– Dr.Jairam Varadaraj, M.D, Elgi Equipments Ltd, Coimbatore
Almost four months is spent under lockdowns and restrictions but our country is still trying hard to find different ways to turn the scenario back to normal. To win the war against COVID, Dr.Jairam Varadaraj, M.D, Elgi Equipments Ltd, Coimbatore says that we have to win three battles. The first is the battle to survive, the next is the battle to protect people and the final battle is for the growth.
He was one of the four eminent speakers at an International Webinar organised by Rotary International District 3201 on Saturday. It focused on business, medical perspective, role of NGOs and Tips for Rotarians at COVID times. Dr.Jairam spoke on ‘Bracing up to the Business Challenge’.
Battle to Survive
He says that in order to win the battle to survive, the fundamental goal should be about remaining relevant. “Business opportunities have shrunk, costs have not” but we need to accept this as a reality, Dr.Jairam pointed. “We need to build a very strong cash-reserve in all our businesses in order to weather the storm”. He suggested the participants of the webinar to consider liquidating the “Ego-Assets” ( the properties that do not necessarily add value to the company but were bought as a person’s business grew).
“Now is the time for us to look deeply into those assets and liquidate them. These are very emotional decisions but this is where we need to step outside of our comfort zones and outside the normalcy of what determines our behavior, and really look at what is good for the business”. He says that irrespective of the market’s condition, a business-head or an entrepreneur should look at ways to bring cash into the system.
He advised the participants to look at the cost structure and discard all “Nice to Have Costs” . These costs are practices that are not necessary for the the delivery of business results but for the overall thought of saying we need to have this kind of soft luxury around us. The “Need to Have Costs” are fine but the other part that eats money unnecessarily should be eliminated.
Battle to Protect People
He pointed that many heads of organizations are strongly overcoming this crisis, at the same time there are millions of people who get their daily sustenance from their employment inorder to conduct their life. “We have a responsibility towards protecting the employment and financial security of our people.”
The people at the bottom of the pyramid are the ones facing extreme challenges, he registered and said “Business organizations have a big social responsibility” especially at this point of time. He shared that ELGi has not cut the jobs of the people nor have they reduced the salaries of those at the bottom of the pyramid. A reduction of salary has only been made to the top level people. He emphasized that the employees of an organization need to be taken care, if not then it would only be adding to the problem at hand and not solving it.
Battle to Growth
“It is difficult to be optimistic at a time like this but if you do not continue to believe in the future and in the purpose of your organization, then you will take decisions that could weaken your foundation”, he cautioned. He said that for transformation to take place in business, we need to invest time, perseverance and sustenance. Though it takes time, it will be worth it.
He brought the case of ELGi and said it took nearly 20 years for the company to transform and be what it is today. As the lockdown in India was almost 4 months long, the business operations here were dormant. Dr. Jairam said businesses in the rest of the world were not as badly affected as India. ” We believe we were in a better place than many organizations that were India- Dependent”. He suggested the participating business-heads to make use of the opportunities that are available in different parts of the world, so that they can have better defence when a calamity like this happens. He said it is a transformation that will demand time but will be worth it in the end.