Thought of the day
Marketing Article
Six Tips for Executing a Successful Augmented Reality Campaign
From 3-D playing cards and movie posters to virtual fitting rooms and vehicle test drives, augmented reality (AR) is emerging as a more accessible, innovative marketing tool.
Because more than half of shoppers use their smart phones to research purchases, AR offers new and improved ways for retailers to build relationships and engage with their customers—both inside and outside stores. In addition to creating a more engaging user experience, AR provides data that empowers brands to better understand what is resonating with consumers, and to tailor their marketing efforts accordingly.
Early examples of AR have proven successful for many brands, but barriers to widespread adoption among consumers are still present. So how does AR avoid fizzling out like so many marketing tech trends that came before it?
Executing an innovative and successful AR marketing campaign doesn't have to be complicated. For retail marketers considering experimenting with AR, here are a few simple tips to keep in mind.
1. Make it relevant
For marketers and brands considering making AR part of their strategy, it's critical to understand what types of AR content are relevant to their users.
Within a user's live environment, AR technology has the ability to deliver 2-D and 3-D imagery, video, and animation via a mobile device. For example:
Conde Nast Traveler added an AR feature to its iPhone app that helped travelers discover nearby attractions simply by scanning the area around them with their IPhone camera.
The ice cream gurus at Ben & Jerry's added an AR feature within the brand's "Scoop of Happiness" app that allowed users to learn more about their ice cream flavor of choice by simply scanning the lid.
By tapping into the insights that AR provides—based on where, when, and how their audience is engaging with their content—retail marketers can better understand what content resonates with the user, then tailor their messaging and marketing efforts.
Snapdeal.com Nagar, The Inspirational Kunal Bahl Story
A privilege last earned by Jamshetji Nusserwanji Tata (Tatanagar), and Gujarmal Modi (Modinagar) has been extended to snapdeal.com. A distant village in Uttar Pradesh is now known by the name of “Snapdeal.com Nagar” earlier known as Shiv Nagar. The tiny town had good reason to, because SnapDeal, India’s version of Groupon, provided it with fresh water.
Snapdeal’s founder Kunal Bahl wanted to do something with his company’s growing profit. The 28 year old CEO found the opportunity in water. He found this for a fact that a mere $5000 would install 15 hand pumps that would relieve the villagers from walking nearly 2 miles just to get clean water. The villagers were grateful for the generosity shown by the company and decided to rename the village.
Kunal Bahl hints at more such philanthropy in the works by his New Delhi business. When he was being asked whether this is a publicity gimmick following was his reply: “All we can say is that time will show our commitment to this project and even the things we do in the future. You need not be a multibillionaire company to make a change in society around you. This project was not about the power of money but the intent and efforts which our team took to give this dream alive. Even if one small company takes inspiration from this, we will feel our efforts have borne fruit.”
Most Promising Young Indian Entrepreneur
Sanjay Kumaran (11) and Shravan Kumaran (13), two brothers from Chennai build a mobile phone applications firm that have witnessed over 10,000 downloads across the world already. Sanjay is probably the youngest CEO in the world.
Shravan is in the eighth grade and Sanjay in the sixth at Vael’s Billabong International School, Chennai.
According to Shravan, their first app ‘Catch me cop’, had more than 10,000 downloads in 45 countries since it was made available on Apple’s App Store from January 21 in 2012. He adds that his company is now developing more apps, all of which are now available on App Store and on Google’s Play Store.
The second app, ‘Alphabet Board,’ and third app “Prayer Planet,” have also received good response from the users all around the world.
These young entrepreneurs now have plans to develop a tablet by 2015-16 and want to price it so slow that they become easily assessable to people of all economic backgrounds.
News
P&G to invest Rs 1,500 cr. in India to catch up with HUL
P & G Home Products, an Indian unit of Procter & Gamble, will borrow Rs 1,500 crore in the form of inter-company loan, the firm has said amid efforts to catch up with market leader Hindustan Unilever. The unlisted maker of Tide detergent and Pantene shampoo has passed a special resolution for the borrowing, which will be in addition to its paid-up capital and reserves, according to its annual filing with the Registrar of Companies last week.
The company did not specify the time frame for the borrowing or how it would be used. A spokesperson for P&G did not respond to ET's specific query on how the funds would be utilised, but said, "Inter-company borrowing is regular business practice where funds move between different divisions at different times. Since our Indian operations are spread across three different legal entities, it is routine to make updates on such plans to move funds within our own legal entities as per the Companies Act."
Analysts say the company would have to direct most of the funds to capacity expansion if it has to include more brands from the group's global portfolio. "Setting up more manufacturing units and expanding existing plants will be key for P&G if they want to launch more brands from its parent company," said Nitin Mathur, consumer research analyst at Espirito Santo Securities. P&G Home Products has already invested more than Rs 2,000 crore over the last two years to spruce up its existing factories and set up a new multi-product plant near Hyderabad.
