The Partners Post www.mahindrapartners.com A mahindra partners publication April 2020 Waste to Energy Solutions Ltd. The Mahindra Group rises Mahindra Partners joins Mahindra Partners sector to the COVID Challenge invests in Aquasail Waste to Energy >> 12 The COVID Challenge >> 05 Aquasail >> 14 One company, three major achievements

Narayan Dharmadhikari trained rigorously about TPM for around three months. Mahindra Accelo Plant visits were conducted to other Indian companies like Godrej and Boyce Appliance Shirwal plant, Mahindra and Mahindra- Igatpuri plant, etc. that have Mahindra Accelo hit the hat- the best in class TPM capabilities. trick by being certified by JIPM, Initially, the team only decided to focus on 5 TPM pillars. In December 2016, Nasik Plant was assessed featuring in Asia's Top 25 world by Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and places by GPW and Zero Waste to received ‘TPM commitment award’. With this, the enthusiastic team decided to challenge themselves Landfill certificate. further to achieve all eight pillars of the TPM excellence award. Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM) Total In December 2018, the TPM Health check Productive Maintenance (TPM) Excellence award is assessment was carried out by Srinivasan of CII. the most coveted and prestigious award to certify the JIPM assessors Prof. Tetsuo Miyamura and overall performance of the plant. Masayoshi Sugiura San conducted Stage 1 assessment It means achieving the uphill task of 4 Zeros: Zero on 27th April 2019 and stage 2 assessment on 30th and Accidents, Zero Defects, Zero Waste and Zero 31st October 2019 at the Mahindra Accelo, Nashik Breakdowns. the Accelo Nashik team. The excited young team Somkumar – Chief Chakan and Nashik plants on the plant. Assessors appreciated the team’s extraordinary Four years ago, a need for TPM was felt for Nashik accepted this thrilling yet herculean task. TPM steering team, the TPM pillars; and a master efforts and excellent demonstration of case studies on Plant location, as the plant was ten years old. The TPM is not only a journey of improving schedule for four years. Another significant driving all eight pillars of TPM. Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) needed to be Productivity (P), Quality (Q), Cost (C), Delivery (D), force of this was Sunil Tidke - Head, Nashik plant. The 30th of January, 2020 was a historic day for improved to become competitive in a volatile open Safety (S) and Morale (M) results but also calls for a Structured review meetings were held weekly, Accelo Nashik Plant when JIPM declared that the market. External market situations such as new cultural change. Mahindra Accelo Nashik team was fortnightly, monthly and quarterly. Under the Mahindra Accelo, Nashik plant was a ‘TPM players, auto-market slow down, steel mills starting very young, with an average age of 27 years only. It Education and Training pillar, a full-fledged training Excellence Award’ winner and invited to receive this its service centres, etc. had an adverse impact on was a lean team. Though the team was very agile, room with all learning tools in the local language was coveted award at Kyoto, Japan. the growth. flexible and passionate about winning. also prepared. Vijay Arora, then Sr. VP and now COO threw a Vijay Arora decided in consultation with Laxman TPM journey kicked off at Mahindra Accelo, Read about the GPW achievement on page  18 challenge of winning JIPM TPM excellence award to Mahale – Chief Business Excellence and Sanjay Nashik Plant in November 2015. All employees were Read about Zero Waste to Lanfill certificate on page  29 Mahindra Logistics introduces Mahindra Tsubaki launches the MLL 2.0 – a strategic change to the Gravimetric Feeder organisational leadership

Ketaki Sule, in MLL’s solution mix. The underlying premise here is Mahindra Logistics that MLL wants to be a bold company. And MLL 2.0 With Rampraveen Swaminathan’s arrival, MLL will enable the organisation to emerge as a premier renewed its focus on growth and excellence with the 3PL logistics service provider. launch of MLL 2.0, built upon the accomplishments of With its eyes set on the future, MLL aspires to the past few years. With some fundamental emerge as a Great Company. To achieve this, MLL organisational changes, MLL 2.0 will bring about will not only do different things but also do things transformations which will enable the company to differently. With MLL 2.0, it will strive to drive accomplish its vision for the future. These changes are profitable growth by becoming the first choice of based on a deep understanding of customer orientation, customers; be purpose-led; leveraging technology and the ever-expanding capabilities and continuous growth digitisation to create differentiation. Vinitia Sequeira The ‘Mahindra Gravimetric Feeder’ combines the Mahindra Tsubaki Conveyor Systems expertise of Yamato in weighing systems and of MTC Mahindra-Tsubaki unveiled its new product 'Mahindra in conveying technology. This combination feeder has Gravimetric Feeder' – a Coal Feeder for boilers, been developed with the unique feature of ensuring Mahindra Susten completes 3 million primarily for Captive Power industry. MTC has measured and controlled feed to the boiler, in accordance associated with Yamato Scale Company, Japan for this. with the load demand and at the same time offering flexibility to accommodate varied user layouts. Safe man hours at Sakaka project The event was held at the factory premises of MACE leads the way in Mahindra Tsubaki at Pirangut, Pune. A working model Mahindra Susten announced an of the equipment, with a Coal handling capacity of 18 achievement of the significant safety Bangladesh Tonnes Per Hour (TPH) was manufactured and milestone of 3 Million Safe man hours that Ankita R installed in the factory, especially for this event – for the team achieved in the Sakaka, Saudi Mahindra Consulting Engineers trial demonstration in front of customers. Major Power Arabia, 405MWp project site! To have The Government of Bangladesh in its endeavour to equipment suppliers such as Thermax Ltd., accomplished this significant milestone promote sustainable tourism, intends to develop the Thyssenkrupp Industries India, ISGEC, L&T Power took more than just commitment and Sonadia Island as an international eco-tourism along with the end-users and select consultants support of the management, it took destination through the tourism economic zone attended the event. Members from Tsubaki Indonesia teamwork, dedication and a robust health model. This project is first of its kind in Bangladesh office and Yamato Scale Co., Japan were also present and safety process. conceptualised for the sustainable and holistic on occasion. development of eco-tourism cluster and knowledge- The event began with a short welcome and What exactly is a Safe man hour? A stellar performance in Safe man hours reflects based green economy. MACE was engaged with introduction which was followed by a detailed The measure of Safe man hours is a clear reflection the ability to assess, predict and perform under the Government of Bangladesh for 3O-year Master presentation of the Mahindra Gravimetric Feeder. The of safety performance in all of the projects undertaken. challenging environments comprising of complicated Plan and Development Plan with supporting presentation was followed by a Q&A session in which A Safe man-hour, by definition, is a unit of production social and physical environments, a diverse mix of infrastructure/utility planning. customers enthusiastically fired a variety of questions completed without any lost time, injury or accident. At culture, nationality and language of workmen, The strategies evolved by MACE to trigger regarding the equipment; it’s operation, application, the organisational level, it is a crucial indicator of the consequent communication and coordination economic growth, rural development, create large feasibility and cost. Members of the MTC team and performance of Health, Safety and Environment problems. scale local and regional employment and promote experts from Yamato promptly answered all queries. (HSE) Management System – a systematic approach This achievement would not have been possible inclusive growth through Sonadia Eco-Tourism Park The customers were then taken to the Shop floor to managing safety, organisational structures, without the HSE Team’s continuous efforts to create initiative. MACE CEO, B Suresh and Manivannan area where the working model of equipment awaited accountabilities, policies and procedures. It also aids and maintain a sustainable safety culture on all sites. recently made a presentation to the honourable to be unveiled. A working demonstration of the in proportionately weighing business activities and Team Mahindra Susten’s commitment and dedication Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh equipment was conducted in front of customers using applying principles, framework, and processes to help towards achieving excellence in safety performance explaining the master plan and they were appreciated coal to give them better clarity of equipment prevent accidents, injuries and minimise other risks. are reflected in this achievement. for the same. functioning and operation. 2 Human Resources Uncovering one’s purpose to create change

Mitesh Jadhav Mahindra Accelo “It’s not enough to have lived. We should be determined to live for something.” ―Winston S. Churchill

The Signature Learning Program, Phase 4 was conducted at the Environmental Sanitation Institute, Ahmedabad. The institute is a place every Indian should visit if they get a chance. Space has over fifty indigenously designed toilets meant for different terrains and climatic conditions of every corner of India. Simply put, this phase was a journey of understanding oneself and discovering one’s purpose. Editorial This was the starting point to enable participants to want to create change in society (through the GAP program). Battling a pandemic This phase kickstarted the Global Action on The GAP Intensive is a 12-month program, starting discovering who one truly is: deep levels of listening, with hope Poverty (GAP) program for participants. The GAP from Oct 2019, brought together Changemakers, and uncovering one’s limiting beliefs and cleaning up of Intensive is a flagship program run by the GAP Corporate Executives from Mahindra (Change one’s life among many soul-searching activities. Being appreciative of the myriads of things organisation along with Head Held High that invites Leaders) to collectively find new strategies and Focus on one’s work and personal relationships: how happening around us, we bring to you, stories young leaders from organisations to engage in a partners to deliver better impact. The program began to own and transform them. Much of the actual of resilience, excellence and hope. meaningful and impactful way with real-world with a 5-day immersion at Ahmedabad through the transformative work happened there and then. And This issue of the Partners Post touches challenges faced by social service organisations to Mission Impossible Leaders Program – designed and most important of them all, these sessions were all upon various aspects of the current times we live in. create real change. The program was created to enable delivered to uncover one’s life purpose and get leading to one final moment of truth, and that was of Don’t miss our exclusive coverage on the Social Entrepreneurs (Change Makers) to amplify the tremendously motivated to drive social change, uncovering and determining one’s true purpose in life. COVID-19 Challenge: the Mahindra Group’s impact they have in communities by providing them followed by a one day workshop with the Some of the key highlights of the program included efforts, Work from Home stories and methods support, knowledge and resources that are easily Changemakers to draft an Impact Goal to increase the uncovering a new dimension of leadership through the of surviving the indoors. available through organisations, individuals and impact of the NGO. path of confusion and paradox leading towards At Mahindra Partners, we have indeed government. The activities conducted in the five days were: enlightenment. The participants not only understood been preparing ‘to expect the unexpected’. who they really are but also got further clarity on their Read all about our conclave on the theme of core beliefs and everything around themselves. Change Management. The participants also visited the Sabarmati Ashram Welcoming the new addition in Partners, and met the famous Udaybhai rickshawwalla. we introduce to you Mahindra Waste to Energy Udaybhai is famous for not charging people for their Solutions Ltd and our latest investment, ride and urges them instead to pay from their heart. He Aquasail. In an exclusive, Mahindra Finance calls the concept ‘Ahmedabad no rickshawalo’ and gives us an account of their resilient journey- works on the principle of giftivism. He creates a overcoming many challenges to stand where unique experience with his rickshaw design with food they are today. We also have exciting stories to eat, water to drink, books to read, music to hear, a from AFS and FES, as they continue raring fan for summers and also a dustbin. ahead dauntlessly. A visit to the Seva Café of Ahmedabad brought in In a story of dedication, read about the further perspective to the concept of giftivism. At journeys of people rising through the ranks. There has never been a better time to emulate Seva Café, the participants were matched with the the ideals that motivated them to get this far. NGO that resonated with their uncovered potential. We are not short of brilliant employees who use The past five days had set the tone and context alternative thinking to drive our organisations. for the participants. The clarity with which they The Shadow Board presentations of Accelo, reiterated their purpose also enabled them to open up Susten and the Group teams stand testament to the idea of creating real impact with their NGO to this. partners. The teams have regular evaluation sessions As we set course on a ‘different’ future, let with their NGO partners and continue on their journey us embrace the change it sets into motion of change. and also try to be harbingers of change on that journey.

Susanne Rodrigues Mahindra Partners Contents Training for future-ready businesses News: The most remarkable news from An organization’s ability to learn and translate across Partners features here...... 1 that leaning into action rapidly, the ultimate HR: Signature Learning Program updates...... 2 competitive advantage. Note by Zhooben Bhiwandiwala...... 3 – Jack Welch Mahindra Rising to the COVID Challenge...... 4-5 SLP Phase 5 was conducted at a place that offers Note by Parag Shah...... 6 serenity and sanctity in its real sense. It was fun to Biding Adieu to Mahindra Logistics...... 7 learn and unlearn midst the French capital of India, Glimpses from the Senior Leadership i.e. in Puducherry. Conclave 2020...... 8-11 The participants enjoyed phase 5 as it was a Introducing Waste to Energy Solutions Ltd.....12 unique mix of storytelling, heritage walks, digital landscapes, business case simulations, and more. Nexus of Good: Anil Swarup tells above this The phase started with ‘tour-de-MRV’ (Mahindra platform of sharing stories of hope...... 13 Research Valley, Chennai). The participants were Introducing Aquasail, the latest investment fascinated with the engineering research and product of Partners...... 14-15 development wings for automobiles and tractors, all Driving Positive Change in Rural India: under one roof. MRV indeed bears testimony to the The story of Mahindra Finance...... 16-17 Mahindra Group’s commitment to technology-driven from a farmer reaching markets by eliminating HR: Taking you through the interesting innovation. After the 80-minutes, and 2 km plus middlemen, to helping the talented but less business stories across Partners...... 18-19 walk, the hungry participants, to their delight, were savvy artisans among a host of other inspirational presented an authentic south Indian lunch on a accounts. Auto and Farm Sector: Bringing together banana leaf, consisting of 34 different food items. For the first time, the SLP 2 cohort spent an entire stories of sheer excellence...... 20-21 A session on the ‘Art of storytelling’ followed the day understanding the heritage of the city in which Business updates from our companies...... 22 delicious lunch. The group also went through the their program was conducted. The group explored The Digital world...... 23 fundamentals of delivering PowerPoint presentations. the French capital of India and even Auroville. The Shadow Boards: Accelo, Susten A summary of this session can be captured in one utopian community of fifteen square miles made and Group...... 24-25 perspective the presenter lay before us. ‘If Ramayana from desolate scrubland outside Pondicherry was was needed to be reduced from 50 slides to 20 slides, designed by the French architect Robert Anger Rising through the Ranks...... 26-27 one needs to reduce the story arcs of characters and dividing Auroville into four zones (residential, Sustainability and CSR...... 28-30 not reduce the number of characters.’ industrial, cultural and international) all arranged Leadership: A look at Anand’s Twitter Feed....31 The third day we had sessions on understanding around the centrepiece of the community, the Group News...... 32-33 digital transformation for achieving stratospheric Matrimandir, or “Temple of the Mother”. success. The session was named Digital BLUR in More than two million trees have been planted The COVID Challenge which BLUR stood for Boundaryless Organization, since Auroville’s inception, transforming the arid • Working from Home...... 34 Limitless Digitization, Unbounded Innovation and waste into a thriving eco-system. Participants • Health is Wealth...... 34 Relentless Iteration. We went through case studies watched a 15-minute documentary followed by • Fun from Home...... 35 and other comparative research tools to understand introductions to the best practices on waste • Stories from our companies...... 36 deeper the world of social, mobile, analytics and management, women empowerment, uplifting local Books to keep you busy...... 37 cloud and their convergence to drive business livelihoods, musical instruments, earth-based Videos to motivate you...... 38 innovation. It was indeed a session on covering the building technologies, mensuration, sustainable disruptors that separate the ‘Now’ from the ‘New’ to product design studio, organic farming, animal care, Team the ‘Next’. carpentry etc., and the list goes on. Participants were Editor: Susanne Rodrigues The second half of day three comprised of explained three Auroville case studies of e-Cycle practising design thinking approach through a rental, wastewater management and sustainable Edit Team: Rustom Vesavevala and business simulation. Day four was all about reviewing bricks. Phase 5 ended with a delicious lunch at the Shernaz Kapadia the social immersion projects of every participant ‘Auroville Solar Kitchen.’ Special contributors: Zhooben Bhiwandiwala, with their respective NGOs. The session started with From understanding product development to Parag Shah, Ketaki Sule, Renfred D’souza, Arun every participant sharing his/her experience about effective storytelling techniques, clearing the Kumar V, Ankita R, Vinitia Sequeria, Omkar visiting the NGOs workplace and field visits. All the digital blur, becoming a societal leader to the Gawde, Mitesh Jadhav. stories were filled with a sense of responsibility meaningful exploration of Pondicherry and Auroville, Art Director: Varghese Sakariya towards social work and on positive spirit SLP phase 5 was indeed a whole-brain stimulating towards driving positive change. The stories ranged experience. 3 The COVID Challenge

Recalibrating our steps Zhooben Bhiwandiwala President-Mahindra Partners & Group Legal. Member of The Group Executive Board

Admittedly, this seems a truly surreal moment in • appreciation of the flowers outside my window, activities, and corporate history for our Post to be launching its next edition. I previously unseen governance which build long term think it is necessary to emphasise that our business • appreciating how valuable family holidays are, and will institutional resilience. activities continue as usual. be in future Fast forward to March 2020, and My earlier note for this edition of The Post is attached • appreciating our inter-connectedness as a society, inter- we are faced with a dramatically below, unchanged. I wrote it on 11th March 2020. Today, dependency with so many others, and pausing to be challenging external environment. 15th April, as requested by our Editorial team, I am adding grateful for the richness of our lives. Even prior to the virus threat, many of a supplementary to that original. How the world changed, in Each of you is currently sequestered at home, wondering our group companies have been severely 34 days. about the future. Honestly, the immediate future is buffeted by the economic downturn in The events during this period have so extremely uncertain. Now, we look ahead at India, resulting in declining revenues effectively exposed our weaknesses and the next few months, evaluating how to and profits. The short term economic laid bare the fragility of the world we navigate through the fog of uncertainty, outlook remains highly uncertain, with have created. But simultaneously, it Our brand till things return to normal. There is the added volatility of the Carona virus has identified new strengths and “ today a challenge for the world to leading us into entirely unknown brought to the forefront the reputation, along find an effective exit strategy to territory. extraordinary abilities of the end Lockdowns and return to However, using the cliché –in human spirit, of our humanity. with purpose-driven normal. The question is, ‘What adversity emerges opportunity. Most of COVID-19 has made the will normal look like?’ While the our portfolio companies continue to world hit ‘reset’. It has people are a crucial duration of this crisis is uncertain, occupy a leadership position in their circumvented the entire our future normal will not look like respective domains. Our brand reputation, globe at 5G speeds without asset today. the normal of recent years. along with talented and purpose-driven people are restraint, affecting millions at The good news is that we have a crucial asset today. The current scenario allows us complete random. It has held rapidly adapted. to leverage both our leadership and institutional up a mirror for each of us, • Our leadership teams are well organised, resilience to manage the present while simultaneously teaching us how interconnected we all meeting regularly and sharing best practices. investing for the future effectively. are and how fragile the balance between • We quickly and efficiently commenced working from We must watch the horizon, even as we fight today’s humanity and nature is, that the world home, albeit in a ‘novel’ (pun intended) format. battles, and continue to invest for the future we had built was not a fair one. • Mahindra as a group is demonstrating leadership in revival which will surely follow prudently. Allow me some humour here- helping the govt in weathering this unique crisis. Being future-fit is an equal requisite to being all of you recall our annual • Our HR, Admin, and IT teams are extending super fighting fit today employee engagement surveys, support and deserve our recognition. In the immediate short term, the unprecedented craving for ‘work-life’ • Financial planning is complete to ensure our continued global emergency caused by the spread of the balance? Well, we got it. And operation going forward. Coronavirus must remain our priority – now, we desperately want In closing, I request each of you to be a true Mahindra towards the welfare of our employees, our work back in our lives. So, Rise brand ambassador in your communities and to be broader communities, customers and be very thoughtful, very, sensitive to the travails of those who are less privileged and suppliers. This will surely test our resolve when you fill out your have less financial sustenance to overcome this crisis. The and require extremely collaborative next survey. Group has launched a donation portal, and I exhort each of mindsets towards each other, but I am sure In this short period, I you to step up, in any little manner, to support that initiative. that we will jointly overcome this have personally relearned This is a great opportunity for each of us to reflect, adversity. one emotion – resolve and recalibrate. I wish all your families and each of appreciation, in so many Yes, we can. Yes, we will. you a brighter, and safer future. myriad and minute ways: • appreciation of Zhooben watching children play in a park Note written on 11th March 2020 • appreciation of all our My earlier Foreword, titled “reflections on the domestic help, who daily year gone by” dated 19th February, was celebrating surmount difficult travel all-round performances as well as momentum on conditions to make our key initiatives related to environmental lives more comfortable stewardship, innovation agenda’s, CSR 4 The COVID Challenge

The Power of Imaginative Communication Since 16th March we have been running this campaign across all Mahinda Partner companies. In these 31 days, over 60 elements of communication have been shared across all our companies. It’s a case study on how to handle internal communications. All change takes time to seed. Using creativity and imagination, drawing upon your values, and ensuring your message is consistently followed through, brings about the shift that is sought. Never underestimate the power of creative and continuous messaging, for any project that you are working on. 5 The COVID Challenge

Mahindra Rises to the COVID Challenge

As the coronavirus continues to spread, medical resources to help them to simplify design and scale-up capacity. respirators, the face shields will be a more effective way to limit around the world are being stretched to the maximum. On the other end, the Group is working on an automated exposure to the virus. Initially beginning with 500 masks a day, Equipment like ventilators for COVID-19 patients and version of the Bag Valve Mask ventilator (commonly known as Mahindra intends to ramp up the production to meet the huge protective gear for healthcare professionals are in short supply. Ambu bag)”, he tweeted. requirements for face shields. Corporates and manufacturers across the globe are scrambling Commenting on the development, Anand said, “These are to meet the growing demand for these lifesaving devices. sophisticated machines costing between Rs 5 to 10 lakh. This Other initiatives by the Group include: In India, Mahindra is at the forefront of corporate India’s device is an interim lifesaver & the team estimates it will cost • Tech Mahindra develops a curfew management system for fight against the pandemic. Within 48 hours of Group Chairman below Rs7,500.” Delhi police in 72 hours. Anand Mahindra putting out a tweet, teams at the company’s Mahindra Logistics’ ALYTE rolled out a 24x7 free, non- • AFS factory canteens serve cooked food for free distribution. Igatpuri and Mumbai plants had made a working prototype of a medical emergency cab services in Hyderabad to help those • Both a low-cost Ventilator (Around Rs 15,000 each) as well ventilator machine. affected by the pandemic. Alyte will provide these services as a more sophisticated version (approx. Rs 1.5 lakh each) Anand Mahindra announced a series of initiatives to help through a dedicated fleet, including Electric vehicles. These to be produced. the country in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. They services are focused on single mothers, disabled individuals, • Two Club Mahindra resorts already opened up to authorities include leveraging the Group’s production facilities and senior citizens etc. who are unable to secure transport for as medical/isolation centres. Others will be made available expertise to manufacture ventilators, donating his salary to help essential services like shopping essentials & medication, visits as required. those most likely to suffer the financial fallout of the pandemic, to Banks, Post offices and periodic medical visits. They will • Mahindra Agri has commenced production of Sanitizers – and the use of Mahindra Holidays resorts across India as also provide these services to doctors, nurses and others available immediately. temporary care facilities. With the country short of facilities to involved in providing essential services. Interested groups may • Mahindra Tractor-sprayers power Mumbai’s sanitation test and quarantine the victims of this pandemic, he also contact Mahindra Logistics’ dedicated helpline to access drive. announced that the project teams at Mahindra would assist the the same. Through the Mahindra Foundation, the Group has created a Government and the Indian Army in building temporary care This service is available in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, fund to assist the hardest hit in its value chain, both small facilities. Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Kochi and Trivandrum. businesses and the self-employed. Besides announcing his Dr Pawan Goenka tweeted that the Group has formulated a Mahindra’s Kandivali plant has begun the manufacture of decision to donate 100 per cent of his salary to the COVID-19 two-pronged strategy to manufacture much-needed ventilators face shields, based on a design sourced from partner Ford fund, the Chairman, Anand Mahindra also encouraged his at short notice. “At one end, we, along with two large PSUs, are Motor Company. The face shield fully protects the face and colleagues to contribute to the fund voluntarily. Log onto working with an existing manufacturer of high spec ventilators eyes from accidental contact with liquids. Paired with N95 www.mahindrafoundation.org to make your contribution now. 6 The COVID Challenge

Preparing for the New Normal

Parag Shah Managing Partner, Mahindra Partners

like Mahindra Healthcare; we are looking at digital business models.

