Two months earlier…
“I still cannot believe we let that contract slip away and to The Saxena Group? They are one-fourth the size of our corporation,” Abhimanyu growled, unable to get past the bitterness of losing a contract—a big one.
“Abhimanyu, The Saxena Group had—” Neil, his best friend and one of the trusted advisors of Birla Corporation, started to say but was interrupted.
“Excuses, and excuses. Unacceptable, Neil,” Abhimanyu snapped.
“Abhimanyu, be nice to your best friend,” Aarohi issued a warning from the rear passenger seat.
He looked at Neil as they drove back home from the airport. “This is such a let down.
“Abhimanyu Harsh Birla, I don’t appreciate you taking that tone with my husband,” his sister chimed in again, and at that point, Abhimanyu knew not to dwell on it, not when his sister sounded pissed.
Abhimanyu had traveled from Singapore, where he had been living for the past eight years, expanding his family business beyond their India operations. They were leaders in manufacturing and construction in Asia, and just when the
company thought they had bagged their first North American contract, it went sideways.
“When are we meeting Mr. Pranav?” Abhimanyu asked after a long period of silence.
“Guys, can you two not discuss business while I’m in the car,” Aarohi interjected.
Neil gave his friend a sideways glance. “Sure, sweetheart.”
Abhimanyu turned to look at his sister from the front passenger seat. “Aarohi, you have no idea how big of a contract this is, and I just can’t let this go.”
His sister rolled her eyes. “If we didn’t get the contract, it is what it is. We have to work on a better one next time.”
He shook his head. “No. We should have done a better job on this one.”
Neil let out a sigh. “I don’t know what else we can do now, Abhimanyu. Let it go.”
“No, I can’t.”
“Boys.” The stern voice of his sister was more than enough, and Abhimanyu fell silent, his mind working on other options.
Later that evening, Abhimanyu sat across from his father and Neil in the backyard of his parents’ house.
“You have been awfully silent since you arrived. What are you thinking about, Abhimanyu?” his father asked.
“Dad, Neil… our only option to get that contract is by acquiring The Saxena Group. If we can’t beat them, join them, and in this case, we make them a part of the Birla Corporation.”
“What?” There was no hiding Neil’s shock. “Elaborate.” Abhimanyu’s father was a man of few words.
“We make an offer to The Saxena Group that they cannot refuse.” Abhimanyu kept his fingers steepled.
“Is that profitable?” Neil scrunched his nose.
“Neil, if you get me the financials, then I will tell how much we will be profitable by, but this is the path forward. If we don’t acquire The Saxena Group now, we will regret it later when they grow to half our size with this contract and all future contracts they get from the American- based company.” Abhimanyu stood up like he was finished with the conversation.
Abhimanyu’s father shook his head. “Saxena Pranav will not sell his company. I know him too well.”
“Let me work on the proposal.” Abhimanyu turned to look at his best friend and his father’s advisor. “Neil, how soon can we meet with the chairman of The Saxena Group?”
