Faith Healing

Walk into any ‘Art of Living’ centre (an NGO started by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar that claims to uplift humanity by bringing peace at the level of the individual, society and the world as a whole) and what startles you is the number of youngsters gathered there for spiritual healing, shattering preconceived notions that it was a place for ‘senior citizens’ who want to make the best of their retired life by enhancing their spiritual self. “Why don’t you opt for the YES+ course?” was the question that was thrown at us no sooner we walked into one such centre in South Delhi. Straight from a marketing text book, eh?

In fact, not only Art of Living, even institutions like International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKON), OSHO World, Patanjali Yogpeeth (Baba Ramdev), et al, are all places where gurus claim to offer peace of mind for battered souls. Girish Bhardwaj, a new entrant to the Art of Living course who has already undergone two stages – the Basic and Advanced Courses – avers that “his perception towards life has changed” after attending these sessions. And if you thought that spirituality comes free, welcome to the world of materialistic spiritualism - the course fee ranges anything from Rs.1,500 to Rs.3,000 (for a week long session).

So, what is it that prompts a Gen-X youngster to be a part of such centres. And more importantly how do centres attract such huge crowd?

Well, if you market your courses with tags like ‘Self Development’, ‘Stress Management’, et al, any person in the present scenario would be sure to lap it up. Don’t mistake us. We don’t disagree with the basic premise of such courses, which have almost become food for many souls in today’s stress filled society. What we are only bringing out is the manner in which modern marketing techniques are now being applied to this otherwise spiritual journey! Despite being low on ads in mainstream media, these centres have a huge presence on the Internet and that is one way they manage to attract tech savvy people like Girish. “Having read some books I got all the more confused. Thanks to the Internet, I chanced upon Art of Living,” points out Girish. Moreover, word-of-mouth certainly seems to be one of their key marketing strategies. “You become happy and you would like your near and dear ones to become happy too and that is how it’s marketed” he adds. There’s even a fair bit of showbiz involved in the business because many gurus spend big bucks to buy TV time that allows them to reach out to masses, organise mass jagrans in well-off neighbourhoods and even hire PR agencies to spread their enlightened word to the stressed out world!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Follow Arindam Chaudhuri on Twitter
1 lakh copies sold in less than 10 days of Arindam Chaudhuri’s “Discover The Diamond In you”
IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau
Delhi/ NCR B- Schools get better By Swati Sharma
Events at IIPM
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON

INDIAN BANKS GETTING SET FOR A WHIRLWIND GLOBAL TOUR?

But therein rises a devil’s advocacy question: Is it really essential for Indian banks to go the M&A route? As Jagannadham Thunuguntala, Equity Head, SMC Capital comments, “It’s better to first scale up in the Indian market, before trying uncertain terrains in the global market. India itself has a huge potential. Considering the banking penetration rate, banks do have a huge opportunity to grow organically within India than without...” There is surely weight in the argument that for banks that have not yet leveraged their competence within India, it’s senseless just to shore up foreign operations simply to play to the gallery. Vaibhav Agarwal, Senior Analyst-Banking reiterates, “I believe that the domestic market in India is amongst the attractive markets globally, offering far higher profitable growth opportunities. On the other hand, the risk-reward trade-off and avenues for profitable growth in competitive global markets do not appear to be the best fit for Indian banks in this phase of their growth. That’s why we prefer banks (at the market place), which are more inward-focused.”

