A new book profiles five Indian companies that delivered 15%+ ROCE annually for 15 years straight through the 2015-2025 crisis period. This goes against the common narrative of hyper-growth startups, spotlighting institutional strength over celebrity founders. Founders often chasing quick exits might miss the playbook for long-term endurance.
How We Got Here
Saurabh Mukherjea and Salil Desai, known for their 2016 bestseller "The Unusual Billionaires", are back with "The Art of Enduring", set for release on September 14. Their analysis picks businesses from India's 500 largest companies that navigated disruptions like demonetisation and COVID-19.
The Numbers
- The five companies selected for deep analysis are Bajaj Finance, Titan, Dr Lal PathLabs, Divi's Laboratories, and Tata Elxsi.
- These firms were chosen for consistently outpacing India's GDP growth while maintaining 15% annual returns on capital over one and a half decades.
- The book details how these firms leveraged robust systems, strong culture, and astute leadership to compound value, moving beyond founder worship.
- It features the stories of leaders like Arvind Lal, Bhaskar Bhat, Rajeev Jain, and Om Manchanda, emphasizing professional management.
- The core idea posits that great companies learn to "befriend time" during disruption, rather than waiting for calm to resume.
What Happens Next
🇮🇳 Why This Matters for India
For founders and VCs in Bangalore's deep-tech sector, this offers a counter-intuitive look at building lasting enterprise value over short-term exits.
The Take
The obsession with "unicorn hunting" and rapid growth often overshadows the discipline of long-term value creation. This book could force a necessary introspection: perhaps the real wealth isn't in the next funding round, but in the mundane consistency of a 15% ROCE for decades.
Source:
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