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I took some poems I had, solved the next term’s Maths textbook, stapled the maths solutions and poems together and sold them to my classmates. I then walked home to tell my mother I had become a professional writer!

How has your journey with General Mills been so far? What have been your major highlights?

I have had a great time so far at General Mills and the biggest highlight for me has been to be part of, and lead, a highly motivated and energized team which is trying to really step-change the business and organization in India and together create a ‘smell of the place’ which will help us achieve our aspiration of being the fastest growing foods company in India. We are certainly leveraging a lot of the global scale and capabilities we have as part of one of the world’s largest foods company. However, building portfolio, brands, capability and distribution footprint in a very accelerated way means that we are really being very entrepreneurial as well, taking decisions faster, taking calculated risks and working in a very open and non-hierarchical manner where ideas lead the way, no matter where in the organization they come from. As we like to say, we’re using the ‘resources of an MNC, and the heart of a start-up’. As a small example, a WhatsApp group connects frontline Area Sales Managers to other functions and to me directly so that we’re sharing ideas and executions, celebrating wins, reapplying ideas from one region to another and staying in touch with the market- all seamlessly, with no hierarchy and in real time. That kind of a culture makes the journey all the more rewarding and fun.

In the highly competitive FMCG space, what is General Mills doing to stay ahead of the competition? Also, now that more and more global brands are available in India through e-commerce sites, has it impacted your business especially for brands like Betty Crocker and the Cakes business?

Big ideas that delight consumers essentially require two things- really being in touch with consumers and then marrying them with capabilities to delight consumers better than other options they may have. At General Mills, we are trying to embrace the idea of ‘Consumer First’- putting the consumer at the centreof everything we do and making consumer interaction not something that is done as part of research on a particular project but an ongoing journey. An example is what we call ‘coffee with consumers’ where we meet consumers and their families regularly with no specific product or brand agenda but to stay in touch with what’s happening in their lives, trends they are resonating to and potential needs we could fulfil. Another big aspect for us is to create a truly externally focused spirit throughout the organization so that every employee, whichever function they are in, is bringing in insights and inspirations from consumers and the marketplace to guide our business. We have a regular ‘Chalo Bazaar’ concept where, for a day, all non-Sales employees go to the market, working with frontline salesmen, helping sell in brands, doing merchandising or promoting and interacting with shoppers, and come back with insights and ideas. We connect all these insights and inspirations into the considerable capabilities for innovation we have to come up with ideas to delight consumers. We have our own manufacturing plants in India and our AMEA (Asia Middle-East Africa) region R&D and Innovation Centre is located in Mumbai, giving us a lot of access to innovation capabilities and best practices. A great example of this ‘consumer first innovation’ is our approach to Pillsbury Cake Mixes. Indian consumers love eating cakes, but for most Indian mothers, recreating this experience at home is a challenge because of the lack of expertise and the low oven penetration. That consumer understanding and leveraging our global expertise in baking helped us develop a series of innovations- cake mixes that allow the Indian consumer to make delicious cakes in less than thirty minutes without any previous baking experience and without needing an oven. She simply has to mix, stir and put in utensils and implements she already has- a pressure cooker or a fridge. Our latest innovation allows consumers to get bite sized cakes by putting the mix in an Idlimould!

As for e-commerce, the truly transformational potential of it as a channel is that it can connect consumers to brands and trends they may be aware of, but do not have regular access to due to limitations of the physical retail environment. In the sphere of packaged food, it is still in its early stages, but we are actively looking to see how we can leverage its potential across our portfolio.

How are things at GM different from P&G?

I actually see more similarities than differences. Both are organizations which are very values based and focused on making a genuine and lasting difference to consumers’ lives and in investing to create long term brands, businesses and careers. The big difference is one of where they are in their evolution in India. I’ve seen P&G’s journey in scaling up in India some years ago by expanding portfolio, capabilities and distribution- precisely the journey we at General Mills India have now embarked upon.

Even though the Indian customer is now open to spending more for a differentiated product, do you feel that Indians generally being price focused limits the possibilities of innovation in product and marketing for a company like yours?

The brands and companies that win with consumers are those who offer the right value, and value is more than just pricing. At General Mills, we are seeking to deliver superior value to Indian consumers in three ways:

a) Provide experiences that go beyond just the functional benefit. Haagen-Dazs is the iconic brand it is not just because its ice cream is of the highest quality and taste, but also because a trip to a Haagen-Dazs lounge gives an indulgent experience that is beyond just the ice cream. Our Pillsbury Cooker Cake delights not just because it gives a great tasting cake, but because it allows an Indian mother to surprise her family with a delicious cake even if she has never baked one before, and using no utensil beyond her familiar pressure cooker.

b) Expand our portfolio to meet a broader cross-section of consumer needs and segments. Yes, we have Haagen-Dazs and Betty Crocker, but we also have Pillsbury Atta, which is a staple part of everyday meals for millions of Indian consumers. We are steadily expanding our portfolio to meet more consumer needs and consumption occasions. To take a few examples, in the last twelve months, we have introduced Pillsbury Instant Mixes (Dosa, Idli, Dhokla- allowing consumers to get the delicious taste their families craves by just adding water to our mixes), Parampara Expert Masalas (providing authentic tasting Indian meals without the need to add any additional masalas) and Pillsbury Choco Spreads.

c) Importantly, in a market like India, value also comes from the right sizing and pricing to enable consumers to try new ideas and brands. We have launched single-serve sachets on our Pillsbury Choco Spreads and our Expert Masalas at very affordable price points and are encouraged at the early response these are getting in generating trial and enabling us to reach more consumers and stores.

