INFLECTION POINT: Leadership Lessons from Turbulent Times

by Disha

Timely and practical, this book helps understand how businesses survive a downturn and emerge stronger once the recovery begins what is the secret sauce of the company that innovated and launched more than 40 products in the first six months of the pandemic. How did a home services company train its contractual workforce to keep the highest safety standards when they visited the customer home. How did a stock broking company scale its technology to handle its highest single-day trading. How did a famous fashion designer generate employment in the times when many of his peers were laying off their artisans. How did real estate move to a virtual world. How did an Internet provider afford to maintain continuity for the thousands working from home. In inflection point, business leaders across diverse industries and leading companies of different scales share candid accounts on the challenges and opportunities in this new pandemic-stricken world as well as their response as leaders and as individuals. The book features stories of conglomerates such as ITC, shapoorji pallonji group, Manipal hospitals, Emerson automation as well as start-ups such as zerodha, urban company (aka urbanclap), among others. While told from the point of view of the pandemic, each story in this book has many subtle leadership lessons—lessons that will remain true for any future crisis.

208 pages, Paperback

Published February 10, 2021

Reviews

[Ruchi Patel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a non fiction book. The tagline or the core concept of the book is leadership lessons from turbulent times. As we all know, in this pandemic and lock down in world, many people faced huge losses in business. This book consists of ten lessons and examples of twenty sectors/ institutes/ organisations that achieved good performances in the times of problems especially in this pandemic. The first is about ITC limited. They usually did business of non essential products such as paperboards and packaging. Later on they shifted gears. And the entire story has been narrated quickly. The next chapter is about Manipal hospitals. I liked the chapter about Urban company as called as “Urbanclap” as I personally feel that their concept is innovative and it paced with current trends. Read the book to read many more such examples and stories in details. Frankly speaking, this isn’t my area of expertise and still I enjoyed reading it. I will read it again to be thorough with technical terms. But the book and chapter is written like more or less in story or documentation form so everyone can understand it. The language of the book is layman friendly upto certain extent. It was indeed inspirational read as there is a hidden Gujarati in me that is fascinated by the idea of business. So I loved and enjoyed reading it.

[Enakshi J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inflection Point refers to a breakthrough in a situation that changes the curve for good or bad. Collating experiences, strategies, modus operandi and growth curve of 22 different organizations, institutions, ventures and startups, Inflection Point presents before us a blend of hardships and survival stories.

Even though the times were/ are tough, people who have the will, go a long way. Citing examples of new ventures like Zerodha, UrbanClap and established organizations like Manipal Hospitals, ITC and Emerson, the author, with her fool-proof research and easy-to-grasp narrative, brings forth the journeys of these leaders who fought tooth and nail during the pandemic.

Read the full review here: https://www.aliveshadow.com/category-...

[Jayanti Pandey · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

#InflectionPoint
Leadership Lessons from Turbulent Times
Authored by #Disha
#nonfiction

Disha Chhabra in her book, ‘Inflection Point’ discusses strategies adopted by corporate houses to tackle the ramifications of the pandemic. The challenges were multiple and unpredictable and even the best and biggest of corporates had to rethink priorities and working modules. The only bid to staying afloat and surviving was to reorient and reinvent.

Disha Chhabra, a Management alumnus herself and currently Product Manager with Google India interviewed a diverse group of leaders. First person accounts tell us how the leaders handled one of the greatest crises ever (still ongoing), demystify leadership and underline simple steps which made a difference.

From bigwigs to entrepreneurs, from start - ups to NGOs, from local administration bodies to RWAs, each segment has played a unique role, and hence the careful selection by Chhabra.

Corporates interviewed:
ITC Limited
Manipal Hospitals
Urban Company (former Urban Clap)
Zerodha ( discount broking)
Delhi Police
Delhi Government Administration
Atria Convergence Technology
TUI ( Travel and Tourism)
Dunzo
Ixigo
Family of Disabled (FOD)
Brigade Metropolis RWA
YourNest Venture Capital
MyResqr.Life
Namastey Away
Landmark Worldwide
Café Delhi Heights
360 Realtors
Shapoorji Pallonji Group
Emerson

Lessons range from taking care of employees to the importance of regulatory compliance ; from power of communication to the need for a business continuity plan; from innovation to being open to fail; from rising above self-interest, thinking customer backwards to the importance of technology.

This book was published in the early part of the pandemic (February 2021) but will continue to be relevant because: “I don’t think we live in a zero-risk world anymore. There is nothing post - Covid. It is with Covid. The recovery is going to be slow and we need to be patient” (Abhiraj Bhal, co-founder, Urban Company). “We are fighting an invisible enemy” adds Anil Rajput ( Senior VP, Corporate Affairs, ITC Ltd).

As the author rightly says: “ A few years down the line, the crisis of today and the leadership and business lessons drawn from it, will be taught as crisis management studies in B-schools.”

“These lessons will remain true for any future crisis”.

Thank you Disha for sending me a copy of your book for review. I wish this publication, and your future works, much success.

#andsoiread
#pandemicchallenges
#corporatecasestudies

[Md Akhlaq · Rating 5 out of 5]

𝗜𝗡𝗙𝗟𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗣𝗢𝗜𝗡𝗧 : 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗕𝗨𝗟𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗦

Author : Disha @disha.chhabra2
Published by : @rupa_publications

The current outbreak of the COVID 19 pandemic has had severe economic consequences across the globe, and it does not look like any country will be unaffected. This not only has consequences for the economy; all of society is affected, which has led to dramatic changes in how businesses act and consumers behave.

This book is a business fort to address some of the pandemic-related issues affecting the corporate world. In total, there are 9 business stories related to different industry sectors (e.g., health, finance, FMCG, real-estate), changes in consumer behaviour and businesses, ethical issues, and aspects related to employees and leadership. It's an essential book to understand how some corporates and their leaders transformed their industry in one of the most challenging and unprecedented time.

The book features stories of conglomerates such as ITC, Shapoorji Pallonji Group, Manipal hospitals, Emerson automation as well as start-ups such as zero the DHA, urban company (aka UrbanClap), among others.

A valuable and quick book. The book has valuable lessons for the present and future. Recommended.

#readwithak #inflectionpoint