Taking a step back - of life before the COVID situation, we did start our new financial year with some changes. As the Group strategically re-aligns itself, we bid adieu to Mahindra Logistics. We have had a fulfilling journey with MLL, one of my proudest moments being the As we are sitting on Day opportunity to RISE, IPO. At the time it was brought into the sector, 21 of our lockdown, hoping and we indeed have done we were reconsidering its future. But over the like the rest of the country that it our nation proud by being next three years, it rose like a Phoenix from the will soon come to an end, just this an active participant in this ashes. With capable leadership and dedicated morning, PM Modi announced that movement of change. This crisis employees, the company pulled itself out of the the lockdown had been extended for is the biggest test yet, of shambles that it was in and was re-built with an another 18 days. But, if I were to read responsible capitalism. influential culture of Mahindra Rise woven into between the lines, I would say he has left us a its very fabric. We are delighted to celebrate message of hope. For us, we spent the first couple of MLL as it joins the big boys. We welcome Waste weeks in accepting the problem and to Energy as we partner with them to take the We have seen a profound level of focussing on how to get work done company to new heights. We also welcome collaborations across public, private and civil from home successfully. This happened Aquasail, our latest investment. society to deal with the pandemic. Even in India, parallelly as the leadership was ensuring people are showing their solidarity in univocally that all companies have sufficient funds In 2009, when we were discussing the idea of supporting the prime minister’s message. While to survive through slightly long-term Partners and the role it would play in the Group, the recovery is going to be slow, we all need to recovery from the COVID crisis. We are we came up with a unique formula. One where do our bit as individuals, as businesses, and as a happy to report that on both those fronts we would nurture existing businesses, invest in group. We need to ensure that people and we have had a successful transition. companies and incubate. In the past ten years, companies that are most affected by this can we have navigated through different stages, come out of the situation. In a black swan event such as this, addressing each one of the goals set out for us. companies will have to relook at their All our companies have grown to become The Mahindra Group is playing a tremendous business models and strategy. There is a formidable entities in the Mahindra Group. We role in seeing our country through COVID-19. need to build resilience in every aspect, are more than proud of this juncture because it is The Group’s effort in manufacturing ventilators right from our cash flows to our supply evidence that we have served our purpose and sanitizers are commendable. Our engineers chains. We need to mobilise our war successfully. have ingeniously built models applying their rooms by protecting our employees and expertise to create ventilators from scratch. We customers (while we work from home) to In conclusion, while we prepare for business are proud of the teams who are working tirelessly ensure business continuity and create to get back to ‘usual’, we are also making way at the shop floor level to realise the vision of the centres of excellence for knowledge for a ‘new normal’. This new normal is going to Group in such challenging times. We saw management. Building agility in every bring with it a host of opportunities and we need Mahindra Logistics’ launching free emergency aspect is another imperative; this crisis to Reboot, Reimagine and Reignite as we wait cab services with Alyte and Mahindra Tractors calls for, as we reimagine our businesses. on this new face of business to take shape. leading the sanitisation drives in the city. It is More companies will go digital-first. moments like these that give us the perfect Even in the businesses, we plan to launch 14th April 2020 7 Parag The Journey of Becoming

There is no better way to explain the meaning of Moulding the largely unorganised sector with the ‘becoming’ than describing the metamorphosis of a Mahindra philosophy, it delivered value to all. butterfly. A butterfly evolves from a tight cocoon. Evolving: They remind us always to push the The process is painful but also necessary. It is a mere envelope & not accept a comfort zone. limp caterpillar, a whole different being when the Over the years, the team has successfully grown- journey begins. But then it evolves. It emerges to from one challenge to another. It has come back become a new creature altogether. Ready to spread stronger after each storm. At the forefront of the its wings. It begins to fly. industry at every stage, it truly shone with its people Mahindra Logistics, after ten remarkable years, initiatives along with its incredible CSR efforts and moves on from Mahindra Partners sector to the newly stakeholder practises. Emerging, it shone with its formed Mobility sector in the group. We fondly IPO achievement. reminiscence the journey of the company with our Becoming: They taught us to Never Settle. sector. At every step of the way, the team has surprised Emerging: Mahindra themselves. They thought Logistics showed us that alternatively and had the guts to ‘where you are is not see their ideas through the who you are’. challenges. Always, As the story always aiming for goes, the better.

This new company phase for the had it rough company is that in the first couple of Becoming, even of years and had a better. By hard time finding its reimagining every footing. But aspect of its through operations, we consistent effort, hope to see it the leadership and transform the the team pushed face of the to build a strong Logistics Industry in foundation for India. its future growth. 8 Conclave

Partners for Change 2020 Our Chairman Anand Mahindra says - “We are at a participated in the Partners for Change 2020 momentous confluence of time and possibilities. conclave held at the Hotel Radisson Blu, Karjat When there are such great changes, the future from 12-14th January 2020. The participants belongs to those who know how to harness the went through three days of intense learning opportunities that such change brings. To Rise, and reflection on what it means to be a change has always been a part of our DNA. Rise is the leader in challenging and turbulent times. Some philosophy that will shape us into the company of India’s leading minds from diverse fields of tomorrow.” and professions shared their life journeys, and Over 100 senior executives from nine Mahindra inspired the audience to reflect on how “the Partner companies and three investee companies change begins with me”. 9 Conclave

12th January 2020

Day one had sessions on varying themes like rather than being concentrated in the hands of the employing technology as the enabler. journey of colour, and wildlife. His candid thriving on change, mobility services and their management hierarchy. Zia Hajeebhoy on behalf of Shakeel Kudrolli observations of people, and capturing their changing scenario, Holacracy, presentations from Next, we had presentations from some of the and Aquasail shared the entrepreneurial voyage of spontaneity on camera, was interesting. our newly acquired partner companies, fireside chat new entrants and companies that we’ve made their company. Aquasail’s vision is to create access Anupam Thareja, Managing Partner, Phi with Anupam Thareja of Jawa Motorcycles, a investments in; Medwell, Center for Sight, Aquasail, and bring safe, responsible boating to India. And Capital & Founder, Jawa Motorcycles, was in an presentation on wildlife photography and more. and Waste-to-energy make India a vibrant global destination. The brand engaging fireside chat, conducted by Parag Shah. Vijay Kalra, ED & CEO, Mahindra Vehicle Piyush Bhargav, COO, Nightingales – Home today stands for uncompromised standards of safety, Whilst on the journey of his life, Anupam said that a Manufacturers Ltd. addressed us on ‘Keeping the Health Care said that their objective is to build flawless execution, and pure undiluted customer large part of his success can be attributed to his pace with change.’ He said that, in today’s fast- India’s largest Home Health business with easy delight. Aquasail hopes to grow exponentially with ability to take risks. He also spoke at length paced world, the leader should actually be dealing access to high-quality healthcare. Nightingales has a Mahindra Partners adding wind in their sails. about brands and their special connection with with tomorrow and the day after, not just about Multi-disciplinary team of specialists who offer a P Palaniappan, Mahindra Waste To Energy customers. He is responsible for reintroducing an today. diverse basket of services ranging from Solutions Limited (MWTESL) spoke about their iconic brand like JAWA, which is both, his passion Sanjay Krishnan, Co-founder and CEO at Rehabilitation to nursing services. They also service partnership with the Mahindra group, of which and pride. Lithium Urban Tech spoke about the changing B2B business. Their USP is their depth of healthcare MWTESL is a wholly-owned subsidiary. They are Recipes for Success - After the conclusion of scenario on B2B mobility services and electrical experience, clinical and technical expertise, due already functional in MWC Chennai, Indore, MIDC sessions on the first day, all our members got mobility. His company Lithium operates India’s first diligence, big data analytics, and one-stop solution Aurangabad, Andhra Pradesh. In fact, Indore has enthusiastic about a cookery competition showcasing completely electric vehicle fleet, thus reducing the for all medical needs. also been voted India’s cleanest city due to their their culinary skills. And our chefs-in-the-making carbon footprint in our major cities. Ritika Sachdev said their company CFS was Swachh Survekshan program. It has paved the way turned out delicacies like chicken seekh kabab, Ranjan Pant, Member, Mahindra Partners born with a vision that “Every Eye Deserves The for 72 more nations to follow the waste-to-energy chilly chicken, paneer tikka and vegetable balls in Investment Committee and global strategy and Best”. Established by Dr Mahipal Sachdev in 1990, model. Manchurian gravy. On display was a wonderful change management expert spoke on Simplexity i.e. CFS is a pioneer in the fields of SMILE, Femto- Himanshu Sheth, an avid photographer spoke spirit of teamwork, comradery, and passion for how simple interfaces improve the usability of Laser, Mobile Lasik, Angio OCT, in India. They about his passion which led him to establish excellence. Some churned out the dishes, some complex systems. He spoke about ‘Holacracy’ operate on the core values of efficiency, precision, Photosafaris. Himanshu is fascinated by nature, others gave valuable advice on how to make them which is a method of decentralized management in compassion, and integrity. They see Mahindra wildlife, people, cultures, spaces and landscapes. He better, and together each team excelled; in their own which authority and decision-making are distributed Partners as major collaborators in their growth. has travelled extensively in India and abroad for way. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, the throughout a holarchy of self-organizing teams They hope to widen their reach in future by multiple photo-safaris. He took us on a veritable judges can vouch for that.

Navtej Sarna, former Indian Rupa Purushothaman, Chief Anil Swarup, IAS, Ex-Secretary, Suman Srivastava, Founder and Meagan Fallone, the dynamic Shridhar Venkat, CEO- The Diplomat, Author and Columnist Economist & Head of Policy Dept. of School Education and Innovation Artist at Marketing CEO of Barefoot College Akshaya Patra Foundation Advocacy, Tata Group Literacy, and author of the book Unplugged International, ‘Not just a Civil Servant’ 10 Conclave

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Day two had us engaging in insightful discussions on shifting sands. Mr. Sarna has also guided India’s What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow Gandhian principles. Meagan has the vision to bring on a case study on Danaher Corporation, the impact engagement with the US during the first two years as a leader? Each question was answered by 2 CEOs together formally educated people with resource- of digitization on the business landscape, Diplomacy of the Trump Administration. He has been the top selected by the JAM Master. In the end, was a rapid- deprived communities; thus empowering semi- amidst shifting sands, Nudge theory and its official responsible for India’s relations with 95 fire round, followed by Q&A from the audience. literate rural women to be financially independent. learnings, JAM session with our Partner company countries. He said that in order to manage change The session brought out the fact that though Their educational program in partnership with CEOs, shadow board presentations, Barefoot especially in this complex area, you need to leadership styles may be unique, the intrinsic Apple is called – Enrich which deals with Digital International college-leading socio-economic constantly focus on the positive. qualities of every Mahindra leader are the same. literacy, Women’s rights, and sustainable change, and Change management simplified. Suman Srivastava, Founder and Innovation The Shadow Boards of Mahindra Accelo, livelihoods. Semi-literate rural women go through a To kickstart the day’s proceedings, Huafreed Artist at Marketing Unplugged, spoke on ‘Forget Mahindra Susten and Group presented their six-month the program, to assemble, install, Nasarwanji (MLL) and Rakesh Singh (Mahindra AI, focus on natural stupidity.’ Starting off with a projects. They were very thought-provoking and maintain solar photovoltaic systems. They then Susten) effectively facilitated a case study on brilliant example from the book ‘The Undoing made us look at young talent with new eyes. return to install solar systems in each house and get Danaher Corporation by HBS. Some key learnings project-A friendship that changed our minds’, he Accelo Shadow Board was on the developing paid for their efforts. These wonder women have emerged namely; their USP which is at the core of explained common errors in decision making made low-cost houses for economically weaker extended their model beyond their villages; into Danaher’s strategy. They have clear benchmarks for by the human psyche. Earlier it was thought that households and rural areas using Purlins -Accelo’s Bhutan and Africa as well. doing acquisitions, careful assessment of markets in people are analytical and rational. However, in new vertical. Ramesh Iyer, Vice Chairman & Managing which the companies operate. To put in a nutshell, reality, they may be the complete opposite! He also Group Shadow Board presented on taking the Director- M&M Financial Services, & Member of what worked for Danaher is; Right strategy in place, spoke about Thaler’s Nudge theory - a highly group to the next level through new businesses in the Group Executive Board – M&M, spoke to us proper planning, Right people, right policy effective model for change-management, used the field of healthcare. about Change Management in a simple, yet most deployment of a leader leading from the front, for understanding how people think, behave, Susten Shadow Board was about solarizing inspiring manner. He has been instrumental in ensuring that the culture is embedded after every make decisions, and for identifying /modifying every rooftop. Chiefly, this would be achieved building Mahindra Finance since 1994, into one of acquisition, lean continuous improvement-kaizen. undesirable influences on people. through Automated design (AI), lean teams, India’s leading rural finance companies. Ramesh Ashok Lalla, our Digital Advisor at Partners J-A-M with Parag was a 60-minute invigorating integrated financing options which would reduce Iyer took us on the journey of his career and spoke about how digital is changing the opportunity session, conducted by our Managing Partner and upfront investment, supply chain optimization leadership and people skills he has acquired. He landscape for business. He showcased the all- JAM Master, Parag Shah. He posed questions to our leading to quick delivery and economies of scale, said that in order to successfully make a change, pervading presence of digital and how it has taken Partner companies’ CEOs. All the CEOs rose to the and effective channel partner training and after- you must first get the ‘buy-in’ of the stakeholder, control of our lives namely; Facebook, Apple, challenge and answered with aplomb. Some of the sales support. that is, the person who will be implementing the Amazon, Netflix, Google, Whatsapp. questions asked included One aspect that needs to Meagan Fallone, the dynamic CEO of Barefoot change. A key takeaway from his talk was; use your Navtej Sarna, former Indian diplomat, author change --- how will you make that change? What is College International, spoke about ‘leading change experience to show others how to do it successfully, and columnist spoke about the Diplomatic dance the proudest moment in your organization and why? to build a better world.’ Barefoot college is run on rather than tell them why it will fail. 11 Conclave 14th January 2020

On day three, we had sessions ranging from Gandhian advice; start small, convince yourself, and your leadership philosophy, digital to bridgital, intricacies immediate circle of influences. Understand the ‘why’ of government and diplomacy, and the Akshaya Patra and ‘how’ to do things, understand the person you are story. dealing with, and what appeals to him. And focus Sunil Savara and Manisha Dahad spoke about only on the issues you can influence, forget about the Gandhiji’s transformational leadership. They others. Work with complete transparency. And of manage an NGO called ‘Head Held High’ which course, diplomacy is key too. enables the transformation of illiterate villagers into Rupa Purushothaman, Chief Economist & Head productive workers. This helps them to seek of Policy Advocacy at the Tata Group gave an employment opportunities, thus leading to the effective talk on ‘Digital to bridgital: changing how creation of sustainable rural economies. Their session we think about technology’. She said that, in the next was about tapping into the leader within you. Through ten years, India will have the highest emerging work- an effective exercise, we were shown that Listening force. Instead of treating technology as an inevitable without replying is a very powerful leadership tool replacement for human labour, India can harness it impacting both; the speaker and the listener. A role- for development. Instead of replacing jobs, AI can play of the Dandi march was organized for the entire generate jobs, and thus harness our country’s human team. In the end, they had to answer a few questions resources. like; How can you make the provocation the highest, Shridhar Venkat, CEO- The Akshaya Patra whilst staying within the boundaries of Gandhiji’s Foundation, spoke to us about the world’s largest values of Ahimsa, Truth, Love? NGO-run school meal programme, feeding over 1.8 Anil Swarup, IAS, Ex-Secretary, Dept. of School million children every day across 13 states in India. Education and Literacy, and author of the book ‘Not The purpose of this foundation is to provide food to just a Civil Servant’, spoke about ‘Making things poor school children so that they can complete their happen in the Government’. About problem-solving, education and become self-reliant. he said that you need to first acknowledge and We ended the conclave on a high note with an associate yourself with the problem, and then work introductory soft launch of the Mahindra Partners’ on the solution. In politics, you require enormous New Recognition awards (REAP- Recognizing amounts of patience, perseverance, passion. And you Excellence Among Partners) that will be instituted must be relatable to people. According to him, an soon. idea can succeed in a democracy like ours, only if The final day of the conclave also saw the launch of it is politically acceptable, socially desirable, our magazine MEDLEY’s special 10th anniversary technologically feasible, financially viable, edition; which covered 10 milestones in each of our administratively doable, and judicially tenable. His Partner companies. 12 Waste to Energy Small Steps to a sustainable Future

“There is no such thing as ‘away’. When we throw authorities. The municipality delivers a part of the This project extends support to keep Choithram anything away, it must go somewhere.” city’s organic waste to the plants which MWTESL Mandi, and it’s surrounding clean by scientifically Mahindra Waste to Energy Solutions Ltd uses to generate Bio-CNG. Scientific treatment and disposing of organic waste. This project supports (MWTESL), a subsidiary of Mahindra & Mahindra disposal of waste is also a smart city focus area. Solid sustainability by reducing carbon footprint Ltd provides unique solutions for converting organic waste management becomes an integral part of the through the usage of renewable energy for the city waste to Bio-CNG (Biogas) and organic fertiliser. fabric of a futuristically well-integrated city. buses and covers around 2500 km every day. The The company began with a simple yet daunting The first plant was that of 10 tonnes per dayin organic fertiliser produced is rich in Nitrogen, vision of converting organic waste into useful energy. Mahindra World City (MWC), Chennai. The plant Phosphorous, and Potassium and helps to increase the Mahindra Research Valley collaborated with leading powers streetlamps in MWC. Every day, ̴ 400 kg of soil fertility. research institutes like the Indian Institute of CNG grade fuel is produced that propels the Mahindra The Bio CNG generated in this plant (on an Technology-Delhi, and Central Leather Research Tourister bio-CNG buses for 2800 km a day. These average 600kgs of gas/day) is used to propel the buses Institute to develop a waste-to-energy solution. buses are used as shuttle buses inside the city. The of Indore Smart city apart for meeting the cooking Biogas technology provides an alternate source of plant also powers bio-CNG Mahindra Jeeto and needs of prestigious institutions like IIM, Indore. energy in India and is hailed as an appropriate tractors which are used for collecting waste and Although CNG does produce greenhouse gases archetypal technology that meets the fundamental cultivation. Daily, ̴ 4 tonnes of organic manure are also upon combustion, it is a more environmentally clean need for cooking and automobile fuel. produced. This MWC plant helped the team to try and alternative to other fossil fuels like gasoline or LPG. MWTESL, with the help of the Mahindra Group’s test the model that is scalable. CNG is also safer than other fuels in the event of a engineering prowess, has proved the benefits and The Indore plant is yet another ideal example of spill because natural gas, being lighter than air, unexplored potentials of biogas by installing plants to the usage and adoption of Bio-CNG for regular city disperses quickly when released. Moreover, the flame produce bio-CNG gas which is equal to auto-grade usages. This model has been hailed time and again as is better, and no liquid is leftover like in LPG (so there CNG gas. The nutrient-rich slurry that remains from one of the best globally. The city prides itself in being is no wastage). the process is further converted to organic bio-fertiliser a shining example of successfully and sustainability “We are proud of the fact, our waste to Bio-CNG for farming. The entire process is zero- waste and is a using this simple zero-waste technology. plant played a small role in Indore being continuously feather in the cap for the Mahindra Group. It has also Choithram Mandi in Indore generates approx. declared as the cleanest city of the country. It won’t be further optimised best in class processes to reduce 20 tons of fruits and vegetable waste daily. MWTESL an exaggeration to say that more than 1000 government electricity consumption, water sealing technologies to has established a waste to Bio CNG/Organic Fertiliser officials, Mayors, Municipal authorities from across avoid gas leakages, premium and improved digestion plant for Indore Smart City Corporation Ltd on the country have visited our plant and appreciated the capability, among other reliable and cost-effective the Viability Gap Funding model in a site adjoining successful running of this plant,” Palaniappan, CEO - solutions. the Mandi. The plant has been operational since Mahindra Waste to Energy Solutions Ltd. The team works in tandem with the municipal July 2018. Here are the current and upcoming plants of MWTESL Location Capacity (Tons/day) Current Status Mahindra World City - Chennai 10 Functional since January 2016 produces Auto CNG for Bus, tractors and Manure. Indore 20 Functional since July 2018 produces Auto CNG for Buses/auto rickshaws and Manure. MIDC - Aurangabad 30 Production commenced from June 2019. Andhra Pradesh 10-40 • 40T/day Tirupati plant operational from January 2020. • 20T/day Piduguralla operational from December 2019. • 20T/day Adoni to be operational by May 2020. • 2 compost plants are operational since July 2019. • Rajahmundry – 40 T/day land allocation is under progress. • Ongole – 20T/day Land allocation is under progress. • Gudivada – Compost Project – Land Allocation is under progress. Udaipur 20 Pre-construction work under progress. Punjab 23 MOU signed with Punjab Government for setting up 10000 Tons/year Paddy Straw to energy project in Punjab. This project is a pilot for establishing a sustainable alternative to straw burning which leads to smog and pollution in North India. 13 Nexus of Good

of Good Anil Swarup, former secretary of the government talks about identifying, propagating, appreciating and Nexusreplicating good work by sharing positive news in the movement #nexusofgood. Written by Anil Swarup

What is ‘Nexus of Good’? the world for what you are. If It is a movement to bring around any change has to come about, it has to good people to identify, understand, appreciate, be with you. Sometimes this journey may have to replicate and scale good work that is being done in the be begun all alone: ‘m¯ Akwla h¢ cla qa jan¢lw m'j¢l mgr society as a whole. The idea is to evolve an alternative narrative to log saq Aate gEú karva' bnta gya’û the negativity that is becoming all pervasive in the social media and other mediums of communication. Such negativity is impacting the thoughts and How to create a nexus of good? actions of a large number of people, especially the impressionistic young minds. One must understand that there is no such thing as ‘objective reality’. Your understanding of a situation depends upon how you interpret it. It is your own mental Why ‘Nexus of Good’? make-up that determines whether you are happy or unhappy, satisfied or dissatisfied. There is no doubt that a lot of good work is happening around us but unfortunately on Hence, effort should be made to change your own thought process. This can be done but account of all pervasive negativity, it gets lost. The ‘premium’ on good work seems to have requires consistent effort. The ‘Magic Rule of 21’ as outlined by Robin Sharma in his book been lost in the din of the high decibels used for promoting negativity: ‘The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari’ can help. It primarily relates to periodically and consciously ‘Aaj Ek xor brpa hW kh¢'ú ko¡ %mox ho gya hW kh¢'’û repeating an act or thought that one wants to internalise. The ‘good’ are struggling for recognition and a number of them are fighting their battles against You should be convinced about the need for nexus of good. Without this conviction it would be a much more organised set of ‘negative mongers’ all alone. Can the good work in tandem? Should the difficult to convince others. You should yourself feel the ‘kick’ out of praising good work done by good work in tandem? The benefits of positive thinking and doing good are enormous. Those that others. There could be some initial problems but the ‘21 day rule’ could help. You ‘have to’ evolve as have experienced the ‘kick’of doing good work know what it means. However, in the vitiated an optimist yourself because ‘The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees environment the majority haven’t had the opportunity to experience this ‘kick’. The good work has opportunity in every difficulty’ (Winston Churchill). Without the requisite passion behind any thought, either not been seen or, if seen, ignored. Hence, the need to make a beginning to make everyone it would not work, it would not get conveyed effectively. realise the utility of ‘positive thinking’ and doing good. Be on the lookout for good work being done around you. Identify and understand the good work. Understand how the good work happened. Appreciate that good work. muKtk'# se p{x'sa kre'. Where to begin? Propagate this good work by talking about it. Use social media for this purpose. Try and replicate Begin with yourself. Try and experience the ‘kick’. All of us have had some such experience this good work or facilitate such replication. during our life time that makes us feel good inside. It is not always very easy to define it but the experience has been there. The initial effort should be to recall and live in those What has happened so far? ‘exhilarating’ moments that made you feel ‘good’. Try and analyse how they happened To begin with, a Twitter Handle (@nexusofgood) was created. This was followed and then attempt to recreate those moments. However, unless you begin with up by hosting a portal (www.nexusofgood.org.in). Hundreds of positive stories yourself, unless you have experienced yourself, unless you live in those have been hosted on this portal. One story is hosted everyday as ‘Story of the experiences you will never be able to replicate it: Day’. A few conferences have been organised in Delhi with FICCI to ‘%ud¢ ko kr bul'd štna k¢ hr tKd¢r se phle road-show the good work that is happening in various sectors. A %uda b'de se %ud pu^e kI bta ter¢ rjýa Kya hW’û Trust has been constituted in the form of a Foundation to There has to be a deep desire in you. You have to take this movement forward. ‘be the change you wish to see in the Come, join the Nexus of Good by identifying and world’. You can’t blame appreciating good work around you and feel good about it. Try and see if the work can be replicated and scaled. Host these stories on www.nexusofgood.org.in and follow @nexusofgood

Anil Swarup is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre (1981 batch). Swarup in his 38 years of career has served in various capacities and later went on to become the Secretary to the Government of India. He is the author of the book ‘Not just a Civil Servant’. 14 Aquasail Sailebrating OceanLife on

