1. 1. RAHUL BAJAJ PERSONALITYPROFILE
2. 2. INTRODUCTIONMr. Bajaj ( June 10, 38) is recognized as one of the most successfulbusiness leaders of India. He heads the Bajaj Group of Companieswhich is a leader in a variety of manufactured products and financialservices in India and abroad including motorized 2 and 3-wheelers,home appliances, electric lamps, wind energy, special alloy andstainless steel, cranes, forgings, infrastructure development, materialhandling equipment, travel, general and life insurance andinvestment, consumer finance & asset management.
3. 3. AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS In 1975, he received the "Man of the Year" award from National Institute of QualityAssurance Business India honoured him as Businessman of the year 1985. Bombay Management Association rewarded him for his service in the field ofManagement, in 1990. On behalf of the French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the French Ambassador Mr.JeromeBonn font presented the honour of Knight in the Order of the Legion of Honour to theCEO of Bajaj Auto, Rahul Bajaj. The French have numerous divisions in the Order and thetitle awarded to Rahul Bajaj is of the highest distinction. Rahul Bajaj Chairman, of Bajaj Auto Limited was conferred the Alumni AchievementAward by the Harvard Business School (HBS) from where he did his MBA in 1964, He was listed twentieth on the Forbes "Indias richest 40" list of people with a net worth ofUS$1.1 Billion For his contribution to Indian industry, he was awarded the nations third-highest civilianhonour, the Padma Bhushan, in 2001. He was elected to the Upper House of Parliament(Rajya Sabha)(2006-10) Economic Times and Ernst & Young bestowed their "lifetime achievement" awards on himin November 2004. Rani Durgavati University conferred the degree of Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa) inMarch 2005.
4. 4. PERSONALITY DETERMINANTS
5. 5. HERIDITY "Given my family background, I knew I wanted to be a businessman by thetime I was about 12," says Bajaj. His grandfather had bought a steel milland started a sugar mill, and in 1945 his father founded Bajaj Auto, nowthe crown jewel in the Bajaj Group, which numbers almost thirtycompanies in a variety of industries. Due to such environment prevailingaround, his mind was into business since the childhood days. He grew up in an environment when the Indian freedom struggle was atits fiery heights. The Bajaj family was truly nationalistic. Rahuls fatherand uncle were involved in the freedom struggle, and had also been jailedbriefly by the British Colonials for their patriotic fervour. Rahuls fatherserved as a three time Member of Parliament under the Congressgovernment. This is the reason he is not afraid of taking the risks. He isoutspoken, confident and a man of his words Jamnalal Bajaj was the firm believer in M.K Gandhi and so is Rahul Bajaj.He is high on ethics as it is evident from fact that he has never bribed anyofficial or has stolen any of the other companys project.
6. 6. SITUATION In the 1970s, India was a socialist state barred by rules and regulations. As a result, therewas no entrepreneurship and nothing could be done without government approval. At thisdifficult time Bajaj became the CEO of Bajaj Auto Ltd in 1968. In this environment, thecompany was limited to produce just 20,000 units a year. Supply and demand didntmatch. Hence, after placing their order, customers had to wait for roughly ten years toreceive it.To lower costs while improving the price and quality of the products, he increasedproduction to avail Economies of Scale. He ignored a government regulation andincreased volume by more than the permitted 25 prevent of his licensed capacity. He was appointed Chairman of Indian Airlines in 1984. This was the first instance whensomeone from the private sector had been given this responsibility. The initiation of Liberalization in India by the then PM Rajiv Gandhi posed great challengesfor Bajaj Auto. It brought the threat of cheap imports and FDI from top companies likeHero Honda. Rahul Bajaj became famous as the head of the Bombay Club, whichopposed this liberalization. Rahul Bajajs company was rock-solid and he didnt feelthreatened to join hands with a rag-tag band of men with completely different corporatecultures and ethics but for Bajaj, the issues were simple. He felt that the government hadnot allowed Indian industry to function freely for decades. When opening up the economyand laying out the red carpet to foreigners, it owed Indian industry the chance to put itshouse in order before forcing it to compete against global giants.
