He Conquers who Endures: S.K. Jain

- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -

I was born into a large but poor family. My father had a modest income and we were dwelling in a village in Haryana near Panipat. I had to leave my parents at a very young age as I went to stay with my aunt who was quite affluent and owned a large house in Sonipat. I was six-year-old and was invited to live with them to give company to their son who was also of my age. I started living with them and got admission in a government school. As a child, I was bright in studies. Even before I had joined school, I had memorised mathematic multiplication tables up to number 20, which, students usually learn in standard three or four. I was acknowledged as an intelligent child from the very first day of school by my teachers and was made the class monitor. It may appear to be a trivial accomplishment now, but as a child it meant the world to me.

Although I got a good start at school there were a lot of issues to be faced back home. As I was living away from my parents I had to encounter a lot of discrimination from my cousin. At times it would make me upset and I would long to return to my parents’ house. Dealing with these hardships at such a young age made me tough and I real­ised early in life that I needed to create a path for myself on my own and that could be achieved through education. I was industrious and by God’s grace, bestowed with a sharp mind.

When I was in standard eight, I scored very well and consequently got admission in a very good school in Sonipat. It was called the SMI Hindu School, which had a reputation for fos­tering toppers from all over Punjab and Haryana. In standard 10 I stood first in the entire Punjab (Punjab and Haryana were one one state then) state. That day was the happiest day in my life. It was a great achievement for my school and for me. The whole of Sonipat was deco­rated and I was the centre of attraction. There was a grand public celebration in my honour. I was interviewed by vari­ous publishers. This performance got me various offers to study in reputed colleges at no cost. DAV college, Chan­digarh was one of them. However, due to the distance factor, I chose Hindu College, Sonipat, for my junior college education and later went on to study electronics engineering at the Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh. I constantly received scholarships for my meritorious performance from the state and Central governments. Till standard eight, I received a scholarship of Rs 40 and from then on, Rs 140 per month. This compensation was deemed a big amount in those days and covered all my expenses as a student.”

- Advertisement -

Adversity to achievement

“The year I was in standard 10 was a turning point in my life. As mentioned earlier, I might have discontinued my studies had I failed to score well, since my parents could not afford educational expenses. The accomplishment of scor­ing well in the examinations threw open the doors to promising prospects. It gave me the determination to continue my studies further. My father wanted me to learn typing and take up a clerical job in a bank or in the government sector. However, since I was getting good offers I discontinued the typing course. In fact, I took a dislike to them and even today, avoid typing or sending telexes. For this reason, I don’t even carry a notepad even though I have been told on many occasions to carry one.”

My professional journey

“I scored 86 per cent in my engineering examinations and was among the top­pers of the university. However, despite good academic records I wasn’t very ambitious about my career. I was hard­working and disciplined but unlike my friends and classmates, who nurtured plans of going abroad, I chose to go with the flow and accepted whatever destiny brought me. Instead of appear­ing for the UPSC exams or acquiring a public sector job in companies like Bharat Electronics, ITI, Hindustan Aeronautics, I accepted a job offer from a relatively small company. The pro­prietor of the company was an alumni of my college and had come there for campus recruitment. My teachers had always been extremely supportive of me and considering my smooth academic background, suggested my name. Also, they empathised with me as my father had recently expired. I got the job and started my career in the year 1978. Al­though it was a small company, it gave me immense opportunities to learn and grow as an individual and professional. On the very second day of employment I was in the Oberoi Hotel, attending to international delegates. Within 10 months, I was promoted to the rank of regional manager, South India. My boss appreciated my work and in 1980, I was sent to the US on a training programme. For the next eight years I travelled ex­tensively to Europe and USA and within India for various business purposes, as well as training programmers. I also finished my masters in business admin­istration during my stay in Bangalore and performed brilliantly since I was now equipped with practical knowledge of business as well.”

