SHINEY’S “MICROMAX BAI” INVITES MACRO TROUBLE!

4Ps B&M’s Consulting editor Monojit Lahiri does a dipstick on the latest controversy gripping Adville

How much is too much and how far is going too far in needling the status quo regarding what is right and wrong in the world of advertising? Engaged in the business of educating, informing, persuading and selling goods and services in an interesting and consumer-friendly manner, are some players “crossing the line” in their anxiety to attract attention of the wrong kind? Should “creative licence” be milked dry in a manner that encroaches and invades personal space and disturbs reputation, tantamount to mocking, ridiculing, and even indulging in character assassination?

The facts. Micromax Mobile has come out with a TVC – Micromax Bai – which shows two young girls discovering how the first girl’s boyfriend bought both of them new Micromax phones. The situation takes a flip when they discover that he has gifted a new Micromax phone to the Bai (the housemaid) as well – all to increase his chances of winning a Hayabusa motorbike, a special Diwali offering by Micromax! In the real world, screaming headlines of “Shiney doesn’t buy the ad” greeted the Lowe-created TVC followed by the tainted actor serving the mobile company with a legal notice. Shiney is clearly not amused at his name being used, nor at the sly dig involving a housemaid. [For late entrants, the actor was sentenced to seven years in jail for allegedly raping his maid, and later, released on bail. The maid has already retracted her accusatory statement]

While the agency chose to remain silent, viewers are categorically vocal! Noted ad guru and Chief Consultant of Planman Marcom Alyque Padamsee is first off the blocks, doing a thumbs-down for the ad created by his old agency. “Freedom of speech, expression and thought is fine and totally acceptable but not when it indulges in maligning well-known personalities. That’s poor form!” Padamsee tells 4Ps B&M. Even the acclaimed and flamboyant champion of irreverence ad film-maker Prahlad Kakkar seems to do a freeze-frame when he says, “Smut is cool but never at the expense of housekeepers, women or public figures going through a downer.” He may have a point there.

But petite, Santiniketan-trained and Paris-based graphic designer Piya Sen takes a categorically opposite view and appears totally zapped. “Indian society continues to be paranoid and has this huge problem of being conveniently sanctimonious, and forever taking everything too seriously! Come on, it’s just a light-hearted aside on an issue that’s dead and buried. The man is out and living with his family. Why so desperately touchy? This hoo-haa has revived interest and attention of the public and on cue, a dumbed-down media has played it up big time to convert it to a headliner. I suspect no one would have connected it with the Bai controversy had not the actor got all heated up and taken legal action. I think in the year 2011, one has to be a little more chilled out about these things. Coming from this great financial super-power in the making, it’s really weird!” she says.

Youngistaan too chips in, hot n’ heavy. Young assistant film director Sneha Shreyasi completely vetoes the ad’s approach. She insists that this is “not done because, firstly, these are watched with family and this kind of nudge-wink jhatkas are in bad taste. Secondly, the adwallahs must think of Shiney’s family members and their feelings before they create such ads!”

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

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Planman Technologies

The 7-points leadership style

He received the “Marketing Professional of the Year” award at the 2011 CMO Asia Awards ceremony in Singapore. And now, he enters the 4Ps B&M Hall of Fame 2011 with full honours

After his MBA in Marketing from IISWBM, Kolkata, Abhra Banerjee started his career with O&M, which he joined in April 1995. Two years later, he switched to ICI Paints, where he spent 10 years, rising from being a sales manager to Channel Marketing Controller, handling the company’s entire South East Asia affairs. Today, he spearheads Century Plyboards (I) Ltd. as its Executive Business Head. His goal, as he shared with anirudh raheja of 4PsB&M, is to make brand CenturyPly a billion dollar brand over the next two to three years.

Innovation has often been cited as the reason that CenturyPly has progressed. What do you innovate?
CenturyPly is a respected brand today, only because it offers innovation along with great quality of products and designs. It is arguably the most innovative wood panel industry brand in the country. Some of the innovations which are worth mentioning are GLP (Glue Line Protection) which kills borers and termites from within. This is an innovation, which the market has not yet been able to replicate. The company has also employed a battery of designers who bring out the latest design trends to India in Laminates and Veneers, faster than our competitors do.

