Anil Singhal of NETSCOUT: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Uncertain & Turbulent Times
Trust is empowerment. Trust is the soul of a business. Trust multiplies and compounds over time. That leads to amazing efficiencies as you don’t need to double-check everything. Employees, investors, partners, customers — all of these relationships depend on trust. But trust is earned, and it takes time to build. Once you’ve placed someone in a position of authority, doubting them in a time of uncertainty is an excellent way to erode that trust, leading to lower motivation, autonomy, and productivity.
As part of our “Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times,” we had the pleasure of interviewing Anil Singhal.
Anil Singhal co-founded NETSCOUT in June 1984 and has served as NETSCOUT’s Chief Executive Officer since its inception. As part of his role, Mr. Singhal provides strategic leadership and vision and sets operational priorities for the company’s management team. Mr. Singhal’s concept of “traffic-based instrumentation” has guided NETSCOUT’s product direction and focus for several decades, helping shape the industry’s evolution.
Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us about your ‘backstory’ and how you started?
I started in the corporate world about 40 years ago as a software engineer at a mini-computer company in the Boston area. That was when I first recall hearing the phrase “Lean and Mean.” It took me a few more years to fully understand its significance.
In September 1984, when I co-founded NETSCOUT, we set out to run our company with a vision grounded on a different value system. We wanted to embrace lean business practices — what business doesn’t want to operate efficiently? — but avoid the “mean” practices we saw in other businesses across our sector. I believe that the best way to lead in turbulent times is to be consistently vigilant (and lean) during good times. Through boom-and-bust cycles, we’ve seen this “Lean But Not Mean” philosophy pay off in dividends through employee loyalty and long-term growth. Today, NETSCOUT is a leading provider of cybersecurity, performance management, and business analytics solutions to the vast majority of Fortune 100 companies and telecommunications service providers globally. We employ more than 2,500 employees worldwide.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I have just the story. In 1991, NETSCOUT was not known as a manufacturer of networking or computing hardware. However, we saw an opportunity to build something unique; something that would differentiate us clearly in the market. So, we hired several engineers to head up the project. We publicly announced our commitment to the strategy. We even sought venture capital funding after spending close to a million dollars on the project.
But over a few days, two larger and more well-known chip manufacturers settled a lawsuit that completely changed all of our assumptions. Suddenly, our whole business plan was no longer viable. Faced with this challenge, we decided to “accelerate the timeline” of potential disruption. We shut down the project, in which we had invested practically all our savings over three years, and instead focused on a new software-centric strategy.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
While I admire many successful entrepreneurs in the software and networking industry, the people I am most grateful to are my family, friends, employees, and customers. Many of these people have directly, or indirectly, supported me over the last three decades.
Extensive research suggests that “purpose-driven businesses” are more successful in many areas. When your organization started, what was its vision, what was its purpose?
When we founded what would eventually become NETSCOUT, the internet was a nascent technology. Yet somehow, we believed networking would go places. Our business cards at the time said, “Because the Network is the Business.” Companies saw the potential of computers, of course, but the infrastructure to connect these devices was still in its early stages. We could play an essential role in providing visibility and availability solutions that were differentiated from other players.
Today, NETSCOUT has met that challenge with a mission to help global industry leaders manage the risks of disruption, help them solve their most challenging network performance and security problems, and ensure the connected world runs safely and smoothly. While we didn’t have a formal statement when we first started, our mission was clear, and it remains to this day. We are “guardians of the connected world.”
Thank you for that. Let’s now turn to the main focus of our discussion. Can you share with our readers a story from your own experience about how you lead your team during uncertain or difficult times?
During the dot-com bubble of the late 90s, like many tech companies, we were desperate for talent. So, we hired quickly, focusing less on cultural fit and more on what we saw on people’s resumes. As the boom continued, we struggled with high employee turnover, which only added to the chaos. After the crash, many former employees who had left for greener pastures wanted to come back, but we re-hired only a handful. Instead, we chose to reinvest in employees who stuck with us, and these became our biggest champions. Our takeaway? When you trust your employees, the results speak for themselves.
In a different vein, a few years back, NETSCOUT bought a small company in Europe. After some time had passed, we realized that the acquisition no longer made strategic sense. It was not aligned with our current direction. We knew what we had to do, but that didn’t make our decision to close their operations any easier. Because the business was in another country, it didn’t make sense to keep our office there open. As a result, fewer opportunities existed to transfer employees to new positions in other locations.
From the start, we were committed to doing things the right way. We didn’t hide our thinking from our employees only to surprise them at the 11th hour. Instead, we did our best to help them find new jobs, offering some opportunities for relocation or equitable severance packages. As a result, several impacted employees let us know they appreciated how we handled the decision.
