Draft:Verghese Jacob

Introduction

Jacob Verghese is a leading figure in the country's NGO movement. He has built the Byrraju Foundation, a leading NGO operating in Andhra Pradesh, from scratch. He has mentored many other NGOs and NGO leaders and made a tremendous impact on the country's social sector. Before joining the social sector, Verghese held senior-level management positions in the Godrej group. He is an ardent lover of tennis and bridge, having played both sports at the national level.

Career Highlights

Verghese’s career can be divided into three broad phases.

The first phase was Academics. Verghese qualified as an engineer but quickly transitioned from Engineering to an MBA. He wanted a broader education than more specialized engineering.

The second phase was Corporate. After beginning his corporate career, Verghese realized that specialization and attention to detail were needed to get the job done. He worked hard and learned on the job every day. It was tremendous learning as he handled 12 diverse assignments over 20 years. Verghese moved across sales, marketing, manufacturing, and joint ventures.

The third phase involved the social sector. His shift to the social sector in the early 2000s was primarily for health reasons. Time was running out, so why not do something meaningful that would benefit society?

Association with Social Sector

Verghese had been looking for an opportunity to work in the social sector. His original plan was to retire and return to his home state of Kerala for social work. However, due to his health challenges, he had to start early. He quit the corporate sector and joined the Byrraju Foundation in the early 2000s. The Foundation was dedicated to rural development in general and poverty affiliation in particular in the villages of Andhra Pradesh. Verghese was impressed by the vision of the promoters.

About Byrraju Foundation

Byrraju Foundation was established in July 2001 in memory of the Late Sri Byrraju Satyanarayana Raju, a generous philanthropist who believed in the development of villages by enhancing the quality of life in rural areas. His philanthropy consisted of numerous direct charitable donations to thousands of needy people, which helped transform their lives.

The Vision was to transform thousands of villages in a structured, professional manner. In a record time of a few months, the first village centers were set up, and the Byrraju Foundation kick-started its services in 50 villages. The foundation rapidly expanded its operations to cover 200 villages, run 40 diverse programs, touch all aspects of rural life, and impact over 2 million people. Thanks to its impressive track record, today, the foundation is a household name in Andhra Pradesh.

In recent years, the foundation has aggressively embraced digital technology. The key themes in the foundation’s digital transformation are digital governance, integrated and customized solutions for stakeholders, leveraging networks for optimal resource utilization, quantitative and real-time insights for improved decision-making, empowering users with precise and scalable solutions, cultural and context-driven messaging, and gamification. Over the years, the foundation has pioneered telemedicine, rural BPOs, and the 108 and 104 services. It was the first NGO to adopt Six Sigma.

Alleviating Poverty

Poverty can be eradicated with awareness and by pooling resources. There is no shortage of funds today. However, the funds do not reach the targeted beneficiaries due to corruption, inefficiency, and lack of accountability. The government alone cannot do the job. The NGOs have a big role to play. The Byrraju Foundation is a good example.

Around the time Verghese joined the social sector, 45% of the Indian population lived below the poverty line. Sixty-five crores lived on less than $1 per day. Prosperity in the urban areas was not filtered down to the rural areas. Villagers were migrating to the cities, which led to a poor quality of life and starvation in the villages.

For the Byrraju Foundation, poverty alleviation became the primary focus. The criterion for adopting a village was that at least 60% of the population had to be below the poverty line. In the last 25 years, poverty has mostly been eradicated in the foundation’s adopted villages.

However, Verghese believes the fight against poverty has just begun. 20% of the world’s poor people live in India. 23 crore Indians earn less than $2 per day.

Going Beyond Poverty Alleviation

In the villages adopted by the Byrraju Foundation, the priorities have shifted from the struggle for survival and living on the edge to a new era of aspiration and opportunity. After meeting all its basic needs, rural India has a large appetite for meeting many more of its aspirational needs. Villagers are no longer looking for charity. Instead, they value their dignity more and want to be empowered. Therefore, the Byrraju Foundation rediscovered itself and re-engineered its model to meet contemporary and rapidly evolving rural needs. Digital technology is an integral part of this game plan. The foundation has embarked on a major digital transformation program.

Personal Philosophy

From his early 40s, Verghese has faced major health challenges. But that has not deterred him in any way. It has made him more determined to value every day of his life. He believed in giving his best every day. His philosophy is: When time is short, you want to achieve more and more things. You want to give it the best shot.

Verghese feels that there is no point in being negative and waiting for death. We should remain positive, operate from only one paradigm—gratitude, be happy with everything that comes our way, and see the challenges we face as opportunities and gifts.

Verghese believes that self-pity is futile. Death is inevitable, so we must appreciate every day of our lives.

Another of Verghese’s core principles is that we should not worry about what is outside our control. What we can control is our positive attitude. We should feel happy that we have good doctors who can take good care of us and well-wishers and caring family members who want us to be healthy.

What we can learn from the poor

From his firsthand experience, Verghese has found that poor people have amazing happiness. They have limited resources but are prepared to share them with others. Their mindset is simple, and their generosity is amazing. On the other hand, the privileged people living in the urban areas have gotten carried away by the rat race. They are unhappy, disappointed, and self-centered.

What it takes to work in the social sector

People who thrive in the social sector must have a larger purpose in life. They must serve the underprivileged, be willing to travel to the most deprived places, and be committed to making things happen for the poor.

Many of those working in the social sector today have given up lucrative jobs in the corporate sector. These are the people who will change the world. As Verghese mentions, people working in the corporate sector may be climbing up the ladder fast. But that could very well be the wrong ladder to climb. In the social sector, climbing ladders is not the goal. It is rubbing shoulders with people on the ground and making them smile.

Grooming Leaders in the Social Sector

Most people in the social sector have not been exposed to formal coaching and training. They have a positive attitude and high levels of empathy. They are also self-motivated, so it is easy to train them. Verghese strongly feels that corporate training professionals should take time off, volunteer their services, and train people working in the social sector and the beneficiaries. This will also give the volunteers a chance to learn and become better human beings at the end of the volunteering stint.