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Turnaround Artist

It's not an epithet Ganesh Natarajan is comfortable with. But after successfully turning around companies that were seen as laggards, the CEO of Zensar Technologies surely deserves the reputation, says Srikanth RP

For a man who spent most of his early years in Bihar, a state which symbolises almost everything that could possibly go wrong with India, Ganesh Natarajan, the chief executive officer of Zensar Technologies, comes across as a man representing the opposite philosophy—life is simple and uncomplicated. The philosophy has seen Natarajan take charge of companies that have big potential but are lagging behind in the marketplace.

A gold medallist in mechanical and industrial engineering, Natarajan has played a leading role in the turnaround of two major companies in the Indian IT industry, Aptech and Zensar. When he joined Aptech from rival NIIT, Aptech was just one of the many institutes that cluttered the IT training industry. Natarajan knew that he had to give a bright and trendy image to counter giant NIIT that was well-entrenched in the marketplace.

Giving an analogy from the Indian film industry, Natarajan recalls, “NIIT was like the Amitabh Bachchan of the IT training industry, and we were trying to position ourselves as Shah Rukh Khan, the bright promising upstart.” This positioning, along with some smart moves—like taking the help of franchisee partners to expand its reach—saw Aptech grow from a mere Rs 10 crore organisation to a Rs 500 crore institution spanning more than 40 countries, a phenomenal achievement for a man who would probably still have been a general manager at Crompton Greaves if he had not listened to his wife Uma’s advice. When working at Crompton Greaves, Natarajan was tempted by an offer to head an IT consulting firm called DPS Systems. He was unsure about the offer, but Uma encouraged him to take it up. Says he, “If it were not for her, I would still be at Crompton Greaves. She was the one who encouraged me to take risks and look at other careers.” After a stint at DPS, Natarajan joined NIIT as regional manager, then left as national head of corporate consulting to take the CEO post at Aptech.

Apart from his administration abilities, Natarajan has been appreciated for his people management skills, which he says is the real reason for his success. Says he, “My basic objective in whichever company I work in is to make sure that employees remain motivated at all times.” This vision at Aptech saw it becoming a brand at par with NIIT. During his tenure, he was seen as the face of Aptech. So synonymous was his name that some relatives used to call him Aptech Natarajan.

After having achieved what was probably the best phase for Aptech, Natarajan started looking at other opportunities. Swamped with offers from consulting majors, he decided to take up the challenge of steering Zensar and giving it a distinct brand image. When he joined Zensar, the company only had the low-cost advantage that was available to a hundred other Indian organisations. This strategy had backfired after 9/11. Rather than lying low and waiting for business to pick up, Natarajan used the opportunity to take a hard look at performance and restructure Zensar.

This period at Zensar saw Natarajan’s people management skills coming to the fore. He encouraged employees to think innovatively and suggest processes that could give Zensar a decisive edge over its competitors. The focused approach paid off, and Zensar became one of the most recognised brands in the Indian IT industry.

For a man who had no defined personal ambitions, Natarajan has come a long way, but his core philosophy of success remains the same: people. He is motivated by the mantra his team had coined at Aptech, ‘We change lives.’ Says he, “My general vision is to positively change the lives of at least five people every year. Till date, I have been able to positively influence the lives of around a hundred people.”

He is heavily influenced by his father’s social efforts, and this can be seen from his organisation’s active involvement in running a couple of NGOs. What about the future? Natarajan sees himself either as a class teacher in Bihar, a professor at IIM, or a politician—anything that would give him the chance to change the lives of people for the better.

srikanth@expresscomputeronline.com