Aquasail is pioneering the leisure boating industry sailing, kayak racing and sailing Regattas for in India. Shakeel Kudrolli has in-depth domain insightful team building and leadership programs Wavesknowledge and has used this to ensure that Aquasail focusing on essential business needs. has invested in relevant state of the art equipment and 5. Corporate Events: Unique and customised formats built into the DNA of the organisation deep respect for curated to meet objectives of networking, adhering to the highest safety standards. Today employee engagement and reward, brand launches Aquasail is proud to have a fleet of 80 diverse boats, and other corporate goals. Aquasail ensures that catering to the needs of a nascent evolving market. brand and business objectives are met. Formats Aquasail’s team is passionate and highly qualified, like Beach Sailing Fiestas, Sailing Olympics and delivering a consistently WOW experience whether to Carnivals have captured the imagination of a corporate client or a retail customer. Corporate India and the event industry. Aquasail Aquasail’s vision is to create access and to bring has hosted events as significant as 800 plus people safe and responsible boating to India. The dream is to in one day make India a vibrant global destination leveraging the 6. Sponsored Regattas: A superb branding platform warm weather and water and predictable wind for customer acquisition and powerful networking. conditions that make it an idyllic sailing destination Key clients have come onboard for long term that is as yet undiscovered. Aquasail has carefully season partnerships. This is deep engagements and developed three sailing centres- Iconic Gateway at helps clients meet their business needs in a very Mumbai which is a city-centric model, Magical differentiated way Mandwa, which provides a weekend getaway and 7. Global Sailing Holidays: Through a global great corporate offsite option and Sundrenched Goa a partnership, Aquasail offers 30 exotic holiday superb MICE (Meetings, Incentives, conferences and destinations in 18 countries, where you can explore Exhibitions) and holiday destination. Each of these aboard luxurious sailing yachts, sailing catamarans centres is geared to give unique and end to end or powerboats. They handhold the customer as he/ experiences. The Goa centre is located in the Grand she explores a holiday aboard a sailing boat Hyatt Goa at Bambolim Bay. 8. Distribution: Aquasail focuses on customer- Aquasail’s offers a host of activities- there is centric advise and sells a range of relevant boats something for everyone to do! and yachts to those who wish to own a boat of their 1. Discover Sailing and SAILebrations: WOW own. Aquasail is known for its advice and its after- leisure experiences for first-timers. For those who sales service. Aquasail also provides flexible want to experience the magic and joy of sailing. ownership solutions like Time Share and Fractional For those who wish to sailebrate differently. Create Ownership magical memories. The experiences are relevant 9. Marina Building: Aquasail has partnered with also for Corporate India some of the world’s best marina builders to help 2. The Aquasail Yachting Academy: A range of facilitate the growth of the marina infrastructure in specially crafted courses for adults and children. the country Aquasail helps ignite a love for sailing. Young 10. The Aquasail Youth Sailing Foundation: Aquasail children, Schools and adults have come onboard believes in teach the youth. It does so through its and earned multiple certificates. This is a social courses and through school engagement. Aquasail sport, and Aquasail is working at creating also has a CSR program where they engage with community programs to help people share their underprivileged children and take them sailing. newfound hobby Aquasail believes that sailing builds self- 3. The Aquasail Club Select: A way to engage and confidence and self-esteem and deep respect for stay connected in a convenient manner. The the outdoors and the environment. They are Aquasail Club is an inclusive scheme with many working towards GREEN BOATING initiatives options for the new entrant and the avid sailor. Aquasail is proud and happy that over 70,000 Ideal for individuals and families as also for people across all ages have had an unforgettable Corporate India experience sailing with them. And over 400 corporates 4. SAILIENCE: Aquasail leverages the platform of have engaged with them in different ways. Aquasail 15 Aquasail

has an enviable list of C SUITE customers, a host of At the Helm: A brief note about the Founders happy partners and people who simply love to be The very able leadership Shakeel and Zia have associated with sailing and Aquasail been charting the course for Aquasail for over a decade. Shakeel Kudrolli, the Founder and the The Voyage Managing Director of Aquasail have over three You cannot control the wind, but you can adjust decades of sailing experience. He coached the Indian your sails: Aquasail faced many a storm as a young Junior squad which won the Junior World start-up in a new industry. These included regulatory championships in 1988. Committed to excellence, he complications, consumer mindsets, talent acquisition has achieved what no Indian had done by winning and more. Aquasail successfully negotiated these Gold for the country in international waters at the unpredictable stormy seas with entrepreneurial zeal Asian Regatta in 1989. He then went on to win two combined with a sailor’s innate agility, continually silvers at the competitive Enterprise World innovating and finding solutions. Aquasail believes Championships in Zimbabwe and South Africa in that resilience and commitment to its vision are what 1995 and 1997. At the prestigious UK Enterprise Open made the journey successful and helped create a robust Championships in 1997, Shakeel achieved what no brand with a strong differentiation Asian has, by bringing home the silver. He was Navigating Unchartered Waters: As the market awarded Yachtsman of the Year in 1989 and 1995. unfolded, Aquasail realised that they had to build from Shakeel began sailing at the Sea Cadet Corps and the ground up. There was no precedent. What was spent over 30 years volunteering, his time at this required to get India to sail was agility and innovation, organisation. He was the Executive Officer for over ideas and flawless execution. Aquasail today has a ten years. Today, he is a Trustee at the Sea Cadet portfolio of diverse experiences catering to individuals, Corps. He also founded the Indian Marine Federation. to families and to Corporate India. Products and The IMF is an industry body aimed at guiding and experiences were tailored to meet the needs of facilitating the growth of this emerging industry partners, sponsors, individuals and organisations. The healthily and sustainably. It is associated with the portfolio that includes networking curations, British Marine Federation, the apex body in the UK leadership and team-building solutions and superb for the leisure boating industry and is a member of brand integration delivers varied Corporate objectives. International Council of Marine Industry Associations. Aquasail created fun sailing events like SPLASH He brings domain expertise, deep experience and is programs and integrated sailing into festive occasion the inspiration behind the dream. like Valentine Day and others seamlessly creating an Zia Hajeebhoy, Director at Aquasail, has over alternative way to spend leisure time and to celebrate. 20 years of in-depth corporate experience with Today, it is a brand which stands for pure, undiluted organisations including Unilever, Reckitt and Colman, customer delight, and it’s repeat clients are its most IL&FS and Monsanto. She has steered brands and prominent advocates. categories through various business cycles and across Ships are safe in harbour, but that is not what industry segments in highly competitive environments. ships are built for: With Mahindra Partners onboard Zia discovered the sport at the age of sixteen and Aquasail hopes to grow exponentially. The foundation since then has enjoyed experiencing the various of this growth will be to invest in a powerful team and dimensions of it. She uses her expertise to conduct to create a second line of leadership to sustain the transformational leadership sessions using sailing and culture and passion, which has brought the team sailing regattas. Zia brings onboard diverse skills and success so far. Aquasail believes that the partnership has helped build Brand Aquasail into a sustainable, will fill the sails with favourable winds, helping the reputed brand standing for safety and customer company to explore new horizons. delight.

Mahindra Partners and Aquasail are working together to chart an exciting new course for leisure boating in India. 16 Mahindra Finance Mahindra Finance: Driving Positive Change in Rural India Striving for positive change: The Journey of Mahindra Finance through the years

model to other markets, Mahindra Finance tied up with Ideal Finance to set up a Non-Banking Financial Institution in Sri Lanka in 2019. The company today offers a whole suite of financial solutions tailored to the needs of the under- served customer in under-penetrated rural markets. It finances UVs and passenger vehicles, tractors, commercial vehicles, construction equipment, pre- owned vehicles and SMEs. It also undertakes mutual fund distribution, offers fixed deposits and personal loans, and offers insurance solutions, housing finance and mutual fund schemes with a special focus on rural and semi urban areas through its subsidiaries.

Growth Challenges As the business grew in size, so did the complexity. The team had to re-orient its thinking and approach which included not just a diverse range of product offerings, but also a distinct set of expectations from different OEMs, dealers and customers, on the operational and service front, on both the lending and collection side of the business. New branches were added to the network. While this meant proximity to the customers geographically, it also added to the complexity of operations. The branch model that the business had begun with and which served all needs of all customers, was no longer equipped to provide specialised attention to different types of customers. Also, between managing the current business and keeping the branches profitable, new opportunities offered by the growing market were probably being over-looked. While overall targets were being met, the teams on the ground weren’t able to go granular Mahindra Finance since its inception has strived to to work to enable Positive Change in rural pockets of goods. Since the customers did not have regular into individual products and the growth opportunities create shared value at the bottom of the pyramid. the country and help our customers Rise.” incomes, a crucial part of the job was to ascertain that lay there. Several signs on the business and Here is the inside story of their journey through the their credit-worthiness by predicting the cash flow organisational front pointed towards a need for years. A Remarkable Journey they could generate from the asset (vehicle or tractor) change. Way back in 1991, at an M&M dealer meeting, the The company began by financing M&M dealers once they put it to work. This was the genesis of A three-phase plan was developed to evaluate if lack of formal financing options for Light Commercial and their LCV and Utility Vehicles (UV) customers. Mahindra Finance’s proprietary “Earn and Pay” the customer and the market needed it. As a first step, Vehicles (LCVs) in rural India was being discussed as The small team travelled the length and breadth of model, which helped rural customers build their the team worked at identifying the reasons leading to a critical growth barrier. Bharat Doshi, then Executive India, meeting dealers and customers and offering credit-worthiness, while also generating rural the current challenges. The second step involved Vice President at M&M, recognised this gap as an them vehicle loans. “Meeting customers at their employment. There have been several instances identifying and evaluating various alternatives to deal opportunity to set up a financial services business, homes was important, because it gave us valuable where Mahindra Finance has been instrumental in with these challenges and finally, the third step, which that would help rural customers finance their vehicle insights into the customers’ socio-economic helping a customer grow from a worker to the owner was the implementation of the chosen alternative. purchases. He took the idea to the M&M senior backgrounds and how they could be serviced better”, of a business. Another decision the company took Employees across the organisation were co-opted management and thus were sown the seeds for explains Iyer. was to consciously recruit people from local colleges, at every stage. Surveys were conducted to confirm Mahindra Finance. rather than appointing people from cities or towns. assumptions about the limitations of the existing V Ravi, then general manager, accounts, at M&M Local employees were familiar with the language and structure and studies benchmarking the company and Ramesh Iyer, who joined the Group in 1992 as We started the company the local culture and understood the challenges faced against other financial services firms were undertaken. GM, Operations, from Ashok Leyland, were assigned by the customers. This deep connection with the All of these pointed towards the need to bring in the responsibility of setting up the company, which customers and their evolving needs has been the key product orientation into the organisational structure, could make finance available to M&M’s Utility with aspiration, to put to its growth and success over the years. It has helped to enable greater customer centricity and efficiency. Vehicle buyers, especially in the rural and semi-urban pioneer many innovative financial solutions that are Operationalising this had its challenges. The parts of the country. Together, they began working our financial acumen to transforming lives in rural communities across India. geography-based branch structure was working well. out of a small office in the parking lot of Mahindra These initial learnings proved invaluable as The branch was a cohesive unit, driven by branch Towers, Worli, operating from a table, two chairs and Mahindra Finance grew from a captive finance profitability and sales targets. Altering the structure to a Godrej cupboard doubling up as a separator! work to enable Positive company into a diversified financial services provider. a product-based one could destroy this cohesiveness Almost three decades later, Mahindra Finance is In 2001, financing of M&M tractors was added to the and team spirit. Several options ranging from pure one of the largest non-banking financial companies portfolio, and in 2002, the company started financing product structure to hybrid ones were discussed, and (NBFC), serving rural India. From that make-shift Change in rural pockets vehicles manufactured by other OEMs as well. The the pros and cons of each were analysed. Finally, a office, with four employees, to more than 27,000 company was listed in 2006. From a market cap of pure product-based structure emerged as the most employees across the country, with assets under of the country. around Rs. 2000 crores at the time of listing in 2006 suitable option. management of over 10.5 billion USD, Mahindra to more than Rs. 26,000 crores at the end of FY19, the The new structure split the organisation into two Finance has genuinely surpassed the expectations of company’s market cap has grown more than 13 times functional verticals - Business and Collection. The the founding team, the promoters and its shareholders. Just as the company was formed in response to a in the last 13 years. Business vertical was further divided into – From a captive finance company, it has matured into customer need, the business model too evolved New subsidiaries were formed subsequently, the Automotive, Farm Equipment, Commercial Vehicles, India’s largest NBFC in semi-urban and rural areas, around the customer, and the initial learnings came insurance broking business, Mahindra Insurance Passenger Vehicles, Pre-owned vehicles and Direct perhaps more extensive than some of the private from the customers themselves. The first realisation Brokers Ltd in 2004, Mahindra Rural Housing Marketing. So while the branch remained a physical sector banks in the country. was that most of the customers did not have bank Finance Ltd. in 2007 and more recently Mahindra unit, it was divided into sub-units by-product, each “But it is not profits alone that drive us,” says accounts, and therefore no financial statements. There Asset Management Company in 2016. All is not rural with an independent reporting line to its respective Ramesh Iyer, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, was no method to assess their credit risk. Secondly, with Mahindra Finance. The company set up a joint Business Head. The branch would no longer be Mahindra Finance, as he recounts this phenomenal the vehicles that were being bought were going to venture in the US – Mahindra Finance USA, to headed by a single Branch Manager but would have journey for The Partners Post. “We started the help them earn their livelihoods. They would be used finance Mahindra tractors in the US in FY 2011. With multiple Area Managers for specific products and company with aspiration, to put our financial acumen commercially, either to carry people or to transport the intent of taking its socially inclusive business collection. 17 Mahindra Finance

Keeping the unique customer-set in mind, a formally in our Annual Meeting and at multiple the propensity of rural India towards cash transactions. Money Retail NBFC Award’. The company has customised model was developed on the Collections forums and informally in my discussions with the The company has since adopted various new-age always looked at how it can contribute back to the front as well, where customers were classified into team on the field. More importantly, this exercise did technology interventions to enable further growth and community and society. Mahindra Finance is the only verticals or buckets depending on the number of not require us to add more people, nor was there any efficiency, using digital platforms to enable borrowing NBFC from India to be listed on the Dow Jones defaults, with guidelines on how these should be attrition. It led to an improvement in engagement, and repayment. Ramesh Iyer believes that future Sustainability Index in the Emerging Markets managed. Interestingly, it was also decided that productivity and performance. Our people felt more growth will come from analytics. “Given the category. It has been ranked 8th on the list of India’s during the first 12 months of the loan, the responsibility empowered. The Product Heads became mini-CEOs knowledge we have accumulated over the years, we Best Companies to Work for in 2019 by Great Place of the collection would be with the business team, running their verticals, and the OEMs responded are now in a position to analyse and forecast who will to Work Institute, moving from the 49th place in 2016 after which it would pass on to the collection team, positively to the change, as the new structure enabled buy what, when, why, through whom and how. We are to the 8th in a short span of 3 years. “Our people- thus ensuring a focus on quality and monitoring, right us to work closely with dealers. So it was a win-win moving away from just sales fulfilment to sales focused culture makes us a great place to work and from the beginning of the loan contract. on all fronts.” generation and conversion with the help of Big Data. sets us apart, says Iyer. “Our employee experiences The performance of the company improved Analytics and data mapping enables us to predict at foster a contagious synergy that makes us feel like a Steering the Change significantly, and so did collection efficiency. what point a customer needs credit interventions, and part of a large family. There is a lot that drives us, that Now that there was visibility on the ideal structure, Interestingly, the company did not encounter the we have launched products like small ticket personal is beyond our business. We encourage our employees communicating this change and bringing all initial dip in performance that typically follows a and durable consumer loans to support these to participate in several CSR initiatives that truly employees on board was most imperative to its restructuring exercise such as this. This could be requirements. We are truly excited about leading the make a social impact at the village level.” The success. The HR team stepped in to ensure that the attributed to the care taken by the company to roll out technology change that will happen in rural India company has consistently featured in the top quartile changes that were being implemented were widely the change, gradually allowing people to adjust to alongside the government’s digital initiatives.” of the Mahindra Group MCARES survey. Its score communicated across the organisation. The senior new roles and expectations. Today, each product last year was 4.62. management discussed the restructuring at various vertical is a microcosm of Mahindra Finance in its A Fulfilling Journey The Mahindra Financial Services Sector today is internal platforms, including the company’s Annual earlier avatar. The branches have not lost their earlier The journey to transform rural lives that began present in every Indian State. Through its deeply Convention, attended by senior representatives from cohesiveness. They still function as a small family with an idea in 1991, has come a long way. The penetrated 2000 branch network, it covers upwards of across the branches and transmitted via webcast to the unit and work collaboratively. company has successfully created a strong deeply 85% of the districts in the country. It has served over entire organisation. penetrated rural financial inclusion model, with 6.6 million customers in more than 3,75,000 villages, New roles and responsibilities were allocated Tech as a Growth Enabler customised products and services, delivered via a which is one in every two villages in the country. The based on competencies, and concerns were addressed Mahindra Finance was among the first financial locally built channel and a large network of locally Sector cumulatively manages assets upwards of 12 and resolved. “Addressing the apprehensions of services companies in the country to introduce recruited employees. The business model has been billion USD. “But more than the growth, what truly employees at the ground level was most important”, handheld devices, which enabled the Collection staff appreciated and lauded with several prestigious matters to us is the value we have created for our says Ramesh Iyer. “I talked about the change to provide a customer with an instant receipt as soon awards. Some of the recent ones include the ‘Forbes customers and the Positive Change we have made in everywhere, as often as I could. I mentioned it as his EMI was collected, which was in cash, given India Conscious Capitalist Award’ and the ‘Outlook their lives, ” concludes Ramesh Iyer. 18 Human Resources

Safety week celebrated across Mahindra Logistics introduced Accelo plants. ‘Sandhaan’, aims at training the women This year's 49th national safety week's theme was family members of business partners 'Enhance Safety and Health Performance by Use of Advanced Technologies’. Several activities like Safety oath, training of remedy on snake bites, f- fighting etc were undertaken across Accelo plants. The team have also adopted 'Zero is our Hero' as thesafety slogan to raise awareness and ensure safe working environment along with strict adherence to safety practices.

Mahindra Logistics’s facilitated a session on 2020. Mahindra Logistics endeavours to empower capability development for the women family members these women to get actively involved either in of the business partners. The first batch, which included their family business or to pursue a career of their 12 participants, was held on 27th and 28th January choice. Mahindra Tsubaki’s team outing The leadership journey at Susten to The Hidden Oasis

Recently the Mahindra Tsubaki team went for their avalanche they witnessed in 2015 at the Everest base Manisha Devani and Sagar Mondal balance the nature of goals and relationships, and Annual Winter Outing to ‘The Hidden Oasis’ – an eco- camp and passed on their experience coupled with Mahindra Susten bring a project-based approach to self-development farm surrounded by a lake on three sides, situated on many learnings one of which was – in a situation of ‘L.E.A.D.’ (Leadership Empowerment and in collaboration with an executive coach. Across the the Kondhwa-Saswad road, approx. 52 km from crisis it is crucial to leverage each other’s strengths. Development) was launched in July 2018 as a course of 6 months, the participants had regular MTC. The facilitators of this event were two Everest They shared actual visuals and videos of the avalanche 6-month leadership journey for 18 people managers follow up calls with their executive coach, who was Summiters who are survivors of the avalanche that captured by them. They also narrated how they left across businesses. The second batch was held in able to guide them in their journey, assisting them took place at the Everest base camp in 2015 and were their corporate jobs to pursue their passion for September 2019 wherein 10 people managers with challenges and potential roadblocks in dealing among the few survivors who stayed back to rescue mountaineering and reach the top of the world participated in a 3 day workshop exploring their own with their team members. The closure workshop will others. These two mountaineers have built activities someday - the Everest. Climbing the Everest was vision and goals, recognizing the importance of be held soon with a panel of senior leadership to have through which they share their experience and life never a cakewalk for them; it involved collecting building trust, learning to apply deep empathy with a developmental conversation on the work done by learnings with others. They conducted many team funds and training themselves – both physically and their teams to collaborate effectively, exploring their the people managers across the 6 months. activities that emphasized the importance of mentally. They narrated how they were faced with the own strengths and gaps in managing conflicts as well The early results of the program are in line with collaborating and leveraging on each other’s strengths. avalanche at the base camp in their first attempt and a as learning to effectively perform skills coaching to the objective of creating positive impact in the The events were kicked off with Virtual Volleyball snowstorm in their second attempt when they were develop their teams and elevate performance. At the various teams of the people managers, with and a Night survival game. The Virtual Volleyball was only 850 meters away from the summit. Both attempts end of the 3-day session, every manager made their improvement in terms of Morale, Delivery, Customer an icebreaker for all to acquaint themselves with one posed life-threatening situations for them and left Individual Development Plan with key team related Orientation, etc. A major impact of this journey will another whereas the Night survival game was them extremely disappointed. Many would have given goals to work on over the next 6 months. be a shift in mindset for the people managers to adventurous in which the team members had to up by this time with a loss of hope and funds. But Through the 6-month journey, the managers are invest in their teams through changes in their own complete a daunting task tied to one another. A fun these two mountaineers refused to give up, they encouraged to discover their own leadership style, behaviours, rather than focusing on external factors. bonfire ended the night. focused on what they had to achieve and attempted to The next team activity held early in the morning climb the Everest for the third time – this time was a was a High Rope Walk. The activity highlighted how success, they finally achieved their dream of climbing every team member’s contribution was crucial in this the top of the world. They left all the participants with Mind Games Season 6 goes digital activity. The next team challenge was building rafts essential learning – to be determined and never give using truck tyre tubes, bamboos and ropes and then up on your goals. The Everest is many times used as testing those rafts in the water. A sumptuous lunch a metaphor which denotes something challenging that followed the rafting activity. one wants to achieve in life. They inspired all to never Post lunch was an activity which was the highlight give up on ‘your Everest’. of the outing – The Avalanche Simulation and Everest The team spent 24 hours at the campsite bonding Experience sharing. The Everest Summiters conducted with one another and took back with them learnings this activity in which they recreated the scenario of the for a lifetime! Great Place to Work certified, again!

For the first time in the history of Mind Games, Round was conducted twice for those who missed taking part 1 was conducted online. In a unique gamified in it the first time around. Over 100 teams participated simulation, all the participants were put through a in the challenge of which 25 teams made it to Round dynamic challenge of running a company. The timed 2. The teams were then given the option to choose game ensured to keep the pressure built in the strategic their case studies of Partner companies and they had a decision-making scenarios. The simulation assessed month to work on building a presentation with the Meghana Moses Institute for assessment, benchmarking and planning performance on four core areas of business acumen. It solution. The teams were judged on their research and Mahindra Susten actions to strengthen their workplace culture. Great drove decision making on strategy finances, operations, analysis, depth of solution as well as quality of In January 2020, Mahindra Susten was certified as a Place to Work® Institute’s methodology is recognized people-management execution and other such areas presentation. Five teams made it to the finale. The Great Place to Work, for the 4th year in a row. Every as rigorous and objective and is considered as the gold that would lead to driving an organization successfully. Finale this time is going to be conducted virtually on year, more than 10,000 organizations from over 58 standard for defining great workplaces across business, The round received an overwhelming response and it the 27th and 28th of April 2020. countries partner with the Great Place to Work® academia and government organizations. 19 Human Resources M.A.D: Make a Difference Accelo Features in Asia’s Best

Anila Nair Mahindra Susten Workplaces in the Top 25. An initiative launched in October 2019, 'M.A.D: Make - A - Difference' is a platform for young leaders to interact with senior leaders across Susten to connect better, share business insights, exchange ideas and learn from each other. Aspiring young leaders across Susten get opportunity to connect on a one-on-one exclusive lunch or High tea with senior leaders wherein they get to share their experiences at Susten and beyond,

Basant Jain & Rajesh Pandey

discuss about any challenges or opportunities they are facing in personal or professional aspects. The senior leaders encourage and inspire the young leaders by authentic listening and providing developmental insights from their personal and professional life experiences. In addition to a cherished memory, the young leaders feel energized, motivated and takeaway For the first time, Mahindra Accelo has featured in of the two from the Manufacturing industry to feature interesting insights and memorabilia from their lunch Asia’s Best Workplaces 2020 – in the Top 25 list of in the top 25. This achievement reaffirms Accelo’s with the senior leaders Great Place to Work. There are two companies of commitment to ‘employee first’ approach. The Senior The team has completed 7 M.A.D session with India in the Top 25 Best Small And Medium Leadership team is proud of its employees whom Rakesh Singh & Himanshu Goyal leaders like Basant Jain and Rakesh Singh Workplaces list. Accelo ranked number 23 and is one together create the Great workplace Mahindra Partners Pathshala: Learning unlimited Logistic’s D&I business needs, functional needs and personality training is the perfect cumulation of rich content for team introduces learning in the work from home scenario. In December and January, Partners Pathshala ‘Aspire’, a new conducted two workshops on Customer Centricity. The main objectives of this course were to gain a deeper understanding of customer centricity and its initiative on career drivers. The course also enabled its participants to develop an approach using tools such as benchmarking, guidance for KANO model and Servquel model. Moreover, it got the managers thinking about using metrics such as employees NPS, customer satisfaction, customer engagement to drive business improvement. The workshop was With the help of the ‘Aspire’ initiative, the D&I conducted by Dr Kalim Khan and our partner was team of Mahindra Logistics aims to provide Acumen Business Consulting. Dr. Khan is a opportunities to the employees to build their management consultant, facilitator and is the Director personal and professional capabilities. The of Rizvi Institute of Management Studies & Research. employees get to interact with the leadership team A PhD in operations research and a statistician by to gain more in-depth insight into managing their qualification. He is also the co-author two Bestselling career aspirations, accelerating their learning curve books ("Where Is My Ketchup" & "Seal the Hole In and making the best use of available career the Bucket") on Customer Experience Management opportunities. The first session was conducted In a very unique initiative to drive continuous learning calendar covers concise learning bits in the format of in the Indian context and has also co-authored a book by Edwin Lobo, Sr. General Manager-HR, at during the lockdown, Partners Pathshala launched a articles, webinars, videos and even self-paced on enhancing the selling skills. ("Be A Super Mahindra Logistics. 30-Day learning calendar for the month of April. This courses. The open domain knowledge curated to suit Salesperson"). Susten Champions League 2020 Connecting Conversations Pranjali Deshpande Mahindra Susten In February, Mahindra Susten witnessed its 4th Annual Sports Event – The Susten Champions League 2020 with over 400 participants joining from locations all over India. It comprised of 7 wonderful sporting events viz. Cricket, Football, Badminton, Table – Tennis, Computer gaming, Chess and Carrom. In Susten, Health and Wellness is an important initiative driven across all the locations. The games were especially curated for the purpose of promoting health, facilitating collaboration and ensuring diverse participation of all types of talent. Ssports like chess, carrom and Table -Tennis which result in better brain function, improved memory enhanced Anila Nair encourage greater degree of Leader interaction with cognitive abilities, strategic thinking and attention improvement were also Mahindra Susten employees. included. In line with the PEOPLE 2.0 initiatives, in addition To encourage diversity. Each team had to have women players and to "Leadership and learning are indispensable to Susten X which is a web enabled platform and encourage synergy, team had to comprise of at least 4 different departments. to each other." M.A.D. (Make- A- Difference) which is a One to One The event also ensured that employees from different locations get to meet -John F. Kennedy session, the HR team has extended the leader connect each other and bond. platform and started “Connecting Conversations”. Everyone at Susten supported this initiative by following the “Bring With the above philosophy and Susten’s Vision 2.0 of It’s a freewheeling connect session with a close- your own bottle” rule which in turn helped in minimize waste. SCL -2020 an efficient and an agile organisation, the team is knit group, that gives the opportunity to ask questions, was a success because of the supportive senior leadership team, a sports constantly striving to create an environment in which exchange ideas and insights, receive business updates committee and because of the unending enthusiasm of the employees. they can leverage open communication channels that and learn valuable lessons from our inspiring leaders.

