Basu: Time management

New Delhi, March 31: Partha Sarathi Basu, chief financial officer of SpiceJet, has a flair for juggling with numbers. However, with his new book, Why not!...Racing Ahead With Mentors, Basu has proved that he can play with words with equal panache.

“Why Not! goes beyond the theory of management practices,” says Basu.

From his personal experience, Basu has tried to provide a guide to achieve success in professional and personal lives.

Why Not! talks about the characteristics needed to rise up the corporate ladder.

A stickler for punctuality and time management, Basu says these two traits have helped him find time to pen his book.

“Time management is a crucial element that enables one to have a balanced life and increase productivity,” Basu said.

Before joining SpiceJet, Basu worked with Coca-Cola India, Whirlpool India and IFB Group.

Born and brought up at Maddox Square in Calcutta, Basu now lives with his wife and kids in Gurgaon. He is a graduate from St. Xavier’s College and did his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta.

New Delhi-based SpiceJet, which was earlier known as Royal Airways, is the new avatar of the SK Modi-promoted ModiLuft launched in 1992. A group of NRIs led by the London-based Kansagra family bought into ModiLuft and relaunched it as a low-cost airline — SpiceJet — in 2005.

At a time when most low-cost airlines are registering losses, SpiceJet has managed to stay afloat and reported an operational profit of Rs 4 lakh for the quarter ended December 2007.

Basu believes there is no better mentor than life. “One can learn valuable lessons from people around us — our children, colleagues, strangers ....even enemies. We also acquire knowledge from life’s experiences and from each moment in a day....the only important thing is to be open and receptive.”.

Basu said he always had a creative streak in him. “Days when I was moved by a particular experience or met an interesting person, I would introspect on what I learnt from that experience and write it down in a journal...when I started on Why Not! I went back to my personal journal to draw and ideas for the book.”

“Writing is the best way to express oneself,” says Basu, who has already started working on his second book.