7. 7. SITUATION The slump in the sale of scooters and the downfall of the stock market of 2001 hit thecompany hard. It was forecast by some business analysts that Bajaj industries would haveto shut down soon. But without losing hope Rahul Bajaj with his business expertise re-established the battered company. He established another factory in Chakan, invested inR&D and came up with Bajaj Pulsar Motorcycle. Bajaj Pulsar is presently a leader in itssector. Rahul Bajaj took over the charge of Bajaj Group in 1965, under his leadership Bajaj Autohas grown to new heights year after year. The turnover of Bajaj Auto has risen from amere Rs.72 million to Rs.46.16 billion. He created one of Indias best companies in thedifficult days of the license-permit raj.Rahuls pet project - The Bajaj Chetak scooter was a huge success story. In 1980 withsome relaxation in LCVs companys started entering Indian markets through jointventures. Rahul had foreseen this, and had gone in for a massive appointment of newdealers throughout the country. He also initiated advertising campaigns to improve thebrand recall in the minds of the customer.. His efforts paid off, and Rahul had ensured thatBajaj retained its top spot in the scooter industry in India. He had his share of low points in his life. His parting with the Firodias and the Italianautomobile major Piaggio left a bad taste. Rahuls spat with the Indira GandhiGovernment made the company suffered as they were not allowed to expand theirfacilities to keep up with the growing demand. The Union related problem at his factory,which turned violent, raised a few eyebrows on the Bajaj Management. In the 80s;analysts criticized him for sticking to his knitting rather than diversifying, and forpreferring to pay hefty taxes rather than taking advantage of dubious tax loopholes.
8. 8. ENVIRONMENT Rahul Bajaj went to The Cathedral and John Conon School. He graduated from St.Stephens College in Delhi in 1958 with an honours degree in economics. Back inBombay, Bajaj did a two-year stint at Bajaj Electricals, clocking in after morninglectures at the Government Law College. He spent most of 1961-62 as a juniorpurchase officer at Mukand and with some work experience under his belt, he leftfor Harvard Business School in USA. He joined Bajaj Auto as Deputy General Manager, in charge of the Commercialfunction of the company. Rahul was made to involve himself in almost alldepartments in the company including key departments in the company likeMarketing, Accounts, Purchase, and Audit etc. except manufacturing. Thecompany was gaining prominence as the two-wheeler market had begun toexpand exponentially. Under the guidance of Naval K Firodia, the Chief Executive of Bajaj Auto, Rahulbegan to learn the nuances of the business.
9. 9. 16 CATTELL FACTOR TEST
10. 10. SOCIAL ASSERTIVENESS High Score- Uninhibited, Bold Low Score- Shy, Withdrawn Rahul Bajaj Is high on this factorBecause as seen in theincident of breaking the rule of the limited production ofscooters he increased the production without any onespermission. Therefore we can say that his nature is very boldand inhibited as he is very resilient and gutsy. His statements about the kingfisher airlines, and Rajat Guptashows his high social assertiveness.
11. 11. WARMTH High Score- Supportive, Comforting Low Score- Cold, Selfish Rahul Bajaj has been high on this factor as his speeches heclearly mentions his views about the Indian economy and hisconcern towards the citizens of his country and he also came intopolitics to serve the people of the nation. And he also makes hisemployees feel very comfortable while he talks to them. At the time when Bajaj scooters were selling at a waiting periodof ten years and were being sold at double the price in the blackmarket he thought for the citizens of the country and did notincreased the price of vehicle even the ball was in his court.Rather he decided to increase the production to double and hewas even ready to go to jail for doubling the production.
12. 12. INTELLECT High Score- Analytical, Cerebral Low Score- Instinctive, Unstable According to his interview all his decisions are thoroughly analysedand are properly pertained to his brain due to which Bajaj Auto the4th largest two wheeler manufacturer of the world. And when askedabout getting into the four wheeler market he just said that forgetting into such competitive market you have to attain at least the2nd position in the two wheeler market. According to Bajaj "If Bajaj Auto cannot be a world player in itsfield, I do not deserve the right to diversify. You should diversifyfrom a position of strength, not from a position of weakness.
