11th issue : Arm-In-Arm

Cradle of Leadership:

Dr. Chandra P. Shrimali, Director, Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon

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Volume 1, Issue No. 11 / August 1-15, 2015 / `50

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www.corporatecitizen.in

Meet Manoj Biswas

Officer and Corporate Gentleman Love ke baad Shaadi bhi-2

What is love and commitment for Pooja and Abhijeet Srivastava...

Leading Lights, Engaging Insights The Asia HRD Congress 2015

Dynamic Duo 11

Shibani and Manoj Biswas

Arm-In-Arm

CII’s prize winning Case Studies-4 NEW SERIES

From the desk of Editor-In-Chief

Reactions to Provocations

L

adies and gentlemen, assume that you have been pushed to the corner by your adversary…

Understand, that he is equally strong. Remember though, that chances of winning over a situation always exist. Tell me, how will you react to such a situation? An eminent psychologist posed this hypothetical challenge during a lecture-cum-discussion session in a seminar on ‘Leadership’. We, post graduate students of Personnel Management were asked to form groups, discuss alternative courses, and give a quick response. Thereafter, we had to individually come out with workable strategies.

As we huddled in groups to brainstorm, the psychologist intervened to caution us on some crucial points. He said, “Utopian concepts have no place in management. The resources at your disposal are scarce and their optimum utilisation is sine-quo-non. Since the market is highly competitive, you cannot afford to put off a swift decision, else your rival will take over the vacuum that gets created. Therefore, you have no option but to plan carefully and act fast. Planning is nothing but finding answers to three basic questions -- Where do we stand?

Where do we want to go? How do we go?”

The session went on for over three hours, as the psychologist intently listened to each student but reserved his own option. However, he summed up the session with the following remarks: “A man’s stature and attitude can be judged by the moral strength he possesses and exhibits in times of crisis. A person may be an intellectual giant and may even be valiant enough to meet any challenge, but if his mind is confused and he vacillates at every stage he cannot be depended upon. A person should maintain his equipoise under all circumstances and for this, control of the mind, through constant practice, discipline and check over the senses, should be ensured.”

The psychologist paused for a while and then said, “The strength of the leader lies in his capacity to maintain patience when he is subjected to shock. He must then dispassionately and pragmatically review the situation. The fact that you are in trouble does not indicate that you have committed a mistake.

Perhaps, your strategy may not have been perfect. So, introspect and find out where and

Pencil sketch of Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian posing with ‘Best Student’ trophies he won at Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies (SIMS)

when you went wrong. Accept mistakes boldly.

Have an open mind and listen to qualified staff.

I can’t think of any one solution to the situation explained. It depends on the leader, the policies and the environment”.

My responsibility to conduct a seminar George Judah, the Director of our prestigious Institute, who used to then charge ₹1,000 per lecture when invited by companies to address their top executives, invariably attended such important lectures in the campus and participated in the discussions. Immediately after this particular session, he called me to his cabin and briefed me on the impending weekly seminar, stating, “You will be the master of

Pic: Ahmed Sheikh

ceremonies. I give you a free hand, to select the moderator, select the topic of your choice and invite any student to address the audience.”

I was nervous. I picked up courage and requested him, “Sir, can you spare some time to finalise the modalities…..topics….”

“No,” he stated candidly, “It is left to you.

The floor is all yours. Go ahead. Just keep in mind that people from local industries may be attending the seminar this time too.”

“Sir, give me some guideline about the aim and the scope of the seminar,’’ I pleaded.

He replied, “Well, I want to embarrass the students! I want you to catch them off-guard and put them to test. I recommend a smug behaviour from you, though with a smile on your face. Mind you -- you will be representing August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 1

From the desk of Editor-In-Chief

the management and the aim is to test the patience and capacity of our students during trying times. Let us see how they react to provocation. Let it be an extempore speech....”

Such suggestions from the director were not unusual. After all, the institute is known for its creative activities. It is considered one of the best institutes in India and students passing out of its precincts are always in great demand.

Discrimination by my classmates However, my major challenge was to organise the seminar, against several odds. (But I remembered the challenge given by the psychologist and knew his words of wisdom would come to my rescue.)

At the outset, I had to face the problem of getting adjusted to the campus culture. There were several reasons.

I was 40 years old and was serving in the Army; other students were in their early 20s.

The generation gap reflected in my approach and behaviour, which was resented by the students. The institute timings were from 1200 hours to 2100 hours; due to my duty hours, I was always a late comer. The students used to go to the factories during the morning hours with their partners, but I could do that only during my leave period. Above all, my ‘dress sense’ was ordinary, for the simple reason that I had limited means. It was then that I realised how apt Malcolm Muggeridge, the British journalist, author and satirist was, when he said, “The only Englishmen now left in the world are the educated Indians.”

I was considered a misfit amongst the elite and nouveau riche students. Was it because they came to the institute in cars and two-wheelers while I used a 15 year-old cycle to commute 15 kilometres daily from home? The discrimination was evident in the classroom as no one was willing to sit next to me or associate with me on the different committees. Was it because I possessed just one coat and tie, whereas they changed their coat and tie daily? I was forced to sit on the last chair.

If ever by accident I occupied a vacant chair between two students, those who were sitting on either side walked away to sit elsewhere.

No one was willing to share his or her costly books which I could hardly afford to buy. Their impression about the intellectual capabilities of military men was poor.

I was jeered at, not cheered for, whenever I raised relevant questions during discussions, lectures, seminars and workshops. I had accepted all this humiliation and the otherwise untenable situation, with stoic silence. I never did blame them. I understood this was 2 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

symptomatic of a social trend. However, the inner strength with which I competed with youngsters, I recharged after repeatedly reciting what Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said: “Age is opportunity no less/ Than youth itself, though in another dress/And as the evening twilight fades away/ The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.’’

However, my silence was not acceptable to my classmates. The provocation went on unabated. Perhaps they thought that a Havildar was not fit to sit next to them. They openly and even publicly requested the Director not to grant admission to old army men like me, least realising the fact that I too had got my admission through stiff competition, like them.

In those days I was leading a hectic life and so I slept fitfully. I used to spend the nights and the wee hours of the morning in research and studies as I wanted to prove my worth. My superior officers not only encouraged me but even loaned their library cards for me to use.

They did everything possible to help me out and boosted my morale.

Finally, after weeks of agony and waiting, the right opportunity did come in the form of the first semester university examinations and debates on professional subjects. Though I had won most of the debates, my right place in the class was still denied. Then came the results.

When the Director came to the class to present a rose to the topper, I was late as usual, but the same students who had initially ostracised me, were magnanimous enough to welcome me with placards displayed at several places, with the words, “Congrats Bala, you are the first”.

I could not believe it, how could it be?

Even as a school going boy, I had failed my matriculation exam at the first attempt. So perhaps it was the provocation which motivated me to reach to that height! By repeatedly trying to push me down, my classmates had actually instilled the spirit in me to fight back! The credit for my performance thus goes to the students.

From Zero to Hero Thereafter, the scenario turned around. All of a sudden, I had become a hero. The past was forgotten by my young classmates and I had become the most sought after person.

Costly books were now pushed into my bags in return for summarised notes for the giver. My simple attire and mode of transport were no more topics of their discussions.

However, soon came the campus elections and that almost spoiled the atmosphere. Many groups emerged and all of them approached me for support, because of the respect I commanded in the campus. I had, however,

I was considered a misfit amongst the elite and nouveau riche students. Was it because they came to the institute in cars and two-wheelers while I used a 15 year-old cycle to commute 15 kilometres daily from home? The discrimination was evident in the classroom as no one was willing to sit next to me or associate with me on the different committees.

Was it because I possessed just one coat and tie, whereas they changed their coat and tie daily? I was forced to sit on the last chair.

When the Director came to the class to present a rose to the topper, I was late as usual, but the same students who had initially ostracised me, were magnanimous enough to welcome me with placards displayed at several places, with the words, “Congrats Bala, you are the first”. Thereafter, the scenario turned around. All of a sudden, I had become a hero. decided to recommend one good student, at the last moment, for the institute’s presidentship.

But I had not spoken my mind about the name.

It was under these circumstances that I was to hold the said seminar. And the Director’s suggestion made me think why I should not use this opportunity to humiliate the few students who still criticised me. Why not utilise the seminar to make them pay back in their own coin? Why not provoke the Director himself and watch the reaction?

I had divided the seminar into two parts -- the first part was to cover professional issues and second part was to be an “embarrassing session”. For the “embarrassing session” I had earmarked four students. One student, whom I shall call Mr X, was a close relative of a powerful political leader. Another student, whom I shall call Miss Y, was a bright student and a women’s liberation movement activist in the city. The third student was considered to be very close to the Director and the management of the institute, I shall call Mr. Z. The fourth one was a habitual critic of the institute whom I used to call Mr. Opposition. All of them were in one group and Mr. X was their candidate.

The doomsday came. The seminar hall was full of students with a sprinkling of a few

managers from local industries. The Director had taken his seat and the formalities were over. The first session went on smoothly and I was nervous about the second session. Finally I called upon the students I mentioned above and the subjects assigned to them on the spot, were: Mr. X – Why Mr. ‘A’ should be defeated in the next elections?

Miss Y – Why women were definitely inferior to men?

Mr. Z – Why I hate this institute?

Mr. Opposition – Why my institute is the best in the country?

The speakers had no option but to speak in favour of the topics assigned. To my utter surprise, each one of them began speaking flawlessly, as if they had been preparing for the particular topics for months! It was a wellargued oration and the crowd gave a standing ovation whenever a speaker completed his lecture. When the turn came for Mr. Z to speak, the Director stood up to intervene.

“May I have the permission of the master of ceremonies to tape record this lecture please?”

The permission was granted. Mr. Z, a person from the inner circles of the management, superbly argued his case against the management. He bitterly criticised the Director on certain aspects boldly and blamed

the management for not paying sufficient attention to the undergraduate level course.

What is more, he incorporated humorous but thought-provoking jokes. The Director heard the criticism with rapt attention, often laughing loudly.

The seminar was over and a dinner had been arranged after the same. I was naturally in a dejected state of mind as my strategy had backfired. The speakers received full credit.

What surprised me more was that they came to thank me as if I had done some favour to them and requested that I sit with them at their table for dinner. Their behaviour put me in an embarrassing position. How could I reciprocate to their warmth? Their attitude only reminded me what Thiruvalluvar, a great Tamil saint-cum-poet, had said, “If you want to punish a man who has done wrong to you, do good to him so that he feels ashamed (for his action).”

The Director had called a meeting of the students’ council immediately after the seminar where the tape recorder was played.

He invited suggestions to set right the issues highlighted by Mr. Z and gave on-the-spot directions to his staff.

Looking at me, he said, “Well done. The seminar was useful and interesting. You will

get many more opportunities. I enjoyed it.”

“But Sir, I gave a topic to Mr. Z which….”

Stated Judah, “I must thank you for that. It is in the interest of the organisation…A good feedback. Now, tell me, have I passed your test…be frank gentlemen!” The Director spoke happily and was in a jolly mood. I had no answer, and he tried to boost me up.

“Come on, Bala, have you forgotten Iacocca, the great management specialist? One of his commandants to leaders demanded that leaders should have mavericks. They are a great source of information. They are more useful than the yes-men. Take my case, I was really not aware of the points expressed by Mr. Z. He was around us for so long….But he never spoke about all these aspects. Thank God, he spoke at last.”

(That Mr Judah spoke from the bottom of his heart became clear later when he awarded all the best trophies of the institute to me – the best Creative Student Award, the Best All Round Award and the Most Outstanding student of the Masters Degree in Personnel Management Award. Though there is a selection committee for the awards, I came to know later that the Director too, had voted for me.)

As for me, I felt that I had planned for ‘something’ but ‘something else’ had happened. I felt that I had lost face and hence wanted to avoid the crowd. I walked towards my old cycle like a defeated soldier. Mr. X stopped me and insisted that I should have dinner with him. He was in the friendliest of terms and very gracious in his behaviour. I told him. “Mr. X, I support you and will vote for you. You are really great. I have to learn a lot from you people. Perhaps I am out-dated.

Will you accept me in your group?” I asked him emotionally.

Miss Y intervened, “It is the other way round. It is we people who have to learn from you. Oh God! We just can’t imagine that a serving soldier of your age can compete with us in almost every front like a one-man-army and show us the path. We admire your guts and courage. Allow us to join your group, spend time with us too. We would like to visit your house and enjoy idli and dosas.”

Hence, remember, when you get pushed to the corner by your adversaries, understand, you are equally strong.

Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian editor-in-chief August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 3

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Contents Cover story

Officer and Corporate Gentleman Manoj Biswas who was until recently Managing DirectorHuman Resources, Geographic Unit HR Lead, Accenture India and South Asia, in an in-depth and insightful interview speaks about how he injected the military spirit into the corporate world. This is the first in a series of interviews of corporate leaders who stirred out of their Armed Forces outfits to pursue effective leadership roles in the corporate field.

Also...

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Dynamic Duo 11

Arm-In-Arm

Shibani Roy, a leading financial consultant, formerly working with American Express, believes marriage is about trust and the ability to live and let live. Her relationship with her husband Manoj Biswas, is based on this philosophy.

4 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Volume 1 Issue No. 11 August 1-15, 2015 www.corporatecitizen.in

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beyond the bottomline Listen for Success

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wax eloquent Who said what and why

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Collywood Chatpata Chatter from the Corporate World

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interview An interaction with Rajesh Panda, gold medallist from NIT, Rourkela and an MBA from S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research

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manage money Dr Anil Lamba on Good Financial Management–Rule 2

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The Asia HRD Congress 2015 Corporate Citizen takes you through the entire journey of the two-day event of the Asia HRD Congress 2015 event, held in Dubai, with the theme, “The New Talent Equation”

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cradle of leadership An interview with Dr. Chandra P. Shrimali, Director, Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon

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cii case study CII’s prize winning Case Studies - IV

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survey Top ten Indian brands today!

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Love Ke Baad Shaadi Bhi-2 Pooja and Abhijeet Srivastava, believe love and commitment go hand in hand. And that when one person is in a temper, it helps for the other to be silent

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Star Campus Placement-3 Adhish Kumar Mohanty on his first break

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Editor-In-Chief Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian

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pearls of wisdom YOGA opens the door to inner freedom by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Bangalore Bureau Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar

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health Egging the Egg on

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Senior Business Writers Mahalakshmi Hariharan Rajesh Rao

Writers Delhi Bureau Pradeep Mathur Anuradha Shukla

bollywood biz Hollywood a ` 100 cr Hit at India Box Office

featherlite Tweets from the Corporate World

Assistant Editor Joe Williams

Senior Sub-Editor Neeraj Varty

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Consulting Editor Vinita Deshmukh

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mobile apps Best Websites/Apps to Gift your loved ones

Pune Bureau Suchismita Pai Kalyani Sardesai

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astroturf Fortune favours the bold and the lucky

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the last word Dr Ganesh Natarajan, Vice Chairman & CEO of Zensar Technologies on Do Good, Feel Good

Be A Corporate Citizen

How do you like this issue of Corporate Citizen - The Cool Side of Business?

Send in your views, news, suggestions and contributions to corporatecitizenwriters@gmail.com We would love to hear from you!

6 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Circulation Officer Jaywant Patil +91 9923202560 Manager Circulation Mansha Viradia +91 9765387072 North : Hemant Gupta +91 9582210930 South : Asaithambi G +91 9941555389 Design & Art Direction Kiyan Gupta, The Purple Stroke Graphic Designer Anil Walunj Cover Story Pic Sanjay MD Photographers B Vijay Kumar / Yusuf Khan / Ahmed Sheikh Website www.corporatecitizen.in For Advertising and Marketing queries Email: MANSHA.VIRADIA@corporatecitizen.in (Corporate Citizen does not accept responsibility for returning unsolicited manuscripts and photographs. All unsolicited material should be accompanied by self-addressed envelopes and sufficient postage) Tel. (020) 69000677 / 69000672

Beyond the bottomline

Listen

for Success Wisdom suggests that as a boss you should actively seek feedback, even if it is negative, listen with an open mind and fully consider what is being said

By Suchismita Pai

P

eter Drucker the guru of management education had said, “The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said”.

Karl Weick, Professor of Organsational Behaviour and Psychology at the University of Michigan went one step further and said ‘Listen as if you are wrong’. While both those may not be easy-to-find skills, most people lack even common listening skills.

All communication can be divided into reading, writing, talking and listening. Listening is the very first part of communication that anyone is exposed to. It begins in the mother’s womb, while talking, reading and writing follow much later. A study at the University of Washington shows that unborn babies are listening to their mothers talk during the last 10 weeks of pregnancy. Yet most adults find it easier to talk or write a memo or even read reports than listen. It is one of the most underrated skills in the corporate world.

In a ‘USA Today’ survey, only about 31 per cent of employees reported that their boss listened to them. This is a significant problem on several levels states ‘Psychology today’. How often have you heard someone say “I don’t want

to listen to your complaints”. You have probably said it many times yourself. Wisdom suggests that as a boss you should actively seek feedback, even if it is negative, listen with an open mind and fully consider what is being said. Not all problems have magic solutions, but letting an employee vent goes a long way toward building loyalty and high morale.

In an informal survey conducted at NASA, when faced with a hypothetical question “What is the probability that the main engine of the shuttle would fail?” The junior engineers rated it as one in two hundred, while the senior executives rated it as one in a hundred thousand because not-so-good news often gets diluted as it goes upstream. They were told only the good news, a modern variation of the famous fable ‘The Emperor’s new clothes’.

When employees can voice concerns and have them dealt with before they become lingering problems, they feel valued which raises productivity and lowers turnover. Also when employees feel they have been heard, they become much more attentive and responsive to the concerns that the management might have.

Listening tells you about people’s past experience, what

All communication can be divided into reading, writing, talking and listening. Listening is the very first part of communication that anyone is exposed to. It begins in the mother’s womb. A study shows that unborn babies are listening to their mothers talk during the last ten weeks of pregnancy

they like doing, what they excel at, what their dreams are; all of which could dovetail with how you assign them tasks and how you get them to be at their most productive. It helps you gain trust.

Listening is the glue that holds the entire team together because it also ensures the most effective communication.

Even if one were to use money as a yardstick for success and productivity, listening pays. The Mars Orbiter mission which burnt in space in 1999 and ended up losing over $125 million is said to have failed because the two engineering teams that were responsible for collaborating on the design, failed to listen to what the other was communicating. One team used metric units while the other used English units when determining key spacecraft operations. A simple communication gap that ended up in a colossal waste of time, energy and resources!

Success comes to those who knowing the truth is imperative, create safe spaces for the truth to flourish, downplay punishment for failure, and commit to listening to what everyone has to say. Opportunities knock very softly and only those who fine-tune their listening skills can hear them. paisuchi@gmail.com

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 7

wax eloquent

The bright side of Corpo India- A bright spot

Entrepreneurs are made, not born

“In otherwise troubled time of the global economy, India clearly is a bright spot. Our growth rates are improving, fiscal discipline is under control.

This year we are targeting eight percent growth, which in current global situation appears to be reasonably impressive. And that is what makes us an attractive destination.”

Arun-Jaitley, Finance Minister, said to reporters while on US tour interacting with American businesses and corporate leaders.

Courtesy: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/india-a-bright-spot-introubled-global-economy-arun-jaitley/articleshow/47754366.cms

Made-in-China Ganesha “I found that nowadays the eyes of lord Ganesha idols are becoming smaller and smaller. One day I turned it back and found Made in China. We have to start Make in India right from Diwali gifts to our own gods. I think it is quite serious.”

Manohar Parrikar, Defence Minister, said at a seminar, talking about the Chinese edge over India in manufacturing.

Courtesy: The Economic Times

Pro-industry Maharashtra

Bollywood’s big time in China

“To consolidate Maharashtra’s position as an investor friendly state, the government has reduced the number of permissions to 25 from 76, cut the number of application forms and days required to get power connection. Besides, the number of days have been reduced to 60 from 162 to get various approvals from the Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation.”

Subhash Desai, Maharashtra state industries minister said while talking about a slew of pro-industry decisions taken by his government.

“Over time, as the Chinese market opens up to more Hindi films, it can redefine the economics for Bollywood- the key will be to pick the right films given the limited number of slots available for foreign films.”

Vijay Singh, CEO, Fox Star, said after Aamir Khan starrer PK collects more than Rs100 crore at the box office in Chinese film market.

Courtesy: The Economic Times

A jugalbandi of IT-Manufacturing skills “Our ‘Make in India’ has to be different in the sense that we have to do a ‘taal-mel’ or ‘jugalbandi’ of our IT skills that exist and our evolving manufacturing skills and become intelligent manufacturers. It is up to us to create a ‘jugalbandi’ within our own group and create a template which becomes almost like a construct for Make in India’s success in future.”

Anand Mahindra, Chairman and MD, Mahindra Group Courtesy: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/make-in-india-ajugalbandi-of-it-and-manufacturing-skills-says-anand-mahindra/articleshow/47755567.cms

Courtesy: Business Standard

Path to a good bill

“We are on the cusp of the most important structural transformation of the indirect tax system. Let us not flunk the test. The irony is that everyone agrees that a GST is necessary, but cannot agree upon its scope, form and content.”

P Chidambaram, former finance minister, said on the proposal of Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Courtesy: The Financial Express

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“There is no such thing as a selfmade person.

Any person who tells you that they made it on their own is not being completely honest. There is an old saying that leaders are born, not made. Well, entrepreneurs are made, not born.”

Frank Islam, an Indian American entrepreneur, who became an exception by pledging $2 million to his alma mater Aligarh Muslim University.

Courtesy: Times of India

Youngsters work on new high

“Growth is drug. It keeps people together.

The number of success stories is causing a lot of younger entrepreneurs not to fear failure at all. A lot of that fear of failure disappears when you see that kind of growth.”

Kunal Shah, Founder, Freecharge

Courtesy: The Economic Times

rate Life

Take a look at what our corporate heads and leaders have to say about some of the recent trends Compiled by Rajesh Rao Monopolising listening market

Manmohan praises Modi

“I have to acknowledge that my successor has been a more adept salesman, event manager and communicator than me.”

Manmohan Singh, Former Prime Minister, said addressing a Congress Chief Ministers’ conclave.

Courtesy: The Economic Times

“We weren’t the first phone, we weren’t the first music player. That’s not where revolutions are made.

Revolutions are about bringing it all together and having the best product that actually works.”

Eddy Cue, Head of software and internet services, Apple, said in an interview after the presentation of new Apple Music products and services at recent Apple’s annual conference.

Courtesy: As quoted in Business Standard

Showcasing company’s rebirth “India is changing. Consumers are changing and consumption is changing, So, as a group, we have to change for tomorrow’s India. It is as good as rebirth. Without destroying something you cannot create something.”

Kishor Biyani, Future Group founder and chief executive. He wants to recast the strategy of the group and likes to call it “rebirth” Courtesy: Business Standard

Yoga power for the world

“Yoga is the soft power of India and through that soft power the whole world can be one global village, and this trend of violence can be done away with…”

Sushma Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs of India Courtesy: Times of India

Celebrity endorsing brand “You allow fairness creams to sell but penalise people who endorse it. It is moral to sell but immoral to endorse. What kind of logic is that?”

KV Sridhar (Pops), chief creative officer, India, SapientNitro said to whether it is perfectly acceptable for celebrities to endorse the product that has been given the go-ahead by the government and legal authorities.

Courtesy: The Economic Times

Engage with people “Expansion of business means breaking boundaries and human barriers. And a successful politician does it on a daily basis. Who fails to do that either has no future or will be restricted geographically. A product to scale new height has to cross diversities of human emotions, cultures, traditions and create new bridges.”

Ashutosh, former Indian TV journalist, turned politician of the Aam Aadmi Party.

Courtesy: http://yourstory.com/2015/05/politics-is-good-business/

Internet of things

“We have the capability to learn new things pretty fast. That is our strength and therefore as long as we focus on those ideas, as long as we put our heart into it, I believe we will succeed.”

N.R.Narayana Murthy, Infosys cofounder said on what big role India will play in the exciting area of Internet of Things

Courtesy: www.livemint.com

Digital India will drive Make in India

If we have digital India at the centre we can use digital platforms to help support citizen services. All these visions of smart cities, Make in India- need a foundation of digital infrastructure. The kind of technology trends we see and the big bold visions that the government has laid out, the government can build a digital structure faster and easier and can improve the social infrastructure through it.”

Vanitha Narayanan, managing director, IBM India, South Asiasaid on what promises the government sector hold now, in the light of Make in India, Smart Cities and Digital India.

Courtesy: The Times of India

rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 9

collywood

People in the news

Steffi Graf-Kerala’s ayurveda ambassador?

From the hard and grass courts, tennis legend Steffi Graf may soon be appointed the Ayurveda brand ambassador of Kerala. The state tourism department had mooted a proposal to make her the brand ambassador as part of its new ‘Visit Kerala Scheme’. The department has an informal agreement with the former world number one tennis player, who has bagged 22 grand slam single titles. Now a formal signing of the agreement will take place as per the convenience of Steffi Graf. The idea behind appointing her is to promote the ancient system of traditional health care to woo tourists from abroad. After consulting with Graf, the tourism department will be charting out a series of programmes to launch the campaign outside India.

Padmasree Warrior to be Cisco advisor Padmasree Warrior, one of Silicon Valley’s high-profile female executives, has stepped down from her post of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at global IT giant Cisco after a significant restructuring of top management under incoming CEO Chuck Robbins. India-born Padmasree, named last month

by Forbes among the world’s 100 most powerful women, will move into a strategic advisor role effective immediately and will stay on in this new role through the transition until September, Cisco said. Under the restructuring announced last week, the ten leaders who will sit on Cisco’s new executive leadership team will include India-born Pankaj Patel, Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer.

Padmasree, 54, had joined Cisco in 2008 and had served as CTO and senior

vice-president of engineering during her seven years at the company. This highly respected leader has been a champion internally for innovation, strategic partnerships, investments and mergers and acquisitions.

10 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Crompton Greaves ropes in Khosla Shantanu Khosla, the Managing Director of Procter & Gamble India, will join the consumer business of Crompton Greaves to spearhead the company under its new private equity owners. Khosla is coming on board in a senior leadership position and is likely to be the vice-chairman and managing director, according to sources. Crompton Greaves’

consumer division, Crompton Greaves Consumer Products, is being spun out and getting demerged from its parent into a separately listed company through a court approved process. The 55-year-old, who will switch shampoo and detergents for fans and lighting, will have a board seat and a chief executive under him to drive daily operations.

Audi Q3 SUV launched in India Audi, the German luxury car maker launched an all-new version of its popular SUV Q3 in India. The new Q3, powered by a 1968 cc diesel engine, is the fourth of five vehicles Audi India plans to launch in five months. As it tries to scale up in the Indian premium vehicle market, this vehicle will be available in three variants with the base variant priced at ₹ 28.99 lakhs (ex-Delhi showroom), the mid version at ₹ 33.99 lakhs and top end at ₹ 37.50 lakhs. “We are confident that the new Q3 will bring in many new members to the Audi family much like it did since its launch and will further strengthen our dominance in compact luxury segment in India,” said Joe King, Audi India Head. Earlier this month, Audi had launched its super sports car RS 6 Avant priced at ₹ 1.35 crores. The new grille is finished in satin chrome and merges with the headlamps (LED headlamps are optional). It is pulled by the same 2.0-liter 35 TDI 4-cylinder oil burner. The engine musters out 174 bhp @ 4200 rpm and 380 Nm of max torque extracted in-between 1750-2500 rpm. The engine is mated to a 7-speed dual clutch automatic transmission.

DB Schenker in India bags award, again

DB Schenker in India won the Supply Chain and Logistics Excellence Award 2013 the second time in a row. It won the top freight forwarder award at the Supply Chain And Logistics Excellence (SCALE) Award ceremony organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The award recognizes excellence amongst logistics service providers and supply chain enablers to the

user industry, whose stakeholders come from the automotive, engineering, consumer, retail and pharmaceutical sectors.

In total, 212 applications were received for the nomination in various categories. The award emphasises DB Schenker’s leading position in India in providing end-to-end logistics solutions and its ability to cater to any industry and destination across the world.

Bobby Jindal bids for White House Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal announced he was running for the White House, making him the first Indian American to seek the country’s highest office. “My name is Bobby Jindal, I am the Governor of Louisiana, and I am running for President of the greatest country in the world, the United States of America,” Jindal said at an event launching his run. Jindal joins a crowded Republican race for the party nomination that has 13 candidates – with a few more in the offing -- to just four on the Democratic side. It will be tough for him to be noticed, and heroic to make it. Jindal, a two-term governor and two-term member of the House of Representatives, has been trailing badly in all public opinion polls on Republican contenders. He finished 11th in the most recent poll by The Wall Street Journal and NBC. Only the top ten will be on the stage for the debates that determine electability. The 44-yearold Jindal is married to Supriya and they have three children. His parents came to the US from Punjab.

He started calling himself Bobby after a character in a popular TV series, The Brady Bunch, while in school.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 11

collywood Mahajan to head commercial & wholesale business at IDFC Bank

Infrastructure financier IDFC Ltd has appointed Ajay Mahajan as the head of commercial and wholesale banking business of its soon-to-begin banking operations. Mahajan will be in charge of lending to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), mid-sized and large companies, transaction banking, treasury and investment banking. Mahajan joined IDFC in October 2013 after a brief entrepreneurial stint at R-Square Advisors LLP. In his 23-year career, Mahajan has worked with the erstwhile Bank of America Corp., Yes Bank Ltd., and UBS AG. IDFC and Kolkata-based microfinance company Bandhan Financial Services Pvt. Ltd. received Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) approval for a banking licence in April 2014. Both the firms are likely to start banking operations in October this year. Rajiv Lall, IDFC’s executive chairman at present, will be the managing director of the new IDFC bank, the company had said in July 2014.

Murdoch’s sons to take over empire Lachlan Murdoch is still seen as well placed to take over the Murdoch global media empire despite his younger brother James’s resurrection as 21st Century Fox chief executive. The current CEO, 84-year-old media magnate Rupert Murdoch is expected to formalise his succession plan and a timetable to hand over the reins at the company’s board meeting. It would mean president Chase Carey standing aside after six years from the day-to-day running of Fox for 42-year-old James. While some view the decision as an anointing of James as heir, the 43-year-old Lachlan has also been promoted from a non-executive to hands-on executive co-chairman role with his father, who has not given any indication of retiring.

According to the Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal, James and Lachlan would run 21st Century Fox similarly to Murdoch and Carey’s arrangement, with one focused on the long-term and the other the operations. Lachlan is more familiar in Australia, where he lives and has held a series of high profile business roles outside and within News Limited before his resignation in 2005.

IT Majors get innovative to serve clients better IT firms are doing what would have once been sacrilegious -- holding coding marathons to develop innovative fixes and deploying units to resolve client problems. Infosys, Wipro and others have kept pace with mushrooming start-ups, but the rate of revenue growth has more than halved since 2011-12, and this is mainly due to the competition in the field. Young set-ups go beyond cookie-cutter solutions and do the job more quickly and for less. They also attract the crème de la crème of India’s engineering graduates with their culture of bubble chairs, breakfast bars and table tennis at work. Client demands are similarly changing.

Major telecoms, retail and banking firms want more than an outsourced help desk, right from solving a server crash overnight to building an app.

To deal with this, Wipro, for example, has set up small “commando force” units that help get swift solutions. It has also introduced gaming-like 12 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

training sessions and so-called hackathons to solve both fake and real client problems. Earlier this month, Infosys, long known for its inflexible rules of employee decorum, did away with a formal dress code. Earlier, it had relaxed rules preventing workers from accessing social networking web sites at work. Client demands are similarly changing in India’s $147 billion IT outsourcing industry. Major telecoms, retail and banking firms want more than an outsourced help desk, and now demand everything from help solving a server crash overnight to help building an app, industry veterans say. To be sure, it is hard for large IT companies, with an army of thousands of employees, to change overnight. Yet, steps as small as implementing a casual dress code and allowing employees to use their own tech devices mark a major cultural shift in an industry that still relies heavily on manpower to win business.

Selvakesari gets elevated at Citi Relli takes over as HDFC Sec chief

Dhiraj Relli will soon take charge as Managing Director and CEO of the retail broking firm HDFC Securities. Relli takes over this position from Aseem Dhru, who returns to HDFC Bank as group head, business banking, rural, commodity and agri-lending businesses. Commenting on the change in ranks, Dhru said, “I am thankful to all my colleagues at HDFC Securities for their support, without which it would not have been possible to achieve what we have over the past five years.”

Relli has an experience of over two decades in the banking and financial management space. He joined HDFC Bank in 2008, before which he worked with Centurion Bank of Punjab and ICICI Bank.

HDFC Securities, a subsidiary of HDFC Bank offers both retail and institutional broking with 250 branches and more than 1.5 million customers.

Citi has appointed Anand Selvakesari as Head of Consumer Banking for Asia Pacific. Anand will manage all of Citi’s consumer businesses in Asia across the 12 markets that Citi offers retail banking, wealth management, cards and mortgages in the region.

During his 23 year Citi career, Anand has led Citi’s consumer bank in China and India and was most recently Southeast Asia Cluster head for Consumer Banking. Anand’s appointment is effective July 1 and he is taking over from Jonathan Larsen. Jonathan will focus on his role as Global Retail Banking and Mortgage Head with the additional responsibilities of US Retail Banking and Mortgage. Anand was formerly Head of Consumer Banking for ASEAN & India. In this role he took charge of in December 2013, Anand was responsible for the consumer banking businesses in the ASEAN cluster, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam as well as India. A Citi veteran, Anand began his career in India in 1991, and has more than 23 years of experience in Consumer and Commercial Banking.

As India Consumer head, he helped transform the business in India, re-defined consumer banking and today the India franchise holds leadership positions in cards, wealth management and digital banking.

Software giants, Wipro boosts operations at Bhubaneswar

Wipro has committed a massive expansion of its facilities to house 28,000 employees. This is after the Odisha government ticked off Wipro for going slow on its development centre. However, the software giant has not spelt out a timeline for implementing its ambitious expansion plan. Wi-

pro in a letter to the government has stated that it had approached the Centre for approval to be the co-developer for the special economic zone (SEZ). The matter is likely to be taken up at the next meeting of the Board of Approvals (BoA) for SEZs under the Union Commerce and Industry

ministry. The company’s response comes in the wake of the state government’s recent warning that it would take back the 26 acres of land allotted at a prime location in the city if the project was delayed further. The company is likely to add 1,800 employees in the next ten months.

Wipro, Bhubaneswar Campus

Compiled by Joe Williams August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 13

Interview

Be Singapore-minded!

Rajesh Panda is a Gold Medalist from NIT, Rourkela and an MBA from S.P.Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai. He is based out of Singapore and is the Founder and Managing Director of Corporate Gurukul which aims to make engineering and management graduates, globally employable and industry-ready, through global learning experiences programmes. Rajesh is also the Chairperson of the Higher Education Forum (HEF), Odisha and Singapore chapters. Corporate Citizen talks to him about the professional environment in Singapore, which has become the global headquarters of 6000 Multi-National Companies (MNCs) and has a large group of young corporate managers working there. By Vinita Deshmukh

Corporate Citizen: How did you land in Singapore and when?

Rajesh Panda: After I graduated from NIT, Rourkela, my first job was with HCL Hewlett Packard, after which I did my MBA from S.P.Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR). Post my MBA in Marketing, in 2002, I got a job for business development with HCL Technologies in Singapore. I dabbled in two other entrepreneurial ventures in Singapore – one was an embedded systems company and the other was Performance Consulting International, a leadership consulting firm in Singapore. Finally, in 2007 I left my job in Singapore and founded `Corporate Gurukul’ (CG) in November, the same year.

What is Corporate Gurukul?

It is a learning and development company to make young managers, globally employable. We started our focus with undergraduate students from engineering institutes and we have now moved to corporates in India, to whom we impart various global skills. We provide three services - training, assessment and consulting. In the consulting space we address companies as well as institutes on different initiatives. For educational institutes we advise on infrastructure , the processes required for it, research and development in academia, and how to develop leadership in academia. At an individual

level, training skills are provided to graduates and undergraduates of both engineering and management graduates, to make them industryready - globally. For corporates, it is more on learning and development initiatives, organisational development and talent management. The other focus is faculty training. We have trained the faculty in India and Singapore several top business schools. We train professors in engineering colleges like we have done it in Odisha for NIT, Rourkela and in Maharashtra for Government College of Engineering (GCOE) in Amravati.

When you went to Singapore, one of the most sought after island countries of Southeast Asia for professionals from all over the world, how did you perceive it - then and now?

When I came to Singapore in 2002, it was for a job in business development with HCL Technologies.

My wife came with P&G and we thought it would be a good platform to launch our careers for USA. However, in 2002-2003 we saw a big downturn in US market, so we thought why not make a career in Asia. Singapore is actually the gateway to Asia, and has been a SMART city for over 20 years. The primary businesses in Singapore are finance, tourism, trade and shipping. Today, 6000 multi-national companies (MNCs) have their cor-

14 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

porate headquarters in Singapore and people of over 50 nationalities reside here. There are now world class universities in Singapore like NTU, NUS and SMU. When I landed in Singapore it was different and was more Asia-focused; now it is globally focused. Most of the Indian migrants are from Tamil Nadu (they comprise 7-8 per cent of the population) and so Tamil is an official language in Singapore; the other three are Mandarin, English and Malay. We have the Singapore-Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI), which initiates and supports a lot of business activities, especially for Indians in business. The transit population of Indians who come to Singapore for work now constitute a very sizable segment. Indians come on expat assignments for two to three years and there is a significant presence of floating population of transit Indians. Hence, you will find schools in Singapore with CBSE or ICSE curriculum. There are now three major schools - National Public School, Global Indian International School and Delhi Public School, which are offering the two curriculums. You have Indian food, restaurants, culture and even, temples. We have lot of traders who are from the Indian community and they have made it big in business. IT professionals and those working in other sectors are mostly young generation Indians.

About 80 percent of transit Indians

who we typically see (I don’t have exact data to put across) are less than 45 years of age. Something important which I noted and must highlight - when Indians land in Singapore they adapt to its culture of cleanliness and discipline very fast. An Indian may be quite unruly in India, but as soon as he or she lands in Singapore he stops all that and gets very disciplined. It’s probably the environment in Singapore which has a big role to play.

What makes for the cleanliness culture in Singapore and why it is difficult to execute it in India?

Every Indian is a thinker; very few Indians can execute a plan or in this case, a rule. We love to think and because there is so much thinking happening there is chaos. When everyone starts thinking and starts acting at freewill – there is chaos.

When there is a rule in India, Indians don’t tend to follow it; they love to think how to break the rule. On the other hand, Singaporeans are so process driven that, it has become a culture. Now, when you follow a process you don’t have to think, if you start thinking you have a serious challenge. So how to execute simple processes (without thinking), is what Indians need to do. Singapore has grown because people at the top think and others execute and follow it without questioning it. Thinkers and executers both are adept at their job.

When there is a rule in India, Indians don’t tend to follow it; they love to think how to break the rule.

Singaporeans are so process driven that, it has become a culture.

People at the top think;others execute and follow those rules

Pic: Ahmed Shaikh

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 15

Interview Tell us about an anecdote that highlights your professional experience of Singapore?

I goofed up big time in Singapore, after which I understood the value of time. I was in sales with HCL Technologies in 2002 and had fixed an appointment with the Vice President of Citibank. I started for the meeting as planned but got caught up in a traffic rush, so I called up the customer and said that I would be late by 15 minutes and she said okay, come in. I had a half an hour of a very fruitful meeting. However, after that, I never got any follow up meeting appointment because I was late. Losing a customer like Citibank and being pulled up by your boss for this and not getting a meeting with that customer again was tremendous humiliation but a great learning. People are typically before time in office and especially with customers, they are extremely punctual. I learnt it the hard way.

You mentioned about getting caught in traffic. But Singapore discourages private transport, doesn’t it?

In Singapore you pay road tax called Electronic Road Pricing (ERP). So, when you pass through busy areas you pay S$2 to S$3 to use that road during peak hours. Singapore has a very good public transport system and they encourage citizens to use it. When you encourage people to use the public transport since the nation is investing in it, it also discourages people from using private transport. If you buy a car in India which costs ₹ 20 lakh, it will cost you typically ₹ 60 lakh in Singapore - so it is three times and most of that is government tax. Essentially the cost of living is also high but number of millionares and billionaires in Singapore, is only increasing. Hence, despite the government taxes the number of private vehicles are increasing because people are rich.

So the government is coming up with innovative ways for managing this but still transport is a challenge.

When I came here, Singapore had a population of 4.5 million and now it is 5.5 million. So, the government is finding ways to manage the population and get into the next level in terms of transport and infrastructure.

An Indian may be quite unruly in India, but as soon as he lands in Singapore he gets very disciplined. It’s probably the environment in Singapore which has a big role to play What can a young corporate manager from India learn from Singapore’s corporate environment?

In India, we think India-centric and the world has become global-centric. I have seen most business plans in top IIMs, IITs and NITs purely focused on India and the Indian consumer. Till graduation, we don’t know about world’s needs. We are not even bothered or focused on world’s needs. We are generally unaware of what the Chinese, Korean, or Japanese cultures are or ignorant about how to do business with let’s say, Taiwan, Malaysia, or Australia.

We are taught to do business the Indian way; you can call it jugaad.

In Singapore, every neighbourhood and school classroom has people and students from multiple nationalities. So you grow up appreciating people from different cultures and

16 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

nations. What Singapore academic courses and learning environment teach you, is Asian plus western culture in theory and practice. Like, my daughter is in class two, and she recently went to Taiwan for immersion and training for six days with her friends. For example, my elder daughter has been to Malaysia and Indonesia with her friends which has helped her understand the perspective of a very diverse cultural environment, nationality and language, so she is trained not to feel uncomfortable anywhere.

Indians find it very tough to work with the Chinese, but Indians who have grown-up in Singapore don’t find it tough to work with a Chinese or a Korean. So a clear learning for a young Corporate Manager from India is appreciation of culture and business in Asia with a global focus.

In Corporate Gurukul, we have a programme called `Global Immersion Programme’. We conduct it in Singapore because it is a truly global city in all sense - multi-racial, multi-cultural and represented by so many nationalities.

What do you think about “Make in India”?

To achieve ‘Make in India’ initiative , Indians need to understand the ‘global needs’. During education, the first way to achieve that is - get global experts to India to interact with students, faculty and professionals.

The second way is to make them travel abroad frequently to immerse and understand the needs of countries and their people. Once we understand the needs of the world, we need to develop the relevant skills.

The current system of education, culture, environment and above all attitude is a big challenge to the vision of ‘Make in India’.

So, you are saying Indians should change their attitude?

In the last four months I have visited nine states, met three chief ministers, and nine education ministers and in our conversation, they have been worried. States and the centre are worried at their own levels.

The worry is not so much about the problems, the worry is about the attitude or lack of initiative towards problem solving. Everybody expects

the government to solve all problems. The social fabric has to change for India to survive otherwise India may not survive - because there is so much competition among nations. In addition, the Government of India machinery, I feel, is not able to match up to international standards, again because of general indifferent attitude of people in the system. Even if you build world class infrastructures and processes, it won’t be followed or maintained, primarily because of the attitude of people – inside and outside the system. I must mention here that Indians are super smart people. We have probably the best of brains in the world but the ‘attitude’ is a challenge and needs to change. We want to support Make in India, it is a challenge more in the mind-set of Indians than in the skills. Once that changes things will happen, because we are extremely sharp, hard working and where ever we go have made big difference to that company and to that nation. Corporate Gurukul was one of the few skill development companies from Singapore to be invited to participate in official Singapore Delegation to ‘Vibrant Gujarat’. All our programmes, our initiatives around global immersions, learning and development are focused on changing this ‘attitude’ of Indians towards the rest of the world – through experience and exposure.

Today the world is a global village, anybody can take a job in any part of the world. So every Indian must develop the right attitude and skill sets to be a GLOBAL RESOURCE. vinita.deshmukh@corporatecitizen.in (Transcribed by Rajesh Rao)

CC

tadka

Asia wins over North America

For the first time, Asia now has more millionaires than North America. The population of newly minted millionaires across Asian-Pacific nations has swelled to 46 lakh, slightly higher than America’s 45.5 lakh millionaires.

manage money In the previous issue we were discussing how to read a Balance Sheet

By Dr Anil Lamba

Good Financial Management – Rule 2 You will recall, I had said, if you wish to read a Balance Sheet, make sure it has not more than four items on the Liabilities’ side and not more than two on the Assets’ as shown here.

Balance Sheet Liabilities Assets Share Capital Fixed Assets Reserves & Surplus Long-Term Loans Current Assets Current Liabilities Can you now reduce the number of items on the Liabilities’ side to two?

Let’s try and reduce the number of items on the Liabilities’ side also to two.

How do we do that?

Let’s look for similarities between items on the Liabilities’ side which can be clubbed together.

There are various possibilities.

Should we combine the first two items (Share Capital and Reserves) and the last two items (Long-Term Loans and Current Liabilities)?

This would give us two items, the first of which represent owners’ contribution, and the second funds provided by outsiders. However, this classification is not going to help us read Balance Sheets any better.

A better way would be to club the first three items. All of these, Share Capital, Reserves & Surplus, as well as Long-Term Loans, represent long-term funds (LTF) or long-term sources (LTS).

Let us see if this is correct. l Is Share Capital a long-term source?

Share Capital is for the longest term. It does not have to be repaid in the lifetime of the company. l What about Reserves?

Reserves are often as long term as share capital. Even though reserves can be used to distribute as dividends in the years when the company makes losses, this provision is rarely used. If reserves are used at all, it is often to distribute bonus shares – that is, shares which are issued free of cost – amongst the existing shareholders.

When this is done, the amount gets transferred from the head reserves to the head share capital. l Finally, the Long-Term Loans are obviously long term in nature.

Balance Sheet Liabilities Assets Share Capital Fixed Assets Reserves & Surplus LTS Long-Term Loans Current Assets Current Liabilities STS

LTU STU

We can safely say that current liabilities are short-term sources (STS), since an item is classified as a current liability only if it has to be repaid within one year from the date of the Balance Sheet.

Similarly, on the Assets’ side, we would not be wrong in saying that Fixed Assets represent long term uses of funds (LTU), being made up of items such as land and building and machinery and equipment, all of which are purchased for use over the long term.

The current assets, which represent gross working capital, can likewise be called a short term use of money (STU). In fact the movement of items of current assets (comprising cash, inventory and debtors) can be depicted in the form of a cycle as shown here.

Working Capital Cycle In the case of a manufacturing organization, cash is used to purchase inventory.

The inventory then goes through a manufacturing process and gets converted to a finished product.

When a sale is made, the finished-goods inventory becomes debtors or receivables.

On the due date, when collection is made from debtors, it gets converted to cash again. This cycle of cash-to-cash is called the working-capital cycle.

