Founded in 1976, the young HCL team led by Shiv Nadar bet big on the nascent Indian IT industry, which is now become a USD 5 billion global enterprise and today, we meet the future of HCL — or at least HCL Corporation, the privately-held holding company that houses HCL Technologies and HCL Infosystems. The new executive director and COO of HCL Corp Roshni Nadar is back from an MBA programme at Kellog and is taking forward her father’s mission to make quality education accessible.

Roshni’s baby, the Rs 500-crore Vidyagyan Schools project, has kicked off with the first opening in Uttar Pradesh. So is the young Nadar is stepped for her role? CNBC-TV18 finds out.

Below is a verbatim transcript of Roshni Nadar and Shiv Nadar’s exclusive interview on CNBC-TV18. Also watch the accompanying video.

Q: Let me start by asking you, your profile on the company website says, “Roshni brings a global outlook, a strategic vision and a passion for social enterprise and building institutions.” You are only in your 20s. Do you actually feel ready for this sort of role and responsibility?

Roshni Nadar: Partly yes, partly no.

Q: What is the part you feel ready for?

Roshni Nadar: I came back last summer and I graduated from Kellogg. I studied social enterprise. We just rolled out Vidyagyan on July 13, which is our school, and I have literally been involved from the beginning till it rolled out. Now I’ve given it to the principal and teachers. They have to see our vision through. It has been so exciting.

In a lot of ways, I’ve gotten to apply a lot what I have read about or learnt about. So, from that perspective I feel like I am sort of ready. The not so ready part is that I have my parent’s kind of guiding it and helping me.

Q: But as the Executive Director and CEO of HCL Corp, and once again I come back to the release, which says she is responsible for strategic direction for only the HCL Corporation. So, that is emphasized in that sense but it is still the holding company for the two listed entities?

Roshni Nadar: I know. It is the holding company but in terms of strategic decision and come back and one thing is the investment and the other thing for the portfolio, which in a lot of ways is a family portfolio. So, the strategic direction regarding that and where we want to take it in terms of our education initiative, and I look at that as an investment opportunity or other things.

At some point if you come back and if you are going to be involved then you kind of have to step up. I have been thrown into the ocean, and now I have to swim.

Q: But was there no apprehension that how are people actually going to respond to this? Were you intimidated yourself by the fact that you are going to come in at this CEO level without really having worked for the company at all?

Roshni Nadar: As far as HCL Corporation goes, the only person I was actually working with was my father and people in the Corporation. I hadn’t worked in the operating companies or had any exposure. But that bit I was prepared for, that I would come back and get involved with Corporation. The only other contenders for that was either my mom or dad or me, it’s a private holding company and when we talk about strategic direction and investments this is truly our family portfolio. As far as the impact of HCL Corporation goes in directions to the operating companies, my father sits on the board of HCL Technologies and he is driving in the direction in some way for HCL Info systems but I am not involved.

Q: So will you get involved?

Roshni Nadar: I don’t know, it’s too premature, I have a lot to learn and to be able to be really involved in the operating companies first you need to be a part of the company in some function or the other.

Q: Is that the next level as this plan is concerned of getting you in to HCL Corp and then gradually you becoming a part of the listed entities as well?

Roshni Nadar: I don’t think there is any plan right now because the First Vidyagyan has come this year, next year is the second one and subsequently there is going to be one every year and they only get further away from Delhi and the Shiv Nadar University.

Q: But you are open to the idea?

Roshni Nadar: I am open but I feel like it will again evolve over my discussions with my father.

Q:  But do you feel ready to actually be part of a listed entity in that sense?

Roshni Nadar: No. I am very young – I have a lot to learn, so no.

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