Step Up masterclass Mahindra Logistic’s D&I team organizes a Meghana Moses Mahindra Susten session to inspire its women employees A new initiative launched this year was Step Up The activity, which included a Masterclass – a series of mastery sessions on topics wide array of topics like career that are initially being touched upon in the Step Up development, competence, managing program. While Step Up is a program catering solely work and home, excellence at work to the Operational band of employees, Step Up etc., was aimed at inspiring women Masterclass is open for employees across Susten, employees of Mahindra Logistics to irrespective of their grades or roles. excel in their professional and The first session on the topic ‘Email Etiquette’ personal lives. was conducted in January 2020 as a webinar to The session was also enhanced by ensure accessibility for our employees across interaction with Bandita Panda, Area locations. In this hour-long webinar, participants Sales Director (West), Hyatt Hotels. learnt how to manage their mailbox, their time and Bandita shared her success stories their relationships through the effective use of and anecdotes about her corporate emailing. The session included practice rounds and experience, which was enriching for polls as well, to ensure that learning was happening the women employees. during the session, and the practical tips taught ensured applicability on a regular basis. 20 Farm Equipment (AFS) Mahindra Farm Equipment Sector shines on The Partners Post brings to you an interview with Rajesh Jejurikar, Executive Director, AFS, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. He gives us a bird’s eye view of the sector along with insights into its growth journey and aspirations.

Where does the Farm Equipment Sector (FES) technologies used in large land holding farms around stand within the Mahindra Group in terms of the world and making them affordable and accessible revenues and strategic importance? to small land holders. A step in this direction are The Farm Equipment Sector (FES) forms an alliances and acquisitions in Agri start-ups in the last integral part of the Mahindra Group. At FES, we aim few years. to deliver Farm Tech prosperity through pioneering technologies for farmers across the world to enable It’s been about two years since M&M unveiled them to Rise. Farming 3.0. How has it evolved since then and how With a presence in over 40 countries, Mahindra is has it helped you better serve the farmers? the world’s largest farm tractor manufacturer by When we consider the global demand for food 20- volumes and is India’s leading tractor manufacturer 30 years from now, we realise that food production for over three decades. The company achieved a needs to go up by around 70%. With most of the manufacturing milestone of over 3 million tractors arable land already under cultivation there is limited (since inception) in FY19. During the year, FES sold land to work with. Hence productivity will need to 3,30,436 tractor units in both the domestic and export drive the food needs of people, and we believe that markets, with a revenue contribution of approx. $3.2 we have a significant role to play in enabling that billion or about Rs.22,000 crores to M&M Group’s productivity. That new wave of productivity will overall revenues come out of data, analytics and new age technologies FES has a strong tractor portfolio and is building around digitisation. technology skillsets beyond it. The company is When we started thinking about Farming 3.0, we working on introducing a range of farm machinery, were building a strategy to not just sell tractors and with the idea of driving positive change by taking farm machinery, but to sell a solution; solutions which help our customers achieve an outcome. It was about thinking alternatively. It was about traversing our business from being a manufacturing company, to one that will help the customer achieve outcomes, through improvement in yield and productivity. Farming 3.0 has multiple legs of how we will use technology. It comes from the vision of democratising Which tractors are selling more in the recent times The three Centers of Excellence are: technology for small landholders. for Mahindra and the overall industry in India – • Finland – Sampo Rosenlew – 49% stake – For There are many new technologies that are lower or higher horsepower? Do you see the trend to Combine Harvesters deployed on large farms around the world, and our continue? Japan – Mitsubishi Agri Machinery – 33% stake idea is to make those new technologies affordable for While demand for tractors in the 30-50HP makes – Rice value chain machinery and accessible to small landholders, to help them up over 80% of tractor sales, over the last few years Turkey – Hisarlar – 75.1% – Global range of soil / achieve a better output. we have witnessed demand in the sub-30HP segment farm preparation implements In line with our Farming 3.0 strategy, we have due to factors like niche applications like horticulture- recently invested in start-ups like Resson Aerospace based farming, which is becoming popular. Mahindra & Mahindra acquired a 11.25 per cent Corporation of Canada and more recently in a stake in a Swiss company called Gamaya, which Switzerland-based agricultural-technology company focusses on farming. How do you plan to leverage Gamaya SA. Both start-ups will enable us to support on this acquisition? the company’s business by developing technology There are many new With agriculture increasingly becoming solutions, with the idea of making a difference in the technology intensive, we at Mahindra are investing in way farming is done. future ready technologies to provide complete technologies used solutions to the global farming community. How are things doing on the exports front? Our latest acquisition of Gamaya, will enable us Global Farm Machinery makes up about 30% of to develop and deploy next-generation farming the total revenue for Mahindra FES. on large farms around capabilities, such as precision agriculture and digital We have an on-ground presence in North America, farming technologies, giving us access to Brazil, Mexico, Finland, Turkey and Japan through the world. We want to hyperspectral imagery analytics, artificial intelligence our subsidiaries. and machine learning, which captures and interprets Going forward we will continue to explore useful information on the state of crops for the newer markets for our products and consolidate our make them accessible to farmers. With this partnership, we expect to set new presence in existing ones, introducing newer products benchmarks in farming and its related services. including upgrades, while building our sales and service network. small landholders. How happy are you with the overall product portfolio of FES at present and how do you see it evolving in the next three years? Horticulture production now exceeds food grain At FES, we have one of the most comprehensive 1st Tractor Company in the World to win the production in India. This has created exciting tractor portfolios in the industry. We have introduced mechanisation opportunities. Our new tractor Jivo, is products on Mahindra’s next-generation tractor “TPM Advanced Special Award” a tractor in the less than 30HP segment which is platforms – the Novo, Yuvo and Jivo. We have also enabling growth in this segment. introduced new product offerings from Swaraj. Shubhabrata Saha • TPM Consistency Award (2012) – Improvement In addition to a strong tractor portfolio, we now Farm Division in Manpower Productivity, substantial reduction in In the last few years, Mahindra has also made some have a full range of Farm Machinery solutions. As the The Mahindra & Mahindra Farm Division has breakdown of critical machines and developed important acquisitions in Japan (Mitsubishi Indian consumer is evolving and as we grow our become the 1st Tractor Company in the World to Equipment Competent Operators across plants. Agricultural Machinery), Finland (Sampo tractor business, there is a greater need for implements win the “TPM Advanced Special Award” integrated • TPM Special Award (2015) – Expanded the Rosenlew) and Turkey (Hisarlar). Tell us about and differentiated farm machinery. Horticulture is a at a business level, covering end to end value chain scope of TPM activities focussing on Lean Mahindra FES’s Farm Machinery play and how big area of growth. We believe that this is an encompassing Plants, Supply Chain, Suppliers, concepts - NVA reduction across Supply Value these acquisitions helped the FES so far? opportunity for us to leverage in the domestic market. Dealers with inclusion of Sales, Service and Chain (Introduction of Supplier TPM The total global Agri equipment market is roughly Product Development functions. This clusters) about $160 billion, of which Farm Machinery makes Tell us about the overall production footprint of award puts Farm Division in the league up $100 billion and tractors $60 billion. We have a FES. How are you utilising advanced technologies of 30+ plants across the world who have This TPM journey further big opportunity in the Farm Machinery space and to become smarter at the manufacturing level? achieved this phenomenal towards TPM Advanced Special India is still a small market with a huge upside FES has Manufacturing and CKD assembly in 8 achievement. Award has enabled the division potential. countries – India, USA, Brazil, Finland, Turkey, This Award is given by Japan to spread these processes further At Mahindra, we have a complete range of Algeria, Australia and Japan. Institute of Plant Maintenance in line with the unique theme of products and solutions as part of our Farm Machinery At Mahindra, we have embarked on a Digital (JIPM), Japan for the significant ‘Lean Digital TPM’, which is an portfolio. This is based on having established three Transformation Journey for manufacturing around 2 improvement in Operational amalgamation of Learnings from global technology Centers of Excellence, through years ago. The Manufacturing Value Chain (Supply Efficiencies across Organizational Value 13 years of TPM practices built on a acquisitions we made over the last couple of years. Chain & Manufacturing Processes) is digitised and Chain with Processes and Systems platform of ‘Zero Based Culture’ and These centres will allow us to bring back and adapt created for all processes, for Data Driven Decision delivering ‘Zero Defect and Reliable continual benchmarking of world’s technologies relevant for the Indian market. Making through Self Service Analytics. Products’. best practices like - The TPM journey started way back in • Zero Loss Factory – Zero 2006, with an objective to develop an Breakdown Plant and ‘Flexible ecosystem, for maintaining and improving Manufacturing ably supported by Operational efficiencies at world class Self-Managed Teams to cater the levels. During this journey, the divison has fluctuating demands in the industry’ crossed some major milestones. • Zero Defect Plants – Zero Defect • TPM Excellence Award (2010) – Built the culture Stations by concepts of ‘Built in Quality’. of achieving Zero BADS (Breakdowns, Accidents, • Supplier and Dealer TPM – Penetration of TPM Defects) with Higher Equipment Efficiencies in Culture for Business Partners – Unique Framework plants. for Mutual benefits. • Digitization (Industry 4.O) at Plants and across Supply Chain – For ‘Quantum Impact’ on key operational metrices. • Maintenance Methodology from TBM/CBM to ‘Predictive and Reliability centred Maintenance’ Winning the TPM Advanced Special Award from JIPM is a testimony to the highest levels of collaboration, personal commitments from all members across the organization. This has brought the division one step closer towards realization of highest levels of excellence maturity and business metrices which will enable Mahindra to Challenge ‘World Class Level’ three years from now. 21 Automotive (AFS)

Mahindra’s ‘Driven by e Purpose’ theme resonates s across its Mobility Solutions o at Auto Expo 2020 The highly anticipated 15th Auto Expo 2020 took place from 7 – 12 February 2020 at Greater Noida, UP. p The Auto Expo is a premier auto show held every two years, that showcases the best products, technologies, concepts and trends from the automotive world. A marquee event of Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d’Automobiles [OICA] - the global automotive trade association - the Auto Expo is jointly organised by ACMA, CII and SIAM. r Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. displayed an impressive range of 18 future ready products and mobility solutions with the theme #DrivenByPurpose showcasing its concept vehicles, EVs, passenger and commercial vehicles, as well as technology solutions. Mahindra’s Rise philosophy of driving positive change resonated with the theme as the company addressed u consumers’ needs for a better today and a sustainable tomorrow. As the pioneer of electric mobility in India, Mahindra displayed one of the widest ranges of EVs and related technology solutions by an Indian OEM this year. This clearly demonstrates the company’s commitment to be #DrivenByPurpose, for a cleaner, greener tomorrow. P Mahindra turned the spotlight on its range of electric vehicles and solutions, which include: 1. Funster, a thrilling futuristic roadster electric concept with a playful convertible mode, nothing short of being an object of desire 2. ATOM, a new age electric urban mobility solution for Smart India’s last mile connectivity needs 3. e-XUV300, the electric version of the popular compact SUV, an aspirational electric SUV y for those who want a thrilling performance. 4. e-KUV100, India’s most affordable EV starting at a competitive price of Rs. 8.25 lacs (ex- showroom Delhi, post FAME benefit) Apart from the concept car and three EVs, Mahindra also showcased 2 variants of the Treo, the pioneering Lithium-ion battery electric 3-wheeler. A first-of-its-kind future electric vehicle b architecture MESMA 350 (Mahindra Electric Scalable Modular Architecture), electric batteries and charging station to drive a connected experience for the consumer, was on display. In keeping with the upcoming BSVI emission norms implementation, Mahindra displayed mStallion, its range of advanced BSVI ready turbo gasoline direct injection, TGDi engines which will deliver a great ‘fun to drive’ experience to its customers. Developed at its cradle of R&D and innovation, the state-of-the-art Mahindra Research Valley in Chennai, the mStallion range of gasoline engines have been designed, engineered, developed and tested to deliver

n thrilling performance across varied driving and traffic conditions. For a better tomorrow that is Driven by Purpose, Mahindra showcased its new division

CERO (Mahindra MSTC Recycling Pvt. Ltd.), India’s first organised vehicle recycler. CERO e stands for a world of zero waste and zero pollution through automobile recycling and reuse. Dr. Pawan Goenka said, “As Mahindra enters its 75th year, our theme of Driven by Purpose will be the pillar on which we develop sustainable mobility solutions for the future. Our focus

will not only be on growing our clean business unit through our electric mobility business but to v also provide cleaner engines as we approach the implementation of BSVI norms. I am also

delighted that Mahindra’s showcase this year reflects our commitment to the ‘Make in India’ i philosophy, while developing globally relevant mobility solutions.” Rajan Wadhera said, “What gives us a sense of pride today, is the display of our new M Stallion BSVI range of Gasoline Engines, which are truly world class with the highest level of technology. It is fitting that we choose to display these engines at an important industry event like

the Auto Expo. I am particularly proud of our new range of BSVI trucks which have had minimal

r changes and offer a hassle-free ownership experience. The launch of our CRUZIO range of buses

is another significant step toward making us a full range player in the CV segment.” D

Funster - Roadster concept with a playful convertible mode ‘Play-for-fun’ is the core experience that personifies Funster, a ‘sports electric vehicle’. With its dual electric motors and full-time AWD system, Funster offers a class leading output of 230 kW with a top speed of 200 kmph, clocking 0 to 100 kmph in a breath-taking 5 seconds. Funster is equipped with a high end 59.1 kWh battery pack, enabling an impressive range of 520 kms on a single charge. The strikingly sharp front end, floating tail lamps, sports-shoe inspired wheel arches and advanced interiors express an active sporty lifestyle as the new norm. 22 Business

Tech M and TEQO partner up MTCS participated in the International Mining Exhibition

Vinitia Sequeira Mahindra Tsubaki Conveyor Systems

Mahindra - Tsubaki participated in the 8th Edition of International Mining Exhibition (IME - 2019), held between 6th to 9th November at Eco Park, Rajarhat, Kolkata. IME is a leading institutionalized biennial international exhibition of the Mining, Minerals, Metals and Machinery industries in India. The Ministry of Coal sponsors it, Ministry of Mines, Ministry of Steel, Ministry of Power and Department of Heavy Industry, Government of India. The event acted as a platform for exhibitors of To leverage Artificial Intelligence, Machine Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, to not only 269 Brands from 6 different countries to display Learning, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality help in operational maintenance but also to optimize their latest initiatives, technologies and machinery technologies while developing advanced solutions. their renewable energy assets.” Mahindra TEQO’s products. It promoted the establishment of joint Solutions will decrease operational and maintenance SolarPulse, a cloud-based software application, which ventures along with the development and renewal and feeding the downstream conveyor. It can expenses by 20% and enable customers to optimize analyses plant performance data will be synergised of regional as well as international contacts. The 8th handle a variety of materials and can be easily their Renewable Energy assets. with Tech Mahindra’s AssetRise, which facilitates Asian Mining Congress and a “Buyer-Seller Meet” installed above ground without the need for Tech Mahindra, a leading provider of digital modular deployment of asset management and asset was conducted during the exhibition with speakers expensive civil work. A prototype of the Feeder transformation, consulting and business reengineering performance management, to improve asset and delegates from over 20 countries including made especially for the event was displayed, services and solutions, announced a partnership with monitoring. Customers will have a comprehensive Australia, China, Czech Republic, Germany, which enhanced the presentation. Exhibited Mahindra TEQO (Technology, Quality and understanding of asset performance using advanced Poland, Russia, UK and USA. products also included Forged Chain Links of Operations), the newly formed renewable energy asset interactive plant performance analysis, realtime alerts, Mahindra Tsubaki made the best of this different specifications and associated components management company, to create digital solutions for energy and event log analysis, audit or report energy opportunity to showcase the products highly such as individual pins and circlips. Accompanying the global renewable energy industry. The solutions, production and meter analysis, automatic fault relevant to the mining industry. MTC showcased catalogues and posters highlighted MTC’s entire developed by leveraging next-generation technologies localization, remote troubleshooting etc. Mahindra Bulk Feeder (MBF) and forged chain product range. like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Steve Odak, CEO, Mahindra TEQO, said, “The links, state-of-the-art products in bulk material The exhibition provided a unique platform to Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality and IIoT collaboration with Tech Mahindra provides a great receiving & feeding applications. Bulk Feeder, showcase our innovative technology and an (Industrial Internet of Things) have the potential to opportunity for us to deliver a growing ecosystem of which has been launched recently by MTC, is used opportunity to expand the business to new decrease operating and maintenance expenses by advanced technology products and services, backed for unloading material directly from truck tipplers customers. 20%, enabling customers to optimize their renewable by a strong team with deep domain expertise globally. energy assets. Tech Mahindra has clearly demonstrated its ability to This partnership will create a digital ecosystem for apply its considerable resources and expertise not only the global renewable energy industry, deliver high to enter but to lead major market segments. We are quality, end-to-end, integrated solutions to customers excited to partner with Tech Mahindra as we focus our worldwide and provide powerful support for customers combined energies on serving a broader range of throughout the lifecycle of the asset. Jagdish Mitra, customers with industry-leading renewable asset Chief Strategy Officer & Head of Growth, Tech management solutions and an end to end integration Mahindra, said, “At Tech Mahindra, our focus is to capabilities.” ensure that business decisions across industries and As part of its TechMNxt Charter, Tech Mahindra is geographies, lead to equitable and sustainable growth. focused on leveraging next-generation technologies to The aim is to enhance our portfolio by developing and cater to the customer’s evolving and dynamic needs. collaborating with partners like Mahindra TEQO to As a leading digital transformation company, Tech provide our global customer base with a platform Mahindra continues to deliver tangible business value powered by next-generation digital technologies like and experiences to solve real business problems.

Mahindra forays into MLL achieves the Integrated Healthcare Management System (IMS) Phil Sarkari CEO, Mahindra Healthcare Business certification!

Healthcare and Logistics in India have IMS is a combination of 3 International Standards: 3 significant similarities: ISO 9001:2015 (Quality Management System), ISO 1) Both are large spends upward of 14001:2015 (Environment Management System) and 150Bn USD ISO 45001:2018 (Occupational Safety and Health 2) Both are unorganised and Management System) recognised worldwide. fragmented to the tune of over 90% This certification, a first of its kind in the logistics 3) Both have Governance issues industry, and it will go a long way in optimising Our Environment’ and ‘Earning Trust’ of all The Indian healthcare ecosystem, processes and resources, reducing operating costs and stakeholders with this outstanding accomplishment!!! like the rest of the world, has evolved improving overall performance. rapidly with the common underlying The audit was conducted by TUV Rhineland, an MLL’s Ecom Team’s Meticulous Planning and theme of change, i.e. reducing disease burden, International Certification body. TUV has conducted Execution breaks Volume records; Continues improving access to quality care and optimising the audits at following locations/functions. Transformation of SCs cost of delivered care. Notwithstanding the Cummins Kothrud, Powerol Chakan, MVML and Quarter 3 of FY ‘19 has been a watershed for continued advancement, India ranks 145th among AOB Chakan teams for Transportation; Bosch Chakan MLL’s Ecom vertical. At the end of Q3, the revenue 195 countries in terms of quality and accessibility and Badali, VIL Chakan, New BTS, Amazon Bhiwandi grew by 33%, and the festival of Diwali was a of Healthcare. education reform through NMC Bill and medical and HUL Vapi for Warehousing; MHEL, GE and GMI significant contribution to this. India has amongst the lowest per capita devices/ equipment price caps to improve Chakan for Stores and Line Feed; Pune branch, Wipro MLL’s ECom team also launched its first two fully healthcare spend ($85) and public healthcare healthcare access, quality and standards and CTS for PTS (Enterprise Mobility); MR Office, mechanised sort centre at Kolkata and Mumbai for expenditure (1.5% of GDP) in the world. 6. Technology Ubiquity – Growing adoption of HR and Admin, Solution Design, Implementation, Amazon. At its peak, the sites are capable of processing Additionally, the country has a shortage of digital health by incumbents will further expand Control Tower, Procurement, Safety and Legal teams 350000 shipments in a day. infrastructure and qualified healthcare professionals the patient pool with access to healthcare from HO. The team also successfully launched flex sort with 1.1 hospital beds (WHO recommendation – services Team Business Excellence played a critical role in centre for Flipkart at Bangalore and Mumbai. 3.5), 0.7 doctor (WHO recommendation – 1.1) and Riding on the wave of these drivers, the Indian preparing and coordinating as per the requirements of MLL also launched a Autonomous Guided Vehicle 1.3 nurses (WHO recommendation – 2.5) per 1,000 healthcare industry is poised to double from USD all the standards. Kudos to team MLL for living by its at MVML Chakan. it helps to move items within a people. 160 bn (in 2019) to USD 320 bn by 2025, growing Purpose principles ‘Shaping the Industry’, ‘Sustaining warehouse and is a safe and efficient solution. As things stand today, the industry is on the cusp at a 15% CAGR. The healthcare industry comprises of significant change with several key trends 5 key segments (i) Healthcare Delivery (contributing (below) redefining the healthcare industry 68% of overall healthcare market), (ii) Pharma the sector is likely to be limited to ~20% of annual Hence going ahead, the Indian healthcare 1. Demographics – Higher consumption of (14%), (iii) Diagnostics (6%), (iv) Medical healthcare spend. Govt. will increasingly play a ecosystem is likely to present greater consolidation healthcare services with ~140Mn households Equipment and Devices (8%) and (v) health greater role as payor (for a large part of the Indian opportunities for existing private players in traditional entering the middle class and ~150Mn ageing insurance 45). Multispecialty and single-speciality population) and regulator for pricing and standards. formats (viz hospitals, diagnostics). At the same time, population by 2025 contribute roughly 80% of the overall healthcare This will result in the private sector continuing to play emerging trends, policy interventions and technology 2. Disease Profile – Higher Incidence of lifestyle delivery segment. a crucial role as in the recent past. adoption will also offer incumbents and new diseases/ NCDs as demonstrated by the rise in What makes this growth story even more Having said that existing high level of participants to develop newer models, e.g. super DALY (Daily Adjusted Life years) due to NCDs attractive for patients and investors alike is the fragmentation and unorganised play across all specialised formats (in Oncology), low-cost secondary from 30% (in 1990) to 55% (in 2017) unprecedented growth that allied sectors like Healthcare sub-segments is likely to change care models to penetrate tier-II/ III cities, tech-led 3. Insurance Penetration – Growing Health wellness and rehab, home health, medical dramatically. Pricing caps and resulting pressure on delivery and support for chronic ailments. insurance penetration (>20% cagr over last 5 technology and Healthcare IT, medical tourism and margins need for better quality standards and To summarise, the healthcare industry offers a years) which is expected to be ~40% by 2020 distribution platforms will witness in the coming measurement of clinical outcomes, improved patient large growing market driven by both structural and 4. Medical Tourism – Growing preference for decade. This would be largely fueled by frugal value-proposition in terms of trust/ transparency and policy drivers. Existing levels of fragmentation and India as a medical tourism hub due to a innovation in technology and delivery mechanisms. integrated care will necessitate a higher share of enabling ecosystem to develop newer delivery models combination of ease of travel, English-speaking Government focus on Healthcare has seen a organised participants. Private players will also need presents the right opportunity for Mahindra Group to population, affordability and quality of positive upswing in last few years, and this to move away from over-saturated metro markets build a business that can help deliver both economic healthcare services momentum is likely to sustain, however, fiscal towards non-metro markets. This will require a rethink (in terms of size and economic viability) and social 5. Govt. Policy – Govt. has made bold policy constraints will mean the role of Govt. is unlikely to of the current operating models/ formats and impact (in terms of improved health outcomes and interventions incl. Ayushman Bharat, medical be of the dominant provider. The public spending in leveraging technology to benefit scale and cost. employment generation). 23 Digital Marketing Nine questions smart business leaders will ask themselves in 2020 When it comes to digital marketing, these are the nine key questions that businesses must ask themselves.

