Takers are self-centred, cunning to the core. Their entire focus is on how to take things, benefits form others. Takers put their own interests ahead of others’ needs. They try to gain as much as possible from their interactions while contributing as little as they can in return.

Matchers like to preserve an equal balance of giving and taking. Their mindset is: “If you take from me, I’ll take from you. If you give to me, I’ll give to you.”

Givers provide support to others with no strings attached. They are ready to help others and contribute to others wellness. Givers give because they consider welfare of others.  

Azim Premji of Wipro has mentored many successful business leaders and supported many social entrepreneurs through his investments and guidance. Premji has also set an example for corporate citizenship and philanthropy in India and beyond. He has shown that business success and social good can go hand in hand. In 2001, the Azim Premji Foundation was established, a non-profit organisation that aims to work towards improving the quality of education in India. Over the years, Azim Premji has donated large portions of his wealth to the Foundation. Azim Premji is a Giver.

Adam M. Grant is an American popular science author, and professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania specializing in organizational psychology. His book ‘Give and Take’ talks about a revolutionary approach to success, Adam Grant categorizes people into three types: givers, matchers, and takers. According to Grant the same definition mentioned above; givers proactively help others, matchers have a “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” manner, and takers are the suck ups and backstabbers of the world.

The world would be a wonderful place if we would have a healthy surplus of givers. Grant writes about the advantages of adopting a giving approach in the workplace, and many of his suggestions and anecdotes can be applied to the library science field.

One does not automatically relate giving with success. Yet, giving can lead to greater success for oneself and others. According to Grant, extensive research reveals that people who give their time and knowledge regularly to help their colleagues earn more raises and promotions in a wide range of settings. Grant often appeals the symbol of a pie throughout the book: Givers increase the size of the pie and, therefore, can cut generous slices all around.

Ratan Tata is regarded as a successful industrialist of India; he is also well-acknowledged for his philanthropic contributions. There isn’t a single person in India who is not acquainted with his unique individuality, and many entrepreneurs not only draw inspirations from him but also look up to him as an example. Ratan Tata is also a Giver.

Givers are more successful as leaders because they help others around them grow. Leaders who give naturally see abundance and potential in those around them. They offer support and share knowledge generously.

Like Adam Grant, Jim Collins also speaks about successful leadership who are givers. Collins is an American researcher, author, speaker, and consultant focused on business management and company sustainability and growth. His model, Level Five Leadership represents a unique combination of executive capabilities, something that allows them to ensure their organizations become the best. Level one is the foundation position; at this level a leader relies on rules, regulations for taking any decision. Level two is called permission where the leader learns to function on the permission level; they merely comply with orders. At level three which is called production, either the leader is producing results for the organization and adding to its profits or is failing to do so. Many people never move up from Level 2 Permission to Level 3 Production. Why? They are incapable to produce results. When that is the case, it’s usually because they lack the self-discipline, they procrastinate, and they lack skills or not productive.

You find good leaders at Level 4 which is called ‘people development’.  At this level leaders invest their time, energy, focus and assessment into developing others around them as leaders. This can be a difficult shift for highly productive leaders who are often misunderstood because nobody likes to change, and constantly work, nobody likes putting in more hours. Developing others to become leaders requires lot of patience and courage.

It is rare to reach Level 5 which is called ‘Pinnacle’.  Pinnacle leadership focuses on building trust and respect, and challenging individuals to reach their highest potential. It focuses on building relationships, encouraging self-awareness, developing communication and problem-solving skills, and inspiring others to take ownership of their work. The individuals who reach Level 5 lead so very well constantly because of which they create a legacy in the organization they serve.

A legacy is the symbol of leaders who attempt to lead with a calling to a life-giving mission. Self-sacrifice and deep levels of service to others are necessary. They make the essential decisions, hire, and support the right people, guide daily efforts, and leave the organization or effort better off than when they assumed leadership responsibilities.

