Azim Premji - Is he a benevolent like Tata in the making?

[ViruRulez]

I have always respected Tata for his benevolence and great deeds. Azim Premji has been in India's richest list for almost a decade or more now but never knew much about his personal life etc. He has never been in the news even when he was the richest the richest Indian residing in India for almost 6 years from 99 to 2005 until Mukesh Ambani became the richest Indian. He has always remained low profile throughout his life and so we do not know much about him. But today, I was just going through forbes list after which I made some research. And frankly speaking my respect for Premji increased a lot. He was a great enterpreneur like Narayanmoorthy and Dhirubhai and he started from his father's vegetable oil company and grew it into the huge Wipro empire through his hard work and diligence. As per wikipedia: Premji is known for his modesty and frugality in spite of his wealth. He drives a Toyota Corolla and flies economy class, prefers to stay in company guest houses rather than luxury hotels and even served food on paper plates at a lunch honouring his son's wedding. I am also quite impressed after reading about the Azim Premji foundation. As per wikipedia: The Azim Premji Foundation says it "Aims at making a tangible impact on identified social issues by working in active partnership with the Government and other related sectors of society". The Foundation was set up with financial resources contributed by Azim Premji. Programmes of the Azim Premji Foundation focus on "creating effective and scalable models that significantly improve the quality of learning in the school and ensure satisfactory ownership by the community in the management of the school". Azim Premji Foundation says it "dedicates itself to the cause of Universalization of Elementary Education in India". The organisation has over the years been instrumental in improving the quality of general education, particularly in rural schools. Citing a technology initiative, the Foundation reported: "Think of a single PC with three display terminals, three keyboards and three 'mouses', which can be simultaneously used as if they are three independent computers" I also read that he has announced that he would not allow Wipro to be a hereditary company and will not pass on the reigns to his son. He says that his son needs to earn his position through the company and not simply get positions in the company for being his son. Really my respect for Azim Premji and Wipro really increased after reading about him. Out of Indian businessman biggies I respected Tata and Narayanmoorthy but today my respect for Premji has increased a lot after reading about him and his family, social activities and humility. Hats off to Premji :adore::adore::adore::isalute:

[ViruRulez]

Also read a few articles about Premji's elder son Rishad Premji and how his father is making him to work hard for everything. An article from rediff in 2007 describing his son

He was considered the second most eligible bachelor in the county after Rahul Gandh till he tied the knot with childhood sweetheart Aditi at a simple ceremony in Mumbai in August 2005. Rishad Premji is now set to make a statement when he joins the Wipro empire sometime in July. The elder of Wipro Chairman Azim Premji's two sons, Rishad studied at the Harvard Busines School and graduated from Wesleyan University, Connecticut. With a penchant for software and music, Rishad sure has learnt one thing from his father, and that is to maintain a low profile. Rishad, who is currently with Bain and Co, had a brief stint with GE before doing his MBA. His move now to join his father's empire is interesting considering the fact that Azim Premji once said he did not want Wipro to become a family business. Sources in Wipro maintain that Rishad will have to work his way through to the top. It is said that Rishad was keen on joining Wipro. Like everyone else, he too had to send in his resume and as luck would have it, he managed to find a placement. Rishad will join the 70,000-employee-strong software-led conglomerate, which also makes soaps and bulbs, as a business finance solutions manager. It is also learnt that he will report to its president, Girish Paranjpe. Speculation has it that he will join the company sometime in late July as the annual general meeting takes place around that time. Like dad, like son: Lots has been spoken about Rishad's simplicity and his love to remain low key. Sources say his father always wanted him to learn the hard way. In fact, when Rishad was in London , he had asked his father's permission to stay at the Wipro guesthouse. This was turned down by Premji Sr who reportedly said it was company property. Interests: Rishad, like his father, is interested in reading and music. It is said that Rishad reads quite a lot and during his spare time reads quite a lot of books, mostly relating to management. The million-dollar question is whether he will travel economy class like his father. Another aspect of Rishad, which is very similar to his father, is his secular nature. Although a Muslim, a visit to the temple is a must for Rishad too. Succession: Rishad's father owns nearly 84 per cent of the stake in Wipro and IT pundits feel this move by Premji Sr to rope in his son means that there is a succession plan in place. The post of CFO is number two in the Wipro hierarchy and bringing Rishad into the financial services hints of a succession plan, it is believed. Analysts say like his father he eventually will become the chairman of the company. Marriage: The tall and handsome Rishad got married to his childhood sweetheart Aditi at a very low-key ceremony in Mumbai in 2005. Considering his father's penchant for remaining low-key, it is learnt that Rishad too was in favour of a low-key wedding. No gala receptions with no celebrity list, the wedding at the Taj Palace, Mumbai, was a very quiet family affair. Although nothing much is known about Rishad's tall and attractive wife, it is said that she also belongs to the no-nonsense clan. It is said she would fit the bill of an ideal Wipro bahurani as her non-nonsense attitude will be an asset in the business world. Rishad, prior to marriage, has had his share of fun too. An ardent party-lover, he was spotted on several occasions at trendy night spots in Bangalore along with Aditi. Family: Rishad is the son of Azim and Yasmeen. His younger brother Tariq, who is currently with the Azim Premji Foundation, is more of a friend. Rishad is basically a family man and any spare time is exclusively reserved for family. Like most Indian men he is closer to his mother and looks up to his father who he considers as his icon.

