Mr. S.Y. Siddiqui, Managing Executive officer (Admin.) of Maruti Suzuki (I)LTD. has performed a very vital role in the success of the company as a truely market leader . His HR policies has been always conducive to the growth of employees as well as the company. In an interview with Today’s Economics, CSR is a relevant term for Maruti, as it has helped the company to conduct business in a socially responsible manner. Excerpts from an interview:-
TE: Don’t you think that CSR seems to have become a lose term ? Is donating money or just talking about it is enough?
Siddique : CSR is a relevant terms for all corporates. It gives direction to a corporate to conduct its business in a socially responsible way. Initially, donating money was considered CSR, but not anymore. Corporates are supposed to partner with governments agencies, NGOs and use their management skills for addressing social issues. Talking about CSR without providing benefits to the society has no meaning.
TE: What does Corporate Social Responsibility mean to you?
Siddique: Corporate Social responsibility can mean different things to different organizations depending upon their years of operations and their level of maturity. CSR for a startup company would be to put in place robust system for engagement with its direct stakeholders , understanding their requirements and through management conduct, initiatives, product or services,fulfill their genuine requirements. However, for 25 year old company like Maruti Suzuki, taking Care of direct stakeholders has to be an integral part of the business philosophy. For such companies, the CSR is to undertake initiatives that addresses issues impacting large population of the society.
TE: To what extent corporates can pool resources to address problems that are so big and over whelming for strays initiatives to make a difference?
Siddiqui : Pooling of resources by coporates for a social cause is a great idea, which has yet to evolve. Synergies among pooling corporates would determines the success of such endeavour.
TE: To what extent has CSR been embedded in Maruti ‘s policy/procedures and processes, especially in india?
Siddique : Over the last 25 year, Maruti Suzuki has established robust system for engaging with its direct stake holders. This aspect of CSR has been fully ingrained into the company systems. CSR in Maruti Suzuki is seen more from the point of view of the company , its direct stakeholders, environment and society at large .
In India, at the moment, some organization have made CSR integral to their business strategy whereas others have to catch up. CII is doing a great job in promoting CSR among its member companies.
TE: What are the social ethics Maruti is working on?
Siddique : Road safety is a major concern in India. Over 100,000 people die in road accident fatalities in India. In the traditional CSR approach, road safety has not been taken up as aninitiative. But with growing urbanization and vehicles penetration, Maruti Suzuki is committed to raise road Safety awareness among Indian population .
We have launched a National Road Safety Mission. Under this program, Maruti Suzuki is expanding its network of driving training infrastructure and engaging with state governments and schools for spreading road safety awareness . The company has set up two Institutes of Driving Training and Research (IDTR)and 56 Maruti Driving Schools to teach safe driving habits. Four more IDTRs are in the pipe line two in Haryana and one each in Gujarat and Uttrakhand.
Maruti Suzuki has adopted four Industrial Training Institute (ITIs) in Haryana along with its two supplier under PPP mode with an objective to bridge gap between the skills requirements of the industry and the skills level of the students passing out of these ITIs to enhance their employability. Besides, the Company has adopted four village near to its Manesar plant for their overall development. A dedicated CSR team implement social initiatives in partnership the local communication and NGO. Maruti has also partnered with education experts to set up two reputed schools in Gurgaon.
TE: What according to you are the principle drivers for CSR in India?
Siddqui: There is a business case in pursuing CSR .The biggest driver of CSR is the image of the company. Prospective employees like to work with socially responsible companies and customers prefer to buy products from such companies. The chances of getting support from business partners for a socially responsible company are very high. This helps in long terms profitable growth and sustainability of the company.
TE: Why do you think that corporates also need to act socially?
Siddique : CSR is not an option for the corporates. It is a necessity. Any organization will sustain so long as its stakeholder have trust in the organization. To build trust, it is important to go beyond business and look at environment and social aspect of business.
India is a big market .The full potential has yet to be realized by the corporates as there are pockets of prosperity and extreme poverty. Inclusive growth is a must for increasing the purchasing power of the larger population of the society and for business growth.
