On Record – Dipesh Dipu , Energy & Resources Expert - My interview in the IIM Indore Magazine
INTRODUCTION:
Dipesh Dipu, an Energy and Resources expert is the founder and partner at Jenissi Management Consultants. He is a mining engineer and did his post graduate in finance and management. He was awarded the young mining engineer in the year 2007 by Mining Engineer’s assosiation of India.He is also on the editorial board of Mining Engineering Journal of Mining Engineers’ Association of India. Earlier he was working with PwC as a principal consultant and later moved as a CEO of Nava Bharat Ventures in the year 2010. He joined Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd as a Director for Energy and Resource consulting and worked till August 2012.
A prolific writer, an existing energy expert and one of the most sought after consultant in the field, Dipesh Dipu still believes in continuous improvement and wishes to be the chosen advisor to his clients and a trusted leader for the industry
1. What according to you are the three most important qualities a consultant must have?
DD: The three most important qualities that I believe a consultant must have are – a) ability to listen effectively, since solutions are mostly woven in the problem statement itself, and then to communicate with the client in their own context; b) ability to imagine and think creatively which enables generation of solutions; and c) ability to market and sell ideas, which after all is what makes a consultant click.
2. What according to you was the turning point in your life?
DD: In my professional life, the turning point came when I got an opportunity to blend my undergraduate technical education and post graduate financial education, which helped me realize my passion. I believe that there is a certain passion in each and everyone of us, which is God-gifted, and we do get equipped along the way to follow our passion. The one big differential that can impact our lives is to discover where our passion lies. The opportunity to work in energy and resources consulting was the turning point in my life.
3. We found you an intense writer. How do you manage to balance your time?
DD: Yes, I do write, but I could do more! I plan to write a book in some time, it has been on my mind for a while. So, I must admit that I have been little off-balance. But writing is again a passion, and sometimes by effectively managing my time and maybe delegating some work to my trusted colleagues, I can pursue writing.
4. Looking back at your graduation, what is the one thing that you find the most useful and what is it that you find indispensable from B School?
DD: My engineering education gave me the analytical foundation and equipped me to have a realistic look at the world around. My business education was also firmly grounded in the practical world; however, it shifted my perspective from being focused on technology to focus on its utility. B-school education probably sets us up for the ‘bigger picture’ perspective.
5. Can you give us a quick overview of the energy consulting industry?
DD: Energy sector consulting mostly focuses on oil & gas, power &fuels; each having niche areas within themselves such as power generation, transmission, distribution, renewables, equipment, regulations, governance, financing, transactions and several others. The typical consulting works involve strategy formulation, performance improvement, human resources advisory, bid advisory, mergers & acquisitions, business structuring, and much more including outsourcing.
6. If possible, please describe the kind of work that a typical consultant in the energy sector does.
DD: There are several types of consultants, so the kind of work they do depends on their scope. Strategy firms have consultants focus on entry and growth strategies for the market participants, while there are firms focused on transformation work, where consultants may be engaged in business processes mapping, evaluation, reengineering and strategies around performance improvement through technology intervention and through outsourcing. There are others who focus on transactions ranging from bid advisory support, financial modeling, valuations, due diligences and assisting in mergers & acquisitions. There are a few others who typically work only on technical aspects such as project design, engineering, quality assurance and implementation monitoring.
7. What do you feel is the current trend in the energy sector? Is renewable energy going to act as a mainstream energy source any time soon?
DD: In India, coal is likely to remain the mainstay for the foreseeable future. The contributions from renewable sources are envisaged to rise substantially from their current levels, but their proportionate size in the portfolio is likely to remain low for now. However, the potential does exist, as several studies indicate that a large portion of our energy needs can be met through renewable sources.Currently,there are hurdles with respect to their affordability, quality of supply and gird connectivity. Regulation wise we are moving towards greater supplies from renewable sources through mechanisms like Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPOs).
8. With a growing number of start-ups and ventures in the energy market (some of the recent ones include – Kiran Energy Solar Power, ReNew Power Ventures) – Do you think the market is actually ready for more such ventures?
DD: Well, energy sector projects tend to be capital intensive and many have economies of scale. However, in the beginning, they all start small. The Indian market is big, and due to its state-wise divides, we may see a larger number of regional players in India. In the traditional coal based power generation sector, we are witnessing stressed firms and fuel constraints indicating potential consolidation.
9. With the energy sector in India still trying to meet the demand, what are the points that
i. The industry needs to keep in mind
ii. Any student pursuing an MBA should consider if he/she wants to get into the field of energy consulting?
DD: The industry needs to be realistic in expectations – from regulatory and commercial points of views. Pace of reforms in India is unpredictable, and hence bets on them can be unsafe. Also, when the competition gets tough, industry players should not lose sight of the basics and become extremely aggressive. The current financial duress can be traced to several over the top aggressiveness by many market players in the private sector.
New consultants in the sector would have to read a lot of research work and follow the trends minutely since the sector has many nuances. Clients always expect the consultants to know more than they do themselves.
10. As an energy consultant, which are the 3 exciting growth opportunities/emerging trends in this sector in the next 5 years?
DD: I believe that performance improvement is going to be critical in energy sector – especially through technology intervention. Business process management and enterprise resource optimization are likely to be big opportunities for consulting in India. Project management is another, where clients would need assistance in implementation of large capital projects for improved cost structure, schedule, and scope control. India has had relatively modest success in project implementation as the work requires specialists and consultants to engage with clients and help them in implementation. Significant opportunities existin financing and also in the renewables sector as it develops.
