13th issue all pages for website

Cradle of Leadership: Dr. Bakul Dholakia, Director, International Management Institute (IMI), Delhi www.corporatecitizen.in

Volume 1, Issue No. 13 / Pages 68 / September 1-15, 2015 / `50

CII’s prize winning Case Studies-6 NEW SERIES

Turning Point

Priti Rao, Former SVP, Head of Infrastructure Management, at Infosys and Founder of Pumpkin Patch Daycare on her career switch

Dynamic Duo 13

Latha and K Pandiarajan

Love equals Ma Foi

NHRD Mumbai and BMA Meet

Why transformation efforts succeed or fail?

Love ke baad Shaadi bhi-4

Shweta and Deep Banerjee

2 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

From the desk of Editor-In-Chief CASE STUDY

12

A Game Plan?

A

s per the United Nations, “Fundamentally, poverty is the inability of getting choices and opportunities, a violation of human dignity.

It means lack of basic capacity to participate effectively in society. It means not having enough to feed and clothe a family, not having a school or clinic to go to, not having the land on which to grow one’s food or a job to earn one’s living, not having access to credit. It means insecurity, powerlessness and exclusion of individuals, households and communities. It means susceptibility to violence, and it often implies living in marginal or fragile environments, without access to clean water or sanitation.”

This scenario described by the UNO is familiar in our cities – witnessed on roadsides, slums and public areas like railway stations.

Only, most of us tend to pass by them or treat them with indifference. Having grown up in poverty, my heart tugs when I encounter such scenarios. Besides having had a frugal childhood, I struggled hard to make a livelihood as a teenager and subsequently when I served in the Army. I have borrowed heavily on several occasions – during my wife’s illness and for pursuing higher studies, which had further added to my financial burden.

This financial starvation which continued into my adulthood, lasted for nearly two decades.

As a result, I have developed a tendency to share whatever I have, in the capacity that I can, with those who are similarly unfortunate.

For example, when I was once going on my annual pilgrimage to Lord Venkateshwara Temple in Tirupati with my students, I saw 50 to 60 beggars sleeping in a row, as I entered the Pune Railway Station to catch the train. I was carrying cash worth a few lakh Rupees on me to offer in the hundi (donation box) of the temple.

Beggars sleeping on the railway platform are not an unusual sight, but that night, I said to myself, why not make them happy for a short while - they can eat well and live well for at least

Beggars sleeping on the railway platform is not an unusual sight, but that night, I said to myself, why not make them briefly happy. So, I asked my students to wake up each one of them and give a `1000 note to each beggar, but not before telling each one the value of the note, as they might not have held one such, before two days, if I give them some money. So I asked my students to wake up each one of them and give a `1000 note to each beggar, but not before telling each one the value of the note, as they might not have held one such, in their lives. I handed over a bundle of notes to the students and they did the needful. The beggars’ delighted and surprised expressions made me extremely happy.

Right from the day I started Sri Balaji Society, I have been giving free education or fee concessions to poor candidates who sought admission for the MBA courses. During one such admission process in Coimbatore, one young couple (who also had a child) desired to pursue our PGDM programme.

They were above-age as per our set college requirement, so the selection panel rejected

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 3

From the desk of Editor-In-Chief

He had done his BSc Computers and he insisted on being in the Systems batch, which is purely for engineers. This, we said, may adversely affect his chances of employment. However, he insisted on taking the risk.

I always believe that I am not any Supreme Power to write anybody’s destiny. So when he insisted, we allowed him to join the Systems Batch their applications. The panel opined that since the young man was doing well in a reputed company, his expectations for a job after the end of the course would be very high and the institute would be unable to meet his expectation. However, the couple persisted and the man said that he was ready to run the risk of not getting fruitfully employed.

I put certain conditions – that they must leave their child at home and both of them should forget that they are married for the two years. That they should reside in the girl’s and boy’s hostel, respectively. I explained to them that it didn’t mean they could not meet each other. I jocularly said it was fine if they were caught romancing in the campus. They happily agreed to all my terms and conditions.

Seeing their spirit of wanting to pursue the course, I exempted one of them from paying the fees. In the subsequent year, the lady brought her cousin for admissions. He had done his BSc Computers and insisted on being in the Systems batch, which is purely for engineers. We advised him about the toughness of the course and the campus placement trend where the minimum qualification expected of a person from the Systems batch was graduation in engineering.

This may adversely affect his chances of employment. However, he insisted on taking the risk.

I always believe that I am not any Supreme Power to write anybody’s destiny. So when he insisted, we allowed him to join the Systems batch. As predicted, at the end of the course, he did not get a campus placement. His biggest weakness was communication, as his spoken and written English was poor. Besides, he had low morale and lacked leadership qualities. So when he approached me about the prospect of his future career, I advised him to go back to his home-state Tamil Nadu, where this language issue would not be a problem.

However, that is not what he wanted to do – his ambition overrode his capability.

He wanted to join us as a lecturer, which obviously I couldn’t have accepted, as he lacked in communication.

He sent the following emails seeking a job in Sri Balaji Society: 31 January 2015

I have seen a post at Balaji Society Alumni Page, for the position of Assistant Professor, Applied in the field of Marketing at given mail Id’s, kindly consider my profile too sir. I keep on waiting for opportunities from Balaji, even if I get an opportunity after 10 years, I would be willing sir.

23 June 2015

I am really passionate about working in Balaji, I am really not because of salary asking sir, I am ok for 10 Thousand Rupees per month also, I can work tirelessly under the guidance of management, whatever work being assigned to me. My words are not lie sir.

Suicide gameplan?

The matter did not end at just asking for a job and going back to his hometown, disappointed. He told me one day that he had decided to commit suicide on one of the full moon days. I got worried and asked our director of Information Technology (IT), who was his professor-in-charge, to reach out to the boy and counsel him. I also said out of sympathy and compassion, that if necessary, we could give him some financial help (a hint about which he had thrown in one of the emails – see below). The aim was to save him from ending his life. To this gesture, he sent a mail, asking us how much we would pay him. We communicated to him that it could be about a lakh of Rupees, just to meet the current problem. He replied stating he should be given ` three lakhs, only then would he not commit suicide. Thereafter, he sent another email stating that he would be committing suicide by jumping from the 13th floor of a building, in Delhi.

4 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

03 July 2015

Bala sir just told me that your communication was not good, Here there is no opportunity at Balaji, Better you go Chennai and try there by struggling for some days and hit, All the best, but I said, I am nervous, I can speak well, but nothing happened sir.

03 July 2015

Sorry sir, I could not able to meet you on that day, I was disappointed, so left home, Thanks sir, for backing me all these days.

Panic button pressed

I pressed the panic button. We called up his near and dear ones and approached the police station. We also called up the young couple who were former students and had introduced him to the institute. No one responded. The police said that they were helpless but came and took my statement.

The most the police could do, they said, was to ensure protection to the building in Delhi on that ill-fated date. I handed them copies of all the emails. I wondered at this quirk of fate where neither the family nor the law enforcing authorities were of any help, but I as a third party was being dragged into the issue. I kept pleading with his sisters, brothers, parents and relatives to seek medical help for him, but all fell on deaf ears. It seemed as if the entire family was conspiring against me.

Finally, I reached out to one Good Samaritan, who I know from Coimbatore city and requested him to take him to the doctor.

His emails seeking financial help and threatening suicide were as follows, reproduced verbatim: 20 July 2015

I am a child from Coimbatore writing, In 2011, I came with so much hope and aspirations to Balaji, and being full confidence of my career path, my family paid my full fee though we never heard of Balaji nor Pune city before, and I studied well too, but neither lord Balaji nor Bala sir or Biju sir or lord Muruga helped me to overcome my obstacles, It would be really helpful for this child, if any of the above immortal legends help me financially. It is not right to ask as I voluntarily joined but my family is depriving or lacking sufficient money or lacking a job, and I felt asking at least once despite being shameful. Because each and every alumni who studied with me including my sister and her husband is prospering well, but my fate drives me and my family clueless.

21 July 2015

It is completely unfair on my part asking or requesting or forcing something, just because I am suffering, so my life has come to an end, it is of purpose, so do not feel bad sir. While I am studying, my parents never came to Pune to see me or my college but just invested on me heavily, as life moves on, I could not able to meet my parents expectations.

My father was working with fire to make sweets in rural part of Coimbatore along with my mother with no labours and he stopped his business in 2013 as he aged, and my younger brother is studying hi graduation. And I being forward caste, I could not able to get a job in Indian or state government. With regard to corporate, I being skill-less suffering, and I, am not blaming anyone because my college has given good education and moderate placements but I just failed. So this being my case and came back to Chennai and tried there too, but I again failed. So came back to Coimbatore and tried for six months and every feedback from company was blah blah like what does it mean PGDM? And to survive myself, took a job in BPO with Maxval IP Services with 10,000 per month and worked there for one and half years as Data Analyst till June and quit my job because there is no appraisal, for transport and food itself consumed 50% of the money. So on coming pournami, the nation must know my case as a grand failure of how it affects one’s career in India if he is skill-

less, so I planned to commit suicide on coming Pournami in 7th floor of AICTE at Janpath or as close radius as possible.

So as to complete my task and get some relief amounts from Government of India to my family.

22 July 2015

It is not possible for me, to accept the amount of 1 lakhs, I need 3 lakhs, if it is not possible, I am going ahead with my plan, I always dream big like lord Balaji, Hence, my death also should be big, and I do not feel bad about my death because I am basically immortal and the blood of lord Balaji, My root and my existence is always with lord Balaji, and I reborn in India again easily, and I do not afraid of any police or any law or any jhumans of any form. I am ready to go jail too. The money, which I am asking is not for me, but for my father and my younger brother, I knew your institute will stop mailing me. So be it. Thanks for showing care on me.

It is my karma, it seems, so only I am suffering though all doing extremely well including my Tamil and other friends, For lord Balaji promise I will repay the amount which I am getting now, For two years my father stopped talking with me properly and my brother and mother is disassociating with me.

23 July 2015

There will be message including Hindi translation, before 10 minutes of my death, from my end to all the B-schools in India, and to SBS debate forum and AICTE, and every Government Body including PMO office, Times of India, NDTV, UN, Students Council, Standing Committee of Parliament to justify my death and root cause behind my suicide.

And if at all, if you want to give some money after my death, please give directly to my father. Do not think, I am using Balaji name to pull money from you. It just comes from within. And the rest will be seen by you with incredible pain. I am just giving conviction to myself but it affects you and the brand name “Sri Balaji Society”. I meticulously crafted this, this is not out of depression but a message to protect many parents in India.

However, subsequently, we received another email from this student in which he described the outfit that he would be wearing when he would end his life along with a scanned photograph wearing that outfit.

So, I called the committee of all directors of our four MBA institutes and discussed the matter. The committee felt that the student was only threatening, and now that we had informed every authority and his family and yet nobody seemed to be bothered, we should ignore the matter. And so we left it at that.

After a while, he sent me an email, apologising for whatever he had done and assuring me that he would not repeat it in future. I was mistaken if I thought that the matter would end there. We have now received an email asking us as to why I couldn’t pay him ` three lakhs when I could afford to give concession of fees to his cousin sister.

This incident has made me introspect and some questions arise in my mind – l Did we fail in adequately convincing him into not opting for the Systems batch? l Did he need comprehensive psychiatric counselling while he was pursuing his course? l Is his threat a game plan by him in connivance with his family members to extract money from me? l Have his parents failed in his upbringing and in maintaining total silence even in this hour of stress?

These are some of the questions that bother me.

Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian editor-in-chief September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 5

Contents

Volume 1 Issue No. 13 September 1-15, 2015 www.corporatecitizen.in

32 Cover story

Dynamic Duo 13

Love equals MA FOI

An in-depth interview with Latha and K Pandiarajan, Founders of Ma Foi Management Consultants, India’s first and largest internationally acclaimed Human Resource Management company, based out of Chennai. An XLRI alumnus of the 1984 batch, Pandiarajan worked in Singapore before he, along with his wife, Latha, began their new innings 6 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

9

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

10

wax eloquent A rich tribute to Former President, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

12

collywood Chatpata Chatter from the Corporate World

16

turning point An interview with Priti Rao, Former Senior Vice President, Head of Infrastructure Management, at Infosys, who quit her high profile job to start a crèche, Pumpkin Patch Daycare, so that she could help at least 1000 women to restart their careers after motherhood

20

NHRD Mumbai and BMA Meet A one-and-a-half day round table meet, recently, organised by the National HRD (NHRD) Network in associatio with the Bombay Management Association (BMA), on “Culture - Its strategic significance in the present day business scenario,” which explored several aspects of corporate culture

24

12 24

16 20

tête-à-tête A candid conversation with Vinodh Chelambathodi, Chief Human Resource Officer at Intellect Design Arena Limited (A Polaris Group Company)

26

cradle of leadership An in-depth interview with Dr. Bakul Dholakia, Director, International Management Institute (IMI), Delhi

38

44

CII case study CII’s prize winning Case StudiesVI on Home to Hearth: A Case for Woman Entrepreneurship

44

Survey An in-depth survey by the World Bank Group, on India’s development update for the first half of 2015

26

48

Love Ke Baad Shaadi Bhi-4 Deep and Shweta Banerjee--the corporate couple, who believe a marriage becomes stronger when both partners are given equal space to breathe and to grow

50

50

student of the fortnight Meet Nischal Narayanam, India’s youngest Chartered Accountant

51

beyond the bottomline Now is the time--On the importance of time

48 September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 7

52

star campus placement-5 Swagat Sinha talks about his big break

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

54

pearls of wisdom Guru is Ganga by Dada J P Vaswani

56

54

bollywood biz Money Spinning, Mind Boggling-Bahubali mobile apps Handy India Govternment Apps

Senior Sub-Editor Neeraj Varty

59

62

health Fermented food for a fit mind

Assistant Editor Joe Williams Senior Business Writers Mahalakshmi Hariharan Rajesh Rao

58

ride on Royal Enfield--India’s oldest motorcycle company makes changes after five decades – and plugs some leaks!

Consulting Editor Vinita Deshmukh

Writers Delhi Bureau Pradeep Mathur Anuradha Shukla

56 58

64

astroturf Fortune favours the bold and the lucky

66

the last word Finding the time to multi-task

by Dr. Ganesh Natarajan, Vice Chairman & CEO of Zensar

59

Bangalore Bureau Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar Pune Bureau Suchismita Pai Kalyani Sardesai 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 G. Pon Prabakaran

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!

8 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

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

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

By Dr Anil Lamba

Good Financial Management – Rule 2 In the previous issue we had discussed that all Balance Sheets can be represented to reflect two items on the Liabilities’ or Sources’ side (Long Term Sources and Short Terms Sources) and two items on the Assets’ or Uses’ side ( Long Term Uses and Short Terms Uses). And then we realise that every Balance Sheet has to be one out of three types as shown below.

Type A Balance Sheet being one which had used Long Term Balance Sheet A Liabilities

Balance Sheet B

Assets

Liabilities

Assets

LTS 80 LTU 80 LTS 90 LTU 80 STS 20 STU 20 STS 10 STU 20 Total 100 Total 100 Total 100 Total 100 Balance Sheet C Liabilities

Assets

LTS 70 LTU 80 STS 30 STU 20 Total 100 Total 100

Funds for Long Term Purposes and Short Term Funds for Short Term Purposes, Type B showing that some Long Term Funds were used for Short Term Purposes, and Type C Balance Sheet reflected that a portion of Short Term Funds were used for Long Term Purposes.

It is easy to identify Balance Sheets with just two-digit numbers as shown here. In real life you are more likely to come across Balance Sheets with much larger numbers. So let me give you another set of three Balance Sheets to make sure you have understood how to classify them.

Can you examine and assess whether they are Type A, B, or C? As you will recognize, in the first example the long-term sources are Balance Sheet C Liabilities

Assets

LTS 6,450 LTU 5,460 STS 3,330 STU 4,290 Total 9,750 Total 9,750

less than the long-term uses and the short-term sources are more than the short-term uses, which make it a Type C Balance Sheet.

The second one is Type A and the last is Type B. Try and get live examples of Balance Sheets and apply this thinking to them. You’ll soon find yourself easily able to classify any Balance Sheet you wish to read in this manner.

How would we describe A, B and C Balance Sheets?

Balance Sheet A Liabilities

Assets

LTS 80 LTU 80 STS 20 STU 20 Total 100 Total 100

In the three Balance Sheets shown earlier, how should we describe each one? A has 80 long-term sources and 80 long-term uses. A’s shortterm sources are 20 and so are its short-term uses. This indicates that A has utilized its long-term funds to acquire long-term assets and short-term funds to finance short-term uses. B, on the other hand, has 90 long-term sources but only 80 long-term uses. It appears that B has Balance Sheet B Liabilities

Assets

LTS 90 LTU 80 STS 10 STU 20 Total 100 Total 100

used long-term funds for long-term purposes and after doing so still has a surplus of long-term funds to the extent of 10. However on the shortterm front, the funds available are 10, but the utilization in short-term investments is to the tune of 20. This deficit has apparently been bridged through diversion of long-term funds. B, therefore, can be described as having used a part of its long term funds for short-term purposes. C has long-term sources of 70 and long-term uses of 80, showing a deficit.

Even if all long-term funds have been used for long-term purposes, C is still running short of 10. However, since short-term sources are 30 but Balance Sheet c Liabilities

Assets

LTS 70 LTU 80 STS 30 STU 20 Total 100 Total 100

short-term uses only 20, there is a surplus. In this case, short-term funds of the value of 10 have been diverted for long-term purposes. C seems to be one who has used some short-term funds for long-term purposes.

All this is just a factual description of what these Balance Sheets reveal.

Which Balance Sheet is the healthiest?

Which of the three is following sound financial management policies?

Don’t forget that we are still trying to understand the application of Rule II. Rule II reminds us that sources of funds are eventually liabilities. All who have lent money are going to expect it back. It’s only a matter of time. Prudence must, therefore, be exercised at all times while deploying those resources to ensure that the assets can generate an inflow before the liabilities have to be repaid. At the same time, it’s essential to recognize that some liabilities have to be paid back earlier than others. Those liabilities which we have classified as short-term sources will have to be repaid in the immediate future – over the next few weeks or months, but not later than one year. This is the reason why we isolated the short-term sources and clubbed the rest as long-term sources. ...to be continued Dr Anil Lamba is a corporate trainer of international repute on finance management.

His clients comprise several hundred large & 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 September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 9

wax eloquent

So long, farewell, we hate to say goodbye

What the who’s who of India said of the iconic Indian – Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, nuclear scientist and former President of India, fondly known as Peoples’ President. He died on 27th July, leaving an intellectual void in our country.

Corporate Citizen salutes him for his colossal contribution in the arena of Science, Governance, Literature and for being an influencer of young minds of the nation Compiled by Rajesh Rao

“He enhanced the country’s defence capabilities. He used to write poems.

I felt some sort of a vacuum when I heard the news of his death. I did not expect, though he was ageing, he was hale and hearty…always jovial, brilliant.”

Pranab Mukherjee, President of India

“His character, commitment and inspirational vision shine through his life. He was unencumbered by ego; flattery left him cold. His vision for the nation was anchored in freedom, development and strength.”

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India

Courtesy: Times of India

Courtesy: Times of India

“Even as the President, Kalam would host discussions on the missile’s progress and give crucial inputs and closely follow military developments across the world. He was like a guide and teacher for us. He transformed DRDO. He told us that success is a result of team work. And, if anything fails, the responsibility is then individual’s” Dr Avinash Chander, Former DRDO Chief Courtesy: Pune Mirror 10 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

“People’s president and first scientist to occupy Rashtrapati Bhavan, Kalam was free of political affiliation and very popular among the scientists, academics and students fraternity around the world. At various stages of negotiations (on the nuclear deal), I used to brief (him (Kalam), and I was very happy when he endorsed what we were doing. He (Kalam) recognised the problems that I had in managing a difficult coalition government.”

Manmohan Singh, Former Prime Minister of India

Courtesy: Indian Express

“New dimension to Rashtrapati Bhawan as he became the people’s President with whom every Indian, be it a child, student, farmer, scientist or industrialist could identify himself or herself” Rana Kapoor, President, ASSOCHAM Courtesy: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

“His tenure as India’s 11th president witnessed unprecedented growth in US-India ties. Suitably named ‘the People’s President’ Dr. Kalam’s humility and dedication to public service served as an inspiration to millions of Indians and admirers around the world” Barack Obama, US President

Courtesy: www.thehindubusinessline.com

“He was a person who could make the impossible look possible and he actually made it possible for ordinary people to dream they could be anybody. If he could make it in this country, he gave the hope that anybody could make it” Prof N Balakrishnan, Senior aeronautical and computer scientist and former associate director of the Indian Institute of Science Courtesy: Indian Express

“President Kalam was a true patriot and a statesman. As President he connected with and inspired so many people, particularly youngsters across the country. At a personal level, he was a very simple, kind, and genuine man - a great role model for our country. I had known him for nearly two decades and I join the country in mourning this loss” NR Narayana Murthy, Infosys co-founder Courtesy: www.business-standard.com His vision for India had no boundaries and challenges in our nuclear program and space program were approached with a can do attitude! He was an inspiration to me to take on technical challenges that seemed insurmountable! His humility and life story were an inspiration for a generation of young people Jamshyd Godrej, chairman, Godrej & Boyce Courtesy: www.business-standard.com

“Dr Kalam’s role as the leader of India ‘s maiden space launch vehicle mission SLV-3, his leadership qualities and his key part in the nuclear tests at Pokhran in 1998, stand out among his immense contribution. Pokhran II made the world realize the potential of India and gave us an upper hand in the handshake with the US” Raghunath Mashelkar, Eminent Scientist Courtesy: Times of India

“The best part about Kalam was that whenever he delivered his speeches he used to come down to the level of a common man and speak despite being such a great scientist. He had great faith in the country’s youth and would always say that youngsters should be given the responsibility of taking the nation forward by developing expertise in various fields and also by building moral values in them” Jayant Narlikar, Eminent Astrophysicist Courtesy: Times of India

“In 1989, I got the opportunity to work with Kalam for his book ‘India 2020: A Vision for the New Millennium’ co-authored with YS Rajan. I had contributed in research and data collection as a chairperson for one of the task forces ‘Agro-Food’ as I was associated with the food processing industry, Later, Kalam motivated me to write a book on the lives of girls who were given scholarships and achieved success in life. I started working on the book titled ‘21st Century Belongs To Them’. This book was published in 2005 at Rashtrapati Bhavan by Kalam in the presence of the girls who are featured in the book. The book has a foreword by Kalam. It was a moment of great pride for the girls” Lila Poonawalla, founder, Lila Poonawalla Foundation Courtesy: http://www.sakaaltimes.com/ “Today, I look back - he took the final journey, teaching, what he always wanted to be remembered doing. And, till his final moment he was standing, working and lecturing. He left us, as a great teacher, standing tall. He leaves the world with nothing accumulated in his account but loads of wishes and love of people. He was a successful, even in his end. The man is gone, the mission lives on. Long live Kalam” Srijan Pal Singh, Kalam’s adviser, co-authored two books with the former President and was on the same stage with him in Shillong when he collapsed and was taken to hospital where he later died.

Courtesy: www.businessinsider.in “When Dr Kalam died, he was doing what he loved most – addressing students at IIM Shillong. I shared a number of stages with him and marvelled at his range of expertise – space travel one day, corporate social responsibility the next, rural uplift the day after: it seemed he had an idea a minute. An unlikely compromise candidate for President, he soon became the most popular occupant of that exalted post, disregarding its customary ceremonial role to reach out to ordinary people, particularly the young. Abdul Kalam was a complete Indian, an embodiment of the eclecticism of India’s heritage of diversity” Shashi Tharoor, Indian author, diplomat, columnist, public speaker, politician Courtesy: http://www.newindianexpress.com

rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 11

collywood Most armoured Merc for Mukesh Mukesh Ambani, the Indian business magnate, is the richest person in India and the 19th-richest in the world. He is a first timer on many counts. His home, Antilia, Altamount Road in Mumbai is a story by itself, a global fascination with its 27-storey residential skyscraper. And now it is the turn of a car. Reliance Industries Limited is to procure the most powerful and armoured Mercedes-Benz for Mukesh Ambani.

This car is mounted on a normal S600 and has vehicle resistance Level-9 (VR9), the highest available currently. It was customised at Mercedes-Benz’s Sindelingen plant in Germany. This incidentally will add to his armoured BMW 7-Series Luxury Sedan worth ₹ 8.5 crore. The businessman also paid a whopping ₹ 1.6 crore just as the registration fee to the Mumbai Regional Transport Office (RTO), the highest amount ever paid by an individual to register a car in India. RIL’s 2015-model S600 V-9 armoured vehicle is the first to arrive in India. Actor Aamir Khan has the 2014 model.

12 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

People in the news

Greet Leah to meet Obama

It will be the smiling face of the 27-year-old Leah KatzHernandez, the White House receptionist, who will be the first to greet you, if you happen to visit the White House to meet with President Obama or a senior White House staff member. Katz-Hernandez who is deaf and has an interpreter to help with communications, also oversees the White House guest book and the West Wing’s main meeting spot, the Roosevelt Room. She worked on political campaigns at the US Congress and in the nonprofit sector before being appointed first lady Michelle Obama’s press assistant and research associate.

Katz-Hernandez has been an active supporter of disability rights. The website Disability.gov reports she gained national attention during the 2008 presidential election with her blog.

Neeraj Aggarwal designated BCG MD Leading management consultants Boston Consulting Group India elevated Neeraj Aggarwal as its new managing director, replacing incumbent Arindam Bhattacharya. Bhattacharya, who has led BCG India over the past six years and has helped make India a role model within the BCG network, will move to a larger global role as director of the Bruce Henderson Institute, apart from heading the strategic agenda of BCG in Asia Pacific. Aggarwal, a 16-year BCG veteran, was heading its technology, media and telecom and financial services practises as a senior partner from Delhi and will continue to operate from Delhi. He is likely to assume the new role by November this year.

Hital Meswani new RIL HR director Reliance Industries has appointed Hital Meswani as its new HR director, according to reports.

Hital, younger brother of RIL executive director Nikhil Meswani, will run the HR department after the departure of Prabir Jha. Meswani is a chemical engineer from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and a Wharton alumnus. Meswani joined RIL in 1990. The chief human resources officer Jha, joined the company in 2013, and since then tried to make RIL a nicer place to work. He put in place a five-day week, increased leave entitlements and sought to modernise performance management and appraisal processes. Many wonder if Jha tried to do too much too soon at the Mukesh Ambani-led company.

Bill, Melinda Gates, wealthiest couple Bill and Melinda Gates have been declared as the wealthiest couple on the planet with a combined wealth of US $ 85.7 billion according to a report. Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft in 1974 and married Melinda, an employee at his company, in 1994. The second wealthiest couple on the list is Amancio Ortega Gaona, a Spanish retail baron and his second wife, Flora Perez who have a combined wealth of US $ 70.7 billion. The youngest couple on the list of wealthiest couples in the world is Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder of Facebook and Priscilla Chan who are at the ninth spot. Their combined net worth is estimated at US $ 38.5 billion.

