Kiran Gems – Patel/Lakhani change-catalyst leaders

    Kiran Gems grew from a 1985 Mumbai diamond-cutting unit into the world's largest natural diamond manufacturer because its founding Patels and director Lakhanis lived Trait #24, Change Catalyst — not just talked about it.

    Kiran Gems – Patel/Lakhani change-catalyst leaders

    Kiran Gems – Patel/Lakhani change-catalyst leaders

    In March 2023, I was invited to speak at a Women's Day event at the Sahara Hotel in Mumbai, and backstage I found myself talking to the leaders of a company most people outside the diamond trade have never heard of — Kiran Gems. What I heard that evening was not a story about diamonds. It was a masterclass in the Change Catalyst trait, told by people who had lived it for four decades.

    In short

    Where this sits on your Winning Kite

    Change Catalyst is the twenty-fourth of the 25 traits on the EQ — left — side of the Winning Kite (KITE Leadership Framework). I place it deliberately close to the end of the EQ cluster, because it is a compounding trait: it needs self-awareness, empathy, motivation, resilience and almost every other EQ trait already in place before it can work. A leader who tries to force change without the traits that came before it — without trust, without listening, without patience — doesn't drive change. They just create resistance. Remember the shape of the kite: EQ (left) plus RQ (right) plus PQ (bottom) is what lifts you to Success (top). Change Catalyst is one of EQ's most demanding traits precisely because it borrows strength from every other side of the kite to do its work.

    From a cutting table in Mumbai to the world's largest diamond manufacturer

    Kiran Gems is one of the biggest companies in the world in natural diamonds. It was established in 1985 by three men — Mr. Vallabhbhai Patel, Mr. Babubhai Patel, and Mr. Mavjibhai Patel — who began diamond manufacturing operations in Mumbai, India. There was no inherited empire here, no head start. Just three founders and a diamond-cutting operation in a city that already had thousands of them.

    Over the years, the company expanded both in India and globally, growing its product range and steadily raising the bar on quality and service. That expansion did not happen because the market handed it to them. It happened because the company's leaders never let "this is how we've always done it" become the final answer. Their success comes from a willingness to change and adapt to a world that never stops changing — an approach rooted in the company's philosophical outlook of trust, integrity and ethics. Values and change-readiness, in their story, are not opposites. They are the same discipline.

    Vallabhbhai Patel: four decades on the floor before four decades at the top

    Mr. Vallabhbhai Patel, the company's Chairman, entered the diamond industry over four decades ago and worked his way up to the very top through hands-on understanding of every stage of diamond manufacturing. That phrase — "hands-on understanding of every stage" — is the part people skip past too quickly. He didn't step into procurement of rough diamonds and manufacturing technique as theory. He built that expertise the slow way, at the source, and it became one of the two pillars of the group's development. A Chairman who has actually cut and polished the stone knows exactly which changes are cosmetic and which ones are real. That is what makes his push for change credible to everyone below him.

    Dinesh Lakhani: seventeen years old, every department, no shortcuts

    Mr. Dinesh Lakhani, a Director at Kiran Gems, entered the diamond business at the young age of 17 and gained hands-on experience in every department of the company. He is well known for his problem-solving abilities and his leadership in formulating strategies and ensuring their implementation — not just designing the strategy on a whiteboard, but staying with it until it was actually executed. He is responsible for the group's marketing strategies, global sales, and distribution of loose diamonds, and has played a key role in taking Kiran Gems to its No. 1 position in the industry.

    Think about what that career path teaches. A 17-year-old who starts on the floor and moves through every department before he ever leads one develops something a change catalyst cannot do without: he knows, from the inside, exactly what a change order will cost the people who have to carry it out. That is the difference between a change catalyst and someone who merely announces change from a boardroom.

    Mavjibhai Patel and Rajesh Lakhani: the same instinct, applied at scale

    Other leaders at Kiran Gems, such as Mavjibhai Patel, the Managing Director, and Rajesh Lakhani, a Director, have also demonstrated the key competency of being a change catalyst. They have leveraged their expertise and experience to drive innovation, growth, and success within the company. What strikes me about this leadership group as a whole — Vallabhbhai Patel, Babubhai Patel, Mavjibhai Patel, Dinesh Lakhani and Rajesh Lakhani — is that the change-catalyst trait was never concentrated in one visionary founder while everyone else executed. It was distributed. Multiple people, across multiple functions — manufacturing, procurement, marketing, global sales, distribution — independently kept asking the same question: what needs to change now for us to stay ahead?

