The Monk CEO: How Carlos Ghosn Manages 3 Companies, $140B in Sales and Still Stays Human
One of the most common anecdotes mentioned about Carlos Ghosn, the joint CEO of Renault and Nissan, is that he became such a hero in Japan for saving Nissan that a manga maker released a 7-part comic about him. That's right: about a businessman. About a businessman born in Brazil, who is half French and half Lebanese and who at the time spoke only enough Japanese to make short, formal speeches. The manga was a best-seller.
That was in 2002. Since then, Ghosn has taken Nissan from has-been to industry leader, aggressively pushing into electric cars — the Leaf is by far the top-selling electric in the world — and declaring that "autonomous drive" vehicles are coming up shortly. He's also continued to expand his reach, this summer completing the takeover of Russian automaker AvtoVaz, which makes the top-selling Lada. Ghosn is now AvtoVaz's chairman.
In other words, if comic makers thought he was impressive for his leadership a decade ago, the fact that he now steers 3 international car companies, in 3 different languages, responsible for 10% of all cars sold and grossing an expected $140+ billion in 2014 sales should practically guarantee Ghosn an Avengers movie by now (in which, of course, he'd play every role).
But that would assume that Ghosn (pronounced like "phone") is a larger-than-life, Elon Musk-like character. He's not. Ghosn lives his life — as he says — "almost like a monk:" everything is planned and everything is telegraphed. (Even our interview ran with precision: He walked in, went over the time constraints, answered the questions and left — in the exact window he had laid out.)
That's because the discipline of running 3 companies in 3 far-flung countries requires exactly that: insane amounts of discipline. Want to know where Ghosn is going to be next year this week? Ask his staff. His schedule is mapped out 15 months ahead and distributed widely. His plane flights are reserved for sleeping since he knows that as soon as he touches down, he's going to get hit with questions from the local staff who now have an audience with the CEO. And when he's in each of those countries, he focuses only on the company whose name is on the local headquarters.
"I start with the principle that when I'm in Japan, I'm making decisions for Nissan," says Ghosn. "When I'm in Paris, I'm making decisions for Renault. And when I am in Russia, I'm making decisions, eventually, for AvtoVAZ. I don't mix the different responsibilities because I just want to make sure the different teams in charge feel responsible and there is no confusion between the different companies. So, a lot of pragmatism, some basic rules, professional people around you and, at the end of the day, it's possible."
He adds that this isn't for the dreamers and free spirits: "If you want room for fantasy, you shouldn't do the job."
That rigid focus doesn't mean that he doesn't seek to build common threads between the companies. There are the physical and financial shared efforts, but also the cultural ones. One of the things that Ghosn has insisted on at every company is a requirement that employees embraces debate. GM's Mary Barra earned some attention this fall when she told Fortune's Most Powerful Women conference that she's forcing everyone at meetings to — very Un-GM-like — state their opinions, even when it causes tension. Ghosn has been demanding such tension for years, requiring debate even in cultures where second-guessing is preferred (like in Latin America, he says) or where public confrontations are usually avoided (like Japan).
"I think a very clear process by which you have a very formal forums where people debate questions and there are presentations about the pros and cons of different options and you allow the competent people to express themselves and the people who have something to say to express themselves," Ghosn says. "[This is] extremely important. Even if you know exactly what you want to do." Why? Because everyone has had a chance to be heard and agrees to be on the same page. The decision has been reached. Debate has closed. Time is of the essence.
As with everything about Ghosn, it's all about discipline. By the time one debate has ended, he's off to another company and another problem.
And while Ghosn's life might seem relevant only to other corporate-juggling titans (like… who?), there's also a clear takeaway for someone managing just one small team: Be just as rigorous about how you spend your time and attention if you have 3 employees as if you have 3 companies:
You need to make sure that you are where you think you are indispensable," he says. "And dedicate your task to that."