The third spot on the list goes to Warren Buffet and Astrid Menks who are worth US $ 65 billion when they pool their resources and the fourth spot goes to David and Julia Koch who have US $ 47.5 billion followed by Charles and Elizabeth Koch who have US $ 47.4 billion.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 13

collywood

Undefeated IndianAmerican Sheriff, Paes It’s not just Preet Bharara. There’s another prominent Indian American sheriff of Wall Street, Winston Paes. Now that Paes is head of the business and securities fraud section in the US Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District, he intends to honour the legacy left by his boss, Loretta Lynch, until she was sworn in as the US Attorney General. Since joining the United States Attorney’s Office in March 2008, Paes has prosecuted a wide variety of criminal matters, including securities fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, corporate healthcare fraud, money laundering, bank fraud, credit card fraud and tax evasion, and has never lost any case in the last seven years, according to the Brooklyn Business Law Association’s website.

New Nestle India MD after Maggi row The Swiss food giant’s India MD Etienne Benet is getting transferred to its headquarters in Switzerland, in the aftermath of the Maggi controversy. He will be replaced by Suresh Narayanan, chairman and CEO of Nestle Philippines. Benet joined Nestle India in October 2013, and oversaw the company’s operations during the Maggi crisis. He is also one of the first heads to roll, said a senior executive from Nestle India.

14 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

SRK, first Indian celebrity, to avail ‘Facebook Live’ app Shah Rukh Khan is technology savvy, he is always above others in this regard. Keeping the same in mind, Facebook partnered with SRK to test and launch their new application in India called Facebook Mention.

Under Facebook Mention, there is a facility called Facebook Live. This application is only available for top celebrities currently. This is Facebook’s way of making it possible for the fans to get closer to their idols. And for SRK, it is the most useful app to interact with his fans extensively in a Live Video format. SRK, the first Indian celebrity to avail this Facebook app, interacted with his fans recently and took them via this app on the sets of his movie. Facebook has partnered with few international celebrities to test and launch this feature world over. In US, they have partnered with Dwayne Johnson.

iGate CE Ashok Vemuri elevated Modi declares August 7 as National Handloom Day Prime Minister Narendra Modi, announced that henceforth, August 7 will be observed as the National Handloom Day to mark the 1905 Swadeshi movement. Modi also launched the ‘India Handloom’ brand at a function in Chennai. The brand will help weavers cater to more global markets. The PM urged to increase use of handloom products, saying a 5 per cent increase in consumption will increase revenues by 33 per cent for the sector. “The handloom sector has inherent strengths that we need to market. Can we not enhance use of handlooms in our daily lives,” he said. “We should enlarge the scope of e-commerce

for sale of handloom products.” It was on August 7, 1905 that the formal proclamation of the Swadeshi Movement was made in a meeting at the Calcutta Town hall. The movement involved boycotting British products and the revival of domestic products and production processes. Handloom weaving provides direct and indirect employment to more than 43 lakh weavers and allied workers. The sector is responsible for nearly 15 percent of cloth production in the country and also contributes to export earnings.

Around 95 percent of the world’s handloom fabric comes from India.

Tech Mahindra appoints Parthasarathy Tech Mahindra Ltd has announced the appointment of V S Parthasarathy as an Additional Director. With Vineet Nayyar’s term as the Executive Vice Chairman expiring, Nayyar will be a non-executive director and has been designated Vice Chairman. Both the appointments are effective from August 10, 2015.

iGate chief executive Ashok Vemuri has been elevated to Capgemini’s highest executive decision making body, months after the Paris-based IT services giant bought the Fremont, California-based outsourcing firm for $4 billion. Vemuri is now part of Capgemini’s group management board, which also includes other top executives such as chairman and chief executive Paul Hermelin, deputy CEO Salil Parekh, consulting and BPO head Olivier Sevillia, infrastructure services business Patrick Nicolet, group CFO Aiman Ezzat and people management and transformation head Hubert Giraud. Capgemini confirmed Vemuri’s new role within the company.

Rekha Menon, first Indian Chief of Accenture Consulting and outsourcing firm, Accenture, has named Rekha Menon as its new India Chairman to succeed Avinash Vashistha who resigned in early July this year.

Anindya Basu also gets a new tag as the new country managing director for India. Both the appointments will be effective August 21. “Rekha has made impressive contributions to our people and our communities,” said Gianfranco Casati, Accenture’s Group Chief Executive, growth

markets. “Her experience will be extremely valuable as we continue to build our brand and enhance our reputation as a leader in India.”

Basu will be responsible for driving domestic business in India and building relationships with key clients. Menon, who currently is the head of human resources for growth markets at Accenture, is Accenture’s first woman head in India, continuing a recent trend of multinational technology firms in

India appointing women leaders.

IBM named Vanitha Narayanan as its India MD in 2013, while Neelam Dhawan and Kumud Srinivasan enjoy similar roles at HP and Intel respectively. Last week, Accenture had confirmed the resignation of former chairman Vashistha, saying it would soon announce his replacement.

Compiled by Joe Williams joe78662@gmail.com

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 15

TURNING POINT

Many a times we witness the first milestones,that the parents miss out -- like a child learning to walk

A corporate career in Infosys and then a day-care are two contrasting career choices. What motivated you to switch over?

A large chunk of my work life – 12 years -- were spent at Infosys, the premier IT company. I got the opportunity to work with many excellent leaders and worked across wide spectrum of IT industry services in its various roles, thanks to the phenomenal growth of Infosys. I had a wonderful time.

After a point though, it was getting a bit boring. I also saw young lady engineers joining and performing very well in the beginning years and dropping out of their careers either when they got married or when they had kids. I had taken a two year break when my daughter was born but realised that for most women today that this option doesn’t exist, given the competition and environment. So I thought if I wanted to do something, I would like to help women go back to work. And if a thousand women go back to work, I would have achieved something good in my life. Fortunately, my husband started Pumpkin Patch, a preschool and daycare in 2006. So we thought, why not extend crèche to babies and toddlers too. That’s how the idea of Pumpkin Patch Daycare came into existence in 2009.

We have separated our work in two parts, - one is the pre-school and school plus which my husband looks after, and seven day care centres which I take care of. In the last six years, we have grown from zero to seven centres. Including

pre-school and daycare centers, We have 1000+ kids under our care now .

Have you adapted any corporate learnings in running Pumpkin Patch?

Our aim is to fill the gap by providing care that is comparable to the best in the world. When my daughter was small, I thought about keeping her in a crèche and continuing to work, but I couldn’t find a crèche that was trustworthy, so I took a break of 2.5 years to be a full time mom . We have created a trusted place where young mothers can feel comfortable, as they need to keep their child there for 8 to 10 hours a day. We pride ourselves in saying that we have created the best combination of east and west practices of childcare. What I mean is the food served is typical Indian vegetarian food, a lot of nurturing and values we teach to our children are Indian, but we abide by international standards of infrastructure, cleanliness, hygiene, safety and care. Today, we have about 1000 kids in our crèches and school put together, between six months and six years of age. Children learn naturally through the use of their five senses, so we use that as our methodology for learning. We have a funloving, happy and stimulating, safe environment. We have planned for large outdoor and indoor spaces. We have age appropriate programmes that children can enroll into. Children just come with a set of clothes to change and

16 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Getting a thousand mothers back to work

Priti Rao, Former Senior Vice President, Head of Infrastructure Management, at Infosys, quit her high profile job so that she could help at least 1000 women to restart their careers after motherhood. Corporate Citizen meets up with this dynamic lady who has given several hundreds of young women professionals the solace of having their children well looked after at her impressive Pumpkin Patch Daycare in Hinjewadi’s IT neighbourhood of Pune, which now has seven centres spread across the city

By Vinita Deshmukh

everything else is provided by us.

We have a central kitchen which serves porridges, traditional Indian snacks and nutritious balanced meals, the way their mothers and grandmothers would serve them at home. Our growth has been reasonable. The focus is not really on creating a pan India business, but the idea is to enjoy what you are doing and do it in the best way.

We have grown well and there is tremendous opportunity in daycare as a business.

What were the challenges that you faced when you entered this venture?

After so many years of experience, you do something that you really want to do and there is really no pressure to do it for revenue or

growth. Therefore I have not faced too many challenges. Being with the kids is really fun.

What I have learnt is, being an entrepreneur does not guarantee that you would be a successful entrepreneur. When you become an entrepreneur - in the initial years - right from designing your logo, your website, your catch-line, your payroll, marketing, selling, HR

and understanding who should be given PF or ESI - the buck stops at you. I have seen some of my friends and colleagues not realising this. When they are employees of a corporate organisation, yes you are in a good position, the organisation framework be it HR, infrastructure, processes, procedures, measurement, quality is around you -- that’s what one

If a drop of water falls in a lake or a sea it has no identity but if it falls on a leaf it shines like a pearl. So, we need to choose the best place to work September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 17

TURNING POINT

A perfect environment where the child enjoys eating, playing and learning and most importantly making them feel at home

internet feeds of her child at the day care centre. If you are at work, you should peacefully work. So we do not give internet feed, but we have recordings available in an emergency. We have all-women staff, except the watchman. That’s the need of the daycare, as the children are very young, care giving to these young ones is only possible by the women staff.

With Narayana Murthy

tends to take for granted. When you become an entrepreneur, you have to do all these things yourself; while it is fun one needs to be able to do it. Leadership styles need to change, because when you are in a particular position, you have ‘positional power’. You need to change your style of leadership from a positional power to a personal power. You need to be respected for your strengths and need to lead from the front. These days there is a lot of discussion – on the need to change from masculine values of ambition, aggression and competition, to values of caring, cooperation, compassion. I have realised that I have significantly changed during my journey of transition.

I have also understood that just having a good idea will not help. You really need to be talking of measures, defining process and procedures; what exactly your customers need and how do you satisfy your customers. The smallest of these details need to be worked on. There is a lot of hard work that has gone into creating our child safe environment, recruiting and training our staff, defining process, measurements et al.

I have learnt to enjoy the everyday moments of life like a hug from a child; in a butterfly hopping from one flower to another in our garden (We have a beautiful butterfly garden in our centre).

There is lot of fun in doing what I do every day. I am a changed person and it has done wonders to me.

‘There is a need to have daycare centres within company premises. We have two centres running at SKF and Sandvik. These exclusive centres are for the children of employees of those companies. It is convenient for employees to have their children nearby’ In India there are no guidelines for maintaining a crèche. Do you think there should be stringent guidelines for crèches?

There is absolutely a need to follow stringent guidelines, there do not exist even basic guidelines and there is no licence required to operate a daycare. So you see the mushrooming of day care services.

This is a huge risk to the child.

There is need for this industry to get regulated, monitored, managed, inspected, audited, which doesn’t exist today.

We have looked at the National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC) standards, which are US based standards. UK has similar standards too. So we have learnt from these and created

18 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

our own guidelines, checklists, quality policies, procedures, adapting them to the Indian perspective, because everything cannot be applied directly here.

We have vegetarian meals. We have no safety inspector visits. We have to do our own audits. We have taken the help of consultants who conduct safety audits of the premises. We have CCTV cameras installed everywhere. Lot of parents want to see what their child is doing during the day. We record activities of the whole day that goes on in the daycare, though we do not give internet feeds of what is happening here. I believe that you keep your child here only if you trust us. If I was at Infosys, I wouldn’t want my employee to be looking at the

What is a day’s routine at the Pumpkin Patch crèche centres?

We have three categories of children - babies, toddlers and after-school kids. Babies and toddlers come at 8 or 9 am and stay with us for the rest of the day, as per the work routine of their parents. We are like professional mothers to them.

Children are like sponge. If you put a sponge in the water, the sponge absorbs water. Children are similar - you create the environment and they explore and learn. They touch, they feel, they taste, they hear, and that’s how they learn. We believe each child is unique and learns at his/her own pace. This is the prime age of learning. While we think we go to school and learn, 80 percent of us are moulded before we become six years old, so these are the most impactful years when you can make a difference. Every month we have a theme. For example this month’s theme is fruits and vegetables, so everything that happens during the day revolves around fruits and vegetables. There are different types of fruits we show - we cut them, they taste it, they can look at different colours, they can feel the different texture of the fruit, they get to know the names. They learn

alright to tolerate a person saying something that he does not mean, at times.

roles like what vegetable vendor does, they learn to count, measure et al. The theme is just used as a proxy for their learning and to create activities around that. There are five meals that the children get here. They don’t bring anything.

We have a centralised kitchen, which prepares baby foods like Nachni khir, daliya and upma. The food is nutritious and balanced.

The meals start around 10 a.m. because most kids come by 9 a.m. They have what we call midmorning snack. It is a typical Indian vegetarian meal like, idli, upma, or poha for toddlers. For very small babies who cannot chew, we serve porridge, kichdi similar baby food. Toddlers and after-school care children eat typical Indian vegetarian meals you get at home.

Around 11:45 a.m. they have their lunch, with poli, bhaji, varan, rice, salad made to their taste. They sleep after meal and get up at 2.30-3 pm. They have milk and fruit when they wake up. After 5 pm we serve an evening snack like a small dosa or paratha . We don’t use much of biscuits and pastries or processed items, as they are not healthy.

What is so insightful that you felt you should educate parents?

For young parents, joint families are shrinking and there is nobody to advise them. It comes more from the fact that the children are with us for the whole day. When they go home they just eat and sleep and many a times they just get up and come here. So we consider it is our responsibility to mould them.

We have breathing exercises, yoga, prayers that we teach children. So

whatever difference we can make, we try to do it as we want to give them our best. We also keep sending a few articles for the parents to read, some things that they can jointly do with their children at home.

What’s your observation about health of children?

These children come from fairly well to do families so they are generally healthy, but given the pollution, given that they are too young and first time coming out of the house, given the possibilities of illness among few children here, they are exposed to common illnesses. We maintain excellent hygiene at our centres. Sanitisers are kept everywhere, and there is a lot of hand washing routine which is taught to our staff. Even kids don’t eat meals without washing hands.

Mildly sick children are separately cared for and really sick children are advised to be at home.

How has your relationship been with the parents?

Our customer satisfaction rate has always been very high. Most parents are delighted by our services and are thankful. We have lot of fun and learning events for parents too.

Most of the parents are cooperative, they believe that we know better, and they understand we have good intentions. But as in any other case, a very small percentage of the parents sometimes are bit upset.

Most often they have a lot of stress at work. Managing work life with a child is not easy and thus irritation surfaces. Our staff has been trained to be very open, honest and accept some of this calmly. It’s

Is there a need for more day care centres like yours in cities, so that a mother does not feel guilty?

Why should somebody feel guilty to work? There is need to have day care centres within the company premises. We have two centres running at SKF and Sandvik. These exclusive centres are for the children of employees of those companies.

It is convenient for employees to have their children around.

However, most IT companies do not want to have day care centres within their premises, they say it is a risk. Honestly, I think they don’t want to take the responsibility.

Manufacturing companies are more inclined, particularly European companies, because it is in their culture.

Can you relate to us some moments of achievement or moments you remember working at the crèche?

Many a times we witness the first milestones -- a child learns to speak, walk – that the parents miss out. We record these moments especially for the parents to see. Many of the parents ask us to keep the creche open on Saturdays and Sundays, because kids do not eat as well, at home. That tugs my heart. This place is open five days a week, Saturdays we work for ourselves, training, cleaning, etc. We take children on weekends as an exception, at times.

I generally discourage it because parents have to spend quality time with their children.

Feeding a child needs a lot of patience; it needs the right type food, the right consistency and it needs the right type of environment where the child enjoys eating.

You may be trying to feed while cooking, then the child will not eat.

So some mothers find it difficult to feed the child on weekends. Many come and ask us to teach them the recipe.

The striking thing I have observed is that a lot of fathers are taking more interest in bringing up their child, spending time. When a child joins, for the first three days we expect the parents to be around and

I have seen a lot of fathers taking turns in parenting. That is a big social change. Fathers are willingly contributing. It is a welcome change I have seen in these last five years.

The number of hugs that I get every day is equal to my previous life’s total hugs. These are small pleasures of life which make it more interesting. Every role has its own privileges , where you enjoy your role, your growth, and get a sense of pride,talking about your business.

Working in Infosys was unique. The pleasures of this role are completely different. You have one life; if you want to do many things. I continue to be on the board of management at Mastek . My experience of 24 years is being used in the role of a board member, so it is fulfilling.

What are your tips for success?

Do what you love - I think it is important to select what you really like, when you set out to be an entrepreneur. Life is about the choices you make. Everybody has windows of opportunity. The decisions that you make at those times makes you what you are, and of course there is no choice but to work hard. More than luck, it is about making the right decisions at the right time. Believe in yourself, have courage, and invest in the right kind of people. Surround yourself with people smarter than you, then the job becomes much easier. If a drop of water falls in a lake or a sea it has no identity but if it falls on a leaf it shines like a pearl. Similarly we need to choose the best place to live and work. vinita.deshmukh@corporatecitizen.in

CC

tadka

If only land was so cheap today The whole region of Kashmir was “bought” for a mere `75 lakh in the mid 19th century by the founder of the Dogra Dynasty, Gulab Singh who went on to become the first Maharaja of Kashmir.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 19

NHRD Mumbai and BMA Meet

Why transformation efforts succeed or fail?

A one-and-a-half day round table meet was recently organised by the National HRD (NHRD) Network with the Bombay Management Association (BMA), on “Culture - Its strategic significance in the present day business scenario,” which explored several aspects of corporate culture. Corporate Citizen brings to you the session insights on ‘Why transformation efforts succeed or fail?’ discussed by top designates from the HR fraternity.

The session was facilitated by Ramesh Mitragotri, Group Head, Employee Relations and Innovations at Aditya Birla Group, and the panelists included Bhawana Mishra, Managing Director, Basil Tree Consulting, Yogi Sriram, Senior Vice President, Corporate HR, Larsen & Toubro and Zubin Mulla, Associate Professor, School of Management & Labour Studies, TISS.

By Rajesh Rao and Mahalakshmi Hariharan

T

alking about how challenging it can be to adapt or respond to change, Mitragotri said it is especially so when it involves organisational culture, when it involves change in culture, when societies start adapting to change and look at culture. “What makes it even more challenging is not just responding but proactively anticipating what changes (are needed) and how we respond. The question then is if the culture is an influencer or it gets impacted by way of changes that happen in organisations, what role does culture play in an organisational transformation? Is it the cause, the effect, or an agent of change that we do,” he added.

Relevance of cultural transformation to organisations today and its importance in the organisation’s lifecycle Zubin Mulla: Cultural transformation is important given the change happening in the environment. It is a function of two things, one is the expected longevity of the organisation and second the extent of change that is happening in the environment. As you expect an organisation to remain alive for a long time and as the environment for which the organisation is designed to deal with keeps changing, it becomes imperative for the organisation to change on an on-going basis. And culture being one aspect, will need to change.

Bhawana Mishra: We constantly say we are doing cultural or change transformation, but do we remain at the surface level, or do we go deeper into what culture is to an organisation?

Innumerable theories have been written giving different types of culture that exist in the universe of the organisation, but do we really understand what culture is and therefore the impact that is going to make to whatever the organisation does?

Panel discussion on ‘‘Why transformation efforts succeed or fail?’- (L-R) Panel facilitator Ramesh Mitragotri, Group Head, Employee Relations and Innovations, Aditya Birla Group, with panelists, Yogi Sriram, Senior Vice President, Corporate HR, Larsen & Toubro, Bhawana Mishra, Managing Director, Basil Tree Consulting and Zubin Mulla, Associate Professor (School of Management & Labour Studies), TISS, during the NHRD Mumbai & BMA Round Table Meet, in Mumbai

20 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Culture is to an organisation, what the three doshas in Ayurveda are to people. Do we understand the psyche of the organisation before we start to make any interventions, which otherwise remains at a systemic level?

Need for organisations to transform and the interplay of culture Yogi Sriram: Most of us in India are in a bit of a spoilt world, because our transformation and cultural change does not happen the way it does in the much more brutal world. In that world especially in IT and ITES, the cultural transformation is so extreme and so real that it perhaps is an example for every other sector.

Today you take most of the IT companies, their 60-70 percent revenue comes from what is called horizon one. Horizon one is basically body shopping. It is sending warm bodies who know Java, CAD, know how to use various software for customers, for a predetermined outcome. So there

Pics: Yusuf Khan

is a pre-sales and sales team and all they do is sell as negative because of its slow decision making. services at $ 21-25 per hour (₹ 1593.5) So the organisation started with a programme Words like smack, cloud, internet of to decentralise businesses, create small business things, digitization and so on, will have a units and let individual CEOs and SPUs take the huge transformational effect. The reason why entire ownership to take the organization forward. transformation is prevented from happening as Where is the organisation? Did the whole initiative fast as it should, is a danger signal for companies, succeed? Two years later - absolutely not. The in India particularly. What is the obstacle? Reason reasons were multiple. Firstly, it was fine to do that number one is arrogance. on paper, as something done Arrogance comes out of by all large multinationals success, arrogance comes conglomerates. But intuitively, out of having high revenues, as an underlying theme for arrogance from having a who you are in terms of high EBITDA, PBIT or PIT, values, ethos, what drives thus success makes you you, are the promoters and fail. The second reason is the entire top team ready to complacency: ‘Things will make that change at their change…but we are strong level or is it going to be just in our market and we need something you are espousing to worry about quarter after because it is the right thing While we are quarter of profits after tax and to do? Secondly, while the discussing culture, therefore thinking about the organisation got restructured why do we future is something that can be and a whole lot of other things postponed.” The third is hubris somehow get carried got done, the most important (dismissing it) - it is right there element was, ‘what’s in it for away by the notion at your door step staring at me’ as a question for the entire of calling it either you. You are getting decadent, organisation and the people good culture or bad but the transformation is that sat in those organisations. culture? Culture is not happening because of Did that get answered?. And the hubris, and that happens that ‘what’s in it for me’ is very culture” because of comfort with the different for different sets of ­­Bhawana Mishra past. people, and was found to be one of the biggest issues of this Examples in the Indian context where particular failure. I don’t think it is documented as transformation, big or small, that started failure but at a tacit level it is probably recognised off with a good intent but did not end well, as one. and the factors that led to the difference Culture and transformation evolving in Zubin Mulla: One of things about transformation organisations which people often ignore is to acknowledge the present and the past. Any organisation will Yogi Sriram: Centralisation and decentralisation have these cess pools of cynicism and apathy is like a pendulum and all organisations go through because of the issues and unkept promises of the it. Besides centralisation or decentralisation, it has past. Very often when top management decides more to do with culture that is with the right gist, on transformation, these are not addressed. with the spirit of the times. Which means, do While on paper you have great goals, you have you have an innovative enough culture to cope a methodology, you have an approach to bring up with the times that are required? L&T today about the change, but without acknowledging the is going through a huge transformation in terms current issues in the organisation, if you embark of becoming a fractal organisation. It is trying to on that journey it is a recipe for failure. Some create entrepreneurship by dividing the divisions organisations tried that, but they hadn’t really into independent companies and independent addressed the issues with the present and past and companies with external board members. So it’s made plans for the future. While on paper they a bit of a cricket net practice, we are getting ready may have achieved certain things, there really has to list the companies, some of them at least, not all been no change at the ground level. It is only when of them. The idea is, when you divide you create issues are addressed at a very fundamental level managing directors, you create leadership, which that future change is possible and fundamental is completely independent of someone pulling change possible. strings from the centre, so therefore you grow.

Some of the parts are likely to be much more Bhawana Mishra: In the last three to four years than the whole as it stands today and that is the a large Indian conglomerate with businesses whole design why we are decentralising and want across industry sectors tried to bring about such to grow. The question is how do you cope with change. One of the key issues they were blamed transformation and what are the transformations for was a very centralised culture which was seen September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 21

NHRD Mumbai and BMA Meet company has done.’ of it varies from individual to individual and one section Money driving and of the organisation to the Ways of changing or transforming the motivating performance other. Defining that ‘why’, architecture of organisations from a cultural understanding that ‘why’, and Zubin Mulla: Coming to the architecture of perspective building compelling stories organisation transformation, a couple of things across the organisation is one are required. The first is the importance of a large Yogi Sriram: Money is ugly, key role for HR. That ‘why’ vision and big audacious goals, but the vision has I am not saying because I need not necessarily resonate to be something which has something in it for the have plenty of disposable with the people all the time, employee. Individuals should feel connected to income. Money goes contrary or all groups of people the vision. It is one thing to say that we will double to culture. I find that in ‘Money goes contrary companies where there is a lot within the organisation. our turnover in five years which doesn’t have any to culture. I find So understanding different meaning for an individual and quite another to of money being paid at 90th that in companies needs of the people within say we will change the world or we will be the percentile, or 100th percentile the organisation, what drives best, which an individual can personally connect or whatever, there is actually where there is a lot them, what motivates them to. The other area is to have an ideology which a lot of politics. When you of money being paid and therefore what the ‘why’ involves the people. One part of transformation is make a pre-placement talk, at 90th percentile, and the story might be for changing how you think, which comes from that what is very important is the or 100th percentile them, and bringing that out large vision people are connected to. Another stories that go around from or whatever, there and involving them, is the first part of transformation is changing what people seniors to the juniors, about real role for HR to play, in the do and in order to change that, you need to have the space that is available in is actually a lot of ‘why’ of it. an improvement ideology that involves people. the company. An organisation politics’ So the first is the ‘why’ of it, If you look at the Indian freedom movement, that has a huge investment in Yogi Sriram which is creating stories and we had a number of politicians talking about learning and development, HR has a big role in finding freedom and you had Gandhi who had come which is structured, is perhaps those stories across the organisation and getting with the concept of not just political freedom more successful than other companies that just people to become champions. The second is but Swaraj. Swaraj is complete freedom, which pay and don’t spend enough on those, because the ‘who’. Identifying who those ‘who’ will be is is meaningful to the people, whereas political they are continuously building insurance. Every really HR’s responsibility and need not always freedom does not make sense to most people.

L&Tite has a big CV and knows if he/she wants be that of the top leaders, the function heads Gandhi supported his ideology of Swaraj with to go, he/she can go. or business heads. And these ‘who’s’ are there Satyagraha or Ahimsa, which was an operational Zubin Mulla: The way I look at the role of HR across the organisation, HR has the best access to ideology and khadi which made it easy for people in change initiative is more like a DJ and the identify those who’s’ and make them champions to follow it. Right at the ground level if I had to task of the DJ is two-fold, one is to bring in an of whatever it is the organisation is trying to do. follow Gandhi, there is a simple to-do action plan, environment in which everyone can dance. The The third -- which is really the systemic role of which helps me to follow. Organisations need to environment ideally has to be such that everyone HR -- is around capability building for whatever work with that along with the big picture. can be part of it, not just one group and exclude the organisation is trying to become -- and another group. Getting everyone on the dance supporting that capability building with structural Role of HR in playing the facilitator in the floor gives the right role model across the board change, process, reward mechanism and what change and transformation and that’s what really drives the change. have you, to reinforce the new Yogi Sriram: HR can use Bhawana Mishra: While we are discussing behaviour that you are trying concrete data, also use a lot culture, why do we somehow get carried away by to build in the organisation. of technology to pick up what the notion of calling it either good culture or bad are individual preferences. It culture? Culture is culture, it’s a bit like going back Yogi Sriram: What can is not only about cohorts, it is to my Ayurveda example and the three doshas.

