Leading from the front in a pandemic

Assuring the workers that the company would be by their side and ensure their wellness was important to us. We have 15,000 employees.

Mostly we were focusing on the industrial relations because that is the key to boosting efficiency and productivity.

Also, we restructured our business a little bit because we tried running lesser hours since there were less work orders. Work orders in the woven segment are still at least 30 to 40 percent lesser than before.

Our major innovation since the outbreak of Covid-19 was basically engaging with the employees because that is the key for us.

At the same time, we tried our best to reduce our costs. To put it very simply, hard copies were reduced. Basically, we shifted to the virtual platform very quickly.

Cost reduction, and optimum labour and management efficiency were focused on.

Our employees were managed pretty well during the crisis. We did not carry out any salary cuts even for higher management. Many companies actually went for radical cost reductions and deducted salaries which we did not do.

So I think through these actions, we won the confidence of the staff and they are all esteemed and trusted colleagues who worked very hard during bad times.

I think gaining the trust and confidence of workers and making them feel respected—as equal partners in the organisation—probably set a better tone. I think business is all about relationships.

So, apart from our books and our ledger, I think what we need to concentrate on is human resources and that is the key.