12 ET Young Leaders B-School Edition THE ECONOMIC TIMES | MUMBAI | TUESDAY | 24 NOVEMBER 2015 DUMMY PIC

A KODAK MOMENT: The 22 students who made it to the final list of ET Young Leaders B-School Edition 2015 in their moment of glory share the stage with 10 leading CEOs of India Inc

CEO SPEAKS AMIT AGARWAL Vice President and Country Manager, Amazon India TALENT LOVES COMPANIES The passion and talent that candidates demonstrated were incredible. It really stood out for me...how passionate the future of India is. WITH STARTUP DNA DEV BHATTACHARYA Minutes after a panel of 10 CEOs interviewed 46 aspirants to pick the final list of The Economic Times Young Business Head, Group Corporate Strategy, Solar Power & Leaders B-School Edition 2015, they came together for a discussion on how companies can engage better with E-Commerce, Aditya Birla Group The time is right. Many B-schools. The discussion was moderated by Sandeep Gurumurthi, executive editor, ET Now. Edited excerpts. students from business schools want to do SANDEEP GURUMURTHI something with startups Sanjay Rishi, how and in turn, improve gender diversity in More than 50% of our hires happen through pre- ship. I see a lot of youngsters even now waiting for and the opportunity is right would you assess the talent pool you saw corporate India? placement programmes. We don’t hire from place- instructions, but the market outside is telling you to for conglomerates to step in. today? ment programmes. The second part is engaging. go find and question. In the last couple of years we’ve gone to business VIVEK GAMBHIR Clearly, this is a journey. I schools and given them (students) real-life problems GAMBHIR The way we define organisational SAUGATA GUPTA SANJAY RISHI MD & CEO, Marico I had a wonderful time last year — think we are taking steps, but very small ones. to solve. It’s like outsourcing the problem and we tell structures and teams will go through a significant How do you create an and even better time this year. In general, the qual- We interviewed some women candidates, and we them we will give them support if they need it. shift. I do worry about entrepreneurship because enabling environment for ity of the candidates was much stronger. I also liked asked them, what makes a great leader? The women The last point is empowering them and we are part- the reality is that 90% of these companies will fail women to carry on into the diversity in candidates — not just gender diver- candidates themselves said, ‘he’ should be this or nering with B-schools to create real-life situations. and that’ll be the track record. It will create a bunch the senior level after they sity, but also social diversity. Talent is also coming that. It wasn’t just men, it was also women who were We even organise visits to centres. We’ve seen a lot of youngsters who will be impatient and become dis- have their first kid or take from small towns and from all sorts of backgrounds. constraining themselves with having some kind of of success with this and this way our dependency on illusioned. Some companies see success overnight, a break? That is the crux of And, people who have experience in life-changing preconceived notions of what defines a good leader. placements is less. but then Amit will testify, there are companies like the matter. adversity. Changing these things will take a certain amount of Amazon where it takes a lot of blood and sweat and time. The good thing is a lot more conversations are GURUMURTHI hard work over decades to find success. And I don’t DEV BHATTACHARYA Do you see a tectonic shift in I think the diversity happening; people are at least putting in some kind aspiration as well from five years ago? think business schools today are teaching students DILIP GAUR point came across very strongly, and more power to of measures, targets. Some may argue that a lot of it how to embrace failure. Deputy MD, UltraTech Cement women! is still lip-service, I do feel pretty hopeful that a lot In the last few months there have been three or The startup phenomenon of us are trying to experiment a lot more to make the DILIP GAUR We saw that today itself. While the four companies who have laid off a few people and it has made a huge difference. GURUMURTHI Ajay, what were your key environment more diverse. students are in campuses, they start work on star- has created headlines and angst across the country Students are able to use takeaways? Business schools will have to take a look at how tups. What’s happening is that people are able to where CEOs have been held hostage. their minds more creatively they recruit people; what kind of admission tests use their minds a lot more creatively because of the Long-term value requires a marathon; it’s not al- and create value as well. are there; are those tests much more biased towards startup phenomenon. ways just a sprint. AJAY SRINIVASAN I picked up two major things male skill sets? I think B-schools have a more impor- VIVEK GAMBHIR — a much greater balance between work and other tant job to also actually ensure that they can create GURUMURTHI How can Corporate India Managing Director, Godrej interests, and a lot of people with some really amaz- more diversity in