Ritesh Tiwari, the CFO of Hindustan Unilever, recently dropped some career wisdom on LinkedIn.
For the unversed Ritesh is a Chartered Accountant and started his career with Hindustan Unilever Limited – HUL in 1999, and over the years grew to become the CFO.
In India, Hindustan Unilever Limited has been operating for over 90 years, boasting a portfolio of 50+ FMCG brands. HUL’s turnover for the year 2022-23 amounted to ₹58,154+ crore.
Here are his top 3 tips for professionals from his treasure trove of knowledge.
1. Don’t let a job description limit what you can achieve
Ritesh said, “In life, you will be given a job description. After that, you have a choice of what you want from the job description.”
His advice is clear – Don’t let a job description limit what you can achieve or experience in a role.
Look for opportunities to learn, grow, and make the role your own rather than just doing the bare minimum tasks listed.
Bring passion and imagination to make your job description extraordinary!
2. Now is Wow
“You will always be excited to do a good job and see where you want to go NEXT! My sincere advice will be NOW is WOW. The more you focus on making your current brilliant, your future is sorted out.”
It’s a reminder to embrace the “wow” of the present and trust that investing in excellence today paves the way for success tomorrow.
3. The 80-20 rule
Ritesh recalled the day he was being interviewed for the CFO role at HUL by then-CEO Sanjiv Mehta.
Sanjiv asked him, “Ritesh if we give a job to you, how ready are you?” He replied, “Sanjiv, I am 80% ready… 20% I want to grow and learn in the job”.
This mindset of being 80% ready and embracing the remaining 20% as a space for learning has been his guiding principle throughout his career.
Closing …
Recently during a CFO panel discussion hosted by the Bombay Chartered Accountants Society (BCAS), he also touched on three topics that are the need of the hour.
Technology: CFOs should think exponentially and leverage AI, big data, and cybersecurity.
Innovation: Finance plays a critical role in funding innovations and measuring performance to scale rapidly.
Sustainability: Collaboration is key for sustainability efforts to maximize impact through shared resources and partnerships.
Ritesh is driven by the purpose and has certainly lived by his words.