Profitable organizations know that the key to success is to have a shorter working-capital cycle. Every attempt must be made to shorten this cycle. ...to be continued Dr Anil Lamba is a corporate trainer of international repute on finance management. His clients comprise several hundred large and medium sized corporations across different countries of the world. He is the author of the bestselling book Romancing the Balance Sheet. He can be contacted at anil@lamconschool.com August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 17

The Asia HRD Congress 2015

Leading Lights, En Developing and nurturing human resource is essential for the growth of any organisation. After all, it’s the people who make the place. Human resources have unlimited potential capabilities and this potential can be used only by creating a climate that can continuously identify, bring to surface, nurture and use the capabilities of people. The 13th Annual International event, The Asia HRD Congress 2015 event, held at Dubai, recently, with the theme, “The New Talent Equation”, brought together HR and business experts to share their knowledge, perspectives, strategies, tools and tips to increase organisational performance.

It named 23 distinguished leaders and organisations from eight countries including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia. The event saw some of the bigwigs from the corporate world, leading and established HR experts & senior officials participate in this highly engaging, interactive, and content-driven event. The Awards ceremony, followed by the Gala Dinner, on the eve of the first day, honoured individuals & HR practitioners from all levels who have significantly impacted or influenced the HR community, organisations, or society as a whole.

The Contribution to Society Award was presented to Dr. (Col.) A. Balasubramanian, Founder & President, Sri Balaji Society, India, for being the first to conceive the idea of launching a management institute exclusively for armed forces personnel and their dependants.

Corporate Citizen takes you through the entire journey of this two-day event.

Honouring Excellence: Winners of the Asia HRD Awards 2015--The Asia HRD Awards 2015 honoured 23 leaders & organisations for their valuable contribution to people development

T

By Mahalakshmi Hariharan

18 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

he event started with a one-day Masterclass Workshop on Talent on Demand in Asia: Building Capability Quickly, conducted

by Masterclass Speaker-Professor Peter Cappelli, Professor at Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and Director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources, United States of America. Cappelli, in this workshop, threw light on the various aspects of talent management, challenges involved, ways of acquiring the right talent and developing talent internally. The workshop had a number of exercises putting participants in different teams and situations so that they got an opportunity to interact with delegates from other countries. By doing so, companies from different regions got a feel of how HR practises of other companies in various regions work, and the various roles played.

Indeed this conference, held June 8-11, brought together HR and business experts to share their knowledge, perspectives, strategies, tools and tips to increase organisational performance. Interactive sessions and workshops from renowned speakers, gripped participants from across the regions of India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Brunei and UAE. This conference helped all participants, particularly the HR community, to increase their professional network, and have a dynamic learning environment for the benefit of their

employees.

Day two saw ‘short n sweet’ sessions by some of the renowned speakers. The panel discussions and sessions were interactive, highly engaging, and engrossed the audience with various tools and exercises. Dato’ Dr. R. Palan, Chairman, SMRT Holdings Berhad, Malaysia, in his session shared his experience in creating value by growing a profitable business and a successful organisation with a social conscience.

“The purpose of my life is to help people learn and perform to achieve their full potential. I would like to be remembered as someone who helped people,” says Palan. He is someone who strongly believes that the intersection of hard work and opportunity is luck. Palan, an alumni of Harvard University, is also a professor, entrepreneur, author of 15 books till date—the recent one being “The Global Journey of an Asian: Talent Management Best Practices.”

Talking about the average attention span of a participant, Karen Ong, Director & Master Trainer, SMR HRPS, Malaysia in her session— Creating Engaging Learner Experience -- used a lot of fun tools and interactive strategies to ensure attention and participation throughout the session and kept all connected and engaged.

She says, “The average attention span of a participant or learner lasts only about three minutes before he/she feels the impulse to begin a new activity.”

Prominent speakers like Professor Peter

gagIng Insights

Cappelli, who has been recently named by HR Magazine as one of the top five most influential management thinkers, and author of the most popular talent management book, Talent on Demand: Managing Talent in an Age of Uncertainty, named as the “best business book” for 2008 by Booz-Allen, and The New Deal at Work: Managing the Market-Driven Workforce, in his session “Doing a better job of managing employee performance” examined ways to deal with problem employees and options for improving the motivation of poor performers.

It is true that economies, today, across the world are undergoing constant change, and organisations too are struggling to stay alive and thrive in these challenging times. More than ever, businesses are realising the critical value of a more integrated approach to talent development as a means to create a foundation of sustained improvement, change and innovation. Searching and developing leadership in talent management is the heart of any organisation that sustains the organisation’s health. With workforce demographics rapidly changing, developing leaders with a diverse range of challenges including the expectations of a multigenerational workforce, can affect the retention of highly-skilled and valued talent.

Other noted speakers also included Muhammad Rizal, Organising Committee of the Asia HRD Congress 2015, YBhg Tan Sri Abd Ghafar bin Mahmud, Former Director General,

Pics: Yusuf Khan

Mr. B. Parandhaman, Principal Director, Sri Balaji Society (centre) receives the “Contribution for Society” Award in Dubai, on behalf of his father, Dr. (Col.) A. Balasubramanian, Founder & President, Sri Balaji Society, India, for being the first to conceive the idea of launching a management institute exclusively for armed forces personnel and their dependants from His Excellency Engineer Fahmi bin Ali Al Jowder, Former Minister of Works, Kingdom of Bahrain (L)

“The average attention span of a participant or learner lasts only about three minutes before he/ she feels the impulse to begin a new activity,” Karen Ong, Director, & Master Trainer, SMR HRPS, Malaysia

Ministry of Education, Malaysia, YBhg Professor Dato’ Dr Ibrahim Ahmad Bajunid, Deputy Vice Chancellor INTI-UC Laureate International Universities and Professor of Management, Malaysia, Dr Tayeb Kamali, Chairman of the Board, Emirates Driving Company, Former Vice Chancellor, Higher Colleges of Technology, United Arab Emirates, Professor Khaeruddin Sudharmin, Senior Research Fellow, School of Management, Asia e University, Advisory Panel Member, OYA Graduate School of Business, Northern University of Malaysia, Dr Nelson D’Souza, Head, Leadership & Management Development, Emirates NBD, UAE, Humaid Al-Sawafi, Performance August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 19

“Successful succession planning can build bench strength, develop suitable team members, spur employee promotions & redesign the organisation for opportunities,” Ahmed A. Aziz Al-Khayat, Undersecretary, Public Works Affairs, Ministry of Works Municipalities Affairs & Urban Planning, Bahrain

Panel discussion on “Workplace Education: What are the Future Trends?” by A. Subra, Director, Global Business Development, SMR Group, Malaysia, YBhg Tan Sri Abd Ghafar bin Mahmud, Former Director General, Minstry of Education, Malaysia, Dr. Suzanne White, Talent Management and Organizational Effectiveness, Sadara Chemical Company, Saudi Arabia and YBhg Professor Dato’ Dr. Ibrahim Ahmad Bajunid, Deputy Vice Chancellor INTI-UC Laureate International Universities and Professor of Management, Malaysia

Masterclass Speaker-Professor Peter Cappelli, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and Director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources, United States of America

Panel Discussion on “Best Practice: Talent Development for High Performance” by Vinod Chelambathodi, Chief Human Resource Officer at Intellect Design Arena Ltd. (A Polaris Group), Humaid Al-Sawafi, Performance and Development, Manager, Orpic, Oman, Muhammad Rizal, COO HRPS, SMR Group Malaysia, Dr Nelson D’Souza, Head, Leadership & Management Development, Emirates NBD, UAE and Debbie Nicol, Managing Director ‘business en motion’, Change Management, Leadership & Organisational Development, UAE

Karen Ong, Director & Master Trainer, SMR HRPS, Malaysia

Dr Edward Shelton, Competency Consultant, Competency Development & Consultation Unit, Saudi Aramco Oil, Saudi Arabia

20 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

and Development, Manager, Orpic, Oman, Debbie Nicol, Managing Director ‘business en motion’, Change Management, Leadership & Organisational Development, UAE, Dr Suzanne White, Talent Management and Organisational Effectiveness, Sadara Chemical Company, Saudi Arabia, A. Subra, Director, Global Business Development, SMR Group, Malaysia, Muhammad Rizal, COO HRPS, SMR Group Malaysia, Vinod Chelambathodi, Chief Human Resource Officer at Intellect Design Arena Ltd. (A Polaris Group), India and Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development, UAE. With so many distinguished speakers, the event threw a lot of insights on the current developments in talent development, on how one can benefit from the expertise of the New Talent Gurus, learning to adopt new HR Talent Strategies to build competitive advantage and a chance to broaden HR networks within the HR fraternity including decision makers and talents, share best practice approach, shape future directions, learn about the tools and technology

approaches to talent management and expand one’s perspectives with cutting edge research.

Dr. Edward Shelton, Competency Consultant, Competency Development & Consultation Unit, Saudi Aramco Oil, Saudi Arabia, focussed on the point that we need managers who are also leaders who can lead their teams to higher levels of creativity, commitment, engagement and job satisfaction, in his session. Thereafter, Ahmed A. Aziz Al-Khayat, Undersecretary, Public Works Affairs, Ministry of Works Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning, Bahrain, in his session “Succession Planning for talent management” threw light on how successful succession planning can build bench strength, develop suitable team members, spur employee promotions and redesign the organisation for opportunities.

The panel discussions on “Workplace Education: What are the future trends?” and “Best Practice: Talent Development for High Performance” by an eminent panel, gripped the crowd, while sessions on E-learning strategies for talent development by Dr. Tayeb Kamali,

“The purpose of my life is to help people learn and perform to achieve their full potential. I would like to be remembered as someone who helped people,”

Ex Asst. Undersecretary, Ministry of Education and Culture, UAE and one on “Self ConfidenceThe Vital Ingredients of Successful HRD Practitioners” by Ahmed Al-Banna, CEO, Origin Group, Bahrain too engrossed the audience.

The event offered plenty of learning and networking opportunities in a fun environment.

Leading experts in human resource truly enriched the crowd with the latest trends around this year’s theme “The New Talent Equation”.

The Awards Ceremony The Asia HRD Awards Ceremony, followed by the Gala Dinner, on the eve of the first day, honoured individuals and HR practitioners from all levels who have significantly impacted, influenced the HR community, organisations, and society as a whole. More than 76 nominations from organisations and individuals across the Asia Pacific and Middle East region were considered in this year’s awards categories: Lifetime Achievement Award, Contribution to Society, Contribution to Organisation, Contribution to HR Community and Movers and Shakers.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is conferred on individuals who have made a lifetime contribution to People Development. YBhg Professor Kolonel Tan Sri Datuk Wira Dr. Haji Mohd Shukor bin Haji Mahfar, Director General and Chief Executive Officer, Inland Revenue Board Malaysia from Malaysia received the Lifetime Achievement Award this year.

The next category of award was Contribution to Society, presented to those who contributed to the development of society by spearheading education and learning initiatives that have been transformational in their impact on communities. Dr. (Col.) A. Balasubramanian, Founder & President, Sri Balaji Society, India received this award for being the first to conceive the idea of launching a management institute exclusively for armed forces personnel and their dependants.

The Contribution to Organisation Award was presented to Felda Global Ventures Holdings Sdn Bhd and HRnetGroup from Malaysia, Emirates Institute for Banking and Financial Studies from UAE, Dato’ Aishah Binti Mohammad, Managing Deputy Director in HR Policies & Performance Department, Royal Malaysian Police from Malaysia, Ms. Amal Al-Kooheji, VP, Human Capital Development, Tamkeen (Labour Fund) from Bahrain, H.E. Mohammed Al Hadhari, Deputy CEO, Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), UAE, Finance Accreditation Agency (FAA) from Malaysia and National Water Company (NWC) from Saudi Arabia.

This award is presented to organisations that have built their successes on innovative systems, processes and practices aimed at overall

Dato’ Dr. R. Palan, Chairman, SMRT Holdings Berhad, Malaysia Dato’ Dr. R. Palan, Chairman, SMRT Holdings Berhad, Malaysia

Vinod Chelambathodi, Chief Human Resource Officer at Intellect Design Arena Ltd. (A Polaris Group)

Council of Islamic Finance Educators from Malaysia, Mr. Innaci Dass, General Manager, HR, Telekom Brunei Berhad from Brunei and Mr. Atul Dhavle, Vice President for HR & TOC, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories from India.

This award is presented to individuals whose concepts and practices have resulted in effective and high impact best practices recognised

by HR practitioners and organisations.

Movers and Shakers Award was presented to Ms. Shalina Virji, Chief Executive Officer, Shalina Healthcare Group from UAE, Dr. P. Sathyanarayan, Vice President, HR, Strides Arcolab Ltd. from India and Mr. D.R. Nagaraj, President & CEO, Nagaraj Management Service, India.

Over the years, the Awards Committee has received nominations from numerous organisations from all over the world, particularly Asia.

The committee recognises the worth of all individuals and organisations who meet the criteria of the award categories.

This conference has offered plenty of learning and networking opportunities in a fun environment and has also helped dignitaries from across the globe to get a different perspective on the HR practises followed in their organisations, and implement some of the learnings learnt through these sessions.

Mahalakshmi.H@corporatecitizen.in

Ahmed Al-Banna, CEO, Origin Group, Bahrain

employee development.

At the same time, Contribution to HR Community Award was presented to Mr. C.M. Vignaesvaren, Chief Executive, Human Resources Development Fund from Malaysia, Ms. Hajah Norezan Binti Haji Hambali, Director, Civil Service Institute from Brunei, Mr Sultan M. Al Hassani, Human Resource Manager, Abu Dhabi Petroleum Ports Operating Co. (IRSHAD) from UAE, Mr. Priyantono Rudito, Director of Human Capital Management, Telekomunikasi Selular from Indonesia, Mr. Y.R. Wilson, President, Corporate HR, Himatsingka Group, India, Dr Hj Zulkifly Baharom, Project Director & Exco, International

CC

tadka

Eccentric festivities Barsane, a village near Mathura celebrates Holi most unusually. As part of the celebrations, men playfully taunt the women and consequentially get beaten up by the women with a lath or stick – which gives rise to the name Lathmar Holi. Of course, the process is more playful than violent, and no one gets hurt.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 21

Cradle of Leadership-9 - - M a nag eme n t D e v e l o pme n t I n s t i t u t e , G u r g ao n - -

For the Executive Class

From small beginnings in 1973 as an institute to train officers of the IFCI, the Management Development Institute came to be best known for its unique National Management Program for IAS officers and top private sector executives. In 1994 it opened its doors to a larger community with a management program for students, and turned into a full-fledged B-school on par with top IIMs, fulfilling a larger mandate.

It now has a second campus in backward Murshidabad, endorsing its sense of social commitment. One person who has been part of MDI’s extraordinary journey is its present director, Dr. Chandra P. Shrimali, whose vision is to make MDI rank among ‘the top business schools of the world’. Corporate Citizen spoke to this dynamic management guru to know the lesser known facts about MDI’s fascinating journey.

W

ith an initial grant received from erstwhile West Germany, the Government of India set up the Management Development Institute (MDI) in 1973 in New Delhi to serve officers of the Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI). Its mandate was to train managers, carry out research and provide consultancy services to both public and private sector companies facing industrial sickness. In 1980, it shifted to its present campus in Gurgaon. Today, 35 years later, spread across 40 acres in a lush-green campus in the corporate hub of Millennium City, MDI stands out as a green island in the concrete jungle of Gurgaon. MDI catapulted into limelight when it launched its full-time, residential, 15-month course called the National Management Program (NMP) in 1987 for senior IAS officers and top executives from the private sector. Six years later, in 1994, MDI became a proper business school with the introduction of an MBA equivalent program, and since then, has added many new programs to its kitty. Ranked consistently among the top ten B-schools of the country with top global linkages next only to the three premier IIMs, MDI has

By Pradeep Mathur earned this excellence on its own.

Today it is a fully self-financed institute with no funding from the government. But, that is not all. With its second campus in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district as part of its CSR initiative, MDI has also shown its social commitment by extending world class management expertise to India’s most backward region.

One person who has seen MDI’s evolution from its early days and been instrumental in its extraordinary journey is its present director Dr. Chandra P Shrimali. A university topper, reputed professor and professional consultant in HR Management, he holds a master’s degree in Business Administration and PhD from the University of Udaipur. From humble beginnings, hailing from a small town of Rajasthan, he made his way to the top through sheer hard work. He worked very closely with the founding fathers of this institution including Dr. BK Madan, formerly Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India and Lt. Gen Manohar Lal Chibber. He believes everybody can make it big in life if he can turn his passion into his profession. His vision for MDI is to make it rank amongst “the top business schools in the world.”

Corporate Citizen You have been

22 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

associated with MDI for almost four decades now. How has this journey been?

Dr. Chandra P. Shrimali: Extremely satisfying. I joined in March 1977 as a research assistant. In those days MDI was located in Vasant Vihar area of Delhi. Since then, I have seen every phase of its evolution. It has been very inspiring as I got to work with some of the finest academicians and administrators.

Why and how did MDI shift from Delhi to Gurgaon?

We moved to Gurgaon campus in 1980. I have seen it through the construction. Both the Maruti factory and MDI came up around the same time. The credit to a large extent goes to the then chief minister of Haryana, Bansi Lalji. He wanted a national level institution to come up in this part of the NCR region. He offered this piece of land, around 38 acres, at a very cheap rate. Dr. Madan accepted it, saying, “Delhi would be very crowded and polluted after 20-30 years. But when we’re creating MDI, we’ve to think of 100 years. We must go out of Delhi to build an institution of our dreams.” I then suggested that we use 30 per cent for buildings and leave 70 per cent greenery for reflection and thinking. He agreed

Pics: Sumeet Sawhney

“A lot of decisions were taken without any understanding of finance, accounting, budgeting, costing, and marketing. These people may have reached the top level, but had no formal management education�

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 23

Cradle of Leadership-9 and made that a policy. Even now at MDI, when needed, we demolish older buildings to create vertical buildings rather than destroy the green cover on this campus.

What problems did you face when you shifted from Delhi to Gurgaon?

In those days there used to be 17 hours’ power cut daily in Gurgaon.

Delhi taxis did not ply up to Gurgaon. Telephone lines were faulty.

But I still remember the words of Dr. Madan, “When there is nothing, there is an opportunity to do everything.” Bansi Lalji also assured us he would provide all the help we required, and he did.

What kind of programs did MDI conduct before shifting to this campus?

We conducted short-term programs for senior executives, mostly in five-star hotels. In those days, we dealt with problems of industrial sickness caused by management failure. We did company specific training as well as open training programs for both private and public sector executives. Their problems were very similar. A lot of decisions were taken without any understanding of finance, accounting, budgeting, costing, and marketing. These people may have reached the top level, but had no formal management education. We used to research on their needs and create one week/two week capsule programs for non-finance executives -- on advanced marketing programs, approaches to cost reduction, strategy formulation and policy implementation, etc. We used to conduct 60 to 70 such programs in a year in different parts of the country including far off places like Meghalaya, Kashmir, Goa, Mysore. In those days, we were doing only three activities, management research involving writing of case studies, applied research which is consulting and executive training.

How did MDI come up?

When India got independence, capitalistic block countries wanted to help India promote capitalism.

They offered funds for industrial development. Some were through

KfW (a German development bank) schemes, at 3 percent interest. But India was very clear it would decide its own policies and opted for a co-existing public and private sector. The funds were utilised to support the Tatas, Birlas, Singhanias, Thapars and the rest because they were investing in cement plants, jute plants, sugar mills, steel mills and refineries. It got this money at 3 percent, but lent it at 15 percent. International norms also allowed you to keep 3 percent for assessment and recovery. So, there still was about 10 percent left over, which belonged to nobody. It was neither KfW money, nor GOI money, nor IFCI money nor any industrialist’s money because everybody paid as per the contractual obligations. This money was called Interest Differential Fund (IDF), available with IFCI, and MDI came out of that fund. So MDI’s genesis is truly autonomous because there was no GOI funding for it in the manner that IIMs get, nor did it get any private funding, as is the case with some other top management institutes like the Delhi-based International Management Institute (IMI) or IMT Ghaziabad which were created by private initiative.

What was the idea behind setting up MDI?

At one stage, the GOI, KfW and IFCI realised that many industries they financed were turning sick.

Some either indulged in political funding or siphoned money or diverted it. The few surviving were those with political patronage under the then prevailing licence raj.

When this patronage went away due to change in government, the unit got sick. One major reason was management failure. The MDI was created to deal with this industrial sickness and help the corporate world through management consulting, research and executive education.

Why did you not go the IIM way?

IIMs were created for imparting management education to young boys and girls but MDI was brought up for executive training, consulting and research. That was our mandate, so that we should

24 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Management Development Institute, Gurgaon

“IIMs were created for imparting management education to young boys and girls but MDI was conceived for executive training, consulting and research, in order that we do not duplicate IIMs” not duplicate IIMs. Our pay scales were also pretty high compared to the IIMs.

Why did the character of MDI change?

Around 1986, we faced an existential problem. We shifted to this campus in 1980. Though we saved hotel costs, those who came here once would not turn up the second time because of the recurring 17-hour power cuts and faulty telephone lines. Our programs suffered. Moreover, when we shifted from Delhi to Gurgaon, many faculty members left and went abroad. This campus became a white elephant. In 1986, the situation became so grave that we were not able to pay salaries for two to three months.

How did you get out of this crisis?

Luckily, Lt. Gen. ML Chibber, a

Padma Vibhushan and a key mastermind of India’s Siachen victory of 1986 was persuaded to join us as our director at this critical juncture.

A recipient of the Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship, he got is doctorate at around 56-57 years of age and had also written a book on leadership.

He was a highly decorated general, great academician and thinker. On joining here, Lt Gen. Chibber realized we were in trouble. But being a former general, he knew how to meet the challenge.

How did he bring the turnaround?

He was a highly respected general.

When Rajiv Gandhi was a boy and Mrs Indira Gandhi the prime minister, he used to go to Kashmir and stay in the defence area. Rajiv Gandhi used to call him ‘uncle’. After becoming the prime minister he once visited MDI and asked Lt Gen. Chibber a question: “When

“It was a high-profile program.

NMP alumni are everywhere in the public and private sector. It was the first time a master’s level course was being offered in just 15 months. But the condition was that the candidate must have a minimum of five years’ experience”

there is war, you are able to integrate the army, navy and air force.

But my bureaucrats do not see eye to eye with public sector or private sector fellows. How do I get cohesion among them?” I was there in this very room when he asked this question. He had come with P. Chidambaram, the minister of state for HRD.

(NMP). Lt Gen. Chibber insisted that this being a high-powered program, it must have the best faculty from all over the country. At MDI, we were only eight to ten people, so we had to pool all the IIMs into MDI for this national initiative. Their faculty members would come in and the government would give some kind of funding for this program.

What was Gen. Chibber’s response?

Did Rajiv Gandhi give the required funds?

The General said, “There is only one way. In the defence service, we learn together, eat together, work together. We go to Khadakvasla near Pune together. We go to Wellington Academy together. We stay in the same hostel, eat in the same mess, share the room, do drill together, shoot together. We build such close affinity that in the days of war, when we require fast decision making, it happens instantly because of the connect we built earlier.”

Rajivji then said, how can we do it in governance? Lt Gen. Chibber suggested a common training program for civil servants. Since Chidambaram was the state HRD minister, Rajiv asked him, would you like to look into this kind of a concept? He said, yes. We coined it the National Management Program

The government gave us ₹ 3-5 crores to create an auditorium and an MP hostel. Additionally Rajiv Gandhi agreed to create a PM’s gold medal for the topper of the course, FM’s gold medal for the topper in finance, HR Minister’s gold medal for the topper in HR and ITC gold medal for the topper in marketing.

We designed the complete curriculum and roped in NCP Nath and SL Rao who taught at IIM Ahmedabad and at Mhow. Chidambaram also helped us get connected with Harvard and Kellogg and other great management schools of the world.

Under that collaboration, I too studied at Kellogg School of Management on a fellowship.

What was your experience in America?

It was great. During that study tour, I studied what Kellogg did to become the number one management school. I sat in Philip Kotler’s classes and the lectures of all the great Harvard professors. I documented everything so I could apply them at MDI. Some 15-20 people went abroad to study the best management practices and decided that we should match or improve on that. Dr. Bala V. Balachandran was the nodal person at Kellogg.

He has recently created the Great Lake Institute in Chennai. He was also involved in the creation of the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad. ISB is nothing but, on a different scale, a replication of our NMP. In fact, the idea was created at Balachandran’s home in America.

When did you launch the NMP?

We started the NMP in 1987 which is in its 27th course, and going strong. The first program had 20 very carefully chosen people each from the public and private sectors.

They all went through the CAT exam and interview to get in. It was a great success.

Do the civil servants come for this NMP program even now?

Oh yes. Indian Oil CMD B Ashok was my student from the first batch.

Tripurari Sharan who was Doordarshan’s Director General was a 4th batch student. Pradeep Gupta, currently OSD to the President of India was a student of our sixth batch.

SIDBI Chairman, RM Malla, was also my student. It was a high-profile program. NMP alumni are everywhere in the public and private sector. It was the first time a master’s level course was being offered in just 15 months. But the condition was that the candidate must have a

minimum of five years’ experience.

It wasn’t open for freshers.

Why would IAS officers come for this program?

It’s a high-powered program aimed at developing leaders. IAS officers would come on leave and their fees were paid by the government.

The concept was very simple: 12 months of education, with three months’ project work on a “live problem” from their department.

If the organisation had engaged a consultant to handle the project, they would have paid a fee of ₹1015 lakhs. Now this guy would solve this problem under the able guidance of MDI professors who would also be responsible for its implementation. It was action-centric research. Private companies were the biggest beneficiaries as they got their critical issues solved, in addition to having a champion in their company, and the cost was offset by the benefits.

What was the impact of NMP on MDI?

Once NMP became successful, MDI started growing. Our losses declined and visibility increased.

We had 20-25 faculty members whom we aided.

In 1990, we had a major challenge. Lt Gen. Chibber retired and left MDI. New directors came, but there was instability at the leadership level. In 1990, the IFCI also became a government company and its shares started getting divested.

At its general body meeting, they took a decision that this Interest Differential Fund (IDF) belonged to them. Their argument was, if MDI was teaching management to everybody else, why should they not be able to manage themselves?

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 25

Cradle of Leadership-9 Why should the IFCI fund them?

Thus, money from both the government and IFCI stopped. They said, we’ve given you capital and infrastructure; now stand on your own feet. We took up the challenge and today we’re a fully self-financed institution.

How did you do this?

When Lt Gen. Chibber left, we only had NMP with us. The financial health of MDI wasn’t that great. Dr. Abbas Ahmed was our chairman then. He had come from Delhi University’s Faculty of Management Sciences (FMS). He said institutions are known by their activity associated with the society at large. As of then, we only had executives, small in number, who joined our program, and went back into their company and got assimilated. FMS was known because so many students studied there for two years, and their families were involved. So he suggested we start an MBA program. We wrote to IFCI that they give us autonomy to operate and we would not ask for more money, except for a one-time corpus. IFCI agreed. Thereafter, we practically got delinked from IFCI and launched our own MBA program in 1994.

How did you design your course?

This course has to be relevant to industry requirements. Since we were not getting any funds from the government, we decided on merit as the only criteria, no reservation, no management quota, nothing. In batch one, we took 60 students. We had invited people from the corporate world. We applied and got AICTE approval and launched our PGPM program in 1994.

Was your curriculum the same as that of the IIMs?

Yes. Just an improved version. We developed our own philosophy: learning by doing. IIM has only summer training. Our classes were from 8.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. after which our students would work in the industries nearby. During their two years’ stay, the students would work on at least 15-20 live consulting projects. Since we were doing executive education, we had

Engaging students in learning at MDI

“We have an annual turnover of over ₹100 crore. We don’t save much.

Whatever we earn, we reinvest, to fulfil a social cause with the surplus money. We have now deployed some capital to develop another campus in Murshidabad, West Bengal” a very strong industry connect. As a result our first batch got placed within three days! And we insisted that packages be no different from IIM Ahmedabad (IIM-A). IIM-A had always been number one and we weren’t even in the top 100 at that time, but we took the stand that our product was not inferior to IIM-A. The course curriculum is our strength, the faculty is from IIM-A, B and C and abroad. We created a pro-active HR policy and then built the institution and brand image. Thereafter, there has been no looking back. Then we started PGP in HRM, next in International Management. Today we have nine programs, each a benchmark.

Why did you go for recognition from so many global accreditation agencies?

Once we were among top 10-15 institutions in the country, we realised we would always be behind IIMA. So we decided to go global. In 2005, we got accredited by the South Asian Quality Systems (SAQS).

Next year, MDI became the first

26 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

and the only institute in India to be accredited by the UK’s Association of MBAs (AMBA) for all its six programs! We then pursued, successfully, both Associations to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS) accreditations.

Once we got that, international students started coming in. Then we signed double degree agreements.

We have nearly 40 foreign partners today. My students go there, their students come here, and the grades can be transferred abroad. As a result, our degrees and our placements have become international.

We also have foreign faculty coming in to teach, eight to ten at any time. We have doctoral programs, executive doctoral programs, parttime PGDM programs, public policy programs, while NMP continues to be our flagship program.

Are you earning profit now?

We have an annual turnover of over ₹100 crore. We don’t save much.

Whatever we earn, we reinvest. We

have also deployed some capital to develop another campus in Murshidabad, West Bengal. People go for other campuses to make money, but we have gone to fulfil a social cause with the surplus money.

Although established in 2010, Murshidabad MDI is yet to make any mark. Is it running in losses?

It’s a CSR initiative, a social cause.

We are fully aware that it will make losses for the first five years. Murshidabad is the most backward district in the country. It is just a 4-5 hours’ drive from Kolkata, but you don’t even see tractors there. Poverty is so acute! Pranab Mukherjee got elected from there, this time, his son. After so many years of independence if so much poverty exists, as management institutions don’t we have any responsibility to do something? We started this campus with that thought, not to make profit. We were also making losses in the beginning.

Have the classes begun?

Classes have begun with the entry of the first batch of 22 students in July 2014. We expect to get 60 students in the new batch. My top faculty goes there, including international faculty. So the quality of teaching is no less than at MDI. Student intake is a challenge, but new institutions have challenge. Here I have students with 98-99 percentile joining. We take students through CAT, but there the cut off is much lower. mathurpradeep1@gmail.com

book review

Keep at it, every step As a self-help book for the armed forces. It could work wonderfully as an army operations or military tactics textbook, even be included as mandatory reading for serving defence / army personnel, especially young officers Usha Somayaji

L

age Raho by Sanjay P Vishwasrao, Colonel, Sena Medal & Bar, Indian Army, is a self-help book on Leadership, fauji style.

Lage Raho (meaning ‘Keep at it, till it’s done well’) is a fictional account of a planned army operation in Jammu & Kashmir where a fictitious Rashtriya Rifles unit is tasked with the responsibility of neutralising terrorists and bringing about peace in the region.

Units have come and units have gone. The immediate period before this new officer takes charge has not been very successful, and what is left is a demoralised team. How the new leader takes charge, what methods he adopts to revitalise and re-enthuse the team, how they learn to take ownership of the task, take step by step measures in text-book fashion, get into the root of how the problem was hitherto tackled, formulate the strategy, chalk out the milestones, and implement the strategy to win the hearts of the J&K civilians, win their trust, and succeed in neutralising the terrorists is the narrative that stitches this lesson on leadership. It is an exposition of how the unit learnt to live and breathe the vision and mission, and ‘keep at it’ until they achieved their goal, applying the principles of team-leadership, but with a twist.

The methods and principles used in this attempt are unconventional -- ‘servant leadership’, satyagraha (insistence of truth), ahimsa (cause no unnecessary or unjust injury), frugal and fearless means, to name a few.

By his own admission, as the author says on page 252 of the book, “This very book is a result of .....failed search for a practical self-help book on contemporary leadership.” As a self-help book for

Lage Raho leadership authors

Sanjay P Vishwasrao publishers

APK Publishers price

`695 pages

286

the armed forces. It could work wonderfully as an army operations or military tactics textbook, even be included as mandatory reading for serving defence / army personnel, especially young officers who have to lead their men in harsh and hostile situations.

But whether it would be equally applicable to a business enterprise, big or small, or other institution outside the army, is debatable. At best, one can draw the essence of the tenets and principles and apply suitably. The second half of the book, spelling out theories, traits and skills of leadership has more relevant gyan for the lay leader.

Although the book is well planned out, neatly organised

in theme wise chapters, indexes, glossaries, references, full forms of abbreviations (which are so many), explanations for Indian language terms, military organisational terms, military planning and management terms, boxed off demarcations within each page, even a list of illustrations and graphics, and written in easy language, what jars is the excessive use of abbreviations. Maybe it is common in fauji communication, but the likes of MIH guys (Make it Happy guys), W5H of things ( what, when, where, why and how,. of things), SaAFFway (Satyagraha, ahimsa, frugality and fearlessness), OODA Loops (observe-orientdecide-act) -- to name a few – trip you up at every other sentence, making it a cumbersome and obstructive reading experience.

Another un-missable feature of this book -- the quotes. Initially every second page has three, four, five quotes gleaned from across the world – Sun Tzu to Colin Powell to Mahatma Gandhi to Kahlil Gibran to Winston Churchill to the Bhagwad Gita to Peter Drucker – many familiar, some obscure.

Subsequently each page starts with a couple of quotes. If the book was not called Lage Raho, it could well be called the Book of Collected Quotes. It is unlikely you will find such a vast compilation of quotes anywhere else except in a book of quotes. Each quotation taken by itself is a gem loaded with wisdom.

But when there are so many – Phew! That’s too much food for thought.

This is not a book you can breeze through. You need to read and re-read it in pieces, chew and mull. And later put into action as a leader, perhaps. Lage raho! Keep at it! ushasomayaji@gmail.com

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 27

COMMAND

Pic: Sanjay MD

NO.1

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The interesting lesson I learnt at OTA was that there were different people who had different points of failures and successes. As a team though, we would help each other and make sure we all passed and qualified for everything. We came with a lot of weak spots, but we passed out very strong as a team. That was the first lesson of comradeship and team work that I learnt in the armed forces

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ew dyna an m ies ser ic

Beginn in

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Officer & Corporate Gentleman

talwart corporate leader Manoj Biswas who was, until recently, Managing Director- Human Resources, Geographic Unit HR Lead, Accenture India and South Asia served in the Indian Army as a Short Service Commissioned Officer before he joined the corporate world two decades back. Biswas, who held top positions in leading corporates like Wipro and IBM, pioneered large scale HR recruitment and strategy in India with innovative techniques that made the process quick, efficient and effective. Biswas credits his successful corporate career to his training in the Army, which adopted techniques of organisational skills, time management, effective communication, camaraderie and transparency long before the corporate world knew of it. Biswas adopted these impressive techniques in his role as corporate leader. Biswas pursued MBAs from both IIM Kolkata and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade before he entered the corporate world after quitting the Army. In an in-depth and insightful interview to Corporate Citizen, Manoj Biswas speaks about how he injected the military spirit into the corporate world. This is the first in a series of interviews of corporate leaders who stirred out of their Armed Forces outfits to pursue effective leadership roles in the corporate field.

By Vinita Deshmukh

Corporate Citizen: Tell us about your background and education that led to a stint in the army and then in the corporate world?

Manoj Biswas: My career journey can be divided into three phases. Phase one was about how and what I could do for my country, phase two, about what I could do for myself and my family, and phase three, what I could do for the society. If you can fulfil these three phases in your lifetime, it completes the career, life and totality of a person, as per my philosophy.

I was born in Dehradun, then small town, now the capital of Uttarakhand. It was a small hill station, renowned for its public schools and the presence of the Armed Forces. The environment around you influences you. The presence of the Indian Military Academy (IMA), the Air Force selection board and the cantonment naturally got me and my friends attracted towards a career in the Armed Forces. So, getting into the Army was quite naturally my first choice.

I got selected in the first attempt in the Combined Defence Services Examination and could either join the Officers Training Academy (OTA) or the IMA. The OTA session was more convenient as I was finishing college and then join the OTA in the August/ September 1988 academic session. We were quite a few classmates from Dehradun in that batch and initially it felt it like an extension of college. As the training programme progressed there was more seriousness, rigor and discipline. For example, I was doing fine in most activities and academics. But swimming was a major stumbling August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 29

cover story block. Every time I got into the swimming pool I would fail.

The instructor decided he had enough and pushed me into the deep waters. I struggled and in the process, learned the hard way that when you push somebody into the water, it is akin to actual ‘training on the ground’ as we call it.

The interesting lesson I learnt at OTA was that there were different people who had different points of failures and successes. If I was bad at swimming, somebody else was bad at something else. As a team though, we would help each other and make sure we all passed and qualified for everything. We came with a lot of weak spots, but we passed out very strong as a team. That was the first lesson of comradeship and team work that I learnt in the armed forces.

What factors contributed to your success?

Three things. First, I don’t feel successful. Even today, I am open to learning from any age group, from Google or even from my daughter.

Secondly, one of my commanding officers once told me that the difference between a successful horse rider and an unsuccessful one was very straight and simple. The successful guy had the courage and passion to brush and dust his clothes and get back on the saddle after he had a fall. At which point of time do you decide not to climb back on the horse? As you go through all of these falls, there are different decision points. The question is where do you lose it and say ‘now I am not going to get back on the horse’?

For an outsider, somebody else’s career graph looks as if it is going diametrically straight upwards but actually if you look deeper, it is made up of a series of peaks and troughs.

What people manage to see are the higher points of your success graph. To them the success journey looks like a plane taking off, but actually it is an undulating trough.

The third and most pertinent lesson I learnt from the armed forces is to hire great teams. Great teams make you successful. Most of us try to hire those who are very much like ourselves. Why? Because we want no confrontation - I will tell, and the person will execute; no conflict. I like to see my face in the mirror so I hire people like myself. The success factor is about having the courage to hire people who are diverse and in many cases better than you, that’s the success of a leader.

I am an HR and business person; my wife is a finance person. We don’t have any commonality -- whatever her strengths are, they are not mine, whatever my strengths are, they are not hers. That’s how a team should be - they should be complementary to each other, because great teams never fail.

Whether it is postings in the Army or the global corporate world, change is the only permanent thing. How do you address that?

Young managers of tomorrow just need to be successful in ambiguous times. We like to get into things which are perfectly pre-determined, spaces that are predictable, because we are afraid of failure. But if you look at success, all great success stories are stories of failure. So you cannot segregate success from failures, so why be afraid of it?

The world is constantly changing. The only thing that is consistent in our life is change. What is new is the velocity of change. If the radio took 38 years to get to a listener base, or a customer base of two million, Facebook took one year, 30 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

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One of my commanding officers once told me that the difference between a successful horse rider and an unsuccessful one was very straight and simple. The successful guy had the courage and passion to brush and dust his clothes and get back on the saddle after he had a fall. At which point of time do you decide not to climb back on the horse? As you go through all of these falls, there are different decision points.

The question is where do you lose it and say ‘now I am not going to get back on the horse’?

Manoj Biswas served in the Army for seven years

Twitter probably took less than a year. Candy Crush, the game that our kids play - some of us who are not so old still play it - garners a revenue of USD 268 million every month.

Would you have thought 20 years back that a video game would give you that kind of a turnaround story?

I was at a tech conference about five-six years ago. One of the guest speakers said imagine that your mobile phone is the only device you will require in the future. It will be your computer, your laptop, your music device and a substitute for your camera. There was a murmur of laughter that went through the audience. Five years down, you probably are sitting with a mobile phone which does everything.

So what can surprise young managers of tomorrow is not change; it is the velocity of change. The number of changes that will hit in a matter of months or a year, will be manifold than we see today. People need to get comfortable living in an ambiguous time full of changes. They need to get out of this phobia of fear; they need to be confident about themselves and their capabilities to help them manage and be successful in the turbulent times.

You have been in unfriendly and hostile terrain during your Army life; what were the experiences and learnings from that phase?

Soon after I passed out in 1989, I was sent to a base camp in Siachen for three and a half months. That is the best time to do a tenure like that, soon after you are out of the academy.

You have no fear, you feel invincible. It is only as you live through life that you become aware of the fears, obstacles, and all the battles in your life take over. When you are fresh out of the college, you are very enthusiastic and think you can change the world.

The only adversity was the climate. When you are serving at the highest battlefield in the world at minus 55 degrees centigrade, adversity teaches you to respect your training.

It actually puts to test your training and how good you have learnt. It also teaches you to trust your friend, teaches you why people are tied to each other when you are going out -- if somebody falls into a crevice or there is an avalanche, others can pull you out. The level of comradeship seen on the glacier is probably the highest. Imagine, at that point of time I was getting paid around Rs 1800 per month, and I am sure if an officer was getting paid so modestly, the jawans were getting far less. Showing such comradeship requires the highest level of personal motivation and guts.

What did the tenure teach me? In the corporate world, when things go wrong, you need somebody with a cool head.

I guess that was one of the big lessons I learnt in my army tenure.

Why did you quit the Army and join the corporate world?

I was posted in Deolali in the School of Artillery. We were doing artillery drills, which is all about firing from a distance.

Basically you use all your mathematical ability, so that the fire round from the firing point lands at the particular spot.

That’s the principle which is the sum total of trigonometry.

I was very lucky to share my room with a postgraduate in Mathematics from Venkateshwar College, Delhi. In those days, when computers were not so widespread, he had a small hand-held computer which he used for basic programming. I was very fascinated by that because in those days in 1989-90, the army had not even seen a computer.

During this time we thought that if this firing is all about mathematics, why we can’t program it on a computer. One of our senior instructors encouraged us to change our firing programme from large plotting boards to a hand-held computer. Thereafter we never looked back and that’s how our life changed.

That was the genesis as to why I quit the army, after serving for seven years. I pursued my MBA because of an accident. I had injured myself while playing hockey in the armed forces and I had free time. I was in plaster for almost a year.

Thereafter, I came to Delhi, joined the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade and pursued MBA in marketing through the 18 month executive MBA course. Interestingly, I met people from leading corporates like Ericsson, L&T and others from different walks of life. That’s where I started to learn that the world outside was going ahead and IT was taking shape and creating an impact. I went back and put in my papers. Then, before my stint at Wipro, I appeared for CAT and got admission at IIM Kolkata where I pursued my MBA.

administration or security. I did not qualify for over 37 interviews and was not even short-listed for several. One of my mentors from the business school advised me not to fight the system. He suggested I get into Human Resource, since that is aligned to the interest I had shown and the market would aptly perceive me. That was how I got into HR and subsequently became a business analyst. Then I worked for North Carolina (US) based Intelligent Information Systems, which had a presence in India.

I went to the US in 1998-99, for about three and half years and worked on designing software to facilitate e-governance for the US government. As a product manager, I designed software products in the financial services and tax collection system for the state and county governments in the US. That is how the transition happened and I came back to India in 2001 post the Y2K, when I met Raman Roy. He had created American Express and GE India. Raman then started his own company, Wipro Spectra Mind. It was a very small outfit in Okhla Industrial Estate, but he had a big vision, to make it a 10,000-people company. I was offered the role of recruitment lead for Wipro Spectra Mind. Raman wanted an unconventional HR recruitment person, so he shortlisted me.

In just about a year and a half, Wipro Spectra Mind grew to be a 15000 people- company, the largest third party service provider in the country. It became a huge success story, creating a lot of innovative practices Secondly, I did not get typical HR people as recruiters.

Women in BPOs left after they got married because of the night shifts and looked for other jobs. I got them to be my recruiters. They knew the business, they knew what was required, what were the metrics, what were the basics. All they required was a basic interviewer certification. So Wipro put up a certification program in place, they got certified, joined my team, interviewed candidates and made the offers, there and then. It made my interview process much faster. They were happy, working regular hours, not night shifts, doing an HR job. You have tremendous attrition in BPOs, but nobody left me, at least until I was there.

Post Wipro Spectra Mind, I met the HR head of IBM India. He asked me if I could replicate the Wipro Spectra I continue to learn...from google and even from my daughter Ipshita

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When you are serving at the highest battlefield in the world at minus 55 degrees Celsius, adversity teaches you to respect your training. It actually puts to test your training and how good you have learnt.

It also teaches you to trust your friend, teaches you why people are tied to each other when you are going out -- if somebody falls into a crevice or there is an avalanche, others can pull you out. The level of comradeship seen on the glacier is probably the highest

So, tell us about your foray in the corporate world?

In 1995-96 I started looking for a job in marketing. Unfortunately whenever people saw I had done a tenure as a short service commissioned officer, they would offer me a job in August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 31

cover story Mind BPO pattern at IBM which wanted to be a truly services company. They aimed to grow very fast by creating a talent supply chain. I agreed. At its peak, we recruited anywhere from 25000 to 30000 every quarter. We created a supply chain, robust and growing. IBM India, from 2003 to 2007, was the fastest growing MNC in India.

In 2005-2006 after a lot of recruitment, I requested the leadership for some other responsibility and I was offered charge as HR Head of all of the technology business of IBM. This was a most complex business as the IBM research laboratories and the Global Delivery Service business involved large scale hiring. I did that for quite some time and in 2006.

Accenture approached me with an offer. I joined them as HR head in 2007 and was thereafter made Managing DirectorHuman Resources, Geographic Unit HR Lead, Accenture India. I recently quit the company.

With such mindboggling recruitment at such quick pace, what about the quality of the hired professionals?

I met the then HRD minister as part of the National Skill Development Corporation of India (NSDC). A McKinsey study indicated that we had 500 million graduates passing out every year, but only 25 per cent got jobs. That’s the divide we have not been able to bridge. Fifty per cent of graduates pursue higher studies or get into education programs abroad.

Only 25 per cent make the cut, the balance 25 per cent go to the likes of NIIT and Aptech making their revenue model.

So the finishing schools need to balance out that divide. That will be the bigger change that India needs to see in the future.

If the government, the corporates, and universities work in tandem, it will happen. The problem is that all of us are like the blind men who guess the elephant, we just see our part of the sector, not the elephant in totality.

It’s said that you have adopted some army style management practices into your corporate working. Please elaborate.

There are lot of things in the armed forces which can be replicated, because HR practices are implemented in the army.

Your training, your refresher training, your buddy system, your team building exercises, your learning and growing gradually through each of the levels, your career progression plan, your performance management system -- all these existed in the armed forces long before the corporate world even talked about it. The Indian Armed Forces is the largest human resource organization that runs 24x7. If you look at the compensation structure, the basic payroll structure, the incentives – all of these too have been created in the armed forces. They need to be modified and fitted into the corporate world.

When new recruits join, they feel lost, in any big organization. The first 90 days are very crucial to learn the organization language, learn the culture, understand, get some help.

That’s where I introduced the buddy system which exists in the armed forces. The moment you get an offer letter you get a mobile number, an email ID, to say this person would be your buddy for the next 90 days. The buddy will call you and say this is your joining location, this is my workstation number and I am available for you. The buddy goes with you, takes you to the cafeteria, tells you where to get the stationery, tells you how you will get the security card, and helps you with your laptop, and anything and everything that goes 32 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

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In the US or Europe, almost 45-50 per cent of people who come out of the armed forces get direct admissions to the best colleges like Harvard or Cornell University, and it is paid by the government.

They also get the best of the jobs. If you look at Accenture, Fujitsu, 3M, McKinsey, some of the top jobs at the director level etc., are with people from the army. But in our country it is different. If you are able to create the same kind of environment, imagine the kind of talent that will come in. The task is to get people not by force but by making it attractive

Happy times are holiday times

wrong. The buddy is there to help you and he is like your mentor, guide, administrative help to negotiate in this large corporate. After we introduced this system, the response of the people was very good.

I also began the system of townhalls. It is a simple thing you go to a cafeteria, there is a small stage and you share the details of the last quarter and what is going to happen in the next quarter. What kills people is lack of information. Employees today are very intelligent. They want to know how they perform; how did their work contribute to the success of the company. They ask questions. If you do not answer questions, if you do not set the right expectation, that is where rumours come - they become Chinese whispers and people start discussing them. Then it leads to disgruntlement. If you stand up amongst them and provide information, you are setting the expectation, which is done very well in the armed forces. Before you go to war you tell them you need to do this, do that, this will not happen, this is the only food you will have, and this is the amount of water - that is, expectation setting. It can be difficult, but people know why you are doing it, and they know beforehand, so they are prepared.

They don’t crib about it, they don’t complain.

At many townhalls I have admitted I didn’t know the answers to their questions. I see people take that at face value.

When I came in, I was told how large we were, so it was difficult to have townhalls. I started using technology, I used something called a round table and I gave video access to team leaders. So whenever I did my townhall, I connected on the video. There is a chat box where people asked questions.

This was held in all locations.

I also ran a program called `Mornings with Manoj’. People who are five-ten levels below me never got to meet or interact with me and I don’t get to hear from them. So we have a coffee morning, a very informal set up, where everybody sits around with coffee and cookies. A random 15-20 people are invited. I run a very small video to do the expectation set-

situation, and then take the decision. They will respect you for that. Communication is 70 per cent listening and 30 per cent speaking. Unfortunately we confuse communication skill as an ability to speak.

When I was at the OTA they told me an officer’s training is tougher than that of a jawan. An instructor told me, “When you go to the unit as an officer you no longer do these things, you will no longer dig a pit with your own hands, or do any of these menial things. You will give the order and somebody else will execute it. But before you give an order to say, dig this pit by so and so time, you should know how much time it takes.”

What’s your advice for India’s youth and young managers?

This is a great time to be here, in India. The opportunities are limitless. Today’s youth is highly intelligent, highly innovative, and there is lot of me-ology (what is in it for me?) with this generation. That is critical. If you lack self-belief, if you are not innovative, you are bound to fail. What the youth have not experienced is what they need to do for the other two pieces -- the society and the country. There is lot of the middle phase -- the ‘me and my family’ that is taken care of.

The youth plays a very dynamic role in a country’s future.

If a university can provide ten successful people who can write the future of India very differently, that is the biggest social contribution a university can make. Our generation and a generation us before went through the independence struggle, so then it came naturally. This generation has not seen that struggle. Somewhere, the connection with the country is missing, not in totality but in quantum.

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ting and tone of the meeting, and then I just listen. After I go back from there I used to send the minutes of the meeting to everyone who was present. This is what I tell them – you told me these 15 things, of these, three things I believe are priority, and I will do this by 1st or 2nd quarter of this year. These other three things that you told me, are very good ideas, but I don’t have the time, so why don’t you do something? I will create a focus group and fund you, and you come back with a recommendation of what we should do. I used to get great feedback from some of these meetings.

HR has become more important than any other department, the artery of an organisation. …..?

The whole concept of the armed forces revolves around HR. When I joined the armed forces the first thing my commanding officer did was give me a notebook and tell me a few things. He said, you are in this regiment, you should try to meet 5-10 jawans everyday. Know everything about them, their names, what they do, where they come from, their village, who are in the family, what do they value, and what they looking for. Talk and listen to them and note it down, try to memorise it. If you know them well and are able to address them by their name, whenever the situation comes you will know their family members, you will know their

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The most pertinent lesson I learnt from the armed forces is to hire great teams. Most of us try to hire those who are very much like ourselves.

Instead, hire people who are diverse and in many cases better than you that’s the success of a leader

Do you recommend a short-period army training for everybody?

People should not be forced, then you don’t see value. If the army has to attract good people to join, the responsibility is with the army, not with the youth. The army has to make itself visible and marketable.

In the US or Europe, almost 45-50 per cent of people who come out of the armed forces get direct admissions to the best colleges like Harvard or Cornell University, and it is paid by the government. They also get the best of the jobs.

If you look at Accenture, Fujitsu, 3M, McKinsey, some of the top jobs at the director level etc., are with people from the army. But in our country it is different. If you are able to create the same kind of environment, imagine the kind of talent that will come in. The task is to get people not by force but by making it attractive.

How do you keep yourself fit and trim?

If you join the armed forces you will always be fit and trim.

It teaches you the regimented way of living.

With your vast experience in the army as well as the corporate, how have you grown as a person?

I have become much more humble, much more innovative and adaptive. I love to get into challenging and ambiguous spaces, but I am more grounded that I was. There is a couplet by the poet Kabir which says that the real test of a tree comes when the tree bears fruit; that’s when it is of value to society.

When it bears fruit, you can see it actually bend towards the ground, it doesn’t stand straight. vinita.deshmukh@corporatecitizen.in (Transcribed by Rajesh Rao) August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 33

cover story Dynamic Duo 11

Shibani and Manoj Biswas

Arm-In-Arm Shibani Roy, a leading financial consultant, formerly working with American Express, believes marriage is about trust and the ability to live and let live. Her relationship with her husband Manoj is based on this philosophy

I

By Vinita Deshmukh

t was a perfectly arranged marriage but had to wait for some time, due to professional commitments of both, Shibani and Manoj Biswas.

Although they met each other for the first time in 1999 and had liked each other, they did not commit.

The decision got postponed further, when, Shibani, who was working with American Express, Noida, got a posting to London and decided to go. Manoj, who was working with Wipro also was posted to the US. Reminisces Shibani, “I had finished my CWA and my parents wanted me to get married. I met Manoj but thereafter, I went to London and nothing moved, although we were in touch with each other. My parents wanted me to come back to India and get married, so I decided to return in 2001, which is when we got married.”

States Manoj, “We had a very long distance international relationship but at some point of time we both decided that we should come back home and get married.

We were very socially oriented and hence found ourselves a little disconnected from the social stand point. That is when we decided to come back to India and get married and so I came back from the USA in 2001.”

So, what was Shibani’s first impression of Manoj? Says she, candidly, “At that point of time I saw him as a very confident, dynamic, outgoing person and one with a vision. I was amazed at the career path he had envisioned.

He was from the army and although he had left it when we met, he was still army-like.

One does not see that kind of chivalry and gentlemanly behaviour, especially in today’s corporate world. The army teaches them to respect women.’’ As for Manoj, he found Shibani to be a very cool and composed person.

Married for 14 years now, with an 11 year old daughter, Ipshita, the relationship has been one of mutual understanding, not only in the personal front, but on the professional front too. Like, when their daughter Ipshita was three years old, Shibani, who was still working with American Express, was posted to Hong Kong and Manoj took it upon himself to look after her. Says Shibani, “We tried to work out a solution where by Manoj who used to travel a lot, spent ample time with Ipshita, during my Honk Kong tenure.

We were also staying with my in-laws, which helped further in making Ipshita feel secure.

To stay out of the country for six months was not easy, especially when you have a child back home, but Manoj and his parents made it possible for me.’’

She adds, “There have been moments when I felt proud as well as guilty during my career. Especially when I was in Hong Kong, I felt guilty and would cry at times.

That was the weak moment of my life. But when I look back, I see the strength I had to hold through it and the family support I got.”

By 2007, Manoj moved to Bangalore and Shibani decided to give up her job, as motherhood overpowered her desire to be a careerist. Says she, “I wanted to be a handson mother and so quit. Ipshita was growing up and I decided to enjoy other aspects of life as well.”

So, was it easy to switch over from a working woman to a complete homemaker? Says Shibani, “I must confess that leaving work and being a homemaker was a trauma for me and at times I also felt it was not the correct decision. We stayed in Bangalore for 2-3 years after which we moved to Manila, as Manoj was posted in the Philippines in 2009, with Accenture. We were there in the Philippines for 3-4 years. I had a different exposure

34 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Pics: Sanjay MD

The happy trio - a life of sincerity and commitment

Manoj is very much a go-getter and outspoken while I am the opposite. He likes to explore various things. In contrast, I am detailed-oriented. Hence, we’ve created a fine balance which makes for a complete picture- Shibani to life there. Being an expat I was in contact with all the CEOs and their families. I also joined the Indian women’s association called Bharti, which was headed by the wife of the Indian ambassador. I contributed a lot to the social cause, through fund raising events for the orphans in the Philippines community.”

Manoj and Shibani make sure they spend time with Ipshita. Says Manoj, “We are committed to spend more quality time with Ipshita and we have our weekends set aside for that. We like to do simple things, like going out for a movie whenever there is a kid’s movie around and other activities.’’

Adds Shibani, “Every two to three months we like to go out for a vacation. I still like to be in control of home, her studies and her activities. I personally sit down with her and take care of her studies, instead of outsourcing that part. Now as she is growing up it has become a little more difficult for me to handle, but as of now I am trying to do it myself.’’ Shibani presently is busy, embarking on a venture.

As for the marriage, being different in nature and approach has helped in its stability, togetherness and enrichment. Says Shibani, “Manoj is very much a go-getter and outspoken while I am totally the opposite. So we complement each other. He is a more dynamic person and he likes to explore various things. In contrast, I am detailed-oriented, and think deeply before I take a decision. I like clarity while Manoj goes by his gut feelings. Hence, we have created a fine balance which makes for a complete picture.

We are also each other’s best critic. We definitely do get into arguments. As we are critics of each other, we do criticize on a lot of things on a day-to-day basis, which I feel is a sign of healthy relationship.’’

They are poles apart in their likes and dislikes too. Manoj is fond of home food while Shibani loves to explore outside food.

As for holidays, Manoj is not too choosy, says Shibani , so she is the one who plans the holidays. Says she, “I like to explore hill station-kind of places. My favourite destination would be Switzerland although I have been there only once.”

So, what is the philosophy that Shibani lives by in marriage? Says she, “Live and let live is my philosophy. Enjoying life in the true sense is what I want to do. We have our difference of opinions in life, but what holds us together is the trust we have in each other.

The trust is the love and respect we have for each other. The trust factor is the basis of any relationship.’’

Hence, her advice for young women is, “Everybody needs to take charge of their life and accordingly it is a situational thing.

Being experienced in every aspect of life, I would say career is very important, but so is family life. I see a lot of women postponing marriage, because career is a priority these days. But other aspects of life are also important. There is so much of stress in today’s corporate life, but it is quite possible to balance it out. Not that everybody should leave their jobs and go the family way but every aspect of life needs to be enjoyed.” vinita.deshmukh@corporatecitizen.in

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cii Case Study-4

‘Team Dynamics among students of different disciplines’ by Dr. Latha Krishnan, Director, MBA- Bangalore University and Ms. Ameer Asra Ahmed, Senior Lecturer, MBA- Bangalore University n Institution n Dayananda Sagar College of Management & Information Technology

CII Western Region EdgeFarm-HR Case Study Writing Competition

Finalist

Author: Dr. Latha Krishnan Dr. Latha Krishnan is a doctorate in Management and Post Doctoral Fellow from IIT Madras, Department of Management Studies. She has 18 years of teaching experience and 8 years of research experience. Her research areas include Entrepreneurship, Micro credit, and Women’s empowerment and developmental studies. She is an enthusiastic teacher, caring mentor and a disciplined administrator. She has 5 years of Industry experience in Marketing research and Human Resource Development. She is a Member, Board of Studies, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Prashanthi Nilayam. She is Research Supervisor for Ph.D students of Tumkur University and Bharathiar University. She is Doctoral committee member of Bharathidasan University, Trichy. She has presented several papers at national and international conferences, apart from publications in refereed journals.

She has conducted various MDPs and FDPs on Time Management, Motivation techniques, Emotional intelligence, Transactional analysis, FIRO-B exercise for bank officials, junior engineers of JSW Steels Limited.

Consultancy and training services provided for KMC constructions and JSW Steels Ltd., for junior and senior level engineers on competency mapping and on key skill areas. She was awarded “Best Educationist Award” for outstanding achievements in the field of Education, 2013 by International Institute of Education and Management, New Delhi. She was awarded NHRD Impactful HR Research Award, September, 2014. Finalist for Cll WR HR Case Study Writing Competition 2014- 2015 , February 2015, Mumbai. She holds a firm conviction that excellence and goals can be achieved by sustained perseverance, innovation and team-work.

36 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Author: Ms. Ameer Asra Ahmed She hails from a family of educationists; her mother who was also a school teacher is her biggest inspiration. She is a graduate in Computer science engineering, Master of Business Administration from The Oxford college of Business Management affiliated to Bangalore University. She is currently working as a senior faculty at Dayananda Sagar College of Arts, Science and Commerce, having a teaching experience of over 9 years currently pursuing her PhD from Bharathiar University, Coimbatore. She has presented more than 15 research papers in National and International Conferences and has more than 8 research publications to her credit in national and international journals. She has organized many student development programmes and professional input programs which have molded several students’ personalities and given them a promising career.

She is an excellent teacher, and has good event management skills, good administration skills, ability to guide students on Research projects, Classroom Management, Discipline Management, Ability to train students on Personality Development, Career Counseling for MBA Students, Counseling and Mentoring Students, Ability to Conduct Simulation activities such as Case study discussions, Roleplays etc.

She was also designated as “Student Welfare Officer” in 2010 by her Director. She is highly passionate about research, particularly fond of experimenting with new data analysis tools and techniques. She always strives towards perfection in everything that she undertakes and firmly believes that Perfection can never be overrated.

cii Case Study-4

1. Introduction “More hands make for lighter work.” “Two heads are better than one.” “The more the merrier.”

These proverbs speak to the potential groups have to be more productive, creative, and motivated than individuals on their own. Sitting atop the Shavige hills of Dayananda Sagar Institutions, in the canteen, sipping a cup of hot coffee, when one looks over the lush green lawns, it can be captivating to perceive the students sitting in groups, giggling away to glory, either discussing or criticizing someone who was not around. It was also striking to note that the group behavior was very much dependant on the attitude of the Group Leader. It can also be seen that various groups of students were engrossed in discussions, with books in their hands, pondering over different subjects. Although, for someone who is working in DSI since many years this scene may not be something new but, for somebody who has specialized in Organizational Behaviour this can be quite intriguing. Well, it is but obvious that students have to work in various groups irrespective of the discipline to which they belong. Therefore it can be said that Group Dynamics play a very important role in a student’s life.

Corporate Citizen, the Exclusive Magazine Partner of the event, will publish the series of eight top Case Studies, one by one.

2. Background of the case

DSI is a large institution in Bangalore and comprises of over 15 course including MBA, MTech, Engineering, Medical Electronics, MCA, Dental, Pharmacy, Aeronautics, BCA, BCom, BBM, BBA, BSc., Biotechnology and a few more.

However, this case focuses only on the group dynamics among Post-graduate students in DSI. Therefore the departments which have been considered for this case are MBA, MTech, MCA & Medical Electronics. The students from the above mentioned departments undergo several group projects as a part of their academic curriculum.

Therefore, an effort has been made towards studying the different aspects pertaining to Group Dynamics such as individual roles played by the Group members, Openness & Confrontation, Cooperation & Conflict and Leadership. Interpersonal relations among the members and Communication patterns in the group during the execution of the projects which can be considered as Group Task

3. Objectives

1. To identify some of the major factors contributing to Group Dynamics among the Post-Graduate Student Groups in DSI 2. To determine the factors which negatively and positively contribute towards accomplishment of Group Task.

3. To gauge PG students of which discipline most consistently work towards Group Task.

4. Sampling A sample size of 200 students from MBA, MTech, MCA & Medical Electronics were surveyed and based on the responses the case was developed. Convenient and Judgmental sampling was adopted for identifying the respondents.

4. Case Presentation

This case deals with understanding, the various group dynamic factors that the Post-Graduate students generally encounter with special reference to DSI. When students work in groups irrespective of whether it’s on some official project or unofficial tasks a lot of

learning takes place. They are capable of generating a huge array of alternative solutions to a given problem which is in the form of a task or a project. Working in groups eases the burden on students by dividing the complex task into smaller sub tasks and sharing it amongst the group members & helps the group members to teach & learn from one another. DSI as mentioned earlier is a huge campus with over twelve thousand students from across the globe therefore working in teams also bridges the cross cultural diversity that exists amongst the students. Not every individual can be good at everything, some might be technically strong, some might be good leaders, and some might be good motivators and so on. Therefore a team has to be carefully chosen, so that people of different backgrounds, diverse cultures and differing personalities can come together to accomplish a common goal. That’s exactly what this case deals with. This case is an attempt to identify the various factors that play an important role in accomplishing a common goal. After a detailed discussion with few teams of each of the above mentioned discipline the following observations were recorded: l MBA The student groups belonging to the MBA course were found to be more focused and consistently working towards the group task.

As per the input received by the students of MBA course, they do not spend more time deliberating the task solution and decisions are arrived at quickly. When questioned about disagreements between the group members during the task execution, the MBA students said that, there have been very few fights or disagreements among the group members as they always had a very effective group leader who always was very fair and unbiased. The team leader always sorted out the issues even before reached the faculty board.

The MBA students seemed highly organized with their system of communication. Since the group were small in size each consisting of not more than 4 members each, and with the usage of advanced technologies such as Group emails and Facebook, WhatsApp and other social media, the students always kept in touch with each other August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 37

cii Case Study-4 Working in groups eases the burden on students by dividing the complex task into smaller sub tasks and sharing it amongst the group members & helps the group members to teach & learn from one another. DSI as mentioned earlier is a huge campus with over twelve thousand students from across the globe therefore working in teams also bridges the cross cultural diversity that exists amongst the students and regularly updated each other about their progress on the task assigned. The MBA students seem to always have a highly capable team leader whom all the group members blindly trust. The MBA students believe that the group leader is most of the time chosen unanimously chosen among the group members and such a leader always takes a stand for his group members and within the group the leader assigns the right job for the right member. As mentioned by the MBA student groups, every student took utmost part in their own group activities and was completely involved. One major drawback that was identified by the MBA students during the group activities was that majority of the times, the decisions were hasty and not quite meticulous and as told by the students themselves they attributed it to the emotional bonding and friendship that they shared with one another. Therefore, every member of the group was motivating the others to give suggestions and come out with alternative solutions for accomplishing the group task. Therefore, many students felt that they might have been wee bit hasty in reaching conclusions pertaining to the group task. l MCA The student groups belonging to MCA course fall second in line after the MBA students in achieving the group task. The MCA students take a reasonable amount of time and deliberate to the right extent before reaching the decisions pertaining to the task on hand. The students however brought some issues to light when they spoke about the kind of fights and misunderstandings that they have within the group during the task period. In terms of ranking the MCA students are right behind the MTech students in terms of fights and disagreements. However, unlike MTech students, the MCA students find it a slightly difficult to handle such issues on their own. Thus, sometimes the faculty intervention was requested to sort out the disagreements. The students admitted that most of the time, they were updated about the progress of the group task in spite of some group member’s being absent. The group leader played a role in constantly updating the absent students regarding the progress made in the task. There were mixed responses among the MCA students pertaining to their satisfaction level towards their group leaders. Most of them felt that the group leaders chosen within the team were reasonably capable of showing quality leadership most of the time and there were instances when the group leader took a stand for his team members in justifying the decisions taken by and the solutions provided by the group for the task on hand. They found their leader to be trust worthy most of the time. The team size was 38 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

comparatively less than Medical Electronics therefore, almost every student contributed towards the group task. l MTech The student groups belonging to MTech course fall third in line after the MBA &MCA students in achieving the group task. The MTech students are found to be spending very little time over discussions before arriving at the solution for the given task. The students during the interview have confessed to having too many fights and disagreements during the task period, but however they believe that the issues and differences between the team members should remain within the team hence the fights and disagreement issues never reach the faculty and such issues are brushed under the carpet. During the course of the discussion, it was also found that the MTech students were never updated about the on going projects & progress of the task. None of the group members shared information with any other group member regarding the progress that has been taken place during any group member’s absence. The MTech students believe that most of the time the leader is selected based on the majority voting and this leader proves to be biased to a few members of the team. Most of the team leaders are reluctant to take a stand for their team members because of which the members feel quite demotivated. And when the team leader refuses to take a stand for his team members and lets them down, it is but obvious that he loses the trust of his group members. Moreover, as told by the MTech students the group leader would be biased and therefore the distribution of work among the group members is also not uniform. When compared to other departments the MTech students have maximum complaints against their team leaders. This could be because MTech students are technically sound and the contribution of team leaders seem to be less. As per the information obtained from the MTech students, social loafing or Group reticence was another common phenomenon that was observed during every task. l Medical Electronics The Medical Electronic students have either delayed or failed to accomplish the group task most of the time. The students of this stream take a considerable amount of time deliberating and having detailed discussions pertaining to the task and take excessive time to arrive at the decision. The students at the time of interview did reveal that there were times when there used to be some small fights and also disagreements between the group members but the most of the time the group leader intervened and resolved the issues before it could

Most of them felt that the group leaders chosen within the team were reasonably capable of showing quality leadership most of the time and there were instances when the group leader took a stand for his team members in justifying the decisions taken by and the solutions provided by the group for the task on hand. They found their leader to be trust worthy most of the time

cii Case Study-4 reach the faculty board. As per the input collected from the Medical electronic students, since the groups were of quite large numbers, every group tended to have its own sub groups due to which there was no information sharing among the subgroups thereby making it very difficult for the group members to know about the progress relating to the task on hand. The group leaders in this stream were not chosen with the consensus of all the group members. The Medical Electronic students were second in line after the MTech students with respect to their grievances against the team leaders. They had very little trust in their team leaders and felt that most incapable students got the chance of being the group leaders. Since the group size was slightly big for most of the tasks, the Medical Electronics students

often found passive group members who refused to get involved in the group activity.

5. Discussion

Through an extensive literature review a set of variables were identified which were then subjected to Reliability Analysis and Factor Analysis. Reliability Test was done to measure the scale reliability with the help of Cronbach alpha which is a coefficient of reliability and is used for measuring the internal consistency among the scale items. The alpha coefficient for the 33 items is .782, suggesting that the items have relatively high internal consistency. (Note that a reliability coefficient of .70or higher is considered “acceptable” in social science research).

l Table 5.1 RELIABILTY TEST Case Processing Summary

Valid Cases Excluded Total

N % 200 100.0 0 .0 200 100.0

Reliability Statistics Cronbach’s Alpha

N of Items

.782

33

Factor Analysis is a simple statistical test to club together similar variables.

The Communalities table and the Rotated component matrix are as shown below. In the communalities table since the extraction values are greater than 0.5 signifies that the variables selected for factor analysis are significant. l Table 5.2 COMMUNALITIES Initial

Extraction

Consistently working towards group task

1.000

.555

You find similarities between you and your classmates

1.000

.753

You have become friends with class mates becauce of GD

1.000

.755

Have you developed positive rapport with friends because of GD

1.000

.814

GD made you sensitive

1.000

.682

Decisions are reached far too quickly when working in team

1.000

.613

We have too many people with similar skills

1.000

.799

In our group people are nor allowed to speak-out

1.000

.620

In my group issues are brushed under the carpet

1.000

.735

People are not involved sufficiently in decision making

1.000

.642

People in groups do not put their true beliefs forward

1.000

.822

People want to hear what they want to hear rather than truth

1.000

.682

Too many fights & disagreements in the group

1.000

.706

People are not willing to take others view into account

1.000

.719

We discuss our differences more

1.000

.705

Team leaders are not trusted

1.000

.746

No team loyalty

1.000

.776

Team leader does not stand up for members

1.000

.733

Team leader does not make the best use of members

1.000

.843

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 39

cii Case Study-4 Team leader believes team members are lazy

1.000

.704

We are frequently having fights/loggerheads with each other

1.000

.728

Groups members are not helpful to one another

1.000

.613

Group members do not understand each other

1.000

.814

Info does not flow freely between members

1.000

.807

Team is not a happy place to work in

1.000

.853

Too many secrets in our group

1.000

.647

There is too little, listening in our group

1.000

.752

GD made me realise my strengths and weaknesses

1.000

.612

Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis. l Table 5.3 TOTAL VARIANCE EXPLAINED Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis.

Component

Initial Eigenvalues Total

% of Variance Cumulative %

Extraction Sums of Squared Loadings Total

Rotation Sums of Squared Loadings

% of Variance Cumulative % Total % of Variance Cumulative %

1

6.480

23.142

23.142

6.480

23.142

23.142

4.329

15.461

15.461

2

3.165

11.303

34.445

3.165

11.303

34.445

3.198

11.422

26.884

3

2.606

9.307

43.752

2.606

9.307

43.752

2.793

9.973

36.857

4

2.520

9.002

52.754

2.520

9.002

52.754

2.707

9.667

46.524

5

2.150

7.680

60.434

2.150

7.680

60.434

2.524

9.014

55.538

6

1.740

6.214

66.648

1.740

6.214

66.648

2.442

8.721

64.260

7

1.569

5.602

72.251

1.569

5.602

72.251

2.237

7.991

72.251

8

1.397

4.991

77.241

9

1.091

3.895

81.136

10

.901

3.219

84.355

11

.765

2.730

87.086

12

.669

2.389

89.475

13

.552

1.971

91.445

14

.485

1.731

93.176

15

.397

1.419

94.595

16

.363

1.296

95.891

17

.294

1.051

96.943

18

.229

.817

97.760

19

.160

.570

98.330

20

.118

.423

98.753

21

.098

.352

99.104

22

.076

.271

99.375

23

.065

.232

99.607

24

.051

.181

99.788

25

.025

.091

99.879

26

.018

.063

99.941

27

.012

.044

99.985

28

.004

.015

100.000

40 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

cii Case Study-4 l Table 5.4 FACTORS AND FACTOR LOADING Factors

F1

F2

F3

F4

F5

F6

F7

Name of Dimension

Poor Leadership

Group Reticence

Poor Interpersonal Relations

Disorganized Group

Dysfunctional Group

Poor Confrontation

Group Thinking

Statements

Factor Loading

Team leader does not make the best use of members

.900

Team leader does not stand up for members.

.825

No team loyalty

.753

Team leader believes team members are lazy

.733

In our group people are nor allowed to speak-out

.578

Team is not a happy place to work in

.841

People in groups do not put their true beliefs forward

.757

People want to hear what they want to hear rather than truth

.727

People are not involved sufficiently in decision making

0.725

You have become friends with class mates because of GD

.720

Group members do not understand each other

.705

Too many secrets in our group

.653

We are frequently having fights/loggerheads with each other

.652

Groups members are not helpful to one another

.557

There is too little, listening in our group

.835

Info does not flow freely between members

.729

We have too many people with similar skills

.577

GD made you sensitive

.762

GD made me realise my strengths and weaknesses

.628

Too many fights & disagreements in the group

.603

Team Leaders are not trusted

.576

People are not willing to take others view into account

.738

We discuss our differences more

.737

In my group issues are brushed under the carpet

.542

You find similarities between you and your classmates

-.765

Decisions are reached far too quickly when working in team

-.679

Have you developed positive rapport with friends because of GD

.577

At the end of Factor Analysis around 7 different factors were identified which could be a part and parcel of every group. It is these factors that constitute the Group Dynamics dimension and which decides the success or failure of every group in achieving their goals.

A set of 28 variables were subjected to Factor Analysis and at the end these 28 variables were condensed to 7 factors. The 7 factors identified were “Poor Leadership”, “Group Reticence”, “Poor Interpersonal Relations”, “Disorganized group”, “Dysfunctional Group”, “Poor Confrontation” & “Group Thinking”.

Once the Factor Analysis was done, a correlation test was run to determine if there was any significant relation between these 7 factors and the group’s consistency towards achieving the group task. The results of this correlation proved that out of the 7 factors, only 4 were significantly associated with the accomplishment of the group task, i.e.

“Poor Leadership”, “Disorganized Group”, “Dysfunctional Group” & “Poor Confrontation” and this association proved to be a negative one (negative correlation) which implies that the presence of these 4 factors acted as hindrance to the accomplishment of the group task.

6. CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GROUPS’ CONSISTENCY IN ACHIEVING THE TASK AND THE FACTORS OF GROUP DYNAMICS l Table 6.1 Correlation between factors of Group Dynamics identified and the groups’ consistency of achieving group task Pearson Correlation Consistently working towards Group Task

Sig. (1-tailed)

1

Poor Leadership

-.344*

.029

Group Reticence

-.080

.334

Poor Interpersonal Relations

-.080

.334

Disorganized Group

-.337*

.032

Dysfunctional Group

-.309*

.046

Poor Confrontation

-.336*

.032

.103

.290

Group Thinking

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 41

cii Case Study-4 Once the Factor Analysis was done, a correlation test was run to determine if there was any significant relation between these 7 factors and the group’s consistency towards achieving the group task. The results of this correlation proved that out of the 7 factors, only 4 were significantly associated with the accomplishment of the group task, i.e.

“Poor Leadership”, “Disorganized Group”, “Dysfunctional Group” & “Poor Confrontation” and this association proved to be a negative one (negative correlation) which implies that the presence of these 4 factors acted as hindrance to the accomplishment of the group task.

This indicates that any group of students working collectively in DSI will find it difficult to work towards the Group Task if: 1. The Group Leader lacks the required leadership skills, i.e. l When the Group leader is not prepared to stand up for his team. l When the leader does not involve the team members into the task. l When the leader believes that the group members are inherently lazy and are not serious about completing the task. l When the leader is unapproachable or the members are not encouraged to put forward their ideas when working in a group.

2. The group is Unorganized, i.e. l Right people for the right job at the right time are not selected during the formation of the group or if a group

consists of too many people with similar skills. l The group members are not transparent with each other or there is no proper system to share information freely with one another. l The group members lack proper listening skills.

3. The group is Dysfunctional in nature i.e. l The group members are constantly at loggerheads with each other and lack co-operation. l The group members spend time analyzing themselves and others rather than focusing on the task to be completed. l The team members do not trust the leader or think that the leader is biased.

4. The Group members lack confrontation abilities i.e. l The group members may have lots of differences with each other which they feel reluctant to open up to one another and as a result they feel frustrated inside. l When the issues arising in the group are just brushed away without confronting those issues. Therefore issues can build to a large extent and remain unresolved. l The Group members lack the ability to empathize with each other and most of the time refuse to take other members’ views into account.

Apart from these 4 factors there are other 3 factors i.e. “Group Reticence”,“Poor Interpersonal Relations”, and “Group Thinking” which also share a negative association with the team working towards the task however these factors are not significantly affecting the group’s ability to achieve the task.

7. CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COURSES TO WHICH STUDENTS BELONG AND THE FACTORS OF GROUP DYNAMICS l Table 7.1 Correlation between courses to which Student Groups belong and the factors of Group Dynamics

7.1.1 HYPOTHESIS H0: There is no significant association between the course to which student groups belongs and the factors of group dynamics.

H1: There is significant association between the course to which student groups belongs and the factors of group dynamics. l Table 7.1 ANOVA (course to which student group belongs) Sum of Squares

df

Mean Square

F

Sig.

Poor Leadership

Between Groups Within Groups Total

12.708 23.274 35.982

3 27 30

4.236 .862

4.914

.007

Group Reticence

Between Groups Within Groups Total

.622 28.933 29.556

3 27 30

.207 1.072

.194

.900

Poor Interpersonal Relations

Between Groups Within Groups Total

3.403 22.401 25.804

3 27 30

1.134 .830

1.367

.274

Disorganized Group

Between Groups Within Groups Total

1.389 33.400 34.789

3 27 30

.463 1.237

.374

.772

42 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

cii Case Study-4 Dysfunctional Group

Between Groups Within Groups Total

2.421 15.175 17.597

3 27 30

.807 .562

1.436

.254

Poor Confrontation

Between Groups Within Groups Total

3.327 23.827 27.154

3 27 30

1.109 .882

1.257

.309

Group Thinking

Between Groups Within Groups Total

.931 7.005 7.935

3 27 30

.310 .259

1.196

.330

One way analysis of variance has been used to find the significant association between the course to which student belongs and the factors of group dynamics, as shown in the above table 7.1.

From the above table, it is evident that, at 5% significance level (95% confidence level), the course to which student belongs and only one factor of group dynamics i.e. Poor Leadership has significant association (significant value is .007). This means that, students of different courses have different expectations from their leaders. Therefore the Null Hypothesis was rejected. l Table 7.2 DESCRIPTIVES

Poor Leadership

N

Mean

Std. Deviation

MBA

7

2.20

1.390

MTech

7

3.86

MCA

11

Medical electronics Total

Std. Error

95% Confidence Interval for Mean

Lower Bound

Upper Bound

Min

Max

.526

.91

3.49

1

5

.957

.362

2.97

4.74

2

5

2.82

.690

.208

2.35

3.28

2

4

6

3.70

.533

.218

3.14

4.26

3

4

31

3.08

1.095

.197

2.68

3.49

1

5

From the above descriptive table, it can be determined that out of the 4 courses that have been considered in this case, student groups from MTech and Medical Electronics are the ones that really have major grievances against their group leaders. However, MCA and MBA student groups seem to have minimal grievances against their group leaders.

8. Miscellaneous Group Dynamic variables and their association with the Course to which Student Groups belongs

Apart from the 7 factors of Group dimension there are a few other variables of Group Dynamics which have a significant association with the Course to which the student groups belong. They are as shown in the figure below: l Table 8.1ANOVA (course to which the student group belongs)

Consistently working towards Group Task

Decisions are reached far too quickly when working in team

In my group issues are brushed under the carpet

Sum of Squares

df

Mean Square

F

Sig.

Between Groups

11.671

3

3.890

6.164

.002

Within Groups

17.039

27

.631

Total

28.710

30

Between Groups

7.250

3

2.417

3.656

.025

Within Groups

17.846

27

.661

Total

25.097

30

Between Groups

9.343

3

3.114

2.413

.089

Within Groups

34.851

27

1.291

Total

44.194

30 August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 43

cii Case Study-4 Too many fights & disagreements in the group

Team Leaders are not trusted

Team Leader does not stand up for members.

Team leader does not make the best use of members

Info does not flow freely between members

Between Groups

13.014

3

4.338

Within Groups

35.760

27

1.324

Total

48.774

30

Between Groups

14.123

3

4.708

Within Groups

43.619

27

1.616

Total

57.742

30

Between Groups

27.582

3

9.194

Within Groups

26.418

27

.978

Total

54.000

30

Between Groups

14.742

3

4.914

Within Groups

41.968

27

1.554

Total

56.710

30

Between Groups

18.621

3

6.207

Within Groups

48.346

27

1.791

Total

66.968

30

3.275

.036

2.914

.052

9.397

.000

3.161

.041

3.467

.030

l Table 8.2 Descriptives

Consistently working towards Group Task

Decisions are reached far too quickly when working in team

In my group issues are brushed under the carpet

Too many fights & disagreements in the group

N

Mean

Std. Deviation

Std. Error

95% Confidence Interval for Mean

Min

Max

MBA

50

4.86

.378

.143

4.51

5.21

4

5

MTech

50

4.00

.816

.309

3.24

4.76

3

5

MCA

50

4.27

.647

.195

3.84

4.71

3

5

Medical electronics

50

3.00

1.265

.516

1.67

4.33

1

4

Total

200

4.10

.978

.176

3.74

4.46

1

5

MBA

50

4.29

.756

.286

3.59

4.98

3

5

MTech

50

3.86

.900

.340

3.03

4.69

3

5

MCA

50

3.55

.688

.207

3.08

4.01

2

4

Medical electronics

50

2.83

.983

.401

1.80

3.87

2

4

Total

200

3.65

.915

.164

3.31

3.98

2

5

MBA

50

2.57

.976

.369

1.67

3.47

1

4

MTech

50

4.00

1.528

.577

2.59

5.41

1

5

MCA

50

2.82

.751

.226

2.31

3.32

2

4

Medical electronics

50

3.50

1.378

.563

2.05

4.95

1

5

Total

200

3.16

1.214

.218

2.72

3.61

1

5

MBA

50

2.14

1.069

.404

1.15

3.13

1

4

MTech

50

3.86

1.069

.404

2.87

4.85

2

5

MCA

50

3.64

1.120

.338

2.88

4.39

2

5

Medical electronics

50

3.50

1.378

.563

2.05

4.95

2

5

Total

200

3.32

1.275

.229

2.85

3.79

1

5

44 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

cii Case Study-4

Team Leaders are not trusted

Team Leader does not stand up for members.

Team leader does not make the best use of members

Info does not flow freely between members

MBA

50

3.14

1.864

.705

1.42

4.87

1

5

MTech

50

4.71

.488

.184

4.26

5.17

4

5

MCA

50

3.00

1.095

.330

2.26

3.74

2

5

Medical electronics

50

3.33

1.366

.558

1.90

4.77

1

5

Total

200

3.48

1.387

.249

2.97

3.99

1

5

MBA

50

1.86

1.069

.404

.87

2.85

1

4

MTech

50

4.00

.816

.309

3.24

4.76

3

5

MCA

50

2.45

1.128

.340

1.70

3.21

1

4

Medical electronics

50

4.17

.753

.307

3.38

4.96

3

5

Total

200

3.00

1.342

.241

2.51

3.49

1

5

MBA

50

1.86

1.574

.595

.40

3.31

1

5

MTech

50

3.71

1.496

.565

2.33

5.10

1

5

MCA

50

2.73

1.009

.304

2.05

3.41

1

4

Medical electronics

50

3.50

.837

.342

2.62

4.38

2

4

Total

200

2.90

1.375

.247

2.40

3.41

1

5

MBA

50

2.29

1.380

.522

1.01

3.56

1

5

MTech

50

4.14

1.464

.553

2.79

5.50

1

5

MCA

50

2.45

.934

.282

1.83

3.08

1

4

Medical electronics

50

3.67

1.751

.715

1.83

5.50

1

5

Miscellaneous findings based on Fig 8.1 & 8.2 u From the above ANOVA table and the below Descriptives table it can be known that student groups belonging to MBA, MCA & MTech work much more consistently towards the group task as compared to Medical Electronics. v The student groups of MBA tend to take much hasty decisions pertaining to their group task as compared to MCA & MTech.

However Medical Electronic students take unusually excessive time to reach any decision. w Fights & Disagreements are much higher in MCA, MTech and Medical Electronics as compared to MBA and therefore MTech and Medical Electronic students tend to keep such arguments hidden from the faculty however MBA and MCA student groups prefer Faculty intervention. x It was found that in MTech and MCA student groups, not only have disagreements on the higher side but they also seem to be very much unhappy with their group leaders, as compared to MCA and MBA course student groups. y The MTech and Medical Electronic students do not seem to be having trust in their leaders as they feel that their leaders do not stand up for the team when any issue arises nor do they uniformly distribute the work among the members. However MBA & MCA students are comparatively happy with their group leaders. z Lastly, when any task is being executed it is highly essential, that all group members are involved and briefed regularly about the progress of the task, but as per the information obtained, the MTech students to a large extent and Medical Electronics to some extent seem a little disappointed in the way things are being communicated to them. They feel that they lack a proper communication channel through which they can be updated about the progress pertaining to the task.

9. Conclusion

This case gives an in depth insight into the group dynamics of the students belonging the 4 main PG courses in Dayananda Sagar Institutions i.e. MBA, MCA, MTech & Medical Electronics. As mentioned earlier in the case, that is essential for a student to work in groups not only because group projects and team assignments are a part of their academic curriculum but also because there is a lot of teaching and learning that takes place when students work in groups. Unless the students, learn to work in teams they will surely find it difficult to gel in the corporate culture where team spirit is the key to winning accolades. Disagreements are something that occurs in every team, however it is essential that the group members confront the disagreements and sort it out mutually. But mainly the success of any team is in the hands of the team leader, who needs to be fair & unbiased. The leader should play a central role in any group & irrespective of the size of the group or the attitude of the group members involve every member in the task and stand by the team no matter what the circumstances.

Disclaimer:

n The views expressed in the published CASE STUDIES belong to the Author / Co-Author (s) of the respective case studies, and not necessarily those of CII’s. n The copyright of these case studies, however, belong to CII. Reproduction, in any matter, without prior permission from CII is expressly prohibited. n NOTE : CII has given exclusive permission to CORPORATE CITIZEN to publish the CASE STUDY only, in full, and without any changes/ modifications. n Reproduction in parts is not allowed. n For further information, please contact:

Sangita Das, Head - Policy, Industry & Practices, CII Western Region, Email: sangita.das@cii.in

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 45

Survey

10 1

The Top 10 brands have been ranked according to key factors such as market capitalisation, increase or decrease in brand value year on year, and investor sentiment towards the brand. Without further ado, we present the Most Valuable Indian Brands, starting from the Numero Uno!

Top

most Valuable

Indian Brands today!

The Indian economy has been on an upswing since the past few decades. In 2014, India displaced Japan to become the world’s 3rd largest economy. The lion’s share of the growth rides on the back of leading Indian brands which are not just big in India, but also respected widely globally. Interbrand, a New York based brand consultancy firm, present in over 27 countries and specializing in areas such as brand strategy, brand analytics, brand valuation and corporate design, conducted an extensive research and identified top Indian brands ushering India into a new wave of economic growth. Corporate Citizen brings you an insight into the Top 10 Indian brands that are making the world sit up and take notice of India’s magnificent potential.

By Neeraj Varty

46 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

`59,837cr 16%

When it comes to vying for the position for India’s most valuable brand, the Tata Group leads the way. Tata’s brand value is 80 percent higher than the second most valuable brand in the country, which indicates the extent the group has managed to permeate across the country. The group which began in 1907 by becoming India’s first Iron and Steel manufacturer now has a presence across seven sectors through many different companies. It increased its brand value 16 per cent, year on year. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the group’s flag bearer had another stellar year, crossing a market capitalisation of ₹ 59, 837 crore. To put this in context, this is higher than the combined market cap of the next four competitors. In other sectors as well, the company leveraged its values of integrity and excellence to make a difference to the lives of the everyday Indian.

While Tata Motors is set to arrest the decline in commercial vehicle sales through two high profile launches in 2014, S&P revised Tata Steel’s rating from negative to stable on the back of consistently good financial performance. Tata’s ambition to compete in the airlines industry looks set fruit with the Tata-SIA launch expected later this year. It is only befitting the group’s stature that it takes it due place in the skies.

2

Market capitalisation

` 33,267cr 12.5%

India’s most diversified corporate group can be described in one word, ‘Ambition’. This ability to dream big has been ingrained in the organisation by its founder Dhirubhai Ambani.

Extending this belief to the group’s philosophy of ‘Growth is Life’, the group has managed to spread itself across multiple businesses and geographies. On the back of strong financial performance coupled with brand extensions, the brand value of the group grew by nearly 13 percent over the past year. In early 2014, Reliance Industries (RIL) became the first private company in India to post a quarterly profit of over ₹ 6000 as a result of higher refining margins, better petrochemical earnings and surge

3

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

Increase in Brand value

in US Shale gas business. The company’s retail business, which posted its first annual profit in the last fiscal year, has its sights on French giant Carrefour’s assets in India as part of its expansion plans. Improvement in gross margins and a tight control on variable expenses helped retail contribute to the unit’s good performance.

Over the past year, by completely acquiring the Network18 group, RIL brought under its kitty a host of media channels and websites. Jio Infocomm, a subsidiary, will be the first Indian company to bring in 4G services pan-India in 2015, the world’s second largest cellular market.

Reliance has always dreamt big and is not likely to rest with these laurels.

4

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

` 29,447cr +0.2% ` 20,694cr 13.9% India’s leading cellular provider in terms of customers as well as revenue is no longer limited to India. Bharti Airtel has operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Globally, the company ranks amongst the top three mobile service providers in terms of number of subscribers. The brand has always heralded the most innovative practices in the industry.

It pioneered the strategy of outsourcing all business operations except marketing, sales and finance, a move now adopted by several other operators. In 2013, the brand consolidated its position in Africa by acquiring Warid Telecom to become the second largest cellular provider in Uganda. It has one of the highest number of subscribers in Nigeria. A tie-up with Manchester United to run the ‘Airtel Rising Stars’ soccer talent hunt has helped the brand further connect with the nation’s youth.

The company’s DTH business posted positive growth on the back of a national digitization plan. The company is now on the verge of becoming a global behemoth.

State Bank of India can trace back its roots to the early 1800’s, making it one of the oldest commercial banks on the Indian subcontinent.

The bank has a reach in every nook and corner of the country and made itself accessible and relevant to every Indian. Its strong presence has transformed into trust and eventually high brand value. It is widely believed that the bank will be the first to make the cut of the government’s list of ‘Too big to fail’ banks in August 2015. The bank is set to expand its large ATM network by another 4,000 this fiscal. Despite its heritage and government association, the bank is new-age ready with six digital branches across the country. These branches will facilitate instant account opening, instant loan approvals, remote expert advisors, along with interactive walls and table displays. Despite its low digital presence, it recently tripled its online presence over a period of three months. Government emphasis on housing and infrastructure will help large lenders like SBI and propel the brand further.

5

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

` 19,580cr new

In a diverse and vast market like India, it is rare to have a market leader with over 80 percent market share. LIC has been breaking norms and traditions since it was formed under the Life Insurance of India Act, 1956 by consolidating the life insurance businesses of private players. The company which commanded a monopoly in the absence of any other player created huge surpluses and by 2006 was contributing to around 7 per cent of India’s GDP. Even post liberalisation of the insurance industry, LIC has continued to grow faster than its competitors. In 2013 the First Year Premium compound annual growth rate (CAGR) was 24.53 per cent while Total Life Premium CAGR was 19.28 per cent, matching the life insurance industry growth, and outperforming general economic growth.

The company has kept itself ahead of the competition and launched multiple products since 2014.

It is widely believed that SBI will be the first to make the cut of the government’s list of ‘Too big to fail’ banks in August 2015.

The bank is set to expand its large ATM network by another 4,000 this fiscal.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 47

Survey

6

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

` 17,821cr 14.9% HDFC’s steady and conservative approach helped it turn in a healthy performance on almost all parameters. The bank saw a steady rise in interest income, deposit growth and loan balances. HDFC has also improved its distribution network to over 3,000 branches across 2000 Indian cities and towns. This enhanced presence directly helps growth in deposits and loans, and brand familiarity. HDFC’s customer centric focus is evident in the initiatives it took in the digital and technology space –revamping its website to be easier to use, introducing banking apps for mobiles and tablets, even innovating with its ATMs, introducing features that allow customers to set a favourite withdrawal amount on ATM cards, making cash withdrawal 40 per cent faster.