Talking about innovation, you seem to have acquired the best manufacturing technologies available in your line of business...
We have achieved this due to our strong partnerships and linkages with manufacturing companies from whom we have acquired the technical know-how. Our senior management team comprising representatives from technical, production and marketing fields, attend all the major wood exhibitions of the world and are constantly on the look-out for the latest winning technologies. So we always keep our eyes open and make the quick, first move to stay ahead each time.

You deal with a natural resource, which is also a raw material for your business – wood. Does this very fact pose any challenge to CenturyPly?
Yes. We need to constantly look out for newer sources of raw materials. Wood is a scarce commodity and we are always on the lookout for newer avenues to source the same.

In July this year, you were felicitated with the ‘CMO Asia Award’ in the category of ‘Marketing Professional of the Year’ for ‘Excellence in Branding & Marketing’. What do you do to ensure that each employee at CenturyPly in the marketing and sales functions lives up to your high standards?
Every business exists for its consumers. The consumers agree to part with their hard-earned money by paying for the goods or services rendered by a business. Hence the company comes into existence. The marketing team of each company therefore helps to identify the proverbial ‘need-gaps’ within the target consumer segment, which the business unit can strive to fulfil and hence continue in its line of business. In our organisation, this ‘Marketing Focus’ or in other words, this ‘Consumer Focus’ is drilled into every member of the sales and marketing team and they are trained to listen to the ‘voice of the consumer’. This voice is then echoed across the length and breadth of the organisation so that the entire business evolves into a consumer-focused business unit.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Planman Technologies

Can Foursquare Actually Work for Marketers?

It’s Hip, It’s Happening, It’s Hot – it’s an Application that has Been Named by World Economic forum as Being The Tech Pioneer of 2011.

Imagine running a restaurant; and noticing a bevy of girls entering your outlet. Now imagine that you’re able to send a message immediately to all those girls that provides them a unique promotional scheme specially packaged to their demographic profile. That’s more or less foursquare (with a small ‘f’) for you, an application that can ensure that if your prospective customers are signed up with the application, they become privy to all such unique discounts purely based on their target profile. Created by Dennis Crowley and Naveen Selvadurai in 2009, foursquare’s unique proposition has been that it combines geographic data (latitude, longitude) of the consumer with the demographic data to provide a marketer most unique insights into the consumer’s purchase behaviour. But foursquare goes beyond, and in fact motivates the consumer through various schemes, badges, reward points et al to ‘indulge’ in purchase behaviour. Has it been successful? Well, with seven million users already (March 2011 data) and with the World Economic Forum announcing foursquare the Technology Pioneer of 2011, all eyes are set on this radical application.

With mainstream social web gravitating more towards mobile Internet devices, the emerging space of mobile-based social networks is empowering customers to find the best venues and prices for their products while offering savvy companies unique ways to cater to this new medium. Since more consumers are using the mobile social web, marketers are able create incentives and contests to drive customers to their business while brands look to connect with consumers within their stores. Naturally, brands are using different types of location-based services and applications such as Foursquare to not only tie their message to a real-world location and provide value for the user but also to get the word out about new products or to reward loyal consumers.

In our ever increasing hyper sharing of status updates society, foursquare has been widely acknowledged to be the breakout hit of 2010. Foursquare, on the back of its hot mobile social media platform, acts as a friend-finder, a social city-guide and a game that rewards you for doing interesting things besides allowing marketers to, as mentioned before, hyper-target their message to consumers at the precise moment they’re in proximity of business establishments. Truly, given the reach and the ability to target a user based on location allows marketers to deliver a message in a way that they haven’t in the past. Any business that wants to connect with a local audience can benefit from location-based services. Many research studies indicate that for impulse purchases, like food and clothing, there is a particularly strong opportunity to point a consumer to a nearby deal and see them take action. For longer purchase consideration cycle products, tying messaging to a location can serve as a strong reminder from the brand in the buying process.

