Vivek Shil Ahuja has been serving one of the country’s oldest and most respected distribution houses for automobile spare parts, Jullundur Motor Agency (Delhi) Ltd., more popularly known as JMA, for 34 years and counting. A post graduate in public administration from Punjab University, post graduate in Industrial Relations & Personnel Management, Diploma in Office Management and a First-class Certificate Course in German language from Punjab university, Ahuja is currently General Manager of JMA, a role and an organization he cherishes and values from the bottom of his heart.
Ahuja had held government jobs on three different occasions before joining the JMA Group in Delhi in 1988, initially taking up roles in the company’s Delhi, Kanpur and Varanasi branches before heading to Ludhiana as Regional Manager to oversee the company’s operations in Punjab, J&K, Chandigarh and Haryana before shifting to Chennai in 1997. Ahuja has over 24 years of experience working and living in the South as General Manager of JMA. Despite his management calling him back to their head office in Gurgaon with a role as All-India Marketing Head in 2016, Ahuja returned to Chennai within 15 months, back to his role as GM, drawn by his love, affection and bonding with the South – the people, tradition and unique culture of the region.
Ask him about his special connection with South India, Ahuja says, “I came to South India without knowing much about the culture and languages of the South. But today, we love the South Indian culture and working style and do not want to go back to my hometown in the North because even my family and children love and cherish Chennai life.”
When asked about serving the same company for over three decades, he shares, “I have stayed with the JMA Group for 34 years due to one main reason – noble people who run the company and excellent management which is system- and policy-oriented. Mr. Virat Sondhi, presently Chairman Emeritus of the JMA Group, is my professional guru and believes in working as per the country’s laws and in a very ethical manner. I have admired this a lot right from the beginning which is why I have remained loyal to JMA ever since starting my career with them.”
Ahuja continues, “I am lucky to work with the third, fourth and now fifth generation of the company as Mr. Varoon Malik, CEO, Mrs. Aditi Arora Malik, President and Ms. Aashna Arora, President (F&A), are running JMA very successfully and improving the working pace by adopting new technology like ERP system. I proudly cherish being part of many new methodologies implemented across our branches in various states.”
On the Move
Ahuja has travelled extensively across all parts of South India to establish the JMA Group. He recounts his experiences during his early days as GM, “During my first 10 years as GM in South, I used to travel overnight by train and work during the day in various markets of South India. We had put in a lot of effort to establish JMA branches and presence in the region and we are happy that the hard work has paid off quite well.”
Ahuja has also travelled across the length and breadth of the country to visit JMA’s branches in other regions including ones in Siliguri, Tinsukia, Guwahati, etc. apart from market visits to North, North East and other regions.
And, his travel experience isn’t restricted to the country’s borders. He has also travelled to other parts of the world to attend various business conferences in Asia and Europe, including a visit to the facilities of leading global clutch maker Luk in Germany.
The aftermarket veteran has trained over 100 team members across different positions and was instrumental in opening a training centre in Chennai to ensure the right manpower is trained to work in JMA’s branches across the South region. JMA currently has 78 branches across India, 16 of which are in the South zone, while it also runs a petrol station at Amritsar.
Close Connections
JMA has built an excellent reputation as a trusted and reliable parts distribution partner for a number of leading auto component brands in the country. The company’s presence in the South has been built over the years by Ahuja through close cooperation with leading players including companies of the TVS Group, Rane Group, Amalgamations Group and Anand Group. Ahuja remains closely associated with the Rane Group in his role as Advisor-Marketing for JMA Rane Marketing Limited, a company that has been taken over from Rane Group by JMA. Ahuja has maintained excellent and cordial relationship not just with his company’s principal partners in the South but also with co-distributors like IMPAL, Sundaram Motors, Madras Auto Service, TVS Iyengar & Sons, JAI Group, Speed-A-Way, George Oakes, Poomkudy Agencies and even Kerala’s Benz Automobiles and now, Focus Group. Ask him his motto for success and he replies, “Give respect and take respect from all is my way.”