The company's efforts at increasing local production are aimed at cutting dependence on costly imports. For instance, the company, which entered the toothpastes category six months ago, is dependent on China for most of its oral-care supplies. P&G is the world's largest consumer goods company by revenue. Despite clocking a CAGR of 25% in India in the last decade, it has been facing criticism for its increased spending in emerging markets at the cost of expansion in developed countries, which had been a cash cow for the global company.
News
Indian economy will grow 6% in 2014-15: Crisil
COIMBATORE: Indian economy will grow 6% in 2014-15 compared with an expected 4.8% growth in 2013-14, ratings agency Crisil has said.
The forecast is premised on normal monsoons, continuation of the recent reform process and widely anticipated global recovery.On the downside, growth could weigh in below 5% yet again if the above assumptions do not play out, according to the agency.
We believe the pick-up will be aided by implementation of stalled projects, de-bottlenecking of the mining sector and a recovery in industry on higher external demand," Crisil said. "We also expect some rebound in services growth in 2014-15 led by higher exports as well as a positive rub-off from higher industrial growth," it said.
"Finally, we assume a normal monsoon year, which will cushion growth and help in taming inflation," the agency said.
The growth forecast is also supported by improved global outlook. Ratings agency Standard and Poor's expects US GDP (gross domestic product) growth to rise to 2.8% in 2014, from 1.7% in 2013, while the Eurozone economy is forecast to expand by 0.9% after two years of recession.
SUCCESS STORY OF JUST DIAL
V.S.S.Mani, a first-generation entrepreneur, was born into a middle-class south Indian family. The eldest among three brothers and a sister, he began working early and attended an evening college to complete his graduation. The idea of setting up a local search service provider originated in Mani's mind in the 1980s when he began selling advertisements and listings for United Database India for its yellow pages in Delhi. He became an entrepreneur in 1992 when he set up search company Ask Me with two partners. The partnership did not last long due to differences of opinion and he soon sold his stake in Ask Me to his partners. In 1996, Mani set up Just Dial from a garage in the Mumbai suburb of Malad.
Just Dial started as a voice-based service. In 1999, at the peak of the dotcom boom, consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) advised Mani to move out of voice and join the Internet bandwagon to grow his business rapidly. He didn't agree with PwC, arguing that the use of phones will grow faster than the Internet in India. He has been proved right, with the number of phone users increasing exponentially in the past decade.
Just Dial has a robust business model. It earns revenue from the customers who advertise with it. It had more than 221,000 paid advertisers as of June, and received more than 364 million search requests during the year ended March 2013. Its users are spread across 1,800 cities in India, though about 90 to 95 per cent of its revenue comes from 12 cities. The advertisers pay between Rs 3,000 to a few lakh depending on the location, and products and services they provide. "We have very high customer retention. That's one of the reasons for our high growth," says Mani.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Marketing Article
10 Ways -Big Data Is Shaping Marketing
With businesses collecting mounds of data today, it is critical that they know what to do with it once they have all that information.
Over the past year, more and more companies have used their big data analytics to support their marketing efforts. With that practice expected to continue in 2014, AgilOne, a cloud-based predictive marketing company, has identified 10 big data marketing predictions for 2014 that will affect mid-market retailers.
Their predictions include:
- Eighty percent of retailers will have a central customer data warehouse with the ability to link all data points to unique customer channels.
- More companies will integrate offline; call center and loyalty transactions with their online customer data.
- Nearly 70 percent of retailers will use predictive analytics for at least one of their sales
- Marketers will no longer limit themselves to predictions of customers' likelihood-to-buy. Businesses will instead add other data, such as recommendations, customer clusters and likelihood-to-churn predictions.
- Predictive modeling will move beyond email and direct mail to include social media and offline transactions.
- Nearly 70 percent of retailers will do customer segmentation.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Brief about
Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Born on 15th October 1931 at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, Dr. Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, specialized in Aeronautical Engineering from Madras Institute of Technology. Dr. Kalam made significant contribution as Project Director to develop India's first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which successfully injected the Rohini satellite in the near earth orbit in July 1980 and made India an exclusive member of Space Club. He was responsible for the evolution of ISRO's launch vehicle programme, particularly the PSLV configuration. After working for two decades in ISRO and mastering launch vehicle technologies, Dr. Kalam took up the responsibility of developing Indigenous Guided Missiles at Defence Research and Development Organisation as the Chief Executive of Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP). He was responsible for the development and operationalisation of AGNI and PRITHVI Missiles and for building indigenous capability in critical technologies through networking of multiple institutions. He was the Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and Secretary, Department of Defence Research & Development from July 1992 to December 1999. During this period he led to the weaponisation of strategic missile systems and the Pokhran-II nuclear tests in collaboration with Department of Atomic Energy, which made India a nuclear weapon State. He also gave thrust to self-reliance in defence systems by progressing multiple development tasks and mission projects such as Light Combat Aircraft.
