MAKING A DIFFERENCE

While consolidating the number one position in South India for CLAAS, Mrityunjaya (Jay) Singh, MD, CLAAS Agricultural Machinery Pvt Ltd., is now aiming to acquire the top position in North India as well as in West India.

- Niranjan Mudholkar

You have been at the helm of CLAAS India since January 2014. What kind of challenge have you faced in this role and how did you deal with it?

Let me start off with a personal challenge and then go on to corporate challenges. On the personal side, I am a mechanical engineer. I understand machines; that’s my job. Therefore, understanding the new type of farm equipment from construction and mining equipment was not a challenge. It was a smooth transition.

I was hired to create a new company in India. Traditionally or rather conventionally, CLAAS operates in this internal supplier and buyer company concept they call it the Product Company and the Sales Company concept. In India, they did not have this concept for three decades, and needed somebody who could set up a new entity. For me, that was not a challenge because in my two previous organizations, there were two mergers, one acquisition, and I was a signatory to those. Therefore, I knew how to light up the midnight lamp and go through legal and board matters and such requirements. Hence it was not a speed breaker. Understanding applications etc., considering if one has a strong team around, it is easy to learn everything. Therefore, there were not any personal challenges. I worked in India, I knew the Sri Lanka market quite well, along with its adjacent countries, and worked well with people with different accents in Southeast Asia and Europe.