Know Your Divisional Heads

My name: Rajiv Jhangiani

My qualifications: B.E. (Mechanical), MMS (Marketing)
I head: The Prima Division of Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd.
We deal with: Office Automation and Conferencing Products
My Division’s sales turnover: Rs. 100 crores (2005–06)
Our competitors: MNCs like Ricoh, Sony, Toshiba, Canon, etc.
My Division’s goals: To be truly profitable (positive EVA) for 2005-06
My strengths: I am a team player. I am committed. I use common sense and operate transparently.
My weaknesses: I am very sensitive
My family background: Wife – Engineering Consultant (Entrepreneur) Children – Ritu (12), Rohan (8) Father – Retired as an Executive Director some years ago. Mother – Homemaker Brother and his wife – Pilots.
My first crush: Is my last
My hobbies: Swimming
My pets: None
My favourite books: ‘Winning’ by Jack Welch
I am content with: Life in general
I am jealous of: No one
I get upset when: Misunderstood
I fear: Nothing
I am proud of: Being part of a “winning” team
The future of Godrej: Very exciting
I love India because of: the ingenuity of its people

There are some people who deliver pep talk, dictate terms and like to call themselves leaders. There are some who lead by example. Rajiv Jhangiani belongs to the latter category. A self-motivated man with unflinching persistence to not only turnaround the loss-making Prima Division into a profit-making one in just one year, but also to aim its turnover from the present Rs. 100 crores to a whopping Rs. 1,000 crores by 2015. Rajivi’s aggression is reflected in his strategy rather than body language. He has brought in greater accountability, clarity in thought, job profiles and boosted the team’s morale. A person who relishes change, the modest Rajiv attributes his success to ‘Team Prima’. Small wonder he is highly respected by not just his superiors, but also his peers and subordinates. RASHNA ARDESHER catches up with this young and dynamic Vice President and Business Head.

The Builder of Relationships

Ch. CHANGE has been given to understand that you are a very down-to-earth and disciplined person, a firm believer in time management. That you are also one of the best presenters in Godrej. Your marketing strategies and decision-making abilities, too, are good. At the same time, you can be tough with employees to deliver. How do you manage to strike a balance?

RJ. I don’t make a conscious effort to strike a balance. Nor do I pretend in my place of work. That’s the way I am. I observe people and try to imbibe their good qualities.

It is most satisfying to be part of a team that can turn the business around. I am extremely fortunate to be part of this fantastic winning team. All it needed was a spark to move the engine. The last two years at Prima have been the most fulfilling in my 20 years’ career.

Rajiv with his family

Ch. What are the solutions/services Prima Division offers?
RJ. The Prima division offers automation solutions for the modern office. Our solutions involve the deployment and integration of equipment such as video conferencing, projection systems, plasma displays, photocopiers, printers, multi function devices and more. We offer services in document management and variable data printing. In the short term we will offer vending services to offices and services in Retail Distribution to companies.

Ch. Prima Division sells “brother” products. As compared to HP, Panasonic, Xerox, why is it that “brother” has not been able to establish itself well in the Indian market? Due to “brother’s” small dealer network, spares/consumables are not easily available. After-sales service is poor, according to the outside market. Thus HP gains an upper hand. Why has Prima tied-up with “brother” in such a scenario?
RJ. We were India’s largest distributor of fax machines some years ago and at that point of time we were dealing with “brother” and Panasonic apart from a couple of other brands. Panasonic decided to change its distribution model for faxes in India.and we realised that we needed to reorient too.. We then had an agreement with “brother” for their exclusive commitment to Godrej as a distributor and what thereafter forged was a robust relationship. “brother” has been doing exceedingly well since the last two years and they have the potential to be a significant player in the Indian market.

As far as after-sales service is concerned, “brother” has given the task to a third-party service provider called Accel IICM. Any change has teething problems. The arrangement is in the process of stabilizing now.

