Vol 7 Issue 2
Editorial
May 2009
Chief Editorial Advisor KM Roy Managing Editor Jaison D
do a satyam-rescue on the economy
Editorial Advisor Leela Menon
Amidst election madness and recession blues, a good thing went unnoticed. That is, for its goodness.
Editor John Antony
Satyam found a suitor. And a good suitor at that. Willing to pay more than the fair price.
Director (Technical): John Antony Director (Finance): Ceena Senior Editorial Coordinator Jacob Deva Senior Correspondent Bina Menon Creative Visualizer Bijohns Varghese Freelance Photographer Anish Aloysious Correspondents Bombay: Rashmi Prakash Hyderabad: Iqbal Siddiqui Delhi: Anurag Dixit Editorial & Business Office Seasonal Magazine 36/1924 E, Kaloor-Kadavanthra Road, Near IGNOU, Kaloor, Cochin-17. Ph:0484 - 2345876, 2534377, 2340080 Mob. 09947141362, 09947258505 Bangalore: House No: 493, Block 3 3rd Main, HBR Layout, Bangalore - 42. 09731984836, Email:skmagazine@gmail.com www.seasonalmagazine.com UK Office: “CRONAN”, Boundaries Road Feltham, Middlesex UK TW13 5DR Ph: 020 8890 0045 Mob: 00447947181950 Email: petecarlsons@gmail.com Reg No: KERENG/2002/6803 Printed & Published by Jaison D on behalf of PeteCarlson Solutions Pvt. Ltd. at Cochin. Printed at Rathna Offset Printers, Chennai-14. All Rights Reserved by PeteCarlson Solutions Pvt. Ltd. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means, including electronic, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
UAE Distributor: Malik News Agency & Distributors Dubai All health related articles are for first information purposes only. Always consult your doctor before taking any decison affecting your health.
Dr. Manmohan Singh, Kamal Nath, and Prem Chand Gupta can be proud. The 6 guys that they entrusted ‘Truth Computer Services’ with, did a splendid job. From Chairman Kiran Karnik to Directors Deepak Parekh, TN Manoharan, Tarun Das, C Achutan, & SB Manik, all worked overtime to save India’s fourth largest IT services company and its 40,000 employees, and more importantly, thwart India Inc from feeling Satyam’s ripple effects. Most of these guys already had their hands full. Still they found time for Satyam. They systematically divided the tough task between them, according to their core strengths. Karnik looked after panicked clients, Parekh negotiated with the banks, Das selected consultants, Achutan took on legal compliance, and Manoharan & Mainak managed the forensic audit to clean up India’s largest corporate fraud to date. It was not an easy task. On one side were the Big-3 hawks who found high ethics in not absorbing Satyam employees, but no ethical problem in poaching Satyam clients. On the other side were hard bargainers like BK Modi and Wilbur Ross who wanted Satyam for a song. And to complicate things, AM Naik who wanted to correct L&T’s earlier investment blunder in Satyam. That is why the Satyam Board deserves kudos. It was a near miracle that they pulled off, that Anand Mahindra agreed to buy 51% in Satyam for Rs. 2890 crore, at Rs. 58 per share. What a far cry from how the Tatas were allowed to take over a clean, booming operation like VSNL in 2000. That was for a song. TechMahindra was the better fit for Satyam, in more ways than one, because the combined entity is something that is nearer in size and capability to compete with the Big-3. Even Ramalinga Raju would have smiled in his cell. All through the years, his distant-fourth operation was left breathing hard, unsuccessfully trying to compete with the shrewdly sophisticated Big-3. In fact, there are analysts who feel that this unfair competition and the subsequent margin-cuts contributed much to Satyam’s problems. The lesson from the Satyam rescue episode is simple. There is no limit to what we can achieve if there is honest political will to appoint people with integrity, and if those people work hard to live up to the trust. Indian fiscal 2009-10 calls for such a team. India has produced many capable brains. But many of them are in US universities, consulting for America Inc and American politicians. Seasonal Magazine presents five such gurus who share their views on how to tackle this downturn. Let us hope for a decisive government and a decisive economic team. John Antony
RECESSION STRATEGIES FROM TOP GURUS By John Antony
Reversing Your Recession 15 Lessons from a 3-IN-1 Leader His last part-time job was to advice Barack Obama during his campaign. His next part-time job is to advice David Cameron on how to become UK’s next Prime Minister. Between such temporary assignments..
Selling Tactics For Difficult Times Less than half of the business-to-business salespeople on the planet have ever sold in an economic downturn, let alone in a huge global recession like the one we face today. Even worse..
MIOT Grows 10 Times in 10 Years, To Grow 25 Times in Next 2 Years Padmasri Dr. PVA Mohandas led MIOT Hospitals of Chennai is celebrating its 10th anniversary in style. From 40 beds to 400 beds, and from a single speciality to a multi super speciality, MIOT has grown unbelievably fast in its first 10 years..
MOVE OVER CALPURNIA!
NITCO Takes The Floor India’s fastest growing floor tiler is unfazed by the downturn or at competitors. Naturoc will be the tile of the post-vitrified era. Under Vivek Talwar’s vision, Nitco is also tiling the remaining opportunities in building materials – wall tiles, exports, sanitaryware, & fittings.
FRONTIER MEDIVILLE, FROM FRONTIER LIFELINE
Designing the Future of Healthcare The future of healthcare is not happening in US. But in a hitherto nondescript village called Elavur, 45 km from Chennai, South India’s biggest metropolis. India’s first medical SEZ is happening here on 400 acres of land...
4 Fatal Financial Fantasies to Discard, Many of us have financial fantasies that help us to remain optimistic in the face of financial hardship. But while there's nothing wrong with dreaming, some fantasies do more harm than good...
Buying a Branded Home in Kerala? Think Again… Homebuying Advisory For Kerala 2009-10
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India’s fastest growing floor tiler is unfazed by the downturn or at competitors. Naturoc will be the tile of the post-vitrified era. Under Vivek Talwar’s vision, Nitco is also tiling the remaining opportunities in building materials – wall tiles, exports, sanitaryware, & fittings.
NITCO GROUP
NITCO, THE CORPORATE CITIZEN Established in 1953, by PN Talwar and now headed by Vivek Talwar as its MD, Nitco Group is a diversified conglomerate with key focus areas being building materials and real estate. The Group consists of Nitco Tiles, Nitco Marble, Nitco Art, Nitco Wall Tiles, & Nitco Earth. NITCO has a wide spread and well established network of 800 dealers and 5000 sub dealers spread across India. SEASONAL 7
NATUROC
AFTER VITRIFIED, WHAT? After ceramic and vitrified, and after glossy and matt, Nitco is pioneering a 3rd category of tiles in the country – Naturoc. The Gres Lapato range in Naturoc gives the best of both worlds- it’s a matt tile and yet has a glossy finish. It addresses all needs the customer looks for in flooring – natural looking designs, anti-skid properties, and easy to clean as well. Inspired from the nature around us and crafted in association with design studios in Italy, Naturoc is being launched at an investment of Rs. 100 crores, but expected to bring in an additional Rs. 150 crores to Nitco. Naturoc is being launched at affordable price points. SEASONAL 8
Contd. on page 49..
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RECESSION STRATEGIES FROM
TOP GURUS
AMARTYA SEN
“Time to Address Neglected Issues” HIS MIND As a child, he was named ‘Amartya’, meaning immortal, by Tagore. At 23 years, after his studies at Cambridge University, his first appointment was as the Head of Department of Economics, Jadavpur University. Prof. Sen later taught at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Oxford University, London School of Economics (LSE), Harvard University, and was the first Asian to head Trinity College of Cambridge University, his alma mater. His focus areas of ‘social choice’ that exposes the holes in democracy, and his ‘capabilities theory’ that exposes problems in governance have won wide acclaim, as
well as helped shape the economic policies of United Nations and many countries including USA, UK, & India. The best example is his measurement parameters for social development, inequalities, & poverty, which is reflected in UN’s Human Development Report. In 1998, Amartya Sen won the Nobel Prize for Economics, and in 1999, the Bharat Ratna. Currently, Amartya Sen is Professor of Economics & Philosophy at Harvard University. His books have been translated to over 30 languages.
HIS RECESSION STRATEGY What does Prof. Sen think of this downturn? He is not willing to predict the length of this downturn. Rather he prefers to explain the hidden opportunity in this downturn. Says Prof. Sen, “A crisis not only presents an immediate challenge that has to be faced. It also provides an opportunity to address long-term problems, when people are willing to reconsider established conventions. This is why the present crisis also makes it important to face the neglected long-term issues like conservation of the environment, national healthcare, and public transport, which have been very badly neglected in the last few decades.”
MORE AMARTYA SEN The Argumentative Indian Inequality Re-examined Development as Freedom Collective Choice and Social Welfare
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CK PRAHALAD
HIS MIND
RECESSION STRATEGIES FROM
TOP GURUS
“Provide Products as Services”
Management gurus are plenty these days. But one thing is sure. Those who have followed Prof. Prahalad through the past several decades wouldn’t be totally lost now. Who can forget the timely contributions this management guru has exhorted for all business leaders to follow? First, it was his focus on Core Competency. When everyone else was chanting the ‘execution mantra’ Prahalad proved that your core competency was the key, that strategy built around that core competency was the key. Later, he would redefine ‘customer’ as a co-creator in highly successful products and services of the future, in his book, ‘The Future of Competition’. And finally, who can forget his theory that fortune is not at the top, or middle, but at the bottom of the pyramid? That the most successful products and services of the future will target the 4 billion world poor, and not the rich or middleclass 20%? Every day, we see Prahalad’s theories translated into large-scale action – a WalMart banking on nothing but their core competency of logistics, a YouTube or Linux riding the crest of co-creation, and a Grameen Bank or Vodafone creating fortunes at the bottom of the pyramid. Coimbatore Krishnarao Prahalad studied physics at Chennai’s Loyola College, business administration at IIM-Ahmedabad, and took his doctorate in business administration from Harvard Business School. Elegantly mixing academics with consultancy, he is currently Professor of Corporate Strategy at University of Michigan Ross School of Business, and has consulted for giants like Sony, Philips, & AT&T.
economy with US & UK that registers zero growth, as well as with Japan & South Korea that are largely export driven. According to him, this alone will help India regain fast from this downturn, much before the developed world turns around. But on the short-term, Indian managers too will have to address volatility issues, and the fact that many of the younger managers have never been exposed to this scale of volatility, will prove to be an immense challenge. He advises businesses to lower their breakeven points, and to invent new billing models that deliver a unique user experience that is more service oriented than product oriented. Prahalad’s example is of a tire company that leases tires to automobile owners and transport companies without any upfront costs, but charges per hundred kms. The company will also collect information about driving habits, resting hours, terrain info etc and a whole suite of new offerings can be made around them. In the end he says, more business will evolve out of this product-as-a-service model.
HIS RECESSION STRATEGY What does Prof. Prahalad think of this downturn? A billion people is an advantage, and a billion younger people is a distinct advantage, feels Prahalad. He contrasts India’s internal consumption driven
MORE CK PRAHALAD The New Age of Innovation The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid The Future of Competition
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Ram Charan
“Raise Cash to Weather the Storm” HIS MIND As a poor boy growing up in a village near Delhi, Ram Charan helped his Maa by making cow-dung cakes for fire. Later, he would consult for some of this world’s most powerful CEOs including Jack Welch. As a highschooler, he helped his father and uncle in their small shoemaking setup. Today, Fortune 500 companies pay Ram Charan more than Rs. 10 lakh a day ($20,000 / day) for consulting. As a teenager, he had his teachers visiting his small home, coaxing his parents to send him to college. Later, while doing his MBA at Harvard Business School, Ram Charan would be specially invited by the faculty to prematurely enrol for their PhD. As an engineering student in Banaras Hindu University, he was two years younger to his classmates and more than two generations poorer. Later, Ram Charan would become Harvard Business School’s first Indian faculty. Emigrating to Australia, and later US, he would fret over his lousy English. Later, he would write several management bestsellers (2 million copies sold) and script two cover stories for Fortune – ‘Why Companies Fail’ and ‘Why CEOs Fail’. He is the antithesis of a corporate guru. He doesn’t believe BSchools can create leaders. Better leaders are crafted in military, sports, and the workplace, says Ram Charan. Nor does he claim that he has something special to teach CEOs or possess an array of readymade tools for success. So, what does he do that other consultants can’t, that earns him $20K a day? It has been one of corporate America’s biggest riddles. The riddle is all the more complex because he is not a man of theories or jargon, but of old-fashioned profit-and-loss strategies and execution. He is basically a problem-identifier, a problem-solver, and a solution-execution specialist. Perhaps, a couple of clients and former clients would explain more of what he does. Says Jack Welch, former Chairman & CEO of GE, “Ram Charan has this rare ability to distill the meaningful from the meaningless and transfer it to others in a quiet, effective way without destroying confidences.” Says Richard J Harrington, Chairman of Thomson Reuters Foundation, “Ram Charan knows more about corporate America than anybody.” Says John Reed, former Citicorp CEO, “Ram Charan is like your conscience.” Says Ivan G Seidenberg, Chairman & CEO of Verizon, “I love him. Ram Charan is my secret weapon.” Says Jack Krol, former Chairman & CEO of DuPont, “Business is Ram Charan’s whole life.” Indeed it is. This guru doesn’t own a car, because he hasn’t had time to learn driving. In his late 60s now, he bought an apartment only a couple of years back, until then living in hotels every SEASONAL 12
night, for nearly 40 years! Needless to say, he is not married nor having kids. He rarely stays in any city – US or international – for more than a day, and in last year alone clocked 50,000 air miles, flying around the globe every day for meetings with CEOs. Legend has it that he has never visited his own office or moved in to his apartment. But his office couriers him fresh sets of clothes and accessories three days a week, to wherever he is.
HIS RECESSION STRATEGY What does Ram Charan think of this downturn? Firstly, he feels that the recession will drag so long in the developed markets that it will seem permanent. Even after recession ends, according to him, leverage will remain out of favour with the public, with nobody ready to commit serious investments. He also puts the political solution before the corporate solution. Says Ram Charan, “It is largely out of corporate hands. Washington needs to come up with a coordinated plan. I just came back from India, and government action there is much more coordinated.” So, what should corporate leaders do? “Leadership is judged in times of crisis. They must be optimistic about weathering the storm, that solutions will be found. But they need to raise cash, and not take risks, especially with cash. Those who can’t raise cash should consider mergers without waiting for the 11th hour,” feels Ram Charan.
