Volume4 issue 5 corporate citizen

OPINION Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw: Need for young people to enter public policy Volume 4, Issue No. 05 / Pages 68 / www.corporatecitizen.in

May 16-31, 2018 / `50

Dynamic Duo: 70

Cosy Companionship Sanchita and Rajiv Mitra - MD, Govind Milk & Milk Products Pvt Ltd

Interview

Binesh Menon, Head, Learning & Organisation Development, Emerson

SURVEY Country-wise Tolerance Ranking

CII Manufacturing Excellence Conclave

‘Make in India’

Success Stories Loved & Married Too

Uma and Kunal Chakranarayan on ingredients of a longstanding partnership

2 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

feedback

Want to see videos of CC interviews on your website

It’s always a pleasure to browse through the pages of Corporate Citizen interviews which are pretty good. Recently I happen to see one such where the Infosys stalwart, TV Mohandas Pai, shared his thoughts about India’s IT industry and other subjects dear to his heart. I loved it as it was not just informative but very inspiring and motivating too. I wish if you could also provide videos of such charismatic leaders.

Please think about it as you’ll be doing a great service to the nation if we can not only read but also watch such interviews on your website!

—M Amolika, IT professional, Hyderabad

Continue doing the good job

I am reading regularly with great interest an array of issues and views covered in Corporate Citizen. The cover page title of The MBA Scenario (Volume 4, Issue No. 03, April 16-30, 2018) covers a burning issue. However, the source data of ASSOCHAM cited is of April 2016 and though still valid today, perhaps, a recent statistics could have been more relevant.

Please continue doing good job.

—Dr Pralay Kumar Ghosh

Editor’s note: Thank you for your email and your kind words. As per my information, that was the latest data. Do let me know if you know of a more recent study by ASSOCHAM. Would be happy to publish.

CC mag—a pleasant surprise

I found Corporate Citizen magazine a bit different from other business magazines available in the market. I was pleasantly surprised that it not only contains business interviews but also some unique articles on lifestyle and culture, for example, the health and

The MBA Scenario The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India has done well in exposing the MBA scenario which is going from bad to worse. I would blame the AICTE as well as the emperors of education for this tragedy which has made hundreds of students unemployable. The AICTE started giving permission to any educational organisation without bothering about whether there is a need for so many management graduates in business and industry.

The institutions which applied for starting the MBA programme did not bother about the quality of learning by these students and teaching by the faculty. They were out only for getting profit and profit only. No one should feel sorry if these some third-grade institutions had to be closed down.

—P. C. Shejwalkar, President, Adarsha Shikshan Mandali and Director, Institute of Management Education

fitness-related detailed discussion, which you may not find in any other business magazines currently. I would like to see more Cradle of Leadership stories and those that are fitnessrelated, articles discussing the impact of classical and Western dance in the life of a busy working, etc. The other regular columns are also good reads. I liked it mostly because unlike other business magazines, it actually doesn’t always

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talk about celebrities; rather, it highlights their views or the strategy in building their business empires. I liked the career journeys of littleknown corporate leaders and their significant contribution for social work. Hats off to the CC team for mentioning and showcasing the role of supporting spouses of successful persons in their magazine.

—Kasturika Dasgupta, IT professional

We look forward to your feedback

We at Corporate Citizen, believe that information should not be a one-way street. Your opinion and views about this issue are most welcome. Your ideas and new thoughts you may have, to enhance the content quality of our magazine, are most welcome. We rely on you to keep Corporate Citizen, on the positive and cool note, through your interaction on this page—just as you trust us with the content that we bring you, every fortnight. Mail us your views on: corporatecitizenwriters@gmail.com

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 3

Editor-in-Chief’s Choice / Shekhar Gupta

Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian

The judiciary is under threat, which is from within

The judiciary is under threat from within—from stretching jurisdictions, headline-hunting and its inability to put its own house in order

B

asu Bhattacharya’s 1971 film Anubhav, the first in his trilogy on marital discord, features Sanjeev Kumar as a workaholic editor and Tanuja as his lonely wife. After all is dusted and done through an intense two-and-a-half hours, with Dinesh Thakur completing the triangle of tension, comes a dramatic final exchange between the couple.

“You write editorials each day for everybody else’s problems. Will you write one for ours too?” Tanuja (OK, millennial, Kajol’s mom) asks Sanjeev Kumar.

Picture your eminent Supreme Court judges in a similar situation. This week saw them deliver a judgment of rare clarity and bombast-free passion. Throwing out the Public Interest Litigations (PILs) demanding an independent inquiry into judge BH Loya’s death in Nagpur, Justice DY Chandrachud, writing for the three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, lambasted the petitioners and their lawyers for making scurrilous allegations without a ‘title of proof ’, scandalising and thereby undermining the entire judiciary.

Rejection of the petitions apart, the rage in the judgment came from wanting to save the judiciary from lawyers, activists, the media and other busybodies. It

4 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

looks like everybody is beating on the judges and they are fighting back.

So can we also ask the judges a simple question echoing Anubhav’s Tanuja: you write judgments all the time to protect the judiciary from others. Will you write one on how to save the judiciary from the judges too?

I am being overly cautious in developing this argument, and I better be. Because the judges said they were being large-hearted in sparing the very eminent Loya case lawyers and petitioners from criminal contempt. A mere editor may not get the same generosity going ahead. Facts, however, have to be stated and debated.

This isn’t the moment to discuss the merits of the judgment itself. It is very well argued and stated with brevity not seen in most Supreme Court orders lately. In these polarised times, what you make of it also depends where you stand politically or ideologically.

Journalist Barkha Dutt described the commentariat’s predicament brutally as being two rival poles, chamchas (sycophants) and morchas. It’s perilous to talk nuance as you will then be abused by both sides. It is enormously more troublesome, however, when the higher judiciary looks and sounds similarly polarised.

That’s the real threat to it, from within. That’s what the judges should be angry about. That’s why the judiciary needs saving from the judges.

There are no individual villains here. Just that while it tries to shoo away what it sees as outside viruses, the institution itself is caught in an awful autoimmune disease—you know, when a body starts to eat itself. You can’t but agree with the larger points made in the judgment.

First, that PILs are being misused. People have made careers out of bringing political, individual and ideological fights to courts, wasting their time and contributing to delays. Second, that judges don’t lie—at least not four of them together. And third, that it is preposterous to say that one man controls the entire judiciary. It is an impossibility.

Now, some fact-checking. On the day this judgment was delivered, the morning’s papers reported the Bombay High Court imposing water-use restrictions for IPL matches in Maharashtra in response to an earlier PIL. Forget the worth of the water thus saved for the farmer by starving a playground. Is it really worth the honourable court’s time to pronounce on a PIL in a cricket league when it has many important cases? You must never impute motives to the judges’ actions even as you question their wisdom. The Loya judgment said PILs had become a “facade” for people seeking publicity.

Would the judges look in the mirror and ask themselves if they haven’t been calling for the same temptation?

My colleague Maneesh Chhibber, who is a most avid and insightful watcher of the higher judiciary, has helped me compile a short list of the more interesting examples besides, indeed, the BCCI, which now has left the Supreme Court governing Indian cricket for more than a year with no end in sight. Recently the CJI, who now heads the cricket bench (heard any such in a constitutional democracy?) also admitted another PIL on the side, seeking to legalise betting and gambling in sports. Misra, before he became CJI, had ordered (on Nov 30, 2016) that playing of the national anthem be made mandatory in cinema halls, only to rescind it much later. Each of these PILs made headlines. Nobody remembers the names of the petitioners. So why blame them alone for headline-hunting?

Even the morning after the Loya judgment, 12 of the 43 cases on the CJI’s list were PILs. A few more: the PIL to bring the Koh-i-Noor back from Britain, another to ban Santa-Banta jokes, to

criminalise porn-watching, to make yoga compulsory in schools, and so on. Some of these were eventually dismissed. Why these were admitted, with such a huge pendency and so many citizens waiting on issues of individual liberty, is a question we ask. The fact is, since the eminently noble idea of PIL as the citizen’s last resort originated in the mid-1980s, too many judges have extended its reach and range and in the process stretched their jurisdiction and powers. This often walks them into the executive domain of messy day-to-day governance with no exit. In the capital, the court set up an empowered committee to improve air quality 20 years ago. It continues to date, having transcended the tenure of 18 CJIs; the air has only become more noxious. The same for the court’s committee on illegal constructions and encroachment in the capital. In both cases, the court can’t admit failure and dismount the tiger. But people blame it instead of the politicians and it suits them fine. PILs are being overdone, but not just by publicity-seeking activists.

Judges are part of the problem.

The second principled point was that judges don’t lie—a least not four senior district judges together.

Does the principle not apply to the four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court who have been raising some substantive points of judicial governance for months now? Is their word to be discounted as motivated and their concerns dismissed as misplaced while we take the four Maharashtra judges at their word? I am not stupid enough to insinuate the district judges are lying. I will have to be insane to believe the top SC judges are. Their questions need a response, debate and introspection.

This relentless stretching of jurisdiction, the judiciary’s tendency of headline-hunting through the same PILs it decries as pestilence, and its inability to get its own house in order has weakened the institution more than any outsiders. When the judges seem so divided, you would expect litigants and lawyers to go forum-shopping. More importantly, you will have the executive play games with you, holding back your own appointments while you try cleaning the air they breathe and run the game of cricket. Some tension among institutions is healthy.

But if one becomes too weak, another will muscle its way into its space. That’s exactly what is happening now. The top judges are squabbling, and the politicians are laughing. Which brings us to the third key point in the judgment—that it is preposterous to say that one individual could control the entire judiciary. In principle, you can’t dispute it. In reality, we have seen that come to pass.

Except that it wasn’t a man, but a woman, Indira Gandhi. The courage and spine of just one great judge, HR Khanna, then saved us from becoming like Erdogan’s Turkey today. India of 2018 needs not just one, but several such because the pre-eminent threat now isn’t just from outside, but from within. http://www.sakaltimes.com/opinion/judiciary-under-threat-which-within-16935

Rejection of the petitions apart, the rage in the judgment came from wanting to save the judiciary from lawyers, activists, the media and other busybodies.

It looks like everybody is beating on the judges and they are fighting back”

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 5

Contents

Volume 4 Issue No. 05 May 16-31, 2018 www.corporatecitizen.in

20 Cover story

Dynamic Duo 70

Cosy companionship Sanchita Mitra and Rajiv Mitra, MD, Govind Milk & Milk Products Pvt Ltd, talk on their marriage, work and relationship

9 COLLYWOOD Chatpata Chatter from the Corporate World 6 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

14 WAX ELOQUENT Who said what and why

16 Expert View What makes some individuals relevant and critical to any business 18 OPINION Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw on why we need better, dynamic young people to enter public policy

14

18

28 CII Manufacturing Excellence Conclave Learnings from top executives and successful organisations on ‘Make in India’

36

36 INTERVIEW Binesh Menon, Head of Learning & Development, Emerson, on his field of expertise and experience 42 CROSS CULTURE The contrasts and the happiness of having lived in both the worlds

42

46

44 LOVED & MARRIED TOO Uma Karve Chakranarayan and Kunal Chakranarayan list the ingredients of a long-standing partnership 46 CAMPUS PLACEMENT Monica Rai on her campus placement experience and her hard work and determination

28

48 HEALTH WHO advice on preventing overweight and obesity 50 SURVEY Ipsos MORI survey to figure how tolerant India is compared to the world 54 BOLLYWOOD BIZ The 2018 National Awards winners

16

44 May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 7

contents

48 Editor-In-Chief Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian Consulting Editor Vinita Deshmukh vinita.corporatecitizen@gmail.com Assistant Editor & Senior Business Writer Rajesh Rao rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com

58 56 PEARLS OF WISDOM The need to cultivate triple faith 57 MOBILE APPS The best smart scales available today 58 UNSUNG HEROES - 3 The meteoric rise of a cobbler’s son 66 THE LAST WORD What is it that makes many Indians do so well overseas?

Senior Sub-Editor Neeraj Varty neeraj.varty07@gmail.com Writers Delhi Bureau Pradeep Mathur mathurpradeep1@gmail.com/ Sharmila Chand chand.sharmila@gmail.com Bengaluru Bureau Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar sangeetagd2010@gmail.com

54

Pune Bureau Joe Williams / Kalyani Sardesai / Namrata Gulati Sapra Marketing Manager Delhi: Mohamed Rizwan riz.mohamed@hotmail.com Manager-Circulation circulations@corporatecitizen.in West : Jaywant Patil, +91 9923202560 North : Hemant Gupta, +91 9582210930 South : Asaithambi G, +91 9941555389 Creative Direction Sumeet Gupta, www.thepurplestroke.com Graphic Designer Shantanu Relekar

66 Be A Corporate Citizen

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Send in your views, news, suggestions and contributions to corporatecitizenwriters@gmail.com.

We would love to hear from you!

8 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

On Cover Page Sanchita & Rajiv Mitra Cover Page Pic By Dhruv Purohit Website / Online Subscription www.corporatecitizen.in

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collywood

People in the news

Raghuram Rajan, contender for UK bank

The former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Raghuram Rajan has been named as one of the contenders for the top position of the UK’s central bank wherein he is likely to replace Mark Carney, the current governor of the Bank of England. But Rajan, with significant achievements at the RBI, is of a different view about the same, if some of the media is to be believed. According to the London-based Financial Times, “Attracting Raghuram Rajan, the highly respected Chicago-based economist and former Reserve Bank of India governor, would be a coup, as would securing Agustín Carstens, Mexico’s central bank chief and the new general manager of the Bank of International Settlement.” And the newspaper went on to add, “The government, which selects the governor and deputy governors of the central bank, has not ruled out another non-British appointment and is seeking a figure who can make an impact on the global stage as the UK prepares for Brexit,” about Rajan, who was the first non-western and the youngest at 40 to become the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund. At present, Raghuram Rajan is in

Amazon CEO Bezos mentions India

Chicago, and is now the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Philip Hammond, UK chancellor, is to select the next governor of the Bank of England to replace Mark Carney next year. According to the article, the chancellor said he had already begun looking for candidates in forums such as the International Monetary Fund spring meetings in Washington.

Xiaomi spells trouble for Indian TV makers Xiaomi expects to disrupt India’s TV industry the way Reliance Jio disrupted the telecom space, the company’s founder Lei Jun said. Speaking to ET, Jun said that Indian consumers should get 32-inch TVs for as low as `10,000 but for that to happen, the government needs to lower taxes, a suggestion he would like to give to PM Narendra Modi if he gets a chance to meet him. Xiaomi is looking to also make its TVs in India sometime in 2018, and will look to set up factories for the same.

Jun also expects explosive growth for smartphones in India, which No. 1 ranked Xiaomi should be able to tap, backed by an improved supply chain, compared with the de-growth in China. “Yes, definitely. We believe that from product design, integrating hardware and internet services and from our operating efficiency of our TV business, we have made great improvements. So, we hope that in a relatively short period of time, we will become the No. 1 smart TV brand in India. We are planning to make India programs for the TVs as well,” he said.

World’s richest man and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos recently sent his annual letter to the company’s shareholders. In the letter, Bezos outlines the company’s strategy, investments as well as mentions several milestones achieved by the world’s No. 1 e-tailer during the year 2017. Amazon India’s operations too finds mention in Bezos’ letter.

Talking about Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa, he wrote, “Finally, we’ve dramatically reduced the amount of time required to teach Alexa new languages by using machine translation and transfer learning techniques, which allows us to serve customers in more countries (like India and Japan).” Prime selection in India now includes more than 40 million local products from third-party sellers, and Prime Video is investing in India original video content in a big way, including two recent premiers and over a dozen new shows in production.The 54-year-old, who has allocated a total $5 billion of investments to India, said the internet behemoth was the most visited site on both desktop and on mobile, along with being the highest downloaded shopping app in India in 2017.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 9

collywood IndiGo’s president Ghosh puts in his papers A few days before their board meeting to finalise the results for March quarter, IndiGo announced that its President Aditya Ghosh will relinquish his post and its promoter Rahul Bhatia will take charge as the interim CEO. In a statement the airline stated that, ‘Aditya Ghosh will cease the post as the president with effect effective on July 31, 2018’, and went on to add that its board of directors has accepted Mr Ghosh’s resignation. Meanwhile, the company announced the appointment of Gregory Taylor as Senior Advisor to the company. He will report directly to Bhatia. The board will consider Taylor’s appointment as president and CEO in due course. Bhatia welcomed Taylor’s decision to rejoin the company.

He served as the executive vice president of revenue management and network planning at IndiGo between 2016 and 2017. “His enormous and varied experience and understanding of the complexities of the airline industry will be invaluable to our future plans. At the same time, we thank Aditya for all his hard work and contributions and for the successes that the company has enjoyed,” Bhatia said in a statement.

Tata Sons gets Jaishankar as global chief

After seeking the cooling-off period from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, S. Jaishankar, former Foreign Secretary, takes charge as the Tata’s Group’s president of Global Corporate Affairs, according to a Tata Sons’ release. In his new assignment Jaishankar will report to N. Chandrasekaran, Executive Chairman of the Group. Jaishankar had retired on January 28, 2018, after which he reportedly wrote to PM Modi for a waiver of the ‘cooling-off period’ for bureaucrats citing the offer from the Tata Group. The ‘cooling-off period’ was reduced to a year from two years after 2015. As per the rule, all central civil servants have to seek permission from the centre before taking up commercial jobs within a year before leaving office. In his new avatar, he will be responsible for the Tata Group’s global corporate affairs and international strategy development, and Tata Sons’ international offices will report to him. Commenting on the move taken, N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons, said, “I am delighted to welcome Dr Jaishankar to the Tata Group. His extensive experience and knowledge on international affairs will be very valuable to the group as we work to reinforce our brand and leadership globally.” “The Tata Group is an iconic institution known for its value-based leadership as well as India’s most respected brand globally. I look forward to being part of the Tata Group and working with key stakeholders to make an impact,” said Jaishankar, who had a great repertoire with the PM as well as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. His major achievements in office include negotiating a peaceful talk process during the Doklam stand-off and successful negotiation during the Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement. A graduate from St Stephen’s College, Delhi University, he also has a Master’s degree in Political Science and an M Phil and PhD in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). He joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1977, holding key roles during his career including stints as High Commissioner to Singapore, Ambassador to China and the United States.

Anmol Ambani on Reliance boards Anmol Ambani, the eldest son of Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani, has been appointed on the boards of Reliance Nippon Life Asset Management (RNAM) and Reliance Home Finance (RHF), according to a statement by Reliance Capital, a part of Reliance group. Anmol Ambani, 26, is currently the Executive Director of Reliance Capital, the holding company of the Group’s financial services business. “Anmol has effected

10 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

significant changes to the senior leadership team in the group companies, attracting a string of top talent from reputed companies. This positions us better for future growth, has helped bring in fresh thinking and augurs well for the culture change Anmol is driving across the group,” Anil Dhirubhai Ambani said. Anmol was inducted into the board of Reliance Capital in August 2016. He has played an active role in steering the strate-

gy and performance of the operating companies working closely with their respective CEOs, and in bringing about greater cohesion among group entities, Anil Ambani added further.

