Head to Head
me so that the company can diversify into various verticals. If stainless steel per se is not interesting as a company profile, diverse portfolios such as defence and retail allow us to keep our workforce interested. For example, it has been my interest to raise awareness about stainless steel, particularly at a consumer level. For someone as young as yourself, how difficult has it been to mentor and guide the staff? The atmosphere of mentorship has to be informal. The boundaries have to break, even if it is sometimes as small as eating lunch together. But, at the same time, there is an entire generation of senior staff that may not take to this change very well. To them, I feel I have to first prove myself and only then can I be taken seriously. In the two years at Jindal Stainless, what has helped me gain their respect and create a smooth work ethic is the fact that I just didn’t turn up one day and become vice-chairman. I worked at the various Jindal businesses, especially on projects with my uncle, Sajjan Jindal. Coming with that experience, the people at our company are bound to have faith in my abilities.
The atmosphere of mentorship has to be informal. The boundaries have to break, even if it is sometimes as small as eating lunch together
Besides recruitment, what do you think has changed with a generation change within the company? In terms of the management style, I think the biggest differentiator for my generation is technology. A step as tiny as going paperless can tremendously reduce cost. Besides, business analytics and knowing the importance of smart marketing wasn’t something that was prevalent even 10 years ago. Bringing that into the business makes quite an impact.