BS People: Ravi Uppal

Powering to the top

Widely tipped to succeed L&T Chairman A M Naik, few were surprised when Ravi Uppal was elevated to the board earlier this week. That’s because though the new director is a rank outsider among his dyed-in-the-wool L&T peers, he is the boss’s blue-eyed boy. Industry insiders say Uppal has traits uncannily similar to Naik’s. For one, both of them prefer to talk in monosyllables. The protégé is also seen to be as aggressive as the chairman.

Uppal is known for his marketing skills, in his earlier job helping Swiss company ABB shed its MNC tag and bag orders from Indian power companies. “His skills of persuasion helped ABB grow in India and he replicated this success at L&T Power, which has started booking orders,” said an industry insider. Uppal's shopfloor experience in the manufacturing sector is what L&T needs, as power is slated to quickly become the infrastructure major’s fastest-growing segment.

An alumnus of two of the country’s premier institutions — he is a BTech from IIT-Delhi and has a management degree from IIM-Ahmedabad — Uppal’s first job was with state-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL, which he joined in 1975. He worked under then Chairman

V Krishnamurthy as executive assistant, and received his first valuable lessons on how to get things done within a hierarchical organisation.

Later, he joined ABB predecessor Asea and served in various management positions. After that, he moved to auto, and was instrumental in establishing Volvo in India. He rejoined ABB and rose to head its India operations, and later South Asia. That was when he received the call from L&T.

If indeed he does take over the reins at L&T, however, insiders say his job won’t be easy. “After working with an MNC like ABB, he will have to adapt to the bureaucracy of an Indian company,” said a top executive with an infrastructure company. He would also have to find virtually a whole new board, as several directors are set to retire in the next few years.