IIPM

This one isn’t for Adrenaline Addicts. This is seriously social.

2012-02-16T16:49:00.001+05:30

In a country where even the most basic of awareness on health-related matters is extremely low, campaigns like saathi bachpan ke are important

I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life ~ Abraham Lincoln

It is easy to understand why TV viewers don’t usually rate an ad that promotes any social cause under the Sun a “5-on-5”. Non-exciting frames, pre-imagined set locations, conclusions which are no different that what can be forecasted by a toddler et al, suck the excitement out of every TVC that comes with a message to make society cleaner and healthier. True. But it is the bundle of emotions that make these ads worth the efforts. And many-a-time, winners. The effort this time comes from the national alliance christened ‘Saathi Bachpan Ke’ (‘Friends of Childhood’ in Hindi; the outfit shares its name with the title of the ad-campaign and was formally launched on March 22, 2010 – World Water Day – by Timothy J. Roemer, the US Ambassador to India), established by the US AID/India-funded Market-Based Partnerships for Health (MBPH) Project, that has diverse partners from both the public and private spheres (including NGOs, research and media agencies and other public health organisations) working to help improve child health by reducing incidences of diarrhoeal diseases in children under five by promoting simple and effective practices of washing hands with soap, consumption of clean drinking water and oral rehydration salts (ORS) therapy. Says Ajay Sharma, Director, McCann Momentum (one of the agencies which is helping to promote the campaign in India) to 4Ps B&M, “Saathi Bachpan Ke is a diarrhoea management programme, focused on children below the age of five and caregivers.”

The importance of the social TVC to the Indian masses cannot be denied. According to the ‘Safe Water, Better Health’ report by WHO (2008), India is the country where maximum count of deaths by diarrhoeal diseases is recorded (close to 400,000 deaths per year – 26.67% of the global count – of which 90% occur amongst those below the age of five). Surprisingly, a majority of these deaths are easily preventable through proper precaution and cure, one of which (ORS therapy) is promoted by the TVC.

The creative idea used in the making of the ad is based on the simple concept of a mother never giving up when it comes to taking care of her child. The TVC – created by Thompson Social-JWT – is indirectly also a tribute to the untiring spirit of a mother. The ad conveys a message that saving a child’s life through the ORS therapy demands just the patience that mothers display when they watch their child grow up – from teaching them to walk and talk, to waking up at midnight to attend to them and running behind them et al. “Thoda thoda ORS, baar baar” is the message of this ad. The background music – which is a typical melodious lullaby – runs throughout the 40 second-long duration of the TVC, strengthening the emotional appeal of the ad. “The film is based on the insight that caregivers are not persistent in giving ORS repeatedly to a child suffering from diarrhoea since the child often refuses to take the solution. It urges the mother to be as consistent in ORS usage,” explains Kavita Ayyagari, Programme Director of the Saathi Bachpan Ke alliance.

Shot at Madh Island, Mumbai and directed by Pushpendra Misra of JWT, the TVC was released on November 5, 2011. Television is indeed one of the best mediums to communicate with population clusters that are branded either rural or the uneducated class. For India, where education and awareness on health-related issues is a big concern, such efforts must be applauded. Our verdict: in this world of profit-making, such TVCs with relevant social messages are as unique as they are perhaps non-exciting. They appear easy-to-make, but are far more difficult than going on a vacation.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS
Planman Technologies
IIPM Contact Info
IIPM History
IIPM Think Tank
IIPM Infrastructure
IIPM Info
IIPM: Selection Process
IIPM: Research and Publications
IIPM MBA Institute India

TAKE A STAND: SOMETIMES LEADERS NEED TO SAY ‘NO’

2012-01-25T15:53:00.001+05:30

Corporations, across the globe, must serve the communities in which they do business, as well as their customers and shareholders.

4Ps Business & Marketing, in a strategic alliance with the new york times service, presents a column by howard Schultz, Chairman, President and CEO of Starbucks corporation

There are times when business leaders are so bound by their responsibilities to shareholders that we can forget we have free will.

I am not implying that we should shirk the obligations we have to deliver a return on investment to the people and institutions helping our companies to grow. What I mean is that we as leaders should not become so beholden to Wall Street and short-term performance goals that we stop doing what we believe to be right – inside and outside our organisations.

I recognise this trap because Starbucks and I got caught in it.

Several years ago, while I was serving as the company’s chairman, Starbucks went through a dangerous period of hyperexpansion. This behaviour was fed by a need to meet Wall Street’s high-growth expectations, which analysts had adopted, in part, because our company had fueled them. Starbucks had a rich history of annual revenue and profit increases of 20%, which became tougher to maintain as the company got bigger and the economy began to slide.

Every day, with every decision, my colleagues and I felt more pressure to meet that bar, fearing the stock would tank if we did not. I got so caught up in our monthly sales performance that I often forgot I had the ability – and sometimes an obligation – to say “no.”

“No” to opening new stores rapidly instead of thoughtfully. “No” to selling products in our stores that had nothing to do with coffee, such as board games. In short, we were chasing a pace of growth with quick fixes rather than with more sustainable activities.

One of the reasons I agreed to return as Starbucks’ CEO in 2008, after eight years as chairman, was to reverse this trend. After retaking the reins on day-to-day operations, I began the painful but necessary process of weaning the company from the yoke of short-term expectations.
We began to say “no” to growth for growth’s sake and “yes” to more investments that might not deliver an immediate ROI but would strengthen the company in the long term. We said “yes” to risky but potentially game-changing research and development projects, to closing underperforming stores, to investing in our information-technology infrastructure and in creative marketing campaigns. Many of these decisions involved short-term costs that ultimately paid off.

Perhaps the biggest “yes” was insisting we keep health-care coverage for Starbucks’ part-time workers, despite pressure from Wall Street to drop it. The potential savings would have dramatically boosted our bottomline. But eliminating health coverage for some of our workers who had come to value it would have been unethical, in my eyes, and would have forever drained the reservoir of trust we had established with tens of thousands of people.

Saying “yes” to these types of long-term investments were, in large part, how we reversed the company’s downward spiral.

More recently, I have said “yes” to something else that, while providing no measurable impact on shareholder value, should deliver an equally important return.

In August I wrote a memo to Starbucks partners (our term for employees) to air my personal frustrations with the failure of America’s politicians to work together to effectively address the country’s complex economic problems, including high unemployment. I followed that with open letters to other CEOs and to concerned American citizens, asking them to join me in withholding campaign contributions to any political party until our elected leaders could do what they were put in office to do: cooperate and compromise.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS
Planman Technologies

INTERNET GROWTH: 2011

2011-12-23T17:15:00.003+05:30

Globally, internet audiences are rapidly proliferating – 87% of the internet population now belongs to regions excluding the united state. Many Emerging Regions are likely to bypass the old modes – skipping dial-up and moving straight to broadband. Moreover, E-commerce growth is now being driven primarily by existing online shoppers, a trend which was at a nascent stage few years back

Asia taking over?

According to the recent report released by comScore, Asia Pacific with 41.2% now represents the region with the largest internet population in the world. From 2000 to 2011, world internet usage has grown by a mind boggling 480%.As a measure of engagement, comScore also analyzed that internet users outside the US account for 13% of the world’s online population in 2011 as compare to 66% in 1996. Many emerging regions, with social networking and mobile internet, are expected to gain momentum over the next few years. That has strong implications for marketers fancying their online edge.

Coupons on the money
A few specific categories have secured top slots in terms of driving web growth. As far as web growth in US is concerned, those are the coupons & retail-movies categories that have driven the growth. Humour was ranked the top gaining category last year with a growth of 88% in Unique Visitors (UVs), but has now dropped to the least growing category with only 8% growth (maybe they need them only in economic downturns!). With already a strong visitor base, unique visitors to the gaming information category grew by 13% since July 2010 and kids sites grew by 16%.

Socially & musically sold

While conversational media sites such as Tumblr & LinkedIn with 223% & 52% yoy growth in UVs respectively are known to be popular among the younger generations, properties such as Vevo & entertainment sites other than social media are fast catching up too. Vevo had 18.6 million more visitors in July 2011 than in July 2010. Even advertisers & marketers are looking for opportunities to advertise on social networking sites as traffic on these sites is comparatively very high. However, the music & entertainment category is fast gaining favour among the youth who are getting attracted to sites like Vevo and Pandora.

India on a searching spree

The global search market continues to grow at an extraordinary pace, with both highly developed and emerging markets contributing to strong growth worldwide. With the recent facts & figures revealed by comScore, it can be seen that 27.4 billion searches were performed in July 2011, which marked an 8% growth rate over the July 2010. India is ranked 8th in the global list of number of searches conducted but it has grown at a rate of 19%, which is the fastest after Turkey & Brazil when we compare the other countries in the top 10 list.

Nation Branding: What Works?

2011-12-14T16:15:00.002+05:30

David Aaker, author of the all-time best selling branding textbook – Managing Brand Equity, attempts to identify the most effective nation branding tools

During August, I spoke at the inaugural conference on nation branding, a project the President of Korea initiated in 2009 to create a nation branding programme for Korea. In preparing my talk, I attempted to identify the most effective nation branding tools. I came down to four.

The first is the hosting of global events such as the Olympics, the World Cup, the British Open, The Australian Open, or the G20. Such events get enormous visibility through media coverage, they provide all sorts of positive associations, and they generate visits from influential people and others who will talk about their experiences. The second are events created and owned by the country. They can be within a country, such as the annual Korean Knowledge Forum that attracts luminaries and thought leaders around the world, or the Singapore Film Festival. These events also provide visibility, association involvement and visitors. The events can also be hosted outside the country, such as Korean Day in New York with a K-Pop contest where the winner received round-trip tickets to Korea. Such events provide a culture story, a country experience for those who have not visited, and a chance to allow people to relive a prior trip.

The third is the identification and leverage of country symbols. Symbols can take many forms, such as the Guggenheim at Bilbao, the Edinburgh Castle, a visual of trekking in Nepal, Queen Noor of Jordan, or prominent athletes such as Rafael Nadel of Spain. Such symbols make vivid some aspects, perhaps the central aspect, of the country. A symbol, unlike a verbal description, is easy to remember especially over many exposures.

The fourth is to encourage and leverage corporate brands. Think of the impact Singapore Airlines has on Singapore, or Mercedes has on Germany. These corporate brands control many of the salient country image factors such as cultural values or perceived innovativeness. Further, the sheer budget makes a difference. Samsung plus Hyundai/Kia will spend well over $1.5 billion in media advertising in just the US, a budget that will dwarf the promotion budget of any nation. The impact of Samsung product leadership in the 90s and Hyundai’s ability to get 5% of the US car market with quality and upscale cars has had an enormous impact on the Korean brand.

There are a host of other approaches including advertising (which works mainly to attract tourists) and social media. But, in my view, these four, properly managed, generate the most impact.

In my talk directed at the Council for Nation Branding established by the President of Korea I discussed the importance of creating a strategy that would include objectives, target marketing and brand vision. With a strategy in place, I identified four effective nation branding tools: hosting a global event such as the World Cup, creating events such as the Korean Knowledge Forum, identifying symbols such as the Guggenheim at Bilbao, and supporting the work of corporate brands such as Samsung and Hyundai. My theme was that, in my view, efforts of the council to build the Korean brand should focus on opportunism, support and leverage. I suggested the council should not sponsor or direct brand building programmes, especially local ones, nor expect an ongoing budget to create communication programmes.

When Jack came out of The Box!

2011-09-26T17:13:00.002+05:30

What Jargon would you use to Describe the form of Advertising Skillfully integrated into your Natural Surroundings such that it Catches your Attention at places you least expect it? 4Ps B&M adds yet Another term to your Marketing Dictionary. Call it Ambient Advertising

A vagabond once shared an anecdotal experience about one of the several magnificent churches in London. He would describe the finery of the church and then mention about the inevitable cracks in the walls, both inside as well as outside the church. Now, cracks in walls are not astounding to an extent that they need a mention, though they are definitely a pain for the maintenance people. In fact, you too might have observed such cracks in walls, which are usually T-shaped, almost crossing each other, resembling a cross at times. But there was something extraordinary about the cracks in the walls of this particular church in London.

This church had almost the same kind of cracks, but instead of filling them up the church authorities had framed those cracks and written right beneath them: “God exists in everything!” Certainly, God is the last person who would require any marketing strategy, but what a way to use your surroundings to spread across a divine message that God is omnipresent. You might take this as devotion, but it is ineluctably a classic example of an effective yet simple advertising strategy called Ambient Advertising.

Simply put, Ambient Advertising is advertising integrated into our surroundings to catch our attention when and where we least expect it. “It’s about looking at everything in your surrounding as having the potential of becoming a medium of advertising,” Zenobia Pithawalla, Executive Creative Director, O&M India tells 4Ps B&M. For instance, when you finish eating a fairly luscious choco-bar, you expect nothing inside except mushy vanilla and choco crust. But when you are finished eating it all, you end up with a stick, which is not a usual stick that you would just throw away without giving it a second look. Yes, you will throw it away eventually, but not before you spot a toothbrush made out of that stick, and a small yet conspicuous ‘Colgate’ written at the top of the stick, and a ‘Don’t Forget’ message following it (the creative agency for this project was Y&R, Bangkok, Thailand). That’s precisely what Ambient Advertising is! Positioning the brand in a surrounding where the consumer least expects it, but having found it believes that it is the best place to have encountered the brand’s existence.

For starters, Ambient Advertising found its first user in 1996, when a UK based ad agency, Concord Advertising, at the wish of a client, who wanted a change from the traditional mediums, started placing ads at unusual places such as on floors, on fuel dispensers at petrol pumps, toilet doors, et al. Clearly these places were not traditional places to advertise for a product. But the idea worked, and in 1999, British Media recognised this form of advertising as ‘Ambient Advertising’.