As Chairman of Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) and as an eminent scientist, he led the country with the help of 500 experts to arrive at Technology Vision 2020 giving a road map for transforming India from the present developing status to a developed nation. Dr. Kalam has served as the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, in the rank of Cabinet Minister, from November 1999 to November 2001 and was responsible for evolving policies, strategies and missions for many development applications. Dr. Kalam was also the Chairman, Ex-officio, of the Scientific Advisory Committee to the Cabinet (SAC-C) and piloted India Millennium Mission 2020.
News
China develops cellphone operating system to ease stranglehold of Google and Apple systems
BEIJING: China has developed its own cellphone operating system aimed at easing the stranglehold of the US' Google and Apple systems, even as sceptics doubt its efficacy.
Dubbed as the China Operating System (COS) it is a strategic product for national security which has become more urgent in the wake of recent incidents such as the US intelligence scandal of Prism and Windows ending further support of its XP system, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) said in a statement.
Similar to the interface on Google's Android and Apple's iOS, the Chinese system can be used on touch-screen phones and serves as a platform for various apps, it can already support up to a lakh of apps, claimed CAS and its partner, Shanghai-based Liantong Network Communication Technology.
Also compatible for tablets and TV set-top boxes, the system is marked by its safety since it allows only one app store, the official one, so as to ensure that all applications are examined to be safe and non-pirated compared with Android, which is open to any apps, the statement said.
However, news about this system drew almost unanimous doubts and mocking on the Internet, with many questioning why the government has funded yet another ambitious project that will not necessarily weather market tests, the state-run Global Times reported.
Some even speculated that it is a modified Android system.
News
Intel to trim its workforce by 5 per cent amid earnings woes
SAN FRANCISCO: US chip giant Intel has said it will trim its workforce by five per cent this year as it shifts from personal computers to powering mobile gadgets.
Word of the job cuts came a day after Intel reported that its net profit last year sank 13 per cent but that the troubled personal computer market appeared to be stabilising.
Intel shares remained around the closing price of $25.85 in after-market trades. "We do expect employment to come down by about five per cent by the end of the year," Intel spokesman Chris Kraeuter told AFP yesterday."It is something we regularly do to make sure that the people we have match up with our priorities."
Kraeuter said that California-based Intel ended last year with 107,600 workers. He declined to disclose which positions or locations would be targeted for cuts.
Intel reported on Thursday that it made a net profit of $9.6 billion on revenue of $52.7 billion last year as compared with $11 billion in net profit on $53.3 billion in revenue in 2012.
"We had a solid fourth quarter with signs of stabilisation in the PC segment and financial growth from a year ago," said Intel chief executive Brian Krzanich.
In the final quarter of the year, Intel posted profit of $2.6 billion on revenue of $13.8 billion as compared with $2.5 billion net income on $13.5 billion in revenue during the same period in 2012. "We've built a strong foundation for our business by bringing innovation to the market more quickly across a wide range of computing platforms," said Krzanich.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
News
Economy will return to high growth: FM P Chidambaram
GREATER NOIDA | NEW DELHI; India will return to a high growth path within three years "step by step", backed by global recovery and measures undertaken by the government to push investments, said finance minister P Chidambaram, promising a "strong financial foundation" to support growth and "unflinching commitment" to fiscal prudence.
His commitment to growth capped a day on which the World Bank said India's economy will accelerate to 6.2% in 2014-15 and wholesale inflation dropped to a five-month low.
The finance ministry also deferred a 15,000-crore bond auction citing a comfortable cash situation, indicating that the fiscal situation may have begun improving since December."We are acutely aware that growth can be secured only on a strong financial foundation.On more than one occasion I have reiterated our unflinching commitment to contain the fiscal deficit to 4.8% of GDP in the current year, and I do so again today," Chidambaram said in his valedictory address at the Petrotech conference on Wednesday.
Chidambaram, who had unveiled a new fiscal consolidation plan to get the country's fiscal health back on track, has already launched an exercise to compress government spending and to ensure that revenues remain robust.
His stringent fiscal plan, announced soon after moving to North Block in 2012, helped the country avert a rating downgrade crisis. The fiscal deficit came in at 4.9% of GDP in FY13, lower than the budgeted 5.2%.
News
FIPB clears Glaxo Smith Kline's Rs 6,400 cr FDI proposal
NEW DELHI: FIPB cleared Rs 6,400 crore FDI proposal of Glaxo Smith Kline to acquire additional 24.33 per cent stake in its India arm.The proposal of Glaxo Smith Kline has been cleared," said a source after the meeting of Foreign Investment Promotion Board, headed by Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram.
The Singapore subsidiary of the UK-based Glaxo Smith Kline plans to buy 24.33 per cent stake or 2.06 crore equity shares in Glaxo Smith Kline Pharmaceuticals Ltd through an open offer.
The acquisition will result in foreign exchange inflow of Rs 6,400 crore, as per the firm's proposal to FIPB.
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals is already majority owned and controlled by the GSK Group.
After the purchase, holding of the promoter group firms in the Indian subsidiary will go up to 75 per cent from the current level of 50.67 per cent.The open offer for tendering of shares is scheduled to remain open from February 7-21.
News
Tata launches new Nano with power steering
MUMBAI: India's struggling Tata Nano, launched in 2009 as the world's cheapest car, unveiled a new, pricier variant of the jelly-bean shaped car on Monday featuring power-steering in a bid to boost flagging sales.
The latest model, called Nano Twist, targets young people. It has power steering along with remote keyless entry, a four-speaker music system with Bluetooth and a higher ground clearance for rough terrain.
Ranjit Yadav, president, passenger vehicles business, Tata Motors, said the car was "loaded with trendy features" to make it a "smart city car to hang out with".
Marketing Article
Small Business? Big Ideas on How to Beat the Competition
With competition as fierce as ever for shoppers, small businesses are always looking for ways to set themselves apart from big box retailers.
To help continue the momentum many businesses gained on Small Business Saturday, hibu, a provider of digital marketing solutions for small businesses, offers tips on how local business owners can maximize their profits this holiday season. Their advice includes:
Avoid the "loss leader" approach adopted by big box retailers: Promoting big-ticket single items can be costly for small businesses. Instead, recommend customers choose a few unique items as a package, and create an offer around that.
Stock up on inventory: Businesses need to make sure their inventory is sufficient. When people come to their store or online site, they expect to be able to buy what they're looking for. Don't let them down by not having the items readily available to purchase.
Online shoppers: For those with an online site, be sure to give customers an excellent e-commerce experience. Things like free shipping over a certain amount and in-store pickup can make a big difference.
Social media: Use social channels to promote deals, and encourage customers to share them with others.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Brief about Nirma
SUCCESS STORY OF NIRMA
Nirma is a group of companies based in the city of Ahmedabad in western India that manufactures products ranging from cosmetics, soaps, detergents, salt, soda ash, LAB and Injectables. Karsanbhai Patel, a well known entrepreneur and philanthropist of Gujarat, started Nirma as a one-man operation. Today Nirma has over 15000 employees and a turnover of over Rs. 3550 crores. In 2004, Nirma's detergent approached 800,000 tonnes – one of the largest volumes sold in the world – under a single brand 'NIRMA'.
Overview
Starting as a one-product, one-man outfit from a 100 sq ft (9.3 m2) room in 1969, Nirma became a very successful company within three decades.The company had multi-locational manufacturing facilities, and a broad product portfolio under an umbrella brand – Nirma. The company's mission to provide, "Better Products, Better Value, Better Living" contributed a great deal to its success.
Nirma successfully countered competition from HUL and carved a niche for itself in the lower-end of the detergents and toilet soap market. The brand name became almost synonymous with low-priced detergents and toilet soaps. However, Nirma realized that it would have to launch products for the upper end of the market to retain its middle class consumers who would graduate to the upper end. The company launched toilet soaps for the premium segment. However, analysts felt that Nirma would not be able to repeat its success story in the premium segment.
In 2000, Nirma had a 15% share in the toilet soap segment and more than 30% share in the detergent market. Aided by growth in volumes and commissioning of backward integration projects, Nirma's turnover for the year ended March 2000 increased by 17% over the previous fiscal, to Rs. 12.17 bn.
Monday, January 13, 2014
News
Can achieve higher growth rate: Rangarajan
KOLKATA: The Indian economy may be witnessing a phase of relatively low growth but things are likely to improve, believes C Rangarajan, chairman, economic advisory council to the Prime Minister. He is also the president of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and addressed the students and faculty at its 48th convocation in Kolkata on Friday.
"It is true that the Indian economy presents a picture that is different from what it was three or four years ago when you (the students) entered the institute. The Indian economy is currently passing through a phase of relatively low growth. But this should not cloud the fact that over the eight-year period beginning 2005-06, the average annual growth rate has been excess of eight per cent. We shouldn't under estimate the structural changes that the economy has undergone in the last two decades. These have imparted greater resilience to the system and the economy is now more competitive," Rangarajan said.
After growing at a rate of nine per cent for three consecutive years, there was a slump to 6.2% in 2008-09. According to the PM's economic advisor, the Indian economy was able to protect itself reasonably well during the global crisis and recovery was swift and sharp. After a growth rate of 8.2% in 2009-10 and 9.3% in 2010-11, the economic activities moderated quite substantially in 2011-12.
News
Oil ministry opposes IOC selloff
NEW DELHI: This is not the time to sell family jewels as you won't get the price. That was the argument the oil ministry forwarded on Wednesday at a secretary-level meeting, suggesting the department of disinvestment needs to pay heed to the rumble on the street and put off disinvestment in Indian Oil.
A ministerial panel is set to decide on the issue on Thursday afternoon since the finance ministryis pushing hard for the sell-off to meet its target of raising Rs 40,000 crore through disinvestment. The oil ministry has already put on record its opposition through an office memo. The memo, first reported by TOI on December 11, lists improper valuation, weakness in the rupee as well as stock market and grey areas in fuel pricing policy as concerns that could spook the sell-off.
The government plans to shed 10% stake through a follow-on public offering. A team of officials from the oil ministry, department of disinvestment and Indian Oil executives held roadshows in the UK, USA, Hong Kong and Singapore to promote the share sale to 84 big investors. Almost all questioned the suitability and timing of the government embarking on disinvestment in a company when valuations were low due to depressed stock prices and uncertain revenue scenario.
Foreign investors also raised concern over rupee depreciation increasing under-recoveries, diminishing profitability, suppressing valuation and a double adverse impact on their equity holdings.
Some estimates put the due to undervaluation, the government's realization could be lower by Rs 4,225 crore from the target seen at the time of announcement in January 2013. At Wednesday's closing price of Rs 195.50, IOC has a market capitalization of Rs 47,466 crore. This M-Cap is after factoring in IOC's 7.69% holding in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation worth Rs 17,9711.78 crore at close.
Case Study
FDI IN RETAIL
"An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."- Benjamin Franklin
Does above quote makes any sense in latest context of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)? The answer is very simple “YES”. We are living in a global village and everything is on our fingertip. The capacity to understand the world’s scenario may open many doors.
So, What about the FDI means in Indian context? We have to go into our history, in early 1498 when a Portuguese Vaskodigama arrived at Calicut. He saw the prosperity of Indians. He introduced India in whole world. Later people started to visit India. Portuguese, Dutch, British and French they established their premises in India and start trading with Indian people and dynasty. Sir Tomas Roe was the first British who came as the ambassador of British emperor and get the permission of trading in Mughal India. After this they created the ‘East India Company’ and started their business. It was the initial form of FDI in India.
Later it got many changes according to the world’s financial status and become more popular word as foreign direct investment and the more similar word called foreign institutional investor (FII).
Concept:-
FDI is a term of investment where one or more companies /people from a particular nation put their capital into other nation according to their development needs. In more specific words according to International monetary fund (IMF) the total capital of 10% or more of a foreign company/people into a unit is considered as FDI below this limit is only a shareholding.
Personal Profile- Sachin Bansal
Co-founder and CEO of Flipkart has received Economic Times Entrepreneur of the year 2013 award.
The award seeks to recognize the ability of a business leader to enter the big league and take on the best in the world. Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal both alumnus of IIT Delhi quit their job at Amazon and started Flipkart in 2007 with an initial investment of Rs 4 Lakh. Initially Flipkart focus was on selling books online and later they expanded in to electronics and fashion items.
Online retail market of India was not attractive enough for biggest online retail player Amazon and they never played in Indian market as they are playing in other markets. A vacuum was there and Flipkart filled it perfectly. Their conviction that Indian market is ready for online shopping paid them well.
Flipkart literally taught Indians that it is OK to buy goods online. Their payment model which include cash on delivery and card swipe on delivery allowed customers to go ahead and shop online. Communication strategy of Flipkart has literally taught Indian market to do online shopping.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
HR Article
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 is a legislative act in India that seeks to protect women from sexual harassment at their place of work. It was passed by the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Indian Parliament) on 3 September 2012. It was passed by the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of the Indian Parliament) on 26 February 2013.The Bill got the assent of the President on 23 April 2013.The Act came into force from 9 December 2013.
The introductory text of the Act is:
An Act to provide protection against sexual harassment of women at workplace and for the prevention and redressal of complaints of sexual harassment and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
WHEREAS sexual harassment results in violation of the fundamental rights of a woman to equality under articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution of India and her right to life and to live with dignity under article 21 of the Constitution and right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business which includes a right to a safe environment free from sexual harassment;
AND WHEREAS the protection against sexual harassment and the right to work with dignity are universally recognised human rights by international conventions and instruments such as Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, which has been ratified on the 25th June, 1993 by the Government of India;
AND WHEREAS it is expedient to make provisions for giving effect to the said Convention for protection of women against sexual harassment at workplace.
News
Volatile rupee, upcoming polls may slow down Cisco's expansion plan this year
NEW DELHI: Cisco is betting on India's telecommunications, media, banking and financial services segments to continue driving its revenue growth, but repeating the 37% expansion reported in the last fiscal year will be difficult for the US-based network equipment maker, with a volatile currency and upcoming polls posing key risks.
The company sees a key growth area emerging from India's thrust on financial inclusion by expanding banking services to rural and remote places, as this will likely boost demand for equipment to network bank branches in those areas.
Dinesh Malkani, Cisco's vice-president for sales, India and Saarc, has his main focus set on the opportunities offered by data traffic. Over the next two to three years, companies such as telecom and cable TV operators are expected to see "phenomenal growth because of mobile data, digitisation and broadband, etc.," he said.
As much as 60% of the infrastructure deployed in telecom networks in the country is based on Cisco's technology. The company is also the market leader in eight of the 10 segments that it is present in India, indicating the US major's dominating presence in the South Asian nation. For equipment like ENT router, the company commands as much as 75% of the market.
Cisco's Bangalore development centre is its largest outside the US. It has more than 11,800 employees in India with offices spread across cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata and Hyderabad, apart from the country's IT capital.
News
Exports lose steam, deficit widens despite low imports
NEW DELHI: The recovery in exports that helped arrest the slide in India's external balances seems to have lost some steam with shipments rising at the slowest pace in six months in December, but the seventh successive monthly decline in imports, led once again by gold, helped contain the trade deficit to just over $10 billion.
Exports rose 3.49 per cent in December from a year ago to $26.35 billion, data released on Friday showed, while imports fell 15.25 per cent to $36.49 billion, yielding a trade deficit of $10.14 billion compared with $9.22 billion in November.
Gold and silver imports dropped 68.83 per cent in December. The export number was softer on account of lower petroleum product shipments amid a planned refinery shutdown at Reliance Industries.
"We now believe that CAD would be lower than earlier anticipated, in the range of $35 billion to 40 billion," said Shubhada Rao, chief economist, Yes Bank. India Ratings expects the current account deficit in the October-December quarter at 1.1 per cent of GDP, while Rohini Malkani of Citi has pegged it at 2.3 per cent.
The dramatic slide in the rupee to just short of 69 to the dollar in August from around 54 at the beginning of the current fiscal year had forced the government into a desperate fight to contain the current account deficit, which had touched a record high of 4.8 per cent of GDP in 2012-13.
Finance terms
What is KIM? How does it differ from an offer document?
KIM is a key information memorandum. It is a summary of scheme information document and statement of additional information which are two important parts of an offer document.
What gets covered in a KIM is basic things like the name of the AMC, the name of the fund manager, plans and options under the scheme, the performance of the scheme vis-Ã -vis its benchmark etc.
What is an offer document? It is one of the most important documents as far as the scheme is concerned. So, whenever a fund house comes out with a new fund they have to come out with an offer document as well which has to be approved by the trustees and vetted by Sebi.
Offer document has two major parts. It is a scheme information document and statement of additional information. Major things covered in the offer document are things like investment objectives, investment strategies of the fund, market view etc. It is the most important document. Investor needs to read the offer document before taking a decision to invest into the particular fund.
Friday, January 10, 2014
News
Coming soon! FDI in Railways to boost high speed train networks
NEW DELHI: The government will soon invite foreign businesses to help expand its once-mighty but now outdated railways, sources said, in a move that would mark the opening up of one of the country's last great state-controlled industries.
Foreign investors will be allowed to fully own new services in suburban areas, high speed tracks, and connections to ports, mines and power installations, said two senior officials involved in the deliberations.
Existing passenger and freight network operations will not be open to foreign investors under the initiative, which seeks to ease bottlenecks that slow travel on the world's fourth-largest rail system.
"The plan is to allow 100 per cent foreign direct investment in suburban corridors, high-speed train systems, freight line projects implemented through public-private partnership," said an official at the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion.
The government officials said the move could attract up to $10 billion of foreign investment over the next five years.
Marketing Article
Marketing Realism for 2014: Don't Let a Good Plan Sit on the Shelf
"Authentic" and "credible" are words that surface often in modern marketing. Your voice must be authentic in social media for followers to share your content and become raving fans. Your branding must be credible — would anyone believe that Volvo equals safety if the statistics weren't strong? But when you're planning your marketing for the year ahead, an important word to remember is "realistic."
Typically, planners begin by developing “what” they want to do.
You can write a beautiful, ambitious and exciting plan to roll out a new product, expand to a new city or grow your market share. That's the "what" of your plan. By all means, take the time to understand your target audience, assess your competitors, identify your brand— what really differentiates you. Decide your strategies. Maybe building brand awareness is key in the coming year, or demonstrating thought leadership. Select your tactics: do you need media relations, social media or community engagement to meet your goals? But don't forget to make it a plan you can realistically implement.
Take a good, long look at the "who."
Who will work this plan? If you commit to doing the work yourself, make sure you really have the time. Will it sit sweating on your task list, waiting for attention? If you plan to do it yourself, put specific appointments on your calendar every day for your marketing efforts, even if they are only 15-minute blocks. Consider hiring a consultant, a marketing coordinator or an intern. But choose carefully. Make sure to look at samples of their work, and talk to references. You need a well-organized, action-oriented doer, not a creative but flighty dreamer. A poor hire will wind up taking more of your time training and supervising.
News
India's emigration process to go electronic by April
India will introduce the e-migrate electronic emigration process from April to enhance transparency and make the movement of people across the border easier, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs Secretary Prem Narain has said.
We are targeting to introduce the e-migrate project in April. It will make the emigration process much easier and enhance transparency," Narain told IANS in an interview on the sidelines of the 12th annual diaspora convention - the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) - organised here by his ministry Jan 7-9.
According to the secretary, e-migrate process would provide a complete and comprehensive electronic platform linking all the stakeholders with minimum human intervention.
The e-migrate system will convert all routine processes like application submission, document verification and other approvals to the electronic mode. Information related to migrants and agents as well as data related to their country of travel and residence will be provided at one place.
Narain said the new process would significantly improve the quality of services being provided by the Indian emigration authorities.