“In a fast-growing economy, the potential for both Reliance Nippon Life Asset Management and Reliance Home Finance is immense... We are capturing these opportunities as our recent financial performance reflects,” said Anmol Ambani.

Apollo Hospitals’ Reddy grooms daughters It could be all in the family as Dr Prathap C. Reddy is on course to navigating succession issues by trusting the mutual respect shared by his four daughters.

Even as a model of rotating chairmanship is being proposed, the Reddy sisters are only focused on the secure future of Apollo Hospitals. First-generation entrepreneurs have been known to flounder on the succession issue. Not only is it a touchy—even volatile—subject, it is also left unresolved till too late due to either oversight or complacence. But Dr Prathap C. Reddy, founder-chairman of Apollo Hospitals, is not shirking this responsibility. The 81-yearold promoter has been preparing for the future for a while now, grooming his daughters into various leadership positions in the hospital chain set up by him, while he continues to play an active role. And they haven’t let him down. “My daughters got passionately involved in the business. They did everything,” says the proud father. “They even printed the first brochure of Apollo Hospitals, which was so good that people in the US didn’t believe it was made in India.

They were involved right from that level.” This commitment from the entire family has proved to be the accelerator Apollo Hospitals needed. Consider that from a 150-bed hospital in Chennai in 1983, Apollo has grown to an 8,617-bed hospital chain with 100 clinics and 1,600 pharmacies across the country. Confident in the growth momentum, the family felt the organisation needed to be revitalised. Shobana Kamineni who, at 54, is the third of Reddy’s four daughters. In July last year, then, a seven-member family council headed by Reddy, and including his four daughters and two professional advisors, met to decide the best way to rejig the structure. The council concluded that the most effective approach would be to redefine the role of every family member; this would give everyone a clear focus. “We needed a focus so that we could perform our roles well,” says the oldest daughter, Dr Preetha Reddy, 57. In the reorganisation that followed, Preetha and Shobana were promoted to executive vice chairpersons; Suneeta Reddy, 55, was made managing director and Sangita Reddy, 52, joint managing director.

GSK’s HR department restructured

GSK Consumer Healthcare in their bid to brighten their HR department have elevated Ongmu Gombu, EVP-HR for the Indian Subcontinent (ISC) to a pan-Asia role. She will now be vice-president, HR operations lead, Asia. Gombu has been managing HR for GSK ISC for the last three years. Gombu’s position will now be taken over

by Rahul Kapoor, who is currently HR director for Japan, Korea and South East Asia at GSK, and will report to Arun Sehgal, vice president-HR, Asia Pacific, and support Navneet Saluja, managing

director, GSK Consumer Healthcare. He will be a part of the ISC Leadership Team at GSK. It is three years since Gombu joined GSK from Baxter Healthcare. An alumnus of XLRI Jamshedpur, 1994 batch, she started her HR career with Essar Oil. After spending over two years at Essar, she joined Gillette as assistant manager-HR and stayed put for more than 11 years. She witnessed the acquisition of Gillette by P&G and the transition that followed. At Gillette too she managed a pan-Asia role. In her next destination, Baxter Healthcare, she headed total compensation, the HR operations centre of expertise for Asia Pacific and the Global HR shared-services function. In 2014, she was named director-HR for the emerging Asia market. Kapoor also comes with over two decades of experience and has been with the company for close to a decade. He joined GSK as the talent acquisition head in 2008. Thereafter, he moved into the role of HR Business Partner, Sales, Value Chain, Procurement, Bangladesh and Nepal, and later took up international roles in South East Asia. In July 2014, he was named the HR business lead for Consumer Healthcare Asia. Post the Novartis joint venture, he was appointed HR business lead for South East Asia and Japan/ Korea.

He holds an MPM degree in HR from the Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 11

collywood Ganesh Chandan joins Tata Projects as CHRO Tata Projects appointed Ganesh Chandan as its CHRO. Chandan, who joined Tata Projects recently, comes from Greaves Cotton, where he had been serving as the CHRO for over a year and a half. Chandan shares that in the next five years India will be gearing towards significant infrastructure development and within that, Tata Projects will take up a large chunk of the responsibility. It is this growth prospect that made Chandan make the move. “Tata Projects is well positioned in the infrastructural development domain and joining as their CHRO, I look forward to contributing in terms of building a strong HR function and culture within the organisation,” said Chandan about his new assignment. He went on to add, “This fast-growing infrastructure development business under the Tata

Group that is expected in the coming years excites me and makes my role more challenging and interesting here.” The IIT Bombay alumnus Chandan completed his master’s from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). His first step into the corporate world was with Titan Industries.

Chandan has over two decades of experience as he worked across sectors.

However, he has spent a large part of his career—around 10 years—at Oracle, in various roles. For five years, he headed HR for Oracle Financial Services, based out of New York. Prior to Greaves Cotton, he was the president and CHRO at Suzlon. Before joining Suzlon, he was the CHRO & head-administration at Avantha ERGO Life Insurance. Prior to that, he headed HR at the power and infrastructure division of Avantha Group.

Biyani, India’s retail superstar

Even as Walmart rushes to acquire Flipkart to challenge Amazon, India’s pioneer retailer Kishore Biyani still wants to fight online retail with a unique strategy, Retail 3.0, which makes use of the online-to-offline model. Biyani’s model blends technology with brick-and-mortar retail. The vast growth opportunity in online retail in India has triggered the war between Flipkart and Amazon. However, Biyani’s calculation is different. According to him, nearly 10-15% customers are acquired online-to-offline (O2O) by Future Group, and he expects it to go up to 35%, 12 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

especially through online promotions. He says understanding India is not easy for a retailer. A global retailer needs to adapt to the local style of retailing, he says. Now it is commonly believed that the doomsday scenario of online finishing off the brick-and-mortar retail was wrong. It is the hybrid model that would work in the long run. That’s why Biyani’s Future Group, which controls nearly a third of the country’s organised food and grocery market, may be an attraction for online retailers. Biyani had met Jeff Bezos of Amazon in the US in January to discuss a possible alliance. Biyani has also travelled to China to meet Alibaba officials in the recent past to study its model and see if that can be replicated in India. Amazon and Flipkart could be pouring billions of dollars into online retail but India’s retail king won’t be convinced. Comparing e-commerce companies to typewriters which gave way to computers and died down, Biyani has said that e-commerce companies in India barely contribute to less than 0.2% of total retail sales and would never be able to make money in India.

Ranjan joins Flipcarbon as co-founder & CEO Alok Ranjan who was the people director at AB InBev India, the Belgium-headquartered beverages and brewing company till recently, has joined the Flipcarbon team, as co-founder & CEO. Ranjan comes with over two decades of experience. Throughout his career, he has worked only with beverages companies, first with Shaw Wallace for five years, then with SABMiller for 14 years and lastly with AB InBev India for a little over a year. Flipcarbon, an integrated HR services company, was founded

by Prabhash Nirbhay, in 2014. Recently, Sanjay Pratap also came on board as co-founder. Prior to that, Pratap worked with MolsonCoors India as HR director. “After a successful three and a half years, wherein we grew from a new venture to a young and respected differentiator, we were seeking a visionary leader in HR, who will bring deep domain expertise, industry network and repute, and lead our next level of growth,” said Nirbhay. Reacting to the move Ranjan stated, “After an immensely satisfying professional journey transforming the perception of what HR can do inside organisations, it was only logical that I seek the next big challenge.”

Compiled by Joe Williams joe78662@gmail.com

Department of Information & Public Relations Government of Sikkim

Sikkim - an ethereal beauty R.O. No. : 12/IPR/Pub/Dis/18-19

Dated: 30.4.2018

wax eloquent

It’s a new world

Take a look at what our corporate leaders have to say about recent trends and their experiences in the business world Make in India in Defence

“It is a question of getting policies simplified, inviting people to invest.

When you talk of Defence, the reason why it takes more time is to say which of those do you want to open up, which of three Forces are still not comfortable to opening up. There is a lot at stake in national security.”

You have to keep evolving

“It’s a new world.

Everyone is trying new things to see what works. We should be open to new ways. If we think something’s not working, we can pull back. The days of a blueprint are dead. You have to keep evolving.”

Yashaswini Samat,

chairperson and managing director, GREY Group India Courtesy: http://www.afaqs.com

Nirmala Sitharaman, Defence Minister, India

Courtesy: www.financialexpress.com

Is there a gene that compels us?

“I truly wonder, sometimes, if it is the Indian DNA. Is there a gene that compels us, at every possible opportunity, into questionable deals and arrangements without much regard for notions of conflict of interest? And if our brightest and best engage in such dealings, is it any surprise that much of the rest of the country wallows in corruption?”

Chetan Bhagat, author, columnist, screenwriter, and motivational speaker

Courtesy: https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/The-underage-optimist

Buzzwords for today’s marketers

Winning spirit

“Winning is something I never wanted to compromise on. That spirit was always in me right from the childhood. It was not just cricket, I always wanted to compete and win in any sport I played.”

“There is no silver bullet in our business. So it’s been several interventions like launching new brands, marketing product innovations, customer service interventions, and other things that all came together to drive growth. Back in 2012, application of Big Data in marketing was a rarity in India. It’s delightful to see how the same practices have become buzzwords for today’s marketers.”

Gunjan Soni, chief marketing officer, Myntra https://www.fortuneindia.com

It’s what I call “Heart Share”

Sachin Tendulkar,

“A consumer will always be willing to travel miles to an outlet which recognises his/her and provides the product or service of need. That builds brand loyalty and encourages repeat visits for purchase. It’s what I call “Heart Share” and “Mind Share” leading to ‘Wallet Share’.”

Courtesy: www.punemirror.in

Courtesy: https://www.financialexpress.com

cricketer

14 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

Samik Roy, country head (Dynamics), Microsoft India

Ideal CEO tenure

“In industries where regulation and technology change fast, it is good to get a fresh pair of CEO eyes every five years.

If the CEO has a 10year tenure there will be ups and downs and the score will even out.”

D Shivakumar,

president (corporate strategy & business development), Aditya Birla Group Courtesy: https://economictimes. indiatimes.com

The India experience

Risks worth taking

“They (stunts) are audacious and they are a risk. But then, I could well slip on a banana peel and head to Thy Kingdom Come.

So… we try to live up to the professional demands required of us and proceed subsequently with adequate precaution.”

Amitabh Bachchan, actor

Courtesy: http://indianexpress.com

Free trade is beneficial to all parties

“Both parties—India and the European Union—see the value in making progress because in the long run, free trade is beneficial to all parties, in the long run, protectionism doesn’t help. Protectionism might give a short-term boost for certain industries for employment but in the longer run, it will not work out.”

Nina Vaskunlahti, Finland Ambassador in India

“India is a country where you can come back time and again and every single experience will be different. It does leave an imprint on your heart and soul. India is like an assault on your senses—you know, the sights, sounds and smells are just intense, and I find that invigourating.”

Lindsey Ueberroth, CEO, Preferred Hotels & Resorts

Courtesy: http://indianexpress.com

Courtesy: Mint

Bitcoin and Blockchain are industry disruptors “Bitcoin and blockchain are the best things to have happened for business. Wherever countries have accepted these, they have become huge beneficiaries. (If) India is thinking of making (crytpocurreny) illegal… other countries will raise their hands to get all the (blockchain) entrepreneurs (from India). (Bitcoin) should be the national currency. People talk about crypto as volatile. Bitcoin is stable. The other currencies are falling against it… Bitcoin is global, can store value. Within 2-3 years, I think it will be acceptable everywhere for transactions.”

Tim Draper, American billionaire, investor and bitcoin evangelist Courtesy: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com

Keep moving forward

“I try not to let either success or failure get to me too much, though. I remember what my dad told me once: Any success is momentary, and no failure is insurmountable. What really matters is to keep moving forward and try to do as much good work as you can.

This is the mantra that I choose to stick to.”

Tiger Shroff, actor

Courtesy: http://www.businessstandard.com

For India, I do not see the threat of automation “Which economies are more vulnerable to automation, and which are not? Within India, automation will affect maybe small section of the industrial manufacturing sector and the software industry. But because of the surplus cheap labour available in India, most of the entrepreneurs will bank on cheap labour. So for India, I do not see the threat of automation.”

Sarath Davala, independent sociologist

Courtesy: http://basicincome.org

Suggestion for Indian IT firms “The IT industry should not be only an outsourcing industry. It should be addressing software requirements of the entire country and not just the software consultants in the US.” Faqir Chand Kohli, former CEO, Tata Consultancy

Services Ltd

Courtesy: https://www.livemint.com

Luck or Hard Work

“It is always hard work. Luck is an external factor, it will always be there.

But internal success is more important and lasting. And that comes only by hard work, by working on yourself and becoming your better self.”

Siddharth Dabhade,

General Manager - India, Criteo

Courtesy: http://bwpeople.businessworld.in

Compiled by Rajesh Rao rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 15

Expert View

Being Successful, Sans Borders

by S K Jha

(IRS (retd) and former Chief Commissioner of Income Tax)

What makes individuals with no relevant qualification or domain expertise get picked up for key posts and plum assignments? They possess intrinsic qualities and values that make them relevant and critical to any business...

A

few days back, there was a news item that Dr S Jaishankar has been selected to become President of the overseas business of the Tata Group and that he will report only to the chairman of Tata Sons.

Who is Dr S Jaishankar? What was his experience in the corporate world? Dr S Jaishankar is a 1977 batch Indian Foreign Service Officer, who excelled in his diplomatic career and retired from the highest post of Secretary, External Affairs, Government of India, just a few months back. He does not have any experience of working in the corporate world. He does not have any degree or diploma in the field of management science. He is a postgraduate in political science from JNU and has a doctorate in international relations. He has been lauded for the work done by him in the jobs assigned to him, and the government gave him extension and now has relaxed the rules for him to join the private sector. A question can be asked as to why the Tata Group appointed a rank outsider to manage its business instead of an old corporate hand? This column proceeds to seek this answer.

Outside talent

In my personal job assignment as a senior tax officer, I had the privilege to closely see the workings of business groups and the corporate world. I saw that for entry at lower and mid level, corporate experience or management degrees were considered, but not for very high-ranking positions. Though such high-level entries of outsiders were few and far between, I saw that some very successful entrepreneurs who were not even very much educated had the knack to select some very talented persons.

Professionals both from the corporate world and from outside were being picked up, and they contributed to the success of the business.

I remember that during my younger days when I was in charge of tax matters of a leading group and most of my orders were against that group, yet I was offered a senior position in the group by the management of that group. I declined their offer as I enjoyed my job, but I asked them 16 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

as to why they wanted to appoint an outsider who did not have management qualification or corporate experience. They told me that they look for many other virtues and that corporate experience was just one of such attributes.

What are the virtues or qualities which are essential for excellence in the corporate sector or in any business activity? The identification of the required quality may be a little subjective, related to the business philosophy of the business entity. However, some useful qualities visualised are discussed here which are the same in all areas of activities, not necessarily only in the corporate sector.

Core essentials for success

Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook has identified six core ingredients for success: 1. Ambition, 2. Vision, 3.

Execution, 4. Determination, 5. Luck, 6. Timing.

Unless a person has ambition he will not decide on doing something big.

The doing something big has to be based on a clear vision, otherwise ambition will remain only a dream.

Execution will mean actually working based on the set vision, otherwise vision will never take off.

All these mean getting a good start and going, but it is determination which becomes a critical factor between success and failure of the project undertaken. It is normal that a new project will face problems and obstacles, and it’s our determination which motivates us to go ahead and succeed. There is no denying the fact that good luck plays a role as it certainly reduces our troubles and businesses should be started when the odds are favourable.

Zuckerberg has identified the parameters for

success in business but they are also very important for all our activities.

A person who reaches the top in his area of activity definitely has inner qualities that will help him do well in other areas of work also. Dr Jaishankar was a talented diplomat with inner qualities, and that is the reason that he succeeded. The Tata Group took him as a top corporate executive after his retirement only because of his inner qualities. The chairman, Tata Sons, was himself equipped enough to identify the qualities of Dr Jaishankar which may prove beneficial to the group. It is an intelligent selection.

Lakhs and crores of people start their lives in the corporate sector every year all over the world, but see how many of them become Bill Gates, Steve Jobs or even our own Narayana Murthy.

What distinguishes a small few from many others are their inner qualities and moral values. Many behavioural scientists have done research on the qualities which make people successful. People having these qualities in addition to domain knowledge of their areas of activities excel and become successful.

“We may remain unaware of our qualities, but the people around us will feel it, and we may be offered a higher job, a better business venture or more money. Our success depends finally on the perception of others about us”

Key qualities

Some of these inner qualities outlined by researchers are: 1. Persistence, 2. Thinking big, 3. Self-confidence, 4. Unswerving commitment, 5.

Tremendous willpower, 6. Patience, 7. Optimism, 8. Flexibility, 9. Thinking long-term, 10. Strong communication, 11. Risk -taking ability, 12. Taking definitive action, 13.

Leadership qualities, 14.

Fearlessness, 15. Allowing work to speak, etc.

The inner qualities of a person consolidate into a strong pedestal and if the same is supported by hard work and core competence, then there

is no reason why that person will not achieve success in any activity he is engaged in.

Take the illustration of the Civil Services examination, which is considered to be the most difficult examination in the country. Roughly, 7 lakh students take the examination for about 1,000 jobs, which means that only 0.15 per cent students succeed. Students taking this examination are mostly bright graduates, many of whom are engineers from IITs, doctors and even management diploma holders from IMMs. Students work hard to crack this examination which is in three phases: preliminary, main and interviews.

There is no doubt about the hard work and intelligence of the successful students but finally when they become civil servants, some continue to remain outstanding and many fall from the high moral ground and become corrupt, lazy and vindictive. Students who fall as civil servants are those who do not have a strong base of inner human qualities. This is possible in all walks of life. In the corporate sector or in the business world persons devoid of inner qualities transform into persons like Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksey or Vijay Mallya for whom money is the only goal whether earned rightly or wrongly.

Outer environment

There is a truth that to some extent success also depends on the outer environment, in addition to inner qualities. We have bright, hardworking youngsters with strong moral values who

fail in India but they are very successful abroad.

The only difference is in the environment they work. A helpful environment is always a strong contributory factor in the success of a person.

We face the problem of unemployment in our country but our youngsters outside India become CEOs of high-profile multinational companies. It is the duty of all of us to improve the environment in our country by improving our education system by putting more emphasis on research and innovation. We should stop producing unemployable graduates and give importance to skilling the students. The government should work towards producing autonomous universities which come among the first 100 universities of the world. Our students are intelligent and hardworking but they need the environment to excel.