Ambient Advertising encapsulates two key factors, one being unusual locations and the second being the quintessential ‘wow’ factor, something that catches you unaware. For instance, when JWT London got a little artsy to emulate a KitKat chocolate bar on a bench in a park (to make it look like a chocolate bar cum bench) with ‘Have a break have a KitKat’ inscribed on the bench; it made use of the both, an unusual location (a bench in a park) and had the wow factor, because the moment you sit on the bench to relax the tagline seems to work on your senses and since you are having a break in the first place, you can’t help but have a KitKat bar!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS

Atoms in Ad-Orbits?

2011-09-06T17:37:00.003+05:30

For years, Sandipan & Manoj have worked together to create ads that have moved minds. And they want to move around till the road ends...

Sandipan Bhattacharya and Manoj Deb might have kept their grungy look on hold for now (having chopped their long tresses off and having shed many pounds), but the two are still considered amongst the freshest of young creative rock stars in the Indian ad-fraternity. They hail from the BBDO India brigade and over the past many years, have proven that they’re worth their weight in gold, metaphorically speaking, given their real-world dieting plans. In terms of experience, having worked together as a duo in the world of ad-making for eleven years, the pair is the most seasoned amongst those featured in this cover package.

Both Bhattacharya and Deb, who are today the Executive Creative Directors of BBDO India, were brought on-board during the very early days of BBDO’s India voyage. That was two years back. In fact, during that time, Josy Paul, the current Chairman and National Creative Director of BBDO India, had commented thus, “Both of them have the potential to break the clutter and do something out-of-the-box.” They did so. In the past couple of years, the mind-blowing advertisements that have been rolled-out of BBDO India’s stable – from the 7 Up commercial to the Nimbooz launch campaign – have all been creations of these two brain-boxes. And as if they are out to prove that expenditures in the form of ad-dollars help any brand grow and earn, the ad-campaign during the launch of Nimbooz (the lemon drink from PepsiCo), not only gained heightened interest of the consumers in India, but also forced supply to play the catch-up game with demand in the FMCG market.

But that’s not their only claim to fame. In fact, their credentials make a long envious list. The duo met for the first time when Manoj joined Saatchi & Saatchi in 1999 (where Sandipan was already trying his hands on the creative side of the ad-game). Soon after, their combined efforts started yielding rich results. Initially, they held the creative mandates for Hyundai’s Santro and Accent accounts, but when the agency bagged Maruti Suzuki’s account, they were even handed creative duties for the tall-boy WagonR. In due course of time, they hopped forward from Saatchi & Saatchi to Enterprise Nexus and Grey. There, they worked on clients like Chevrolet, BPCL, Haier, Aviva Life Insurance, OCM Suitings, Suzlon, Wrigley’s Doublemint and Orbit White.

Somewhere along the line, their twain became inseparable. “Our biggest strength is balanced teamwork. Any creative process brings forward many conflicts, but it has to be treated as a healthy debate. And that is when the real value gets multiplied manifold,” says Manoj Deb, adding that this stimulates them to deliver fabulous creatives, ad-after-ad, client-after-client and year-after-year. But that is not to flatly claim that there are no conflicts. “I would say that advertising is not about marching individually. It is a collaborative work. After staying together for so long, we really don’t know what are the negative and positive points about each other. Although respect is key, at the end of the day, the creative process in advertising comes individually. Therefore, it is important that two minds also work uniquely...” Of the two, Sandipan is more inclined towards the creative end of the scale, while Manoj has his hands right in art direction.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Farmers lured with new policy

2011-07-29T17:35:00.002+05:30

With the August 12 deadline to seal a deal closing in, and farmers remaining insistent on higher compensation, Greater Noida Authority (GNIDA) is banking on the state's new land acquisition policy - that offers farmers not only higher rates per square metre but also a handsome annuity - to break the Noida Extension ice.

After inviting Patwari village to talks on Wednesday, GNIDA officials met the village headman on Thursday. The village, which won its case against land acquisition earlier this month, accounts for the second largest piece of acquired land in Noida Extension. According to the Authority, the new policy offers land owners compensation ranging from Rs 960/ sqm to Rs 1,050/ sqm. But its highlights are benefits such as 7% developed land with compensation, or 23% of developed land without any compensation, an annuity of Rs 23,000 per acre for 33 years (increased every July by Rs 800), or a onetime payment of Rs 2.76 lakh. The Authority is hopeful that farmers will understand this economics of land acquisition and development. It has already begun renegotiating with them on their three main demands: increased compensation, rehabilitation benefits and sorting out the long-pending abadi land disputes. While most farmers are currently undecided on the rate of compensation they now want, they are unanimous in seeking rehabilitation benefits, including developed plots, annuity payments, minimum agricultural wages etc. Besides, the farmers are also contemplating demanding a list of other benefits, such as health services, jobs for the unemployed etc.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting

IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Total lunar eclipse on June 15

2011-06-13T12:25:00.002+05:30

Over the next 30 days, there will be three eclipses, two partial solar eclipses and one total lunar eclipse. Of these three, however, only the total lunar eclipse will be visible from India and also from the city.

The first one, a partial solar eclipse will occur on June 2 between 12.55 am and 4.37 am as per the IST. The eclipse, however, will not be visible in India. But the total lunar eclipse, the first this year, will be visible on June 15. During the lunar eclipse, the moon will be completely covered by earth's shadow from 11.53 pm on June 15 to 3.32 am on June 16.

The eclipse will, however, begin at 10.53 pm and end at 4.32 am.

The third eclipse will be another partial solar eclipse on July 1. This too will not be visible from India.
N Raghunandan Kumar of Planetary Society Of India , Hyderabad said that the society plans to conduct a sky observation programme on June 15 on the lunar eclipse day for school children.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting

IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....

IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

MBA: A potion for creativity?

2011-01-22T15:57:00.002+05:30

DESPITE SOME BIGGEST NAMES IN THE AD WORLD COMMENTING THAT CREATIVITY CANNOT BE LEARNT SIMPLY BY GETTING AN MBA DEGREE, THEY DO GRUDGINGLY ACCEPT THAT AN MBA PREPARES PEOPLE TO MANAGE A MULTITUDE OF TASKS IN THE AD INDUSTRY BETTER THAN THEM

A chewing gum can light up a complete village, a soft drink can make you popular with the ladies, a bank can take care of all your financial worries for the future… Advertising is mostly intended to persuade an audience to purchase or take some action upon products or services, which is cuddled around a power idea that strikes the decision chords of the consumers. Cutting the elongated story short, how does one learn how to get the ‘great creative idea’? Cutting it further, can an MBA education help an individual in becoming more adept at creativity – especially with exhaustive subjects on innovation, business process reengineering, branding and consumer marketing being taught?

On the positive side to the debate is the fact that a B-school education teaches the student much more about marketing than can ever be learnt by a pure-experience bred ad industry professional – really, would an ad-industry professional ever truly understand the concepts of Johari Window and perception management? Better is the point that while an MBA graduate is busy in making ads that lead to closing the sale, the ad-industry ‘creative’ professional is simply bent on creating the “world’s most creative ad,” so to speak, sales be damned. But then again, on the huge negative side is the fact that a Zoo Zoo would never have been a Zoo Zoo if an MBA had tried to create the idea. In other words, creativity – critics claim – requires those extra grey cells that are God and parents gifted, through exposure and education while growing up, and not just through an MBA school. So where do MBAs stand on this?

Arvind Wable, Executive Director & CEO-Delhi, Draft FCB-Ulka, also an IIM-A alumni, believes creativity and management are completely cohesive in the ad world and that a good strategy is as important as creativity – “The degree develops marketing skills, makes you understand the strategy behind it and most importantly, makes you well planned. All this give rise to advertising where both skills meet.”

V. Sunil, Executive Creative Director, Wieden+Kennedy, agrees with Wable’s concept that a B-school degree is relevant in the ad world, though in its own place. Sunil (who’s most recent creation is the Indigo Airline ad, which, while being creative, focuses on ensuring that the viewer understands Indigo gets you ‘there’ on time!) says, “A lot of time is invested in planning and deciding what the advertisement should communicate to its target audience. It is the wholesome effort of a team to make a great ad, to bring out the vision of the brand with the creative vision of the script, music and lyrics well planned in advance and then executed. A degree in management helps one execute in a planned way.”

Rahul Nanda, Chief Operating Officer, Webchutney, a leading interactive consultancy in India, disagrees to an extent and feels that a B-School degree is essential when it comes to planning and account management, but not in creativity – “Management surely is important everywhere and it sure makes the processes easier in advertising, but the main onus still remains on the creative guys.”

Advertising companies have evolved today because they have successfully diversified into complete media consulting firms. Says Viraj Kalra, Head, Planman Marcom and an IIPM alumnus, “The money they receive from their overall media businesses are much higher compared to the pure advertising portion of it.” One example being father-daughter duo of Sam and Lara Balsara, who’ve now diversified their Rs.25 billion firm Madison into 20 units across 9 specialized functions in advertising, media, out-of-home, PR, rural, retail, entertainment, mobile and sports, at the same time employing over 800 communication professionals, a significant bunch being MBA graduates. Arvind Sharma, Chairman and CEO, Leo Burnett India, goes one step further and accepts to 4Ps B&M that he even uses MBAs for targetted creativity, “Leo Burnett has been a regular recruiter at the business school campuses for two decades. They say that great campaigns are born out of great briefs.

Great briefs are an outcome of considerable amount of analysis and pre-work – the kind of work MBAs are well trained to do.” Sharma adds that among MBAs, those with a good innate understanding of people and communications are preferred. The debate is surely here to stay and would require some more years of analysis to end. For now, MBAs in the ad world are an inevitability.

Swati Sharma

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting

Not missing the woods for...

2010-07-26T17:08:00.001+05:30

What happens to the sponsorship market when the golfing icon, the world’s first billionaire athlete, decides to take an indefinite break from pro golf in favour of other, more controversial pursuits? Mayhem would be an understatement. Understandably, Tiger Woods has been dumped by Accenture Plc. While some have been supportive, others like Swiss watch maker Tag Heuer plan to spend the next few weeks assessing their relationship with Woods. But the golfer’s fall from grace will, in all probability, hurt the multi billion dollar sponsorship market bad. As Woods continues to get lurid and unrelenting media coverage for his personal demons, the $12 billion a year endorsement industry is aware that their poster boy has more potential to harm than help brands right now. And given the stakes, it seems that the worst sufferer in this entire episode will be the PGA Tour. Not everyone views Woods as a negative asset however. Gillette (a unit of US consumer giant Procter & Gamble) for one does not plan to sever its ties completely with the icon and plans to support Woods’ desire for privacy by limiting his role in marketing programs. Nike (supposed to be Wood’s best known endorsement) goes a step ahead and is standing by Woods; with CEO Phil Knight stating that these indiscretions are but a minor blip. Clearly, not everyone is abandoning Woods, who earns an estimated $100 million a year from endorsements. Sponsors like Electronic Arts Inc, TLC Vision Corp, Upper Deck, Berkshire Hathaway Inc’s NetJet et al plan to stick with Woods. Whoever said golf wasn’t a team sport needs a reality check!

Gyanendra Kashyap

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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While you were sleeping…

2010-04-03T11:59:00.003+05:30

Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

If you are a market leader or a brand with long years of expertise or a trusted name, reassurance advertising that reinforces trust may sometimes work as a great slowdown strategy. We’ve seen a lot of that in recent times. A case in point is ICICI bank, which maintained its leadership position by reinforcing ‘50 years of believing in each other’ – a platform that celebrated its long years of existence, expertise and partnership. Tata Capital, which came in as a new player at the height of slowdown, made the unusual choice driving reassurance at launch when it went with the ‘We’ll only do what’s right for you’ campaign. The importance of driving trust and reassurance in the insecure, volatile climate of a slowdown can’t be over-emphasised. And even far away from the world of commerce, it’s interesting to note that the Congress party has used the reassurance logic when it mentioned the progress made by its government as part of its election strategy.

Then there has been a third category of players who were already faltering on growth or image or relevance, even before the slowdown. The advent of the slowdown gave them the impetus to correct their course. A case in point is Videocon, which came out with its well thought out repositioning strategy that involved a new visual identity and a change in approach to get connected better with today’s consumers. The new positioning line of ‘Experience change’ as well as the ‘Chouw Mouw’ campaign fell in very neatly with the overall attempt to make brand Videocon fresher, younger and more relevant.

So, is re-branding and repositioning every brand’s strategic answer to every slowdown? Looking at the experiences of various marketers, the answer would be that ‘It all depends’. If a man wants to look more modern, then wearing rimless glasses and pink shirts, and parting your hair in a different way is not the only way to go. And the story is the same with brands. Marketing budgets are always tight, and especially during a slowdown, one has to be choosy about how best they can be employed, because every decision takes money away from another. And sometimes there are some high efficacy answers to be found without the need for any drastic repositioning exercise. Thums Up had a record year without any change in its campaign, much less any repositioning. Idea Cellular’s ‘What an idea sirji’ campaign, followed by the ‘Walk when you talk’ campaign not only helped the brand make a turnaround, but also drove saliency and a more youthful image. Similarly, Complan grew despite commanding a price premium in the heart of the slowdown, by its simple choice of driving its irresistible kesar-badam flavour with advertising targeted at kids. And driving its growth message harder by the ‘Twice as fast’ claim.

Once the genuine need for rebranding is established, a slowdown is as good a time as any other to carry it through. Since many advertisers cut back in times of slowdown, consumers tend to pay more attention to the brands that are advertising and what they are saying during a slowdown. The problem comes when brand and agency teams get too trigger-happy and repositioning becomes the easy way out.

At the end of the day, it comes down to good judgment. Marketers who can look objectively at their brands, keep their hand steady and their minds ticking even as the markets slump, will live through the slowdown, and when they wake up the next day, their world will be straight again!

