Sandeep Sethi, Managing Director, Corporate Solutions, JLL, West Asia

 

I was leading teams and running large P&Ls. After almost 11 years in the US, I moved with JCI to Singapore in 2001 to run Singapore operations for couple of years, following which I moved with JCI to Mumbai as India MD for 2.5 years. I was the youngest MD at 32. I was instrumental in turning around the operations and put the company on a profitable path. I then relocated back to Singapore in 2006 to run the Service business across APAC. After 15 years, I then decided to try something different and moved to China with Carrier (part of UTC then) as Head of their APAC business for Commercial Refrigeration. Living and working in China was like a dream assignment. I immersed myself completely in the local culture. Took up Chinese lessons, made local friends, travelled extensively across China. My next assignment was in Paris, however I had to return to India for personal reasons and joined Acme Telepower as their global CEO. This is a company that went from start up to 15000cr valuation in 4-5years. Working for a promoter led firm for the first time was an amazing experience. Manoj Upadhyay is one of the smartest entrepreneurs I’ve ever come across. The India telecom business wasn’t doing too well, so I spent a lot of time in expanding the business across Africa. I travelled extensively across sub-Saharan Africa setting up entities across 17 countries. That was an amazing experience. After almost 3 years, I had set up a team and I felt it was time to do something else. I took a break from work and thought I’d go chase my dreams of climbing mountains (I climbed Kilimanjaro). I spent a lot of time soul searching, trying to decide my next step. I thought of trying something very different professionally. I explored an opportunity to run a hospital chain and another one to lead a subsidiary of a  global logistics company; I even thought of getting into the social world. I was clear about what I wanted – to be in an industry that had runway, that had the potential to be connected with a social cause, huge untapped potential and not fully organized yet, and one that would require innovation. I came across an opportunity in Real Estate and it seemed to check the all boxes that I had. I joined JLL. I’ve been with them for 7.5 years and I’m having the time of my life.

I’ve learnt so much in the last few years and the more I learn, I realize that there’s so much more to learn. What I love the most is that RE can make such a big social impact. That’s the part that gets me going the most. Today, I play an active part in the firm’s sustainability agenda, am on the firm’s D&I council. I also chair a subcommittee on industry placements for one of NSDC’s sector skills councils. My experiences have provided me with great opportunities to travel, live in different countries, work across diverse industries, in different corporate cultures (blue chip and promoter driven). I’ve met some amazing people and I’ve

grown stronger each year. Along the way, learning has been the most important driver for me. Learning comes in different formats these days. I’ve been fortunate to have received good formal education – MS and MBA in the US, summer school at the LSE and couple of leadership development programs at IIM A&B. However, life’s best lessons are learnt daily when you roll up your sleeves and immerse yourself in life… with an open mind.