As published in The Economic Times on January 12th, 2008
New Delhi: When he first joined Tata Motors 16 years ago, Girish Wagh had no idea he would one day head the companys now-legendary Rs 1-lakh car project. Although he was part of the Indica vendor development team in 1997, Wagh was actually reluctant to get into full-scale product design with the Ace.
He remembers how Tata Motors MD Ravi Kant hand-picked him for the job and convinced him that it was as important as the work he was doing with the companys excellence group. That was December 2000. The Ace rolled out in May 2005 and almost singlehandedly helped beat a recession in the commercial vehicle space.
Impressed by his ability to deliver under tight deadlines, chairman Ratan Tata and Ravi Kant decided to move Wagh to the small car project in August that year. Almost painfully media shy, the Nanos strobe-steroidal launch this week was one of Waghs few public appearances.
A mechanical engineer from the Maharashtra Institute of Technology, which was followed by a post-graduate programme in manufacturing from Mumbai B-school SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, the 37-year-old Wagh has had a pretty dramatic career at Tata Motors. But nothing comes near the Nano experience. Heading a 500-strong team, Waghs biggest challenge was to define the products specifications as they went along.
Unlike the Ace where we knew what the necessary specs were, in this project all we had was a cost target, he says. That and the fact that it had to be a real car which met all the regulatory requirements.
The small car team had already put in about 18 months work by the time Wagh came on board. The R&D team was in place and work was on to get a fix on the styling, packaging, engine and transmission. Because there were no guidelines, the team used the M-800 for comparison. The idea was that we had to achieve at least this much and more, says Wagh.
As we went ahead, we redefined performance specs. As recently as nine months ago, we tweaked the engine to increase the power. The team also decided to launch the car with a manual transmission instead of the earlier-announced continuously variable transmission (CVT).
The CVT will come but the first variants will have a four-speed manual. Widely known as one of Tata Motors new bunch of engineering whiz kids, Wagh enjoys a formidable reputation in the company. A stickler for perfection and a hard taskmaster, Wagh is the first to admit that the Nano experiment had its own share of hiccups. Part of the problem was the constantly evolving design. His solution was to leverage the collective knowledge in the company.
In a somewhat hidebound company like Tata Motors thats never be easy. But then folks inside knew that this was no hypothetical project, the chairman had made it amply clear that he wanted it done. Ravi Kant also made sure the team was insulated from all these pressures. So by the time the project hit top-gear, the R&D team, vendor development team and manufacturing team were all working together, says Wagh.
That may sound easy but the ability to take inclusive decisions without losing the way is a tough call. No wonder, Tata himself is more than generous in his praise for Wagh. Girish is a terrific guy and has displayed enormous leadership qualities, he said, just after the Nano launch.
He takes over a responsibility and sees it through. Of course, no one is indispensible and Telco did go through many years of innovation without a Girish Wagh. Theres a terrific spirit in the company and we try to identify, motivate and empower that spirit. Girish is part of that process, he said.
Now that the peoples car has been unveiled, Waghs challenges are hardly over. Tata Motors must prove that the seemingly incredible design specs hold up at the manufacturing stage too. Product quality needs to be consistent too, something the firm isnt well known for. Although Wagh wouldnt say, insiders say enough quality assurance systems have to be put in place at the upcoming Singur plant.
But Thursdays high-voltage launch at the AutoExpo will no doubt ensure that Waghs career gets another turbo-charge. If the Nano manages a similar product record, it could make the self-effacing Wagh one of Indias most sought after auto engineering brains.
Indias growing importance as an ultra low-cost auto engineering hub means people like him will call the shots in the next phase of growth. For Wagh, the future is here and now.