Narayan Murthy of Infosys is compassionate capitalist, management visionary, and dedicated moralist, Narayana Murthy placed India squarely on the global map of India’s IT dominance. He has been listed among the 12 greatest entrepreneurs of our time by Fortune magazine. He has been described as the “father of the Indian IT sector” by Time magazine and CNBC for his contribution to outsourcing in India. He is an example of Pinnacle leadership. 

Grant notes that most people are matchers, and matchers are people who want to see givers rise to the top and takers fail and get to desert. Today the business world, political world, NGOs, educational world, healthcare, agriculture, commerce, legal world every sphere of life requires GIVERS. Try to become a giver whichever walk of life you serve.

BOOK REVIEW

Hardcover, 320 pages, Published April 9th 2013 by Viking (first published January 1st 2013)

The book Give and Take is authored by Adam Grant who is considered Wharton’s most appreciated professor. Grant talks about why some people rise to the top of the success ladder while others remain at the bottom. The author has illustrated some short stories based on true life characters and mini-case studies to underline the fact that givers always score above takers. His book opens up an approach to work, connect and increase productivity in the work place. Even in business, the entrepreneurs who give are appreciated by employees. The author cites Phil Jackson’s the coach of Chicago Bulls example as a giver; Phil inherited in 1989 a struggling team with one of the best players in the world, that’s Michael Jordan. Jackson instead of focusing only on the basketball star, chose to develop the team as a whole — a coaching philosophy that helped the Bulls win six NBA (National Basketball Association) titles. The author calls Michael Jordan as a “self-absorbed and egotistical” taker. Grant has not elaborated Phil’s philosophy of giving.

The book talks paying it forward: when leaders give they create value. An organization requires more givers than takers to progress. The book emphasizes that leaders must think about creating team of people for a robust organization. They should not only think about how they would be compensated. A parallel old school classic success principle is to do more than you’re paid for. In commercial vocabulary it is to give more than you get. The author says that in due course of time organizations must invest in trust bank, which means create a pool of trustworthy employees.  The author also talks about 101 ideas to invest in the trust bank.

The book sharply distinguishes the two styles of giving and taking, the approach of givers and takers and their attitudes and actions towards other people. He says that if you’re a taker, you help others strategically, when the benefits to you compensate the personal costs. If you are a giver, you might use a different cost-benefit analysis: you help whenever the benefits to others exceed the personal costs.

Adam Grant advances the challenging proposition that givers enjoy a powerful comparative advantage over takers. His message is that merely taking is not a good strategy. In particular, Give and Take is an intense indictment of the takers’ tactics of grasping, maneuvering, and manipulating corporate executives who literally take from their colleagues and customers; and who by their pursuit of unethical misconduct literally topple the aims and objectives with their slimy tactics. He highlights the supposed poster boy of this unsustainable style is Ken Lay, former Enron CEO, who exemplified that “takers may rise by kissing up, but they often fall by kicking down.”

Importantly Adam Grant outs the ill-conceived and ultimately destructive policies of such heavy-handed, hard-hearted executives as Jack Welch, who insisted that employees rated in the bottom 10 percent regularly be terminated. Such fear-inducing policies both suppress giving, and also obviously disrespect the proven managerial workplace psychology principle that workers’ performance is strongly influenced by their superiors.

The author has acknowledged nearly 300 named people for their feedback, wisdom, knowledge and experience, wealth of innovative ideas, help and encouragement.

Conclusions drawn from the book:

1. Takers operate with a distinctive style of operating, they take more than they give.
2. Takers manipulate a lot, they take credit for work not done by them.
3. Givers focus on what people need from them.
4. A giver is usually generous and he strives by sharing his ideas, skills and contacts.
5. There is a category of “matchers” at work place who try to balance giving and taking.
6. Givers are not necessarily at top of the ladder, sometimes you see them at bottom.
7. If you are taking something from a taker, it is risky proposition, they tend to squeeze a lot from you in end.
8. Takers are I, me, myself and givers are we, us, and ourselves.
9. When favors come with strings attached, it is nothing, but a transaction.
10. Takers suck the energy of the organizations and givers enhance energy of the organization.

I recommend that all students of business management must read this book, not only read but review the book as one of the assignments.