🎶Howard Gardening Story #22 – Sudhir, the Leader who sang his way into hearts

 

The first thing I remember about Sudhir, way back in 1996, is his humming. Always a Kishore Kumar tune on his lips.

Back then, he was a young technical team lead on our banking product. Today, he’s a Senior Vice President managing thousands. Yet his love for music — and Kishore da — remains unchanged.

Sudhir had a rare gift: he made people his fans forever. Even when he disagreed, he did it with grace. I still recall him scolding me for endlessly polishing a functional spec. His advice: “Don’t aim for perfect. Aim for done.”. That one line has stayed with me for decades.

As a people manager, he was exceptional — nurturing people with patience, clarity, warmth and a great sense of humour to lighten even a serious discussion. 

And music was always his bridge to connection.

Sudhir must have created hundreds of song videos by now. 

I remember once in our company’s basement parking place, I requested him to sing. Without hesitation, he launched into “Hum the, woh thi” from Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi — an apt song for the surroundings!

He also led our in-house orchestra, Tarang. Every monthly townhall began with a song, Sudhir’s voice setting the tone. He even led us when we recorded our company anthem, composed by the celebrity Raghu Dixit.

That’s Sudhir — the leader, the singer, ‘star-maker’.

🎶 Question for HR & CSR Leaders:

How are you tapping into the “Sudhirs” in your workforce? Have you invited them to old age homes or community events you support? Imagine the joy they could create.