Inspiring Journey of a Hero

Priya Kumar

Description

O.P. Munjal started Hero Cycles in 1956, fuelled by meagre resources and an insatiable ambition. His vision was to create an inexpensive and effective mode of transportation for a post-Independence nation on the move. The rest, as they say, is history: Hero Cycles went on to become the world s largest bicycle manufacturer. This book chronicles the life of O.P. Munjal through anecdotes from his professional and personal life. He proved that a people-focused management style could be superior to the process-driven systems of the West. The book is a result of extensive conversations with O.P. Munjal, Hero employees, dealers, and family members. Join bestselling author Priya Kumar as she takes you on a roller-coaster ride seen through the lens of a visionary with the soul of a poet.

Sujets

• Lettres et linguistique

Informations

• Publié par: Penguin Books Ltd
• Date de parution: 15 février 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789351186205
• Langue: English

Extrait

Priya Kumar

THE INSPIRING JOURNEY OF A HERO
Learnings From the Life of O.P. Munjal
Foreword by Ram Charan
Contents
Author s Note
The Soul behind the Making of the Book Priyanka Malhotra
Special Thanks
Foreword by Ram Charan
The Journey Begins
The Man in His Own Words
Introduction
1. A Sturdy Tree Needs Strong Roots
2. Early Days
3. Om Prakash s Heroes
4. An Early Discovery of a Passion
5. A Romantic at Heart
6. Education outside the Boundaries of Schools
7. Never Shirk Responsibility
8. The Munjal Brothers: A Family of Heroes
9. Deliver on Expectations
10. Challenges are Important to Life
11. Challenges are Meant to Be Overcome
12. When Life Beats You Down, Stand Up
13. A Search for New Frontiers
14. Opportunities are Meant to Be Taken
15. Discipline is a Dreamer s Weapon
16. The Two Washbasins of House No. 26
17. Never Step Down to Fit into the Crowd
18. People are the Real Wealth
19. It s Lonely at the Top: Take Your People with You
20. The No-Nonsense Taskmaster
21. Equality Leads to Unity
22. Epitome of Humility
23. Expansion is the Answer to a Secure Future
24. Compete with Your Past, Not People
25. Safeguard the Dreams of People Who Work with You
26. Never Fail the Customer
27. Just-in-Time
28. The Ritual of Rewards
29. Never Fail Your Team and Supporters
30. His Word is Enough
31. Create Leaders and Allow Them to Find Their Own Way
32. Every Day Holds the Promise of New and Better Opportunities
33. Won t Give Up, Won t Give In
34. Discipline is the Key to Sustained Success
35. Simple Living, High Thinking
36. Make Happy Endings
37. Happy People Don t Carry Upsets
38. The Dealers Hero
39. Work is Worship
In Appreciation
Awards and Recognition
Acknowledgements Thank You, Pankaj, Charu, Aditya and Abhishek
Follow Penguin
Copyright Page
Author s Note
Ever since I decided to be a writer, which was in my teens, I wished to write about a personality whom I considered exemplary such that he should be set as a national or international example of values and success. Though there are many such personalities our country and our world can boast of, I wanted to pick someone who had not been discovered yet. Finding O.P. Munjal, the chairman of Hero Cycles, was a jackpot.
What I loved about him was that he didn t care to be written about, he had no interest in being known. When I looked up the Internet and found minimal information about him, I was elated. This is what I wanted, to be the mediator between him and the world. To bring him out from behind the scenes and put him centre stage.
In this book I haven t focused much on how the business of Hero Cycles was made but I have focused on the values that led to what was made. I believe that values build empires. I believe that values form an integral part of sustained success. How and what are questions that come after one s values are in place. We all know how to do it, we all know what we should do, but the widespread confusion is a consequence of missing values. The Inspiring Journey of a Hero brings to light the founding principles which when applied and imbibed will lead to success no matter what industry you choose.
What came as a matter of pride for me was that, apart from the wonderful human being and stellar businessman that he is, O.P. Munjal has built an empire that has not only changed the economic structure of the state of Punjab but also made Hero Cycles the largest manufacturer of bicycles in the world. Hero Cycles is the centre of gravity that anchors over 90 per cent of the bicycle industry in Punjab. The company has not only created direct employment for people but has also created over 300 supplier ancillary units, resulting in indirect employment of an additional 15,000 people. Apart from benefiting the state exchequer through taxes, Hero Cycles, under the leadership of O.P. Munjal, has led to the development of a robust supply chain, with Punjab as its hub. With exports of over 1.5 million bicycles from Punjab, currently registering rapid growth (8 per cent of Punjab s total exports), the industry accounts for 21 per cent share of the manufacturing output and more than 25 per cent share in industrial employment.
How did O.P. Munjal do it? How did he create a world-class company that found its way into the Guinness Book of World Records as the highest-producing bicycle company in the world? I have attempted to answer that question by focusing on the founding principles and values that led to the creation of Hero Cycles. For without that, history would have been different.
