Billionaire Anil Agarwal says he often gets asked by entrepreneurs how to expand their businesses and he always advises them to get two things right -- empower young talent and let local people lead.
Sharing a handwritten note on Twitter, the Vedanta chairman also recollected how the mantra resulted in profits worth $25 million in a year for a company he had bought.
"In 1990s, I learned about another bankrupt company, Copper Mines of Tasmania in Australia. I flew from India to see if I could acquire it. I was advised that it was risky but my faith was strong," Anil Agarwal wrote.
"I remember I had gone to meet the Premier of Tasmania to close this deal... and showed him my turnaround plan. He decided to give the plant to me and I put in $2.5 million to lock in the deal."
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Next, he revealed that he made the general manager of the plant the company head, empowering him to do things his way. "The passion and dedication with which he worked, I hadn't seen it even in the CXOs of the company," Agarwal said.
He also downsized the company and kept only three people in the senior leadership, leaving the rest of the company to be led by locals. "It's how you sweeten milk by adding sugar... that's how when setting up business away from home, you must work with the locals to bring the best results," the industrialist added.
After the changes, the company made $25 million in profits and continued to stay profitable for 10 years, Agarwal said.
"Our success in Australia changed everything for us. This led to substantial growth of Vedanta," he added.
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