More and more companies are hopping on the foursquare location-based services bandwagon as this tool apparently helps drive customer traffic and sales to businesses better than competing platforms – foursquare got the “Best Location Based Service Award” in the TechCrunch Crunchies 2010 event. About a year ago, in the USA, McDonald’s launched a promotional campaign built around a consumer-generated foursquare day. It raffled 100 $5 and $10 gift cards to foursquare users who checked in at a McDonald’s store location. The event generated a 33% increase in http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=26030769check-ins at the chain’s locations. Similarly, Saks Fifth Avenue and InStyle now regularly offer several foursquare promotions throughout the year where customers can “check-in” to certain departments to get a prize such as lip gloss or gloves. Foursquare users “check-in” to places using their smartphones. Check-ins earn users points and the more you check-in the more you’re rewarded with social currency in the form of various badges — and you can share your “virtual acquisitions” automatically on Twitter and Facebook. The person who visits a location the most becomes “Mayor” of that place, until someone else comes along and wins the title. And foursquare promotions are not limited to food and drinks alone. Higher-end fashion chains like Diesel and Marc Jacobs have also launched foursquare campaigns, as have media outlets like NBC, the New York Times and The History Channel.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
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The Idiot Box!

The following points are the deciding criteria for selecting and short-listing the winning TVCs: Product positioning clarity; clinching benefit to the brand; presence of a power idea; visibility of brand personality; expectancy of communication; single-minded focus; reward to prospects; visually arresting and painstaking craftsmanship. Here’s a peek into our TVC verdict for the fortnight ending February 19, 2011!

1 . Tata Sky
Baseline: Isko laga dala toh cricket jhingalala
Agency: Ogilvy India

Description: The TVC opens on the cricket field where an extremely uninterested umpire is yawning when a bowler appeals for LBW. Instead of declaring the outcome, this umpire makes a call and asks ‘Babloo’ whether the batsman is out or not and then confirms in the affirmative because ‘Babloo’ said that the player is out. The frame then shifts to ’Babloo’ who’s watching cricket on Tata Sky. VO: Babloo cricket dekhta hai Tata Sky HD par. High definition clarity ke saath.

4Ps Take: As the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 takes centre-stage, Tata Sky is all geared to promote the HD experience of watching cricket big time. The company known for its ads crafted around a humorous theme has once hit the target bang on when it comes to clarity in terms of communication. Perfect timing to make the viewers get a heck of HD is how we look at it.

2. TVS Wego
Baseline: The new TVS Wego has body balance
Agency: BBH, India

Description: The TVC kicks off with two couples riding the TVS Wego scooters. The pillion riders (read ladies) in an attempt to compete, start by showing off their balancing skills and end up performing some awe-striking acrobatics. Just when the scooters stop at a traffic light, an old lady is shocked looking at their posture; her husband then tells her that it’s the new TVS Wego scooter with body balancing. VO: It’s true, the new TVS Wego has body balance.

4Ps Take: There are very few ads that score on communication as good as this one does. The USP (body balancing, which underlines the scooter’s handling capabilities) is highlighted really well. The creative succeeds in breaking away from monotony as every element has been supported with minute details. Great idea, smart execution, superb results!

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
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Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
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The ‘Spirit’ual Teacher’s secret brand concoction

Steven Philip Warner learns some brand secrets from the Veteran who spearheads the marketing division of the fourth-largest spirits & wine-making company in the world

Neeraj Kumar
Beam Global Spirits & Wine

Seven years back, when Neeraj Kumar appeared for his first interview at Allied Domecq Spirits and Wine India (the previous avatar of Beam Global Spirits & Wine), the-then Regional Brand Director from Singapore, shot a question at him: “What according to you would be success, five years from now?” To this, he replied, “Currently my dad drinks a competition brand to your portfolio. If I can convert him to drinking your brands, I would consider myself reasonably successful.” Today, his father’s minibar has more Teacher’s scotch bottles than any other spirits brand, a product which accounts for 80% of the company’s revenues.

So how has the journey been so far for this formerly PepsiCo and Electrolux veteran, who is today the Director of Marketing at Beam Global? Kumar feels that every single day at work, during his 15 year-long career, has been very different. And why not? Selling Pepsi-cola in Nepal to the youth, catching attention of homemakers with Electrolux ACs and refrigerators in Singapore and grabbing eyeballs with wines and spirits in India call for different routines and game-plans for a marketer. “I think it all has to do with who your bull’s eye is. So while with Pepsi, it was all about the next generation, with Electrolux, the task was to involve the decision-maker and the mother of the house. When it comes to Beam Global, it was about activation programmes to get to the legal drinking age group,” says he. Even in terms of media usage, it has been quite a decathlon, for when you talk about FMCG or even white goods, you can very conveniently use above-the-line activities (ATL) to spread the word. But the law of the land disallows the same in the case of spirits. And this is where comes the biggest learning curve for Kumar at Beam Global. “It is all about how you move away from ATL approach and reach out to your target audience, by way of activation and below-the-line activities. From using media channels in my previous roles, to really going to that one person in a Hard Rock Cafe and telling him about a Jim Beam or a Teacher’s – this has been the biggest change and the best lesson for me here,” shares Kumar.

