IIPM College: January 2013

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Its infrastructural needs can at best be described as pathetic

UPA government’s record in augmenting its infrastructural needs can at best be described as pathetic, feels Sharad Gupta

However, the biggest blow that UPA government delivered to the infrastructure sector was to the roads. All the national highway projects have been running behind schedule – ranging from few months to five years – resulting in manifold cost escalation. And the Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, T. R. Baalu had busied himself with shuffling his officers if not kicking off controversy over the Ram Sethu.

He changed the ministry’s secretary five times, NHAI chairman four times and junior officials several times over, during the last five years. What he couldn’t change however, was the consistently falling progress of National Highway Development Programme (NHDP). It slid from 81% during 2004, the year he took over, to less than 20% in 2009, the year when he would quit office. In fact, no new projects have been awarded during the last nine months.

Things turned ugly last month when World Bank (WB) cancelled a Rs.31 billion grant for four-laning of 485-kms long NH-28 from Muzaffarpur to Lucknow. The loan was sanctioned in 2005 and the project was supposed to be completed by 2010. Even Committee on Infrastructure chaired by the Prime Minister pointed out that NHAI was taking 20 months to award a project against the scheduled time frame of five months and the project award rate is down from 70% in 2005-06 to 17% in FY 2007-08. Only 49% of work was completed under the first phase of NHDP-I in 2007-08. That is why, the first phase of the NHDP project, which was supposed to be complete by December 2007 (after several revisions), is still on. Similarly, contracts for four-laning of 811 kms were to be given in FY 2007-08 under NHDP-II but MoRTH could award contracts for only 43 km, a pathetic 5% progress. The NHAI, however, performed slightly better by achieving 51% of its target of four-laning 2,013 kms.

Contracts could be awarded for just 278 kms out of targetted 3,278 kms during FY 2007-08 under NHDP-III – a dismal 9% achievement. Progress of NHDP-V was slightly better as 882 kms work was awarded against a target of 2,995 kms – 29% achievement during FY 2007-08. The situation can be gauged from the fact that it took NHAI six years to complete a nine-kms stretch of Tumkur by-pass in Karnataka.

Read more.....

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

Friday, January 25, 2013

Cinema on 18mm

Here’s a new avenue for individuals to unleash their creativity: Cell phone cinema!

Many people may argue that mobile phone radiation is harmful to one’s health. Some say it can damage one’s DNA; some put up videos on YouTube showing how it can cook an egg and even make popcorns! Worst of all, phones with cameras are often used by the disoriented and perverted minds to come up with scandalous MMS videos. However, Asian Academy of Film & Television (AAFT) has given mobile phone users a new direction, toward the art of movie making. So, as it goes ahead promoting this radiation-emitting monster, no one, as yet, is complaining. This year, on 21st January, 2009, it organised the 2nd International Film Festival of Cell Phone Cinema, which aims at providing a platform for creative individuals to create masterpieces by making use of this rapidly growing technology. Here, the competition was in the field of fiction/music videos, reality/electronic news gathering, and still images, wherein the participants are expected to use mobile phones only in order to take photographs, and videos are not to exceed the time limit of three minutes. The competition witnessed 500 entries from over 20 countries.

They were judged by a jury, which comprised a mix of Indian and international personalities such as Karl Bardosh, Master Professor, Tisch School of Arts, NYU and the pioneer of these awards; Kurt Inderbitzin, Hollywood Film producer/director; Rahul Rawail, film director; Pankaj Prashar, film director; and Arun Anand, still photographer. The winners for the video films were All Elements of Hand – Ek Kavita by Sachin Sreshta and Mukti Krishnan as well as Rainwaters by Sachit Sadanandan; which won US $1,000 and US $500 respectively. While the first is a film that shows what a human can achieve with his or her hands, including surreal achievements like holding sunlight in one’s palm, the second is a film about rain water harvesting. The best award for a still photograph with a prize of US $500 went to Dead Carrier can Die too by Kamal Mahrishi that showed a discarded van from a morgue. The winning films will be screened at New York University – Tisch School of the Arts Theatre.

