Multiple Captains for Kolkata Knightriders-A relook at Fayol's unity of command...

I am a huge fan of Kolkata Knightriders. I remember cheering for them along with my family in the last season. It was dissapointing that they could not even reach the finals of this high profile tournament. But then the win in their last match proved to be a consolation prize for me.

KKR coach John Buchanan today announced that there would be multiple captains for IPL 2. It would be shared between Ganguly, West Indian Chris Gayle , New Zealand's explosive opener Brendon McCullum and Australian Brad Hodge.

Now that goes against the Fayol's principle of unity of command. But here we are considering a cricket team and not a corporate set up. There is a completely different dynamics at play. I wonder if the West Indies team at it's peak or the famed Aussies during their world cup dominance or the current Indian team which continues to bash the New Zealand team has ever followed even one of the Fayol's principles.

The only thing which produced the results for those teams were cohesive team work that produced the desired synergy along with the right talent and the lazor sharp focus to WIN!!!!!!!

I think when any team gets absorbed with these three[team work,lazor sharp focus and right talent], they get too preoccupied to think of any of the principles by any thought leader.

But then unlike sports, in corporate these three do not get right and hence they resort to Principles of managements by thought leaders. It certainly helps too.

I hope that this sort of multiple captaincy practice has been thought out after a good amount of rational discussion by the leadership team[Buchanan,Saurav,Shahrukh etc] and is not an innovative practice for the sake of being innovative in itself.

Since the decision has been already taken, I hope the leaders of KKR take full ownership for the decision and try their level best to win IPL-2.

Only the results of IPL-2 will decide that whether we will give it a serious thought to include Mr Buchanan's principles of management in the B-School syllabus.
-Saikat Saha
[A Kolkata Knight Rider Fan]

P.S- Go for Gold...Be a Kolkata Knight Rider...Korbo Lorbo Jeetbo Re