Dare to Lead: The Transformation of Bank of Baroda

by Anil K. Khandelwal

Dare to Lead is a rare story of leadership that produced dramatic business results through a multifaceted reform and transformation program. Narrated in a lucid manner by the author, who was the CEO of Bank of Baroda (BOB) for a tenure of three years, the book explores the trials, tribulations, joys, challenges and excitement in transforming a leading 97-year-old public sector bank into a modern, tech-savvy 21st century customer-centric bank. The book provides a blue print for undertaking transformation in large, geographically dispersed public sector enterprises. Emphasizing that large-scale transformation can be undertaken successfully if the CEO shows courage to change the status quo and mobilize the human effort in the organization, the book shows that sustainable transformation is all about laying foundations of intangibles such as leadership, people processes, branding, technology and customer-centric processes.

454 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2011

Reviews

[Rahul Chowdhury · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is a business autobiography of Mr. Anil K. Khandelwal. Mr. Anil talks and share his experience on he turned around the falling business of Bank of Baroda and put it into growth path amid tough competition from private banks. In public limited companies, where performance is often taken for granted, Mr. Anil shares how he was able to inculcate the culture of performance. He also tells his interaction with union and how he convinced them to participate in the turnaround of the bank. There are key management lessons one can find in this book and in fact, Mr. Anil list down his management tenets in the last chapter.

[Varun Moka · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is nothing special about this book. It's a regular Autobiography of a typical Indian CEO.
There are no exciting stories or incidents that can keep the experience of reading fruitful.

[Aby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good thoughts about leadership and communication

[Tejasvi Mohanram · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take Jack Welch, Douglas McGregor and Sidney Sheldon - Indianize them and put them in the slow-moving world of PSU banking from 20 years ago. That is the sort of energy, human empathy and sense for the dramatic that it took to lead a public sector bank from its morass of politics, labour unions and absence of motivation. It is the same set of qualities that has helped Anil Khandelwal in authoring this racy account of how it all transpired.

Few people are able to explain how big outcomes were achieved in the form of a story, a sequence of events and episodes, without resorting to the cryptic or the boring. This is not the story of any one bank or any one company - it is the story of how to deal with situations, how to motivate people, how to negotiate and of real leadership. It could have happened anywhere...just that in this case, it happened at a public sector bank to a consummate rebel with the intelligence, pluck and tact to lead his troops to victory even under the severest of constraints. And with an eye for detail & sense of drama that it takes to document 30 years in 400-odd pages.

In a decade when too many Indian business writers have focused on the future and on the macro picture, this book is an honest, straight-as-it-gets, racy account of how it is actually done. No platitudes, no bullshit - this book is both entertaining and stimulating.

[Anandh Sundar · Rating 4 out of 5]

At Rs 795, this book is a tad expensive, but worth every rupee. The author is probably the only HR professional/academic, who successfully took over two operational roles in under performing areas, and then earned the MD role of Bank of Baroda. His achievements are documented well-rebranding, doubling the turnover during his tenure etc.

Some teach others do. As some one who has done both, it is a very valuable perspective. Must read for anyone striving to motivate people without much monetary incentives.

[Sharad Kumar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insider account of the transformation of a bank is a good case study of leadership in motivation of self and masses,action by all and result orientation. For emerging markets with a background of public sector banking the book is a guide for managers.