8

Market capitalisation

7

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

` 17,321cr -3.6%

9

Increase in Brand value

` 14,805cr 21.7% After a cautious stance during the downturn in the economy, ICICI seemed a lot more confident in 2014 and outpaced rivals in credit card issuance. It added 0.3 million cards to its base during 2013-14 even as the country’s largest card issuer, HDFC Bank, trimmed its card base by 1.39 million. The Bank also built on its presence in the global markets, following a focused, India-linked strategy, offering to Indian companies expanding overseas the same uniform brand experience they are used to here. But one of the more significant initiatives was to build its employer brand. The Bank took cognizance of its “tough” image and put together a host of more caring employee policies like “fertility leave” for employees seeking fertility treatment, flexible working hours for women and a special call centre to counsel any employee who was stressed or depressed.

48 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

Infosys – the erstwhile darling of the Indian stock markets – had a rather trying couple of years in the wake of Narayana Murthy’s opting for a mentorship role from actively running the company. On the one hand, there was increasing competitive pressure and on the other, some push-back in the United States against foreign workers. Infosys last year appointed Vishal Sikka to the post of CEO – perhaps the first time that the company has done so in its history. And he seems to have his task cut out – to swiftly attach the brand to the higher value demand-drivers like products and consulting to compete with other mainstream IT companies in a meaningful way. And perhaps rise in position on the brands list next year.

10

Market capitalisation

Increase in Brand value

` 13,344cr +9.5% ` 12,829cr 10.4% 2014 was a rather challenging year for automobiles. Sluggish economic growth, rising fuel costs and stubbornly high interest rates caused a slowdown in demand, and slide in volumes. For Mahindra, there was also increased competition to contend with. Mahindra responded by launching refreshed or updated versions of its successful products to continue building on their relevance. The Verito (the rechristened Renault Logan) came with a new grille and lights and followed with a hatch version, the Verito Vibe. This product gave it a foothold in a segment that drove volumes. On the other hand, Mahindra made the price-value equation of its SUV portfolio more attractive through stripped-down versions. Thus, the XUV500 came with a W6 variant, followed by the launch of the Ssangyong Rexton RS6. And Mahindra didn’t stop its innovation and R&D initiatives.

Having acquired the Reva Electric Car Company, Mahindra unveiled the stylish e2O, India’s only mainstream electric car, helping build its image as an environmentally-friendly, responsible corporate citizen. Further, Mahindra Racing signed with the FIA as a Formula E racing team. Formula E will provide Mahindra with the perfect platform to showcase its electric technology. Going ahead, the challenge for the brand would be to build on its success to create products that are relevant to a global audience, pitched against global benchmarks.

In line with their philosophy of brighter living, Godrej – the 117-year-young company that pervades almost every aspect of the average Indian’s life – brightened up its products in most segments it operates in. On the personal products side, Godrej launched a new range of air fresheners under the Aer brand with suitable product innovations like a gel formula ensuring two-month consistent fragrance besides being spill-proof. Innovation was a common thread that ran across consumer electronics as well, with products with innovative designs and features. In a bid to showcase the entire consumer electronics range and provide an ideal branded experience to its customers, Godrej began opening exclusive stores for its appliances, the first coming up in Chandigarh, in October 2013. The ‘brighter’ products and services came with a high-decibel advertising campaign featuring Bollywood star Aamir Khan, aired during the Indian Premier League. With these product innovations and strategies, Godrej is moving from playing a price-led game, competing with mainstream brands on the higher order drivers of demand. In the years ahead, the challenge will be whether customers willingly pay a premium for these. With a lecacy spanning over a century and an excellent knowledge of the Indian market, Godrej is perfectly capable of riding the winds of change. neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com

Representative Agra railway station image

Claps & Slaps

Corporate Citizen claps for the Agra railway police for sending 109 to jail for urinating in public

Cleanliness is next to godliness…We, as citizens of India, should take steps to keep our country clean and green. In what is being touted as a first of its kind drive in India, the Government Railway Police (GRP) of Agra division sent 109 persons to jail after they were found urinating on railway property. According to a report in The Times of India, the people, who had been found urinating on railway property including platform, tracks and parking lot, were released after 24 hours. They were also made to pay a fine ranging from ₹ 100 to ₹ 500, depending on the gravity of their act. The offenders were charged under Section 34 of the Police Act (Punishment for certain offences such as inconvenience, annoyance to passengers or residents in public places, roads, etc.).

Senior Superintendent of Police, GRP, Gopeshnath Khanna noticed that the stink of urine and paan stains from spitting surrounded almost all railway properties and decided to launch a drive to penalise those creating public nuisance.

The drive, part of the Swachh Bharat campaign, was conducted over a period of two days across 12 stations of the Agra division.

“In a special drive conducted at several stations of Agra division, including Agra Cantt, Agra Fort, Idgah, Raja Ki Mandi and Tundla, 109 men were sent to jail for 24 hours and were penalised up to ₹ 500 for urinating in public places on railway properties in front of women and children. They were also fined for creating public nuisance by consuming alcohol or spitting pan masala from the window of trains in a public place,” the SSP told the newspaper.

He added, “The message behind such a drive is to convey to the people that enough is enough. For more than six decades, our adamant social behaviour has not changed. This city hosts millions of tourists every year; we just can’t be negligent and irresponsible when it comes to showing etiquette in public fora.”

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju

Corporate Citizen slaps the VIP culture in India

RIP the VIP culture! Enough is enough! It’s high time that we put an end to this VIP culture in India. Recently, the Prime Minister’s office got a report from the Civil Aviation Ministry over the issue after reports regarding Maharashtra Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju delaying flights triggered a massive controversy.

Air India flight (AI 446) from Leh to New Delhi was delayed for about an hour on June 24. Reports say that three passengers, including a child were allegedly off-loaded from the flight to accommodate Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh.

The aircraft doors were shut for take-off, but the flight did not depart at its scheduled time as Rijiju, along with his personal assistant, had to be on board. Rijiju was in Leh on June 24 to attend the ‘Sindhu Darshan’ festival. But due to bad weather, the helicopter in which he had travelled could not take off and some last minute arrangements had to be made to accommodate him and his aide on the Air India flight. However, Rijiju said he was unaware that an Air India flight was allegedly delayed and three passengers had to be de-boarded. “I can’t be blamed for the happening as the Leh administration didn’t inform me on what basis they were making the changes to accommodate me on the Air India flight,” Rijiju said.

In a separate incident, an Air India flight from Mumbai to New York, with Maharashtra Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis on board, was reportedly delayed by nearly an hour. This was allegedly done to accommodate a member of his entourage.

While Fadnavis denied any such hold-up, Air India confirmed the delay, but for different reasons. “The flight AI-191 of 29th of June, 2015, was delayed by total 57 minutes. The delay was partly due to technical/operational reasons and also due to ATC (air traffic control),” an airline official said in a statement.

Moments after the PMO sought a report, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju offered his apologies to passengers who were inconvenienced due to the two incidents. “A few things are already in the public domain. We regret inconvenience caused to the people.

As the civil aviation minister I am apologising to all those affected.

Things like this are indefensible and we will avoid such incidents in the future,” Raju said. “This is too small an issue to drag the Prime Minister. Since the PMO has asked for a report, we will provide all the truth. Air India is yet to come out with its report,” he added.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 49

Love Ke Baad Shaadi Bhi-2 ge at colle days thwedlock. e s e h t into a t often tory It is no ce fructifies nlocks the s to n u a in n rom te Citize lminated bility ra u Corpo e that has c eve in the sta it. v n li u lo e f b y o we mil ge, for and fa marria relationship you real life of a e bring to got sealed t W on... ces tha roman rriage. Read a in m

“If you care for someone, have the courage to commit’’ Pooja and Abhijeet Srivastava, believe love and commitment go hand in hand. And that when one person is in a temper, it helps for the other to be silent

T

By Kalyani Sardesai

en years of togetherness, and six years of marriage have only reiterated the belief they started out with: if you love someone, have the courage of conviction to commit.

And never mind what the horoscope indicates.

“It cannot be any other way,” says 34-yearold Abhijeet Srivastava, senior manager at Knight Frank. “At least not for us. We have always believed in the institution of marriage.”

Flashback to 2005. The Srivastavas’ story starts like most college romances do: girl meets boy on campus. They are thrown together by a common group of friends; they find each other compatible—bonding over books, hot cups of chai in the canteen, movies, outdoor trips and the assorted rituals of college life that make it so memorable.

They realise their feelings go beyond mere friendship; perhaps it would be an idea worth exploring to umm…get married?!

“She proposed to me,” says Abhijeet.

But Pooja (31) has a different version. “He held me to it. He told a common friend that he wanted to know how, after six months of togetherness on campus, I felt about him. He wanted a straightforward answer.”

So, she indeed gave him one. At the famous cafeteria of the Jehangir Hospital where all

50 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

collegians would hang out in the after-hours.

“It was a sweet and simple moment. One that I’ll never forget. We were waiting for other friends to join us when she told me that she could see us spending our future together,” shares Abhijeet.

Of course, like every couple they had their ups and downs. “I remember we had a massive argument just before our college tour to Devgarh. Both of us were upset. Neither was willing to make the first move,” reminisces Pooja.

Both got into different buses—not willing to sit next to each other. However, a faculty member who knew about their courtship noticed the empty seat next to Pooja.

“He actually made the buses stop, and asked Abhijeet to come and sit next to me,” she laughs.

As for the parents, they had their doubts.

But not profound ones. “He is from Gorakhpur, whereas I was brought up in Nagpur along with my other two sisters. Dad passed away sometime back, so mostly, it’s been just us sisters and mom. He is the only son of his parents, and they were most concerned that he made the right choice,” smiles Pooja.

To add to the anxiety their horoscopes did not match. “Quite frankly, my family doesn’t believe in horoscopes,” shrugs Pooja.

But even when the duo decided to put that behind them, Pooja’s mom had another wish: that the couple wait for a year so Pooja’s sister

The secret seven for a happy marriage l Spend enough time together l

l

l

l l

l

before and after marriage Save up enough before you take the plunge. This gives you more precious time together in the crucial early days of marriage Outsource work to reliable help.

Don’t try to do everything by yourself. Tempers will fly Space, understanding, respect and trust are the master-keys to marital happiness Be straightforward and honest with your partner If one person is annoyed, it makes good sense for the other to be quiet at that point Back each other’s dreams

Despite the mutual camaraderie, things get tough at times and tempers fly. “We are both short-tempered, but it helps when one person does the listening,” says Abhijeet.

Love and conviction

Both Abhijeet and Pooja are different people with different inclinations—but in harmony with each other. While Abhijeet is the talkative one, Pooja is understanding and serene Abhijeet Srivastava with his wife Pooja and son ,Yajat

who was in the US could attend the nuptials.

“Well, there were moments of uncertainty. A year is a long time. Besides, we had known each other long enough: first the two year MBA course, followed by our first jobs together in Mumbai,” shares Abhijeet.

However, eventually things did come together—and they were wed in 2009 amidst much fanfare.

From the beginning, the Srivastavas have lived by themselves as a nuclear unit. So do they believe this works over staying with parents?

“It’s not so simple,” says Abhijeet. “We did not have a choice. Both parents are not from Mumbai. But I do believe both joint family units and nuclear set ups can work, with maturity and understanding from both generations.”

A study in contrast

Both Abhijeet and Pooja are different people with different inclinations—but in harmony with each other.

“I like that she is understanding and

serene—whereas I am the talkative one,” grins Abhijeet. “I like photography and travel, whereas she loves to read and write. (Post the birth of their son Yajat about two years ago, Pooja has made a 180 degree career switch to content-writing and training.)

“She just loves to do this, so it makes sense for her to follow her heart,” says Abhijeet.

But to juggle home, work and baby in Mumbai all by themselves needs solid tuning and teamwork. “By day, she looks after the baby with the help of the maid, even as she works at her desk, going out only to interview people,” says Abhijeet. “I help out by paying a little attention to all that’s happening in the kitchen, and taking charge of the kid when I am home.”

Memorable moments and ‘us’ time—though quite rare for the parents of a young baby--- include photographing each other and short vacations at different hill-stations around the country.

“We recently created a portfolio of photographs for each other for our Facebook page on photography,” laughs Pooja. “It was good fun.”

So what does it take to make a marriage work in a city like Mumbai? “Saving up enough before marriage, so you can spend time together post the wedding. Getting reliable help around the house so you don’t have to be burdened by chores, and above all, listening to and understanding the aspirations of the other person,” they say.

Given the backdrop of failed marriages in the corporate world, how did the twosome decide to take the plunge? Wasn’t there any sense of hesitation?

“None,” refutes Abhijeet. “If you care for someone, have the courage to commit. Don’t hurt feelings. By and large, women are more sensitive and take time to get over the trauma of a break-up. I would never do that to someone I love. In fact, as far as we both were concerned, if it didn’t lead to marriage, it just wasn’t worth it. Live-ins are not something that I personally believe in.”

“This is what I like best about him,” says Pooja quietly. “He is straightforward. He’s not a flirt but someone who is respectful of women’s feelings.”

Does having a partner from a similar corporate background help?

“It depends,” says Abhijeet, carefully. “To the extent that you are accepting of each other’s career graphs and avoid comparisons, it’s great.

The moment a sense of either superiority or inferiority creeps in, there’s trouble.”

For her part, Pooja believes: “Every relationship needs to be supported by the pillars of trust, understanding, respect and comfort. It takes time and patience and effort.” kalyanisardesai@gmail.com

This village loves a k tad it’s daughters CC

In a country that still favours the birth of a son, Piplantri village in Rajasthan not only embraces daughters but has created a tradition that benefits the planet. This endearing village plants 111 trees every time a girl is born. The village also collectively contributes ` 31,000 and puts it into a 20year fixed deposit for the girl.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 51

Star Campus Placement-3

Flying high

Adhish Kumar Mohanty, who completed his Post-Graduation from one of the leading B-schools of India, is today successfully placed with SMR Group, a leading conglomerate headquartered in Malaysia

By Mahalakshmi Hariharan

T

Nostalgic memories Adhish completed high school from Kendriya Vidyalaya, one of the best academic institutions in India. Thereafter, he did his graduation in Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering in the year 2010 and joined the manufacturing sector, where he got good exposure and knowledge about the shopfloor.

Soon after, he decided to go in for a master’s degree to take on new professional endeavours.

“My college which is ranked as one of the top B-schools in India today, offered us world class faculty with the best curriculum. It was a 360 degree development for all. We had a lot of extracurricular activities during our college days and also got an opportunity to interact with top notch corporate leaders. Not just that, we also got a chance to be part of various global conferences which increased our exposure,” says Adhish, adding, “My college thrives on the three pillars of success—Discipline, Dedication and Determination. In the first year we stayed in the hostel accommodation. This was the time when we started bonding with our 52 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Pic: yusuf khan

oday, Adhish is successfully placed in the Pre-sales & Digital Marketing division of the leading conglomerate, SMR Group, in Chennai, with a fat package of over ₹ 12 lakh per annum, plus perks and benefits. He keeps travelling to Malaysia and other locations for work, depending on his projects, as and when required.

On a nostalgic note, he took us through his journey right from his college days to being placed, while also offering tips to his juniors.

“Getting placed was a different yet wonderful experience for me.

I had got rejected in the first five companies I had applied for, that too in the last round. I started introspecting as to where was I going wrong. I realised you need to learn and fill in the gaps where needed” batchmates.”

Talking about lectures and the hectic schedule, Adhish says, “Yes, the schedule was rigorous but I would say they were training us to enter the corporate world.” The strict attendance criteria at college ensured that students did not go off track.

The college conducted guest lectures in the evening at 6.30 pm, after classes. Students had to follow a tight schedule, with no holidays for the first year. They would study all seven days of the week, were made to go through frequent surprise tests and so on. At that point in time they were too stressful…but today Adhish realises its importance, after having got placed.

For pastime, Adhish is into reading naturalistic and social novels. He has represented his state, Odisha, in basketball, in the past—a game he has always loved to play.

He believes that interests evolve into hobbies, which grow into passion. It takes time, more time than anyone can imagine, but when it starts to shape it is a wonderful feeling.

Placement experience The sailing wasn’t smooth for Adhish too, like many other students who get too anxious when rejected by companies during their placements.

“It was a different yet wonderful experience for me. I had got rejected in the first five companies I had applied for, that too in the last round. I then started introspecting as to where was I going wrong,” says he, adding that it was a continuous learning process. “You learn and fill in the gaps where needed, like improving your communication and deliverability skills, subject knowledge, internship and maintain a positive attitude,” he noted.

After waiting for a few months, finally his wait ended. Adhish went through three rounds of screening with the SMR Group—written test, personal interview and developing a business proposal.

Adhish’s business proposal was to set up a virtual E-Learning program for the students in the rural part of the country. He went about doing it by laying emphasis on the marketing

Adhish’s sister, Ansula Mohanty Ray, with her husband, Biswajit Ray, are also thrilled with his placement

Adhish with his parents

l Take advice from your seniors and apply it l Having a positive behaviour and attitude will always help you to excel in your field l Be a team player “Here’s wishing all my juniors a great time and all the very best for their career ahead.

Thank you and best wishes to everyone!” he signs off.

Mahalakshmi.H@corporatecitizen.in

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Adhish Kumar Mohanty

aspect, finding out various mediums to reach out to educational institutes, collaborating with government bodies and NGOs for support, connecting with ISP’s for broadcasting and generating funds to supply digital devices for the e-sessions. Adhish had incorporated a lot of innovative ideas for a proper and feasible implementation of the proposal.

Adhish had maintained a positive attitude throughout. He also worked on enhancing his communication, deliverability skills and his self-confidence and decided not to give up.

Piece of advice to juniors l Take your internship seriously

tadka

Eco friendly bridges Mawlynnong, a village, in the East Khasi Hills in Meghalaya, has the acclaim of being the cleanest village in Asia in 2003.

It’s also famous for its most popular eco-attraction – living root bridges. These root bridges, some of which are over a hundred feet long, take ten to fifteen years to become fully functional. They are also extraordinarily strong — some of them can support the weight of 50 or more people at a time.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 53

Pearls of Wisdom

By Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Yoga opens the door to inner freedom

The ability to deeply relax renews your ability to be dynamic in action. Passion is like the in-breath but you cannot just breathe in; you need to breathe out as well and that is dispassion. Life becomes a harmony when we have all three – passion, dispassion and compassion

T

here is a new icebreaker in the international diplomatic circuit. The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call at the UN General Assembly for declaring an International Yoga Day has gained support from all over the world, as was evident on 21st June.

From being an ancient spiritual pursuit for those seeking enlightenment, Yoga has been absorbed into mainstream lifestyle by people from all cultures and backgrounds across the globe. And now it has also arrived in the global political arena. Good governance and administration require multi-faceted skills and yoga brings skill in action. In fact, it was called Raja Yoga because it was practiced by kings and princes in the ancient days.

Yoga became popular in the west as a solution to lose weight or as a physical exercise and people also found relief from many ills such as stress, anxiety, professional burnout, addictions and insomnia. In additions to its remedial properties, yoga is also a path to realise and harness your deepest potential.

It has a profound impact on multiple levels of our existence. While stretches and postures make the body supple, pranayama and meditation take the mind deep within. An unknown dimension opens up within our being that enriches the experience of life in many ways. There are several benefits of yoga – it enhances health, improves memory and concentration, sharpens the intellect, de-stresses the system and increases

54 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

Yoga, enhances health, improves memory and concentration, sharpens the intellect, de-stresses system and increases energy levels. It also unveils an intuitive ability within us which is much needed for creative pursuits and in overcoming obstacles like the writers’ block

energy levels. It also unveils an intuitive ability within us which is much needed for creative pursuits and in overcoming obstacles like the writers’ block.

According to Maharishi Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the oldest known text on the subject, yoga is freedom from all the distortions of the mind. If we observe the mind, we will realise that it is always engaged in one of five things 1. Seeking proof or answers 2. Forming conclusions 3. Imagining or fantasising 4. Remembering past events or memories 5. Dreaming Yoga or union with the Higher Self happens when the mind is not engaged in any of the above. You usually identify with the activity in the mind. In the waking state, you are caught up in all that you see, smell, hear, touch, taste. If not, you return to sleep or to the state of dreaming where you are completely cut off from the world. None of these really give that deep rest that the system needs to totally recover from the stress that it gathers.

In the physical realm, it takes effort to get results.

In the realm of the mind, what is needed is effortlessness. For instance, you cannot relax or go to sleep by putting effort; in fact, putting effort is counterproductive. It takes a certain kind of skill to become effortless.

The ability to deeply relax renews your ability to be dynamic in action. Passion is like the in-breath but you cannot just breathe in; you need to breathe out as well and that is dispassion. Life becomes a harmony when we have all three – passion, dispassion and compassion.

Often one has to sacrifice personal freedom to some degree to observe discipline. But yoga is a discipline that opens the door to inner freedom, contradictory as it seems. With practice, you acquire the knack of switching between different modes of the mind, from engaging with the outside world to withdrawing from it and going within; between passion and dispassion. This skill of moving outward or inward at will makes you the master of your own mind, and when you win over the mind, you win over the world.

(Source: http://srisriravishankar.org/)

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tadka

Now that’s called having faith!

The village of Shani Shingnapur in Maharashtra is certainly the most trusting village in India. Why? The village has a local tradition of not installing doors and locks in its houses. Their faith in the local deity, Lord Shani leads them to believe that anyone stealing, would face the wrath of the local deity.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 55

Bollywood Biz

Hollywood flicks gross `100 cr in India 2015 has been a remarkable year for the Indian cinema. From kicking off the year with the highest grossing Hindi film ever (PK), to the emergence of content driven cosmopolitan films like Baby and Piku, movie lovers in India are finally getting the quality cinema they deserve. Indian audiences are now opting for substance over fluff, and nowhere is this more obvious than in the phenomenal rise in footfalls for international films, a category historically ignored by Indian audiences.

Going from niche appeal to back-to back monster hits in 2015, Hollywood has truly arrived in India. Corporate Citizen explores the history of English cinema in India

By Neeraj Varty

E

nglish language films date back to the silent days, when they were introduced in India to entertain not Indians, but the gora-sahibs yearning for nostalgic fare in a foreign land. In the 1920s, films directed by Franz Osten and Himanshu Rai, including The Light of Asia and A Throw of Dice were released in India, and they barely managed to make any money locally. In fact, they were such disasters commercially, that English cinema virtually vanished in India and for a long time it looked as if it would stay that way.

After Independence, Hindi cinema took off on a large scale and Indian audiences just couldn’t have enough of it. The largely traditional audiences could not relate to English cinema due to linguistic and cultural differences, and after a point, English films did not even release in India, with zero scope to recover costs. This situation continued for decades, until the 1960’s when English cinema came back to India in the form of crossover films.

The British had exited India, but had left a legacy in the English language. By the 1960’s there was an English educated minority audience in India who desired more from films than the usual song and dance routine. This was when Indian crossover films appeared in Indian 56 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

cinema, international productions with Indian themes, starting with Merchant Ivory Productions’ first venture The Householder(1963), which had an India story setting with an Indian cast which included Shashi Kapoor, Leela Naidu and Durga Khote. Other India-themed films largely propelled by Indian-born producer Ismail Merchant, followed.

However, it took a while before an Indian director would commercially take up making films in the English language, as they were not money spinning ventures. Also, Bollywood had become a behemoth in India during this time, and English films could not even hope to match the domestic force of Hindi, (and to a lesser extent regional cinema).