Arvind Sharma is Chairman-Indian Subcontinent, Leo Burnett

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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BALD, BIZARRE, BRILLIANT, BROTHERS!

2009-09-17T13:23:00.001+05:30

IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau

“Inseparable” or “truly connected” as they call themselves, the brothers stuck together in the early years of their career but went their own ways in 2001. Raghu came to Bombay to look for jobs and tried to renew previous professional contacts. “I went to MTV; and they rejected me. Then I tried everywhere else and it didn’t happen. I was up sh%t and creek. In Mumbai, I was living with a guy who was living in a room as a PG and hadn’t paid rent for one and a half years,” Raghu seems repentant, though humorously. Rajiv, on the other hand, stayed in Delhi and tried his hands on many things. He was instrumental in the launch of satellite radio WorldSpace in India and the relaunch of Channel V. He also directed ads during this time. But ‘connected’ as they were (and are), they couldn’t stay away from each other for long and Rajiv joined Raghu in Mumbai in the job hunt. And then came, as Raghu reveals, his two most career defining moments. The first defining moment of his life was replying to an ad by Delhi based BBC World Service Trust in 2002. “I landed from Bombay to Delhi with a couple of friends. Rajiv too came with me and we went to the BBC office to drop my resume… The guard stopped me outside and asked me to leave the biodata there. I still remember there was a hut-like wooden structure for the guard to sit and that was stacked up with resumes... I was not in the first list as they went by the who’s who of television. But they called me in the second list, I went there and I got the job...” And while Raghu was working in BBC, he got a call from MTV to join them for Roadies season one. And that was his second defining moment. The ‘inseparable’ Rajiv couldn’t hold back and he too joined MTV. But he didn’t work on Roadies. Instead handled other things like style shows, music videaos, awards et al.

“And that’s when things started happening for us,” Raghu exclaims excitedly. And even since 2003, when Roadies debuted, each season of the show has got double or more TRPs than the previous season. In fact, Roadies, for information, is the longest running reality show of the country. While Raghu is more focused, Rajiv believes more in versatility. And that’s one sharp difference between the two. Perhaps it was versatility which led Rajiv to quit MTV in 2007 to join another production house, which also he quit within a few months to join Colosceum as its first employee. Today, the production house is known too famously for its shows like Splitsvilla, Jai Shri Krishna, et al.

For a man who has quit the television industry thrice in fourteen years, when quizzed about his too frequent job jumps, Rajiv comments, “I know I will quit television again soon. Maybe I will make a movie... that’s one area I have not tried my hands on.” But aren’t chances of failure higher in the movie industry? “Success has been a tricky mistress, but failure is a true friend. Whenever I have failed, I have shot up with new success. And whenever I become successful, I tend to get bored and try the next available thing... so I think it is OK to fail.” Joined at the hip not only to themselves, but also to their jobs (Raghu’s wife Sugandha Garg, an actress, calls him ‘MTV ka Damaad’ colloquially), the two brothers commit to excellence in creativity. But at the cost of even expletives? Raghu recalls one dinner talk his father had with him, “He said ‘I don’t think you should be that rude with the kids; they are nice.’ I snapped back and asked, ‘Why’, and he said ‘Because when you use abusive language, people talk bad about you, and I don’t like that.’ And I realized that I had never thought about what my parents must be going through when people talk bad about me.”

The Occult’s first rightful entrants: the bald, bizarre, brilliant brothers!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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GM’s India plans…

2009-09-07T11:50:00.000+05:30

Karl Slym, MD, GM India

GM car owners in India would certainly be asking this question with dread – Will GM India be fully insulated from the crisis on American soil?” Karl Slym, MD, GM India, seeks to assure them all, including, of course, those who are planning to purchase a new GM car, “We are committed to ensuring that our customers continue to receive a top-notch sales, service, spare parts and warranty coverage experience. Our dealers will also continue to receive all our carlines, while our suppliers will continue to work with us to supply parts and components for our cars, which we will continue to build at our state-of-the-art Talegaon and Halol facilities...” There is no denying that its India operations are fully insulated from what is happening to its parent company but there is an indirect impact on the company. If we go by the words of the suppliers, the picture is entirely different. “Though GM India is not dependent on its parent company, but it will take a hit on its sales on the grounds of brand equity,” said a vendor to the company on conditions of anonymity. As it is, the company hasn’t been doing well for 5-6 months now. GM India saw a yoy sales fall of as high as 11% in May, 13% in April and 26% in March. They have already been slow to innovate on new models as compared to the competition. Moreover, if customers are gripped by the fear factor in a country like India, even the three year warranty with no maintenance cost and service cost cannot make them line up outside GM showrooms. Clearly, GM’s communications department will have its hands full at the moment.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Jeetey Raho!

2009-08-21T11:36:00.000+05:30

IIPM Best B-school

Brand: ICICI Prudential
Agency: Lowe

Jeetey Raho earned ICICI Prudential enormous brand recall. The hint of humour laced with seriousness worked. Sales grew 68% in FY08 y-o-y, helping the brand cross the seven million policies mark for the first time.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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It’s all for the love of yummy bean burgers...

2009-08-03T12:51:00.000+05:30

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Brand: McDonald’s
Agency: Leo Burnett

They said ‘I’m lovin’ it; India repeated after them!’ Before unleashing this Rs.4 crore mega campaign, McDonald’s extensively trained its people. This was also the burger company’s first integrated global campaign to bring consistency in communication for both customers and employees worldwide. The company raked a 15% jump in its overall sales turnover of 2004; “It gave us a big thumbs up from customers and our employees; people are just lovin’ it,” reiterates Vikram Bakshi, MD, McDonald’s India (north & west)...

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Hey, we really did it!

2009-07-22T12:49:00.000+05:30

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It was April 2007 when LG decided to shift gears and focus on manufacturing GSM based handset instead of CDMA. All thanks to the strategy, the market share of this Korean major is on continuous drop since then – from 11% in 2006-07 to a meager 6.2% in 2007-08 (Voice and Data) – and is further estimated to come down to 4.6% in 2008-09. Now that happens when you don’t read the market well!

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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“India is a strategic market for Panasonic...”

2009-06-22T12:44:00.000+05:30

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Sabiha Kidwai,
GM Marketing, Panasonic India

4Ps B&M: What are your plans for the forthcoming summer?
Panasonic’s clear focus is to bring good technology to India and educate consumers on the best possible products. We will keep on delivering the best products and will keep on promoting throughout the year in India. For the summer, we have launched a range of refrigerators and ACs. Panasonic ACs are different because they have an air purification system and germ killer as dust is a major problem in India.

4Ps B&M: Which are the new product(s) or product categorie(s) which you are planning to launch?
India is a strategic market for Panasonic and we are aggressively looking to expand our footprint in the country, in-line with our efforts towards promoting green technology. Focus categories will be Plasma TVs, LCD TVs, DSC, Aircon, cameras, Refrigerator and colour television with Slim TVs. In addition to CE/HA we will focus on office automation product like projectors, laptops, telephone and also cameras.

4Ps B&M: What changes are you making in your marketing strategies during this summer?
Our marketing strategy will be based on a 360-degree plan of communication. We will have a consistent communication plan for ACs in March, April and May. Also, we will participate in CSR acts...

4Ps B&M: Is there any product category in which you intend to increase your presence?
Eye catching models of our ACs are available with features like advanced air purification system with patrol sensor. The models are based on energy saving techniques and also provide better cooling...

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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The Flip Side...

2009-05-05T17:14:00.000+05:30

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But every success story has its dark side. And the side effects of Chandra’s super hit low cost formula has spawned a human resource problem. Let’s go back a few years. In 2005, Zee TV bounced back with fresh programming giving a serious threat to Star Plus’ supremacy in the category. In fact, Zee actually outshone Star Plus in TRPs in the prime time band for a few weeks. But they couldn’t sustain the lead for long and Star Plus soon reclaimed its position. So what actually happened? The low cost employee strategy backfired! The key people in their creative team and programming, which were working on major shows at that time, moved on because they got better offer (read: fatter pay packages). Vivek Bahl the then Creative Head of Zee TV moved to Star Plus and Ashwini Yardi the then Programming Head of the channel joined Viacom18’s Colors. As the big man himself admits, “Last year when all these fresh news and entertainment channels were launched many of our people were offered and taken at three to four times more salary than they got here.”

And it’s not just money! “The negative of being a family run business is that objective decision making is not always there,” feels Publicis’ Gupta, believing that the group has suffered because of this. Take the example of ICL: Sources confirm that ICL was conceived in 2005 itself, but the bureaucratic procedures delayed its launch by two years. “Imagine if ICL was launched in 2005 it would have divided the international cricket in two factions, taking the entire world by storm,” exclaims a source familiar with the development.

Clearly, like a few other family run businesses, Essel Group lags when it comes to giving freedom (especially financial) to its senior management. This probably is one of the reasons why key senior guys at Zee have not stuck around for long. Chandra himself admits that there have been some such conflicts in the recent past, especially when some in the senior management felt that Zee should spend like others are spending. But Chandra remained adamant. “That’s why there were some exits in senior management last year,” he adds grimly, perhaps hinting towards the exit of Pradeep Guha (the ex-CEO of ZEEL, who was used to the high cost spending style at his previous job in Times Group). Rajendra Sinh, Corporate Director HR, Essel Group, candidly observes, “Non performing assets even at senior level are not accepted. There have been some wrong hirings in past and that’s why the high churn rate at Zee!!”

At a time when high-flying consultants are paid millions of dollars simply to reiterate the important role of human talent in any organisation’s success, this candour toward its people resource may be the biggest chink in Chandra’s shining armour. At a time when the entertainment sector is witnessing unprecedented new-entrants, and when innovative programming is the key to retain eyeballs, Chandra is losing many of his best creative people. But the simultaneous economic slowdown and the resulting ad revenue slump that its most likely to serve up is certain to make Chandra’s low-cost mantra win yet again. Game, set and match... Now, that’s what we call a real SURVIVOR’S DESTINY!!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Handicapped and welcome!

2009-02-24T13:13:00.000+05:30

At a time when IT companies are sacking people, Laser Soft Info Systems (LSIS), a leading banking and financial services IT company, employs one hundred disabled persons among its 500 strong workforce. Suresh Kamath, MD, started LSIS in 1986. Within 20 years, it has grown and is teaching other companies a lesson in corporate social responsibility through its employment policy. This policy ensures right to employment to disabled persons as much as it does to able-bodied candidates.

At Valasaravakkam, before entering the office, one cannot miss rows of wheelchairs at the parking lot. Once inside the office, one witnesses employees on wheelchairs moving from one computer to the next on the office’s ground level which is designated to the disabled employees. Prakash, an employee, cannot walk since birth. He is working on developing a hospital management software. “After my BSc in computer sciences, I joined this company. My initial salary was Rs 5,000. Today, after four years, my salary has increased to Rs 25,000 per month. I’ve also managed to help four other disabled people get employment here,” he says with evident pride. ....Continue

Simply Mayagardi in Uttar Pradesh

2009-02-18T15:05:00.000+05:30

Auraiya is a nondescript town in the vast swathe of Gangetic plains in Uttar Pradesh. Four days before demitting the chief minister’s office in her second term in 1997, Mayawati had taken out two sub-divisions – Bidhuna and Auraiya – out of Mulayam Singh Yadav’s home district Etawah, to carve out a new district called Auraiya. Not only that, she also lured away a local leader Shekhar Tiwari from Mulayam’s Samajwadi Party. Little did Mayawati know that her own creation would become a thorn in her flesh 11 years later.

For the first time in over a decade, she was forced to cut down on the extravagance and grandiosity of her birthday celebrations which has been marked in party’s calendar as Fund Raising Day. Ten days before that, Tiwari tortured an executive engineer of state’s Public Works Department (PWD), Manoj Kumar Gupta, to his death because the latter was unable to fulfill the MLA’s demand for money to be ‘donated’ to the chief minister on her birthday.

The incident pushed Mayawati on the defensive, as the otherwise somnolent Congress and staid Bharatiya Janata Party took to the streets to condemn ‘killings to celebrate chief minister’s birthday’. The principal opposition formation, Samajwadi Party leaders too upped the ante demanding a CBI inquiry into this ‘fund raising’. Said former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, “Mayawati has fixed a quota of Rs 10 lakh for each Member of Legislature and Rs 50 lakh for each MP, to be raised for her birthday. She has given her party workers a license to loot and extort.” The SP mocked Mayawati by sending party workers to ‘beg’ on the streets for a ‘fundraising’ drive for her birthday.....Continue

Kismat Konnection!?

2009-02-11T12:58:00.001+05:30

One lad who is making the most of his singleton is Shahid Kapoor. After his breakup with Kareena, the JWM star was linked with all and sundry and lately, rumours of Shahid and Priyanka getting too intimate on the sets of "Kaminay" led to another controversy since even Priyanka had parted ways with Harman Baweja. But recently, Shahid was seen dining with ‘just good friend’ Vidya Balan alone. Although they had been spotted dining with common friends, earlier, but this time the two just couldn’t get their eyes off each other! Is there something brewing, Shahid?....Continue

Politico by default

2009-01-30T13:23:00.000+05:30

Ravi Prakash Verma, SP MP, Uttar pradesh

While most MPs were roaring up and down the aisle of the Lok Sabha, hurling insults at each other debating the cash-for-vote scam, one man grimaced watching the tamasha sitting in his North Avenue flat. Says Ravi Prakash Verma, whose family has sent MPs for 10 out of all the 14 Lok Sabhas: “When Atal Behari Vajpayee’s NDA turned turtle, defeated by one vote, I had been offered Rs 10 crore for my vote. People do not know that I had rudely sent back the man who had come with the money.”