Happy and healthy

Success remains incomplete if the successful person is not happy. In fact, happiness is an important ingredient for continuous success.

It works as motivation and it also supplies positive energy to work still better. If happiness is lost, then even if the person is successful in his career, he will stop doing things better or working harder and thus start decaying.

In short, success and happiness are complementary to each other. Together with the inner qualities of a person, the strong moral value of that person brings happiness to him. Strong

moral values include honesty, truthfulness, giving love and respect to parents and giving back to the society. Selfless caring and giving to needy ones give immense happiness.

Money lying in our banks definitely make us feel good, but the real happiness comes when some money is given to people who need it with humility, and without any ego or elitism.

See the smile on the face of people whom you have helped and that will work as the ignition fuel of potential energy in you. The strengthened positive energy will give a strong kick for our success and happiness.

Yes, inner qualities and strong moral values form our pillar for success, but there is yet another segment which has to be strengthened and that is our health. We have to be good human beings and try to be successful persons but our happiness will still remain away from us if we are physically not healthy. How can we enjoy our wealth, power and position if we have pain in our body? Can we enjoy our life lying on the hospital bed? Definitely not. Hence our fitness becomes a necessary component of our happiness and also our success.

We need to develop ourselves on all the parameters as discussed for ultimate success. We may remain unaware of our qualities, but the people around us will feel it, and we may be offered a higher job, a better business venture or more money. Our success depends finally on the perception of others about us.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 17

Opinion

“It’s time for India’s youth to stand up and be counted”

Today, there are avenues other than the traditional channels of politics and bureaucracy to engage in governance. This is why we need better, dynamic young people to enter public policy, either in politics or as policymakers, policy advisors and analysts By Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

T

he Lok Sabha elections in 2019 will be historic! An entire generation that was born at the turn of the 21st century will have turned 18 and thus become eligible to vote!

133 million young adults will get to exercise their franchise and thus give shape to their idea of India. This overwhelming number of young firsttime voters can have an extraordinary impact on the outcome of any election. Thus, their inclusion in India’s public policy discourse will be crucial in determining the direction that we take as a nation in the years to come.

If today’s youth is to engage meaningfully in the public arena as active citizens, they need to understand the fundamentals of public policy and governance.

Participative Democracy is the Need of the Hour

Academy Award-winning filmmaker and best-selling author, Michael Moore, famously said, “Democracy is not a spectator sport, it’s a participatory event. If we don’t participate in it, it ceases to be a democracy.”

He is right! Democracy is not a passive exercise of citizenship limited to the exercise of one’s franchise in periodic elections. Democracy needs to be more proactive.

As citizens, we need to know and demand more accountability from the political leadership.

As citizens, we should be aware of our responsibilities; shed our apathy towards politics and engage robustly in our own governance.

Public participation is one of the major mainstays of democracy. It promotes responsible, shared decision-making on issues that affect individual and collective life. Active citizens promote healthy communities, improve their quality of life and have a say in governance. In contrast, passive citizens are disempowered, alienated from public life and frustrated with politicians, public policies and public institutions.

Today, there are avenues other than the traditional channels of politics and bureaucracy to 18 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

engage in governance. This is why we need better, dynamic young people to enter public policy, either in politics or as policymakers, policy advisors and analysts.

We need people who can lead a fundamental rethinking about the roles of government, citizens, and community organisations in the true spirit of democracy. In doing so, they will play a key role in ensuring policy making is more responsive to citizens and thus more effective.

Corporate Governance

In the corporate sector also, we need more skilled professionals in areas such as regulatory affairs, compliance management and corporate social responsibility. Recent instances of corporate governance issues at some of the country’s leading corporate houses have dented their reputation and resulted in a sharp loss of investor confidence.

Research has shown that good corporate governance practices enable companies to attract capital from a much larger pool of investors and at a lower cost. These companies also perform better in the long run. And when they perform better, it leads to better societies and the creation of sustainable businesses that contribute to the overall economic development of the countries within which they operate.

Effective corporate governance systems, within an individual company and across an economy as a whole, help to provide a degree of confidence that is necessary for the proper functioning of a market economy and to reap the full benefits of the global capital market.

India has introduced several measures to improve corporate governance standards. However, more work is needed to improve minority shareholder protection, support a higher degree of transparency and disclosure, and promote greater accountability of controlling shareholders.

India needs the leader in all of us

Today, we need to usher in the kind of political governance that is accountable, transparent, and performance-oriented.

We need a democracy where every citizen has access to modern infrastructure, good education and effective affordable healthcare.

We need effective, metrics-driven governance, which offers self-empowerment opportunities to the disadvantaged so that they can participate in growth and partake in its dividends, lifting them out of poverty.

We need to ask ourselves what can we do to improve the reality we live in? How can we, as citizens of a great country, ensure a better life for all?

This is where today’s youth need to play an important role.

It is important that every young man and woman in this country gets involved, to get their hands dirty and take on the challenges in order to build strong democratic institutions.

Leadership comes from within. Any individual with knowledge, vision and courage of conviction can aspire to become a leader. Today, as India faces enormous challenges, we require the leader in all of us to wake up and act. We need to stand firm to protect liberalism, pluralism and social harmony—the values the Indian republic has been built on.

India needs ordinary but daring young people, driven by the passion to make a difference, to take extraordinary steps in changing things for the better.

We need a more enlightened and development-oriented political discourse in India that rises above partisan politics and instead focuses on putting the nation on the path to robust, inclusive and equitable growth. Today’s youth should strive to raise the quality of debate, continue to uphold decency, civility and decorum and aim for the highest standards in public life.

As Mahatma Gandhi said, “The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.” May you be and may you make the difference that this country needs.

(The author, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, is CMD, Biocon. This article was originally published on https://kiranshaw.blog.)

India needs ordinary but daring young people, driven by the passion to make a difference, to take extraordinary steps in changing things for the better

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 19

cover story Dynamic Duo 70

Sanchita & Rajiv Mitra

Cosy companionship

S

Sanchita Mitra, a social entrepreneur, an impassioned traveller and travel writer, a Gladrags Mrs India finalist in the early 2000s, and an expert in Hispanic Studies, is also a solid support for her dynamic husband, Rajiv Mitra. She, along with Rajiv, spoke at length to Corporate Citizen on their marriage, work and relationship By Vinita Deshmukh

anchita and Rajiv Mitra have built their marital relationship on positivity and banking on the good qualities in each other. They believe in walking the talk, when it comes to bringing up their son, Purushottam, who is presently pursuing his B.Tech. Rajiv believes that life will have dents now and then, but it is important to look at the brighter side of it. Both believe, it is patience, understanding and of course, love, that keep a marriage going.

Working honestly and taking one day at a time, is what makes them tick as happy and successful individuals.

Jab We Met

The first time they were introduced to each other was at a cricket stadium.

States Sanchita, “I was pursuing my Masters in Delhi University. I had accompanied my friends to watch a cricket match at the Feroz Shah Kotla Ground.

Rajiv too was there with a common friend of ours. That’s when we got introduced to each other.’’

Thereafter they got to know each other. Says Rajiv matter-of-factly, “the chemistry between us was just too good, at the first meeting itself. She was staying in the Delhi University hostel and that time there were no mobiles; only the landline connection and that too, sparingly available. A brief courtship followed by. After which, the rest of the arrangements being outsourced to our parents, we got married in 1996.’’

What is it that they admire about each other? Says Sanchita, “The first thing that I loved about him was his sense of humour which is a rarity these days.

And then his strong personality and sociable nature. A conversation with Rajiv can be a very interesting and enriching experience.’’

As for Rajiv, he says that, “I liked her charming smile, a very pleasing and friendly demeanour and her righteousness. She knows exactly what she wants to do—she is the one with a definitive character.’’

All that keeps a marriage going…

These days one sees break-ups in marriages more often,than a couple of decades back. So, what is it that keeps a marriage and what advice would they give to youngsters?

Says Rajiv, “I think marriage needs a lot of patience. Understanding each other, attending to each other’s needs and seeing the good side of each other 20 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

Pics: Dhruv Purohit

I think marriage needs a lot of patience. Understanding each other, attending to each other’s needs and seeing the good side of each other forms a firm foundation for marriage. It is like a journey —Rajiv Mitra

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 21

cover story We all see and learn. The child sees what his or her parents are doing and picks up on their behaviour. We were not worried that our child wouldn’t listen to us; we were concerned that the child would watch us — Sanchita Mitra forms a firm foundation for marriage. It is like a journey. For example, recently we were driving down from Phaltan to Pune. Our car met with a small accident, as our driver was trying to save himself from a reversing truck. He hit a divider and the car had a dent. Similarly, life’s journey is fraught with dents and we don’t know which way trouble is. But what is it that you want to give more importance to? The dent or the car, which is otherwise shining bright—that’s the choice to make.’’

Says Sanchita, “Today’s generation, whether it is the girl or the boy, is in too much hurry, to have the perfect marriage. They don’t have any respect for the institution of marriage. Though, of course, it would be unfair to make a sweeping statement that all marriages are bad.

We do also see a lot of happy marriages now.”

Says Rajiv, “I feel that the acceptance of break-up is also a blessing because if the marital relationship is not working, then it may be better to separate than to have a life of bad marriage.

Earlier, people never used to think of a break-up.

Social framework has changed now. I don’t think that you have to try too hard and live with friction.

However, youngsters must remember that marriage is not about youthful romance all the time.

The definition of romance changes— eating out at your favourite place is also romance.’’

Child upbringing

What are their thoughts on child-upbringing? How did they bring up their only child, Purushottam? Says Sanchita, “We all see and learn. We just can’t dictate and compel him to do this or that. The child sees what his or her parents are doing and picks up on their behaviour. We were not worried that the child wouldn’t listen to us, if at all; we were concerned that the child would watch us. So it is all about doing what you would want him to do.’’

Says Rajiv, “Yes, we are not preachers. Children will do what they see and they will definitely not do what they are told to do. I don’t tell him too much. I remember my childhood—if I was told something, I didn’t like it. We let him make his own choices and then learn through experiences.’’

Has technology changed the role of parents? Says Sanchita, “Oh yes. Technology has made parents the learners. Today, I ask my son, what to watch on Netflix, which app to download. Technology has changed our lives the way the Maruti car changed the way an urban Indian lived in the 1980s. Then came the Internet.’’

Leisure

Their idea of leisure? Says Rajiv, “We are fond of holidays, reading and watching movies. She is very particular about her fitness at the gym, more than I am.’’ Quips Sanchita, “Gymming and keeping fit is something that I am fond of.’’ Their favourite destination for a holiday in India is Goa. London is their favourite international holiday spot; this is where they go often—to visit family and to holiday.

Sanchita, the model and an entrepreneur

Sanchita has been a Gladrag’s Mrs India’s finalist. This was something that 22 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

happened to her by chance. She was spotted and encouraged by a Pune-based groomer/trainer to participate in the pageant. “I was highly encouraged by Rajiv; my in-laws were very supportive too,” quips Sanchita. “It was a different thing to do; a new perspective in life. I am glad I took the plunge”. However, being a career fashionista was not something that she was looking forward to. This elegant couple, however, can be seen in social and fashion circuits of Pune, Mumbai and some other cities.

But, the business of fashion was always on Sanchita’ s mind. And you could not get better than to combine it with a social cause. Sanchita runs her own company, Sanrocks Global Fashions. She procures sarees from the weavers directly and sells them on e-marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal and others. Thus providing a good price to the manufacturer and a good value to the buyer. ‘Traditional tant sarees from Bengal, Paithanis from Maharashtra, silk from Bhagalpur are in my collection. I am scheduled to launch my own website soon. I have some charity events lined up, for benefit of the weavers essentially, towards the end of the year’.

Hispanic Studies expert

An MA in Hispanic Studies, she was working with the Spanish Embassy in Delhi for some time. Says Sanchita, “I specialised in English Literature in Delhi University and also studied Hispanic language. I taught Spanish at the Pune University and at Symbiosis. I have worked as a consultant with a couple of companies having trade relations with Spain and Latin America. I also did a lot of translation for CDAC at that time for Mexican movies that were shown there”.

Travel freak

I travel a lot, write a travel column for the Times of India and a few other publications and have my own travel blog: www.traviajar.in.

What is her philosophy of life?

Take each day as it comes.

Business is about managing people, money and processes With a vast and versatile experience in varied sectors of the industry from telecom when it was in its infancy to the Indian dairy industry which is gaining international interest—Rajiv Mitra, presently the Managing Director of Govind Milk & Milk Products Pvt Ltd, shares with Corporate Citizen, what it takes to consolidate an enterprise... By Vinita Deshmukh May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 23

cover story

R

ajiv Mitra, Managing Director, Govind Milk & Milk Products Pvt Ltd, one of India’s leading dairy companies, has over 20 years of experience in FMCG, Telecom and Food industries. He has held senior-level positions with the RPG Group, Bharti Airtel and Reliance. He has extensive experience in marketing, sales, brands, products, supply chain and general management. A post-graduate in Economics, an MBA in Marketing, Mitra takes a keen interest in teaching and mentoring. A day might come, says he, when he may hang his boots and take up teaching full-time at any one of the premier universities of the world. He is an alumnus of Jadavpur University, Calcutta and executive alumnus of IIMA. A keen lover of sports and a keen reader, a golfer, debater and a commentator on political and social issues, and an avid Amitabh Bachchan fan—read on, for his inspiring story of how he came to be a noted corporate leader…

Tell us about your childhood dreams and your family background.

I was born and raised in Calcutta. The name changed to Kolkata while I was away. Kolkata is a place where I go back to once in a short while, but Calcutta is what goes with me wherever I go. My father who passed away last September was a banker and my mother is a housewife. I graduated from Jadavpur University and I am quite proud of the fact that I studied Economics at Jadavpur where Nobel laureate Amartya Sen once taught.

I was a compliant and behaved student and used to take part in extracurricular activities like drama, fine arts and play sports like cricket and football. As an adolescent, I saw myself to be a professor at a global level.

I still wish to contribute by way of teaching and sharing my experiences and accomplishments. I do visit a lot of colleges and universities all over the world and exchange thoughts. Interacting with students and freshmen actually uplifts me; it is indeed a great learning experience, motivates me to keep abreast with anything that’s new—technology, society, politics, economics. I read a lot.

Which was your first job?

I joined the RPG Enterprises, headquartered at Calcutta. They were into varied fields like retail, carbon black to tyres, electricity distribution and IT. I was in the IT sector and that’s how I came to Pune on a transfer to the company headquarters, which, at that time, was called Fujitsu ICIM. A part of it is now well-known as Zensar.

Who was the boss who inspired you the most?

I was fortunate to have very good bosses. I remember Rajan Kohli, who eventually retired as executive president of Hindustan Times, as my super boss during my initial days as a rookie. We used to admire him from a distance. I didn’t get to interact with him on a daily basis. Even an opportunity to meet up with him would make my day.

But as I said, I worked with a lot of very good bosses. Whatever I have achieved today, has a lot to do with my parentage, family, professors and my bosses. It would be unfair to name any particular boss. As a management trainee, I had to meet CEOs of client companies or consultants, make presentations to them, negotiate with them. At times, this used to make me very nervous. One of my seniors told me that all I need is confidence, which can take me anywhere. This is something which still remains with me. With confidence, you can take on anything. He said to me that assume that nobody in the room knows anything and you know everything. This was a defining piece of advice that I got. Got that confidence to face the world and never lost it till date. I kept on building on it and I saw it helping me in my career. This approach, he had cautioned, is not to belittle someone or to not pay respect to his intelligence. He also taught me that if you are addressing a crowd and come in a few minutes late, never apologise. Then your dominance is finished. At the outset, never do 24 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

As a management trainee, I had to meet CEOs of client companies, make presentations to them and negotiate with them. One of my seniors told me that all I need is confidence, which can take me anywhere —Rajiv Mitra something for which you need to apologise. Confidence teaches you not to be overconfident.

How many years were you in the telecom industry?

I worked in the telecom industry for over a decade. I was there from the start of the mobile telephone in this country, around 1999 when the new telecom policy was launched. Being the initial phase of the industry, it was growing at breakneck pace, at the rate of 100% CAGR (compound annual growth rate).

You were with which telecom company?

For a while, I was with Reliance and then I moved on to Airtel. I have very fond memories of my Airtel days. Initially in Pune, Maharashtra Circle and then at the headquarters in Gurugram. We were growing at a CAGR of 100% per annum, so we were literally working on the edge. That was the pace of the industry. It’s a story, which would be well worth writing for our grandchildren and for generations to come. Now the industry has an altogether different pace.

How do you assess the telecom industry today?

As it happens with any other industry, during the early years, it is akin

great infrastructure; Mumbai; the city of glamour; Dubai and Abu Dhabi, also great, glamorous cities. All great places to live and work. However, we always had Pune in our mind. When I was in Dubai, I got to know of the opportunity at Govind Milk.

Govind Milk & Milk Products was founded by Sanjeev Naik Nimbalkar, descendant of the royal family of Phaltan, a philanthropist and social worker in his own right. We got to know each other through some earlier transactions. He mentioned to me that the then Managing Director was moving on and it would be of my interest to consider the opportunity. I saw the expanse of the operation and envisioned what I would be able to do with it. I sensed a phenomenal opportunity to create an enterprise out of an ambition and took up the job with both hands. I was very impressed with the promoters’ penchant for quality and fabric of ethics in business.

I speak broken Marathi and don’t dress up like a farmer but I am able to touch a farmer’s life and that is something that I am very proud of. I am extremely gratified to be able to bring happiness to the farmer, quality to the consumer and value to all stakeholders. We are a well-known name in Maharashtra and Western India. Our pan-India ambitions are taking shape. The next step is to go global.

But dairy business is much specialised and now there are courses like Dairy Technology and so on. How did you get into that mould?

to how a child in its first year will grow rapidly, in high percentages, but in comparison, a 20-year-old man will grow by a small percentage, in the same one year. So, when you are an infant, your growth is very high.

Growth has stabilised, revenue pressure has increased, competition has intensified and profitability has shrunk. Telecom once used to be a generous payer to shareholders and employees, but now this generosity has reduced.

At that time we were looking for people who would want a mobile phone to talk. Now they are looking for people who will use that mobile phone for a whole lot of purposes other than just talking. Whatever may have happened to growth, in my assessment, mobile telephony has been one of the most important inventions of our age or of all times, for that matter. As important as the aeroplane or the motor car. It has been a very important and positive factor for our macro and micro economic development of the last two decades.

So why did you leave the telecom industry?

My generation is that of drifters; we are journeymen, unlike my father, who served in a bank and retired from there. The world was very big then; now it is smaller. Why is it that after so many years I still think I will to go to the Harvard to teach? Because there is always a quest to do something more, something new. When I was in telecom, I thought I was having the time of my life. Indeed, I was having a great time. Today, I know life could not have been more fulfilling, more exciting. It is such an indescribable, great feeling to be able touch lives of millions of people—from the marginal dairy farmer to the consumers. No better feeling than to be able to create happiness, to be able to bring about social and economic changes within your area of influence and beyond. I am also working on a book, titled, Dairy Famers of Western Maharashtra.

