Experience: Peter Chernyshov
The president of company «Kievstar» Peter Chernyshov shares advice based on his own managing experience and true success story with the readers.
For fourteen years, I have given beer for people. In particularly, not only for citizens of
I am very pleased to represent «Kievstar». For more than two months, I have become a president of the stated company. I feel a great pleasure ruling such a lunker. I am keen on people working there, I like their dedication to the business. Therefore, I try to make their lives good.
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Am I going to follow a new trend and join governance? I will say categorically – in your dreams! Firstly, I was not invited because of my Russian passport. I was not invited in any public association, that is, by the way, very pleasing. Apart from that, I regard that there is a skills set which allows becoming a successful politician. I do not have such values. Politics is an art of cheating people in proper situations (in a good sense). People always dream of immersion into other, mythical world. I am not able to create such worlds.
«In theory there is no difference between the theory and practice. But in practice – there is». It was not said by a great philosopher or scientist, it was said by one of the best catchers in the baseball history – Yoggy Bear. That is a beautiful quote, I advise to remember it. Many people in the business build the theories, supposing that ideas come to life by themselves and start working. However, theories do not work on their own terms. I have always told like that (although it seems as brutal truth): a person may put forward one hundred ideas but if you cannot implement them, nothing can help you.
I do not like lie in the business. I always say to my people that if you do not know anything, do not be shy to admit it. It is better to claim that you do not know anything than cheat and bluff your way afterwards. I would say, it is better not to cheat in business. In reality, the situation is subtler.
No man in business is indispensable. I have been working for Carlsberg for a long time and thought: if I went, what would they do without me? I have gone. The company is developing and will be developing in future. Therefore, no man in business is indispensable. Everything depends on the fact which people you have gathered and which system you have built along with them.
Reduce bureaucracy. It should be reasonable. Without bureaucracy, any business, big or little one, cannot exist in usual conditions. It will just collapse. However, bureaucracy should not become such a devil-fish that stifles business.
My favorite slogan I often say to my workers sounds as: «Executeorbeexecuted». If you do not understand what is «execution», there is no space for you in business. Company should have several «philosophers». All others have to follow through the line.
You cannot consider yourself as a good manager, unless you have work experience in FMCG, service company, and sector B2B.
It is always important to be tad trickier than your rivals to earn more. When you are in flight from the tiger, it is not necessary to run quicker than the tiger. It is important to be quicker than a person that runs from predator together with you. The same situation is in business.
Those who tell that in their company there is democracy lie. It is impossible to make decisions in business by a majority of vote. By its definition, the corporation cannot be a democratic establishment. What is democracy? It is when the majority defines what everybody should do. Can you imagine it in the successful business?
I am not a top-bottom manager. To be a manager means to play exact role. Sometimes you should be autocratic, on other cases you have to be pure as the driven snow.
There are three main roles of CEO in a company. They are arbitrator, communicator, and messenger. The arbitrator should always define truth. Communicator has to explain in a proper way to executors what they do for achievement of purposes in a company (it is called to concatenate purposes). Messenger gives information about company to stakeholders (analysts, Board of Management, shareholders). CEO should obtain credit of trust so as to do that all.
Tell stories and create corporative myths. The great driver of business is creation of exciting stories and legends. In «Kievstar», there are lots of such legends. It is really important to have beautiful stories that warm the cockles of the heart.
If you are beloved, they bought not once – they bought forever. It is a «task number one» for a business to make a conquest of customers love and confine them.
Repeatedly I have had desires to set up my own business. However, I restrained my temper. Why? I think it is important to have an exact competitive advantage. I have not found it for myself yet.
«Leadership is an art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it». I like this quotation of Dwight Eisenhower very much. It sounds a little bit cynically, but still true-life. It is very important to have an ability to motivate.
Concerning my thoughts about the destiny of
European Business Association gives thanks to the company «Kievstar» for help in organization of the stated event.
