Rajeev Kannan's Secret To Excelling In Life

This is Rajeev Kannan’s secret to excelling not just in work, but in life as well. The managing executive officer of SMBC reflects on his journey.

- Farhan Shah

RAJEEV KANNAN THUMBED THROUGH THE WELL-WORN BOOK AND SEARCHED FOR THE NEXT BANK ON HIS LIST. THE SUN HAD ALREADY TAKEN ITS BOW, BUT THE THEN 25-YEAR-OLD WAS STILL BENT OVER HIS DESK WRITING INTRODUCTION LETTERS.

The year was 1997 and Rajeev had been a deputy manager at ICICI Bank for three years. It was a stable job but he wanted more. A friend recommended the city-state and gave him a book published by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) that had a list of banks that had set up shop here. So, every evening after work, with help from his then fiancee and now wife, he would pen a letter, fold it in half and gingerly place it in a fresh envelope. “E-mail was not prevalent then,” Rajeev laughs. He mailed 60 letters.

A month later, in February 1997, Rajeev made his way to Singapore. It was his maiden overseas trip. “I called about 30 of the banks I had sent letters to. Many said they didn’t receive my letter. Fortunately, some did and I secured interviews with eight,” the 49-year-old recalls.

The most memorable was with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) Singapore. While most interviews usually take place in stuffy boardrooms with an imposing oak table separating the candidate and the interviewer, Rajeev’s first encounter with SMBC Singapore was at Lau Pa Sat with the head of the Asia project finance team at the time. “He asked me to get my dish and he would get his.” Rajeev bought nasi lemak. He thought it intriguing.

He returned to Mumbai after a month in Singapore and expectantly waited for offers to come in. Three banks got in touch: two large European ones and SMBC Singapore. Most would have opted for one of the former, but Rajeev was a calculated risk-taker. SMBC Singapore was a tiny, emerging bank and the team Rajeev was joining comprised only three people.