HR do specifically? Pay only about individual preferences You are the dosha that you are or combination of a 50th percentile. Most of and trying to derive patterns all of those and the whole point is of being able us do a copout taking this and creating conversations to understand what you are, what works for you benchmark of compensation with people who are at and in that context how are you going to run the studies and then we tell our leadership level. organisation. And that’s very important for us to top management, we must be understand as HR professionals. One thing that giving the high performers 75 Bhawana Mishra: I would works for one company, needn’t necessarily work or 80 percentile. I think you have three roles for HR in ‘The first is the for another. Some of the best examples of wellshould challenge yourself. HR the context of whether it’s importance of a run organisations which are emulated by people has a role in actually insulating culture, or any kind of change large vision and big the world over, for example, would be some of the top performers. What can programme. Go back to the highest payers talking of compensation per se.

HR do specifically is not classical ‘why’, ‘who’ and audacious goals, but hide behind compensation ‘how’ of anything that you the vision has to be Underlying principles for change and and mourn and are trying to do, whether something which has surveys transformation groan that attrition is 18 or it is a change process or something in it for the 15 percent and start making Zubin Mulla: One is, deal with the past. Have whatever else. What is it that employee’ vicious presentation to the top the company is trying to do, a big vision which is meaningful. Provide an management saying, ‘we must and move from one point to inclusive ideology. Create role models at every Zubin Mulla do it….look at what so and so the other point? That ‘why’ level. Finally review your change processes on a that come.

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regular basis and provide feedback to people on how they are doing and recognise success.

Bhawana Mishra: One benefit smaller organisations have is nimbleness, simply because of size and a relative ease in understanding what the expectations from the senior leadership/ promoters/ owners will be. So if that is relatively well understood then it is that much easier to percolate across through processes and whatever else it is that you are trying to really do for the organisation. It is that much more complex in a larger setup because those needs and expectations and what you set out to do will vary by your geographies, your markets, your segments of business and so on. The smaller and larger setups will be vastly different, understanding what my culture is not about good or bad, it’s about understanding what my culture is on a set of dimensions.

Thirdly, even if there is a due diligence done, if you are taking over another company or you are demerging or getting into another or whatever, the culture dimension is extremely important in understanding whether it will be a successful merger or not. Many companies have fallen flat only because of this one reason. Even if it means taking over another customer what they call in IT language ‘badging and rebadging’, it just might fail because of culture.

Culture not supporting the environment Zubin Mulla: Essentially the norms are so strong that there is not enough flexibility for individuals to behave in violation of those norms - that’s the definition of a strong culture.

Here a couple of roles come in terms of the role of the leader. One of the jobs of the leader is to understand what is essential to that organisation and what is peripheral. So Strong and weak culture when we talk about change and transformation, we are Yogi Sriram: Strong culture not talking about radical is a culture which is difficult change, we are talking about to copy. Copying culture is not essentially unleashing some easy and I think the strength ‘The value inherent capabilities into the of a culture is defined by how proposition is organisation. difficult is it to emulate it, it’s about what that And there is also an element built over the years, it’s the of framing, where the task way things are done. It may organisation does of the leader is to essentially be succession planning, it to really inspire the ar ticulate what thos e may be how you treat people, people to deliver essential elements are to it may be what an organisation much more than the organisation, which are does, caring for people when what they could have enduring and permanent, the chips are down. There and what are peripheral, and are a whole lot of things that otherwise done’ which are those that affect builds into that culture - that Ramesh Mitragotri its ability to compete in the is what it means by strength. current environment.

Strength could be in the form of almost paralysing the company and not Culture aspect portrayed or given as value making it agile enough to change with time. So proposition to smaller organisations the same competitive strength can become a weakness if the culture is so set that people keep Ramesh Mitragotri: When an individual gets looking over the shoulders and say, we have been into an organisation he is already hooked on to doing this for so many years, as our founder did the organisation and because he wants to get into that. It’s called the founders’ mentality and they that organisation, there is already motivation. The live under the founders’ shadow. That of course value proposition is about what that organisation is very debilitating. does to really inspire the people to deliver much more than what they could have otherwise done.

Common theme for transformation It’s not only the individual’s motivation to be in that organization, but also what that organisation Yogi Sriram: Firstly, creating a sense of urgency has done. by the leadership is very important, even creating an artificial urgency if you are clear about Yogi Sriram: We are all wired differently. moving into a particular technology or moving Many people feel that this conversation into a particular strategy. The second is to tune about suppressing compensation is highly your culture…to have a conversation that is manipulative because we are in a way trying to deep enough about culture. Most of the strategic take away the fundamental right, or something consultants deal with this subject in a very which is very important to the people. perfunctory manner.

Not at all, what I am trying to say is that it They just say, HR is very important and HR is something very transitory, so elastic, so should do this and do that to change the culture. frivolous.

Leaders identifying the right time for transformation Yogi Sriram: (The right time is) whenever you feel your company is not going to survive unless you change. I am not talking about people changing, but your business model changing.

Many companies in IT have to move from horizon 1 to horizon 2 or 3, because if they stick around with horizon 1 their revenues will be 70-80 percent, they would be absolutely dead.

The model of sending a massive number of people who know Java or particular language to customers in America and Europe is not going to be good enough for the future. Those companies have already moved ahead and the CIOs will not be deciding anymore, it’s the CMO who decides. Therefore companies using the SMAC, or big data and so on, are more relevant. When the chief executive thinks that you have come to the inflection point, it is the point when the conversation of culture is extremely important.

Impact, if any, when good people driving a lot of value walking go out for competitive offers…dealing with such issues Yogi Sriram: In our culture we don’t chase people with extra money. We chase them with a lot of love and affection. We certainly don’t increase compensation to keep people back. The entire conversation is changing in the IT world. where utilisation rates and so on are absolutely redundant. In times to come, people are not going to talk my 78 per cent is in TCS, 82 per cent is L&T Infotech, as all that is redundant. People are going to work more like consultants, they will have to go find the work. There is going to be 100 percent utilisation in such companies. Therefore, the conversation in horizon 2 will be more about doing things that change and sculpt consumer behaviour. It’s not about responding to consumer behaviour. Where there is a huge scope for sculpting the kind of talent that you have around that have imagination…to understand how you really hook the consumer to certain patterns. rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com

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tadka

India’s internet adoption India had 25.51 million broadband users in rural areas as compared to 73.69 million subscribers in urban parts till March 2015.

India’s rural areas are adopting internet at an incredible rate, showing a 100 per cent year on year increase.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 23

tête-à-tête

How engaged is your employee?

in Dubai

Vinodh odi Chelambath D R H a si A at the 5 1 0 2 s rd a Aw

Vinodh Chelambathodi, Chief Human Resource Officer at Intellect Design Arena Limited (A Polaris Group Company), is a dynamic Global Human Resource Professional who has had varied and rich experience in leadership roles in large firms with multi-geographic presence. He has played key roles in leading transformation initiatives like Organisation Structural Diagnostics, Mergers & Acquisitions, Demergers, Global Compensation, Global HR Risks and Regulatory Compliances, Performance Development Dialogue, Leadership Hiring with organisations he’s been associated with. Identified as a highly assertive leader, who focuses on results, Vinodh has worn multiple hats within the domain of HR and as business leader. In a candid conversation with Corporate Citizen, Vinodh touches upon various facets of employee engagement, performance management, bell curve, attrition in the IT sector, while also touching upon his personal space

By Mahalakshmi Hariharan Human Resource Management in organizations is designed to maximize employee performance vis-a-vis employer’s strategic objectives. HR is primarily concerned with the management of people within organizations, focusing on policies and systems.

Today, a lot of people stress on how important Human Resource Management is, and about getting the employer and the employee closer to each other in an organisation. What are your views and experience in terms of the employeremployee relationship, in terms of dealing with high attrition rates?

I truly believe that learning is the key. It is important to see how much anyone is able to learn from the organisation he or she is associated with, and how much the person is willing to contribute. Unfortunately, the whole industry has gone through a ritualistic process of putting performance at the centre point. Does talent really lead to speedy performance? I have

my own contrary view on this subject. To me, human resource management is not about talent development but is about learning and engaging. When I say learning, I am not talking about the typical classroom sessions of training, but learning in-depth about the business and also see how actively the supervisor is engaged with his people, his team and how engaged is the person with his manager. In a way it is true that ‘People leave people and not the organisation’, but more than that statement, it is not only about the boss, it is about the entire ecosystem which you create. One of the ingredients is the boss. You have to continuously develop a complete nonjudgemental environment in an organisation where there is no comparison, no fear. We’ve always looked at performance management and the bell-curve, saying 50 per cent are super performers, 30 per cent are average performers, etc. So there are a lot of comparisons within organisations.

But we have still not evolved in the human

24 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

resource industry in terms of making learning the critical centre point of focus rather than performance. This is because of our belief system that says performance or talent development leads to superior performance. But I don’t believe that talent management builds a super organisation.

You can develop talent but people may leave, or stay and may not be productive for many other reasons. Even if someone is talented, it may not really lead to superior performance, because of his disengagement with the organisation.

Hence, it is crucial to have proper engagement.

Now, this engagement will only come through constant feedback, coaching and a constant dialogue process. While you can easily do it for 100-200 people, how do you do it for a large set of people like 5,000 or so? Here we will have to create systems and ecosystems to ensure that the whole IT delivery model changes from a typical hierarchal structure to a more collaborative structure where six people work together to

solve a complex customer problem. In talent performance, there is always an end state or destination. At the end of the year, when I am being appraised for some goals, that is a destination.

When you choose a destination, you are not testing for some unconditional thinking, which might be manifold in your productivity.

Tell us about your experience in dealing with employees, especially youngsters. Has it been difficult or challenging?

It hasn’t been difficult at all. It is all about engaging with the right frame of mind.

Youngsters today do have a lot of dreams, a lot of aspirations. The moment you put comparisons, there’s fear. Comparison brings fear. Ambition is fundamentally disruptive, very destructive. You must take the youngsters along with you and ensure there is a lot of chemistry while working, for the larger purpose of the organisation. In a large company with over 5000 people, very few people understand the vision or goals of the company. When there is alignment to the larger purpose of the organisation, there is a very bright chance that you have complete collaboration.

How have you dealt with difficult employees?

Pic: Yusuf Khan

The word “difficult” is very subjective.

Something that you look as difficult may not be difficult to someone else. To me, a difficulty is an opportunity. In my career, I have seen employees who have been star performers until a few years ago, but today are pretty average performers.

Again, that is putting him in a ‘performance basket’. Fundamentally, every human resource professional should influence the belief system of the employee. If someone who was a star performer in the past, but today is an average performer, it means that the ecosystem has been lost somewhere in the journey. It is important to have continuous dialogue with your employee, understand his belief system and the reason behind the sudden drop in performance. A super-duper performer cannot become a nonperformer all of a sudden. If that is the case, then there may be a problem in the entire ecosystem.

He may not believe the process that you follow.

That’s where we miss out by not having a continuous dialogue with the people. You must take people along and align them for the larger purpose of the organisation.

What are some of the things that you look at while hiring top management professionals?

When we hire top management professionals, some of the things we look for are the sense of urgency, thoroughness, influencing skills, assertiveness and risk taking abilities.

What are your views on the bell curve? Is the bell curve good or bad?

I have never been a fan of the bell curve. If there is a bell, there’s always ‘noise’. It is not about the bell curve, it is all about how you engage people. Why do you need a bell curve? Why aren’t you putting learning as the focal point rather than performance as the point? When you put performance as the central point, then it becomes a bell curve. When you put learning

engagement. So if you address the engagement issue, especially cognitive and intellectual engagement, then it will solve your problem.

What do you think of youngsters hopping jobs for money?

Well, it’s not about them, it’s about the ecosystem created. A lot of social media tools and peer pressure influence him to make this decision.

We’ve all seen people joining companies and quitting in no time at all. Again, there are employees who joined a company in the 90’s and are still around, and to think of it, they were also youngsters then. So it is all about how you tap the youth and take them along.

You can develop talent but people may leave, or stay and may not be productive for many other reasons. Even if someone is talented, it may not really lead to superior performance, because of his disengagement with the organisation as the central point, performance becomes a sub product of learning. But then how do you reward people? Well, it’s a different ballgame altogether.

So you’ll have to move away from a task based reward system to a team based system. That’s what we are trying to do in terms of aligning our business. If you reward the team by moving away from a task based reward system to a team based system, it helps. When you put an individual task, it always becomes a selfish goal. Then you don’t put the organisation before you. When there is a complex customer problem, and we work as a team and the entire team gets a reward, then we are on the right track.

How do you deal with freshers?

Youngsters today have a lot of aspirations. There is a myth that youngsters don’t understand business, but most of them are brilliant, they have a lot of dreams, a lot of aspirations. We have to encourage them and tap them right from the beginning. Why should a fresher out of college not understand what a business strategy is?

Most of the time, it is we who take it for granted that they may not understand business, but by making him understand at least some parts of it, he may contribute more than you expect.

What do you think about the growing attrition levels in the IT sector?

Attrition is a very wrong way of looking, as a measure. One should talk about engaging employees. How many of you have engaged employees? If you are losing some of your engaged employees, there is something wrong with your ecosystem -- then you should address that problem. The root cause of the problem is

Take us through your education background, career, hobbies and your family.

I did my Masters Diploma in Business Administration, Management from Madras Christian College back in 1988. Thereafter, I completed my Masters Diploma in Personnel Management, in 1990, from NIPM, Kolkata, specialising in Personnel Management and Industrial Relations. I have been part of the IT industry since 1997. I held senior positions with HCL Technologies and Capgemini in the past.

I was also the Director – HR with Flextronics Software Systems P. Ltd. About my family -- my wife is a fashion designer, running a boutique from home in Chennai. My daughter is in the ninth standard. I like to play Carnatic music on the harmonica. I am a lot into fitness, swimming and acting as well.

Mahalakshmi.H@corporatecitizen.in

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tadka

Philanthropy at its best The langar or kitchen at the Golden Temple is said to be the biggest free eatery in the world. What makes the langar even more remarkable is that the food is prepared and distributed mostly by unpaid helpers. More than 1000 volunteers come up for this virtuous deed daily.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 25

Cradle of Leadership-10 International Management Institute, Delhi Dr. Bakul Dholakia, Director, IMI, Delhi

Having spent 33 out of his 45 years of teaching econometrics at the premier Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A), Dr. Bakul Dholakia is best known as its most courageous, energetic and visionary director (2002-2007). He is also known for his legendary battles with the then political establishment at the Centre to vigorously espouse the cause of IIM’s financial autonomy.

Recipient of the Padma Shri in 2007, he is acknowledged as a colossus among management gurus under whose leadership IIM-A emerged the top ranked B-school in India and Asia-Pacific by every consecutive survey, conducted by respected business publications like Business Today, Outlook and The Week. An institution builder who is known for his penchant for calling a spade a spade, he subsequently joined India’s fastest growing corporate group, the Adanis (2007-14), to establish their world-class Adani Institute of Infrastructure Management, Adani Knowledge Centre and Adani Institute of Medical Sciences in Bhuj (Gujarat).

A gold medallist and Doctorate in Economics from Baroda University, the irrepressible professor worked in every committee of the IIM-A and even now gives the impression of being a man with no full stops in life. Having guided 20 PhD students at IIM-A and served as a board member of the Reserve Bank of India (1993-2001), Dr. Dholakia is currently working as the Director-General of the New Delhi-based, high-profile International Management Institute (IMI). For the past nine months, he has been making every possible effort to take IMI to new heights of excellence, giving dynamic thrust through his strategic thinking. In a candid conversation with Corporate Citizen, he shared his thoughts on a wide range of subjects while giving glimpses into his exceptionally stimulating journey. Excerpts:

By Pradeep Mathur

Face to face with a After leaving IIM-A, why did you opt to work for the Adani Group?

In October 2007, when my term as the Director IIM-A ended, amongst the various offers that I got, the best one was from Gautam Adani.

He said he wanted to invest in education and create a world-class institute of infrastructure management in Ahmedabad because there was no such institute that created talent for this sector.

Since most of his investments were in Kutch, he also wanted to invest in a medical college at Bhuj,

26 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Kar

which did not have any such college, through a Public Private Partnership with the Government of Gujarat, in the Kutch district. Both projects involved the creation of new institutions. All my life, I worked at an institute of excellence and took IIM-A from one level to another. But here would be the joy of creation and it excited me. Both projects involved five to six years of commitment.

In any case, had I continued at IIM-A, I would have worked for another five years, so I joined the Adanis. Within a year, both institutes were up

The profile of IMI is similar to that of IIMAhmedabad. It also runs an MBA program, a one year executive program, PhD programs, does consulting – so it has a classic business school profile but not a single one where a civil hospital is run like a corporate hospital! My motto was: quality healthcare to the poor at civil hospital prices.

Serving vulnerable sections of society was the objective. If a poor guy gets a heart attack, why should he not get a bypass surgery done by the best doctors who only corporate hospitals can afford? So, this was a Corporate Social Activity and that was what excited me. I wanted the focus of its medical education on research. I wanted to create a post-graduate centre of excellence at this medical college because Gujarat medical colleges were not doing much research. That was what I was able to create there. It’s comparable to AIIMS in Delhi. That is the reason I took up that project.

How did you join IMI, Delhi?

Pics: Sumit Sawhney

mayogi

Dr Bakul Dholakia interacting with the students

and running. Both admitted their first batches in 2009. By the time, I moved out in 2014, both were well established. The first batch of students of the Adani Medical College had completed their course, and the post graduate program had also started. Now, it was a question of maintenance only. So, I handed over the baton.

How was your experience creating a medical college at Bhuj?

Here was a civil hospital run by the Government

of Gujarat. It was not running well. When the earthquake hit Bhuj in 2001, the civil hospital got destroyed. Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the PM and he went to Kutch and promised that not only would this be rebuilt from the PM’s relief fund but a medical college would also be created in the same campus. Nine years passed, nothing happened, so the Adani group took up the responsibility. The idea was to take over the civil hospital and run it. There are many examples of corporate hospitals in this country,

Around the time I left the Adanis, the Goenka group was looking for a new leader for IMI. They have three IMIs, one each in Delhi, Bhubaneswar and Kolkata. They were looking for someone to manage Delhi and also oversee the other two. I decided to accept their offer and for the first time moved out of Gujarat.

Late RP Goenka, founder of the RPG Group, created this institute in 1981 with a vision of shaping global leaders of tomorrow. Now his son, Sanjeev Goenka is managing it. He wanted me to turn the IMI around. Upgrading it to a global brand was the challenge at IIM-A. Here the challenge was to turn it around, both financially and operationally.

Tell us a bit about your experience at IMI.

This is a different experience. IMI Bhubaneswar and Kolkata are new institutes, just coming up, but IMI Delhi has been in existence for 30 years. However, the financial position is not so good because my predecessor went for capacity expansion of executive education, and therefore created a lot of infrastructure. The Society did not have money, so he borrowed heavily from a bank. A huge loan then needed to be serviced but the markets went down, because there was recession. So, executive education also went down. Managing finances, repositioning this

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 27

‘There are different aspects of leadership, they all require different ways of leading. Here, (at IMI) it was about changing the culture; introducing systems and processes; changing the vision; upgrading the profile of the institute and giving it financial stability’

institute, and making its position felt globally are issues I have been brought in to deal with.

Is the IIM-A experience helping you?

In many respects, the activity profile of IMI is similar to that of IIM-Ahmedabad. It also runs an MBA program, a one year executive program, PhD programs, does consulting – so it has a classic business school profile. But the question was about refocusing each of these. For instance, the executive education programs and MDPs were largely sponsored; the banking and finance program was not doing well; we didn’t have too many partnerships; existing partnerships were not active. So it was a turnaround case – introducing and managing change.

How is this challenge different from the rest?

There are different aspects of leadership, they all require different ways of leading. Here, it was about changing the culture; introducing systems and processes; changing the vision; upgrading the profile of the institute and giving it financial stability. This was the first time I was managing an institution which had a huge debt.

What other challenges did you face at IMI?

The institute had no formal budgeting system.

Most people running programs did so without preparing any sort of budget. It’s unbelievable, but that’s how it was. So, I introduced an approval process that required people to apply their mind to allocating resources to different activities. They had introduced a twoyear MBA in banking and insurance. But that decision was taken in a random manner – there was no project report, no feasibility study. No wonder, it was not doing well. Faculty was recruited without a formal recruitment process. There were a whole lot of systems and process related issues too.

What changes have you introduced at IMI Delhi?

I restructured the banking program, MBA in Banking and Finance. The one year program was another area of concern. Public enterprises sent their participants who took one-year leave, studied, and went back. I am restructuring this program too. We now have self-sponsored candidates. Of course we have to take the responsibility of placing them, but it gives vibrancy to the program. Then we can insist on performance. I interact with students regularly to understand their problems and I also involve the corporate sector in a large way. I have introduced MDPs that are private sector oriented. The PhD program was not producing quality. It was sponsored and part-time. I have now converted it into a full-time, residential PhD program.

Managing liquidity and funds is another important issue. Business Development remains an issue with most private enterprises. So, I have introduced cost efficiency measures that improve the operating efficiency of the institute. From the same revenue you get better income.

28 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

What about placements?

The problem with placements at IMI was that there was no connect between executive education and research the institute was doing, and placements. In a standard business school like the IIM-A, all of our PGPEX is done for the private sector. That enables us to showcase our abilities to senior executives of the private sector and it comes back to you in the form of recruitment. We do a lot of consultancy for the private sector, which helps with better case material in the class room, experiential learning for faculty, upgrades the quality of teaching and gives you better placements. So, between research, consultancy, executive training, and a two-year MBA program, there is a direct connect.

But here at IMI, there is a total disconnect. All the activities are public sector oriented. Consulting is for the public sector, so is training. The public sector, however, does not come to private business schools for recruitment. They have their own systems and do not offer good packages. I’m trying to correct it.

What has been the response of the private sector towards this change?

I’ve been here for hardly nine months, and the green shoots are very positive. So, I’m hopeful.

What is your vision for IMI?

My vision is to make IMI the best private sector B-school in the country. So long as IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta are there, to become the best in the country is very difficult.

The ABC will always continue to occupy the top three slots for quite some time. But in the private sector space, we could be the leader.

That’s my purpose. I want to introduce dual degree programs and strengthen international linkages. We are going for the most high-profile international accreditation. We have applied for AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate

The class room activitiy at the institution

Schools of Business). It’s a long process but I’m confident it will happen. Then we will be one of the few AACSB accredited colleges in India. We already have accreditation by AMBA (Association of MBAs), but I want two international accreditations because it helps in branding, partnerships, attracting foreign students and has long-term impact.

What other things are you trying to correct at IMI?

I am trying to streamline the recruitment process. Staff members did not have KRAs (Key Responsibilty Areas), I have defined them.

The fundamental problem in higher education institutes is that the administrative support staff does not have the required skills. So I started inhouse training programs for my administrative employees. It made a lot of difference in their skill set. I made it compulsory for my staff to attend ongoing executive programs as participants.

Then I sent 20 officers on an overseas trip to show them how international institutions work.

I plan to apply many of these experiences here.

But managing change is a painful process.

In your previous stint at IIM-A, what are the things that you did to make IIM-A rank number one?

B-school surveys were not very fashionable till 1994-95. There was no rat race for rankings.

In fact, the country liberalised its economy in 1991 and it was only after that that placements came into fashion and aspiration levels started going up. The integration of the country with the global market place happened; international collaborations also started happening. Global branding was not something people would even think about in the ‘80s but by 2000, change was coming in. In 2000, Business Today conducted a perceptual survey of business schools and IIM-A was ranked number one. But in 2002, when they

repeated the survey, IIM Bangalore was ranked number one and IIM-A number two. There was another survey which also ranked IIM-A at number two. So, by 2002, the impression got created that IIM-Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta were almost on par. It was in that environment that I became the director. I said, “We must not only unequivocally establish ourselves as the best B-school in the country, but simultaneously emerge as a global B-school with international recognition.” As they say, it is the art of the possible. I studied the functioning of the best B-schools abroad and made a presentation to the board that these were the strategic initiatives that were required, and convinced them. I also did a SWOT analysis of the institute. In those days, it was not common for the directors of the institute to make formal presentations to the board. I started the practice of power point

But here at IMI, there is a total disconnect. All the activities are public sector oriented. Consulting is for the public sector, so is training. The public sector, however, does not come to private business schools for recruitment presentations. In 2002, Dr. Narayana Murthy of Infosys became the Chairman of IIM-A. It was under his chairmanship that I got appointed as its director. We worked together for four and a half years and made sure that IIM-A emerged on top and stayed ahead of the rest of the B-schools.

On main finding of your SWOT analysis..

I felt that autonomy was a real problem because there was too much government interference in our matters. My SWOT analysis mentioned it as a major threat. My diagnosis was that because IIM-A depends on the Government of India (GOI) for its funding, it was in a difficult situation. In those days, we used to get about ₹ 10 crores by way of annual recurring grants and around ₹ 2 crores for capital expenditure. I was of the view that the institute should manage its activities from its own internal resources and not depend on government funding. Let them use that money either for creating new IIMs or doing something else, but we should be self-sustaining.

Why were you so opposed to funding?

When I took over as director, the government

had given us grants to create a corpus of a little under ₹ 100 crores, and in those days the interest rates were very high. We used to get around 12 per cent interest for long-term deposits. That basically meant you earned about ₹ 10-12 crores interest and about ₹ 12 crores grants and the total budget of the institute was hardly ₹ 40 crores, which basically meant that 60% of our money came from grant and interest. So, I argued, we were more like a portfolio management company.

We were managing funds of ₹ 100 crores and our core activities were not contributing half of our revenue, only 30-40 percent. So, we needed to review it. At the very first board meeting after I took over as director, I proposed that we politely say no to government grants.

How did you convince the board members?

My strategy was that while it was okay to be subjected to power control, our annual reports were placed in the parliament, our budgets were approved by the board and seen by the ministry, and our accounts audited by CAG, but once the budget was approved by the board, individual items of the budget should not be subject to further approval by the ministry, which was what was happening. If I have to send my faculty members abroad for conferences or if I have to open a new centre, I can’t keep waiting for ministry approvals. If I need to get approvals from the GOI for every strategic action or plan, then I was not interested in the job. That’s what I told the selection committee. My vision was of not just administrative autonomy but financial autonomy as well. The key element in this strategy was to not take money from the government, so that the moral authority for government control disappeared completely.

What really happened when you rejected the government’s ₹ 10-crore offer?

