DIALOGUE WITH THE CHIEF

Steel Authority of India (SAIL) produces ‘Adhyaksh se Vartalaap’, a two-way communication channel for effective broadcasting of the company’s strategies and plans, where the Chairman of one of India’s biggest public sector steel makers, Anil Kumar Chaudhary, is reaching out to SAIL employees through a web platform.

In the pioneering communication exercise at one of India’s most valuable PSU ‘Maharatnas’, over 2,000 employees at the steel major’s various plants and units across the country took part in this communication exercise. In his interaction, Chaudhary urged the SAIL family to stay “focussed and meet the annual targets” regardless of the extraordinarily tough times that the nation and the economy was going through.

“If we aim for something with single-minded commitment, there is no force in the world that can stop us from achieving it,” he said. The communication exercise is expected to generate fresh hope and enthusiasm amongst SAIL staff. 

One of the key purposes of the exercise was also to effectively broadcast the company’s strategies, plans, and projections. In the first phase, Chaudhary connected with executives of SAIL’s five integrated steel plants at Bhilai, Rourkela, Bokaro, Durgapur, Burnpur, and also with Central Marketing Division.

The SAIL Chairman also spoke about both the “domestic and international steel market scenario” and the current impact of COVID-19 on the steel sector. In fact, production across the company was cut by 50% in the wake of the Coronavirus crisis. 

Chaudhary was confident that the company can rally on the back of staff morale and efforts during the remaining 10 months of the current fiscal. “Cost competitiveness” was of the essence and employees needed to be aware of the “nuances of cost optimisation”, he added. 

Earlier in February, SAIL declared its performance results for Q3 of Financial Year 2019-20, reporting a 5% growth in its top line over the Corresponding Year Last Year (CPLY). Sales Turnover stood at Rs. 14,645.19 crore for FY 2019-20. Notwithstanding price reductions, SAIL achieved higher revenue by pushing towards higher volumes which saw actual production at 3.9 metric tonnes (MT) and sales at 4.1 MT grow by 3% and 26% over CPLY, respectively. With an annual production of 16.30 million MT, SAIL is the 20th largest steel producer in the world and the third largest in India.