Currently, Beam Global is the fourth-largest wines and spirits company in the world and has more than ten brands in its portfolio, of which the flagship product undoubtedly, is Teacher’s scotch whisky. “Teacher’s accounts for 40% of all scotch whisky sales in the country,” claims Kumar. The other brands include Jim Bean (the #1 selling bourbon whiskey in the world), Courvoisier cognac (the leading cognac brand in the United Kingdom), Laphroaig (the highest selling single malt islay scotch whisky in the world), Sauza (the second-highest selling tequila in the world) and a few more. But despite having established many strong brands in the Indian market (which is also the most profitable one for its Teacher’s brand), Kumar still doesn’t want to loosen his strong hold on the channels of distribution which he considers extremely critical. “I think the channel is an integral part of brand-building. You can use it as an engagement tool and make your customers believe in your brand. Without a proper channel focus, brands have a weaker selling proposition.” Then there is also the difference in the required level of education and sophistication of channel types that come into the picture when it comes to spirits. For instance, when you talk about TVs and refrigerators, customers would very rarely make impulse purchase decisions and would visit at least 2-4 outlets before taking a final call. Therefore the education to be imparted, whether to the consumers or salesforce and distributors, is of a more evolved category. Also, the engagement for the company is more off-premise. But when it comes to spirits, it is more of an on-premise effort. And this is quite an exercise, as Kumar says, “On-premise is when you talk to a bartender or the catering staff to educate them about your product(s). We have a constant effort going on in this respect. And why is education and engagement required? The reason being that there is a particular way in which a margarita drink is prepared. With colas, the consumer simply makes a choice, but in spirits, despite the consumer having made a choice, it all depends on how the bartender prepares the concoction.” There is another difference. A product like Pepsi cola doesn’t demand a high level of engagement, for it is all about ensuring that the product is available chilled, anytime & anywhere. But with spirits, it is about getting the right temperature product, with the right mix and at the right place and time.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
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IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Sri Lanka detains 23 TN fishermen

Even as diplomatic talks between India and Sri Lanka were going on over Tamil Nadu's complaints of attacks on its fishermen, theLankan navy on Monday detained 23 fishermenfrom Rameswaram after they strayed into its territorial waters. The fishermen have been detained in a police station in Talaimannar in Sri Lanka's northwestern coast. Tension prevailed in Rameswaram when the fishermen did not return. Their colleagues, who had also put out to sea along with them but managed to get back, met officials of the state fisheries department and demanded that steps be taken for their immediate release. Hours after the news broke, chief minister J Jayalalithaa wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking his intervention to prevail upon the Lankan government to release the fishermen and their five boats. Jayalalithaa said the frequent arrests of fishermen by the Lankan navy created a lot of tension and unrest among fishermen in the state. She reminded Singh that last month when four fishermen whose boat had capsized were arrested and remanded in custody by Kayts Court in Sri Lanka she had written to him. In your June 15 letter you had informed me that the matter had been taken up with the Sri Lankan government, she said.

The incident comes barely two weeks after both national security adviser Shiv Shankar Menon and external affairs secretary Nirupama Rao met their counterparts in Sri Lanka to apprise them about the problems faced by Indian fishermen. Menon had met Jayalalithaa before he left for Colombo. In her letter, Jayalalithaa said Shivshankar Menon had met her on two occasions, once before leaving for Colombo and again during her meeting with the Prime Minister.

According to reports from Rameswaram, the fishermen put out to sea on Monday in about 620 mechanised boats. With fish catch sparse in the Indian waters, they headed for the Kachchativu island. On spotting the Lankan naval vessels, most of the fishermen turned back and escaped. But the 23 fishermen along with their five boats were nabbed.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Morgan Stanley cuts FY'12 India growth to 7.7 per cent

The next three to six months may not be very good for the Indian equities market, but it makes a very good investment proposition with a 12-18 months view, and India would continue to be on a high-growth path posting 7.7 per cent in 2011-12, said Morgan Stanley analysts. "There is a 19 per cent upside for the BSE Sensex considering our target of 22,100 points. And the market provides a great environment for the stock pickers, as the macro influence on stock prices has already peaked," said Ridham Desai, MD and head of Indian equity research team of Morgan Stanley.