Becoming an MP has become a habit with the members of late Bal Govind Verma, Ravi’s father. He himself had been MP four times, his wife thrice and Ravi Prakash himself is in his third consecutive term. But though his father had been a minister, Ravi Prakash never went to school in a red beacon vehicle. He used to walk to and back from school. His school uniforms were never bought, rather, his once-MP mother used to stitch them for little Ravi. During his college days at Allahabad University, he like any other normal student stayed in a rented house, and cooked his own meals. And even now, there hasn’t been much change in his lifestyle. Unlike politicos who appoint PAs the second day after being sworn in as MPs, Ravi has none. It is possible that if you ring the bell at his door, his wife would open it, not some liveried servant. Most often he travels to the Parliament in the pool bus meant for members. He remains what his father was, a firm believer of socialist ideals of Acharya Narendra Dev. “I have bought no property during my tenure as MP,” he categorically told TSI. “Yes, I have property, but that is ancestral. For a living I farm my land. Indeed, he does not think of himself as a politician, but rather an intellectual. In fact, he came into politics to stop his mother from being duped by unscrupulous people. “After father’s demise, mother became an MP, but since she was not well-educated, people ripped her. So to help her with her paperwork, I returned home from Delhi, now here I am!” he smiles gently....Continue

Despite talk about American decline, the world is not prepared for a post-American era.

2009-01-14T15:41:00.000+05:30

To make its case for a continued global leadership role, America must, however, step up to the plate. While the go-it-alone impulse of the Bush administration has been discredited by its consequences, the inverse lessons regarding how important collaborative action is in today’s interconnected world are still being learned. Even at the apex of American power, its greatness was always based on inspiring others, and the opportunities for building market share in that particular category remain unlimited. America’s actions over the coming years will determine whether its power model can be restored. America can and should, for example, become the global leader combating climate change through major investments in alternative energy, conservation, and energy efficiency, and by taking strong actions to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. It should transform its immigration policy to recruit the best people from around the world to move to the US, and remain the world’s leading champion of open markets.

Closing the prison at Guantánamo and reaffirming America’s commitment to international law and human rights will also be an important step in this direction. The world wants to believe in an America that lives up to its own best values.

The prospect of a global community of nations working together to achieve the greater good for all is indeed exciting. But, although America has been far from perfect over the last six decades, the end of the pax Americana has the potential to create a dangerous void in international affairs. If the world is going to shift in the direction of a new and more globally democratic system, other nations also need to step forward. Until this happens, let us all hope that America can get back on track as the global champion of collaborative action.....Continue

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Ashok Gehlot, the former chief minister of Rajasthan and AICC general secretary

2009-01-10T12:05:00.000+05:30

Do you see yourself as chief minister, and if that is the case, what would your priorities be?
How can I comment on it... it is for the legislators and the party high command to decide. I am just a party worker and I am ready to take on any responsibility the party gives me.

I cannot spell out my priorities so early. But one thing is clear: whosoever becomes the Congress CM would provide a sensitive and transparent government in the state.

Would you like to comment on PCC president CP Joshi’s defeat?
He lost by one vote only. We term his defeat as a victory because it was due to his efforts that Congress won so many seats in Rajasthan.

Do you see any sabotage in the 1-vote defeat?
No, there was no sabotage. The real sabotage took place in the BJP, where the rebels campaigned actively against the party and destroyed their efforts on the day of elections.....Continue

M Rajasekhara Panicker at the Passing Out Parade of the dog squad in the Kerala Police Academy.

2009-01-08T11:48:00.000+05:30

And loyal they remain to their last breath. Little wonder that they are so much of an asset in the Army, where in the background of thousands of lives lost to mines and other explosives on the borders, they have successfully detected explosives and saved precious human lives. “A dog army of 12,000 specialised canine breeds, mostly Labradors, German Shepherds and Belgian Shepherd dogs, is in place in the Indian Army,” Lieutenant Colonel S S Kashyap said to an agency last year. Many Army dogs have won Shaurya Chakras and special commendations from the Chief of Army Staff. Their services are utilised even by the UN Peacekeeping Forces.

Railway Protection Force (RPF) too has dog training centres at Delhi and Podanur in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. “German Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers and Dobermans are being trained. Six dogs are currently undergoing training and 13 are ready for passing out from Zonal Training Centre (ZTC) at Podanur,’’ says Neenu Ittyerah, Chief Public Relation Officer, Southern Railway. “Chief Security Commissioner is nominating a committee with three gazetted officers for procurement of pups from popular registered private kennels and breeders with KCI certificates,’’ she says. Ittyerah recollects with pride a dog named Rita in the Trichy division who solved a murder case of Kayatharu village police station in January 1985. Last month, ‘Hira’ detected an explosive at Malda divison of the Eastern Railway station.....Continue

MASS CENSURE

2009-01-03T12:53:00.001+05:30

That is because the people hit the streets. No one was happy that it were the haunts of the elite only – five star hotels and posh restaurants, mostly – that were hit. The sustained gun battle of over 60 hours made people cry, literally, about the fact that we were under siege inside our own country… never had Pakistan come this close inside even in a declared war of aggression. People were inclined to believe – whether it is substantiable or not – that India has been violated by Pakistan and media – in wilful suspension of responsibility – whipped up a frenzied demand for going all out. This time it was not like an Indian Mujahideen serial blast. It was utter humiliation. They had never seen the politicians' dirty faces so clearly as during the Mumbai attack.

The blame game and face saving exercises are not yet over. This may continue up to the next general elections and all the parties will sure try to 'milk' the votes.

But two public gestures of private families stand out and show what the people’s mood is: Hemant’s widow Kavita Karkare has bluntly refused to accept Modi’s compensation. And Major Unnikrishnan’s father has slammed the door furiously on the face of the so-called ‘people’s man’, Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan when he wanted to visit the martyr’s home to pay his tribute.

So far, the writing on the political wall is clear. If this commonsense prevails in every Indian, the political system may change in this country.....Continue

AMAZE: The world shows up!

2009-01-02T11:49:00.000+05:30

It was celebration with a cause at the Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM) when its annual management and cultural fest, Amaze, came to life on the 12th, 13th and 14th of November. With ‘One Earth, Let’s Heal It’ as the theme, it was only befitting that participants from 18 countries had turned up to make it a mega success. On the evening of 11th, the Indian Handicrafts Emporium venue came alive in a plethora of colours, floral decorations, heritage structures – even a spectacularly illuminated Taj Mahal replica – to welcome guests from across the globe.

The first event at the Festival was ‘Crushed Ice’, the icebreaker round. Eminent personalities including Anil Rajput (Head, Corporate Affairs, ITC), Mukesh Tyagi (MD, Punj Lloyd), Dipinder Hooda (Member of Parliament), Sandeep Hooda, Anil Kaul (Director, Marketing, Ambuja Cement), Naresh Dayal (Secretary, Union Health Ministry), and Pratima Dayal (Chief Economist, ADB) among others graced the occasion. After Prof Arindam Chaudhuri, (Honorary Dean, IIPM) inaugurated the event, the crowd pulled out all stops when it came to enjoying themselves!

Real action commenced at IIPM’s international campus with ‘Clash of the Titans’ – the Global Debate Challenge prelims. The winner won a trip to London. In the Business Plan event, the budding business barons were judged by Pankaj Parnami (Founder Director, KPO consultants) and Prof Sumanta Sharma.....Continue

Beauties of California!

2008-12-22T12:03:00.000+05:30

Back on the shore of SF, you can choose to travel through the city in cable cars which take you to the tourist spots, including Lombard Street, aka the ‘crookedest’ (most winding) street in the world. The eight sharp turns and a one-way street not only make you test your driving skills, but also your senses as you try to observe and admire the view of the beautiful houses and landscape around you but of also the distant Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge.

To conclude your active day in San Francisco, take a break from the travel and driving and stroll down the Piers, especially Pier 39. Robust with life and rife with live local musicians, this pier is suffused with the natural smell of walrus’s as well as the local farmer’s market. And with fine dining, available in the form of five star restaurants with a romantic setting, Pier 39 offers you all the variety for anyone and everyone, literally! My favourite destination in San Francisco is the stretch of Piers from 35 to 39, as I can walk along the Bay and get some time alone or go shopping across the street for local memorabilia and also satisfy my extravagant side by splurging in shops like Gap, Macy’s etc.

During my stay in California, my monthly mantra, without fail, was a trip to San Francisco to grab an escape from routine and a chance to imbue interesting atmospheres and cultures.....Continue

Obama and Lincoln

2008-12-18T12:10:00.000+05:30

Throughout his election campaign last year and this, President-elect Barack Obama promised to make US politics return to the bipartisan ethos. If his selection of people to fill the key cabinet posts is anything to go by, he has already scored here. From Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, to Economic Policy Advisor Lawrence Summers, to likely Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and to New York Federal Reserve's Timothy Geithner as the new Treasury Secretary and Commerce Secretary Bill Richardson; all are veteran Washington hands and belong to different ideologies altogether.

While Geithner has lent a hand to direct efforts to soothe financial markets and stressed that banks vital to the worldwide financial scheme should function under an integrated regulatory scaffold, Clinton has a comprehensive profile both as a political person in charge in her own right, and as the wife of a former US President. Her appointment could help Obama mend the only chink in his armour – foreign policy. The passionate and plainspeaking Lawrence Summers has previously served as Treasury Secretary in the Clinton regime and is pegged by both Republicans and Democrats as the best hand to deal with the current crisis. Bill Richardson’s potential appointment as Secretary of Commerce will not only bring the much needed experience in that department, but will also inject confidence in the Hispanic community after disillusionments of the Bush era. The appointment of Tom Daschle as Secretary Of Health And Human Services is a tactical move to make the Left fringe of his party happy.....Continue

The Daily Indian IIPM Think Tank
The Sunday Indian

Lt. Col. Purohit's case becomes murkier and murkier as the Maharashtra police contradicts what the central government has been saying so far.

2008-12-13T16:06:00.000+05:30

By all available accounts of army officials close to him, Purohit has had a distinguished career. In an interesting twist, the ATS now hounding and investigating him, had hosted Purohit at their Mumbai headquarters in 2005 to deliver guest lectures and conduct a day-long training programme on “operational techniques and strategy.” Now, it appears, his process of de-learning could have begun. Surprisingly, the ATS which made these charges appeared cagy to defend them when the case came up for hearing before a lower court in Nasik last week, which is potentially a source of huge embarrassment for the government. Just how politically motivated is the ATS?

The case being made by the ATS is at total odds with the central government’s position on the blasts which laid the blame for explosions and horrendous deaths on Pakistan-inspired jehadis. In the case of Samjhauta Express blasts, the National Security advisor and India’s defacto intelligence boss, M.K.Narayanan, was categorical in his assertion that Islamabad was behind them. After months of pointing fingers at Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, the ATS has made a U-turn and declared that it was actually Purohit who had supplied RDX used for the Samjhauta blast.

Questions one security official: “If Purohit masterminded Samjhauta blasts, what intelligence inputs did India give to Pakistan to act on in this case at the various anti-terror mechanism meetings?” It is a tricky question which provides no easy answers......Continue

Barack Obama

2008-12-10T13:12:00.000+05:30

Said Nadkarni: "There is a degree of xenophobia among Americans — what is not like them is viewed with an element of suspicion. I think Obama is going to change that." Nadkarni was talking about how the public discourse on immigration affected her daily interactions with the American people. While she acknowledged that some Indian Americans had conflicting views on the candidate best equipped to address the key issues affecting them — such as the Indo-US civilian nuclear treaty and security — she herself never changed her mind about Obama.

A pre-election poll by the non-profit organization Bridging Nations immediately before the election had predicted that fully 81 per cent of Indian-Americans favoured Obama and Joe Biden, with barely 19 per cent rooting for John McCain and Sarah Palin.

McCain's steep drop in popularity in recent months is being blamed on the ongoing economic slump that brought down Bush's approval rating to below 30 per cent. Worse, McCain's choice of the inexperienced Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate found few takers among large sections of traditional Republican voters.

A national election exit poll conducted on behalf of AP and other major US TV networks said responses from nearly 10,500 voters after voting suggested that Obama had succeeded in mobilizing African-American voters to an unprecedented extent. He won 95 per cent of the black vote against McCain's 4 per cent. Moreover, Obama was also a major hit with the Hispanic voters whom Bush had partly succeeded in winning over in 2004. McCain led slightly among white voters.

But no surveys or polls are needed to conclude that the Americans know just what is good for them and the rest of the world. The melting pot that is the US of A has shown that the man holding its top job can be of any origin — and that black is better than white if it can deliver better.....Continue

PAKISTAN : IMPOVERISHMENT

2008-12-04T15:33:00.000+05:30

"In the last 30 years, we have not invested in our infrastructure, both physical and human. A lot of our infrastructure is non-productive and is falling apart. The basic problem is that the economy is not producing what it ought to. Our annual food production growth rate is one per cent, population is growing at 2.5 per cent per annum, so shortages are bound to occur," he said. Bengali believes that the Benazir Income Support Program would enable the poorest segment of the society, that earns Rs 5,000 per month, to boost its income by 20 per cent. He dismisses the notion that the bulk of the money earmarked for the scheme would be appropriated by a bureaucracy that is corrupt to the core.

"The money will be directly transferred from the ministry of finance to beneficiaries through an electronic postal system," he argues. About 3.5 million people would benefit from the scheme.However, given the track record of Pakistan, one could hardly believe that the bulk of the amount earmarked for families living below the poverty line would not be misappropriated by a corrupt bureaucracy working under still more corrupt ministers.....Continue

The last time i called you bro...

2008-12-01T13:40:00.000+05:30

IIPM Publication

Porcupines are tricky creatures. When they fight, they leave each other bloody. And when they mate, it is no different. The same can be said about China and Taiwan. Landmark financial agreements inked between China and Taiwan this week have brought the long-time antagonists one more stride nearer to ending what is now a six decades long conflict. However, deep-rooted political divergences from a rupture that keeps the Cold War alive in East Asia threaten supplementary reconciliation progress in the near future.

