Naina Lal Kidwai, former country head of HSBC India, has her hands full. Not only is the former Ficci president a Senior Adviser to Rothschild & Co India, who sits on the board of a clutch of companies, she also finds time for not-for-profit work in water sanitation, environment and green financing. Kidwai, a chartered accountant by training, was the first Indian woman to do an MBA from Harvard, and one of the first top women executives in the banking space in India. In an interview with Business Today’s Global Business Editor Udayan Mukherjee, Kidwai talks about her not-for-profit work, the role of independent directors, and breaking the glass ceiling.
Q: Naina, I remember that time back in 2015 when you put in your papers at HSBC, and everybody said, isn’t she quitting too early? You were not even 60 at that point. Do you ever feel that you could have hung on a little longer?
A: So, Udayan, the retirement age was indeed 58. They were extending it by a couple of years but I didn’t want to be seen as the one who was hanging on for my benefit, because there were others who were impacted. And they tried to keep me on in advisory roles, etc., but I was quite clear. I wanted to break with banking and move on to do other things, a decision I’ve never regretted because it’s given me the ability to not be a slave to others. You know, when you work in an organisation, you work for their agendas. Some of them can be very uncomfortable. Because there are times when you have to ask people to leave, there are things you have to do that you don’t enjoy. What I can do now is to pick and choose what I like—and I have by no means retired from work; I’ve only retired from HSBC—and my entire portfolio today gives me a very, very full day made up of everything that I enjoy.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 30, 2022-Ausgabe von Business Today India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 30, 2022-Ausgabe von Business Today India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
"Inaction is worse than mistakes"
What was the problem you were grappling with?
TEEING OFF WITH TITANS
BUSINESS TODAY GOLF RESUMES ITS STORIED JOURNEY WITH THE 2024-25 SEASON OPENER IN DELHI-NCR. THERE ARE SIX MORE CITIES TO COME
AI FOOT FORWARD
THE WHO'S WHO OF THE AI WORLD GATHERED AT THE TAJ MAHAL PALACE IN MUMBAI TO DELIBERATE THE TRANSFORMATIVE IMPACT OF AI ON INNOVATION, INDUSTRIES, AND EVERYDAY LIFE.
Decolonising the Walls
ART START-UP MAAZI MERCHANT IS ON A MISSION TO BRING INDIA'S FORGOTTEN ART BACK HOME
"I'm bringing Kotak under one narrative, one strategy, one umbrella”
Ashok Vaswani is a global banker who spent most of his career overseas at institutions like Citi Group and Barclays, among others.
CHOOSING THE CHAMPIONS
The insights and methodology behind the BT-KPMG India's Best Banks and NBFCs Survey 2023-24.
'INDIA IS AT AN EXTREMELY SWEET SPOT'
The jury members of the BT-KPMG Survey of India's Best Banks and NBFCs discuss developments in the banking sector and more
FROM CRISIS TO TRIUMPH
Dinesh Kumar Khara stewarded SBI through multiple challenges during his tenure, while ensuring that profits tripled, productivity soared, and the bank consolidated its global standing
AT A CROSSROADS
BANKS ARE FACING CHALLENGES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALANCE SHEET-ASSETS AS WELL AS LIABILITIES-WHICH ARE PUTTING PRESSURE ON MARGINS.
EXPANSIVE VISION
Bajaj Finance, an outlier in terms of digitisation, faces stiff competition. But it continues to expand its reach