 "<b>Newsmaker:</b> Satish Reddy")
G V Prasad was appointed the chairman of Dr Reddy's Laboratories in April last year after the death of company founder K Anji Reddy. His term came to an end all too soon on Tuesday when K Satish Reddy, the 47-year-old son of Anji Reddy, was elevated to the chairman's post. As Prasad privately told a company colleague, he hadn't even found time in the past year to sit in the chairman's seat, busy as he was in his additional role as the company CEO.
The new chairman would be the first to acknowledge the role of 54-year-old Prasad, his brother-in-law, in driving the growth of the company. Satish Reddy also knows he is taking over at a time when growth expectations have only become bigger and the market tougher, especially with the Sun Pharma-Ranbaxy merger.
A graduate in chemical engineering from Osmania University and an alumnus of Purdue University in the United States where he earned a master's degree in medicinal chemistry, Satish rapidly climbed up the ladder in the company his father started in 1984, becoming the vice-chairman and managing director, even as Prasad took over as chairman last year. Satish has played a key role in the company's transition from a bulk drugs manufacturer to a global player in the branded generics space, while Prasad is credited with developing the company's generics strategy.
The job swap - Satish will be chairman of the board while Prasad will be co-chairman, CEO and managing director - had people trying to read between the lines in order to trace signs of tensions between the two. But the management changes were as smooth as Anji Reddy would perhaps have wanted them to be. "The two of us work as a team," says Satish.
According to Satish, the separation of the roles of chairman and CEO & managing director was primarily meant to enable the two men to focus on their chosen areas of interest. While Satish, the new chairman, will concentrate on corporate governance, policy issues, corporate social responsibility and community development activities under the trusts and foundations launched by his father, Prasad will drive the core activity of the company spanning new generics launches, niche products, biosimilars (approved versions of patented biopharmaceutical products) and innovation.
"It is all right for the duo to focus on distinct activities," responds an industry observer. "But it is to be seen if the chemistry between the two men grows beyond family and professional relationships and brings complementarity to a collective leadership that is necessary for big thinking in the absence of Anji Reddy."
While the pair has practically run Dr Reddy Laboratories for the past six years, it has only been a year since they have had the independence to hold the reins for themselves. As in family-run entities, it was interesting to see who Anji Reddy would entrust his company to. With his appointment as chairman, the question seems to have been answered in his son's favour.
The new chairman would be the first to acknowledge the role of 54-year-old Prasad, his brother-in-law, in driving the growth of the company. Satish Reddy also knows he is taking over at a time when growth expectations have only become bigger and the market tougher, especially with the Sun Pharma-Ranbaxy merger.
A graduate in chemical engineering from Osmania University and an alumnus of Purdue University in the United States where he earned a master's degree in medicinal chemistry, Satish rapidly climbed up the ladder in the company his father started in 1984, becoming the vice-chairman and managing director, even as Prasad took over as chairman last year. Satish has played a key role in the company's transition from a bulk drugs manufacturer to a global player in the branded generics space, while Prasad is credited with developing the company's generics strategy.
The job swap - Satish will be chairman of the board while Prasad will be co-chairman, CEO and managing director - had people trying to read between the lines in order to trace signs of tensions between the two. But the management changes were as smooth as Anji Reddy would perhaps have wanted them to be. "The two of us work as a team," says Satish.
According to Satish, the separation of the roles of chairman and CEO & managing director was primarily meant to enable the two men to focus on their chosen areas of interest. While Satish, the new chairman, will concentrate on corporate governance, policy issues, corporate social responsibility and community development activities under the trusts and foundations launched by his father, Prasad will drive the core activity of the company spanning new generics launches, niche products, biosimilars (approved versions of patented biopharmaceutical products) and innovation.
"It is all right for the duo to focus on distinct activities," responds an industry observer. "But it is to be seen if the chemistry between the two men grows beyond family and professional relationships and brings complementarity to a collective leadership that is necessary for big thinking in the absence of Anji Reddy."
While the pair has practically run Dr Reddy Laboratories for the past six years, it has only been a year since they have had the independence to hold the reins for themselves. As in family-run entities, it was interesting to see who Anji Reddy would entrust his company to. With his appointment as chairman, the question seems to have been answered in his son's favour.