http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2007/jun/07rishad.htm Another article from economic times this year about Risadh:

BANGALORE: When Rishad Premji, the 32-year-old son of Wipro founder Azim Premji, joined the company as a business manager two years ago, he had to travel almost 10 km from his Koramangla residence to work at the company’s Electronic City campus. As the elder son of Mr Premji moves into a new role of general manager, treasury and investor relations (IR), at Wipro’s corporate headquarters on Sarjapur road starting Wednesday, he will only need to drive around 5 km every day. For somebody who is being looked upon as an obvious heir to inherit around 80% of Wipro stake along with his brother, moving up the corporate ladder continues to be a normal process — something Mr Premji himself has ensured ever since he proposed that his elder son join Wipro. “This is just a role change for him, just like anybody else in the company,” said a senior Wipro official requesting anonymity. “From the very beginning, it was made clear that he is being brought as a normal employee, and he will have to earn his position through performance,” he added. Indeed, ever since Rishad joined Wipro, there’s been speculation about him being groomed to lead Wipro. But insiders say, it will be a gradual process. “For all you know, Wipro could form a trust, just like the Tatas did, and the company could be run by professional leaders, including Rishad,” a person said. He requested anonymity because he is not authorised to speak on Wipro’s succession plans. For Rishad, who is married to childhood friend Aditi and has two kids, Rhea and Rohaan, the past two years have helped him understand the business of software. According to Rajendra Kumar Shreemal, Wipro’s head of IR, Rishad has helped the company evolve its financial services practice by leading two acquisitions and also spearheading Wipro’s operating margin improvement initiative. Rishad will be reporting to Mr Shreemal in his new role. In his earlier role, he reported to Soumitro Ghosh, senior vice-president of Wipro’s banking and financial services division. In a year when Wipro was preparing to cope with falling revenues from financial services customers, Rishad helped the company drive two critical acquisitions. “He helped us in a significant acquisition we did recently. He was the integration head for our Citi Technology Services acquisition,” Mr Shreemal said. “He has championed some of our major non-linear initiatives including acquisition of Gallagher Financial Systems and alliance with Cenlar Financial last year,” he added. Rishad’s new role will involve handling investor relations and maintaining dialogue with Wipro’s financial investors and key stakeholders, besides managing the company’s treasury. “He already has exposure to treasury when he worked at GE Capital,” added Mr Shreemal. With an MBA degree from Harvard Business School, Rishad worked with GE Capital and consulting firm Bain &Co before he joined Wipro in July 2007. Meanwhile, Tariq Premji, Rishad’s younger brother, continues to work with the Premji Foundation, which is focussed on providing quality education across primary schools.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Company/Corporate-Announcement/Rishad-Premji-moves-up-the-ladder-gets-new-role/articleshow/4726714.cms Really reading all these today my respect for Azim Premji has also increased a lot. Hats off to him for being honest and humble and making his son earn for each and everything. :adore::isalute: