AGENTS OF CHANGE: ANAND G. MAHINDRA 

Anand G. Mahindra, one of the most successful business men of India Inc., recently added another feather to his cap – Satyam Computer Services Ltd, which was counted as the fourth largest Information Technology (IT) services firm of India until the revelation of a financial fraud by its founder chairman.

It was a risk that even the top three Indian IT companies of India avoided, but Anand Mahindra went ahead with the calculated risk of bidding for Satyam that turned out to be “historical and game changer” in his own words. Venturbay Consultants Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of Tech Mahindra Ltd., India’s sixth largest software exporter outbid the diversified conglomerate Larsen & Toubro Ltd, U.S. based Cognizant Technology Solutions and American investor Wilbur Ross to acquire a controlling stake in Satyam Computer.

Anand Mahindra was among those business heads at the helm of family owned businesses who acknowledged that ownership should be separate from management. The professionalism has paid off well and his flagship firm Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, one of India’s leading automotive manufacturers known for its tractors, has carved out a niche space in the passenger vehicles space also with successful sports utility vehicle (SUV) models such as Scorpio and Xylo. The Scorpio, developed from scratch for just $120 million, became a case study at the Harvard Business School. Another group company Mahindra Holidays and Resorts has just ended a four-month long drought at India’s initial public offering (IPO) market.

When Anand Mahindra joined the family business in early 1980s, he had to struggle to change the work culture at the grass root level. Then he focused on diversifying the business and the Group has now significant presence in sectors such as automobiles, financial services, trade and logistics, hospitality, automotive components, information technology and infrastructure development.

Mahindra, India's top multi-utility vehicle maker and the world's fourth-largest tractor maker, has about 30% of the Indian tractor’s market share, the world's largest by volume.  Mahindra also has strong presence in urban and foreign markets like Russia, Brazil, Columbia and Africa. Mahindra was a co-founder of Kotak Mahindra Finance Ltd., which in 2003 was converted into a bank.