their classrooms, and the faculty Consumer Products engage better with students when their Introducing Changes ing interests outside of work. The second thing was also has to be more diverse. aspirations are with startups? I don’t think business a huge interest in the social sector — I never saw Corporate structures need to schools today are teaching that last year but it was amazing to see the number MENON We have to do something quickly. In the students how to embrace of people who’ve aligned themselves to causes and new Companies Act, it’s almost forcing companies BHATTACHARYA We have this programme called change as we are hierarchical... failure. It’s all about trying spent time on these causes that they’re passionate to appoint women directors. That’s one step. And Bizlabs where we engage with the ecosystem of to become a CEO on day about. I think both are very wonderful things to see the other is B-schools, changing their intake. The startups and we find ways to scale up and how it’s Even our HR policies have to adapt. one. But that’s a long haul. in the youth of today. candidates that we interviewed today, their number like to work in a sophisticated environment. We saw was largely biased towards engineering campuses; Stanford University’s startup programme called PRANAB BARUA REKHA MENON There was such diversity largely biased towards STEM (science, technology, StartX and that’s something which encourages PAI There was a famous book, Who Says Elephants Business Director, Apparel And in the background, from their socio-economic engineering & mathematics), which is okay, but is students who have been to Stanford and want to Can’t Dance? I think most of us big established Retail Business, Aditya Birla background, from the kind of experiences they’ve that what we really need in business itself ? We need come back and use the platform to get incubated and companies are like elephants, and startups are like Group had, also from what they’ve done before starting a fair number of liberal arts degrees. accelerate. They use corporates to engage with and little mice who nick the elephants from the back to The clarity of thought that B-school. I thought to myself, ‘My gosh! Even before I think there’s a possibility waiting to be exploited make them change. Corporate structures need to came through was amazing. they’ve started their MBA they’ve accomplished so GURUMURTHI but B-schools have to start accelerator programmes change as we are far too hierarchical and there are much!’ For a company like Hindalco, and corporates will jump at them. We’ve seen a huge too many layers between the frontline and the top SANJAY RISHI it’s tough to hire someone from a liberal arts excitement from all our colleagues in the opportu- and these things are ossified unless there is an ex- President, American Express, background. The bias towards engineering is nity provided and engage with startups. The time is ternal crisis or stimulus. Even our HR policies have South Asia Diverse Approach obvious. So, how can manufacturing look at a right. Many students from business schools want to to start to adapt to a younger generation that will The idea is how can one more diverse set of people? do something with startups and the opportunity is demand a different way of working than the ‘sir’ and replicate all the excitement B-schools have a more important right for conglomerates to step in. ‘madam’ ways of working seven layers up. and risk-taking capacity of a startup yet give them job to also ensure that they can SATISH PAI To say in order to create gender di- GURUMURTHI Sanjay, what’s your view on GURUMURTHI That’s an upside for a safety-net of a large versity you need to hire from liberal arts is wrong. corporation. That would create more diversity in classrooms this visible shift in ambitions? The brightest Corporate India and technically it would When we hire trainees now, 30 -35% are engineer- may not be available for corporates. get more nimble-footed. We celebrate the be an incredibly powerful ing graduates who are women, so I personally value proposition. don’t think the problem is at the input level. In fact, success of startups so much that we don’t RISHI realise that a majority of them fail. It could GURUMURTHI women have a good representation at the input level. The idea is how do you replicate the environ- SATISH PAI Amit, what was your If anywhere there’s a problem, it’s when you get in at ment, all the excitement and risk-taking capacity create a majority of youngsters who fail. Deputy Managing Director, experience this morning? the ecosystem and support systems of the company. of a startup? Yet you give them a safety-net of a Hindalco Industries The problem is how you propagate it at the middle large corporation and that would be an incred- AGARWAL I think I would hire them any day. Corporate structures need AMIT AGARWAL It took me a few moments to get management level. The middle management has ibly powerful value proposition. We won’t put We take pride in failure. The culture companies to change as we are far too my bearings that I was in the middle of such amaz- practical issues. In a woman’s life, she will have chil- you in a rut or a groove. After