Do we realise the increasing role Is our digital work like a technology is playing in digital patchwork quilt of this-and-that Are we still checking off the digital marketing? Technology is now the or are there strong foundational boxes and merely being swayed most potent digital enabler for a elements and ideas that bind it by the shiny new digital cool, or do business today. Thinking digital all together? Too many brand we have a wholesome, concerted without harnessing technology owners get carried away by the approach to digital? Without a well well is like trying to paint a canvas temptation of doing a little bit thought-out holistic approach that with brushes but no paints. of a lot of digital things and integrates digital with the business 2 hoping that something will click. and its marketing, digital will soon Instead, it is important to build start giving diminishing returns. digital activities around a strong 1 central core, much like it is with erecting a tall tower. Digital media 3 channels or content formats are not ideas by themselves. Good Is digital part of our C-suite old fashioned creative ideas are and Board-level deliberations still very much the currency of regularly? The smartest impact, even in digital. businesses realise that Digital needs to be upfront and centre, and even in a position to call the shots in the business. For the others, the time is now to reconsider how digital resides Are we able to co-relate digital within the organisation, and impact with business outcomes 9 quickly take steps to give digital or are we caught up with digital its place at the big table. for the sake of digital? It is 2020, and so the ability to draw effective linkages between digital initiatives and investments with impact on Are we on the top customer preference and brand of understanding sales is increasingly real. It takes consumer more effort than a simple cause- effect analysis but can be done behaviourial trends Are our own capabilities 4 and should be done. through how with respect to digital Are our agencies and digital channels good enough to take partners more focused and platforms us to the next level on digital channel are designed and through digital or are management and work? An example we held back by talent their own core areas of this is the Tinder and ability? While of expertise or do they Is our digital focus still around effect on brands, digital is being given provide wholesome scoring vanity metrics or have or how the growth greater importance by counsel that helps deploy we matured to seeking sanity in consumer most businesses, it is digital to its best capability metrics? Millions of impressions, promiscuity still often tucked away for our business? likes and content virality are just (smartly translated under the marketing It is common to find the nice to have vanity metrics into a dating function or a business agencies hawking that digital offers. Too many proposition owner. And ownership whatever their core marketers continue to be caught by Tinder) is of digital given to mid- competence is as the up with them. It is time to look influencing buying senior persons with digital holy grail to clients. beyond such numbers and focus decisions and a skew for one or two This could be web and instead on using digital to deliver brand loyalty, and of the digital channels 6 app development, content sanity metrics, the numbers that 8 therefore how they have worked with. marketing, technology 5 matter in a business, and can brands should This is operationally tools and platforms, impact the balance sheet. respond. The 7 a sound approach but influencer marketing, Amazonization limits the strategic media plans… While all are of consumer advantage a business important, skewing to one shopping is can get from digital. or the other is usually a another trend It often helps to tap recipe for disaster. that influences external experts who how brands must can help manage the market themselves, big picture and also both offline and mentor internal teams Ashok Lalla is an independent Digital Business Advisor who online. to grow their digital also advises the Mahindra Partners portfolio of companies. He nous over time. tweets at @ashoklalla. This article first appeared in the online publication, Adgully in January 2020 Protect your data Sumedha Shukla, Mahindra Partners 1. Check your devices: accounts which you no longer use from platforms links which are shared publicly outside of the You must check which devices are connected to you may have signed up on previously. platform, are indexed by Google and can be used Data protection has become a top priority for most all your web services. Whether email, social 4. Use secure services for file exchanges: by anyone to extract and alter information from organizations and individuals. All organizations are media profiles and even e-commerce portals, you Do not use unreliable services for file exchanges. the group. So be aware of the services which you investing in secure cloud services to ensure their must delete all inactive or old devices from the Recently it was revealed that even Whatsapp group use and their security protocols being followed customer data is secure, but what are you doing as an platforms. before you share critical information online. individual to protect your personal information? 2. Clean up your app permissions and data: 5. Actively unsubscribe and opt-out of We all use several devices and applications in our Reconsider using an app if it requires all communications: daily lives which require us to give necessary access permissions to operate. There are several non- This is perhaps the biggest exercise to do for all for basic usage. Our personal data with our internet invasive options in the market now. You can go users. If there is an email subscription you no service providers and financial services is largely into your phone settings and remove critical longer read, consider unsubscribing. You are secure. However, we must remain vigilant of wherever permissions like phone, contacts and being sent emails as you are part of a we get the choice to “opt – out”. While there is no locations for almost all apps except the larger email list, which can be shared legal requirement for Indian companies yet, since the ones you use regularly. with other email marketing agencies introduction of GDPR, several Europe based 3. Information on social media: depending upon the subscription TnCs. organizations have enacted these rules for their With social media policies for You must periodically unsubscribe from overseas operations. Some Indian organizations have employees becoming stringent, reconsider emails you are not reading to limit also implemented this to stay ahead of the curve and what information is public on your email access. Alternatively try using practice an ethical form of data consent. profiles. You may want to aggregator apps which consolidate As publicly available data is being increasingly sold remove your workplace subscriptions or setting up Google to multiple parties and overall surveillance also information from platforms Alerts for important topics you will like becomes a concern for privacy – here is quick guide where you are not required to to track. on how you can protect yourself. be a brand evangelist. Deactivate 24 Shadow Boards A pathway to the future of the Mahindra Group Shadow Boards are an important part of the talent management process at Mahindra, and this is often cited as a best practice of the Mahindra Group. The Shadow Board was instituted to hear different voices and counter-views that could challenge established modes of thinking and to encourage new inputs for the Mahindra group’s strategic business plans. This year the Shadow Boards were given direction from the Group to choose a topic that was either related to radical transformation of the business or working on a digital business.

Accelo Shadow Board: Low-cost housing Shadow Board Team Mahindra Accelo with different work experience and functional Every year, Accelo encourages its employees to expertise. This year, Vijay Arora (COO – Mahindra nominate themselves to become a member of the Accelo) was the business mentor t who provided prestigious shadow board platform. The shadow strategic direction to the project. board functions independently. The team members The economic downturn of 2019 made were Mitesh Jadhav, Manager – Business businesses reflect on the intensity of the VUCA Development; Vinu Cherian, Manager – Sales world. This economic degrowth posed a unique (Home Appliances); Rajvimal Agarwal, Head – challenge for the Accelo Shadow board. Should the Accounts; Seema Choudhary, Head – Accounts; board work on identifying ways to improve existing Harshit Pancholi, Manager – Operations; Omkar processes OR identify diversification in the existing Gawde, Manager – Sales (Steel Trading); Manish business model? But based on the direction given Ramteke, Head – Production Planning; Vaibhav by the Group mandate of choosing projects, the Chavan, Head – Electrical Section; and Yogesh team instead decided to evaluate a radical Shirsat, Head – Operations (Automotive). The team transformation opportunity. is cross-functional, cross-bordered and is a unique Accelo, under its brand Purtec, manufactures combination of members representing each plant, purlins which cater to Solar and Construction segments. But, recently, the solar purlins market has been extremely turbulent with major changes happening. This resulted in a capacity utilisation gap in the Accelo plant. The Shadow Board brainstormed opportunities to fill this gap and evaluate the opportunity of providing a new product developed carefully. The product that the team identified was in Pre-Engineered low-cost house, which can be built faster, provides Buildings (PEB) segment. basic hygienic standards and ones that are built to Accelo can also leverage its tie-ups with The Shadow Board noticed last. Japanese partners for the design support, source that, in hindsight, with the Traditional methods of house making were secondary materials from local vendors and development of a new product studied, and alternate materials to develop a low- manufacture purlins from its existing facility. These for the PEB segment, Accelo cost house, which will cater to all the above needs housing kits can be sold through B2C and B2B has an opportunity to cater to were identified during research. The team proposed channels and ultimately construct these houses at the housing segment where a product which essentially is a housing kit that will the customer’s end. These kits can be sold via brick 90% of the houses can be consist of purlins, sandwich sidewalls, doors, and mortar and via online platforms also. made of purlin structures. fasteners, roof panels, etc. With these materials in The Shadow Board believes that these low-cost housing kits can contribute to The Pradhan Mantri Some of the factors the kit, a complete house can be built in less than 72 affecting the housing sector hours. The application of the housing kits is in the Awas Yojana which has identified 305 cities for were identified as cost, time, areas prone to natural calamities, rural areas, slums building two crore houses till 2022. Building a low- living standards and House and Tier III cities. Apart from houses, structures of cost house is a unique opportunity for Accelo to type. There is a need for a office cabins, labour townships, portable cabins can radically transform its business and accelerate be developed for commercial purposes. towards achieving its vision of becoming a billion- dollar company.

Susten Shadow Board: ZOLARIO - Solarise every rooftop roof is a potential customer. As an EPC, Susten is Vishal Pandya well placed in construction and infrastructure, Mahindra Susten especially handling large operations of solar. But replicating the same model for small scale rooftops At Susten, the Shadow Board was formed based on would be a costly affair. So instead, the team leadership selection of cross-functional team thought of coming up with the idea of productising members which comprised of Vikram Kenjale – the offering. This modular kit could fit any rooftop Head Program Management, Technology and in its various combination. The model moreover Products; Dhruv Khosla – Head Sales and will be the channel partner-driven – reducing Marketing, B2C business; Shashi Madaparil – overheads drastically and leveraging on networks Head International Operations, O&M; Nagesh of collaborators both within and outside of the Patil - Senior Manager – Supply Chain, B2C Group. The team intends to collaborate with business; Prabhat Lakhera – Manager Business Mahindra Powerol for its network, Mahindra Development, Utility Solar; Gangesh Tiwari – Finance for integrated financial options and Manager Proposals – Utility Solar; Ankit Sharma Mahindra Logistics as a logistics partner. – Manager Business Development, BESS and The team has also taken special efforts to ensure Vishal Pandya - Senior Engineer, D&E - Utility that the solution provides an unparalleled customer Solar. The board functioned independently under experience. The team presented a design that was the mentorship of Abhay Tilwankar – Chief ‘online’. The customer will get a complete Growth Officer, TEQO. introduction to the product and process online. On The team began their phase of exploring a tech-based platform, the customer can sign in and business challenges by conducting one to one provide their address. The app will find their interviews - both physical and telephonic with the rooftop automatically - detect objects of obstruction senior leadership and managerial cadre. They to define the area available for the solar panels. completed four installations and are rearing for analysed themes and narrowed down those that their rooftop with the solar panels. The set-up will They will even get a quote, and a calculation of the more. You could say that Shadow Boards truly had an apparent link to bring about radical take only four days as opposed to a typical 14 days, savings they would have in the long turn by serve their purpose, not only by getting new ideas transformation to the existing business line (In and the client will also be able to monitor the daily switching over to this solar solution. The channel from engaged bright minds; but also by leading sync with the Group’s ask). Thus, was born the generation from solar in real-time through an app. partner will thus reach them directly with a proposal companies to experiment and execute. product, Zolario with a mission to solarise every Ever since the team unearthed the idea, they have along with a VR tool that will help them visualise rooftop. The beauty of it is that everyone with a 25 Shadow Boards

M&M Group Shadow Board: Wheels of Change – The next 75 years

Mitesh Jadhav Mahindra Accelo In a first since its inception, a Mahindra & Mahindra Group-wide Shadow Board was formed which consisted 12-members from 6 different Mahindra company Shadow Boards of Auto Division, Farm Division, Finance Services, Club M, Accelo and Susten. The cross-functional team was therefore established with people from different sectors and different businesses. The main aim of establishing the Group Shadow Board was to anticipate and embrace change. The project infused with a dynamic spirit was taken on by a young team of sharp minds. Their mandate was to discuss and give recommendations on significant issues, both strategic and operational while redefining the meaning of success through it. The Group Shadow Board was mandated to think of projects that were Group-wide as opposed to business-wise. The board was expected to engage with the mentors, Ramesh Iyer (VC & MD, President – Financial Services Sector & Member of GEB) and Suman Mishra (Sr. VP. Group Strategy Office) on formulating the topic, the Business Development, Mahindra Accelo), Shashi the past, present, future and imagine the kind of business. Backed by the trusted name of Mahindra, approach, the format, and the preparations. Madaparil (Head – International Operations, organisation that they would have liked to lead in it would be an opportunity to emerge as an industry The team of 12 consisted of the following O&M, Mahindra Susten), Dhruv Khosla (Head – the future. It was then the team felt the real weight leader, one where futuristic technology and members: Akshay Gupta (EA TO Sr. VP-Sales & Sales & Marketing, Mahindra Susten) of the task they had at hand– ‘great power’ that with evolving needs were addressed. The potential of Customer Care, Auto Div.), Anubhav Agrawal The participants had only 30 days to formulate a it brought along ‘great responsibility’. the opportunity was mapped at a billion dollars in (Manager- Human Resources, MTBD), Shrey topic, present and even rehearse. The Group Shadow After intense brainstorming sessions, the Group the Indian Economy. Tamhane (Sr. Manager-Consumer Analytics Farm Board ate, drank, slept, walked, thought, spoke only Shadow Board zeroed-in on ‘Female Healthcare’ The real question that it got boiled down to was Div.), Abhiyan Adhikari (Sr. Manager – EA, AFS), about the M101 presentation for 30 Days. More than a.k.a. ‘FemTech’ as the segment they wanted to why the Group should take up an opportunity like Urvi Laoria ( Sr. Manager – Refinance, Mahindra 20+ Face to Face meetings, 60+ virtual calls, 15+ develop on, and they named this presentation as this. Unlike its current businesses, this is an Finance), Amogh Doger (Dy. General Manager – Leadership interactions, 500+ phone calls, 3000+ Wheels of Change: The next 75 years. entirely different venture, and the team very well Accounts, Mahindra Finance), Karthik working hours were what it took for the coordinated The Group Shadow Board proposed to start a knew that the leaders could become hesitant. In an Ramasubramanian (Dy. General Manager, Data efforts of 12 people to culminate to the 45-minute business around female healthcare, one that was exciting way to highlight the rationale behind their Sciences, GSO), Vidisha Debsarkar (Manager – presentation at the M101. built on a vision of inclusivity, progression and faith in this venture, the team presented seven sins Member Communications and Product Marketing, The Shadow Board had to step into the shoes of positive change. The team proposed a host of and seven antidotes. It outlined some of the core Club M), Rajvimal Agarwal (Head – Accounts, the Mahindra Group Executive Board and evaluate product and services that would address the critical areas in which Mahindra could buckle up with best Mahindra Accelo), Mitesh Jadhav (Manager – ideas, deliberate on the company culture, understand stages in the life-cycle of a woman with this practices in this VUCA times.

Sin 1 – To pioneer or not Sin 2 – Competitor Sin 3 – to pioneer is King Company of Mahindra & Mahindra group The Group has always Idea Generators has a journey of many firsts. been the customer’s The Mahindra They have built the first choice. Going ahead group has been A1 indigenous tractor, first to spot too, it needs to focus on idea generation, the rural NBFC opportunity, on the evolving and now it’s time Build India’s first true blue customers first to to transform into SUV, First to spot real-estate thrive while building a company of as a big business opportunity, technologies of the pilots. Sustained etc. The Group has seen a future. experimentation slowdown in the past decade, is the formula to and hence the real opportunity succeed in the was to encourage diversity long term. of thought, age, gender, competence and geography. The Group needs to enter these VUCA times, asking every opportunity the question “Why not Mahindra?”

Sin 4 – Go Big or Go Home Sin 5 – Analysis Paralysis Sin 6 – Performance Dilemma Sin 7 – SINergy Homing in on the Group’s capacities Accelerating decision making To make the best of the processes of In a federated group of 100+ companies, the to fund and mould the start-ups of by delegating & empowering key evaluating employees based on their current synergy boasts of hard-core business tomorrow, it is the Group’s responsibility stakeholders and employees will performance, one must build in a system collaborations only, which represent, just the tip to give each business a fighting chance increase the pace at which the that encompasses the ‘aspirations and of the icebergs. Hence, synergy must be exploited to become more than what it is. Group as an organisation can thrive. goals’ of its employees while the employees to the core, in terms of leveraging customer data, look at becoming full process owners and business processes, technology prowess, talent, take responsibility of business outcomes. etc. to power the growth of the Group ahead.

The Group Shadow Board, through this the project to the jury which consisted of the M&M thought in 101 best minds of the Mahindra Group. Mahindra Partners Annual Senior Leadership presentation and its antidotes, intended to plant the GEB members and Anand Mahindra (Executive The teams were overwhelmed with the scale of the conclave at Radisson Blue, Karjat in January. seed of an idea that would get all the leaders Chairman, M&M) at Mahindra Towers, Worli. chance that those 45 minutes would give them. It The Shadow Boards have since been evaluating thinking- what is it that they need to challenge to Selected Shadow Boards were invited to present at was also the first time in Partners history that two the feasibility of the projects with collaborators propel the Group into the next 75 years of M101 – Mahindra’s most prestigious, Senior shadow boards were selected to present at the M101. within the Group. The interest of other companies in changemakers. Leadership Conclave at Hotel Taj Mahal Palace, The journey did not stop here, as all three the projects is the manifestation of the hard work In October, the Shadow Board teams presented Mumbai. It was an opportunity to plant the seed of a Shadow Boards were further invited to present at and uniqueness of the innovative projects. 26 Career Rising through the Ranks We capture some amazing stories from across Mahindra Partners of people who have grabbed their opportunities, surpassed challenging moments and risen through the ranks.

“This whole level of wholeness is a place where I am able to show up as a full human being with all of my gifts to the table to be a part of this organization. That leads to a great feeling of inclusiveness because what it allows me then to do is to bring this real, authentic self to the table and to really love the work that I do.”

- Kimo Kippen (Founder of Aloha Learning Advisors)

What opportunities should you make the most of? How would you like to sharpen the way you work? We hope that at the end of reading this article, you will have serious food for thought, about how you would like to Rise through the ranks in your own way.

non-technical background. During a review meeting with my knowledge on purchase, sales and even accounting. Her COO, he gently taught me a good lesson. He generally asked initiative served her well over the years, she and owes much me about the grinder machines we use at our homes. Being an of her success to consistent learning. electrical engineer, I explained in detail. And then he asked if a grinder at your home failed, what your mother will do? I said, Rekha advises, “One must understand well, their own “she will inform my father and he will get it repaired”. That where strengths and weaknesses. And while trying to overcome he stopped me and told me that “your mother is not a technical the latter, one must leverage their strengths and align it person and she knows how to use it. When a problem occurs with the needs of the organization. When faced with any she only wants to fix it. The root cause of the problem doesn’t challenge, one should Rise up to the opportunity and one bother her, she doesn’t assess why the machine failed in the should always continue to learn.” first place. That’s the way, an operator also will behave, it makes no sense to blame them”. He taught me such a profound lesson in the most gentle and simple way possible and since then, I have always put myself in the other’s shoe first and maintained harmonious work relationships with all. Today, the team is my support and my backbone through daily work.” Annasaheb Ramkrishna Shinde Deputy General Manager -Freight Procurement, While there is no limitation to seizing opportunities and Mahindra Logistics taking on new responsibilities one must consciously develop a reasonable attitude towards the tasks at hand before Annasaheb Shinde joined the company more than 17 years developing a course of action. ago, on third-party rolls when MLL was only a department in M&M. As of 2018, he was instated as the DGM of Operations. He was the first employee of the company at the customer’s facility. Being the face of the brand to the client, he had a huge responsibility to gain the customer’s confidence. He got a chance to be a part of the central team in Mumbai, but with a young son and family well settled in Nashik, he considered declining the transfer. He credits his wife of being his stronghold in the situation who assured him that despite their young family, she would manage if he had to be away for work. Vinitia Sequeira From there on, the journey got bigger and better. At every Sr. Executive – HR, Mahindra Tsubaki Conveyor turn, there were challenges and emerging victorious from Systems Pvt. Ltd. them all was the real win. He credits his early successes to qualities such as maintaining meaningful relationships with all Vinitia began her stint with MTC as a fresher and today stakeholders, excellent listening skills and innovative thinking. she is heading the HR function – responsible for all HR Some of his most memorable projects have been that of processes at MTC. introducing Cross-docking in facilities. This not only saved time and space but also cost for MLL. In every project, he is also Her journey has been enriching and rewarding. From the motivated to Rising beyond. moment she was given the choice to step into the shoes An example of this would be the project of converting old Rekha Bhandarkar of her senior taking on major responsibility to attending diesel vehicles to CNG, which led to the revival of dead asset Chief - Sales Accounts and IT, Transaction Department, her first Management Team Meeting, from earning her and other cost benefits. “In this tenure, I have faced many Mahindra Accelo first “Good Job” appreciation from her MD to successfully challenges. I tried, I failed, I followed, I learned, I succeeded but executing the Company’s Annual Event for approx. 200 most importantly, what I learnt is that in every situation you Rekha joined the company as a data entry operator on a members, these are some of the moments that she have to be a team player”, he says. He doles out only one advice contract a basis 23 years ago. While she joined with limited cherishes deeply. to all, “At every step of the way know that you are responsible. operational skills that helped her with daily work, she took You have to take care of your tasks at hand, and you have to on learning as a personal task. She began not only learning Some of her most fulfilling projects have been that of deliver the best results.” newer technologies but also experimenting and steadily organizing Assessment Center for leadership team implementing them. Her supervisors also pushed her further members, streamlining processes, conducting employee to learn larger software systems and she took it on happily. engagement initiatives and organizing major events like Although it was challenging, she knew very well that she the annual outing and annual bash. In her journey, she Chinnaiyan R wanted to achieve it not only for herself but also to apply it has encountered and overcome a number of obstacles. Manager – Maintenance, Mahindra Water Utilities Limited in her organisation. She also credits much of her nuanced Vinitia describes her experience, “To begin from a ‘no one’ learnings to her colleagues. Over the years, she has attained and become a ‘someone’ in the company is challenging. I Chinnaiyan who joined MWUL as a Shift Engineer now handles have been exposed to so many new tasks and have gained the overarching role of plant maintenance functions. He joined so many learnings. Each of those tasks came along with the company as a young engineer and early on he even received challenges that have now translated into experiences. an opportunity to organize a major plant shut down. He got They have helped me grow more and more!” his first boost of enthusiasm on successfully carrying out this operation. Some of his most rewarding moments since then One of her biggest learnings have been to keep moving have been when his analysis and recommendations for the forward even in difficult circumstances. Quoting Steve company have brought in major cost savings. Time and again, Jobs, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you he looks for opportunities in saving via efficient maintenance, can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to necessary replacements and experimentations to increase trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future,” efficiency. Her advice to others is to make the best of the On asking him about the secret of his successful journey opportunities at hand and step up to responsibilities. She so far, he will tell you it is all about how you treat people. He didn’t let the fear of striking out stop her from playing the recites the story that led him to this realization, “During my game. She reiterates that one must always choose to Rise early days, as a dynamic young engineer whenever a process to the occasion. equipment failed, I used to blame the operators who were from 27 Career

Vijay Arora Chief Operating Officer, Mahindra Accelo

Vijay Arora began his career as a graduate Apprentice Trainee in the year 1991 in M&M, Machine tools division of the group at Worli as a Service engineer. Around then, Mahindra & Mahindra Intertrade division was just set up bringing together the trading divisions of the group under one entity namely M&M Steel, M&M Machine Tool Division and EAC Graphics. At that time India’s first steel centre was being set up by M&M Steel Div. at Kanhe, and they needed support during the project execution phase to support a very lean team executing the project. He took the opportunity as it came along, and this was his first exposure to the steel service business. During the apprentice stage, he was deputed to Kanhe plant for project execution for 6 months and was asked to look after the production till an experienced person joined the plant, and the rest is history. From there on he went on to introduce newer products in the service centre industry which were the latest in the country. In essence, CRNGO slitting (1997) and CRGO transformer Laminations (2000) and established MSSCL Kanhe and Sumit Issar a leading quality supplier of products to the industry and Vinay Mohan MD, Mahindra Accelo which looked at it as a benchmark. Senior General Manager, Mahindra Partners

