PROFILE & ACHIEVEMENTS Ms. Mallika Srinivasan, Chairman
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
PROFILE & ACHIEVEMENTS Ms. Mallika Srinivasan, Chairman & CEO, Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited, Chennai Ms.Mallika Srinivasan heads the Rs 4750 crores Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (TAFE), India’s pioneering manufacturers of tractors and farm equipment. In a span of 25 years, she has steadily built this enterprise into becoming the world’s 3rd largest Tractor manufacturer, the country’s largest exporter of tractors and the most profitable tractor manufacturer in the world. Its brands Massey- Ferguson and Eicher are the first choices of the Indian farmer. TAFE has played a pioneering role in farm mechanization and agricultural productivity in the country and, through its efforts at its adaptive research centre ‘J Farm’, revolutionized farming practices which have resulted in the enhancement of farm productivity and incomes, particularly in the state of Tamil Nadu. Her personal efforts in the area of Women and child care and contribution to management education have been well acknowledged. Her organization’s contribution to social development in Tamil Nadu, through the establishment of schools , colleges, orphanages, community centers and wedding halls , besides contributions to a wide variety of causes aimed at better health care of the less privileged, are widely recognized. Her achievements, in the sphere of Industry and Commerce, and her contribution to social causes, have won her several awards and recognition around the world. Educational Achievements: A university gold-medallist in Econometrics from the University of Madras, Mallika Srinivasan graduated as a Member of the Dean’s Honor List, and the Alpha Beta, Gamma Society, from the University of Wharton, Pennsylvania. She is today ranked as one of the top 125 most successful Alumni of the Wharton School of Business. A graduate in Hindi, she is a gold medallist from the Hindi Prachar Sabha, and is also the recipient of the Kulapathi Gold medal ranking first in the country in Marketing and Advertising from the Bhavans College of Mass Communication Contribution to TAFE She joined TAFE and worked her way across the organization before taking over the reins of the Company. Deeply committed to core values, she has institutionalized the core values of integrity and ethics, maintaining long term relationships with customers and all stake holders, and ensuring that TAFE’s reputation as a manufacturer of quality products and customer satisfaction remained sacrosanct. Highlights She has successfully increased TAFE’s revenues from US $ 20 million to over US $ 1 Billion today. (TAFE had a turnover of Rs 86 crores when she took over. In a span of 25 years she increased the turnover of the company to 4750 crores.) TAFE is the largest family business in the country to be lead by a woman. She has led TAFE’s global growth across both Developed and Developing countries. Her leadership has taken TAFE from being a domestic player to becoming a global player, ranking as; The 3rd largest Tractor Manufacturer in the world The 2nd largest Tractor Manufacturer in the Country India’s largest exporter of Tractors TAFE is ranked as a bench mark on profitability. It has posted a profit every single year in the last 25 years, despite being in a highly cyclical industry. Under her leadership, a business model has evolved, that enables the company to deal with sharp cyclicality in sales volumes, and yet remain profitable. TAFE is today recognized as the most profitable business in the tractor manufacturing business worldwide with a PBT of 685 crores in 2009-10, TAFE has AA+ rating from CRISIL, and is virtually debt free, having a sizeable cash balance on its books. TAFE exports Tractors to over 40 countries including North America, South America, Balkans, Brazil and Croatia to name a few. They have extensive distribution operations in over 20 countries in Africa, Australia, Malaysia and Thailand TAFE holds market shares of over 60% in significant South Asian markets. They have established service networks in all these countries in order to be able to service and maintain their products through the life time of the product. Her spearheading the acquisition of Eicher Tractors in 2005 received extensive recognition and acclaim. This was followed up with a Greenfield investment in Turkey at Manisa, where TAFE’s rst overseas plant has been set up at Manisa in 2010. Her business strategies not only made TAFE a frontline player by strengthening its brands, but also made it a highly profitable one. This was achieved using a product – led approach and by employing unconventional, innovative ideas tailor made to the Indian context One of TAFE’s core strengths is its commitment to Research & Development. She has ensured a steady investment in indigenous Research and Development, and has launched and expanded the product range to include 25 to 90 horsepower