Well, I was called for a discussion in Delhi. They asked, “How can you do this? We want to give you money. Take it.” I said, “No, you want to give me money but in turn, you want every item of my expenditure to be controlled and I’m not interested in that. I will not come to you, even for

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Construction marvel Navi Mumbai, a planned satellite township of Mumbai, was developed in 1972 and is the largest planned township of India. It was designed by famous urban planner, Charles Correa.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 29

Cradle of Leadership-10 Leadership capital expenditure. I’ll just manage everything myself. You come to the board meeting, give inputs in terms of discussions on the budget.

Once the budget is approved, and so long as I’m within the parameters of the budget, I’m free.”

They didn’t like it. There were heated discussions.

The ministry felt that our fee of ₹ 1,58,000 per year for our program was very high and therefore we were getting a lot of money in addition to the corpus fund of ₹ 100 crores. That was what created the problem. They issued circulars and executive orders reducing the fee from ₹ 1.58 lakhs to ₹ 30,000 per year and asked us to surrender ₹ 50 crores of the corpus. They also said that they would conduct CAT instead of the IIM-A conducting it. I said, nothing doing. They wanted to reschedule the CAT date, scheduled for 23rd November. They threatened that if I did not agree to their change of date, eventually they would take over the institute.

Anyway, I had already anticipated all this. I remember the first ever idea as soon as I took over as director was that we ought to have a meeting of IIM directors – let us share our common issues and concerns. I had created an informal forum of IIM directors. There were six IIMs when I took over as the director, but no such forum. There were ego issues because people did not get along. The first-ever meeting of IIM directors was held in Mumbai at Narsee Monjee Institute because a neutral venue was required! Thereafter, each IIM hosted, and we used to meet every quarter. That forum stood by me in good stead when the storm really came.

They passed this order of fee cut in February 2004 and four of the six IIMs fell in line. They accepted the dictat. However, Bangalore said we will do what Ahmedabad does, and I said, I’m not going to sign it. The famous threat from the ministry was: sign or resign! I said I’ll do neither.

You need to sack me if you have the guts. And then it became a raging battle. I perceived it as a battle for autonomy.

Besides autonomy what were the other issues of confrontation?

Certain sections in the Memorandum of Association were grey areas. For instance, fee determination was a grey area; foreignpartnerships were a grey area. However, salaries of faculty were fixed in black and white by the government. So, I could not pay market salaries.

Similarly, foreign campus was not a grey area.

I could not have a foreign campus. So, it was a question of interpreting the MoA and I always argued with my board that autonomy is not to be sought, it is to be taken within the purview of the written rules. Anything which is not clearly spelt out in the MoA is therefore my area of freedom. So, I entered into tie-ups with foreign institutes. I conducted activities abroad. The MoA was silent on consultancy, so I framed my

rules, liberalised it so much that it became my instrument for retention of faculty. When I took over the previous year, 15 faculty members had left IIM-Ahmedabad. People would take leave and then go on exodus. However, in my entire tenure of five years, I granted leave to ten faculty members and nine of them came back. It takes a lot of effort to recruit faculty, so you must retain them. I liberalised the terms and conditions of consultancy, so that the gross pay package of the faculty shot up. I gave liberal research grants and simplified rules for travel for overseas, and I led by example.

AACSB accreditation is in the process. It’s a twoyear process and we should have it by next year or so. AACSB-accredited schools are considered to be the best B-schools in the world because they have to pass rigorous standards of quality.

Accreditation is a third party quality certification and you require that. Self-accreditation is of no use. During my time at IIM-A, it was ranked number one in every survey. When I went to my faculty saying we needed international accreditation, they were up in arms. They said we were already the best. I said nobody can say that we will remain the best forever because you can

My vision is to make IMI the best private sector B-school in the country.

So long as IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta are there, to become the best in the country is very difficult Why did you not opt for a second term at IIM-A?

When my term ended, I was quite popular with the board, alumni, society members, faculty and students, and there was a lot of pressure on me to take a second term. I was only 60 and the retirement age was 65. So I had five more years to go and could have taken the second term. But at IIM-A, we always had a change of leadership every five years which I thought was very healthy.

I remember the HRD ministry secretary called me up to find out if I was still interested. But I said, no, thank you very much. The board also asked me, and I refused again.

Your take on foreign accreditation agencies..

Yes. IMI already has AMBA accreditation and

30 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

always go for improvement. If you want a global status, you must have global agencies recognising you. They agreed, and thus we went for EQUIS (European Quality Improvement System) and became the first B-school in India to have got it in 2008, just a few months after I left IIM-A.

Why is it that our B-schools do not attract the best international brains?

When I launched our one-year program I told my faculty I need international participation. My first batch had 30 percent foreign participants.

IIM-A became the first B-school in India that went and conducted interviews in London and New York. I had so many applications, but this cannot be done in a two-year program.

The reason is very simple – two-year program

‘The fundamental problem in higher education institutes is that the administrative support staff does not have the required skills’

admissions would get thousands of applications but I had enough quotas and I did not want to create one more.

The fees for IIMs has shot up to over ₹ 20 lakhs. How do you justify it?

There is no connect between the cost of education and these fees. It is not justifiable. It is a vicious circle. You require to pay faculty well in order to get good quality faculty. It is true that only good quality faculty can drive good quality education, but even with reasonable market-oriented pay packets for faculty, and other world-class infrastructure cost and all that, I still don’t think the cost of education per student per year is more than ₹ 6 lakhs or so per annum, including some surplus to invest in research and other things. Even the Supreme Court allows 15-20 percent surplus.

So if you assume ₹ 6-7 lakhs as the cost, then ₹ 8-9 lakhs per year is justified. In private institutions, the entire investment is borne by them, not so IIMs. Which IIM has purchased land? Nobody.

The basic infrastructure of all IIMs was created by government grant. So you have no capital cost. Hence, to that extent, the cost of education at IIMs should be less than the cost of education at comparable private B-schools. But people have gone overboard. Currently our fees at IMI are ₹ 14.5 lakhs for two years, a little more than ₹ 7 lakhs per annum, which is significantly below what IIMs are charging. Today, even newly set-up IIMs are charging more than ₹ 10 lakhs for two years. The entire capital expenditure of the newly set-up IIMs is given by the government, and they also get significant annual grant which covers faculty cost and everything concerning infrastructure. So, that’s what it is. Fees in the established IIMs around ₹ 20 lakhs plus is certainly pretty high.

Why is it that most IIM students go for big money only?

A view of the institution

admissions are through CAT. How will foreign participants write CAT? I wanted to make CAT go global that’s why I wanted it to go online and become an international brand like GMAT, but with the then set up of the government, it was a challenge. You need a different vision for doing that. For our one- year program, the selection instrument was GMAT. In fact, the gold medallist of my first such batch was a British national.

NRI-sponsored candidates are accepted in the two-year program. They give GMAT but what happens is that at IIM-A, the GMAT cut off has to be parallel to CAT. Now, in CAT, we take 99 percentile and 99 percentile GMAT will get admission anywhere in the world. So, why will he come to Ahmedabad? I kept on telling people, if I created a foreign quota, my MBA

Firstly, consciousness towards the society and the desire to give something back to society is not a matter of teaching and training. Just as ethics cannot be taught, so is culture. You imbibe your culture.

IIMs are postgraduate institutions. The average age of people who come there is 22-23. At this age, you can’t be taught values. Your values have already been moulded. Your approach to life has already been determined. So, these are things which have to be done at the level of the school which is where the personality really develops.

Secondly, the cultural position and ethical values of a child or an adult are, to a large extent, determined by the family and the environment he/she comes from.

Having said that, business schools should do what they can. This is where high fees become a problem because then it becomes a question of return on investment. If I have acquired education by paying ₹ 20 lakhs and to the ₹

20 lakhs I add ₹ 10 lakhs more because if I had not acquired the education, I would have been working, and that would have been my earnings, the cost of education at an established IIM comes to ₹ 30 lakhs. It is quite natural that he wants to recover these ₹ 30 lakhs as fast as possible. That is the reason why there is so much focus on packages. This is the crux of the matter. Now, there are two things business schools can do. One, create the consciousness to do something for the society and also inculcate the entrepreneurial spirit. That’s what I did when I was at IIM-A. I focused on entrepreneurship, created frameworks where the students could opt out from placements to pursue entrepreneurial dreams. I also encouraged students to at least take their summer internships at NGOs, so that they became responsive to societal problems.

We introduced courses that opened them up to the society. Like, for instance, one of the courses in the second year elective in my time was called ShodhYatra. Prof. Anil Gupta used to run this. He would take students to rural India and they would spend two to three weeks there.

It’ s like discovering true India. Similarly, we had a compulsory course on the Indian social and political environment where they would basically understand Indian society and culture. But that was all. You can’t force a man to be ethical. You can take a horse to a river but you can’t force it to drink.

Tell us a bit about your family?

Besides my wife, I’ve two daughters, highly educated and settled in Canada. I’ve a brother who is a distinguished professor at IIM-A. He has been there for the last 30 years. My wife has been teaching at a higher secondary school. She has also retired now. Right now, she is with my daughters. She stays partly with me and partly with my daughters. Both my daughters are working. My elder daughter is married and has two sons while the younger one is unmarried.

How would you like to be remembered?

I’d just like to be remembered for the difference I made at the institutions where I worked. mathurpradeep1@gmail.com

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‘Monumental’ protection Taj Mahal was covered with a huge scaffold during WW2 to make it look like a stockpile of bamboo and misguide any enemy bombers. It was also disguised again in 1971 Indo-Pak war!

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 31

Pics: G Pon Prabakaran

32 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Cover Story dynamic duo 13: Latha and K Pandiarajan

Love equals L

Ma Foi

atha and K Pandiarajan, founders of Ma Foi Management Consultants, India’s first and largest internationally acclaimed human resource management company, are based out of Chennai. Founded post the 1991 economic liberalisation, Ma Foi initially focused on placing middlelevel managers in the Middle East. It then started offering all the businesses under HR Services which made them the No.1 HR services provider in India. In 2002 they partnered with the Dutch HR Company, Vedior which took a majority stakes in them. This helped them to expand in various countries and they had 70 offices in India and had their presence in 18 countries. In 2007 Randstad acquired Vedior for US$5.14 billion and hence Ma Foi became a part of Randstad and Pandiarajan remained the Chairman till 2012.

An XLRI alumnus of the 1984 batch, Pandiarajan worked for various assignments in the Middle East and Singapore before he, along with his wife, Latha, started Ma Foi. In 2012, this dynamic couple launched a new venture focusing on management consulting and education - Ma Foi Strategic Consultants Pvt. Ltd., to help companies in the SME sector to scaleup.

In 2000, Pandiarajan joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, but later shifted to the DMDK Party founded by actor turned politician Vijayakanth. He contested the 2011 Tamil Nadu legislative assembly elections and won the Virudhunagar constituency seat.

Last month, the Rajans announced their second ‘avatar’ in the HR industry through a new entity, CIEL HR Services. The company, based in Bengaluru, will provide HR solutions leveraging technology and analytical strengths. CIEL is a French word meaning ‘sky’.

Indeed, the sky is the limit for the enterprising and energetic Rajans!

Corporate Citizen speaks to this dynamic couple who have been the most successful peoples’ people of the corporate world.

By Vinita Deshmukh

Latha and K Pandiarajan with Jayalalitha, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu at the latter’s office

What do you say of a couple who began an enterprise with a mere ₹ 60,000 which has metamorphosed it into an internationally acclaimed ₹ 1,000 crore human resources empire -- the first such in India -- and stayed together in utter harmony with each other?

Meet Latha and K Pandiarajan, pioneers in mammoth recruitments, founders of the famed ‘Ma Foi’.

Jab we met

Latha, a fresh Chartered Accountant, was an auditor for a subsidiary of British Oxygen Company (BOC), in Nagpur. K Pandiarajan, a fresh graduate from XLRI, worked for BOC in Kolkata but often visited the Nagpur office. They knew each other through a family friend and steadily developed a close friendship during Pandiarajan’s official visits to Nagpur. Love blossomed, leading to the nuptial knot in 1989.

It is not surprising that Pandiarajan fell hook, line and September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 33

Cover Story sinker for Latha, as her pleasant disposition, passion for music and charming smile wins anyone who meets her. If she terms Pandiarajan as a ‘workaholic’, he in turn refers to Latha as a person ‘with a deep passion and compassion’.

Both, despite coming from diverse religions and backgrounds, ensured they remained ‘made for each other.’ Their spacious home in Chennai has a pooja corner where pictures of Hindu Gods sit side by side with those of Jesus Christ. Christmas is celebrated with equal fervour as is Diwali, at their home. Says Latha, “I am very spiritual but not religious. I am a born Protestant but Catholic by practice, so I go to all the churches as well as temples. I have a lot of nuns and priests as friends. Our children are free to follow whichever religion appeals to them.’’

Pray, what is the secret of their successful marriage of over two decades? Latha quips with a twinkle in her eyes, “Ma Foi has kept our marriage going; may be it would have fallen apart otherwise.” Elaborating further she states, “The kind of pressure he used to work under, which entailed at least 20 days travel would have been hard for me to understand if I was an outsider. Being a part of Ma Foi I could understand the reason and necessity for his absence.’’

States Pandiarajan, “While there is a lot more gender balance in the corporate world today than when we launched Ma Foi, I find that a husband-wife combo, where both are 24x7 with each other is a rarity. It requires courage to have your spouse as your business partner. I think marriage partnership should be all about mutual inclusiveness and not mutual compartmentalisation.’’

Childhood ambitions

Latha terms her childhood as a ‘nomadic’ life, what with her father employed in the Railways. Says she, “I spent my childhood in Chennai, Kolkata and Nagpur, depending on my father’s postings. So, I studied CA for a career and wanted to work for a company - entrepreneurship never crossed my mind.” Immediately after her marriage, she worked for Billimoria in Kolkata. “My ambition was limited to being a successful chartered accountant,” she says.

In sharp contrast, Pandiarajan was born in a small village – Villampatti near Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu. Says he, “I was three months old when my father, who was a worker in a match box factory, died.

So, my mother returned to her maternal home and my grandfather became my source of inspiration. It is a village where entrepreneurship commands a high social status – even if you are earning ₹ one lakh as a professional, you are still not respected. My grandfather was a thorough entrepreneur – he started his career as a cook to a prominent doctor in Chennai, Dr. Santosham. When the doctor joined politics, he bid good bye to my grandfather, gifting him a handsome amount of ₹ 5000. He used this money to start a factory called Pandiarajan – after me -- and that’s how I had a tryst with entrepreneurship at an early age,” and adds cheekily, “without me contributing anything to it.”

The first big professional leap

While Pandiarajan secretly nurtured entrepreneurship ambitions, he got a golden opportunity for global exposure when he joined V Krishnamurthy, the doyen of BHEL and SAIL, after he quit his job in BOL, soon after marriage.

States Pandiarajan, “Krishnamurthy was running a number 34 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Ma Foi has kept our marriage going; may be it would have fallen apart otherwise - Latha Pandiarajan (cheekily)

There is a lot more gender balance in the corporate world today, but I find that a husbandwife combo, where both are 24x7 with each other is a rarity.

It requires courage to have your spouse as your business partner

of companies in the South. He was then chairman of BHEL and AK Nandi was the director. One of the companies was called IDEA which focused on engineering consulting. I was handling the HR of this group at that point of time. That gave me phenomenal breaks, as I moved around the world and got exposure to HR and marketing. Finally, I was posted in Singapore to penetrate that market. However, that was a time of political turmoil and turmoil within the company.

We decided to move out and create something on our own.

…And Ma Foi was born

The birth of Ma Foi was triggered off, quite literally, by the incident of a ravaging fire in the oilfields of Ravva in Andhra Pradesh in 1990. Elaborates Pandiarajan, “In those days there was a company called Techni-Skill from Australia, which used to depute people to India. The idea of deputation of people was very new. An HR company in those days like ABC Consultants for example, was celebrating its 25th anniversary but it was this Australian company that received more orders from Indian companies. A crew called the Fire Quenchers was called to arrest the flames at these oil fields.

Thirty-three people, 30 of who were of Indian origin were called from different parts of the world. I was aghast that, to get Indians to work on Indian soil, we needed an Australian company which charged us in Australian Dollars, while the leading Indian consultant company was side-lined. That set me thinking, and I decided to plunge into the placement business and make it big enough to be noticed.

Says Latha, “After marrying Pandiarajan, my mindset of staying a professional, steadily got weaned off and we had decided while we were still in Kolkata that someday we should start something on our own. But if we ever start something, it would be down South where we belonged.

Thus we moved to Chennai after the Singapore stint.”

The decision was made to set up a Human Resources Consultancy company, but what would it be called? Says Latha, with a twinkle in her eyes, “We wanted a global kind of name, so settled for Ma Foi which means ‘my word’ in French. Adds Pandiarajan, “Thanks to this tongue twister, people pronounce it in multiple ways. We were also called the mafias, jocularly.”

So how did they start this venture which was relatively

`members’ of Ma Foi while they were with us, and became our alumni, when they left.” Our people relationships and values were the foundation for our growth. Pandiarajan adds, “Even now the 2000+ guys who went out of Ma Foi stay connected. That interface being the symbol of Ma Foi, is our greatest strength.”

“The First Phase of eight years we co-created Ma Foi with pure entrepreneurship, raising funds from friends, relatives, clients, and employees. These were the four constituents we had raised funds from, and expanded the company from Chennai to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Baroda, Calcutta, Delhi, Pune, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Dahisar. These were our ten ‘mother centres’ through which we worked with multinationals. We generated 70 percent of the revenue from fortune 500 companies. For example Apple Computers, a $ 700 billion company came to India and we recruited the entire team for them. When Monsanto came, we did all the recruitment for them. And when the BPO boom happened, It takes a lot to please the constituency. Each one has a different expectation we were there, at the start. When HSBC wanted to do the back office, 2000 people were recruited by us. In a sense, we were the pioneers in new? “Multinationals like Apple, professional recruitment.

Monsanto and others were all coming “We also embarked on the deputation into India. There was the need for good business – staffing, as it came to be later and robust placement consultancy, now called. We had companies asking us to known as professional HR services. Our depute a set of teams – for Unilever for vision was that if you start with a base example, where 5000 people were deputed of ₹ five lakhs and achieved 100 percent across 400 locations. That’s the range of growth every year, in the 20th year you work we did and we kept on growing in had to be a ₹ 1000 crore-plus company.” scale, in scope and in depth. As for scale, Adds Latha, “We had taken money from as we had envisioned, we went up from ₹ friends, relatives, colleagues who helped five lakhs in the first year to a ₹ 1000 crore us with sums ranging from ₹ 5000 to ₹ 20 company in the 20th year. In our industry, lakhs and given them shares, with a clear With their daughter Sunila (R) & son Suhaas we were the first in the country to do ₹ commitment that we would give them 20 10 crore plus, first to do ₹ 100 crore plus per cent dividend every year. We worked and the first to do ₹ 1000 crore plus. Our primary business very hard but kept this commitment.” was permanent recruitment, the second was a variant of The Pandiarajans say they are grateful to all the people permanent recruitment called executive search, the third who showed trust in them by putting in money, as they was staffing, and the fourth was payroll processing (first in would never have got a head-start without them. For, he the country to do payroll processing), where we basically rues, being a human capital-centric company, banks refused took over a company’s payroll processing responsibilities. loans outright. Banks, he said, told him point-blank that Citibank was the first company in this country to outsource they were okay giving loans to buy 20 buffaloes since payroll processing to us, followed by Standard Chartered they would not run away, but what guarantee was there Bank and several others. Finally we sold that part of the that people would not run away? Adds Latha, “A Human business to ADP, a payroll processing company.

Resource company was a new concept, so banks hesitated.

After our success though, there used to be a line of bankers wanting to give us loans when we did not really want them.’’

Propped by VC wings “In the second phase, we were the first in the country to take venture capital to augment our business, when the term Five phases of Ma Foi growth was new. This was a sequel to our valuable experience and Ma Foi growth can be mapped in five phases, explains exposure in the USA through the Eisenhower fellowship, Pandiarajan and adds cheekily, “The initial years of hiring which we both received. For two months Latha researched was driven by our identity as a coffee company. Only two of into the venture capital industry, while I researched the HR us were around – Latha, a part-time worker as she was doing services industry. We were a group of 15 people from India, her auditing and used to come only in the evenings to work. including senior journalists and bureaucrats. It was a unique I used to be alone. At that time any candidate could walk in time for the 15 of us, spending two months together with our from 6 am and 10 pm and, over a small cup of coffee, meet families and researching the areas we wanted to. the managing director.” Another way of staffing adopted “After our return, we collectively took ₹ 8.5 crores was to visit MBA colleges and recruit freshers. Says Latha, from three people and offered them 26 percent interest “People used to wonder why we were employing such per annum. That gave us a big opportunity to grow. We inexperienced staff, but it is they who brought in freshness were the first in the country to get into dotcom by starting to the profession and became our brand ambassadors mafoi.com, a portal which had eight sites corresponding to when they left. We didn’t call them employees, they were

‘She always says we have three children– daughter, Sunila son, Suhaas and Ma Foi.’

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 35

Cover Story eight sub sectors of HR - segmented testing, compensation benefits, permanent recruitment and so on. We were ahead of our time, when the internet penetration was hardly one percent in India. After two years of our getting in, Naukri. com came. From March 2000 to March 2001, 15 such companies came in and took funding. Venture capital was on a high, but March 2001 onwards the dotcom got busted, and 13 of these 15 companies died month by month. Only two survived -- Ma Foi and Naukri.

“Our business got rewritten, several times. We went into career and skills training and created the Ma Foi academy. Training for employability was another vertical we created. We created HR consulting which involved a range of consulting services in HR. At that time we also got into HR research and were the first in the country to create a research group and came up with many psychometric test products. We also ventured into HR automation and created a separate IT company. This was the second phase, which I would call the Venture Capital growing phase. We created three international offices in Singapore, Dubai and London.

We believed that we should create an expertise corridor, wherever Indian expertise could go and come back. We created around 18 sub-centres around the world and that was the time we realised that we should link with international companies, so we found Vedior, a listed company based in the Netherlands. We became part of Vedior, which defined itself as a configuration of entrepreneurs. They had similar entrepreneurs like us around the world in 51 countries, of which it was a configuration. That was the big transition that happened in 2004.

Going global

“The third phase was the Vedior phase, the time we really went international. We created seven offices in the MiddleEast, five offices in South East Asia - Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong and China in Shanghai and also in the USA and UK. Wherever expertise would migrate to and migrate from, was the logic we went along with. Along the way Vedior got acquired by Randstad, again a Dutch multinational, but Randstad went by the fundamental belief of one company, one culture, and one brand. They re-defined Vedior as the least known Euro nine billion multinational.

Randstad already had two companies in India, which they had acquired prior to the acquisition of Vedior. The integration took almost a year and by 2010 December, we sold our shares to Randstad. I continue to be its chairman.

“The fourth phase began a year later. In January 2012 we created four businesses - Ma Foi Strategy, Ma Foi Education, Ma Foi Connecting Dots, and Ma Foi Analytics .

“Ma Foi Strategy is into strategic consultancy and advice, getting small companies grow larger, working with them to respond, working with them to figure out operation strategies.

“Ma Foi Connecting Dots does manufacturing and supply chain consultancy, where we work with companies like Tata, Mahindra, to streamline their vendor ecosystem. Another niche involvement of Connecting Dots is in aerospace, after the Indian government came out with the new Defence Offset policy. When we buy an aircraft or defence equipment from overseas, 30 to 50 percent of that value has to be procured from India. It is like the Make in India policy. Anybody who runs a component company 36 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Our primary business was permanent recruitment, the second was a variant of permanent recruitment called executive search, the third was staffing, and the fourth was payroll processing

would want to migrate into aerospace, and we help them with the migration and the business plan. We have also tied up with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, where we work in the ‘location excellence’ part of their business. Ma Foi Connecting Dots is located in Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Madurai and Coimbatore.

“Ma Foi Analytics has been largely focusing on sales and marketing analytics. We created a new office in Dallas, USA. In India we have presence in Chennai and Bengaluru.

“Ma Foi Education is our recent setup, into e-learning. We have also started management development programmes (MDP) closer to HR. Our plan is to create an institution.

It is an e-learning and MDP programme for corporates, which we conduct at companies, and at hotels when there are public programmes.

Social endeavours

“The fifth phase belongs to Varam Capital Pvt..Ltd which we have newly created. It is a new generation Micro Finance Institution (‘MFI’) with a vision to catalyse the economic empowerment of households that operate at and around the base of the pyramid and thus usher in a brighter future for these households. Varam is one of the 48 registered NBFC – MFI’s in India. We have also formed the Sornammal Education Trust (SET), which runs the Sornammal Education School in Chennai for the underprivileged. Over the past 10 years SET has promoted 3500 SHGs with 60,000 members, who have availed over ₹ 80 crores in credit with a current outstanding close to ₹ 35 crores. SET was awarded

by ICICI Bank for achieving the highest volume of credit under the ICICI NGO Partnership Model, with 100 percent recovery. Another of our NGOs is Ekam, which works in the health care sector – for this, we are working with the National Rural Health Mission in three states, including Maharashtra and Chattisgarh. The third is Ma Foi Foundation, where we have created the brand Disha, which mainly works for empowering under privileged children in education and sports. We have supported more than 4000 children of which

300 have already taken up jobs, 1500 are in colleges and the rest are in schools.

“We have also created a small network for NGOs called the Confederation of Indian Organisations for Service & Advocacy (CIOSA). That’s a network of about 250 NGOs in Tamil Nadu and a very powerful voice in the NGO sector.”

‘Sky’ is the latest venture

Last month, the Pandiarajans announced CIEL HR Services, to provide HR solutions leveraging technology and analytical strengths, based in Bengaluru. CIEL is again a French word, meaning ‘sky’. It comprises of two companies – CIEL HR Services for HR solutions and CIEL IT Solutions for IT requirement.

The Ma Foi legacy

By the time they left Ma Foi in 2012, as Pandiarajan proudly says, “We had generated careers for around 4 lakh people, in about 36 countries, mostly in large multinationals. Our own employees numbered 2000 people and at one point we were interacting with almost 72,000 people located physically over 450 locations in India and 14 other countries.”

The culture of Ma Foi was to serve as key role models to every member of the team. “We had the Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) scheme, allowing employees a stake in this company. The other aspect was the human interaction with over one crore people who trusted us, day after day. It is extremely important how you handle that trust. Ma Foi even today maintains the highest visible rank in HR services.”

And he won…

Latha observes, “His great networking skills, ability to grasp many things and put them together, and the passion with which he deals with peoples’ issues is admirable. I sometimes get irritated with him because it’s always work and work - he is a workaholic in that sense.”

Counters Pandiarajan, “She always says we have three children – our 24 year old daughter, Sunila, our 17 year old son, Suhaas and Ma Foi. Her key strength is the intense attachment she had for Ma Foi – she became the anchor of the Ma Foi culture. Her ability to understand, accept and forgive is very strong. I am a bit of a detached person and my excitement lies in the scope and scale of the business.”

Adds Latha, “The larger perspective and the larger goals are quite similar. My daughter just finished her postgraduation from King’s College in London after pursuing visual arts at graduation. My son in the 12th grade and wants to pursue aeronautical engineering.