How did you diversify in the dairy business?

We moved to Pune in 1998 and fell in love with the city. We made lot of efforts to stay back here. Work, however, took me places. Delhi, a city of

I read Robert Kiyosaki early in life: manage people well, manage money well and manage systems and processes well. If you do these and use something called common sense abundantly—then be it telecom, fashion or dairy—you can be in command. And that stems out of confidence which I gained decades back. Is it a specialised job? Yes, every job is. But you can’t be a specialist of everything. I could attract the best talent in dairy technology, the best finance manager and the best IT guy—good amongst the very best. My job is done when I am able to add value to their jobs. I don’t need to be a diary technologist though I have a yearning for that knowledge too.

I have been able to learn ‘dairy technology’ and believe me, it is very simple.

Everything is, when you use your common sense.

When you joined Govind Milk & Milk Products Pvt Ltd, what was the turnover, and what was the turnaround that you were able to do, thereafter?

Turnover-wise we have beaten the industry which growing at a CAGR of 16%. That too, during the very challenging years that the industry is going through. More importantly, we have been able to create a household name in our chosen area of operation, we have created exceptional trade equity, attracted the best human capital and got the attention of the community as a whole—the consumers, the investors, the suppliers et al. We have been able to take some products through sales charts that do give some jitters to competition. We are working hard towards creating a brand that is most loved by consumers, valued by stakeholders, trusted by partners and associates, envied by competitors. We are on track, yet a long way to go.

CC

tadka We scream for ice-cream Indians sure now how to make the best of milk and milk products. The ice-cream industry in India generated revenue of more than US$1.5 billion last year and is expected to more than double to generate over $3.4 bn by 2021, according to TechSci Research, a global market research and consulting company.

What’s more, we have a young economy, rising income and lots more potential to exploit. Yummy!

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 25

cover story Going forward, the percentage of revenue that the industry earns from milk products will increase manifold. Coupled with changing tastes and increased urbanisation, westernised products like cheese will gain ground —Rajiv Mitra How do you see consumption pattern of milk in India?

Extremely buoyant. India is the largest producer of milk in the world. We are also the largest consumer of milk. With sustained growth of the Indian economy and a consequent rise in the purchasing power during the last two decades, more and more people today are able to afford milk and various other dairy products. Moreover, milk is a very affordable source of protein to the large vegetarian population in the country. This growing trend in demand is expected to continue with the sector experiencing a robust growth in the short and medium run. However, if the impediments in the way of growth and development are left unaddressed, India is likely to face a serious supply-demand mismatch and may gradually turn into a net importer of milk and milk products.

What are the impediments?

Several impediments are there. Availability of cold-chain facilities is something that remains wanting. India needs to have more colleges and universities churning out quality dairy technologists and professionals. The industry also has to turn attractive to talent. Adulteration, contamination needs to be addressed at its root. Though India is the largest producer of milk, we still are the poorest in per capita yield. Lot of work needs to done on this.

At Govind, we are working hard on increasing milk quality and yield through series of concerted activities. Our pioneering concept of ‘Happy Cows’ is appreciated and widely emulated. Our state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities are geared up to cater to increased demand in our chosen markets. Our robust distribution system reaches out to all our markets.

We also have online sales facility for ghee and milk powder for the discerning consumer and for markets where our traditional distribution has not yet reached.

Govind is creating significant buzz in milk marketing.

You are giving a new dimension to an otherwise insipid product category. Tell us about being ‘The Happy Makers’.

Going forward, the percentage of revenue that the industry earns from milk products will increase manifold. Coupled with changing tastes and increased urbanisation, westernised products like cheese will gain ground.

We are already seeing high involvement in purchase of milk products.

This leads to hypercompetition. Communicating to the consumer about quality, availability, usefulness becomes very important. You would have seen, product categories like butter, cheese, etc. have always had brilliant marketing campaigns.

‘Happy Makers’ is our thought-out tag line. We live it. We are reason for happiness for the dairy farmers. We cause happiness to the consumer when the products land up on her dining table. Our team of happy employees and distributors make happiness. We give an experience to all our stakeholders—an experience of happiness.

What do you think about the new corporate managers, MBA students and their syllabus?

In all my interactions with the youngsters, I find them a much smarter 26 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

lot than we were. I see the same thing at home, with my son, who is slightly younger than the MBA students. Exposure is much more and so is knowledge and understanding, well mostly. Adherence and conformity to basic values of life is very strong—now this is very encouraging. I am impressed, encouraged and hopeful of the future of our country, the community, the world.

As for colleges, they are rated more on average salary that a student gets during campus placement than the quality of professors or the curriculum; education is not meant to be that. It is a placement factory, and I think people are okay with that. Parents want it that way. They will do a survey as to where their child will get a good placement or the best salary.

I think the starting salary, and the salary you draw after five years have no linkage to each other, whatsoever. So what is it that you are chasing?

Is it excellence, or is it the first pay packet? This worries me. Excellence is perhaps a more sustaining attribute to pursue!

Secondly, I went to speak at a very reputed a college. I found them accessing JDs from companies and training people based on that JD, which is a good idea but what it leads to is over specialisation. Like an HR during an interview will say that I want only compensation and benefits, somebody will do only recruitment, somebody from marketing specialisation will say I will do only pricing, or brand. If you have it in you then why you worry about such overspecialisation.

However, having said what I said, I think, the MBA revolution has been good for the corporate world and also for millions of boys and girls across the country.

What is the philosophy of life that you live by, in your professional and personal life?

First up, I live honestly and responsibly. I stand up to the national anthem respectfully, don’t jump red lights, clean my pet poop and yes, pay my taxes. Secondly, I love to dress well and address well. Apart from this, every time I watch a Bachchan movie or an Al Pacino or DeCaprio movie or read Alvin Toffler or Tom Peters or Tagore, I add something or other to my philosophy of life. vinitapune@gmail.com

CII Manufacturing Summit

Make in India­

Success Stories

To realise the dream of Make in India, we need doers who will create disruptive business models of engagement and help Indian manufacturers become globally competitive. We need to create a marketplace where manufacturing enterprises (from suppliers, OEMs and companies to supply chains) are fully integrated and adaptive to VUCA changes in the global and national manufacturing sector. At the recently-held CII Manufacturing Excellence Conclave 2018, at Hotel Westin, Pune, the second plenary session focused on the various success stories of Make in India initiative. The panellists for the session were, Anil Goel, Chairman, Duro Shox Pvt Ltd (Session Chair); Kaustubh Shukla, COO, Industrial Products Division, Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co Ltd; G.K. Pillai, MD and CEO, Walchandnagar Industries Ltd; Col. Rajinder Bhatia, President and CEO, Bharat Forge Defence and Aerospace; and Deepti Chandrachud, Director, Kwality Paints. Corporate Citizen, brings forth the learnings from top executives and successful organisations By Rajesh Rao

Why Make in India?

Anil Goel, Chairman, Duro Shox Pvt Ltd (Session Chair) Why operational excellence, why manufacturing excellence, why Make in India, when we can get it from elsewhere also? I have been in the industry for last fifty years and I started my entrepreneurial career in Pune, by manufacturing shock absorbers. When economy was opened we use to get threats from our customers, “Reduce the price or we will start importing from China”.

That didn’t happen. Today, I am proud to say that I am exporting shock absorbers to China and I am exporting shock absorbers to the USA, which is the country that gave us this technology initially. And I have been recognised by Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India, as the highest exporter for the last three years in succession, in this segment.

Why? I feel a lot of national pride—India was the centre of knowledge and learning in the golden days, but somehow we lost it. We are a race, which has always given to the world the best and I think we should do it now. It is not only because the Prime Minister says ‘Make in India’, it’s our moral responsibility towards our country. Don’t you want to ride a better car? Don’t you want your children to study in better schools? Don’t 28 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

you want prosperity and see nice things around you? It is unfortunate that today our country is producing more children than wealth and that has to change. I don’t know how to stop producing more children, but I think we can definitely produce more wealth and that can only be done when we are the best.

Our culture is, we learn from storytelling. To-

It is not only because the Prime Minister says ‘Make in India’, it’s our moral responsibility towards our country. Don’t you want prosperity and see nice things around you?

—Anil Goel

day we will hear from stalwarts of the industry; they will share their success stories and we have to take learning from them. Try and do the best for our country, for our self-respect, for our welfare and welfare of our people.

We are blessed with talent Col. Rajinder Bhatia, President and CEO, Bharat Forge Defence and Aerospace

If you really want to make a defence industrial base, what will it need? In defence, we are nearly in the bottom half. Making defence and aerospace industry to grow, you need two parts-technology and manufacturing ecosystem. Technology, you need R&D, innovation and when you have both of these, disruptive technology will start coming out—we have lot of technology startups in the country. In manufacturing ecosystem it is competence, capability and if you have both of these, capacity will be a function of capital and business development.

I am sorry to say that the least number of startups today are in defence-they are more in ecommerce and many other streams, but not in defence. Why are there no startups in defence?

Do we lack technology? Today, there are 870 MNC centres in this country and they employ close to 3,00,000 bright engineers of this country.

Pics: Yusuf Khan

(Clockwise)

We are a race, which has always given to the world the best and I think we should do it now —Anil Goel ‘Make in India’ has been in the country for long time, Indian companies have the capability; what we need is the mentality —G.K. Pillai In our business there are huge challenges. Good decisions come from experience and experience comes from bad decisions —Kaustubh Shukla With our green technology (water-based paints), we can reduce VOC emission induction by 98 per cent.

That is the major revolution in this technology —Deepti Chandrachud

There is no shortage in this country of skill sets and manufacturing. Probably enablers are not in the right place, to make it happen —Col. Rajinder Bhatia

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 29

CII Manufacturing Excellence Conclave 2018 CII Manufacturing Summit GE has the second largest setup in India-in the world after the US-and this centre is recruiting at the rate of 9 per cent per annum growth. So, we do have the capability, but the unfortunate part is that we as a nation have not been able to utilise it for ourselves.

Where do we stand in the global manufacturing ecosystem? We, as a manufacturing nation, are far superior to South Korea, US, Brazil and even Japan, especially in high-technology manufacturing. So, you have the ecosystem, you have the R&D and still you are not putting that to work for the country. Most of the executives think that India is the best place today to design, develop and manufacture innovative products.

If I talk about manufacturing competence, a company like ours, which had in 1990 a turnover of 200 crore, is today 7,700 crore. At that time we had 9 per cent of Indian market, today in a chosen product, we have 55 per cent of the global market. So, there is no shortage in this country of skill sets and manufacturing. Probably enablers are not in the right place, to make it happen.

What do we really need to do as initiative?

We need to de-bottleneck innovation. We need to promote people at all levels and more so in assemblies, to come out with innovative ideas.

Then we can surely switch from net importer to net exporter.

How do we create skill sets in our group? Our group turnover is close to about 2,000 crore today. Bharat Forge’s turnover is about 700–800 crore and defence in 12 years has reached to 12 per cent of Bharat Forge’s turnover, next year it’s going to be 15–18 per cent. How do we do it? We created a talent pipeline… we recruite people from tier-2 and tier-3 cities, with basic knowledge in maths and physics. We have our own test—after putting on 3–4 years of training on the shop floor, we select around 45–50 people every six months. So, we have a three-year

course and 300 people undergo degree course with BITS Pilani and we run this course in our own university, with a campus in Pune. These are the people after the training, they come back to the shop floor. They start working on the shop floor as design engineer, quality engineer, production engineer, quality engineer. After working for 3–5 years, out of them 20–25 young boys are picked to do MTech with IIT-Powai and equal number to do MBA. Every year we pick up 2–3 people to do PhD—all this training is done on company expenses. Twelve to fifteen per cent of our manpower is on formal training at any given time. Then concurrently we started three highend technology sectors, in Pune, Hyderabad and Bangalore. And challenges taken were, whatever you were not able to do in this country, let’s do it with our own money. There is nothing that is difficult, it just the will power that has to be there and you can achieve what you want. We developed number of guns from 2012 to 2014—three guns. Each gun has about 3,000 to 5,000 new components and all components are designed, developed and manufactured by our own teams.

This country has some unique advantages; we are blessed with talent. Indian engineers have a unique capability to design and perceive items in three dimensions. It is no surprise that today two largest technology giants are headed by Indians. Second great advantage this country has, is the age—today average age is 32; by 2021, average age of Indians will be 29 years and 400 million will be getting ready for jobs. And the greatest point is our family ideology. An Indian parent will do everything, put their life savings, to educate their children. Nowhere in the world such family value exists and if such value exist this nation cannot fail. So, things can happen at a delayed interval, but it is certain that they will happen.

Working with startup mentality Kaustubh Shukla, COO, Industrial Products Division, Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co Ltd

Indian engineers have a unique capability to design and perceive items in three dimensions. It is no surprise that today two largest technology giants are headed by Indians —Col. Rajinder Bhatia

30 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

While Godrej is a 120-year-old conglomerate, but today I am going to focus on where we are working on with startup mentality. When we are talking about Godrej & Boyce, it is essentially known to be an appliance, consumer durable company and nearly 600 million people touch a Godrej product every day. But, we are much more than appliance and consumer durable company. We have done very significant contribution to space research, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, defence research and defence production. In 1897, a lawyer by profession, chose to defy the British dictate of not allowing Indian entrepreneurship. A Parsi lawyer could have done very well as a practising lawyer, but he chose to

be an entrepreneur and that’s the spirit that runs in the company today. Things like developing the world’s first soap out of vegetable oils—that spirit of entrepreneurship has lived along.

Various products like manual typewriters, refridgerators, machine tools, process equipment, aerospace, defence equipment, nuclear equipment—we were among the first to produce them in the country. We also produce humun-

Cost reduction would come later; people will get you the cost reduction, that’s the approach that we have. Customer-centricity improves the win-win

—Kaustubh Shukla

gous process equipment—800 tonnes, 8 metres, some of them are 97 metres—are produced in Mumbai and sold and installed all over the world. We are talking about building reliability, accuracy, and tolerances of very high order.

So, from consumer durables to very high-end equipment, that’s the kind of variety and spectrum, we are handling.

What are the organisational challenges? Very large portion is engineer-provided—every new project that we do execute, there is need of engineering requirements. Across projects, there is no similarity, so material of construction, the sequence of manufacturing, the type of vendors we deal with, the manufacturing processes, the assembly and assembly-based protocol-everything is different. So, how can one be nimble-footed, very agile in taking such projects and execute them well? It is very specialised, so we require very deep skills in a wide range of capabilities. This field requires high investment and facilities, infrastructure, high competence level of workforce—to be in the business you have to have it all, but then you have the issue of all of it not being utilised. There are many more challenges—maintaining machines at peak level, the man-machine-material everything has to be qualified for the particular project. If I have to summerise these challenges—shifting goal posts in manufacturing, and to do it productively, to do it reliably, what you want is a regimented way, repetitive way, so that you can

really do it. The kind of work we are doing, require extremely intelligent people, not to look for better ways but to do it in the manner that we do and at the same time keeping them engaged, channelling their energies.

What has been our approach to really survive and do well? One is to accept reality—it’s a level-playing field, whoever is in this sector has to have it. Then you demystify—you have to do a good job doesn’t mean you have to compromise productivity. So, you must also learn to demystify. Skill is important and very crucial, but so is will. Highly skilled people tend to become indispensable and therefore their productivity drops—so willingness to learn new things and willingness to adapt is important.

Profits through people and processes ar something that has helped. Cost reduction would come later; people will get you the cost reduction, that’s the approach that we have. Customer-centricity improves the win-win. In our business of strategic industry, there are huge challenges.

Good decisions come from experience and experience comes from bad decisions. We have been making in India since 1897, we have 3000 acres of land in Mumbai, out of which 1750 acres is conserved and preserved mangroves, and we call it Make in India, because this is probably the largest green lung that Maharashtra has.

Necessity is the mother of invention

G.K. Pillai, MD and CEO, Walchandnagar Industries Ltd Today’s programme is on manufacturing excellence and we are looking at how we can excel in the field of manufacturing, along with ‘Make in India’ and success stories. When do we succeed, or when do we say that somebody has succeeded? In my 45 years of professional service, I was in public sector for about 26 years and 19 years I was in the private sector.

What makes an organisation succeed? India and Indians have been very much instrumental in innovation and today it is the buzzword everywhere. The Walchandnagar Industries has been in existence for last 109 years and we have been working with ethics, to do something for the country.

There are two segments of Indian industry-Make in India has been very successful.

Apart from large and medium industries, there are many small industries in the country that have played a major role. The nuclear and space sectors are the two industries and if you look at these two sectors in Indian scenario—almost 100 per cent components of the launches which are made by ISRO, are manufactured in India by Indian industries, with Indian technologies. There are no collaborations for these items, which go into the spacecraft. Similarly,

‘Make in India’ through green technology Deepti Chandrachud, Director, Kwality Paints

The most important aspect in an organisation, which makes it successful, is the plant-level leadership and that has to be given more emphasis

—G.K. Pillai

in the field of nuclear, as far as 700 megawatt plants are concerned… in the early seventies, after the Pokharan blast took place, the West stopped any support to the Indian industry or to the Indian nuclear programme. Industries like Godrej, L&T, Walchandnagar, all of them have worked with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCL) and today as far as 700 megawatt power plant is concerned, not one item need be imported from anywhere in the world. There is a message in this—necessity is the mother of invention.

Today, if you want to set-up a steel or fertiliser plant, we still need a better technology from somewhere in Germany, Japan or Italy. But, if it is a nuclear plant or space programme, technology is 100 per cent indigenously available. Why we have been doing ‘Make in India’ in these two sectors, because we were forced to do that. An important point—if we are compelled to do something, we will definitely do that.

The third point which all of us can take pride in both these segments of space or nuclear, the private sector has played a major role in developing items. There has to be a real coordination between the private and the public sector. For a long time, defence has been kept reserved for the public sector. With regard to manufacture, Make in India, yes, there are companies who are doing it. In the area of Make in India and some of the success stories, the most important are technology transformation, people transformation and process transformation.

Which is the most important aspect in an organisation, which makes your organisation successful? It is the plant-level leadership and that has to be given more emphasis. Hundred years back, the founder, Walchand Hirachand, thought of putting a huge manufacturing setup. ‘Make in India’ has been in the country for long time, Indian companies have the capability; what we need is the mentality.

This is about development of water-based technology for industrial segment. We are a family-run organisation, founded by my father, Pradeep Chandrachud in 1980. We are 38-yearold company. We are manufacturers of automotive and industrial paints. Currently we are producing around 3 lakh litres of paint per month, which comes to around 10–12 thousand litres per day. We have over 80 employees and direct associates. I am really proud to say that we are contributing to the visionary mission of ‘Make in India’, by developing water-based technology, for industrial application, first time in India.

