Directors of work (DOWs) of Karnataka province met in Fatima Retreat House on August 20-21, 2022 for a two-day training programme. The theme of the two-day session was Jesuit Leadership.

Fr Melwin J. Pinto, Rector of St Aloysius Institutions made a presentation on what it means to be a Jesuit leader – its challenges and opportunities. He made a distinction between core identity and role identity of a Jesuit. “While our collaborators may stress their role identity, what differentiates us Jesuits is our core identity,” he said. He also added that “if our character lacks moral and spiritual integrity, our effective leadership skills have no impact.”

He further enumerated various aspects that characterise Jesuit leadership. He differentiated between a leader and a manager quoting author Robert Heller that “A leader looks at the horizon, while a manager looks at the bottom.”

Provincial Fr Dionysius Vaz in his address called upon DOWs to always focus on the horizon rather than the bottom to be effective leaders. “While most of our DOWs are doing a good work, it is important to also work as a team. It is essential to take a break when needed and learn skills to do crisis management,” he said. 

Earlier, Fr Jason Furtado, province treasurer, made a presentation on financial management and Fr Cyprian Tellis on inter-ministerial collaboration.