Marking the highest-level contact between China and Taiwan's administration in 60 years, Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou met in brief with Beijing's most high-ranking herald for Taiwan, Chen Yunlin, this week post latter’s signing of the deal with his Taiwanese counterpart PK Chiang as thousands of demonstrators deafeningly yelled anti-China slogans outside.

What makes Bhiwani so different from other districts of India, indeed other districts of Haryana for that matter?

2008-10-24T15:49:00.000+05:30

As Vijender’s semi-final match ends in a narrow defeat, Jagdish Singh, solemn but satisfied, emerges from his prayer room. Almost a legend in Bhiwani, the man, fed up with overcrowding and hidebound rules in SAI hostel, mortgaged his house and other property, took loans from well wishers and friends and started this club in 2002, where he dispenses free coaching. As the medals and accolades rolled in, his colleagues and superiors at SAI, did the most predictable thing, they initiated a departmental inquiry against him on the charges that he takes money for his coaching. Still fighting the enquiry, Coach Jagdish Singh, gets a reprieve when the news comes in that he has conferred the Dronacharya award. The reprieve is that in more ways than one, as the award carries a cash prize of 25 Lakhs. “I will use this money to pay back my loans, the rest I will invest in this club and maybe get my motorcycle repaired,” he says as an afterthought. Famous for not taking any breaks, the club is open seven days a week. Singh gets right down to business as the evening rolls in and with it come some 100 kids with stars in their eyes and dreams in their hearts. “I say, give us money and hold us accountable if we fail to produce more medals in 2012,” he says, with the supreme confidence of a man who’s been vindicated. I could be wrong, but maybe he’s the difference between Bhiwani and the rest of India.....Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

Read also :-

The Dark Knight!

2008-10-21T12:33:00.000+05:30

Of all the July 4ths that Bennett hates, he’ll hate July 4, 2008, the most. While the nation rejoiced on this day, he had already been sentenced to 16 years in Federal prison the day before... all thanks to his Dark Knight acts at Refco

“I knew failing to disclose these filings was wrong. I know I was wrong. I deeply regret it,” is how Phillip R. Bennett pleaded guilty, with eyes full of tears, before the US District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald, on February 15, 2008. And what was his crime? Well he literally killed a company!!! Bennett, the former CEO of Refco Inc., a New York-based leading financial services company, earned fame having made millions for thousands of his clients (even US Senator Hillary Clinton was one!). But there was the dark side to this knight... he mismanaged Refco’s clients’ equity and disguised $430 million of bad debts. During its heydays, Refco was known as the largest non-bank US futures commission merchant of commodities and futures. The company was founded in 1969 by Lt. Thomas Dittmer and his stepfather Ray Freidman (who also had a criminal record!) as ‘Ray Freidman & Co.’ in Chicago. It was eventually relocated to New York. Its base had swelled to 200,000 customers and $4 billion in assets by October 2005. Then doomsday occurred. Many experts claim that Refco’s flameout was one of the most spectacular financial failures in US history amid civil and criminal investigations. Between its IPO in August 2005 and its October 18, 2005 bankruptcy filing, more than $1 billion in investor capital evaporated from Refco’s coffers. Beat this, it took just four days for Refco to transform from being the world’s largest commodities and futures brokerage to a company worth nothing, making it the fastest crash of a publicly listed company ever!...Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

Read also :-

Rockers & shockers!

2008-10-11T13:33:00.000+05:30

Imagine selling rock guitars when classical music comes into vogue! Surely, a difficult external environment can overwhelm the best of them. B&E profiles three key sectors that merit a mention for profitable or not-so-profitable reasons. psus, of course have been included for their prominence in the list

Sub-prime?: Who is he?
Despite global slowdown, interest rate uncertainties & mounting inflation, Indian banks have a great opportunity to move ahead. But consolidation is also looming on the horizon, says gyanendra kashyap

The paradigm shift in the dynamics of the banking industry is overwhelming; thanks to the continued strong economic cycle. A total of 23 banks made it to the B&E Power 100 list this year. This shows that we are either quite immune from the sub-prime crisis or the impact is yet to come.

Bankex, which trailed around the 3,000 mark a couple of years ago, crossed the 12,000 mark on January 14, 2008. Once dominated by public sector entities, the industry is witnessing unprecedented changes and shareholders are having the last laugh (even though 19 of the 23 are PSBs); and why not, for Indian banking has topped the charts in value creation in FY ’08 (Boston Consulting Group’s report entitled “Managing Shareholder Value in Turbulent Times”). What is more interesting is the sharp decline in NPAs (from 8% in 2000 to about 1% today). Private players as well as their foreign counterparts are making deep inroads into the highly untapped markets; on the backdrop of an efficient technological set up and customer service; and slowly and steadily increasing their market share. Estimates suggest that the duo have been adding 1% of market share on an annualised basis. Their growth in terms of market share (by total assets) has been phenomenal; in 2003, market share of private banks was 17.5% and of foreign banks was 6.9%; by the end of 2007, the private sector banks commanded 21.5% of the market share, while their foreign counterparts increased their share to 8% (Moody’s report). ICICI, HDFC and AXIS are challenging the PSBs both in terms of quality and profitability; nevertheless the banking major State Bank of India (SBI) still tops the charts as far as profitability is concerned. Market capitalisation of ICICI bank (on June 24, 2008) was at $18.01 billion (as compared to SBI’s mcap of $17.71 billion); ample reasons to suggest why Brand Finance Plc. has rated the brand value & mcap of ICICI as ‘very strong’; HDFC bank has been rated strong on the same parameters. Going by the current rate of growth and promises that the new players show (AXIS, HDFC & ICICI banks have respectively registered 62%, 39% & 34% surge in profitability), the day may not be too far when more of them occupy the coveted B&E Power 100 ranks....Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

Read also :-

Unwilling contestant

2008-10-07T14:33:00.000+05:30

The AICC General Secretary tours the country to enlarge his constituency

For four years Rahul Gandhi did what he felt was right. He seemed oblivious to advice from partymen. He concentrated on Amethi and his mother’s constituency, Rae Bareli and refused to look beyond these two constituencies. He delivered simple speeches. Unlike other politicians, he has refused to make empty promises in his speeches. And in an effort to take the higher ground, he has refused to play politics with the dead body of a farmer.

It is only after four years that an extremely adamant Rahul Gandhi has come out of his constituency to ‘Discover India’. This is again purely his decision. According to Congress sources, it is Rahul who has now realized that in politics one can not survive without playing mind games and do it all over the country.

Politicking may not be his cup of tea, but now it appears, Rahul is learning. From a man who believed in being a silent worker, the Gandhi scion is turning another leaf. Seeking to expand the Gandhi Nehru magic, he now spends nights with Dalit families, plays around with their children and enjoys photo-ops with Dalit children on his shoulders.....Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

Read also :-

Heritage entry fee hike in rupee

2008-09-29T13:26:00.000+05:30

Tour operators are opposing the government's decision

India’s top tour operators feel put down by the government's move to make foreign tourists pay in Indian currency. According to the decision foreign tourists visiting monuments protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) will now pay the entry fee in rupee. Says an outraged Subhash Goyal, Chairman, Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO): “Tour operators finalise their clients’ itineraries well in advance. Far from helping us, a fee hike would only create problems.”

From now onwards, each visitor will be charged Rs.250 or about $6 for giving a visit to a World Heritage Site such as the Qutab Minar, the Taj Mahal or the Ajanta and Ellora Caves, and Rs.100 for other monuments. This is a change from the previous dual tariff system under which the fee was $5 for World Heritage Sites and $2 for protected monuments such as the Red Fort & Purana Quila....Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

Read also :-

A woman on top

2008-09-20T13:52:00.000+05:30

She is one of those rare women executives, who have thrived in a man’s world. And she has helped HDFC perform better.
Last week, as Renu Sud Karnad, Executive Director, HDFC, winged her way to yet another visit to the US, she had already taken a decision that thrilled the hearts of individuals who had taken retail loans from the corporation. Despite the fact that the Reserve Bank of India refused to lower the prime lending interest rates, Karnad had announced that HDFC would lower its home loan rates. Her’s was one of the first financial institutions to do so in recent times, when home loan rates had zoomed and lenders had been saddled with huge EMIs or increasing repayment periods.

In fact, Karnad, in her personal capacity, feels that interest rates have already peaked, and there are no macro reasons for another hike. But she was unwilling to say it on record. Instead, she said that RBI’s Governor has the unenviable task of balancing growth and inflationary pressures. “RBI Governor Y. V. Reddy is doing a great job, and has managed to achieve the objectives that any central bank would wish to. India is on a sustained growth path, and inflation seems to be under control,” she explains.

In the past year or so, Reddy has been worried about the unusual rise in asset prices across categories, he has felt that there is a bubble building up in sectors like real estate, and has tried his best to control the increase in prices without sacrificing on the growth front. For example, he has tightened the norms for real estate and home loans, thereby creating a sort of a slowdown at least in the small towns. But, at the same time, he doesn’t want investments to slow down considerably in the housing or real estate sector.

It is in this regard that Karnad’s move should be appreciated. If banks and institutions like HDFC can still lower interest rates, it will still spur demand despite the tight monetary policies of the RBI. It will create a win-win situation that will help the retail consumers as well as the policy makers. It will also turn out to be a relief for individuals, who have been saddled with huge outgo as home loans rates have steadily climbed from less than 8% to over 11% in the past couple of years.

Over the past many years, such decisions have defined the achievements of Karnad, who has maintained HDFC’s Numero Uno position in the housing sector. But it has not been an easy climb to the top of the corporate ladder. Especially for a woman, who has fought it out in a hitherto man’s world of Indian financial and banking services. “I was just lucky. I joined HDFC at the right time. So, it was slightly easy for me to reach the top. May be, the women who have joined in recent times, or my daughter if she joins the corporate world in the near future, won’t find it so easy,” explains Karnad.

What she means is that when she joined HDFC nearly three decades ago, the state-owned entity was on a growth path. So, anyone who joined at that time inevitably grew with the company. It was like joining a startup. Since you were one of the first to join, you participated in the successes – right from getting employee stock options, whose value jumped after the initial public offering, to grabbing a designation as you were one of the few who understood the philosophy and the strategy of the company.

eling in the corporate circles that women are better workers than their male counterparts. A senior woman executive contends that women tend to work harder as they have to prove that they can be as good, if not better, than men. So, HDFC sources explain how Karnad spent more hours in the office. In her early days, there were no fax machines, laptops and Blackberry mobiles, so one had no option but to be in office to receive communication on the telex machine.

In the same vein, women are known to be great multi-taskers. Unlike most men, who think and act sequentially, who complete one task at a time, women can tackle 4-5 issues at the same time. One of the reasons may be that women do it all the time at home – look after kids, listen to their in-laws, interact with their husbands – all at the same time. Therefore, they are adept at solving 4-5 problems at the same time. In financial services, where everything has become globalised, and where problems crop up at regular intervals, the art of multi-tasking turns out to be an advantage for women executives.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-
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B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
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The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
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High-end diesel technology

2008-09-02T17:37:00.000+05:30

Now, the world’s cheapest car moves into the third gear. With access to high-end diesel technology, and several options to locate its ‘cheap car’ factory (or assembly units), the Tatas seem to have got their back-end in place. Simultaneously, they had to look at the front-end; after all, Tata Motors wanted to sell the Rs.1 lakh car in as many markets as possible. It was meant to be a global car for global consumers. It is in this context that the Jaguar-Land Rover deal will immediately help it to tap the European market.

The Jaguar-Land Rover buyout becomes critical as the Tatas have failed to make a mark in foreign markets in the past. Prominent signage on the Team Jordan’s Formula 1 car preceded Tata’s exports of Indica to the UK; the car was marketed under the City Rover brand name. Even though the car did not do too well, it did give Tata Motors a foothold in Europe. Today, the company has agreements in various European nations to assemble the Tata Safari SUV, among other products. Sponsoring Narain Kartekeyan, India’s first F1 driver, was also a step to establish the Tata brand in Europe.

As you have probably realised, the Rs.1 lakh car has moved into fourth gear, and you are cruising at 60 kms an hour. But just drive along, as the puzzle is still not complete. The last few pieces have to still fall into place. Only then will you be able to figure out the real design behind the several decisions taken by Ratan Tata to turn his ‘small car’ dream into reality.

Despite being loss-making (see box), Jaguar and Land Rover are perceived as exclusive and high-end European brands. Even if Tata Motors gives full management autonomy to the acquired businesses, and sells their products the same way as Japan’s Toyota does with Lexus (without lending its name to reduce any form of brand dilution), it will still earn brownie points. The two European brands will help establish Brand Tata, at least in Europe. They will additionally help the Indian car maker to combat any moves by China to manufacture its own version of the world’s cheapest car.

“Tata Motors has a better image then the Chinese as it has a history of manufacturing, and has already acquired brands like Tetley and Corus,” says Autocar India’s Ashish Masih. It’s time to move into fifth gear. Tata Motors now has the technology, low-cost manufacturing options, access to developed markets, and a globally-recognised brand name. It is all set to launch the Rs.1 lakh car, which will be unveiled at the Auto Expo. Every cog in the design-manufacturing-marketing-branding wheel is in place.

So, while the world’s cheapest car is breaching the 80 kms an hour mark, it’s time to take a ride in another vehicle, the Tata Motors’ SUV. For years, Tata wanted to do an Indica with his range of SUVs. But Tata Sumo and Tata Safari have never been perceived as low-cost, entry-level, but stylish vehicles. Another Indian competitor, M&M, has done wonders with its Scorpio. Foreign players like Toyota too have fared much better. In the high-priced SUV segment, Tata hasn’t been able to make any inroads.