MORE RAM CHARAN Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty Execution Every Business is a Growth Business Know How: The 8 Skills That Separate People Who Perform From Those Who Don’t
RECESSION STRATEGIES FROM
Vijay Govindarajan
TOP GURUS
“Innovation = Creativity X Execution” HIS MIND VG is there in every list that matters – from the Forbes ‘Top-5 Most Respected Executive Coaches on Strategy’, to the Wall Street Journal ‘Eight Leading Executive Advisors’. Strategy execution through innovation is his home-turf, and for more than three decades he has been grooming it to perfection. In the new millennium, Vijay Govindarajan has focused on teaching corporations about how to create new breakthrough businesses even while sustaining excellence in their core business. One of his original contributions to management science is the sharp way in which he differentiates creativity and innovation. “Many confuse innovation with creativity. Innovation is commercializing creativity.” With such crystal clear thinking, the business world often looks up to VG for the next big idea in leadership. One of Prof. Govindarajan’s latest contributions is Emotional Infrastructure (EI). He identifies it as a new critical asset in most Fortune 500 companies. Emotional
Infrastructure is the collection of factors that motivate employees to do their best for the company’s good, and since EI is more difficult to build than physical or intellectual infrastructure, as well as more difficult for a competitor to replicate, VG assigns it the greatest value in creating success. As a 21 year old, Govindarajan stood first in India’s Chartered Accountancy program, and obtained President’s Gold Medal. But soon, he forsake a safe career in India for his MBA at Harvard Business School which he completed with distinction, and later a PhD from there itself. VG’s teaching career has spanned North America, Europe, & Asia, with stints at IIM-A, Ohio State University, Harvard Business School, and topnotch Universities in Japan, France, & Finland. Currently, he is Professor of International Business at Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and Founding Director of Tuck’s Centre for Global Leadership. VG is a prolific author and has also consulted for global giants including IBM, GE, Boeing, Kodak, HP, Wal-Mart, British Telecom, & New York Times. HIS RECESSION STRATEGY
MORE VIJAY GOVINDARAJAN The Emotionally Bonded Organization Ten Rules for Strategic Innovators The Quest for Global Dominance
What does Prof. Govindarajan think of this downturn? He is a firm believer in the resilience of human beings, and thinks that collective human innovation will make the world come out of this recession. But VG’s innovation has its share of challenges. For him, innovation is the product of creativity and execution. He stresses that it is a ‘product’ and not a ‘sum’ – because, if either creativity or execution is zero, then innovation also is zero. Also, VG argues that during a recession, it is much more effective to double execution, say from level 1 to level 2, than to painstakingly take creativity from level 6 to level 7, again because it is a product and not a sum. Prof. Govindarajan who has worked for GE as Chief Innovation Consultant, explains that Indian companies have many things to learn from operations like GE, especially during this recession. The key among them is the balance between the innovation pipeline and the ability to maintain margins in existing businesses. He calls it the conflict between long-term and short-term goals. One should not be at the cost of the other, so as to survive this recession unscathed. SEASONAL 13
Tarun Khanna
“Don’t Believe in Labels” HIS MIND He is the India expert at Harvard Business School. He is also a China expert at HBS. And a couple of years back, Tarun Khanna made heads turn when he predicted that India would eventually overtake China. That time, China’s economy was already thrice the size of India! The fact that the report was co-written by Yasheng Huang, a Chinese-American scholar at MIT, also didn’t help it. The Chinese pooh-poohed it, while Indians found it difficult to believe. But a few years down the lane, and deep into the recession, even the Chinese would give Prof. Tarun Khanna’s report a second look. The exportmanufacturing driven Chinese industry is in shambles, with tens of thousands of factories closed down. In contrast, even in this downturn, India innovated with Nano – most probably a first in a series of ultra-low-cost innovations in different segments. India is still nowhere near to overtaking China in sheer numbers, but Prof. Tarun does seem to have a point – it is not ‘Chindia’, as it is often made out to be, and there is a world of difference in how these emerging giants operate. A specialist in emerging markets, Tarun Khanna’s current research focus is on how to build world-class companies from emerging markets. These markets have a habit of having family-based entrepreneurship, which is, incidentally, another of Prof. Tarun’s research interests. For his research, he studies entrepreneurial companies
in 15 emerging markets in Asia, Latin America, Southern Africa, Middle East, & Eastern Europe. He is still willing to bet on the original reason why India would overtake China – this country’s open economic model that offers more freedom to entrepreneurs, in contrast to China’s highly regulated, top-down approach. The difficult consensus of democracy and the deceleration due to bureaucracy are unique Indian problems, but entrepreneurial freedom offsets all these problems, argues Prof. Tarun. Currently a professor at Harvard, Tarun Khanna took his engineering degree from Princeton and PhD in Business Economics from Harvard.
HIS RECESSION STRATEGY What does Prof. Tarun think of this downturn? India, driven by Indian entrepreneurship, will emerge stronger from this downturn, says Tarun. But three things are crucial for this development. Firstly, keep the corporate eye on the proverbial ball – what is important, what is the emerging opportunity. Secondly, though this crisis is thought of as never-before, it is important to creatively learn from all past downturns. Every business should have minds that have tackled similar situations before. Lastly, don’t ever believe in labels. A case in point, Prof. Tarun says, is the label of poor performer given to India’s public sector. He calls our attention to the miracle that happened in Council for Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) after Raghunath Mashelkar took charge as Director-General of the 38-institution chain. This top scientist weaned away his best researchers from government support, and bound them skilfully to MNCs like GE, & IBM, so that royalty payments on indigenously created intellectual property would fund CSIR efficiently. There was also a sideeffect. CSIR is today among the largest holders of US patents from the developing world! This winning strategy evolved from an acute problem – lack of government funds; but the creative solution achieved more than imaginable. Sometimes dubbed the ‘dangerous optimist’, Mashelkar was just unwilling to be labelled, says Prof. Tarun.
MORE TARUN KHANNA Billions of Entrepreneurs Why Cooperation Matters Emerging Giants The Scope of Alliances SEASONAL 14
Buying a Branded Home in Kerala?
Think Again… riven by the downturn, expensive apartments and villas have ceased to be high-return investments in Kerala, thereby finishing off the only remaining reason for buying one such unit in the state. The only exceptions are ultra-low-cost homes and the high-value offerings from a few national developers. What are the available options for buying a home in the state, as of 2009? First, a little history. Late 2007. Seasonal Magazine issued an advisory to homebuyers: ‘AVOID BUYING APARTMENTS NOW’ It was also the cover story for our August 2007 Issue. Needless to say, those who heeded this advice saved lakhs of hard-earned money. Those who didn’t, lost millions. Some lost crores. We still get mails from some unexpected part of this globe, thanking us for this advice. NRKs are everywhere these days, but when it comes to a
home, they want one in Kerala too. Our cover story was no run-of-the-mill feature. It was well-researched and contained the distilled essence of our extensive interactions with developers and homebuyers across India, for more than 7 years. And it was whistle-blowing at its best. Imagine predicting the market a good 14 months ahead! It was at the right moment in time, because homes tend to be long-drawn affairs for most homebuyers, thanks to the exorbitant prices that can only be financed through 10, 15, or 20 year loans. And it was not only for the benefit of homebuyers. Many developers too gained by listening to this predictive story, and turning their products more homebuyer friendly. We cited 8 rock-solid reasons why it was foolish to opt for a branded home then. If you haven’t read this story yet, we have posted a synopsis for you here: Seasonal Magazine – August 2007 – Cover Story AVOID BUYING APARTMENTS NOW
1) Property Prices At An All Time High Now 2) Several Indications That Property Prices Will Fall 3) Serious Oversupply In The Hottest Markets 4) The Move Against Benami Will Crumble Demand & Prices 5) Home Loan Interest Rates Are Inching Up 6) Down-Payment, EMIs, & Real Estate's Eroding Investment Value 7) When Prices Go Down, Banks Demand Additional Surety 8) Live-Work-Play Townships Will Dominate The Future
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15 LESSONS FROM A 3-IN-1 LEADER is last part-time job was to advice Barack Obama during his campaign. His next part-time job is to advice David Cameron on how to become UK’s next Prime Minister. Between such temporary assignments, Dr. Eric Schmidt holds a regular job – Chairman & CEO of Google Inc. While screening the then 45-year old Dr. Schmidt for the Chairman’s job in 2001, founders and wonder-boys Larry Page & Sergey Brin – both not yet 28 then – are said to have expressed a unique reservation – “We need you in the future, but not now.” But encouraged by their venture capital partners, Larry & Sergey would take aboard Dr. Schmidt as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Just five months later, experiencing Dr. Schmidt’s calibre directly, Larry & Sergey would hand over the CEO post too to this IT industry veteran. Ever since then, this unlikely threesome has gelled like anything, in creating what is arguably the world’s most powerful brand, most ambitious business, and, even more importantly, a hitherto unknown corporate culture that is designed for success. This triumvirate’s synergy has amazed observers so much, with ‘PC World’ considering them as one person while naming them #1 in Web’s 50 Most Important People. The culture that they fostered in Google is something that took the company from zero to hero in less than 5 years. Within 1 year of its incorporation, Google encountered the dotcom burst. It had no revenue model then, but it survived. In 2009, they have a solid revenue model but due to its 97% reliance on routine advertising, Google is again at crossroads. Or is it? Most analysts believe that Google does so many things so perfectly that they will outlive and outsmart this recession too. How Google does this should be essential feed for all companies. Seasonal Magazine brings you hot tips from this triumvirate – through the mind of Dr. Schmidt - that should help any business survive this round. He is a leader who volunteered to learn how to fly a jet, so that the mission-critical nature of leading an organization is never forgotten. He draws $1 as salary, and is one among a few non-founder, non-promoter, non-inheritor CEOs who became billionaires on stock options alone. SEASONAL 16
Dr. Eric Schmidt
were these people in their fields. Precise with facts, crisp with answers, and no beating around the bush. The Google triumvirate decided then and there that their executives too needed to be this knowledgeable in their fields. Whatever it takes – high IQ, discipline around knowledge, or whatever. This policy has ever since then reflected in Google’s recruitment and training, with obvious results. LESSON 2:
Innovation is Daring to Fail
LESSON 1:
Are Your People Knowledgeable? Google has never been averse to learn from others. Dr. Schmidt says that a defining moment for Google occurred soon after his joining. Some executives from Intel had come in for discussions. Immediately after they left, he remembers that Larry, Sergey, & he had only one thing to say – how knowledgeable
Dr. Schmidt says that this is a lesson Google learned from Sony. The Japanese giant has had so many niche successes, but so much more failures too. For every massive success like memory cards, memory sticks, walkman etc, they had so many products that didn’t take off - like book-readers, video formats etc. Still, Sony teaches its employees to dare to fail. To drive home the point, Sony founder Akio Morita used to tell employees that “anyway we are going to work together for the next 50 years, so try something new, keep going.” This took away the fear-factor and that is how Sony innovated and thrived. Dr. Schmidt took away the fear factor by implementing his 70/20/10 rule of time allocation, in which employees are urged to pursue innovative projects (not directly useful to their projects) using 10% of their time. (See Lesson 15 to see how it works). SEASONAL 17
LESSON 3:
Incredible Focus on Your Business Model Dr. Schmidt remembers meeting Michael Dell (founder of Dell Computers) for the first time after taking over as Chairman of Google. It was a large business conference. Dr. Schmidt says that Michael approached him directly at the venue and told him point-blank that he would like to sell some servers to Google’s data-centres. It was an example of the incredible focus on one’s own business model. There were no distributors, retailers, or salesmen selling Dell machines. Everything was mail-order. Michael was not willing to pass a golden chance. Dr. Schmidt says that Dell Computers thrived solely on this incredible focus on the unique components of their business model – which were low cost, large scale, and the highest degree of automation. Nobody was doing PC business that way, but Michael was so confident of his home-grown business model, that he relentlessly pursued it until Dell Computers became the world’s largest selling PC & server brand in the 90s. Google too has thrived, says Dr. Schmidt, by solely focusing on their home-grown business model of selling search related ads. LESSON 4:
Build-it-Yourself is the Culture Right from their Stanford days, when they created the BackRub search algorithm (which evolved into Google), Larry & Sergey have been evangelists of the do-it-yourself / build-it-yourself philosophy. This culture is so ingrained in the organization that Dr. Schmidt jokes that if Google were to need a new building for their operations, they would build it themselves brick-by-brick. He remembers how difficult it was to coax Larry & Sergey to implement an Oracle based financial accounting package at Google, way back in 2001. They weren’t impressed with any of the available accounting software, and wanted some of their programmers to create one inhouse. But this CEO didn’t allow the idea, citing that no auditors would agree to audit reports from such in-house software. And finally they implemented a frugal Oracle based system for 100,000 dollars. But even to this day, whenever the issue of accounting comes up, Larry or Sergey would complain that they should have created one themselves! But, jokes apart, there are definite advantages for this build-it-yourself philosophy, SEASONAL 18
says Dr. Schmidt. For one, it builds culture, the organizational DNA. Secondly, it creates that unique edge in one’s market. Here is one small example. Ever since its start, Google has stubbornly refused to buy stock servers from any computer makers, instead, deploying their engineers to build their own servers using Intel processors, custom-supplied by the chip giant. Google will turn to IBM, HP, or Dell, only for specialist servers that they couldn’t possibly build. Years of following this strategy has finally resulted in a competitive advantage – Google has developed a patented portable data-centre (inside a freight container!) complete with air-conditioning and electricals – copies of which they can ship to any of their worldwide traffic hubs to augment capacity. LESSON 5:
Opportunity Costs What is the biggest cost for Google? Salary? Data centres? Most new employees are asked this question, either personally or in meetings. Many reply “electricity”. Dr. Schmidt himself is said to have replied “taxes”. But Sergey has a different take on the issue – it is opportunity costs, he says. For a person like Dr. Schmidt, coming from primarily a hardware
/ networking background, this was something difficult to digest. His earlier assignments like in Sun & Novell seemed so similar to what Google was doing – employ 500 engineers on a product like a new chip or computer, and if it is successful, ship a million pieces. If it was done within deadlines, provide millions in bonuses; if it wasn’t, fire the team management. Because, if it was done within deadlines, it meant a fortune for the company; and if it wasn’t, it meant the company risked running out of cash – or in other words, they were cash-flow negative operations. But Google was so different, Dr. Schmidt learned early on in his job. For software and web services companies like Google, business was all about opportunities – utilized opportunities as well as lost opportunities. Google had to be extremely vigilant about emerging opportunities in the web-sphere, and quickly develop applications to meet those needs. Millions would be spend on such development, but once a software or web service had proven itself, creating copies was not resource intensive – or in other words, these companies were cash-flow positive operations. That is why opportunity cost is the most crucial cost for Google, according to Sergey. A missed opportunity meant not only a missed fortune, but a missed mindshare in that application space, that would take years to replicate or billions to buy. Even many brick ‘n mortar
Dr Schmidt with Sergey Brin & Larry Page
companies are also realizing the importance of this concept in their respective competitive arenas. LESSON 6:
Iterative Decision Making Outsiders often think of Larry, Sergey, & Dr. Schmidt as supermen inventing one brilliant decision after another. But nothing could be farther from the truth, says Dr. Schmidt. Despite their superior IQ and formidable industry experience, each one of them is often lost on what to do for a particular challenge. Most companies try to solve these problems by internal consultations or meetings. And often, a better-than-nothing solution emerges, which is thrust on all concerned parties, who are to carry out this solution. But people don’t really buy in such solutions, says Dr. Schmidt. For all team-members to have buy-in or interest or commitment, they should be active participants in the process that creates this solution. But it is not easy to implement such meetings. The key, Dr. Schmidt says, is iterative decision making, in which team-members repeatedly come back to solve a problem, and create solutions in increments. Some of Google’s best decisions have evolved from such iterative processes, says Dr. Schmidt. The enormous buy-in for those decisions among all team-members ensured that their implementation was with passion and commitment. LESSON 7:
Going Against the Wind Dr. Schmidt has always been amazed at how entrepreneurial brains work. Founders of organizations look at the industry structure quite differently, says this CEO. It is as though when all others look, they see a structure; and when these entrepreneurs look at the same industry, they see a radically different structure. Part of this difference is that ordinary mortals see the industry as it is, while entrepreneurs see what the industry could be in the coming years and their company’s role in it. It is a trait Larry & Sergey shares with other great founders like Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, Steve Jobs, and many others, says Dr. Schmidt. Three decades back, looking at a formidable hardware dominated industry, Bill Gates, instead of getting daunted, had the audacity to dream that software would dominate hardware in the coming years, and that his then tiny Microsoft could dominate software like no other company. Oracle’s Larry SEASONAL 19
Ellison pinned all his hopes on relational databases, even when database major IBM pooh-poohed the idea. Ellison says his single-most important success trait was that he always questioned the experts. Steve Jobs dreamt of not only a superior computer, but a playful, colourful computer, when the rest 99% of the industry was dreaming in only shades of grey. For this, Jobs knew that the Apple’s working culture needs to be changed, and that is why he started wearing jeans-tees-sneakers to office, says Dr. Schmidt. Google’s history is also dotted with this kind of different thinking, of going against the wind. During 1999 and early 2000, Larry & Sergey had a splendid window-ofopportunity to opt for an IPO, by riding the unprecedented dotcom bubble. Both were in their mid-twenties, and would have ended up multibillionaires. All dotcom companies powered by VC funds were doing exactly that, and Google’s VCs too wanted Larry & Sergey to follow suit. But they resisted going public like anything, arguing that a better opportunity would come. It was incredible patience, says Dr. Schmidt, taking into
The Google Chrome Team SEASONAL 20
account its fledgling revenue model then. And soon the bubble burst and the IPO market would not resurrect for the next 3 to 4 years. Yahoo! meanwhile offered to buy Google for a fair price of $1 billion, which Larry & Sergey turned down, by demanding an absurd price of $3 billion! But in 2004, proving their stand, these co-founders together with Chairman & CEO Dr. Schmidt would take Google public, thus giving it a valuation of $23 billion! (at current prices it is around $100 billion). LESSON 8:
Shorter Meetings, Larger Meetings When Dr. Schmidt joined Google in 2001, there were no formal or scheduled meetings at all in the entire company! It was a shocker to this IT industry veteran, who came from a culture where daylong meetings were held every 15 days. But he also understood that - forget daylong meetings - even a two-hour meeting would be met with resistance with Google’s team.
