Managing the demi Gods

Managing the Demi-Gods!

Poonam Talwar Sayal profiles Col (Retd) Arvinder Singh, the dynamic CEO of Kings XI, Punjab, with Adam Gilchrist as its skipper. The team is held and promoted by a consortium which includes actor, Preity Zinta and industrialists Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, and Karan Paul along with Gaurav Burman and Shagun Khanna. The mascots are Rocky and Ranjit, who have recently found their voices through a nationwide competition shares the CEO with Purple Beret Cricket in our country has attained cult status and cricketers are nothing short of ‘demi-gods’ for their fans. Managing these demi –gods and the associated hullaballoo is no mean task and so the promoters of Kings XI Punjab sought the services of a seasoned soldier to take up the challenge! The first season of IPL had just got over and the Kings XI team was looking for a good administrator. As luck would have it Preity Zinta knew Col Arvinder personally since her brother was serving in the same regiment as Col Arvinder. Preity was well versed with the bright career record of this impressive, tall and handsome army officer. Col Arvinder in fact was then her brother’s Commanding Officer. Out of the blue, one day, Col Arvinder received a call from her asking him to join her team. Taken aback at this sudden and unexpected proposal, Col Arvinder’s first reaction was "I haven’t left the army to manage security..." little realising what the job actually entailed. Preity invited him to meet the team owners and discuss the nature of the job before taking any decisions. And the rest they say is history...! "They wanted me to come and handle the entire business as such, manage the complete franchise but I had no experience in sales and sponsorship and marketing and all that, so I myself took a step back..." says Col Arvinder. He joined the team in January 2009, taking on the challenging task of Vice President Operations initially, while slowly soaking in the nuances of this intricate business because he wanted to step into the final position as CEO only after learning through experience at the grass root levels. The 2nd IPL began on the 1st of April, of the same year. His first season of IPL went past like a whirlwind because the venue was shifted to South Africa and there were only three months to organise all the details! Flying around the beautiful locales of South Africa he tied up the various nitty-gritty’s for the team in record time. By the time the third IPL was held in 2010 he was the Sr. Vice President of the franchisee and by November 2010 he was appointed the COO (Chief Operating Officer) and Head of Management Kings XI Punjab. "I am loving it!" he says when asked whether he is enjoying his second innings. "I guess I was one of those fortunate ones who got this opportunity. Of course I am thankful to the almighty that I am sitting in my hometown, doing what I have always loved (sports), it is a unique opportunity that has come my way." He explains that the job is not the typical corporate desk job as it entails a lot of travelling and interaction with many high profile ‘page 3’ celebrities and cricketers. Strategising in the beginning of the year and planning the entire season in advance, working out the details and executing marketing gimmicks, matching sales deadlines and other such associated jobs keeps him busy round the year. He has now learnt his way around sponsors and financial big-wigs and has mastered the art of selling their brand to the public. "There is a lot that goes behind the organising of each match to ensure that it is an enjoyable experience for the people who are paying that kind of money to watch it", he says. Selling the idea of the team to the fans and garnering support for the brand is no mean task. His one trait which has helped him tackle most of his problems and establish his command here is his honesty, he modestly lets on. The experience gathered in the army has been his pillar of strength and the background was a definite advantage when he took up this new task. He might be hobnobbing with celebrities and cricketers today but his links to his regiment and the ‘fauj’ are as strong as ever. In fact he was recently visiting his regiment along with his family to participate in the command changeover. His wife and two sons miss the army culture more because of the comparative social void created as part of civilian life but Col Arvinder’s efforts are on to create a pseudo family amongst the core staffers of the team. And he hopes to create camaraderie akin to the army amongst his team members! A third generation ‘fauji’, Col Arvinder wanted to tread waters outside this disciplined and close knit zone. After commanding the elite 71 Armoured Regiment to which he had also got commissioned, Col Arvinder Singh was ready to move on. He had a plum job offer from an international firm in Bangalore and all that was left was convincing the army to release one of its most promising officers to return to a civilian lifestyle! The task was not easy because of his exceptional career profile. A gold medalist from RIMC, Dehra Dun, he was 3rd in the All India Merit List for the National Defence Academy in 1983. He was the Academy Cadet Adjutant in NDA and was awarded the President’s Bronze Medal. His success saga followed him in the Indian Military Academy where he passed out in the elite Super Bloc again as the Academy Cadet Adjutant. Arvinder made his mark as a competent soldier continuing his academic excellence by achieving AI grades in all his courses. He was awarded the prestigious Thimmaya medal for best all round performance at the Defence Services Staff College with distinction in M.Sc. He served as the BM of a Counter Insurgency Brigade in J&K, was on deputation with the United Nations as the Operations Officer of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea where he received the Force Commander’s Commendation for outstanding service. He was posted at the Army HQ for handling Indian Army overseas operations with the United Nations, was a member of the elite US led Multi National Planning and Augmentation Team (MPAT) and also served on the roster of UN instructors for International courses of instruction. He commanded his own Regiment and also converted it into the elite T-90 profile. After such a distinctive army career, it is no wonder that the promoters of Punjab’s IPL team homed in on him! True to his nature and with characteristic élan and efficiency Col Arvinder has created a niche for himself amongst the ‘Who’s Who’ of our society. A man to watch out for as he takes the Kings XI of Punjab to dizzying heights!

By Poonam Talwar Sayal