B.P.SETTY- LOYALTY TO THE CORE

B.P.SETTY- LOYALTY TO THE CORE

B.P.SETTY- LOYALTY TO THE CORE


(I was very fortunate to work under this young man- Padmanabha Setty. He was General
Manager of Davangere Cotton Mills and Chandrodaya Mills at that time. He gave me
opportunity to work under him as Manager of Chandrodaya Mills. Sharp at 9.0 clock he
will enter the Mills, take thorough round of all sections along with me, then and there solve my problems and cheerfully will leave to attend his other works – a fine gentleman and for the Mills a loyal worker. )


In a fit of anger I resigned my job at Bangalore – newly married and not knowing where to go. I was praying God to show me a way. In came a call the next morning from Mr. Padmanabha Setty to meet him at Bangalore. I was very much surprised since I did not know him and never approached him for a Job.

When I met him- he was a lean man almost the same age of mine. He explained that he
was looking for a good Manager for his sister Mills and his friend recommended my
name and hence his call. What a coincidence- nay the Grace of God – a very timely call which influenced my career to a great extent.

Every day he will visit the Mills. He will never utter a single word during the round. Many workers wished to talk to him but he will ask them to meet me and discuss. Later he will call me to his office and ask me the problems and my advice. In 99% he will uphold my views and gave me full freedom to implement my ideas.

I was fortunate that I got opportunity at the earliest to show my skill. New German
machine came; it was the latest with advanced technological features like unit system of joints, photoelectric stop motions etc with 4-fold production capacity. German Erector was supposed to erect and hand over the machine. Due to pressure of work he was not available for 4-months and management was very much upset.

I approached Mr.Setty and asked permission to take up the erection work myself. There
were objections from the office side. Mr. Setty discussed the matter with me and asked my plan and ideas of the machine. Just prior to the arrival of the machine I got complete catalogues of latest machines from Germany sent by one of my friend. I found that this new machine was also included.

Impressed with my explanations and procedures Mr. Setty took full responsibility on him and asked me to proceed with the erection. I was able to complete the erection and when I took the trial run he was with me. The trial run was highly successful. His prestige enhanced and I was able to live up to his expectation.

There were several occasions when I have to face resistance from my colleagues and on
all occasions he stood behind me. In the course of 6-months production increased by
more than 40%, quality improved and our yarns were fetching premium price in the
market. On his recommendation I got 4-increments.

During my tenure as Manager I learnt a lot from Mr.Setty. Electricity cost per Kg- both that day and progressive and norm; labor cost per Kg – both that day and progressive;stores cost that day and progressive, packing cost that day and progressive- are some of the items that gave grip for effective management.
After 3-years of best service I left Mr.Setty with good will to take up new assignment at Malaysia.

We used to correspond often and one day I received the sad news of his murder
at the Mill premises by errand workers while on duty. It was a shock and personal loss for me - since I owe many positions because of the training I got from him.
I used to wonder why such bright people were snatched away by cruel fate. But young
people can learn lot of lessons from people like Mr.Setty to improve their career.

Analysis:

Many more Settys’ are required for industrial development of each State in India. Selfless and loyal to the management to the core people like Padmanabha Setty has contributed lot for good governance. For this cause they have to shed their life. Such dynamic persons strengthen management Principles.


· Brilliant Personality.
· Loyalty to the Core.
· Scientific Management Principles.
· Encouragement to youngsters.
· Innovation and Refinement.

R.Jagannathan./