The government has contracted Tata Consultancy Services ( TCS) for implementing the project.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
News
On Dalal Street, midcaps are the new bluechips; to gain most in case of recovery
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have struck gold in the midcaps. Quality midcap stocks have had a spectacular run on the bourses in the past three months as FIIs shifted money to beaten-down shares from large caps. The valuation gap with large caps is at a record high and has served as a strong lure for investors, analysts said.
The BSE Midcap index has surged 15% in the past three months compared with the anaemic 2% gain in the Sensex. Stocks such as Aurobindo Pharma, PI Industries, TVS Motors, Arvind, Infotech Enterprises, Just Dial, Info Edge, Apollo Tyres and Indian Bank have surged between 50% and 100% during the period.
Fund managers believe that even with this kind of increase, mid-level companies are still cheap and that these are the stocks that will bounce back sharply when the economy turns around. India's economy slumped to a decade-low 5% in the year to March 2013 and while the chances of a revival are receding, the government expects a strong second half will mean full-year growth remaining at last year's level.
"Midcap stocks, which have been beaten down sharply in the past few years, are currently trading at 30-40% valuation discounts to large caps," said Sunil Singhania, chief investment officer (equities) at Reliance Mutual Fund. "In case the economy recovers earlier than expected, these are the stocks to give spectacular return and we are positive on this space."
Finance Article
LESSONS FROM FINANCIAL YEAR 2013
LESSONS FROM FINANCIAL YEAR 2013
The investing landscape saw momentous developments in 2013, most of them driven by regulatory actions. Whether it was the introduction of direct plans in mutual funds, new guidelines for health insurance, or the precipitous fall in debt funds, each of these events had a significant impact on your finances. Each development also offered a lesson to the small investor.
The rupee played a pivotal role during 2013. We learnt that it affects nearly every other investment. The RBI raised interest rates to buoy the rupee and the capital markets went into a tailspin. The falling rupee also kept gold prices high in India when global prices crashed.
The stock markets remained volatile during the year and the Sensex touched an all-time high. However, this euphoria was confined to large-cap stocks. The mid- and small-cap stock indices closed the year with losses, underlining the need to be choosy while investing.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Business News
Kishore Biyani is the most successful PE investor in 2013
MUMBAI: You know him as the entrepreneur who revolutionised retail in India. But did you know Future Group's Kishore Biyani is also the most successful private equity (PE) investor of 2013?
In the past 12 months, Biyani's listed investment vehicle Future Ventures - now rechristened Future Consumer Enterprise Limited - has clocked stellar returns through a series of multi-bagger disinvestments. Interestingly, out of the total Rs 250 crore invested across 12 ventures and JVs since its inception in 2007, just three exits alone have raked in Rs 550 crore - more than double the total money invested in all.
This is in sharp contrast when most peers including bulge-bracket global names are struggling to exit their portfolio companies from a similar vintage and return money to their investors. Even in the past two years, when Biyani's core retail empire was beset with high leverage and severe cash crunch, which eventually led to a significant pruning of flagship assets, the investment team at Future Ventures managed to deliver its mandate.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Business News
ONGC to invest $9 billion in producing oil and gas from Krishna Godavari basin
NEW DELHI: State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) will invest over $9 billion in bringing to production an array of oil and gas discoveries in its prolific Krishna Godavari basin block off the east coast by 2017-18.
ONGC has made 11 oil and gas discoveries in the Block KG-DWN-98/2, which sits next to Reliance Industries' KG-D6 Block and Gujarat State Petroleum Corp's Deendayal gas field. The block is divided into a Northern Discovery Area (NDA) and Southern Discovery Area (SDA). ONGC plans to invest $9 billion in producing from discoveries in NDA.
"We are looking at producing 2.5-3 million tons of oil (per annum) and 9-10 million standard cubic meters per day of gas from the Northern Development Area of Block KG-DWN-98/2," ONGC director (Exploration) NK Verma told PTI here.
Article (Economics)
Economic factors affecting business
These are some of the economic environment factors which affect business-
At what stage of the business cycle is the economy
If the economy is going through a recession it is obvious that businesses generally will not be doing well due to low aggregate demand in the economy. On the other hand, a boom period will lead to higher business profits and revenue for most of the businesses in the economy.
Inflation rate
High rate of inflation leads to lower purchasing power for consumers resulting in lower demand for goods and services. Moreover, a higher inflation rate will make business uncompetitive in the international market leading to lower sales for the business.
Prevailing interest rates
Higher Interest rates will lead to a fall in the aggregate demand in the economy thus leading to difficulty for business to find customers willing to buy its product. Lower interest rates will lead to a increase in demand in the economy.
Business News
R Chandrashekhar is Nasscom chief:
NEW DELHI: Former telecom secretary R Chandrashekhar, under whom a government IT department was set up for the first time, on Sunday took over as president of Nasscom - a body representing the $108 billion Indian IT-BPM industry. He succeeds Som Mittal, who served as the president of Nasscom from 2007-13.
"I feel privileged and look forward to leading Nasscom in its next journey of achieving the vision and aspiration of $300 billion revenues by 2020. The opportunities are very vast at this particular juncture and exciting times lie ahead for the industry," Chandrashekhar said.