    Kiran Gems is a company that has stayed ahead of the curve by continuously driving innovation and growth. Its leaders have demonstrated the key competency of being a change catalyst by continuously pushing the boundaries of what is possible within the diamond industry. By embracing new technologies, ideas, and approaches, they took Kiran Gems from a small diamond manufacturing operation to a global leader in the industry — not through one transformation, but through the habit of transforming, repeated for decades.

    What actually makes someone a change catalyst

    A change catalyst is someone who initiates or manages change. This competence is all about recognising when change is needed and taking action to make it happen — and it includes all the previous 23 competencies on the EQ side of the kite, which is exactly why the more of those qualities you already have, the better your change leadership will be. People with this competence identify the need for change, remove the obstacles blocking progress, and lead others in pursuit of that change. As markets shift faster every year, companies are valuing leaders who can do this more than ever before.

    The first step is recognising when change is necessary — looking at a situation honestly and figuring out when the status quo is no longer good enough to reach the goal you actually want. Once that need is recognised, change catalysts work to remove the barriers standing in the way. Sometimes that means questioning the status quo out loud and getting others to agree something must change. Sometimes it means simply identifying what's stopping progress and getting rid of it.

    But being a change catalyst is more than technical expertise. It takes emotional skills — the ability to persuade, to stay committed, to stay motivated, to take the initiative, and to remain optimistic even when the outcome isn't guaranteed yet. Ratan Tata, former chairman of Tata Group, showed exactly this when he led the Tata Group through a period of major change — diversifying the business and expanding globally until it became one of India's largest and most respected conglomerates. Change catalysts also play an important role in championing change and enlisting others in its pursuit; they inspire and motivate people to get behind the change and work together to make it happen. I think of the psychologist Daniel Goleman's writing on emotional intelligence here only as a light echo of what the Kiran Gems leaders demonstrated on the ground — the theory follows the practice, not the other way round.

    Gary Kirsten and the Indian cricket team: the same trait, a different stage

    In 2007, the Indian cricket team suffered a humiliating first-round exit from the Cricket World Cup. The BCCI realised something had to change and brought in a new coach, Gary Kirsten. Kirsten, a former South African cricketer, became a change catalyst for the Indian team. He understood the need for change and quickly got to work, building trust and credibility with players including Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh. He identified each player's strengths and weaknesses and tailored his coaching approach to get the best out of them individually.

    Under Kirsten's leadership, the Indian team went on to win the 2011 Cricket World Cup — the first time in 28 years. M.S. Dhoni hit the match-winning six in the final, and Yuvraj Singh was named "Player of the Tournament" for his all-round performance. Kirsten's ability to lead change and build a winning team culture was central to that victory. Notice what Kirsten and the Kiran Gems leadership have in common: neither one arrived with a magic new strategy. Both spent their early effort building trust and credibility first, and only then pushed for change. That sequencing is not optional — skip it, and the "change" collapses the moment you look away.

    What makes a great change catalyst, according to the experts

    According to Mary Shapiro, a professor at the Simmons School of Management, technical expertise is essential, but emotional intelligence matters just as much. Good change leaders need strong self-awareness, real empathy, good communication skills, the ability to adapt and bounce back, and a strategic understanding of the organisation's goals. According to Vineet Nayar, former CEO of HCL Technologies and author of "Employees First, Customers Second," an effective change catalyst is someone who can inspire and empower people to drive change themselves — building a culture of trust and openness, giving employees a voice, and creating room for people to try new things and learn.

    I saw this same pattern in Mr. Pratik Jayant Patil, whom I met at the Islampur Business Forum. Despite coming from a well-known political family — his father, Jayant Patil, is a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra — Pratik chose entrepreneurship and philanthropy over the expected path of political power and status. He founded the Islampur Business Forum to give local entrepreneurs a platform to collaborate and grow together, in a genuine win-win spirit. In my interactions with him, I found Pratik to be a constant learner, always open to new ideas that could bring about change. He embodies the traits of a change catalyst: he leads by example, recognises the need for change, and drives it forward with conviction while supporting others through the process. Leaders like him aren't just stars in their own domains — they're catalysts of transformation who create a ripple effect of positive change well beyond their own company.

    Change leaders are not necessarily innovators

    Here's a distinction I want you to hold onto: transformational leadership goes beyond traditional management. In times of change, organisations need charismatic, inspiring leaders who can move their people through enthusiasm rather than instruction. Transformational leaders don't just tell people what to do — they get people excited about change by appealing to emotion, meaning and shared values, painting a picture of the new goal that people feel emotionally invested in reaching.