The life of the monk CEO isn't cut out for everyone, but it's something that everyone can learn from.
-- By: Daniel Roth, Executive Editor, LinkedIn
That was in 2002. Since then, Ghosn has taken Nissan from has-been to industry leader, aggressively pushing into electric cars — the Leaf is by far the top-selling electric in the world — and declaring that "autonomous drive" vehicles are coming up shortly. He's also continued to expand his reach, this summer completing the takeover of Russian automaker AvtoVaz, which makes the top-selling Lada. Ghosn is now AvtoVaz's chairman.
In other words, if comic makers thought he was impressive for his leadership a decade ago, the fact that he now steers 3 international car companies, in 3 different languages, responsible for 10% of all cars sold and grossing an expected $140+ billion in 2014 sales should practically guarantee Ghosn an Avengers movie by now (in which, of course, he'd play every role).
But that would assume that Ghosn (pronounced like "phone") is a larger-than-life, Elon Musk-like character. He's not. Ghosn lives his life — as he says — "almost like a monk:" everything is planned and everything is telegraphed. (Even our interview ran with precision: He walked in, went over the time constraints, answered the questions and left — in the exact window he had laid out.)
That's because the discipline of running 3 companies in 3 far-flung countries requires exactly that: insane amounts of discipline. Want to know where Ghosn is going to be next year this week? Ask his staff. His schedule is mapped out 15 months ahead and distributed widely. His plane flights are reserved for sleeping since he knows that as soon as he touches down, he's going to get hit with questions from the local staff who now have an audience with the CEO. And when he's in each of those countries, he focuses only on the company whose name is on the local headquarters.
"I start with the principle that when I'm in Japan, I'm making decisions for Nissan," says Ghosn. "When I'm in Paris, I'm making decisions for Renault. And when I am in Russia, I'm making decisions, eventually, for AvtoVAZ. I don't mix the different responsibilities because I just want to make sure the different teams in charge feel responsible and there is no confusion between the different companies. So, a lot of pragmatism, some basic rules, professional people around you and, at the end of the day, it's possible."
He adds that this isn't for the dreamers and free spirits: "If you want room for fantasy, you shouldn't do the job."
That rigid focus doesn't mean that he doesn't seek to build common threads between the companies. There are the physical and financial shared efforts, but also the cultural ones. One of the things that Ghosn has insisted on at every company is a requirement that employees embraces debate. GM's Mary Barra earned some attention this fall when she told Fortune's Most Powerful Women conference that she's forcing everyone at meetings to — very Un-GM-like — state their opinions, even when it causes tension. Ghosn has been demanding such tension for years, requiring debate even in cultures where second-guessing is preferred (like in Latin America, he says) or where public confrontations are usually avoided (like Japan).
"I think a very clear process by which you have a very formal forums where people debate questions and there are presentations about the pros and cons of different options and you allow the competent people to express themselves and the people who have something to say to express themselves," Ghosn says. "[This is] extremely important. Even if you know exactly what you want to do." Why? Because everyone has had a chance to be heard and agrees to be on the same page. The decision has been reached. Debate has closed. Time is of the essence.
As with everything about Ghosn, it's all about discipline. By the time one debate has ended, he's off to another company and another problem.
And while Ghosn's life might seem relevant only to other corporate-juggling titans (like… who?), there's also a clear takeaway for someone managing just one small team: Be just as rigorous about how you spend your time and attention if you have 3 employees as if you have 3 companies:
You need to make sure that you are where you think you are indispensable," he says. "And dedicate your task to that."
The life of the monk CEO isn't cut out for everyone, but it's something that everyone can learn from.
EDUCATE, EMPOWER, ELEVATE
Prof. Bholanath Dutta
Founder & President
MTC Global: An Apex Global Advisory Body
in Management Education, ISO 9001: 2008
Partner: UN Global Compact I UN Academic Impact
Cell: +91 96323 18178 / +91 9964660759
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