He contested the 2011 Tamil Nadu legislative assembly elections from the Virudhunagar constituency, and won.

Says Pandiarajan, “I was not deterred by losing elections in 2001. I started working for my constituency, focusing on basic amenities like water for households and schools. With the firecracker industry dominating the area, accidents were common, so I focussed on the rehabilitation of victims and safety aspects of this cottage industry. I spent two days a week here and appointed people to oversee the work. My hard work paid off ten years later.”

How does Latha see him as a politician? “It is an extension of our social work, though it takes a lot to manage the constituency. Each one has a different expectation and sometimes you feel you have done so much and yet so little. However, I have campaigned vigorously for him and enjoyed every bit of it.”

Narrating an incident, Latha states, “Campaigning for elections was a great learning experience for me. I remember, once we went to a very small village, where all the women worked in the match factory. While we were talking to them about higher studies for their children, one woman got up and suggested that we should visit her house and look at the sanitation level and water shortage first. I saw that there was a huge disconnect -- what they really needed in life and what we were promising.”

“At times,” says Pandiarajan, “your qualification becomes an obstacle in politics. So holding together the corporate world, the social sector and the political world has not been that easy.’’

What is it that made him join politics?

Challenges for working women

It takes two to tango

Her ability to understand, accept and forgive is very strong.

I am a bit detached; my excitement lies in the scale of business

people should get into mainstream politics. So we actually joined the BJP on our return -- because that was the time of Vajpayee. I was a National Council Member and was heading the IT cell, for Tamil Nadu. It was an interesting time but in Tamil Nadu there was not much movement for the party. He then moved to DMDK , a party lead by actor Vijayakanth and contested the Parliament Election in 2009 and lost the election.

“Politics is a very important and a powerful tool for change. But dealing with the internal dynamics of a party is difficult for a person like me who is used to the organised system of the corporate world. One small intervention can a make huge difference, but along with it comes the dynamics of party politics. Ultimately, 80 to 90 percent funds and decisions for proposals and projects go through the political process, so you can do a lot, but the constraint is party politics.”

“I used to believe that unless the political processes got straightened out, India will never realise its potential. During my student days, I was politically active and remember writing letters to George Fernandes. Also, we have been in the social sector for a very long time. We started a charitable trust right from the time we started the company and at one point we almost touched 80,000 families in some way or the other. However, we realised that there were many things we couldn’t do unless you are in power, in politics, and thus my ambition to get into politics. The dream got reinforced when we went to the US in 2000, under the Eisenhower Fellowship and met stalwarts like Amartya Sen who believed that good

Latha agrees being a working woman is a challenge: “It is challenging, but possible. The support system of the family and people around you can make it easier for women. Ultimately what you want out of life is very important, and that you have to answer yourself. In a sense, entrepreneurship gives flexibility as you can manage your timing as per your priorities and convenience. What you create, the growth of your business and people around you gives a deep sense of satisfaction. So that has been really good for me as a woman entrepreneur and could work well for others too.” vinita.deshmukh@corporatecitizen.in September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 37

cii Case Study-6

Home to Hearth: A Case for Woman Entrepreneurship by

Dr. Shalini Khandelwal, Associate Dean (Research) Faculty Member at IBS-Gurgaon and Prof. Jean Saldanha, Adjunct Professor at ICFAI Business School, Gurgaon

CII Western Region EdgeFarm-HR Case Study Writing Competition

Finalist

Author: Dr. Shalini Khandelwal

Dr. Shalini Khandelwal is currently Associate Dean (Research) and Faculty Member at IBS-Gurgaon. She is the Managing Editor of IBS Gurgaon quarterly newsletter ‘Samvaad’. She is also the Area Coordinator of HRM & OB Area at IBS Gurgaon. She has 18 years of experience including industry, research and academics. Her area of specialiszation is Organizational Behavior and Strategic Human Resource Management. She was awarded doctoral degree from Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore in 2003. She is Gold Medalist in MBA [Prestige Institute of Management and Research (DAVV), Indore] and College Topper in B.Sc. (Microbiology) from Holkar Science College, Indore. She is the editor of a derivative book on Knowledge Management. She has presented research papers at many National/ International Conferences and published 16 research papers and 4 cases. She has conducted Management Development Programs for senior managers of Rajasthan Financial Corporation, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, Moser Baer and Food Corporation of India. She has conducted Faculty Development Programs for the faculty members of reputed colleges of Jaipur, Agra and Lucknow. She was awarded silver medal in ‘Best Case Writing Competition’ at the AIMS (Association of Indian Management Schools) National Convention in 2004. She was awarded silver medal in ‘Best Research Paper Competition’ at the AIMS National Convention in 2005. She received ‘Faculty Award for Excellence in Summer Internship Program 2011’ at IBS Gurgaon. She is the recipient of “IBSAF Award 2014 for Faculty for Overall Excellence” at IBS Gurgaon.

38 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Author: Prof. Jean Saldanha

Prof. Jean Saldanha has 22 years experience in human relations, industrial relations, leadership training, business school pedagogy, manpower planning, counselling and marketing. Currently a freelance trainer, HR consultant, and Adjunct Professor for Organisational Behaviour, Human Resource Management at IBS Business School, Gurgaon, she also teaches Industrial Relations and Leadership and Change Management. She has taught Managerial Effectiveness and Corporate Governance.

Jean has worked with Tata Share Registry, Britannia Industries, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation in various roles, largely in the Marketing and Personnel and Industrial Relations functions. She worked with HCL Technologies as Associate General Manager, in learning and development and was the country manager for their flagship programme on development of first-time managers.

She headed the Women’s Council, Gurgaon. She worked as a consultant with American Express where she provided L&D consultancy , as also for EXL services. Jean is an ATD Master Trainer, holds a Certificate in Change Management from ATD, USA, (formerly ASTD), PF 16 certification and is a Certified Recruitment Analyst. She holds a diploma in Personnel Management and Industrial Relations, from Xavier Institute, Mumbai and a Master’s in HRM. Jean has presented a paper Global HRM entitled “Managing Across Cultures”. She has taught at a Government school in Gurgaon as a part of HCL Technology’s CSR initiative.

cii Case Study-6 “Though I grew up in Delhi, holiday time meant visits to Chennai, my mother’s home town and the magical aroma of filter coffee combined with the fun of visiting uncles, aunts and cousins”.

Nandita Kaushik, Founder, Home to Hearth (Jan 2015)

Introduction In November 2014, Ms. Nandita Kaushik presented her case at a corporate meet at the IBS Business School in Gurgaon, India to an audience of entrepreneurs and academics. Her strong entrepreneurial zeal was evident from her presentation and the courage of being a woman entrepreneur in a competitive area occupied by high sounding business competitors like Starbucks, Café Coffee Day, Costa and Barista was noticeable.

Born to a North Indian father, hailing from Uttar Pradesh and a Tamilian mother in 1969 at Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu, Nandita grew up in the capital city of India, Delhi, staying in university allotted housing. She grew up in a cosmopolitan environment. Her friends were children of other professors and academicians, hailing from different parts of India. She imbibed the essence of diversity of India as she grew up and embraced both the North Indian culture of her father and the South Indian culture of her Tamilian mother.

As with most offspring of inter community marriages in India, the opportunity to celebrate the festivals of both cultures was a highlight of her childhood. One of the lasting impressions of visiting her mother’s home town, Chennai, the capital of the southern state of Tamil Nadu, was the aroma of south Indian filter coffee, the brewing of which was a quintessential part of the morning rituals in the homes of her grandmother and uncles.

Nandita carried this splendid feeling of sipping at an aromatic cup of south Indian filter coffee through her growing and early adult years. Many a guest at her parents’ home in Delhi was treated to this specially brewed coffee. As she grew into adulthood, Nandita felt that she should share this splendid treat with the people of North India, who are largely tea drinkers or, in more recent times, drinkers of coffee at the upmarket coffee shops that have mushroomed across the capital, like Barista, Café Coffee Day and Costa Coffee. She wanted to introduce the distinctly different filter coffee which can be drunk hot or even as cold coffee.

Nandita went through the rigour of a sound education. She studied at Modern School, Vasant Vihar, Delhi and then went on graduate at Hindu College, Delhi University in Economics (Honours). She then completed a post graduate degree in Business Economics from Delhi University. She found an excellent job at IMRB, a market research, survey and business consultancy firm, as a brand and social issues researcher and did well. She also worked with organisations like TNS and Nielsen.

After eighteen years, when she allowed her career to take a back seat to enable her to spend time with her growing children, Nandita knew that the time was right to pursue her passion. Her entrepreneurial dreams could not be suppressed beyond a point and in 2011; she decided to take the plunge into her promoting her dream: to spread the good word and good cheer about the delicious drink that was so much a part of her childhood.

According to Kadakol and Appasaba , a woman entrepreneur also wants to oversee and control every aspects of her business for its overall success (2012). This typically describes Nandita Kaushik’s approach to the setting up of Home to Hearth. She single mindedly began her pursuit with minimal dependence on others.

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

THE RESEARCH BEGINS

Nandita decided that she would introduce the joy of drinking a hot cup of south Indian filter coffee to the tea drinkers of the Delhi region, where she lives, also known as NCR i.e. National Capital Region. She realised that the taste would be new to many and that enormous effort would be needed to win over people to the habit of drinking coffee.

However, the NCR area does have a fair number of south Indian residents who do regularly drink this type of coffee, so she realised that there was already a network of retailers which was supplying filter coffee powder in the NCR region. During her survey, she found that many

south Indians carry back their own preferred blends of coffee powder whenever they visit their hometowns in south India.

Her research began online on sites such as Ali Baba and India Mart, to understand the distribution chain, the types of coffee beans marketed in India and the suppliers to the stores in the NCR region. She had a very clear idea of the taste of the coffee that she wanted to market but as she researched she found that there was a range of types of coffee, viz.

Arabica and Robusta, along with some which had chicory 2. Chicory is priced far lower than coffee and helps keep the price of the product down when blended with coffee powder.3 September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 39

cii Case Study-6 Exhibit 1

History of Coffee Planting in India Coffee is said to have first been planted in India by the saint Baba Budan in Karnataka, as a part of planting “Seven Seeds” around 1600 A.D. However, this cultivation spread slowly in small gardens. It was during British rule, that a lot of effort was put to cutting into jungles and planting the seedlings on a large scale that led to the rise of coffee plantations as we see them today and commercial planting. http://www.indiacoffee.org/ ; Jan 2015 1 A. M. Kadakol and L. V. Appasaba (July – Sept, 2012), Women entrepreneurship in India, International Journal of Organizational Behaviour & Management Perspectives, Volume 1, Number 1.

2 Chicory: The root of the chicory plant is sliced, kiln dried, ground and roasted and added to coffee powder for body, aroma, colour and mellowness. http://www.pmkchicory.com/what_is_ chicory.html, Jan 2015 3 http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-10-17/ news/30289851_1_coffee-companies-coffee-powder-blend, accessed Jan 2015 4 http://www.statista.com/statistics/277137/world-coffeeproduction-by-leading-countries, Jan 2015 5 http://www.crnindia.com/commodity/coffee.html

Coffee is grown extensively in south India (see Exhibit 2) and exported around the world. Brazil is the world’s largest producer of coffee. Other leading coffee producing nations are Vietnam, Indonesia, Columbia, and Ethiopia.4 It is said that the coffee plant originally grew naturally in some parts of Ethiopia and a shepherd observed that when his sheep ate the berries of the plant, it became hyperactive.

Coffee berries are plucked off the bush and pulped to remove the soft flesh. They are then fermented in water for 10 to 36 hours and then washed and sun dried. Thereafter they are roasted at high temperatures.5 Coffee beans are sold commercially and these are bought by users and roasted and ground before use. Many vendors have roasting facilities and grind the beans before selling them to customers who prefer the powder in order to save time. However, freshly roasted and ground beans are usually a preferred option by connoisseurs of south Indian filter coffee as the flavour and aroma is fresh.

THE FIRST STEP: SOURCING

Nandita found a vendor of coffee beans in Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka, which is the headquarters of the Coffee Board,1 run under the auspices of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of Karnataka. The vendor, a private player, agreed to send samples of ground coffee powder. The coffee made from the samples that he sent did not trigger the kind of memory of coffee that Nandita had in mind to promote.

She then specified to him, the blend that she found to be the right 40 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

balance in taste and aroma, which he was quite prepared to supply.

She received consignments sent by road transport and began to sell the coffee powder on a small scale. The supplier very soon began compromising on quality and while initially, he had agreed to 100% payment after delivery, he soon wanted a 50% advance and then a 100% advance. She found that the quality of the coffee powder was also deteriorating. Nandita realised it was time to move on.

So she researched further and found shops selling filter coffee in the Khanna Market area of Delhi. She researched the blends and specifications of the coffee powder being supplied there. A period of intense self study began. Nandita read books, visited coffee shops, small restaurants which had filter coffee listed on their menus and shops in various neighbourhoods that sold filter coffee powder. She found that the south Indian population of Delhi that regularly bought filter coffee powder went to specific neighbourhood stores which had a fixed set of brands and by and large, most families had preferred brands.

TURNING POINT IN SOURCING

It was during this phase of determination to find the right sources and suppliers, in 2013, that Nandita chanced upon an exhibition being held in Connaught Place,2 Delhi by the Coffee Board. The exhibition proved to be a huge source of learning for her in terms of the supply chain and the processes of growing, roasting and grinding.

She chanced upon a lady, Sumitra (name changed) at the exhibition with whom she struck up a conversation. The conversation continued over a cup of coffee, given the ambience of the meeting!

Sumitra held a Diploma in Coffee Making from the Coffee Board and owned her own coffee estate in the Chikamagalur 3 area of Karnataka. Sumitra worked with a large supplier of coffee and was at the exhibition, looking for orders. She was already in the business of procuring beans, roasting and packaging them. A natural partnership emerged; Nandita shared her specific requirements, such as the degree to which roasting was to be done, the temperature of the roasting and the mix of Arabica and Robusta and Sumitra worked to match the requirement.

Nandita takes pride in the fact that, the specification she indicates to Sumitra is entirely based on her instincts. She was elated when, at a Coffee Board event, a qualified coffee taster had identical judgement on the specification that she had indicated, though she has no formal qualifications in the field at all. Whenever she has doubts about the future of her business, she reminds herself about her instinct and her passion for this venture and gains optimism from this.

1 The Coffee Board, is a government body that promotes the export of coffee from India, regulates the industry and does research in the field of coffee production, www.indiacoffee.org, accessed Jan 2015 2 Connaught Place, Delhi: a central part of Delhi, known for its shopping ; it captures the essence of Delhi 3 Chikmagalur, at an elevation of 3400 ft., is located in the foothills of the Mullayanagiri range in Karnataka. It is about 65 km from the temple towns of Belur and Halebid

cii Case Study-6 Exhibit 2

Growing of Coffee beans in India In India, coffee is grown in the Western Ghat areas of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Now, some coffee is also being grown in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and parts of North East India. Coffee plants grow well in shade and a canopy is provided above the plants for best results.

Arabica coffee, which is mild but high on aroma but mild and Robusta which is strong and good for making blends are both grown in India.

More than 6 lakh people are directly employed in this sector and around the same number gain indirect employment. Indian coffee has made its mark in the international market and in the year 2013 – 2014, India exported 298151 Metric Tonnes of coffee to countries all over the world ranging from Myanmar, Liberia, Israel and Croatia. The largest importer was Italy. http://www.indiacoffee.org/Indian%20Coffee/countrywise_ exports4.8.pdf Jan 2015

THE PRODUCT

There are three products that Home to Hearth has been promoting.

One of them is roasted coffee beans, which customers could buy and would then need to grind to make filter coffee powder. Customers can also buy readymade filter coffee powder in sealed airtight packs of 250 grams and 500 grams each. The 250 gm packet retails for Rs. 150/- and the 500 gm. packet retails for Rs. 280/-. The shelf life of this coffee powder is around six to eight months.

These are standard offerings that are available at several outlets, with varying qualities, grades and specifications. They are transported to Delhi through road transport.

The third and most unique offering that Home and Hearth brought to the market is readymade filter coffee decoction that has already been through the filtration process through a steam filter (see Exhibit 3).

This makes the coffee ready to drink in minutes. Filter coffee is never drunk black; some milk must be heated and then, depending on the strength desired, the coffee decoction is added. According to Nandita, filter coffee is easy on the stomach and does not cause acidity.

As the process of making the filter coffee decoction from the powder takes time, this readymade decoction is every busy person’s dream, particularly in a busy metropolis like the NCR, which has a large number of working women for whom time has a high value. The decoction is bottled in a 250ml pet bottle and can yield approximately 12 to 14 cups of coffee depending on the strength desired. At the selling price of Rs. 120/- per bottle, the cost per cup would be around Rs. 8 for the coffee decoction.

Laboratory tests have shown that there is no bacterial build up in the decoction even after 7 days. However, to be on the safe side, Nandita decided to declare the shelf life as 5 days. Even so, retailers have shown resistance to the product because of its short shelf life.

However, there are small clients who have a regular order for the readymade decoction and this is supplied to them at their premises.

Nandita has brought from Chennai, an elaborate electric steaming

apparatus that produces a very high quality of decoction as it passes steam through the coffee powder and this captures the aroma to the maximum. She uses this to produce the decoction that she supplies her regular customers.

Exhibit 3

The process of making filter coffee There are various types of filters that are used all over the world for deriving the decoction that makes a cup of filter coffee.

Essentially, hot water or steam need to pass through the ground powder in order to obtain the decoction. In many homes, there is a stainless steel filter that has an upper jar, a provision in the centre for placing powder, a disc to press the coffee powder down and a lower jar to collect the drip. Boiling hot water is put into the upper part of the filter which then drips through the coffee powder into the lower jar. http://shanthisthaligai.blogspot.in/2013/12/filter-coffee-southindian-filter.html, Jan 2015

Exhibit 4:

The coffee filter used by Nandita to produce the decoction that she supplies

MARKETING VENTURE THROUGH KIOSKS

Between 2012 and 2014, Nandita ran a kiosk at the Carrefour store in Seelampur, in East Delhi. The rental was high and the footfall was low.

She persisted but finally wound up the kiosk sale in 2014, as Carrefour also left India. Her key learning was that you cannot sell filter coffee September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 41

cii Case Study-6 to everyone. Tea is the common man’s drink and he will not graduate to a new taste for a higher price. Through this venture, she realised that filter coffee would need to be marketed to a middle and upper class clientele. Marketing efforts continued at prominent buildings in Gurgaon put up by reputed builders such as DLF and Bestech but the rentals proved unaffordable. In one attempt, Nandita was allocated space in a prominent high rise Business area with a large office crowd and one that was quite likely to appreciate the product but it turned out that space had already been allotted in the food court to another south Indian brand. There was bound to be a clash of interest as the other brand would be serving snacks as well as beverages which would include south Indian filter coffee, which is a standard offering in south Indian cafes.

INROADS INTO THE MARKET

However, all efforts did not go in vain. Nandita was able to find some small clients as well as one frozen yoghurt chain that also sell coffee. This client has remained loyal for the past two and a half years and sources a fairly large quantity of coffee beans from Home to Hearth. After receiving the beans, the chain grinds the beans and sells the coffee that they make. Some small clients regularly place orders for coffee powder and it is home delivered to them.

The experience with the small stores in residential areas did not prove so heartening though. Nandita found that these stores, while willing to stock the product on a trial basis, were not willing to make the slightest effort to promote it. As a result, if the product did not move off the shelves fast enough, they would ask for it to be taken back. By and large, she found that they preferred large distributors.

Exhibit 5:

The packaging for Kaappi coffee powder and decoction syrup

CHALLENGING MARKET PLACE

While an entrepreneur has a passion and a dream, the environment around may be more challenging than one can imagine.

Despite having complete clarity of thought regarding her offering and going through laborious days of sourcing, Nandita has found that the challenges in marketing are very stiff. She has found that small stores, while they may have a reasonably high selling potential, do little to specifically market the product. If it sells on its own, they are comfortable with that but if it does not move, they ask for it to be taken back and then are not keen to store it. They are not keen to store the coffee decoction because of limited shelf life.

If small stores are a challenge, then bigger supermarkets may seem to be an option. However, here Nandita has realised that shelf space is valuable real estate, in a part of India that is already known for its high property prices. Some large stores have stocked the product but because of lack of prominent display and promotion, orders for around ten to fifteen kilograms a month have dropped to five in recent times. Some supermarkets were reluctant to stock a new brand but in one case, Nandita made a bold entry into the office of the CEO of the chain and projected the fact that Home to Hearth was a start up that needed support and hence the product was accepted.

Some supermarkets have an elaborate and lengthy document that needs to be filled to be enlisted as a vendor. Attachments to be provided to this document include certifications of the product which are difficult for Home to Hearth to provide at this juncture.

Nandita’s surmise is that most supermarkets prefer the safety of working with big brands. Nandita states that another challenge for the small start up entrepreneur in this format is the high margin that typically is demanded that goes as high as 30%.

E COMMERCE

E-Commerce has proved to be a blessing in disguise for start ups. Around mid January 2015, Home to Hearth was registered as a vendor with Snapdeal1, one of India’s large e-commerce sites. While Snapdeal does not provide high visibility, reach is assured and this is now a bright light on the horizon for Home to Hearth. Online portals providing home delivery of groceries and fresh vegetables exist in the NCR, catering to a busy, working population with not much spare time for shopping for daily needs. Nandita has engaged with one of them but could not supply them as the payment terms did not suit her. In due course, this particular home delivery website closed down.

In terms of pricing, Home to Hearth is priced around 20 to 50% lower than other brands for coffee powder of a similar blend.

Nandita states that most of the competitors sell instant coffee powder which is spray dried and loses some of its flavour in the process.

CHALLENGES

At this juncture, one of the biggest challenges is funding for marketing the product. Kaappi got some publicity when a prominent newspaper, the Indian Express carried an article entitled, “Call of Kaappi” in April 2013, highlighting the uniqueness of the offering and the initiative of the entrepreneur. http://www.snapdeal.com, Jan 2015

1

42 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

cii Case Study-6 The Government has several schemes for entrepreneurs and particularly for women entrepreneurs but Nandita found these are not user friendly and more importantly, most of them are not tailor made for a one man show. Nandita states that many of these schemes require a disclosure about the employment being generated through the venture, which does not suit this venture at this juncture. She states that she falls under the category of micro SME, but has not been able to make much progress with the government support that is available.1 Hence, she finds it difficult to take this forward.

Exhibit 6:

FUTURE PLANS

Indian Express, 26th April, 2013

T alk

22

IN THE

FRIDAY l APRIL 26 l 2013

TheIndian EXPRESS

NEWS

www.indianexpress.com

Shaping with Water Two dancers travel to a village in Manipur to fuse a pot-making culture with a spontaneous dance. The result is an aesthetically shot documentation of the journey and an installation of the pots that were made in the process Along with filmmaker friend, Chaoba Taiyan, they stayed with a family of potters for three days, sharing stories and their lives and creating a new dance form that they would later show in Delhi. The pot-making process includes grinding, grain-refining, shaping with water, drying and carrying the shapely pot to the forest to mould with ashes and polish with tree leaves. This process takes a whole day.

“The reason these black pots are so famous is because they are not painted. The stone used to grind and mould into the pot gives it colour.

You won’t find such craft anywhere else in the country,” says Surjit. He reveals every detail of their three-

SWETHA RAMAKRISHNAN

M

AYUKA Ueno Gayer and Surjit Nongmeikapam met in Delhi in 2009, while participating in Gati Dance Forum’s three-month dance residency programme. Gayer, who is a ballet dancer from Japan, and Surjit, a choreographer from Manipur, shared a common passion — dance. “We were both interested in Manipuri traditions. After thorough research, we found out about the black pot-making culture that originates in Longpi, Manipur,” says Surjit. They decided to visit the village in March this year, with the hope of styling a dance piece inspired by the handmade pot-making culture.

Compared to machineproduced expressos, filter coffee has a full-bodied flavour

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Internet booking: www.libertycinema.in Phone booking No. 39895050

Call of

Kaappi SHANTANU DAVID NANDITA Kaushik is a lady on a mission. The self-professed coffee fanatic dreams of a world that learns the joys of filter coffee, preferring its leisurely-brewed full flavours to the machine-produced instant espresso.

“If you crush coffee beans and then dump them into an instant coffee machine, the top

notes, which is the actual flavour and aroma, quickly disippate, leaving behind only the bottom notes of bitterness.

But filter coffee has an incredible full-bodied taste as the coffee is ground and then drips down the percolator, a process which takes 15-20 minutes, retaining the actual flavour of the beans”, says Kaushik. Tired of the faintly-coffee flavoured slush sold at coffee shops,

Kaushik started Home to Hearth, a Gurgaon-based venture, which currently supplies coffee in the form of liquid concentrates (filter coffee decoctions, the eponymous kaappi), powders and beans which are custom-roasted according to Kaushik’s exacting specifications.While most national grocery chains refused to stock Kaushik’s products, the local ones were welcoming.

Marketed by word-ofmouth, Kaushik is catering to the coffee cravings of a small, though rapidly growing, loyal clientele in the NCR. “Given prices these days, it’s more economical for me to hire runners than rent a retail space,” she says. Her ultimate goal is to firmly entrench the filter coffee culture in north India through a chain of “Kaappi on the Go” kiosks across cities, which will dispense kaappi concentrates to coffee cultists.

Contact www.kaappi.co

A Good Delusion A little-known Parisian band debuts in India, garnering a positive response

Isaac Delusion at a concert PALLAVI PUNDIR WHEN Isaac Delusion made their debut appearance at the Capital’s Alliance Francaise on Wednesday, this little-known Parisian band was preceded by mysterious posters depicting an elephant emerging out of a dark, effervescent background. When they took to the stage, we heard sounds vaguely familiar, technopop, yet mixed with hip hop loops, funk bass, folksy tunes and psychedelic lights. They say their music is “made of dreamy ballads, vague landscapes, and indefinable vastness.” Some even drew similarities to popular British band, Coldplay. With lit-

tle or no knowledge of who they were, the packed auditorium, nevertheless, gave them a thundering applause and requested for encores.

So when we caught up with Isaac Delusion, we knew this young (aged 24-27) band of four — Jules Pacotte, Nicolas Bourrigan, Loic Fleury and Bastien Dodard — are up to something good. Listen to Midnight Sun and you could feel the dreamy vocals of Pacotte in sync with techno beats, singing of their visit to Iceland where they saw the sun coming out at midnight.

Barely a year old, the band was brought together by Pacotte and Fleury who have known each

other since high school. It’s surprising how mature their music already sounds. “That’s probably because even though the band was formed recently, we were already making music and we knew what kind of music we want,” says Pacotte.

Isaac Delusion (the meaning must remain a mystery, insists Pacotte) rose with a number of influences — Fleury’s indie and progressive rock and folk favourites and Pacotte’s take on world music. They have released two EPs, Midnight Sun and Early Morning, and are working on their third one, to be released in 2014. They will be performing in Kolkata and Mysore as well.

day visit to the village. “Pot-making is a part of these villagers’ everyday life. All the movements connected to the pots were so inspiring, and so we moved our bodies at the same pace that the grinding, melting and mixing was happening,” says Surjit. The end result, as documented by Taiyan, is an aesthetically shot 10-minute video of the melding between a traditional culture and a spontaneous dance form.