Because, meetings were considered as countercultural in Google. Around that time, a psychological study had also come out, that proved people will effectively participate in a meeting for maximum one hour only; after that they get distracted and lose focus. So, Dr. Schmidt designed a timetable for meetings – a short meeting on Monday for business plan, a similar one on Tuesday for product reviews, a Wednesday meeting on product strategies, a Thursday meeting on ads, and finally a short catch-up meeting on Fridays. And it worked, as long as most of the Google staff were in one time-zone. Nowadays, with datacentres, research centres, & sales offices around the globe in different time-zones, it is a bit more difficult to coordinate, but this short one-topic-per-day meeting structure is the generally followed norm at the search giant. Another radical difference at Google is the larger meetings. When Dr. Schmidt joined, Google was just a 200 person company, but he insisted that all meetings should have around 20 people at least. The idea was simple. Since each meeting would generate decisions that affect many people and operations, it was important to take as many on board as possible, to arrive at true consensus driven decisions. Each one at the meeting was encouraged to speak freely, and each one’s viewpoint on the issue was heard. But why limit at 20 persons? Well, only 20 people could fit in a Google room in those days! Anyway this culture of consensus, powered by large meetings,
has been a guiding principle for Google, whose headcount now stands over 20,000. LESSON 9:
Meetings With Dissidence & Deadlines Noted financial journalist James Surowiecki’s 2004 bestseller ‘The Wisdom of Crowds’ is a book that has influenced how Dr. Schmidt has been directing meetings at Google. The Wisdom of Crowds argues that for groups to take better decisions, there are two preconditions – a dissident and a deadline. Whenever an easy consensus is reached, there is a big chance that all have overlooked some problem. So Google never implements a solution on which everyone agrees, until a dissident arises with his arguments and each and every one of those arguments is overcome by the rest of the group. There is also another angle to this strategy, says Dr. Schmidt. Inside their minds, many would be dissenting to an idea. But nobody likes to be the first dissident. Everyone wants someone else to speak up their dissent first, and then they would join. So, the crux is generating the first dissident. This is easy with experience, says Dr. Schmidt, who quickly developed the skills to identify the dissident on most issues at Google. Many times it will be Larry, Sergey, himself, or any VP, and many other times it will be
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a junior executive who would speak up dissent. The only condition for being a dissident is that he/she should not later chicken out and abandon dissidence, but should fight to the end. So either the dissident wins or the rest of the group. Dr. Schmidt remembers that a crucial product decision at Google sometime back came from Sergey’s sole dissent, against everyone else – including Larry, himself, and the VPs - arriving at a consensus. The second precondition – a deadline – is also crucial to decision making, especially in a consensus driven environment like Google. Discussions can go on and on, with no consensual or logical end in sight. Often, Dr. Schmidt himself intervenes in the meeting, reminding about an external deadline or forcing a realistic deadline by himself. He has had to force even Larry & Sergey for outcomes, he says. Forcing such outcomes from a round of meetings is essential due to two things. One, whole teams can get directionless and demoralized without proper decisions. Secondly, often there are legal or regulatory issues for which the CEO would be held ultimately responsible. LESSON 10:
Who Sets the Agenda? An action oriented CEO who was used to getting an enormous amount of things done within a short span of time, Dr. Schmidt was often taken aback by the seemingly laidback attitude at Google which he terms as the things-take-its-own-time mindset. Soon after his joining, he was appalled at the speed with which pending tasks were accumulating. And
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nobody seemed to bother. So to set things right, he ordered a cram meeting in which he used his supreme authority as the CEO to bring into focus a long list of pending issues. After finishing his long list through a speech, he asked for feedback. But not many volunteered with their ideas. Larry & Sergey too were unimpressed with his style, which they dubbed as a lecture. So, the next time, Dr. Schmidt ordered the reverse – he kept mum, and all others were encouraged to contribute to the agenda. It resulted in much feedback, but the discussions never went anywhere, and Larry & Sergey dubbed it directionless. From those two experiences, Dr. Schmidt evolved a unique style of participative agenda setting. He will be the agenda-setter, but he will email all a copy of the agenda beforehand. That enabled people to have time to think about all those points, even before the meeting began. That left enough time in the meeting for friendlier, issue-based conversations, as well as more definite outcomes. LESSON 11:
Rephrasing Challenges For all their courage and smartness, the Google brains are often challenged at novel tasks. Dr. Schmidt remembers Google’s first Earnings Call in 2004, soon after the IPO. Most executives at Google responsible for this mega teleconference (where analysts will shoot questions and scrutinize their financial condition as a public company) were nervous about the event. Even Dr. Schmidt was upset, because the concerned Googlers were not responding to preparatory meetings with enthusiasm. Finally, it was
his secretary who came up with a novel idea. Googlers were very comfortable with product / service launches which they do on a monthly or weekly basis. So, why not do an ‘earnings launch’, she suggested to her boss. It was just a rephrasing, but Googlers started responding to emails announcing meetings about the ‘earnings launch’. Many of them quizzed back, “What is an earnings launch?” And Dr. Schmidt promptly replied, “It is just like a product launch”, and that set the ball rolling. Of course, this is a small example of the strategy of rephrasing challenges, from a company who coined one of the most colourful yet most concise corporate value principle – ‘Don’t be Evil’. This slogan predated Dr. Schmidt, and while joining he too thought that it was just an attention-grabber. But soon he was in for a shocker. A meeting of engineers was on and he backed a new product strategy proposed by someone. Instantly, another engineer stood up and objected – “No, that would be evil”. He said it as naturally as logical objections like “that would need new data-centres” or “that would be too much error-prone”. Dr. Schmidt was surprised at how pervasively this ‘Don’t be Evil’ culture had spread throughout the organization. Larry & Sergey had rephrased the eternal challenge of corporate ethic long back, and this magnificent rephrasing had contributed to its acceptability. LESSON 12:
Risk Taking Around 1 year after his joining, Dr. Schmidt got a taste of big-ticket risk taking. Google wanted to partner with America Online (AOL), an industry giant then multi-times their size. Protracted discussions were going on with AOL as well as inside Google. Being a more experienced organization, AOL was forcing a shrewd partnership plan in which they stood to gain whether the deal became a huge success or not. Apart from a stock option, Google also had to guarantee them a reasonable payout, whether this
partnership clicked with AOL users or not. Being a more mature dealmaker, Dr. Schmidt saw through AOL’s plan and warned Larry, Sergey, and other executive heads. If the partnership clicked, Google would gain immense market-share. But if it didn’t, Google would face a serious cash-flow crisis and possibly go bankrupt within months, making it vulnerable for a takeover by AOL or some other tech giant. But Larry & Sergey didn’t agree. They refused to see such a negative scenario. Thus there was a serious rift in Google’s top management with Dr. Schmidt and some conservative VPs on one side, and Larry, Sergey, and some other VPs on the other side. One side had to give up for the deal to go through with AOL, and finally Dr. Schmidt withdrew. He had made his case. It was decided to go as per AOL’s proposal. Now the difficult task was convincing Google’s Board, comprising some heavyweights from the VC industry. The onus was on the CEO to call and tell them of the controversial decision. But Dr. Schmidt was in for a surprise. What the venture capitalists complained about was not the risky nature of the deal, but the conservative nature of the deal! You should have pushed for an even ambitious deal regardless of the risk, they told Dr. Schmidt. Then only it dawned on this CEO – these were the kind of financial brains that had bet big on these youngsters even when they had no revenue model in sight. Anyway, the deal with AOL went well – more well for Google – so much so that, by the time the deal came in for extension, it was Google who was in a more commanding position. And believe it or not, within three years of the original deal, Google would also become one of AOL’s largest shareholders – just the reverse of the scenario Dr. Schmidt expected. It was a rare purchase move from Google, only to counter AOL being taken over by rivals like Yahoo or Microsoft. An enormous risk had paved the way for an enormous strategic advantage in the market. SEASONAL 23
LESSON 13:
Setting the Mission For quite some time, it was difficult for Google to write down a proper mission statement. Even after Dr. Schmidt’s joining, the company went from one ad hoc mission statement to the next. All through this time, founders Larry & Sergey also kept on giving bits ‘n pieces of their ideal mission statement to Dr. Schmidt and other top managers. But no final document would emerge. Finally, Dr. Schmidt took it on himself to pin Larry & Sergey during an apt time to force the mission statement out from them. Because, as this CEO says, going without a mission statement means going without a formal strategy, and such informal or ad hoc techniques don’t work in the long-term. But when he jumped in front of them with this requirement, Sergey came up with a classic excuse – he had to take someone out for dinner. So, Dr. Schmidt whipped out a crude mission statement that he himself had prepared, to provoke Sergey, who was the culture evangelist of Google. Taking a glance at that document, Sergey lost control and started making a speech about what the real mission statement should be. Larry remained silent but Dr. Schmidt took it down on paper. Sergey then excused himself and hurried out for dinner. Dr. Schmidt then forced Larry to provide the nitty-gritty of what Sergey just spoke, which he did with élan, and which too this CEO jotted down quickly. Then with Larry waiting, Dr. Schmidt applied his experience, creativity, and writing prowess to coin a mission statement. Unexpectedly, Sergey came back – he had confused the day of the dinner – and was quickly handed over this new mission statement. One look, and both of them okayed it – that unique mission statement that has sort of become a legend not only in Silicon Valley, but throughout the corporate world. It is simple and it reads like this: “Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” Now to the execution part: “For this, we choose
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to work on problems that affect a large group of people and problems that matter.” Suddenly everything made sense – it demystified Google’s past decisions, it justified Google’s present projects, and most importantly, it became the guiding principle for future decisions. In other words, this mission statement became the rubbing stone on which all future projects would be critically judged. Even Google’s harshest critics wouldn’t disagree at its effectiveness. LESSON 14:
Superior Strategy It goes without saying that Larry & Sergey are two of the best business strategists around. Some of their strategies can become case studies no business school can teach you. Google was founded during 1996-97 as Larry’s & Sergey’s doctoral thesis at Stanford University, under the guidance of Prof. Rajeev Motwani & Prof. Terry Winograd. Google quickly outgrew the $10,000 grant from the University. Yahoo cofounder David Filo (their senior at Stanford) suggested that they take leave from University to pursue their new search engine. Google had not yet been incorporated as a business, but was rapidly growing in popularity. To incorporate, they needed at least $1 million in funds. The boys came up with a unique strategy to crack this daunting challenge. They decided to identify just one high-profile investor who could come up with at least one-tenth that amount, so that the rest of the investors could come on his fame. One of their professors at Stanford suggested Andy Bechtolsheim, a German born and Stanford educated computer scientist who had cofounded Sun Microsystems in 1982. Andy had since then turned into a high-profile angel investor in Silicon Valley. Andy is said to have replied to Larry & Sergey that, “This is the single best idea I have heard in years. I want to be part of this”, after seeing Google in action. He immediately wrote a cheque for $1,00,000 in favour of Google Inc – a non existing entity then. Larry &
Sergey were flabbergasted, and legend has it that it took two weeks for them to incorporate Google and create a bank account by that name so as to deposit the cheque! And Andy’s approval was more powerful than they imagined – many other angel investors were anxious to back any project Andy had backed. Faster than they imagined, they had $1 million in capital. Around a year later, in late 1999, the boys would pull off an even tougher one. Trying to graduate to VC funding, Larry & Sergey were finding it difficult to raise $25 million in capital. No less than ten major VC funds had turned down their business plan, citing poor revenue model and out-of-this-world idealism. Only two big fish were left – Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB). Sequoia had earlier funded giants like Apple, Cisco, Yahoo, & Paypal, while KPCB’s portfolio included AOL, Sun Microsystems, Amazon, & Verisign. Larry & Sergey met with Michael Moritz of Sequoia and John Doerr of KPCB independently. Two things surprised the boys – one, Moritz and Doerr were willing to invest in Google, and two, they were bitter competitors who wanted exclusive investment access to Google. No way, said the boys. They needed both Moritz & Doerr to bring in $12.5 million each, or nothing at all; they would look elsewhere then. The idea was simple – while Moritz & Doerr fought in the Google Board, the boys would be free to run their baby as they like. And that is what happened. This single decision helped Larry & Sergey to stall their IPO for nearly five years, all the while operating as a private company that didn’t have to disclose their financial results to the public. That is how giants like Yahoo, Microsoft, & AOL, remained unaware of Google’s financial lucrative-ness for years, thus failing to catch up with them for ever! Dr. Schmidt says Google abounds with such superior business strategies. Their advertising network is unbeatable because it is an auction-market, which eliminates under-pricing. Superior strategies also enabled Larry & Sergey to virtually dictate terms to Wall Street during their
legendary ‘Don’t be Evil’ IPO in 2004 that accommodated maximum number of individual investors by opting for a much-smaller-than-possible issue price. LESSON 15:
70/20/10 Rule Googlers spend 70% of time on their core task – for most of them, it is bettering Google’s core search service, in their own capacities as developers, programmers, managers, researchers etc. Of the remaining time, 20% (assigned as one day per week) is spent on projects related to this core task, by each person. They can select or propose projects according to their passion and aptitude. And the remaining 10% (assigned as half-a-day per week) is dedicated to projects unrelated to the core business. These too can be proposed according to one’s interests. The 70/20/ 10 time-division was originally implemented using special 20% and 10% rooms, but after the organization became huge, the scheme relies on secretarial services which remind everyone. Everyone from Larry, Sergey, & Dr. Schmidt, to the newbie programmers follow this motivation technique which is dubbed Innovation Time Off (ITO). And has it produced any innovations? You bet! Soon after 9/ 11, Krishna Bharat, a young Googler of Indian origin (St. Joseph’s, Bangalore / IIT, Madras) used his 20% time to create an automated news aggregation technology called StoryRank, which we now know as Google News. Two years later, in 2003, Google published a 20% project of one of their Turkish software engineers. His name was Orkut Buyukkokten; need we say more? One of the most ambitious 10% projects at Google is to roll out free wireless Internet access in select US cities. Other hit products / services from independent ITO projects include Gmail & AdSense. According to Google’s own estimates, around half of new product launches originate from this 20% or 10% time. Dr. Schmidt explains that the strength of ITO is that it is voluntary and not mandatory. Employees need not declare what their 20% or 10% projects are going to be, or compulsorily complete it. But they are encouraged to share snippets of their personal projects with others so that they will get specialist volunteer help. Despite no persuasion, most engineers at Google pursue and complete their ITO projects due to their own passion for the project, for professional accomplishment, and to garner respect from peers. As Dr. Schmidt – who pioneered this scheme - says, the success of ITO is purely a cultural thing. But it has proved to be Google’s biggest differentiator in a highly competitive marketplace. SEASONAL 25
INNOVATION COMES TO KERALA REA
A FOR APARTMENT, A FOR AFFORDABLE, A FOR APPLE!
Krishna Iyer, FCA, lighting the lamp in the presence of singer KS Chitra, Apple Directors , and the Apple team.
ALTY - THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 456
Apple Directors Rajeev and Saju were this year’s recipients of Economic Times’ award for innovative marketing. Being customer-centred is this duo’s mantra. In his welcome speech, Rajeev drew attention to the fact that it was an achievement that they rubbed shoulders with heavyweights of Kerala business for this award.
The Kerala housing market was booming. Toddlers were switching from “a for apple” to “a for apartment”, when disaster struck in the form of this downturn. Now, for their parents, the only rhyme that matters is “a for affordability”. Indeed, if the recession goes on further, even toddlers would learn this affordability mnemonic. Rajeev Kumar Cheruvara and Saju Kadavilan understand this situation much better than most developers. All through their existence as builders, they have not only sung “a for apartment” and “a for apple”, but “a for affordability” as well. Today, this strategy is helping them reap big dividends. Even while the Kerala real estate market stands paralysed with broken EMIs, stopped projects, and mounting cancellations, Apple a Day Properties is surging ahead with loyal customers. A rare show of this operation’s strength was visible on 26th April at Cochin’s Le Meridien Hotel when Apple
handed over keys to 456 completed homes to their proud owners. And signalling what is in store for Kerala’s real estate market in the months to come, this young developer announced Kerala’s first ever ‘Completed Projects Expo’. The rules of the game are being rewritten, says Rajeev. From now on, homes will have to be completed before they can be sold. And homes will have to be at truly affordable prices, say Rs. 14 lakh or around, and not at Rs. 30 lakh plus. That market - the speculative market - is dead. Now it will be Makaans as in Roti, Kapda, aur Makaan. Apple, may be unconsciously, is following one of this millennium’s most candid business strategies – fortune is at the bottom of the pyramid. No wonder they won this year’s Economic Times’ award for innovative marketing. Apple is already Kerala realty’s No.1 in sales for 2009.
It was the rarest of the rare events in Kerala realty. Even during the height of this past boom, no developers – not even the mightiest – has had the volumes to do something like delivering 500 homes across 10 projects in one go. The fact that this was done by a young developer, and that too during this recession, speaks volumes about the sheer confidence of its promoters Rajeev Kumar Cheruvara and Saju Kadavilan. The grand function at Le Meridien, Cochin, was something befitting this unique achievement. Welcoming the gathering, Rajeev Kumar Cheruvara announced that they were now the largest builder in Kerala for this financial year, in terms of units sold as well as turnover. He also thanked media for being
Welcoming the gathering, Rajeev Kumar Cheruvara announced that they were now the largest builder in Kerala for this financial year, in terms of units sold as well as turnover. supportive of Apple’s activities, especially during this recessionary period. And unfazed by the recession Apple is moving full steam ahead, with all current projects – except Apple Ice and New Cochin - set to be completed before 2009 ends. Marking themselves as not only one of Kerala’s largest developers, but as one of the most prestigious too, Apple revealed for the first time, the length and breadth of their customer portfolio.
KS Chitra lighting the lamp
Homebuyers who received keys included renowned singer KS Chitra; Deputy Director ...Continued on page 49
...Continued from page 8
Dt. Collector M. Beena, IAS, and SP P. Vijayan, IPS, with Rajeev Kumar and Krishna Iyer
of Income Tax, Solji Jose; Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax, Esther Hanghal; Deputy Collector, Vigilance, Revenue Central Zone, Geetha A; Dr. Aravind Babu; Dr. Shibhu Sreedhar; Dr. Veena Suman, and many noted figures in Cochin. Even before, Apple had attracted discerning customers like M. Beena, IAS, District Collector, and P. Vijayan, IPS, SP. Most of the keys were handed over, on behalf of Apple, by marketing or business unit heads of leading dailies and news channels in Kerala. KS Chitra also handed over a couple of keys - to Income Tax heads Solji Jose and Esther Hanghal, for the Apple Villa project at Kakkanad. The singer’s unit is a studio flat at Nedumbassery, in the Apple Studio project. The key was handed over by Krishna Iyer, FCA, a longterm mentor of Apple, as well as the co-chief-guest of the event. It was a heady evening of music and dance, with songs by KS Chitra and the participants of the ‘2 Crore Apple Megastars’ reality show in television. The cocktails and food served were also sumptuous. The ten featured projects of the evening were Apple Heights at Vazhakkala; Apple Studio at Nedumbassery, Apple Villa at Kakkanad; Hill Palace Phase II at Tripunithura, Golden Apple at Aluva; Apple Neighbourhood’s A, B, C, & D Blocks at Nedumbassery; & Apple Heights Studio at Vazhakkala.
Krishna Iyer, in his speech towards the conclusion of the ceremony, noted the diligence of Rajeev and Saju in this business, and wished them all success. Of these ten completed projects, two deserve special mention – Apple Heights and Apple Studio. Heights at Vazhakkala is a 15-storeyed complex that provides 3-BHK, 2-BHK, & studio apartments. Amenities include swimming pool, health club, indoor games, auditorium, guest room, driver's room, watchmen's room, intercom facility, lift, generator back-up, car parking etc. Studio is a novel experiment in Cochin, with each studio unit resembling a posh suite room of a star hotel. The build quality is fine with vitrified tiles, teak wood door, aluminium windows, putty finish painting, branded electrical fittings, branded bathroom fittings, and a spacious balcony. Each
Solji Jose, Deputy Director of Income Tax receiving key.
studio unit is fully furnished with wardrobes, kitchen cabinets, cot for bedroom, dining table, curtains etc. Provided appliances in each unit include air conditioner, television, refrigerator, coffee maker, and microwave oven. Common amenities are health club, business center, indoor games, club house, intercom facility, broadbrand, security, generator backup, two passenger lifts etc.
Chitra, before her song, reminded the audience for a healthier clapping. Many of them were sitting too excited about the prospect of taking home their keys. Separate counters had been arranged for presenting the 456 keys across 10 projects. Starting 27th April, Apple also kick-started a home expo with a difference. For the first time in the history of Kerala realty, if not Indian realty, this expo features only completed projects. Ready-to-move-in houses
In her brief words, Chitra prayed to God for blessing all the projects of Apple for their successful completion start from Rs. 14 lakhs. For those planning to move into a new apartment before the end of this financial year, Apple has an even wider portfolio. Apple projects to be completed during this fiscal are Apple MyHome at Ernakulam South; Apple.Com at Kakkanad; Limited Edition at Palarivattom; Apple One BHK at Nedumbassery; Apple Suite at Nedumbassery; Cool Home at Vyttila; Guest House at Palarivattom; and Big Apple at Palarivattom. The superstructures of most of these projects are already fully up. Customers who received keys included three valued customers who had willingly volunteered for testimonial TV commercials of Apple.
Krishna Iyer, in his speech towards the conclusion of the ceremony, noted the diligence of Rajeev and Saju in this business, and wished them all success. In his vote of thanks, Apple Managing Director, Saju Kadavilan thanked not only the dignitaries and staff, but their thousands of customers as well as media who made it all possible. Seasonal Magazine quizzed Rajeev Kumar Cheruvara about Apple’s current and upcoming offerings, on the sidelines of the key handing over function. Team Big - The Apple Professionals
Why did you decide to stage such a grand function to hand over these 456 units? There were many reasons, a few main ones I will tell you now. Firstly, real estate is a very peculiar market in that it is easily swayed by negative news or sentiments. Someone floats a story somewhere that a particular builder is failing, and it can indeed fail. Simply because, apartment business relies on regular payments, that is, the EMIs. Something happens to block the EMIs, and any builder can be in trouble. It need not be negative news as such. It can be negative sentiments, like of this current financial downturn. In such scenarios, it is very
Actual Photos of Completed Projects Apple Villa - Kakkanad
Apple Hill Palace Phase-II
important that we keep on with the momentum, and keep on informing our customers and would-be customers that everything is fine at Apple. This function largely serves that purpose. Secondly, this is our way of telling our customers that they matter to us. That we value them greatly. They took a challenging decision with us, and we lived up to their expectations. Isn’t it something to celebrate? You are planning to rapidly spread across Kerala. Is it the right moment in time to do so? To tell you the truth, does a builder have any option now but to spread? Believe me, Cochin is a saturated market now for houses and will remain so for probably another one to two years. There are so many apartments in so many completed projects already Apple Studio - Nedumbassery
Golden Apple - Alwaye
vacant, and many developers are still continuing to complete long overdue projects to survive. While launching Nano Villas, I made it clear that this is going to be our last major project in Cochin for now. We have completed the superstructure of 9 more projects in Cochin, which is getting ready for handover before this financial year ends. And we have Apple Neighbourhood - Nedumbassery, B block
Apple Neighbourhood - Nedumbassery, A block
Apple Branded Home
Apple Neighbourhood - Nedumbassery, D block
Apple Hill Palace Phase-I Apple Neighbourhood - Nedumbassery, C block
Apple Heights - Vazhakala
even bigger projects slated for completion by the end of 2010. Very few builders understand the Cochin market like Apple, and believe me, there is going to be a serious oversupply in the market in the coming months. That is why all our new projects will be in rest of Kerala. You are launching a new initiative for selling completed projects. Is it realistic? It is not a matter of whether it is realistic or not. It is about this being the only way out. With a completed project, you solve most doubts of homebuyers. Even after this downturn gets better, leverage and risk will remain out of fashion. If you have completed
Big Apple A block - Palarivattom
Big Apple B block
Big Apple C block
projects, homebuyers will be more than willing to come up with the entire money and buy a unit. I am not saying this offhand, but based on the extensive feedback we get from our interactions with thousands of aspiring homebuyers. Just as we pioneered the ultra-low-cost segment in Kerala with NanoHomes, we are pioneering this concept of selling completed homes only. Just as other developers are struggling to follow suit with low-cost homes now, they will be forced to change their business model to selling completed homes only. However, unlike us, many of them will be forced to sell numerous completed projects, as they relied heavily on speculative buyers, and many of these buyers have already fled the projects. Apple My Home - Valanjambalam
Big Apple D block
Apple Limited Edition - Palarivattom
How will be your initiative of completedprojects different? The main difference is our scale. We are doing it on a pan-Kerala focus with projects in 1000 towns across 14 districts. We realized the biggest secret in Kerala realty – people want class homes in their native localities, and not in a transplanted city. We will focus on branded villas of 4, 3, & 2-BHK. This mega initiative is named Apple Branded Home, and will be backed by a 20-year structural guarantee and 1-year service guarantee. Just like cars and other high-value brands, we will operate this project through local dealers. Currently, we are short-listing and finalizing the dealers.
Apple Suites - Nedumbassery
Current Status of Ongoing Projects Actual Photos Apple 1 BHK - Nedumbassery
Apple.com - Kakkanad
Apple Cool Home - Vyttila
he brand equity that many of India’s 28 nationalised banks wield in the public mind would make anyone yawn. They are the giants, but they are also the business-as-usual types. But one among this pack has recently captured the public imagination, hinging on a heart-touching campaign – ‘Your Dreams Are Not Your Alone’. Featuring dream-sharing pairs like parent-child, husband-wife, elder-siblingyounger-sibling etc, the message was subtle, yet clear – your dreams are also Union Bank’s. A tall claim? Are there any real credentials for it? What is so unique about Union? 2008-09 was not an easy year for Indian banking. Plagued by market uncertainties, loan book growth was not at all impressive, if at all there was any growth. But contrary to this general industry trend, Union Bank’s loan book growth accelerated
steadily through the first three quarters thereby enabling this PSU giant to close the fiscal with a better-than-peers loan book, despite the fourth quarter dipping. The bank had made net profits of 45% during the first three quarters. An expanding loan book means a more customer-centric bank. This performance was also reflected in the bourses, with Union Bank outperforming Bankex by a whopping 25%, even in the choppy markets since September 2008. The stock still enjoys a BUY recommendation from key analysts. Customer friendliness was always a principal aim at Union. Otherwise, how could it be the first and only nationalised bank to offer their customers free access to their accounts from any banks’ ATMs? Starting from this financial year, RBI has forced other banks to adopt this best practice. Union Bank has responded to this move by
announcing plans for 500 more ATMs to its network. Always working in tandem with their customers, Union Bank is not oblivious to the difficulties faced by the SME and home-loan customers. The Mumbai headquartered bank is in the process of restructuring 1 lakh loan accounts to address the difficulties faced by customers in home EMIs and industrial loans. Thereby lending credence to their corporate motto – ‘Good People to Bank With’. Under the leadership of industry veteran and its Chairman MV Nair, the bank is also making strategic moves to capitalize on the new business environment. As per the directions of their advisor, Boston Consulting Group, Union Bank is setting up a Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) Advisory Cell to cater to its corporate customers, anticipating increased M&A activity in the coming quarters. Nair, an award-winning performer at Corporation Bank and Dena Bank, believes
in doing everything professionally, and has deputed 30 officers at various levels for training at Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, for handling their M&A operations. Together with internationally experienced Executive Directors TY Prabhu and S Raman, this Chairman had embarked upon ‘Project Nav Nirman’ for transforming the bank to a customer-centric marketing organization, since he took charge. Union Bank has also tied up with IIM-Ahmedabad for fostering research on SME segment. The 25,000+ strong Union team is working in clockwork harmony to take the bank from its current level of Rs. 2.23 lakh crore business-mix to one of India’s top-three nationalised banks by 2012. Maybe it is not only hard work, but blessings. After all, how many banks in India have been blessed to be inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi?
