Kumar Mangalam Birla
Kumar Mangalam Birla is an Indian industrialist and the Chairman of theAditya Birla Group, one of
the largest conglomerate corporations in India. The group is India's third largest business house. He
is also the Chancellor of theBirla Institute of Technology & Science.
[2]
Early life and education[edit]
Kumar Mangalam Birla is a fourth generation member of the Birla family from the state of
Rajasthan.
[1]
He spent his childhood in Kolkata and Mumbai .He has BCom degree from University
of Bombay & Chartered Accountant from Institute of Chartered Accountants of India & an MBA
from London Business School, London, UK, where he is also an Honorary Fellow.
[2]
Career[edit]
Kumar Mangalam Birla took over as Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group in 1995, at the young age of
28, after sudden death of his father, Aditya Birla, after whom the group is named. Many doubts were
raised about his ability to lead the group with varied interests in textile and garments, cement,
aluminum,fertilizers etc. but Kumar Mangalam Birla not only proved his skeptics wrong, but also has
grown to become one of the most respected industrialists in the country. Under his leadership
the Aditya Birla Group has expanded to Telecom, Software, BPO and other areas while
consolidating its position in existing businesses.
[3]
When Kumar Mangalam Birla took over the reins of the group in 1995, the turnover was only $2
billion and overseas operations accounted for a very small part of the overall business with Egypt,
Thailand and Indonesia being major centers. Under Kumar Mangalam Birla's strong leadership the
group's turnover has spiraled to $40 billion and it has expanded operations to more than 40
countries including Australia, Dubai, and reaching out to North America, Canada, Brazil, Germany,
Italy, Spain, Hungary and China. 60 percent of the group's revenues now come from abroad and
more than 130,000 people are being hired globally for their business operations.
[4]
Personal life[edit]
Birla is married to Neerja Birla.
[2]
They have three children: Ananyashree, Aryaman Vikram,and
Advaitesha.
[2]
Neerja oversees the Aditya Birla World Academy, a school in Mumbai,
Achievement: Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group; Chosen as Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the
Year - India in 2005
Name Kumar Mangalam Birla
Born on 14 June 1967
Place of Birth Rajasthan
Educated from H.R College Mumbai, London Business School
Works For Aditya Birla Group
Valued at $9.2 billion
Position Chairman of Aditya Birla Group
Married to Neerja Kasliwal
Father Basant Kumar Birla
Mother Sarala Birla
Family
He was born into a Marwari business family, commonly referred to as the 'Birla family.' Basant
Kumar Birla and Sarala Birla are his grandparents Rajashri Birla and Aditya Birla, after whom the
company has been named, are his parents. He also has a sister, Vasavdatta, who is married to
Kushagra Bajaj of Bajaj Corporation.
Growing Up
Born into a many generation-old business family, Kumar believed that he was brought up in a
'pressure-cooker' environment that continuously made him conscious of his family name, wealth and
the responsibility attached with it.
His doting grandparents were convinced that he was born to succeed, and groomed him in this
belief. But, his father remained his hero, as he always took out special time to spend with his son.
He acted as a teacher to him.
He spent his early years in Calcutta and Mumbai. After graduating in the B. Com program from HR
College, Mumbai, he studied Chartered Accountancy, and later completed his MBA program from
the London Business school, where he is an Honorary Fellow.
Endeavors
He became involved in the family business at the age of fifteen.
In 1995, he took charge of Aditya Birla Group, when his father died, due to cancer, at the early
age of 52.
Two years before his father's death, he consciously fast-tracked his efforts, realizing that his
father did not have much time left, and he would have to succeed him. At the age of 28 years,
when he took over the company, many people felt that he would not be able to lead well. But
he set out to prove them all wrong.
The Ideal Beginning
At the time Kumar took over The Aditya Birla Group, it had already become a giant business house,
dealing in viscose, textiles, garments, cement, aluminum and fertilizers. He brought in radical
changes, by changing business strategies, professionalizing the entire group and replacing internal
systems.
Through entering into consumer products, he effectively reduced his group's dependence on cyclic
commodities. Along with maintaining the group's name in present sectors, he also ventured into
sunrise sectors like cellular telephony, asset management, software and BPO.
Conjugal Relationship
At the age of 22, he married Neerja Kasliwal, when she was only 18 years old. She is a full-time
housewife and has no business ambitions, although she acts as a big support to him in all his
emotional needs. Kumar, is the father of 4 children, Ananyashree, Aryaman Vikram and Advaitesha.
He wants his children to come up in life like anybody else, overlooking the various advantages they
are born with.
Man of Substance
Today, he is the Chairman of Aditya Birla Group. He is also the Chancellor of the Birla
Institute of Technology and Science.
Kumar took over a company worth Rs. 8000 Crore and transformed it into a 34,000 Crore
empire, estimating his net worth at $9.2 billion.
He has been honored with many awards, to name a few Business Leader of the Year (2003)
by The Economic Times, Business Man Of the Year (2003) by Business India, The Ernst and
young Entrepreneur of the Year India (2005)
Apart from this, he also holds significant position in various professional and regulatory
bodies, including, membership of Central Board of directors Of the Reserve Bank of India,
membership of the prime minister of India's advisory council on trade and industry,
chairmanship of the Board of trade reconstituted by the union minister of Commerce and
industry.
Company Profile
Major companies of Aditya Birla group in India are Idea Cellular, Aditya Birla Nuvo, Ultra tech
Cement, Hindalco, Grasim. Its joint ventures include Birla Sun Life (provides financial services) and
Birla NGK (insulators). The group also performs internationally in various countries, such as
Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, Canada, Australia, Philippines.
Kumar, also brought about a major change in the group's work environment by abolishing policies
such as 'babu-culture, 'womb to tomb policy' and 'partha system'. He focused on employee
satisfaction and management training, and founded the innovative Organizational health service
(OHS) to measure the satisfaction level of all managers across the group. The group also works
towards achieving 100% customer satisfaction.
Obstacles Faced
He was under the continuous scrutiny of the society, at large, who were dubious about his
skills of handling a giant business house. Continuously, expectations had to be met, in order
to lead the group in his style of government.
As a young leader, he faced opposition to changes that he implemented in the organization,
but he refused to be let down by these challenges.
Virtues
India's most successful young entrepreneurs, Kumar Mangalam is a shy and modest man.
He is tagged as an agent of change and has driven against the stream to bring about marked
changes in the functioning of Aditya birla group.
Passion, he feels, is an important tool to achieve success, as it brings a certain amount of
discipline, sustainability, the fact that you can be much more productive, much more lateral in
the way you think, about the business you are doing.
Kumar believes in profitable Growth, and wishes to undertake only those streams of business,
where he can see himself excelling to the top position in the future.
He is an inspiration to budding entrepreneurs and managers, all over the world.