Akshay Marwah, the festival director, quotes film director Pankaj Prashar to enumerate the criteria for choosing the winners, “the main idea was not replacing a film camera by a film camera, but to see that a mobile phone can capture moments that film cameras can’t, and that is one of the most important criteria and of course technicalities and quality would follow.” Mr. Rawail, one of the jury members, said, “Whatever the technology, it is ultimately the content which should hold the attention of the viewer, and therefore those who create, must realise that their responsibility has increased”.

Read more.....

Monday, January 21, 2013

THEY TOOK THE COMPARISON TOO SERIOUSLY WE GUESS

INDONESIA, PHILIPPINES & VIETNAM WERE FAMED TO BE FOLLOWING THE JAPANESE GROWTH PATH... THEY TOOK THE COMPARISON TOO SERIOUSLY WE GUESS. BY VIRAT BAHRI

Also, these economies are plagued by the “huge dependence on exports and foreign capital,” according to Prof. Baladas Ghoshal, Visiting Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi. He laments how these economies, particularly Indonesia and Philippines, still face high income inequality (hence a weak domestic market), rampant corruption and deteriorating infrastructure.

As far as Indonesia is concerned, the dubious $670 million bail out of Bank Century last year has already raised suspicion about the true state of the country’s banking and regulatory system. The economy started to slow in the third quarter of 2008. Fitch analysts Ai Ling Ngiam and James McCormack, caution, “The rundown in the foreign exchange reserves position during H208 to help minimise the impact of extreme currency volatility, and the forecast decline in current external receipts attributable to weak external conditions, weigh down on Indonesia’s external finance ratios in 2009.” Net foreign buying dropped by around 32% in 2008. Thanks to that, CDS premiums on the Indonesian government widened to as much as 1400 basis points. Portfolio investments began to revive in early 2009, but direct investment inflows began to come down. The country’s capital and finance accounts posted a deficit of $2.4 billion in the second quarter of 2009. Instability has taken its toll on the rupiah, which depreciated to as low as Rp11,000 to the US dollar in the first quarter of 2009. With global trade expected to decline by around 9% in 2009, Indonesia faces further risks, as its exports for June 2009 were around $7.6 million, down by 27% yoy. “Indonesia’s export sector is undiversified and exposed to terms of trade shocks; commodity exports constituted (a rather high) 46% of CXR,” as per Fitch Ratings. In addition, the credit problem has been detrimental to growth. In its latest Financial Stability Review, Bank Indonesia, the country’s central bank, cautions, “Recently, Indonesia has faced increasing difficultly in the bank intermediary function, similar to the problems that persisted for years following the 1997/1998 crisis.” From a growth of 37% yoy in 2008, credit has grown by just about 2.1% yoy this year. Fitch warns that the government’s external solvency position is still “relatively weak within its peer group.”

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Sunday, January 20, 2013

cANKER BRYGGE HOTEL, SVOLVAER

Located in Svolvaer, the capital of Lofoten, the Anker Brygge hotel overlooks the harbour and is connected with a bridge to the mainland. Enjoy your stay at this lovely facility in Lofoten, which offers accommodation in traditional and luxurious rorbus, apartments and suites. One can feel nostalgia gripping at the quay and the rorbuer which are carefully restored. Spend a quiet evening with friends at the hotel’s bar or relax those muscles at the spa. There is also a conference room equipped with modern technology. The Anker Brygge hotel is for those seeking luxury in a cosy atmosphere.

The View: All the rorbu suites at the hotel provide an unhindered view of the harbour, the ocean and the mountains. The hotel bar stretches out on the quay, providing the most spectacular view.

Archi Type: The hotel is built in a classy complex, with brown and red rorbuers decorated with buildings made of white wood. The hotel is arranged like pearls on a string. The decor is rustic with a lot of details. The architecture is done traditionally with a hint of modernity.

Bon Appétit: Kjokkenet, the hotel’s restaurant is becoming the numero uno choice for people in Svolvaer. The restaurant is a gourmet place and serves sumptuous seafood.

Around The Corner: The hotel is strategically situated within walking distance of the town square, along the walkway on the main quay to Hurtigruten and the local shops, to ensure that you are never away from all the action.

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Friday, January 18, 2013

How special is your speciality?

Specialised MBAs are now coming up in various sectors. B&E meets up with specialists within these sectors to find out whether such niche mbas are useful in the long term...

The specialised MBA tag is getting significantly wider in scope and appeal. While we had specialisation streams available in areas like agriculture since many years (IIM-A being a leading example) and in computers too since the past two decades, recent MBA specialisation steams have included eclectic areas like production management (for example, Indian Institute of Production Management’s School of Management; not included in our current survey), petroleum management, hospital management and more; in fact, we even have specialisations in the football and wine industry now (not in India though)! But do they work or not?

When MBA institutes, as well as the students who join them, invest their time and money in specialised MBA courses, they have an agenda in mind. The students want to establish a unique positioning, with a specific target audience in mind; i.e. the sector in question. Sometimes, such a unique positioning is actually driven by an illusory impression created through a short term growth in the sector in question (for example, MBA with retail specialisation); a growth that may or may not last over the long term. Sometimes, the MBA specialisation in itself is created by teaching only a mere handful of subjects – in one university-affiliated institute that we went to, the specialisation course in retail management was restricted to simply three elective subjects. To be fair, we did not deeply investigate the depth that each of these courses had – perhaps they did too – but what was clear was that even students aren’t analysing more important factors like contents, academic orientation and industry interface in the specialisation area, before taking up the course.

Moreover, unless a student is crystal-clear about his/her industry preferences, this could be akin to playing a major career gamble, just based on the hype that the sector generates.

But then, there is an other side to all this too – the better side. Retail is a perfect example, where the managerial crunch runs in thousands, with the industry being brilliantly unorganised. Gibson G. Vedamani, former chairperson of Retailers Association of India, goes as far as to claim, “The potential is very high in retail Industry as today 50% of the retailers look for specialised MBAs in their organisations.” Pantaloon started off a novel initiative when it tied up with management institutes for providing retail management courses. The trend has surely kickstarted now.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

Thursday, January 17, 2013

PROFILE SUMMARY: RAHM EMANUEL

Countries like Iran and India have strangely not realised the importance of Rahm Emanuel; it is time...

In just six years in Congress, he has risen to leadership, helping to craft myriad important pieces of legislation and guide them to passage... The son of an Israeli immigrant, Rahm shares a passionate love for this country, and has devoted much of his life to its cause... I appreciate his friendship. And I, and all Americans, should be grateful that Rahm is once again answering his country’s call.” It has been unprecedented for any past President of the United States to publicly accept his personal closeness at such levels to such a high member of the cabinet, and this at the danger of being accused of being nepotistic.

And the biggest advantaged entity we guess is Israel. Rahm is a Jew, has served as a civilian volunteer in the Israeli defense force, and is expected to be the leading think tank behind Obama’s strategy on Israel (Benjamin Emanuel, father of Rahm, said, “Obviously he [Rahm] will influence the President to be pro-Israel. Why wouldn’t he? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to clean the floors of the White House.”). Recently, Obama cancelled his planned visit to the UJC/Jewish Federation of North America conference. It would have been Obama’s first major address to a Jewish American group since he became President. No prizes for guessing who’s going in Obama’s place.

It would do well for nations at the wrong end of Obama’s different sticks – for examples Iran, India – to instead try and convince Rahm Emanuel on many conflicting issues. Think about it, how many times has an Indian or Iranian government head invited/talked to/met or even mentioned Emanuel’s policy on India? There, you have the answer!

Read more......

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

RIO DE JANEIRO: OLYMPIC BID

Brazil is on track to host the 2016 Olympics, but it must also focus on developing more world class athletes

Along with Lula, soccer legend Pele and Olympic champion swimmer Cesar Cielo were also there to urge IOC members. Lula da Silva said in his appeal to IOC delegates, “It’s not possible that it be in England in 2012 and in another European country in 2016 ... It’s not fair that Brazil, one of the 10 biggest economies in the world for 30 years; that Brazil, one of the world’s industrialized countries, a nation that has demonstrated its love for sports; it’s not fair that Brazil not be chosen.”

Europe has already hosted 30 Olympic games, while Asia has five. Oceania has hosted two and North America has bagged 12, including eight in the US alone. Rio also hosted the Pan American Games in 2007, which has led to a lot of positive change in the city. Even the local public support was higher for Rio as per the IOC poll. Around 67% locally supported Chicago, 56% locally supported the Tokyo and 85% locally supported the Games in Rio and Madrid.

Lula knows that along with a huge games infrastructure, Rio needs a complete re-fabrication of its transportation system. To ease the chaotic traffic of the city, Rio is planning to make roadways through granite mountains (from Ipanema to Barra da Tijuca). Rio also plans to upgrade its bus rapid transit or BRT systems. With the poverty graph moving southwards and offshore oil deals paying off the county well, things are indeed looking up for the company. Out of the total planned investment of $14.4 billion, around $11.5 billion will be spent on building/upgrading infrastructure. As per Brazil’s sports ministry, the games are expected to rake in 120,000 jobs each year across Brazil until 2016 and an additional 130,000 jobs per year for the following 10 years.

The biggest predicament for this nation now is preparing its athletes, especially in the country that is known as Holy Grail of football, but not so much for other sports. China spend millions on development of its athletes, while UK is doing the same for the London Olympics in 2012. Just like China, Brazil will want to showcase its growing might to the world in every possible way through these Olympic games. And an inspired performance by its own athletes may just be the icing on the cake it needs.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Can CMD R.s. sharma save india’s most profitable company?

For decades, ONGC was a virtual monopoly when it came to oil and gas in India. Now, CMD R.S Sharma finds that players like Reliance and Cairn can outsmart and outrun it. ratan lal bhagat analyses his dilemma.

As the car virtually hurtled away from the Ahmedabad airport after an uneventful flight, my flight of fancy took over in an almost childish manner. Here I was, all set to see what so many had passionately described as Black Gold. The jolts that I encountered as the driver played footsie with the accelerator was bliss compared to the torture that the corporate communications guy had put me through; before he even made my office pay for the trip! My seniors had consoled me and persuaded me to persist badgering the PR guy. Their logic was: since he is a de facto government employee and since you are not Barkha Dutt, you have to persist. After months of frustration, I was finally headed towards an oil well being drilled by ONGC, India’s most profitable company. I was excited because I had heard many professionals and even journalists talk about the ‘high’ you get when you can see oil literally gushing out of a field. And I was silently thankful to R.S. Sharma, the Chairman and Managing Director of ONGC who personally facilitated this trip despite the incredible inertia displayed by his corporate communications people. It wasn’t exactly the same, but I couldn’t help recalling the first time I hired a cab to go on a date.

It was virtually an anti-climax when we reached the ONGC drilling site about 40 kilometres away from Ahmedabad. There was no gushing oil that I could see. Nor could I see men throwing their hard hats and cheering and cursing in a manner that resembles a confirmed bachelor suddenly discovering that he does want something! But, after the first bout of disappointment at not having seen what I had fantasised about, I began to see the complex web of pipes, equipment, hats, sucker rod pumps, et al, in a more sober and realistic light. And within a few hours, I got to actually first see oil definetly not gushing out as we see in movies-but quietly gurgling away in separators at the ONGC facility in Kalol near Ahmedabad.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

CHINA: WTO

WTO finally pulls up errant China

Even though American movie companies have tried tooth and nail to keep prices low, they are suffering. Although the WTO has nudged China to clamp down on piracy, it is difficult to curb bootlegging altogether in this vast country (which is an outcome of China’s own pigeonhole). China’s unprecedented growth over the last 3 decades was primarily triggered by export of manufactured goods that have been outsourced through China by the West. But this Asian giant has been very slyly restricting imports, except for raw materials and intermediate goods (for example computer chips are imported from Japan to be assembled in China and then to be shipped to the US).

The US sees this saga as an opportunity to ensure that China complies with the rules of the WTO and ergo protects intellectual property rights, something they haven’t done since they joined the organisation in 2001. But knowing the dragon’s incorrigible tendencies to act in self interest, this dispute may not be dying down very soon. For them, back to the wall literally means back to the Wall...