2006, 2007, and 2008 were important years for Union Bank in more ways than one. On the leadership side, the bank got its current top-three executives during these years. Chairman & Managing Director MV Nair came in April 2006, Executive Director TY Prabhu in June 2007, and Executive Director S Raman in October 2008. Chairman MV Nair is the architect of Project Nav Nirman, which he kick-started soon after taking charge of the bank. The project aims at transforming Union Bank to a customer centric marketing organization by leveraging technology, redefining business strategies and re-engineering the business processes. A veteran of Corporation Bank, he has several innovative firsts to his credit there – from implementing Cash Management Services (CMS) for corporate customers to setting up a Marketing Division, something unheard of in public sector banks. Executive Director TY Prabhu is a Canara Bank veteran, and has handled Canara Bank’s wholly owned subsidiary in Hong Kong. After returning to India, a highlight of his long string of achievements is the handling of Canara Bank’s IPO. Executive Director S Raman is a Bank of India veteran, and has handled BOI’s operations in UK & USA. He was Chief Executive of US Operations, before joining Union Bank. His strengths include personal knowledge of most banking markets in India, as well as deep exposure to corporate banking, international banking, and HR. Gone are the days when banks were for saving and taking loans. Driven by globalization, the banking industry started providing a whole range of services to every possible customer group – students, farmers, entrepreneurs, corporates, societies etc. And technology came in at the right time as the enabler. Though MNC banks could be credited with introducing some of the innovative services, it was a handful of public sector banks like Union Bank that
Mr M.V. Nair, Chairman & Managing Director, Union Bank of India (left); Mr Rajesh Doshi, Senior Executive Director, National Securities Depository Ltd; and Mr Alok Kumar Agarwal, Chairman & Managing Director, Alankit Assignment Ltd,
excelled in innovation plus reliability. Here is how Union Bank’s offerings serve your dreams. INTERNET BANKING
Union Bank, Now at Your Home or Office Union Bank customers can avail of the bank’s extensive internet banking services to make their office or bank function as flexibly as a bank branch. All possible transactions and queries are included like detailed account information, transfer of funds, payment of bills, issuing DD/cheque book, FD opening / renewal, changing postal address, email address / communication module, trade module for LCs, bills, contracts etc, and bulk upload of debit / credit transactions. TELE BANKING
Your Phone is a Union Bank Executive One of Union Bank’s fastest growing services, telebanking, literally makes your mobile or land phone do all the banking work. Union’s tele-banking services include balance enquiry, last five transaction details, order statement of account by post / fax / e-mail, requesting cheque book, cheque status enquiry, stop payment request, and funds transfer to own accounts. ONLINE DEMAT
Union is Your Online Helper in Stock Markets
MV Nair CMD and TY Prabhu Executive Director
Demat services are increasingly moving from depositories and brokerages into banks, and Union Bank is very active in this space with full services and an online option too. Offered services by Union Demat include opening and maintaining of demat accounts,
dematerialization, rematerialisation, purchases, sales, pledging and unpledging, safe custody, detailed transaction statements, nomination facility, freezing, defreezing etc. ATM SERVICES
Union ATMs are the Friendliest ATMs Free access from other-bank ATMs were made mandatory by Reserve Bank, starting from this financial year. But at Union, free access from otherbank ATMs were always practised. Features of the ATM plus debit card include free insurance against accidental death of Rs. 2 lakhs, daily withdrawal of Rs. 50,000 (Rs. 25,000 from ATM and Rs. 25,000 for purchases), multiple account access, add-on cards etc. The bank is augmenting its friendly ATM network with another 500 locations. CREDIT CARDS
Union Visa Makes Credit Cards Accessible Union Bank makes the entry conditions easy. If you are salaried, minimum criteria is Rs. 60,000 per annum; if self-employed, it is 80,000 per annum; and if you can’t produce an income proof, a minimum unencumbered deposit of Rs. 25,000 would do! Shop at over three-crore member establishments across the globe. You can spend up to 25% of your annual income. Enjoy up to 50 days of free credit on your purchases. Add-on features of Union Visa include free accident insurance and a rewards program that can be used to waive of annual renewal charges. RETAIL LOANS
A Lender in Need, Union is a Friend Indeed The real mettle of a bank is measured in its loan portfolio – how broad it is, how flexible it is. Customers need loans for their needs, and they need it when there are needs. Very few banks realize this basic fact. This is especially true of retail or consumer loans divisions. But a look at the Union retail portfolio is really refreshing. There are 'Union Home' for home loans; 'Union Top-up' for any expenditure connected to existing house; 'Union Miles' for cars and two-wheelers; Union Comfort' for consumer durables or personal expenses; 'Union Education' for higher education; 'Union Health' for
Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram, right, inaugurates the 2501st branch of Union Bank of India (UBI) in the country, as Chairman and Managing Director of the UBI M.V. Nair
doctors to start a clinic or buying medical equipments; 'Union Mortgage' for meeting wedding expenses, emergencies etc; 'Union Shares' for funding individuals, brokers, and corporates against approved scrips; 'Union Cash' for meeting emergency financial requirements; 'Union Smile' for pensioners; and 'Union Reverse Mortgage' for senior citizens against own, occupied property. HOME LOAN LIFE INSURANCE
Union Covers Your Family’s Risk Taker Availing a home loan is a difficult decision. Still, dads, moms, hubbies, and bros do it for their families. But who will cover them? If something unfortunate happens to the family’s risk-taker, the whole family can be in chaos due to the unresolved home loan. Union solves this problem by providing life insurance cover equivalent to the amount of the outstanding home loan. The Union Home Plus scheme provides complete security to the family in the event of an unfortunate death of a Union home loan borrower. The insurer, SBI Life, assumes the full responsibility to repay the balance loan amount in the event of death. Features include top ceiling of Rs. 50 lakhs, single premium for entire duration, additional loan to provide premium, income tax rebate for premium, tax-free death claim, coverage of death due to any reason etc.
ONLINE BILL PAYMENTS
Union Customers Won’t Stand in Bill Queues Paying your bills in person and on time is one of life’s remaining hassles. You have to pay numerous bills just to survive – telephones, cellular phones, electricity / water / LPG utilities, insurance, mutual funds, credit cards, and what not. Union BillPay can come to your rescue. All you need is a net connected device – mobile, kiosk, or computer. In fact, you don’t even need any device. Just provide standing instructions and Union BillPay would do the rest. The program covers all major billers in your city, and you can even request to add one of your billing service providers. Even major charities, religious donations, and magazine subscriptions are covered. No more late payments, no more depositing cheques, and no more queues. CORPORATE BANKING
Union Sharpens Your Competitive Edge Corporate banking has graduated from mere trading loans. Union Bank provides an impressive array of products and services that any discerning businessman would appreciate. Because, they are the tools of modern business finance. Consider
Union’s Cash Management System (CMS) for corporates. Multi-location collections and payments of a company are effected at high speed. Bank’s courier will collect cheques from a company’s customers or dealers. Running over a dedicated, state-of-the-art Wide Area Network (WAN), CMS enables collection of funds at the source of origin, central pooling of funds, and centralised control of receivables and disbursals. Union’s CMS centres number 74 and there are over 1550 locations for collection of outstation cheques. GIANT INDUSTRIES TO SMEs
Union Cares for Businesses of All Sizes Financing large industrial and infrastructure projects calls for loan syndication, and Union Bank has been an early mover in this segment. Union has agreements with IDFC and Bank of India to jointly finance such large projects. Union Bank is also your perfect partner for international business with tailormade solutions for exporters and importers, foreign currency loans, and correspondent banking with 400 international banks in 80 countries. But all these cutting-edge solutions don’t mean that the SME segment is neglected. In fact, Union Bank has one of the largest customer bases in the country’s SME segment, thanks to well-thought-of products like Union High Pride, Union Procure, & Union Supply.
Kambakkth Ishq explores the relationship between two individuals so chalk-and-cheesely different from each other that no matter how many times they are pushed together, there’s just fireworks … no fire. Viraj Shergill (Akshay Kumar) is a swashbuckling stuntman in Hollywood who lives by the mantra “women are only good for two things … making love & making love” Simrita Rai (Kareena Kapoor) is a firebrand who is more than able to stare down the most arrogant male with her caustic wit and sardonic tongue ... her firm belief “all men are dogs” Forces of nature make sure the two people who hate each the most are thrown together in the most absurd, hilarious situations until one dramatic twist of fate binds the two together in a manner that they could never ever have even dreamed of in their wildest fantasies. If there ever was a marriage between the east and the west, a romantic comedy and Action, Hollywood and Bollywood … this would be it. Direction: Sabir Khan, Cast :Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor, Vindoo Dara Singh
FRONTIER MEDIVILLE FROM FRONTIER LIFELINE
Dr. KM Cherian SEASONAL 26
The future of healthcare is not happening in US. But in a hitherto nondescript village called Elavur, 45 km from Chennai, South India’s biggest metropolis. India’s first medical SEZ is happening here on 400 acres of land, and refreshingly it is not by real estate giants or corporate hospitals. And surprisingly, not named a medi-city too. Frontier Mediville is the brainchild of Dr. KM Cherian, one of the world’s most accomplished cardiac surgeons. A medical entrepreneur who is building one of the largest medical facilities in the world, but who still prefers to be a surgeon to his patients from over 21 countries. Mediville has no role model in the world, not with components like a National Medical Science Park and a Bio Hospital. Instead, Mediville will be the role model for the future. y middle-age, most successful doctors want to start a hospital on their own. But by the time he reached middle-age, Dr. KM Cherian had started or helped start four hospitals, including a medical college. And not for his own cause, one was even in the public sector. That Dr. KM Cherian thinks differently from most medical entrepreneurs, need not be said anymore. But how differently, one would be awed, when hearing about the upcoming Frontier Mediville. One among the world’s most accomplished cardiac surgeons, Dr. KM Cherian wants nothing short of redefining medical practice through his brainchild, Frontier Mediville. The scope of this integrated medical village goes beyond even medicine. Being planned at a cost of Rs. 1500 crores, Frontier Mediville will span nearly 400 acres near Chennai, and will be built over the next 10 years, starting now. People who know Dr. Cherian up-close and personal know that he is not that megalomaniacal kind out to build that next money-spinning, fame-spinning project. In fact, as Dr. Cherian himself says, he is attempting just the reverse. Sharing the credit as well as responsibility for this project with other giants – from worldwide as well as from India’s public sector – Dr. Cherian is designing and building Frontier Mediville on his longstanding belief and practice that, “Healthcare might be an industry, but caring for the sick is not an industry.” The larger-than-life scale of the project is evident from the PPP/SEZ nature of the project, the collaborations with Australian, Japanese, & Korean research organizations, the equipment grants from Department of Science & Technology, TIDCO’s involvement, the agreement with Railways for ‘adopting’ a local railway station, and, of course, CM Karunanidhi’s personal participation in the launch. That it is not just a money-spinner project is evident from the fact that Mediville’s first phase is going to be a unique National Medical Science Park. It will be followed up by a Bio Hospital, an Ayurvedic & Alternative Medicine Centre, a Herbarium,
MoU formalized with Tamil Nadu Government between Frontier Lifeline & TIDCO
a Medical University, a Research & Training Centre, and a Sterile Biomedical Corridor. On the treatment side, the project will address the entire spectrum of patients – from the economically challenged to the medical tourists. Also being built as a major tourist cum hospitality cum residential centre, non-medical attractions in Frontier Mediville include a star hotel, shopping mall, senior citizens’ enclave, residential quarters, an 18-hole golf course, and many such premium amenities. Frontier Lifeline is investing Rs. 150 crore to fund the first phase of the project which is to be completed within two years. What prompted you for this larger-than-life scale and scope that we see in Mediville’s plans? Nothing or nobody prompted me, as such. I mean, nothing human. It just came to me. And I realized that it is an enormous opportunity. But I am not a businessman. I won’t go around asking investors to take shares, like how these corporate hospitals do. And I am not a rich man, or born to a rich father. But my real father is rich, richer than Bill Gates. It is He who prompts me. My job is to listen and carry it out. SEASONAL 27
FRONTIER MEDIVILLE FROM FRONTIER LIFELINE You have been a critic of business groups with non-medical background coming into medical townships. Can you explain why? I am a critic because I believe that though healthcare might be an industry, caring for the sick should not be an industry. Caring for the sick is about empathy and expertise. I am an expert cardiac surgeon. Complicated cases come to me from all over India and abroad. I still operate on two cases daily, and my patients include neonates to old people. Forget doing such complex feats, how many doctor-turned-entrepreneurs can carry on with even their simple practice? It is not easy, because they are businessmen first. They lose their empathy, their expertise. Imagine the situation then when business groups with no background in medicine enter this field. That is why I don’t feel great about what CII and all are trying to do in this sector. They are industrialists, not practising doctors. Can you explain the concept of a Bio Hospital? How will Mediville fare in this sector? It is a complex subject. I will put it in a different way for you. There are no bio hospitals in the world as of now. But there will be 18 bio hospitals in the world by 2015. US, Japan, & South Korea will dominate this sector. Apart from the Japanese and the Korean hospitals, ours will be the only bio hospital in Asia. This novel concept came to me, thanks to my interactions with some international giants in healthcare. A bio hospital basically combines allopathic clinical medicine with ayush and biotechnology. By ayush I mean alternative practices like Ayurveda, Siddha, & Unani, and under biotechnology I refer to technologies like tissue engineering, nanotechnology, & biotechnology. Now nobody has as much as heard of bio hospitals, but I guess
Boomi Pooja Function at �Project site on 8th March, 2008
SEASONAL 28
now many will start speaking about it. We have been hearing about regenerative medicine. What is it all about? The focus of a bio hospital is regenerative medicine. A small example would help you understand. When the liver grows old, it sends signals. Today there is technology to interpret from which portion of the liver these distress signals are coming. And in ayush, we have the regenerative medicines for liver. Combine it with a high-tech delivery system, and there you see regenerative medicine in action. The concept of a bio hospital is comprehensive and holistic. It is way apart from the usual gimmick of a corporate hospital buying the next version of imported equipment and trying to make big money out of it. You seem very confident about undertaking a mega project like Frontier Mediville. What is behind this confidence? Frontier Lifeline is not a big hospital. Just one speciality – heart. Do you know of any hospital that survives on one speciality these days? We are not only surviving, but growing at a furious pace. How can we do it? Simply because, our technology and expertise in cardiac care are superior. Patients come looking for us, or they get referred to us from across India, and over 21 countries. This is what is behind our confidence. Mediville is not about my cleverness. It is about somebody prompting you to do it. If I am ordained to do it, who can stop it from happening? Can you provide us with some instances of this superior expertise in action? Yes, of course. Be it cutting-edge surgeries or original R&D, Frontier Lifeline is way ahead of the rest of the pack. Today, many hospitals claim to do heart transplants. We don’t go around claiming anything, but it is we who do a heart transplant almost every week. Such cases simply come to us. Donating a heart is a serious decision, and the spouse, parent, or sibling, of the donor wants their dear one’s heart to survive. That is why they come to Frontier. Similar is the case with our R&D. We have developed our own heart valves from pigs, and valved conduits from buffalo jugular veins – which only a global giant, Medtronic, has done before. We have
started applying stem cell therapy for heart disease, which is the first such initiative in India. We are doing the kind of works that others will take years to just figure out. Your expertise is well acknowledged in the field. But what about teamwork? Nobody can do this alone. We succeed because we are a great team. We have the right people, and they are provided with the right environment, and the right motivation. Frontier is all about collectiveness and team spirit. That is why many corporate hospitals find it pretty difficult to compete with us. Their doctors are just not interested in building the institution. For them it is just a job, to make some money. But here everyone is motivated, as collectiveness is promoted. That is why I always tell my team that we need not be rich at all. This team spirit is the biggest wealth. Many medi-cities have been proposed or launched. How will be your project different? First of all, ours is not being called a medi-city. We have purposely named it Mediville to contrast. The reason is simple. It was from villages that we all started. And we are not building the next mega multi-super-speciality hospital. Even the bio hospital won’t be the first project in Mediville. First we are going to build a National Medical Science Park, which will be the first of its kind in India. That sounds interesting. Can you explain this Medical Science Park? People, and even some doctors, mistakenly think that it is high-tech equipment and money that Indian healthcare lacks. Our real problem is lack of research in basic sciences, the supporting sciences of medicine. Only when we address this issue can we dream of being a healthcare major. Mediville’s National Medical Science Park will be an ambitious project to address this gap. The Park will have four components – an Animal House named Bose’s Proof of Concept, a Research Block named Da Vinci’s Synthesis of Science, a Training Centre named Plato’s Academy, and a Convention Centre named Flamingo. By this we are honouring giants of science and teaching like Plato, Da Vinci, & Jagadish Chandra Bose. The convention centre is named Flamingo because it’s architecture is like that of a giant flamingo in the Pulighat Lake where flocks of flamingos come every year. How did you arrange the land and basic infrastructure for Mediville?