Back in Delhi, Surjit and Mayuka brought the black pots from Longpi and used it for an installation at the Japan Foundation. As we walk into the space used for the installation, the first thing we noticed were pots hanging from the ceiling in no particular order. It was aided by mood-lighting that transported us into a different realm, as we understood that conceptually, the black pot symbolises many things. We had questions, and as we turned to the walls, the video that Taiyan shot was being projected on loop to answer them for us. “For us, the darkness of Longpi pottery also evokes the societal issues that have been plaguing the Northeast region for decades now, such as drugs, alcoholism and cultural and political violence. Our dance form is similar to

The dance performance inspired by the black pottery making process; (below) part of the installation their pot-making culture because as we synchronise, we are also malleable and irreversible,” says Surjit.

Gayer and Surjit performed a snippet of their newly created dance piece at the opening day of the installation on April 13. They fused contemporary dance with silhouettes.

“We used shadows as our main theme, because even though the idea was to show the similarly between the black pot and our dance, we wanted to perform something that wasn’t already captured in the film,” says Surjit. While Gayer has returned to Japan, Surjit is overwhelmed with the entire experience. “Mayuka is also an Odissi dancer, and I have been workshop-hopping through various cities in India for many years to learn about new dance forms. This entire idea originated from our passion to create new things, and not restrict dance to simplistic body movements,” he says.

The installation is on display at the Japan Foundation, Lajpat Nagar till May 4. Contact: 26442971

The Usual Suspects Playing society is more work than fun these days SOME sayPage3isdead. That it isnolongerconsidered cool to haveyourpictures splashed in thesocietysupplements. Others sneerthat attending parties and being fetedforithasalways been afrivolous pursuit ofvacuous folk. It is common knowledge that nowadays one can pay one’s way to the glossy pages, and that a slew of wannabe somebodies fork out vast sums for their fifteen minutes of fame. While many deride such social climbers, there is no dearth of people who still aspire to see their mugs in the papers. Here then is a ready reckoner of the various specimens who can be found stalking Page 3.

that social activists aregrabbing, these bleeding hearts havebecome socialite activists. Butinstead ofstaging downmarket dharnas andwasting waxatcandlelight vigils, thecause celebs prefer toremain inclimate-controlled surroundings andpay their publicists toplant stories expressing solidarity withissues that range inimportance from AnnaHazare toAnna Kournikova.

young director cattily observed, to the opening of an envelope.

CSI (CHEATING SPOUSES INC.)

Samar of

Discontent

PGC (PROFESSIONAL GATE CRASHERS)

Not just wannabes, who often try sneaking into parties, a few members of the beau monde also feel it is their birthright to attend high-profile events without bothering with the niceties of F3 (FULLY FALTOO an invite. ConFILMI) SeveralBollyvinced that they are wood actors find welcome everythemselves at a where they habituloose end after disally saunter in and covering they have FAHAD air-kiss the hostess, lost their on-screen SAMAR who immediately lets it be known that lustre. Craving attention, they land up at every these are pesky guests. eventtheyareinvitedto,even,asa

RSVP (REALITY SHOW VETERANS AND PROFESSIONALS) This gag-

gle of unabashed C-listers earns their livelihood by acting outrageously in front of the media.

They slap each other at parties, threaten to strip publically if India wins a cricket match and shamelessly debase themselves to receive offers to appear on reality shows. As the nation mocks their theatrics, these performing monkeys go laughing all the way to the bank, earning a fat fee for their exhibitionism.

SPCA (SOCIALITES PROMOTING

CAUSES ALWAYS) Somemembers oftheglitterati have become notorious forchampioning every cause andcharity imaginable. Inspired bythemedia attention

Husbands and wives that cheat on one another are a source of great entertainment to the hoi polloi. Adulterous spouses sometimes arrive at the same event as a cuckolded partner or an ex, leading to red faces and hasty exits.

B3A (BADEY BAAP KI BIGDI AULAAD) The metropolises of

India are peppered with the impudent progeny of wealthy parents. Society pages abound with spoilt brats who shovel coke with a silver spoon and behave obnoxiously. But by tacit agreement, stories of their shenanigans rarely become public knowledge.

Page 3 isn’t dead. It has simply sold its soul. samarofdiscontent@gmail.com

http://msme.gov.in/Web/Portal/New-Default.aspx, Jan 2015

1

Vipin Gupta (2008), An inquiry into the characteristics of entrepreneurship in India, Journal of International Business Research, Volume 7, Special Issue 1, 2008 2

In terms of pricing, Home to Hearth is priced around 20 to 50% lower than other brands for coffee powder of a similar blend. Nandita states that most of the competitors sell instant coffee powder which is spray dried and loses some of its flavour in the process

Nandita hopes to have her own roasting and grinding facility. She has identified a high quality German brand of roaster which will cost her Rs. 8 to 9 lakhs. The grinder will cost her around Rs. 1 lakh. By using her own roasting and grinding facilities, Nandita would be able to increase her margins and enhance profitability.

Theoretically, entrepreneurship rests on three core factors sequences or personal traits. 1) Risk taking propensity (e.g. Cantillon, 1755); 2) achievement motivation (e.g. McClelland, 1961), and 3) human capital (e.g. Romer, 1991), according to Vipin Gupta (2008).2 McClelland identified “need for achievement” as a key to entrepreneurship. The drive and enthusiasm of the founder of Home to Hearth continues unabated as she is driven to achieve her dream.

While the drive to make its presence felt in the market is still on, Nandita, in true entrepreneurial spirit is letting her plans evolve further. She dreams of promoting her product through small kiosks which will sell filter coffee in different formats. “Kaappi on the Go” will be a quick and hot cuppa for a person in a hurry made from the ready decoction. “Kaappi Shots” will be 60 ml of filter coffee in small cups and “Kaappi and Cookie” will be served on a small rectangular plate: two cookies and a cup of filter coffee. “Kaappi Mild”, will be a lighter version for those who do not have a taste for the stronger version and “Kaappi Sledgehammer” will be cold coffee, which turns out very well with the decoction and froths easily.

The challenge of high rentals for kiosks, which she states is in the region of Rs. 50000 per month in some of the prominent Malls in the NCR, is one that Nandita hopes to address in the near future.

She is confident that once the kiosks take off, she will be able to introduce the delicious taste of south Indian filter coffee to the cities of the NCR.

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

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 43

india development update Survey

Indian Economy’s Progress Report Inspires Confidence After a decisive election victory in May 2014, the government has set ambitious development goals, seeking to transform India into a “prosperous” nation. The time has come to look back and analyse the real time effects of the wheels set in motion by the new government. Corporate Citizen presents an indepth survey by the World Bank Group, one of the world’s most respected fiscal management research agency, which tracked India’s development update for the first half of 2015. By Neeraj Varty

44 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

T

he India Development Update has two main aims. First, it reports on the key developments over the past six months in India’s economy, and places these in a longer term and global context. Based on these developments and on policy changes over the period, it updates the outlook for India’s economy and social welfare and second, it provides a more in-depth examination of selected economic and policy issues, and analysis of medium-term development challenges. It is intended for a wide audience, including policymakers, business leaders, financial market participants, and the community of analysts and professionals engaged in India’s evolving economy.

The following are the key findings of the survey: The economy seems to have turned the corner, and the economic outlook has improved significantly The economy has been on an upturn in the last three quarters--growth has accelerated, inflation has declined, current account deficit has narrowed, and external buffers have been replenished. GDP growth (at market prices) is projected to accelerate to 7.2 per cent in 2014-15, compared to 6.9 per cent in the previous year. On the production side, growth is driven by the services sector, which continues to outperform manufacturing; and on the expenditure side, it is driven by public and private consumption, with modest contributions from investment and exports. Underpinned by the global trends, inflation declined to 4.6 per cent during the second half of 2014-15 from an average of 7.3 per cent in the first half of the year. The decline in inflation and fiscal restraint generated some room for monetary accommodation, making it possible for the RBI to lower the policy rates twice in the last quarter of 2014-15.

While the decline in the price of oil helped contain the oil import bill; moderation in the price of gold and restrictions on gold imports helped restrain the import of gold.

Global growth is expected to pick-up modestly this year, but less than previously anticipated. Several countries and regions with strong trade, diaspora and investment links with India continue to face a soft growth patch, dampening the Towards a higher growth path India Development Update external outlook. Countries that figure most prominently among large destinations for Indian exports as well as its diaspora, such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the broader 8. also Global Developments set of GCC, but China and Europe, face subdued growth prospects.

20

Global growth remains soft despite lower oil prices

While the sharply lower Figure 28: Global Growth Remains Soft oil price is reflected in a World GDP growth - qoq saar significant pick-up in 4 World GDP growth - yoy retail sales and falling inflation across major oil Growth in the fourth quarter of 2014 is 3 importing economies, estimated at 2.7 per cent,global down from 3.5 remains per growth cent in the third quarter;soft a similar(Figure or slightly28), 2 softer momentum is expected in the first reflecting divergent trends quarter of 2015. The modest globalbetween growth oil 1 importers oil outlook is further marred by divergentand and In persistent outlooks across countriesexporters and regions.

0 headwinds in a particular some of the economies bearingnumber of large economies. significant trade and financial links Growth in with the fourth India have registered slow growth. Countries quarter of 2014, Source: World Bank, Haver Analytics that figure most prominently among India’s annualized quarter-onquarter, is estimated percent, down percent in the third quarter; a hasfrom seen3.5 a surge of optimism export destinations include the UAE, Saudi at 2.7 government is expected in the growth, first quarter of 2015. and moderate economic which is Arabia, the broader set ofsimilar GCC;orasslightly well assofter momentum 2014Q4

2014Q3

2014Q2

2014Q1

2013Q4

2013Q3

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2013Q1

%

Global Developments

encouraging. It will be interesting to evaluate China, US and Europe. In inflows of foreign Growth lacks The modest global growth outlook is further marred by divergent outlooks across India’s economic development in the 2015-16 direct investment, the countries that dominate momentum among countries and regions. In particular some of the economies bearing significant trade period, see if theslow growth is sustainable (after Mauritius and Singapore) include the India’s major trading and financial links with India have to registered growth.

Countriesafter that figure initial euphoria of the new government US, UK, Japan and the larger in the partners and origin most countries prominently among the India’s export destinations include the UAE, Saudi has worn off. as China, US and Europe. In inflows of Euro Zone. All in all, theArabia, first year the newset of GCC; theofbroader as well of FDI

foreign direct investment, the countries that dominate (after Mauritius and Singapore) include the US, UK, Japan and the larger countries Citizen in the Euro Zone.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate / 45 Growth outcomes in these countries remained subdued in Q4, 2014 (Figure 29).

india development update Survey

Towards a higher growth path

GDP Growth Accelerated in 2014-15, with the Service Sector Towards a higher growth path making the largest cxontribution

After increasing Private sector achieves impressively in the stagnancy Figure 2: Private and Public Consumption contributed prima Contribution from Investment and Exports Remained Subdued mid-2000s, Savings and (percent contributions, yoy) India Development Update Investment Ratios have declined, and rebound Figure 1: GDP Growth Accelerated in 2014-15, with the Service Sector making the largest Contribution is not yet in sight (percent change, yoy) Final Consumption Expenditure: Private

10

Final Consumption Expenditure: Government

8

Q2 2014-15

Q1 2014-15

Q4 2013-14

Q3 2013-14

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3

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15

5

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0

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Q4 2012-13

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% of GDP

4

Q2 2012-13 1995 Q3 2012-13 1997 Q4 2012-13 1999 Q1 2013-14 2001 Q2 2013-14 2003 Q3 2013-14 2005 Q4 2013-14 2007 Q1 2014-15 2009 Q2 2014-15 2011 Q3 2014-15 2013

5

Q1 2012-13 1993

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% of GDP percent Change - Year to Year

7

Private and Public Investment

2 30 0 25 -2 20

Public Sector Private sector Gross Capital Formation 408 7 356 T o w a r d s a5 h i g h e r g r o w t h p a t h India Development Update 4 30 3 15 2 Figure 2:25Private and Public Consumption contributed10 primarily to GDP Growth in 2014-15, while 1 Source: Central Statistical Office, India Contribution0 from Investment and Exports Remained Subdued 20-1 5

Q3 2014-15

8

4

Services

Q2 2012-13

GDP Growth

9

Q1 2012-13

percent Change - Year to Year

6

Contribution to GDP Growth Saving and Investment Rate Agriculture andDomestic allied Industry Gross Savings

2. Private Sector Investment

Gross Fixed Capital Formation 2013

2011

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2007

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Agriculture Gross and allied Industry Domestic Savings

Services

Public Sector Private sector and 2.7 percent in the year before.

30 The manufacturing sector (with a weight of 18Figure 3: After Increasing Impressively in the mid-2000s, Savings 2 percent in GDP) grew at a steady 5.4 percent in the first three quarters of the fiscalRebound is not yet in Sight (data for fiscal years) year. The trend of revival was25 also reflected in high frequency indicators of 0 Saving and Investment Rate industrial production—the Index20of Industrial Production, grew by 2.6 percent yoy Gross Domestic Savings during Apr-Dec 2014, -2from stagnant output in the previous year. While utilities 30 Gross Capital Formation 15 Apr-Dec, 2014, construction growth slowed in 40 grew at a robust 9.6 percent during 25 the third quarter of 2014-15.

35 10

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% of GDP

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% of GDP

Q3 2012-13

Agriculture output growth continued to 15 decelerate in 2014-15

0

Gross Capital Formation

Q2 2012-13

40 7 6 35 5 4 30 3 2 25 1 0 -1 20

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of GDP - Year to Year percent%Change

during 2014-15 8

Q3 2014-15

Q2 2014-15

Investment’s Private investment in particular remained of Goods contribution to GDP Exports growth, as welland asServices to its own past perfo 8 growth was modest attributed to a combination of factors, as , with the Service Sector making the largest Contribution Source: Central Statistical Office, India Source: Central Statistical Office, India in 2014-15 “weak corporate balance sheets, an impa 6 deficiencies of the public private partners GDP Growth Industrial Contribution to Industrial output, which accounts for nearly one-third of GDP, accelerated by 5.3 Saving and Investment Rate Private and Public Investment hold back private investment going forwa production revived percent during the first 4three quarters of 2014-15, compared to 4.6 percent last year, Final Consumption Expenditure: Government

20

25

1991

2009

2007

2005

2003

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% of GDP

of industrial production—the Index of

% of GDP

1991

% of GDP

2013

2011

2009

2007

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2001

1999

1997

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1993

1991

2013

Q3 2014-15 2011

Q2 2014-15 2009

Q1 2014-15 2007

2005 Q4 2013-14

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1991 Q1 2012-13 1993 Q2 2012-13 1995 Q3 2012-13 1997 Q4 2012-13

5 Agriculture output growth continued to decelerate (growth turned negative in the 30 15 third quarter, yoy) Source: due toCentral deficient rainfall.

Growth Statistical Office, India in agricultural output 0 25 decelerated during the first three quarters 2014-15 to 1.4 percent from 3.4 percentPrivate sector has a high rate of stalling, 10 2. Private Sectorseason.

Investment last year, due to below-normal rainfall during the monsoon Total food-grainwith about 16 per cent of its projects under 20 5 production during the kharif (summer) season – which accounts for more than one-implementation currently held up. While a Source: Central Statistical Office, India Investment’s Private in particular subdued, compared to the other drivers of0 third of total agricultural output was 3 percent below the investment level in previous year. The remained 15 of projects held up in the growth is GDPfor growth toGDP, 7.4 is per cent decline in the rate of investment which accounts nearlyaccelerated one-third of accelerated by 5.3 toThe contribution to GDP growth, ashas to cropped its ownislarge past number performance.

The are weak investment decline largely attributed deficient rainfall (53 percentasofwell the gross infrastructure sector, particularly electricity,Survey, during of the2014-15, first three quarters of 2014-15, extended to all major sectors of the economyfirst three quarters compared to 4.6 percent last year, growth was modest attributed a pulses. combination of factors, as discussed aptly in theinEconomic rain-fed) which affected the production of rice, coarse cerealstoand the year before.

The manufacturing sector (with a weight of 2014-15 18 -agriculture, manufacturing, are also held up in other sectors, compared to 7 per cent in the previous year.in construction, “weak corporate balance sheets,projects an impaired banking system, difficulty of exit, the Source: Central Statistical Office, India rew at a steady percent in theaccounted firstPrivate three quarters of half the fiscal expenditure On 5.4 the expenditure final consumption (which accounts forasclose toas60 percent ofincluding manufacturing.

Theinmain reasons The services sector for nearly other non-industrial sectors, well deficiencies of the public private partnership (PPP) model infrastructure—could f revival was also reflected in high frequency indicators of grew at average 6.5 percent yoy during the first twoSlowdown in discussedto inbe thepoor Economic Survey, t side, consumption total demand for output) for stalled projects are As considered of the total GDP,Production, continuing to be the largest services. For example, construction holdinback private investment going forward”. on—the Index of Industrial grew by 2.6 percent yoy investment is evident extended to all major sectors of th growth, at 6.2 quarters of 2014-15, but decelerated tothe 3.5rate percent in theformation third quarter (Figure 2).market conditions, lack of promoter interest contributor to economic growth.

Industrial activities, of capital 014, from stagnant in the previous year. While utilities construction, other non-industrial secto all sectors of percent output in the first This deceleration was in-turn countered by aImpressively 32 percent inspike in publicacross Figure 3: After Increasing mid-2000s, Savings andtoInvestment Ratios have declined, and and inability acquireconstruction timely regulatory output, which accounts for nearlygrowth one-third declined from 6.5 per cent in 2011-12the toconsumption 6 percent during 2014, construction slowed inin the activities, the rate of capita the economy three Apr-Dec, quarters of consumption expenditure third quarter.

In 2014-15 government Rebound isper notcent yet in in 2013-14; Sight (data for fiscalin years) 2014-15. of projects; GDP, accelerated during the translating to anformationclearances for private sector 2011-12 to 5.5 percent in 2013-14; transla waspercent a major contributor to5.5growth.

Simultaneously, fixed capital 2014-15, was most by 5.3 Saving and Investment Rate and Public of 11.5 percent projects seem to Investment be heldinup2012-13; due and a further first three quarters of 2014-15, compared investment cent lostgovernment Private (investment), aftertogrowingannual rapidlydecline in thein first quarterofat11.5 7.7per percent, robust growth continued to decelerate (growth negative in the Domestic Savings Public Sector Private sector momentum in in thethe next two in quarters, growing at an average 2.2ofpercent. issues related to land acquisition, lack of 4.6 per cent last year, and 2.7turned per cent 2012-13; andGross a further decline 4.4 per Exportsto A p r30 il 2015 ) due to deficient rainfall. Growth in agricultural output negative in the second Formation growth has been(with worryingly and third quarters of 2014-15,funds 40 cent in 2013-14.Gross Capital and lack of timely regulatory clearances. year before.

The manufacturing sector the first three quarters 2014-15 to 1.4 percent from 3.4 percent theGDP) growth in three at abudget low 0.5proposed percent. Low exports growth was 25 The government has set up a Project weightduring of 18the permonsoon cent in a quarters averaging The railway to step up its ow-normalarainfall season.grew Totalatfood-grain on account of the decline35in petroleum exports, and stagnant exports of gems and he kharif (summer) season – which accounts for more than oneMonitoring Group (PMG) to track stalled steady 5.4 per cent in thejewelry, first three quarters capital expenditure and improve operational which together account for one third of the export basket; but also due to 20 ltural output percent level in previous The efficiency. It also lays out an ambitious plan for projects and to remove their implementation of was the 3fiscal year.below The the trend revival wasyear. slowofexports growth of other 30 products. tributed to deficient rainfall (53 percent of the gross cropped is 15 bottlenecks.

Project involving investments also reflected in high frequency indicators expansion in the next five years (Rs 8.5 cted the production of rice, coarse cereals and pulses.

of Rs 10 billion or more, or any project in 10

trillion or close to 6 per cent of GDP)

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Industrial by 2.6topercent has mption expenditure accountsgrew for close 60 percent of for expansion. For the current year A p r i l 2 0 1 (which 5 Production, T H Eit W O R L D B A N Ksectors such as infrastructure, manufacturing, 20 proposed a 50 per cent increase in plan 5 etc. can be referred to the Group 2power, output) grew average 6.5 percent during the first two yoyatduring Apr-Dec 2014,yoy from stagnant 5, but decelerated in year. the third quarter (Figure 2). expenditure, over the previous year, from 650 for resolution.

The PMG has already been output to in 3.5 thepercent previous While utilities 0 15 was in-turn by9.6a per 32 cent percent spike in public successful in resolving more than 200 of the grewcountered at a robust during Apr-Dec, to Rs 1 trillion in 2015-16; to be financed by a nditure in the third quarter. In 2014-15 government consumption projects referred to it, worth nearly 30 per cent construction growth fixed slowed in theformation third larger budgetary support and its own savings. tributor to 2014, growth.

Simultaneously, capital of the value of all projects. growing quarter rapidly of in 2014-15. the first quarter at 7.7 percent,Source: lost Central Statistical Office, India next two quarters, growing at an average 2.2 percent. Exports orryingly negative in the second and third quarters of 2014-15, 46 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015 in As discussed in the Economic Survey, the decline in the rate of investment has Slowdown quarters averaging at a low 0.5 percent. Low exports growth was investment is evident extended to all major sectors of the economy--agriculture, manufacturing, decline in petroleum exports, and stagnant exports of gems and

in 2014-15– falling in the WPI and CPI series; as well as separately in core inflation and in food and Average CPI After averaging at 7.3 percent the first half ofwith 2014-15, inflation declined from an average of 10 fuel inflation—the twoincomponents a cumulative weightsharply exceeding 50 percent inflation declined by to 4 percent in the third quarter before stabilizing at 5.2 percent, yoy, in the last percent in 2013-14 in the CPI index 7). inToinflation the extent that based it is reflected in aboth moderation of rural 4 percentage points to quarter of 2014-15.

The (Figure moderation was broad and reflected wages, as well as in a decline in inflationary expectations, the current decline in 6inpercent in 2014-15 2014-15– falling in the WPI and CPI series; as well as separately in core inflation and in food and GDP to 7.4 per cent with during the first quarters of 2014-to the seems anchored.

Among different components that contributed from angrowth average of accelerated 10 fuelinflation inflation—the twowell components a cumulative weightthree exceeding 50 percent percent in 2013-14 to toin7the CPIcent index To extent prominent that it isThe reflected inthe a moderation of rural decline in (Figure inflation, thethemost was sharp decline in the food and 15, compared per in the7).previous year. services sector accounted wages, as well ascategory, in a decline in inflationary expectations, the current decline in 6 percent in 2014-15 beverages followed bytothe miscellaneous category (consisting for nearly half ofinflation the total GDP, continuing be the largest contributor to of health, seems well anchored. Among different components that contributed to the education, recreation and other services, and household goods) (Figure 8). economic growth.

Industrial which accounts nearly of decline in inflation,output, the most prominent was the sharpfor decline in the one-third food and

GDP, acceleratedbeverages by 5.3category, per cent during same period followed by the the miscellaneous category (consisting of health,

Figure 7: Moderation in Inflation (yoy) was based, and seen in CPI, goods) WPI; Food, education, recreation andbroad other services, household (Figure and 8). Fuel Inflation (percent change yoy) Inflation showed a considerable decline Figure 7: Moderation in Inflation (yoy) was broad based, seen in CPI, WPI; Food, and Fuel Inflation CPI: Food Inflation (percent change yoy)CPI Inflation WPI Inflation 14 16 CPI: Food Inflation

14

CPI: Fuel Inflation

India Development Update

Mar-15

Jan-15

Nov-14

0.2

Update

Sep-14

Jul-14

0.2

Jan-14 Sep-14

Mar-14

0.5 0.3

Sep-13 Pan, Tobacco & May-14 Pan, Tobacco & Intoxicants Intoxicants Nov-13

Source: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, India.

Jan-14 Jul-13

Jul-13

0.5

Fuel & Light Nov-13 Fuel & Light May-13

0.6

-4 Source: 0 Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, India.

Mar-13 Sep-13

Mar-15

1.1 0.7

Clothing & Mar-13 Clothing & Footwear May-13 Footwear

Jan-15

Nov-14 Mar-15 Housing Housing

Nov-14

1.5

Sep-14 Jan-15

Jul-14

Jul-14

May-14

Miscellaneous Sep-14 Miscellaneous

Food & Beverages Food & Beverages Jan-14 Mar-14

May-14 Mar-14

Nov-13

Nov-13 Jan-14

Sep-13

Sep-13

2

Headline CPI Jul-13 Jul-13 Headline CPI

-4

May-13 May-13

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14 12 India Development 12 10T o w a r d s a h i g h e r g r o w t h p a t h 10 8: Decline in Food and Beverages Inflation, primarily 12 Figure Contributed to the decline in Inflation 10 in 8 2014-15 10 8 Figure 8: Decline Food and Beverages primarily2014-15) Contributed 8 to the decline in Inflation (yoy CPI Inflation inin April-January of 2013-14Inflation, and April-January 8 6 in62014-15 9.8 6 (yoy 10CPI Inflation in April-January of 2013-14 and April-January FY14 6 2014-15) FY15 44 9.86.7 8 4 4 FY14 FY15 5.3 22 610 2 2 8 6.7 3.6 0 5.3 0 46 0 1.9 1.5 0 1.1 0.7 -2 2 3.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.2 0.2 -2 0 4 1.9

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CPI Inflation

a higher growth path

Nov-14 Mar-14

T14 owards 12

CPI: Fuel Inflation

adhering to its fiscal stance; and the recent education, recreation and other services, and After averaging at 7.3 per cent in the first half move to the flexible inflation framework household goods) of 2014-15, inflation declined sharply to 4 anchoring inflationary expectations. Some The favourable outlook is based on per cent in the third quarter before stabilising Source: Ministry of Statistics Programme Implementation, upside risks to food prices may arise in the expectationsIndia. that global oil and food prices at 5.2 per cent, yoy, in the lastand quarter of event of adverse weather or unanticipated would remain low -- international agricultural 2014-15. Among different components that Source: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, thethedecline in inflation in 3.4 India is consistent decline in inthe Both domestic increases the Minimum Support Price prices, which India. fell per cent in 2014, are with thelarge contributed to the and decline inWhile inflation, international prices expected of oil, food, and by other commodities, policy factors global factors was the sharp of food grains, and because full impact of to decline another 5 per cent in domestic most prominent decline in the While 9the decline in10)inflation in restraint India is on consistent with the Both and (Figure excessdecline rains recent 2015, while oil prices are expected to remain food anddomestic beverages followed byand the Figure such as food procurement pricesin in (thethemonths may not have contributed to category, international pricesrelatively of minimum oil, low; food, otherprices commodities, policy factors global factors been felt. theand government broadly miscellaneous category of health, government mandated support of Rabi domestic (winter) and Kharif moderating inflation(consisting

(Figure 9crops and increased Figure 10)such as restraint on food public procurement prices (the (summer) marginally in 2014-15); releasing food grain stocks incontributed the past fewto ICRA “Indianmandated Banking Sector”, February 2015, indicates that banksand would need about minimum support prices of the Rabi (winter) Kharif moderating inflation in8government the market; restrained monetary policy; and a stable orineligible slight appreciation in months half the PSBs’ totalincreased requirement during FY2015-FY2019 of INR 2.6public trillionfood in equity around 40 (summer) crops marginally inprices 2014-15); of releasing grainand stocks the past few Aincomparison of the minimum support exchange rate contributed as well (Figure 11). percent of the INR 1.4 trillion in Additional Tier I capital to meet their growth objectives and to in the with market; policy; and a stable or slight appreciation in months comply Basel restrained III norms. monetary Khariff and Rabi crops impacting inflation rate contributed as well (Figure 11). Tier Figure 9: Several Domestic 9exchange and Global Factors Contributed to Moderating Inflation in India be that 8 World Bank “Indian estimates Banking indicate that US$36 billion I capital would needed the nextbanks five would need about ICRA Sector”, February 2015, indicates theover ineligible (percent change yoy) yearshalf to sustain capital adequacy of PSBs. the PSBs’ total requirement during FY2015-FY2019 of INR 2.6 trillion in equity and around 40 Figure 9: Several Domestic andWheat Global Factors Contributed to Moderating Inflation inPaddy:Common India Minimum Support Prices Support Prices percent of the INR 1.4 Minimum trillion in Additional Tier Paddy:Grade I capitalT to objectives and to A p r i l 2Rabi/Winter 5 HAEmeet W O Rtheir L D Bgrowth ANK Crobs Kharif Crops (percent0 1change yoy) Barley Jowar:Maldandi 9 comply with Basel III norms.