Our product portfolio is diverse, we supply paints for automotive applications, we are into general industrial segment, also into protective coatings of pre-engineered buildings and steel structures and plastic coatings. We have developed UV-curable coatings for plastic applications—the speciality of the product is that general paints take minimum half hour to cure or to dry, but this UV-curable coating is a radia-

We are contributing to the visionary mission of ‘Make in India’, by developing water-based technology, for industrial application, first time in India —Deepti Chandrachud

tion-curable technology and it hardly takes 3–4 seconds to cure.

About this green technology in paints (water-based technology)—the main important factor of paints are volatile organic compounds (VOC), these are chemical compounds, which evaporate at room temperature and they are hazardous to human health and environment as well. So, with this green technology, we can reduce VOC emission induction by 98 per cent. In general paints VOC is 400–450 grams per litre, in water based paints it is just 10–15 grams per litre.

That is the major revolution in this technology. rajeshrao.rao@gmail.com May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 31

Interview

By Joe Williams Take us through your career and educational background.

I started my career as a 17-year-old, when after my Class XII exams I worked for a marketing campaign. From then on, there was no turning back as I took up a series of marketing assignments and even full-time jobs during my graduation years. The jobs that I held those days gave me a lot of exposure across industries and product segments. Most importantly, it enabled me to garner invaluable experiences which have had a significant impact on me. After my PGDBM from IIMM (now BIMM) in 2002, I again drifted through a few jobs in customer service and sales, prior to finding my calling in the fulfilling world of talent management and people development.

Out of my total 21 years of work experience, I have been fortunate to have spent the past 15 years in the field of Learning & Development in reputed organisations like the Tata Group, John Deere and now for the past seven years with Emerson. In my current role at Emerson, I head the Learning & Organisation Development function across India, the Middle-East and Africa. Essentially, what that means is, I get to outsource 10,000 of our employees across over 50 countries to not just become what they do today, but also equip them with skills, knowledge and experiences for their future career growth. I am also a certified facilitator for various leadership courses. I like to believe that when I deliver these workshops, they have an impact not just on the business aspect of what

these leaders do, but also have a significant influence on their personal lives as well.

What are the challenges that you come across in your role, and how do you tackle them? Has the role changed over the years?

In my role, I need to work closely with business heads and senior leaders to drive development initiatives across their organisations. Sometimes the senior-most leaders in these organisations don’t necessarily share our enthusiasm for developing their people. I have learnt that it is best to first work on establishing one’s own credibility with them before convincing them on backing our initiatives. This is easier said than done. However, one of the most effective methods I have found is to help them achieve their business goals through coaching conversations and targeted interventions. I don’t see these as ‘challenges’, I prefer to see them as ‘circumstances’. Sometimes the circumstances are favourable for one to achieve their goals and at other times they may be unfavourable—like tailwinds and headwinds in aviation.

How do you balance work and life?

Work-life balance is an oxymoron. Trying to maintain a balance between work and life is one of the foremost causes of stress today. Because in today’s world of constant connectivity, it is next to impossible to cut off from one’s work at any point. Similarly, if you have a crisis or a concern in your personal life, it would be a huge challenge to not think about it between

Challenges are circumstances that need to be addressed.

Work-life balance is an oxymoron, embrace life as a whole.

Head of Learning & Development at Emerson, India, the Middle-East & Africa, Binesh Menon has over 21 years of experience.

Work should energise, not stress you out, says renowned trainer, facilitator and ‘influencer’ Binesh Menon and speaks to Corporate Citizen, about his field of expertise and experience

look at ‘challenges’ as ‘circumstanc 36 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

With this connected world of Instagram, Facebook, etc., peer pressure has moved to a completely different level. This constant need for external validation is turning people into insecure beings hidden behind the projection of a concocted exterior. They are often too stressed out with their own expectations of themselves

Pics: Yusuf Khan

es’

May May 16-31, 16-31, 2018 2018 // Corporate Corporate Citizen Citizen // 37 37

Interview nine-to-five and only focus on it once you step out from your workplace. Hence, instead of constantly trying to balance these two aspects of one’s life like a juggler in a circus, our focus needs to be in creating a life that is wholesome in every way. Instead of striving for a balance between the two, I embrace both. That’s why it is important that you love what you do for a living.

There are 24 hours in a day and all of those 24 hours are my “life”. It would be absurd to think that I will “work” from 9 – 5 and live my “life” after I am done with my work. When I wake up in the morning, I prioritise what all needs to be done during the course of the day, irrespective of whether that task belongs to my personal life or my work life. I do it with the same enthusiasm and zest, because life cannot be lived in compartments.

Tell us about your family.

I am a proud army brat; my father is a retired Colonel from the Indian Army. My mother is a very strong woman; throughout my growing up years I have seen her handle a lot by herself.

My father, being an Infantry officer, was away on long tenures in very hostile environments including the IPKF in Sri Lanka. My parents are now settled in our ancestral home in Kerala. My elder brother is settled with his family in Mumbai. My wife, Anjuna and I live with our sevenyear-old son in Pune. We have been together for 18 years now and married for the past 13 years. She is the academician in the family with three postgraduate degrees to her credit and is currently working towards her doctorate. She teaches film and television production for Liberal Arts students and runs her own company that specialises in conducting workshops on film-making.

38 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

How do you manage stress?

Believe it or not, I am happiest when I am in front of an audience and training people. Hence, my “work” energises me rather than stressing me out. I do travel for work about 15-20 days in a month, which can be tiring at times, especially while taking red-eye flights and moving across time zones. To mitigate this, I do make it a point to hit the gym or pool at hotels when I travel. I love reading books, mostly about psychology, philosophy, management and leadership. I avoid reading fiction. I watch shows on Netflix for my dose of fiction. When I am at home, my favourite de-stressing activity is spending time with my son. We do fun things like baking cakes, playing

video games, painting or just going down to the playground together. On a philosophical note, I have found that Stephen Covey’s concepts of ‘Circle of Concern’ and ‘Circle of Influence’ are very relevant when it comes to managing stress.

I avoid being concerned with issues that are beyond my influence and continuously work on increasing my influence on every aspect of my life that I am concerned about.

What has been the turning point in your life, both personally and professionally?

I have always been a seeker. Ever since I remember, I would explore different places, observe peo-

After my MBA in Marketing, I again switched a couple of jobs in sales before I found my true calling. The turning point in my life, both personally and professionally, ought to be the first time I stood in front of an audience as a facilitator. That day I knew that that was what I enjoyed doing the most. This was almost 15 years ago, and from that point onwards I have trained audiences of all sizes, age groups, levels of experience and seniority across India, in the Middle-East, Singapore, Australia and even places as far off as South Africa. The one thing that has never changed is the level of satisfaction and happiness from making a difference in somebody’s life through my workshops and one-on-one sessions.

What is your take on women’s role in today’s corporate world?

ple and behaviour. I didn’t know what I was looking for but I was constantly searching. As I entered teenage, I experimented with and explored numerous paths. There was a phase in my life (late teens) when I was deeply religious, I remember saving money from my part-time jobs and setting out on numerous pilgrimages by myself. I visited many holy places across the length and breadth of India. I also read a lot of books on different philosophies, alternative healing and spirituality during that period. I also meandered through a lot of jobs and entrepreneurial ventures in search of something that would resonate with who I am. In five years (1995 – 2000), I had worked at 23 different jobs even before I went in to do my MBA.

Despite all the initiatives and growing clamour about equality and women’s rights, even today women make for only a minuscule percentage of the corporate world. This is really disheartening. There are a number of reasons for this. It’s like a funnelling effect of sorts. The gender ratio keeps on dipping throughout their education from kindergarten till their post-graduation. At every progression point they keep dropping out from the mainstream. Unfortunately, the trend doesn’t stop with education; even in the corporate world, if you look at the ratios from the start of an employee’s career all the way to the top of the organisation at the CEO level, you see the same pattern. At various transition points in a woman’s life, she is faced with this difficult choice between pursuing her career and fulfilling her perceived social obligations.

Do you feel there should be special efforts made to empower and

encourage women in the corporate world?

Absolutely. I am aware of several initiatives that organisations like ours have implemented in this regard. There are programmes that are put in place at the talent acquisition stage itself to ensure women candidates are given equal opportunities as their male counterparts and the most suitable person for the role is selected, irrespective of their gender.

Many policies are especially designed keeping in mind the needs of women employees, e.g. flexible hours, work from home options, crèche facilities, etc. But these are not enough; the larger part of the challenge is in creating a conducive work environment where every employee feels valued and respected. The focus needs to be on creating awareness around the unconscious biases that may have crept into the psyche of each one of us around gender equality and women in the workplace. Don’t get me wrong, these biases aren’t only in the minds of men in the workplace; research tells us that women have similar unconscious biases around the skills and abilities of other women employees. Hence, awareness and acceptance are the first steps in eradicating the corporate world of this inequality.

Can you recall your great moments in your corporate life?

I have been fortunate enough to receive a lot of recognition for my work, not just from within the organisations that I have worked for but also from the fraternity and industry at large. Despite all these awards and recognitions, what I truly cherish as highlights of my career are a few heart-touching moments. These are oftentimes small gestures like a thank-you note or message from someone years after I would’ve worked with them. It’s so gratifying to realise that the brief conversation or even a message I would’ve deliv-

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tadka The turning point in my life, both personally and professionally, ought to be the first time I stood in front of an audience as a facilitator. That day I knew that that was what I enjoyed doing the most. This was almost 15 years ago, and from that point onwards, I have trained audiences of all sizes, age groups, levels of experience and seniority

Bihar is the best Bihar is generally viewed as least-progressive among states but Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s recently launched scheme providing education loan up to `4 lakh at just 1% interest has pleasantly surprised everyone. Though it’s meant for girls, differently-abled and transgender students, interest rate for others is also kept pretty low—at 4% only. But that’s not all. While commercial banks give education loans at 9% and more and that too mostly for engineering and medical courses only, here it’s available to all 12th-pass students pursuing education for any course, even polytechnic-walas!

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 39

Interview

“Make workplaces more family-friendly”

In a recent convention at a city institute, Binesh Menon shared his views with students on a range of topics such as the demographics of the corporate world, diversities, some dos and don’ts, statistical characteristics of human populations (such as age or income) used especially to identify markets, besides others, culled from his years of work in the field Demographics of the corporate world: The demographics of the corporate world have been taking different shapes down the years. This is one of the main reasons why organisations have had to adapt their practices in order to respond to the increasing diversity within labour markets. Diversity alters pools of potential employees, the needs of employees, as well as influencing broader business objectives like service provision. In addition, the constantly changing demographic profile of the broader population means that organisations need to develop strategies that will meet the needs and desires of the country’s citizens. Citing the profound implications for organisations and managers in the coming decades, he said that the need to have better understanding and awareness of different cultures including their practices and religious beliefs makes it imperative to implement flexibility in work whilst ensuring that the quality of work is not eroded. He emphasised the need for the creation of non-discriminatory environments within organisations and better integration of work and life, so that workplaces are more family-friendly.

Diversity: There have been many changes at the workplace and with changed diversities one has to cope with these changes. Diversity encompasses race, gender, ethnic group, age, personality, cognitive style, tenure, 40 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

organisational function, education, background and more.

Power distance index: According to experts, power distance index measures the extent to which the less powerful members of organisations and institutions (like the family) accept and expect that power is distributed unequally. This represents inequality (more versus less), but defined from below, not from above. It suggests that a society’s level of inequality is endorsed by the followers as much as by the leaders.

Corporate culture: The most important aspect of corporate culture would be navigating different geographical cultures, selecting jobs based on culture,

Seeing is believing, but believing is also seeing. You believe in something and you will see that more than anything else. It is a valuable tool for understanding ourselves better and others as well. Preference is different from skill. One can develop a skill, but preference will remain the same, since it is internal

changing cultures, and offering feedback across cultures, especially in a multi-national firm. Building a great culture in your workplace is a worthwhile endeavour. Sometimes, the hardest part of building the culture is keeping tabs on how well you are doing. A general view of this would be the notion that “we’re all in this together” for a better office culture. Great managerial cultures eschew the divide between ‘us’ and `them’, replaced by ‘we’. But it is easier said than done, as this is an extremely challenging task.

Frame of reference: Seeing is believing, but believing is also seeing. You believe in something and you will see that more than anything else. It is a valuable tool for understanding ourselves better and others as well. Preference is different from skill. One can develop a skill, but preference will remain the same, since preference is internal. Citing an example, Menon asked the students to write something with their preferred hand (right hand for the majority of the population) and later asked them to do the same with their other hand (left hand for most people) which many felt was difficult. He asked them what would happen if they continued to do so for long with the hand they did not prefer. It could be that they would also be able to write just as well with the other hand as well. However, even if they are just as skilled in writing with the “other hand” their innate preference would never change. Which means you may not be able to alter your preference, but if one wants to learn a new behaviour or a new skill, they can.

With this experiment, he reiterated that irrespective of one’s “preference”, any skill can be inculcated, adapted and “learnt”. This holds true also for our ability to deal with the behaviour of people, who, we believe, are different from us. When we use our non-preferred hand for writing we could be clumsy, slow and the process may be very frustrating to begin with. But if we persevere we can master any behaviour and be adept at it, no matter how different it is with our innate preference. Preferences are in-born but skills are learnt.

What I truly cherish as highlights of my career are a few heart-touching moments.

These are oftentimes small gestures like a thank-you note or message from someone years after I would’ve worked with them. It’s so gratifying to realise that the brief conversation or even a message I would’ve delivered to a larger group sometimes ends up helping an individual through what might’ve been a critical phase of their lives

Spend time understanding and developing yourself. Never stop working on yourself.

The more you see the more there is to marvel about. Keep an open mind. Spend your time learning, experiencing, interacting, reflecting!

Bruce Lee once said—If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.

This, to me, is the best advice for anybody irrespective of whether they are young or not.

You must make a conscious choice at every moment of your life for the best utilisation of your time. If the answer is negative, then it is time to make a change!

Dream big! Go forward! Believe in yourself and be nice! joe78662@gmail.com ered to a larger group sometimes ends up helping an individual through what might’ve been a critical phase of their lives. “Changing lives” is the mantra I live by, and I am thankful to God that I get to do that on a regular basis through my work and other social initiatives.

How do you see youngsters of today? What is your advice to them?

I totally love the youngsters of today. They are very confident, well-informed and clear about their goals and ambitions. Most of them have such detailed plans in terms of how they would like to steer their careers and life. We saw this trend with the millennials but now with the current generation of centennials (or iGen) these strengths are even more pronounced. These youngsters have been fortunate to come into a world where there is no dearth of either information or entertainment and the access to

knowledge is free and unlimited. On the flip side, they have also had to face the pressures that come with this information overload. People of my generation and the ones prior to us never had to deal with the stresses of social media while they were growing up. Peer pressure was limited to your immediate circle of friends, now with this connected world of Instagram, Facebook, etc., peer pressure has moved to a completely different level. This constant need for external validation is turning people into insecure beings hidden behind the projection of a concocted exterior. Based on my interactions and observations of this generation, I think they are often too stressed out with their own expectations of themselves. I would love to see them take joy in the present moment rather than trying to capture it (not to mention the edits and filters) for social media. Your life is only as rich as the variety of your experiences!

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tadka

India - CSR spending mandatory

India is one of the few countries in the world that mandates a minimum spending requirement for CSR activities. Under Section 135 of the Companies Act, which was enforced on April 1st, 2014, a company has to allocate 2% of its average annual net profit in the preceding three years to CSR. However, the policy only applies to companies of a certain size, those with a net worth of `5 billion or more, those with an annual turnover of `10 billion or more or those with an annual net profit of at least `50 million.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 41

Cross Culture

t r a e H n a i d In Rina in front of a breathtaking Swiss backdrop

Swiss Passport,

A young Indian girl, brought up in Switzerland but having stayed connected with India, Rina Haksar, narrates the contrasts and the happiness of having lived in both the worlds

A

s an Indian-born and raised in Switzerland, I am fortunate to experience ties to my culture without the corruption of my parents’ country of origin. According to the 2018 fact sheet for the Indian embassy in the Swiss capital Bern, the Indian community in Switzerland includes approximately 24,567 Indians, roughly 7,164 of which are people of Indian origin. The Indian population in Switzerland has the highest concentration in the cities of Zurich, Geneva, Basel, Baden, Bern and Lausanne, in that order. Many expats favoured Switzerland’s international schools, unlike my family who decided to integrate with a German-speaking education. That way we grew up able to communicate with other Swiss kids, as well as other Indians in our area.

My parents moved to Switzerland in the mid-eighties because of a job transfer the pharmaceuticals company Novartis (then Sandoz) gave my Dad. They had no idea then that Switzerland would still be home over 30 years later.

Growing up, I was so lucky to be able to afford a visit to my grandparents and other family in India every single summer holiday during the school year. I grew up never taking the time with my grandparents for granted, because it was so limited every year.

42 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

It wasn’t until 2013, the year I turned 22, that I spent more than six weeks at a stretch in India for the first time since before I started school as a toddler. Helping out at the school my family founded in the eighties in Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh, I experienced for the first time key differences between the Swiss and Indian lifestyles.

The Indian community in Switzerland has had to carve out a place for their rituals and beliefs among the very different Swiss culture. I have experienced the complete opposite in India.

Shivpuri is a relatively small place as Indian cities go. Yet I have seen how even there, the mind-set of the locals prioritises religious dates in the community. The school celebrates a number of religious festivals, over and above a commendably solid education.

Considering the number of public holidays, one can imagine how much harder the massive population works on the days they do have school or work. The goal for any kid is to be able to support their parents financially someday.

With little scope for employment in that little town, you have to strive to be successful in academics, so that you can migrate towns and villages for jobs.

Witnessing that atmosphere first-hand, taught me why my parents, who spent a big part of their formative years in boarding schools in India, al-

land is a er z it w S in in a Travel by tr runs with g in th y er ev s a g oa l popular tourist n and the views are often io clockwork precis ectacular sp

Aerial view of a train passing through the Swiss Alps

ways called my sister and I lazy students. Even Switzerland has had to become more competitive nowadays, but growing up it was easier to just appreciate the joys of everything the Swiss are famous for: impeccable punctuality (they are big watch manufacturers), cheese and chocolate production. I literally had to use my time in India to be able to stick to a strict weight loss diet once because the Swiss are best known for specific cheese (raclette and fondue) and potato (rösti) dishes.

Travel by train in Switzerland is a popular tourist goal because everything runs with clockwork precision and the views are often scenic and spectacular. The Swiss see cows as mere farm animals, whereas Indians let them wander free on the streets as they perceive them to be ‘sacred’ animals, to be worshipped. Train travel in India, meanwhile, (this is unfortunately first-hand experience) is so unreliable that the platform loudspeaker could literally announce a train is running days, not hours, late because of foggy conditions. I sometimes wish it were possible to throw the best aspects of my dual worlds in a blender but sadly pros and cons are a way of life.