three years we’ll build will matter a lot to diffuse the differentiation hierarchical and there are ing talent. I’m not an MBA, so it was amazing to dren and then come back onto the treadmill without put you in a place to find solutions of a problem between startups and established companies. At too many layers between know that people can accomplish so much at such missing a beat. Even in a metal company, it’s not a that we don’t have answers to. Amazon it’s always based on — ‘Think about the the front line and the top. a young age. The gender and social diversity were problem to get women in. But if you hire women and In fact we are discouraging the solution to the customer’. Competitors will go away, market trends Our HR policies have to amazing, and the passion and talent that candidates just keep them inside the office in HR roles, you’re problem because the incumbency of the solution is will change but a customer’s needs are what you’re start to adapt to a younger demonstrated were incredible. At that stage, having not doing anything much for them. so strong and the traditional view is so strong that chasing which will never be satisfied. There is a generation that will demand clarity of purpose matters a lot more. people aren’t looking for it. So, companies today are complete safety net. The pride we take in a failure a different way of working GURUMURTHI How can companies support rife with problems whether you’re in ecommerce is a lot like startups. Going back and creating a GURUMURTHI Pranab, could you come in on-campus entrepreneurship? or any other business. I think you can achieve very culture like a gang and having a long-term outlook. good harmony and we’re trying to do that. Established companies may have Wall Street or REKHA M MENON on the point that Amit made about clarity of AGARWAL Chairman, Accenture India thought. Is there a stand-out quality that you The things we do is we have a very Dalal Street pressure which they don’t get dis- comprehensive programme — educate, engage and MENON It’s a very interesting problem and an tracted by. If companies can manage the external I would actually argue with could see in the candidates here today? you when you say that empower. The key focus is how you give them a real- opportunity. Accenture is now taking minority pressure of an established company but build the many big corporations have life experience while getting an academic learning. equity stake in startups which we’ve never done pressure of willingness to create and manage it, it’s women leaders. It has to be PRANAB BARUA It was good I was sitting on the Based on the first part, an internship programme has before. Clearly, that provides the opportunity for celebrated. all across, and done fairly right side of the table, because if I was sitting on the to be coupled with a strong mentorship programme ideas to percolate and that’s the only way by which radically. wrong side of the table, I was sure that I wouldn’t with a senior leader. The business intern is put right you will encourage diversity of ideas which the GURUMURTHI: What would be your advice get a job. That’s the overall impression I had after in the middle of the business problem in the fulfil- old system may not be able to figure out and at the to all the young graduates? interviewing these candidates. What really came ment centre and we ask them to manage it. These are same time provide a base and then we decide on AJAY SRINIVASAN through to me was clarity of thought — and we were real-life problems and you’re working with a team whether or not to fund it. Director, Financial Services, MENON: Aditya Birla Group looking at that and we were also focusing on what that might have face-time with real life leaders. One key piece of advice to students on the kind of values they bring to the table; what values GURUMURTHI startups boom — we celebrate successes and we Two major things that I they have in their own personal lives, and they were The way jobs were ten or so don’t talk about failures but as long as there is learn- picked up — a much greater able to articulate them. That’s how companies start, years ago, will they cease to exist? ing from failures, I would say, the more startups the balance between work and Old Vs New System with a sense of values. better. It creates an entrepreneurial culture. We other interests. The second BHATTACHARYA thing was a huge interest There are youngsters waiting for Jobs as we see them will cease would hire them in a heartbeat. Failures give very in the social sector. I think GURUMURTHI to exist. We might as well stop looking for instruc- different learnings that an established firm doesn’t Gender diversity is an issue instructions, but the market outside tions. You have to start thinking, ideating, and have. My advice is: stay curious and stay learning. both are very wonderful that we’ve all been grappling with. How can things to see in the youth is telling you to go find and question converting them into action and see where opportu- As long as there is agility and adaptability, there’s of today. we get more gender diversity into B-schools, nities arise for entrepreneurship and intrapreneur- going to be success.