Moreover, the possibilities of inorganic growth within India are also endless. With a lot many small banks still existing in the market, the industry is due for a serious phase of consolidations as shown by the recent merger of HDFC Bank and Centurion Bank of Punjab. The marriage pushed HDFC Bank to the position of India’s third largest bank in terms of market value. But, it’s not only the potential of the domestic market that is keeping Indian banks away from tasting global waters. There are more roadblocks on this global path. The foremost concern is in the lack of advanced risk management systems. Experts believe that Indian banks lack adequate skill to even adopt these systems quickly. Technology too plays a vital role, not only because it has a direct impact on a bank’s business model and process quality, but as it also affects the bank’s distribution channels radically. For Indian banks, which still trail their global counterparts in application of advanced technologies, handling the global consumers would certainly be a tough call. Besides, adoption of new technologies itself will end up increasing costs and besides, they’d also have to invest in changing their accounting principles to adhere to international standards. Adds Bimal Jalan (see interview on page 64-65), Ex-Governor, RBI, “For going global, banks must also follow India’s regulatory system to ensure that the main company remains safe.” But that is business logic put simply. The fact remains that with international valuations languishing at brilliant lows, there is no better time to takeover a foreign bank than now. And then, not every deal is as bad as Jaguar, is it?

In the meantime, some Indian banks are doing all in their means to entice the global customer (not just NRIs), offering attractive interest rates and unique banking options through multi-channel strategies. For instance, ICICI Bank Canada and UK offer unique HiSave accounts to customers. True to name, these accounts offer a higher interest rate on deposits than prevailing rates, ensuring a virtual flood of applications to the bank. When launched in 2005, ICICI UK had to even turn many applicants away as it had not expected such rave response to its HiSave ads. If Indian banking’s baby steps into global stardom are having such an impact, wonder what the full stride will bring in its wake?

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Management guru Arindam Chaudhuri’s latest blockbuster book, Discover The Diamond In You
IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau
Delhi/ NCR B- Schools get better By Swati Sharma
Events at IIPM
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON

Everyone loves a good slowdown

Uh... okay, not everybody! But our edit team prowled the roads of India Inc. and zeroed in on a few companies and brands that are loving every burst of the recessionary winds that are playing havoc with the economy. What helps is that India’s slowdown is actually defined as 6% growth. And the smart ones have been making all the right moves to convert the supposed crisis into an opportunity. Now that the green shoots of recovery are showing up all over, the 4Ps B&M team brings you the key strategies of some over-performers who defied every rule in the book and made the best of bad times.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
1 lakh copies sold in less than 10 days of Arindam Chaudhuri’s “Discover The Diamond In you”
IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau
Delhi/ NCR B- Schools get better By Swati Sharma
Event at IIPM
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM Admission Detail
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON

The first ones to break the news of Jackson’s death

An auction event organised by Julien’s auctions (of Darren Julien), sold a Jackson album ‘Goin’ Back to Indiana’ for $33,750. The auction also featured other collections of Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley. Social networking sites have also not let-go this opportunity and have done everything possible to give their users real-time updates.

Twitter and Facebook are alleged to be the first ones to break the news of Jackson’s death. Twitter saw up to 5,000 Jackson-related messages being posted per minute and eventually his death emerged as the most discussed subject on the portal. Facebook saw a similar response; with the number of postings tripling during the hour after the news of Jackson’s death broke. Talking on these marketing techniques, Barry states, “Some companies license rights to use a dead celebrity’s image, movie clips, or music and incorporate those things into TV ads or promotional materials. Others just pay homage to the dead celebrity to gain a marketing association with the individual.”

Even IT giants are getting enamoured by the potential of this mammoth business. Corbis, the digital image company set up by Bill Gates, has bought a Beverly Hills company, which owns the image rights to more than 50 deceased celebrities. Corbis takes a 20% cut of the profits from any endorsement, double the usual rate for a living celebrity endorsement. Even celebrity Promotion Companies like CKX rely heavily on dead celebs for their bottom-line. They purchase the intellectual property rights and thus churn out huge money.

