The world will remember Narayanan Vaghul as a brilliant thinker, a visionary and an institution-builder, a man who laid the ground for the evolution of universal banking in India. But he will also be remembered as a people’s person—someone who nurtured the careers of many professionals, taking them under his wing and mentoring them before letting them fly away to make their mark.
The many bankers from the ICICI (Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India) fold, who went on to hold top positions both within ICICI Bank, and in other institutions, are testimony to his ability to spot talent and nurture it. Indeed, Vaghul was generous in his praise of his colleagues and always pushed them to do their best. One cannot think of any organisation that has thrown up so many bright professionals, the brightest being KV Kamath.
At ICICI, which was housed in the unpretentious Mafatlal Chambers at Backbay Reclamation in Mumbai, it was not merely about loans and interest rates; it was about creating a culture in which everyone could learn and grow. Indeed, the chairman himself worked out of a small room and almost never sat at his desk.
One of his lasting contributions as a leader was democratising the process of management and bringing in transparency. Though final loan decisions could be taken only by the credit committee members, he threw open the meetings to anyone in the organisation who wanted to attend. He was particularly keen on new entrants attending the meetings so that they could learn how decisions were taken. On Mondays, when the meetings took place, the room used to be overcrowded, with many people standing and watching the proceedings. That’s what no management book or academic lecture can ever teach anyone.
While the day-to-day work mattered, it was never a humdrum existence for the team; it was a vibrant organisation with ample room for ideation and innovation. Many of them were well ahead of their time. This kind of environment, fostered by Vaghul, would have been an inspiration for many. One never saw the same energy at any of the other banks or development institutions of the time.
As a young reporter, I used to meet Vaghul, then ICICI chairman, regularly in his 5th floor office and never returned without learning something. For the most part, Vaghul, always unassuming, would be seated on a sofa, and even if I didn’t always get a ‘story’, I would get to know about something new that was happening.
He believed in the greater good of the country and its progress as a nation; his thinking was not limited by the growth of ICICI or its balance sheet or even the banking sector. He was deeply affected by the passing away of Aditya Vikram Birla whom he admired greatly and who he felt could have gone on to do great things for the country.
Above all, Vaghul will always be respected and admired for his integrity.
In times when other bankers were known to succumb to pressure from New Delhi, Vaghul was able to fight it; it was these values and principles that set him apart from his peers. There are several anecdotes in his book Reflections released last year that give us an insight into how bankers were put in difficult situations by politicians and bureaucrats who expected the former to toe their line.
Vaghul, too, found himself in such predicaments, but to his immense credit, he managed to stand his ground, sometimes even threatening to resign. It could not have been easy but then Vaghul was never one to compromise on his values.