Ajay Santrupt A young Srinivasan Misra leader takes shares a Bonding Pranab speaks her citation word of over a selfie Barua and to young from Rekha wisdom M Menon Sanjay Rishi leaders watch over WWW.ECONOMICTIMES.COM B-School Edition ET Young Leaders 13 WHAT COUNTS AS THE WINNING STREAK Multidimensional Talent Question sample Life Experiences Question sample DEV BHATTACHARYA: DILIP GAUR: (to Kanav Goyal Between Flipkart and from ISB Hyderabad): Amazon, who is likely to win Analytics is your area of DEV in India? (the Amazon India SAUGATA strength. How can you use BHATTACHARYA head was sitting right there!) GUPTA it in HR? What is the biggest asset of a (to Parina Magu from ISB marketing guy? Hyderabad who comes AMIT AGARWAL: How do you from an army background): deal with people who do not What do you think of the AMIT mesh with your plans? How DILIP OROP issue? Now that you AGARWAL would you strike a balance GAUR are part of ISB, do you think between passions & career? it is right?

Candidate Take Candidate Take It’s inspiring to be at an The event tested me across CEO Take event where you get to CEO Take skillsets. The best part of it, interact with doyens of the however, was the interview. This is my first time here. I There is a very broad swathe of capabilities industry. One thing I learnt The appetite for risk-taking is much more The biggest change among young It was more of a self- am amazed at the diversity and exposure among the students chosen. from the CEOs was what among these young people. They have leaders is they aren’t unidimensional. reflection really, where the of purpose, clarity of The ability to bring people out of the inner India, being grounded is about hunger in them and a point to prove. The quality of discourse has gone up questions asked made me purpose and vision and bring them out to the corporate world — MINAL SUBHASH DHONDGE, Between arrived and arriving; it’s always and they are far more holistic in terms think about who I was PRIN, LN WELINGKAR PRATHAP PS, NARSEE MONJEE exposure of this sort will give a huge fillip INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT better to be the latter of richness of their experiences INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT to the youngsters DEVELOPMENT AND RESEARCH STUDIES (NMIMS), MUMBAI How they picked the Young Leaders How they picked the Young Leaders While Dilip Gaur focused more on SAUGATA GUPTA: This year, there was AGARWAL I was very keen to see a will have to rally people around and a Fun Moment probing the candidates’ subject a big bias towards people with ini- Fun Moment purpose-driven mindset because certain degree of being able to admit Music seemed to be a passion matter knowledge, depth and un- tiative; those who’d done different They were grilling this girl on it shows they are aspiring to do mistakes. for some of the candidates. derstanding of concepts and strat- things and experimented, what she would do if someone something more meaningful than One candidate could play the egy, Saugata Gupta’s queries were instead of focusing solely on aca- in her team was under- just a milestone. BHATTACHARYA — I like people to be guitar and keyboard, while wide-ranging, including throwing demics. We judged the future performing and was under I was looking for humility at a inclusive, honest, and have a broader another liked to dance away up several hypothetical situations for leaders looking at their life pressure from management to young age to make sure they un- canvas. And what they say and what her blues. The interview the candidates to gauge them as experiences; their motivation, hunger, fire the person. She said she derstand there is a lot to learn; a certain they have done should match. In corporate session turned musical when potential leaders. Both judges creativity and imagination. We were would buy more time. But the degree of optimism that is the oxygen that life the people who usually excel are the a candidate was asked to sing, were in sync, inevitably spotting looking for people who have it in judges smiled and said she will keep them going; a certain ability to people who do more things than in one and she promptly recited the the same strengths and weaknesses in them to become tomorrow’s entrepre- might learn to act tough once know they will face different viewpoints, dimension. sargam of a morning raga! individual candidates. neurs-cum-leaders. she is on the job Team PlayersSCROLL OF A Track Record VIVEK SANJAY GAMBHIR RISHI