    Picture a company with a manufacturing plant in Bangalore that has operated there for years. Management decides to shift the plant to Pune for cost savings, better logistics, or access to new markets. That decision alone creates upheaval — employees who are used to Bangalore, who have built their lives around it, will resist. This is exactly where a change catalyst is needed: someone who can help employees adjust to the change and motivate them toward the new goal, rather than simply issuing the relocation order and hoping compliance follows.

    That leader needs to be transformational — self-aware, empathetic, a strong communicator, adaptable, resilient, and strategically clear about the company's goals. But here's the important nuance: a transformational leader doesn't have to be an innovator. They don't need to invent the new idea or the new product. Their job is to inspire and motivate the team toward a goal that someone else may have set, even in times of uncertainty. In the Bangalore-to-Pune scenario, the change catalyst would show employees how the move benefits both the company and their own careers, build a culture of trust and transparency, give employees a genuine voice in the transition, and create space for experimentation and learning along the way.

    Becoming a change catalyst: the ADKAR model

    The ADKAR Model, developed by Jeff Hiatt, is a practical framework for managing change at the individual level. It has five components — Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement — and it applies to almost any workplace change, including the discipline of becoming a change catalyst yourself.

    Take a simple, realistic example: a team leader introducing new project management software.

    1. Awareness (of the need for change): the team leader communicates why the software is changing — improved efficiency, better collaboration, streamlined processes — backed by data and examples that make the benefit concrete.
    2. Desire (to support and participate in the change): the leader addresses individual concerns directly and emphasises the positive impact on each person's own work, highlighting how the new tool saves time and supports professional growth.
    3. Knowledge (of how to change): the leader arranges training sessions and resources, and identifies "change champions" within the team who can support their colleagues informally.
    4. Ability (to implement the change): during the transition, the leader monitors progress, identifies obstacles early, and offers one-on-one coaching, troubleshooting, or extra training as needed.
    5. Reinforcement (to sustain the change): the leader recognises and celebrates the team's success, resolves any lingering issues, folds the new tool into the daily routine, and gathers feedback to keep improving.

    Applied consistently, the ADKAR Model lets a team leader act as a genuine change catalyst — guiding the team through the change process and making the transition stick, rather than watching it quietly reverse itself three months later. This is the same discipline, at a smaller scale, that the Kiran Gems leadership applied across an entire global diamond business for forty years: recognise the need, build the desire, transfer the knowledge, support the ability, and reinforce the win.

    The takeaway for your own team

    What the Patels and the Lakhanis at Kiran Gems teach us is that change catalysts are rarely built in a single dramatic moment. Vallabhbhai Patel spent four decades earning the credibility to lead change at the top. Dinesh Lakhani spent his teenage years learning every department before he ever tried to change one. The trait compounds — which is exactly why it sits near the end of the EQ cluster on the Winning Kite, resting on the self-awareness, empathy and resilience you build through the traits that come before it. It's worth comparing this story with how Ratan Tata drove change at Tata Group or how Salil Parekh transformed Infosys — three very different industries, the same underlying trait. Explore the full corporate training topics we run around the EQ cluster, and how they connect to our Signature Programs for leadership teams.

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    Avinash has trained the Indian Army, BRO, RBI, BARC, JSW Steel and 1000+ corporate leaders across India. His work focuses on leadership, emotional intelligence and behavioural training rooted in Indian values and modern business needs.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What is the Change Catalyst trait in the Winning Kite framework?

    Change Catalyst is Trait #24 on the EQ (left) side of the Winning Kite. It is the ability to recognise when the status quo has stopped working, remove the obstacles standing in the way, and lead others through the discomfort of change — rather than just managing what already exists.

    How did Kiran Gems become the world's largest natural diamond manufacturer?

    Kiran Gems was founded in 1985 in Mumbai by Vallabhbhai Patel, Babubhai Patel and Mavjibhai Patel as a small diamond-cutting and polishing operation. Under founder-leaders like Vallabhbhai Patel and directors Dinesh Lakhani, Rajesh Lakhani and Mavjibhai Patel, the company kept re-inventing its processes, technology, and global footprint, growing into the world's largest natural diamond manufacturer.

    What leadership lesson does the Kiran Gems story teach about change catalysts?

    It shows that being a change catalyst is not a single dramatic act but a sustained habit — leaders who started at the shop floor, mastered every stage of the business, and kept pushing the company to adopt new technology and methods decade after decade, long after they could have coasted on early success.

    How can I apply the Change Catalyst trait at my own workplace?

    Use a structured model like ADKAR — Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement — to move your team from recognising why change is needed to sustaining the new behaviour, the same discipline that let Kiran Gems' leaders keep transforming their business without losing their people along the way.

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