"Valuations are looking attractive, especially on an absolute basis, and for the broader market, the market is pricing in slower near-term growth," he added. Morgan Stanley has shifted its focus from global commodities to domestic consumer-driven sectors. "We remain overweight on industrials and are cognizant of the downside to capital expansion," Desai added. Industrials include engineering, capital goods and infrastructure sectors.

Other favourites include energy, telecom and utilities, while sectors that are underweight are consumer staples, healthcare, financials and materials (commodities). Technology is in the neutral. "Risk-return analysis is in favour of small- and mid-cap stocks, compared to frontline stocks," Desai said. Global risks apart, the market performance would depend on the policy initiatives of the government in the coming quarters. Desai listed expected policy decisions as fuel price hikes, fertiliser prices, FDI in retail and coal mining policy.
"Higher interest rates are likely to put pressure on corporate profitability, but are unlikely to affect them much," said Desai, reasoning that the current debt levels of Indian companies was much lower compared to its own past. On the global front, the impact of withdrawal of quantitative easing (QE-II) in the US on commodity prices was identified as a major surprise in store. Consequent to the US launching the QE-II in September 2010, commodity prices shot up as the US dollar slid.

Responding to a query on the attractiveness of the Indian market for foreign institutional investors (FIIs), Desai said, "Foreign investors are cautious at present and are waiting to invest. But typically foreign inflows follow performance and not the other way round."

Chetan Ahya, MD and Asia Pacific economist at Morgan Stanley, said the government spending will nosedive this fiscal to seven to eight per cent of GDP from 18-19 per cent of CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) in the last five years.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Angela Merkel in India for joint cabinet meet

India and Germany will hold their first inter-governmental consultations at the cabinet-level when Chancellor Angela Merkel visits New Delhi Tuesday on an invitation from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. India is the first Asian country and one of very few nations with which Germany holds a joint cabinet meeting and this is seen as a demonstration of its high esteem for India as a long-standing and reliable partner and as a recognition of the country's rapidly growing economic clout and technological prowess. The Indo-German inter-governmental consultations in New Delhi will be chaired jointly by Chancellor Merkel and Singh and it will be attended by five German cabinet ministers as well as senior officials from several ministries. Further expanding and intensifying the economic cooperation between the two countries will be high on the agenda of the meeting and the two sides are expected to explore ways to step up bilateral trade as well as to promote German investments in India and vice-versa. Discussions will also focus on new possibilities for cooperation in building up and modernising India's infrastructure, development of renewable and conventional energy sources and promotion of technical education and vocational training as well as new avenues for cooperation in the field of defence.

Economic Cooperation has been the main pillar of Indo-German relations and its continuing importance is evident from the fact that Ms Merkel is taking with her a high-ranking business delegation of 19 top managers of leading companies representing key industrial sectors such as civil and military aerospace, auto ancillaries, electrical industry, chemicals, machine tools, railway technology and technical services.

Germany is India's largest trading partner in the European Union and bilateral trade has been growing rapidly in recent years. The exchange of goods and services between the two countries went up by 17.8 per cent in 2010 and reached a record level of 15.44 billion euros.

However, the India's deficit in bilateral trade widened as it imported goods from Germany worth 9.25 billion euros, 14.32 per cent more than in 2009, compared to its exports to Germany worth 6.19 billion euros, 21.49 per cent up from the level of the previous year.

India's main imports from Germany include machinery, engineering goods, aircraft, precision equipment and control systems, metal products, chemicals and synthetic items.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Sensex, Nifty hit highest level in more than a week

The key benchmark indices hit their highest levels in more than a week as most Asian stocks rose. The market breadth was strong. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries edged higher. The BSE Sensex was up 63.14 points or 0.35%. ONGC, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Indian Oil Corporation, BPCL and National Aluminium Company rose ahead of their Q4 results due today. Reliance Communications (RCom) fell ahead of its Q4 results today. A bout of volatility was witnessed in early trade as the market pared gains after a firm start. The market soon regained strength.

