Focus on staff, not financials: Charan
1 min read . Updated: 30 Apr 2021, 11:29 PM IST
PremiumCompanies across the globe have suffered due the ongoing pandemic, which has not only impacted key markets and economies but has also led to a health crisis.
New Delhi: Corporates should focus on the well being of their employees instead of just looking at ways to shore up finances during the ongoing pandemic, which has disrupted the economy and healthcare system of the country, management guru and business advisor Ram Charan, who advises several top companies said on Friday.
Speaking at Mint India Investment Summit 2021, in a fireside chat with Sumant Sinha, CMD of ReNew Power, Ram Charan said that the ongoing pandemic has taught companies important lessons, which include caring for the physical and mental well being of employees, and that cycle time (of a product) can be cut, which has been well established with vaccine manufacturers coming out with jabs for coronavirus in less than a year, compared to earlier normal of coming out with a vaccine in eight years.
"Every leader (and chief executives) will have to deal with the present by keeping their feet on the ground and building the future while confronting the realities of today," added Charan, who's also an independent director at ReNew Power, a leading Indian renewable energy company.
Companies across the globe have suffered due the ongoing pandemic, which has not only impacted key markets and economies but has also led to a health crisis.
The crisis has also led to several large corporations reporting huge losses or racking up debt.
Speaking at the summit, Sumant Sinha, chairman and managing director at ReNew Power said that his company's priorities have had a huge shift since the beginning of the pandemic early last year.
"At the beginning when we faced a lock down (during March-May 2020), there were lots of uncertainties....As we progressed, we realised that it's not that bad in terms of business and we even started looking out for opportunities. However, the last two months have been a tremendous setback," Sinha said adding that employee wellbeing, both physical and mental, have become the focus for his company during the pandemic.
"We have allocated money (for the pandemic), and the board has been supportive. We are doing this because it's the right thing to do and not because it's good for business," he added.
Meanwhile, top management and company boards should aspire to show return on investment while solving the various ESG ( Environmental, Social, and Governance) issues Ram Charan said.
"Most difficult part is not resource allocation but changing of (existing) habits," Charan added.
