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of the Month |
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| SUCCESSFUL INDIAN OF THE
MONTH |
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Rooma Nanda is currently in
the finance industry, working as a residential mortgage consultant. She has
over 10 years work experience with various corporates, such as, IBM and Yellow
Pages. Rooma has done her MBA from Sydney, and is passionate about learning on
a constant basis. This column is to highlight the achievements of
certain individuals who could be a source of inspiration for others. Email
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Our
column guest for this month is not only a highly accomplished, well regarded
and an eminent figure in his professional field but more importantly he is
respected as a truly great man in society. As the saying goes, "The
measure of a truly great man is the courtesy with which he treats lesser
men." - our column guest for this month is a fine image of this saying.
 We are honoured to
introduce to you Mr Neville Joseph Roach AO - a humble paragon, currently
Chairing a large number of high profile organisations such as, Fujitsu
Australia Ltd, Australia India Business Council and Smart Internet Technology
CRC. He has previously chaired groups such as the Committee of Enquiry into
Temporary Business Migration, the National Multicultural Advisory Council and
many more. He is also on the board of Directors of organisations like CEDA,
SBS, OneSteel, UNSW Foundation and TAFE Global, to name a few.
Q: Mr Roach, first of all, tell us when did you arrive
in Australia and what brought you here?
Mr Roach: I came to Australia in 1961 through New India
Assurance, a Tata group company at the time. I first came to Sydney and moved
a couple of years later to Adelaide. At that time, reflecting the White
Australia policy that was still in force then, there were only 27 Indians in
Adelaide! Initial adjustment to the new environment was very challenging,
however Adelaide, being small and with so few non-Whites, proved to be a very
good environment in which to meet highly
placed personalities in the Government, professions and business which brought
good results later.
In 1965, I joined IBM Australia in Adelaide and then
moved to Melbourne as a Systems Analyst. In a short time, I moved into Systems
Engineering management and was eventually given responsibility for the
Southern region of IBM. In 1980 I left IBM to join Fujitsu as National Systems
Engineering Manager.
Q: You have been on the board of directors of many
leading organisations, such as, OneSteel, NRMA Building Society, AIIA, CEDA,
SBS, UNSW Foundation, TAFE Global and AARNET. How have you been managing so
many entrepreneurial activities whilst keeping high positions in top
companies?
Mr Roach: My extra-curricular activities largely began
after I became CEO of Fujitsu Australia, and were initially closely linked to
that position. The early impetus came from the need to lift Fujitsu's profile
in Government and Business circles, helping to set the policy agenda and to
enhance Fujitsu's credibility as a major IT and Telecommunications supplier.
My first appointments were mainly to Government and Industry bodies and were
not that all that many. Most of the current somewhat larger portflio of
appointments, including those in the private sector, are fairly recent, and
have generally occurred after I handed over my full-time responsibilities as
CEO of Fujitsu in January 2000.
Q: What does it take to be at a level where you are
today?
Mr Roach: In my case, extreme hard work has been a
dominant factor. The rest is all good timing and a lot of luck. However, to
enjoy good luck, one must give luck a chance and this involves taking risks. I
took a very serious risk when I resigned from the New India Assurance company
without any job to go to and without any certainty of being allowed to stay in
what was then White Australia. The job with IBM was the lucky break that
followed. Leaving a good job at IBM to join Fujitsu, when it was only
beginning to establish itself as a significant company outside Japan, was also
very risky. But it proved to be the start of a career that took me much
further than I would probably have gone had I taken the safe option of staying
with IBM. More recently, resigning as Chairman of the Council for
Multicultural Australia and the Business (migration) Advisory Panel, was
fraught with danger of some sort of backlash. But the huge support that I have
been fortunate to receive has made it all worthwhile.