Land Rover will be a coveted catch for Tata as the brand represents one of the most-sought after SUV. The recently launched Range Rover and the updated Disco models have done well and can provide Tata with a platform to ride the international markets. Tata Motors may sell its products along with Land Rover’s, thereby amplifying both the visibility and reach of the indigenous SUVs. Before you think that it is not worthwhile to associate with a loss-making brand, listen to Ford UK’s John Gardner.

“The Jaguar-Land Rover business has been a profitable one in recent times; 2007 has been best ever year for Land Rover, better than 2005 and 2006.” This implies that Land Rover can effectively be used as a brand extension. Masih agrees, “Tata Motors will get access to better technology from Land Rover that can help the former to reposition its SUVs in higher segments.”

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus

Top Articles on IIPM:-
IIPM to come up at Rajarhat
IIPM awards four Bengali novelists
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The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs

A Finnish bard

2008-08-25T13:05:00.000+05:30

Nokia’s move into music is logical

What comes to your mind when you talk about the $159.9 billion Finnish giant Nokia? Obviously handsets, right? Yes, and that its ride in this regard of late has been wonderful is undeniable (with a global market share of 32.6% being proof). However, there is much beyond just handsets that this Finnish giant is in for these days. Putting words to practice comes its latest revelation to move into unlimited music downloads to its subscribers in collaboration with Universal group, through a venture called ‘Comes with Music’ announced on December 2, 2007. So is this move well-toned with the changing scenario in the cellphone industry?

Certainly, as Jeff Kagan, a telecom expert notes, “The cell phone industry continues to go through enormous change and growth and the wireless phone is growing past a phone. The next several years will be full of these types of announcements.” Alternatively, with the venture (which will become operational in 2008) guaranteeing Nokia upto $5 billion in added revenues on an annual basis, the strategy appears logical as Mike Grant, Head, Broadband and Media, Analysys Inc. asserts, “With this announcement, Nokia has stepped out ahead of the rest in bridging the divide between mobility and the Internet. Should Nokia successfully execute these developments and attract even a small proportion of their current 1 billion customers to this service, other operators and OEMs will have a mountain to climb to offer the same compelling proposition.” Surely, Nokia is laying down the gauntlet and moving away from being a pure device play into an integrated end to end consumer service organisation in the mould of Apple, or perhaps even bigger and better than Apple in the business as Grant asserts, “Nokia’s global market reach and scale make it a powerful competitor to all in this space, while Apple has a strong presence only in the US.”

Surely, Nokia’s has expertly diversified its revenue streams during the past couple of years. Its focus on software as its core strategy, unlike other phone manufacturers will enable it to ride into sectors that are inherently software focused, such as mobile web services and other services including music et al. And this radical strategic move automatically pushes Nokia up the value chain. With revenues for Q4 2007 estimated to touch $21,123.4 billion, representing a rise of 63.77% over Q3 2007 this move is all but a clear case of successful bundling; all to please its consumers. Enough reasons why it should be the market leader in this regard.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Deviating from the derivatives path!

2008-08-20T13:56:00.000+05:30

New products will help minimise export of our capital market
Getting driven towards the complex or deviating your path from derivatives. Of course not, after SEBI’s decision to introduce seven new products in the stock market.

“Rather than allowing the trade to move offshore, they have allowed these products to be traded in India. If the trading environment is open, global investors would always prefer to trade derivatives in the home market and this psychological advantage is sought to be converted to a real one,” says Rajiv Shastri, Head – Business Development and Strategic Initiatives, Lotus India Mutual Fund.

Derivative market has experienced remarkable growth over the last five years. This new initiative will further open doors to various new opportunities. Select steps will bring much of the volume on Indian bourses, which are otherwise happening in offshore markets as of now. However Yogesh Radke, Derivative Analyst, Edelweiss Capital, feels that, “it will take a long time before all products get launched into the market. Few products like ‘Long Duration Options’ & ‘Mini Contracts’ are expected to get introduced by next 3-4 months.”

There was a void in the Indian market with respect to new products. But now??? Shastri believes, “If there was a void it would have been filled by offshore markets in the absence of any developments domestically. Having chosen to act, SEBI has laid the foundation for retaining the ownership of the market.” Exciting, bright, a long way to go... – are few adjectives, which resonates, describing the future of the derivatives market in the time to come in India.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Head-mounted display with two stereoscopic screens

2008-08-13T16:31:00.000+05:30

Most of today’s VR systems consist of a head-mounted display with two stereoscopic screens positioned just a few inches in front of the eyes. Movement in cyberspace is simulated by shifting the optics in the field of vision in direct response to movement of certain body parts, such as the head or hands. Turn the head, and the scene shifts accordingly. The sensation is like being inside an artificial world the computer has created. As the user moves his head to look around, the images shift to create an illusion of movement. The user moves while the virtual world is standing still. The glasses also sense the user’s facial expressions through embedded sensors, and that information can control the virtual version of the user’s body. Most current VR systems provide only visual experiences created by computer-assisted design or other graphics/animation systems, but researchers are working on interface devices that add sound and touch. Experts agree that MMORPGs are our current epitome of VR. Various technologies (communications, AI, computing, interface) will affect us, and together these will shape society in the future. Eventually, VR may be delivered through direct computer-to-brain connections. This means that you could probably “jack-in” to a virtual world using a mechanism that connects the world with your brain. Sounds familiar? Yeah, that’s what the characters in the movie Matrix did all the time.

Remember Morpheus’ spine-chilling question – “What is real? If it is what you see and feel and smell, then real is nothing but electrical impulses analyzed by the brain.” If it were possible to connect your brain to the virtual 3D world, you could very well close your eyes and live a virtual life with all your senses intact. That’s what they do in the movie; but obviously, we are not ready with the cranium plungers yet. Such technology is still years away. We need economically feasible hardware, not to forget VR software so advanced, that it blurs the line between reality & virtual reality. But we’ll be there sooner than you think. Check out some software experiments showing promise.

Photosynth (http://labs.live.com/photosynth) from Microsoft Live Labs is a 3D image re-constructor that rebuilds entire environments based on hundreds of photos taken from different angles. The result is a web based photo browser that stitches photos into a seamless panorama in a true 3D environment. So, if you took enough pictures on your last trip to the Swiss Alps, go ahead and recreate a virtual 3D version of the snow-filled locales on your desktop.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Motion Picture

2008-08-11T15:26:00.000+05:30

Amit Khanna, Chairman, Reliance Entertainment, says, “Reliance Entertainment has a dominant position in India but, when it comes to motion pictures, it has been obvious that we extend our footprint to Hollywood. We’ve devised a unique method of investing, whereby Reliance Big Picture can help advance the goals of several important creators in the global industry and expect such deals in the near future too.”

But what is it that the Indian movie mavericks will bring to Hollywood? Industry experts believe that production houses like Big Motion Pictures, UTV, Percept Pictures, et al, can bring a lot of differentiation to Hollywood in terms of content. They will bring Asian perspective in American movies, which can make them more appealing. More importantly, they will bring a lot of cost benefits to Hollywood, which is very much needed at this point of time, when the US economy is going through a lean period. However, one question that is troubling the experts is: will these Indian production houses be successful in their Hollywood stint? “It’s better for them (Indian production houses) to start with co-productions and that’s exactly what they are doing,” says a media analyst. Tying-up with Hollywood studios like George Clooney’s Smokehouse Productions, Tom Hanks’ Playtone Productions, Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, Chris Columbus’ 1492 Pictures, Nicolas Cage’s Saturn Productions, et al, will make them understand the market better. Whatever they do, the road to Hollywood will not be an easy one as Publicis’ Gupta feels, “America is very America-centric… The perceived notion of low quality for any product from a third world country may create some initial hurdles for them.” Be that as it may, the ‘big’ money lies overseas only. And if the corporate production houses need to compete with their global counterparts then the only way for them is to think local but act global!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Andhra Pradesh

2008-08-08T13:28:00.000+05:30

IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

Today, giants like Reliance, Dabur or even smaller players like Turtle are all making Hyderabad a hub to conquering the entire southern market. “Andhra Pradesh is an important state for expansion in South India. Rapid industrialisation in the state, is putting Hyderabad on the global map and its multi-cultural, multi-linguistic community is gradually making Andhra a real cosmopolitan centre,” feels Amit Ladsaria, Director, Turtle Ltd. Indeed, Hyderabad is emerging as a cosmopolitan and unlike other metros, it offers abundant space for real estate development which brings us to the next sphere abuzz with activities – real estate. Currently, players from all over the world like Malaysia’s Sunway Berhad (with its investment of Rs.350 crore to set up a township) & Germany’s ACI Real Estate et al have developed a hitherto hidden penchant for Hyderabad.

With respect to state income, we’d pick two cash cows that are taking care of its economic fortunes – IT (where the state claims to have scripted the highest growth in 2007) and pharma (where we can talk of names like Dr. Reddy’s, Lupin et al, which are investing in the state). Andhra today controls 50% of India’s pharma production and this in turn is also motivating young entrepreneurs to enter this lucrative market. Explains, Apu Gupta, COO of MedPlus Health Services Pvt. Ltd, “Andhra has an entrepreneurial energy made possible by high educational levels, good income levels, political stability, and relatively lower real estate values. And with its rich history of medical excellence, the state will continue to innovate in the realm of retail health-care.”

But that’s not the only two boosters that have added the spring to the gaits of Andhra. According to a CII Analyst, Andhra Pradesh left several states behind during 2008 even in the realm of infrastructure developmental projects. For instance, since 2006, 2.67 lakh hectares of area have been brought under the micro-irrigation scheme, which is the highest for any state in the country. “It is proposed that 29 such projects will be completed by March 2009. In addition, additional irrigation plans spread over 16.18 lakh acres are in the pipeline for this fiscal year,” promises P. Lakshamiah, Minister for Irrigation, Andhra Pradesh. Even in the energy department, this state is well in the high-improvement zone as Mohd. Shavir Ali, Minister for Energy, Andhra Pradesh asserts, “Power sector in the state has been performing extremely well, despite the non-increase in power tariff to any category of consumers.” These are no ‘flash-in-the-pan’ acts on behalf of the state; no wonder bigwigs like Reliance Power (in a coal-fired project spread across 2,625 acres near Krishnapatnam port) and UB Group (in a brewery plant) are ready to bet their bucks in this state with investments amounting to Rs.20,000 crore and Rs.500 crore respectively.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Tech-savvy people

2008-08-06T15:25:00.000+05:30

Given the scenario, a few intelligent ones like RPG Cellucom have latched on to an innovative business model to succeed in the mobile retail sweepstakes. In Feb. 2008, RPG Cellucom launched their own private labels for mobile accessories, willing to make additional profits through this route. Says Singh, “Our core target audiences are the tech-savvy people and we would continue to leverage through cross-selling and up-selling of our offerings.”

This strategy also makes more sense because gross margins in the cell-phone business are a meager 4-5%, whereas the upcoming accessories market boasts gross margin to the tune of 15-30%. Small wonder that even players like Subhiksha and mBazaar have begun evaluating the private label for accessories. But this strategy has its loopholes. Of the 100 people who buy cell phones, only about 10 look for accessories. With such low demand statistics, will having their own private labels fetch adequate returns on investment for these retailers? Brand analyst Harish Bijoor feels that private labels can be an option but that “Going forward, personlised solutions in terms of desired features would be the key to their success.”

Personlisation to the extend that customers should be able to choose whether they want a camera in their phone and if yes, then the kind of configuration that the camera would have. This would mean that handset manufacturers share some product specification functions with these organised retailers. But in the ‘mass models’ driven Indian handset industry is in presently, this is easier said than done.

For now, organised retailers are doing a fancy job of aggressive expansions, but in the long run they’d have to choose their own innovative route to add-value for consumers. And that perhaps would be the key to become the King of this Castle.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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History of failed overseas acquisitions

2008-08-05T14:56:00.000+05:30

However, the question still remains unanswered. “Why now?” “Currently the valuations demanded by the companies are on the higher side and are major deterrent to big deals. Besides, apart from M&As, companies are also on a lookout for brand acquisitions to enhance their presence in respective therapeutic segments,” reasons Nangra. Also, with concerns related to economic slowdown and a history of failed overseas acquisitions, Indian companies now seem to have realised that though it’s exciting to buy big companies abroad, the real synergies are hard to achieve. Moreover, the competition from small generic drug-makers has stiffened too forcing these big pharma companies to re-think their strategies. “Develop new business models… on the basis of strengths & revenues – this is the most important factor that will decide the competitiveness and sustainance of Indian companies in the future,” agrees Dr. R. B. Smarta, MD of Interlink, a pharma and healthcare consultancy. Even Sujay Shetty, Associate Director, Financial Advisory Services Pharma & LifeSciences, PwC shares the same view. “This will not only provide the required size and expertise to the domestic companies (so that they can compete globally) but will also certainly improve efficiency; provide economies of scale; and strengthen their product portfolio, eventually benefiting the industry as a whole.”

Thus, as international pharmaceutical companies increase their activity in India and globally and bring-in modes of killing, domestic companies will need to move up the product value chain. And in this context, targeting niches seem to be the next best move. Yes, but then it’s not that simple – it all depends on what you pick!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Sony Pictures Imageworks

2008-08-04T15:05:00.000+05:30

But the bigger question to ponder is why these companies are resorting to setting up subsidiaries rather than outsourcing which would have been a cheaper option for these companies. Tim Sarnoff, President Sony Pictures Imageworks, reason, “This way we would have a better control over the output of the product. Also, our staff in Culver City (Los Angeles) and India can work on different parts of the same projects making use of the same kind of infrastructure…” There are also some other advantages that these companies would be looking at gaining. With the boom that has been there in the animation scenario, there is plenty of trained staff that would be working at almost less than half the price. Well, it would mean higher investments now, but the bigger studios would now be looking at churning out greater outputs. Hence, in the long run, they would be able to save greater costs.

