The Man Who Multiplied Value: Giri Giridhar’s Corporate Journey
In a House of Few Frills
Giri’s stickiest childhood memories revolve around his grandfather. In an era sans gadgets or even a television, Aaja would teach him this and that. Even discuss passages from Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, for good measure. Giri realized early on that books and lessons were portals into magical worlds.
In any case, there wasn’t much else to do. In his lower middle class household, sports was deemed a distraction. With his father moving around the country in a transferable job, and his mother holding the fort at Chennai, Amma felt compelled to limit her kids’ activities. While he did climb trees, pluck fruits and cavort around the garden, he had absorbed the family’s fierce focus on education.
Family Influencers
Right through, Giri watched his Chartered Accountant uncles establish steady practices with their whip-smart book keeping. He decided to follow suit. “Not much choice in those days,” he chuckles. Entry into the Chartered Accountancy program was easy, getting through entailed a slog. But Giri clearly had a knack for juggling numbers and decoding tricky tax laws. So much so, he garnered a national rank in the notoriously competitive exam. Then, on a whim, he attempted the CAT exam. And received an offer at IIM Ahmedabad. Which he was to discover, only later, was a haloed and highly selective institution.
From a Small Pond
Till then, hanging about his smaller circle in Chennai, he had always felt smart. A bit complacent even, what with that CA rank and all. Landing at IIM was a shock. He was surrounded by a dazzlingly diverse set – who brandished not just book smarts but also a flair for tennis or a thing for quizzing. His batchmates included future trailblazers like Raghuram Rajan and Nachiket Mor.
Forging Lifelong Bonds
While the first year was grueling, by the second, he had found his groove. And in the process, formed bonds with batchmates. While these relationships were initially charged with competitive undercurrents, over time they evolved into enduring connections. Today, his IIM peers rank among his closest friends, with the group engaging in frequent meetups.
Twin Thrills: A First Flight and A First Job
At the end of his MBA, he snagged a coveted job at ITC, a company he chose because he had been asked to fly to Calcutta for an interview – his first flight ever. The elation of a job offer was amplified by the thrill of his airborne adventure.
From Guntur to Global Adventures
He describes his 8 ½ years at ITC as “foundational” – a period marked by travels to cities and small towns. Most memorably, he was posted to Guntur, where he met his wife, Laxmi. ITC had a tight-knit, collegial culture, with employees sharing clubs and communal spaces. At ITC, he gained not only finance chops but also a fresh circle of forever friends.
Stepping Up and Branching Out
Watching IIM-mates and an ITC colleague venture into banking, Giri felt the itch to broaden his own horizons. Joining ILFS when the institution wielded a starry reputation proved a savvy move. Advising CEOs and CFOs on their businesses accorded a strategic lens.
Making Strong First Impressions
In those pre-internet days, mastering research required combing through banks’ libraries and scouring newspapers for rare nuggets that could sway senior leaders. His boss’ advice stuck: “The first time a CEO meets you, it’s because of your business card. The second time is because of what you did the first time.” He learned to tide through dealmaker wins and rejections: “You meet 20 companies, you get four leads, of which two will convert.”
From Setting Up Petronet India to Shopper’s Stop’s Early Days
Giri also played a pivotal role in setting up Petronet India, a joint venture of oil companies that entailed interactions with the Ministry of Petroleum. With Petronet India still thriving today, he feels proud to have led the foundational project.
After ILFS, he chose a conventional CFO role, joining Shopper’s Stop in its nascent days. He recalls how, when B.S. Nagesh founded the retail company, they opted for a simple black-and-white logo—not out of style but out of necessity—as they couldn’t afford a designer.
Diageo: A Whirlwind of Travel and Decision-Making
At Diageo, within three months of joining, he was thrust into the Managing Director’s role. A year later, he found himself in Singapore, navigating a truly multicultural environment. As the Asia region grew, the company started devolving power to regional teams, turning roles like his into high-impact positions. From Singapore, Giri was soon overseeing finance for large swathes of Asia.
Then came the move to London, where he assumed a global role, traveling a staggering 200 days a year. Involved in M&A and Strategy, one week he’d be in Venezuela, the next in Japan, then Russia. The job demanded far more than number-crunching; he had to keep up with geopolitics and global risks. He relished making decisions that spanned borders: “If I had stayed in India, we might have asked, ‘If this works in Chennai, will it work in Mumbai?’ Here, we were asking, ‘If it works in Venice, will it work in Venezuela?’”
Creating Impact in the Home Country
He chose to return to Mumbai in 2007 to head Finance for More, the Birla group’s brand-new retail venture. Within a couple of years, he transitioned to Wockhardt, a listed company that needed a massive financial overhaul. During his time there, the company bounced back from an INR 1000 crore loss to an impressive INR 1500 crore profit-after-tax, with its market capitalization skyrocketing 18 times. That role supercharged his credibility in the market.
Merck: Making a Difference at the Community Level
Then Merck, the American pharma giant, came calling. He was drawn by their innovative patient assistance programs. He observes that Hepatitis B, a “pincode disease” that can spread within tight-knit communities, can be cured in early stages with simple oral medications. To make these treatments accessible to rural areas, the company partnered with banks to offer financial assistance to patients. At the end of a 12-week period, if a person wasn’t cured, their loans were forgiven, a genuinely people-first initiative that Giri recounts with pride: “Merck, despite being one of the biggest pharma companies globally, puts the patient at the center.”
Taj Group and TATA Values
Opting not to move overseas, he joined Indian Hotels, better known as the Taj Group. When he came on board, the hotel group was facing losses. Over his seven-year stint, the company flipped to a profit-after-tax of INR 1250 crores, and its market cap soared from INR 8000 crores to INR 92,000 crores. He was also deeply inspired by the TATA group’s values: “When the pandemic hit, the first message from Chandra and Mr. Tata was clear—no layoffs.”
A New Chapter: Family and Fresh Horizons
Recently retired after 37 transformative years, he plans to take a few months to “chill”, study, and explore passions. With a personal trainer on weekends, he’s diving into weight training. And looks forward to spending time at a farmhouse outside Mumbai.
His children are now grown and accomplished. Both completed a Master’s in Economics at the London School of Economics (LSE). While his daughter is a banker in Frankfurt, his son is pursuing a music career as a composer and producer. His first credit as a “Music Director” will feature in an upcoming Bollywood film, “Match Fixing.”
Come December, Giri plans to explore consulting assignments, board memberships, teaching, and mentoring opportunities.
A High Tolerance for Ambiguity
Having intentionally moved across different organizations and sectors, he’s always been open to trying new things and embracing a growth mindset. He’s noticed that adults often lose the child-like enthusiasm to experiment. A key skill he’s always possessed and has retained is a high tolerance for ambiguity.
A Lifelong Learner Across Domains
A zealous lifelong learner, he’s earned certifications in ESG, Climate Change, and Leadership with AI from top institutions like ISB and The Economist. While he admits that credentials are secondary to insights gained, he’s always been driven to stay on top of emerging trends. As an adult learner, he’s made it a point to put aside his own biases and stay open-minded. “Unlearning is actually the biggest part of the challenge.”
To the younger generation, he advises focusing on breadth, not merely depth. He agrees with David Epstein, the author of Range, that the future belongs to generalists, not just specialists.
This is not armchair advice. Curious to delve deeper into thinkers like Descartes, Plato, and Socrates, he’s currently exploring philosophy through a course at Oxford University. He resonates with the Greek sage’s wisdom that “an unexamined life is not worth living.”