tractors. These tractors have been built with several sophisticated features such as power steering, a range of transmissions, and emission compliant engines that meet global standards. The TAFE range today offers as its USP, fuel efficiency, ergonomics and reliability and hence commands the best re sale value in the market. All of these have been developed and built in-house. TAFE’s R&D is recognized by the Government of India and they have several patents to their credit. TAFE is now poised to expand their international presence in the developed markets and Turkey and to revolutionize Indian Farming practices through the introduction of innovative and cost effective farm mechanization practices specifically in the areas of harvesting, storage and handling of agricultural produce in the country. AWARDS TAFE was recognized by the jury of the CII-Exim Bank Award for Excellence for “Signicant achievement on the journey towards business excellence” in 2009 and has been awarded Star status by “Business Standard” in the unlisted category in august 2009. Mallika Srinivasan was the very first recipient of the BBC (UK) Business Woman of the year Award in 1999. She was awarded the ‘Zee Astitva Award for Exemplary Women’ in 2005 by Zee TV, for Business Entrepreneurship. She was awarded the India Today Award for Business Leadership in 2005. She received the Lakshmipat Singhania - IIM Award, for Business Leadership in the young business leader category in 2007. She received the Economic Times Business Woman of the year 2005- 2006 Business Today has recognized her as one of the twenty most powerful women in Indian Business 7 years in a row. Positions Held: Mallika Srinivasan has headed a variety of Industry Bodies and is actively involved in promoting Indian Business in India and abroad. She advocates learning as being an integral part of achieving organizational and individual excellence. She is currently a Member of the Executive Board of The Indian school of Business, Hyderabad. She is currently a Member of Board of Directors of Tata Global Beverages Ltd. The Government of TN has appointed Mallika as a Member of the Committee on employment generation in Agriculture. Earlier she served on the Board of Governors of the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai, the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi and the Southern Regional Committee of the CII She was the President of The Tractor manufacturer’s Association, She was President of the Madras Management Association She was President of the Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Social Responsibility ‘J Farm’ is a 200 acre, near Chennai, (a not- for- profit unit of TAFE,) is focussed on adaptive research and extension services that aim to improve the productivity in agriculture and improve the returns to the farmer. The crops under focus include rice, mango, pulses, vegetables and groundnut. Over thousands of hectares of land in the country are growing rice varieties (eg;J – 13) developed at J Farm. J farm has successfully developed and demonstrated dry farming in mango, that has proven to be very profitable for farmers. In keeping with environmental consciousness, it is now working on research and propagation in the area of organic farming. J Farm has contributed significantly to Farmers’ Education; it provides a personal advisory service through its panel of scientists on a variety of farming practices, and hosts a portal, which farmers can access for advice on cultivation practices, identification of pests and diseases etc. A philanthropist, Mallika Srinivasan has an abiding commitment to and belief in the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility. She is deeply committed to women’s healt h, and welfare. She continues her father’s concern for physically challenged women at the J Rehab Centre, a factory entirely manned by orthopedically challenged women, where they have been trained to make wiring harnesses for the tractors. This initiative has won many state and central awards. Through Trusts which have been set up, Mallika along with her husband Venu Srinivasan has been involved in a variety of village development programmes throughout TN, where, over 40,000 women have been included in Self –help groups, agricultural extension services have been provided to improve productivity in farming, tsunami rehabilitation carried out and restoration of places of worship completed on a large scale. In her family’s native village of Alwarkurichi, the Parama Kalyani Group of Institutions have been established, including a school, college, hospital and a wedding hall. Annadanam or feeding of the less privileged and contributions to various religious institutions are also regularly undertaken. Recently through the establishment of an Endowment Trust, significant contributions are being made to preserve, recognize and ensure the growth of the rich traditional heritage of Carnatic music in association with the Music Academy, Chennai. .