How CEOs & CFOs Can Unlock Their True Leadership Potential : Ameet Parekh

 

For a growing number of India’s top executives, the next level of growth isn’t operational. It’s personal.

On paper, everything looks right.

The revenue is growing. The board is satisfied. The teams are in place. And yet, somewhere between quarterly reviews and leadership offsites, many senior executives admit to feeling something most would never say out loud:

“I’ve hit a ceiling I can’t explain.”

That feeling, subtle but persistent, is becoming more common among India’s C-suite leaders. And instead of reaching for more data or new strategy decks, many are now turning inward.

Leadership Isn’t What It Used to Be

“The demands placed on today’s CXOs aren’t just about performance anymore,” says Dr. Ameet Parekh, a business and leadership coach who has worked with hundreds of founders and senior executives across India.

“They’re expected to lead change, shape culture, stay emotionally available, and keep their own clarity intact all at once.”

In the past, leadership development often meant tactical upgrades like productivity tools, communication tricks, or time management hacks.

But that surface-level toolkit doesn’t address what many leaders are actually wrestling with today. Decision fatigue in uncertain markets. Disconnected teams despite structured processes. A growing sense that they’re managing everything but leading less.

And perhaps the biggest shift is this: leaders are no longer rewarded just for control. They are now expected to create connections.

From Strategy to Self-Work

This is why a quiet wave of senior leaders are now stepping into leadership training spaces that go deeper. Not to fix something broken, but to sharpen something that’s gone dull - self-awareness, emotional clarity, and grounded decision-making.

Dr. AmeetParekh has seen the change firsthand. Many of the executives who join his programs aren’t looking for motivation. They are looking for mirrors.

“At this level, you don’t need more knowledge,” he explains. “You need a clean perspective. You need someone who can help you see what you’ve stopped noticing about yourself.”

Participants often describe the experience as refreshingly unpolished. There are no corporate buzzwords or five-step formulas. Just honest, sometimes uncomfortable reflection on how leadership patterns built over years might now be limiting their next move.

The Ripple Effect at the Top

What’s striking is how fast these internal shifts cascade outward.

One participant, a CFO at a tech firm, shared how a single mindset shift in the program led to a restructure that saved her team from burnout. Another CEO described how learning to slow down in high-pressure moments radically improved how his leadership team operated under stress.

None of these changes came from strategy books. They came from deeper, slower, more human conversations.

What This Signals

This isn’t a trend in the coaching industry. It’s a shift in how modern leadership is being redefined.

While titles and authority still matter, the real edge is now in soft skills sharpened at scale.

Leaders who are clear within can lead with less noise outside. Teams don’t just follow their strategy. They feel their presence.

And as more CXOs begin walking this path, not in public view but behind closed doors, what we’re witnessing is perhaps the most important kind of business transformation, the one that starts with the person in the corner office.