Paddy:Common Bajra Minimum Support Prices Minimum Support Prices Wheat Paddy:Grade 25 9Gram World Bank estimates60indicateKharif that Crops US$36 billion Maize Tier I capitalAwould be needed over the next five Rabi/Winter Crobs Barley Jowar:Maldandi Ragi Masur/Lentil years to sustain capital adequacy of PSBs. Bajra Arhar/Tur Gram and Mustard Rapeseed Masur/Lentil Safflower

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neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 47

Love Ke Baad Shaadi Bhi-4

Space, the Spice of Life

e t colleg ays tha edlock. d e s e th w into a t often tory It is no ce fructifies nlocks the s to n u a in n e m d z o e i r t it bility rate C ulmina Corpo e that has c eve in the sta it. v n li of lo for we be mily u ge, and fa marria relationship you real life of a e bring to got sealed t W ces tha roman marriage. in

The Banerjees are one corporate couple who believe a marriage becomes stronger when both partners are given equal space to breathe and to grow

T

By Kalyani Sardesai

hey had been dating each other long before they took admission for their MBA in HR. From the time of their engineering college days in Nagpur, to be precise.

Even so, it took Deep and Shweta Banerjee’s classmates quite some time to believe they were indeed a pair. “That’s because we were just not the types to hang out together 24 x7,” grins Shweta. “Being a couple is great; but that does not mean you don’t pursue other hobbies and projects.” Deep nods in agreement.

Perhaps the complete absence of insecurity stems from long years of friendship, when Deep, a native of Kolkata took admission in the same engineering college as Shweta’s in Nagpur.

“Though my family is originally from Orissa, I was born and brought up in Nagpur. Of course, for Deep the city was new.”

Just good friends initially, Deep found himself ‘in sync and totally comfortable’ with this ‘mature girl’ with whom he could converse at length. Even so, proposing to her took him quite a bit of nerve.

“He told me about his feelings sometime in the third year of engineering. I had taken him out for my birthday treat, when he started confiding in me about this wonderful girl who he really liked,” shares Shweta. Intrigued, she asked him to tell her more. But all he would say was that she was a good friend and he was worried about her taking his confession in 48 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Shweta and Deep Banerjee with their son, Ankan

a negative manner. “I gave him lots of good advice on how to take up the matter further, which he immediately applied to me,” she laughs.

She did not take him seriously at first, but about a year later accepted his proposal.

“Initially, it had come as a complete surprise, this proposal from him. I was not even thinking romance. He was just a good friend. But the idea grew on me,” she says. By this time, engineering was over and done with; both took up jobs in different cities before finally pursuing their MBA. It helped that their families did not have major reservations about the match.

“Honestly, I was worried as to how my dad would take the news. But he was much more open to the idea of me marrying Deep than I expected him to be. All he was looking for was a sensible guy from a good family and Deep fit the bill,” says Shweta.

Even so, the courtship period had its funny moments. Like the time they were both working on a college assignment for their course. While Deep took up the assignment in Kolkata Shweta stayed with an aunt in Mumbai and pursued the assignment. “On completing the assignment, I decided to pick her up from her aunt’s place so we could spend some time together before rejoining college Pune,” reminisces Deep. Unsure how the aunt would take it, he offered another name and made it out as if he was just a part of a big group.

“However, the next time her aunt and I came face to face, it was at our wedding,” smiles Deep.

“She recognised me as the guy who had come to pick up her niece, and it was both, hilarious and embarrassing.”

From strength to strength

Like several long-standing couples the Banerjees (both 32) are ‘chalk and cheese.’ He is an extrovert, whereas she takes her time to open up. But both describe each other as “genuine” and “giving.”

While he is the more patient one, and she a blunt talker who tells it like it is, both are united by their complete faith in the institution of marriage and family—despite the pressures of the corporate world.

Currently working as Senior Manager (HR) for the RPG Group, at CEAT Ltd, Deep’s work requires him to work out of Mumbai and frequently travel across the country, though the couple is based in Pune. Shweta’s career is similarly demanding—she is a consultant, HCM Oracle at Infosys; a profile that requires her to work in shifts. Between all this, they make time for their two-year-nine-month old son Ankan, even as another little one is on the way. Pray, how do they manage all this?

“With some juggling and plenty of understanding,” says Shweta. The couple has

The building blocks of marital success l Space—lots of it—given with grace—and freely at that

l Space, however, rests on security l Which in turn comes from know-

ing each other well l To know each other, spend quality time with each other l Talk to each other, do things together and tell the truth l Believe in marriage a day time nanny to look after Ankan, with either set of parents staying with them at any given time. “There are ups and downs, but we manage. It helps a lot that Deep does not oppose the demands of my work.”

The nitty gritties of a corporate marriage

Given the high pressure backdrop of the corporate world of which they are both a part, what keeps a marriage moving and growing?

“For starters knowing each other well is a big plus,” says Deep. “When you decide to get married it must be considered from all angles.

Way too often, people take the plunge without considering all aspects of the situation—and then live to regret it. When you take the time and effort to figure out whether your goals and values are a match, it avoids trouble later on.”

The second biggie, as far as they both are concerned---is space. “Both partners must have the others’ graceful support and understanding in all aspects of their life. A prime case in point being that of timings. What if I am working nights in keeping with US timing, and my wife by day in keeping with Indian schedules? In such cases, the only way ahead is to accept the

situation for what it is,” he says.

Last but not the least, is “clean and clear communication” with one’s spouse at all times to build an environment of trust. Hiding things from each other, whether big or small, is never a good idea. In short, says Shweta, “looking at the big picture” at all times is important. “You have to believe in marriage to make it work.

The corporate world has its share of push and pull---but it’s up to you to stand up for what you believe in. Be true to yourself at all times.

Sure, there are people who go from relationship to relationship, but I do believe there is an emotional pay-off somewhere. For our part, marriage was always the only available option.”

Both are non-judgmental about live-in relationships that are a part of modern day life.

“Each to their own,” shrugs Deep. “However, in our case the question never did come up.

Things were pretty smooth from both families.”

Another point Shweta would emphasize on is the ‘quality of time, any day, over quantity of time.’ One way of doing so is going on long drives and short, impromptu vacations nearby.

“Be it by bike or car, we have explored the country by road extensively,” smiles Shweta.

“And most of these vacations are totally spontaneous. Every now and then, he’ll come home and say we are taking off to such and such place. I am happy to fall in the line with the mad plan.”

Apart from which, the Banerjees also like exploring different restaurants together. “I go in for the ambience, whereas he is particular about the food. Either way, it is fun to eat out at new places,” she says. Romance, however, has a totally different definition as far as both are concerned. “Ours is not really the candy and flowers kind of bubble-gum world,” smiles Deep. “We have known each other since we were 19, and thus, I guess most of our adult lives have been spent together. Our equation is different.” kalyanisardesai@gmail.com

CC

tadka

Love for nature even after death To avoid polluting the elements (fire, earth, water, air), followers of Zoroastrianism in India don’t bury their dead, but instead leave bodies in buildings called “Towers of Silence” for the vultures to pick clean.

After the bones dry, they are swept into a central well.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 49

student of the fortnight

India’s youngest Chartered Accountant

Meet Nischal Narayanam, who is just 19 years old, and is already a double post-graduate and the youngest Chartered Accountant of the country

T

echnically, it took just six years for 19-year-old Nischal Narayanam to become a double post-graduate and the youngest Chartered Accountants in the country. After accomplishing a ceiling-to-floor-length list of degrees, courses and awards.

This Hyderabadi teenager studied up to Class VII like any other kid, one year at a time. “After that I caught up,” he says.

Instead of writing one exam a year, he wrote one every six months. By the time he was 13 years old, he was ready for college.

Although he finished five years of high school in half the time it is usually completed in, he had to do his BCom degree in the required three-year course. But by 19, he completed two post-graduate degrees in Commerce, and Mathematics and Statistics.

“It all began when I was nine years old. My dad’s an industrialist and I was looking at his balance sheets and I spotted an error. It was then that my parents also realised that this was something I could do,” Nischal says.

Vigorous coaching followed with Nischal learning various branches of mathematics from Vedic Maths to Abacus to Soroban. Mathematics and Memory were his two favourite subjects. While pursuing his degree, Nischal simultaneously appeared for exams that would qualify him as a chartered accountant.

However, he will have to wait for two more years to officially become one, as the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) does not take members younger than 21. “Throughout all this, my family has supported me a lot. The amount of patience that my mother had, for 8-10 hours a day, for months at a stretch got me through it,” Nischal adds.

But that’s not all When he was 10, he started authoring books on mathematics. At the age of 11, after two years of training, Nischal got his first Guinness World Record by memorizing 225 random objects. “Though I did it, it wasn’t easy. It took hours of sitting down in one place and concentrating before I could do it,” he says.

One year later, the mathematics prodigy, won the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement, an award given by the central government to children below 15 years for outstanding performance in academics, culture and sports. He was also featured in National Geographic’s, “My Brilliant Brain”, a documentary initiative to celebrate the power of the human mind.

50 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Image source: Nischal Narayanam/Facebook

“It all began when I was nine years old. My dad’s an industrialist and I was looking at his balance sheets and I spotted an error. It was then that my parents also realised that this was something I could do,” Nischal says When he turned 13, he was already setting his second world record of memorising 132 numbers in a minute, and recalling them even in reverse order. The whiz kid has also set up his own company and has been running “Nischal Math lab” since the age of 10.

“The concept was simple. There is a lot of fear when students are faced with math in our country. When Physics and Chemistry can have labs, why not Maths? Children learn from experiencing more than rote learning and by-hearting a textbook,” says Nischal.

Since then, the company has grown leaps and bounds and also offers other subjects. “We want to create a platform for innovative ideas.

The lab is portable and comes to your classroom, so you don’t have to wait for that one day of the week when you have lab practicals in your timetable,” he adds.

However, all the royalties that Nischal receives from his company go into his foundation that provides an education for children in rural areas of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

“Of everything I have done, the foundation is closest to my heart,” he says. The foundation conducts free camps in rural areas besides providing necessary equipment for children from the first grade to tenth grade.

(Courtesy: www.thenewsminute.com)

Beyond the bottomline

N W time is the

To put it simply, all seconds, minutes and hours on the clock may be exactly the same, but they do not always feel the same. Fun moments always seem to fly by, while dull ones drag on for ever. So in effect, we create our own time to some extent

By Suchismita Pai How to s-t-r-e-t-c-h your working day and get more out of it.

Not every manager rises to be CEO. Ever wanted to be the professional who seems to get everything done and delivered gift –wrapped to the boss? Ever wish you had more time to chill out at leisure, doing the things you like along with completing work?

Why do some of us seem to rush around more than others? Why do some seem to have everything organised and make everything look like a walk in the park? If there is a resource that is equal for all, it is TIME. Everyone has 24 hours to everyday. Yet many fall short of it and seem to complain all the time, while others seem to have enough and more. To put it simply, all seconds, minutes and hours on the clock may be exactly the same, but they do not always feel the same.

Fun moments always seem to fly by, while dull ones drag on for ever. So in effect, we create our own time to some extent.

What if you could add an entire days’ worth of time to your existing work week simply by saving 20 percent of each day? To start with, value your time and so will others. The first step would be to rid yourself of tasks and activities that do not add much value to you or the firm - Sorting

The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.

Extend these warriors to their fullest and you can conquer the corporate arena documents, for instance. Harvard research calls these quick-kills and suggests that dispensing with these is most important.

Delegate or Off-load. A study on knowledge workers indicated that they spend an average of 41 percent of their time on discretionary activities that offered little personal satisfaction and could be handled competently by someone else. While this might seem very obvious, ridding oneself of work is easier said than done.

We all cling to tasks that we carry forward from our earlier days and those make us feel busy and thus important.

Share tasks and problems if you get stuck. By simply asking workers to rethink and shift the balance of their work, research proves that you can save time and focus on more worthwhile tasks with the hours you save.

There are in fact many simpler methods to stretch time and do more in less.

Have to do lists and review them regularly.

Avoid distractions. Do not multitask. While it may appear very productive, research proves that doing one thing at a time fetches best results.

Mini breaks that will rejuvenate a tired brain work very well.

End a day at a fixed time and certainly have a daily end time after which you will not work.

Disengage from work if it is not leading anywhere… you will have belter solutions when you come back to the problem.

Depending on whether you are a lark or an owl, schedule your important work when you are at your best, in the morning or later in the day.

Leo Tolstoy had said “The two most powerful warriors are patience and time”. Extend these warriors to their fullest and you can conquer the corporate arena. paisuchi@gmail.com

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 51

Star Campus Placement-5

Experiences Enrich

Swagat Sinha, an electrical engineer, who completed his post-graduation from the prestigious MDI, Gurgaon in 2014, talks about his big break

By Mahalakshmi Hariharan

T

oday, Swagat Sinha is successfully placed with Fidelity Worldwide Investment that provides asset management services to investors all over the world outside the US and Canada. He is part of the Compensation and Benefits team in India with a high annual package, with perks. He spent six months in the UK as part of his rotational programme.

Swagat has truly enjoyed every bit of his time spent at the campus of Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon.

Reminisces Swagat, “My experience on campus was wonderful. I believe that on campus, your personality is given an all-round development, be it studies, extra-curricular activities, sports, new avenues in clubs and so on.”

He says that one can and should do more than just study. “I was part of the placement committee on campus, the body that handles all student placement-related activities -- right from getting companies on campus, providing them with the platform to hire the best talent and managing the arrangements with the help of volunteer students. This experience does help to enhance one’s corporate relations, build team management, and better your negotiation skills for yourself and for the institute. It is an extremely enriching experience.”

Swagat notes that while it does get very hectic considering the workload, but the payoff is simply great.

Despite his hectic schedule, Swagat managed to make a lot of friends on the campus. Well, he met his wife on the campus.

52 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

“We were part of the same program. We started off being friends and slowly got to know each other better. Finally, we got married in February 2014. So MDI has fonder memories for me than I had imagined,” says Swagat.

MDI is one of the premier business schools in India, located in Gurgaon. It ranks among the top ten business schools in India.

Placement process Swagat sat twice for the placement process, once for his summer internship and the next during his final placement. “I got through to Standard Chartered Bank for my summer internship. There was an online psychometric test, followed by shortlisting of my CV and a personal interview on the campus. I was working out of their Mumbai office, as part of the Consumer Banking team.”

Talking about his final placement, Swagat was interviewing with a couple of firms, but got through to Fidelity Worldwide Investment.

“The process followed then was an application form based shortlisting, a numerical test, a company presentation, a group activity and three rounds of interviews. Following this rigorous process, Fidelity offered me the job and I was more than happy to accept. As part of my role, I spent six months in the UK as part of my rotational programme, and am now working with the Compensation and Benefits team in India,” he says.

Leisure time Swagat is a voracious reader. In fact, it’s his dream to have a separate room for a library at home. Not just that, he’s a big movie buff too.

Says Swagat, “I am currently maintaining a spreadsheet with details of the movies I’ve seen till date, and the ones I haven’t, with the year.

In the last ten years, I have seen more than 950 Bollywood movies.”

He is also a huge football fan and loves gaming. His favourite football team is Chelsea. “I managed to visit their stadium and watch a match in 2013. I am also a big fan of gaming. I recently bought an X-box for gaming at home.”

Background Swagat is the only child of his parents. His father is an Air Force Officer and mom is a homemaker, who was also a teacher for a while. Given his father’s profession, Swagat has spent his childhood in various parts of the country which has helped him to know different people from different cultures.

“It’s a different and enriching experience when you interact with people from various part of the country, who have different cultures, and speak different languages. It

Proud Moment: Swagat with his parents

“Preparation will not hurt you; it can only come in handy. Before the final placement season started, I reviewed each and every subject studied during the two year program. I also revised my CV from my pre-MDI days and participated in a number of varied events to enrich myself. All this joined together gave me a good base for the placements” opens you up to new experiences,” recalls Swagat.

After completing his schooling from various branches of Kendriya Vidyalaya across the country, Swagat completed his graduation in Electrical Engineering from GNDEC, Ludhiana. Later, he worked with an HR Consulting firm for a while before he decided to pursue his post-graduation from MDI, Gurgaon in 2012.

Success mantra Says Swagat, “Preparation will not hurt you; it can only come in handy. Before the final placement season started, I reviewed each and every subject studied during the two

Swagat with his wife, Purnima

year program; I revised my CV from my pre-MDI days. I participated in a number of varied events to enrich myself. All this joined together gave me a good base for the placements.”

“Don’t forget to have different experiences on the campus, as that time spent will not return,” he signs off.

Mahalakshmi.H@corporatecitizen.in

CC

tadka

The millionaire Barber A barber in India named Ramesh Babu gives his customers a decent trim for `50.

The strange part is that he owns a Rolls Royce, as well as a fleet of 200 luxury cars, but still runs his hair cutting business personally.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 53

Pearls of Wisdom

Guru ganga is

Dada’s tryst with Lord Shiva enlightened him on why the Ganga River is not confined to Varanasi but flows at the feet of a spiritual Guru

“Of purifiers I am the wind; of the wielders of weapons I am Rama; of fishes I am the shark; and of flowing rivers I am the Ganga” - Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita 3:14

By Dada J P Vaswani

A

dip in the holy waters of Ganga that flow through Varanasi is considered as the ultimate destination for cleansing of one’s sins and thousands yearn to go on this pilgrimage even today.

Several decades ago, when the River Ganga was cleaner than it is now, Dada had the golden opportunity of accompanying Sadhu Vaswani to the holy city of Varanasi. Little surprise that Dada was delighted that soon his ardent wish to have a dip in it would be

54 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

fulfilled; and he was also showered with requests to do so, on behalf of those who like Dada, yearned for the pilgrimage but could not make it. In Dada they found a holy and noble persona to represent them to seek purity.

Dada recalls in his own words, of the holy dip that remained a mirage and of an enlightened lesson that came through a dream. Read on…

I had always longed to have the sacred dip in the Ganga River at Varanasi, and now here she was, flowing

right outside the house where we were lodged! It was, indeed, a dream come true!

Every morning, I got ready to take my Ganga snaan – but some work or the other came up, and I couldn’t make it.

Soon it was time for us to leave Varanasi. Our train’s departure was 12.30 p m and so I thought to myself that I could still make it to take a dip in the Ganga.

I grabbed a towel and prepared to go for my bath in the river. I had just taken a few steps, when a sister called out, saying that Sadhu Vaswani was looking for me. I promptly retraced my steps and went to the Master’s room. He wanted me to write a letter on an important and urgent matter, and I forgot all about the Ganga.

As our train chugged out of Varanasi station that day, my heart was filled with sadness at not being able to take the much desired dip in the sacred river. I was seated close to the Master, and felt comforted by his presence. But I was not at peace; I felt restless in the heart within.

That night, I had an unforgettable dream. Lord Shiva appeared before me, resplendent in his leopard skin attire around his waist; holy ash spread on his forehead; his trishul held majestically by his side smiling at me and holding up his hand as if to bless me.

However, I was taken aback to see that the gentle Ganga was not flowing from his intricately knotted locks, as it usually does.

“Dear Lord!” I gasped, even as I gazed at him with folded hands. “What is this I see? Where is the Ganga?

Why is she not flowing from your locks?”

“Don’t be so shocked, dear Jashan,” the Lord said, smiling. “True, the Ganga

used to flow from my head – but now, she has changed direction.”

“Changed direction?” I repeated, astonished. “But Lord, how can the Ganga flow in Kashi, if it does no more from your sacred locks?”

“I will tell you dear Jashan,” the Lord replied. “The Ganga flows at the sacred feet of the saints of this sacred land. You need not be so sad and restless.’’ ``Were you not at the feet of your beloved Gurudev these last few days in Kashi? The Ganga was flowing right there, at his feet. Why are you sad then?”

The train braked and came to an abrupt halt; I woke up with a jerk.

I was filled with a tremendous sense of peace and joy. A light seemed to illuminate my soul, spilling over to light up the holy feet of Sadhu Vaswani who slept, as always, with a beautiful smile on his angelic face.

Instinctively, I touched his feet and bowed my head in devotion. “Foolish, foolish me!” I chided myself. “I spend my days and nights at the feet of a saint; how can I long for Ganga jal? Are not Kaaba and Kashi, Mecca and Mathura, Ganga and Jamuna, at the feet of the Guru?”

Indeed, the relationship between the Guru and the disciple is so sacrosanct that Guru’s feet is synonymous with the sanctum sanctorum.

No wonder it is said,

That night, I had an unforgettable dream. Lord Shiva appeared before me, resplendent in his leopard skin attire around his waist; holy ash spread on his forehead; his trishul held majestically by his side - smiling at me and holding up his hand as if to bless me.

(The Guru is Brahma, the Guru is Vishnu, the Guru Deva is Maheswara (Shiva), 1.2: The Guru is Verily the Para-Brahman (Supreme Brahman); Salutations to that Guru.)

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 55

Bollywood biz

Money spinning, mind boggling

Bãhubali

Contrary to popular notions, Bãhubali debunked the myth that regional cinema cannot transcend linguistic reach, or nationwide – even international -- box office success. SS Rajamauli’s Telugu multiple-language-release epic broke all scales – of sets, money, language, technology, expectations, as well as returns, proving to be the true ‘Indian’ blockbuster. By Neeraj Varty

F

or a country which boasts of 780 spoken languages, we have been shockingly contemptuous of regional cinema. In fact, when people refer to Indian cinema, most immediately assume Bollywood. The fact that a thriving regional film industry exists is something barely acknowledged by mainstream trade pundits, who judge a movie solely on the amount of crores it rakes in. No wonder, then, that critics were left with their mouths wide open when SS Rajamauli’s Telugu epic Bãhubali marched right in to their home turf and destroyed existing box office records, debunking the myth that regional cinema can never aspire to transcend its linguistic reach.

When SS Rajamauli, arguably the most successful director in South Indian cinema (he has never had a flop) announced the making of the Bãhubali saga three years ago, everyone had high expectations from the director with the Midas touch. After all,

he helmed hit after hit in the form of Student No. 1, Vikramarkudu, Maryadaramanna and the recent 2012 blockbuster Eega. Rajamauli announced that Bahubali’s scale would be so large, it would be released in two parts, Bãhubali - The Beginning (2015) and Bãhubali - The Conclusion (2016).

He further stated that the movie would star popular Telugu actor Prabhas and Rana Daggubati. This was no ordinary movie though.

‘Bãhubali’ literally means ‘the

one with strong arms’. The roles required both Prabhas and Rana to get beefed up, requiring a strenuous eight month training to build the physique required for the warrior characters. Prabhas ate eight meals in a day and got gym equipment of around ₹ 1.5 crores shipped to his home so that he could train for over five hours a day. Both Prabhas and Rana have have put on weight to achieve 100 kgs physiques for this film. Prabhas even postponed his marriage so that he could devote

It became the first South Indian film to collect `300 crores worldwide, reaching the figure in just nine days. It is still running strong, having crossed `500 crores worldwide in only 24 days

56 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

complete attention to the film for three years straight.

So much faith Bãhubali was an event even before it started. The producers, placing an unprecedented level of trust in Rajamauli, approved of a budget of ₹ 250 crores, making Bãhubali not just the most expensive movie in Telugu cinema, but the most expensive Indian movie ever produced. Everything in Bãhubali is on a grand scale. Forty-five feet high sets were constructed for the movie, where Indian cinema has never seen sets over 25 feet height before. Over 15000 sketches and endless man hours have been spent on the movie.

This movie was shot with some of the best technicians roped in for the film, notably Sabu Cyril who is a national award winning art director. It took almost one year for pre-production work, which is the highest for any Indian movie to date. The magnificent palaces, impregnable forts, breath-taking water falls were all created exclusively for the movie.

The makers used the same special effects team which worked for the Hollywood blockbuster Jurassic World to create colossal battle scenes and seamless graphics.

Even the poster made for the movie’s promotion set a Guinness world record for being the world’s largest poster (51,000 square feet).

The spectacle drew its share of naysayers. As the movie’s release date approached, hushed voices echoed that there was no way the film could recover its mammoth ₹ 250 crore budget, and would become the biggest disaster in Indian cinematic history. And if history was any indication, they

Even the poster made for the movie’s promotion set a Guinness world record for being the world’s largest poster (51,000 square feet) were right. Regional films had never before transcended state boundaries to populist appeal.

Unimagined success As it turns out, all the critics were proven completely wrong.

Bãhubali released on 10th July 2015 on 4000 screens all over India. It became the widest dubbed film ever by screen count.

It was made in Telugu, Tamil and dubbed in Hindi, Malayalam, English, French, and even Japanese. The movie collected ₹ 50 crores on its first day of release and galloped to a ₹ 162 crore weekend gross, the third biggest ever in Indian cinema. It became the first South Indian film to collect ₹ 300 crores worldwide, reaching the figure in just nine days. The movie is still running strong, having crossed ₹ 500 crores worldwide in only 24 days. It is only the third Indian film in history to have done so, behind only PK and Dhoom

3. Even with strong competition from the Salman Khan blockbuster Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Bãhubali’s Hindi dubbed version has become the most successful regional dubbed movie in India, raking in over ₹ 105 crores at the box office. That alone makes it the third highest Bollywood grosser of the year, behind Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Tanu Weds Manu. Looking at the pace of the movie, the Hindi version may just become the highest grossing Hindi movie by the time its theatrical run is over.