Throughout the 60’s and 70’s, sporadic crossover films were made which sometimes broke even or managed a small profit, but nowhere did they leave a lasting mark on the

box office. During this time, English cinema reached astronomical heights internationally, and there were blockbuster hits like Stephen Spielberg’s ET or Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, some of which did reach Indian theatres, but with a time delay of six months to a year, and these too very heavily censored, killing all of their momentum.

In the late 70’s, the intellectually inclined of the Indian audience increasingly demanded better films, and that led to the first Parallel Cinema movement in India, reaching its peak in the 1980’s, when Aparna Sen directed 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981) to critical acclaim.

Its lead actress, Jennifer Kendal was even nominated for a BAFTA Award. The genre was able to stand on its own with Dev Benegal’s English, August (1994) which was widely accepted by urban audiences and became its first hit, drawing an audience of 20 million. In a way,

Fast 7 was fast and furious at the box office

A still from Avatar

‘It took twelve years to break Titanic’s record, and another six years to break Avatar’s record at the Indian box office, so no one expectead an encore anytime soon’

A still from the first Hollywood blockbuster in India - Titanic

the 1980’s can be considered the true resurrection of English cinema in India, and English films continued to be released in India, but at irregular intervals.

By this time, audiences had become much more accepting of English language films, but the biggest hurdle was the socialist stance of the Indian government, which blocked or restricted the entry of several films in India. All this changed in 1991, when the then Indian government adopted liberalisation, opened its doors to foreign investment and brought down trade barriers. Hollywood, for the first time, looked at India as a potential market.

The 90’s saw several English films releasing in India to moderate success, but none that took the box office by storm. It looked like Hollywood would never be a big force in India.

This myth was turned upside down with the 1997 release of James Cameron’s masterpiece

Titanic, which became not just the first film to gross $1 billion globally, it raked in ₹ 55 crore in India. Just to put that in perspective, only a handful of Hindi films had managed to gross over ₹ 50 crore until then, and here came a foreign language film that had managed to do the impossible. Hollywood never looked at India with doubt, ever again.

In the late 90’s and early 2000’s, English films started releasing on the same day in India as their international release. In fact, some movies like James Bond’s Casino Royale (2006), were released in India a week prior to the US and UK release, such was the respect that Hollywood began to have for the Indian market. However, no English film became a blockbuster in India until 2009’s Avatar, which grossed ₹ 56 crore, breaking the record of Titanic set over a decade ago.

Fast forward to 2015. First, we saw the release of The Fast and the Furious 7, which grossed over ₹ 100 crore in its run in India.

This was a never-before-seen milestone, but as history suggests, it would have to be taken with a pinch of salt. It took twelve years to break Titanic’s record, and another six years to break Avatar’s record at the Indian box office, so no one expected an encore anytime soon. Which is why when Jurassic World released in June and trampled all the competition to gross ₹ 110 crore in just two weeks

(and still counting), it left everyone pleasantly surprised. The consensus is that the Indian viewer has now truly become global, and language is just a technicality, not a hurdle to the success of a film.

Jurassic World is not the end. Hollywood has a smorgasbord of blockbusters lined up this year, like Terminator Genisys (July), Mission Impossible 5 (July) and James Bond’s Spectre (November). It looks like 2015 will see a lot of records getting broken, both for Bollywood and Hollywood in India. As cinema lovers, we couldn’t ask for more!

neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com

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tadka

India’s African connection African by origin, Indian by nationality and Gujarati by language, the Siddi tribe from Jambur in Gujarat, are originally Bantu people of sub-Saharan Africa. Predominantly brought to the Indian subcontinent as mercenaries or slaves by Arab and Portuguese merchants, they exist today as an ethnic group in various states all over India.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 57

Health

Egging the Egg on The ubiquitous egg, scrambled, fried or tossed has had its love-hate relationship with egg-lovers. The scientific research in the past on the boon and bane of consuming continues to baffle eggetarians. But, a recent US advisory health panel has delinked the overconsumption of “dietary cholesterol” as a nutrient which need no longer be a cause for concern. This would mean that egg lovers need not restrict their consumption as part of a balanced diet. But, will this cause a shift in diet patterns where other animal-based cholesterol-rich food, with risk factors linked to heart disease and obesity, see higher intake?

With childhood malnutrition on the rise, this directive might just be a blessing in disguise for mid-day meal schemes in India. But, is egg truly the ‘manna‘ for all?

58 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

A

By Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar

lmost a one-third of children continue to show signs of malnutrition at age 12 with high rates for economically- and socially-marginalised children and those in rural areas,” states an international study of childhood poverty by ‘Young Lives’ involving 12,000 children in four countries over 15 years, across Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam.

But recent remarks by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan earned

him the bouquets by PETA to make mid-day meals egg-free.

However, the State Women and Child Development Department Principal Secretary J N Kansotia had in April proposed to either introduce egg curry or boiled eggs in anganwadi meals on an experimental basis. With the study also stating that about 56 out of 1,000 kids below five years in India died of malnutrition in 2012, egg has once again come under the scanner for public debate.

‘Tell someone they can have cholesterol, they think ‘steak’. When you say cholesterol is not a concern, the mistake is that they think they can eat fat. The guideline must make it clear that eating cholesterol doesn’t give license to eat unlimited amounts of saturated fats.’

- Venkatraman Srinivasan, Medical Director, Cardiovascular Institute at West Penn Hospital School Of Medicine and former American Health Association President stated, “The right studies need to be done where the entire diet is prescribed and the only modification is in cholesterol content.”

Cholesterol Myth

In a crucial development, the 2015 dietary guidelines by the US Advisory Committee actually overrides the 2010 restrictive guidelines that recommends fewer than 300 milligrams a day of dietary cholesterol, with a national (US) average of 340 milligrams. With one egg yolk comprising 185 to 213 milligrams of cholesterol, the Indian NECC’s (National Egg Coordination Committee) slogan of ‘Roz Khao Anday’ might find a new breather.

NECC states, “with a moderate fat content of about 5 grams in only the egg yolk, (1.5 grams saturated), and 75 calories, eggs can easily fit into a balanced daily fat limit.”

However, besides combating cholesterol whether from eggs or other sources, one has to take into account the other underlying fat components in diets.

As Robert H Eckel, professor at the University Of Colorado

Cholesterol has always been muscled up as a villain in the minds of the lay person as a ‘bad’ nutrient in the dietary system. But, it is important to know that this waxy, fat-like substance found in body cells is needed to make hormones, vitamin D and substances that help in digesting food. The governing National Institutes of Health (NIH) U.S., states that the body is capable of generating the adequate amount of cholesterol it needs. Cholesterol is found in animal-based foods but not in plants, and travels in the blood.

It is only the elevated amount of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol level that causes build-up of plaque in arteries, resulting in cardiovascular and heart disease.

With Indians genetically prone to cardiovascular disease and diabetes, it is wiser to approach eggs and cholesterol intake with some moderation. Even with a poor reputation, scientific studies have in the past indicated that l Eggs boost good cholesterol levels, l Have a fair amount of essential vitamins and minerals and anti-oxidants such as selenium, l There is little or no link between frequent egg consumption and heart disease.

Beware of Flawed Interpretation

However, as per news reports, critics have indicated that with the restrictive norm on dietary cholesterol relaxed, most individuals will use the new US dietary advisory as a license to eat unlimited high-cholesterol foods. As reported, Venkatraman Srinivasan, medical director of the Cardiovascular Institute at West Penn Hospital, said, “Tell someone they can have cholesterol, they think ‘steak’. When you say cholesterol is not a concern, the mistake is that they think they can eat fat.

The guideline must make it clear that eating cholesterol doesn’t give license to eat unlimited amounts of saturated fats.”

The Do’s

l Consult a doctor and understand the difference between dietary cholesterol (from eggs and meat products) and blood cholesterol and the risks of dietary cholesterol from food intake. l Review diet and other components in foods containing cholesterol that can pose health risks, including saturated fat. l Understand that cholesterol in the blood goes back to the liver where it is removed and discarded.

But saturated fat in the liver often prevents the liver from removing the bad cholesterol, which causes a build-up of blood cholesterol in the body. l Review your cholesterol intake; especially those with normal blood cholesterol. Excessive consumption triggers the body to produce less of the good cholesterol to

maintain a healthy balance. l Those with existing high blood cholesterol levels, who also suffer from a coronary condition or are diabetic should restrict their consumption of cholesterol-rich food.

Incidentally, another new research by the University of Eastern Finland found that egg consumption helped to lower risk of type 2 diabetes as well as regulate lower blood glucose levels. However, the Finnish study explains that unlike in other populations, egg consumption in Finland is not strongly associated with unhealthy lifestyle habits such as low physical activity, smoking and consumption of processed meat. So, a check on these parameters in India could be a path to herald healthy egg consumption and a means to adopt the ‘Roz Khao Anday’ diktat for at least the mid-day meal schemes! sangeetagd2010@gmail.com CC

tadka

The lure of the West The number of students from India in the US increased by six percent to 102,673 over the previous year. prospective Indian students have submitted more than 90,000 visa applications in the last 12 months. In monetary terms, In 2014, Indian students contributed $3.3 billion to the US economy.

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 59

Featherlite

Corporate Twitterati Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the “Digital India’ campaign recently, with a view of creating a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.

CC brings you the most informative tweets from #DigitalIndia making headlines this month.

PMO India @PMOIndia Get Tweets from the PMO on your mobile. Give a missed call on 011 3006 3007 & receive the Tweets through SMS. Ravi Shankar Prasad@rsprasad With Full Mobile No.Portability customers can choose the best mobile service provider across the country. #DigitalIndia Dr Raman Singh@drramansingh In line with @_DigitalIndia campaign, we have launched ‘Digital Locker’ facility for every student at all schools & colleges of the state.

Laugh Aloud What is Two and Two?

A business man was interviewing applicants for the position of divisional manager. He devised a test to select the most suitable person for the job. He asked each applicant, “What is two and two?”

The first interviewee was a journalist. His answer was “Twentytwo.”

The second applicant was an engineer. He pulled out a slide rule and showed the answer to be between 3.999 and 4.001.

The next person was a lawyer. He stated that in the case of Jenkins v Brown, two and two was proven to be four.

The last applicant was an accountant. The business man asked him, “How much is two and two?” The accountant got up from his chair, went over to the door and closed it then came back and sat down. He leaned across the desk and said in a low voice...”How much do you want it to be?”

He got the job.

PIB India@PIB_India 5 key products launched by @PMOIndia at #DigitalIndiaWeek

The American and the Japanese corporate offices for a large multi-national corporation decided to engage in a competitive boat race. Both teams practiced hard and long to reach their peak performance.

On the big day they felt ready. The Japanese team won by a mile. Afterward, the American team was discouraged by the loss.

Morale sagged. Corporate management decided that the reason for the crushing defeat had to be found, so a consulting firm was hired to investigate the problem and recommended corrective action.

The consultant’s finding: The Japanese team had eight people rowing and one person steering; the American team had one person rowing and eight people steering.

After a year of study and millions spent analysing the problem, the firm concluded that too many people were steering and not enough were rowing on the American team.

So, as race day neared again the following year, the American team’s management structure was completely reorganised.

The new structure: four steering managers, three area steering managers and a new performance review system for the person rowing the boat to provide work incentive.

The next year, the Japanese won by two miles. Humiliated, the American office laid-off the rower for poor performance and gave the managers a bonus for discovering the problem.

PIB India@PIB_India PM @narendramodi will launch #DigitalIndiaWeek soon; here are the nine pillars of #DigitalIndia

Nine Pillars of Digital India

Sam walks into his boss’s office and says “Sir, I’ll be straight with you, I know the economy isn’t great, but I have over three companies after me, and I would like to respectfully ask for a raise.”

After a few minutes of haggling the boss finally agrees to a 5 per cent raise, and Sam happily gets up to leave. “By the way,” asks the boss, “Which three companies are after you?”

“The electric company, water company, and phone company!”

n Broadband Highways n Universal Access to Phones n Public Internet Access Programme nE -Governance-Reforming government through Technology n eKranti-Electronic delivery of services n Information for All n Electronics Manufacturing-Target NET ZERO imports n IT for jobs n Early Harvest Programmes

The boss called one of his employees into the office. “Rob,” he said, “you’ve been with the company for a year now. You started off in the mail room, one week later you were promoted to a sales position, and one month after that you were promoted to district manager of the sales department. Just four short months later, you were promoted to vice-president. Now, it’s time for me to retire, and I want you to take over the company. What do you say to that?”

“Thanks,Dad,” said the employee.

Anandiben Patel@anandibenpatel Launch of #DigitalIndiaWeek is a significant step twd realizing our collective dream of @_DigitalIndia. Congratulations to PM @ narendramodi!

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Mobile Apps Cake Hut

(Website and App) Rating: 4 Stars www.cakehut.in Cake Hut is an app dedicated to cakes, and it delivers big time. You can browse through sinful varieties of scrumptious cakes like Death by chocolate, Blueberry cheese cake and Belgian double chocolate cake and order to have it delivered fresh off the oven. The flipside is that Cake Hut is currently present in West Bengal and South Indian states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, but is yet to make it to the rest of the country. If you have anyone living in these areas, however, you can order a cake for them, no matter where you are located. Prices start from ₹ 550 (for the Black forest Cake) to ₹ 2100, but judging by the positive comments on the app, customers aren’t complaining.

Best Websites/Apps to Gift your loved ones Flowers, cakes and chocolates are the best gifts to mark any memorable occasion such as anniversaries, birthdays and achievements. It becomes difficult, however, to have these items delivered to your near and dear ones, especially if they stay in another city or state. Locating the number for a florist or a confectionary can get inconvenient, and there is no way to pay over the phone or guarantee prompt delivery. Or is there? Using a computer or Smartphone, you can have the fastest, freshest and tastiest gifts delivered to your loved one’s doorstep at the tap of a button.

By Neeraj Varty

Shari’s Berries (Website)

Rating: 4 Stars www.berries.com If you have a relative or friend living in the US or UK, you might want to look up the Shari’s berries website. A berry specialises in a wide assortment of fruits hand dipped in chocolate including strawberries, cherries and even dry fruits. This tradition of Belgian origin is immensely popular in Europe and America. Shari’s Berries delivers in most parts of the United States and The United Kingdom. Prices start at a very respectable $19 (For half a dozen gourment dipped swizzled strawberries), which comes to ₹ 1200.

Florista

(Website only) Rating: 3.9 Stars www.florista.in Florista is a website only flower delivery service. It specialises in corporate events, Weddings, Anniversaries and Birthday deliveries.

For simple deliveries like sending flowers to someone on a birthday, Florista works much like any other online gifts website, where you order and pay by card. For complex or customised orders, all you need to do is to leave your number and florista will arrange for a call back and help you in choosing the right flowers. Prices start From ₹ 800 (The lowest order is a set of 12 roses) to ₹ 1800 for a single delivery. Florista also delivers to Over 50 international countries.

Baskin Robbins

Rating: 4 Stars www.baskinrobbinsindia.com While there are several options to home deliver cakes, chocolates and flowers, Baskin Robbins is one of the very few sites that actually deliver ice-cream. Baskin Robbins delivers a variety of ice-cream varieties like sundaes, cassatas

items will be gift wrapped and delivered at the exact time you choose. Monginis has a large base in India, and is present in all the metros and most of the Tier 2 cities. Cakes and Chocolates come in all shapes and sizes, starting from ₹ 500 – ₹ 2000. Prices are a bit steep, but the service is reliable, and you have the option to customize the cakes as per your needs.

Infibeam (Website and App) and ice-cream cakes (Cakes with ice-cream toppings which need to be refrigerated at all times) Ice Creams are available from ₹ 50 (Small scoop in a cup) up until ₹ 699 (Bavarian Ince-cream cake), but to avail of free delivery, the minimum order is ₹ 200. Baskin Robbins is a house hold name in India and the food quality is exemplary. The only flipside is that Baskin Robbins deliveries are limited to big metros like Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi and Kolkata as of now.

Monginis (Mobile & App)

Rating: 3.5 Stars www.monginis.net Whether you want to deliver just flowers, or a wide variety of gifts including Cakes, Chocolates, Gift Hampers, Soft Toys or Greetings Cards, Monginis does it all with style and panache. You can select the items you want delivered through the app or Website, and pay via debit or credit card. The

Rating: 3.8 Stars www.infibeam.com Infibeam is a popular e-commerce portal which has branched out into new categories of products like Flowers, cakes, chocolates, gift certificates and sweets. The one advantage of ordering gifts from infibeam is that it offers the option of cash on delivery. This is preferable you would like to deliver the gifts in person, and can have them ordered to your house and then pay in cash if you are uncomfortable with paying online. neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com

August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 61

astroturf more alluring to the opposite sex.

You will get attracted to those from whom you can learn mentor types.

Be more patient with finances. If you are involved in some kind of game or athletics then do not push yourself too hard.

Aries

Mar 21- April 20 You would experience emotions connected to the self, maybe inner energies want to flee and be independent. Be a team player, for your goals will be achieved through cooperation of others, focus on the needs of other people and allow them to have their way.

Health needs to be still monitored.

Do your best to stay in a positive mood; emotional disturbances or prolonged negative emotions have a dramatic effect on the body.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 20 The pace of life will be much slow and not much excitement is anticipated. Utilise this period to review your own personality make improvements in your health regime. Resolve issue that give you any doubt, gain mental clarity over personal or professional matters. Sales, marketing PR will reach their targets. You will get opportunities to supplement your income by doing work from home or privately. Love life also sees an improvement.

GEMINI

May 21 - June 21 You are in a very indulgent period, you will like indulging yourself in everything that please your senses and mind. It brings money and personal pleasures. Your love life improves and remains all time high in the coming days. Singles encounter endless opportunities for romance. The main challenges that you face will in the professional or career sector. Health remains good.

Focus on home and family matters.

CANCER

Jun 22 - July 23 Your state should be in a blissful kind of nirvana. Plenty of energy as all goes well with your personal and professional life. Finances

www.dollymangat.com

Fortune favours the bold and the lucky

Your attitude is your altitude, says Dolly Mangat, our renowned Astrological Expert and believes she helps people create their own prophecies rather than live predictions will be unusually good since Jupiter the benevolent planet is still in your money house and is very powerful. Love remains good though certain complications are seen since your love planet has been retrograde. If single do not rush into relationships just allow developing at its own pace.

LEO

July 24 - Aug 23 Â You could exercise your power and independence. This is the perfect time to make those important changes that you have been long thinking off and wanting to execute your plans.

The steps you take now will have a profound influence on the year ahead. Acknowledge mistakes and correct them, set your goals for the coming year. Prosperity is assured.

VIRGO

Aug 24 - Sept 23 This period demands personal independence and your personal power is the strongest. Take advantage of this situation as it allows you to do whatever you feel best and succeed. You have the power to create situations to your liking. Job opportunities are in abundance. Finances remain good. You will look and feel good, more appealing the opposite sex.

62 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

You will experience harmony all round as health and energy remain excellent. A word of caution while. and arguments as far as you can, also avoid confrontations.

CAPRICORN

Dec 23 - Jan 20 You are still into your social and love peak. You will be more proactive.

You will be able to resolve old issues from the past and heal from within.

Your health and energy remains good. Finances have been stressful, earnings will happen though through much hard work and effort.

Earnings will happen and they are larger than usual but with delays and glitches. Be clear and honest in your financial transactions.

AQUARIUS

LIBRA

Sept 24 - Oct 22 Good idea to go on holiday this month and renew your energies.

You do not have to stress yourself out on mundane matters as situations or issues. There is no need to force things and increase your stress levels. Finances show an upsurge. You need to do your home work well, resolve your doubts and then make major decisions in regards to finances.

Jan 21 - Feb19 There can be delays and glitches but definitely no defeats. Your financial life should be put under review and make long-term plans.

Love life should be kept at the back burner for the time being.

You may be reconsidering or starting new relationships in life also taking them further to make permanent bonds. Health and energy needs to be paid attention.

PISCES

SCORPIO

Oct 23 - Nov 22 Success both financial and career wise is happening for you this month but perhaps at a slower pace. Career goals get redefined or are achieved. There can be problems due to poor romantic choices.

Affections can be misplaced.

SAGITTARIUS

Nov 23 - Dec 22 Your spouse or partner will be supportive to you.Your personal charisma is at its best and will be

Feb 20 - Mar 20 Its important that you continue to look after the interests of others first. Your good luck comes through teamwork and blessings from others. Finances flourish. Be careful in financial matters. Care will help you tide over any unexpected expense.

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August 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 63

the last word

Do Good, Feel Good Ganesh Natarajan

T

he opportunities to do good, real good for society and the country are many but the people who really want to do good are found more in the traditional NGO sector than in business corporations. Most or at least many Indian CEOs and business leaders come from humble backgrounds. But, beyond the traditional cheque writing for a favourite charity, many firms have done precious little over decades to alleviate the suffering of people in the environment around them. The triple bottom line or the focus on people and planet beyond the single minded chase for profits has in the main, remained a matter of discussion in seminars and conclaves and not visible on the ground.

The good news is that there is a heightened interest in corporate social responsibility in companies, thanks at least in part to the two percent of profits that the Government has prescribed to be spent on social causes. After a series of objections and much deliberation, most companies have got down to the serious business of thinking through their social obligations and defining themes and causes to support. The creation of Foundations or the addition of substantial budgets to them has been a welcome move, and many firms have also chosen to rely on the research and the program management capabilities of industry associations, like NASSCOM Foundation and CII Foundation to ensure that their social contributions flow through to the target recipients.

The publishers of this magazine themselves are a case in point, being the main supporters of a forthcoming publication on the social

Amidst all this, it is quite creditable to see the heart that many young people in industry have displayed in giving freely of their time and money for social causes

In our company, we measure the success of our social outreach by the number of associates who give their time to a cause which is close to their hearts initiatives many corporations in Pune are taking and planning for the future.

Amidst all this, it is quite creditable to see the heart that many young people in industry have displayed in giving freely of their time and money for social causes. In our own company, we measure the success of our social outreach by the number of associates who give their time to a cause which is close to their hearts. Over the years, this has grown both in terms of number of hours and the percentage of Zensar associates who have volunteered. Last year, over a thousand young people volunteered to give time, a fact that gives me as much pride as the thousands of jobs and

64 / Corporate Citizen / August 1-15, 2015

crores of market value we have created over the last decade or so. Case in point is young Shweta who is an ace performer in her inside sales and marketing role but still finds ten hours per week to teach in our community centre and help less privileged children of the Chandan nagar community to dream their own dreams.

What is the tipping point when someone decides that there is more to life than just the pursuit of money and position? For some people it happens at a stage in life when they feel they have earned or achieved a lot and it’s time to “give back�. For someone like me, who spent my early childhood growing up in the dusty village of Tatisilwai in Jharkhand, all material achievements have always reminded me of the huge divide and disparity that exists in our country. But for many young people, it is the quality of their hearts that makes them willingly contribute to the effort and start on this journey even as they are building their careers.

Today in the city of Pune, we have created a Pune Action Task Force that has committed itself to

improving cleanliness, education and digital literacy in the city with the active support of the Municipal Commissioner and his team. Corporations like Thermax, Forbes Marshall, Weikfield, Amdocs, Persistent and Zensar and many others have taken the early lead to collaborate for common good and we expect many more corporations to join the effort in the months to come. Here again the real strength of the movement will come from individual volunteers. We are hopeful that the willingness with which so many young people in colleges, companies and collaborative groups like Young Indians come forward for causes will extend to this city initiative as well.

There is nothing more gratifying than doing good and doing good collectively has a charm of its own. We are sure the country will see much more collective action in future!

Dr. Ganesh Natarajan is Vice Chairman & CEO of Zensar Technologies and Chairman of NASSCOM Foundation and the Pune Action Task Force.

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