Tel-Comm-Tek New India Managing Director Recommendation

Managing Director Recommendation

The person who will replace the departing managing director in India needs both technical competency as well as adequate people skills. The new director needs to be experienced in accounting, supply chain logistics, finance, labor relations, and leadership as well as verbal and nonverbal communication, conflict resolution, stress management, and efficient time management. Furthermore he or she has to be familiar with India’s unique business environment and its elaborate licenses, regulations, and bureaucracy.

As a team, we have chosen to nominate Ravi Desai for the new managing director of TCT’s India operation. We decided that he is the best candidate to replace the previous managing director because of his past work experiences as well as his knowledge of Indian language, culture, business and politics. He has had a diverse work experience over the past ten years, performing well in all his positions, and is a native of India, implying a unique understanding of area and its needs. We believe that Ravi Desai is the best possible candidate for the position and under his leadership the India operation will continue to grow and expand. As will be discussed later on in the paper, we also believe that Ravi’s strengths coupled with Saumitra Chakraborty as the assistant to the managing director will create the best possible team to run the TCT India operation. Saumitra’s experience in with the TCT Indian operation and his personal connections with the government will help Ravi to succeed in India’s unique business environment. Through a well-integrated team the company can exploit its multinational experiences to optimize operations in India.

Ravi Desai is the assistant managing director in the larger Asian operation and has overseen production and sales in Singapore, Malaysia and China. Even though Ravi will be working in his home country, these international leadership experiences prove that Ravi is a competent and capable manager and indicate that he will be successful as the managing director in India. In his past positions, Ravi has had the opportunity to work with many expatriates and international employees within the company. This experience will be important since the on-site factory director in Bengaluru is a U.S. expatriate. As long as Ravi Desai has worked with TCT, he has worked outside of India, but always maintained close communications with U.S. Headquarters. The new managing director position requires someone who will be able to work fluidly with headquarters in order to maximize efficiency. Ravi well prepared for these responsibilities of the new position.

Ravi has been with TCT for ten years, substantial time in order to understand company workings, policies and values. Consequently, he can transfer the mission of TCT to his employees to motivate them and improve their performances in accordance with the TCT’s company strategy.

As a team, we feel that Ravi is uniquely positioned to efficiently handle the difficult government and business environment in India. Ravi’s Indian nationality and citizenship is an important factor in our decision to choose him. His nationality and inherent understanding of culture and customs will help him to work with employees, local suppliers and the government. For instance, a local supplier will be more likely to cooperate and deal with a subsidiary that is managed by a native rather than a foreign leader. Ravi’s Indian origin will help him to capture the needs of locals and to better adapt practices, being sensitive to the host environment without losing sight of the company’s interests and knowing what it needs for growth. Ravi’s presence in the Indian subsidiary will maintain a good and fruitful relationship and atmosphere with locals. By selecting Ravi for this position, TCT demonstrates that local citizens have opportunities to succeed in a top-management position in a multinational American company. This will markedly improve motivation among Indian employees. Furthermore, by hiring Ravi for the position, the company can demonstrate the importance of local interests, decreasing the risk of potential conflicts and opposition from Indian stakeholders. His familiarity with local traditions, customs and people will ensure TCT less risk of failure due to cultural conflicts.

Ravi’s high-level of education in addition to his previous experiences in operational positions, give Ravi the technical skills needed to fulfill the tasks of his future position. He has been an assistant managing director, giving him experience in all of the technical areas required for this position, with specific responsibilities over production, sales and operations. Out of all the candidates, Ravi has the most diversified experience, performing well in all his positions. As a team, we feel that Ravi is distinctly qualified for this position in terms of his past experience and expertise.

In sending U.S. citizens to India, departing managing director Mark Hopkins and the on-site factory director, TCT followed an ethnocentric approach, believing that the home country approach was most appropriate for international markets and that employees worldwide could and should follow it. At the time, this approach was thought to be the most appropriate because the company’s business in India was still in its infancy. Now that the India operation has passed the beginning stage, the India subsidiary is ready to become more independent by hiring an Indian citizen for the managing director position. By hiring an Indian native to run the India operation, TCT will engage in a more geocentric approach in India, allowing for and encouraging cultural differences and diversity.

Unselected Candidates

We will now take a brief look at each of the other candidates to analyze some of their pros and cons so that we can better understand why we have ultimately nominated Ravi Desai for the position.

Tom Wallace

Tom has been with TCT for 30 years, which is much longer than any of the other candidates. He has traveled substantially during this time and toured many of the company’s foreign operations. He has also expressed interest working abroad and his children are all grown. As a team, we agree that these factors indicate Tom is in a position to readily accept the new managing director position in India. Tom’s long history with the company means he will be able to provide insights and wisdom that only come from experience. He also currently supervises a U.S. based operation the same size as the future India operation, so he would not be overwhelmed by the large size of the India operation. However, Tom’s experience is primarily in the technical and sales aspects of the company, not in management, accounting, supply, finance, or

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