‘Flamingo’ - Convention Centre in “Frontier Mediville”
We have acquired around 400 acres of land, which contains a 111 acre lake. Since nobody has such vast lands there, we acquired it from the state government as well as many farmers. Part of the land is marked for a medical SEZ. Frontier is a small group, but we were the first to get a medical SEZ approved in the whole country. For the National Medical Science
SEASONAL 29
National Medical Science Park with ‘Flamingo’ Convention Centre in “Frontier Mediville”
Park, we will get a Rs. 11 crore grant from Department of Science & Technology. As I told you earlier, we need not have all the money with us, as long as our purpose is honest and we are willing to work hard for it. Are you planning to bring in some PE funds? No, not at all. Some big names in private equity came to me. I politely refused. They don’t know my history. I had forsaken a 68,000 dollars job in US to take a 742 rupee job with Indian Railways. So, why should I bother about money? I can take any risk. Can anybody take zero from zero? Even if they can, zero will remain. I am confident of doing this without big-ticket funds, because there is a purpose beyond me in this project. Do you have a role model for Mediville in any part of the world? No. We can’t find one. Instead, we will be the role model for others to emulate. We are doing so many innovations in this project. We have planted 7500 sandalwood saplings, which will grow to a sandalwood forest. How many of us have ever walked in a sandalwood forest? We have also planted 27 trees for the 27 star signs. It is said that if you meditate under your star sign tree, you gather physical and mental well-being. Also being planted are Arjuna trees and an extensive garden of herbal trees. The herbarium will be a joint project with Asia Pacific Bio Resources Consortium, a leader in this segment. And we are collaborating with the South Korean scientists through KRIBB, who are world leaders in genetic engineering and cloning. Will Mediville have a major medical tourism initiative? You will be surprised to know that more than 30 years back, even before the term ‘medical tourism’ was coined, I was attending to patients from many neighbouring countries. Today, at a small hospital like Frontier Lifeline, we operate on patients from 21 countries. So you can imagine what will be the scope for Mediville. But we don’t like to brag about these things. If you are good, patients will come from everywhere. You don’t have to promote it as medical tourism. What will be the employment generation potential of Mediville? Already 150 local people have been employed in the project. Around 1.5 years back, we took 6 girls from poor SEASONAL 30
background and trained them in stem cells, tissue engineering, nanotechnology etc. You will be surprised to know of their formal education – SSLC, pass or fail. Now they are gainfully employed with us. We proved that fancy degrees, PGs, & PhDs are not necessary for many tasks in this sector. This shows our farsightedness. When it is complete, Mediville is expected to provide 3000 villagers with direct jobs. How do you plan to address the healthcare needs of the economically challenged patients? We have always been a socially responsible hospital. We are not here to exploit anybody. During the 5 years of our existence, we have forsaken over Rs. 6 crores as free or subsidized treatment to deserving patients. And we cooperate with all government initiatives. We also do many free camps regularly. At Mediville too, this culture will continue. But at the same time, we won’t allow anybody to exploit our generosity. We have had an instance where a girl was flown in on a chartered flight from North India, but on successful discharge, her relatives wanted a big concession! Nobody is giving us funds to run this as a charity. We still do charity because we feel that unfortunate people should be helped. We are able to do charity because we are not answerable to a huge shareholder community. People should realize this. A tailor can forsake his stitching charges, but can he buy cloth for a poor man and stitch? I don’t think mindless charity would work out in the long run. What do you want your team to learn from you? Not much. They are all professionals in their own right, and with much younger energy than me. But one thing I always tell my team. God gives you nuts, but He doesn’t crack it for you too. Cracking and eating are up to you. Same with opportunities. It is up to us to utilize opportunities. But the biggest problem is that people don’t realize opportunities for what they are. What do you want to leave as a legacy? People will be remembered for their actions. That is why Mother Theresa, Gandhi, & Martin Luther King are loved and remembered by millions. And why, a rich man like Rockfeller is not popular or remembered. I too want to be remembered for my actions. I am a cardiac surgeon. I will continue to do surgeries as long as I am fit to do it. Then maybe I will retire and oversee Mediville.
MOVE OVER CALPURNIA! The Ancient Greeks never thought that after thousands of years, the world would look back at them to catch a glimpse of their stunning gowns. Yes, the one shouldered gowns are back in vogue. Luckily though we have not yet borrowed their Toga! Anybody who is somebody and who dresses in western clothes are seen sporting this attireost of the functions which are the hallmark of the fashion world are peopled by ladies wearing these flowing robes.. The Golden Globe awards saw a bevy of Hollywood beauties including Cameron Diaz, Sandra Bullock and Maggie Gyllenhal donning these robes. Michelle Obama too wore a stunning one shouldered ball room gown at the inaugural neighborhood ball Closer home Bollywood starlets and Socialites, the glitterati and the ‘wanna be seen’ are making waves. Why, even Frieda Pinto of ‘SlumDog Millionaire’ fame wore one to the Oscars. Even if the breath taking Greek profiles are a far cry from what we see today, the innovations that we have done with this dress is amazing. Today
Freida Pinto
Michelle Obama
maggie Gyllenhal
Bina Menon
the shoulder strap has become narrower, embellished and more delicate. Designers have used color co-ordinates, the pleated look, using one color in front and one at the back, doing it up with broaches and jeweled buckles are all part of the silhouette. It is not just the gown, the one shouldered silhouette has also been adapted to the sari, kurta, blouses and lehengas as well. The strap has been put into focus eliminating the need to wear a neckpiece or a broach, Jute ropes, jeweled pieces for straps, fur straps, cap sleeves or a knot are just some of the different variations The hottest new trend in the silhouette is to not separate the fabric of the shoulder, Using the same fabric one can wear a highly embellished look, be it a string of roses ropes of pearls or chunky wooden beads The imagination is the limit Fashion is a fickle mistress, yet certain traits endure. More than anything else the personality of the person who makes a fashion statement that really matters. Strong personalities make their own rules, others follow!
camaron dise
sandra bullock
kate-beckinsale
SEASONAL 31
With the Kerala real estate market soaked in uncertainties, here are the only safe options for buying a home during 2009-10: SEASONAL 32
READY-TO-MOVE-IN HOMES @ BARGAIN PRICES Fully ready to occupy homes make some sense. That is, if you get it for bargain prices. Not at fancy rates like Rs. 2500 per sq ft. Yes, that is fancy these days. Especially, if it is from a local, Kerala-only builder. Rs. 1000 per sq ft for the 1 or 2 cents of undivided share in the land, and another 1000 per sq ft for the construction. Surprised? Yes, that is what it really costs them, including decent profit. Need you pay for their overheads? If you have 10 or 20 lakhs to spare for their overheads and ‘brand’, donate to them. But remember, it is no BMW or Merc you are getting. Our advice is to ask for Rs. 1800. It is a bargain. Let them take it or leave it.
HIGH VALUE HOMES FROM NATIONAL DEVELOPERS Nationally branded homes still make some sense. Because, even if you want to go for a distress sale, the buying community will be wider. The design, amenities, and build quality are also much higher. We don’t know of any local, Kerala-only builder who measure up to this level. According to the location, a good price for a nationally branded home can range from Rs. 2000 to Rs. 4000 per sq ft in Kerala. When buying above that, you should be sure that you really need it. Like, for owning a piece of Marine Drive or such luxe desires. Try for projects that are racing to completion, say, 6 months or so, from now.
ULTRA-LOW-COST APARTMENTS & VILLAS These units make immense sense, even if they are ongoing projects. But make sure that they are big enough for your current requirements, and, if it is a villa, extensible enough for your future requirements, say, five or ten years down the lane. Also, ensure that the lower prices are achieved by lower per-sq-ft rates and not lower sq-fts. Good prices to look for are in the Rs. 1250 to Rs. 1500 range. That way, you can own a 1000 sq ft apartment for Rs. 12.5 to Rs. 15 lakhs. If it is a 1000 sq ft villa, look for prices between Rs. 1900 to Rs. 2200 per sq ft for a 3 to 5 cents unit. It will come up to Rs. 19 to Rs. 22 lakhs. Villas also have the advantage of better completion times, as there is no need for a superstructure.
BEWARE OF PRICE CARTELS Home prices across India have shrunk by 30%. Banks are pressurizing builders to cut costs further to realistic
levels. But if these lower rates are not reflected in your locality, a price cartel might be working. They come in different forms, industry associations or forums being one. The strategy is simple. You want a home in a particular suburb. You go to Builder A; you are offered Rs. 3000 per sq ft. Pretty sure that it doesn’t cost that much for a home there, you go to Builder B, but is again met with Rs. 3000 per sq ft. You may continue visiting C, D, or up to Z, but the response will be the same; Rs. 3000 per sq ft. Finally, you are convinced that the running rate at your favourite suburb is Rs. 3000. Such cartels often have non-competitive clauses in their charters, which will include mechanisms to maintain prices at exorbitantly high levels. Thankfully, there are still many honest high-volume developers who are not part of any such cartels. Always, opt for them first.
DO-IT-YOURSELF HOMES With the organized market in uncertainty, do-ityourself homes are making a strong comeback in Kerala. Even in a dense district like Ernakulam, you can still get pristine land for Rs. 1 lakh per cent. And that too within a 30 minutes to 45 minutes travelling distance from the city centre. With building material costs down, even posh construction will cost only Rs. 1000 per sq ft. So, for a 1000 sq ft independent villa on 5 cents of land, all it costs is Rs. 15 lakhs. But a do-it-yourself home is not for the faint-hearted. Nor does it require much courage. Some hard work, and that is it. Your home, according to your dreams, in your favourite location. You can avail loan to buy property, take another loan later to build, or build it in a staggered way on your own funds. Another definite plus is the very low pollution in the affordable suburbs. Savings will also come on hospital bills. If you can afford 10 cents to plant a couple of fruit trees, that is what we call luxury. Not shared spas.
CONTINUE ON RENT If you don’t have an ancestral home to live now, but still feel uncertain to commit to a home loan or home, we don’t blame you. Continuing on rent still makes immense sense. When the interest rates are high – as it is now – home loan EMIs don’t make much sense. An FD of Rs. 25 lakhs will fetch Rs. 20,000 per month for the rest of your life, in this interest regime. Building such a nest egg is also a viable option during these times. But be on the lookout always for that tipping point when home EMIs make better sense than monthly rent payments. In any case, investing in a small piece of land for future use is a wise decision. Homes – branded or not - never appreciate like vacant land. SEASONAL 33
Selling Tactics For Difficult Times
By Neil Rackham, Visiting Professor of Sales and Marketing at Portsmouth & Cranfield Universities, England.
Less than half of the business-to-business salespeople on the planet have ever sold in an economic downturn, let alone in a huge global recession like the one we face today. Even worse, middle level sales managers–and sometimes senior management too–are woefully inexperienced when it comes to the tricky task of leading a sales force through difficult economic times. It is easier for large companies. They have bigger cash reserves; they can afford consultants who will help them navigate through the hard times ahead. But it is much harder for smaller companies. With limited financial resources and inability to raise credit, their only hope is to be successful in outselling their competitors. But that’s no easy task. Competitors are hungry and aggressive. Large companies, who in good times often ignore less profitable segments of the market, are moving into local business opportunities that used to be SME territory. So what can a small business do? SEASONAL 34
WORKING HARDER ISN’T AN ANSWER The knee-jerk reaction in hard times is to push salespeople to more activity–more calls, more demos, more proposals. There’s nothing wrong with working hard to fill the sales pipeline with every qualified opportunity. In fact, studies done in the recession during the 1980s show that for smaller transactional sales, that was all that was needed. Pure hustle, hard work and lots of cold calling was a very effective way to survive. Successful companies selling lowvalue products managed their call activity ruthlessly and made their people knock on an awful lot of doors. But the same strategy proved much less productive for the more complex and consultative business sale– and there’s no reason to believe that it will be any more successful in today’s marketplace. There are several reasons for this. Buying cycles, in economic downturns, take up to 40% longer due to budget freezes and added approval and justification steps. Salespeople can do very little to shorten these extended cycles. Attempts to pressure or speed up the buying process will upset customers, make you appear anxious and in trouble while bringing in very little extra in terms of sales. And diverting sales effort into cold calling in an attempt to generate new business just isn’t an economic option in today’s world of expensive sales talent. No, just pressing the “more” button won’t work. Yet, for many SMEs, it seems the only option.
THE “BETTER” BUTTON So what’s the alternative? The first principle for success is to focus sales effort where it counts. During the hard times of the late 80s, a number of studies looked at the differences between successful and less successful salespeople selling in competitive high-end businessto-business markets. It was found that less successful people tended to focus on opening up more accounts when times were lean. They chased every opportunity, however small. They were busy, they were active–but they were ineffective. The average value of each sale fell, and their overall sales volume fell too. In contrast, the successful survivors of those hard times concentrated on their best opportunities. They spent more time in developing call and account strategies than in rushing out to make extra calls. Another clear contrast between the survivors and the strugglers was what they did once they came face-to-face with a potential customer. Less successful people were likely to become “talking brochures”. In their anxiety to
uncover new customer opportunities, they often found themselves pitching products in an attempt to interest poor prospects. Their tendency was to chase every lead and they were rejected most of the time. This eroded their confidence and led them to adopt “tell”, based selling styles that were visibly hurried and communicated an unhelpful sense of desperation to buyers. Their calls became shorter and their hit rate fell even further. The opposite was true for the successful group. Because these salespeople focused their efforts on a few good prospects, and spent time in planning and preparation, their calls were both longer and deeper. They sold through questions, not through telling. And, unlike their unsuccessful colleagues, they came across to customers as wellprepared and confident.
A QUESTION OF CONFIDENCE In the studies, when customers were interviewed to find why they bought from a particular vendor, salesperson’s confidence was frequently mentioned as a decisive factor in the purchasing decision. Why should confidence be so critically important in an economic downturn? There’s a widespread fallacy that in hard times customers buy solely on price. Nothing could be further from the truth. In hard times, above all else, customers buy safety. Research for IBM during the last recession discovered that, for computer hardware at least, customers actually paid 12% more on average for equivalent equipment than they did in easier economic times. Why? First, in hard times, decisions are more likely to be taken by committees and lower risk options are generally favoured in group decision-making. Generally, the lower-risk option carries a higher price tag. Second, buyers realised that their decisions would come under more scrutiny, and they would personally be blamed if equipment didn’t perform. The old slogan, “nobody ever got fired for choosing IBM” was a potent selling tool, even if it meant a price premium. Here’s where it’s most difficult for SME companies. It’s easy to seem safe to a customer if you represent a large and well known brand. If you are a small company, helping customers feel safe in doing business with you is even more important, although it takes much more skill. So what’s the bottom-line advice for selling in hard times? Focus on the best opportunities; don’t go chasing everything that moves. Invest in strategy, planning and preparation. Be confident. Sell the safety and reliability of your offerings and don’t think that you have to compete only on price. Come to think of it, that’s not bad advice for selling in good times too. SEASONAL 35
Padmasri Dr. PVA Mohandas led MIOT Hospitals of Chennai is celebrating its 10th anniversary in style. From 40 beds to 400 beds, and from a single speciality to a multi super speciality, MIOT has grown unbelievably fast in its first 10 years. The further vision of Dr. Mohandas and Chairman Mrs. Mallika Mohandas is even more challenging – to grow 25 times by the 12th anniversary by starting MIOT International, a new hospitalinside-hospital with 600 rooms and 15 operation theatres. SEASONAL 36
Padmasri Dr. PVA Mohandas SEASONAL 37
Already a major player in medical tourism, MIOT Hospitals, however, is taking the vision to new levels. ‘MIOT International’ will consolidate the group’s initiatives till date into a standalone hospital within MIOT’s premises. There is nothing small in Dr. Mohandas’ vision. While Seasonal Magazine had first unravelled MIOT’s uncanny resemblance with the famed Mayo Clinic – in its redefinition of medical practice, familial origins, and mission statements – through our cover story ‘The Mayo of Madras’ (October 2008), Dr. Mohandas himself had recently stated in a press interview that he wants MIOT to be a Mayo of India in the years to come.