In short, there would be many more companies who would be looking at following this trend in the coming years. Even various state governments have sensed great opportunity here and as a matter of fact, the Andhra Pradesh Government has announced that it is soon setting up a Hyderabad Digital Media City by acquiring about 200 acres of land in Sultanpur. There is no denying that given the digital infrastructure, talent pool and low production costs that India offers, it is a welcome sign for many International production houses to step up their shop here.

However, there are some roadblocks too that they might face, as they grow forward. Keeping in mind the pace of the industry, people like Jayakumar have already started worrying about the talent crunch. Also, there are other countries that offer great opportunities to the business and are also doing great animation work, including China, Philippines and other Eastern European countries. So, in the long run to able to sustain this industry, India would have to continue being cost effective and provide ample opportunities to welcome other international companies. There would also be a need to set up more animation training institutes by the government and corporates to ensure that at least manpower problems do not dampen the pace of this growth saga.

Mass marketing

2008-08-01T16:42:00.000+05:30

Niche is also making inroads into the radio space, with channels like Meow from Radio Today’s stable. The channel flaunts the idea of being the first and the only radio channel for women. “Going by the international trend, niche radio stations have a bright future in India, provided some policy changes are incorporated like multiple frequency allotment to every player,” says S. Keerthivasan, Business Head, Fever 104 FM. Agrees Anil Srivatsa, COO, Radio Today, “Niche radio will affect mass radio channels a lot because people will move on to specialised channels and hardly any audience will be left over for general channels.” Industry veterans believe that keeping in mind India’s diversity, niche stations can even be in regional languages, news focused, sports centric, business news driven, or even themed on the various music genres (rock, pop, jazz or classics), a la World Space on FM. Media planners agree that the expansion into niches will make business sense too as the advertising pie for the entire medium will expand substantially. They add that niche stations will also boost the entry of non-traditional advertisers on the radio bandwagon.

Even the traditional last frontier of mass marketing - the FMCG segment – is not unaffected by the rising niches within the masses. Upwardly mobile urban women are, by far, the favourite niche of these marketers, by virtue of their purchase decision making status within the family. So, Calcium Sandoz Woman, Amul Calci+ (a high calcium milk, which caters to the to-be-moms), and Horlicks for women are prime examples of marketers finding niches (within the mass), in addition to their mass markets. The positioning by such FMCG marketers is simple: educate this category about the importance of them remaining fit, to eventually look after their family better.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

The Big ‘B’ of venture capital in India

2008-07-31T15:37:00.000+05:30

“We are a long-term, patient investor; if you have to build world class companies, it does take time,” believes Bessemer Venture Partners, India

They are perhaps, as old as the concept of venture capital itself! Some of the best known technology brands globally have been seeded by Bessemer Venture Partners–the oldest VC firm in the United States. Bessemer steered its way into India in 2003 and made its first investment in year 2005. While the biggest of big, share this regret of “we should have invested much before in India,” this fund has no regret. According to Bessemer, the India growth story has just about begun and that they are a long-term and patient fund. In an exclusive tête-à-tête with 4Ps B&M, Devesh Garg, Head of Bessmer’s India practice, dwells at length on the correct recipe of creating a world-class company...

When did Bessemer actually got serious about India growth story?

In 2003-04 we started getting interested in India. I and my partner Rob Chandra, made the first trip in December 2002. We felt that India was becoming a really interesting place to invest in. An observation we made at that time was that India was not ready for traditional hi-tech investing, the kind of investing that we specialise in. We came to the conclusion that Indian investing will primarily be non-technology oriented. So, we started getting active in 2003. In 2004, we established our offices – one in Mumbai and another in Bangalore – and for the last four years, we have been actively investing in India. We have one of the largest India dedicated teams in place, comprising 14 people, 10 of whom are investment professionals. I have also physically relocated to India. I don’t fly down from US, make an investment and fly back. All this shows our commitment toward India, as we think long-term growth prospects are tremendous in the country. We have $500 million of committed capital across our two funds in the country.

What is Bessemers’ unique investment philosophy? How are you different from other service provider?

We look to find a strong alignment between our Limited Partners (whose money we have invested in) ourselves and the promoter/entrepreneur that we back, which makes our long-term success easier. We are very rigorous in our research and stay focused. We like to look for emerging growth sectors that offer things off-the-beaten path. This is because we have a long-term view and therefore stay very disciplined. Our investment size ranges between a dollar to somewhere between $30 million. What I mean by a dollar is that we would love to invest in seed companies too. We will take on entrepreneurs, we are really excited about that, give him the seed capital and help him start the company.

We add value in three areas – first, we have expertise in scaling and building operations, worldwide. Second, we have the ability to source customers. No matter what business you are into, you are always looking for customers whether local or global) and we have the ability to help investees with that. Lastly, financial sophistication. We understand how to assist in areas of financial sophistication, as we have operating partners to help with that.

Which are your most promising investments in India? And what sectors are you bullish on?

We are investors in Anant Raj industries (Construction and Infrastructure Developers), in Motilal Oswal (Financial services), Shriram EPC (servive provider for renewable energy projects), OnMobile (VAS for mobile operators), Deccan Chronicle Holdings (media). We have invested in a couple of start-ups as well, like Sarovar hotels (hospitality)and Sunil hi-tech (company focussing on power sector). We are also investor in Lloyd Electric, KS Oils and NetAmbit. We had four IPOs in a relatively short period of time, but we continue to hold on to our positions because we feel that there exists a positive long term opportunity. IPOs are not necessarily an exit event, it’s just a financing event and we still believe that these companies have a long way to go. Besides, we are a long-term, patient investor; if you have to build world class companies, it takes time. We invest across all geographies and sectors and our Indian portfolio reveals that. We forsee an investment boom in the infrastrucure space and all businesses that are linked to the growing consumer class of India, particularly growth-oriented, non-tech areas.

Apart from growth capital, what else does Bessemer bring to the table?

Within Bessemer, we have this concept of operating partners. The idea is to bring value added services to the companies. At the end of the day we are a service provider and we want to make sure that we have all capabilities in-house to add meaningful services and assistance to portfolios of companies that they should want. It is something that we do as a part of our association with each investee.

We have Sridhar Iyengar (former chairman and CEO of KPMG India), who brings deep experience in tax & audit; Mandeep Khaira (senior executive from Dell) – an expert in operations and procurement; Yagnesh Sanghrajka (former Global CFO for Hinduja TMT), so he knows how to deal with family-owned companies. We find promoters and entrepreneurs that have the ambition to create world class companies and ability to recognize things that we bring, and then jointly partner to create that.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Investee: Intelenet Global Ser.

2008-07-30T17:20:00.000+05:30

Investor: Blackstone Group

Investment Value: $200 mn

Susir Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, Intelenet Global Services, explains the key rationale behind the Blackstone and Intelenet deal to 4Ps B&M: “We wanted to retain our third party BPO focus and wanted to grow into a global brand. From the outset, we were very clear about what we were looking for in a potential partner. This deal with Blackstone will enable us to continue to grow as a third party BPO service provider and will also help our multi-pronged growth strategy. The association with Blackstone is a mutually beneficial one where Blackstone leverages Intelenet’s delivery capabilities for all its portfolio companies. Intelenet aims to optimally leverage Blackstone’s financial backing to improve and expand its operations. These acquisitions will enable Intelenet to expand its delivery footprint from solely offshore centres, to an on-shore and near-shore capability based out of the US and Latin America. Blackstone is lending its global brand and ready access to its investee portfolio.”

In one of the largest management buyouts in the BPO space, leading PE player Blackstone Group bought out HDFC and Barclays stake in Intelenet Global Services for a consideration of close to $200 million last year. Since incorporation in 2000, Intelenet has grown from 25 employees to over 17,000 employees across 18 locations in India and overseas. The fund infusion is enabling the investee company to become a global service provider with a global delivery footprint. In December 2007, Intelenet acquired two global companies, as part of its aggressive inorganic growth plans.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

Pension plans

2008-07-28T16:03:00.000+05:30

Now to pension plans; which are basically tools for retirement planning. Policyholders make contributions over a period of time (or even a one-time contribution) to form a corpus. This corpus is used to generate regular income for policy holders from the retirement age. The pension plans are flexible, whereby income can be received either for a fixed tenure or till death. In the majority of cases, investors avail of tax rebates under section 88 in the range of 15 % to 30% of the premium paid during the year depending on the total income. Tax benefits are also offered when medical riders are added to the policy as per section 80 D.

Looking at taxation of returns, thankfully, the maturity proceeds (either claims or at the term end) of all insurance policies including bonuses are entirely tax-free. But single premium policies are exceptions whereby the proceeds on maturity cannot avail of any tax benefits as they are charged as capital gains tax. At the same time, while contributions to pension funds are deductible from gross total income, the proceeds from the scheme are fully taxable as income from other sources. Pension schemes differ from insurance products as far as taxability of returns is concerned.

Of late, one amongst the most prized attractions for investors are the ULIPs. They are not only an important source for saving on tax and covering risk, but also aim to match the equity market returns. Explains Amit Saxena, CEO, Planman Financial, “The money paid towards ULIPs is partly spent on the purchase of units of the plan, and the balance is allocated towards the insurance premium.” Your premiums are invested in a mutual fund type of investment instrument. Some plans additionally guarantee the capital invested in the form of premiums paid, reducing the risk associated usually with other forms of equity related investments. Even these investments are eligible for tax break under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. The maximum eligible amount of investment under Section 80C is Rs.100,000. Under Section 10(10D) of the IT Act, even the maturity proceeds are tax-free. On another front, the Life Insurance Council, in order to encourage log term savings, has also sought exemptions on infrastructure bonds in ULIPs as they are directly channeled for infrastructure developments.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Punchline

2008-07-22T15:47:00.000+05:30

The first Amul hoarding, sporting the Utterly Butterly delicious girl in a polka dot frock came up in 1967, in Mumbai. The Amul mascot continues to be topical, funny and popular till date and has been sent to the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running campaign ever.

The tagline ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious,’ working from the last 50 years, remains ever contemporary & evergreen. The punchline is same from such a long time because we have the same advertising agency, same people at the top and the same product positioning. I don’t understand why Bajaj changed their tagline from ‘Hamara Bajaj’ as there was no need to do so because it was working well for them. These things change when people in the top management change. The tagline has definitely helped us grow. Today, we are the number one food company in India & market shares are consistently improving.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Surfing for a new Identity

2008-07-21T12:06:00.000+05:30

When IIPM comes to education, never compromise

A broadband pioneer broadens its offerings

Only change is constant... And when it comes to the world of the web, these words don’t fall apart. Realising this, Sify Technologies Limited launched its new logo and identity. The new brand promise of “Keeping you ahead” reiterates Sify’s focus on technology, innovation and new services. Unveiling the new brand identity, Raju Vegesna, CMD & CEO, Sify Technologies Ltd asserts, “The new identity is a reflection of our outlook and nature of business. A fresh, vibrant and eco-friendly green signalling a prosperous world. The logo is a futuristic one with a promise of keeping its customers and stakeholders ahead.” The plan is to provide Indian customers with many new VAS, with a focus on solutions like Math Guru and Sciences through their broadband and cybercafés and further offerings like security services and database services for both their consumer and enterprise businesses.

The strategic alteration is directed towards differentiating & strengthening its foothold in the market and adding to its consumer base. Though the investments aspect for the entire re-branding process has been kept under wraps, when asked, Raju shot back diplomatically, “We plan to invest according to the needs and requirements of the market. As of now we cannot disclose or put a number to it...” With other major players like Reliance and Bharti Airtel gaining a foothold over the market, Sify, the pioneer of broadband considers itself ahead of the pack as Raju puts it, “I don’t believe that there is any such competition. The market is growing and we welcome all the competition.” Surely, it all boils down to a broad veteran get broader...

Research bureau: Ratan Lal Bhagat

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global
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Profitability

2008-07-18T13:05:00.000+05:30

It was in the red for years and the task of turning it to profitability seemed impossible. But it happened. Indian Railways: the icon of profitability!

Cheers to Indian Railways, for its profits have simply been mind-blowing and have only got bigger during the past two years! The reasons for the same are intensive asset utilisation (track, wagons, coaches, locos), increase in axle load, improvement in turn-round of wagons and also lowering of unit costs through higher volumes. The railways also used differentiated strategy for social and commercial segments of operation and a dynamic and market-driven tariff for freight and premium passenger segments. The railways also made the reduction of tariffs in real terms. The railways is also utilising its real estate to earn revenues. To begin with, it is roping-in real estate developers and utilising PPPs as part of its makeover plans. While the former are a part of the modernisation plan of 225 railway stations across the country, the PPPs focus will fund a major portion of the dedicated rail freight corridor and high speed passenger corridors. PPP options are also being explored to by holding auction for the private sector to build malls, cineplexes and shopping arcades. Finally, the PPPs will also help develop energy-efficient trains with the state-of-the-art facility & controlling.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)

IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)

IIPM makes business education truly global

The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)

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A run(a)way success

2008-07-17T17:00:00.000+05:30

It’s yet another year of building a better India for GVK Reddy

“He is very dynamic! He has built up a professional team with clear lines of responsibilities,” avers Kamlesh Kotak, Vice President – Research, Asian Markets Securities, on being asked about G V Krishna Reddy, chairman of GVK Power and Infrastructure Limited. The audacity with which GVK Power and Infrastructure Ltd. snatched the Mumbai Airport project from the jaws of well established international players also speaks volumes about the leadership at the top of the company.

