March 2015

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 28 mar 2015

Internet of Things (IoT) has the potential to transform and disrupt various industries like healthcare, infrastructure management, transportation, utility etc. Recent report by Verizon estimates that by 2025, organizations that extensively use IoT technologies in their products and operations will be upto 10% more profitable. According to Arun Kundu, Director of Professional Services at Verizon Enterprise Solutions, manufacturing sector will be hugely impacted by IoT. He says, 'IoT is creating opportunities to capture and interpret data leading to new services, avoiding commoditisation. And of course, manufacturers are always looking for ways to streamline processes and increase efficiency. IoT-enabled asset tracking not only provides manufacturers with better control of their logistics, but using the data can also enable them to offer their customers near real-time tracking of shipments, an appealing differentiator.' He further adds, 'The factory of the future will be more capital efficient and flexible. Updates from product design teams will be introduced more quickly, and customisations incorporated more easily. Schedules will reflect changes in demand within hours, not days. Managers will be able to see what stock and raw materials are on hand, and exactly where they are, from their tablet.' Remote monitoring of the conditions of the equipment and visualize indicator's of imminent failure, and production-line monitoring and automation leading to predictive maintenance are some other uses of IoT that Mr. Kundu mentions. Read on...

Business Standard: Internet of Things can have massive impact on manufacturing
Author: Rakesh Rao

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 25 mar 2015

The recent rise of India's e-commerce industry with names like Flipkart, Snapdeal, Quikr etc making headlines in the media, rush of just-out-of-school entrepreneurs to create start-ups and venture capitalists pumping money in internet-based companies, there is much talk of the development of India's start-up ecosystem. But there are critics who point out that India's laws predate the start-up and e-commerce culture. They argue that even though billions of dollars are being invested in the sector, there are lack of clearly defined laws, regulator, ministry or watchdog. As e-commerce companies look to take the IPO (Initial Public Offering) route and seek listing on stock exchanges, there is news of SEBI's (Securities and Exchange Board of India) working towards making the norms easier but at the same time safeguard interests of investors. One of India's top investor, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, in a recent interview with CNBC-TV18 commented that Indian e-commerce sector is in a bubble with high valuations of companies and lack of profitable business models. Read on...

Business Standard: India's startup ecosystem needs a Sebi of its own, and now!
Author: Itika Sharma Punit

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 18 mar 2015

The consistent growth of 'Business Process Outsourcing' (BPO) industry over the last years in India have now transformed it from a simple outsourcing utility to a mature and innovative sector. It is currenty often termed as 'Business Process Management'. This transition has also affected the human resources employed in the industry. There is a trend towards niche expertise and more specialization. According to Muralidhar Teppala of Genpact Headstrong Capital Markets, 'Business Process Manager' is a profile that will be in high demand in the BPO/ITeS industry in 2015. Similar sentiments are echoed by Manuel D'Souza of Serco Global Services, 'As more and more companies realise the impact effective business process management can have on business performance and profitability, the demand for qualified business process managers will continue to grow.' Experts suggest following required skills for effective business process manager - (1) A good blend of communication skills and technical competence like computer proficiency & knowledge of Six Sigma, Total Quality Management etc. (2) Embracing growth and learning. (3) Critical thinking and problem solving. Read on...

The Economic Times: Must have skills to be a business process manager
Author: Neha Singh Verma

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 13 mar 2015

'Make in India' concept has the potential to do for manufacturing sector what economic reforms of 1991 did to the information technology industry (IT services & BPO). Jugaad is an inherent Indian trait to find a fix or an instant solution by applying unconventional and non-standard processes. According to Banmali Agrawala, president & CEO of GE South-Asia, 'The Make in India campaign has been getting a lot of jugaad reaction, particularly in the case of capital goods, to raise import barriers and to go around World Trade Organization norms to impose forced localization. Jugaad is at best a stop-gap measure. To move forward, encouraging creativity and innovation at an affordable price point through serious research and development must become the cornerstone of this campaign.' He points out factors that drive global investments in manufacturing, namely domestic demand, skilled workforce and efficient governance. He further explains and analyzes these three factors in Indian context and concludes - India's domestic demand is modest, requires thrust from government spending, support through competitive financing for exports, production efficiencies and quality output at competitive prices; India have skilled workforce but to leverage its full potential needs focus on innovation, research, design, engineering and high end of value-added manufacturing. Indian companies have to invest more in such manufacturing related activities; Although India has strong institutions in place but there is room for improvement in achieving better and efficient governance with transparency and predicability. Read on...

