Delegating, empowering & being a role model: Marico founder's 3 stages of growth for a leader

It has been a week-long bonanza of business advice from billionaire Harsh Mariwala, the man behind popular FMCG brands like Parachute and Saffola that resonate with every Indian.

From entrepreneurship to leadership, the Marico Chairman knows how to run a successful business.

Mariwala took to Twitter to share the three stages of growth for a leader in every entrepreneurial journey.


While the involvement in the initial phases of any business is quite "microscopical", the 73-year-old said that the second and third stages are crucial for any leader.

Elaborating on the second stage, Mariwala said that a businessman's role in his company gets more important when hiring the right talent comes into the picture. The second phase is all about delegating and empowering.

"Once you reach a certain stage, you start recruiting the right talent. So from ‘doing things’, you start ‘getting things done’. This is the second phase where you also delegate and empower them," he wrote in his tweet.


Mariwala also discussed the third phase when any organisation becomes larger. At this point, it becomes the leader's responsibility to influence his staff and become a role model.

"When the business becomes much larger, then the role shifts to influencing by communicating verbally and also by being a role model," he shared.

The FMCG boss said that this role shift is "very important" for an entrepreneur as s/he must be open to reinventing himself/herself. "You have to reinvent yourself, as what was working in the past might not work in the future," he concluded.


In his previous post, Mariwala said that any company made with shortcuts is bound to crumble, but ensuring building an organisation with a strong foundation will help in the wrong turn.

"The crucial ask of a business is to ensure that its building blocks are there in place. Taking shortcuts can often backfire. An entrepreneur must invest their resources to improve the building blocks of their entrepreneurial dream to ensure that they are not pushed back," he added.


Earlier this week, Mariwala shared the importance of being a good listener and taking risks without being afraid of failure.



Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the businessman-turned-author has been sharing snippets and business insights from his professional journey for aspiring leaders with the hashtag 'Harsh Realities', which is also the title of his recent book and a wordplay on his name.

Published by Penguin India, Mariwala co-authored the book with management guru Prof Ram Charan. It was released in July 2021.