When I was eleven, I first learned to appreciate Bollywood films. Shah Rukh Khan was my first celebrity crush as a pre-teen connecting with her roots. With Bollywood films, in the nineties, often shooting musical numbers at Swiss locales like the beautiful Alps and more, I had found a passion that tied my two worlds together. Before I started school, I spoke Hindi a lot more freely at home. The decision to integrate in a German-speaking environment made it less of a priority growing up. I became fluent in German to make friends in Switzerland and it was English-subtitled DVDs that reignited my love for Hindi cinema many years later. Now, much like my school-level French, it is shyness that holds me back from speaking Hindi but I understand quite a lot and can communicate easily with the servants at my grandparents’ homes in India.

While most of my year is spent wishing I were closer to all my loved ones in India, I am thankful to have grown up with the opportunities that Switzerland provides. I was born with mild cerebral palsy and I’m not entirely sure I would have fared well in an Indian school from what I’ve seen. But my ties to both India and Switzerland have given me a greater appreciation of two cultures, two countries, two worlds and the one heart that makes us all human no matter where we come from.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 43

Loved & Married too

The DNA of

It is not often these days that a college romance fructifies into wedlock. Corporate Citizen unlocks the story of love that has culminated into marriage, for we believe in the stability of a relationship and family unit. We bring to you real-life romances that got sealed in marriage

Togetherness, deconstructed Married for 14 years, and dating for 20, here’s getting Uma Karve Chakranarayan (39) and Kunal Chakranarayan (41), to list the ingredients of a long-standing partnership—culture and religion no bar

By Kalyani Sardesai

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typical day for Uma, media woman-turned-entrepreneur, begins with attending to calls from her customers. As partner at Petsworld, a premium pet food and accessory Pune-based chain of stores, Uma has converted her passion for pet animals into a viable business that keeps her close to her favorite folks on earth, namely animals. For this, she has the unflinching support of her husband, the quiet, unassuming Kunal, who respects all that she stands for. “There are times when she needs a gentle push to go for what she wants, but once she decides to do something well, she goes all out,” he says. Deputy manager for Idea Cellular, Pune, his work entails travel, long hours and all the stresses that come with a corporate career, but together the duo have made it work as they always have—with some humor and plenty of deft time management.

Back to the beginning

This love story was first scripted on the grounds of Fergusson College, Pune way back in 1997, with Uma pursuing her eco honors and Kunal, political science. It so happened that Kunal was accompanying a boy who Uma’s friend had a heavy crush on. To help her shy friend break the ice with Kunal’s friend, the effervescent Uma went up and struck up a conversation with Kunal and his friend. Well, not much is known about what happened to either of their friends, but Uma and Kunal embarked on the journey of a lifetime—starting with long conversations and longer walks in the blazing sun on campus, picnics to local forts, coffees and cookouts and dates. Post-graduation, Uma studied journalism while Kunal joined Idea Cellular. Despite this, the relationship continued on an even keel.

44 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

The popular notions of what could be a roadblock are usually wrong. For example, one of the first questions posed to my in-laws would be: does she eat meat? But that’s such a non-issue really. What really decides the future of a relationship are compatibility, trust and generosity —Uma

It helped that despite their temperamental differences, (he’s quiet and she, far from so), they loved the same things: books, the outdoors and humor. “We can make each other laugh. That is a big deal,” says Kunal. “We share a mutual love of puns. Both of us bond over witty conversation and gags, ” he says.

The families, though, were none too pleased.

Uma is a Maharashtrian Brahmin, and Kunal, a Christian. Both sets of parents worried as to how two youngsters with such diametrically differing cultural backgrounds would possibly make a sound marriage.

The face-off continued for some time. Ultimately, though, the elders did give in. “I don’t know what made them change their minds; I guess we just stuck it out for that long,” smiles Uma. Finally, the duo were wed in late 2004.

The building blocks of a marriage

Uma with Arin Uma and Kunal

hands and my smile is posing for a pic 100 watt! Kunal isn’t as crazy about animals, he is crazy about football. I am not like the other wives who keep complaining about his first love. I see and respect his need to play all weekend mornings and weekday evenings.

Gives me free time,” she winks.

Uma successfully ran her own pet magazine Tell Tail for three-and-a-half years before finally converting it into a Facebook magazine. “I have always had the freedom to pursue my dreams because I know he has my back,” she says. “We end up adopting any animals I rescue. That’s how my dogs Bhu and Wag came home. That is also why we had guinea pigs. What is a relief is that he understands my need to do what I can to help animals who are victims of cruelty or abandonment.”

So how easy or difficult was the post marriage adjustment considering that they were living in a joint family? “It takes time and effort and an open mind,” says Uma. “But let me tell you, the popular notions of what could be a roadblock are usually wrong. For example, one of the first questions posed to my in-laws would be: does she eat meat? But that’s such a non-issue really.

What really decides the future of a relationship are compatibility, trust and generosity,” she says.

“I would say things usually settle down once the first child comes along,” says Kunal. “Everyone then begins to look at the bigger picture, that is raising the child well.”

The most crucial aspect of a relationship as per Uma is the ability to let things go.

“You cannot and should not make a bogey of everything. Your partner is a different individual. Just let him or her be. Trying to change someone— and in the process forgetting to appreciate them for who they are—is an exercise in futility,” she says.

•Celebrating Kunal agrees that Uma is the differences more understanding partner, for instead of all her temper and impulsiveness. making them “When things heat up, she has a a stick to beat wonderful way of diffusing the coneach other with flict and tension. She’s really effective at it,” he says.

• Choosing your Quality time together consists battles wisely of date nights. “We both believe in working hard, and partying hard• Letting go of er,” says Kunal. To that end, Friday past grudges nights are dedicated to clubbing, dinners and exploring the latest • Respecting restaurants in town. “We are both each other's big-time foodies and love trying out dreams different cuisines,” says Uma. The duo have worked their differ• Patience ences to advantage. “I’m a complete dog person, so put a puppy in my

The Pillars of a Marriage

Bringing up their son

Like every couple, the upbringing of their 12-year-old son Arin is an important arena of responsibility. “I gave up a fairly rewarding career as a journalist with The Indian Express when our baby was born,” reminisces Uma. “It was a very hard decision, but as a family, we were firm that our little boy would be the focus of our lives for the first few years at least,” she says. “Even today, my work timings are around his schedule and it works well. In fact, when I started my shops, I had a heart to heart with both him and Kunal as to what it would entail. Fortunately, they were encouraging.”

Both Kunal and Uma are focused on the overall development of their child, rather than merely the academic zone. “I would rather that he learn to say please, sorry and thank you rather than excel in class. These things count in life,” says Uma. A typical pre-teen, Arin is heav-

Kunal with little Arin

ily into football and the outdoors. “If he had his way, he’d play all day long. But he shares my love for animals and goes to check up on the street dogs we love. And he work diligently to keep our dogs, Wag and Bhu on their toes,” she says.

Holidays usually consist of long car drives —just the three of them-to somewhere open, clean and green. “It’s usually just the three of us as it gives us the time and wherewithal to catch up with each other,” rounds off Kunal.

As a wise man said: at the end of the day, family is all that counts. kalyanisardesai@gmail.com

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tadka

Singapore is the passport king Singapore now offers the world’s most powerful passport. For the first time ever, an Asian country has the most powerful passport in the world. Holders of a Singaporean passport can now easily visit 159 countries, either visa-free or by gaining a visa on arrival.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 45

Campus Placement

Embrace destiny with open arms Engineer, writer and now a banker (relationship manager) with a multinational bank, life has come full circle for Monica who is now wise to life’s unknown plans. Her open attitude and acceptance of these plans and the inspiration and value system she derived from her grandfather are making her stronger by the day By Joe Williams

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estiny, the hidden power believed to control life’s events made Monica Rai, an engineering graduate from Jabalpur, change track and plunge into the management stream. Today she is with HDFC Bank Ltd. as relationship manager, retail branch banking. “Yes, this is my destiny and today I am happy,” said Monica who passed out of one of the renowned management colleges. Monica has a liking for writing. She is the editor-in-chief and writer for the Facebook page ‘Humans of SBS’, started by one of her faculty.

She always wanted to be the best in the business, and she went about it with sheer hard work and determination. She particularly remembers the grind during the campus placement. "For many, their dream is getting into the best company with the best package. For me, I feel it is

46 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

the happiness from the success one derives as one goes up the ladder. It is not just money which can make a person,” says Monica.

There were many who taught her in school and college, but it was her grandfather who taught her the values of life. The eldest in the family, she enjoyed her childhood most importantly because of her grandparents. “My grandfather Dr Vijay Shankar Rai was a renowned philosopher, educationist, lawyer, author of many books and was conferred with many prestigious awards like Darshan Shree award, besides many others.” Her grandfather was her inspiration. “He was the person who gave me the strong foundation of a value system in my childhood to stand tall in the world.

They say, ‘you become your conversations’, and may be that is why my conversations with my grandfather since my childhood, from politics to philosophy to physics to law to learning the tricks

of the trade to life philosophy and practicality has made me who I am today.”

Earlier days..

An outstanding student in her class, Monica was the teachers’ favourite all through her schooldays, not because of sycophancy but because of excellence. “My school was a perfect place, conducive to a learning environment with its emphasis on strong basics. I enjoyed the science fairs where one gets fulfilment seeing projects which stimulate thinking. I was fortunate enough to have great teachers who motivated me and pushed my limits in every field of discipline.” That has helped her move forward and carve her own destiny in the field, which, she says, “has been joyful as well as astonishing.”

Once an engineer, always an engineer. The mental grooming that engineering colleges bring about sharpens one’s ability to comprehend things analytically, and she feels that mathematics is core to anything and everything. She did miss Engineering college, but found that postgraduating from a management college gave her a multidimensional approach to everything —not just technical skills, brain-storming, even overall personality development.

Placement journey..

Monica made it in her first attempt with HDFC Bank Ltd., the first company to visit the campus for summer internship. She appeared for the process which included a written test, followed by an interview round and got selected. HDFC Bank has a policy of offering pre-placement offers to students who outperform in their summer internship. During this period, one gets to work with complete dedication, determination and discipline with an opportunity to showcase professional and behavioural excellence at all levels. The first experience is always special, and so it was for her. “I am grateful to Kiran Bhatt, Branch Manager, HDFC Bank, Pune, for her constant support and encouragement throughout my summer internship,” says Monica. She is of the opinion that it was the brightest opportunity one could ask for, as a fresher. “Getting into one of the best banks in the country and being associated with the most valuable brand as per BrandZ consistently for two years (2016,2017) in a row is no joke. I was always confident about my placement. I knew I had a bigger canvas to paint.

Having completed my PGDM-Marketing, it was time to explore the unexplored and work with great discipline to reach the top.”

Being patient is the key to success, says Monica.“There are times when one is bound to lose patience and that is when the downfall starts, so never lose your cool.”

Her success story…

“My grandfather will always be a constant source of inspiration and courage for me throughout my life. My mother has been a beacon of encouragement for all my trails, and she keeps on mentioning that I am the train engine for my younger siblings. My direction will decide their trails too, so choose your direction well, is her advice.”

Teachers all through her school and college have played an important role in Monica’s life. “And I guess that is how success finds its way with all the love and support in life.”

Happiest moment..

“That was when I got the news that I secured 6th position in the district merit list in my class VIII board examination. I was surrounded by journalists from different news channels asking me questions. I had never encountered anything like that before. Later she finished in the top eight at the district level in her Xth exams.

However, the most precious memory that

I was always confident about my placement.

I knew I had a bigger canvas to paint. Having completed my PGDM-Marketing, it was time to explore the unexplored and work with great discipline to reach the top” still lingers in her thoughts is that of having a 20-minute-long discussion with Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former President of India, popularly known as the ‘Missile Man of India’. “My grandfather and I were invited to meet him on his visit to Jabalpur. My grandfather gifted him books authored by himself. And we entered into a discussion about the book and the world around. That discussion was something that I carry with me throughout life.”

What is life all about…

For me, life is all about values and principles that you believe in and stand for. They can never get you wrong and will always ensure prosperity in life. A person is as good as his value system.

Six tricks to be successful…

Monica posing with a friend Interacting with former President the late Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

1. Never settle for less, if you believe you deserve more, go for it.

2. Pursue excellence, there is no place for the second best in the world.

3. Be real. Companies love to see the genuine you!

4. Be punctual. This is, by far, the most attractive trait that one could gift oneself.

5. Know your craft. Know what all competencies you have that stand you apart from the crowd and then keep polishing them.

6. Do your homework well. Before appearing for any company, know A to Z about it. joe78662@gmail.com

Monica with family Monica being felicitated at an event

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tadka

Not any more All good things come to an end but when it’s about the next plot in Harry Potter series, ye dil maange more. However, J. K. Rowling, its creator, feels differently. After seven books, eight films, one Broadway play and numerous awards, Rowling says, she’s content with the way the story of Harry Potter has turned out and she won’t like to stretch the plot.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 47

Health

WHO Warning on Obesity and Overweight

Overweight and obesity are largely preventable. Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s choices, by making the choice of healthier foods and regular physical activity the easiest choice (the choice that is the most accessible, available and affordable), and therefore preventing overweight and obesity

B

ody mass index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify overweight and obesity in adults. It is defined as a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/m2).

Adults

For adults, WHO defines overweight and obesity as follows: • Overweight is a BMI greater than or equal to 25; and • Obesity is a BMI greater than or equal to 30.

BMI provides the most useful populationlevel measure of overweight and obesity as it is the same for both sexes and for all ages of adults. However, it should be considered a rough guide because it may not correspond to the same degree of fatness in different individuals.

Facts about overweight and obesity

Some recent WHO global estimates follow.

• In 2016, more than 1.9 billion adults aged 18 years and older were overweight. Of these over 650 million adults were obese.

• In 2016, 39% of adults aged 18 years and over (39% of men and 40% of women) were overweight.

• Overall, about 13% of the world’s adult population (11% of men and 15% of women) were obese in 2016.

The worldwide prevalence of obesity nearly tripled between 1975 and 2016.

In 2016, an estimated 41 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight or obese. Once considered a high-income country problem, over48 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

weight and obesity are now on the rise in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in urban settings. In Africa, the number of overweight children under 5 has increased by nearly 50 per cent since 2000. Nearly half of the children under 5 who were overweight or obese in 2016 lived in Asia.

Over 340 million children and adolescents aged 5-19 were overweight or obese in 2016.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents aged 5-19 has risen dramatically from just 4% in 1975 to just over 18% in 2016. The rise has occurred similarly among both boys and girls: in 2016 18% of girls and 19% of boys were overweight.

While just under 1% of children and adolescents aged 5-19 were obese in 1975, more 124 million children and adolescents (6% of girls and 8% of boys) were obese in 2016.

Overweight and obesity are linked to more deaths worldwide than underweight. Globally, there are more people who are obese than underweight—this occurs in every region except parts of subSaharan Africa and Asia

Overweight and obesity are linked to more deaths worldwide than underweight. Globally there are more people who are obese than underweight—this occurs in every region except parts of sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

What causes obesity and overweight?

The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended. Globally, there has been: • An increased intake of energy-dense foods that are high in fat; and • A decrease in physical inactivity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of many forms of work, changing modes of transportation, and increasing urbanization.

Changes in dietary and physical activity patterns are often the result of environmental and societal changes associated with development and lack of supportive policies in sectors such as health, agriculture, transport, urban planning, environment, food processing, distribution, marketing, and education.

What are common health consequences of overweight and obesity?

Raised BMI is a major risk factor for noncommunicable diseases such as: • Cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke), which were the leading cause of death in 2012; • Diabetes; • Musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis – a highly disabling degenerative disease of the joints);

• Some cancers (including endometrial, breast, ovarian, prostate, liver, gallbladder, kidney, and colon).

The risk for these noncommunicable diseases increases, with increases in BMI. Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of obesity, premature death and disability in adulthood. But in addition to increased future risks, obese children experience breathing difficulties, increased risk of fractures, hypertension, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and psychological effects.

How can overweight and obesity be reduced?

Overweight and obesity, as well as their related noncommunicable diseases, are largely preventable. Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s

choices, by making the choice of healthier foods and regular physical activity the easiest choice (the choice that is the most accessible, available and affordable), and therefore preventing overweight and obesity.

At the individual level, people can:

• Limit energy intake from total fats and sugars; • Increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, as well as legumes, whole grains and nuts; and • Engage in regular physical activity (60 minutes a day for children and 150 minutes spread through the week for adults).

Individual responsibility can only have its full effect where people have access to a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, at the societal level it is important to support individuals in following the recommendations above, through sustained implementation of evidence based and popu-

lation based policies that make regular physical activity and healthier dietary choices available, affordable and easily accessible to everyone, particularly to the poorest individuals. An example of such a policy is a tax on sugar sweetened beverages.

The food industry can play a significant role in promoting healthy diets by: • Reducing the fat, sugar and salt content of processed foods; • Ensuring that healthy and nutritious choices are available and affordable to all consumers; • Restricting marketing of foods high in sugars, salt and fats, especially those foods aimed at children and teenagers; and • Ensuring the availability of healthy food choices and supporting regular physical activity practice in the workplace. http://new.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 49

Survey

India, the 4th most tolerant country in the World The world is more tumultuous than it has ever been. Developed countries like the USA and the UK have become more paranoid, while political turmoil has enveloped much of Europe and the Middle East. India, 2 in contrast, is doing much better. Indians feel more upbeat and tolerant than ever before. Corporate Citizen dives into the ‘World Divided 2018’ survey by global market research specialist Ipsos MORI to figure how tolerant India actually is, compared to the world By Neeraj Varty

50 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

People around the world are feeling more divided than ever. Countries like the USA are enveloped in a protectionist and conservative mindset and there is more discord amongst its citizens than ever before. Brexit has made the UK more isolated from its neighbours, while Italy is in political turmoil. In such an atmosphere, it is important to understand what the citizens of each country feel about their motherland and their outlook to one another. It is with this intention that Ipsos MORI asked a series of questions to citizens aged 16-64 from 27 countries to get their views on their country’s unity and tolerance.

Here are the results.

Q. Overall, how divided do you think your country is these days?

Three in four people globally think that their country is divided. Serbia is seen as the most divided, while Saudi Arabia is perceived as the least divided. India is the also very united, coming at the sixth position worldwide. This speaks volumes for the secular fabric of our country.

% Very/Fairly divided Total Serbia Argentina Chile Peru Italy Hungary Great Britain Poland United States Spain Brazil South Africa Russia Germany Belgium Sweden Mexico South Korea France Australia India Turkey Canada Malaysia Japan China Saudi Arabia

16% 8% 11% 6% 7% 8% 10% 10% 10% 14% 11% 14% 16% 7% 20% 15% 15% 15% 22% 22% 30% 16% 26% 13% 33% 34% 8% 28%

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 51

Survey Do you think society is more or less divided than it was 10 years ago, or is it about the same?