And if you thought that only the big brands and consultants can take advantage of legends that have passed away, you could not be more wrong. Just walk the streets of New York, London or Rio De Janeiro and you’ll see markets flooded with Che Guevara, Marilyn Monroe and now even Jackson merchandise, ranging from T-shirts, handkerchiefs and coffee mugs to sundry decorative brick bracks. True, dead celebs make for hot brands, hotter than even the living ones! May their souls Rest In Peace!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau
Delhi/ NCR B- Schools get better By Swati Sharma
Event at IIPM
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM Admission Detail
IIPM, GURGAON

THE AXA EFFECT

IIPM Admission Detail

In July 2006, Bharti ventured into the financial services sector along with the France-based AXA Group with Bharti AXA Life Insurance, General Insurance and Investment Managers. Their performance in the first year of operation was nothing to write home about. Not only did the life insurance business fail to meet the social sector obligation, it had an equity share capital base of just Rs.1.1 crore as compared to others like Shriram Life Insurance (launched in 2005) and Future Generali (2007) who had a base of Rs.125 crore and Rs.185 crore respectively in their first year. Sure, Bharti AXA has picked up since then and recorded a 1355% growth in first year premium collections in FY 2007-08, but does the company have the potential to bring in the next big leap for Bharti? Tough! Given that the Indian market is largely uninsured and under-insured, on the face of it, there does seem huge potential for private insurers to cash in. But Bharti AXA has largely concentrated on the urban market so far, with limited focus on the mass market - lower income sections, semi-urban and rural markets. Moreover, Bharti AXA’s high-cost operating model has been unable to yield profitability in the low ticket high volume business. N. Wadhwa, MD, SKI Capital Securities, sums up, “Bharti entered the sector without appropriate knowledge and expertise.”

There are others who believe that given Bharti’s stature and reputation in the Indian market, it should be easier for them to get customers for their financial businesses. Asserts Ashok Jainani, Vice President – Research & Market Strategy, Khandwala Securities Ltd, “In my opinion, Bharti’s insurance business will succeed mainly because it is a very capital intensive industry and Bharti AXA has the support of its telecom business and can perhaps even take leads from Airtel’s subscriber base.” He further explains that there is a huge untapped mass potential in both urban and rural areas, which has not been exploited. “Bharti AXA may not be the number one player in the segment it operates in, but it will surely prove to be a profitable venture,” Jainani explains. He may have a point given that Bharti AXA recorded a whopping 511.8% growth in industry-wide premiums received in H1 FY’09 as compared to last year. But even then, the insurance sector has a long gestation period. And with deeply entrenched players like LIC and ICICI Prudential in the reckoning, even if Bharti AXA does well in the short to medium term, it will take time to join the league of numero unos in the business.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
2300 IIPM students get jobs
The Most Revolutionary Concept In Education PLANMAN CHE CENTRE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION, Supported by IIPM India’s Leading B-School
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON

Are you ready to become a chatter-box?

IIPM Best B-school

Brand: Reliance Comm.
Agency: Leo Burnett

Bol India Bol increased Reliance Mobile’s (RM) subscriber base to about 46 million in the FY2007-08. In fact, RM’s revenues shot 34% at Rs.14,468 crore and its profits surged a whopping 612% . Phew!!!

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri’s Profile
IIPM only B-school in India to be Ranked Ahead of The IIMs in so Many Parameters! Regularly!
Four Phase of IIPM Global Plans
IIPM Global B-school
IIPM Alumni Officially on Facebook
IIPM Respected Business School

‘Zav’iation is now in vogue!

IIPM only B-school in India to be Ranked Ahead of The IIMs in so Many

Kishor Zavery, Chairman, Zav Airways, in an exclusive to 4Ps B&M 4Ps B&M: How feasible is it to enter a turmoil hit sector and what are your plans to tackle the same?
KZ: I don’t think this is a time of turmoil in the sector. Our main target is to provide the common people with better services in comparison to others. We are coming up with mid-size aircrafts; seat capacity mostly of 70/80. During our operation, we expect 95% occupancy. Whereas, the big-size crafts with 200 seat capacity are currently operating with just 50% occupancy. The additional 45% occupancy is clearly one of our plus points.