SATISH HONOUR PRANAB PAI BARUA ET YOUNG LEADERS B-SCHOOL EDITION AASTHA KUMAR KANAV GOYAL Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Management Indian School of Business, Mumbai CEO Take Studies, Delhi Hyderabad CEO Take RESHMA BABU There are no Family values are a crutch. You will only One doesn’t necessarily need to Life isn’t always black and ANKIT ASHOK SRIVASTAVA MINAL SUBHASH Indian Institute of shortcuts in life take risks when there’s no one behind Symbiosis Centre for DHONDGE Management, Calcutta work at a very senior level to make white — there are many grey Management and Human Prin. L. N. Welingkar an impact on people, you can work you. In India, we’re not taught to say I ROHAN SANDEEP areas where one needs to take don’t know! We’re always told to talk Resource Development, Institute of Management in a grocery store and still be able a moment to think about how Pune Development and MANKAME Jamnalal Bajaj Institute about two options. Research, Mumbai to make people smile to navigate the situation with a ASTHA AGARWAL of Management Studies, proper sense of values Indian School of Business, NISHANT JEYANTH Mumbai picked Hyderabad Management Development How they the Young Leaders Institute, Gurgaon RUCHI SINGH The CEOs were looking to er they could handle situations CHITRA MALIK Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode How they picked the Young Leaders probe students about team- in terms of stress. Indian School of Business, PRASANNAKUMAR Mohali PRANAB BARUA - The most strong value system. work as they’re used to NAGESH BENDRE SARANSH DUA important factor we looked working in silos. “Young SANJAY RISHI: Good team Indian Institute of DIVYA AGGARWAL Indian School of Business, for was clarity of thought. VIVEK GAMBHIR - We picked work culture today is be- work and strong team skills Management, Lucknow Xavier School of Hyderabad And the candidates we chose candidates on the basis of coming individualistic and are important but the candi- Management, Jamshedpur PRATHAP P S demonstrated that they were their stories, and how cohe- we are not looking just for date must have a broader and SHWETHA SUBRAMANIAN Narsee Monjee Institute clear about what they were sive the details were on their great individual performers but bigger picture to contribute to the GEETIKA BAJAJ Indian Institute of of Management Studies, saying and how they perceived journey so far. We paid attention also those who can perform well un- country Narsee Monjee Institute Management, Lucknow of Management Studies, Mumbai themselves. We also noticed authen- to how self-aware candidates were, der pressure when put in a team,” Mumbai VIJAY ARUR ticity in their personalities and the and how much they’d reflected on said Pai. Rishi was judging them on SATISH PAI: Leadership and team- PRATIK VIJAYKUMAR Indian Institute of ease of comfort in their own skin. their own strengths and weaknesses. their risk-taking ability. work are good but there has to be NIKAM ISHAN KHARE Management, Indore Personality and attitude, of course, A factor in our decision was the track The panel judged students on greater contribution to society. Indian Institute of Indian Institute of were governing factors in our deci- record of accomplishments, and the whether they were team players or Indian work culture is built around Management, Indore Management, Indore VIVEK ROHILLA sions as well, as was their ability to impact they’ve created thus far. It’s not, whether they have good com- seniority but there are many more Indian School of Business, PRAVEEN KUMAR get along with others. Finally, we not just important to do things but munication skills as well as wheth- ways to make a living JINITA BHADRESH SHAH Mohali Indian Institute of GOPALSAMY looked for basic intelligence and a also to grow as a person Management, Lucknow National Institute of Question sample Candidate Take Question sample Candidate Take SANJAY RISHI asked most candidates what The panelists were VIVEK GAMBHIR: What would you like The idea of talking to such they thought about what needs to be done to judging you based on your obituary to say? In other words, senior professionals whom accelerate the growth of India and what they your life experiences how do you want to be remembered? you normally wouldn’t interact could do to change it? He also asked what risks more than work, which is Methodology with in ordinary circumstances PRANAB BARUA: What is the value the students took in their lives and how they very good was nerve-wracking. But the The second edition