Amazing Bosses 9 - Mr. Dev Avadhani
One of the challenges in one’s career is that you grow up, become a “boss” yourself and then its not easy to place a person you report to on a pedestal. The relationships grow more equal and you become an equal partner in most situations unless there is a situation that exposes ones own limitations. Yet there can be exceptions and Mr. Dev Avadhani is that for sheer attitude, energy where he could shame a 25-year-old. Dev also provided maximum “thrills” in a manner of speaking. If the reader wants a trailer, then he can read this blog of mine from 2015. Hence, this piece is also written in a light-hearted manner.
When I was appointed to the job, I was supposed to join a totally
different division. Days before the joining date I was moved to the division
headed by Dev. Normally anybody heading a business would throw a fit at being
given a 2nd in command he had never met. But Dev simply took it in his stride
like everything else. One meeting over coffee and we were friends. With a week
to go for my joining date he requested that I visit the office to be introduced
to the Chairman of the board. That is when my roller coaster ride with Dev
began.
The same evening, he asked that early next morning I fly to attend a
tender committee meeting with a defence undertaking on a missile project. He
had forgotten about this and nobody was available, and he wanted me to handle
it. Beyond seeing a missile on TV I had no clue, no clue about my employer,
tender, customer and Dev simply said – “Come on, you are senior and you will be
able to handle this. I will send the file to your home tonight with the
tickets. You can read it on your way and be prepared”. The next day, not
yet an employee, I was winging my way into the unknown.
I read the file, understood little and with a prayer entered this large
conference room. The meeting started and had at the head some 5 chaps sitting
seriously as if they were pronouncing some death sentence. In the middle sat a
chap in uniform with all kinds of medals and ribbons looking like Clint
Eastwood from Dirty Harry and a bunch of others also like me “bidding” for the
project. The meeting started and while everybody asked questions I shut up,
listened, simply made notes, and was feeling relaxed when the uniformed chap
addressing me suddenly said “We had asked some questions, and everybody has
replied except your company”. I was now feeling confident because the topmost
document in the file was a letter with answers given by my would-be employer.
Confidently I said that we had indeed replied, indicating the date. The effect
was like a nuke.
The committee got into a huddle and the uniformed chappie sent his men
running to locate the letter and finally he had to admit defeat. Now wondering
how to handle the crisis he confessed that they did not have our letter in
their records. Helpful as always, I pointed out the name of the officer to who
it was addressed and there were bewildered looks – apparently no such officer
worked for them. That is when I had a pang of doubt. Now confident the uniform
chappie gave me the 3rd degree and soon the facts were out. I was at the
correct address, but I had the wrong file, wrong missile, wrong customer.
Uniform announced lunch and over lunch became friends with me as he
commiserated with my situation. When I told Dev about this, he had a hearty
laugh and that was when I realised what I was getting into in this new job.
Dev was one of those people in life who seem to attract the bizarre,
unusual adventure stuff in life – to share a few.
Dev went to a global defence expo and was very excited as he discussed
and closed a deal to supply the company’s product with a bunch of folks and
these folks said they would return after lunch to sign the deal. Logic would
dictate that any salesman would offer to take such clients out for lunch but
since Dev always skipped lunch, this thought never occurred to him, saving his
life. Soon after he was buttonholed by a chap from a government secret service
organisation and told that the folks Dev had dealt with were from a dreaded
terrorist outfit and if he did the deal the secret service would do him in. If
he did not the terrorist folks were likely to do him in. What was the solution?
Dev abandoned the company booth, his luggage, hotel room and jumped into a taxi
on the spot, went to the airport and caught the first flight out of that
country before the terrorists returned from lunch. Finally, back in India he
went into hiding for a month while his office received strange calls asking for
him.
Another occasion Dev oversold the company product to none other than the
super cop KPS Gill. The irrepressible Mr. Gill demanded a trial by fire on the spot.
