“Great businesses are never built on the quick sands of opportunism, I reiterate that if living by our values means, perhaps growing at a pace slower than we would otherwise have liked, so be it. For us, leadership lies at the heart of knowing what we stand for.” These are the words of none other than Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of Aditya Birla group, which clearly define the driving forces within the group. I am a firm believer that values perform an integral role in the success of any individual or a group. Values is one of the reasons ABG attracts me. I follow it, analyse it and idealize it.
In this article I pen down some core values required in today’s cut throat business world, whose importance I learnt from ABG directly or indirectly. Along with some nostalgic anecdotes that make ABG big in my life, as it is an obvious truth that if you are born and brought up in India, there is no way you will be left untouched by ABG in some way or the other, such is its magnanimity...
First and foremost is Innovation. To provide a robust innovation foundation, the Group has set up Aditya Birla Science and Technology Company Private Limited (ABSTCPL) as a global corporate research and development hub which supports the Group's diverse businesses through multi-disciplinary teams of expert scientists and engineers who lead fundamental and applied research projects in several areas.
Second is Sustainability. The group endeavours to become the leading Indian conglomerate for sustainable business practices across its global operations. Looking at the drastic impact that industrialization has had on our environment, sustainability is all but what is needed to build a better future while keeping the profits ticking.
Next is Employee Satisfaction. It is of utmost importance for employees to remain happy and also deliver their level best. Satisfied employees do not work out of any compulsion but because they dream of taking their organization to a new level. ABG is anchored by an extraordinary force of over 120,000 employees belonging to 42 nationalities. It ensures that each employee is given due importance and feels as much as a part of the system as any other in the organisation, no matter what level.
Fourth is Value Creation. It is the primary aim of any business entity. Creating value for customers helps sell products and services, while creating value for shareholders, in the form of increases in stock price, insures the future availability of investment capital to fund operations. The Group is built on a strong foundation of stakeholder and customer value creation.
Last but no way the least, is Corporate Social Responsibility. CSR helps to operate a business sustainably. It demonstrates that you're a business that takes an interest in wider social issues, rather than just those that impact your profit margins. This helps the business in creating a strong bond with the customers who share the same values. ABG cares deeply in the community and considers it their duty to facilitate inclusive growth. The Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiative and rural development reaches out to 7.5 million people annually and focuses on healthcare, education, girl-child, women empowerment, social reform, sustainable livelihood and infrastructure.
Coming to a more personal level, ABG has touched my life every now and then. I still remember during my formative years, shopping for clothes meant ‘pantaloons’, as it was the quality one stop shop for all ages and occasions. My first formals were from ‘peter england’, my first SIM was ‘idea ‘ and my first mutual fund investment was in ‘aditya birla sun life’. For something that is number one to you in so many ways, there can’t be a second one to it.
For me, ABG is BIG in my life because for me being BIG is being #1.
How have you made an impact and overcome challenges in your life?
Life throws challenges at us every now and then, if we overcome it taste success and if we fail we get experience. Unlike most people think, failure is nowhere in the equation.
My biggest challenge in life came when I was in XIIth standard. Like every aspiring engineer I was under immense pressure, school plus coaching equals hell was my belief. Being a bright student until now, my parents and teachers rode high hopes on me, which bogged me even more. Net result, towards the end I completely fell apart. Under performing both in boards and IIT entrance. Even though the result was pretty evident, it was a huge setback for me and my parents.
At this juncture of what I perceived as utter failure, I went into self retrospection and spent some time with myself probably first time in years. That valuable time taught me some valuable lessons that helped me come out of the mess I was in and move forward.
That experience taught me the importance of time management, how to prioritize your tasks and most importantly, I learnt not to be bogged down by others expectation. I learnt that by aligning our actions to please others and giving importance to what others will think of us, we are no better than in self destruct mode.
With these learning I gave one more shot to engineering entrance exams and did fairly well and I attribute all my humble achievements so far in my life to that experience of mine.
