QSR Brands appointed Nehchal to its Board of Directors in March 2020. Thereafter, he was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director in April 2020. The Board chose him for his leadership brilliance, strategic competencies for organizational transformation, and consistent performance in previous roles. His appointment has been a pivotal step for the company, as he has extensive experience building high performing teams, leading company growth, and improving product value.
The visionary leader stood up to the expectations of the Board by delivering outstanding financial performance. He continues to take QSR Brands and its subsidiary businesses to new heights with his experience, determination, and zeal. He has shown extraordinary courage during the global health crisis posed by COVID-19.
Since his appointment, the company has embarked on a transformation journey while growing shareholder value. Keeping in mind QSR Brands’ values and vision, he continues to build upon them to ensure that the company remains competitive in the market.
AN IMPRESSIVE CAREER GRAPH
Nehchal is a qualified lawyer. He pursued Bachelor of Law (LLB) from King’s College in London. Throughout his career, the well versed leader has held leadership roles at leading investment banks.
Prior to joining QSR Brands, he worked as a Corporate Advisor to Johor Corporation, a state-owned investment company established by the government of Johor State (Malaysia). Between 2010-2016, he served as MD of Morgan Stanley’s Singapore office. Before joining it, he worked for Deutsche Bank as the MD, overseeing investment banking operations in Malaysia and Indonesia.
ASIAN DEAL MAKER
An industry veteran with significant experience in Investment Banking, Nehchal has orchestrated some of the largest IPOs in Asia, including Petronas Chemicals’ USD 4.8 billion IPO and Felda Global Ventures’ USD 3.3 billion IPO (each as Global Coordinator)., Nehchal originated several capital market mandates, including Khazanah Nasional, Axiata, Sime Darby, and other notable companies within Southeast Asia. He has also advised numerous multi-billion dollar corporate clients across the Southeast Asian region regarding transactions of mergers, acquisitions, and capital markets. These remarkable achievements make him uniquely qualified to drive any business forward.
A TRUE VISIONARY
Nehchal is a proactive leader brimming with relentless energy. His passion about his vision is a testament to how much he loves his work and the people in the organization. Under his stellar leadership, QSR Brands have been witnessing remarkable growth year on year. With his relentless efforts and strategic planning, he is helping the brand further strengthen its position in the market as the leading food chain brand loved and trusted by everyone in the region.
Nehchal’s new vision for the company is to provide future-proof dining experiences using technology and data and become ASEAN’s leading food technology company. In the coming years, he aims to mold QSR Brand’s Mission to proactively prioritize product innovation and providing high quality food to new segments of consumers. His strategic approach during the COVID-19 pandemic has already helped the brand transform into a technology-based omnichannel food service company. When thousands of thriving businesses struggled to stay afloat due to the coronavirus pandemic, Nehchal, instead of giving up, rolled up his sleeves and implemented an overnight transformation to upgrade the business model. Firstly, he placed a high priority on keeping people safe and providing food that is hygienic and safe for consumption.
Secondly, he initiated the transformation of the brands business models into e-commerce and digital to enable “channel switching” – to continue sales through online delivery when Dine-in was closed. He ensured customers would seamlessly place orders and receive them smoothly via brand’s own website, apps and 3rd party aggregators like FoodPanda, Grab food and others despite the ongoing pandemic and the restricted movement control and lockdowns. All these initiatives were done following the government set guidelines and the abiding by the company’s stringent SOPs. As a result, business growth and profitability increased significantly during such a highly challenging period. It was an instant transformational change to shift from a traditional business strategy to a digitally-driven dynamic and agile business model, which helped QSR Brands and its subsidiaries to thrive during the pandemic period. As a result, digital sales for KFC and PH increased 600% and 300%, respectively. Through radical changes, Nehchal took every possible measure to transform QSR Brands and its subsidiaries into a data-driven, digital-driven group. He also ensured that all QSR Brands employees received training on the new COVID-19 prevention practices.
LEADING BY HEART
At QSR Brands, pregnant women who are at their 28th week of pregnancy can work from home. This scheme launched in 2020 is applicable to women working at KFC and Pizza Hut Stores as well. Nehchal is a compassionate individual who believes in leading from the heart. People and their wellbeing have always been a top priority for him. Consequently, the benevolent leader has implemented numerous welfare initiatives for their benefit. For instance, QSR Brands launched a private vaccination assistance campaign under his direction in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, PIKAS (Program Imunisasi Industri COVID19 Kerjasama Awam-Swasta), and KPJ Hospitals. He has steered QSR Brands towards making meaningful CSR programs an integral part of the firm’s commitment to giving back to the society. It has launched several CSR initiatives under his guidance.
