This article tries to map the leadership styles of Akbar and Azim Hasan Premji. The mapping was done on the basis of parameters like family, upbringing, environment, achievements etc. Leaders and leadership are not new to us. They can be traced back to the time when communities had started taking shape. In today's world when managers are transforming into leaders, it becomes eminent to find out whether there is a missing link between the leaders of the past and present.

Akbar was born in Umarkot in Sind on the October 15, 1542 to Humayun and Hamida Bano Begum. He was the descendant of both the Turks (paternal side) and the Mongols (maternal side) and was born when Humayun was on a move after he was banished from his kingdom by Sher Shah Suri after the defeat in the battle of Chunar. During these days Humayun was usually stayed under the protection of different non-Muslim rulers, which might have led to the secular mindset. Akbar lost his father at the age of 13. He was made the king under the tutelage of Bayram Khan. But later on gaining majority, he took the charge and laid the real foundation of the empire. He was particularly proud of two of his famous ancestors, the Mongol conquerors Genghis Khan and Tamerlane. Akbar was trained as a military leader from his childhood. At the age of 10, he was given his first military command. Although Akbar was not tall, he was strong and fit. Akbar was the first of the Mughal emperors to identify himself completely with India.

Azim H Premji was born in Bombay, on July 24,1945 to MH Premji. He is from the business Bohra community. Not much is known about his childhood days as he is unwilling to have the focus on himself. His father was offered the post of Finance Minister of Pakistan by Jinnah, but he refused to shift to Pakistan. He lost his father when he was 21 so he had to cut short his studies of Computer Science Engineering (he went back to complete the degree in electrical engineering in 97) at Stanford University in 1966 to look after his father's business. Though he was the third son, after the sad demise of his father he came back as he was said to be close to his father and so he did not want the business to close down.

It is quite evident that both Akbar and Premji were trained well in what would become the professions or say businesses of their lives. Akbar got military training at the age of 10. Premji got the professional education from Stanford. Both of them had lost their fathers at early ages. But they did not succumb to the grief or expectations at tender ages. They transformed themselves into the most powerful individuals of their centuries.

Global CEO Magazine, Leadership Mapping, Leadership Styles, Mughal emperors, Mongol conquerors, Business Bohra Community, Computer Science Engineering, Information Software and Services, Software and Hardware Business, Innovative Solutions, Decision-Making Process.