MTEA: For the love for the supporting cast...

The topic that has caught the attention and the fancy of the transport business professionals lately is the Mahindra Transport Excellence Awards (MTEA). The coveted award is again picking steam with the main entries shortlisted for the Grand Jury. The tension is heating up and the last month just added fuel to it. An 18 member illustrious jury (Expert Jury) met to shortlist the entries for the enablers of the transport industry (Dhaba/ Mechanic/ Spares Retailers/ CV Financiers Category). The 2 day process (held over 12^th & 13^th of December) was driven by subject matter experts in the above category.

The number of entries, the variety and the quality was motivating. The newly introduced Spares Retailers category saw an enthusiastic bunch of takers, which we believe is a testimony of the popularity and acceptance of the MTEA.

Let’s have a look at how the process for the categories unfolded:

1. Highway Dhaba Category

To talk about the Transport business and not mention Dhabas is a crime. The sector that feeds, provides shelter and takes care of one of the most important cogs of our business: Drivers, had to feature prominently in the MTEA. The shortlisted Dhabas were evaluated by the Awards Core Team and Zee News. The team interviewed not only the Dhaba owners, but also the employees. The interaction was converted into a shortfilm which was later screened for the Expert Jury. The short film provided a gist of how the Dhabas and their owners contributed to the 3 pillars of Rise. The film also captured the facilities provided, food offered and the simple humanitarian approach displayed towards the drivers who stopped at their Dhabas, with a motto of Atithi Devo Bhava. 

      2. CV Mechanic Category

The on-call doctors of the Transport business, the mechanics too are critical contributors to building the transport business, curtailing time delays and efficiency issues. The first level screening of the shortlisted mechanics was done with the help of DISCOVER Team. A short film capturing personal interaction, vetted with ground checks was displayed for the Expert Jury. 

The Expert Jury for the Highway Dhaba category and the CV Mechanic category were as follows:

·         Mr. Bharat Dabholkar (Media Personality)

·         Mr. Balasubramanian Natarajan, Editor-in-Chief – Motor India

·         Ms. Ruchita Purohit, Interface Communications

·         Prof. Sanjeev Tripathi, Professor of Marketing – IIMA

·         Mr. Girish V S, Executive Editor - SCM Pro

·      Mr. Ghanshyam Pandit, Head – COCO Operations & Business Development, Mahindra Finance

·         Mr. Ajay Sharma, MTBD (Non-voting Observer)

3. Spares Retailer Category

This category is highly user driven and hence it was prudent to let the truck mechanics decide it. Over 1500 truck mechanics from 15 cities across the country nominated their preferred spares retail shop. The voting based selection ensured that the shortlisted entries covered a wide range of services like engine parts, electrical parts, lubricants etc.  

The jury consisted of:

·      Mr. Shiv Kiran, Head - Marketing, Business Strategy & New Initiatives - First Choice Wheels Ltd

·         Mr. Bharat Sheth, Director - Navnit Automobiles

·         Mr. K Hari Prakash, Vice President – Retail - Valvoline Cummins Ltd

·         Mr. Ranjit Vadhavkar, Sr. Vice President (Commercials) - Mahindra Sona Ltd.

·      Mr. Sanjoy Chatterjee, General Manager-Bazaar Channel Sales - M & M Spare Business Unit

·         Mr. Sivasubramanian Murugan, Vice President – Parts Mart Business - TVS & Sons Ltd.

·         Mr. Sukhdeep Kochar and Anand Govilkar, MTBD were non-voting observers

     4. CV Financier Category

The people who ensure dreams are crystallised into reality, by providing the right amount of investments. The financier category was judged keeping in mind their growth strategy & its adaptation for the HCV segment, demonstrated customer orientation, Innovation adopted in SME / Retail segment and overall alignment to the Rise pillars. Top financiers like ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Canara Bank also featured in the contenders.

The jury consisted of the following stalwarts:

·        Mr. Anirban Ghosh, Vice President, Auto and Farm Sector - Sustainability, CSR & Ethics – Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

·         Mr. Pradip Shah, Chairman - IndAsia Fund Advisors Pvt. Ltd. (Ex-Chairman CRISIL)

·         Mr. Praveen Kutty, EVP – Head Retail & SME Banking - Development Credit Bank

·      Mr. Rakesh Bhalla, Senior Financial Advisor - IREDA, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy

·        Prof. Sobhesh Kumar Agarwalla, Professor Finance and Accounting Area, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad

·         Dr. Brinda Jagirdar, Senior Business Economist and Faculty at NIBM

·         Mr. K. A. Ravindranath, MTBD was the non-voting observer

The end of this round brings us to the closure of the Expert Jury, moving MTEA to its final and the most exciting stage. The shortlisted candidates would now move to be scrutinised by the Grand Jury, which will be held in the early 2015.

Watch this space for more.