13. 13. EMOTIONAL STABILITY High Score- Calm, Level Headed Low Score- Irritable, Moody Rahul Bajaj is moderate on this factor as seen in his interviewwith Karan Thappar he was easily irritated when the conversationgot too personal and direct; but in other interviews he was foundvery calm and quiet when answering the questions. Rahul Bajaj is very short Tempered when it comes to his ownethics but he is also very patient at times when it comes to takingserious decisions.
14. 14. INTROVERSION High Score- Private, Quiet Low Score- Open, Friendly Rahul Bajaj is low on this factor as seen in his many interviewsand speeches he is found to be very open and friendly and hasportrayed himself as what he is from inside is from outside. The editor of Business Standard T.N. Ninan has mentioned that"He uses a hundred words when ten would do."
15. 15. BIG FIVE PERSONALITY TEST
16. 16. ABOUT THE BIG 5 PERSONALITY TEST In psychology, the Big Five personality traits are five broaddomains or dimensions of personality that are used to describehuman personality. The theory based on the Big Five factors iscalled the Five Factor Model (FFM) The Big Five framework of personality traits from Costa & McCrae,1992 emerged as a robust model for understanding therelationship between personality and various academicbehaviors. The Big Five factors are: Openness (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious) Conscientiousness (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless) Extraversion (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved) Agreeableness (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind) Neuroticism (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident)
17. 17. EXTRAVERSION High- Open and friendly Low- Quiet and private Rahul Bajaj is high on extraversion as he is outgoing, talkative andsociable. We can see this as Rahul Bajaj openly speaks about what is on hismind. For example, when Vijay Malaya asked for governmentsupport when Kingfisher was going down, Rahul Bajaj openlyspoke against it. Also, Rahul Bajaj openly voiced his opinion about being happyabout Rajat Gupta getting a lenient jail sentence. He was also openly against liberalization in India.
18. 18. AGREEABLENESS High- Empathetic friendly and helpful low-- Manipulative and self-centred Rahul Bajaj is moderate on agreeableness. He is very helpful ascan be seen in the numerous corporate social responsiblyinitiatives that Bajaj auto has taken and also, Rahul Bajaj is always very concerned about his employees. But, even though he listens to his subordinates, the final decisionis always his.
19. 19. CONSCIENTIOUSNESS High: Hardworking and reliable Low: less goal oriented and laid-back Rahul Bajaj is high on conscientiousness as it can be seen by thesuccess of the company. From just a scooter manufacturingcompany Rahul Bajaj has diversified the company intoautomobiles, electrical, insurance ,travel and finance. Rahul Bajaj took over the charge of Bajaj Group in 1965, under hisleadership Bajaj Auto has grown to new heights year after year.The turnover of Bajaj Auto has risen from a mere Rs.72 million toRs.46.16 billion
20. 20. EMOTIONAL STABILITY High- Level Headed and Calm Low- Moody and Irritable He has moderate emotional stability. Sometimes he gets very emotional looking at peoples problemsbut other times, he does not move an inch. He lost control of his emotions as shown in Karan Thaparsinterview in his show devils advocate.
21. 21. OPENNESS TO EXPERIENCE High- Imaginative, sensitive, intellectual Low- Incomprehensible Rahul Bajaj is high on this factor as can be seen that when foreigncompanies came in and the stock market collapsed in 2001, Butwithout losing hope Rahul Bajaj with his business expertise re-established the battered company. He established another factoryin Chakan, invested in R&D and came up with Bajaj PulsarMotorcycle. Bajaj Pulsar is presently a leader in its sector.
22. 22. MAJOR PERSONALITY ATTRIBUTESAFFECTING OB Locus of Control Machiavellianism Self-Esteem Self-Monitoring Risk Taking Type A and Type B Personalities
23. 23. LOCUS OF CONTROL The degree to which people believe they are in control of theirown fate. Internals:Individuals who believe that they control what happens to them Externals:Individuals who believe that what happens to them is controlled by outside forces such as luck or chance. I am a believer. I firmly believe that God exists but I do not make a show ofthis belief. I do not pray at temples, I do not follow rituals. But I do pray a lotalthough I do not have a fixed time or place to pray.-RAHUL BAJAJ I belong to a deeply religious family, so I have no reason not to believe in God. Ialso believe in karma and the doctrine that man makes his own destiny. Mykarma will determine my future. Also in his interview at CNBC , he blamed Government and entry of othercompanies for his companys downfall in late 1990s Thus Rahul Bajaj is an external person.