New roles, new hats

“In 1984 I was promoted to the post of CEO of the company. I was then 29-year­old. My boss liked me so much that he even proposed that I marry his sister. I accepted the proposal, not out of love but due to the faith he entrusted in me. I came to Delhi and my boss, who was now my brother-in-law, contemplated diversifying into other businesses. The company was doing well and he planned to venture into manufacturing, handing over the reigns to me entirely. Unfortunately, the business didn’t take off and he wanted to come back. This friction created a rift between us. I might have been the CEO of the company, but he was still the owner. So in order to move ahead in life I thought of setting up my own company with an engineer I had known since my days in Banga­lore. I quit my job and Sumitron was founded in 1986.

As is common in any start-up, we too had our share of financial hiccups in the initial 11 months. Most of the in­vestments came from my pocket. At one stage I had to sell my wife’s jewellery and borrow money from friends. That difficult phase ended and I received my first cheque of $4000 in July 1987. Busi­ness started blossoming and we set up our first branch in Bangalore.

Everything was going well but in 1991, when India was faced with the foreign exchange crunch, import busi­nesses were badly affected. In order to keep moving I started Sumitron Exports Pvt Ltd in 1990, in partnership with a businessman from Panipat. We started an export business with products like handicrafts, textiles and furnishing fabrics as they were easy to export. The business did well and started generating profits while my own company, Sumitron Marketing was meeting its expenses. The real push came in 1993 when Dr Manmo­han Singh became the Finance Minister and brought along with him economic reforms that liberalised India’s economy. After the liberalisation, the economy that had been in shambles regained footing and the import sector benefited. I was not interested in garment export and hence handed over the business to my partner. Since then I have been engaged it and this approach has helped me in maintaining a very healthy relationship with my customers.

My management style can be described as fatherly. I do not like to pressurise my staff or burden them with too much workload. I want them to value what they are doing and not get stressed. Even during this period of recession when our business has dipped by 20 per cent, we never once thought of laying off anyone from our staff or indulging in cost-cutting pertinent to festive bonuses or gifts. I like to share my wealth with others. Also, I like to offer presents as tokens of memory and appreciation to my patrons and clients. I feel there is a difference between being ‘wealthy’ and being ‘rich’. To be rich is to have a lot of money but in the electronics business and have been able to maintain a growth rate of 30 per cent every year.”

Wealthy, not rich

“I have been in business for the past 22 years. I don’t judge a person by his technical knowledge, but through the parameters of reliability and integrity of character. I don’t believe in taking a for­mal education-centric test. Instead, I ask candidates to write about themselves or about life in 20-100 words. Many a times I have judged a person through his own self assessment. If an individual has the right attitude but is not technically sound, he can be trained. For example, I was never considered to be a market­ing person but destiny brought me to a juncture where I am selling electronic products and have been extremely successful in doing so. I believe in long-term relationships, whether it be with a customer, supplier or an employee. I have young customers; they trust me and have faith in my products and serv­ices. If I commit to something I will do to be wealthy is to have the blessings of elders, good wishes of friends and a good rapport with customers. For this reason I have always idolised Mr Narayana Murthy, chairman, Infosys, for his simplicity and his inclination to­wards the concept of sharing. He has not just established the biggest IT empire in the country, but created hundreds of millionaires in the process; he has shared his wealth. Conducting business with the right ethics and appropriate sharing of wealth had been my mantra and will continue to be in the future. I also attribute my growth and success to our customer-oriented approach. As a businessman I believed in the age-old adage, ‘The customer is always right’. I might be from a technical background but my commercial, financial and legal knowledge has been strong enough to add value to the business.”

Familial bliss

“I was the eldest among five brothers and three sisters and often my father would say that I was like the engine of a train; if I moved in the right direction the others too would follow suit. After me, there have been six more engineers in the family.  I have two sons, both have studied engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering (DCE). One of them is mar­ried and has joined me in business. My wife is a masters in economics.

I have always tried to strike a bal­ance between the personal and profes­sional spheres of my life. As a business­man I had to travel a lot but I managed to devote quality time to my family as well. I have always been a sports en­thusiast and a keen follower of cricket, tennis and multi-sports events like the Olympics. Travelling is also my pas­sion and I have had the opportunity to travel extensively in India and abroad. My wife and I have travelled to many religious places together and we often plan out family weekends. I am not a workaholic and like spending time with my loved ones.”

