Vinod S. Nair puts a humorous spin to his response about his childhood aspirations. “My early ambition was to become a driver so that I could drive different cars. As time went by, that fascination diminished, as I realised that owning cars is better than just driving them,” he jokes.

Today, he seems quite content with a career in telecommunications and is eager to tackle the challenges before him at work. As director of AGC Networks’ marketing functions, his basic responsibilities centre on chalking out a product-related road map for the company, besides introducing new products like IP surveillance. He is also responsible for ensuring organisational readiness to adopt new technologies, alliance management and pricing, and improving product price realisations.

What helps is a strategic and rational management style. “I set long-term goals for my team, try and reach a consensus on the big picture and usually don’t interfere in day-to-day matters. I also believe in the method of questioning and analysis to be able to evaluate various situations, such as employee performance,” he says.

What also comes in handy is over 16 years of work experience in the sales domain, from selling Motorola’s wireless communication-related products to Avaya’s unified communications and contact centre solution. Prior to his current stint, he was in charge of AGC Networks’ integrated infrastructure solutions business and has been instrumental in setting up the company’s videoconferencing and audio-video solutions integration business.

He considers incubating the audio-video practice in AGC Networks as his most challenging assignment to date. “The idea was to take it to a critical-mass level, which was very exciting,” he says. “From setting up the team to engaging with customers to managing different expectations, every task was different and immensely challenging, and a great learning experience.”

That was then. Currently, he is working on consolidating AGC Networks’ position in the Indian market and believes that the company is in a good position to bring diverse skill sets to the table. “We are charting a new growth path by strengthening our existing business streams such as video and networking. The challenges and prospects of the future relate to these verticals and we plan to meet these targets by adopting an industry vertical-based strategy,” he notes. 

Nair keeps himself equally busy outside the boardroom as well. An avid reader, he sometimes goes through three books simultaneously. He also enjoys listening to music and watching movies.