PLANNING

Larsen and Toubro successfully managed to broaden its operations by acquiring a new firm. This
was done through successful planning. A well-stated goal accompanied by a clear plan made
sure the acquisition took place with little to no hiccups for both organizations. The company with
excess cash and zest to expand and diversify its operations were already looking for profitable
deals. Mind Tree was successfully managing its operations and making profits through well-
established clients like Microsoft. When VG Siddhartha the first institutional investor of Mind
Tree was in a dire need of liquidity and approached L&T with his shares, the company readily
accepted the offer.

After that, the company steadily planned and executed its operation of acquiring a major stake in
ML through open market operations and soon became the largest stakeholder. This clearly states
the importance of planning.

At the same time, it shows poor planning on the part of the Executive board and co-founders of
ML. They failed to act on time. Even when the earlier founders left they did not buy their buyout
and steadily gave up on ownership over time. They relied too much on Mr. Siddhartha, also
when Mr. Siddhartha approached the co-founders at first for the buyout they did not act on it and
thus lost the ownership of the company which they built over time.

STAFFING

Staffing requires the company to employ the right individual to fulfill the right positions.
Staffing is an important part of Management as it ensures that the organization is working
efficiently. After the takeover by L&T of MindTree, the former hired its Executive Chairman
AM Naik as the new non-Executive Chairman of Mind Tree Ltd (ML).

SN Subramanian former Managing Director of L&T who spearheaded the acquisition process
was nominated as the non-Executive Vice Chairman of ML. L&T brought Debashish Chatterjee
from outside the organization’s executive board as the CEO and MD of ML to spearhead its
operations and lead the organization to a better future. Acting as a new face, Mr. Debashish with
his expertise in earlier leading organizations with similar goals and operations made sure the
employees of ML do not feel
L&T successfully completed this process by having its trusted employees on the executive board
of the newly acquired firm whilst also hiring new talent from outside. This helped the acquirer to
oversee the day-to-day operations while not interfering with the existing status quo of ML. AM
Naik the newly promoted non-executive chairman acting as a leader gained the trust of
employees with a welcoming letter that stated the latter’s importance in the organization and how
Mind Tree was still a separate entity that the employees had built over time.

ORGANISING

Organizing refers to the execution of a plan step by step. LARSEN and TOUBRO successfully
organized the acquisition by first buying stakes of V.G Siddhartha then buying more shares
through open market operations and thus becoming the largest shareholder of Mind Tree. The
acquirer then strategically organized and placed its employees inside the acquired firm to
overlook the management of the organization and have control.

From planning to staffing and to leading every step was organized in such a manner to make the
acquisition as smooth as possible for both firms. They both gained significantly from the merger
as L&T acquired new talent and a successful profit-making firm to its portfolio which will help it
in exploring new horizons. Mind Tree got to enjoy the client base, resources, and reach of its
parent organization which is an established conglomerate with operations spread all over the
world.

CONTROLLING

Controlling is pervasive in nature throughout all the functions of Management. After a plan has
been successfully implemented it has to be followed up on a regular basis to ensure effortless
functioning. Larsen and Toubro did the same by promoting its most trusted employees AM Naik
and SM Subramanian to the non-executive board of directors. This also ensured that L&T
overlooked and controlled the operations of the newly acquired firm while also not interfering
with its daily operations.

LEADING

Leading is one of the most essential functions of management as without successful leadership a
plan is nothing but a great idea. AM Naik during the crucial times gracefully handled the
acquisition by acting as a leader, he made sure that the employees of Mind Tree did not feel the
acquisition to be hostile. He also ensured that the employees felt that they were still a part of
Mind Tree and the acquisition was not going to affect their work and inclusivity as the
organization which they had worked hard to build over time.