Note to readers:
Nirmal Jain, founder of IIFL, is a well-known figure in the domestic financial sector and a strong advocate of the India growth story. Jain leads a financial conglomerate which has listed entities such as IIFL Finance, IIFL Securities and IIFL Wealth Management. Jain, who started his career in Hindustan Unilever in 1989, founded IIFL Securities in 1996. The company has over 2.4 million customers now across 2500 locations. In a quick chat with Moneycontrol, Jain talks about his management style and daily schedule, among other things.
Edited excerpts:
What time do you like to be at your desk?
Earlier it was around 9:30 am in the morning, but post Covid, since the unlock process has begun, I start working early at home and reach office around 10am -10:30 am.
Where is the best place to prepare for leadership: at business school or on the job?
On the job, but both have an important role to play.
Are tough decisions best taken by one person or collectively?
All tough decisions are taken collectively in our organization.
Do you want to be liked, feared or respected?
Liked What does your support team look like?
My support team is a well-knit bunch of charged-up and motivated individuals, most of whom are millennials and are digital-savvy.
A business outside of the financial services or a business leader that you draw inspiration from? Inspiration from outside my business area would be the fascinating stories of ecommerce businesses like Amazon and Flipkart.
Which books have influenced you the most?
Animal Farm by George Orwell, Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham, Reminiscences of a Stock Operator by Edwin Lefevre, Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman and Exponential Organizations: Why new organizations are ten times better, faster, and cheaper than yours (and what to do about it) by Salim Ismail, Michael S. Malone, Yuri van Geest.
Do you socialise with your team outside of work?
Yes, I do socialise with my team outside of work, although in the recent past because of Covid it has been limited, but I look forward to such opportunities.
What would your key management advice be?
The business models across the world are changing and particularly more so in the financial services industry with revolutionary technologies, much stricter regulatory environment, and empowered customers. Therefore, participatory management is the key to success in today’s world, because together as a team we always have far better solutions. You have to be open minded because many impossible looking things can work, while many obvious things to do may not be worth doing.
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