Friday, September 30, 2011

Thought of Day

The secret of successful managing is to keep the five guys who hate you away from the four guys who haven’t made up their minds.

~ Casey Stenge

Pramod Kumar (Pramod), CEO of the Tiny Toddlers Group was going through certain figures related to the sale of educational toys in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Since its inception in 2001, the Tiny Toddlers Group had emerged as a strong regional player in the Toys segment in South India. The company faced competitive pressure from other major players such as Mattel¹ , Lego² , Leo³ , and Funskool⁴ that had a large market share and also produced and promoted educational toys that improved the learning of the children. Pramod decided to take a relook at his marketing strategies in order to improve his sales in relation to that of the other players. He had asked his staff to tabulate certain data pertaining to the sales of the company's educational toys in Andhra Pradesh. He wanted to know what factors would help increase the sales of the toys. But he was now faced with a dilemma on how to go about analyzing the data.

The Tiny Toddlers Group was established by Pramod just after he completed his MBA. Pramod, who lived in a joint family in Hyderabad and had a liking for children, began by manufacturing small toys with the help of the disposable plastic and wood material lying around in his house. There were many families in the neighborhood which had kids and the children used to visit Pramod’s house nearly every day to buy the toys he made. Pramod not only sold his toys but also got to spend time with the kids, something he really enjoyed doing.

Harindra Singh

(Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Percept Ltd.)

Chatting with afaqs!, Harindra Singh, vice-chairman and managing director, Percept Ltd, talks about the organisation, the increased focus on Intellectual Properties, and his perspective on how communication and advertising ought to be.

From ad agency to media conglomerate, Percept has come a long way in the last 25 years. In this exclusive interview with afaqs!, Harindra Singh, vice-chairman and managing director, Percept Ltd, spoke about the Percept journey so far, how Intellectual Property (IP) will help steer the company into the next level of growth, and a tongue-in-cheek remark on advertising as we know it.

Q. Take us through the Percept journey. How has Percept grown from being an ad agency to what it is today in the last 25 years?

'Roller coaster'. You have all the emotions -- thrill, excitement and fun, with the ups and downs on a roller coaster.

We got several distinctions in the first 10 years. And, then came the stage in the early '90s, when we were hit by this global paradigm shift.

When I got into this business, there was just one kind of agency, that is full service. And, then came a time when full service agencies were seen as useless doctors.

Super specialization was coming in. This unbundling was happening and we realised that if we do not change, we will die.

Storyboard: Titan

Agency: Ogilvy India
Category: Apparel | Fashion and Lifestyle

TVC opens with a man sipping tea and looking at his watch.

He tells the young man standing next to him that his grand father had bought the watch he's wearing during the second world war ...

Corporate Personality Introduction - SUBHASH CHANDRA

Subhash Chandra is the founder of Zee TV,

India

's first private TV channel. This onetime rice trader from Hissar, Haryana has today transformed into a media baron and his other interests include packaging, theme parks, lotteries and cinema multiplexes.

Subhash Chandra launched Zee Telefilms Limited in October 1992 as a content supplier for Zee TV -

India

's first Hindi satellite channel. Subash Chandra was the first in

India

who sought to harness the huge business potential of satellite television channels. Before the launch of Zee TV viewers in

India

were under the firm grip of Doordarshan, the state-controlled terrestrial network. It was Subhash Chandra's vision that helped give birth to the satellite TV industry in

India

and inspired others to follow suit.

After the launch of Zee TV, he commenced Siticable operations in 1995 and also started a joint venture with News Corp. In 1995, he launched two new channels, Zee News and Zee Cinema. In 2000, Zee TV became the first cable company in

India

to launch Internet over Cable services. In 2003, Zee TV became the first service provider in

India

to launch Direct to Home (DTH) services. In a short span of time Zee TV has become a big media and has give tough competition to international media moghuls such as Rupert Murdoch.

Thought of the Day

And I was asked if I would come and help with the recovery of this great British company, Cable and Wireless, and I'm delighted to become part of the new and very talented management that have been brought in to that company as well.

- Lord Robertson

Honda changes India strategy with Brio

Honda Motor Co. Ltd's Indian unit started selling its Brio model on Tuesday, marking the company's entry into the small-car segment that accounts for 70% of the local market, as sales of its more expensive models drop.