Six in 10 say their country is more divided now than it was 10 years ago, compared with one in six who think it is less divided. India is the fourth least-divided country in the world, as per this metric.

Most Indians feel India is as united as it was a decade ago.

Overall, how tolerant do you think people in your country are of each other when it comes to people with different backgrounds, cultures or points of view?

Overall, nearly half of the people think that people in their country are tolerant of those with different backgrounds, cultures or views.

Canadians are most tolerant whereas Hungarians are least tolerant. Indians think their country is very tolerant. In fact, India is the fourth most tolerant country in the world as per the survey.

Net More Less Divided Divided

More Divided Total Spain Sweden Italy Germany Great Britain Hungary Belgium United States Mexico Poland Argentina Brazil France Turkey Australia Russia South Korea Peru Malaysia South Africa Canada Chile Serbia India China Japan Saudi Arabia

59%

16% 8% 11% 6% 7% 8% 10% 10% 10% 14% 11% 14% 16% 7% 20% 15% 15% 15% 22% 22% 30% 16% 26% 13% 33% 34% 8% 28%

77% 73% 73% 73% 73% 69% 68% 67% 64% 64% 64% 62% 61% 59% 57% 56% 55% 53% 52% 51% 51% 49% 48% 46% 44% 43% 30%

43% 69% 62% 67% 66% 65% 59% 58% 57% 50% 53% 50% 46% 54% 39% 42% 41% 40% 31% 30% 35% 35% 23% 35% 13% 10% 35% 2%

Very/Fairly Tolerant Total Canada China Malaysia India Saudi Arabia Australia Sweden Mexico Russia Peru Great Britain Serbia United States Germany South Africa Argentina Turkey Belgium Japan Spain France Chile Italy Poland Brazil South Korea Hungary

52 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

46% 74% 65% 65% 63% 60% 60% 58% 55% 55% 55% 54% 52% 47% 47% 44% 42% 40% 39% 37% 37% 36% 36% 34% 30% 29% 20% 16%

Do you think people in your country are more or less tolerant of each other when it comes to people with different backgrounds, cultures or points of view than 10 years ago, or is it about the same?

More think that people in their country have become less tolerant of those with different backgrounds, cultures and views than 10 years ago. In China people say there is more tolerance whereas in Hungary there is much less. India too feels it is as tolerant as it was a decade ago.

Has the net tolerance in your country when it comes to people with different backgrounds, cultures or points of view increased or decreased than 10 years ago, or is it about the same?

People in China, Canada and Peru are most likely to say there is more tolerance whereas in Hungary, Belgium and Italy people say there is much less tolerance.

Net More Less Tolerant Tolerant

More Tolerant Total China Chile Canda Peru India Mexico South Africa Spain Australia Malaysia Saudi Arabia Brazil South Korea United States Japan Great Britain Turkey Argentina Sweden Poland Serbia Germany Russia France Italy Belgium Hungary

30% 59% 44% 42% 42% 40% 39% 35% 33% 33% 32% 31% 29% 29% 28% 27% 27% 25% 25% 25% 24% 24% 24% 23% 19% 17% 16% 9%

39% 16% 34% 26% 28% 34% 31% 41% 41% 36% 33% 29% 45% 35% 44% 19% 45% 52% 45% 46% 47% 28% 48% 33% 47% 57% 57% 62%

-9% +43% +10% +16% +14% +6% +8% -6% -8% -3% -1% +2% -16% -6% -16% +8% -22% -27% -20% -21% -23% -4% -24% -10% -28% -40% -42% -53%

Net More Tolerant Total China Canda Peru Chile Japan Mexico India Saudi Arabia Malaysia Australia Serbia South Africa South Korea Spain Russia Brazil United States Argentina Sweden Great Britain Poland Germany Turkey France Italy -41% Belgium -41% Hungary -53%

-10% 43% 16% 14% 10% 8% 8% 6% 2% -1% -2% -4% -6% -7% -8% -10% -16% -16% -20% -21% -22% -23% -25% -27% -28%

neeraj.varty07@gmail.com May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 53

Bollywood Biz

The 2018 National Awards winners The National Awards are the most prestigious film awards in India, and rightfully so. Every year, hundreds of films from all over India vie for the top prize. This edition, Corporate Citizen brings you the big winners from the 65th National Awards ceremony held in the national capital recently By Neeraj Varty

Best Feature Film

Village Rockstars (Assamese) Village Rockstars is an Assamese language coming-of-age film, written and directed by Rima Das, in which Dhunu (Bhanita Das) is the protagonist amidst a group of real village rock stars.

Growing up in depravation, she learns to manage her life within surroundings of hostile natural calamities and dreams of owning a guitar! The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) 2017. Apart from bagging the National Award for Best Feature Film, Village Rockstars also won awards in three other categories, Best Child Artist, Best Location Sound Recordist and Best Editing.

54 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

Best Director

Jayaraj for Bhayanakam (Malayalam) Jayaraj may not be very well-known all over India, but he is a legend in the Malayalam film industry.

He is known for fusing commercial and art films and is successful in both genres. Notable in his early career were Kudumbasamethan (1992), Paithrukam (1993) and Sopanam (1993). Paithrukam was critically acclaimed but was subject to criticism for its conservative, religious philosophy. Desadanam (1997) was a milestone in his career. With the film, he was considered a serious film-maker by the critics. It was followed by another critically acclaimed film, Kaliyattam (1997) which was an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello. It also won him the National Film Award for Best Direction. So far, he is a six-time recipient of the National Film Award and several Kerala State Film Awards.

Best Actress

Sridevi for Mom (Hindi) What can be said about the legendary Sridevi, whose career spanned over 50 years, other than that this National Award has been due for a long time. Sridevi has had one of the most illustrious careers of any Indian actress, and one which included huge commercial films like Mr. India (1987), Chandni (1989) and Himmatwala (1983) as well as critically acclaimed films like English Vinglish (2012) and Mom (2017). In Mom, she plays a 21st century mom, who is loving and caring but not helpless. She is love and kindness personified in one moment but can turn into Maa Durga the very next to fight the demons of society and protect her children. The only sad part about this award is that Sridevi received it posthumously and not while she was amongst us.

Best Actor

Ridhhi Sen for Nagar Kirtan (Bengali) Riddhi Sen is an acclaimed method actor from Bengal. He is a regular actor of the theatre group Swapnasandhani, and has picked up most of his acting chops from doing theatre itself. He has received critical acclaim in the past for his performances in Parched, Bhoomi and Chauranga. Nagar Kirtan is a transgender love story, which, as you can imagine, is an extremely sensitive subject in India. To essay the role of a transgender in a poignant way without caricaturing it takes courage and real acting prowess, which Riddhi has displayed brilliantly. neeraj.varty07@gmail.com

The full List of Winners Dadasaheb Phalke Award: Vinod Khanna

Best Director: Jayaraj for Bhayanakam (Malayalam)

Best Feature Film: Village

Rockstars (Assamese) Best Actor: Ridhhi Sen for Nagar Kirtan (Bengali) Best Actress: Sridevi for Mom (Hindi)

Best Supporting Actor: Fahadh Faasil

for Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum (Malayalam)

Best supporting actress:

Divya Dutta for Irada (Hindi)

Best Action Direction:

Baahubali 2 (Telugu)

Best Choreography: Ganesh Acharya for Toilet: Ek Prem Katha

Best Film for National Integration: Dhappa (Marathi) Best Popular Film: Baahubali

2 (Telugu)

Best Debut Film of Director: Pampally for Sinjar (Jasari)

Best film on Social Issues:

Aalorukkam (Malayalam) Best Child Artist: Bhanita Das for Village Rockstars (Assamese)

Best Children’s Film: Mhorkya (Marathi)

Best Cinematography:

Nikhil S Praveen for Bhayanakam (Malayalam)

Best Special Effects: Baahubali 2 (Telugu)

Special Jury Award: Nagar

Kirtan (Bengali)

Best Film Critic: Giridhar Jha Special Mention for Film Criticism: Sunil Mishra of

Madhya Pradesh

Special Mention:

Mhorkya (Marathi) Hello Arsi (Odiya) Take Off (Malayalam) Pankaj Tripathi for Newton (Hindi) Malayalam actor Parvathy

Best Film on Environment Conservation/Preservation: Irada (Hindi)

Best Regional films Kaccha Limbu (Marathi)

Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum (Malayalam) Newton (Hindi) Mayurakshi (Bengali) Ishu (Assamese) To Let (Tamil) Gazi (Telugu) DHH (Gujarati) Hebbettu Ramakka (Kannada) Sinjar (Jasari) Hello Arsi (Odiya) Walking With The Wind (Ladakhi) Paddayi (Tulu)

Music Best Lyrics: Muthu Ratna for March 22 (Kannada)

Best Music Direction (Songs): A.R. Rahman for

Kaatru Veliyidai (Tamil)

Best Music Direction (Background score): A.R. Rahman for Mom (Hindi)

Best Location Sound Recordist: Mallika Das, Village

Rockstars (Assamese)

Best Sound Design: Walking With The Wind (Ladakhi) Best Female Playback Singer: Shasha Tirupati for

Vaan Varuvaan from Kaatru Veliyidai (Tamil)

Best Male Playback Singer:

Yesudas for Poy Maranja Kalam fromViswasapoorvam Mansoor (Malayalam) Best Make-up Artist: Ram Razak for Nagar Kirtan (Bengali)

Best Production Design:

Santosh Rajan for Take Off (Malayalam) Best Editing: Reema Das for Village Rockstars (Assamese) Best Costume: Gobinda Mandal for Nagar Kirtan (Bengali)

Screenplay Best Original Screenplay:

Sajeev Pazhoor for Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum (Malayalam)

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Jairaj for Bhayankam (Malayalam) Best Dialogue: Sambit Mohanty for Hello Arsi (Odiya)

May May16-31, 16-31,2018 2018 / / Corporate CorporateCitizen Citizen / / 55 55

Pearls of Wisdom

By Dada JP Vaswani

Believe and Achieve Believe and achieve! And in order to do this, faith is essential. It is a triple faith that men need today—faith in oneself, faith in the world around, which is not merely just but essentially good, and above all—faith in God. If you cultivate this triple faith, you are bound to succeed in whatever you do!

us—the larger self, the nobler self, the radiant self, the true self, the “self-supreme” in the words of the Bhagavad Gita. In the measure in which you identify yourself with this higher self, in that measure success will come to you like an ever-flowing, ever-full river.

Throw out the ego self, the lower self; invite the big self, the self-supreme to come and take charge of your life. Surely, you will believe and achieve!

Walter Davis was a great athlete who believed and achieved. As a boy, he contracted infantile paralysis, and the doctors feared that he might not be able to walk again. His mother’s loving care and attention put the boy back on his feet.

As he began to walk slowly, he saw a boy doing high jumps and thought to himself that it was

Throw out the ego self, the lower self; invite the big self, to come and take charge of your life.

Surely, you will believe and achieve!

T

here was a man who had set out on a mission to go around the world on his bicycle. He came to meet my beloved master, Sadhu Vaswani and said to him, “I have been on the road for over a year now. And during this year, there have been occasions when my spirits have fallen very low. I have felt discouraged and frustrated.

Give me a few simple words that I can inscribe on my ring, so that whenever I feel depressed, I can look at the inscription and feel my spirits rising!”

Sadhu Vaswani thought for a brief while and then gave him these words: “Believe and achieve!”

These three words spell the secret of success: believe and achieve! Believe in yourself, believe in the work you have undertaken, believe that you will succeed in your work. If you do not believe in yourself, how can you hope to succeed?

Believe in yourself—but which self? For you 56 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

must remember, there are two selves within every man. There is a lower self, the ego self, the empiric self, the self with which we are only too familiar in our day-to-day existence. It is the self of passion and pride, of lust, hatred, greed, envy, jealousy, resentment, ill will, selfishness and misery. Unfortunately, we have identified ourselves with this self; we magnify it out of proportion in the course of our daily life. That is why in the world today, we have wars and violence, hatred and strife.

The lower self sits on the threshold of our consciousness, and easily catches us; it captures us, misleads us, leads us astray. And yet, it is just a tiny self. When you enter into the depths of meditation, you will realise that it is but a tiny speck of a speck of a speck of a speck. But because we have identified ourselves with it, we magnify it beyond all proportions and allow it to dominate our life.

But there is another self within each one of

something he would love to do. So he began practising high jumps, until he became very good at it. But, his legs were still weak, and serious competition was out of the question for him.

He, however, kept up his painstaking efforts to strengthen them. When he married, his wife understood his aspirations and said to him, “Walter, it is not enough to have power in your legs. You must have power in your mind!” She coined a new phrase for him: the strength of belief. This, she said, would bring greater strength to his legs.

Strength of belief took Walter Davis to great heights.

Eventually, it helped him create a world record. He cleared the bar at six feet eleven and five-eighth of an inch—propelled by his strength of belief. The boy they said might never walk again became the high jump champion of the world! Belief was his strength—he believed and achieved!

On the road of life are many who carry loads on their weak shoulders: and the loads are not merely physical. As you bear the loads of others, you will find that your hearts are filled with a wondrous feeling of happiness and joy

Mobile apps

The best smart scales to keep you fit The analog scale has now made way for the smart scale, which not only measures your weight, it also tells you how much fat, muscle, and water your body contains. All you need to do is connect them to your smartphone and they tell you all the important metrics. With that in mind, Corporate Citizen lists the best smart scales available today By Neeraj Varty Lenovo HS10

The HS10 is a smart body scale with many sensors. It has a hidden display underneath the glass—only visible when you step on the scale and it turns on. In case you’re worried about stepping onto glass, don’t worry—Lenovo has used military-grade tempered glass, which also gives it a very premium look and feel. Various sensors in the scale can calculate your BMI, body fat/water, muscle mass/bone mass, visceral fat and BMR (basal metabolic rate). All this data is not visible on the scale’s display—to view it, you will have to use the companion app. A point to keep in mind is that the scale is not 100% accurate and slight variations may occur in values, but for its price, it’s a great buy.

The Mi Body Composition Scale

The Mi Body Composition Scale is by far the most value-for-money smart scale available today. Costing just `1,999, it looks absolutely gorgeous.

The scale uses advanced BIA technology to analyse a number of important parameters including body weight, BMI, bone mass, body water, muscle mass, basal metabolism, body fat rate, visceral fat level, figure, and body score. It’s also incredibly simple to use. Just download the Mi Fit app, then pair your smartphone with the Xiaomi body fat scale. All of your weight data can be saved in Mi Fit app, which supports storing up to 16 different people profiles. This makes the scale suitable for sharing with family and friends. The app also prepares charts and statistics to mark your progress.

Fitbit Aria 2

The Aria 2 connects to your Wi-Fi network via the Fitbit app on your smartphone. It can measure the weight, body fat percentage and BMI of up to eight users, which it then automatically syncs to the Fitbit app. If you use a Fitbit activity tracker, the app’s dashboard syncs information about your weigh-ins with your daily workouts and the food intake you manually input for a true overview of your body on any given day. The scale takes several seconds to display your weight, which is annoying. It also lacks support for pregnant women. This scale is worth considering mostly if you own other Fitbit accessories like their smart band and are already invested in their ecosystem.

Nokia Body+

The Nokia Body+ not only measures more types of data than other scales do but also presents the information in an intuitive, useful app. In addition to measuring your weight and BMI, the Body+ can record your resting heart rate, which is also an important indicator of your overall health. The scale also monitors the air quality inside your home and provides the local weather report, which is useful if you’re weighing yourself first thing in the morning. neeraj.varty07@gmail.com May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 57

Unsung Heroes - 3

The Meteoric

Rise of a Cobbler’s Son When he returned from Germany, Ashok Khade began laying the groundwork to start his own company. The risk was enormous, and it was almost unheard-of to leave a steady job to start a company. But his two brothers were expert offshore welders. They had good contacts from their years at Mazagon Dock

“Risk more than others think is safe. Dream more than others think is practical.”

—Howard Schultz, CEO, Starbucks

H

is father was a cobbler and his mother worked as a farm labourer in Peth, a village in Sangli district of Maharashtra. Born a Dalit, he was not permitted entry into schools, temples or any public places.

Once in the rainy season, when his mother sent him to fetch flour, he slipped on the way back and the flour fell in the mud. He, along with his parents and five brothers, had to go without food for two days. He realised that if he did not do something different, he would have to spend the rest of his life as a cobbler like his father. And indeed, he did do something different. Meet Ashok Khade, the founder-CEO of DAS Offshore Engineering—a company worth about ₹550 crore employing 4,500 people! He was conferred the Udyog Ratna award in 2011.

Ashok Khade had humble beginnings. He was

58 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

a bright student in school despite the fact that his Dalit background was a stumbling block in his education. Teachers, he says, particularly admired his neat handwriting, proudly displaying the fine strokes on the yellowing paper of notebooks he has carefully preserved. He has been twirling a green fountain pen, which is now revealed to be the same pen with which he wrote his SSC exam 40 years ago. “Babloo”, as he has affectionately nicknamed the instrument, cost him a precious ₹3.50. He also met some Good Samaritans along the way. During the famine of 1972, he was “adopted” by a man who gave him food, and one of his teachers bought him a new set of clothes after he showed up for an exam in torn trousers. All through school, poverty gnawed at him. Students had to bring their own answer sheet to write their exams, and one day he found himself without any money to buy an answer sheet for his exam. A teacher tore pages from the attendance ledger for him to write.

Too poor to buy string to tie the pages together, he used a thorn from a tree. None of this could shake his determination.

After finishing high school, he went to Mum-

bai to live with his uncle. He worked in Mazagon Dock along with his brothers. In the daytime, he would do welding, and study at night. They had just one room to stay, so Ashok would often have to sleep outside on the stairs. This did not prevent him from dreaming big. He built a network of excellent contacts along with his brothers Datta and Suresh. His flawless drafting skills and hard work won him promotions. In 1983, he was sent to Germany to work on a submarine project.

One day, he saw the payslip of one of his German colleagues, who earned in one month more than what he earned in a year. “I thought about my family’s needs,” he said. “My sisters needed to get married. I knew I could do better than working for someone else.” He got married shortly thereafter and in the meantime also managed to complete a part-time diploma in mechanical engineering alongside his job.

When he returned from Germany, he began laying the groundwork to start his own company. The risk was enormous, and it was almost unheard of to leave a steady job to start a company. But his two brothers were expert offshore welders. They had good contacts from their years

at Mazagon Dock. What seemed like a setback turned out to be a stroke of luck. The economy was changing after years of stagnation as the 1991 reforms began to reduce the bureaucracy’s control of the economy and stimulate growth. “It was obvious there was a chance to make a lot of money,” he said.

