Courage, fearlessness and focus make great business leaders: Ajay Piramal

Ajay Piramal, chairman, Piramal Group was recognised as the 'Business Leader of the Year' by the International Advertising Association's (IAA) India Chapter in Mumbai. Presented by Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL), the sixth edition of IAA Leadership Awards, honoured Piramal for his sharp business acumen, leadership quality and ability to tap into diverse sectors while making a successful business out of them.

Sharing his thoughts on what makes a leader, Piramal said, the person has to look at things differently and act accordingly to be a good leader. "One can only make abnormal returns by seeing/ identifying an opportunity that others have not. You start before others and deal with it differently. That's how you become a leader," he said while receiving the award from IAA president Ramesh Narayan at a glittering event in Mumbai.

The IAA Leadership Awards function coincided with the eve of Guru Purnima that was being celebrated across India along with a rare lunar eclipse occurrence. Talking about his learnings derived from the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Piramal said courage, fearless attitude and focus on the actions are some of the key points that the holy book outlines.

Every stage of the book is very practical and nor philosophical, said Piramal adding that it's the most optimistic book that helps you deal with every challenging situation in life. "I was forced into leadership at a pretty young age of 29 years after my father and eldest brother passed away. We were in textile industry and the business was facing a big strike when I went it. So you didn't have family, business and that's when one remembered the lesson that you have to keep on fighting and have the courage to take out difficulties. The other thing Lord Krishna keeps reminding in the Bhagvad Gita is 'do not grieve'," said Piramal adding that his wife Swati Piramal walked hand in hand while dealing and overcoming those challenges in life.

On his point about the path less traversed, Piramal said that's what he has done in business. "We shifted from textiles to pharmaceuticals and build it from nothing to one of the largest in the country. This was followed by a shift from pharmaceuticals to financial services. You can see there is no connection between these businesses. But if one is fearless then that's very much doable," he said.

According to Piramal, the results of everything one does totally will depend on the person's actions. "This we realised while selling our domestic pharma business to Abbot. This was a large transaction valued at $3.8 billion. We were very clear that what is right will be done irrespective of the outcome of the deal. And frankly, because of this inspiration from the Bhagavad Gita we focussed on the actions and were able to get the highest ever valuation in the world for our branded generics business," he said.

The IAA Leadership Awards recognised and honoured prominent leaders in business, marketing, advertising and media. The awards had two distinctive segments wherein the first segment saluted excellence in marketing over 14 categories, including auto, mobile devices, e-commerce, consumer durables, cellular services, fast-moving consumer goods, food, beverages, home care, retail, banking, finance and insurance. The second segment honoured game changers in business, media, advertising and entertainment. And the 'Business Leader of the Year' is the highest recognition conferred at the IAA Leadership Awards.

According to Ramesh Narayan, president, IAA, said, the India chapter has been leading from the front to name a few initiatives #WorktoLivetoWork, IAA Mentorship for Women, IndIAA Regional Awards, Reigniting the Artist and Storyteller in you, IAA Olive Crown Awards, IndIAA national awards. "And for the first time in 80 years, we have IAA World Congress being hosted in Kochi in February 2019," he said.

The awars function also witnessed a panel discussion moderated by Partho Dasgupta, chief executive officer, BARC India. The panellists comprised Sanjay Behl, CEO, Raymond Ltd, Shashi Sinha, CEO, IPG MediaBrands and Prathyusha Agarwal, chief marketing officer, ZEEL. The discussion revolved around television medium being a strong influencer.

While Behl touched upon the importance of reach, intensity and quality Agarwal spoke about how emotionally invested and involved people are when they see television and with the coming of digital the loop can now be closed. On his part, Sinha urged marketers to explore as he was of the strong opinion that television is still under-utilised and holds immense potential.

The IAA India Chapter also inducted Sam Balsara, founder, chairman and managing director of Madison World and Madison Communications, into the IAA 'Hall of Fame' for his outstanding work in the advertising and media space besides just founding and building a great communication company.