Situational Background

Deepinder Goyal, co-founder and CEO of Zomato, leads with candid updates, customer service focus, and steady iteration. Heshares what’s working and what isn’t, respects numbers over narratives, andkeeps teams close to real users. Goyal’s tone is pragmatic and humane; henormalises learning without blame. Distinctive for transparency and resilience,he shows how honesty, service, and small improvements compound anywhere.

Practical Leadership Principles

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1) Candour that teaches.

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Tell the truth early; turn it into improvement.

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Behaviours to model:

• Start reviews with “what we got wrong.”
• Share fixes and owners in writing.
• Score yourself on prior commitments.

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2) Service reliability.

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Trust is built on what arrives, when promised.

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Behaviours to model:

• Track a few on-time and quality metrics.
• Apologise with remedies, not spin.
• Spotlight teams who fix root causes.

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3) Frugal experimentation.

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Learn cheaply and often.

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Behaviours to model:

• Run weekly small tests with clear thresholds.
• Kill weak ideas without drama.
• Reuse wins across teams.

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Call to action

Publish a candid note on one miss and the fix, choose a small test with a keep/kill rule, and report outcomes next week.

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