leadership qualities of kalam and birth and acheivements presidency and biography of APJ kalam leadership in action his educatonal life and scientist and wings of fire

1. LESSONS FROM
WINGS OF FIRE
GROUP 2

2. Background
Personality Traits
Leadership Principles
People’s President
At the helm of DRDL
Review of Kalam & Presidency
Topics Covered

3. • Full name:Dr AvulPakir JainulabdeenAbdul Kalam
• Born Oct 1931,at in Rameswaram District, TamilNadu
• Father:JainulabdeenMarakayar,a boat owner
• Mother:Ashiamma
• Has three siblings
• Died on : 27Th July 2015
About the Legend

4. People who Inspired
4
• Apart from his Parents, Teachers like Iyadurai Solomon,
Guidance of Rev.Father Sequeria, Vikram Sarabhai
• Two people influencedrightfrom childhood
Jallaluddin– Brother in Law
Samsuddin– First Cousin – HelpedAbdul Kalamto earn his
first income

5. • Primary education was from Rameshwaram elementary
school.
• Later he settled in schwartz, Ramanathapuram where he was
highly inspired by his teacher IYADURAI SOLOMON,who
told tomasterthree forces desire,belief and expectation.
• In 1950 hejoined St Joseph collegeat Tiruchirapalli to do B.Sc
• He joined DMIT in Aeronautical Engineering at
MIT,Madas(1954-1957)
• In 1958,after passing as a graduate,aeronautical engineer,he
joined Hindustan Aeronautical Limited(HAL),Bangalore as a
trainee.
Education

6. As an Aerospace Engineer-Major Contributions
• Job at the Directorate of Technical Development & Production(DTD
&P).
• Project Director- development of India's first indigenous Satelite
LaunchVehicle(SLV-III).
• Director of DRDO- Kalam was entrusted with the Integrated Guided
Missile Development Programme(IGMDP), India's most successful
military research task to date. The programme constituted of 5 major
projects which was scheduled to be completed in 10 years

7. (1) Nag - ananti-tankguided missile
(2) Prithvi - asurface-to-surface battlefieldmissile
(3) Akash-a swift, medium-range surface-to-airmissile
(4) Trishul- aquick-reaction surface-to-airmissilewith a shorter range
(5) Agni - anintermediate range ballisticmissile, the mightiest
• Chief Scientific Adviser to Prime Minister and Secretary, Department
of Defense Research & Development from July 1992 to December
1999. Pokhran – II nuclear tests were conducted during this period.
• As Chairman, Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment
Council(TIFAC), he generated the Technology Vision2020 documents.

8. President
• On 25th July 2002 – He became the11th President. He met
1000’s of children duringhis presidency. He was knownas
the People’s President.
• Heis thefirst scientist and a bachelor to chair theposition of a
president holding thelargest Democracy.
• Retired- 25th July 2007

9. AWARDS WON
Bharat Ratna Award on Republic Day 1997

10. •Padma Bhusan –
1981
•Padma Vibhushan –
1990
• First Asian to be
honored with
“Hoover Medal”
2009.
•Honorary doctorates
from about 30
universities globally.

11. Personality Traits
11
1. Integrity
2. Highly spiritual
3. Hardworking
4. Determined
5. Perseverance
6. Passion for the work
7. Positve Thinker

12. Integrity
Work is God
Served as the11th Presidentof India from 2002-2007 and is till
now considered one of the best politician/leader in thecountry.
He brought dignity to every work he did.

13. Highly spiritual
Strong Value System
He had immense trust in God and his parents.He believed that
prayer act as a stimulus to creative ideas.He believed that there
exist a divine power that can lift one from confusion, misery,
melancholy and failure, and guide one to one’s true place.He
begins his day by reading the Bhagavat Gita.Being an Islam he
had confessed thathewas a ‘Ram Bhakt’.

14. Hardworking
Dedicationto Work
He took leave from work just twice, when his parents died.He
always worked for about 18 hrs a day. He always used to set
short term and longterm goals.

15. Determined
Chasefor scholarship
When Prof. Srinivasan, Director MIT, reviewed his project and
said it was disappointing, eventhough he askedfor a delay of one
monthbutwasgivena hard deadlineof3 days
Drive tofollow collective dream
When the SLV-3 Apogee rocket was scheduled to be flight tested
in France, he receive the news that his mother had passed away.
Even if he was physically exhausted and emotionally shattered,
he was determined to fulfil an ambition of flying an Indian rocket
motoron foreignsoil

16. Perseverance
Ragsto Riches
He believed that “With faith, you can change your destiny”, a lesson
fromhis teacherIyadurai Soloman
Notthe end,justa bend
The premature death of the hovercraft Nandi, the abandoning of the
RATO, the abortion of the SLV-Diamont fourth stage,failure of the
first experimental flight trial of SLV-3 were lessons to prepare for a
greatersuccess.