Mahindra Intertrade was Sumit Issar’s first job. Today, he With MSSCL growing only in Pune, the first most significant Vinay Mohan joined the Mahindra Group at a stage is the MD of the company. Hailing from the town of Indore challenge was of gradually expanding the business that when they were rapidly diversifying into different and having lived all his life in the Eastern part of India, was set up in 1993 out of Maharashtra. The first opportunity business ventures. During his first stint in the Oilfield Sumit craved the fast-paced city life and incidentally joined came when Nippon Steel of Japan, impressed by MSSCL’s Services Division, he had the privilege of leading a Mahindra in Mumbai. He joined the company as a GET, and capability to handle their Electrical Steel products, asked very complex operation that involved moving heavy in his very first role, he was asked to report to 7 managers Intertrade to set up Middle East’s first Electrical service equipment through sensitive zones among other across departments. The challenge was that at 9 am centre at Sharjah in 2003. He was deputed to Sharjah issues like harsh weather and restrictions on imports. everyone wanted him to be there for work, available to them. alone to set up the factory there. For 7 months, where he Not very long after, the management decided to exit And, so in his first role itself, he got a depth of experience had to battle immense challenges like the streamlining of the business and although it was heartbreaking, he of balancing expectations, managing time, and creatively resources and vendors in unknown foreign territory. The credits his hard bargaining skills and his austere dealing with different types of people. Moreover, as a young Mahindra Middle East Steel Service Centre was ready for sense of maturity to this event. bachelor surviving on rent in Mumbai on a salary of Rs Inauguration in 2004. Post this he was given the charge of 3000 was a daunting task. He confesses that while it was setting up India’s first merchant Blanking line at Nashik in His next role was as the EA to the ED & President not easy, he used simple tricks that any other young guy 2005 and area where Intertrade had no expertise. – IDS after which he went onto head Business would use, like skipping breakfast on holidays to manage Development for Mahindra Realty. He saw the resources judiciously. While at Nashik, while visiting the M&M Engine plant at set-up of Guestline Juhu, Mahindra Air Services, Igatpuri, the potential of electric motors dawned on him, Club Mahindra at Varca and the inception of In yet another anecdote, he tells of how relationship as a futuristic opportunity and this made him work on the Mahindra Acres Consulting Engineers Ltd, Mahindra building became a strong suit for him. “We were pursuing Electrical stampings which was a forward integration of Construction Company Limited, Mahindra Water a customer for sales. I would spend hours waiting for this CRNGO slitting. Diversifying the business further Electrical Utilities Ltd. He also played a pivotal role in the man at his reception and would always get the reply that stampings was established in 2011 in Kanhe and is today acquisition of 850 acres of land for MWC, Chennai and he was too busy and unable to meet. I was young then and supplying all motor stampings to M&M Electric. Besides 175 acres for Mahindra United World College, Pune. stayed in Khar. I got to know that the customer, visited the helping in developing the Bhopal, Vadodara and Chakan As part of brand building projects he played a lead Khar vegetable market on Sundays. In a genuine attempt plants in 2016, he also lead the conceptualisation and role in organizing large events such as Mahindra to build a relationship with the customer, every Sunday execution of the CERO business. The auto recycling industry International Squash – piloting the squash scene for two months, I also visited the Khar market to bump in India is exceptionally unorganised, and there are no revamp in India. The event with over USD 500000 prize into him casually and strike a conversation. After building laws or regulations around it in India. Despite this, along money was heralded by many players as the best a successful relationship with the client, he finally called with his time, they not only conceptualised the plan but event on the PSA Super Series. me in for a meeting and closed the deal. Till date, they are also executed it. Another significant achievement has so One of his most memorable projects would be that customers of the company,” says Sumit. This, among many far been that of achieving JIPM in the two plants of Kanhe of setting up Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) other experiences, formed the foundation of learning in his and Nashik. It is the highest recognition of quality, process at Mahindra World City (MWC), Chennai. He was journey at Accelo. and productivity in the industry and is one that requires Head - Commercial, Statutory Relations & Business unprecedented efforts and mindset change to achieve. Development for the project. In their journey of In 1995 many senior people quit the service centres on creating a world-class facility, one that would the sales side, but with the very supportive management, If you ask Vijay how he got so far, he will tell you that it was host testing and research for both the Auto and junior staff were challenged to do these assignments. Sumit the supporting and nurturing leadership, support of my Farm divisions, the management did not want to credits this phase as one of massive learning. Working day teammates at all levels along with opportunities coupled compromise on the quality of the project. Due to space in and out with the leaders, he learnt many nuanced skills with his own passion and drive to do something new every restrictions, they took a call to change the location of by observing his seasoned bosses at work. Right from time. The team is always experimenting with new and MRV to Chennai as opposed to the originally planned sensing an opportunity to speaking to customers to explore daunting technologies which enthuses him further. site in Thane. value gaps, these were the days where he learnt ‘the art of trading’. Vijay follows a couple of leadership mantras. This includes The peak construction phase was during March 2008 challenging the status quo at all times, having an attitude to December 2010. This overlapped one of the biggest The operations only grew by the year. Every two years, the of challenging oneself to do better and improving slowly construction boom phases in India which resulted in team explored a new opportunity gap which kept him on his yet consistently; appreciation and gratitude towards all a steep increase in the cost of raw materials, labour toes. The real turning point was in 2005 when the Sharjah irrespective on their rank in the organisation and most and other resources required. The project team worked plant was set up. This cemented further the relationship importantly leading from the front. “If you design and tirelessly to reduce the impact by resorting to import with the Japanese partners Nippon steel. Another learning conceptualise things, you need to lead from the front. You of material, hard bargaining in negotiation, harmonious curve for Sumit has been this interaction with his Japanese have to also get the buy-in from your team on the purpose relationships with the contractors, etc. The team to business partners. He considers their work ethic as the best and face all the challenges from the helm,” Vijay advises. stretched beyond measure – tackling local regulatory in the world. requirements, meeting stringent design standards and collaborating with business teams to deliver a state- Once, on a business trip in Japan, Sumit was on his way to of-the art facility within the desired timelines all while the airport after checking out from the hotel. On his way, maintaining a track record of zero accidents. The site he got a phone call from the hotel staff. They informed him received recognition from the National Safety Council that they had accidentally over-charged him and needed to in the form of “Prashansa Patra” in 2008 as well as in return his money. Since he wasn’t too far off, he turned the 2010. MRV was fully completed and handed over by cab and went back to the hotel. After returning his money, December 2011 and was formally inaugurated by Dr. they gave him an envelope with more money for the taxi, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, former President of India, on April because it was their error and they had wasted his time. He 11th, 2012. The MRV Project Team won the Mahindra was pleasantly surprised at how the Japanese think to such Rise Award in 2012. detail of a customer’s experience. Since then, customer delight became another strong pillar of his business Vinay said, “I have learned over the years that the attitude. most valuable asset you can build for yourself is the power of relationships. I have teamed up with very Sumit always felt that his leaders truly cared for him. They bright people from different backgrounds during my gave him the freedom to experiment and innovate, and long tenure of 31 years at M&M and my journey stands hence he felt like he was doing everything he loved. He testament of the fact that true achievement cannot advises that “one must love what they are doing and should be derived without collaboration. I strongly believe be passionate about it. This will show in their work as they that nurturing of relationships is key to making your come up with creative solutions. One must always strive dreams come true.” to do every task with great dedication as well as applying alternative solutions wherever necessary.” 28 Sustainability Future sustainability trends in real estate and Mahindra Lifespaces’ pioneering efforts

Sunita Purushottam connectivity; ethical and conscious procurement; and among the first 7 companies in the real estate sector Head- Sustainability, Mahindra Lifespaces the mitigation of construction phase impacts via low- globally whose targets are in line with the 1.5°C limit Each year in January, the carbon, green homes. As we design cities and urban (the limit on average global warming by the end of the World Economic Forum habitats, we will have to bear in mind how design century, as compared to pre-industrial temperatures). shares a risk report. In 2019, considerations will help us mitigate the risks of We have partnered with The Energy and Resources extreme weather events flooding, water shortage and air pollution. Institute (TERI) for the first-ever Centre of Excellence induced by climate change Moving into a new decade, the efforts of the real (CoE) to boost energy-efficient real estate in India. was ranked as the top risk in estate/construction ecosystem to align to the above The CoE will boost energy-efficient real estate in this report. trends will dictate how quickly it is able to adapt to India, while working towards preparing policy briefs and thrive in a carbon-constrained world of the future. for Central and State Ministries to promote ‘green’ What does this mean for the Mahindra Lifespaces is deeply cognizant of the development. Our ‘Green Army’ school program is global real estate sector? opportunities and challenges stemming from this taking our message of environmental consciousness A sustainable built context. Our materiality exercise - recognised as a best outward and beyond our immediate stakeholder environment is today defined as one that practices practice within the Mahindra group - uses the risks ecosystem – to future citizens and change-makers. ethical land acquisition; siting as per climate, water and opportunities to identify issues that impact our pathway proves. In fact, we are the only real estate Sustainability has moved far beyond the ‘do-good’ risk and seismic risk evaluation; the incorporation of business and key stakeholders positively and companies in India (Mahindra Lifespace Developers approach of the past. It is a business imperative and passive and active strategies in building design; negatively. As a pioneer of the green homes movement Ltd., Mahindra World City Developers Ltd., Mahindra nowhere is its potential impact as high as within the integrated planning of mobility with last-mile in India, our science-based target is in line with 1.5C World City Jaipur Ltd.) to get targets approved and are real estate and construction industry.

While there are many, here are some of the most prominent sustainability-related trends that we can expect will shape the global real estate industry going forward: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Green buildings - Increased customer The green building awareness of market in India is sustainable Increased adoption slated to double by lifestyles – in other Increase in Severity of water Circularity will Focus on local of electric vehicles, Increased Waste segregation 2022. They reduce words, conscious renewable energy challenge will rise. dictate how we live economies through Climate change shared mobility and telecommuting will will be on tech- costs of ownership home buying. The adoption – an However, this will in the sharing local sourcing – this and associated improved public define how enabled platforms for occupants due to real estate opportunity for also create economy – we will will be fortified with extreme weather transportation will apartments are with increased reduced energy and developer long-term savings opportunities for see a shift from higher import tariffs. events will have dictate how people designed to also focus on water costs. community will for cities and conservation and ownership to We can expect far-reaching move; parking factor for home composting at Intangible benefits market green residents of housing rainwater service-based feasible options to impact. spaces will open for offices. source. include improved features and complexes. harvesting. models. grow our own food! other uses. ventilation; better embrace green air quality; portfolios, driven to provisions for waste a significant extent management and by policy measures recycling. and/or incentives.

Planting the seeds for a MLL extends its efforts to support sustainable future sustainability By recycling Ganpati idols during In yet another feather in the cap for group has taken the lead to plant a million trees Visarjan, MLL’s Nashik & Igatpuri the Mahindra Group, it entered the every year as part of the Mahindra Hariyali teams continued their initiative of Limca Book of Records for planting initiative which was launched on October 2, promoting environmental a total of 16.4 million trees from 2007. Till March 31, 2019, a total of sustainability in the year 2019 as 2007 to 2019 as part of its Mahindra 16,413,894 trees have been planted in and well. A camp was set up on Anant Hariyali sustainability initiative. around the factory premises of the group Chaturdashi, and the team managed This is part of the group’s efforts across India. The group’s corporate social to collect 22,000 idols on Day 1. to create a sustainable future and responsibility unit, which drives the effort, 136 volunteers from Team MLL to enrich the lives of the also gets the tree plantation audited once contributed to 598 man-hours. The communities which it serves. The every three years. idols were handed over to government officials for recycling.

To France on two-wheels! The brand new electric two-wheeler, E-Ludix, arrived 45 kph. Its performance and weight of 85 kg makes it at M&M’s subsidiary, Peugeot Moto in France from an equivalent of a conventional 50 cc scooter. The their Pithampur plant in Madhya Pradesh Bosch battery on the E-Ludix weighs 9 kg. A full India has made its mark in the automobile industry charge takes three hours and the e-moped has a Mahindra acquires Meru cabs with Mahindra and Mahindra becoming the first claimed range of approximately 50 km, with features Indian manufacturer to export two-wheelers to like regenerative braking. Driven by its mission to realize the Future of Mobility, run a pilot fleet of electric cars. Europe. M&M recently exported its first batch of With an investment of Euro 11.7 million (Rs 100 the Mahindra Group has partnered with a variety of Mahindra’s acquisition in Meru is an all-cash deal E-Ludix, (electric two-wheelers), manufactured at the crore) into the development of E-Ludix, M&M will enterprises globally to offer shared mobility solutions. for Rs 44.71 crore with plans to acquire a 55% stake in Company’s Pithampur plant in Madhya Pradesh, to incorporate the knowledge of the development The Mahindra Group has consolidated its presence multiple tranches. The investment gives Mahindra the its subsidiary Peugeot Moto in France. process of the Peugeot-branded electric scooter into in the growing shared mobility space, with the first right to appoint a majority of directors on Meru’s The moped-style two-wheeler E-Ludix, is its own range of products. tranche of its investment in Meru Cabs. With the 37% board. powered by a 3-kW motor, with a top speed limited to stake, Meru and its allied companies have become As the pioneers of electric vehicles and related subsidiaries of Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. technologies in the country, the Mahindra Group has The Meru acquisition is Mahindra’s latest foray already partnered with a variety of enterprises globally into the shared mobility and ride-hailing market, after to offer EV mobility solutions, and is focused on investments in self-drive car rental company Zoomcar, realizing a futuristic automotive industry in India in addition to running its own e-mobility company which is at par with global standards. As pioneers in Mahindra Glyd with e-Verito cars. Now, with the sustainable technology, Mahindra & Mahindra have Meru acquisition, M&M is competing against Ola and always been at the forefront of leading the change Uber, after earlier working with the cab-aggregators to towards smart and sustainable living. RISE@WORK Story

Presented by Gnanaprakash Vunnam

Hello Susteners,

Today I am going to tell you a story of how my team and I went about planting 350 Trees at Divine Solren and Neo Solren sites with a little bit of sunshine and a lot of ownership.

Here it goes…

I belong to the O&M function and I take care of and monitor the O&M activities that take place post commissioning and handover of the plant from the Utility function. When I first moved to Divine Solren (DSPL) site at Nirmal, Telangana, it was just like any other solar site with a few patches of grass and solar panels all around. I came to the DSPL site in May 2017 and in the month of July we got our first rains. Something sparked in me on that rainy day and I got myself two saplings - one was of a Mango tree and the other a Guava tree. I planted them at the entrance of the site and fondly named them Abhaya (Mango) and Akshaya (Guava).

Giving birth to a new life that will support all living beings on Earth is an empowering feeling. We need just a handful of soil, some seeds and water to start contributing to the world.

I and my team of 14 members started to work on this initiative. We identified a few parameters for planting the trees as it was not just any other piece of land but a fully functioning solar plant. We ensured that the area chosen for plantation has enough ground water reserves or is accessible to water pipes that is laid across the plant. Certain trees can grow quite tall and shadows cast by such trees can affect the energy generation of nearby solar panels. Hence we ensured adequate distance between the planting area and the solar panels. The roots of plants and trees are quite strong so we took measures to prevent them from coming into contact with underground low tension & high tension cables. We researched on the compatibility of soil and types of trees to ensure a right fit for the plants with the environment. Summer months of March, April and May were chosen for taking extra care of the vegetation as ground water reserves from the rains of last year are drying up and the chances of the plants dying are high. We made it a point to use no fertilisers in this initiative and wanted the plants to be grown completely organic. There are many benefits of organic farming like an increase in the health of the soil, combatting erosion, fighting the effects of global warming, water conservation and water health, supporting animal health and welfare, and a flourishing biodiversity.

With this knowledge, my team and I started getting in touch with local nurseries and governmental organisations to check if they have the saplings we require.

'Haritha Haram' is a large-scale tree-planting program implemented by the Government of Telangana to increase the amount of tree cover in the state from 24% to 33%. The Government makes the arrangements at the District Forest Officer's (DFO) location for saplings to grow to a suitable height. These saplings are then distributed to various local institutions and individuals for free. We took advantage of this opportunity and started to collect the saplings from the DFO's Office and transported them to Divine Solren and Neo Solren sites. My team with the help of a few locals and the staff provided by Haritha Haram planted the acquired saplings at sites and nearby road areas. Post plantation care was taken by our team.

We reached another milestone on the World Environment Day (WED) i.e. 5th of June 2019. WED is United Nations day for encouraging worldwide awareness and action to protect our environment. It is also considered as a people's day for doing something to take care of the Earth. We received an encouraging mail from Kamalesh Dube a few days before WED wherein he shared his vision of planting 1500 trees this year across all TeQo - O&M sites. He also shared his recommendations on what type of trees can help increase ground water levels which we incorporated in our initiative. Taking note of the suggestions, we planted a total of 100 plants at DSPL and NSPL sites.

Our efforts were highly appreciated and the total count of trees planted at both the sites reached 350.

Sunshine mixed with Smiles Peacock visiting us for some cool shade Me with our guest, Rabbit.

A mini garden of 23 Metres X 17 Metres was created at the DSPL site and a total of 2 acres of land (excluding the garden) at DSPL and NSPL sites were utilised for planting the trees. Vegetables like drumsticks, brinjal, tomatoes, and ladyfingers were grown. Trees like Neem, Pomegranate, Guava, Mango, Amla, Jamun, Strawberry, Moringa, Badam, Coconut, Teak, Ashoka etc. 29 were planted. We also planted flowers like multi-coloured Roses, Tulip, Yellow Flame, Tabebuia TreeSetcustainability. The result of this initiative are clearly visible. The site looks more beautiful with green trees, colourful flowers and fruits all around. It has added to the overall beauty of the site. There are rabbits and various species of butterflies flocking to the site. Peacocks drop by and rest in the cool shade provided by the trees. 120 Neem trees have been planted which are known to increase groundwater reserves andSustainabilityused in reforestation of infertile regions. first: Rising Mahindra Accelo, is now certified as with the environment ‘Zero Waste to Landfill’

Intertek does hereby certify that an independent assessment has been conducted on behalf of

MAHINDRA INTERTRADE LTD.

Certificate Number: ZWL-2020-03 Initial Verification Date: 14 February 2020 Certificate Issued: 17 February 2020 Certificate Valid Until: 16 February 2023

Applicant Address: At & Post: Gonde, Taluka: Igatpuri Nashik, Maharashtra, 422403, India

Product Category: Machinery & Equipment

Conformance Criteria: Zero Waste to landfill diversion rate exceeding 99% is applicable to processing of steel coils into blanks, profiles and roll-formed sections.

Gnanaprakash Vunnam, a Sustener from Site of this opportunity and started to collect the saplings Issuing Office Name & Address: Intertek Testing Services NA, Inc. Our little green space… 4700 Broadmoor Ave SE, Suite 200 Operations (O&M) along with his team, planted 350 from the DFO’s Office and transported them to Divine Kentwood, MI 49512 USA Ph: +1-616-656-7401 trees at their sites. Here is his story. Solren and Neo Solren sites. My team, with the help of “I belong to the O&M function, and I take care of a few locals and the staff provided by Haritha Haram,

My team isandhappy monitorto have the O&Mcontributed activitiesto thatthis takeinitiative place post-and I wouldplantedsincerely the acquiredlike to saplingsthank themat sitesfor andsupporting nearby roadthis initiative Brian Kneibel Certification Manager whole heartedlycommissioning. They have andbrilliantly handovermanaged of the planttheir fromtime thewith areas.regards Afterto managing plantating,the thesite teamwork tookand drivingpersonalthis initiative. 19 February 2020 Sometimes Utilitythey have function.even Whenworked I firstextra movedhours toto Divineensure Solrenthe plantsownershipare taken for carethe careof. of350 theseTrees plants.is just the start, I have a vision This Certificate is for the exclusive use of Intertek's client and is provided pursuant to the agreement between Intertek and its Client. Intertek's responsibility and liability are limited to the terms and conditions of the agreement. Intertek assumes no liability to any party, other than to the Client in accordance with the agreement, for any loss, expense or damage occasioned by the use of this Certificate. Only the Client is authorized to permit copying or distribution of this Certificate. Any of taking the(DSPL)total count site at toNirmal,500 by Telangana,2020. it was just like any We reached another milestone on the World use of the Intertek name or one of its marks for the sale or advertisement of the tested material, product or service must first be approved in writing by Intertek. The observations and test/inspection results referenced in this Certificate are relevant only to the sample tested/inspected. This Certificate by itself does not imply that the material, product, or service is or has ever been under an Intertek certification program.

other solar site with a few patches of grass and solar Environment Day (WED), i.e. We received an Intertek Testing Services NA, Inc. November 2018 To leave withpanelsa message, all around.I would I camelike toto thehighlight DSPL thatsite inover May15 .3 Billionencouragingtrees aremailchopped from Kamaleshdown every Dubeyear a fewacross daysthe world. It is not just enough2017, andfor inus July,to plant we gota 100our firsttrees rains.per year Something. We should beforeaim WEDfor a whereingreener, hehealthier shared hisand visiona thriving of plantingecosystem, and that only comessparkedwith in mesmall on thatactions rainythat day,we andcan I gottake myselftoday two. Let us1500leave treesbehind this yearclean acrossdrinking all TeQowater, - O&Mclean sites.air Heand a greenerThis is a huge achievement for the Mahindra Accelo this certification. Kudos to the team who at every turn saplings - one was of a Mango tree and the other a also shared his recommendations on what type of trees team as it is the first certified Steel Trading plant in display their dedication to sustainability in taking the environment for our future generations. Guava tree. I planted them at the entrance of the site can help increase groundwater levels which we India (and possibly the world) to receive this company to new heights. and fondly named them Abhaya (Mango) and Akshaya incorporated in our initiative. Taking note of the recognition for its sustainability initiatives through So here it was(Guava).. My story of how my team & I built a thriving greensuggestions,space comprising we plantedof 350 a totaltrees of 100here plantsat Mahindra at DSPL Susten. Its amazing how all we need is a handful of soil, and NSPL sites. Let's hear yours!some seeds and water to start contributing to the Our efforts were highly appreciated, and the total world. count of trees planted at both the sites reached 350. GnanaprakashMyVunnam team of 14 members and I started to work on A mini garden of 23 Metres X 17 Metres was Reaffirming our commitment Site Operationsthis initiative(O&M) further as we recognised it is a vision we created at the DSPL site, and a total of 2 acres of land all shared. We identified a few parameters for planting (excluding the garden) at DSPL and NSPL sites were against Climate Change P.S. Click onthethe trees3 icons as it belowwas notto justjoin anyhands other withpiece meof landand butre -astart utilisedthe green forrevolution! planting the trees. Vegetables like fully functioning solar plant. We ensured that the area drumsticks, brinjal, tomatoes, and ladyfingers were The 50th edition of the prestigious World Economic Development Goals, and facilitate discussions on chosen for plantation has enough groundwater reserves grown alongside trees like Neem, Pomegranate, Forum 2020 was held in little town of Davos, technology and trade governance. or is accessible to water pipes that are laid across the Guava, Mango, Amla, Jamun, Strawberry, Moringa, Switzerland from January 21 to 24 with the core “Scientific research tells us that the next decade plant. Certain trees can grow quite tall, and shadows Badam, Coconut, Teak, Ashoka etc. were planted and theme this year being ‘Stakeholders for a Cohesive will be critical in dealing with the global climate cast by such trees can affect the energy generation of flowers too. The result of this initiative is visible. The and Sustainable World’. The focus was on ‘reshaping crisis. It is clear that the world cannot continue to nearby solar panels. Hence we ensured adequate site looks more beautiful with green trees, colourful capitalism’ to embrace all the stakeholders in the pursue a business-as-usual approach and nobody can distance between the planting area and the solar flowers and fruits all around. It has added to the overall business eco-system to create a more sustainable solve the problem on their own. Business, government, panels. The roots of plants and trees are quite stiff, so beauty of the site. There are rabbits and various species world. and philanthropy must collaborate within and among we took measures to prevent them from coming into of butterflies flocking to the site. Peacocks drop by It brought together 3,000 participants from around themselves to drive results quickly and at scale. India contact with low underground tension & high tension and rest in the cool shade provided by the trees. 120 the world, with the aim of giving concrete meaning to Climate Collaborative can make this happen. Together cables. We researched on the compatibility of soil and Neem trees have been planted which are known to “stakeholder capitalism”, assist governments and we will find solutions that will make climate action types of trees to ensure the right fit for the plants with increase groundwater reserves and used in reforestation international institutions in tracking progress towards effective and impactful”, said Mr. Mahindra during Howthe to environment. Prepare Compost Summer months of March,How April to Prepare and Pottingof infertile Soil regions. How to Germinate the Paris Climate Agreement and the Sustainable his many interactions at Davos Mayfrom were Kitchen chosen Waste for taking extra care of the vegetationfor Indoor Plants My team is happy to have contributedVegetable seeds to this as groundwater reserves from the rains of last year are initiative, and I would sincerely like to thank them for These video tutorials from the YouTube channel ‘Garden Up’ will help you in creating your own little green space right at your home. drying up, and the chances of the plants dying are supporting this initiative wholeheartedly. They have high. We made it a point to use no fertilisers in this brilliantly managed their time with regards to initiative and wanted the plants to be grown entirely managing the site work and driving this initiative. organic. There are many benefits of organic farming Sometimes they have even worked extra hours to like an increase in the health of the soil, combatting ensure the plants are taken care of. 350 Trees is just erosion, fighting the effects of global warming, water the start. I have a vision of taking the total count to 500 conservation and water health, supporting animal by 2020. health and welfare, and flourishing biodiversity. To leave with a message, I would like to highlight With this knowledge, my team and I started getting that over 15.3 Billion trees are chopped down every in touch with local nurseries and governmental year across the world. It is not just enough for us to organisations to check if they have the saplings we plant 100 trees per year. We should aim for a greener, require. healthier and a thriving ecosystem, and that only ‘Haritha Haram’ is a large-scale tree-planting comes with small actions that we can take today.” program implemented by the Government of Telangana to increase the amount of tree cover in the state from 24% to 33%. The Government makes the arrangements at the District Forest Officer’s (DFO) Mahindra Finance raises the bar location for saplings to grow to a suitable height. Mahindra Finance is the only BFSI company from Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) These saplings are then distributed to various local India to be included in the DJSI Emerging Markets department. This membership is awarded based on an institutions and individuals for free. We made the best category out of the selected 12 Indian companies. integrated assessment of the organization’s economic, Mahindra Finance has made it to one of the most environmental and social performance. Vinay prestigious global benchmarks for corporate Deshpande, Chief People Officer, Mahindra responsibility and sustainability, the Dow Jones Finance, said, “We are delighted to be a part of the Sustainability Index (DJSI), in the Emerging Markets prestigious DJSI ranking for the 7th consecutive year. Category for the 7th consecutive year. Mahindra This recognition is an endorsement of Mahindra Finance is the only BFSI company from India to be Finance’s continuous efforts towards driving included in the DJSI Emerging Markets category out sustainability. The company through its’ several of the selected 12 Indian companies. Out of 4500 of environmental and social initiatives focuses on giving the world’s largest companies (by Market Cap), 144 of back to the society more than we take.” them were Indian firms, assessed by the DJSI MLL distributes 8000 saplings to the residents of Tembha village MLL encouraged the residents of its adopted village 8000 saplings to the residents. This endeavour is part Tembha to fight environmental pollution by planting of the multi-pronged approach MLL has undertaken to trees in the vicinity. The activity saw the distribution of build a more sustainable future for the village. 30 CSR

Steady steps of progress with Fostering positive change

The Group’s CSR initiatives aims to create a positive Women rising Tembha village impact through deeper engagements. A common perception is that an automobile workshop is a man’s domain. The Mahindra Group With an aim improve the infrastructure and the Walking the green mile dispelled this notion in October, by launching India’s lives of residents, Mahindra Logistics had adopted the The Mahindra Group continued to lead the way first, all-women run automobile workshop in Jaipur. village Tembha (Thakurpada) a hamlet near Shahapur, when it came to businesses taking effective action This initiative is a part of Mahindra’s #pinkcollar Thane. Through this CSR initiative, Mahindra against climate change. It was the only Indian program that encourages the participation of women Logistics has been conducting various developmental corporate to be listed as an “Organization to Watch” in the workforce, particularly in core sectors and bring programs including infrastructure development, by the GreenBiz Group in its prestigious 2019 ‘State more women on board across roles in the automotive education, health and vocational guidance amongst of Green Business’ report.The report analyzes key industry. others. trends and metrics to assess how companies worldwide To promote health and family welfare, Swachh are adapting their business models to address the Bharat Abhiyaan and Family Planning Awareness existential threat of climate change. programs were conducted. Self-help groups session Laying the foundation was undertaken for women empowerment. Raksha Averting a climate crisis Arun K, Bandhan, Makar Sankranti, Farmer’s Day, Christmas At the United Nations’ Climate Action Summit in MWUL and New Year celebrations were also organised by New York, on September 23, 2019, Anand Mahindra, Mahindra Logistics in the village. Schools were Chairman, Mahindra Group, addressed world leaders, As part of its CSR, Mahindra Water Utilities is inaugurated, and Vanrai Dam was built to improve the governments, business conglomerates, and urged constructing classrooms for a school. The water scarcity situation in the village. them to take on an urgent and collective course of foundation was done by Pugal, COO along with the With its continuous efforts, Mahindra Logistics action in tackling the climate crisis and to recognize team and school headmaster. strives to bring about socio-economic and sustainable the key role that companies play in driving progress transformations to the lives of the residents of Tembha. on the global agenda.