Did you ever consider giving up? Where did you get the motivation to continue through your challenges? What sustains your drive?
Yes, such thoughts come now and then, often when you get frustrated, tired, or miss your expectations. But, thankfully, such thoughts have never lasted for more than a day or so. We often thrive on crises and challenges, especially those we can control.
I’m an author and I believe that books have the power to change lives. Do you have a book in your life that impacted you and inspired you to be an effective leader? Can you share a story?
One of my favorite books about leadership is the “Blue Ocean Strategy” by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne. It pushes back against conventional wisdom with the idea that it’s possible to create new demand by pursuing uncontested market sectors. It explains the benefits of aligning your entire company around pursuing differentiation and low cost.
What would you say is the most critical role of a leader during challenging times?
Trust yourself and your instincts. Additionally, surround yourself with people who trust you and believe in you. The job of a leader during challenging times is to build on the trust they’ve already developed and to set a vision that others can believe. Use this to let employees, investors, customers, and other key stakeholders know you have a vision and execution plan.
Likewise, for large organizations, I’m a firm believer in leaders practicing what I call “The 5 Percent Rule.” This approach effectively means that you must focus on the first five and last five percent of any significant company action or decision as a leader. It recognizes that a leader must set direction and make critical decisions. Likewise, implicit is trust and empowerment for those you’ve hired to do their jobs to the best of their ability.
When the future seems so uncertain, what is the best way to boost morale? What can a leader do to inspire, motivate and engage their team?
People often ask me, “What’s the secret to building a successful company spanning three decades?” Well, giving employees the freedom and trust they need to build a company that will stand the test of time is essential. I’ve also found that meeting regularly with employees leads to improved communication, greater collaboration, and higher morale as employees feel more recognized and heard.
What is the best way to communicate difficult news to one’s team and customers?
Be authentic and proactive with simple and crisp messages. It’s also essential to engage your employees by speaking with them rather than at them so you better understand their concerns.
How can a leader make plans when the future is so unpredictable?
If you are playing the “long game” and believe in your “staying power,” you do not need to worry about short-term issues and uncertainty. Never declare the winner until the race is over.
Is there a “number one principle” that can help guide a company through the ups and downs of turbulent times?
Have a consistent strategy, posture, and belief in good and bad times. You and your strategy are the constant — turbulent times will come and go!
Can you share 3 or 4 of the most common mistakes you have seen other businesses make during difficult times? What should one keep in mind to avoid that?
In challenging times, leaders can fall into the trap of thinking that maximizing shareholder value requires layoffs and cutbacks as soon as revenues or profits diminish. The problem with this thinking is that it prioritizes short-term financial gains while potentially threatening long-term success.
Additionally, during an economic downturn, it’s tempting for a successful or well-financed business to think the time is finally right for an acquisition. Perhaps a key competitor isn’t doing so well, or they believe they can cheaply acquire an essential piece of technology to help them expand their current offerings. But suppose the business isn’t careful in its due diligence or hasn’t fully figured out how to integrate the new business, including how the combined company will work toward common goals with a shared culture. In that case, such a deal can prove costly in the long run.
Finally, businesses need to anticipate their customers’ needs. For example, many companies collapsed during the COVID-19 pandemic because they could not adapt to rapidly changing market conditions. However, successful businesses learn to anticipate and respond accordingly.
Here is the primary question of our discussion. Based on your experience and success, what are the five most important things a business leader should do to lead effectively during uncertain and turbulent times? Please share a story or an example for each.
- Trust is empowerment. Trust is the soul of a business. Trust multiplies and compounds over time. That leads to amazing efficiencies as you don’t need to double-check everything. Employees, investors, partners, customers — all of these relationships depend on trust. But trust is earned, and it takes time to build. Once you’ve placed someone in a position of authority, doubting them in a time of uncertainty is an excellent way to erode that trust, leading to lower motivation, autonomy, and productivity.
- In turbulent times, don’t give up on your beliefs, track record, long-term view, or values. Eventually, things will come to pass. Better that you still have faith in yourself when they do.
- Be vigilant in good times. Effective leaders should steer the ship from the start and plan for eventual downturns.
- Be a problem solver and not just a solution provider. The best companies are great at identifying issues, understanding pain points, and remaining focused on providing solutions. The same is true for great leaders.
- Be decisive and accelerate the timetable for disruption if it is looming on the horizon. Times of uncertainty can also be times of great opportunity. But, on the other hand, taking a do-nothing or wait-and-see approach can sometimes be the worst decision.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
I’m a fan of what Benjamin Franklin said about preparation. In short: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
How can our readers further follow your work?
You can connect with me on LinkedIn.
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
Anil Singhal of NETSCOUT: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Uncertain &… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.