Manoj Kedia's Mission
As the Executive Director of Kedia Organisation, Manoj Kedia (37) has the overall mission to bring back his business house to the same leadership position as it had assumed some time back. He says, "We were once the topmost one. Now we are among the top 15. But we have the potential to be the top one again and that is what we are going to be very soon."
The strategy being followed to achieve this objective is to diversify and consolidate in the fields in which the group has its strengths and to abandon those in which the group has not comparatively sufficient advantage. Following the strategy, the group has stopped loss making businesses while continuing with flour mill, sugar mill, vegetable ghee, dairy, furniture and flooring material. Recently, it entered into banking and financial services, general insurance services, housing development, automobile dealership and cement manufacture. And the plan now is to expand further in the housing sector and enter into hydropower and other service based businesses. Also on the cards is a rotary plant in the cement sector while a life insurance company is about to start in the near future.
Personal side |
Sidetime management: Morning vipasyana meditation (though not so regular) or to the gym for exercise fighting obesity. Visits temples on different occasions, sometimes with wife.
Habits: A non-smoker and vegetarian.
His strengths: "My eagerness to keep learning new things. I never pretend that I know everything. I am always ready to learn from others and ready to be led from kins and kiths - from my elders, my wife and children. I respect the values they set for me. Their love and affection is also my strength."
Interests: "I take interest in anything good or useful. I am content with what I have. Music, books, new people, history, travel and new places are my interests.'
Dislikes: Boastful people, people who think no end of themselves.
Friends: 'O, I have so many. At the club (he is in the Round Table), in the society and among the employees.'
Pastime: 'I hardly have any. I am mostly busy working. Still, I listen to music, watch the TV and sometimes movies. And yes, I love outing. I go on trips within or outside the country, at least once a year with the family."
Inspiration: Achievements in development sphere inspire me. I regularly monitor the development news from Nepal and abroad with great interest. When I travel around, my first interest is to observe the development achievements of that particular place. That is my main motivator. Observing such developments, I wonder why the same cannot be achieved in Nepal.” |
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The guiding principle of the group, according to Kedia, is an advice from his grandfather. As he recalls, his grandfather used to tell him: "'In business both profit and loss are normal occurrences. But always think positively that you are a bigger businessman than many others you deal with. You should always safeguard their interests. You should strive to minimize their losses. Uplift them when they are in need."
Regarding his own achievements, Kedia says whatever he has been able to do in furthering the business of his family is an achievement. "This is in spite of my comparatively little education," he points out. He holds a B.Com. degree and could not go further as he had to assist his father in his business and meanwhile got married as well.
Therefore, he had to follow the method of "learning by doing". In this he thinks his large family was very helpful. The Kedia family now consists of two grandfathers, their 10 sons and Manoj’s 16 cousins. With the three generations working together, the Kedia house is operating in a hybrid system of traditional Marwari Gaddi and modern corporate office with cubicles. The guidance of the elders and the modern skills of the young generation (few of them are MBA, CAs and college graduates in other disciplines) have combined to expand Kedia Organisation to restore to its past glory.
When asked about his specific contribution to the family business, Kedia says it is difficult to pinpoint a particular person to give credit or blame for the success or failure of any business as the family works as a team. However, he likes to mention Sitaram Gokul Milk as a unit in which he had to work from the initial concept to the implementation and operation stage. But now, this unit is being run by his brothers. Similarly, the units in cement, bank, insurance, automobile and housing were all developed by him as the leader of the respective teams. Also the dealership for Swaraj Mazda and Changi Motors for the automobile unit of Kedia Organization was received with the special efforts of Manoj. In fact, he is these days more in developing new businesses than in operating the existing ones. For example, he is the leader of the teams that are developing the businesses in real estate, hydropower, rotary plant and life insurance. He is the Chairman of the insurance company promoted by the group in association with other renowned business houses of Nepal. He looks after the automobile business, real estate, cement and banking as well. Among the lead businesses of the Group is the sugar mill and that is being looked after by his cousin Rajesh Kedia.
One may wonder how is a Marwari family involved in the business of producing alcohol. Though with the times modernizing, alcohol has stopped being a taboo even in traditional Marwari families, the reason for Kedia's involvement in alcohol is a business compulsion. "It was to utilize the molasses, the by-product of our sugar mill," he says and adds: "though we are in alcohol business, we are also in the milk business." In fact the family members had initially opposed to the idea of starting a distillery. However, they had to finally accept the business reality.
How about his view on the current business environment? "No, I'm not frustrated at all. Although the prevailing socio-political situation is not positive, I don't like to whine about it. Instead, I try to get busy to improve the situation from whatever field I'm in."
Now that the government has announced a policy to allow Nepalis invest abroad, Kedia has started studying if this opportunity is worth utilizing.