A SMART Academy for women To mark the occasion of International Women’s Day, the Tech Mahindra Foundation launched an all- women SMART Academy for Healthcare in Mumbai. The state-of-the-art institute is aimed at helping women make a career in the healthcare sector. It is equipped with hospital simulated labs, industry- relevant study material, and experienced faculty to help young women make a career in the healthcare sector.

Zero Accident Zone Project by #SustainableMe: Making Mahindra Logistics sustainability personal at Susten Sohini Gupta, Mahindra Susten

At Susten, we believe in cultivating sustainability champions at all levels. Our employees have always been an integral part of advancing sustainability across our operations and locations. This year, we attempted to converge innovation, CSR and sustainability and take a higher leap to give back to the communities.

#Cut the Crap: Littering, coupled with a lack of waste segregation is a problem that has crippled India’s progress. After Climb and Clean: Wellness and Clean-up hike concentrated efforts by the government, NGOs and Project Climb and Clean is about Promoting individuals, the littering has reduced, but it is still not Swachh Bharat and fitness amongst employees. Under enough. the purview of this project, we are cleaning up We have taken this initiative to educate the masses mountain trails, historic forts and restoring lakes, about the benefits of proper waste disposal and garbage being a part of a national clean-up drive. Employees of In order to promote a culture of road safety in our Kurund areas. To put further emphasis on the segregation. To illustrate the impact of proper garbage Mahindra Susten from Mumbai, Thane, Delhi and country, Team Mahindra Logistics initiated the Zero importance of road safety, Mahindra Logistics’ Nashik collection and segregation, we conducted scrap Bangalore went to an adventurous rendezvous with Accident Zone Project. This Road Safety Awareness Team organized a bike rally wherein 92 employees collection drives #CutTheCrap across our offices with nature while ensuring that we commit to the zero- session was conducted for 300+ students at Vashi and participated and contributed to 368 man-hours. Ennoble. We collected old clothes, denim, bags, waste travel experience and contribute by cleaning up flexes, plastic bottles from our employees. The scrap the mountain trails. 50 employees from Delhi, collected from these drives is used to provide yelo- Bangalore and Mumbai office locations recorded 520 green backpacks to underprivileged children. Yelo ESOPs hours while collecting approximately 55 kgs MACE takes another step to make Bharat Swachh backpacks are durable, lightweight bags that can be of scrap. As part of CSR initiative of the Mahindra Group, a Three units of toilets are provided with basic converted into writing tables. This scrap was then brought to the city and public/community block at Madras Veterinary facilities in which one is exclusive for the differently Till now we have upcycled close to 3 tonnes of disposed of responsibly with the help of the local college campus, Veppery, Chennai was constructed abled visitors. Aspects such as circulation, elevation waste and donated close to 2,000 bags. municipal corporation working on waste management. by Mahindra Consulting Engineers. This was to high, hand-washing areas, low maintenance address the difficulties faced by visitors, especially requirements were also addressed at a micro-level. women, in accessing toilet facilities within the While ensuring a good finish and quality campus. The objective of this CSR initiative was to eco-friendly materials used throughout the provide easy access to toilets for people who bring process, aspects like natural light and ventilation, Rise for Good: Giving and receiving their animals for treatment. The site is adjacent to minimum water consumption, incinerator disposal the intensive care unit and provides easy access by machine were some of the additional features of connecting both the roads leading to the clinic. the initiative. MANA buzzes with activity! than a hundred hives and six million swarming bees later, the NGO is spearheading efforts to spread the importance of pollinators and the need for conservation of honeybees. Brian Peterson-Roest, the co-founder of Bees in the D, said, “They say one of every three bites of food you put in your mouth is dependent on pollinators, more specifically, honeybees. The stated mission of Bees in the D is to create a cooperative effort to Shri Ram Nath Kovind, President of India, with other CSR will be handed over to Anand Mahindra, contribute to both the health of honeybee colonies and dignitaries and award winners at the first-ever National Chairman, Mahindra Group or Pawan Goenka, MD, the education of their importance to our environment. CSR Awards Ceremony organized by the Ministry of M&M Ltd, at a later date, the other two awards were We heard a lot about the things Mahindra does and we Corporate Affairs. received by Manoj Chugh, President-Group Public are excited to now be a part of that team.” The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, Affairs, M&M, in the hands of Nirmala Sitharaman, The fresh honey that Mahindra employees will get presented the first-ever National Corporate Social Hon. Union Minister for Finance and Corporate to enjoy next year would be the end-product of a Responsibility (CSR) Award to select companies in Affairs, and Anurag Thakur, Minister of State for Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) strenuous journey for bees. To put it in perspective, a New Delhi on October 29. The Mahindra Group was Finance and Corporate Affairs. has become a ‘hive’ of activity ever since the bee must collect nectar from around two million the only corporate to be honored with awards across The National CSR Awards (NCSRA) have been automaker partnered with Bees in the D, non-profit flowers to make one pound of honey. Also, ifone all three categories for its outstanding contributions in instituted by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to organization in Southeast Michigan that’s turning adds up all their distance traveled, bees fly more the field of Corporate Social Responsibility. recognize corporate initiatives in the area of CSR to yards and rooftops of Detroit into homespun apiaries. than once around the world to gather just a pound achieve inclusive growth and sustainable development. Thanks to this collaboration the recently installed ten of honey! The 3 awards were in the following categories: These awards are the highest recognition in the domain hive-bee habitats at Mahindra’s Auburn Hills However, all that Mahindra employees have to do 1. Excellence in CSR of CSR by the Government of India and seek to headquarters is ‘buzzing’ with thousands of honeybees. to savor fresh honey is just wait a little longer. Though 2. National Priority Area Education for Project Nanhi recognize the companies that have made a Mahindra’s sweet partners - Bees in the D, is the MANA hives were installed too late this season to Kali transformative impact on society. building a network of urban honeybee hives throughout reap a robust honey yield, next year 3-5 gallons of 3. National Priority Area Agriculture & Rural Deve­ This year, 528 entries were received for the Detroit, Southeast Michigan and Canada to preserve fresh honey will be distributed to interested Mahindra lopment for the Integrated Watershed Management NCSRA. 131 companies were invited for detailed healthy, sustainable pollinator levels in an era of the employees. Till then the office will continue to ‘buzz’ Programme in the state of Madhya Pradesh submissions. In the end, 19 winners and 19 honourable vastly declining bee population. Three years and, more with anticipation. While the National CSR Award for Excellence in mentions were made across the three award categories. 31 Twitter Anand ‘Average leaders raise the bar on themselves; good leaders raise the bar for others; great leaders inspire others to raise their own bar.’ - Orrin Woodward.

Anand’s twitter feed constantly resonates with our brand truth of Rising for Good. How he does that you may ask? His tweets constantly bring out positivity, encouragement and inspiration. 32 Group News

Pioneering Zero Waste to Landfill ‘Zero Waste to Landfill’ (ZWL) is a sustainability concept that encourages the redesign of resource lifecycles so that all products are reused. The goal is to ensure that no waste matter is sent to landfills, incinerators or the oceans. Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India (MHRIL), a leading player in the leisure Global Safety Recognition for XUV300 hospitality industry, recently set a sustainability Mahindra’s compact SUV model, the XUV300, benchmark when Club Mahindra Virajpet, its property has just received global recognition for its safety in Coorg, Karnataka, was certified India’s first ZWL performance, getting a 5-star rating from the resort. Global New Car Assessment Program To 5G and Beyond Organisations with more than 99% waste diverted (GNCAP), in addition to a 4-star child safety Tech Mahindra has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with away from landfills receive the ZWL certification. rating. Business Finland, a government agency directed by the Finnish Minister of Club Mahindra Virajpet recycles and reuses 99.32 per A mandatory criteria for this recognition is Employment and Economy to set up a 5G and 6G innovation lab in Finland. cent of its waste, a pioneering achievement. The the side-impact performance of a vehicle, for This lab will develop, pilot and implement state-of-the-art digital products resort was certified by Intertek, a renowned quality which the XUV300 is one of the best among all and services to foster growth, productivity, and innovations in the area of 5G assurance provider to industries worldwide. 5-star rated cars. The XUV300’s safety features and 6G technologies while acting as a platform for collaboration with key This certification was the successful culmination include 7 airbags, disc brakes on all 4 wheels universities, research institutes, government and corporates in Finland. of a host of initiatives. The journey towards ZWL and parking sensors that gives it a fortress-like 5G and its associated technologies have the power to transform our began in September 2018, when Club Mahindra first safety, in this segment. digital lives with their immense speed and capabilities. began by sourcing eco-friendly and biodegradable Tech Mahindra already has a three-step approach to 5G, providing materials for its resorts. The resort made it a point to solutions for communications service providers to help with the network use materials like straws, laundry bags and packaging roll-out and upgrade enterprise applications across industries like of bathroom amenities made from corn starch, manufacturing, retail, oil and gas, and logistics, and device enablement. This disposable wooden cutlery, liquid soap dispensers collaboration with Business Finland and the newly set up Innovation Centre (instead of soap) and bottled shampoos, etc. will further enable Tech Mahindra to leverage their expertise in this space Then, it began to identify and categorise waste, and establish themselves as a globally recognized leader in the 5G and 6G and authorised collectors and recyclers were hired to Around segment. ensure its proper disposal. Food waste was converted Finland is one of the important European destinations for the Mahindra into manure, sewage water was treated in a sewage Group. Apart from Tech Mahindra, Holiday Club Resorts Oy, Finland is treatment plant and used for gardening, and aerators owned by Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd. that makes the Company were installed in the taps in every room to reduce the largest vacation-ownership firm outside the US. The Mahindra Group water consumption. The resort also eliminated the use Mahindra has also acquired stakes in Finland- based Sampro Rosenlew that develops, of bottled water on the premises. An organic garden markets and manufactures high quality combine harvesters and forest was planted and rainwater was harvested for all and Mahindra machines reaffirming their commitment to the region. outside use. Here is our list of the most happening news of the Mahindra Group.

Smart City Tech Five years ago, the Central Government announced the Smart Cities Mission, to set up 100 smart cities across the country. The objective - to develop cities that provide core Pininfarina Thinks Electric infrastructure, a decent quality of life to Pininfarina has entered into a strategic citizens, and a sustainable environment agreement with China’s third-largest through the application of new technology. To property developer, the Evergrande accelerate this Mission, Tech Mahindra is all Group, for the design and development set to power the Pimpri Chinchwad smart city of a new range of Electric Vehicles project near Pune. (EV). This partnership will harness Through this project, valued at Rs. 500 Pininfarina’s expertise in the field of crores, Tech Mahindra will engage with more vehicle development, its R&D than 15 lakh citizens of the Pimpri Chinchwad ’Revv’ Up to a Mahindra capabilities as well as utilize the Municipal Corporation (PCMC), by enabling a Mahindra and Mahindra recently launched a unique subscription-based existing resources of Evergrande to technology-led transformation to convert it initiative in partnership with Revv, a self-drive car rental platform. This jointly develop a new range of into a smart and sustainable city. Part of the unique, flexible ownership experience for customers of Mahindra's personal innovative models for the car brand, Prime Minister’s Smart Cities Mission, this range of vehicles is an all-new, affordable and convenient way of using a ‘Hengchi’. In China, Evergrande has project will be executed over a period of one brand new vehicle, without actually having to buy or own one. smart luxury factories in Guangzhou, year. Retail customers can choose from the entire personal-vehicle portfolio -- from Shanghai, Tianjin and, Shenyang. They As part of its TechMNxt charter, Tech KUV100, XUV500, XUV300, Scorpio, TUV300, Marazzo to the Alturas G4, are known to use the best equipment Mahindra is focused on making use of next- at a subscription price starting from Rs 19,720 per month. The offer is and production technologies in the gen technologies to cater to evolving market inclusive of insurance and routine maintenance charges. Other highlights are world for the development of EVs. needs. With PCMC being a hub for industrial zero down payments, no road tax, and zero risks on the resale value of the Earlier this year, the Evergrande Group houses and business conglomerates, the vehicle. Once the subscription period is over, the customer can either upgrade launched its first-ever Electric Vehicles. the models or return the vehicle to the company without the hassle of selling municipal corporation has been keen to it and buy a new car instead. maximize business value by transforming itself into a smart city. 33 Group News

Speak Up! In its endeavor to keep workplaces safe, transparent and friendly for people to work in, the Mahindra Group had a POSH (Prevention of Sexual Harassment) policy in place even before it was made mandatory. Over the years, the policies have been updated to enhance the focus on both, physical and psychological safety at the workplace. The robust policy and processes were again reviewed recently to ensure that Mahindra Heavy Engines - India’s First Manufacturer to any complaint of sexual harassment is Double Energy Productivity dealt with appropriately, sensitively and Mahindra Heavy Engines Ltd (MHEL) has become India’s first and expeditiously while maintaining the world’s third manufacturing unit to double its energy discretion and confidentiality. productivity, within a record time of just 4 years. This is aligned The Mahindra Group strongly believes with the company’s EP 100 program commitment in alliance with in creating a safe and inclusive the Climate Group. environment for everyone. Which is MHEL’s efforts to enhance energy productivity included the why they have a zero-tolerance policy adoption of energy efficient lighting, air-conditioning and motors & about sexual harassment at the appliances, the use of alternate fuels, and smart metering for real Global Recognition for Mahindra’s Strong workplace. If you or any of your time monitoring of energy consumption, along with other natural colleagues have faced sexual harassment Corporate Governance Practices resources. The company also improved manufacturing efficiency Mahindra and Mahindra recently won the prestigious in the office, you can count on them to through cycle time reduction and optimisation of production shifts take prompt and appropriate action, Golden Peacock Global Award for Excellence in and resources. Flexibility was also built in the process to avoid the Corporate Governance for 2019. The Awards Jury was without any prejudice. addition of equipment. All you have to do is Speak Up. led by Chairman Sir Richard Needhan, Non-Executive “MHEL is the first EP100 member from India to achieve this Director, NEC Europe Ltd & Chairman – Advisory ambitious goal and is leading by example. We hope the news will Group, STERN UK. inspire many more companies to join the initiative and accelerate One of the important objectives of the ‘Golden towards a clean economy,” said Mike Peirce, Corporate Partnerships Peacock Awards’ Excellence Scheme is to boost a Director, The Climate Group. company’s brand image and employee morale. It EP100 is a global collaborative initiative on energy productivity encourages the organization to share their successful led by The Climate Group in partnership with the Alliance to Save journey on improving corporate governance – not just Energy. By setting ambitious targets and integrating energy compliance, but also the firm’s efforts on performance efficiency into business strategy, EP100 members are driving clean aspects of the Board’s work through strategy tech innovation while delivering on emissions reduction goals. formulation and policy making. The other Mahindra Group companies that have signed on to EP 100 include, Mahindra & Mahindra, the first company globally to make the commitment; Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd. that joined in 2016; Mahindra Vehicle Manufacturers Ltd and Swaraj Engines Ltd. that joined in 2019.

Building the ‘Factory of the Future’ Tech Mahindra recently launched a 5G-enabled solution to help build a wireless and secure ‘factory of the Mahindra Electric & Lithium surge past 100 future.’ Built-in collaboration with American technology million e-kilometres milestone firm, Cisco, this end-to-end business and technology Mahindra invests in Car and With the New Year, come new achievements, this time in solution will provide network infrastructure assessment Bike Portal electric mobility. Mahindra Electric and Lithium Urban and consultancy services to build connected factories. Mahindra First Choice Wheels is Technologies, today celebrated the significant milestone By leveraging the latest 5G technologies, these expanding its digital presence with its of 1,000 Mahindra electric vehicles clocking 100 million solutions will help accelerate the adoption of a factory recent investment in leading e-kilometers (ekms). India’s largest zero emission service wireless network, factory-to-enterprise software-defined automotive portal CarandBike.com. for employee transportation, Lithium Urban Technologies network, cybersecurity, and a Information Technology- This initiative will seamlessly had partnered with Mahindra Electric in 2015. Operation Technology (IT-OT) integration area. integrate the online and offline user Having clocked 100 million ekms, with over 500 Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) coupled with experience of Mahindra’s customers. Mahindra electric vehicles (EVs) running more than 1 Artificial Intelligence (AI) has paved the way for the This acquisition will lay emphasis lakh ekms each, the partnership aims to transform creation of completely autonomous production units. A on strengthening content leadership employee transportation and increase the adoption of self-learning network of machines can significantly and adding new services for electric mobility in the country. boost profitability at each point of the manufacturing prospective two and four-wheeler What started off with a small fleet of 10 Mahindra value chain and transform the industry for the better. customers. There will also be a special e20s, has now increased to 1000 Mahindra EVs. Together Tech M’s range of advanced and innovative analytics focus on improving the customer the companies have aided in 20,000+ MT of CO2 tools are designed to optimize, simplify, and accelerate experience to connect those looking to abatement and saved 8,500,000+ litres of fuel. manufacturing operations. buy used cars with dealers. The partnership between the two companies has been With reduced production downtime, efficient supply bringing about a positive change in consumers’ lives, by chain, and significantly less time to market, these changing the way they commute. A greener and more analytics solutions pioneer a way into the connected sustainable option, initiatives like this, are aimed at manufacturing future. bringing rapid transformation to the overall EV adoption rate in the country. 34 The COVID Challenge Your 10 step guide to working from home

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, most And then remember, to also shut your laptop, and 9. Keep the spirit and motivation going organizations across India and the rest of the world do your regular home routines. And spend precious Sometimes, just a chat-call or a quick Teams call have adopted Work-From-Home (WFH) policy, as time with family. Rules like weekly schedules, just to say ‘hello, how’s it going?’, is an excellent one of the ways to check the spread of the virus. Let’s daily meal timings, regular exercise, and proper way to keep fellow workers perked up, especially look at some WFH etiquettes for those especially who sleep patterns are essential. those who may be living alone, and have minimal are doing this for the first time. It may need getting a connect with the outside world during the little ‘used to.’ But can prove to be very useful. 6. Meetings lockdown period. While attending online meetings; it would be nice 1. Office Camaraderie to follow some rules; 10. Virtual commute time It would also be fun to have a ‘virtual’ get-together Limit the background noise as far as possible. This During the time you would have regularly been or a birthday event, as it brings the team together. could be the sounds of outside birds, car honking, commuting, try to do those same activities you Or there could be an office contest online, where or the sound of children. Be on time for online were doing during your commute. It may be all members ‘assemble and mingle’ in the virtual meetings. Have your camera switched on so that reading a book, surfing the net on your android, or world. others can see you and the meeting is as close to a listening to your favourite melodies. face-to-face meeting as possible. Participate in the 2. Official dressing meeting. This could be in the form of expressing 11. Balance expectations It’s best if you can dress the part. With office attire, your views or speaking on a particular topic. While Balancing the expectations you share in your you will also feel more energetic and more speaking online, be expressive. This will hold the household are equally important. Be there in productive. So, imagine you are going out to work. attention of the other members present at the times, places and ways you can to take Dress up well. You need not wear a blazer or a tie. meeting. ownership. One can craft a ‘Do not However, dressing up well will put you in the right disturb’ sign to be used judiciously and frame of mind for working. 7. Communicate Communicate Communicate even set up children with their timed work Setting clear goals with your reporting manager assignments -paid or unpaid. 3. Maintain a work area vis-à-vis communication will play a significant Challenges may be Stumbling blocks, At home too, try to keep a dedicated work area role in making a smooth switch to WFH. Having a but they can also be Stepping stones. After comprising your desk, chair, laptop etc. And try to quick discussion-recap every morning/ evening all, every cloud has a silver lining. keep it a little distance away from the family area. will help prioritize tasks and be ‘on the same page.’ This will result in minimal disruptions, especially if there are young children at home. 8. Working in a team Setting up video calls, and zoom calls are good as 4. Take power breaks it creates a ‘virtual’ face-to-face communication as As we know the saying, All work and no play in- opposed to only emails. Using applications like between a hectic session, take a 5 min power MS teams, WebEx is useful in aiding effective break. Listen to your favourite music, catch up on communication and also chatting. some news, or a 5 min power workout. Get re-energized for another power-packed work hour. Taking 3-4 such short 5 min breaks will help in increasing productivity.

5. Keep work hours discipline You may be working from home, but that does not mean you go slack on work hours. Do your utmost during your regular work hours.

