Nurturing Goodness!

PACKAGING IS ALL ABOUT PRESERVING THE ESSENTIAL GOODNESS OF A PRODUCT. TAKING THIS THOUGHT AHEAD, DR. ARUP BASU, MANAGING DIRECTOR, HUHTAMAKI PPL LTD, BELIEVES THAT IT IS THIS INHERENT IDEA WHICH DRIVES THE COMPANY’S SUCCESSFUL GROWTH AND HIS PERSONAL JOURNEY AS WELL.

- Niranjan Mudholkar

With a Ph.D in technology and almost two decades of senior level industry experience - including the last stint in a chemicals company, I was expecting Dr. Arup Basu to be a mix of a serious academic and a stern corporate leader. My expectation was quite off the mark. An affable smile, a firm but gentle handshake and an equally warm welcome later, I realised that it was going to be an interesting conversation. More so, because here was a Managing Director who started by confessing that he never planned a long-term career path but focused more on learning! The common factors in his journey of ‘serendipity’ have been creating new products with a focus on innovation and empowering people. Going beyond the cultural barrier of ‘information arbitrage’ that would benefit only a few in the traditional set ups, Dr Basu has believed in ‘institutionalising listening’ with the aim of democratising the corporate framework which in turn would prove beneficial to the entire ecosystem. As against the inheritor attitude, he believes in having the ‘ancestral mindset’ that is focused on institution building through ethics, efficiency and empowering of people. Dr. Basu took charge at Huhtamaki PPL in November 2017, and he has been glad that his thought process has been in sync with this organisation’s culture which resonates with positivity.

You took charge at Huhtamaki PPL as Managing Director on November 1, 2017. How’s been the journey since then?