4Ps B&M: What are the challenges that you need to be wary of?
KZ: There is no major challenge as such. The north-eastern region has always been neglected in terms of connectivity. So we witness a sky-high demand for air-taxi services. Looking at this potential, we are entering into the sector. The West Bengal Government and the North-East council are helping us to venture into the market. We are not worried about our competitors in the sector. We would rather, welcome healthy competition in this neglected north-eastern region.

4Ps B&M: Pls share some of your strategies to make Zav’s presence felt?
KZ: Our basic strategy is to provide economical air travel. As we want to connect various destinations with maximum comfort at reasonable prices for our customers. We plan to have a pan India presence in the coming future. Beside fulfilling the aviation need in Eastern and North eastern part of India, providing quality and on-time services with better safety to our customers is high on our to-do list.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM
IIPM Best B-school
Parameters! Regularly!
Why has IIPM always been opposed to B-school rankings?
IIPM : One of the leading and most respected business schools
IIPM students on NDTV Television Chat Show
Four Phase of IIPM Global Plans
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri says
30 professors of international repute to IIPM
IIPM Global B-school
IIPM Alumni Officially on Facebook
IIPM Respected Business School

HP LaserJet M1522n MFP

IIPM Programme :- SUPERIOR COURSE CONTENTS

Technical Specification

Print speed (black, normal quality, A4) Up to 23 ppm; Print quality (black, normal quality) Up to 600 x 600 dpi (1200 dpi effective output); Maximum output capacity (sheets) Up to 125; Duplex print options Manual (driver support provided).
PRICE: Rs.21,599
WARRANTY: 1 year limited warranty

A number of features like the 2-line LCD text display, alphanumeric buttons, navigational buttons plus 2 LEDs (setup, up, ok, down, back, cancel) along with copy buttons (start copy, reduce/enlarge, lighter/darker, quality, number of copies) and 2 scan buttons (start scan, scan to) makes this printer sparkle. The product is embedded with software like HP Toolbox FX, HP LaserJet Scan, TWAIN 1.9 or WIA scanner drivers, Readiris PRO text recognition software. The printer consumes 410 watts of maximum (active/printing), 325 watts maximum (active/copy or scan), 10.5 watts maximum (ready/sleep). All these features not just make the print quality awesome, but also with the sort of speed it can print pages at, this printer is just the right choice for business entities.

Marketers’ delight: For corporates, it is certainly the right choice. One time investment and one can simply forget all print-out related problems as this is one answer to all those problems

Tester’s Note: Pros – The printer has a user friendly interface (ease-of-use) and spectacular print speeds. Con – The copy mode for graphic/visual is a real letdown as most people buying a multi-functional printer intend to use it at least in part as a photocopier.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Now IIPM's World-Class Education... for everybody!!
IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

ACER Aspire 5920

IIPM Programme :- SUPERIOR COURSE CONTENTS

Technical Specification

Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate; Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 / 2 GHz; RAM: 2 GB / 4 GB (max); Screen Size: 15.4; Storage Capacity: 200 GB
PRICE: Rs.74,990;
WARRANTY: 1 year

Acer Aspire 5920, though bulky is a great choice for consumers who are looking for a media friendly laptop with a highly portable HD DVD player, which can be plugged into their home theatre systems. The high end features further include HDMI-out, S/PDIF, and Dolby Home Theater sound. The machine also has a long battery life, with storage HD capacity upto 200GB! However, issues like a wobbly display, and too glossy a screen result in distractive reflections and a low native resolution. So what’s the distinguihing feature available at this price point? As per a South Delhi dealer, “It’s the Nvidia 8600m GT video card. Though it’s not the DDR3 version, yet it can be counted amongst the fastest 8xxx GPU.”

Marketers’ delight: It’s a definite yes for movie lovers, with surround sound enhanced capabilities.