Efforts without values don t sustain. Work without principles bears short-term results, with the promise of a future downfall. I must say that I have been the greatest beneficiary of my work in making this book happen. You have to meet O.P. Munjal to believe that he is for real. In knowing him over the months, I have been moved, I have been inspired and, above all, I have been blessed. He takes success to a whole different level altogether; he takes success to a spiritual level. O.P. Munjal s philosophy has the potential to redefine the way business is done, for he brings to work love, passion and unfailing care for his supporters, his customers and his employees. O.P. Munjal stands for that balance between work and life after work; he stands for justice and values; he stands for determination and dedication; he stands for service; and he stands to be true to his purpose.
I have tried and failed to be objective in many instances of writing this book, and the editor had to continuously check upon the superlative adjectives I had used to describe O.P. Munjal and his values. I wrote two versions of the book, one as a fan-as a person who is deeply inspired by Mr O.P. Munjal-and one as an author. When my friends read the first version, their unanimous comment was, Is this man for real? All this sounds too good to be true! and that s when my editor stepped in to make the writing more objective, and hence this book. My fan version adorns my bookshelf, the it s a too good to be true version.
I dedicate this book to The Hero, O.P. Munjal. Thank you for allowing me into your world, Sir.
The Soul Behind the Making of the Book Priyanka Malhotra
Priyanka Malhotra, the youngest daughter of O.P. Munjal, has been the soul of the book. I know of writers whose persistence is tested to their last breath and sometimes they still don t have access to the story the world needs to hear. Many good people, many heart-warming stories, many inspirational personalities are firmly guarded and protected from the reach of artists with a pen. And every time the walls grow thicker to keep goodness obscure, the world fails at hope. I am grateful to Priyanka for allowing me the chance to make that connection.
Priyanka is one of the kindest souls I have ever met. Though she was born into a blessed family, she extends that blessing to the less fortunate ones through her contribution via her social service organization, Nipman Foundation. Priyanka embraces every opportunity to help others and spends her time, money and energy in service on a daily basis.
If it were not for Priyanka, this book would not have been possible. She has been 100 per cent involved and ensured that I spoke to the right people. She travelled with me and took me to meet people who she believed would add value to the content. She didn t just give me the leads and let me find my own way; she was a part of the entire journey.
When one finds that the daughter has that much dedication and admiration for her father, that itself speaks volumes about the values and the upbringing, reinforcing my belief on sharing O.P. Munjal with the world.
Thank you, Priyanka, for being the wonderful soul that you are. The world is in good hands when people like you inhabit it.
Special Thanks
This book would just not have been possible without the unending support and prompt assistance of Ashok Bawa, G.D. Kapoor, S.K. Rai and Abhishekh Kanoi. My heartfelt thanks to all the grandchildren of O.P. Munjal for their enthusiasm and zest in the making of this book. I especially want to thank Nipun for helping out with the edits and Ruchika for proofing the content.
A big thank you to all the daughters, Neeru, Neeta and Punam, for their time and their love. Special thanks to Pravin Malhotra, Sunil Munjal, Renuka Munjal, Suresh Munjal, Sanjeev Soni, Arti Sharma, Isha Dewan, Mr Pahwa, Dr Bawa, Dr Bobby Bindra, Baldev Raj, Amrit Nagpal, Bharat Soni, Geeta Anand, Mr Goenka, Jang Bahadur, Kailash Kumar Goenka, Mr Khanna, Khushvinder Singh, Kunal Soni, Manek Malhotra, Suresh Khanna, Nari Hira, Padam Kumar, Pramendra Chaudhary, Rajendra Seth, Rakesh Johar, Ram Saran Agarwal, R.C. Rastogi, S.K. Mehta, S.K. Bhandari, Sanjeev Pahwa, Sat Pal, Sharaddha Manektala, Sidhant Seth, Kanika Soni, Sushil Vohra, Varun Kumar, Vibhav Soni, V.R. Badam, Hasmukh and Prakash Shelate, Varun Khanna, Arun Surpal, Anil Surpal, S.P. Khosla, K.B. Suri, Mr Mehta and many others for their contributions to the book. Thank you for the time you took out to make this book possible.
Foreword
Three decades is a long time to observe a business up close, sensing and feeling boardroom dynamics and how they translate to the shop floor and the forward and backward value chains. I have seen a spectrum of management styles, work cultures, and success and failure stories-from the fall of giants to the rise of underdogs.
But within this wide spectrum of possibilities, there are few-if any-surprises to be found. This is not to undermine anyone s journey to success but just a reaffirmation that when it comes to corporations, the basic path to success remains essentially the same in character: lots of hard work, smart and opportunistic moves, diligence, and a threshold cash volume to declare it a success.
This brings me to why I am writing the foreword to this book. Can an enterprise truly transcend the