An evening with Mr Anil Bhasin
On Friday, Dec 1, we had a very insightful conversation with Mr Anil Bhasin.
About Mr Anil Bhasin
Mr Anil Bhasin is a distinguished professional with over 38 years of experience in Business Development, Sales, Marketing, and Project Management. Renowned for his exemplary leadership and strategic acumen, Mr. Bhasin has received several prestigious awards throughout his illustrious career including the Peter Drucker Memorial Award of Excellence from the International Chamber of Professional Education & Industry (ICPEI) and a Lifetime Achievement Award from Amity University.
Mr Bhasin was the President of Havells India Ltd., where he played a pivotal role in catapulting revenue from 72 crores in 2005 to an impressive 1200 crores in 2019, with a remarkable Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 22%. As the driving force behind a team of 700+ professionals, Mr. Bhasin significantly contributed to corporate policy decisions as a member of the Executive Council. He played a crucial role in steering the company towards groundbreaking achievements.
Under Mr Bhasin’s visionary leadership, Havells became the first Indian company to establish a plant for lighting fixtures in Neemrana and successfully launched the solar business in 2016. Mr Bhasin’s strategic initiatives also encompassed the overhaul of rural distribution strategies, the conceptualization of a new distribution model for enhanced rural coverage, and the establishment of world-class R&D centres in Delhi and Bangalore.
Mr. Bhasin also played a pivotal role as General Manager at Singer India Limited, where he set up an All India distribution network and a dedicated sales team for small appliances. At Bajaj Electricals Limited he handled various product categories, earning him a regular place in the 100% Achiever's Club for over a decade.
Mr Bhasin is also a motivational speaker and storyteller. He delivers lectures in top B-Schools and industry forums and actively participates in international conferences.
Introduction
Unlike equipment, we do not have any instruction manual we can use in real life. We have to learn from your experiences and move forward in life. Mr Bhasin went on to cover some key principles that can help us to navigate our life and our career.
Attitude
Many people have the same level of ability and talent. What makes the difference is attitude.
A positive attitude certainly does not guarantee success. But a positive attitude combined with proper action increases the probability of success.
Success does not come from reading a book and memorizing the principles of success. It comes from implementing things in our daily life. Desire alone is not enough. We must get things done.
Despite having such a large population, we have won just 35 Olympics medals in the last 125 years. That is because we do not do things properly.
Acceptance
We must accept that we cannot change certain things. Height, colour, and features have been given to us. But we should try to exercise our influence where we have an opportunity.
Three students wanted the school to be closed the next day. They painted three goats with the numbers, 1, 2, and 4. All the people were busy looking for Goat No 3. So, the school remained closed. In life, we keep looking for Goat no 3. But that goat is simply not there. We should make do with what we have.
There is a famous Serenity prayer that we should keep in mind: Grant me the serenity to accept things that I cannot change. Courage to change things that I can. Wisdom to know what I can change and what I cannot….
Adaptation
It is not the strongest or the most intelligent of species which survive. It is the ones that are adaptive and most responsive to change.
We do not have the physical strength and stamina of animals. But we can think. Every five years or so, we can reinvent and reset our life. We can evolve ourselves.
Mr Bhasin joked that MBA should not be expanded as Master of Business Administration. Come to think of it, there is no administrative work for MBAs. It is really about Master of Business Adaptation.
What matters is not qualification but skills. With only a BSc qualification, Mr Bhasin has succeeded first at Bajaj and then at Havells by leveraging his communication and people skills.
It does not matter what we have. It is what we do with what we have that matters. Once Madhuri Dikshit was admired for her beauty. She responded that there were many beautiful women like her. What mattered was how they put their skills to use.
Belief
Self-belief is important. Michael Jordan is a good example.
We must find a mentor or coach or someone who believes in us. Rahul Dravid’s father did not believe in his cricketing abilities. He wanted Dravid to focus on his studies. But the school principal had belief in Dravid. He ensured that Dravid could play cricket while also coping with his studies. Dravid was allowed to skip the last period of the day to attend nets in the evening. After nets he once again would wind his way back home on a crowded bus. Effectively, he was home just for dinner and sleep. And as we all know, he became one of the successful cricketers of India. Like Dravid, we should have an anchor in life.
Behaviour
We earn respect because of our position and behaviours. The first is temporary and the second is permanent. People are hired for their skills and fired for their behaviours. It is our behaviours which move us forward. Our behaviours are being observed all the time. If we embrace wrong behaviours, our children will also do the same thing.
Balance
In school, the lemon and spoon race is a popular event. The winner is not the one who runs the fastest but the one who can keep the balance. We should not compromise on our health, family, and relationships. We must invest in our health every day. We should spend time with our family as they have made a lot of sacrifices for us. Relationship is a key success mantra. Ultimately, things get done because of trust and relationship.
Change
We can change at any point of our life. The turning point in Mahatma Gandhi ‘s life came during middle age, when he was thrown out of the train in South Africa. Mother Theresa was a schoolteacher and did not even look like becoming the principal. Both became leaders with a mass following. We should learn from them that it is never too late to change and do something significant in life.
People resist being changed. Take the example of brushing our teeth at night. Most people find it difficult to do this. The key point to note is that good habits are difficult to develop but easy to live with. Bad habits are easy to develop but difficult to live with.
To change people, we must lead by example. Mahatma Gandhi in South Africa is a good example.