Tester’s note: Pros – Dolby 5.1 surround sound. High-quality webcam. Con – Screen resolution poor.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Now IIPM's World-Class Education... for everybody!!
IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

The Russian economy faced a trial by fire in 1998, but has been on the rebound since

IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA

There were too many reasons which led to the financial crisis of 1998 in Russia. It wasn’t obviously a one year thing but a long-lasting line of developments, which “prepared” the crisis. It was the absence of well thought out economic policies, weak monetary and fiscal conditions, a full collapse of control mechanism as far as the execution of laws was concerned, and, certainly, the unfavourable external conjuncture with the Asian crisis that led to the downfall of the ailing Russian economy.

It was liberalisation of prices and extrusion of domestically produced goods from the Russian market, which consequently decreased the tax base along with budget revenues, eventually leading the way to the budgetary crisis. Real tax rates were increased, but the collection of taxes was very poor. According to several sources, only 16% of the total enterprises paid taxes in Russia in 1998 with 40% of the economy functioning in shadow. Money laundering was prospering too. Actual inflation figures were intentionally lowered by decreasing social taxes and increasing deferred inflation (currency depreciation, non-payments, increasing of internal and external State debt, et al) which was already out of the State’s control way back in 1995-96. Attempts to curb this inflation with decreasing of money base led to a shortage of cash to serve commodity turnover. This absence of cash to pay taxes & salaries intensified the budgetary crisis and resulted in a flow of non-payments and high volume of barter deals.

Moreover, monetisation of the Russian economy was at 10% of GDP while the common figure for developed countries stood at 70% of GDP. If the State has no revenue, it has to either issue money or issue debt. Russia chose the second variant. The government started to finance budget deficit through borrowing. GKO pyramid started to develop and was promoted with non-residents getting an access to this market, which also fed speculative blowing of Russian stock market (in 1996-1997 it grew by almost 5 times) and further refusals to pay back debts, which the was not possible for the country to service. Privatisation led to the appearance of the institution of private owners, many of which were not effective. It also brought a spike of crime. However, I could not say that everything was done wrong. The situation was difficult and I am sure that in many cases there was no alternative in decision making.

Liberalisation was essential for the transition to market economy. In the result of a deformation of planned communist economy, GDP fell sharply: ~25% cut from GDP was due to a decrease of war production, ~15% cut due to a decrease of the production of consumer goods of low quality, which were previously bought due to the absence of alternative choices. However, on the other hand, the ruble was depreciating in the currency market and its declining demand was partially explained by the fact that companies, for example, could not care less about paying taxes because of the poor State control.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

RAGHAV BAHL - (network) 18 till he...

IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA

RAGHAV BAHL
(network) 18 till he...

R aghav Bahl is a successful Indian entrepreneur in the field of Media and Entertainment. His media group ‘Network 18’ has done phenomenally well in the past some time. It’s a big expansion plan that Raghav has been working on for his group in the past few years. He is building a well-rounded media entity. He has conceptualised a successful business model, he has launched many successful television channels in the past some time and there is no stopping him. Cliché as it may sound, but for Raghav, ‘sky is the limit’. I really expect his media empire to flourish in the coming years, especially when other prominent media personalities & media houses are joining him in his pursuit to make ‘Network 18’ a goliath in the Indian media terrain. Raghav is a man who’s made his mark in the Media industry. There is a lot more to witness for the world from his side. He is an entrepreneur with an acute business sense and a pioneer. He is truly an inspiration for all Indians. With his unparalleled passion for media, he promises to take Indian media fraternity to newer heights this century.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

The world’s most dangerous jihadists no longer answer to al Qaeda.

IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA

The first wave to join al Qaeda was Afghan Arabs who came to Pakistan and Afghanistan to fight the Soviets in the 1980s. They were, contrary to popular belief, largely well educated and from solidly middle-class backgrounds. They were also mature, often about 30 years old when they took up arms. Their remnants still form the backbone of al Qaeda’s leadership today, but there are at most a few dozen of them left, hiding in the frontier territories of northwest Pakistan.