The `3.95 lakh exshowroom price of the Brio in Delhi is lower than the Swift, the largest selling model of market leader Maruti Suzuki India Ltd in the same category. The Swift retails at `4.22 lakh in Delhi.

“While customers are happy with our products, they also expect us to be competitive on the pricing front,“ said Seki Inaba, director (marketing), Honda Siel Cars India Ltd. “They would not mind if some of the features have not been added to the car".

To reduce the price, Honda is offering customers the option to buy the base version of Brio without some safety features such as airbags that have been standard in all models of cars that the company has sold so far in India. At least 80% of the car is localized. That is expected to increase to 90% in the next few months. “This has helped us in minimizing costs,“ said Takashi Nagai, president and chief executive of HSCI.

Cognizant acquires Zaffera's assets
Mahindra Insurance gets regulator's nod

HR Glossary

Recruitment

The process of bringing into an organization personnel who will possess the appropriate education, qualifications, skills and experience for the post offered.

Outsourcing

A contractual agreement between an employer and an external third party provider whereby the employer transfers responsibility and management for certain HR, benefit or training related functions or services to the external provider.

Orientation

The introduction of employees to their jobs, co-workers, and the organization by providing them with information regarding such items as policies, procedures, company history, goals, culture, and work rules.

Outplacement

A benefit offered by the employer to displaced employees which may consist of such services as job counseling, training, and job-finding assistance.

Career in HR

During the last decade HR developed into the function, which shares the responsibility for the business objectives and the HR Employees are obliged to understand the basics of the business, including the financial analysis and the sources of the main income of the organization.

Common HR Jobs and Career Path

The HR Departments in large organizations are quite standardized and they offer the same set of the HR Jobs. The job title can be slightly different, but the job content is usually the same.

HR offers two main career paths to its employees. One career path is mainly in the HR Back Office and Centers of Excellence and the second career path is in the front office. It is very difficult to combine those two sets of skills and competencies in Human Resources. The HR Front Office does not like to analyze the data in Microsoft Excel and HR Centers of Excellence does not like to negotiate with the internal and external clients. The common HR Jobs in HR Centers of Excellence are the following:

Company profile of Ambuja Cement

Ambuja Cements Limited was earlier known as Gujarat Ambuja Cements Limited (GACL). The company was set up in 1986. In this short span Ambuja Cements has achieved massive growth and presently, the total cement capacity of the company is 16 million tonnes. The company has three subsidiaries, viz, Ambuja Cement Rajasthan Limited (ACRL), Ambuja Cement Eastern Limited (ACEL) and Ambuja Cement India Limited (ACIL). Ambuja also has a strategic investment in ACC through its subsidiary (ACIL).

Ambuja Cements is the most profitable cement company in India, and the lowest cost producer of cement in the world. One of the major reasons that Ambuja Cements is the lowest cost producer of cement in the world is its emphasis on efficiency. Power consists over 40% of the production cost of cement. The company improved efficiency of its kilns to get more output for less power. Thereafter Ambuja Cements set up a captive power plant at a substantially lower cost than the national grid. The company sourced a cheaper and higher quality coal from South Africa, and a better furnace oil from the Middle East. As a result, today, the company is in a position to sell its excess power to the local state government.

Thought of the Day

"I believe the real difference between success and failure in a corporation can be very often traced to the question of how well the organization brings out the great energies and talents of its people."

— Thomas J. Watson, Jr.
A Business and its Beliefs (1963)

Fewer buyers replacing their old cars

Car makers sold 1.5% few- er cars in the five months to 31 August compared with the same period last year, and behind this fall is an interesting detail: fewer people are replacing old cars or their buying second and third cars.

“Replacements are just not happening. Typically, it is said that people who have money do not hesitate to spend even during a slowdown,“ said Shashank Srivastava, chief general manager, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. “In the case of cars, we have noticed that while the number of first-time buyers has gone up significantly, people who already have a car and want to buy a second one or want to sell an old car to buy a new one are holding their decisions".

