Akash Prakash: The decline of the MNC

There was a time not very long ago when the preferred option for any executive was to work in a multinational company (MNC). The MNCs, being global organisations, were perceived to be more professional and offer a better career path. They were positioned as being infinitely better career options than Indian companies, which were supposed to be dogged by nepotism and not offering career development and adequate compensation.

This was the norm in the 1990s, when my generation was passing out of business school, and still holds by and large true for fresh graduates coming out of business school even today.

What we are witnessing today is a sea change in the attitude of Indian middle managers, who are moving to Indian industry in droves. Having spent enough time working for the MNC charm to have worn off, more and more Indian managers are making the leap to local companies. Lured by the chance to actually build world-class companies and their own future, as well as the increasing professionalisation of corporate India, in industry after industry, no longer do eyebrows get raised if you join an Indian company.

Take the case of financial services, where this trend is the most pronounced. The new private sector banks have been able to hire the best and brightest from all the major foreign banks both in India and from abroad. From HDFC Bank to Centurion to Yes and now even IndusInd, all these organisations are headed by senior bankers who cut their teeth in MNCs, and each has built an equally well-qualified team around him or her. These newly created private sector banks have given the foreign banks a real run for their money, and will dominate the financial landscape in India over time. The willingness of organisations like Kotak and JM to discard their JV partners and attempt to compete on their own only further underlines the confidence these organisations have in being able to attract and retain the best talent. For in financial services, it is in a true sense only about the people you have, there is no other real basis to compete.

The ability to build a world-class organisation from scratch, scale it up and make millions in options has proved to be an irresistible attraction for many senior managers.

Or take the case of India Infoline, which has set a precedent by picking up the entire top management of CLSA,the leading foreign broker in India. The move and its immediate success in terms of market cap and market share have laid to rest once and for all any doubts on the ability and desire of Indian brokers to compete with their MNC counterparts. It is rumoured that the CLSA team move will be very soon replicated by others.

In industry after industry, the MNC is slowly losing out both in terms of aggression, market share and the war for talent. In a dynamic and rapidly growing economy like India, where growth is currently only handicapped by your risk taking appetite, it is no surprise that the international companies are losing out. In many areas of the Indian economy, the private sector is rapidly gaining share and it is a bit of a land grab. The rewards for those companies (and their employees) that can scale and rapidly grow are disproportionate. In such an environment the more measured and cautious approach of the MNC is clearly suboptimal. Just look at the new sunrise sectors in India "" retail, telecom, media or even financial services. What is the penetration and relevance of MNCs in these sectors? Who is drving growth in these industries? The poor presence of MNCs may be due partly to regulatory reasons, but that is not relevant from an employee perspective.

Even in the stock market, the MNC sector, once the darling of investors, is now almost irrelevant in market cap terms. There was a time when Unilever, Glaxo, ABB and the like were the biggest companies in India, no longer true today.

What accounts for this change in attitude and mood towards Indian companies?

Well for one, the ability and willingness of Indian companies to pay up for talent has never been higher. If you look at the list of the top 100 highest-paid managers, the majority are from Indian companies. The capital markets boom and current valuations give corporate India a huge advantage in terms of the value of stock-based compensation they can offer. The market and investors are in effect paying for this talent migration. Given the extent of growth ambitions harboured by most Indian companies and the need to scale up rapidly, they now recognise the value of managerial talent. The willingness of the capital market to pay up for an injection of top-quality managerial talent, through higher P-Es, has also emboldened Indian entrepreneurs. Just look at the price performance of companies that have been able to attract talent. Most MNCs with their rigid global compensation policies and unattractive stock (from a growth perspective) have no ability to compete on this metric.

Secondly, as the global ambitions of Indian companies have crystallised, they offer their people the chance to actually be involved in creating a global entity. The manager is also much more in control of his/her destiny, and not on the whims and fancies of corporate HQ located in an OECD country. The sense of ownership and attachment is far greater for an Indian company.

The third angle is the increasing professionalisation of Indian industry. Whether out of compulsion and the need to compete, or the advent of a younger western- educated next generation, Indian industry is far more professional and talent- aware than ever before. The investments being made by Indian companies in training and talent development far outstrip anything the MNCs can provide.The scale and ambition of vision are totally different.

This trend also underscores the confidence and risk-taking appetite infecting Indian managers. Everyone wishes to participate in the India gold rush, and staying within the MNC construct is perceived to limit your personal upside.

While financial services may be leading the way, the trends observed above are equally applicable across multiple industries.

When one used to list the risks to the India story a couple of years back, one of the biggest used to be the ability of corporate India to scale up. Most Indian companies were perceived to be one-man shows with no depth in middle management. The new-found ability of these companies to attract top MNC talent alleviates these concerns to a large extent. We used to wonder as to how corporate India will get its middle management. How will Indian companies attract talent with international experience? The answer is from the MNCs both in India and overseas, for they are in decline as attractive careers. The MNC is in decline and the biggest beneficiary is corporate India.