“We all strive for the manyness, but what sets us apart is the oneness.” Was the advice of Mr. Rajiv Bajaj, Managing Director, Bajaj Auto Ltd, to the SIIB Marketing Batch of 2010-2012 at the “SIIB Bajaj Workshop” organized with help of Ms. Adya Sharma (H.O.D, Marketing at SIIB) The event took place on the 10th of September 2011, and had a full house of excited second year marketing students.
Mr. Bajaj proved to be as brilliant a speaker as he is a marketing strategist. He immediately captured the attention of the students by busting some prevalent marketing myths and ideas. He then continued to delight his audience till the end with his stories and experience of transforming Bajaj Auto Ltd into the most profitable auto company in the country.
A case study titled ‘Bajaj Auto Ltd. - The Waves of Change’ authored by Ms. Adya Sharma was analyzed and discussed by the students. The case study tells the story of Bajaj Auto Ltd. from being the rulers of the two wheeler market (before liberalisation), to their downfall (post liberalization) and to their resurrection. It also raises questions about future growth and possible direction the company could take.
Mr. Bajaj addressed some of these questions and also talked about various types of strategies undertaken by firms in an increasingly hostile market. He talked about the values that Bajaj Auto Ltd. stands for and warned the students against certain prejudices that destroy businesses. Mr. Bajaj is an ardent follower of homeopathy and draws inspiration from it to solve his business problems. He demonstrated the advantages of keen observation and showed how it helps in business decisions.
Three hours later a very impressed and delighted batch of students walked out of the room, with some ideas that would stay with them for a lifetime. “Fashion dates, but logic is timeless!” says Mr. Bajaj, and we agree!