Seven new members on RBI board
Shareholders' nod to Parsvnath on funds

Real Estate Glossary

Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) :-

A mortgage with an interest rate that changes over time in line with movements in the index. ARMs are also referred to as AMLs (adjustable mortgage loans) or VRMs (variable rate mortgages).

Adjustment Period :-

The length of time between interest rate changes on an ARM. For example, a loan with an adjustment period of one year is called a one-year ARM, which means that the interest rate can change once a year.

Amortization :-

Repayment of a loan in installments of principal and interest, rather than interest-only payments.

Annual Percentage Rate (APR) :-

The total finance charge (interest, loan fees, points) expressed as a percentage of the loan amount.

CSR at ONGC

The mission of ONGC stated that the company would have an "abiding commitment to health, safety, and environment to enrich quality of community life."And this mission was reflected in its CSR activities. CSR at ONGC began as a philanthropic activity where the company contributed to several socio-economic developmental programs like building schools and hospitals, developing agriculture and cottage industry, building infrastructure facilities, etc., around its areas of operation on an ad hoc basis...

ONGC's CSR programs at the corporate level focused on disaster relief management and water management projects. When disasters struck India, ONGC provided relief and helped state and central governments in rehabilitating those affected. For example, when a heavy cyclone hit the eastern state of Orissa in 1999, the company provided immediate relief like food, drinking water, temporary shelters, medicine, clothing, etc. ONGC doctors provided medical treatment round the clock. The company also contributed Rs. 80 million toward the Prime Minister's relief fund and took steps to rehabilitate the cyclone victims...

YOGESH CHANDER DEVESHWAR

Chairman

ITC Limited

Yogesh Chander Deveshwar is the Chairman of ITC Limited, one of India's largest multi-business conglomerates. He was appointed as a Director on the Board of the Company in 1984 and became the Chairman on 1 January 1996.

Education

Yogesh Chander Deveshwar was born on 4 February 1947. He received his Bachelor of Technology Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in 1968. He has an AMP Diploma from Harvard Business School, United States, and also did a course on advanced training in hoteliering and Services at Cornell University, United States.

Career

Y C Deveshwar joined ITC Limited in 1968. He was appointed as a Director on the Board of the Company in 1984 and became the Chief Executive and Chairman of the Board on January 1, 1996. Between 1991 and 1994, he led Air India as Chairman and Managing Director.

Thought of the Day

"Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them."

—Paul Hawken, Natural Capitalism

Case Study on David Martin

David Martin (Martin), the marketing manager of Trendz4U, a UK-based garments manufacturer, which offered a range of clothing, was mulling over some key decisions that he would have to take while launching the company's successful brand in India. Two months earlier, the company had taken a decision to enter the rapidly growing market. Since then, Martin had been actively involved in devising the company's marketing strategy for India. Trendz4U was one of the leading apparel manufacturers in UK. Its product line included varieties of menswear, womenswear, and a range of sport wear. It also had a range for children and infants. It had a wide network of shops across the UK with around 100 stores.Trendz4U was renowned for the elegant maxi dresses and camisoles that it unveiled every season. Its stylish, high quality, and impeccably designed clothes, had earned it a good number of satisfied customers in the places in which it operated. In the UK, where it had established a significant presence, Trendz4U also provided free delivery and return services for apparel purchased online for bulk purchases. Its Toga dresses, or one-shouldered dresses, were a hit in 2009.

IT Glossary

Malware

Malware is any program or file that is harmful to a computer user. Thus, malware includes computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and also spyware, programming that gathers information about a computer user without permission.

Macintosh

The Macintosh (often called "the Mac") was the first widely-sold personal computer with a graphical user interface (GUI) and a mouse. Apple Computer introduced the Macintosh in an ad during Super Bowl XVIII, on January 22, 1984, and offered it for sale two days later.The Mac was designed to provide users with a natural, intuitively understandable, and, in general, "user-friendly" computer interface.

1. Start with a Solid Foundation

2. Have a Method or a System

3. Do More Listening Than Talking

4. Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Questions

5. Be Patient with Your Explanations

6. Explain Your Reasons and Thought Processes

7. Give Advice When Needed

8. Avoid Jargon

Productline of HUL:-

Personal wash:- Lux. Lifebuoy, Liril , Hamam, Breeze, Moti , Dove, Pears and Rexona

Laundry:- Surf Excel, sun light, Rin ,Wheel & Ala bleech

Dishwasher :- Vim

Disinfectants:- Domex, cif

Foods:- Kissan(Jam,Ketchup,Squashes), Annapurna(Aata and salt), Knorr Soups, Modern Bread

Ice-cream:- Kwality Wall's

Name the author of the book “Management Challenges for the 21^st century”.
Which sports gear and shoe manufacturer had launched an advertisement campaign with the tag line” all day I dream about Sachin”?
The phrase “mist on the screen” was popularized by which Indian IT czar?
Name the author of the book “The Evolution of non cooperation”.
Sourav Ganguly and Javagal Srinath endorsed which soft drink company in the late 90s?
“Denominator Management “was a phrase popularized by which management guru?
Nokia is a company registered in which country
The Portuguese footballer Cristiano Rolando endorses which brand?
Name the company that launched the first generation smart phones.
Tetley Tea is a brand owned by which Indian business group

Thought of the Day

All of the sports have a safety net, but boxing is the only sport that has none. So when the fighter is through, he is through. While he was fighting his management was very excited for him, but now that he is done, that management team is moving on.

- Gerry Cooney

Small Durables and growing market

Small durables--the little items that each home different--can be divided into four main groups: furniture and fixtures, household appliances, recreational goods, and other personal goods including mobile handsets, watches, clocks, plastic goods and decorative items. As a group, they account for less than 2% of total household expenses, as other basic necessities such as food, travel and rent take up the bulk of the budget.

The largest sub-groups in this category are other personal goods and household appliances, accounting for more than 80% and 11%, respectively, of the total expense within the group. There are variations across states. In Chandigarh, Goa and Kerala, household appliances take up close to 20% of the expenses in this category, double the average.

Within this group of small durables, there is a wide variety, with prices and brands to suit every pocket, and as house- holds move up the income ladder, they spend on higher-value items within the group; per-household annual expense on small durables, therefore, rises from `1,255 on an average in the lowest income segment, which are households earning less than `1.5 lakh a year, to `11,807 in the highest income segment of house- holds earning more than `10 lakh a year.

Aspiration levels being high across urban India, the demand to spruce up households as soon as money starts coming in is strong. In more affluent states such as Maharashtra and Gujarat, which together account for close to one-third of the total small durables expenditure, a glimpse into slums in their cities reveals families spending on light fixtures, sofa sets, mixer-grinders, etc. Though the northern region has the highest population, it is the western states that have the largest share of expenditure on household appliances, furniture, fixtures and recreational goods.

Glossary for Hospitality

Room Blocks - Several rooms held for a group.

Sales Mission - Where suppliers from one DMO travel together to another state of country for the purpose of collectively promoting travel to their area. Sales missions may include educational seminars for travel agents and tour operators.

Sales Seminar - An educational session in which travel agents, tour operators, tour wholesales or other members of the travel trade congregate to receive briefings about tourism destinations.

Shells - A marketing and sales promotional piece that depicts a destination,accommodation or attraction on the cover and provides space for copy to be added at a later date. Usually shells fit a #10 envelope.

Site Inspection - An assessment tour of a destination or facility by a meeting planner, convention or trade show manager, site selection committee, tour operator, wholesaler or incentive travel manager to see if it meets their needs and requirements prior to selecting a specific site for an event. After site selection, a site inspection may be utilized to make arrangements.

Communication Tips

1. Commit to becoming an effective listener. And learn how to “hear” what people are saying to you.

2. Conduct regular 1-on-1 meetings with people that work with you. And give them your full attention when meeting with them. These meetings are a great time to actively seek feedback from your staff about your own communications.

3. Demonstrate the core values of your company or organization on a consistent basis in whatever you do in your communications with fellow employees and those you supervise and manage.

4. Be sure you make extra efforts to ensure that all those people that need to know are told what they need to know and in a timely manner. For performance issues, this means communicating with them well before an annual performance review.

Storyboard: Reliance Digital TV

Agency: Leo Burnett
Category: Services

TVC opens with four friends lounging on sofas.

One of the friends starts the conversation and says, "Let's add FashionTV in our channel pack," and jokingly adds that 'seeing beauty is their duty'.

Teasing him, another friend recommends for him to become a watchman at some girls' hostel to fulfill his wish.

Thought of the Day

"So much of what we call management consists in making it difficult for people to work."

— Peter Drucker

Case Study on Can opportunities ever be equal?

The idea of equal opportunity is that men and women, on average, should have the same chances of, say, becoming the chief executive of a FTSE 100 company, or of pursuing careers in management at all levels. What individuals make of their lives should depend on their talents, choices and efforts, and not on artificial barriers such as sexual discrimination. We might expect that equal opportunities will lead to roughly equal representation of men and women in management, or at least that representation at this level will reflect the balance between males and females within the workforce. Should we expect 50% of managers to be women? If so, British business is clearly a long way short of the mark. However, this outcome should only be expected if men and women have, on average, the same talents and make the same choices. It can be argued that part of the ‘under-representation’ of women in management is a reflection of women having, as a group, different attitudes to work and careers than men. In particular, if a proportion of women choose home (i.e. being a stay-at-home mother looking after young children) over career then we would expect men, on average, to be more successful in their careers than women.

Economic Glossary:

Black market: An illegal market in which the price of the goods sold is above a legally set maximum price. A black market invariable results whenever the government imposes a price ceiling on a good. A common example of a price ceiling is rent controls on apartments in many large cities. Although landlords cannot "legally" rent apartments for more than the specified maximum, they often do so "illegally" by charging "finders fees" and "tenant association dues." In so doing, they have entered into the realm of black markets.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): measures the changes in the price of goods and services. The CPI measures price change from the perspective of the consumer. It is a key way to measure changes in purchasing trends and inflation in each country. Most developed countries have an inflation target measured by the CPI. A higher than expected reading should be taken as positive/bullish for the currency (as the common way to fight inflation is raising interest rates, which may attract foreign investment), while a lower than expected reading should be taken as negative/bearish for the currency.

Project Management

Meaning

Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end (usually time-constrained, and often constrained by funding or deliverables), undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value. The temporary nature of projects stands in contrast with business as usual (or operations), which are repetitive permanent, or semi-permanent functional activities to produce products or services. In practice, the management of these two systems is often quite different, and as such requires the development of distinct technical skills and management strategies.

Process

Traditionally, project management includes a number of elements: four to five process groups, and a control system. Regardless of the methodology or terminology used, the same basic project management processes will be used. Major process groups generally include:

ü initiation

ü planning or development

ü production or execution

ü monitoring and controlling

ü closing

In project environments with a significant exploratory element (e.g., research and development), these stages may be supplemented with decision points (go/no go decisions) at which the project's continuation is debated and decided. An example is the stage-gate model

Initiating

The initiating stage should include a plan that encompasses the following areas:

analyzing the business needs/requirements in measurable goals

reviewing of the current operations
financial analysis of the costs and benefits including a budget
stakeholder analysis, including users, and support personnel for the project
project charter including costs, tasks, deliverables, and schedule

CSR-ICICI Bank Ltd.

The ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth

The Foundation seek to catalyse and accelerate social and economic inclusion by bridging economic and human development gaps. The ICICI Group continue to leverage growth opportunities in India and overseas, seek to make a significant contribution to the integrated development of our country and build a platform for sustained growth that will create value for our stakeholders.

ICICI Bank’s ‘Read to Lead’ initiative aims to bridge gaps in the access to formal schooling for a large number of children from disadvantaged backgrounds. This initiative aims to reach out to 100,000 children through different voluntary organizations, facilitating formal schooling, bridge courses, and supplementary teaching-learning material. For children like Riya, formal education is now a reality.

Thought of the Day

"Management is, above all, a practice where art, science, and craft meet."

— Henry Mintzberg
McGill University

Consumer durables sector likely to see lukewarm festival season

India's festival season, which begins in October, is unlikely to add any shine to the country's `40,000 crore con- sumer durables and electronics industry because high inflation and interest rates are expected to dampen sales growth.

“The industry will not see growth of more than 5-6% in the festive season this year, which is significantly lower than last year's growth rate of 12%,“ said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, a director at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and In- dustry (Ficci).

Ghosh leads the industry lob- by group's economics and re- search unit, which compiles monthly data for the consumer durables sector in collaboration with the Central Statistics Office of the ministry of statistics and programme implementation.

Ghosh added the increase in equated monthly instalments (EMIs) due to recent interest rate hikes will also create pres- sure on a consumer's wallet.

The Reserve Bank of India has raised rates 12 times since March 2010, making loans costlier.

A large number of Indians prefer to buy consumer goods and home electronics on hire purchase. Dealers say some 40% of the good sold in the festive season is purchased through this route.

In the premium goods segment (in which a product costs more than `30,000, according to most dealers and retailers), sales might actually fall.

“Sales might dip by about 10% this coming Diwali for premium products as they might not sell much due to a steep rise in EMIs,“ said Nilesh Gupta, man- aging director, Vijay Sales, a Mumbai-based dealer of con- sumer products.

Yes Bank ties up with Malaysia bank
Asian Paints to demerge subsidiary
Apollo Hospitals to divest stake in arm

Yes Bank ties up with Malaysia bank

Private sector Yes Bank Ltd on Wednesday announced an agree ment with Malaysia's Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank), to collaborate on investment banking advisory, corporate banking, trade finance, remittances and other allied services between the two countries.

Asian Paints to demerge subsidiary

Asian Paints Ltd will demerge its wholly owned subsidiary Asian Paints Coatings Ltd with Asian PPG Industries Ltd, a joint venture with US based PPG Industries Inc., the firm informed the stock exchanges.

Along with this, two subsidiaries of PPG Industries--PPG India Pvt. Ltd and PPG Coatings India Pvt. Ltd, will also merge with the joint venture.

Apollo Hospitals to divest stake in arm

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd expects to divest stake in its health care outsourcing arm,

Apollo Health Street

Dr Prathap C. Reddy, executive chair man of Apollo Hospitals Group said three firms showed interest in picking up a stake. He did not disclose details on how much the hospital chain plans to divest. “We prefer to divest shares to an information technology provider having expertise in healthcare”, he said.

(Source.mintlive.com)

Marketing Glossary

FCC
Federal Communications Commission. The federal agency responsible for regulating broadcast and electronic communications.

Fixed-Sum-Per-Unit Method
A method of determining an advertising budget, which is based directly on the number of units sold.

Generic Brand
Products not associated with a private or national brand name

Niche Marketing Can Be Your Ticket to Success

Definition:

A niche market is a focused, target able portion of a market.

By definition, then, a business that focuses on a niche market is addressing a need for a product or service that is not being addressed by mainstream providers. You can think of a niche market as a narrowly defined group of potential customers.

For instance, instead of offering cleaning services, a business might establish a niche market by specializing in blind cleaning services.

You bother to establish a niche market? Because of the great advantage of being alone there; other small businesses may not be aware of your particular niche market, and large businesses won't want to bother with it.

The trick to capitalizing on a niche market is to find or develop a market niche that has customers who are accessible, that is growing fast enough, and that is not owned by one established vendor already.

One common path to success for many small businesses is establishing themselves in a niche market. Because no matter how hard they try, no large retailer can be all things to all people, there are always going to be segments of the population whose needs for particular products and/or services are going unmet – leaving room for the small business to succeed by meeting those needs.

CSR ACTIVITIES Steel Authority Of India Ltd

Cont..

Peripheral development :

Corporate Social Responsibility [CSR] begins by being aware of the impact of its business on society; and SAIL has been practicing CSR right from its inception. SAIL was founded with well-articulated socio-economic objectives towards the people of India, i.e. employees, customers, suppliers and community. The Credo of SAIL specifically highlights the commitment towards society at large which states inter-alia "We value the opportunity and responsibility to make a meaningful difference in people's lives". A lot of work has been done to improve the quality of life in and around the plants/ units and townships. SAIL has taken effective measures in the field of environment conservation, health and medical care, education, women upliftment, providing potable drinking water and ancillary development.By systematically addressing a gamut of issues such as health and medical welfare, education, access to water, sanitation, power and roads, women's empowerment, generation of employment, electricity, sports, culture, etc., at each of its plants and units, SAIL has contributed immensely to the economic development of its peripheral areas. By partnering creatively with small, local entrepreneurs, NGOs, state government and the centre, SAIL has ensured that the benefits arising out of its activities actually reach the grassroots level and not merely remain on paper. SAIL is committed to linking business opportunity and corporate responsibility in ways that fulfill one of SAIL's core purpose's To make a meaningful difference in people's lives.Under Peripheral Development various activities are being undertaken around the plants/units upto a radius of 16 kilometers. Several socio-economic surveys reveal considerable benefits emanating from SAIL's efforts that reach interiors upto a radius of 16 kilometers. Programmes are undertaken by each plant in close co-ordination with the State Government, District Administration as well as the local panchayats, social organizations and people's representative of the area. All plants/units are making special efforts to initiate new projects in the area of road connectivity, construction of bridges/culverts, access to improved water sources etc. The various activities undertaken as part of Peripheral Development are :-

Thought of the Day

"If you are the master be sometimes blind, if you are the servant be sometimes deaf."

— R Buckminster Fuller

CASE STUDY ON PRICING PARADISE: HOW THE HONOLULU POLICE DEPARTMENT

For years, the chiefs of the Honolulu Police Department used ohana, the Hawaiian word for family, to describe the department. Family is important in Hawaiian culture and ohana is the reason why officers joined and stayed with the force. Several years ago, the police family found itself in a staffing crisis. Like many other organizations, a large percentage of the officers were nearing retirement. Combined with other issues such as officers leaving for better paying jobs on the mainland and competition from other law enforcement that went on hiring sprees after 9/11, the force found itself significantly short of officers with no end in sight. Typically the department accepts only 3 percent of the applicants into its six-month training class, and lose some before the training in complete. The situation called for lots of applicants . . . fast. The department’s leaders decided that a massive recruiting campaign built around their ohana family-style culture was in order; $60,000 was put into recruiting efforts that took many forms.

■ Department image and culture was promoted as close knit and service oriented rather than the usual rough and tumble image of police departments.

■ Women’s recruitment seminars were held.

Culture

Culture is part of the external influences that impact the consumer. That is, culture represents influences that are imposed on the consumer by other individuals.

The definition of culture offered one text is “That complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man person as a member of society.” From this definition, we make the following observations:

Culture, as a “complex whole,” is a system of interdependent components.
Knowledge and beliefs are important parts. In the U.S., we know and believe that a person who is skilled and works hard will get ahead. In other countries, it may be believed that differences in outcome result more from luck. “Chunking,” the name for China in Chinese literally means “The Middle Kingdom.” The belief among ancient Chinese that they were in the center of the universe greatly influenced their thinking.
Other issues are relevant. Art, for example, may be reflected in the rather arbitrary practice of wearing ties in some countries and wearing turbans in others. Morality may be exhibited in the view in the United States that one should not be naked in public. In Japan, on the other hand, groups of men and women may take steam baths together without perceived as improper. On the other extreme, women in some Arab countries are not even allowed to reveal their faces. Notice, by the way, that what at least some countries view as moral may in fact be highly immoral by the standards of another country.

CSR Activities- Steel Authority of India Ltd.

Units are located mainly in backward area's, the company took steps to create better and healthy living conditions for both its employees as well as people living in the periphery Medical and health care: Ever since inception, SAIL has endeavoured to provide a healthy life to the people living in the peripheral areas of its plants/units. As the plants.There are 20 hospitals including 4 state-of-art hospitals situated throughout the country having a total strength of around 4000 beds for the benefit of employees, their dependents and the peripheral population and are managed by trained medical staff of around 4400 people.SAIL has launched an AIDS awareness and control program in partnership with National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Till date about Rs.32 million have been received for implementing the policies of NACP-II in all plants/units. SAIL hospitals also implement the RCH programme across all plants/units. SAIL is also participating in other National Health Programmes like TB Control, anti-Malaria, Leprosy etc. The company also organizes a number of health camps at various villages on fixed days. Villagers with major ailments are referred by these centres to the main plant hospitals, where they receive treatment. These centres also observe certain occasions such as World Health Day, World Blood Donor Day, New Born Week, etc., to enhance awareness and sensitise people on health related issues. Another major function of these centers is to create health awareness by distributing handbills, condoms, water purification tablets, etc., in health camps/melas, putting up hoardings in prominent locations and conducting debate, painting and quiz competitions, etc.Roads :

Economic Glossary:

Dumping: Selling the same good to a foreign country at a lower price, often below production cost, than that charged to the domestic buyers. Dumping usually occurs because -- (1) producers in one country are trying to stay competitive with producers in another country, (2) producers in one country are trying to eliminate the producers in another country and gain a larger share of the world market, (3) producers are trying to get rid of excess stuff that they can't sell in their own country, (4) producers can make more profit by dividing sales into domestic and foreign markets, then charging each market whatever price the buyers are willing to pay.

Discrimination: Treating people differently based on some sort of group characteristic--like race, ethnic origin, or gender--rather then individual abilities. Discrimination is usually most prominent in employment and housing, but can filter into all aspects of life in many subtle ways. Discrimination tends to be inefficient because it limits the number of buyers or sellers that have access to a given market. Those who discriminate in this manner are, in essence, willing to pay extra for the privilege of associating only with "their own kind."

Thought of the Day

"The conventional definition of management is getting work done through people, but real management is developing people through work."

— Agha Hasan Abedi

CSR ACTIVITIES- SAIL INDIA LTD.

Women UpliftmentIn all SAIL Plants, Mahila Samities have been formed since inception. The members of the Samities are spouses of the employees. Spouses of MDs, EDs etc are also a member of Mahila Samities . A lot of work is being done for the society by these Samities.

The various activities being performed by the samities includes women empowerment and development- community welfare activities - assistance during natural calamities - manufacturing products for general use in plants - providing assistance to women belonging to economically weaker section etc - providing vocational training to women - facilitating access to education for needy girl children.

IT Glossary

Task Bar

In the graphical user interface (GUI) for a computer operating system or application, a taskbar is a visual device on the desktop that typically shows the user which applications (tasks) are currently active and running. Some taskbars, such as those in Windows operating systems, also include icons for commonly-used utilities such as the system clock and antivirus software.

TIN

A taxpayer Identification number (TIN) is an employer identification number assigned by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) when registering a company to do business in the United States.

Tool Bar

In the graphical user interface ( GUI ) for a computer, a toolbar is a horizontal row or vertical column of selectable image "buttons" that give the user a constantly visible reminder of and an easy way to select certain desktop or other application functions, such as saving or printing a document or moving pages forwards or backwards within a Web browser . Most operating system comes with a toolbar. In addition, many application programs, such as word processors and spreadsheet programs come with one or more toolbars as part of their user interface.

Microsoft recently unveiled a reconfigured version of its large-scale table-top computer, called "Surface," showing off groundbreaking sensor technology and aiming to break into corporate markets.

The Redmond, Wash.-based software giant, who originally introduced the Surface in 2007, said its new touch-table table is thinner and lighter. It features a 40-inch LED display panel bonded to rugged "Gorilla" glass, Corning's damage-resistance material. The panel, which is only four inches thick, can be placed horizontally on stands or counter tops, or mounted on vertical surfaces, kiosk-style.

Each display has full PC capabilities, with Windows 7, and runs on Duo-Core processors.

Microsoft said the Surface will cost $7,600, down from the original price of $15,000,
and be available in 23 countries, including the U.S. and Canada, later this year.

(Born: 1^st December, 1954)

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Medha Patkar is an Indian social activist. She is known for her role in Narmada Bachao Andolan. She has also filed a public interest petition in the Bombay high court against Lavasa along with other members of NAPM, including Anna Hazare.

Medha Patkar was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra to Indu and Vasant Khanolkar, a trade union leader and freedom fighter. She was raised by politically and socially active parents. Her father actively fought in the Indian Independence Movement. Her mother was a member of Swadar, an organization setup to help and assist women suffering difficult circumstances arising out of financial, educational, and health related problems. Her parents' activism played a role in shaping her philosophical views. She was often known for her extreme views on growth of country and liberalization.

Medha Patkar is a well known social activist of India. Prior to becoming a social reformer, she completed her M.A. in Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). She left Ph. D. in the midst and got actively involved in the agitations conducted by tribals and peasants of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. This paved way for the formation of the organization named Narmada Bachao Andolan