He said the future looks positive for the Indian IT-BPM industry as the sector is evolving dramatically in terms of scale, complexity and innovation.
Monday, January 6, 2014
News
Dr Shashi Tharoor: PETA's Person of the Year
The
Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Dr. Shashi Tharoor
named as the Person of the Year by the animal rights body PETA (People for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals) –India for
taking steps to advance animal protection. Mr. Tharoor recommended the National
Council for Teacher Education (NCERT)
to ban the use of animals, viz. for dissection, etc, in training teachers.
By his initiative, in 2012, the
Ministry of Environment and
Forests issued a directive instructing all the institutes or establishments
associated with teaching of medical, pharmacy and other courses in life
sciences to follow UGC guidelines for discontinuation of dissection and animal
experimentation in universities and colleges and introduce use of alternatives
to animal experimentation.
About People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) - India
- Based in Mumbai, launched in January 2000.
- Operates under the simple principle that animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on or use for entertainment.
- Focuses primarily on the areas in which the greatest numbers of animals suffer the most: in the food and leather industries, laboratories and the entertainment industry.
- Responsible for the ending of animal experiments by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education in 2008.
Business News
FIIs pour in over Rs 1,000 crore in equities
Overseas investors have pumped in over Rs 1,000 crore in the Indian equity market so far in January, when the US Federal Reserve is scheduled to start reducing its monthly bond purchases by $10 billion.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were gross buyers of shares worth Rs 4,157 crore and sellers of equities worth Rs 3,148 crore till January 3, resulting in a net inflow of Rs 1,009 crore ($163 million), according to Sebi data.
FIIs also invested Rs 1,746 crore in the debt market. Their total investment in debt and equity was about Rs 2,754 crore.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Business Leader ..
Mark Zuckerberg is co-founder and CEO of the social-networking website Facebook, as well as one of the world's youngest billionaires.
Born on May 14, 1984, in White Plains, New York, Mark Zuckerberg co-founded the social-networking website Facebook out of his college dorm room. He left Harvard after his sophomore year to concentrate on the site, the user base of which has grown to more than 250 million people, making Zuckerberg a billionaire.
"With a generation of younger folks who have thrived on the success of their companies, there is a big opportunity for many of us to give back earlier in our lifetime and see the impact of our philanthropic efforts."
– Mark Zuckerberg
Thought of the day
“Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the result of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinion drowned your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
–Steve Jobs
HR ARTICLE
7 Retention Resolutions managers should make for 2014..
Retaining talented employees
has become a higher priority in an improving job market, with 78 percent of
employers are worried about losing key employees, according to an OI Partners
survey.
Here are some of the top
resolutions managers can make to help retain talent:
1.Coach workers in how to become more influential and persuasive.Explain
the implications of their actions and decisions on internal politics and help
them become savvier. Provide training and guidance in how to craft their
messages to meet the needs of others. Managers are too often frustrated by
employees’ inability to work effectively through others. Teach them how to win
over people in appropriate ways.
2.
Develop employees’ leadership skills. Use challenging
‘stretch assignments’ that motivate workers, require them to learn new skills
and build coalitions. Look for opportunities where members of your team can
step into leadership roles. That may mean you have to be in the background more
and become comfortable with sharing the spotlight.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
News..
Successful GSLV launch on Sunday, important for ISRO
Engineers at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are never short of confidence. ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan was oozing confidence before the Mars launch in November.
He is similarly upbeat now, one day before the launch of the Geostationary Launch Vehicle (GSLV) D5 — a rocket that launches a satellite at an altitude of 36,000 km — on Sunday. "We were confident in 2010 as well," says Radhakrishnan, immediately putting things in perspective.
ISRO had two GSLV launches in 2010, and both were unsuccessful. The first one failed in April, milliseconds after the final cryogenic stage ignited. The second flight, in December, had to be destroyed just under a minute after lift-off as the flight path had deviated from predictions.
In August 2013, the flight had to be aborted an hour before lift-off, as the fuel tank developed a leak. This Sunday's vehicle, named GSLV-D5, will put a satellite, called GSAT-14, into a geostationary orbit.
Friday, January 3, 2014
News..
Mahindra & Mahindra rides on hope of turnaround; plans 7-8 variants in 2014
In 2014, Mahindra & Mahindra, India's largest utility vehicle maker, is slated to introduce 7-8 new products, including facelifts and variants of some models, in a further bid to rustle up demand in a sagging and lacklustre market
The utility vehicle maker's strategy follows the response it received for its new variants launched in the last 3-6 months, soon after excise duties were increased on utility vehicles, which resulted in demand beginning to contract.
Over the next 12-18 months, M&M has lined up a major Scorpio facelift (June 2014), new Maxximo load and passenger codenamed P405 and P409, respectively, (October 2014) and the new 0.5-tonne mini truck to replace Gio codenamed P601 (October to November 2014) to take on Tata Motors Ace Zip. Besides, it will also give a facelift to XUV, code named W207 (March 2015).