Rajiv with his parents

Ch. What led “brother” to remove its after-sales service from the Godrej portfolio and hand it over to Accel IICM? Was it that “brother” was dissatisfied with Godrej’s after-sales service? Or, is it Godrej’s tie-up with Xerox that has led “brother” to take this decision? What do you think could be the reason behind this policy change?
RJ. Brother’s decision to outsource warranty service to a third party was prior to our association with Xerox. Our association with Xerox will in no way compromise our relationship with ‘brother’. Our business with ‘brother’ has grown significantly post our association with Xerox and is getting stronger every day.

Ch. Is it true that the Godrej Vending Machine is the lowest selling product of Prima Division? Why?
RJ. It is only two years ago that we started to develop on our own hot beverage vending machines. We have recently collaborated with ‘Veromatic’ from the Netherlands to produce world class vending machines in India. This partnership involves contract manufacturing the entire range of their machines over a period of time, collaborative designing and a truly global opportunity in selling these machines. Vending machines constitute a very small part of Prima’s turnover as of now but that is about to change soon.

Ch. On the other hand, we are successful in selling Panasonic and Video Conferencing products. What’s so special about these?
RJ. Panasonic products are very good quality and our relationship with them is very strong. Doing business with them has been a good experience. The India market is alive to the possibilities of video conferencing. We at Prima are successful in capturing this opportunity.

Ch. What are the changes you brought about in Prima Division since the time you have taken over?
RJ. The most significant change is in attitude — ‘never say die’. It was a people’s movement that made the turnaround possible. All I had to do was merely facilitate some changes. Initiatives such as margin management, cost management, smarter purchasing, educating the field about the signifance of selling at optimal prices instead of top line pursuit went a long way in the change process., Enhancing the team’s understanding of the fundamentals of Finance made a huge difference in how they looked at business. A very high degree of transparency at all levels in the division has been achieved and appreciated by all.

Ch. Employees of not just Prima Division but also of other Divisions have great faith in you and look at you as a turnaround man. The level of job satisfaction in Prima Division employees runs high. How did you manage this complete turnaround in motivation levels?
RJ. I think the feeling of succeeding and being respected is one of the highest motivators. A lot more remains to be achieved in the area of motivation and it will be done over a period of time.

Ch. Growth opportunities in Prima Division at the middle and high corporate levels are rather limited. CHANGE has been given to understand that, two years ago when you joined Prima, it was a conscious decision on your part to make Prima bottom heavy instead of top heavy. Would you like to change that again?
RJ. Two years ago we had to go through the painful process of downsizing. The structure at Prima works fine now, for the existing size and nature of business. In a year from now, we hope to revisit our structure and assess it for its appropriateness to sustain growth in the coming years. This will throw up growth opportunities for many employees at Prima.

Ch. The factory establishment at Shirwal, which manufactures manual typewriters and vending machines, has been facing problems lately. Most workers who are on contract, are demanding increase in salaries and permanent positions in Godrej. To the effect that some orders remain pending due to their non-cooperation or, rather, less cooperation in production. How do you plan to sort this problem?
RJ. This matter has been amicably resolved and all is well. We hope to shrink the pending orders quantity substantially in a short period.

Ch. You visualise to be a world-class provider of communication solutions. Presently, are we world-class?
RJ. I believe we will need to reinvent ourselves as a business significantly and will aspire to be best in class.

Ch. What are the changes you intend to bring about in the next 5 years?
RJ. The big change is finding and evolving for Prima a business and business model that can grow substantially. The business and the model should have the potential to meet our aspiration of reaching the thousand crore target in ten years’ time. The business should have a prime mover advantage. It should be simple, scalable and pilotable. Godrej & Boyce is manufacturing biased. We hope to increas the ‘Services’ content of the businesses portfolio.

Ch. You relish change. What does change mean to you?
RJ. To me it means continuous improvement

Top