Communication
Communication is not about mastery of English language. More than the fluency and content, what matters is the tone and delivery style. Indra Nooyi for example realized that she had to speak more slowly to make an impact.
Connect
Without connect, we cannot convey the message. It is connect which makes people willing to receive our message. And if people are not willing to listen to us, our communication cannot be effective.
Q&A
Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal. It is a journey. We must do things in the right way as we try to succeed.
Every 5 years, we must revisit our goal. Success can mean different things to different people. Success, growth, and happiness are correlated. It is important to strike a balance: physical, mental spiritual, social and home.
Mr Bhasin has seen Havells growing from a revenue of Rs 429 crore and profit of Rs 20 crores in 2004 to a revenue of Rs 20,000 crore and profit of Rs 2000 crores in 2023. This kind of growth involved several initiatives:
Investment in manufacturing and infrastructure.
Diversification: 20 verticals were set up. Major acquisitions such as Lloyds were made.
Brand building: Without a strong band, it is difficult to grow.
After sales service: This is important for favourable word of mouth. The first 15% of the customers become brand ambassadors and then pull in the remaining 85%.
Havells took decisions according to the needs of the market. The company did not depend only on consultants. Execs went to the market and interacted with the customers. That is how the storage water heater was launched. Dealer feedback indicated that there was a need to supply white goods as well (Air Conditioners, TVs, refrigerators and washing machines.) With this, Havells was able to provide all the major categories for the household.
Innovation and differentiation can drive growth. Havells fans were positioned as decorative artefacts. The existing fans were priced below Rs 2000 and did not have any decorative appeal. Havells used metallic paints and created an elegant finish. When it came to lighting, Havells stayed away from incandescent and fluorescent lamps. The company focused on CFL and LED lamps.
Personal experience alone is not enough. We must be able to learn from various sources. We must read a lot. We must ask questions. We must ask for help. We must not be egoistic and think we know everything.
Nelson Mandela recalled that his father a tribal leader would often sit with his colleagues in a circle. All of them would be allowed to speak. People have something and indeed want to contribute. We should allow them to speak their mind. The collective wisdom of the group should be leveraged.
Success does not need money. What we need are ideas. Success calls for relationships. We should be transparent and not hide anything. It is good to declare our intentions openly. The Havells chairman once offered to compensate the dealer for all their losses. No dealer came forward. They had figured out how to make money.
Information Technology is a great enabler and can enable us to move fast.
Our higher education system was established by the British. They wanted us to learn English. They did not want us to think for ourselves. They wanted Indians to follow the instructions given to them. Indian politicians persisted with this kind of education system till the NEP, 2020. Now students have more freedom to choose the courses they like and institutions have more flexibility to offer a range of courses.
It is a pity that Indian students go abroad for higher studies. Hopefully, with NEP, we will be able to hold these students back and offer them quality higher education in India. The establishment of foreign universities in India is also a good move. Students too look for good brands. (Incidentally, India still does not have any global product brands.)
We should not try to imitate anyone. We must leverage the talent we have. We must pursue what we are good at. It is important to have a mentor. A mentor can help us uncover our hidden talent.
While making career choices, parental pressure can be counterproductive. We must do a course correction in the first few years, if we do not get the job we want. We should not delay the course correction.
Qualification matters only when we join a company. After a few months, the IIT or IIM tag do not matter. What matters is the skills we have and our performance. Students must acquire skills. They are what matter. Mr Bhasin has leveraged his people and communication skills.
In the past, in most companies, there was a family atmosphere. Now leaders are not taking ownership. They are quick to fire people. Earlier, people would never be asked to go. Leaders would guide and mentor them and make them better. Today, leaders have become more selfish. They want to protect their own jobs at any cost. Large tech companies have laid off people. Smaller companies have started to imitate them. Leaders do not hesitate to let people go.
It is important to assemble good people and have confidence in them. Indeed, we must attract people who are better than us. We must enable them to grow along with us. Mr Bhasin built a good team. So, he could free up his time and focus on what to do next.
Information is already available with students. Teaching must be more interactive and focus on story telling. We tend to remember stories and case studies.
It is important to keep the basics right. The idea should be right. What pain point are we addressing?
95% of the startups fail. Only 5% succeed. Resilience is important. We must teach young people how to handle failure.
The government is there to support us. The government always listens to us. The government may take time to act but if the suggestion is good, it will be accepted.
We must uphold our values and principles and resist the temptation to take shortcuts. We should always do business ethically. If we do not, we will get caught at some point. We should not evade taxes and we should also persuade our channel partners not to do so.
Prof Prasad pointed out that we must be cognizant of our stakeholders. We must be problem solvers. We must ask: how can we do things better? We must learn from other industries and keep improving. Regular learning every day is important. We must go beyond the day-to-day operations.
The ICFAI Online MBA enables students to open their minds, reflect on the problems they face and then start solving them. As they go through several courses, they develop the ability to tackle business problems and develop end to end solutions.
We should not look at an MBA as a degree or certificate. We must do what we like. We must love what we do. We must pursue our passion.
Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj Auto was asked by his coach: What is your job? In India leaders do not do any job. They only give instructions. We should try to improve things daily. We must motivate people to improve. We must act daily.
We must keep our curiosity alive. We must keep the child in us alive. Life is like a book. We must read the next page. We should not go back to the previous page.
People do not follow leaders. They follow followers