Livemint: Making in India beyond jugaad
Author: Banmali Agrawala

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 08 mar 2015

The pharmaceutical industry in India and around the world is one of the fastest growing industry with a total revenue of about US$ 3 trillion. Indian pharma industry's revenue in 2013 was US$ 12 billion and is primarily driven by exports in the regulatory and emerging markets. India has 20,000 pharma companies and 60,000 distributors and large number of big and small retailers. Marketing is one of the most critical component of pharma industry. Continuously chaning business environment due to strict regulations, policies and guidelines have driven companies to adopt innovative ways to expand their customer base and stay ahead of the competition. Pawan Chaudhary, CMD of Venus Remedies, provides his perspective on the evolving aspects of the pharma industry, marketing strategies to survive in the dynamic and competitive environment and the future challenges that the industry faces. According to him, Patent Act of 2005 has shifted the approach of most pharma companies from merely generics to branded generics and towards R&D orientation. They generally spend 8-10% of their total sales on marketing related activities to properly position and promote their products. Due to highly specialized nature of his company's products, he explains the following tools that are used for effective marketing - Key Opinion Leaders (KOL); Webinars; Expositions; Conferences/Seminars; Social Media; Continuing Medical Education (CME) Programs. According to him the challenges faced by the pharma industry are - Rising costs of research and development with 8-10 years of time and US$ 800-1000 million investment to successfully develop a new chemical entity; Increasing regulations and drug policies like National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPA) to reduce prices of essential medicines. He suggests that companies now need more agile, smarter and smaller marketing teams and field staff. They have to focus on new drug development and competitive pricing strategies to provide best value to customers. Read on...

The Financial Express: Art and science of pharma marketing
Author: Pawan Chaudhary

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 03 mar 2015

While speaking on 'democracy, inclusion and prosperity', Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan, said that reforms must focus on creating capacities to provide a strong government instead of creating 'layers' that become obstacles. Mentioning political scientist Francis Fukuyama and his analysis of the emergence of political systems, he said 'Countries would have to strengthen government and regulatory capabilities to remove barriers and push development.' Adding on to the definition of liberal democracies - that are best at fostering political freedoms and economic success and have three important pillars: a strong government, rule of law and democratic accountability - he talked of free markets as the fourth pillar that makes liberal democracies prosper. He also showed concern for the rising inequality of opportunity in industrial countries that threaten these pillars. According to him, India is strong in democratic accountability and somewhat better in terms of rule of law, but it has to go a long way to improve the capacity of the government to deliver governance and public services. Read on...

The Economic Times: Reform to create capacities for strong governance- RBI's Raghuram Rajan
Author: NA

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 02 mar 2015

Indian society is facing multiple challenges like high poverty rates, child labor, female foeticide, illiteracy, malnutrition etc. To overcome these issues, considering the substantial population size, requires mobilization of large amount of resources, social innovations, entrepreneurial spirit and commitment from government, private sector and civil society. Philanthropists, alongwith NGOs and local level community and grassroots organizations, are trying to tackle old problems in innovative ways. And there is still large untapped potential that is waiting to be harnessed to make required changes for the betterment of Indian society particularly in the rural and tribal areas. Santanu Mishra, co-founder and executive trustee of Smile Foundation, explains how an initiative by Rajasthan government 'Padharo Mahari Lado' to protect the girl child is bearing fruit due to the collaborative efforts of Department of Health, Barmer, National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), Cairns India Limited and Smile Foundation. According to him, 'When a social innovation is intended through collaboration, it is very necessary that it features a common agenda, unbroken communication, effective measurement systems, and the presence of a core organization.' Read on...

Business Insider: How Indian NGOs are marrying Philanthropy with Social Innovations?
Author: Santanu Mishra

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