Management Lessons From Ramayan
Ramayan is an epic of Hindu mythology. There was a king Dashrath with four sons named Ram, Lakshman, Bharat, and Shatrughan. They were half brothers but they loved each other. They were married to the daughters of King Janak. Ram was married to Sita, Bharat to Mandavi, and Lakshman to Urmila and Shatrughan to Shrutakirti. They had an elder sister named Shanta. Things took an interesting turn when Ram had to leave the kingdom. Full of twists and turns, their story was the Ramayan, written by Saint Valmiki. It teaches us a lot. The 10 management lessons from Ramayan are given below.
1. Commitment
Queen Kaikayi, the real mother of Bharata, demanded Ram to go to the forest in exile for 14 years and Bharat to take over as the king. King Dashrath was shattered but when Ram came to know he obliged to his father’s commitments. It teaches us to fulfill commitment under whatever circumstances. Ram followed his father’s commitment. It should be understood by all the managers, executives, and employees in a company. Everyone in a company must put effort into fulfilling the commitment given by the manager or representative to the entities or individuals of the external environment.
2. Leadership skills
When Sita was abducted by Ravan, the king of Lanka; Lord Ram showed spectacular skills of leading an army of monkeys. His first prominent quality as a leader was of being a visionary. His vision was to rescue Sita from Ravan and overcome all the difficulties in between. His second prominent quality was to be an effective motivator to the army. His army developed special skills to face the enemy under his leadership.
3. Delegation of Responsibility
Ram was also responsible for delegating the right responsibility to the right person. Hanuman was given the responsibility to find out where Sita was in Lanka. The engineers Nal and Neel were given the task of designing the bridge from India to Sri Lanka. It was an engineering marvel that today has the potential to generate electricity for millions of years because of the radioactive material in it.
4. Teamwork
Building the bridge (Ram Setu) from India to Sri Lanka was not an easy task. It needed manpower and teamwork which was contributed by all the monkey soldiers and their leaders including Sugriv, Jamvant, Hanuman, Nal, and Neel. It is considered the first-ever bridge in the world.
5. Ethics
The entire Ramayan is an epitome of ethics. Ravan tricked Sita and kidnapped her in the absence of Ram. Even then Ram always followed ethical steps to take Sita back. He sent Hanuman with a warning to leave Sita or get into a battle ethically. He kept giving warnings to Ravan to follow the right path before he finally killed him.
6. Time Management
Ram and Bharat were half brothers but they loved each other. Ram was more attached to Bharat than Shatrughan who was his real brother. The height of Bharat’s dedication crossed its limit when he made Ram promise to return as soon as the tenure of 14 years was over otherwise he would commit suicide. Ram could return with Sita only after killing Ravan. He set a wonderful example of time management by planning all the events very well and managed to arrive on time before Bharat. Every employee must learn the importance of timely production and delivery of the products and services to the customers to avoid the risk of losing them.
7. Decision Making
There was a day when Ravan’s son Meghnad killed Laxman during the battle. Ram delegated the responsibility of bringing Sanjeevani (the medicine to save Laxman’s life). Hanuman outperformed and brought the entire mountain called Dronagiri or Gandhmardan from the Himalayas. Hanuman exhibited excellent skills of decision-making by deciding to take the mountain if he was not able to identify the medicine. Lord Hanuman was an unbeatable superhero! Such decision-making skills must be developed in not only the managers but also the executives in times of need.
8. Coordination
The construction of Ram Setu, the bridge, did not take place with any heavy and advanced technological equipment. It was the result of brilliant coordination directed and performed by Nal and Neel. The entire army of monkey soldiers set a great example of coordination for making the first-ever bridge in the world.
9. Values
The battle in Ramayana was fought to set an example in front of society to follow the value system created by society. In the name of selfish interest, there must be a zero-tolerance policy for the culprits. Ravan was a culprit who abducted Sita and wanted to marry her forcefully. Therefore, Ram killed Ravan. Every company has some value system. All the employees must understand its significance and learn to follow it to avoid strict and penal action against them.
10. Mission
When Ram got to know that Sita was in Lanka, he set his mission to reach there and rescue her come what may! He was a king, but he did not return to his nation to take an army during exile. He managed to arrange soldiers, reach Lanka, and win the battle to fulfill his mission. He faced many difficulties, but he led the way in getting the work done by humans and animals. Getting the work done is the simplest definition of management. Ram was one of the greatest managers in India. He accomplished his mission by showing commendable managerial skills. His determination is worth learning by all the employees as every company has a mission statement. Everyone in the company should take it as if it is his own and work towards it.
Ramayan is an epic that is used in the present times to teach various lessons on management and morality. These 10 management lessons of Ramayan are to be learned by us to create a respectable brand image.