Unique Qualities of N Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman & MD, India Cements

13.1.2019   

 Unique Qualities of Shri N Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman & MD, India Cements

V. Balasubramanian

Mr. N. Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, India Cements and an excellent sports administrator   is blessed with so many unique qualities that are reflected in his multi-faceted roles and positions. He has a blend of soft and strong qualities for overcoming any situation.

I would like to share his unique qualities compiled by me for the benefit of employees of India Cements, his admirers and well-wishers.

Qualities as an Individual:

Soft qualities

He is a frank and open person, a Man of few words, soft spoken, calm, very humble, sincere, very kind hearted and a true human being.  Hardly is he seen tense, losing his cool. Always known for the   passion for the job he is doing.

Religious person, God fearing. Whenever he finds time, he visits temples, places of worship, Sringeri Acharya Guru

Strong qualities

Very bold, courageous, fighter, determined to pursue and achieve his goals, He used to say, “if we do not commit any mistake, we get that courage. If you are clean, you can stand up and face any problem”.

He never likes to speculate and likes to live in the present. “Life teaches you a lesson every day”, he used to say philosophically.

He is not a typical South Indian, who is perceived as sober, risk averse, conservative, less aggressive person. Mr. Srinivasan is simple and humble but at the same time very bold, aggressive. In 2014, TOI Sunday Times carried an article on the transformation of Madras to Chennai in 375 years. The writer, Anwar Alikhan asks If Chennai was to be a brand with whom he will identify it. After throwing some names, he selects Mr. Srinivasan and slightly modifies the quote of US president T Roosevelt,” talk softly, carry a big stick, you will go far”.  What the writer implies in my opinion is to show Srinivasan’s tactics of caution, no aggression but able to hit back if required.

National interest tops his mind

He is a nationalist in his outlook, be it industry, business or sports. National interest tops his mind and gets priority. Examples:   1. Ensuring industrial peace in cement industry since 1992 by helping the Companies and the industry body, CMA to amicably reach a negotiated wage settlement with unions through collective bargaining. 2. Batting for the interest of cement industry at the State and national level, educating them on the importance of fair price for cement (he used to say cement costs less per kg than brinjal). 3. How he fought with the mighty ICC in getting a fair deal for India via structural changes  4. How he distributed the BCCI money ( lying idle in banks) as pension and other benefits for cricketers and for the welfare of former cricketers.

As an industrialist, business leader, Corporate CEO

He is a natural leader. Rich knowledge (50 years) on cement industry, technically strong, Known for his business acumen, sharp business sense, friendly but competitive. keen listener, he is ahead of time,  very pragmatic, positive in approach, hands on person, motivates by example, leads from the front. He is not for taking views or what is said at face value. He would like to apply his mind and find out the other views.

Examples:   When the cement market faced a long slump, he decided to meet dealers, stockists to understand the actual situation and tell dealers about their long association with India Cements, strength of Company brands like Sankar, Coromandel and Raasi, importance of fair price in the interest of dealers and their business etc. The meetings have given   an opportunity for top company officials to travel with him to the markets and see the love and affection poured on him by them.

Again when everyone predicted the worst for cement market and real estate sector due to demonetisation in November 2016, he decided to visit the traders, met over 100 dealers, stockists, listened to them and gave them tips to cope with the situation. This served a big motivation for Company marketing team and stockists.  He also met investors and FIIs and explained the company’s focus on cost control.

Perhaps, he is the only CEO to have visited over 100 stock points to assess the situation of note ban at the ground level. He termed this as an example of out of box thinking, to be a game changer at the business conclave organised by Shriram College of Commerce, Delhi on Feb 7, 2017.

A father figure for India Cements,  employees  

He is a  father figure for the organisation and employees. The level of trust and faith he is having on employees is something unique which one has to experience to believe that. Again, he is not known for doing micro management. According to him, “essence of management is management. It is the art of delegation. One must realise that he cannot do the job of someone below him. Delegate, give support and apply your mind on these lines. You will not have difficulty in managing any situation”, he used to emphasis.

