Lenovo India CEO tracks every minute, uses 'ruthless time management' to stay productive in WFH mode

Rahul Agarwal has been working from his Bengaluru home since the lockdown started around 50 days ago. The Lenovo India CEO has earmarked one part of his home as his office space to avoid distractions.
The 46-year-old tells ETPanache, “We use video calls for our meetings. The one mantra I believe in is ‘ruthless time management’. I track every minute of my day and try to spend my time efficiently. I don’t believe in working 18 hours a day, I am a proponent of getting the same amount of work done within nine hours. We continuously have to review how we spend our time and look for ways to improve efficiency.”

One of the offshoots of this pandemic has been uncertainty and anxiety about careers. To counter that, Agarwal tells employees and himself to keep calm and focus on things that are directly under their control.

“The key is to stay connected with your teams daily and communicate all the key decisions or changes to them in the most transparent way,” he says.

The lockdown has given Agarwal more time at home, as travelling and commuting have virtually ceased.

“On the professional front, meetings have become more efficient,” he says. “I like the flexibility and the time on hand as a result of working from home. I am also leveraging that to think and implement new ideas. On the personal front, I get a few extra minutes every day to sleep and work out more.”

Agarwal spends 15 minutes more every day on his morning exercise. “I was never a believer of online fitness classes and this experience changed that for me,” he says. “I work out every day, sometimes on my core, shoulders, etc. I also practice yoga thrice a week with my regular teacher through video conferencing.”

After a disciplined week working and eating right, weekends are for sumptuous food. Agarwal has made calorific dishes like bread pakoda, aloo paratha and bread rolls.