“Congratulations Saketh ! After a year of multiple pilots, your team has won the $40 Mn 4-year contract with a major O&G”
While this announcement from our Practice lead at Accenture was music to my ears, his subsequent statement made me feel proud. “All the Junior Consultants in the team have been fast tracked to the role of Senior Consultant and will each be responsible for independently managing 08 members”.
When the project started 1 year back, I was entrusted with a team of 4 juniors spread across Argentina, India, US, and Philippines to lead multiple Proof of Concepts as part of Accenture’s bid to win the contract against 3 competitive vendors. I was extremely proud of creating positive long-term impact on two counts. Firstly, successful implementation of the digital transformation project will help the client in its pursuit to meet the 2050 Greenhouse gas emissions reductions target. Secondly, the individual members of the team had transformed from an individual contributor to a leader in less than 12 months under my tutelage. Over the next few years, I want to create even greater impact on not only the current generation but future generations also by leading the renewable energy practice of a Consulting firm and developing strategies to reduce carbon footprint, improve adoption of alternate energy sources, navigate the global energy transition etc.
The motivation to take an initiative, form a small group to work alongside and then allow this group to independently run the show is something I ingrained from my undergrad days when I started the college’s Photography Club in my 3rd year with a few enthusiasts from different classes. Over the next 1.5 years, I groomed couple of juniors to manage all the responsibilities of running the club, and felt proud to launch NITW’s Yearbook, Nostalgia, for my batch. During my stints at RIL and Accenture, I have tried to lead by example by taking the first stab at doing things, created low-risk leadership opportunities for my team, empowered them to make independent decisions, placed checks and balances for ensuring quality, provided them training on soft skills and recognized their small achievements.
ISB’s PGP Pro will equip me with globally practiced management frameworks, help me understand industries beyond just energy, give me a ready access to a network of accomplished industry pioneers, enrich my perspectives and catapult me to start a climate tech startup in long term.