Desires that still lurk within

“I have one regret—not having spent enough time with my parents, especially my mother. I shared a strong bond with my mother and the vacuum of her absence is difficult to fill. I would like set up a school in the memory of my father in my hometown. I don’t want to see any child left uneducated due to poverty and hence donate funds to vari­ous educational institutions.”

Words of wisdom

“From my experiences I would like to share a few things with young aspiring minds. If one does things with earnest concentration and integrity he is bound to achieve success. One should not be fussy and accept what life presents to him. Never shun difficulties as they enrich the spectrum of life. A systematic and consistent approach will surely bear fruit. Somebody correctly said, “If you follow success, success will follow you; if you follow money, success will not follow you.”

As told to Himanshu Yadav of Electronics Bazaar

- Advertisement -

Related Artcles

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Exclusive

Indian PC Market Grows 4% In Q4 2023, Local Manufacturing Efforts Ramp Up

0
IT procurement by enterprises and SMBs, delayed in the first half of 2023, is starting to take place and is expected to accelerate...

“Efficiency In Solar Energy Is More About Investment Rationale Than Resource Limitation”

0
Indian utility-scale solar company SolarArise claims to offer investors long-term, cash-generating assets and anticipates advancements in energy storage technologies to enable 24-hour clean power...

A New Form Factor Of Two Wheelers Takes Shape In India

0
The logistics sector has become India's biggest adopter of electric vehicles. However, attrition due to physical and mental fatigue is alarming for lease and...

Buzz

Suzuki Makes Investment In IoT Expert Soracom

0
Key areas of interest include globally-marketed electric vehicles, modular 'mobility base units', and innovative technologies and services to achieve carbon neutrality. Just a month after...

Microsoft announces Pavan Davuluri As Head of Windows and Surface

0
Davuluri has been contributing to the company's collaborations with Qualcomm and AMD in developing custom Surface processors. Microsoft has announced the appointment of Pavan Davuluri...

EDAG, Baier Motors Develop Electric Motorcycle for Africa

0
The Oryx Concept motorcycle, a collaboration between EDAG Group and start-up Baier Motors, is designed to meet the increasing demand in Africa for a...

Important Sectors

Suzuki Makes Investment In IoT Expert Soracom

0
Key areas of interest include globally-marketed electric vehicles, modular 'mobility base units', and innovative technologies and services to achieve carbon neutrality. Just a month after...

EDAG, Baier Motors Develop Electric Motorcycle for Africa

0
The Oryx Concept motorcycle, a collaboration between EDAG Group and start-up Baier Motors, is designed to meet the increasing demand in Africa for a...

MNRE Announces Minimum Efficiency Criteria For Thin Film Solar

0
Utility grid- scale power plants using CdTe should have efficiency of 19%.  For rooftop and solar pumping applications efficiency requirement is 18.5% and...

BYD Achieves 7 Million New Energy Vehicles, Last Million In 4 Months

0
BYD has become the first in the world to produce seven million new energy vehicles (NEVs), with the most recent million being manufactured in...

ZF Hits 1,000 CeTrax Lite Electric CV Drives, Boosted by Isuzu Demand

0
Shortly after beginning volume production, Isuzu experienced an increase in demand, driven by its use of the ZF CeTrax lite electric drive in its...

Manufacturing

JLR To Hire 250 Electrical Technicians For Future EVs

0
These new roles, part of a £15 billion investment, are in addition to 300 positions created last year by the British car maker. Jaguar Land...

Altmin India Partners With WMG To Advance Battery Tech

0
Altmin and WMG will collaborate to strengthen their global battery materials supply chain position by optimizing cathode materials and developing diverse cell designs across...

EVs To Cost Less Than Gas Vehicles by 2027, Says Gartner

0
Gartner predicts a faster decline in production costs compared to battery costs, which represent the most significant expense in an electric vehicle, accounting for...
MG

MG Motor To Set Up Battery Assembly Unit At Halol Facility

0
The company plans to investigate battery cell production in collaboration with external partners. Automaker MG Motor India is actively exploring the possibility of assembling and...

Servotech Boosts India’s EV Charging Infrastructure With Manufacturing Facility

0
The new facility is poised to start with an annual production capacity of 24,000 power modules and plan to scale up to 2.4 lakh...