Ashish R. Puravankara, MD, Puravankara tells about the recent changes to the company’s Board of Directors. Excerpts:
How is the Board being strengthened? What are the reasons for doing so?
At Puravankara, our Board is central to our governance and value-driven growth objectives. We have made great strides in strengthening our Board by bringing in industry veterans with diverse areas of expertise. As we expand our business, we are confident that their cross-industry experience will bring tremendous value and form a strong guidance system for us.
Who are the new Independent Directors on Board?
We have four independent directors on our Board – KG Krishnamurthy, Sanjeeb Chaudhuri, Shailaja Jha, and Anup Shah. Krishnamurthy has served as the MD & CEO of HDFC Property and has been associated with the real estate and banking industry for over three decades. Chaudhuri, currently the Chairman of IDFC First Bank, comes with an in-depth experience in FMCG and banking. Jha has over three decades of experience in IT global consulting while Shah is a reputed lawyer.
Why undertake such an exercise being one among the leading regional players?
As we scale our business in Southern and Western markets, we want to ascertain that our strategies are aligned with our long-term objectives. We have established a Board with independent directors to help review, realign and guide our growth plans and ensure success amid the evolving macro-economic factors.
How does it help the company?
Having a strong Board with experienced minds helps us to be strategically thorough in our approach to growth. The cross-industry experience of the directors helps us to analyse every important strategy from multiple perspectives before we move to the execution stage.
How much of these changes are necessitated by the on-boarding of the IFC Emerging Asia Fund?
We decided to strengthen our Board to attain our long-term growth objectives and is not related to the on-boarding of IFC. IFC is an important financial partner for us and a leading player in the market for affordable housing. They have brought significant value to our organisation, and we look forward to continuing a strong association with them.