There is another key factor which has always kept me going and that is the
strong survival instinct that dominates the psyche of man who, like me, were
brought up in the unimaginably competitive job environment in India in the
50's and early 60's. Jobs were very hard to get and, once you got a job, you
could not afford to lose it. So you worked as if your life depended on it,
which it did. And, as the best way to survive was to do better than anyone
else, competition with your peers became second nature. The thought of
reporting to one of your colleagues was very hard to take because it meant you
had fallen behind. The only way to avoid this was to try and get promoted
first by demonstrating that you were the best person for each higher job,
including, if you had the staying power, that of CEO.
I would also stress the importance of turning seeming difficulties into
opportunities. For example, many people ask how difficult it was for an Indian
to get on in White Australia. Well, it had its challenges and my wife and I
were breaking new ground. Ignorance of India and a generally patronising
view that it was a relatively backward country had to be countered, especially
if one wanted to succeed in the developing IT industry. But I always thought
that being an Indian was an asset and a unique one given how few there were in
Australia at the time. So I made it a point of wearing my Indian-ness, India's
rich culture and history and my Indian education on my sleeve. This gave me a
much higher profile than many of my Australian-born colleagues and also gave
me many opportunities once relations with India and Asia became important for
Australia. Of course I am also proud to be Australian, but my Indian origin
remains a source of pride and a great asset.
Q: Having been on the advisory council of the top
business associations, what advise would you like to give to the upcoming
businesses here in Australia?
Mr Roach: The fundamental key to a successful business
is to define clearly why anyone would like to buy your product or service from
you. If your judgement about the value of what you are offering the market is
sound, you have won half the battle. Therefore, for most start-ups, success
does not primarily depend upon the size of the market or even market share;
first and foremost it depends upon the need for or the benefits of your
product or service which can stimulate demand. Even a small percentage of a
niche market can be enough to make a business viable. The other challenge is
to be able to sell your offering for more than it costs you to provide it.
These probably seem like very basic principles, but most businesses that fail
do so because they do not meet these simple fundamentals.
Q: Being involved with the premier educational
institutes in Australia, what would you advise prospective Indian students
weighing options offered by Australian institutions as against those in the US
or Europe.
Mr Roach: I realise that, mainly because of historical
reputation and tradition, even now, most Indian students might prefer prefer
going to the US or Europe, and only choose Australia due to our
cost-effectiveness. However, the quality of Australian education is very high
and our best institutions compare very favourably with those in the US, Europe
or the Asian region. As more and more Indian students graduate in Australia
and succeed globally, Australia will become the first choice for many more,
not only for the competitive cost, but also for the high standards. Moreover,
the quality of life that Indian students enjoy in Australia will increasingly
make coming here a very attractive option. So Indian students are definitely
not choosing second best by coming to Australia. Our challenge is to convince
more of the best to choose Australia first.
Q: How do you create work- life balance being so active?
Mr Roach: I have been working 6 or 7 days a week for
most of my working life and definitely in the past ten years or so. This has
clearly not been very fair to my family. Looking back, I wish I had created a
more balanced approach to my work and personal life.
Q: Success has different definitions for different
people. How would you define success?
Mr Roach: The most obvious definition of success is
reaching the top of one's career, with the income and status that goes with
it. But this is too narrow a definition. One's family is far more important
than one's job. Therefore creating a good work/life balance and achieving both
personal and professional success is a better definition. Probably the most
important measure of success is making a difference. If, in your own mind and
heart, you can look back on your career and say that a few good things
happened because of your efforts and involvement, and, if your near and dear
ones did not pay too high a price for your ambition but themselves feel you
have made a positive difference to their lives, then you can feel very
successful. And, if you gain public recognition for making a difference, then
you're a very lucky person indeed!
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In the Previous Issues:
Anupam
Sharma
Vikrant Kapoor - Zaaffran Restaurant
Rashmi Mehrotra
Dr. Jagnnath Mazumdar
Naville Roach - Fujitsu
Australia
Dr Arapaut Sivaprasad -
WebGenie Systems
Suda Navada
Jeet Bindra - Caltex
Dr. Bhuvan Unhelkar
Safina Uberoi - My Mother
India
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