24. 24. MACHIAVELLANISMDegree to which an individual is pragmatic, maintains emotionaldistance, and believes that ends can justify means. .People high on this factor tend to be rash decision makers and wouldnot give a thought on how their decisions would affect others.Such individuals may some times not take decisions within theframework of the organization. Rahul Bajaj is high on this factor. He made a rash decision toincrease the production in 1967 when the government didnt allowhim to increase it. Without giving a second thought that he couldbe jailed. But he too takes his own decisions on his own withfeedback from employees. Also he didnt diverse in other fields in 1980s due to which he wascriticized.
25. 25. SELF-ESTEEMIndividuals degree of liking or disliking of themselves.People with lower self esteem generally lack self confidence.High on self esteem tends to make a person goal oriented andachievement oriented. Rahul Bajaj is high on this factor as he is a goal oriented person andhigh on confidence. He is a person who has the ability to call aspade a spade. He is outspoken. He turned the Profits of thecompany from Rs.72 million to Rs.46.16 billion today.He isextremely goal oriented and achievement oriented. He made anexcellent company during license raj.
26. 26. SELF MONITORING A personality trait that measures an individuals ability toadjust behaviour to external situational factors. People high on this personality trait would adjust themselvesquickly to external environment. These people can control theiremotions quickly. Rahul Bajaj was moderate on this factor. He strongly opposedFDI in 1991 because he knew that it would bring in cheaperimports of raw materials and there might be chances that hiscompany wouldnt survive. When he saw scooters coming intothe market in 80s he became aggressive on his marketingstrategies. Handed over the company to his Son when he feltthat he wont be able to compete in motorcycle market.
27. 27. RISK TAKING Refers to a persons willingness to take chances or risks Also refers to some levels of decision making. Whether he / she isdecisive or need external help for their decision making. He was high on this factor as he took the risk of increasing theproduction even though the government didnt permit it. He wasdecisive in nature as he took the decisions on his own. After theheart attack he started delegating his work to the senior officialsof the company.
28. 28. TYPE A PERSONALITY The theory describes a Type A individual as ambitious,rigidly organized, highly status conscious, can be sensitive, carefor other people, are truthful, impatient, always try to helpothers, take on more than they can handle, want other people toget to the point, proactive, and obsessed with time management.People with Type A personalities are often high-achieving"workaholics" who multi-task, push themselves with deadlines,and hate both delays and ambivalence. Rahul Bajaj is a Type A personality as it is seen in his interviewsthat he measured his success in terms of numbers. Unlike others he spend his leisure time with the employeeschildren in his factory premises. He is a workaholic as he took the break of merely 4 days between1964-1984
29. 29. Myers-Briggs Personality TypeIndicator
30. 30. Extraversion V/S Introversion He is an extrovert. Entrepreneurs are not known for their sharptongues. But Rahul Bajaj is. When wielded, sharp tongues may cutdown profits and invite victimization from the government. He isvery brazen and outspoken about his views. He is bold andaggressive when it comes to express them. Bajaj likes to do things his own way. He has no inhibitions, when itcomes to speaking his mind, and he does that remarkably loudlyand defiantly. This characteristic made Rahul Bajaj famous as thehead of the Bombay Club that vehemently opposed liberalization inthe Nineties. Bajaj was never shy of announcing his friendship or specialrelationship with Sharad Pawar, though the latter has lot manypolitical foes in Delhis political circles. He chose to strike rapport with his 20,000-odd employees, basicallywith his personal equation and talking to them. At the factory, he isnot a tight-lipped, inscrutable boss, but more an intimate friend,who talks directly. This style of openness and cordiality, he believes,enhances productivity, quality and smoother functioning.