What is your idea of CSR? Do you think India Inc.’s current focus on CSR is a marketing stunt triggered by the government’s directive or companies have genuinely realized the need for this?

It won’t be fair for me to comment on any other organization, but I believe CSR needs to be more than a programme run in isolation or to meet statutory guidelines. I believe each and every one of us has to give back in the best way we can, and a corporation does so by genuinely seeking to improve consumer lives with its brands and ideas and then by using its capabilities to make a positive difference in the communities it operates in. For me, creating a sustainable CSR commitment v/s it being a short term effort depends on three things:

a) Strategic choice and commitment on areas the company will impact based on where it can make a difference. At General Mills, for example we focuses on broad areas linked to our pedigree as a global foods company- Hunger alleviation, Nutrition – Wellness – Health, and finally their link to Education.

b) Creating longer term platforms and partnerships v/s one-off events. This builds sustainable platforms and also creates a multiplier effect on the lives of those impacted. In India, along with our partner, BAIF MITTRA (a pan India NGO), since 2008, we have undertaken an ambitious program of building sustainable livelihoods for the Tribals in AkoleTaluka in Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra. The program currently covers 13 villages and 11 schools and we have been steadily scaling up the impact on these families over time, including sharing expertise in nutrition, agriculture and education. In 2015, we have instituted a General Mills Scholarship Program to provide monetary assistance to 5 deserving girl students of these villages each year for pursuing higher education.

c) Last, but by no means the least, making CSR part of the DNA of an organization requires it to be something that is embedded in employee engagement and participation; something that is a common bond that ties employees together. That ensures that CSR efforts go beyond just handing someone a cheque. We partner with an NGO in Mumbai called Udaan which ensures underprivileged children get a strong and holistic educational foundation. Last year, General Mills employees volunteered over 900 hours to support this programme, in addition to 100 hours spent teaching at the schools in AkoleTaluka. When employees voluntarily spend weekends with underprivileged children and your employee awards each month are not just for sales targets but for those who went out of their way to help the local community, then you know CSR is going beyond a marketing stunt.

What is your idea of Leadership? What are some of the most important character traits of a good leader?

A good leader needs to do three important things:

a) Ask the right questions. Move beyond the ‘what’ (strategies, plans, numbers) to the ‘how’ (capabilities, structure, ways of working) and importantly, the ‘why’ (creating a sense of shared purpose and values and the ‘smell of the place’ that guides everything).

b) Take accountability. When we succeed, everyone shares in the glory, but when we stumble, the leader has to take responsibility and also help other teammates get back up.

c) Lead from the front. A good leader is someone who is in touch with consumers, employees, marketplace ground realities so that decisions are not made solely in the air-conditioned comfort of a conference room but based on what will truly make an impact to the business and organization bottoms up. I believe the only useful thing made in a conference room is a good decision, so a good leader needs to try and get out as much as possible where the action is- among employees, in the market, with consumers, at plants.

What are your views on Cross-hiring from other sectors? What are the things that you see in an individual when you hire for key senior positions?

Sectoral experience does sometimes bring its advantages, especially when specialist or technical functions are concerned. However, especially at senior levels, what matters more is really the potential the individual has in terms of demonstrated experience in leading diverse teams, the ability to create a compelling vision and trust among stakeholders, and the ability to balance- short term and long term, strategy and execution, action and ideation.

You are also a Bestselling author with over 15 books. When did you realise that you wanted to be a professional writer and what was the trigger? What are you currently working on?

I don’t recall when the writing bug bit me, but as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to be a writer. I was in Grade 7 when I read an interview by Stephen King where he said that the moment anyone paid you a penny for your writing, you were a professional writer. I took some poems I had, solved the next term’s Maths textbook, stapled the maths solutions and poems together and sold them to my classmates. I then walked home to tell my mother I had become a professional writer! At present, I have three projects on hand, working with two fantastic publishing partners. I’m working on a new business book with Penguin-Random House and have two novels lined up for release with Westland.

How do you choose what topic to write on? You seem to have a special inclination towards Zombies and apocalyptic events. What sparked your interest in this subject?

Like most authors, I tap into my own experiences and interests. So my day job in the corporate sector has shown up in some books- my first novel, ‘The Funda of Mix-ology’ and two business books (The Cubicle Manifesto and Brand Management 101). I come from a family where my father and grandfather were both police officers, so growing up among people in uniform and in the Intelligence Services, thrillers are a genre I have resonated with since childhood (and expressed in books like Herogiri, A Little Mayhem, Vimana and Line of Control). I am also a voracious reader when it comes to science and international affairs, and what strikes me is that far from supernatural horrors or a meteor slamming into our planet, we risk being the cause of our own downfall with the way we mess up our planet and treat each other in the search for power and riches. That led to me the dystopian genre and in all my work in the genre, the origin of the apocalypse is not some supernatural affair, but very much the result of human machinations.

Finally on an informal note, what does you average day look like?

I like to live in the moment and make the most of each and every day, so each day is simply a microcosm of all the things that are an important part of my life- my family, my work, and having some time for myself. Early morning, I wake my son, Aaditya, up and get him ready for school and after dropping him off at the school bus, I run for an hour or so. Those runs are when I’m really by myself and thinking of things I need to focus on, at work and otherwise. Then it’s coffee with my wife, Puja, before I head to work. Then I’m full on at work other than lunch, when I try and catch up with Puja over a bite. Evenings are family time, and before I go to bed, I try and squeeze in 30 minutes of writing each day. For me a good day is when I can go to bed feeling that I’ve done the best I can for my family and the people at work who are counting on me.