The second wave that followed consisted mostly of elite expatriates from the Middle East who went to the West to attend universities. The separation from family, friends, and culture led many to feel homesick and marginalised, sowing the seeds of their radicalization. It was this generation who traveled to al Qaeda’s training camps in Afghanistan in the 1990s. They were incorporated into al Qaeda Central, and today there are at most about 100 of them left, also in hiding in northwest Pakistan.

The new, third wave is unlike its predecessors. It consists mostly of would-be terrorists, who, angered by the invasion of Iraq, aspire to join the movement and the men they hail as heroes. But it is nearly impossible for them to link up with al Qaeda Central, which was forced underground after 9/11. Instead, they form fluid, informal networks that are self-financed and self-trained. They have no physical headquarters or sanctuary, but the tolerant, virtual environment of the Internet offers them a semblance of unity and purpose.

Take the case of Mohammed Bouyeri, perhaps the most infamous member of a network of aspiring jihadists that Dutch authorities dubbed the “Hofstad Netwerk,” in 2004. Bouyeri, then a 26-year-old formerly secular social worker born to Moroccan immigrants in Amsterdam, could also trace his radicalisation to outrage over the Iraq war. He became influential among a loosely connected group of about 100 young Dutch Muslims, mostly in their late teens and born in Netherlands. The network informally coalesced around three or four active participants. Mostly they met in Internet chatrooms. Other popular meeting spots included Internet cafes or few apartments of the older members. The group had no clear leader and no connection to established terrorist networks abroad.

On Nov. 2, 2004, Mohammed Bouyeri brutally murdered Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh on an Amsterdam street, nearly sawing off van Gogh’s head and pinning a five-page note threatening the enemies of Islam to his victim’s chest. Bouyeri had been enraged by van Gogh’s short film, Submission, about Islam’s treatment of women and domestic violence. After the murder, Bouyeri calmly waited for the police, hoping he would die in the gunfight that he expected would follow. He was only wounded and later sentenced to life in prison. A series of raids against other members uncovered evidence of more diabolical plans.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

Why the fears

IIPM - Admission Procedure

Michael O’Hanlon of Brookings Institution, who specialises in US national security policy, explains that “if the Pakistanis thought we were scheming to try to go after their nuclear weapons to prevent the possibility of a worst-case scenario, they would be quite put out, to put it mildly, and they would take measures like distributing those warheads even more than they already have. So, we do not really want to encourage this line of reasoning within the Pakistani military.” According to him, the ideal situation for Pakistan would be to keep the fissile material separate from the delivery vehicle. “Maybe, it is even separate from the rest of the bomb in all likelihood.”

Given this context, the question that many experts are asking is about the future course of US action. As Frederick Kagan, a military historian, puts it: “The US simply could not stand by as a nuclear-armed Pakistan descended into the abyss. But I do not envision and do not argue for any unilateral American option even under dire circumstances.” Instead, O’Hanlon says that America “is better off with a policy of quietly working with the Pakistanis to improve their procedures and safeguards.”

Another expert, Thomas Donnelly, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute, is also in favour of “continuing to engage Pakistan, or trying to influence things internally.” The last words come from David Albright, President, Institute for Science and International Security, Washington: “In the event of an emergency involving Pakistan’s nuclear assets, the US should be prepared to act quickly if Musharraf asks for assistance.”

Why the fears

• A few Pakistani scientists have close links with terrorist groups
• Pakistan’s army is becoming more religious and Islamised
• If Musharraf distributes the nukes, the problem aggravates
• No one knows if the fissile material is separate in Pakistan
• The US doesn’t know how to deal with Pakistan or Musharraf

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION
IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...
4Ps Power Brand Awards 2007
When IIPM comes to education, never compromise
IIPM is A World of Career
Why Study Abroad When IIPM Gives You 3 global Advantages!
IIPM Ranked No. 1 B-School In Global Exposre - Zee...

