We at LANXESS - Malathi Sriram, Accounting

Malathi Sriram, 34, is responsible for Accounting and Indirect Taxes at the Group Function Accounting at LANXESS, India. She is married with two children. She has a degree in economics and has done an additional qualification in Cost & Works Accounting (popularly known as AICWA in India). She worked for two companies prior to LANXESS, gaining a total of ten years experience in the pharmaceutical industry.

"I like the cross functional interaction, complex problems and the interaction with the business units and the group functions at various levels. This gives me an insight into the chemical industry and also the opportunity to understand the various business models. Being with LANXESS for three years has sharpened my leadership skills, team building capabilities and interpersonal skills, coupled with a widened portfolio. I got this job through a business consultant. At that time, LANXESS was just a month old and I thought –what better opportunity could there be to take part in building up an organization from its inception?

I must admit, the decision was the right one. Today I see myself as well prepared to face bigger challenges and still bigger responsibilities.

Being one of the four process owners of Axapta at the apex of implementation two years ago was an especially memorable experience for me. It was a very unique challenge with the aim to bring about uniformity in the functioning of various business units. At the same time, we wanted to capture as much information as possible in the system to make data available to the relevant people in the organization. The outcome was worth the long hours put in by all the colleagues from Reporting & Controlling, Information Technology, and Logistics & Supply Chain.

Painting is a passion of mine, as this gives me a chance to be very creative. Spending quality time with my children helps me to unwind and gives me immense satisfaction. I also want to increase my spirituality to maintain a perfect balance between work and personal life. Furthermore, I try to instill values, tradition and culture into my children so as to raise them to be good human beings."