31. 31. Sensing V/S Intuitive Sensing : The past few generations of successful Indian businessmen did nothave formal education. They were more known for native wisdomand robust common sense. They sensed the changing directions of theblowing wind and adjusted accordingly to make the best of thechange for their businesses and personal fortunes. Rahul Bajaj had formal education in business administration at theworld renowned Harvard University. Though he inherited thecommon sense of the business family, his was a more scientificapproach towards management. He relied on gathering data, makingsurveys and studying the projections of the economy. When economic liberalization became a reality in India and rival HeroHonda made him bite the dust, Rahul Bajaj thought of recoveringfrom the paralyzing blow by setting up altogether a new world-classfactory in Chakan, near Pune, invested heavily in the R&D and cameback to the market with Bajaj Pulsar Motorcycle. Bajaj Pulsar is a bighit and currently a leader in the two-wheeler segment. A scientific management approach made this possible, not intuition.
32. 32. Thinking V/S Feeling Rahul Bajaj cannot exactly be described as a person, who was alwaysright or who was not sentimental. He was sentimentally attached to theLicense & Permit Raj. He had acquired an expertise on how to function inthat system. Rather he had become a bit inert in the protectedatmosphere. When the liberalization came in the Ninties, he opposed itand spoke on behalf of the regressive elements in the industry. Also, heescaped logic. He thought liberalization was reversible. He was rathersentimental. But soon reasoning prevailed over him. He fell in line. He toed the line ofhealthy competition and innovation. He went to create a market leaderBajaj Pulsar two-wheeler, braving a break-neck competition. When he took over the reins of Bajaj Group in 1965, the turn over wasjust Rs.72 million. Now it has crossed Rs.46 billion. Now the Bajaj Group has diversified interests ranging from automobiles,home appliances, lighting, iron and steel, insurance, travel and finance.
33. 33. Judging V/S Perceiving Rahul Bajaj changed his style of decision making, when he tookover his family business, the Bajaj group, in mid-Sixties. It was Rahuls grandfather Jamnalal Bajaj, who had launched theBajaj Group. Jamanalalji was a close associate of MahatmaGandhi and had an unwavering loyalty to the Gandhian principles.Rahuls father, Kamalnayan Bajaj, served as a Congress MP forthree-times. The whole family was honed in the Gandhianambience. Rahul had to survive and grow in the ruthlessly negative ambienceof the License & Permit Raj that was marked by red-tapism,favoritism and corruption. It was urgent and must for him toremould his style. He did it. Rahul Bajaj created one of Indias best companies in those difficultdays, when entrepreneurship and profits were considered to bedirty words.
34. 34. ESTJESTJs are hardworking traditionalists, eager to take charge in organizingprojects and people. Orderly and rule-abiding, ESTJs like to get thingsdone, and tend to go about projects in a systematic, methodical way. Theyvalue factual evidence over conjecture, and trust their personalexperience. ESTJs are the consummate organizers, and want to bringstructure to their surroundings. They value predictability and prefer thingsto proceed in a logical order. If chaos is present, the ESTJ often takes theinitiative to establish processes and guidelines, so that everyone knowswhats expected. The ESTJ wants to achieve efficient productivity andtypically believes this is best accomplished when people and systems arewell organized. ESTJs are usually outgoing and enjoy upholding family andcultural traditions. They concern themselves with maintaining the socialorder and keeping others in line. ESTJs often take on a project managerrole at home as well as at work, and excel at setting goals, makingdecisions, and organizing resources to accomplish a task.
35. 35. BLAKE & MOUTONSMANAGERIAL GRID The Blake and Mouton managerial grid uses two axis. Concern for people is plotted against the y axis Concern for work/production is plotted against the x axis. Each axis ranges from 1(low) to 9(high).
