Recipe for Keki Mistry's secret sauce: Growth seasoned with governance

After taking a calculated risk to join a financial sector start-up — Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) — in the early Eighties, Keki M Mistry hangs up his boots as its vice-chairman (V-C) and chief executive officer (CEO) at the close of June, capping an over four-decade career.

While it may technically be the end of an era for the institution he led that went on to become the largest mortgage lender, his pioneering work on housing finance and profitable growth segued into governance standards will endure.

      

Mumbai-born (1954), he was blessed with the good fortune of an upbringing that valued ethics. He graduated in commerce from Mumbai University. He also studied to be a Fellow member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Starting his career in 1975 with accountancy firm A. F. Ferguson & Co., he later had brief stints at Hindustan Unilever and Tata Group’s hospitality arm, Indian Hotels Company.

In 1981, he switched to HDFC for what was to be over a four-decade-long career. He was inducted into the board of directors of the mortgage major as executive director in 1993 and later appointed managing director (MD) in 2000. He became V-C and MD in October 2007 and later V-C and CEO in January 2010.

Having moved up the rungs of management, his emphasis has been on effortlessly managing the affairs of the corporation.

His thoughts on leadership sum this up rather well: a leader needn’t be an expert, but a facilitator.

“A leader, in these changing times, in my opinion, should be a problem predictor more than a problem solver. He is a scenario painter, more than a specific planner,” said Mistry.

When at the top, where managers are under the microscope within the company and the ecosystem, integrity and governance are crucial.

“Corporate governance must come from within the organisation; it cannot be imposed through inflexible rules. For corporate governance, you have to be an open organisation,” he said.

A senior executive with a financial sector services entity said managing the twin aspects of high corporate governance and steady growth was a real test. The team under his leadership performed consistently to deliver on both counts: by no means a rare feat.

A truly professional approach and not shying away from taking calls for sustainable growth were two qualities of his that stood out.

Being at the helm of affairs, he played a critical role in the successful transformation of HDFC into India’s leading financial services conglomerate by facilitating the formation of companies, including HDFC Bank, HDFC Mutual Fund, and insurance firms.

While shaping the fate of the financial behemoth, Mistry was engaged in the evolution and growth of the Indian financial sector.

He is a Member of the Primary Market Advisory Committee constituted by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and was member of the corporate governance committee constituted by Sebi in 2017.

Thoughts about care and a better quality of life for senior citizens have been occupying his mind lately.

“I would like to build homes for old people where they can stay and enjoy all the facilities, including good medical care. This will be on a self-sustaining basis,” he added.