Why I turn up at work -CEO, KPMG INDIA
The greatest asset I have built over
my working years is the wealth of relationships. The human connection; the
ability to make a difference and empower change that's what puts a spring in
my step every morning. For me, people are the heart and soul of an
organization. The quality of work from motivated and engaged people is what
will lead an organization to success. Our lives get so busy that it is easy to
forget to connect. That's why I make a conscious effort. I have made it a
practice to meet newly qualified chartered accountants across offices to have a
chat with them about their careers, their lives, their ideas about the firm I
feel it is important to have honest conversations with people. It is the same
with clients. I do not believe in being transactional. When we deliver jobs, we
are making a difference to businesses where people work for a living, where
people may have staked their life's worth on. I try and never forget that. So
it's never just a job for me. Trust is important. People come to me because
they believe that they will get the right advice, that puts a huge
responsibility on me.
I have been fortunate that I had a
mentor very early in my career. He has had a huge influence on the way I
approach my life and towards the underlying principles, values and work ethics
that I hold dear to my heart. Integrity, honesty, open and transparent way of
operating, positive thinking, empowering people to grow, giving back to
society, motivating people -I had the opportunity to work with someone who
lived his life in this manner. I cannot forget the day he said to his partners,
“With god's grace, I have provided for my family; you are young and you need to
provide for the future. From today onwards, you can divide the profits amongst
yourselves.“ He limited his own income to a small amount. He encouraged us to
give away a percentage of our gross revenues for causes that we believed in. He
ensured that we punched above our weight and that we never gave up.
Everyone has setbacks in their life.
When I expected to make it to partner earlier in my career and did not make it,
of course there was disappointment. But I put aside negative thoughts and
worked even harder to prove both to myself and to others that I deserved the
position. Another time in recent years, one of our clients terminated a
contract without reason. A lot of investment and work had already gone in. The
contract had a clause to invoke penalty for termination and initially I did
consider imposing it. In the end, I decided to discuss the client situation
with empathy and an eye on the long term relationship between the firm and the
client. My decision to discuss their future plans instead of the early termination
propelled our relationship with the client in the long run. We have since done
significant business with the same client and are privileged to be their
preferred advisors for numerous engagements.
What helps me go through bad patches
at work is having a vision and a long term view. I've never expected life to be
easy so I take disappointments in my stride. I focus on solutions and not on
the problem. I focus on innovating, adapting if possible, changing the trend
and setting new precedents altogether but avoid the frustration and
disillusionment of the inevitable blame game. I am fortunate to be working with
some of the most talented people in the industry who are constantly focused on
pegging higher benchmarks and reinventing the wheel. The only goal I set for
myself is to do my best, to go beyond expectations. Work is worship for me, I
want to see my firm grow into a centre of excellence for both staff and
clients. It must be the best place to work for. I am trying to build a
differentiator that is seen by all, deliver high quality services, focus on
innovation and client servicing. For this I am always challenging the status
quo, listening to people, understanding the trends to keep ahead of the curb.
We are on a transformation journey and at the end of it I want the firm to
emerge as a name that people are proud to be associated with. Heads should turn
when our name is spoken. It is not the top revenue numbers I seek, but respect
for our work, for our ethics and for our culture. Trying to make individuals go
beyond their potential to find purpose and meaning in their lives is what
drives my passion. In the end, it's the thought of touching the lives of 8,500
people at work and those of our numerous clients, making a positive difference
to them and through our work to society at large is what keeps me coming back
to work day after day. CD
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By Richard Rekhy
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CEO, KPMG India
CDET20MAR15
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