Dr. Anish Shah, Managing Director & CEO, Mahindra Group, On The Importance Of Purpose In The Corporate World
What is ‘purpose’ in the corporate world? How should companies take leadership and take it forward? Why is it important today?
The world today has greater expectations from companies; consumers are starting to associate with companies and not just their products. The new generation has a different view so it’s important for companies to realise that they can’t stand alone. They need to look at sustainability, governance, equality, and diversity from a broader set of consumers.
What is purpose?
Purpose is balancing both social and commercial. We have to believe in it first; it cannot be done for profit. It has to be purpose for the sake of purpose. It has to be for the broader society. Dr. Ranjay Gulati at Harvard has written a book titled Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies and he mentions four pillars, the four benefits – directional (where does it take the company forward); relational (how do the stakeholders believe the company): repetitional and motivational (what you feel for the company).
The generation that’s coming in is more vocal and wants to know what a company stands for; they are looking at how they are contributing. Patagonia, Hindustan Unilever, IKEA are few examples doing well in serving the purpose. They stand out.
Mahindra’s purpose started from when it was founded, in 1945 it talked about the principles it was founded on, dignity of human toil, opposing antisocial principles. This gave rise to our purpose in the form of driving positive change in the life of communities. Therefore, it is ‘Together we rise!’
We have made commitments to guide us one of which is to move into electric. We aim at launching five electric vehicles. We launched India’s first Net Zero Carbon residential community. There is a fair amount of science and technology that goes into it. It was fully sold out and we weren’t expecting it. The next agenda is to skill women and take it forward.
ROTARIANS ASK
What is your view on the 2-wheeler electric space and what about the charging infrastructure?
We are not looking at the 2-wheeler space. Our lesson is to focus on what we are good at and the results will come. For charging, that will take some time. Electric vehicles are a much simpler technology, with much fewer parts. The fundamental point is how fast it can charge. Today the fastest is 45 minutes, the question is whether someone is willing to spend that time and land to charge. There lies a challenge, we are moving in the direction of a 30-minute charge. In the next 5 years, we see the penetration at only 20%.
Three wheelers are easier because you can take it and charge it.
Again, in rural India, it will be difficult, but technology is fast evolving. We will reach the 10-minute charge.
Do you think ESG evolves and helps the corporate or the values will be sacrificed at the altar of profit?
That also leads to sacrifice of profits because it is more about the next generation coming and where they are putting their money. Some corporations will be there because the founders will have the DNA. Some will come with a balance of social and commercial. We see many examples nowadays.
What is the contribution of design in Mahindra Vehicles. SUVs are driving the trend and are fuel guzzlers. How does that work?
Design is essential, the starting point. SUVs have the image of being gas-guzzling but the technology has come a long way. It takes a little more fuel than a sedan but we are looking forward to moving the SUV to electric sooner. Just moving to electric is not the solution; we are still generating a lot of carbon. It has to be paid with renewable energy. We have committed to green buying, committed to go for shipping in green ships. Even if it is at a higher price now, it will grow the market, and that is when the price will go down.
The electric car market is an affluent focus. When do you think, the transition is going to happen to mid-scale and cheap pricing.
We are manufacturers that look after the masses, our cars are going to be affordable.
How can Mahindra and Mahindra be partners with Rotary?
Definitely, we are partnering with Inner Wheel Club in January. Now, we channelise our CSR funds into three areas, one is education for girl child, women empowerment, Hariyali project – planting trees. It is about making an impact. We are happy to partner to find a way to make an impact. Purpose, Profit and Future-ready are what we spend time on. The focus is important.
The hardest hit goes to small scale industry, can there be a commitment from large scale corporations to pay in time, can Mahindra be the start?
FICCI can play a big role in that. We have made a commitment in one of the areas, but I don’t think others have followed.
What are the initiatives for building a Net Zero Carbon residential community?
The challenge is to scale up. A lot needs to be done before the building comes up, how the land is laid out and how the building is built, the right way to allow light to come in. One thing is solar energy, the simplest way to start. Then, water conservation and water metres to be aware of how much you use it. Just so you are accountable.
