On Monday, June 12th, I left the UK for my first visit to the Vadodara Rangam India Office, eagerly looking forward to the 3-week trip ahead. After a short 8-hour flight, a 5-hour stopover at New Delhi airport, and a final 90-minute flight, I landed in Vadodara bright and early on Tuesday, June 13th.
I arrived at the office around midday and received a warm welcome from everyone. I set up my system in the conference room, which would be my workspace for the duration of my visit. Over the next three weeks, I spent 38 hours in 1:1 meetings with India's leaders, 27 hours in 1:1's with the local team, and an additional 33 hours in meetings involving the local team. Finally, I delivered 11 hours' worth of training and consumed approximately 180 cups of coffee to keep me going.
I was hugely impressed with everyone's hard work and dedication to the company; it truly stood out to me. I carefully listened to every comment and piece of feedback given to me by each individual, and I have taken those insights back to work with my colleagues, the leadership team, and local leaders in India, to identify areas where we can improve and benefit our India operation.
Meeting the team was truly uplifting for me, and I made an effort to get to know as many individuals as I could. I gained a deep understanding of the work each of you is undertaking and was inspired by the numerous great ideas on how things could be done differently. The passion for what we do shone through from each of you, and it was an absolute honour for me to be there.
Throughout my visit, I have established fantastic relationships with many people. I hope I have conveyed that my door is always open to all of you, and I am here to listen and support. I look forward to returning, and hopefully, it will be more frequently. I have learned so much from the India team, and I intend to share these learnings widely across the business.
We are one Rangam, and I am proud of every single one of you for all that you do.