Dipesh Dipu, an Energy and Resources expert is the founder and partner at Jenissi Management Consultants. He is a mining engineer and did his post graduate in finance and management. He was awarded the young mining engineer in the year 2007 by Mining Engineer’s assosiation of India.He is also on the editorial board of Mining Engineering Journal of Mining Engineers’ Association of India. Earlier he was working with PwC as a principal consultant and later moved as a CEO of Nava Bharat Ventures in the year 2010. He joined Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd as a Director for Energy and Resource consulting and worked till August 2012.
A prolific writer, an existing energy expert and one of the most sought after consultant in the field, Dipesh Dipu still believes in continuous improvement and wishes to be the chosen advisor to his clients and a trusted leader for the industry
1. What according to you are the three most important qualities a consultant must have?
DD: The three most important qualities that I believe a consultant must have are – a) ability to listen effectively, since solutions are mostly woven in the problem statement itself, and then to communicate with the client in their own context; b) ability to imagine and think creatively which enables generation of solutions; and c) ability to market and sell ideas, which after all is what makes a consultant click.
2. What according to you was the turning point in your life?
DD: In my professional life, the turning point came when I got an opportunity to blend my undergraduate technical education and post graduate financial education, which helped me realize my passion. I believe that there is a certain passion in each and everyone of us, which is God-gifted, and we do get equipped along the way to follow our passion. The one big differential that can impact our lives is to discover where our passion lies. The opportunity to work in energy and resources consulting was the turning point in my life.
3. We found you an intense writer. How do you manage to balance your time?
DD: Yes, I do write, but I could do more! I plan to write a book in some time, it has been on my mind for a while. So, I must admit that I have been little off-balance. But writing is again a passion, and sometimes by effectively managing my time and maybe delegating some work to my trusted colleagues, I can pursue writing.
4. Looking back at your graduation, what is the one thing that you find the most useful and what is it that you find indispensable from B School?
DD: My engineering education gave me the analytical foundation and equipped me to have a realistic look at the world around. My business education was also firmly grounded in the practical world; however, it shifted my perspective from being focused on technology to focus on its utility. B-school education probably sets us up for the ‘bigger picture’ perspective.
5. Can you give us a quick overview of the energy consulting industry?
DD: Energy sector consulting mostly focuses on oil & gas, power &fuels; each having niche areas within themselves such as power generation, transmission, distribution, renewables, equipment, regulations, governance, financing, transactions and several others. The typical consulting works involve strategy formulation, performance improvement, human resources advisory, bid advisory, mergers & acquisitions, business structuring, and much more including outsourcing.
6. If possible, please describe the kind of work that a typical consultant in the energy sector does.
DD: There are several types of consultants, so the kind of work they do depends on their scope. Strategy firms have consultants focus on entry and growth strategies for the market participants, while there are firms focused on transformation work, where consultants may be engaged in business processes mapping, evaluation, reengineering and strategies around performance improvement through technology intervention and through outsourcing. There are others who focus on transactions ranging from bid advisory support, financial modeling, valuations, due diligences and assisting in mergers & acquisitions. There are a few others who typically work only on technical aspects such as project design, engineering, quality assurance and implementation monitoring.
7. What do you feel is the current trend in the energy sector? Is renewable energy going to act as a mainstream energy source any time soon?
DD: In India, coal is likely to remain the mainstay for the foreseeable future. The contributions from renewable sources are envisaged to rise substantially from their current levels, but their proportionate size in the portfolio is likely to remain low for now. However, the potential does exist, as several studies indicate that a large portion of our energy needs can be met through renewable sources.Currently,there are hurdles with respect to their affordability, quality of supply and gird connectivity. Regulation wise we are moving towards greater supplies from renewable sources through mechanisms like Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPOs).
8. With a growing number of start-ups and ventures in the energy market (some of the recent ones include – Kiran Energy Solar Power, ReNew Power Ventures) – Do you think the market is actually ready for more such ventures?
DD: Well, energy sector projects tend to be capital intensive and many have economies of scale. However, in the beginning, they all start small. The Indian market is big, and due to its state-wise divides, we may see a larger number of regional players in India. In the traditional coal based power generation sector, we are witnessing stressed firms and fuel constraints indicating potential consolidation.
9. With the energy sector in India still trying to meet the demand, what are the points that
i. The industry needs to keep in mind
ii. Any student pursuing an MBA should consider if he/she wants to get into the field of energy consulting?
DD: The industry needs to be realistic in expectations – from regulatory and commercial points of views. Pace of reforms in India is unpredictable, and hence bets on them can be unsafe. Also, when the competition gets tough, industry players should not lose sight of the basics and become extremely aggressive. The current financial duress can be traced to several over the top aggressiveness by many market players in the private sector.
New consultants in the sector would have to read a lot of research work and follow the trends minutely since the sector has many nuances. Clients always expect the consultants to know more than they do themselves.
10. As an energy consultant, which are the 3 exciting growth opportunities/emerging trends in this sector in the next 5 years?
DD: I believe that performance improvement is going to be critical in energy sector – especially through technology intervention. Business process management and enterprise resource optimization are likely to be big opportunities for consulting in India. Project management is another, where clients would need assistance in implementation of large capital projects for improved cost structure, schedule, and scope control. India has had relatively modest success in project implementation as the work requires specialists and consultants to engage with clients and help them in implementation. Significant opportunities existin financing and also in the renewables sector as it develops.
posted by Dipesh Dipu @ 10:12 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home