Autoform India: Spearheading The Firm Towards Further Prosperity
Siddharth Gandhi
MD & Managing Partner
In an exclusive interaction with CEO Insights, Siddharth Gandhi, Marketing Director & Managing Partner at Autoform India, highlights his roles and noteworthy moments of his illustrious professional journey in the company.
Tell us about your educational background. Did you foresee that this is where you would be?
I did my schooling at the Amity International in Noida, and right after my 10+2, I went to England and pursued my degree in business management, marketing, and operation from the University of Manchester. Autoform India is a family-run business, and my father Rajan Gandhi, who is the founder of the company, started this business in 1989. When I was pursuing my degree in England, I was sure in my mind that I would come back and join the business, as I was always keen and passionate about cars.
Being a director of a company who is skilled in strategic planning, business development, and much more, what different roles have you been undertaking at Autoform India?
I've been aggressively involved in the business development activities and instrumental in adding and getting our company associated with a lot of car companies. In the course of my joining, we added Maruti Suzuki, Toyota, Ford, Hero MotoCorp, Royal Enfield, and many such brands. And in the realm of strategic planning, it was very
important for me to focus on the overall return of the company. I've always been a very strong advocate of the mission and the vision of the organization, which is what I have established here so everybody works on a mission and keeps their focus on the essential things to grow the organization in a particular direction. As far as my other roles are concerned, in terms of marketing and sales,I've been instrumental in organizing the channels of the brand. We've been very successful in establishing a very strong network of 40 distributors, catering to over 800 retail points across the length and breadth of the country. Also, I always ensure to maintain a transparent relationship with the team; everybody is allowed to bring in their ideas. They are given the tools and the power to make decisions, which of course, brings about a lot of positive energy, keeps them motivated as well as helps the organization to grow faster.
What are the methodologies used by the company for providing the best customer service?
We ensure to provide the best customer experience from the look& feel,aesthetics, to products, services, operations, maintenance, and after sales assistance. We work closely with auto companies by giving them designs, concepts, and products that are trendy and relevant to the current time. In accordance with the B2B side of the business, we have account managers who are working closely with the company to make sure that they get the product and also ensure after sales support so that the customers are satisfied and happy. When it comes to the B2C side, we have aftermarket team, backend team, and executive team across the country who cater to the requirements and manage the grievances of the customers. All in all, we have a very strong customer service program for both sides.
What is the most challenging project that you have executed so
A successful director is one who believes in exploring, and at the same time, improving the overall vision and being inspiring so that it becomes fulfilling for themselves and the people around them
What are the methodologies used by the company for providing the best customer service?
We ensure to provide the best customer experience from the look& feel,aesthetics, to products, services, operations, maintenance, and after sales assistance. We work closely with auto companies by giving them designs, concepts, and products that are trendy and relevant to the current time. In accordance with the B2B side of the business, we have account managers who are working closely with the company to make sure that they get the product and also ensure after sales support so that the customers are satisfied and happy. When it comes to the B2C side, we have aftermarket team, backend team, and executive team across the country who cater to the requirements and manage the grievances of the customers. All in all, we have a very strong customer service program for both sides.
What is the most challenging project that you have executed so
far? How did you overcome the hurdles and what did you learn from it?
I have been instrumental in establishing our 150th network of the franchise which was recently launched in Haryana. Our customers can go and have a look at our products on display, touch & feel the product and then buy it, because the overall experience of our customers is very important. However, it was very challenging and took some time for our hard work to reap the benefits, but you need to be patient and keep rolling the ball. If the planning is right, eventually the patience will be fruitful.
Who do you look-up to for inspiration or mentorship? Tell us some of the important attributes of a successful director and what successful mantra would you like to recommend?
The founder of our company Rajan Gandhi, who has been instrumental in driving the company from day one itself, has always been my inspiration. Also, the two leaders who have been my role model are the ex-President of the US, Barack Obama, and the current CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella.
Some of the key aspects of a successful director are that one has to be a leader who believes in exploring, and at the same time, improving the overall vision and being inspiring so that it becomes fulfilling for themselves and the people around them. The vision and the power to motivate will keep the organization connected, allowing them to grow further in life. As business is not just about making money, it is about helping others who are attached to the organization. The mantra that keeps motivating me to further reach new heights is NSI (Never stop improving) which was shared by Robin Sharma in one of his books. We should focus on to keep improving, be it with the design,organization, people, or ourselves, because that is the only way we can keep ourselves updated, similar to our mobile phone we also need to keep updating our version.
Siddarth Gandhi, Marketing Director & Managing Partner, Autoform India
An experienced promoter with a demonstrated history of working in the automotive industry, Siddarth specializes in Retail, Sales, Customer Relationship Management(CRM), and Sales Management. He is a strong marketing professional with a Bachelor of Science(B.Sc)degree focused in Business Management Marketing and Operations from Manchester Business School.
I have been instrumental in establishing our 150th network of the franchise which was recently launched in Haryana. Our customers can go and have a look at our products on display, touch & feel the product and then buy it, because the overall experience of our customers is very important. However, it was very challenging and took some time for our hard work to reap the benefits, but you need to be patient and keep rolling the ball. If the planning is right, eventually the patience will be fruitful.
Who do you look-up to for inspiration or mentorship? Tell us some of the important attributes of a successful director and what successful mantra would you like to recommend?
The founder of our company Rajan Gandhi, who has been instrumental in driving the company from day one itself, has always been my inspiration. Also, the two leaders who have been my role model are the ex-President of the US, Barack Obama, and the current CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella.
Some of the key aspects of a successful director are that one has to be a leader who believes in exploring, and at the same time, improving the overall vision and being inspiring so that it becomes fulfilling for themselves and the people around them. The vision and the power to motivate will keep the organization connected, allowing them to grow further in life. As business is not just about making money, it is about helping others who are attached to the organization. The mantra that keeps motivating me to further reach new heights is NSI (Never stop improving) which was shared by Robin Sharma in one of his books. We should focus on to keep improving, be it with the design,organization, people, or ourselves, because that is the only way we can keep ourselves updated, similar to our mobile phone we also need to keep updating our version.
Siddarth Gandhi, Marketing Director & Managing Partner, Autoform India
An experienced promoter with a demonstrated history of working in the automotive industry, Siddarth specializes in Retail, Sales, Customer Relationship Management(CRM), and Sales Management. He is a strong marketing professional with a Bachelor of Science(B.Sc)degree focused in Business Management Marketing and Operations from Manchester Business School.