Read more.....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

Sunday, January 13, 2013

A Ball by the Baltic

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree”, said Emily Bronte; and autumn in Jurmala is one time when this spa resort turns ‘golden.’ In this blissful golden forest, one could unwind and recuperate at will. Jurmala, quietly nestled near the Baltic Sea and amidst the famous continental European nations like Germany and Finland, is amongst the most fascinating Baltic destinations. Jurmala boasts of its National parks, awe-inspiring art and architecture, white sand beaches and beautiful boulevards perfectly suitable for soothing romantic walks.

Once in Jurmala, pamper yourself by visiting the wide range of spas available, and indulge in tempting curative massages. ‘Paradise city’, as Jurmala is also known, is well known for its hydrogen springs and a certain kind of mud, which has medicinal properties, very useful for massages and mud- treatments. If your idea of recuperation is some breathtaking adventure, then drive down to Sigulda and experience some skydiving simulation without the parachute. One doesn’t need to get on a plane and jump out of it; simply float in the air above gigantic ventilators in a vertical wind tunnel. But if your idea of a good day spent is exploring new places, then a visit to the city of Tukums is a must. It is a very short drive away from Jurmala and is better known as Latvian Hollywood! One could take props and don the army gear and pretend to fight the war in a battlefield, while making funny videos and taking hilarious pictures. Jurmala also offers its guests a glimpse of the late 19th century. In the vicinity are some wonderful old wooden homes and other buildings that display many decorative Art Nouveau details. Those who appreciate art, culture and tradition would love to visit the Baznica Church and Jurmala City Museum, which has almost 50 thousand exhibits in different historical and artistic collections, as well as exhibits of underwater archaeology. Jurmala’s true assets are its white sand beaches like Majori and Bulduri beach.

Jurmala, probably has the longest stretch of beaches on one side and on the other is the beautiful Lielupe River, which flows parallel to the beach. Those accompanied by kids could splash around at the Aqua Park. Nature lovers can go for some photography or a refreshing walk in Kemeri National Park.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri – A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
IIPM – FLP (Flexi Learning Program)

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Eureka! it’s 3m

It’s the ‘Ingenious Technology’ that has been the driving force behind this component supplier’s longevity in India...

B&E: What was the vision and mission for the Indian market when you started off?

AN: After many years of servicing India on an export basis through our Singapore operations, it was felt that we could better service our customers with a full-fledged local presence. 3M India commenced operations in April 1988 with a focus of providing products and solutions for the healthcare, packaging, telecommunications and electric power distribution sectors. These four sectors were also the focus areas for the Indian government at that point. Our vision was to provide innovative product solutions to the Indian customer with the aim of strengthening our worldwide claim that 1 in 4 people around the world experience a 3M product on a daily basis.

B&E: What understanding of the Indian market did you have then and what strategies did you formalise for the market penetration?

AN: Typically when we enter an emerging market we focus on infrastructure. Additionally, we recruited a seasoned team to carry out an assessment of where the opportunities lay for 3M. Further, the breadth of 3M’s portfolio provided numerous options. While 3M India did have access to 3M’s entire range of products, all of them would not have suited the Indian market. Hence, we slowly introduced products in India using two strategies – manufacturing and stock-and-sell. 3M made a modest start with a sale of Rs.28o million in the first year of its operations.

Read more.....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

Education system in India

The latest Union Budget has given ample scope to HRD Minister Kapil Sibal to realise his grand dreams to completely revamp and restructure the education system in India. In an exclusive interview to priyanka rai, Sibal lays down a road map for how he will do to education what Manmohan Singh did with the economy in 1991. B&E wishes him Godspeed.

B&E: Did you harbour any desire back then to bring about a change in the education system?
KS: As a young boy you don’t usually think about such things.

