First of all, thank you Christine for setting this blog up. I would hope that we can get a majority of our class to continue the dialogue past the international seminar as we continue to think about opportunities and interests collectively in India.
As some of you may have come to know during the class week, I am very keen to "get stuck in" and remove my Non-Resident Indian status sooner rather than later... I personally found the week in Mumbai very inspiring with so many of our speakers talking enthusiastically about double-digit growth and ethics rather than grabbing a tiny decimal of market share in a declining market (as we are getting used to in North America and Europe nowadays!).
Here are some of the more interesting speaker notes I made during the week:
- Ravi Kant (Vice-Chairman Tata Motors) "What is Brand India? It's about Leadership and Trust with superior Corporate Governance. We prioritise ethical value over profits and we infuse this into businesses we buy, through absorption rather than diktat"
- Kumar Mangalam Birla (Chairman, CEO Aditya Birla Group): "Our strategy is to be the lowest cost producer. If we are in the bottom 10% then we'll be the last man standing and will always have a differential advantage... However, our core competence is Talent Management and we do this through our Near Relations programme, Training, clear line of sight to High Performers, Relocation initiatives for a globalised experience etc." Interesting to note that ABG was the Best Employer in India in 2007 (according to Hewitt Associates) but did not even appear on the Top 20 list in 2009. (Perhaps a question to Pragnaya Ram on whether ABG even registered!)
- Manjit Singh (CEO Sony Television): "A $12.2bn market in 2008 is going to increase to $22bn by 2013 and with that 13% CAGR in entertainment and television we are going to witness 149m households with a television. Multiply that figure by 4 and you have more eyeballs in India than the entire population of the US"
- Prem Mehta (ex chairman Lintas) on NRIs: "Centuries of war and difficulties have empowered Indians to be ambitious and strive for more… In the 60’s and 70’s there was always a shortage of everything… so Indian’s now have a psyche of ambition. The perception back then was that the opportunity was abroad and away from India. Today, that perception is changing and more and more Indians are staying here or wanting to succeed here… Indian’s who went abroad were a representative of India and created credibility and provided opportunities for Indians here as well as abroad"
- Jamshyd Godrej (Chairman Godrej & Boyce): "We are looking at all disruptive technologies because if we don't innovate then someone else will and put us out of business. We are seeing new, "bottom of the pyramid" innovations such as rural refrigerators at 5C using solar power for $10-15... but the real challenge is marketing to this wide population... The future will be sustainable so innovations must integrate more efficient systems with sustainable energy sources."
A couple of other things which came across from conversations with classmates during the week were:
1) India is seemingly not open to everyone. It is difficult enough to do business as an Indian in India. As a non-resident Indian it will be even tougher to get used to the inefficiency. But mostly, for foreign expats it could be exceptionally difficult without either the culture, connections, language or efficiency. (I would like to challenge that and find some entrepreneurial businesses which have succeeded from non-Indians in India - any thoughts?). Bottom-line is that India does not currently foster a similar "American dream"
2) There are many India's and the double-digit growth at the top-level doesn't always translate to customers or growth in the demographic being targeted. Something to consider when doing your due diligence at business opportunities...
Finally, given the subject title for this blog, it is only relevant to post a video for Incredible India tourism:
That's all for now.
Anand
