India's Best CFOs

Business Today awards India's Best CFOs

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BEST CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICERY.M. Deosthalee, 64, CFO and Member of the Board, Larsen & ToubroMY BEST PRACTICEDecision-making is meticulously objective. I am willing to learn from anyone, including juniorsWHAT GETS MY GOATHypocrisy, a political environment in the office. I try to defuse or avoid such situationsHOW I UNWINDSinging light classical music. I love Hindustani musicGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIRESteve Jobs and Apple, for their ability to innovate and come back after failure

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SUSTAINED WEALTH CREATION (LARGE SIZE)Ravi Sud, 57, Senior Vice President & CFO, Hero HondaMY BEST PRACTICEOpenness and transparency. Be as open as possible to all stakeholders. Do not make anybody an insiderWHAT GETS MY GOATRumours and rumour-mongersHOW I UNWINDOn weekends, I sit at home and relaxGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREWhy go abroad? The CFO that I admire the most, and call 'guru', is T.V. Mohandas Pai (former CFO of Infosys)

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SUSTAINED WEALTH CREATION (SMALL SIZE)Sangeeta Gulati, 45, Chief Financial Officer, Educomp SolutionsMY BEST PRACTICEStrike a balance between social and financial objectivesWHAT GETS MY GOATIndiscipline, delays and unprofessional behaviourHOW I UNWINDPainting, watching moviesGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREMohandas Pai (as CFO of Infosys), because it is a challenge to create a sound financial structure at the startup stage, on which the company builds subsequent growth. Steve Jobs for his innovation.

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REMARKABLE LEVERAGE MANAGEMENT (LARGE SIZE)Akhil Gupta, 55, Deputy Group CEO and MD, Bharti AirtelMY BEST PRACTICEBeing conservative in my actions and my projectionsWHAT GETS MY GOATThe inability of people to see the big pictureHOW I UNWINDI play tennis every weekendGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIRENone

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REMARKABLE LEVERAGE MANAGEMENT (SMALL SIZE)Muniswamy Srinivas, 53,Head, Finance, Opto CircuitsMY BEST PRACTICEI prefer verbal communication more than e-mailsWHAT GETS MY GOATIf work is not completed within the stipulated timeHOW I UNWINDPlaying cricketGLOBAL CFO/ CEO I ADMIREN.R. Narayana Murthy. He inspires youngsters to take on challenges

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CONSISTENT LIQUIDITY MANAGEMENT (LARGE SIZE)Ajay Seth, 51, CFO, Maruti SuzukiMY BEST PRACTICEKeep challenging the status quo. Continue to innovate and bring in best practicesWHAT GETS MY GOATLaid-back attitude, complacencyHOW I UNWINDBy listening to music, especially classics - bands such as the Carpenters and the BeatlesGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREN.R. Narayana Murthy, because he ran his company like a professional, and stepped down at the right time

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CONSISTENT LIQUIDITY MANAGEMENT (MID-SIZE)R. Rajendran, 66,Director, Finance, Lakshmi Machine WorksMY BEST PRACTICENever leave money idleWHAT GETS MY GOATCustomer or vendor queries not being immediately addressedHOW I UNWINDBy spending time at the school run by LMWGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREN.R. Narayana Murthy

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TRANSFORMATION AGENT (MID-SIZE)Mehernosh Kapadia, 56,Senior Executive Director, GSK PharmaceuticalsMY BEST PRACTICEI believe in integrity and trust. I focus on team work.WHAT GETS MY GOATI like people to be quick. They should also be punctualHOW I UNWINDBy spending time with family, listening to music and going for long walksGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREJack Welch. Our current CEO, Andrew Witty

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ENHANCING COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH M&As Uday Phadke, 60, President, Finance, Legal & Financial Services Sector, Mahindra GroupMY BEST PRACTICEDocument every decision exhaustively, with details for references in docket formWHAT GETS MY GOATUnpunctuality and unpreparednessHOW I UNWINDListening to old Hindi film songs and Indian classical musicGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREThere is so much talent within the company. Why look outside?

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GLOCAL CFOV. Balakrishnan, 47,Executive Director and CFO, InfosysMY BEST PRACTICEI try to reply to all my emails daily before going homeWHAT GETS MY GOATConvoluted arguments to support a bad caseHOW I UNWINDBy spending time with my eight-year-old daughter ShwetaGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREN.R. Narayana Murthy, because he leads by example

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BEST CFO OF A PSUD.K. Sarraf, 53,Director, Finance, ONGCMY BEST PRACTICEWhen I take a business decision, I put myself in the shoes of the company's ownerWHAT GETS MY GOATRoundabout answersHOW I UNWINDMornings by walking, evenings by watching TV with the childrenGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREN.R. Narayana Murthy, former chairman of Infosys

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BEST TREASURERIndrajit Banerjee, 55,Executive Director and CFO, Cairn IndiaMY BEST PRACTICETrust, transparency and timelinessWHAT GETS MY GOATI work in Gurgaon and live in Delhi. The drive home puts all my nerves to the testHOW I UNWINDBy travelling to a remote place where my BlackBerry doesn't workGLOBAL CFO/CEO I ADMIREAnil Agarwal, Executive Chairman, Vedanta Resources