The aim of IGOF is to promote friendship, comradeship and collaboration between Indian and German Orthopaedic Surgeons. IGOF over the years has conducted several courses, symposia and seminars on various subjects connected with Trauma, Spinal Surgery and Joint Replacement Surgeries all over India. These courses are conducted twice a year in some part of the country. So far IGOF has conducted 20 courses in India. The Foundation has awarded 62 Fellowships to Indian
However, he is not pinning all his hopes on the 600 bed / 15 OT MIOT International. He plans to establish MIOT Hospitals cum medical universities in Sri Lanka, West Indies, Burma, Vietnam, & Cambodia. His vision seems to be perfect in that, currently medical tourists at MIOT are made up mainly from Africa & Middle East. While the Chennai facility will continue to cater to these regions, the new planned hospitals will take the MIOT service to the Americas, and trans-Asia. MIOT remains at the cutting edge of orthopaedic practice – its original speciality – also by collaborating extensively with the Indo German Orthopaedic Foundation (IGOF). September and October 2008 witnessed two such events. A 2-day international seminar on Hip & Knee Arthroplasty, attended by 400 delegates from the world over was conducted by IGOF at MIOT Hospitals during September. And in October, MIOT played host to the first IGOF course on Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery. This event was attended by 200 delegates from across the globe.
Surgeons to visit Orthopaedic Centres in Germany. IGOF has really contributed to improving the knowledge and skills of young Indian Surgeons. This year too IGOF is awarding 12 Fellowships to young Indian surgeons to visit Germany for 4 to 6 weeks.
Dr. Prithvi Mohandas SEASONAL 38
IGOF is the brainchild of Dr. PVA Mohandas and Prof. Siegfried Weller, a German orthopaedic specialist who has contributed much to the Indian orthopaedic scene, as well as in the design of MIOT Hospitals.
MIOT is not just another swanky multi-super-speciality hospital, but involved in redefining how medical practice should be. MIOT Institute of Nephrology, MIOT Endovascular Centre for Aortic Aneurysm (METAA), MIOT Global Centre for Ideal Joints, and MIOT Institute of Research (MIR) are only the latest in a series of world-class initiatives by this South Indian healthcare major. Earlier,
Mrs. Mallika Mohandas
Ever since Dr. Prithvi Mohandas joined MIOT Hospital as Consultant Hip Surgeon and Director of Hip Arthroplasty, the long string of innovations for which this Chennai based multi-super-speciality hospital is famed for, has only gathered further momentum. Dr. Prithvi has earlier been a noted hip replacement surgeon in London. MIOT Centre for Ideal Joints, a first of its kind centre in India if not the Asia-Pacific, has been formed under his leadership. MIOT is also strengthening its position in the nonorthopaedic segment, with some powerful initiatives like MIOT Institute of Nephrology. Ever wondered why kidney transplants are tough? And often riddled with ethical abuse? MIOT had become one of the first movers in keyhole surgeries, pinhole surgeries, computer navigated joint replacement, and medical tourism. MIOT also excels in healthcare philanthropy – the best example is, of course, CHIME, the free or subsidized heart surgery program for needy children by the MIOT Centre for Children’s Cardiac Care. And there are other similarities too. MIOT has a visionary family at its nucleus, but is run in an internationally professional style. MIOT’s has global tieups – with a German hospital for training and a Swiss hospital for stem cell research.
The best source – and often the only source - for a replacement kidney is a near relative like spouse, parent, sibling, offspring etc. Nobody else would sacrifice such a vital organ for the patient. But this option is unavailable if there is a blood group mismatch between the donor and the recipient. Thus enter the kidney donors, the traffickers, and all the unethical stuff. All that is history now for Chennaiites, and those who are willing to travel to Chennai from anywhere in the world. Because MIOT Institute of Nephrology has successfully pioneered in India a technology for ‘mismatched transplants’. The donor and recipient SEASONAL 39
blood groups need not be the same anymore! It is as simple as that!
stay! Even the grafting of the organ to the recipient can be done through pinhole surgery.
Then why didn’t anyone else implement it earlier? Well, it is not as simple as that, from a hospital’s angle. The procedure requires administration of high-tech drugs that remove antibodies across three of four sessions. MIOT has attracted Dr. Rajan Ravichandran, one of the most well-accomplished nephrologists in the world to head MIOT Institute of Nephrology as its Director.
Explains MIOT Chairman Mrs. Mallika Mohandas, “MIOT has been a pioneer in minimally invasive surgeries, first introducing keyhole surgeries and later their pinhole versions.”
The technology transfer comes from Japan, one of the few nations with this priceless know-how. MIOT Hospitals has invested Rs. 10 crore just to start this Institute of Nephrology, which features a 100 bed facility. Dr. Kazunari Tanabe, head of Renal Transplantation at Tokyo Women’s Medical University, who assisted MIOT in this technology transfer, was himself present in Chennai during the inauguration. Mismatched transplants is the latest in a series of initiatives from MIOT Hospitals that “redefine medical practice” - a phrase that often crops up in the talks of Padmasri Dr. PVA Mohandas, Founder and Managing Director of MIOT Hospitals. This visionary claim is generally seen used by only a handful of the world’s finest hospitals, like the Mayo Clinic. At MIOT, this redefining draws strength also from multiple technologies that MIOT has mastered earlier. For example, mismatched transplants and laparoscopic nephrectomy are coupled together to achieve some unbelievable results. Nephrectomy is the surgical removal of a (donor) kidney, and laparoscopic nephrectomy is the same procedure done through a pinhole! The donating relative doesn’t have to bother about a large incision, significant pain, or a long hospital
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Today, medical innovations like these happen on a daily basis, but only at the world’s best hospitals. We wanted to know MIOT’s take on whether all such innovations need to be adapted to the Indian scenario. It was Dr. Prithvi Mohandas, who is also the son of this Chairman-MD couple who answered our query. “Yes, what you indicate is true. As a cutting-edge hospital, we always have to take a choice when a new technology is available. There is a danger of simply going down the path of novelty only for the sake of progress. On the other hand, there is a fear of not providing newer and better alternatives to the patients. So the acid test before us is this – is it significantly better for the patient? If so, we go for it.” “That is how we acted on most of our recent initiatives including mismatched transplants and ideal joints. Dr. Prithvi will explain to you the idea behind these new joints,” adds Mrs. Mallika. “The beauty of Ideal Joints is that it is not about embracing the latest and greatest technology from West; but rather, inventing something uniquely for India,” Dr. Prithvi starts explaining. MIOT Centre for Ideal Joints will – for the first time in India – design artificial joints specifically for the Indian
Dr. V V Bashi hip & joint peculiarities. Earlier, Indian patients had to ‘suffer’ joints made for Western or Japanese populations. Centre for Ideal Joints is also planning to produce these Indian joints at one-tenth the cost of an imported joint, which is often upwards of Rs. 1.5 lakhs. This new MIOT Centre will also serve as a Centre of Excellence and Reference Centre for Joint Replacement Surgery & Revision Surgery in the Asia Pacific. Says Dr. PVA Mohandas, “This comes naturally to MIOT, as we have the unparalleled achievement of over 15,000 hip replacements and over 6000 knee replacements to our credit. Dr. PVA Mohandas has been the pioneering orthopaedic surgeon who introduced joint replacement in India in 1973, barely three years after this revolutionary technology’s international debut. He has worked hard to popularize it all over the country, as also some other orthopaedic techniques, which finally earned him the top national honour of Padmasri. The familial roots of MIOT are, however, no hindrance for the hospital to attract and maintain one of the finest and most comprehensive team of doctors & surgeons, all of them working only for MIOT. It includes ‘best-in-their-class’ surgeons like Dr. VV Bashi and Dr. Barry D’ Rosario.
was something rarely attempted in cardiac practice, but under the masterful direction of Dr. VV Bashi, a team of cardiac surgeons, interventional cardiologists, cardiologists, & interventional radiologists went for it – a three-stage hybrid surgery involving three modes viz. open heart surgery, keyhole surgery, and finally pinhole surgery! The complex procedure was noted also for its inter-departmental coordination and innovation on the fly. In the final stage, the interventional radiologist (the pinhole surgeon) deployed a heartspecific implant outside the heart as suggested by Dr. Bashi. It has never been attempted before anywhere in the world. But it worked perfectly and Chrisine started smiling with relief for the first time in her life! Dr. VV Bashi, one of the best-known cardiac surgeons in India and abroad, is the Chairman and Chief Surgeon of the MIOT Cardiac Care Unit. He is credited with performing the first extensive thoracic aortic aneurysm surgery in India, and was a pioneer in Beating Heart Surgery in the country. Like only the finest cardiac surgeons in the whole world, Dr. Bashi is a specialist in correcting congenital cardiac problems, valve repairs, and replacements. He has many complex surgeries to his credit in these difficult areas, and also does a huge volume of regular work that includes vascular & pulmonary operations and more than 5000 coronary bypass surgeries until now. He has performed over 1500 beating heart bypass surgeries with a success rate of 99.5%, which is exceptional even by world standards. This is especially so, given his passion for performing complex operations on patients who have multiple complications and as such rejected by most hospitals. Putting to good use the expertise of doctors like Dr. Bashi, MIOT has started a new initiative – MIOT Endovascular Centre for Aortic Aneurysm (METAA) – which transforms complex and risky aneurysm surgeries into neat and safe keyhole surgeries. Endovascular Stenting, which is METAA’s main
Better than explaining their roles at MIOT would be to illustrate some of their recent exploits. 24-year old Umiwana Chrisine of Rwanda was in a pretty bad shape when she was flown in to MIOT by the Rwandan Government. Tests revealed that she had severe leaks in two heart valves, many leaks in four segments of the aorta, and only one functioning kidney. What her condition called for SEASONAL 41
procedure, is done only in a handful of centres in the world, owing to the kind of equipments and expertise needed for it. METAA has been set up with an investment of Rs. 22 crore. Numerous other departments also excel at MIOT. In fact, Dr. Mohandas’ principal vision for MIOT Hospitals is for it to be a group of Centres of Excellence. Dr. Barry D’ Rosario has always been a strength for MIOT, who together with Dr. PVA Mohandas, has contributed much to MIOT’s original status as a Centre
resuscitated, attended to, or taken for emergency surgery, without wasting precious seconds. In fact, MIOT is perhaps the only Trauma Centre comparable to US Level 1 Trauma Centres. Even many healthcare professionals will be surprised to know that at MIOT, the ‘Door to CT Time’ including preliminary resuscitation, for head injury cases, is less than 7 minutes, a speed which is even better than in many US hospitals! MIOT has collaboration with Klinikum Hospital, Stuttgart, Germany, for exchange of specialists, training of nurses, and treatment of patients. The core domains of collaboration include orthopaedics, trauma management, cardiology, & cardiothoracic surgery. The German Government-run Klinikum Hospital and MIOT had been working together for some time now. MIOT also sends surgeons and nurses to get world-class training from this German hospital.
of Excellence in Orthopaedics. Dr. Barry is the Director, MIOT Centre for Joint Replacement Surgery. Under their guidance, MIOT has already arrived at the gold standard – computer-navigated minimally invasive joint replacement, being the world’s 3rd hospital and Asia-Pacific’s 1st to start it. Other initiatives from the Group include MIOT Retreat and MIOT College of Nursing. With Retreat, the hospital is implementing the concept of extended care for patients who require longer stays. They can stay with their families in a more cost-effective fashion. The green campus of MIOT which did away with stock hospital symbols like “emergency”, “casualty” etc is the perfect setting for MIOT Retreat too. Yet, for all its laidback serenity, the MIOT design can rise up to any demanding occasion with clinical precision and efficiency. This is largely due to the role a team of doctors, including Dr. Mohandas, had played in co-designing each floor, connection, elevator, lobby, facility, operation theatre, and room. Features include separate entrances and corridors for emergency outpatients, inpatients, public, and service personnel, so that there is no crowding at any point even in case of multiple emergency cases being brought in simultaneously. As a hospital that also specializes in trauma, any emergency trauma, accident, stroke, or heart attack patients can be efficiently brought in, SEASONAL 42
The hospital has been quite active in research, and has entered the super-specialised research area of stem cells nearly one year back. MIOT Institute of Research (MIR) is in collaboration with University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland, and is headed by Dr. Omana Trentz a veteran in this high-tech field. Unlike many such initiatives that work on the theoretical front, the focus of MIR is actual stem cell therapy and specializes in culturing stem cells from the same individual for his or her own use! Today, MIOT has over 45 full-fledged departments including Orthopaedics, Diabetology, Oral & MaxilloFacial Surgery, ENT, Head, & Neck Surgery, Pulmonary Medicine & Critical Care, Dermatology, General Surgery, Radiology & Imaging Sciences, Spinal Surgery, Ophthalmology, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Neurosurgery, Cardiology, Nephrology, Gastroenterology Surgery & Minimally Invasive GI Surgery, Preventive Health Care, Neurology & Neurosciences, Joint Replacement Surgery, Weight Loss Surgery (Bariatric Surgery), Accident & Trauma Care, Trauma Surgery, Paediatric Orthopaedics, Orthopaedic Oncology, Micro-Vascular & Plastic Surgery, Thoracic & Cardio Vascular Care, Rheumatology, Urology, Paediatrics, General Medicine & Geriatric Care, Physiotherapy & Rehabilitation, Endocrinology, Dental, Master Health Check & Special Check, Microbiology, Transfusion Medicine, Ultrasound, Pathology & Clinical Laboratory, Knee Surgery & Sports Medicine, Anaesthesia, Department of External Fixation (Limb Equalization), Diseases of the Hip & Hip Surgery, Back School (for Back Pain), Physiotherapy, and International Patient Care.
Signature Immortal
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Barbara Bush
ot since Jacqueline Kennedy stepped to the podium in her pill box hat and fur collared coat in 1961 has the focus on the first lad’s style been so intense. The First Lady of any country for that matter has the limelight always beaconed on to her. It is not always easy to measure up to the appraising gaze of millions whose Jacqueline Kennedy adulations are so necessary to maintain the status quo. Every First Lady has her signature look, from Nancy Reagan’s penchant for electric red to Barbara Bush’s strand of pearls which many in the crowd imitate. Michelle Obama is a class apart, not only that she is the first non- white first lady but also that physically and professionally she brings a unique stature to her post at 5ft.11in. She stands not behind her husband but shoulder to shoulder with him. Women have always been obsessed with beauty and clothes, visions of Cleopatra soaking herself in ass’s milk and doing up her fabulous eyes with kohl are not too distant. Michelle Obama is a far cry from that picture. Her beauty is from within, it is about a new way of looking at fashion, it’s about women who are real and confident it’s about power and intellect. Unlike haute couture designers finding a model here it is about the model finding the designer to suit her personality. Women who are powerful have one thing in common, an aura of steely determination. Their clothes may or may not reflect their personality. Queen Elizabeth 11 of England radiates calmness and royalty. Her clothes reflect the typically British art of under playing one’s attire mostly conservative, he only thing ostentatious is her brooch which complements her dress. She reflects the stiff upper lip attitude of the British. On the other hand Christina Fernandes de’ Kirchener, the first
Nancy Reagan
Queen Elizabeth 11
elected President of Argentina dresses more flamboyantly. Her well groomed appearance and highlighted eyes shows her ebullient spirit. Her theory that “women are culturally formed to be citizens of two worlds” reflect in her Angela Merkel dressing also! Angela Merkel , the first woan Chancellor of Germany, inspite of her total make over carries about with her the no nonsensical look of her country. Gloria Arroyo of the Phillipines, Mitchelle Bachelet of Chile and our own President Pratibha Patil have individuality stamped all over them, yet she portrays the typical stand back attitude of Indian wives with her sari worn demurely over her head. It may convey a condescension to male superiority,we leave it to the readers to judje . Sonia Gandhi on the other hand chooses to portray herself as a true blue Indin though Italian by birth.. Her choice of clothes reflect the Gandhian spirit of Khadi but does Gandhi-ism end there!. “Clothes maketh a man” said Bacon and aptly so, ut are clothes alone enough?, Appearances can be deceptive, it is the attitude one carries that make the difference Michelle Obama has plenty of it . She is not afraid to wear bold colors or wear clothes bought online. She has a quirky side too, flats with cocktail dresses or the black cardigan wrapped around her Narciso Rodriguez dress on election day , as if to say this is what I’ve been wearing all day, no need to change just because he (Obama) hhhhas won. The world looks up to a person not only by what he is wearing but also by what he does.It is not to say that clothes don’t make a difference .Who can forget the fabulous attire of Jaqueline Kennedy or the prim and proper Indira Gandhi with the famous silver streak in her hair and her large charismatic eyes?. Ultimately it is the combination of attire confidence, attitude innate personality and style that matters. t is the way we connect ,our signature of immortality in this mortal world.