Like the title of the movie says, Bãhubali is just the beginning. Its 2016 sequel is poised to become the biggest movie in Indian cinematic history. It is high time we considered cinema on merit alone, instead of looking down on its regional origins. In a lot of ways, Bãhubali has shown that you just cannot keep greatness down. Here’s hoping critics learn a lesson from this. If not, well, there’s

always Bãhubali - The Conclusion to look forward to next year!

As a parting note, let us iterate that Bãhubali is not a “South Indian” film. It is an Indian film, and should be celebrated as such! neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com

CC

tadka

India’s European connection Alexander the Great of Macedon (356-323 B.C.) was one of the first important figures to bring India into contact with the West. After his death, a link between Europe and the East would not be restored until Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama (1460-1524) landed in Calicut, India, in 1498.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 57

Mobile apps

Handy India Govt. Apps One of the priorities of the Narendra Modi led BJP government has been the adoption of digital initiatives as part of the Digital India campaign. In the past year, we have seen the digitalisation of several key government services, leading to a streamlined experience for users.

If you have a smartphone, make sure you download the following apps by the Indian government right now

By Neeraj Varty

My Gov (4 Stars)

Released on July 1, 2015, with the onset of Modi’s ambitious Digital India Week, this app allows citizens to contribute their ideas to the government. Users can post pictures and comment on issues like Digital India, Clean India, etc. Users can also post pictures of areas which need immediate attention from the administration, like potholes on the road, cesspools in residential areas which need cleaning, etc. The app promises swift response and action on all complaints. Also, the app gives citizens a direct outlet to air their views without having to go through any intermediaries.

Download it now.

IRCTC (5 Stars)

Say goodbye to the days of sitting and fuming at the slow and virus laden IRCTC website. With one-step login for existing users, journey alerts, saved passenger

details and cancelling tickets, the app has made train reservations much easier. Not to mention that the app actually looks very polished, something you can’t say at all for the website version, which looks like it has been designed by an eight-year old. Having used the app several times for bookings, we can vouch for its security, which is more than anyone can say about the website.

Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan

(4 Stars) Launched last year soon after the launch of the Swachh Bharat campaign, the app provides details of cleanliness drive programmes initiated by the government. You can also ask your friends to join you in cleaning your locality. The app lets users petition the government to conduct a cleanliness drive in their vicinity, and also invite people in neighbouring areas to participate in the drive, acting as a type of crowd-sourcing initiative.

Anyone who wants to contribute

58 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

to a cleaner and greener India must download the app right away.

Let’s clean India, starting with our locality.

related to RTI using your phone camera. This app is extremely useful for users to keep themselves abreast of their rights and to initiate action against any discrepancies in government rendered services.

Incredible India (4.5 Stars)

Released by the Ministry of Tourism, this is a user driven app containing information for domestic and international tourists regarding recognised and certified service providers like travel agents, tour operators and guides for a safe journey, as well as suggestions on sights to visit while visiting a particular destination.

This app should be high on the list of travel enthusiasts.

RTI India (5 Stars)

Although not an official government app, RTI India is a very useful app for RTI activists and already has about 4,00,000 users. You can read blogs on RTI, get instant help on your RTI and also upload images and videos

Passport Seva (5 Stars)

The government has announced its plan to take passport police verification completely digital, which will make the otherwise cumbersome passport application process a whole lot easier. Add to that the newly released Passport Seva app, and you can definitely breathe easy when it comes to passport applications. The app lets new users register and book their passport appointments at the nearest passport office as well as pay for the services. You can also check the status of your application as well as receive updates regarding the printing and shipping of your new passport. This app is definitely a must have on any smartphone. neeraj.varty@corporatecitizen.com

Ride on

Even the Royal bowed to change The oldest motorcycle company makes changes after five decades – and plugs some leaks!

By Dilip Bam

R

oyal Enfield (RE), India’s oldest motorcycle company, makers of the legendary Bullet motorcycle, starting 60 years ago did not change any model or make any significant technological upgrade for 55 years. It was selling approximately 30,000 of its bolted gearbox model bikes per year. It used to have four gears, with the foot-operated gear shift lever (GSL) on the right hand side (RHS) and foot-brake pedal (fbp) on the left. Yet all other bikes (except Bullet and Jawa/Yezdi) had fbp on the right hand side and GSL on the left.

For people who wanted to upgrade from small Indo-Japanese bikes like Bajaj Pulsar & Hero Honda to Bullet, this was a problem because of the fbp and GSL being on opposite sides.

Royal Enfield (RE) commissioned AVL of Austria to change this configuration: change to fbp on RHS and GSL on LHS. In addition, instead of four gears, have five gears, which gives a much better torque spread and improves mileage.

In addition, RE also incorporated the gearbox inside the crankcase like the Japanese bikes and the result is the Unit Construction Engine (UCE), and the bolted gearbox disappeared.

The biggest drawback of the old Bullets was engine oil leak from the crankcase. Apart from poor machining and poor quality gasket, the number of bolts holding the cover to the crankcase was just not enough to hold it tight enough to prevent oil leaks.

Now the crankcase shape has changed, the gasket has improved and the number of bolts

holding the cover to the crankcase has more than doubled. This has stopped oil leaks.

With the above changes and improvement in the quality of machining, gaskets and tolerances, the overall quality and efficiency of RE Bullets has improved tremendously and it has become dearer.

There are totally 11 models and variants of this two-wheeler (Bullet), and come in three engine sizes. The largest is the 535 cc Bullet Continental GT having a single spark plug, which produces 29.1 bhp at 5100 rpm. All other Bullets have twin spark plugs. Next is the 500 cc twin spark plug engine which produces 27.2 bhp at 5250 rpm and the third is the 350 cc twin spark plug engine which produces 19.8 bhp at 5250 rpm.

Technically the best Bullet is the model Bullet500, which, though having twin spark plugs and same engine size as the other 500 cc engines, produces 26.1 bhp (1.1 bhp less than the other 500 cc engines), but at a lower rpm of 5100 rpm which is the same rpm as the Continental GT. Bullet500 produces its

maximum torque at a low 3800 rpm, which is the slowest revving engine in the whole country and probably in the whole world.

Bullet500 gives the most distinct thump (99.9 percent people buy Bullet for the thump) among all Bullets. Not only that, it also has the highest Engine Life Factor of 2.307 which is again the highest in the whole world.

The Royal Enfield Bullet was originally a British overhead valve single cylinder fourstroke motorcycle made by Royal Enfield in Redditch, West Midlands, but now produced

by Royal Enfield Motors, the successor to the British company, at Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The Royal Enfield Bullet has the longest production run of any motorcycle having remained continuously in production since 1948. The Bullet marque is even older, and has passed 75 years of continuous production. The Royal Enfield and Bullet names derive from the company’s links with the Royal Small Arms Factory in Enfield, London. dilipbam@gmail.com

Bullet500 gives the most distinct thump (99.9 percent people buy Bullet for the thump) among all Bullets. Not only that, it also has the highest Engine Life Factor September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 59

Featherlite

Corporate Twitterati Google, arguably the world’s most well-known tech company, has appointed indian national Sunder Pichai as its CEO, creating waves in the tech world. Corporate citizen brings you some of the best congratulatory tweets that are echoing the mood that India is in right now.

Narendra Modi@narendramodi Congratulations @sundarpichai. My best wishes for the new role at @google.

Satya Nadella@satyanadella Congrats @sundarpichai well deserved!

Bret Taylor@btaylor Congrats to @sundarpichai on his well deserved promotion to CEO of @Google. One of the most capable technology leaders I have worked with.

IIT Kharagpur@IITKgp Congratulations to @sundarpichai, @IITKgp Distinguished Alumnus Awardee (93/MT/NH) on being appointed CEO of Google. http://goo. gl/DkdTZZ Hugo Barra@hbarra Alphabet takes “Google speed” to a new level.

Not sure people realize how significant this is.

Congrats and best of luck to @sundarpichai!

NASSCOM@nasscom Congratulating Mr. @sundarpichai for his new role as @google #CEO Amit Burman@Burman_Amit Now we can have our own Satyam Shivam Sundaram contest.. #Microsoft-#satyanadella..HCL -Shiv Nader & #Google #SunderPichai !! #ProudIndian Ujjwal Bhattarai@uj2wal #SunderPichai as CEO at #Google while #SatyaNadela at #Microsoft while Sergey and Page at Alphabet. What a new day! Bravo Google!

Neelam S. Amitabh@GNeelamitabh Congratulations #SunderPichai ! With brains like this, nothing can stop India from becoming Super Power.

60 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Art of washing hands Hand Washing Techniques from National Health Service, UK

It takes at least fifteen seconds to wash your hands properly – this is about how long it takes to sing ‘Happy Birthday to You’ twice through! Encourage children to wash their hands by showing them how to do it, and by setting them a good example.

How to wash your hands: Wet hands with water Apply enough soap and handwash to cover all hand surfaces Rub hands palm to palm Right palm over the other hand with interlaced fingers and vice versa Palm to palm with fingers interlaced Backs of fingers to opposing palms with fingers interlocked Rotational rubbing of left thumb clasped in right palm and vice versa Rotational rubbing, backwards and forwards with clasped fingers of right hand in left palm and vice versa Rince hands with water Dry thoroughly with towel. Duration of procedure: At least 15 seconds To see the correct way of washing your hands, please see the steps outlined above.

(Acknowledgement goes to the World Health Organisation for the use of their hand washing technique diagrams).

Jokes

Claps & Slaps

Corporate Citizen claps for autistic golfer, Ranveer Singh Saini, who is the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles, on August 1

We salute Ranveer Singh Saini, an autistic golfer, who has become the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles on August 1. Ranveer is also the youngest participant, at 14 years, to win the competition. The Gurgaon-based amateur won the golf Level Two alternate shot team play event with unified partner and aunt, Monica Jajoo by an emphatic nine strokes.

The Class IX student at Scottish High School in Gurgaon, who was diagnosed with autism when he was a year and 11 months old, defeated special golfers from 21 countries at the Wilson & Harding Golf Course at Griffith Park along with Monica. Ranveer and Monica took a four-stroke lead on the opening day, led by seven strokes on Day Two and picked one more shot in the penultimate round before beating the Hong Kong duo of Tsz Leung Chung & Ka Kit Lam and Japanese pair of Takefumi Hiyoshi & Tadatoshi Sakai, who finished joint second.

Ranveer, who picked a club at the age of nine, said he would celebrate the victory with a visit to Disneyland and a special gift from father Kartikeya Singh Saini, who accompanied him to the event.

Ranveer is no stranger to accomplishment and has already won gold twice in the Special Olympics Asia-Pacific International Level 1 & 2 events in 2013 and 2014. However, his real challenge will be to achieve his ambition of emulating former Asia No. 1, Jeev Milkha Singh, who has also won four European Tour events.

Special Olympics World Games happen every four years and Kartikeya wants his son to graduate to Level 5 of the competition, which is an 18-hole individual strokeplay event, when the next edition takes place. Ranveer was certainly ready for a shot at glory. He now returns home as that rare Indian sportsman, the proud owner of a gold medal, and a motivation for many.

A big round of applause for Ranveer and Monica, from the entire team of Corporate Citizen. We are proud of you!

Corporate Citizen slaps the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) and other relevant authorities for the frequent landslides witnessed during the monsoons on the Mumbai Pune Expressway and the ineffectiveness of its earlier repair work, which is causing a nightmare to commuters

Truly, it’s been a nightmare for commuters travelling on the MumbaiPune Expressway as this 100-km-long, six-lane road has become prone to landslides in recent times. The Expressway, officially known as the Yashwantrao Chavan Mumbai Pune Expressway, is India’s first six-lane concrete, high-speed, access controlled tolled Expressway, which connects Mumbai, the administrative and financial capital of Maharashtra and Pune, an industrial and educational hub. Fully operationalised in 2002, it introduced new levels of speed and safety in automobile transportation to Indian roads, and is one of India’s busiest roads. This Expressway usually sees very high traffic over the weekend, with people travelling from Mumbai to Pune and vice-versa.

Incidentally this was the fourth time in the past eight weeks that such incidents hampered the flow of traffic on this busy route. Despite calling skilled workers from the Republic of Mali to heed to the boulders which have been giving way due to rain in this portion of the highway, the route is still cumbersome.

On August 7, a second landslide occurred on the Expressway at 3.30 am, near the Adoshi tunnel, situated close to Lonavala. This was the second time in less than a month that a landslide occurred near the Adoshi tunnel. On July 20, three people were killed after a landslide there. Blame it on continuous rains which have loosened the soil and increased the possibility of more landslides.

The MSRDC, which maintains this Expressway, floated a whopping ₹33.15 crore tender to upgrade the road and bring relief to commuters. The work was likely to be carried out immediately and expected to be done by the end of this calendar year. It will include multiple measures, removal of loose boulders and rocks and making way for streams to flow unhindered, among others.

Over 100 people die every year on the expressway. MSRDC officials say their renewed effort to put in place new safety measures and massive awareness efforts would go a long way in curbing the rising rate of accidents. Well, it’s high time that the state authorities did the needful, so that we avoid such mishaps from happening in the future.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 61

Health

Fermented food for a Fit Mind With lifestyle parameters becoming sophisticated, there is no dearth of new thinking on food therapy. Enhanced consumer awareness helps us make sound diet choices to suit each lifestyle. Whether it is a hunt to get the best organic produce, a ‘ready to eat healthy meal’ option or even reverting to ‘from the scratch’ traditional menu, there is almost at least one academic research with which we justify our personal choice of health recipes. Falling back on a recent study by the University of Maryland, Baltimore, that says fermented food can lower social anxiety amongst teenagers and young adults, Indian and South Asian recipes could definitely be the winning food formula for mums. Why not grab your platter of Idlis, Appams or Dhoklas, or maybe Indonesian Tempeh, Khimchi or Kefir, the fermented starter from Eurasia?

By Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar

I

f you wake up to the aroma of freshly steamed dhoklas, idlis or appams, there is no need to shy away from these for a hearty breakfast fare.

It might actually be beneficial, as Vidya K.P, Dietician, Columbia Asia Hospital – Hebbal, Bangalore explains, “Fermentation is one of the methods to preserve food and alter its quality. Yeast, and certain bacteria, including lactobacillus are used for fermentation. A common effect of fermentation is that the food product is less hospitable to other microorganisms, including pathogens and spoilage-causing microorganisms, thus extending the food’s shelf-life. This process preserves food while producing beneficial enzymes, B-vitamins, Omega-3 fatty acids, and various strains of probiotics.”

A new study from the University of Maryland states that young adults with certain degrees of social anxiety symptoms could benefit from eating fermented foods. It is in fact beneficial to those with higher genetic risk from social anxiety disorders.

As reported, Matthew Hilimire, Psychology Professor and co-

Vidya K.P, Dietician, Columbia Asia Hospital – Hebbal, Bangalore

Khimchi

researcher said, “It is likely that the probiotics in the fermented foods are favourably changing the environment in the gut, and changes in the gut in turn influence social anxiety. I think that it is absolutely fascinating that the microorganisms in your gut

62 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

can influence your mind.”

But, do we really know how to balance our need for fermented recipes or probiotic products?

Probiotics and prebiotics Health fanatics today swear by their daily helpings of probiotics.

More often than not we club them all under dairy based recipes. The commonly referred probiotics include yogurt, dahi (Indian yoghurt), flavoured milk, butter milk, fermented pickles or the soft cheese variants. But, it is also important to note the existence of prebiotics or chemicals that are added to induce growth or enhance activity of micro organisms for building up a healthy environment in our bodies (either the gastro intestinal tract or skin composition as in modern day hand sanitizers!)

“While probiotic foods have live bacteria, prebiotic foods feed the good bacteria already living in your gut. You can find prebiotics in items such as asparagus,

l Organic ingredients - “A Candida overgrowth means that your liver is already overworked, so the last thing you should do is add extra pesticides and chemicals for it to metabolise. Furthermore, organic produce tends to be higher in nutrient content, so you’ll get more nutrition out of each bite!”

Appam

Indonesian Tempeh

“It is likely that the probiotics in the fermented foods are favourably changing the environment in the gut, and changes in the gut in turn influence social anxiety. I think that it is absolutely fascinating that the microorganisms in your gut can influence your mind.”

Dhokla

Jerusalem artichokes, bananas, oatmeal, red wine, honey, maple syrup and legumes. Try prebiotic foods on their own or with probiotic foods to perhaps give the probiotics a boost,” said Vidya.

In India, probiotics is marketed in either of the two forms – as milk and as fermented milk products. According to the Probiotic Association of India, “India is emerging as a major probiotic market of the future with annual growth rate of 22.6 percent until 2015 with a handful of players in the Indian probiotic industry... With their advent, the Indian probiotic market turnover is expected to reach $8 million by the year 2015. Probiotics in India generally comes in two forms,

milk and fermented milk products with the former occupying 62 percent of the market share and the latter having 38 percent market share (Indian consumer survey, 2010).”

Savouring Indian recipes Made with Bengal gram flour and subsequently steamed, the fermentation of the flour enhances the nutritive value in Dhoklas.

“Dhokla has a low glycemic index (it releases glucose at a more sustained rate) which makes it good for diabetics. As it is steamed and not fried, it has less oil content which makes it low in calories.

It contains fewer calories -- 100 g of Dhokla contains only 160 calories. The same goes with other fermented dishes like Idli, Appam, etc,” explained Vidya.

The pros and cons Advantages: l Fermented foods help restore

adequate bacterial balance in the intestines. l Most probiotics belong to a group of lactic acid-producing bacteria found in yogurt, fermented milk and other fermented recipes. l Eating fermented food make the intestines less vulnerable to intestinal illnesses while boosting the immune system. l Fermented food has lactobacillus which helps reduce the onset of diarrhoea.

Disadvantages: When foods ferment or decompose, certain waste products produced by the bacteria break down food components and release alcohol as a byproduct. Many fermented foods such as soy sauce, contain a significant amount of alcohol.

A study has revealed that high intake of fermented soy foods was significantly associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer. “Of course the alcohol in fermented foods is usually a small quantity (unless the fermented food happens to be wine or beer!), but even small amounts of alcohol can affect the cells of the body,” she said.

Yet, be wary...

Look for: l Foods labelled – ‘No added sugar’: Excess sugars can feed and cause an overgrowth of Candida – a type of yeast and is the most common cause of fungal infections worldwide. “Fermented foods will typically have some sweetness from the natural sugars that remain in the food, so there should be no need to sweeten them further.”

Go for: l Fermented food options that are certified as organic: Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Yogurt, Kefir, Kombucha (be careful with this though, watch out for the sugar content), pickles and olives l Unpasteurized fermented vegetables and dairy: Processes like pasteurization and sterilization kill good bacteria. Even if bacteria are added back in and cultured after pasteurisation, the enzymes in the food that help digestion of food are destroyed during pasteurization. Individuals with Candida overgrowth are likely to experience digestive problems and pasteurization makes foods even harder to digest and much less beneficial. l Avoid added alcohol: Although small amounts produced during the fermentation process are permissible, alcohol is a liver toxin.

In individuals suffering from Candida overgrowth, potent toxins like acetylaldehyde, an alcohol, is produced and it helps to minimise the body’s toxic burden. sangeetagd2010@gmail.com

Now that’s a k d populated! ta CC

India has 1200 million people. That is more than the combined population of US, Russia, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Japan, UK, Germany, Australia, Italy, Spain and New Zealand! In fact, India’s population is larger than any other continent in the world, outside Asia.

September 1-15, 2015 / Corporate Citizen / 63

astroturf Generally it is forced to replace with something superior. You should be prepared for shake ups in the company and there will important changes in the company’s policy. Do not let the attitude of others alarm you.

Aries

Mar 21- April 20 Be prepared for a hectic and substantial month ahead with lots of changes and happenings around you. If you are an employer then be prepared that you may find instability in the work force. Or if you are employed be prepared for a boss change in your work scenario.

Just be patient go with the flow do not be aggressive.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 20 Love starts to blossom and so do your energy and health. Take things easy, do not get perturbed when situations do not move your way. For the end results will always be in your favour. Over all it’s a fun kind of month. Attain mental clarity on issues involving finances before making the move.

GEMINI

May 21 - June 21 You can look forward to an eventful month ahead. Just be patient and you will gain mental clarity. Take your time before making major decisions.

Family members would be temperamental, so patient is required, the much you exercise patience the better would your own mental peace be. Health and energy need to be looked into.

CANCER

Jun 22 - July 23 You will be a witness to a dramatic eventful month. You cannot sweep things under the carpet and say that you will deal with them later. For students this could indicate change of school or courses in their curriculum.

Financial changes have to be taken as positive note. These changes were needed to be modified. Be mentally prepared for all kinds of changes, even the government

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 may regulate your industry and make professional changes.

LEO

July 24 - Aug 23 Be prepared for many changes in your life. Financial peaks are on a positive note. You will be forced to modify your routine. Job seekers will be able to seize opportunities.

You may give your personality a overhauling and change your thoughts and concepts. Reduce stress and work load, no need for you to indulge in temptations or any kind of risky deals. Legal matters will move forward during this period, and will be positive.

Travelling especially to foreign countries is not advisable,

VIRGO

Aug 24 - Sept 23 Long-term happiness and prosperity is on your way, so it’s befitting that the blockages to this internal or external get blasted away. Be calm and patient and wait for situations to unfold.

This is also a period when your perceptions and thought process changes, you will redefine your own self. You will change the way others think about you, so over the next six months you will not only change your personality but also your wardrobe. Life is a blink of an eye. So do not waste time.

64 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

LIBRA

Sept 24 - Oct 22 Be prepared for the changes world around you, and midst all this movements many nice and positive situations will emerge, easing your financial pressures could be one. This will bring clarity to your personal affairs.

Health and energy remain good. New revelations, a new understanding comes to you and this change is just a natural outcome. Friendships and relationships will get tested time and again.

SCORPIO

Oct 23 - Nov 22 You will have to work long hours to achieve your targets and reap rich benefits. Both need equal attention and devoted time. Friendships will get tested, sometimes, relationships are flawed and sometimes shake up faiths. People are temperamental so you need to be patient with yourself and others in general. Chances are that you may completely change your profile or profession.

SAGITTARIUS

Nov 23 - Dec 22 You will experience a lot of changes compared to last month, but the end result will be good.

CAPRICORN

Dec 23 - Jan 20 An eventful month is predicted for you. Foreign travel is on the cards. Your philosophical and religious belief systems will get tested and be probably be revised . It is advisable that you take things slowly and calmly. Hidden flaws in the family relationships will be revealed. You could also be taking corrective measures to remodel your surroundings.

AQUARIUS

Jan 21 - Feb19 There will be many changes around you, but you will remain unscathed. Your potentials and talents show the path to your destiny. Your love life will be smooth. Making important financial changes this month will be benefit you. Usually these changes come about due to a financial crisis.

PISCES

Feb 20 - Mar 20 You need to take situations as they come calmly. The ground is being prepared for love. The change can be within an organisation or else you could be changing your career profile completely. The conditions at the work place will change. Rules and regulations of the government could affect your working scene. Do not jump into conclusions get second opinions before taking major steps.

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the last word

Finding the time to multi-task Ganesh Natarajan

O

ne aspect of the life that my wife Uma and I have enjoyed for the last fifteen years and more in Pune is the regular advice we get from friends and well-wishers to work less and sleep more. “How on earth do you get on with five hours sleep with all the things you guys do and the places you travel?” is the constant refrain. On a Saturday morning, when friends are playing golf or just chilling over wine and brunch, we would inevitably be reading or writing or participating in a heated discussion on social or gender or economic issues. But then when we take stock of our lives, that’s what creates the most excitement for us. And before you shake your head in sympathy, read the next few paragraphs to understand our motivations.

We both grew up in middle class families in Ranchi and Pondicherry respectively, where there was always food on the table but little time or money for luxuries. In these circumstances the motivation was always the extraordinary capacity for hard work demonstrated by our parents. My father Shri Ganapati Iyer Natarajan was the epitome of multi-tasking excellence, running a successful chemicals and industrial lubricants factory in the village of Tatisilwai near Ranchi, participating regularly in the activities of the Ramakrishna Mission for whom he ran a “Seva Kendra” for poor children in the village and being the life and soul of the cultural scene in the city where he presided over the Ranchi Tamil Sangam and entertained national figures like M.S.Subbalakshmi, Kamala

At the end of a career spanning forty or so years, nobody really will remember how many crores of Rupees (`), you accumulated or how much business or corporate success you enjoyed. Those are all by-products in the chase for legitimacy

Lakshman and even Ghanshyam Das Birla at events in the city. This gave him the confidence that no goal was too difficult to achieve including getting the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to make an unscheduled stop at the social centre to encourage he children of the village.

And thereby hangs the moral of this little story. At the end of a career spanning forty or so years, nobody really will remember how many crores you accumulated or how much business or corporate success you enjoyed. Those are all by-products in the chase for legitimacy which all of us embark on as we finish our education and enter corporate or entrepreneurial roles. The legacy we leave will be counted by the number of careers we helped transform, the number of lives we touched in a positive and lasting manner and the difference we make to our environment. In corporate terms we call it the triple bottom line – profits, people and planet and it is the success in doing all three that really make one’s life worthwhile.

For me personally, this has meant the ability to devote sixty or more hours every week on my one

66 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015

Multi-tasking is not a drudgery, it is truly the privilege of those who believe like we do that life and health is finite and there is too much to be done in too little time. corporate role as CEO of the very successful Zensar Technologies and then an additional thirty or more hours on social pursuits through NASSCOM Foundation, collaborative transformation activities in the city with MP Vandana Chavan in the village of Sudumbre, Commissioner Kunal Kumar through Pune City Connect and the Pune Action Task Force which has seen many corporate chiefs, social enterprises and well-meaning individuals in the city come together for common causes. Add to this the work we do through Social Venture Partners, the Harvard Business School Club of India and various academic and social

interventions and my cup of joy and fulfilment truly runs over every week and month.

There are many others too who have discovered that multi-tasking can lead one to higher and higher levels of fulfilment. Examples abound like my wife Uma who has a full entrepreneurial role as CEO of one of India’s most innovative skills development firms, Global Talent Track and still runs the Indian Women’s Network in Pune and contributes regularly to national business dailies and cultural and historical research, the publisher of this magazine Bala who has transitioned from the military to academia to publishing, our friends Anu Aga, Meher Pudumjee, Rati Forbes, Naren Goidhani, Vandana Chavan and many active members of SVP Pune who contribute time and money to many causes and even my eighty-two year old father in law Shri SV Iyer who finds the time to travel extensively in India and abroad and is fully engaged in Southern India with a pioneering initiative for the cause of senior citizens.

Multi-tasking is not a drudgery, it is truly the privilege of those who believe like we do that life and health is finite and there is too much to be done in too little time. So the next time you think of spending an extra hour in bed or one more party to go to, think a little and ask yourself where your time and knowledge could be more productively spent. The choice is clear!

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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68 / Corporate Citizen / September 1-15, 2015