The pursuit of a dream is a complex endeavour, requiring a delicate balance of strategy and spirit. Without a roadmap or experienced guidance, realizing one’s aspirations can feel like navigating uncharted waters. In such instances, raw passion becomes the sole compass, a fiery force propelling the individual forward.
However, even the most meticulously crafted plans can falter without the ignition of passion. It is the primordial fuel that ignites ambition, driving individuals to initiate, persist, and ultimately achieve their goals. Patience and perseverance, while crucial, are secondary to this driving force.
Sheeba Thomas, a business leader brimming with passion, epitomizes this principle. Today, being the Head of Corporate Relations and Credit Control at Paysquare, her journey is marked not by the challenges faced but by the triumphs achieved, a testament to the power of unwavering enthusiasm.
A Reflection of the Inception
Naive to the corporate world, Sheeba embarked on her career in technology with youthful enthusiasm, oblivious to its intricacies. Sixteen years ago, in Kolkata, she began her journey as a PR executive, earning a modest salary of ₹3,000. The transition from campus to corporate life was a profound transformation, demanding a significant shift in perspective and behaviour.
Reflecting on her career, Sheeba acknowledges it has been a journey marked by both triumphs and setbacks. The importance of a clear vision, a well-defined plan, and unwavering commitment to one’s goals became evident. Beneath the veneer of success lie the often-overlooked challenges of persistence, failure, sacrifice, and disappointment. Recognizing the value of continuous learning, growth, and self-investment, Sheeba has dedicated herself to personal development.
Beyond her professional endeavours, Sheeba is actively involved in social activism. Primarily volunteering on weekends, she believes in the power of giving back to the community. Her philanthropic work has enriched her life in countless ways, demonstrating the principle that generosity yields abundant rewards.
An All-Inclusive Leadership Ethos
Sheeba’s guiding philosophy for unstoppable business success is simple yet profound: Strong leaders build a compelling shared vision with other leaders and their teams and are able to inspire and influence those around them to translate that vision into action and create positive organizational change. A few of her key guiding principles are ethics and integrity, technology, innovation, agility, customer centricity and Inclusiveness. Leadership Begins with Integrity. It’s doing the right thing all the time and making decisions based on uncompromising honesty and moral values.
Technology and innovation involve embracing change and continuously seeking ways to improve products, services, processes, or business models. Innovation is about staying one step ahead, anticipating customer needs, and offering unique solutions. By leveraging automation and data analytics, companies can streamline processes, anticipate customer needs, and provide tailored solutions more effectively than ever before.
Customer-centric organizations deliver exceptional experiences across all touchpoints. She says, “We have always put our clients at the heart of everything we do, which has increased loyalty and reduced churn.”
No organization can achieve success alone. Building and leading high-performing teams is essential for driving innovation and achieving organizational goals. “As leaders, we need to make sure that every employee is treated equally and respectfully, has the same opportunities and resources, and can participate and thrive,” adds Sheeba, whose leadership style is often recognized as…
An Inspirational Force
Her view is that team building and leadership development are two essential components of creating a strong and successful organization.
Leadership involves
- Creating a clear sense of direction,
- Motivating and empowering team members and
- Making tough decisions when necessary.
While leadership sets the tone and provides direction, team-building activities provide the platform for these values and behaviours to be practised and reinforced. By leveraging the power of team building, leaders can cultivate an environment of collaboration, align the team’s efforts with organizational objectives, and harness individual strengths towards collective success. Team building should also be an ongoing process in the workplace. Setting shared goals is an integral part of constructing a successful team, and every good team should work towards a shared vision. ‘As a business leader, it’s your role to foster trust among your team members by implementing transparent modes of communication.’ Moreover, creating a supportive work environment where each team member feels heard and valued is vital. Regularly solicit feedback, implement suggestions wherever possible, and ensure that everyone knows they have a voice that matters.
The Crucial Components
Sheeba believes the essence of future business lies in innovation, disruptions, and enhancing the end-user experience. Operational efficiency and customer success are two crucial components of any successful business, she says. First, a highly efficient organization can deliver products or services quickly and cost-effectively, which is crucial for remaining competitive in today’s fast-paced business world. Second, a focus on customer success helps businesses build strong, long-term relationships with their customers, leading to increased loyalty and repeat business.
However, prioritizing one over the other can have negative consequences. Therefore, it is important to balance these two critical components of success.
*Set clear goals and KPIs: Operational goals may include reducing costs, improving productivity, and streamlining workflows, while customer success goals may include improving customer satisfaction rates, reducing churn, and increasing customer lifetime value.
*Develop a customer-centric culture: Customer-centricity is the ability to understand consumers and make business decisions based on their needs. It’s putting the customer at the centre of everything you do. Monitoring key metrics and gathering customer feedback helps you more accurately measure your company’s customer-centricity.
*Utilizing Data and Analytics: Companies can use data and analytics to gain insight into customer behaviour, preferences, and purchasing power. This information can be used to accurately tailor services to meet customer needs, resulting in improved customer satisfaction and loyalty. Data and analytics can also help businesses reduce costs by improving operational efficiency and eliminating waste.
*Employee Training and Development: When employees are equipped with the right skills, knowledge, and tools, they become more effective in their roles, which in turn positively impacts operational efficiency and customer satisfaction scores. Employee Training and Development should be a continuous process.
Creating a Path to Empower Women Leaders of Tomorrow
Looking at the future, “My vision is to inspire and motivate women to transcend the limits of traditional boundaries imposed on them and explore goals that stretch them to new possibilities,” discloses Sheeba.
In recent years, the Indian business landscape has witnessed a remarkable transformation, with an increasing number of women taking the helm as leaders, entrepreneurs, and CEOs. Although tremendous strides have been made in this aspect, there is still a fundamental lack of women in leadership roles. She adds that as business leaders, they should play a pivotal role in championing diversity and continue promoting gender equality, creating opportunities for women entrepreneurs to flourish. They should implement flexible work policies that accommodate the diverse needs of employees, especially women who may have additional responsibilities at home.
Sheeba explains, “We have, but one life, and it’s up to us to live a life of purpose, meaning, and fulfilment. We must find ways to empower more women to join the ranks of India’s most successful leaders and create an inclusive environment that nurtures their growth.”
“We should aspire to be someone who inspires,” she closes.