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4 Fatal Financial Fantasies to Discard 4 Sure Shot Financial Realities to Embrace Many of us have financial fantasies that help us to remain optimistic in the face of financial hardship. But while there's nothing wrong with dreaming, some fantasies do more harm than good, especially when they affect the way we behave. Why give up the dreams? Because expecting a windfall or a free ride to get you through life isn't going to make you successful - in fact, it will allow you to make excuses that can stand in the way of your financial freedom. Let's take a look at four common financial fantasies - you're better off forgetting about them, but we'll provide some realistic, actionable plans you can put in their place. By Investopedia - Forbes
Common financial fantasies 1 I'll receive a large inheritance. Grandparents and parents are probably the most likely prospects when people fantasise about receiving an inheritance. Setting aside the heartlessness and laziness of waiting for a close family member to die so you don't have to make your own money, your grandparents will probably leave the bulk of their money to their children, not to you, and with any luck, by the time your own parents pass away, you'll be at least 50. What's more, if your grandparents are lucky enough to live long lives, or if they have to spend long periods in the hospital, it is likely that they will have used up much of their savings by the time they pass away. If you do receive an inheritance, it might not be as much as you think.
2 I'll win the lottery. You already know how low the odds of winning the lottery are, but millions of people play it every day. What could be easier than winning $1 million by picking out a few numbers? Therein lies both the SEASONAL 44
appeal of the game and the difficulty of winning. Even if you did win the lottery, you might not be able to hold onto the money. A high percentage of lottery winners actually squander their windfalls and end up right back where they started (or worse). If you don't have the skills to manage the money you have now, how will you manage $1 million? Also, there are considerable headaches associated with winning keeping it a secret is difficult, if not impossible, and everyone you've ever known is likely to come crawling out of the woodwork like termites wanting to chomp away at your prize until nothing remains.
3 I'll start a website and make a killing off advertising. Various books and websites promise to help you get rich by creating websites that generate advertising income. Sometimes, these books and websites advocate making "junk" websites that do not have any useful content, but that are still likely to show up high in search engine results, get lots of traffic, and thereby make lots of advertising dollars. Others advocate getting rich through creating legitimate websites or blogs that provide content of real value to users and selling advertising on those sites. Sounds great, right? Who wouldn't want to sit back
and have the money come flowing in for simply creating a page and paying for a URL? While the success stories of people who make a full-time living from either "junk" or legitimate websites and blogs can make anyone want to quit their day job, running one of these sites is not as easy as it sounds. Popular advertising programs, such as Google AdSense, hire people to keep an eye out for sites that clutter the web and make it more difficult for people to find valuable information online. If advertisers discover that you are running a junk website, your account is likely to be terminated and your profits forfeited. It is certainly possible to make money from running one or more legitimate websites or blogs, but it's not a viable getrich-quick scheme. Any website that gets considerable money from ad traffic has done so from hard work and thousands of dollars spent in design, content and upkeep.
4 I'll make a ton off an initial public offering (IPO). People who lived through the internet bubble days probably still get twitchy when they hear about investing in IPOs. While investing in the stock of a rising star seems like a fast and easy way to make a killing, this logic has several flaws. First, to make money in stocks, you have to have money to invest. If you can afford to invest $100 in a stock, even if it
doubles in price, you've only got $200 - hardly enough to quit your day job (or even take a vacation). Second, you'll need a combination of stock-picking luck and skill to pick out the next big thing before everyone else catches on. Third, just because a private company decides to go public doesn't automatically mean that its stock is a good investment.
Reality Check Acknowledging that most of your financial fantasies probably won't come true isn't the downer that you think it is. If you've been hanging on to these fantasies as the only answer to your money problems, they've probably been holding you back from reaching your full potential. There are many more realistic ways to become financially comfortable, if not wealthy. Here are several tried-and-true plans that are worth dreaming about.
1 I'll start my own business. Why wait until someone you love dies to be comfortable financially? When done correctly, starting your own business can be a great source of financial freedom. While salaried employees receive the same incentive no matter how little or how much work they do (assuming they manage to hang on to SEASONAL 45
their jobs), those who are self-employed are limited only by the number of clients they're able to secure and the number of hours they're willing to work. Further, being able to set your own hours and choose your own vacation days can make being selfemployed feel like financial freedom compared to working for someone else, even if you're still working 40, 50 or 60 hours a week. If you do want to start your own business, however, keep in mind that this isn't a get-rich-quick scheme, either. Many small businesses fail within the first two years because of inadequate planning and poor execution.
2) I'll finish college. If anyone has ever told you or you've ever thought that you're not college material, now is the time to defy that belief. There are colleges for people from all backgrounds and with all time commitments. If you dropped out of college, or never started in the first place, that doesn't mean you can't go back. A college degree opens the doors to higher-paying jobs and a higher lifetime earning potential. Even though many jobs won't make use of the majority of the things you study in school, a bachelor's degree is a prerequisite for getting an interview at many companies. A college degree increases your lifetime earnings by so much that it's the equivalent of winning the lottery and receiving your payments annually instead of in a lump sum.
3) I'll make passive supplemental income through investments. If you save and invest a little bit of every paycheck, your money will eventually start working for you in the form of dividends. Investing in dividend-paying stocks and mutual funds can put more money into your account with very little work on your part. However, you'll need to make regular investments for this strategy to pay off, because the more shares you own, the higher the dividend payment you'll receive.
4) I'll buy a house. While buying and selling real estate isn't a surefire investment strategy, there are several relatively proven methods for achieving success in this field. Taking in a renter to help pay down your mortgage faster than you could on your own, buying property in an up-andcoming neighborhood, or fixing up a downtrodden property can all create wealth if you're willing to make the necessary sacrifices. However, as the burst of the housing bubble has shown, buying property can have pitfalls, so do your homework carefully before jumping in. Be realistic and rely on yourself The best person to rely on to achieve your financial goals is you - not an improbably lucky lottery ticket or an ailing grandparent. Bury your financial fantasies, work hard, spend and invest wisely, and build the odds of financial success in your favor.
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Weekend Biz Up by 35% This anomaly is thanks to the recession, when families can afford only closer destinations and shorter getaways. Weekends are the new vacations. t a time when the business for travel companies has come down by 25-30 per cent, bookings for weekend travel have gone up by 1735 per cent as people are looking to travel for shorter durations and to closer tourist destinations. There has been a 37 per cent increase in weekend get-away bookings on Travelguru, a hotel and air ticket booking website. “The improvement in weekend bookings is encouraging for us. Travellers are opting for weekend trips over longend trips,” says Ashwin Damera, Founder & CEO, Travelguru. With a usual weekend trip spanning two nights and three days, the average transaction size for such a trip has increased by 10 per cent. Hotels are giving special discounts during weekends in order to cash in on the new trend. “Our hotel rooms are available at 50 per cent discount during weekends. Bookings during weekends have gone up by 5-7 per cent even though there is a decline in
the overall business due to the recession,” says Manoj Thapa, general manager, The Atrium, Claridges. As consumers find their pocket shrinking due to salary cuts and lay offs, the overall spending behavior of travelers has changed drastically with reduction in travel costs and comforts. “People are trying to save on the airline cost by choosing destinations that are close to their cities. People from Delhi are going to places like Shimla, Nainital, Mussorie and Jaipur while people from Mumbai are opting for Lonavala, Panchgani, and Mahabaleswar,” says Richa Goyal Sikri, director, Group Business Development, STOC Travel Group. Deepanjan Bhattacharya an executive with a multinational company just came back from a trip to Jaipur on the eve of Holi. “Going to Jaipur was value for money as my friend and I went by road and saved the cost of air travel. We spent around Rs 4,000 for two nights and three days”, says Bhattacharya.
Indian Credit Card Industry Buckles in Sub-Prime
basis. The main reason why very few new cards are being issued is that banks have turned very cautious and are applying more stringent norms in considering new applications. “None of the issuers have been aggressively
In US, it was the housing segment that dominated sub-prime borrowing. In India, it has been the credit card business. Sub-prime lending or lending to lessthan-qualified borrowers has already made 22 lakh cards out of circulation in the country. he sub-prime fallout has hit India’s credit card numbers. Growth is no longer on the cards for Indian Banks with 22 lakh credit cards going out of circulation since April ’08 either because of cancellation or non–renewal. As a result credit card spends have also dropped. According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, the number of operational credit cards have dipped 7.6% from 2.83 crore in April’ 08 to 2.62 crore in December ’08. The same period last year saw banks add 27 lakh new cards – a growth of 11.6%. Consequently, credit card spends have dipped 5.3% between April – December in FY’09 as compared to a 25.9% increase in spending in the same period last fiscal. The slowdown in spend is more sharp since October ’08 after the crisis deepened. Before the crisis in 2008, spending had grown by around 30% on a compounded
marketing cards in the past few months. Credit card norms have been tightened. Issuers have raised the minimum income requirements across the board and also the cut-off scores for issuances on these cards,” says Sachin Khandelwal, Head, Credit Cards, ICICI bank. With the Credit Information Bureau (Cibil) becoming operational, banks are finding it easier to determine borrower creditworthiness on the basis of credit scores supplied by Cibil. Cibil is an RBI regulated entity which manages a shared database of borrower profiles. SEASONAL 47
Who Buys Certified Used Cars Now? Premium Customers or Barely-There Aspirants?
The news from BMW USA is that regular customers and lease customers are among those who opt for their certified used cars which is the only ‘affordable’ option now. But the news from Mercedes India is that new cars and certified used cars are distinct segments with no customer overlap. It is difficult to digest with used luxury cars including Mercedes witnessing a 30% price drop in India, and with BMW recently overtaking Mercedes as the country’s top luxury car seller.
The Story From US ayerische Motoren Werke AG, the biggest luxuryauto maker, is using financing incentives to encourage US sales of certified used vehicles that can offset falling sales of high-end cars and sport-utility vehicles. The Munich – based automaker sees opportunity in usedcar sales, because it offers an alternative to leasing for customers who can’t afford to finance the purchase of a new car, Peter Miles, executive vice president of BMW of North America, said on Sunday in an interview. BMW brand certified used vehicles sales rose 24 percent in January and February to 19000, while new car sales fell 29 per cent to 25,211. Many of the customers buying the certified pre-owned vehicles are BMW lease customers returning their cars. “It’s an easily justifiable purchase. As opposed to putting their arms around a $50,000 5-series, they are getting into a two-or three year old car that’s under $30,000,” said Jeff Gerken, owner of Cunningham BMW in El Cajon, California. BMW and other automakers have programs where used vehicles are inspected and repaired and given extended warranties, often with belowmarket financing rates from affiliated lending units. Certified used vehicles maintain brand loyalty with customers who are likely to buy new cars in the future, Miles said. Extra demand for so-called certified pre-owned vehicles improves values of vehicles coming off a lease, which ultimately allows for lower payments. Although BMW new-car sales in the Us fell 15 percent in 2008, the company’s certified pre-owned sales rose to a record 1,04,000 units. BMW expects those sales to rise 15 per cent to 20 per cent this year. The result is that dealership sales of all BMW brand vehicles fell only 7 per cent in 2008, Miles said on Sunday.
The Story From India It is not just real estate which is witnessing a 30-40% fall in prices, so are prices of used cars, an area of discretionary spending. Mumbai – based used car dealer Fazulbhoy Motors director Ayaaz Fazulbhoy was categorical that prices of used luxury cars have fallen in the past six SEASONAL 48
months. “The prices of used cars in the luxury segment have fallen by 30-40% in the past six months because the stock market has tanked. We believe they could come down further,” he said. An indication of this was the recent sale of close to 35C Class Mercedes cars in the Pune Market at Rs 18 lakh each. First hand cars in this segment retail for Rs 26 – 29 lakh each, depending on whether they are powered by the lower – priced petrol engine or a diesel engine which comes at the higher end of the range. Reacting to this development, Fazalbhoy was clear that it would impact the market for first hand cars, saying: “It will definitely affect sales of brand new cars, who in any case are not buying now. Most of the buyers of new luxury cars are jewellers and builders and they are heavily affected in this slowdown.” However, Mercedes Benz India brushed this off, with it’s corporate communications general manager Manas Dewan saying: “This has no effect on the brand new cars since the used cars are targeted at a different segment from the buyer of a brand new car. This is standard practice everywhere at least for the premium segment. We replenish cars in both categories, for executives and demo cars with dealers and we have a department which evaluates the used car, decides its price factoring in depreciation, to offer a fantastic deal.” Moreover, Mercedes Benz routinely sells used cars, as frequently as every three to six months, when company executives and its car pool change cars. By market estimates, Mercedes has about 100 cars that are given to company executives of a certain rank as well as the company’s car pool and demo cars with dealers. All of these go into its used car business at least twice a year. Dewan added that cars sold through the used car business are refurbished and reconditioned hence offer the best deal. Market sources indicated that the latest batch of around 35 C Class cars were in very good condition when sold. Market sources pointed to the depreciation benefits that come in this business, amounting to a significant 20% depreciation on profit. This will be claimed for sales done before March and Fazalbhoy added that in April – May, such sales could be higher thanks to the depreciation benefit.
NITCO TILES
NITCO DOMINATES INDIAN FLOORS India’s fastest growing tile company. One of Asia’s largest tile manufacturers. Nitco Tiles has also many firsts to its credit. They were the first company in India to launch a range of tiles with glossy, rustic, wood, & slate finishes. Also a pioneer in vitrified tiles, and in the value-for-money segment too. Today, Nitco provides a single stop solution to all your tiling needs through floor, wall, natural and composite marble. For designs and décor, the company has Nitco Art which supplies the mosaico range of items.
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NITCO WALL TILES
NITCO SCALES WALLS, HEIGHTS Nitco is a new entrant to the emerging wall tile segment, and doing the entry in style. Over 60 concepts are being launched in wall tiles. Nitco believes that the market for wall tiles is as big as the market for floor tiles. The objective of the launch is to garner 5% market share in the first year itself. SEASONAL 50
NITCO’S CLIENTS
WHO TRUSTS NITCO? Catering to real estate, hospitality, IT, and other corporate segments, as well as lakhs of discerning homeowners, Nitco’s major clients include DLF, Hiranandani, Taj, The Leela, Grand Hyatt, TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and many similar heavyweights. SEASONAL 51
LE STUDIO
SEEING IS BELIEVING, FEELING IS BELIEVING To give a unique what-you-see-is-what-youget experience to its customers, Nitco launched Le Studio showrooms that represents a sophisticated combination of ambience, display and tiling solutions. Le Studios offer better visualization that comes through design, touch and feel. It makes the decision process of buying tiles far more informed and easier for the customer. The SEASONAL 52
company has 13 exclusive Le Studios at Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, Ahemdabad, Indore, Kolkatta, Gurgoan, Chandigarh, Cochin, Bhopal, Coimbatore & Chennai.
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NITCO EARTH
FROM BUILDING MATERIALS TO BUILDINGS
Nitco Realties Pvt. Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of Nitco Ltd is implementing eight premium projects (both residential and commercial) at prime locations in Mumbai, Thane and Alibaug. The land bank for these properties has been valued by leading global property professionals, Knight Frank at Rs. 406 crore (Net Present Value). These projects will be completed over a period of 3 years.
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RNI NO. KERENG/2002/6803
Regn. No. KL/EKM/664/2006-08