"Defining the Vision and Building a Capable Team"- Debashish Vanikar Shares His Priorities at Kansai Nerolac

In an exclusive interview with CXO Lanes, Debashish Vanikar, Chief Executive Officer for Adhesives & Construction Chemicals at Kansai Nerolac, shares insights into his career milestones and vision for the company's future. Reflecting on his extensive leadership experience with industry giants, he discusses his plans to drive sustainable growth, implement innovation, and build a dynamic team to strengthen Kansai Nerolac’s market position in the adhesives and construction chemicals sector.

Q: Could you share some key milestones from your career journey prior to joining Kansai Nerolac that have played a significant role in shaping your leadership style? Debashish Vanikar: Some of the key milestones I would say are as follows

• Executive Assistant to Mr. Kumarmangalam Birla – Exposure to strategy formulation for a business, developing a long-term perspective, and multitasking.
• P&L Leader for West at Aditya Birla Retail – Managed end-to-end P&L, scaled up a business in a short period, and built a unique path for business growth.
• Head of Acquired Businesses at UltraTech – Handled takeover, integration, and operations of two large acquisitions (JP and Binani).
• Pidilite – Led revival and aggressive scale-up of the Tile & Stone Solutions business under Roff, working on category creation.

Q: What attracted you to the Chief Executive Officer position for Adhesives & Construction Chemicals at Kansai Nerolac, and how do you see the company’s vision aligning with your own professional goals? Debashish Vanikar: I took up this role because I was familiar with both businesses and had experience running them. The company had entered these sectors, but they had not scaled up due to diffused focus within the organization. These segments in building materials still have room for substantial growth through a systematic business-building approach. I have always enjoyed taking on challenging assignments to scale businesses rather than managing established ones. This role presented another such opportunity.

Q: As you step into this role, what are your top priorities for leading the adhesives and construction chemicals division, and how do you plan to address the evolving demands of the industry? Debashish Vanikar: My top priorities are as follows:

• Defining the vision and roadmap for these businesses
• Building a capable team to manage these businesses
• Scaling up the business systematically across the country
• Creating a long-term sustainable business of scale

Q: How do you plan to leverage your previous experience to drive innovation and growth within this segment at Kansai Nerolac? Debashish Vanikar: Having handled these categories previously, I am familiar with setting up and scaling such businesses. My focus will be on managing them according to the specific dynamics of these sub-segments rather than the broader established Paints business within the organization. There is a need for regular innovation in both products and services to establish a long-term, sustainable competitive advantage.

Q: In what ways do you envision implementing new strategies or improvements to strengthen the company’s position in the market over the coming years? Debashish Vanikar: A key change will be the deployment of focused resources dedicated to running these businesses. Our approach to people, product pricing, promotions, and distribution will be tailored to the specific needs of these sub-segments, rather than a one-size-fits-all company-wide approach. Building the retail segment of these businesses will require a long-term investment in people, demand generation, and category creation.