Health is Wealth Robin Sharma says; “If you don’t make time for exercise, you’ll • Perform yoga and deep breathing exercises to achieve complete probably have to make time for illness.” relaxation of mind and body. Let’s take the first step … literally, through exercise, coupled • Do simple muscle strengthening exercises from simply stretching with mindful eating. This can go a long way to keep the body toned, your muscles to moving parts of your body from the wrist, and in good shape. shoulder, hands and legs in simple clockwise and anti-clockwise motions. Some simple things we all can surely do; • Zumba today, is gaining ground, as a fun-cum-intensive workout. • Maintain a good diet. Eat smaller portion sizes. Plan meals. Some It exercises and stretches every muscle and burns fat too! And it other easy-to-follow tips; would include bumping up your fibre can easily be done indoors. Some of the hip and more popular intake, avoid over-eating and eating smaller meals to help resolve Zumba instructors today are; Vijaya Tupurani-Hyderabad, Joanna this, give healthy snacking a shot. You can use the help of apps, Michalska, Mark Kramer Pastrana, Alix, Karina Rocha, Jessica HealthifyMe and Cure.fit being two of the most popular ones in Bush, Zumba_Lo, Claudio Lopez this genre. • If you are looking for the motivation, nothing is better than an • Get a good night’s sleep entire community of people who are exercising from the confines • Do some form of exercises and stretches at home, even during the of their homes. Download a Fitness app. They have workouts lockdown period. This will also help reduce your feelings of tailor-made for you. And many of them are FREE! Here are stress and anxiety in the wake of the pandemic. 150-300 minutes some you could check out: Peloton, Nike Training Club by Nike, per week of moderate-intensity physical activity is recommended. Inc (NTC), Cultfit, Fittr, POPSUGAR Fitness, and FitOn. If you cannot find a continuous stretch of 40 minutes, break it up NOTE – Please choose and do the workouts as per your into 4 slots of 10 minutes each. requirements, and fitness levels. If you have Arthritis or other bone • Walk briskly; at home, or up and down the stairs for 10- 15 or physical issues- do not strain yourself to a level that it is minutes, at least thrice per day. It’s completely do’able. Put on uncomfortable. Look up the internet, or ask a friend about something your favourite music and dance. Do skipping (if you have weak that suits your condition. knees, please skip it). Play active games with your family. • Workout to a video. There are scores of free fitness videos on the Go on, take control of your fitness today! youtube. Sift through them and select one which you like and Or as Nike says, JUST DO IT. also which is ‘doable’ for you. 35 The COVID Challenge Fun from HOME While we continue to work from home, one also needs OnlineOnline Movies Learn a new Language to make time to enjoy the new pace of things. Hobbies You can watch them free on Youtube, TV channel Have you always longed to learn that new language; can be a refreshing change from the humdrum of websites, Netflix. Select your genre, and then sit back be it English, Urdu, French, Spanish or German? Now everyday life. They are engaging, fulfilling, fun and and enjoy them. you can. There are a plethora of resources online – and enhance our experience so! Especially at a time like youtube videos, podcasts. Who knows - in the next six this when socializing is minimal, and ‘staying home’ Google your interests months, you may be able to start a conversation in any is the norm, having one or two hobbies does help in What are you passionate about? It could be science, of these languages. passing the time productively, and happily.We can wildlife, astrophysics, psychology. With Google, you choose from a wide range of hobbies. Listing a few have the world at your fingertips - literally. Calligraphy exciting options, Pick the ones that work best for This is a skill, which can be perfected, of course with YOU! Scrabble and indoor games practice and patience. Scrabble, carrom, and other such indoor games involve There are books and online tutorials. To-Do list the entire family, and are great fun, for any age group. It’s not expensive to learn. You can pick up the pens Make a list of things you want to do or see. It could be from a nearby stationery store, and begin learning. anything from that film you want to watch for the Music genres You can then personally calligraph that ‘special’ longest time, to places you want to visit ‘virtually’, to Check out music websites, Youtube or Spotify. birthday card, and pen your personalized wishes. perfecting that Toastmasters speech you had heard on You may listen to various genres and shortlist a few TedEX… which you find most fascinating. And then listen Podcasts to these. These are a good way of productive time-pass. DIY Celebrities today also record podcasts. There could be Buy a book on Do-it-Yourself (DIY) and start on Yoga/ meditation podcasts linked to your favourite topics, on education, anything. It could be a new skill, like a DIY kit, Use videos on Youtube or e-books, to master some or profession, or travel, or humorous podcasts as well. assembling a piece, puzzles, embroidery. And when easy yoga positions. It has holistic benefits, both for Name it, and you could probably find the podcast of you look back at your creation, you will realize it was the mind and body. your choice. worth it. And is a great relaxation technique. Photography Experiment with your culinary talents Maintain a picture scrapbook If you love taking pictures, but want to learn more, It could also be learning and experimenting with new This is an excellent way to help you remember the you can check out the internet for some good tutorials. recipes from a book, and maybe even perfect them. best moments of your life. You could make a scrapbook There’s a host of them. You can also use some online Also, while trying various things, you may get hooked on a friendship, a holiday, or even your school years. mentors, eminent photographers, like Girish Menon onto any one of them. Making that ‘just right’ fluffy And build some unforgettable memories! and follow them on Twitter or Instagram, idli, or just the perfect ‘dar-ni-pori’. . And this applies equally to the men too! You too can Learn Financial planning Mentoring aim to be as good as Sanjeev Kapoor ! and if you Do some research and then create a sound investment If you are a Subject matter expert, consider sharing haven’t started yet – Dalgona, the hottest internet plan, and start building up on your investments. your knowledge with others. coffee trend is something you should try. Set aside an hour or two every week towards working This is the time when you probably can do it. on your home budget. Mentoring can be very satisfying; both to the mentor Gardening and the mentee. Gardening can be fulfilling and therapeutic. Just a few Volunteering (On-line) … and some others… reasonably priced packets of seeds which you can also This is a great hobby to pick up, as it will also benefit Reach out online to friends and other family members. buy online, and start your garden, right from your others and give you immense joy. You could help Take a course online. kitchen window. And then watch it bloom. Wouldn’t it people in need, and feel fulfilled. Binge watch some good documentaries or videos and just be fun, picking tomatoes from your garden? open sourcebooks. (We have some recommendations Learn To Dance too in the next page for you) Sketching, painting This low-cost hobby is great for working out the entire Don’t hesitate to ask for help. Sketching and painting is a delightful way of body and lots of fun. Don’t hesitate to reach out to a professional to assist expressing yourself. There are many different ways to Use Youtube videos and tutorials to learn new dance you with your mental health. draw, from sketching to doodling to shading, to steps, or perfect some intricate steps. Keep active. charcoal painting. Choose the one you are comfortable So, come on, start today! with and then Paint Your Canvas! Reading Make this period of lockdown an enriching and Reading in any form- fiction or non-fiction is both; learning experience for You. Writing/ blogging fun, and stimulating. Admittedly, we have lots of Writing is a beautiful way to express your thoughts. books at home which we may not have glanced at So, come on, start today ! You can start by maintaining a daily diary to pen your even once. Make this period of lockdown thoughts. Use this time to devour the books, and get lost in And later, progress into writing a blog. an enchanting world of visual imagery. For those an enriching and learning Who knows, it may even transform into a book at who prefer e-books, read on your kindle. Or on your experience for You. some point in time. And you will be the Author. tablet.

– Lists compiled by Shernaz Kapadia, Mahindra Partners. 36 The COVID Challenge And Life goes on… While we all work from home, it is really interesting to note our learnings from this situation. We all have different reactions to what is happening around us. Here are some stories from our employees.

Beating the Work from Home blues by Vishwa Tanna, Mahindra Logistics

Vishwa tells us about her lockdown experience, and she navigated from being restless at home, (just like the rest of us) to make useful use of her time.

“While initially I spent time binge-watching Netflix, three days into the lockdown and it began taking a toll on my mental health. In the past seven years, I have always spent my weekends out – be it meeting my friends, colleagues, at sites, etc. To help myself An open letter to feel more energetic, I made a schedule and stuck COVID-19 to it with a breakup of hourly tasks. So far, I have by Dinesh Jadhav, Mahindra Susten started an online course on digital marketing to brush up my skills. I have learnt a ton of recipes Dear SARS-CoV-2, from my mom. I even learnt some yoga and how to We would like to tell you that we know grow tomatoes at home. Among other things, I am your relatives – the cough & cold, flu, now proficient at folding the table napkin in over ten fever, etc. we treat them with respect. different techniques and draping sarees like a pro.” When they meet us, we slow down and Made with love stop our work, take medicines, eat well, Fakkirappa Savadatti (Executive, Kanhe take rest, and when they decide to leave, Plant) uses his skill to make homemade we say bye politely. When they visit us masks and distributes them free of cost again, we do not complain. All is well. Winning the deal at his village in Karnataka. by BD team, Mahindra Susten But because of some reason, you don’t He has distributed over 100 masks so seem to stop attacking us. That is very far. It is remarkable how each one can The BD Utility team at Mahindra Susten UNITY IN DIVERSITY disrespectful, and rude. by Shernaz Kapadia, Mahidnra Partners make a difference in our own way. closed a deal for a project during these We do not appreciate you, attacking trying times when meetings and traveling the people we all know directly or In china when COVID struck is not possible. The team connects every indirectly. The people we love, people we We tho’t anyway its China tough luck morning to plan and discuss strategies. care about, and we do not accept you It reached SE Asia and moved around “We have been engaging with the taking any of them away. We may not We still tho’t we are safe n sound customer for this project for past one meet these people on daily basis, we may It went to Italy and spread like wildfire month or so. It is a 50MW/70MWp project. not like them sometimes, we may not We tho’t it still doesn’t matter In the final negotiations sitting across the even know many of them, but we do not It went to Europe and created a buzz table is usually easier. But not being able appreciate you hurting them. We tho’t what’s this why the fuss to do so, the team transitioned this same There are great minds, extremely It went to US and crushed it piece by piece process seamlessly to emails and calls. talented & brave people amongst us. We tho’t why worry over troubles as these because We trust them. They will hunt you. They And then it crept upon US Coordinating with multiple teams, time will find you. They will break you down. Like a lurking spirit in the dust management was a challenge. We truly They will eliminate you. We will be with A tiny speck in the air realized how we take these simple things them, doing everything we can, to support Yet its effects all over.. here and there for granted like printing and proof-reading them. We have defeated many viruses Our urge to our Nation, please unite a document to physically signing it to seal in the past, Ebola, Rabies, HIV, Smallpox, For once forget your issues your strife the deal. We scanned using our mobile Influenza, to name a few. Let’s leave aside our political, religious notions phones and used digital signatures instead Thank you, Corona Virus As the human race we have courage, Let’s do this together, as One force, One Nation by Pritesh Patel, Mahindra Susten to successfully close the deal,” said we have hope. We will overcome. If social distancing is the mandate Monika Rathi. Let’s not congregate and complicate Thank you for shaking us and showing Our brethren who are starving us we’re dependent on something much Let’s pour our generosity our Caring bigger than we think. It’s not only them who will be nourished Thank you for making us appreciate the Applying corporate It’s for us, for our hearts to flourish luxury we lived in abundance of products…. So when, as One we reach our goal freedom…. health and making us realize we learnings at home We shall be happy we saved our soul. were taking it for granted. The Kanhe team has been implementing Thank you for stopping us to make us see their Kaizen training at home! The 5S how lost we were in the “busy-ness” include Sort (Seiri), Straighten (Seiton), Not having time for the most basic things… Scrub (Seiso), Standardization (Seiketsu) and Sustain (Shitsuke). Categorised Thank you for allowing us to put aside all bookshelves, a standard naming system our problems for kitchen herbs and reorganising shoe We thought were so important… And racks are some examples of these pieces showing us what is actually important. of training put in action.

Thank you for stopping the transport, we Stillness…… knew the world had to change its ways. Getting out of the comfort zone, comfortably! The Earth was begging us to look at the and nature speaks by Deepen Shah, Mahindra Susten by Nora Bhatia, Mahindra Accelo pollution for a very long time and we didn’t listen… “Currently, the team has been working to create our knowledge database on our ventures for No children rushing for the school bus, Floating Solar. So we have been speaking to vendors and other consultants to understand the And all the ghar ka khana frown and fuss. Thank you for all the FEAR. As we learn mechanisms and challenges they have been facing for these type of projects. A critical part how to embrace it with love and with the of this project is the floating island which is really the foundation of the entire project. From No Mums rushing to work support of our communities. Thank you for my team, I was given the opportunity to explore this area. At first, the task seemed extremely The hurried breakfast almost a perk. the unity among us all. daunting, and I was unsure if I could deliver in time. These quarantine days worked wonders for me as they gave me a time of relaxed learning and understanding, which is hardly possible The relentless honking on the roads has gone, Thank you for helping us re-evaluate our when otherwise one is swamped with day to day engineering tasks. It’s such an eerie stillness at dawn. lives. We understand better now, what it While I am from the D& E team, I had to conduct a training session for the OE team on means. Ferrocement Technology. I thought, what if I can make this presentation a new experience for Can now here the sparrows constantly chirp, attendees? The parrots come closer to the balcony curb. Thank you for helping us to undermine I started learning a new software called Whiteboard animation everything and giving us a chance to build presentation, which is supposed to be much more effective The crows seem to have gathered for a session, the world anew. compared to the simple PowerPoint presentation. It seemed Never heard them this loud in unison. This Virus is part of us fairly simple to work with, but at the end of it, I had It’s between us, in us to put together all the different parts of the Seems like nature is saying “I reclaim” It connected us all. presentation that I had created (from the videos, “It’s my space too,” it proclaims. voice-overs and content). To complete it before We can view the same situation from many the presentation day, I even had to pull off COVID-19 and the forced lockdown, paradigms but we can ignore the gratitude an all-nighter. I actually loved the process. It May be its time to introspect and create a new we should have towards it. reminded me of my engineering days when dawn. I would sit up all night for assignment Be Grateful submissions. Long story short, I realised We co-exist with different species, Things will never be the same again that we all have that enthusiasm to learn It’s almost like they are saying “live and let The World Is Changing something new every day in our respective live”……. please. NOW field, somehow we restrict ourselves to our comfort zone.” 37 Books

Marketing ZERO-WASTE LIFESTYLE History Title: Growth Hacker Marketing Title: The Zero-Waste Lifestyle: Title: A Short History of Nearly Author: Ryan Holiday Live Well by Throwing Away Everything Today, big brands do not spend Less Author: Bill Bryson much on traditional methods of Author: Amy Korst Bill Bryson describes the marketing. They employ a new This is a practical guide to beauty of science in a very kind of strategy called growth generating less waste, by involved and imaginative hacking—to reach millions. employing small meaningful manner. Whether you are part of a small strategies. startup company or a Fortune If trash can be effectively 500 one, this book serves as a recycled, it would lead to a ‘road-map’ with practical tools more healthy sustainable life on Advertising and Marketing. on this planet, and preserve the planet better, for future generations.

Evolution Title: Sapiens: A Brief History Self-Discovery Success of Humankind Title: Jonathan Livingston Title: Give and Take: Why Author: Yuval Noah Harari Seagull: A Story Helping Others Drives Our The author views the whole Author: Richard Bach Success of human history with a The short novel is about a Author: Adam Grant fresh set of eyes, examining seagull who in his simple Give and Take highlights critically the building blocks struggles, learns about taking what effective networking, and making us question the flight and life. collaboration, influence, very foundations of history. negotiation, and leadership skills have in common.

HISTORY OF INDIA (POST SUPERPOWERS OF THE THE BRITISH) WORLD Title: Inglorious Empire – what Title: AI Superpowers: China, the British did to India Silicon Valley, and the New Author: Shashi Tharoor World Order Shashi Tharoor gives a Author: Kai-Fu Lee full account, of how every The author describes how supposed imperial ‘gift’ from 18 Book China has rapidly caught up the British was designed with the US as a Superpower in Britain’s interests alone. of the world. Through his book, Through this bold and scathing he urges both, US and China account, Tharoor depicts the to accept and embrace the devastating effect of British significant responsibilities that reign in India. to read come with being superpowers.

FINANCE (an attitude) WORLD ECONOMICS Title:Think and Grow Rich Title: Good Economics for Author: Napoleon Hill during the Hard Times Napoleon Hill, in this book Author: Abhijit Banerjee and on personal development, Esther Duflo presents a 13-point philosophy Winners of the Nobel Prize for success and growing rich. in Economics 2019 Abhijit Some of these are – desire, V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo faith, imagination, persistence, lockdown show how to deal effectively organized planning, sixth with today’s critical economic sense, and harnessing the problems, with decisive power of the subconscious “Reading is essential for those who thinking. And they also show mind. the importance of making timely, intelligent interventions seek to rise above the ordinary.” toward a society built on – Jim Rohn compassion and respect. ARCHITECTURE TRAVELLING Title: The Eyes of the Skin: Title: Journeys of a Lifetime: Architecture and the Senses While this lockdown gives you a reason 500 of the World’s Greatest Author: Juhani Pallasmaa Trips The Eyes of the Skin is to stay indoors, we give you yet another Author: National Geographic almost like a ‘Bible’ for fresh reason to spend your time productively. Society architecture students. It This book depicts the world’s provides new insights into Here are some interesting books on a most fabulous journeys, along an old subject. Pallasmaa with helpful tips for readers has outlined new ideas into variety of subjects that could give you who want to venture into some architectural thinking. The of the most famous as well as title of the book suggests a different perspectives of life. obscure travel destinations. revelation of sorts, of what lies inside the book.

Emotional INDIAN COOKING Intelligence JOURNEY WITHIN Title: Madhur Jaffrey’s Instantly Title: The Age of Empathy: Title: Sadhguru: More Than Indian Cookbook Nature’s Lessons for a Kinder A Life Author: Madhur Jaffrey Society Author: Arundhathi The Queen of Indian Cooking Author: Frans de Waal Subramaniam shares different types of By studying social behaviours Sadhguru, with his profound dishes both; quick and easy in animals, such as bonding, wisdom and compassion to prepare. She shares the the herd instinct, the towards all living beings on best and fastest way to cook forming of trusting alliances, the planet, urges us to explore rice, meat and fish in an expressions of consolation, our spiritual self. With his instant pot. She also shares and conflict resolution, Frans razor-sharp intelligence and Indian recipes along with their de Waal demonstrates that surprising insights into every accompaniments like various animals–and humans–are minute happening, Sadhguru is delicious types of raita. ‘preprogramed to reach out.’ both; a mystic and an enigma.

PLANTING DESIGN THINKING WINGS OF FIRE Title: The Less Is More Garden: Title: Design to Grow: How Title: Wings of Fire: APJ Abdul Big Ideas for Designing Your Coca-Cola Learned to Combine Kalam Small Yard Scale and Agility (and How You Author: Arun Tiwari Author: Susan Morrison Can Too) This book is about a young How does on complementing Author: David Butler and Linda Muslim boy who lived in their lifestyle with their Tischler Rameswaram, and later turned landscape? The author Learn how Coca-Cola uses into a famous scientist and recommends the best plants design effectively to grow its then the President of India, to grow in order to personalize business by combining the APJ Abdul Kalam. It depicts your own landscape. She advantages of scale with the the various stages of his life; shows conclusively how limited agility to respond to changing from orientation to creation, spaces can be converted to market conditions. It also to accomplishments, to unlimited opportunities to shows how other companies contemplation. design your own garden. can replicate this approach to grow their businesses. – Compiled by Shernaz Kapadia and Samridhi Dhar. 38 38 Videos Reel Life Motivation Title: Have the balls to follow your dreams Title: Mumbai Dabbawalas Have you wondered -Why is it that Speaker: Dianna David Speaker: Dr. Pawan Agrawal Description: You have to have the courage to Description: The speaker is CEO of the Mumbai Dabbawalas. some people achieve greatness and follow your dreams, and believe in yourself. He is also involved in conducting research and contributing to the some do not? Are they born great? Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/ design and delivery of courses for the entire educational fraternity, watch?v=wLxMbzWm5Es and fostering a positive learning environment by embracing a wide Or is it something else? Your range of teaching methodologies. He has always shown empathy for Title: How to live passionately–no matter your the socially weaker strata of society and has undertaken limitation—it’s only your imagination. age many activities for their upliftment. Hear his inspiring talk, Speaker: Isabel Allende with many learnings. Push yourself, because no one else is Description: Isabel Allende gives an insight into Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N25inoCea24 how to live your life. Irrespective of your age, going to do it for you. Sometimes later you can live in the best possible manner, and as Title: You become what You believe! passionately as possible. Age is after all, just a Speaker: Oprah Winfrey becomes never. Great things never number. Description: Celebrity TV anchor Oprah Winfrey shares her 10 rules for come from comfort zones. Success Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/ success -Set boundaries, Create the life you want, Turn your wounds watch?v=5ifMRNag2XU#t=35 into wisdom, Live your life to the fullest, Demand respect, You become doesn’t just find you. what you believe, Touch lives everyday, Own your life , Live a truthful life, Title: The Secret To Achieving the “Impossible” Say thank you. Speaker: Ravi Dubey Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xe99QWlM_9A Description: Those who have achieved the impossible, Here are 20 incredibly motivating the common thread running through all of them is Title: Life Advice that will change your Future! Madness. Whether it may be Shah Rukh Khan, Raj Speaker: Michelle Obama videos that we hope will move you, Kapoor or anyone who has achieved great heights, they Description: Do not be afraid to fail. It’s not about failing. It’s about have been delusional enough to believe that they could what you do when you fail. What do you want to be ? How do you want curated by Shernaz Kapadia. do it. The future holds infinite possibilities for each of to give back ? Change course, and do what you dream for. Listen to us. So, the question then is – who is willing to push the your thoughts, listen with your mind and with your heart. Only you can boundaries? Live on the edge and sometimes jump off it. choose your path. Do not let someone else choose it. Good things don’t Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/ come easy. Overcome your fear… all this and more. watch?v=iQaiMoUn-zc&t=186s Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5zpakvc_4w

Title: After watching this, your brain will not be the same Title: Amitabh Bachchan’s Most Inspiring speech – on education ! Speaker: Dr. Lara Boyd Speaker: Amitabh Bachchan Description: Dr Boyd describes how neuroplasticity gives you Description: Speaking on the importance of education, superstar the power to shape the brain as you want. Amitabh Bachchan said, “Knowledge is yours forever. No one can steal Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/ it from you.” History remembers the wise and knowledgeable; not the watch?v=LNHBMFCzznE ones with wealth alone. Therefore keep learning. Knowledge is the shield which will protect you. Always respect your teachers. Title: Thoughts on humanity, fame and love Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7H9E62P9_A Speaker: Shah Rukh Khan Description: “I sell dreams, I peddle love to millions of people,” says Title: One of the Greatest Speeches Ever – find your calling Shah Rukh Khan, Bollywood’s superstar. In his inimitable style, Khan Speaker: Jeff Bezos traces the cycle of his life, displays a few of his famous dance steps Description: The best thing to happen to you is for you to find your and shares nuggets from his life as a public figure. passion, your calling. When you find it, you will never have to work Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NV1KdWRHck another day in your life, says Jeff Bezos CEO and Chairman of Amazon. It will give meaning to your life. Title: Rising when you fall Be proud, not of your gifts, but of your hard work and choices. There are Speaker: Neha Aggarwal no shortcuts. You have to take one step at a time, with patience. You Description: Life is at a high, with all your dreams coming true, all have to be resilient and stubborn on your vision. And be flexible on the your efforts paying off, and all of a sudden, life throws you a curve steps to reach that vision. ball. Neha Aggarwal, the only woman participant from India for Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EctzLTFrktc table tennis in the 2008 Olympic games, relates her journey to the Olympics and the weight of expectations that followed it. She says Title: Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address, stay hungry that what kept her going was sheer grit and determination, and the stay foolish dream to represent her country again! Speaker: Steve Jobs Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KKGj9EfV3E Description: Steve Jobs, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Apple Computers and Pixar Animation Studios, tells the 3 stories from Title: Befriend Yourself his life, and urges new graduates to pursue their dreams and see the Speaker: Nivetha Thomas opportunities in life’s setbacks -- including death itself . He says- Do Description: The speaker traces the journey of her life; from what you believe is great work, love what you do. If you haven’t found childhood to excelling in her career. She shares her path to it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As in all matters of the heart, you will being a successful film artiste. Her personal quest to find know when you find it. And there’s more …… joy, happiness and success in life is captivating. An actress Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc as well as architect, she is among the top names in the South-Indian film industry. A beauty with brains indeed. Title: Do what is Hard Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/ Speaker: Jack Ma watch?v=sB34sRehUvU Description: Jack Ma is a Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is Founder and Executive Chairman of the Alibaba Group. He is the Title: Kerala’s First Lady IPS Officer richest man in China and 18th richest person in the world. He says, the Speaker: R. Sreelekha future world will be C2B, not B2C. Machines of tomorrow should not Description: R. Sreelekha is the first female IPS only manufacture, they should also talk, they should think. The future officer from the Kerala cadre and is also an officer will also have many women leaders because it will be based on wisdom, in the Indian Police Service. She speaks about caring, responsibility, not just muscle power. It’s dreams that drive the how her calibre was questioned during her tenure world, it’s not just technology. as an IPS officer, but she proved her true mettle Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyGVCI8bMmE to her country. She is a shining example of an empowered woman and has served as Managing Title: The secret power of introverts Director for PSUs in Kerala. She also became Speaker: Susan Cain the first woman to be given the rank of Director Description: Introverts bring extraordinary talents and abilities to the General of Police (DGP). In this inspiring video, world that should be celebrated. They are an asset to society. she speaks candidly of her journey. Link to video: https://www.ted.com/talks/susan_cain_the_power_of_ Link to video : https://www.youtube.com/ introverts?language=en watch?v=OswaMyBZEyA Title: Understand the vulnerability behind humanity Title: The Unstoppable Power of Letting Go Speaker: Brene Brown Speaker: Jill Sherer Murray Description: The ability to feel connected is what makes us feel alive. Description: Letting go can make you As human beings we have the ability to empathize, love, belong. And unstoppable. The most important thing there is also an inherent fear of disconnection, which results in our is that it CREATES THE SPACE FOR vulnerability. THINGS THAT YOU REALLY WANT. Also Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCvmsMzlF7o learn to Let go, of what PEOPLE WILL SAY. Let go of the need to be perfect. Title: Simon Sinek shares how great leaders inspire others to take Let go of NOT YET. Make everyday action count. In this video, Jill recounts Speaker: Simon Sinek her story of love, loss and a new Description: Why is Apple so successful ? Dr King - why was he so lease of life. She speaks of the popular in America ? He did not show people the path, but he said ‘I challenges of an uncommitted believe’. He inspired them. People took his cause and made it their boyfriend, her fear of letting go, cause, and in turn, told other people. And he got the support of the and then facing her fear, which entire population. Hear the video to know more. led to her success and future Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp0HIF3SfI4 happiness. Jill shares the 5 Steps she took to change what Title : How your body language shapes who you are was not working for her, and Speaker: Amy Cuddy convert it into what worked Description: Can power posing for a few minutes really change your for her. life in meaningful ways ? Our bodies change our minds. Is this true ? Link to video: https:// Amy Cuddy in this video, discusses the ways we use body language to www.youtube.com/ change the way our life unfolds. watch?v=nirKw3mWB3I Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3nlgbVxNfA