Kautilya, well-known as Chanakya, was the backbone of Mauryan dynasty. He has contributed various principles for effective administration in his book Arthasastra. Arthasastra deals, in detail, with the qualities and disciplines required for a Rajarshi—a wise and virtuous king. “In the happiness of his subjects lies the king’s happiness, in their welfare his welfare. He shall not consider as good only that which pleases him but treat as beneficial to him whatever pleases his subjects,” wrote Kautilya. The views of Kautilya are more applicable to today’s competitive business environment. The business organization is the kingdom and the CEO is the Rajarshi. The success or failure of any corporate is vested in the hands of the CEO or Chairperson who is running the organization. A disciplined and self-controlled leader is ever active in promoting the growth of an organization by satisfying the desire of the customers and enriching the employee fraternity, as the king ensures a quality life for his subjects.

Effective Qualities of Success-Desiring CEO
An ideal king is one who has the highest qualities of leadership, intellect, energy and personal attributes which attract the followers, and he utilizes the resources only for the benefit of his subjects. In the same way, the CEO of an organization has to be an excellent leader to lead the organization towards success. The boss of a company has to be a visionary in thought. He has to inculcate loyalty in his group of people so that they will be more committed to the organization’s development. This is possible only when the CEO provides a secure environment for his employees’ career growth. Conflicts will spring up and there is no organization without differences and issues. The approachability and shrewdness in judging persons will help the CEO as a troubleshooter and in promoting a peaceful environment. The CEO has to be highly self-disciplined so that he can attract the goodwill for his company in the society.

Human Resource Development
Kautilya seems to have given a lot of thought to human resource development for the government machinery. He is specific about the qualities mantris (ministers) must possess. He writes about these qualities as qualifying standards for appointment as a mantri. These qualities are: Drudhachitta (power of concentration), Shilavan (character), Pragna (thinking capability), Vangmi (communication skills) and Daksha (observation/vigilance). In addition, he highlights the competencies that a mantri must possess. These competencies are the same as the competencies advocated by the management gurus of the present time, namely, knowledge, skills and attitude.

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