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| Authors Kiran Bhat, Sekhar Seshan |
In 1992, an advertising agency, Xebec Communications Pvt Ltd
was started by a young lady with a Masters in Industrial Psychology, from Pune
University. Over the next 22 years the Agency grew from ‘just another name’ to
a name to reckon with. The owner, a first generation entrepreneur tells her
story in the newly released book, “No Holy Cows in Business...” along with
Sekhar Seshan, Senior Journalist from Buniness India. The book is matter of
fact and the writing is direct – it appears that the author is speaking to you,
even as you read the 9 Principles of entrepreneurship, which she lays down,
pretty simply.
- Love what you are doing
- An organization is the reflection of the promoter’s energy
- Focus, focus, focus
- Get financial literacy
- Add a new revenue stream every year
- Keep costs under control at all times
- Enrolment of key people for the next level
- Continuous learning
- Pull the plug when it does not make any sense
Each of these principles is duly enhanced with Case Studies
which make the reading very interesting. Harshvardhan Neotia, Chairman, Ambuja
Neotia Group, tells his story of how he broke away from his family business to
start his own, Padmasri Chandra Mohan, Founder Chairman, Punjab Tractors, C
Parthasarathy, Chairman, Karvy Group, Dr Anil Lamba, Founder Director, Lamcom
School of Management, Vikram Kirloskar, Vice Chairman, Toyota Kirloskar Motors,
G V Krishna Reddy, Chairman, GVK Group, Suhas Baxi, CEO, Pennar Industries Ltd,
Nishit Kumar, Founder MD, NOTRA Group, T Muralidharan, Founder Chairman, TMI Group
– and many more names, you might have heard about, or you might not have done
so, but these are stories/Case Studies of people who through extreme grit and
belief on holding a large dream, started from scratch to become household names
and who, fell many times, but did not give up on themselves or their vision of
their Company. The book is a veritable joy when you think about the pains and
strains, the never-say-die attitude of a true entrepreneur, who through thick
and thin; come hail, come high water, strives to realize and spread his dream.
It talks of struggle of a different kind, which is not really individual. When
you have 50 people or 150, 2000 or 5000 people who work in your Company, the
loss is only the proprietors, while that gain belongs to all. The financial
health of the Company is THE most important watch you will ever care about.
In a world where outsourcing has become the business norm
and coming out of business school does not mean getting the best job that pays
the highest salary, if one is bitten by the entrepreneur bug while at school,
the world belongs to him or her. Hence this book serves as a handy tool to keep
along from a connoisseur who has known it all, scaled heights and bitten the
mud to come up like a phoenix over and over again.
Most of the Case Studies, which have all been done by Sekhar
Seshan, prove that industry does not necessarily belong to those who come from
rich backgrounds, or those who were trained for it. Indeed, it is a passion, a
driving need to excel and keep doing better, reinventing oneself and the organization,
over and over again, that keeps a healthy business house going. It is heart,
head, strategy and a mind that is clear and can hold a vision that finally wins
the world.
Like Arjuna’s focus in the great big battle field of dog eat
dog, keeping the mind held strongly to the goal can be the only weapon that
keeps the creator of a vision going. The rest is co-creation with his team.
Surgically cold with precision to be able to hack and cut
down on manpower if the need arises, the entrepreneur must execute like a Zen
Master and yet at the same time, enroll personnel for growth to the next level.
Above all, the entrepreneur must be endlessly on the ball, never tiring of it
and yet, be distanced enough from it, to hold the vision and launch it to the
next level.
A game of skill, knowledge, strategy, meditation and above
all, the hunger to create, is the story you will read of in this book.
If you are an entrepreneur or want to be one, all you need
in your hand is this book of inspiration and the fire in your belly that
propels you to be your own Master.
Good Luck to the book and the zillions of humans, across the
globe, who want to be their own business persons.
The book lacks examples of women entrepreneurs, except the
shining example of the author herself and two other, like Geetanjali Kirloskar
and Uma Chigurupati of KRSMA wines. Also, being more an academic book that will
be read in business schools and by people with a mind for business, a digital
version would be excellent as most academic books, shopped from abroad, are in
digital format.
Case Study: Booked!
(pg 30)
“T Narayan Shanbhag who started Mumbai’s ionic Strand Book
Stall in November 1948 and ran it till he dies in 2009 at the age of 85, was a
personification of the principle this chapter enunciates – An Organization is
the reflection of the promoter’s energy – Here is an extract from a biography
written in 2003.”
Read on here:
Publisher: Viswakarma Publishers
283, Budhwar Peth
New Post Office
Pune – 411 002
Email: info@vpindia.co.in
Website: www.vpindia.co.in
Authors: Kiran Bhat, Sekhar Seshan
Pages: 147
Price: Rs 200
283, Budhwar Peth
New Post Office
Pune – 411 002
Email: info@vpindia.co.in
Website: www.vpindia.co.in
Authors: Kiran Bhat, Sekhar Seshan
Pages: 147
Price: Rs 200
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