“There is no shortcut to success – hard work has no substitute,” said H.M. Bangur, Chairman of Shree Cement, while addressing the Marketing Conclave organised by KIIT School of Management on Saturday. Speaking to an audience of young management students, Bangur stressed that those who cultivate the discipline of consistent hard work are the ones who will truly stand out in their careers.
He called upon students to balance ambition with values, invest in themselves, and embrace humility. Drawing from his own habit of sitting for the CAT exam for two decades to test his relevance, he said, “In life, your unseen discipline, humility, and integrity may not be noticed immediately, but they are what will carry you forward.”
He lauded the vision of KIIT and KISS Founder Dr. Achyuta Samanta for transforming a dream of inclusive education into one of India’s most respected institutions such as KIIT and KISS.
Bangur confided that he sits for the CAT exam every year as a policy of self-feedback to keep himself relevant with contemporary times. “There is one danger in success – people around you stop giving honest feedback”.
Touching upon the ongoing debate around working hours sparked by Infosys founder Narayan Murthy’s call for 72-hour workweeks, Bangur said success is directly proportional to the number of hours invested. “To take on greater responsibilities, you must put in 10,000 hours of focused effort. To become a true expert, you need 25,000 hours. How fast you achieve that depends on your choice – whether you work harder and get there faster, or take longer. But there is no substitute for putting in the hours,” he told the gathering.
Reflecting on India’s economic journey, Bangur said that the country has moved from a shortage economy to one of abundance and choice. He said that with greater choices now, businesses must innovate, build confidence, and offer trust and pride along with their products.
He predicted that India will reach developed-nation status within the next 10 to 15 years, but warned that the mortality rate of businesses will rise in the abundance era, where only the most innovative and trusted brands will survive.
He also emphasised the need to align knowledge and authority in organisations, warning against a system where those with authority lack knowledge, and those with knowledge lack authority.
Bangur shared his personal philosophy on spending money meaningfully, laying out five areas: investing in future skills, building visible goodwill, giving silently, supporting family, and spending guilt-free on oneself. “If money is spent in these five ways, there will never be regret – neither in the present nor in the future,” he said.
The marketing conclave was attended by the Vice Chancellor of KIIT Prof Saranjit Singh; Registrar Prof. J R Mohanty; Prof. Kumar Mohanty, Director, School of Management; Prof. Arvind Tripathy, Dean, School of Management and others.