Nandini Anitha Nandakumar

We need to address this Q in two scenarios a. Company has a single power brand b. Company has a portfolio of power brands In the second scenario I want to provoke a point of view - should Company values drive brand values? Which is the superset v subset? if we were to draw a Venn diagram - Will it be company values be a big circle and all brand values a subset within the circle? I am of the camp that brands are bigger than company. Company values drive ‘how’ the people would behave and ‘where’ we will participate. And hence if we were draw a venn I believe we will have overlapping circles where a common red thread of company values ties them all together but they also have areas unique and values unique to each of the brands.

Trust is a key factor in any relationship building irrespective of being remote or otherwise. One of the aspects that I try to do is connect to know each other on a personal level. And it's best before you hit the road with work. Having worked in multi cultural environments and teams I also realized that in some cultures trust is build over informal connections, while in other cultures it's more build over working together. Doing this remotely is definitely tough but doing it deliberately right from the start is critical. Also recognize the person is also feeling the same constrains as you, to read you and trust you. While connecting remotely I try to over communicate, state the intent as clearly as possible and that has helped.

A team with a diversity of perspectives push us all to get to a better outcome. It has to a deliberate effort by the leader to create an environment where everyone thrives and can bring their perspectives. As a leader you need to ensure the environment is created and unified only by the end objective. I am privileged to have led diverse cross-functional teams. My lived experience of being in diverse teams equipped me with an insider perspective of what are the expectations and challenges of team members and that helped me in my journey of leading diverse teams. Creating an environment of psychological safety is a critical step one - an environment where people can openly challenge and debate but also commit to decision and action.

Brand equity is a long-term metric- it takes time to build. Hence while assessing reality, critical to also have an ongoing evaluation. One-time data point will not give you insights as to how the scores have changed over a period. Additionally, if there is a strategy to pivot, the base scores will be great to see the change. Kantar's MDS - Meaningful, Different and Salience scores is a great tool used by many Consumer goods brands. Additionally - while assessing reality, critical to go beyond quantitative data - real insights will be when you hear your consumers - the way they describe your brands - read/ feel the unsaid! And if you can, always always hit the road yourself - no research summary can replace your first-hand understanding.

A great tool for prioritize tasks is the Eisenhower Matrix - simple 2x2 of important and urgent. Low Low on both is when you should delete, don't even chase that Low Urgency but High importance - schedule to do these tasks High Urgeny low importance - delegate High on both is where you shoulddo us immedietly Many strategy work streams fall in the high importance buckets. One other advice I got from a senior leader is make two lists- things you want to do and things you need to do When you do a mapping of how you spend time on you will be surprised to see how you can get into a loop of tactical tasks vs setting aside time for real impact worksteeams

Any strategy project is an iterative journey and there is no fixed linear path to solution. And like a big puzzle, solving one part helps the other and you might have multiple partners working and as the lynchpin who holds it together bringing everyone together and orchestrating the journey is critical and many times tough in this iterative journey!