Qualifying oneself can make us more recognizable - M.R. Raghu, Senior Vice President at Kuwait Financial Centre

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IIK: You did your B.Com in the year 1986. In this period in India, the two major fields students opted for were either medical or engineering. So how did you choose this field?

When I'd completed my tenth as a school topper, the trend then, was that brilliant students entered the science stream and the not so brilliant, into commerce. But I opted for Commerce since I had no interest in science, much to the surprise of the Principal of the school. My father told the principal ,“I want my son to do what he likes” and that is how my journey in the Commerce stream started. Here, I wish to state that what a person likes, is a discovery process. When I joined my B.com in Loyola College, I observed that many of my classmates were pursuing CA alongside. I asked my professor what exactly a CA does. He told me that a CA acted like a police and saw if accounts were maintained correctly and weren't fraudulently reported. A certificate that everything is in order, is then issued by the CA. I thought this line would not excite me at all. It was quite a difficult decision to make when all the students were going in one direction. So I chose cost accounting which I was told ,enabled a person to price the product of a company correctly to help the company make profits. But more than that, I liked analysis and this was when I learnt about a course called CFA. At that time, it was just a small time expensive course and had very few takers. But I found out this was my line of interest. This was a discovery process. In my humble opinion, each person should take his time to know what he has an interest in as accurately as possible and should not blindly follow others. For me, to walk into an office as an analyst was more exciting than walking into an office as an auditor. This is my individual taste. Other people might find an auditor's job more exciting. To realize our potential, it is important to know what our interest area is and back it up with hard work.

IIK: You have obtained most of your professional degrees while you were a working professional. Is this usually the case in the field of finance or have you chosen it to be that way?

Except for ICWA, I have picked up my degree as a job requirement,as I have mentioned before. In my opinion, education is a life long journey and combining academic pursuit along with job will enable one to gain maximum advantage.

IIK: In your first stint as a working professional, you worked in an EPC firm as a finance professional. As a finance man, did you always have the upper hand in all the decision making?

Unfortunately, yes. I've always felt that engineers are the heart and brain of any organization. An engineering idea is the basis for a company to stand. Finance is more advisory and strategy based compared to engineering. In personal financial industry, an advisor job comes with fiduciary duty. It means as an advisor, I need to first think that if I were in the position of the client ,would I do it myself? Finance can advise with a fiduciary responsibility. I also feel that in India, glamorous positions command more premium while what is needed is the development of science and research.

IIK: You are a strategic thinker. Is this a special quality for all finance people?

Strategic thinking is the way you look at things. You should have the bigger picture in mind while doing and planning things. Real estate in Dubai is a prime example. Many Indians have invested hugely in Dubai real estate without taking into account the risks involved. They have lost a huge amount of money that could have otherwise been invested in India and could've earned a fourfold profit. A company’s CEO brings in the bigger picture and does not think of himself as the functional head. This enables one to see the big picture and clearly evaluate risks from that position.

IIK: Is Indian economy, according to you ,really immune to the global economic recession?

I would say India is more immune, say as compared to China. India developed as an internal economy. It depended more on itself. In the long run this is not healthy as India has not yet globalized completely. It needs to become globalized as quickly as possible. We have examples of the US and Germany who have exported quality material. India is yet to develop on these lines. India has enough talent. Many Indians are a big success abroad. So we have enough talent, but limited disposition. We should be bold enough to compete in the world market. India should open up more and not resist competition.

IIK: You are a double CFA. Would you like to share your method of preparation to pass this extremely tough examination?

I was 35 years old when I completed the American CFA. I had grown- up children, and a balance was needed between family and profession. So the first thing that needed to be done was to sell CFA to the family. They needed to know how important it was for me to complete CFA and what benefits the family could get if I did. When they were convinced, I would go to the office on all holidays and on weekends and would prepare by myself without any disturbance. This way we do not disturb the family and achieve our goals.

IIK: A motivating thought you wish to share with IIK readers

One thing I found in ME is that once people come here, they become victims of comfort. People tend to repeat the same things over years and get back to India upon retirement. Many of them have become laid back. Qualifying oneself with add- on qualifications of international repute can make us more recognizable. If we are at this stage with minimum effort, imagine what we could be if we put in some additional effort!This can lead us to grow in our own organizations. I wish to encourage people in identifying the degrees of international repute and pursue it.

Mr Raghu's wife Hemalatha,39, is a Cost Accountant and has an MPhil in Commerce. She has worked as a teacher in various Indian schools based in the Middle East and takes a practical approach to teaching students. She teaches Commerce and Accountancy for 12th grade students. His daughter Shruthi, 18,is now pursuing a BA in Communication Studies, Psychology and English Literature. His son Shravan,16, is interested in Astrobiology, football, and tennis.