The Prince of Gold Knows His Way From the 'Way Bottom' "I have come to be loved and respected by everyone in the organization and this is the best thing that has happened to me"
By Sugandh Singh •
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Like most kids in India, Siddharth had a penchant for playing cricket when he was in school. But the legacy which was getting formed as he was growing up, 19-year-old Siddharth had already started learning the nitty-gritty of business from "way bottom" (as he puts it), on all of his innocent visits to his father's office.
Today, his role in the organization is the "Chief Strategist'. He says, "I look at strategy and innovation and in all the divisions if something is not right, I jump into it and make sure everything is up and running well."
Indeed this is a huge responsibility which Siddharth took on his shoulders at a very young age when he realized that Rajesh Exports is the world's largest manufacturer, processor, and refiner of gold.
Siddharth tells, "In school and college days, my father never had the time to attend the AGM. It was always my mother. But I have understood that and learned one of the best traits from my father that is to be punctual. If he commits a time, he is present there no matter if anyone else is there or not."
As the millennial generation is more handy of the e-commerce space, Siddharth is focusing on expanding the retail segment in the organization and also trying to relax the centralized approach of the company's decision making policy. He says, "Earlier, the selection of every franchise was approved by Rajesh Mehta, but now as the company is rapidly expanding and we are managing everything in more organized manner, we are changing a few things."
It was however not that easy for Siddharth to rise up to the expectation of his father, who by all means is a remarkable achiever. He says, "When I was younger, as he was my taskmaster, he used to make me pull myself up as much as possible to put in the hard work as much as was required. So back then, you always had a feeling that as a kid, you need to enjoy. But when I look back and see what I have achieved throughout, I think what he did was right."
Revealing about possibly the best thing that has happened to him professionally, he says, "When someone directly comes and sits on top of everyone, no employee will actually respect you. But since I myself have grown from the bottom and have come to be loved and respected by everyone in the organization, I think this is the best thing that has happened to me."