He told students of Shriram college, “ If I have learnt anything in the last 40- 50 years of my experience  in business ( I am an engineer, studied management and used to read lot of management books) , it is that ultimately there are two ingredients to success. One is that you must have focus on what you are doing, keep an eye on the  ball, know what you are doing, be it job or sport. Second, there is no substitute to hardwork, nothing comes easy in this world, there is no free lunch”.

Mr. Srinivasan will advise everyone to give time for their health and for their family. it is always his pleasure to visit plants and meet our people and their families. When long serving employees retire, he will personally see the settlement benefits and revise them much to the pleasant surprise of employees. He will ask them with concern if they have adequate income for their livelihood.

As a journalist of Economic Times, I wrote in the early nineties, when India Cements had to reduce its excess workforce, Mr. Srinivasan worked out a novel VRS scheme by which the money will be deposited in a bank account so that it is not spent immediately by them and instead their family secured a regular income. It was widely appreciated. Later,  in a rare, unique gesture, he introduced a health benefit scheme for retired employees by which every year their medical bills are reimbursed by the Company up to certain limit.

Favours professional management of family run businesses

He strongly believes in professional management. He used to say when a person from the family runs the business; he will think business 24x7. His view is that family run professionally managed business is always a winning combination.

Believes in doing CSR activities quietly

Mr. Srinivasan is very generous and a great philanthropist. India Cements has been supporting CSR (corporate social responsibility) activities for a long time now, even before it was made mandatory by law. The Company has touched lives of people through schools, college, polytechnic, sports facilities, temple renovations, free cataract surgeries, spectacles, free meals, old age homes and sponsoring visit to pilgrim centres by aged couples.

His view on CSR is “Do as much as possible, but do not talk about it”.

Managing Challenges, tough situations

He faced the tough times in business life and as sports administrator. Perhaps, his outstanding human qualities and as an excellent sportsperson (since his young age as tennis champion) helped him to face the challenges, the tough situations and he used them as opportunities to succeed in his endeavours. 

When asked what keeps you going, he has said, “I am a sportsperson. First thing we were taught is victory and defeat are part of your game. When you have to survive, you will find a way to survive”, pointing out that victory and defeat are two sides of the same coin.

Examples: he his lost father in 1968 and  had to return from his higher studies in the USA to take up a prime position in India Cements at the young age of 23.  Srinivasan used the opportunity to work for the company in the difficult period when there were price and capacity controls, licensing raj etc. Again, he had to be away from the Company for ten years from 1979 to 1989 when there was a dispute between the promoters and institutions were managing the affairs of India Cements.

  

 When he returned to lead the company again in 1989, it coincided with full de- control of cement and reform age in 1991. He used the opportunity for the rapid expansion of capacity through a series of M & As and capacity addition.

In 2001-06, when he was politically targeted by the rulers (AIADMK) through  double taxation on cement, price controls, he remained cool. That time, he has said in an interview to ET, “When I faced the worst political ambush (during the Aiadmk regime in 2001-06) I had accepted it as part of my life. No B school will teach you on political management. You have to deal with it”.

Again, when company incurred loss, debts mounted, there were pressures from fund bodies, and he worked a way out through CDR and scripted the turnaround of company.

Boldly faced the trial by media in IPL time

When he faced the trial by media and courts, he was in headlines for more than days, national channels targeted him, he remained cool, did not budge, did not yield to their pressure, faced them boldly. Told them, “   I have not committed any mistake, my conscience is clear”. He used the time to concentrate more on the company business. 

This helped a lot Company and senior management team in coping with the situation. When he was proved right by the verdict from Courts, people admired him for his boldness and straightforwardness. He was delightfully greeted by people, known and unknown, whenever he visited temples, airports, railway stations and while going for walk as his daily routine.  It was awesome to see those taking selfies with him.

Relevant quotes for reflecting his unique qualities

I would like to give below some highly relevant quotes which reflect the unique qualities of Mr. Srinivasan.

“Strong persons are those, who in spite of repeated obstacles persist in their endeavour until successful completion”. ( Bhartrihari’s Neeti Shaktakam).

“With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity”. (Author, Keshavan Nair)

Full of Faith

"He who has faith has an inward reservoir of courage, hope, confidence, calmness and assuring trust that all will come out well- even though to rest of the world it may appear to come out most badly". (BC Forbes)

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