From Groundwork to Greatness: Leading Teams on Sites | Poonam Chandok | VP & HR Head | L&T Energy Hydrocarbon
‘Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge.’ – Simon Sinek
This philosophy is the cornerstone of our leadership development journey at L&T Energy Hydrocarbon. We are committed to cultivate leaders who are not just technically brilliant, but also profoundly empathetic, driving growth and success for their teams and the broader organization.
The Residential Construction Manager (RCM) Development Program is no exception. It has been conceptualized as a premier developmental program to meet the growing requirements of the business and build a robust pipeline of leaders well equipped to take on the complex and multifaceted challenges that construction sites pose.
Program Objective
The program aims to equip participants to take on the roles of the RCMs and thus build a first line of leadership for our projects, both domestic and international.
Program Design
The RCM Development Program stands out through its highly curated and interactive structure:
Integrated Learning: It uniquely blends behavioural and functional topics within a residential format. This encourages deep engagement and fosters invaluable peer learning among participants.
Strategic Curriculum: Modules cover critical areas, namely:
Frontline Leadership
Project Excellence
Engineering Excellence
Building Strategic Acumen
These are all tailored through extensive stakeholder discussions to meet current industry demands.
Exclusive Nomination: Participants are nominated by senior leadership based on proven performance and high potential, ensuring that top talent gains crucial organizational visibility.
Modular Application: The program is delivered in four, 3-day residential modules. A key differentiator is the emphasis on practical application: each module begins with a reflection on how learnings
from the previous module have been put into action, ensuring immediate relevance and impact.
Expert-Led & Experiential: Our faculty comprises a powerful mix of internal Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and industry stalwarts, delivering sessions through a dynamic blend of classroom learning, real-world case studies, and practical role-plays.
“The Leadership Forum”: A cornerstone of each module, this exclusive forum provides direct interaction with senior LTEH leaders, including the Deputy Managing Director and President of L&T, and various business heads. These sessions offer unparalleled wisdom, experience sharing, and open dialogue, linking program learnings to the organization’s overarching strategy and vision.
Key Impact
With the primary goal of equipping aspiring participants to step into RCM roles, this program is instrumental in building a resilient first line of leaders for our projects. It has cultivated a robust talent pool for our recently awarded and future project demands. Many are now successfully managing significantly larger and more complex projects, including international assignments, and have taken on expanded responsibilities in senior roles within Proposals, Estimations, and Contracts, all of which directly fuels our business growth and ensures project success.
A crucial benefit of this program is its ability to cultivate a robust internal pipeline of site leadership, significantly reducing the need to look externally for critical RCM and other senior project-based roles. This ensures continuity, deep organizational understanding, and faster integration of leaders into our projects.
Way Forward
Looking ahead, while the core design remains steadfast, we continually refresh module topics to address evolving needs. A key future enhancement will involve integrating more modules focused on AI and Advancements in Digital Technology, ensuring our leaders remain at the forefront of industry innovation.
Some glimpses of the program…