He demanded that Dev and he step outside, Dev wear the protective jacket and
Gill would shoot him. If he survived the order was his. Dev unsure went ahead
and stood in the field wearing the jacket like that kid in the William Tell
story. Mr. Gill after all the drama did not shoot him but instead impressed
gave him the business.
Developing a new product that could also float in water Dev did an
oversell to an elite Indian commando unit. The chief of the unit finally took
him out to a swimming pool and asked him to demonstrate the product. Dev being
Dev, wore the jacket and jumped into the pool without hesitation knowing that
he knew swimming. Floating on his back like a “dead body” he impressed the
commando Chief into doing business with the company.
Once Dev went to a state troubled with militancy taking my junior with
him. As they were having breakfast the chaps who were to take them to the
meeting arrived – in a Maruti van covered in dark black tint all over. His
instincts kicked in, churning his stomach that he excused himself, went to his
room, locked himself in and called up the local police chief. They had sent
nobody in such a vehicle and soon the cops sent a posse of commandos and the
Maruti Van sped away. The intent apparently was to kidnap senior management of
companies who visited the state and get ransom. All travel to that state was
banned by Dev after this.
The funny side apart Dev had this enormous gift to be able to spot
opportunity like an Eagle from high up in the sky. He spotted so many that like
in the blog referred above he was like a satellite that made you chase so many
ideas, projects that one just did not have the resources or bandwidth to do
justice. If an organisation were willing to throw money and resources at
whatever Dev pointed out, they could grow at double digits easily. In hindsight
I have seen how he was spot on right about every big idea he suggested and
others who chased those ideas have become large corporations over time. But at
the time he suggested these ideas any normal thinking board would have serious
questions about the business based on what they could see. Some of his ideas
have come to fruition 6 to 8 years later as I can vouch in my own case but that
was Dev – the uncanny ability to smell something in the future.
At work Dev was like mercury. Even 20+ chaps would find it difficult to
keep up with him. His energy was limitless. He would call me to his cabin
asking me to do something and by the time I was back in my seat, he would have
initiated action and irritated me no end – why the hell did you even tell me?.
Soon I realised he was supercharged. Dev would take a 2 ½ flight in the
morning, attend 4 meetings in different corners of the city and fly back home
in the night. When I found myself taking an hour just to drive between these
same locations, I refused to rush back the same day putting in 16 ~ 18 hr days
rushing like a man possessed. Even my juniors staying in that city found it
difficult to keep up with him but then that was Dev – “Mercury Man”.
To get an idea of how he would work. On one occasion he had signed up to
send one of us to United Kingdom as a part of a business delegation and the
person selected forgot to mention he did not have a passport till the eve of
the departure date. I was in Mumbai when he said I had to leave immediately for
London and that night got me back, early morning next day made me fly to
Chennai, drive to meet the British consulate to who he had spoken, get my visa across
the table, drive back to airport, fly back to Bangalore, and then switch to a
flight to Mumbai and from there catch a flight to London – all this in about
half a day. No idea however bizarre was unacceptable to him. He agreed,
supported, and had the name of the division changed we worked in together in a
rebranding strategy suggested by me. That the name was in existence for decades
and the change was almost like sacrilege did not bother him. He pushed my idea
down everybody’s throat including the board. Working with Dev was like working
inside a Hurricane.
He trusted you implicitly. Like the satellite he would point out an
opportunity and then trusted you to chase it to closure. If, however you faced
roadblocks he seized the leadership without ever making you feel that it had
been taken away from you and navigate the blocks before giving it back
seamlessly. He thought so high and so wide that we actually came up with a
version of the existing product that costed and was priced 2.5 times higher but
was unique in its performance. Unable to appreciate the uniqueness in
performance I still remember that Dev got a tongue lashing from some of the
highest in the land in politics and administration since they felt that the
company was cheating the Government. But he stood firm and proved us right even
if it took many months of stress and anxiety for all.
Very interestingly both me and Dev quit and were jointly relieved on the
same day.
The last one in this series on Amazing Bosses with yet another Amazing Boss – Mr. Dev Avadhani
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