More buck for the bank?

In 2013, Tamal Bandyopadhyay had written a book about HDFC Bank. Titled A Bank for the Buck: The New Bank Movement and The Untold Story of The Making of India’s Most Valued Bank, it was 343 pages long and captured the story of HDFC Bank. It sold well and was also reprinted. If you have read that book, should you read this new book? While the title of the book is not a complete giveaway, there is a hint in the words “From Dawn…,” which should let us know that there is substantial history. Also, a bit of admission in the preface: “While the first four chapters have been added recently, the rest have been recast with new information to make them contemporary and relevant.(p.xv)”

 
So, what is new? The first 68 pages traces the life and times of Aditya Puri the managing director and CEO of the bank in the last few years and how it intertwined with the growth and strategy of HDFC Bank. This also possibly coincides with the regulation that extended the age restriction for whole-time directors of banks from 65 to 70 years. And, of course, there are some course corrections. A chapter titled “The Dirty Dozen” (Chapter 3 in the original book) is now rechristened “The Lucky 13”, with one personality — H Srikrishnan — added at the entry level and in the exit stories, without much mention of what he did in between. A part of the history re-written and parts of the old book brought up to speed with the contemporary events.

 
Is this, therefore, a new book? If we apply the concept of materiality we would say “not really”. It would not have passed the evergreening  test under a patent law. Not a new drug discovery, but an improvement of the potency and efficacy of an existing drug. Of course, it has a completely new packaging — Y V Reddy who wrote the Foreword is out, without even an acknowledgement, and Nandan Nilekani is in. A more appropriate title would have been “More Bank for the Buck”, but let’s not quibble. Luckily, this writer did not review the first book, and at least the review is completely fresh.

 

How do you narrate the story of the most “boring” bank in India? A bank that has never had a crisis worth mentioning [a little over a page is dedicated to the bouts of stress that the bank went through (p.380-81)], a bank that does not look spectacular in its growth and a bank that has become big with stealth? That is a testimony to the stability of the bank. In good old cricket analogy, it does not have the flamboyance of a Tendulkar or the aggression of a Ganguly, but appears more like Dravid — the careful wall. Mr Bandyopadhyay, of course, has the magic of putting drama, a dollop of detail into whatever he writes, making it very engaging. When one reads Mr Bandyopadhyay’s writing — whether it is the story of Sahara or Bandhan, one almost wonders if he was there all the time when events were unfolding. He has the detail up to the menu that was served in the meetings and the conversations that went on. That makes the book interesting and readable.

 
What does the story tell us about the bank and the leadership style of Aditya Puri? The word that describes this bank is “uncluttered”. There is focus on what the bank should do, and clarity on that what it should not. Whom it should lend to, and where it should not tread. How it should engage with customers and when to tick them off. How to let go of precious and senior employees and still maintain equanimity. It is a fascinating story of how a stable business could be built over the years, with a veneer of conservatism and risk management on the exterior and stretch targets within. This is an interesting story of how to run a marathon as a relay race, with each runner given a speed and achievement target without losing the focus of the long haul. How much of this is Aditya Puri and his leadership style and how much of this is the DNA of the “HDFC Family” led by Deepak Parikh and the governance oversight is a mystery. If Mr Bandyopadhyay were to write the story of HDFC Limited and unpeel the leadership of Deepak Parikh we would know. That would be a fascinating comparison. Mr Bandyopadhyay briefly attempts that towards the end of the book, but not quite. Time will tell whether there is an HDFC culture embedded into all the institutions when Aditya Puri moves on in 2020.

 
It was necessary for the HDFC 2.0 story to be told. The question is whether it should have been a fresh book as a sequel to A Bank for the Buck,  or More Bank for the Buck — a revised and updated edition or relaunch with a new title is a choice that the author and the publishers make. They have chosen the last option. If it was a sequel, much more work had to be done. If it were an updated edition, there would be no book launches and reviews. The new title and repackaging enhances sale volumes. We learn a new marketing principle with every book of Mr Bandyopadhyay.

HDFC Bank 2.0: From Dawn to Digital
Tamal Bandyopadhyay
Jaico, 432 pages, Rs 499
The reviewer is Faculty member, Centre for Public Policy, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore; mssriram@pm.me