of The Economic ployability, was the assessment partner system that guides your actions, and changed them. DIVYA AGGARWAL, XLRI interview felt more like a Times Young Leaders B-School pro- for the early phases. The first phase com- if in a certain case you found that the SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, conversation, and the questions SATISH PAI asked students what the voice of values of the company you work for JAMSHEDPUR gramme was launched on August 31, prised an online personality test. The compelled me to be really their generation was & if they had to stand and clash with your own sense of ethics, 2015 with the Aditya Birla Group as the second phase was a combination of two honest about myself make PM Narendra Modi’s speech at Wembley, presenting sponsor. The programme as- online assessments — one was a test to as- what would you do? what would be different from what he said? SHWETA SUBRAMANIAN, 24 YEARS sesses final year, full-time postgraduate sess logical, verbal, and analytical skills; OLD, IIM LUCKNOW students studying in any business school and the second to assess managerial com- Fun Moment in India on their potential to become fu- petencies. In the third phase students Fun Moment Sanjay Rishi asked a candidate what was the last movie he watched and when he ture leaders. We received 13,000 entries. were asked to solve a case study based on One candidate, when asked about her shortcomings, said she wasn’t a good liar. couldn’t recall what it was. He joked that it would have been a long time since he They cleared three hurdles before they an Aditya Birla Group business. About 22 She said, “I was asked by a company to come in for a PPI, but being in Bangkok last saw a movie. Rishi: Let’s say you find a girlfriend or a life partner and your met the CEO Panel. Aspiring Minds, an Young Leaders qualified to find a place in then, I fibbed that I couldn’t as my grandfather was ill. On my return, the parents say no. What would you do then? expert in testing students on their em- the ET Young Leaders list. interviewer asked me about grandfather. It took me time to remember my lie.

Wider Interests Question sample How they picked the Young Leaders REKHA M MENON: Tell me about a failure REKHA M MENON: I was decision-making skills, ability in life and what you learnt from it? looking for evidence that to communicate effectively would tell us about their or tailoring communica- AJAY SRINIVASAN: How important is AJAY learnability, adaptability tion to different audience, CEO Take CEO Take money to you? SRINIVASAN and resilience — all key networking skills and Today’s young Just achieving leadership traits. Today’s people management skills. leaders come a job or a Candidate Take young generation looks I am very impressed by the I have studied in a government school from diverse position will beyond business and are a lot candidates this year. They dis- till Class 8 and I learnt English at a later more socially conscious. They played a wide range of interest and backgrounds, not drive stage…For me education is my passion success…there also have wider interests, a broad- come from diverse socio-economic bringing and what drives me. Going forward I er platter to choose from and a backgrounds. They also have a lot together their REKHA are several aim to set up a social enterprise in better ability to take on challeng- of social focus. For the first time I unique M MENON other aspects the field of education.” ing roles am hearing such youngsters talk- strengths. to success… RESHMA BABU, 23, IIM-C ing about something like work-life Collaboration even happiness AJAY SRINIVASAN: I was look- balance, which shows their level of I would like to be happy no matter ing for 5-6 things, which include maturity and awareness. and innovation is one such what I do and want to be constantly are key success aspect learning, which, in turn, is a source of mantras… my happiness. Fun Moment ROHAN SANDEEP MANKAME, 22, When a candidate kept reiterating the importance of work-life balance and never JAMNALAL BAJAJ INSTITUTE OF taking up a role that requires him to work for over 12 hours a day, a CEO offered MANAGEMENT STUDIES him a 5-hour a day job. The candidate said neither works for him as it is too less.

Photos: Nitin Sonawane Reporting: Team ET Candidates A picture discuss perfect Making a point on This young leader is Rekha M Menon on what what makes moment for posterity presenting the best keen to know answers constitutes food for thought them tick possible scenario