17. Passion for the work
17
Love whatyou do and do what youlove
During his schooling days itself he had developed a great
interest in English literature and Physics.He believed that those
who cannot work with their hearts achieve,but a hollow half-
hearted success thatbreeds biterness allaround

18. Positve Thinker
Lessonsfromchildhood
The first lessons on positive thinking was from Jallaluddin, who
said– “Strive to control your thoughts and your mind and through
theseinfluenceyour destiny”.
Lettingthingshappen
When his long cherished dream to fly was shattered as he was not
selected in the Indian Air Force, he went with his destiny to join as a
Senior ScientificAssistantatDTD&P(Air)
“All birds findshelter during a rain. But eagle avoids rain by flying abovethe
clouds. Problems are common, but attitude makes the difference!”

19. A comparisonwith Big FiveTraits
BIG FIVE TRAITS TRAITS EXHIBITED BY KALAM OUTCOME
Emotional Stability • Positive Thinking
• Better Decision Making
Inspiring Leader promoted
To Dream Big & Achieve
Great Goals
Extraversion • Great Interpersonal Skills Infectious Personality &
The Humble President Of
India
Openness • Quest For Learning
• Innovative/Creative
• Flexible And Autonomous
“Missile Man” Of India
Or Father Of Indian Missile
Technology
Agreeableness • Individual Recognition To
Team Members (Better Liked)
Great Colleague
Conscientiousness • Hardworking & Determined
Discipled
• Organized & Planned
Single minded devotion to
work

20. 20
• He was Dr. Abdul Kalam’s mentor and played an important role in
shapinghis leadership capabilities
• Prof. Sarabhai was ever-willing to try out novel approaches and liked
to draw in young people.
• He wasan ideal experimenter and innovator
• A bunch of young, inexperienced, but nevertheless energetic and
enthusiastic persons were given the task of fleshing out the spirit of
self- reliance in the field of science and technology in general, and of
space research in particular. It was a great example of leadership by
trust.
Prof VikramSarabhai

21. • He considered the collective understanding of the problem the main
attribute of effective leadership.
• He brought into use each person’s knowledge and skills. He made
every man feel directly involved in problem solving.
• Prof. Sarabhai never tried to hide his disappointment. He used to talk
with us in an honest andobjective manner.
• He used to challenge everyone in a subtle way to stretch their
capabilities by bringing in someone better from the developed world
into the technicalteam
Contd..

22. LeadershipPrinciples
• An optimist:Everythingis possible
AtADE(AeronauticalDevelopmentEstablishment)BangaloreAPJled
a teamoffour scientiststodesign an indigenous hovercraft. They
were given 3years to launch the model.There waslimited
informationand resources availableand yet theycontinuously putin
effortsconsistentlyfor 1year andsuccessfullydesignedthe model.It
didnot happenimmediately,but ithappenednevertheless.

23. Contd..
• Participative Decision Making
DefenceR&Dat thattimewasheavily dependentonimported
equipment.Virtuallynothing indigenouswas availableand there
was aneedtocome upwith an alternative.APJinvolved oneofhis
young colleaguewhohad a positiveattitudetochalkout aplan and
comeup withsuggestions.He cameupwith a soundproposition and
highlightedthe importanceofbusiness acumenin developmental
work with highstakes.

24. • Total commitmentin thecreation of SLV
“To succeedinyour mission, you must have single-minded
devotion to your goal. Total commitmentis a crucialquality
for those who wantto reach the very top of theirprofession.
The desire to workat optimum capacity leaves hardly any
room for anythingelse. “
• He had immenseconfidence inhis team;a teamthatwould
stand like a rock in success and failure.
Relationship oriented vs Taskoriented

25. 25
• AnotherinterestingconceptthatDr Kalambringsin, called`flow`,
which is aby-product ofworkwith fulland heartyinvolvement.
• ThefailureofSLVdidnotdampenhis spirits.He tookthe
responsibilityforthe failureofthe launch of SLV. Hetookonestep
ata timetoresolve issues and madesure he motivatedhis team
memberstonot giveup.Allhis consistenteffortsledtoIndia’sfirst
SatelliteLaunch Vehicle,SLV-3liftedofffrom Sriharikota (SHAR)
RocketLaunch Station.
Contd..

26. Leadership lessonsfrom Dr.APJ.Abdul
Kalam,
• Leaders Ignitethe minds of Others
Dr Kalam was a destiny’s child. A man with nothing except
curiosity and passion for flying, with wings of fire, flew as high
as he could in the sky. And, like a special satellite that orbits the
Universe, he went about his mission, igniting millions of young
mindsand many nations

27. Contd..
• Leaders care, share andmaintaintransparency
Dr.Kalamboastednothingbut learntas much as hecan tillhis last
breath.He keptnothingtohimselfbut shared withtransparency and
sincerity toeach andevery one,everything he learnt,whocrossed his
lifetillhis lastbreathat IIM,Shillon
“Byshowingthatit waspossibleto thinkbig andlookfar, he did
whatthe bestleaders alwaysdo: recalibrate whatpeople think
is possible.”
-ManishSabharwal

28. Contd..
• Leaders humblethemselves
Such was his leadershipstyle thatDr.AbdulKalam'saccession to
power and position was justoccasions to further humble
himselfas much possible as he can, so thatthe people who met
himcan feelstronger and taller in theirheart and life.