So, what is it that puts GVK Power & Infrastructure Ltd and its chairman G.V. Krishna Reddy in the watchout list for 2008? Well, there are a slew of reasons why this company will make some deafening noise in the coming year. As Kotak unhesitatingly states, “the company will be in the limelight at least for the next five years as it has an excellent business model, strong growth credentials & high earning visibility.” Another analyst tracking GVK, on the condition of anonymity said “GVK has quite a few big and long projects.”

The company has been impressively increasing its presence in the lucrative power sector and is also planning to get into power transmission and distribution – a step that further diversifies the business of the company, which is already into infrastructure, roads and construction, power generation, et al. Even the current airport business would generate higher cash flows in the future (or at least once the commercialisation of the space inside the airports happens). The company will also see a surge in revenues stemming from advertisements, rents, et al, along with the normal aero related revenues.

However, one can argue that it’s not always a cake walk. Agreed! GVK is operating in a sector where competition is definitely high, with the fight coming from the likes of REL, Gammon, Punj Lyod etc. But Kotak who has interacted with the company management reveals, “GVK has a good management team in place which is highly focused in their respective business domain and taking newer initiatives. Moreover, the pie is getting bigger by the day so, every one will get a fair share.” Apart from the competition, there’s one more thing that might prove to be heartbreak for the company – the execution. Winning projects is one thing, but many believe that the sector inherently embodies more than a few bureaucratic bottlenecks that may create problems in execution. For example, in the airport business, land availability, clearing slums, and getting approvals, are big problems that a company has to deal with, eventually causing project delays.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

The tabloid talisman

2008-07-14T17:55:00.000+05:30

Will tabloids ever replace your first newspaper of the day?

Yellow journalism and sensationalised reporting are almost synonymous to tabloids in the West; and to a large extent are the key factors contributing to their success also. In sharp contrast, the tabloid market in India (so far) is still unevolved and the fact is pretty obvious if you just zoom into the miniscule number of tabloids in the country. “You find a lot of niche magazines in the country, but not tabloids. While if you look at the West, there are even tabloids on niche subjects,” says Anita Nayyar, CEO, MPG India. “In India, television media has been known for tabloid journalism and sensational news and that’s one of the key reasons why tabloids have not been that popular in the country,” says columnist Sevanthi Ninan.

However, Mumbai is an exception to that. Tabloids are a success in Mumbai and its clearly reflected in the popularity of Mid Day in the city. Apart from Mid Day, there are other tabloids in the tinsel town like Vashi Times, Twin City, Newsband, 21st Century Commercial, though none of these is anywhere near the popularity ratings of Mid Day. The Mumbai Mirror is also fairly popular, but is positioned as a newspaper in compact form, as opposed to a tabloid.

On the contrary, tabloids had not been a popular concept in the national capital of Delhi, until recently. Last year, two major tabloids burst into the psyche of the national capital. The first one ‘Metro Now’ created history in the sense that the two arch rivals of the print industry, Times of India and Hindustan Times, joined hands to taste the tabloid market of Delhi. Then came Mail Today, a collaboration between India Today group and British group Associated Newspapers (which owns Daily Mail). “I find Mail Today as an interesting tabloid and I think it will pick up with Delhites, once the metro network in the capital city is completed,” offers Sevanthi. For now, the state government and DMRC is leaving no stone unturned to improve public transport in Delhi, after which the market for tabloids will become better, as they are traditionally read while travelling. Agrees Ravi Dhariwal, Executive Director, Times Of India, “The tabloid market is growing and will only get better with a strong public transport system.”

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
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Cup dé Espresso

2008-07-12T13:14:00.000+05:30

A ‘forbidden’ pleasure no more

For donkey’s years, we’ve heard admonitions about caffeine cravings so much so that we’ve grown to know coffee as the ‘forbidden drink’. Nutritionists and dieticians claiming coffee caused dehydration, besides being a diuretic put it on the ‘No-No’ list along with chocolate, ice cream and drinks. But for all you forlorn coffee lovers, here’s a twist! A recent research proves these theories wrong. In fact, other studies even prove that a doze of caffeine could actually help one walk the treadmill longer than usual.

Confirms Dr. Mukesh Batra, Chairman and MD, Dr. Batra’s Positive Health Clinics Pvt. Ltd., “Caffeine has been shown to increase short-term intense exercise performance, stop-start activities (football, rugby etc), and long distance running and pumping iron. It is likely that coffee increases the fat burning process.” However, this may not be applicable to one and all as Dr. Batra cautions, “Individual results may vary greatly. Differences in metabolism, diet, and frequency of consumption, are a few factors that can determine how an individual will react to caffeine.”

The research which reviewed a dozen studies concluded that caffeine, (if taken in mild dozes of up to 500 mg a day i.e. slightly over three cups of coffee daily) wouldn’t adversely affect one’s exercise routine.

Back on the Indian shores, nutritionists aren’t ready to let coffee addicts rejoice just yet. “Dehydration is a potential concern because caffeine is a mild diuretic,” asserts Dr. Batra.

It wouldn’t hurt to indulge in a cup or two but that sure doesn’t give you the licence to go easy on those spoonfuls of sugar or creamers!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

TIME believes in her!

2008-05-08T12:49:00.000+05:30

Sheetal MAFATLAL...has been rated as India’s Fashion Retail Pioneer by the TIME Magazine

Known for her flamboyant style and elegance, Sheetal Mafatlal is the President of Mafatlal Luxury Ltd. When Sheetal, the style icon, married Atulya Mafatlal in 2000, she joined one of the oldest industrial families of India. Sheetal, who started with her father’s business, ultimately carved a niche for herself as a businesswoman by selling modular kitchens before founding Mafatlal Luxury. Interestingly, Sheetal fits the ‘beauty with brains’ plume perfectly, with degrees in finance & law.

She established Mafatlal Luxury in 2005 when the Mafatlal Group chose to make a strategic foray into luxury retailing. Not only this, she is also President of Mafatlal Home Products Ltd. The lady who always wanted to do something connected to fashion, brought luxury and fashion together by partnering with Valentino Fashion Group and opened the first Valentino boutique in Delhi last year.

“My ambition is to create a retail commemorate for a variety of brands,” Sheetal told 4Ps B&M. With so many feathers already on her hat, she was also profiled as India’s Fashion Retail Pioneer by TIME Magazine. The future would surely see Sheetal dictate India’s fashion essentials...

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Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative

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The Sunday Indian

Now over to the idiot box!

2008-04-09T11:06:00.000+05:30

The following points are the ruling criteria for selecting and short-listing the winning TVC ads: Product positioning clarity; clinching benefi t to the brand; presence of a power idea; visibility of brand personality; expectancy of communication; single-minded focus of message; reward to the prospect; visually arresting and painstaking craftsmanship. Here’s a peek into our TVC verdict for the fortnight ended June 19, 2007. Ready to groove?

BRAND: Hero Honda Pleasure
AGENCY: FCB Ulka
BASELINE: Why should boys have all the fun?

DESCRIPTION: A guy’s car breaks down in front of a railway station. He seems to be an American Born Confused Desi (ABCD). Enter, Priyanka Chopra (dressed typically like a Punjabi kudi), riding a Hero Honda Pleasure. She offers him a lift after finding out that he wants to visit one Mr. Singh. On their way, she asks him about his purpose of visit when he says that he has come to see Mr. Singh’s daughter Manjeet and calls her a silly village girl. So when the ABCD asks her if she knows Manjeet, she says she looks like a buffalo and drops him back to the railway station – after telling him that she is Manjeet. While the ABCD bangs his head in despair, Priyanka signs off saying, ‘‘Why should boys have all the fun?’

4Ps TAKE: Hero Honda Pleasure has always kept women on top for an obvious reason: women (not just city slickers but gaon ki goris too) are the brand’s target audience. This time Priyanka Chopra takes great pleasure to take the guy’s trip – and how! Scoring high on communication, the tongue-in-cheek storyboard, and the splendid visuals, the message is sent across loud and clear. The tagline -- ‘Why should boys have all the fun?’ -- simply reinforces the communication. The power-idea is to depict woman power and show the fairer sex as being much smarter than the opposite sex. The USP? Well, the all new 100cc Hero Honda Pleasure is light to handle and easy on the move. And the reward to the prospect is, of course, Priyanka Chopra: if she can do it, why can’t the rest of the girls? What a pleasure!

BRAND : Sunfeast Pasta Treat
AGENCY : JWT
BASELINE : Pizza Style

DESCRIPTION: Shahrukh Khan asks two kids whether they want to have pasta or a pizza. The kids say that they want both. Shahrukh replies, ‘No problemo’ in an Italian accent, and the kids seem surprised. He then tells them about the new Sunfeast Pasta Treat Pizza-style and shows them the packet, explaining that the product contains wheat, real tomatoes and corns (all the good and healthy things!). He then explains how easy it is to prepare: just boil the pasta and it is ready in pizza style in just 10 minutes. He serves the dish to them and the kids love it. They yell out: Yummy! And Shahrukh says Mama Mia.

4Ps TAKE: Sachin and Shahrukh are both taking ITC’s Sun Feast brand to newer heights as its brand ambassadors. The power idea is to launch the new Sunfeast ‘pasta treat in pizza style’ via the communication in Italian style. Nothing new, but truly, hats off to King Khan, who has, as usual, done the job with oodles of pizzazz. The visual is appealing with the two oh-sosweet kids tucking into the tasty pasta that tastes like pizza! The USP is its lip-smacking taste. The reward to the prospect – let’s just put it down to the health angle: unlike pizza, that is supposed to be a fast food, this one gets a thumbs up for being health conscious. In the end, we have to say, Very tasty, Very Italiano!

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Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative

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The spice route

2008-03-24T13:30:00.000+05:30

There’s a spices park coming up in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara district. To be built on a nine-acre plot of land, the project will cost about Rs.9.95 crores (Rs.99.5 million), and will offer facilities for dehydration of garlic products, coriander leaves, green chilly extracts, turmeric and other medicinal plants and herbs. Other than these, there is also a proposal to set up a world-class testing laboratory. Phew! This initiative will be jointly sponsored by Spices Board and State Trading Corporation. Now that’s really hot!

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Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative

The Sunday Indian

Tale of how McChicken is going McGreen

2008-03-03T11:04:00.000+05:30

The twists and turns started in the late 1980s when McDonald’s faced censure for its polystyrene clamshell containers. In ‘87, McDonald’s replaced CFCs, with weaker HCFC-22’s after facing criticism for ‘contributing to ozone depletion’. They then organized efforts to mail clamshells back to Oak Brook head-quarters, establishing a “Ronald McToxic Campaign”. More such innovative nomenclatures were churned out by these groups – “McPuff ” was the name given to the project when McDonald’s tested its on-site incinerators. In 2006, a sensational protest came from Greenpeace when 7-foot-tall chickens invaded McDonald’s restaurants across the UK and chained themselves to chairs in a protest against deforestation of the Amazons. McDonald’s was accused of sourcing soya and beef from the deforested areas of Amazon. Acting fast, in the same year, McDonald’s and other food companies formed an alliance with Greenpeace to stop the traders from deforesting Amazon.

Thus, with the expansion of a strong environmental policy declaring that Mc- Donald’s is committed to protecting the environment for future generations, they sure are treading the “Green-Back” along with the “Green Path”

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Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative

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The Sunday Indian

The realty sector in India is quickly coming up to global standards, but a lot still needs to be done...

2008-02-18T12:03:00.000+05:30

The sector which was largely unorganised fragmented and unregulated in the 1990’s has seen tremendous transformation. Relaxation in government regulations and liberalisation of the market has resulted in foreign funds investing in the sector. A large number of global private equity firms like Goldman Sachs, DSP Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan have started investing in the Indian real estate market. It is estimated that over $4- 5 billion of FDI was pumped into the sector during 2006, while during 2005-06, the bank credit to the sector touched Rs.2.60 trillion against Rs.1.45 trillion during the previous year. Streamlining of the regulatory framework has gone a long way in making the sector more transparent, thus making the environment more investor-friendly. Today, the Indian real estate sector has moved into the large corporate space by getting listed, forming credible JVs with large foreign partners. This capital infusion from legitimate sources has further led to the sector being organised and transparent.

Increasing exposure to international capital has also encouraged local firms to match international standards, thereby raising the bar for domestic players. The immediate beneficiary has of course been the Indian customer who gets the benefit of high quality products across a wide range. Also, this has helped in ‘corporatising’ the Indian real estate sector resulting in higher standard in accountability, performance, quality and on time project management. One can see significant improvements in market transparency, with better standards of reporting and legal processes.

Having said that, I feel there is a lot more that can be done to ensure more accountability, transparency and discipline in the real estate industry. In order to help this sector gain more respect, a more focused and liberal approach & the right kind of impetus has to be given by the government. The government has to join hands with the private sector, as it can further catalyse growth. A more supportive attitude, sustained focus and relaxed fee structure would give the sector the much needed thrust.

Mining sector reform on the anvil

2008-02-06T12:11:00.000+05:30

The policy envisages “attracting domestic & foreign direct investments to the tune of Rs.1,000 billion in the mining sector & generating direct & indirect employment for about 500,000 skilled & unskilled labour force by 2011.” If approved, it would allow 100% FDI in mining of all minerals, barring Coal, Lignite & atomic minerals. Furthermore, staterun agencies will be treated at par with private entities for the purpose of award of concessions. There will be no mandatory joint venture with local or state-owned companies for mining. The Secretary General of Federation of Indian Mineral Industries, R.K. Sharma, told B&E, “On the whole, it is a good step forward, but the auction of mineral deposits & provision of captive mines needs to be opposed.” He further added, “Tatas are sitting over 3,000 million tonnes of iron ore deposits & produce only about 5 million tonnes of steel; while SAIL, which has control over 5,000 million tonnes of steel, produces over 13.33 million tonnes of steel.”

Development needs to be promoted, but selling the assets of the nation at runaway price would be abominable & a breach of people’s trust in the state.