At 09:25 IST, the BSE Sensex was up 63.14 points or 0.35% to 18,329.24. The Sensex jumped 114.07 points at the day's high of 18,380.17 in early trade, its highest level since 20 May 2011. The index rose 51.06 points at the day's low of 18,317.16 in early trade.
The S&P CNX Nifty was up 21.05 points or 0.39% to 5,497.60. The Nifty hit high of 5,509.30 in early trade, its highest level since 20 May 2011.

The market breadth, indicating the health of the market, was strong. On BSE, 483 shares advanced while 113 shares declined. A total of 13 shares remained unchanged.
Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 24 stocks rose while the rest of them fell.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) gained 0.39%, with the stock gaining for the third straight day.

India's largest oil & gas exploration firm by sales ONGC gained 0.55% ahead of its Q4 results today. India's largest tractor maker by sales Mahindra & Mahindra rose 0.87% ahead of its Q4 results today.

Shares of state-run oil marketing firm BPCL rose 0.86% ahead of its Q4 results today. Another oil marketing firm Indian Oil Corporation gained 0.26% ahead of its Q4 results today.

India's second largest mobile services provider by sales Reliance Communications fell 0.24% ahead of its Q4 results today. Public sector aluminum producer National Aluminum Company rose 1.98% ahead of its Q4 results today.

Reliance Infrastructure (R-Infra) rose 0.53% after the company announced after market hours on Friday that consolidated net profit rose 2% to Rs. 1552 crore on 4% rise in total operating income to Rs. 15408 crore in the year ended March 2011 over the year ended March 2010. The company said it remains debt free at the net level and enjoys top end ratings from CRISIL and Fitch.

The company said it is developing 11 road projects worth Rs. 12000 crore and three metro rail projects in Mumbai and Delhi worth about Rs. 16000 crore. The Delhi metro rail project has already become operational. The company said the order book of its engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) division stood at Rs. 29635 crore as on 31 March 2011.
DLF gained 2.24% and was the top gainer from the Sensex pack. DLF, last week, said it is focusing on high margin residential projects. In the commercial leasing segment, the company's strategy is to increase average rentals and focus on leasing of semi-finished and ready-to-occupy properties. DLF also said it intends to strengthen operational cash flows and enhance momentum on non-core divestments. The company said it will moderate investments in land aggregation and capex. DLF said it has raised its overall target for asset divestments to Rs. 10000 crore from Rs. 4500 crore previously.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
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IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Coal Market Targets the growing Indian and Chinese markets

China will face stiff competition for coal shipped by Indonesia, the world's biggest exporter of thermal coal, from India where demand for electricity is rising in an economy seen growing around 8.5 percent.

"With domestic prices rising so strongly -- they are basically on par with import prices now -- the likelihood of China being strong importers of thermal coal over the summer is extremely high," said Daniel Hynes, director of commodity research at Citigroup in Sydney

Chinese domestic coal prices rose to the highest level in more than two years last week as utilities stocked up ahead of the summer months, making imports more attractive.

Chinese buyers have already been on the hunt for Indonesian cargoes as well as some Australian coal over the last few weeks to fill requirements.

Indian demand for Indonesian coal is also on the rise, and India's short-term and long-term demand is likely to be a focus. Growing demand for Indonesian coal by India, to fill the widening gap between domestic coal output and demand, is likely to continue, the analyst added, resulting in intense competition between India and China for tonnage. Indian and Chinese companies are also seeking to acquire stakes in Indonesian coal mines to secure their supply, with Coal India , the world's largest coal miner, in advanced talks to buy up to 40 percent of Indonesian low-grade coal producer Golden Energy Mines for up to $1 billion, three sources with direct knowledge of the deal said.

Although India is home to 10 percent of global coal reserves, it is plagued by a shortfall in local supplies as demand has grown rapidly with the increase in coal-fired power plants.

India's coal demand is forecast to grow 11 percent a year, reaching 135 million tonnes in 2011/12 with imports set to make up about 20 percent of its total consumption.

ANTICIPATION OF RECOVERY

The industry will also be closely watching Japanese demand for coal, which withered after the March tsunami took some coal-fired plants offline and forced some utilities to declare force majeure on coal shipments. Some Japan-bound cargoes have been diverted to destinations such as China.

INDONESIA MINING REGULATION

With demand for Indonesian coal ramping up, in particular from China and India, Indonesian coal production capacity and regulations will also be in the spotlight.

Indonesia's coal, generally lower-quality than the coal its neighbour Australia produces, is attractive to Asian buyers seeking bargains, and cheaper freight from Indonesia offers an advantage.

But the lack of infrastructure and some government regulations have depressed production.

"The overall consensus is that production is still under pressure," Singapore-based UBS analyst Andreas Bokkenheuser said.

Indonesia also struggles to deal with a raft of problems including illegal mining and overlapping mining concessions.

In its latest move to clean up the industry, Indonesia's government will audit some 8,000 new mining permits to make sure they are in line with mining and environmental laws.

"For the fifth or sixth year in a row, it's going to be about production, infrastructure and regulations," Bokkenheuser said.

"There will be talk about new land reform, increasing the investment environment in Indonesia -- that will be the primary focus."

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

IIPM B-School
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Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting

IIPM in sync with the best of the business world.......

IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Ex-IMF chief Strauss-Kahn moves to new housing

Dominique Strauss-Kahn moved into a new location in Manhattan where he will wait under house arrest for his New York trial on sex assault charges.

The former head of the International Monetary Fund left the lower Manhattan apartment where he first went after being freed on bail and entered a new residence in the trendy Tribeca neighbourhood.

Strauss-Kahn, who resigned as head of the IMF after being charged with the violent sexual assault of a hotel chambermaid, was granted a USD 6 million bail package that requires him to live under 24-hour armed guard and wear a monitoring device.

Initial efforts by his wealthy wife to put him in a luxury building in another part of Manhattan fell through after complaints from residents, forcing him to go to the lower Manhattan location owned by the security company managing his home detention.

Strauss-Kahn is next due in court on June 06.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Mahesh Gupta, Founder & MD, Kent RO systems gets candid with neha saraiya on what drove him to quit his job at IOC and set up his own venture

How has the scenario changed since then?
Now we are heard and our voice is accepted. Consumers too are aware and demand a better product and a better technology.

But, the competition has also increased...
Yes indeed. But we need to keep innovating and upgrade our technology which we have been doing till now. In a consumer business, a consumer is not looking only at the product but at service as well.

You claim that your products are based on cosumer insights. What kind of research goes into it?
It’s not a methodological research that we follow, but it’s a research through our interaction with people in the field. Further, we have created a special marketing team in Delhi which remains in touch with consumers on a daily basis. It’s quite important as we need to know the pulse of market. Even for our channel partners based outside Delhi we do the review once in every six months.

How challenging is it to remain on top?
The business demands a great service network as such we need to be on our toes every second. Secondly, many fly by night operators enter into the market and spoil the business. They buy components from outside and develop it. Further, as our products are becoming popular, duplicate and fake products are dumped in the market in our name.

Your future plans...
I see myself as a market leader. I want to surpass Eureka Forbes as its turnover is bigger than ours. However, in the RO category we are still the leaders.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM makes business education truly global
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Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
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Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

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Still MAC! Yes!

Despite the VAT rate increase, McDonalds released its new advertising campaign themed, “Affordability” for its Happy Price Menu with the central message, “You don’t need to think twice when McDonalds has burgers at only Rs. 25.” Earlier, the same burger was priced at Rs. 20. With the ad-drive, McDonald’s is hoping that the Young Adults No Kids (YANKS) group, which is seen contributing to 75% of McDonald’s footfalls, would not really mind the 25% increase in prices if the same is communicated appropriately. Given that McDonald’s has been ranked in July 2010 as the 12th best brand in the Asia Pacific region by one report, the presumption of McDonald’s holds weight, if not evidence, given that it caters to above of 2 lakh customers in India on a daily basis, by various estimates. In related news, in the United States, McDonald’s profits were up 12% and reached a promising $1.23bn. Apparently, McDonald’s is also in the process of streamlining its supply chain processes much better to ensure these profits rise further in the future.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

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4Ps B&M analyses

Mercedes has proven to be that fast second-mover. But how does the company plan to market its latest offering to the Indian consumer? According to estimates, the size of the pre-owned car market in India is expected to be 10-15% of the new car market volume (sales figures for the first half of 2010). This figure is expected to rise substantially over the next couple of years, which makes the pre-owned car market critical for all luxury carmakers. So what marketing mode of mass communication are the second-hand car sellers banking upon. Says Debashis Mitra, Head – Sales & Marketing, Mercedes-Benz India to 4Ps B&M, “A large chunk of awareness will depend on the word-of-mouth advertising through the consumers in the pre-owned cars business.”