29. Contd..
• Leaders Inspire others and make them dream rather than
makingthem believe in their owndreams
Dr.Kalam inspired millions of young heartsto dream; And,made
them to believe in theirdreams. He wantedpeople to dream, to
transform their dreams into thoughtsthatcan result into actions.
Dr.Kalam envisioneda developed India thatis very much a
reality through strong vision

30. Contd..
• Leaders are trulyVisionary
Dr. Kalam strongly believedthatfutureIndia’s success rest over
PURA(Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas). And, thatis
the way forward, to create a developed India. He is truly a
visionary.

31. • Leaders look for solutions to problems with Innovative
mindset
What can a missile scientist do with his learning's to alleviate
India’s problems? He cross-pollinated the idea of using the high-
grade steel used in missiles that can killpeople and designedand
developed, what is famously known as Kalam-Raju Stent-that
now saves people...at fraction of the cost compared to those
expensive ones, makingit more affordable
Contd..

32. People’s President
• Indians tend to see Kalam as a father figure, but not as one in
authority.
• He was not just a father figure. An outsider in politics and free
of political affiliations, he redefined and demystified Indian
presidency.
• From India’s Missile Man, hebecame thePeople’s President

33. Contd..
33
• He emphasized that leaders should have a vision and not be
afraid to go down unfamiliar paths. Most importantly, Kalam
said, they should know how to manage failure
“He pushed the country to reach new heights and to aspire to lead
the way in its global rise, rather than aim to merely catch-up with
the developed nations.”–Saikat Chaudhuri

34. At the helm of DRDL
In 1982, after a brief tussle between ISRO and DRDO for the
services of Dr Kalam, he was finally appointed the head of DRDL
division. The morale was at its ebb following the failure of
ProjectValiant and Project Devil. The atmosphere was gloomy.

35. • Opportunities
“Do not make anything which you can’t sell later and do not spend
your lifeonmakingonethingonly”
• Interactive
“I not only described and explained our goals, but also made them an
interplaybetweenour workand ourselves”
He invited people from IISc, IITs, TIFR for their expertise. This shocked
thesenior scientists.
Contd..

36. • Open door approach to critical decisions-
Formation of Missile Technology CommitteewithinDRDL
(managementby participation)
• Reorganisationof IGMDP dept.
Chose five project leaders who in turntrained another
twentyfive futureproject leaders
Contd..

37. Contd..
37
• Avoided close contact
“Through loyaltytoa friendone can beeasilyledintodoing
somethingthatis not inthe bestinterestsoftheorganisation”
• Learningfrom anotherleader
Smt.Indira Gandhivisitedthe facilityonJuly 1984. On being
toldthatthe Prithvimissiletestflightbe possibleas earlyas
1987,she respondedwhatelseis neededby thefacilitytoaccelerate
thework.

38. Contd..
• Combine experience with youngblood-
“A bigshotis a littleshot whokeepson shooting,sokeepson
trying”
Fourbasic factors for success:
a. Goal-setting
b. PositiveThinking
c. Visualizing
d. Believing

39. Dedicationand sacrifice:
Agni team- VR Nagaraj, leader of the electrical integration team. His
brother-in-law passed away while he was at ITR, his family kept this
news from him so that there would be no interruption in his work
towards the launchingof Agni
Agni-I was first tested in 1989, Prithvi-I in 1988 and Pokharan-II Tests
were heldin 1997 under thesupervision of Dr Kalam
Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1990
recognising his pioneering work in development of Prithvi and Agni
missiles.

40. WHATPEOPLE THINK ABOUT KALAM

41. Truly humble,polite, and above all, patriotic and idealistic
- Dr M. VidyaSagar (Subordinate)
“A man of integrity”
- Satish Dhawan (Mentor)

42. 42
Never oncedidI see him lose histemper. Youcould
tell he was not happywith youby a strange
expressionhe used to employ:'Youare a funnyguy,
I say’
- Dr P K Menon (colleague)

43. PRESIDENCY
As a President, he continuedto do what hewas already doing -
inspiring people
He was affectionatelyknown as the People'sPresident

44. Issues Handled During Presidency Time
Officeof Profit bill
An officeof profit is a term used ina numberof national
constitutionsto refer to executiveappointments.A number of
countries forbid members of the legislaturefrom accepting an
office of profit under theexecutive as a means to secure the
independenceof the legislatureand preserve the separation of
powers

45. Sharad Pawar Issue
BCCI is registeredas a charitableorganization, and havinga
post thereis exempt under theOffice of Profit exclusions. Kalam
was powerless to do anythingagainstit

46. Mercypetitions
He left 20 odd mercy petitionsopen, and Pratiba Patil gave
clemency to halfof them.They were criminals of theworst kind.

47. “Let me define a leader. He
must have vision and passion
and not be afraid of any
problem. Instead, he should
know how to defeat it. Most
importantly,he must work with
integrity”
Dr APJ Abdul Kalam