Verbatim: Quotable Quotes

“We are completely rethinking how we approach the business. We have one foot in today, and one foot in tomorrow. It is all about understanding what the world will look like five … 10 … 15 years out”
— Mark Fields, president and chief executive officer, following announcement by Ford Motor Co of plans to bring 13 electric vehicles to market within the next four years, potentially making it the largest electric-vehicle manufacturer in the world

“We cannot be seen as a paper tiger. We are changing our attitude towards compliance, but this is work in progress”
— Raghuram Rajan, governor, RBI, stressing that as the most respected regulator in the country, the central bank should take the lead in ferreting out wrong-doing and punishing the wrong-doer

“I personally believe we can actually make money on devices, and I think we’re close”
— John Chen, CEO, BlackBerry, on why the company has no plans to get out of the smartphone market, despite job cuts and pressure from analysts and investors

“Young people are the future of the country, and new startups embody the creativity and innovation of young people ... If a startup doesn’t excite me, then I really don’t need to make an investment in that company”
— Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Trusts, at a conference

“The diesel passenger car could sooner or later disappear from these markets”
— Elmar Degenhart, chief executive of automotive supplier Continental, expressing the fear that Volkswagen’s emissions test-cheating scandal could kill nascent markets for diesel cars in North America, Japan and China, in an interview

“The territories of industries are collapsing. We have to compete in a new way that we’ve never experienced in the past”
— Kwon Oh-Hyun, co-chief executive, Samsung Electronics, warning of a tough environment in 2016 amid weak global economic growth and increased competition in the company’s key business units, in the company’s New Year address

(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 26-01-2016)