head of Training for the total conglomerate.

The lesson for life: Sometimes you have to make career changes in ones life that can be drastic. Do not be scared. Do it, as end of the day you have only one life and you must make the best of it.

English is not a must

In one of the multinational companies I worked for, I was on an interview panel to select a medical representative for the company. A youngster from Matara came in and spoke in Sinhala stating 'My dream is to join a multinational company and wear a tie'.

I was adamant to give this youngster a chance in his life as he was very honest to his purpose and had a likable personality.

We gave him that chance. Whilst working on the field as a sales representative he learnt English and completed the post graduate diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Thereafter he read for his MBA.

The guy became a Brand Manager for a global brand and thereafter a Senior Brand Manager and subsequently he got head hunted to lead the 1.5 billion rupee Elephant House category. Today he is heading Business Development in the largest brewery in the country.

The lesson for life: Language is not a barrier for one's development. You can learn English as you move on in your career. All that is required is the passion to learn and the will to learn.

Leaders fall too

Once I was heading towards my vehicle after taking a lecture, when a very bright student came to me and said that he had been asked to take a cross posting internally to work as an Area Sales Manager on the field.

He felt it was unfair as he had got strong performance ratings in Brand management. I asked him to take the challenge and perform. Thereafter argue it out at the next appraisal on why he needs to get back to brand as he was now going to be more richer with the ground reality on the field.

Within six months he had made his area within the top two regions in the country and he went on to become the marketing head and today a General Manager of a large apparel company.

The lesson for life: Leaders also get in to murky ground in one's career but, the difference is that they get up and run and prove to the world the spirit of fighting. In fact these experiences make ones success sweeter. Just get up and run should be the motto.

Honesty

Once there was this youngster who announced to that he had resigned from a company as he did not want to get involved in unethical practices that were of financial nature. I was proud of him, but was angry that he had thrown a job out of the window without having another in his hand.

But I told him that I had done the same when I was Chairman of a State corporation and received a request to sign a one million rupee cheque that I flatly refused and resigned.

But within three days was called by the then President to task a bigger role for the country. I knew I had to help this to get himself on his feet and went out of my way to set up a few interviews for the youngster. Today he works for a top bank in the country a Brand Manager very soon will be taking over and it's key operations overseas.

The lesson for life: Never be scared to be honest. There can be peer pressure but in the long run it pays off. Think of the long- term and not the short-term wins you can accrue. Financial integrity is a must in corporate life.

Girls can win too

At a particular lecture I take I came across a female student who was very conservative in dress and behaviour. At one time I wondered if she will fit in to the fast track pace in the world of marketing. She went on to win the Sri Lanka prize that I taught and I got her the first break in her career in a market research agency.

Then she called me after around two years later to ask if I can be a 'referee' as she was applying for a top brand job in the leading multinational in Sri Lanka.

She now works in the Indian business of this company in the global new product development team servicing the total Asia Pacific business.

The lesson for life: In today's competitive business world one is recognized on performance and not on how one is dressed or if one is a male or female. Just get out there and perform. But keep your values of life intact all the time.

Imperfect home

We live in a world where values have changed drastically and now there are many families which are single parent driven. Once I came across a youngster who used to miss lectures quite often and when asked, discovered that he came from a single parent household. I felt it was my duty to help him and his family. I only set up an interview for the youngster.

He earned his job. Today he is the Business Development Manager of a leading Bank in Sri Lanka.

In the first year he was rated to win the Chairman's performance award and in the second year he received an exceptional performance award. Today he is on a MBA program and is tipped to lead the Bank's marketing department.

The lesson for life: Family imperfections should not be a deterrent for ones performance. It's all about being committed and disciplined. Every Family has their own imperfections. That's life.

To conclude, my mind goes back to the day I was awarded 'Gold' at college and my mentor said 'You become, what you take time to become!'

He is no more as he passed away some years back, but when I look back now I see that I have been able to unearth the talent of people to be better than me. I guess I have done him proud.