To mould the core values in an individual. Raju menon is an example. As head of Morison Menon, established in four GCC countries, with plans to expand in 50 cities in India, he believes in the human aspect of business. By Shiva Kumar Thekkepat.
If you only saw his business card you would imagine Raju Menon to be a formidable man. The qualifications fill up the white space impressively: M.Com, LLB, FCA, CPA… the list goes on. When you meet him, his unassuming and surprisingly modest manner is disarming. His smart suit and swanky office belong to one dimension. The other, that reveals itself quite quickly as the interview gets going, is that at heart he is still firmly rooted to his humble background (from a small village Cheekilode in Kerala, India).
His present-day success and wealth have in no way tampered with his core values and personal attitude to life. In fact his values have powered him on from the time when he was a chartered accountant apprenticing with firms in India, and later in Dubai, to setting up his own businesses. His consultancy has expanded beyond accounting and today includes IT and real estate.
Founder of the Morison Menon Group which began operations in 1994 in Dubai, he today employs a staff of 200 people across the GCC. The group has its headquarters in Dubai with offices in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah as well as operations in Oman, Qatar, Iran, Bahrain and India.
Menon is a rising star in the consultancy business but that is not his ultimate goal. His business growth is a device to fulfil his core belief – to want to make a difference in the lives of people and in this world. What is of real interest to him is to help people acquire the skills and means necessary to live a good life.
"What's the point of making a lot of money if you are not loved by many?" he says. The birth of this belief he credits to his mother who was a midwife and an example of selfless service and compassion in and around his village. Menon is trying to follow
in her footsteps through his own brand of service.
I, ME, MYSELF
I always ... schedule my time. I get up at 4.30am every day, do a bit of exercise and am out of the house by 7. If I am in town for a stretch of about 10 days, I make it a point to return home by 5.30pm. But even if I am here only for a couple of days, the latest I'll get home is 6.30pm. I love being home. Generally, we call it a day by 9.30pm during weekdays. But I'm not really a stickler for time or rigid about schedules. If I am required to stay back at the office, or if I have to drop by somewhere, I am quite willing to do so if it's a genuine need.
I make decisions... quickly. It has always been so with me. In many cases, I act on instinct. It has its advantages. But sometimes problems do crop up and I'm used to solving them so it evens out!
Taking risks... is important in a business. It's the way things work. If you don't have the capacity to take risks, then you shouldn't work for yourself. Though I must add that I don't believe in taking unnecessary physical risks.
I make it a point to drop my three children off at school, because it is the one part in the day I get them all to myself. That's the best time of the day for me as I am able to totally interact with them. It's very difficult getting three boys between 6 and 12 to sit still. But therein lies the challenge of turning them into a captive audience! I don't lecture them. I want to get to know them as well as I can by being truly, actively interested in what they have been up to and what could be troubling them. I offer my opinion if I am asked. This morning drive is family time. I don't switch on the radio during these drives; this time is purely for them. These days, you have to devise ways and means of keeping in touch with your children.
Since I travel 15 to 20 days a month (last year
I was away for more than 120 days in total) and sometimes have to stay back late at the office, this is the one privilege I never give up. It keeps me in touch with them as they grow up.
It's unrealistic to expect our children to forge the same kind of familial ties I did in my growing up years. But I try to maintain the ties
I have – with my family and friends as well as with my home country. I want my children to imbibe the same core family values I did. Which is why I do what I can to keep them in touch with their roots.
Though I would like my children to take over the family business, I will not stop them if they wish to pursue something else.
I believe in keeping fit. I walk a few kilometres every day and when I am in Dubai I am a regular at the gym. I take the saying 'A fit mind in a fit body' to heart.
I believe I am a relaxed person and easy to
get along with. I would say my people management skills are a result of what I think is my ability to understand people. I love interacting with people. Perhaps it's a family trait – my father was a very sociable man. My mother gets along with anybody. She is a driving force in our village who is welcome anywhere. I remember our house as always being full of visitors.
I too am most happy when I have a house full of guests. Though a middle-class family, our parents believed in sharing what we had.
I learnt the virtue of generosity of spirit from my mother. Thirty-five years ago, reaching the nearest hospital meant a journey of many kilometres with hardly any transport. Therefore, most villagers would call upon my mother when faced with an emergency. She was on call 24/7, so much so that she spent more time in others' houses. After each delivery, she would spend 14 hours or more with the mother and newborn child even though it was not strictly necessary. My mother is my role model.
I try to emulate my mother's ideals by trying to help as many people as I can. I don't believe only in giving a needy person money. I think it is more important to help him earn a livelihood. I prefer to hire my staff predominantly through references.
It may take a bit longer for the individual to learn and the cost the company some more money but their loyalty and dedication more than make up for it.
I grew up in an environment where neighbours played a big role in day-to-day life. That has been integral in shaping my character. It enables a person to enjoy human interaction more actively and this in turn makes you to want to be helpful in solving others' problems.
I believe that any problem, whatever its magnitude, can be solved. I run my business and live my life based on that belief. The solution lies within the problem. You only need to identify it. For example, when I was thinking of expanding my business in India, I faced a problem: how could I keep all my business partners happy? Many friends warned me that I was taking a huge management risk by including so many partners. When I thought about it, I realised that it was a situation similar to what joint families face.
I decided that my partners would earn a greater share than myself. It resolved the problem. After all, it is the combined strength of all the partners that gets you to your goal. If they are happy, I am happy too.
I, ME, MYSELF
Me and my family
My parents gave me a lot of freedom while I was growing up. There were
no restrictions on what I wanted to do with my life. This helped me appreciate and understand the power of independent thinking.
My wife, Girija, who is also a chartered accountant understands my problems at work. Though her approach to work is very different to mine, she provides me support and is unbiased enough to point out flaws in my methods. It may sound clichéd, but she really is my pillar of strength.
Me and CA
Some people have this notion that chartered accountants are there to just cook up statements to avoid taxes. This couldn't be further from the truth. I am proud that I am a chartered accountant.
Me and my rise to success
Growing up in a small village in India, I never thought I would reach this position. Success is not just about luck. One needs to assess one's strengths and weaknesses and work on them. Learning to recognise an opportunity when it presents itself and making it work for you is the key to success. It's also important to understand that failure is just another door that allows an opportunity in.
Some people will tell you that it's important who you know and what you study. To me, the most important skill to have is application: you should know how to apply what you have learnt. If you are exposed to hardship early on in life, it sets the pace for the rest of your life to move on smoothly; life is fuller and achievements become more meaningful.
I believe in fairness as a core value and I expect the same from others.
I value relationships, whether personal or professional and I'll go to any ends to see them survive.
I, ME, MYSELF
Do you feel you have missed out on anything?
I feel that I would have been a good politician! It could still be an option in the future. Right now though, my priority is to expand and consolidate my consultancies. I would like to see my ideals benefit many more people. Politics is the base on which you can build good for a larger section of society. That is my ultimate goal.
I know realise that no matter
how good or how selfless your service, there is a limit to what you can do. I would love it for my children to take up politics though my wife hates the idea!
I try to model my life on what I would expect a truly correct politician to be: open, accessible and down-to-earth. I would like to do something for the displaced children of the world, whom we generally term as 'street children', as well as abandoned elders. I think it's important to help them make something of their lives. It's not easy as it involves more than just channelling money.
As a professional, what is your advice to others to survive tough times?
My advice is to view it as a natural check on your activities, whatever your business. It is a way of forcing introspection, motivating you to review your past and plan for your future. Set right the things you have not been doing well. Those who invested wisely have not lost their investment. Their returns may not be the same, but if one studies what one have done right, they will last in the long run. Always, time is the best solution.
– As told to Shiva Kumar Thekkepat, Feature Writer, Friday