B&E: How pressing really is the need to change the education system?
KS: India cannot wait anymore. Time is running steadily out. We just cannot afford to set up committees and wait for their reports. It is time to act now. We need to move forward with three mantras: expansion, inclusion and excellence. That translates into access, equity and quality. You must expand opportunities in education. Therefore, you must not depend only on the government or the private sector. You must think about new structures to deliver learning to the people. It must be inclusive because at the heart of it is the fundamental duty of the state to ensure that the underprivileged have access. Once you have access and there is equity you cannot compromise with quality. So you must deliver quality education at all levels. My focus is mainly primary and secondary education. I think once you increase the gross enrollment ratio then you will have enough stock to take care of higher education.

B&E: So you are essentially thinking about a bottom-up approach.?
KS: It has to be the bottom-up approach. At the moment, out of every 100 individuals who go to school, only 11 graduate. No country can move forward with this kind of gross enrolment. I also wish to remove trauma from education. I don’t want parents and children to be traumatised as they move up the ladder. School education must not be a traumatic experience for parents and children.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

“We’re working hard to make LG a premium brand”

Soon H. Kwon, MD, LG Electronics India, talks about his company’s growth and positioning strategies in a very competitive Indian market

Competition has risen in the Indian consumer durables market post-recession. How is LG dealing with this change in environment?
The Indian consumer durables market has become very competitive today. During the past few years consumers have become willing to pay more for features and quality products. LG’s entire strategy depends on how to meet demands of new age customers. We are constantly introducing new products & categories with a key focus on localisation.

Your core positioning strategy has changed. LG was a mass market brand, and today, it is being positioned as a premium offering. Is this strategy working for the brand?
We are still working towards becoming a premium brand from a mass market brand. We are working on our products, communication strategy, and with channel partners. As far as market share and leadership in the segment is concerned, we still lead in most of the product lines and are not far behind in some. We are working hard to protect our leadership by launching new products with the latest technologies and combining such launches with better communication.

Samsung, Sony and Panasonic are regularly launching innovative products. But actually, we haven’t seen much from LG. Why?
Our brand spends heavily in understanding consumer insights and lifestyle. Depending on that we launch products which our customers demand. Our marketing activities are then planned accordingly. So we launch innovative products as and when the consumers demand them. Ultimately, our aim is to sell good products.

The mobile handset segment has been a trouble area for LG. What’s your plan on this front?
Yes, we still need to catch up in the handsets segment as our performance is not satisfactory as compared to how we fare in other categories. We are working on it. This year we will launch 12 new Android handsets in the price bracket of Rs 7,000 to Rs 35,000 for Indian consumers. We will begin the launch from May with Optimus 4X HD smartphone with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and quad core Nvidia Tegra 3 mobile processor. These launches will definitely enhance our market share in mobile handsets.

Read more.....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

Critical success factors

1. Seek strong consumer insights
Really go the extra mile to understand their attitudes, behaviours and, importantly, deep emotional drivers. For example, in the UK, Skoda understood that the brand was derided by consumers for its historic poor quality and image. Post the VW acquisition though, product quality was significantly improved and they tackled the negative attitudes head on with a campaign based on the thought “You won’t believe it’s a Skoda.”

2. Unearth product truths

Again, really go the extra mile to understand the strengths of the brand, particularly in a competitive context. When you think you’ve got to the truth, carry on looking.

3. Happiness is a tight brief
When it comes to the creative brief, ensure it’s really tight. Any creative worth their salt will say that a tight brief leads to the best work. Be uncompromising in its focus.

Read more......

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

‘Thin’ tanks

Are Indian think tanks a farce?

Even though India is one of the first countries outside Europe and North America, where modern universities have been created (University of Calcutta was established in 1857), it has failed to create an education system par excellence, comparable to the best of the world. Even China’s performance is much better than India. The country has created world class universities like Tsinghua, Fudan and Beijing.

Equally alarming is the quality of think tanks in India. The inputs that have been received from our think tanks by the policy makers over the years have been mooted with contentiousness and indecisiveness. Albeit the fact that there are 122 think tanks in India, only a little more than a handful of them are of quality. Centre for Civil Society, Centre for Indian Political Research and Analysis and Centre for Policy Research are some of the best, although each of them functions in their specialised area of interest.

Read more......

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.