MANAGEMENT MANTRA
“Be Honest To Yourself”: Shashank Agarwal, MD, Salasar Techno Engineering
- Sharmila Chand
- Dec 06, 2021
Shashank Agarwal firmly believes that there is no
substitute for hard work. The managing director of Salasar Techno Engineering
has, in fact, been working hard to make his company one of the leading players
in the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) industry. Salasar, which
has its registered office in New Delhi, has been catering to a diverse range of
industries. Sharmila Chand chats up with Mr Agarwal – who is an engineer
with over 30 years of experience – to get to know his management ideas and
practices that have been boosting growth, year after year.
Your
five management mantras
Innovation: The real challenge to achieving success in business
is sustaining it. While it is easy to create a company and even prosper,
success is simply much more than that. Innovation is essential to maintain and
grow your business.
Adaptability: It is imperative that businesses keep reinventing
themselves to sustain through challenging times swiftly. The world is changing
very fast, and if you are not innovative, you will find yourself in the back
seat. Successful exploitation of new ideas is crucial to a business being able
to improve its processes, bring new and improved products and services to
market, increase its efficiency and, most importantly, improve its
profitability.
Know
your market and your customers: Know
your market, its segmentation and your position in it. Constantly ensure that you
know your customers’ wants and needs. Use market research to understand your
customers’ buying habits. Promote the benefits of your offer and not just the
features.
Create
a culture of lifelong learning and education: Invest in the development of your staff, encourage skills development
and a lifelong learning culture. Skilled and motivated people make fewer
mistakes, produce better quality and are more productive. Promote enterprise
and participation.
Lead
from the front: Show your leadership –
be visible, active and supportive, express a clear vision and show confidence
and determination – develop your plans for the business.
A
game that helps your career
I am not an avid player but what keeps me fit is a regular
morning walk of 45 to 50 minutes and then Yoga of 30 minutes. I personally
think out of the many physical activities suggested for a healthy lifestyle, and
a morning walk always shines at the top of the list. Many people find heavy
exercise and jogging difficult, and some even lack the motivation for it. A
simple and effective alternative to these is a morning walk.
Turning
point in your career life
I have been an entrepreneur all my life. I have been
through a lot of failures and ups and downs in life. But that has never
deterred me from taking the next step or trying something new. I thanked God for
everything and accepted whatever He decided for me. Founding of Salasar Techno
has truly been a turning point in life, and it sure has given a lot of opportunities
to grow at all levels. God has been kind.
Secret
of your success
Hard work, honesty and Integrity, trusting people, a
lot of delegation of responsibilities, appreciating and giving due credit to
the team around, and, most importantly, not committing more than you are able
to deliver.
Your
philosophy of work
Take life as it comes. Man proposes, and God
disposes. You cannot plan your life on an Excel Sheet! But yes, you must have
the ability to visualise yourself wherever you want to be in future, and then
start working around it, have a lot of optimism and positivity, don’t be
judgmental of others, and learn to accept any circumstances.
A
person you admire
I don’t have an idol, and if you have one, you are
limiting yourself. What one has to understand is that he or she has unlimited
potential, and only sky is the limit. Every individual is unique and should try
and exploit his or her potential to the maximum, rather than trying to imitate
someone. People can be inspiring, and that’s it. Your aspirations should not
stop there.Try and grasp something good from everyone, no matter how small or
big he or she is.
The
best advice you got
People and time will teach you more than the books.
And your entire life can change in an instant. So, instead of passively taking
what you have for granted, be grateful for it, and do whatever good you can
with it.
Your
sounding board
My inner voice, my sixth sense and my gut feeling
Your
favourite books
Since the evolution of the digital age, reading of books
has somehow disappeared. It’s not that I was an avid reader earlier, but I had
been reading, and, now for quite a few years, I have been listening to Osho’s discourses.
His sayings are very simple, but then to understand those, you got to listen
and absorb them through repeated listening and, trust me, whatever he has said
is the last word, the ultimate word. There is nothing left to say after
whatever he has said on any topic. Even if you are able to grasp a few
teachings, your understanding of life and people around will be much different.
All modern-age, so-called Gurus are trying to imitate or copy from his
discourses.
Your
five business mantras
Hard
work: This age-old, golden mantra still holds true for everyone. If you want to be ahead of
others, you must give more than 100 per cent in everything you do. There is no
substitute for hard work. Luck, of course, plays a part in your life, but that
too comes only with hard work.
Honesty
and integrity: You should be honest to
yourself rather than proving your integrity and honesty to anyone else. You sure
must check and ask yourself at times if you are being honest in whatever you
are doing.
Decide
to succeed: Success comes to those who
dare to dream and to those who truly want to succeed. It does not come knocking
on the doors of people who only wait for things to happen. So, if you want it,
go get it.
Be
bold: Success does not come easily. If life throws you a
challenge, fight back hard. You might fail numerous times to achieve your
ambition but never let failure be an end as there is always light at the end of
every tunnel.
Have
faith: Believe in yourself, and have faith in the supreme
power. You will be rewarded whatever you deserve. Karma never fails.
Your message on management to youngsters
Life does not happen the way you plan. Someone up there has a different plan for you, and, trust me, HIS plans are the best. Acceptance is most important, learn to accept any situation. You may not like it sometimes but probably that is what you deserve and that is the best for you. So, learn to accept and be happy in any situation. Give your best shot with all your integrity and accept whatever the results are. Don’t plan your life, but visualise, and start working towards it.
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