Khade’s hunch was right, and his timing was impeccable. Faster growth meant India’s appetite for fossil fuels would grow too.

DAS Offshore, named after the initials of the three brothers, was established in 1995. The brothers used their savings to finance the small subcontract jobs they began with. Their first project came from Mazagon Dock, their former employer—making underwater jackets for an offshore oil rig. A contractor had abandoned a project halfway and bids were invited. Captain P. V. Nair, a retired Indian Navy officer and former chairman of Mazagon Dock, recommended DAS for finishing the job, and so they were awarded the contract worth ₹1.82 crore. “I got all my supplies on credit from people I had worked with,” says Khade. Nair, who now acts as advisor for DAS, says that Khade is “determined, hardworking, and will take the work to its logical conclusion”. The company specialises in doing fabrication work on offshore platforms for energy and infrastructure companies.

Having battled against both financial and social odds, a Dalit entrepreneur might be expected to favour positive discrimination towards his ilk.

Not so with Khade ! Khade is a staunch believer in merit, and rejects the idea of giving more weightage to aspiring employees or vendors from his caste. Less than 1% of his employees are Dalits. “I believe in quality control,” says the man who once refused a job to an underqualified nephew.

However, DAS’ capacity-building programmes have trained over 1,000 employees so far.

Mr Ashok Khade would probably not be in business with a prince had he not attended a networking cocktail reception hosted by the Dalit Chamber of Commerce and Industry at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai this year. There he was introduced to the Arab sheikh, who helped him globalise his company. He recently signed a deal with a member of the royal family of Abu Dhabi to work on oil wells there, and he is building what will be India’s biggest jetty fabrication yard on the Maharashtra coast.

DAS made a turnover of ₹130-140 crore in 2010-11 and has an order book logging ₹550 crore. Khade says DAS does not have any investors and did not take bank loans to start with.

Most of the funds, he says, came from acquaintances and relatives because of the brothers’ high-performance ratings. Khade says that he is responsible for quality control because of his experience and skill in design drawing. His younger brother Suresh handles labour issues, while elder brother Datta oversees goal management.

“Competitors try to strike just before a contract is

Ashok Khade is a staunch believer in merit, and rejects the idea of giving more weightage to aspiring employees or vendors from his caste awarded. It is a cat and mouse game. Sometimes I am the cat and sometimes I am the rat,” he laughs, while admitting that he is in a very competitive business. He adds that honesty, hard work and love for one’s country are indispensable ethics for business. Prakash Malvankar, CEO & Vice President (Projects) Dolphin Offshore Enterprises, a rival, concurs. “I have met Ashok Khade at conferences and we have a high regard for each other.

The DAS offshore leadership is technically sound and follows fair business practices,” he says.

Ashok Khade has also bought 100 acres of farmland in his native village, where his mother used to work as a farm labourer. When asked whether it was a business decision or a personal one, he merely calls it a “cycle of nature” and denies that any sentiment was involved. While Khade does not give preference to Dalits in his work, his family gives back to their community in different ways. One of his brothers arranges for the wedding trousseau of each new bride in their village, regardless of caste. Even Mr Khade, with all his wealth and newfound status, does not want to offend potential upper-caste clients. His business card reads Ashok K, leaving off the last name that reveals what he is—a Dalit.

His brothers are both in politics—one leads the Peth village council, the other is a member of the state assembly, both holding seats reserved for Dalits. The sons of upper-caste families now work for Mr Khade’s company. By any measure he is a man who has made it, and big. Khade has also renovated a temple in his village that used to stop dalits at the gate—a promise he had made to his mother. A very devout man, he visits Alandi and Pandharpur ev-

ery month, and sports a black thread from Tirupati around his wrist. A temple door covered in 55 kg of silver bearing his mother’s picture has been installed at Alandi— another tribute from her son. Although he does not like to quantify, Khade estimates he has given about ₹50 lakh to his community. Reclining in his BMW 530, Khade indulges in two minutes of nostalgic soul-searching. “I once met Mother Teresa at an international airport. I kept in touch with her, and she called me Ashok. I was there at her bedside after she passed away...” With that, Khade drives away, full of memories from his meteoric journey.

The above story is featured in ‘Unsung Heroes-Real stories to inspire you’ ISBN 97881-7108-902-4 by Maj (retd) Pradeep Khare (pradeepkhare2011@gmail.com). It is published

by Better Yourself Books, Mumbai.

CC

tadka

TCS emerging as India’s first billiondollar company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), it seems, will soon emerge as the country’s first $100 billion-dollar company, following betterthan-expected quarterly earnings. TCS shot up as much as 6.7%, the highest level last seen in April 2012 to `3,406 per share. TCS has the highest number of women employees among listed companies at 34% of its total workforce.

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 59

Claps & Slaps Corporate Citizen Claps for China, India and the United States for emerging as the top three global renewable energy growth leaders.

Corporate Citizen Slaps for the fact that women are less likely to have bank accounts, despite an extra 1.2 billion people joining financial institutions over the past seven years.

The 2017 Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index has ranked India second, behind China, followed by the United States.

January 2018, saw India achieving the 20 GW solar capacity target, meant for 2022—four years ahead of its deadline. The World Bank said India is “making strides” towards becoming “a global solar superpower”. It said that to achieve the 20 GW target, India has installed solar parks on large tracts of unused land across the country. The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Renewables 2017 reports that “sharp cost reductions and improved policy support are paving the way for continued growth in the renewables sector.” India’s renewable capacity is expected to more than double by 2022 and in doing so, India has overtaken the EU wherein solar and wind renewable capacities now stand at 90% of its ‘capacity’ growth. The report said that “India has also improved grid integration and addressed the financial issues of its utilities. Because of these factors, India’s growth between now and 2022 is, for the first time, expected to be higher than

A report from the World Bank said that worldwide, 72% men have an account compared to 65% women. “I was not at all surprised that (the gender gap) would not have changed,” said Mayra Buvinic, senior fellow at the Center for Global Development. “In the past six or seven years there’s been a lot more awareness, but that awareness has yet to translate into

in the European Union (EU).” India also tripled its renewable production capacity of over 12 GW solar energy. India is trying to regulate energy targets by attracting foreign direct investment and paying 50% government’s subsidies in its attempt for targeted installation of 175 GW renewable power. This has seen positive upsurge in a green passage via $200 billion renewable investment flows. About 293 global and domestic companies are in line to invest for 266 GW of solar, wind, mini-hydel and biomass-based power production. Japan’s Soft Bank and Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Enterprises and Taiwan’s Foxconn have directed $20 billion aimed at capturing financial profit with the execution of 20 GW solar and wind hub as per the government’s framework of ‘Power for all’ policy. While the profitable energy landscape of India is attracting transnational companies to the RE sector, the varied business approaches by the states and government agencies continue to offer fragmented business environments. For now, ‘power to the people’ is good enough—hopefully ‘illuminating’ the lives of our brethren in remote locales!

60 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

large-scale, meaningful progress.” With South Asia experiencing large improvements in financial inclusion in the past three years, rising 23 percentage points to 70% is primarily reflective of the changes occurring in India. In India, the World Bank attributes the inclusion gains to the government’s biometric ID system.

Despite been criticised, on concerns of data protection, its uptake has, however, brought in a lot of women and poorer adults into India’s formal financial sector. Globally, this gender gap in developing countries is 9% points, which remains unchanged over the past seven years. While there are 980 million women globally who do not have an account, efforts have been made to get more women to sign up for accounts. Also, development agencies and governments have resorted to financial products as a tool for poverty alleviation. “The hope is to narrow the gender gap around the world, but women face specific challenges, so it’s often harder to ‘bank’ women—especially as we’re increasing account ownership,” said Leora Klapper, the lead economist at the World Bank’s Development Economics Research Group and a coauthor of the report. However, experts say significant change will come only through focused efforts from governments and banks to provide services for women. Need is to therefore to empower more financially challenged women to step up their course in managing their own finances.

(Compiled by Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar)

DrDr(Col.) (Col)A. A Balasubramanian

From The Mobile

What is Prayer?

Prayer doesn’t just happen when we kneel or put hands together and focus and expect things from God Instead...

Thinking positive and wishing good for others - That’s a prayer When you hug a friend - That’s a prayer When you cook something to nourish family, friends and poor people—That’s a prayer .When we send off our near and dear ones and say “Drive Safely” or “Be Safe”—That’s a prayer When you are helping someone in need by giving your time and energy—That’s a prayer Prayer is a Vibration - A feeling - A thought Prayer is the voice of love, friendship and genuine relationships REMEMBER The Best “om” is home The Best “age” is “courage” The Best “mile” is “smile” The Best “stand” is “understand” The Best “end” is “friend” The Best “day” is “today”

62 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

The Whale...

A recent front-page story of the San Francisco Chronicle, was about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider’s web of crab traps and lines.

She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth.

A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farallon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help.

Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so badly off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her.

They worked for hours with curved

knives and eventually freed her.

When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles.

She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around as she was thanking them.

Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives. The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth said her eyes were following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.

May you, and all those you love, be so blessed and fortunate to be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you.

And, may you always know the joy of giving and receiving gratitude.

I pass this on to you, my friends, in the same spirit.

Nothing is impossible Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it, even if I did not have it in the beginning.

—Mahatma Gandhi

With high and purposeful aims, solid determination to achieve them, supported by self-belief, nothing is impossible—including transforming India to its old glory and as a most developed country in the world.

The Mysteries of Anatomy Where can a man buy a cap for his knee, or the key to a lock of his hair?

Can his eyes be called an academy?

Because there are pupils there?

In the crown of your head can jewels be found?

Who crosses the bridge of your nose?

If you wanted to shingle the roof of your mouth, would you use the nails on your toes?

Can you sit in the shade of the palm of your hand, or beat on the drum of your ear?

Can the calf in your leg eat the corn off your toe?

Then why not grow corn on the ear?

Can the crook in your elbow be sent to jail?

If so, just what did he do?

How can you sharpen your shoulder blades?

I'll be darned if I know. Do you?

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 63

astroturf

Aries

CAPRICORN

March 21 - April 20

Dec 23 - Jan 20

The tables are turning in your direction and soon you will find a new way to take your career to.

Many new opportunities will also come your way this month. As per Aries May 2018 finance horoscope predictions, like all other good times, your finances may come to a major halt this month.

You might have splurged a lot in the past few months but this is a time to watch where you are headed for.

(www.dollymanghat.com)

Fortune favours the bold and the lucky

Your attitude is your altitude, says Dolly Manghat, our renowned Astrological expert, who believes she helps people create their own prophecies rather than live predictions

other.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 20

For Taureans May brings an opportunity to think differently. It may require for them to go out of the box to get ideas, as the usual way of handling things might not work. Finances seem bleak and health also requires serious attention. You may develop issues regarding skin or stomach.

Be careful what you expose these two organs to.

GEMINI

May 21 - June 21

For Geminis, this month is about ideas and more ideas. However, there is little progress concerning them as far as results are concerned. You will be at your creative best during May and this could lead to you being a part of some big projects. Still, there is a good chance that once these ideas are about to be implemented, there’ll be some opposition.

CANCER

June 22 - July 23

Financial prospects will see a considerable rise. You will see money coming in from various sectors.

Government sectors will be one of the prominent sources of financial inflow. Stars predict multiple sources for financial gains.

Love is definitely on the charts.

Those in relationship should consider taking the next leap.

LEO

July 24 - Aug 23

The placement of planets predict a very sound financial health.

The signs of a positive financial growth are seen in the middle of the month. Your career adds to your financial success too. There are increments in salary and other perks on the charts. The love aspect for Leos seems slightly tricky this month. There is a good chance you may end up breaking up with your partner.

VIRGO

Aug 24 - Sept 23

Though you had been very frugal with regard to spending, you might spend rather extravagantly during this month. Therefore, it is highly expected of you in May 2018 that you would strive to balance your decisions to take a middle stand between sentimentality and rationality. .

LIBRA

Sept 24 - Oct 22

As the month advances, you will discover that your love life is on the bloom and will continue to remain so, throughout the

64 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

month. From time to time, you will be seen taking extra care of your loved ones and seeing to their needs. Those who are married, should buckle up for some amazing surprises from their significant other.

SCORPIO

Oct 23 - Nov 22

You will find yourself occupied with a lot of competition around you this month. However, the zeal with which you conduct yourself and your tasks, would become an inspiration for many others around you. You will find yourself looking for a partner who follows the same professional pursuits as you. Wherever you land, you are sure to woo your partner with your skills

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 22

This month, while the stars make their transit above you, you will discover that you are being asked to work harder than usual and devote more energy at work than what you were hoping for! This will end up casting a tremendous amount of pressure and stress on you, ultimately taking away your free time and joy for a while but you need to stay patient all this while, if you wish to come out of this situation.

The sun’s healing powers will be working in your favour this month. There are huge chances that those people who have been suffering from a long illness will find some respite this month.

However, as the recovery takes place, there is a need to take care of your health. On the financial front, nothing major is expected to come your way. Those who have a job of dealing with the government, might find themselves bearing certain losses this month. losses this m

AQUARIUS

Jan 21 - Feb19

You will soon find out, as the month begins, that financial prospects are bright for you this month. Those who are dedicated in the field of fine arts would also find this month to be highly rewarding.

This is also the month of fun and pleasure for you and your partner, although you may find some stagnation in your love life and feel puzzled by the state of events in your love life.

PISCES

Feb 20 - Mar 20

You will be on an emotional high this month. Things might get intense this month. For those in a relationship, you might be willing to take the plunge and given the kind of person that you are, expect a positive response from your special someone. For the ones who are still looking, your wait might just be over. You cannot go wrong. Your charms are intensified and there are complete chances of a member from the opposite sex being smitten by you. Be prepared for good times.

Address: 143, St Patrick’s Town, Gate# 3, Hadapsar IE, Pune-411 013.

Tel.: 020-26872677 / 020-32905748 Email: connect@dollymanghat.com/ info.dollymanghat@gmail.com

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CRADLE OF LEADERSHIP

PROF. SUDHIR K SOPORY, VICE CHANCELLOR, JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY (JNU) Volume 1, Issue No. 21 / Pages 68 / www.corporatecitizen.in

January 1-15, 2016 / `50

CORPORATE CULTURE

Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, ICICI Bank on women in leadership and gender diversity

INTERVIEW

An in-depth interview with Vishal Parekh, Marketing Director India with Kingston Technology and Rajeev Bhadauria, Director, Group HR, at Jindal Steel & Power

Dynamic Duo 21 MEERA SHANKAR AND AJAY SHANKAR

UNFLINCHING SUPPORT

May 16-31, 2018 / Corporate Citizen / 65

the last word

Ganesh Natarajan

The Great American Dream!

What is it that makes many Indians do so well overseas? I give a lot of credit to the middle-class values we grow up with, the familiarity with inequity and disparities in income we see all around us and the sheer commitment to hard work…

Sitting in a three-level town house in Seattle watching sailboats on the Puget Sound on a Sunday afternoon, it seemed almost incongruous that the menu for lunch was exquisite stew, aapams (rice hoppers) and kadlai curry (chickpeas for the uninitiated) washed down with masala tea. But this is not unusual in many part of the US where Indians have moved, done well for themselves and their families and are now thoroughly enjoying the best of both worlds— Indian culture and cuisine, coupled with the American way of life!

The young woman whose home I was spending a weekend in on this early spring Saturday morning in the US grew up in Kerala, did her engineering in the South and worked for a couple of years as a tester at one of India’s well-known brand IT firms before doing Management at the Indian School of Business and joining my former company Zensar. At Zensar, in the true spirit of flexibility that the organisation’s 5F culture provided, her career moved from Human Resources to Consulting to Sales, from India to Cape Town to San Jose to Seattle where she met and married a bright American in Seattle and today has an infant son and the support of her family from India and her husband’s family in the US. The delicious lunch was of course the creation of her mother!

During my extensive travels for work and pleasure around the

credit to the middle-class values we grow up with, the familiarity with inequity and disparities in income we see all around us and the sheer commitment to hard work in a school and college system that has been much maligned for its tendency to “learn by rote” but which has given many of us the basic foundations on which we have built global qualifications and excelled in our careers. I recall an interesting chat with the legendary Professor CK Prahalad on a transatlantic flight a few months before his unfortunate demise when he surprisingly For the hardworking turned out to be a strong professional, there are no advocate of the Gurukul dearth of opportunities in system of yore, where folks were taken our own country. It’s all a young into the schools under matter of personal choice a patriarchal Guru before they entered their teens and stuffed with knowledge trepreneurship (Kanwal Rekhi, that would be of long-term use Rajesh Sinha, Shankar Bharadthroughout their lives! Something waj). There is no field that Indians to think about particularly in the have not attempted and excelled. cities where some of our young My friend MR Rangaswami who parents chose to keep their progfounded and leads a great coneny away from the traditional necting group called Indiaspora school system and put them in brings together an eclectic mix of new school systems! the Indian diaspora and the stoThe opportunity to live and ries of many who are now pursuwork in America and Europe has ing second careers in politics and been one that many young profesthe social sector are heartwarming sionals from India have grasped not only in terms of their achieveand enjoyed to the hilt and it is ments but also their commitment somewhat disconcerting to many to giving back to society! What that the harsh winds of protecis it that makes many Indians do tionism and immigration barriers so well overseas? I give a lot of world, I have seen many cases of people who grew up in little towns and even villages in India and are now building substantial success stories competing and collaborating with the best in the world! The hallowed halls of the tech companies including the famous FANG quartet of Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google have bright Indians at all levels of the hierarchy (Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella), across academia (Nitin Nohria and Raghuram Rajan), business (Indra Nooyi and Rajat Gupta) and en-

66 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018

Ganesh with Smita in San Francisco

may be coming in the way of this opportunity in many parts of the world including the USA. However, Indian ingenuity will still flourish and shine on many countries worldwide in future.

It is not the purpose of this writer to extoll the virtues of the American way of life as a comparison to the fate of those who choose to live and work in their own country. I am one of many millions who have lived and travelled outside India for decades but have chosen to remain rooted to the country, moving from Kolkata to Ranchi to Nashik to Mumbai to Delhi to Mumbai and for the last 17 years in Pune.

No regrets whatsoever because most of you reading this column will agree that for the hardworking professional, there are no dearth of opportunities in our own country as well! It’s all a matter of personal choice. Writing this on Alaska Airlines aircraft 40,000 feet in the air between Seattle and San Jose, I end this column with a wish—let us look forward to reaching a 10 per cent growth-level in our own country and sustaining that for two decades or more so that many of our brethren can live an Indian dream! Till then, long may global opportunities for our adventurous youth continue.

Dr Ganesh Natarajan is Chairman of 5F World, Pune City Connect and Social Venture Partners, India.

Printed and published by Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian on behalf of Sri Balaji Society. Editor: Dr (Col.) A. Balasubramanian.

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68 / Corporate Citizen / May 16-31, 2018