Beyond the core?
And while the four segments (agri machinery, construction equipment, railway products and auto products) form a formidable business proposition at the national level, it is far from comprehensive. Nanda is well aware of that and had a few years ago said that there was no need to look beyond these four core sectors. Would he still continue with the same thought process or is there a possibility of looking at another segment now that things are getting better? Nanda has the answer ready.
"Escorts today has tremendous clarity of who we are and what we want to build. Having taken some tough decisions in the past, we are now clear about our strengths vis-a-vis our participation in the verticals that we are functioning in." Of course, he is also keeping his options open! "Having said that, the day a company says it is not looking at newer avenues of growth, you can be sure something is wrong with the leadership. I am fortunate that I have a very capable team running the show, which gives me the time to dream a little on where the company needs to be and what we should be doing to get there," he adds that with a knowing smile.
The Escorts Production System
His response also shows that he is very well connected with his team. In fact, he makes it a point to communicate with his team in every possible way. Of the many methods that he employs for reaching out to his associates spread in different geographical locations is a regular blog. For example, his recent post for the New Year says this: "Don't let anyone tell you It can't be done!! There are few who will believe in you, but the starting point is that you must believe in yourself. God bless you and I wish you and your family a very happy 2016, a year of growth for us all and a year of impossible growth." When the leader is using terms like ‘impossible growth', it only shows the confidence he has in his people.
One of Nanda's previous posts titled ‘Transforming Manufacturing Excellence' (dated ‘December 9, 2013') also speaks about the ‘2020 vision'. So what exactly is this vision? In fact, the same post also describes the aspiration to have the EPS - ‘The Escorts Production System'. So, how far or close is he from the EPS today? First, he explains the ‘Vision': "Our Vision is to be the most respected innovation-driven engineering company in the country. The leadership team at Escorts has a clear-cut plan of growing market share, profit share, topline for domestic market and also our global share for the year 2020 and beyond. We are clear about the companies we will look at for acquisitions to ensure we have adequate knowledge in terms of product competence." He also adds that Escorts is working rigorously to de-risk its cyclicality dependence on agriculture. "Whether it is our construction business or railway component business, we are developing products and technology that meet the discerning needs of our growing economy."
Talking about the ‘Escorts Production System', Nanda shares that the aspiration is to create a production system that is not just frugal in the typical Indian way, but also capable of developing products that are world-class in quality and technology. "To make this happen, we have benchmarked with the best engineering companies in the world and are closely tracking what they do. We have sought the expertise of world-renowned consultants who are monitoring our processes and systems and steering us in the right direction," he says.
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