Understanding followers' duty orientation from Indian management wisdom

Abstract

There has been an active interest in discovering ‘Indianness’ of Indian management and this can be attained by discovering the roots of our culture. Jaina wisdom and tradition as contributors to the field of Indian management are now being recognised and appreciated for their rich insights applicable to current competitive scenario. This study critically reviews the Uttaradhyayana Sutra, one of the four Mula Sutras of Jain canon, to extract nuances of characteristics of followers. The corporate of today can derive from this sutra valuable knowledge about the conduct of follower towards his leader. The purpose of this paper is to explore the applicability of verses of Uttaradhyayana Sutra in relation to the subordinates’ duty orientation towards their leader. This paper illustrates the qualities of a Savineet (polite and disciplined) and Avineet (impolite and undisciplined) disciple in a very subtle way. If we apply the attributes of a Guru to the boss and those of a disciple to a follower or subordinate, then we get a fair idea of the qualities that we expect a subordinate to possess and his duties towards his supervisor or boss. Author presented a ‘DISCIPLE’ approach of followership, which summarises the essence of good followers.