For long, this vanguard of Maruti’s marketing army has battled hard to ensure that the company retains the #1 spot in the Indian auto arena. He’s succeeded to a large extent... By Pawan Chabra
Mayank Pareek
Managing Executive Officer – Marketing & Sales, Maruti Suzuki
Two long decades back, Mayank Pareek, an engineer holding an MBA degree and an ex-employee at BHEL, was on the lookout for a job. The first opportunity knocked in the form of a lucrative overseas offer from the Bank of America. He turned down the offer. Many scoffed at him; more so, because he chose to join a government-owned Maruti Udyog Limited (the erstwhile Maruti Suzuki India). That was 1991. Recalling his decision, Pareek recalls, “The decision was mostly triggered by my love for cars. Surely, I was in love with intriguing statistics, but my love for cars was bigger.” He certainly does not regret the divine call. Having joined the company as a Regional Manager in Chandigarh, today, he has climbed the management ladder at the Indo-Jap carmaker to take charge as the Managing Executive Officer – Marketing & Sales. His responsibility: to ensure that the #1 Indian carmaker Maruti’s market share, which has been flirting with the 50% mark of late, remains healthy.
When we sit down for a chat over coffee with Pareek, he chooses to break the ice with a casual discussion on Indian media space. But he quickly drifts on to a debate on automobiles. His passion for cars is visible more than ever. He hasn’t changed, not one bit in 20 years! So what has kept him glued to the Maruti brand for such a long time? He replies, “You look for a change when you experience monotony in your work. But at Maruti, life has always been interesting and every new week brings a new challenge to your desk. Therefore, I never felt the need to look out for greener pastures.” [He says that since the day he presented his resume at Maruti, he’s never taken a look at it in all these years.]
Pareek’s presence at the helm of decision-making on the marketing front has surely been felt by the company over the years, whether it be the announcement of the launch of the CNG versions of five models (which shows how the company is still conscious of what a price-sensitive market desires) or the fact that Maruti earns up to 15% of its revenues from Tier II & III locations, which is definitely great news for the company. Says Pareek, “Even in the past 12 months, Maruti has tried to give what the consumer has expected. When they were looking for small cars, the company met the demand. Now, we have even started to offer what the new-generation consumers want.” He has surely been one of the strongest pillars of Maruti’s citadel in the past two decades. It is also worthy of mention that he had always been amongst the loudest of voices that voted for several small car launches under one category, which helped in de-fragmenting the hatchback market and capturing market share in India.
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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
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