Knows The Art Of Growing
Renu Sud Karnad was all of 26 when she joined HDFC within a year of its formation. She has since grown with the institution, all the way up to now being the managing director of India’s iconic housing-finance institution. Through her exemplary leadership, she became joint-MD in 2007 and MD in 2010, leading the efforts of HDFC, to become a part of the nearly six million customer stronghold.
Karnad was instrumental in several key decisions that led to the spectacular growth of not only HDFC but also housing finance in the country. While she understood that people wanted to connect with a housing finance company directly, she also knew that setting up branches meant rising costs. So, Karnad and her team set up a hub-and-spoke model where a one- or two-person outfit would be set up in far corners, which would not only have HDFC connect directly with its customers but also control costs for the corporation, while expanding the housing market.
A post graduate in Economics from the University of Delhi and a degree holder in law from the University of Mumbai, Karnad’s enormous knowledge in the mortgage sector has enabled her to come up with innovations in expanding the market. She was also instrumental in setting up HDFC Sales, which now brings in over 45 per cent of the corporation’s fresh loans, one that replicates the agency model most other housing finance companies follow.
She also leads the human resources and communications functions, apart from managing the brand HDFC. Karnad is the guiding force behind the formulation of the organisation’s communications strategy and public image. She also holds several directorships across the corporate world including in companies such as Maruti Suzuki and Bosch, apart from being on the advisory boards of a few Indian corporations and multi-nationals.
To her credit, Karnad has won several awards and accolades in her distinguished career, including several ‘Women Business Leader’ awards, while in 2006 the Wall Street Journal Asia adjudged her as one of the ‘Top 10 Powerful Women to Watch Out for in Asia’. Karnad, however, is a people’s person, and is known to tell people that one of the strongest weapons in achieving excellence is ‘self-belief.’
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