36. 36. MANAGERIAL GRID
37. 37. LEADERSHIP STYLES The impoverished style (1,1)- In this style, managers have low concern for bothpeople and production. Managers use this style to preserve job and job seniority,protecting themselves by avoiding getting into trouble. The country club style (1,9)- This style has a high concern for people and a lowconcern for production. Managers using this style pay much attention to thesecurity and comfort of the employees, in hopes that this will increaseperformance. The produce or perish style (9,1)-With a high concern for production, and a lowconcern for people. Managers using this style pressure their employees throughrules and punishments to achieve the company goal. This style is often used incases of crisis management. The team style (9,9)- In this style, high concern is paid both to people andproduction. As suggested by the propositions of Theory Y, managers choosing touse this style encourage teamwork and commitment among employees. Thismethod relies heavily on making employees feel themselves to be constructiveparts of the company. Middle of the road style (5,5)- Managers using this style try to balance betweencompany goals and workers needs. By giving some concern to both people andproduction, managers who use this style hope to achieve suitable performancebut doing so gives away a bit of each concern so that neither production norpeople needs are met.
38. 38. We analyzed Rahul Bajaj and he lies at(9,7) in the managerial grid
39. 39. CONCERN FOR PEOPLE On personal front, he is more a human than a businessman. He is veryliberal to his employees and gives them lot of independence and roomto learn, create and innovate while at work. This makes his employeesinvolved and interested in working in an open and friendlyenvironment, which is not possible by coercion. This shows his empathytowards employees and his relationship with them. As a great strategist and business analyst, Rahul Bajaj visualized thenecessity of safe and hazel free transport availability, for the averageIndian household. He played key role in the design and development ofBajaj Chetak scooters in India. This shows his concern towards common-man. On the contrary, to the new leadership practices, Bajaj never believedin delegating authority to all. He always keeps himself at the helm ofthings. He gave a patient hearing to all others ideas. However, the finaldecision was made at his discretion.
40. 40. CONCERN FOR WORK Rahul Bajaj has established Bajaj Group as top player in India with histremendous efforts and seamless hard work. He is exhaustively workaholic and never likes to take a break. In twenty years oflong stretch from 1965-1984, he took a leave of just 4 days. This would probablybe the reason why Bajaj Group emerged as a company of excellence with smoothand friction free operations. Between 1978 and 1981, Bajaj Autos export salesjumped from Rs63.5m to Rs133.2m. A euphoric Bajaj even ran a campaign in Timemagazine, perhaps the first Indian advertiser to do so. Under the helm of Rahul, Bajaj Group has diversified into various businessverticals ranging from automobiles, home appliances, lighting, iron and steel,insurance, travel and finance; serving needs of all categories of consumers. RahulBajaj applied his cross-pollinated ideas on the growth of the company and turnedit around from a company of Rs.72 million to Rs.46.16 billion. This was possibleby striking decisiveness and assertiveness of Rahul Bajaj even at turbulent timesand his great business acumen. In 2001, recession and collapse of stock markets hardly hit the sales of scooters.Some business analysts even forecasted that there was every possibility that BajajAutos would shut down. However, Rahul Bajaj with high determination and greatperseverance; reinvented the company.
41. 41. CONCLUSION Rahul Bajaj Is a leader who led from the front, with his actions proving so. His thinkingand taking decisions based on honesty has always paid off. For e.g., after the workersstrike in 1979, there has been no other strike at the pune plant because they reached aconsensus which was a win for both Bajaj and the workers.Rahul Bajaj has always stayed true to his words. When he says something, he sticks by it.He is not fickle minded. We can learn to be honest and truthful. Bajaj has never bribedanyone in his life. He did not give any bureaucrat a single penny to secure licenses.Rahul Bajaj was also very hardworking and knows every part of the company as at thebeginning of his career, he worked in almost all departments of the Bajaj business. Bajaj knows how to handle difficult situations in a good manner. When liberalizationhappened and competitors like Honda came in, Rahul Bajaj increased his advertising andhis R&D expenditure to ensure that his products are not inferior to his competition. Also,He made it through the parting with firodias and piaggio and is still a very big nametoday. Bajaj also knew what was the right thing to do when. When he was not getting licensesto produce more vehicles, even though there was a lot of demand, he did not exploit thesituation and charge a higher price. Instead, he found ways to produce more. Lastly, it is the passion of Rahul Bajaj for his company that inspires us. He led a scootermanufacturing company to where it is today and the fact that he lives in his factorygrounds even though he could afford a sprawling mansion, proves how much he loves hiswork.