On the proactive front, the company plans to follow conventional advertising methods to promote its second-hand car arm in the Indian market, as it has been doing for its passenger car business so far. Talking about outreach, the company has rolled out its Proven Exclusivity program across four cities (Phase I) and plans to take the count to 12 locations by the end of 2010. Aulbur also says that Mercedes is expecting to generate around 10-15% of its topline via the used car route by 2011. Experts also opine that the second hand car business will guarantee greater footfall in Mercedes’ showrooms across the country.

There is a challenge that threatens to decelerate this dream run of the Mercs – the unorganised market. According to industry data, 90% of the resale auto market belongs to the unorganised segment, which covers not just the friendly neighborhood second hand car dealers but also the one-to-one ‘grey’ dealmakers. There is one hope though – thanks to the segment in which Mercedes operates, it is widely believed that the consumer will prefer the organised channel.

Even in other segments, competitors like Maruti True Value (Maruti’s preowned car reselling arm), have been showing growth rates between 25-50% month on month (data available till February 2010). At the same time, due to the fact that there is no dearth of top class service and support facilities for even the grey market purchases/imports, one would have to wait for the market figures to come in, before confirming Mercedes’ success. Sixteen years and 30,000 units sold in India – what does the future hold for Mercedes? Whatever it does, its long-earned glory in India will come in handy.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM B-School
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Planman Consulting

It’s a Fox’s Jump

FOX International Channels (FIC) which is a subsidiary of the FOX entertainment group has added 7 new channels to its portfolio in India. FIC which produces and distributes entertainment, sports and movie channels around the world is part of media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. Out of the seven new channels that the company has announced to be launched in India, FOX Crime and FX are already available but only with DTH players like Tata Sky and Sun Direct; but will soon be available with other DTH players and cable distributors going by the announcements made by the company. These new channels are in the genre such as music, wildlife and crime and will give the Indian customer more options in the space. This will apparently bring change in the entertainment space because FOX is attempting to bring its international experience in play to capture more market share in the Indian market. FOX, for records, has 170 plus channels in its global portfolio and may bring a few more if these launches are successful.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM B-School
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Planman Consulting

NISSAN, WHY SO SERIOUS? NOT SO SERIOUS!

Roping in brand ambassadors for a larger awareness and acceptability of the product is a trend that does not have many takers in the Indian automobile sector. An SRK for i10, Aamir for Innova and Big B and Junior Bachchan for Versa are a case in point. However, Ranbir Kapoor has also recently made it to the list as he has been signed by Nissan Motors India for the next three years. In fact, while Micra was able to register only 600 bookings in the first six weeks, post Ranbir’s entry, the automaker got an additional 400 bookings within two weeks. But with only 11 dealerships all India, celebrity or no celebrity, sales will never thunder up. Apart from Micra, Ranbir will promote various other products of Nissan. Nissan has also done a handful of BTL activities to promote the upcoming Micra in the Indian market that were in a way, innovative – but only in a way. The company seems to be hunting for the consumer based on tried and tested concepts. “We always focus on addressing our customers with creative and unseen marketing activities. Moreover, we use our best brand ambassadors, our carlines with a clear benefit for the customers,” explained Lutz Kothe, Chief General Manager – Marketing & PR, Volkswagen Group Sales, India to 4Ps B&M. There is no denying that Nissan’s efforts have been able to work in favour of the company, but with consumer choices changing fast, Nissan needs to bring in creativity in its future campaigns. And of course, dealerships...

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting

Tablet’s Big War

Mark Hurd (CEO, HP; above) is a worried man. And so is Michael Dell. And mostly because of Steve Jobs, whose iPad launch, for whatever reasons, has catapulted Apple into becoming the second most valuable company on the planet (after ExxonMobil). The bone of contention is the tablet PC market, with HP (about to launch Slate as their iPad answer) and Dell (about to launch Streak) ready to jump into the market in a big way. While HP has its distribution as a plus, Dell has its pricing strategy to beat Apple’s first mover advantage. But HP might score in another area – after their recent purchase of Palm, HP gets unrestricted access to use Palm OS on their tablet PCs, rather than the previously decided Windows 7. And then again, it could be neither HP nor Dell. Latest news is that not only is Jobs relaunching a ‘better’ version of the iPhone (a smaller iPad perhaps?), but even Nokia, Microsoft, Sony and Google are coming in the tablet PC market. jayant mundra

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting