Employees First

For Sudhir Rao Hoshing, hard work is just another day on the job. A civil engineer by profession, he has more than 36 years of experience and fully understands the type of commitment and effort needed to head a successful company. So it is no surprise that his role as CEO of IRB Infrastructure – one of India’s largest highway construction companies – has allowed him to contribute to its impeccable reputation.

Joining the company in 2015, Sudhir took the position intending to put every bit of his experience to good use. His role as CEO is vast, requiring his direct management and oversight of all aspects of the firm, including its sites, construction, operations and maintenance. However, such responsibility was nothing new, as he had served as CEO of Roads Business at Reliance Infrastructure just prior.

IRB Infrastructure was already doing well on its own, but more positive change was on the horizon and Sudhir made sure of this the moment he took hold of its operations. “We improved a lot of systems and HR functions including bringing in many employee benefit schemes which were earlier missing. So with that we also did a lot of work to increase our employee happiness index,” he tells The CEO Magazine.

In fact, employee satisfaction was high on his list of priorities, and it has resulted in a loyal and efficient team, a core element of any successful business. “None of our top-level employees has ever left, and that says volumes about how they’re associated with us. They’re loyal to the company and they want to grow along with the company, and that’s what is happening. The confidence we get from them, and which we give them, gives us the best possible results.”

This commitment from employees stood firm despite the challenges posed by the pandemic. Sudhir made sure that the interests of his most valued asset – his team – were taken care of in the toughest of times. “We made special efforts to see that everybody on our site was vaccinated,” he says.

“Our top priority is making sure that all our employees are safe and, going forward, I want them to be very safe and keep being able to work. That is the confidence I need to build in them that by working here, working in the open, they’re not getting any of the latest issues relating to COVID-19. That is number one.”

Overall, Sudhir aims to steer IRB Infrastructure towards continued growth, a goal he sees as a challenge yet one that is very much achievable. However, he points out that this would not be possible without a supportive team.

“I get a lot of help and cooperation from my employees here. I need to show confidence in them, and then I will receive that confidence back. This is how we have been able to effectively move forward together,” he reveals. “We have been able to complete a lot of projects as well as secure a lot of new projects, and the way we have been moving, things have become much smoother now.”

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Sudhir says he remains cognisant of the challenges before him because this brings the opportunity to develop effective solutions. One such example was the need to improve technology processes within the company. With the safety of his own team still front of mind, he also has his eyes set on promoting a sustainable, green operation while saving costs, ensuring the timely completion of work and, of course, the safety of commuters.

“For me, success is measured by how you run the show, how confident your people are in you, how happy your stakeholders are with you and how the company is growing,” he explains, adding that he strongly believes these are the things that speak volumes of a healthy company.

And while numbers are important, he has a strong belief in the intangible aspects of business like appreciation of the work that is being done. “It’s public work; it’s not something which is done inside four walls, and everyone can comment on it,” he points out. “So how many comments I get, how many complaints I get, those are the things I talk about in terms of my success of the deliverables.”

These strong principles will catapult IRB Infrastructure ahead of the industry along with a CEO that believes in the good treatment of his people and the result of excellent work for the overall satisfaction and safety of the consumer. As Sudhir faces the future and heads steadfast towards excellence, he believes that a continued focus on these values will bring the desired results.

“I want to see growth of the company along with all its shareholders and stakeholders. This means continuous growth and us continuing to march ahead from year to year,” he says. “In the long-term, we would like to see this company number one in terms of road business and delivering a safe journey for all of our users.”