Want improvement? C’mon let’s conduct an annual survey

IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Annual employee survey is nothing more than an eye-wash that companies carry out in the name of ‘continuous improvement’

Que: My company runs an annual employee survey in the name of “continuous improvement,” but nothing ever really changes. Now, my boss has asked me to come up with a better way. Frankly, I think the whole “polling the people” thing never works. Shouldn’t we just switch to a town meeting approach? (Name Withheld, Waterloo, Iowa)

Ans: It’s so easy to hate polls, isn’t it – especially now? Everywhere you turn, you’re bombarded with dozens and scores of “expert” surveys about who’s going to win, where and by lastly how much. Then, a few hours later, the poll results change, or turn out to be totally way off, and the pundits (literally!) start hyperventilating. You are left thinking that – as you put it – the ‘whole polling the people thing’ doesn’t actually tell you much about anything. Maybe political polls have their own flaws – obviously; they are an inexact science – and sure, company-wide ‘town meetings’ do in fact tend to generate meaningful debate. But effective employee surveys are, in fact, a form of polling that really works. The key, of course, is the word effective. Unfortunately, too many employee surveys concentrate on the kind of incidentals that get a lot of nattering in the hallways but rarely matter outside company walls. Maybe that’s why nothing meaningful ever seems to change at your company after the results come in.

Effective surveys are devoid of the usual triviality about parking spaces & lunchroom. They’re usually hard-hitting and totally confidential. They focus on the issues that really matter.

And they do so by delving deep into four distinct areas. Firstly, they probe whether employees truly buy into the company’s mission and its major initiatives. Look, leaders can pontificate all day, but the future that they desire will never arrive if employees do not reaaly understand why a change in direction will advance the organisation’s competitive position and as a result their own careers.

That’s why, if you’re moving from a product-driven to a service-driven strategy, for instance, make sure your survey asks employees how much they agree with statements such as, “I clearly understand the role service plays in the success of this business,” and “I support the use of our best engineering talent to upgrade the technology of our service offerings.” Never assume buy-in. Measure it.

Second, effective surveys probe whether managers walk the talk. There’s something inimitably motivating about a manager who does what he says he will and lives the company’s values. Surveys, by dint of their confidentiality, can shine a light on this key driver of employee engagement. They can test how managers behave when it comes to fighting bureaucracy or promoting on merit. Further, they can measure whether senior management is in touch with reality by asking for each employee’s level of agreement with the statement, “What I read about this company in the newspaper & annual report is consistent with what I experience at work everyday.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

Read these article :-
‘This is one of Big B’s best performances’
IIPM to come up at Rajarhat
IIPM awards four Bengali novelists
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus
The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs

He’s On A New High

IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Siddarth Mallya has the tenacity, ambition and the aggression of his flamboyant father. By ROMSHA SINGH & NEHA SARAIYA

He made his first public and business appearance on May 8, 2005, during the launch of Kingfisher Airlines. It turned out to be one of the most important days of his life, and not because it was his birthday. It was because his father, the flamboyant Vijay Mallya, patted his 18-year-old son, and gave him the best possible gift. Junior Mallya became the official heir to the Rs.60 billion UB group. Siddarth Mallya became a director on the board of United Breweries (Holdings), the holding company.

The King of Good Times, Vijay Mallya, has always celebrated, launched and introduced new products or companies with aplomb and in style. His son’s grand entry into the family business seemed to be no exception. But then, as they say, there are always two sides of a coin; in this case, immense power came with even more immense responsibilities that were directly put on Siddarth’s shoulders. The immediate question that everyone around asked was ‘whether the young son was ready for the new job’.

He will step into shoes that seem several sizes bigger. “Vijay Mallya’s is a personality-driven organization, so it will not only be big shoes for Siddarth to fit into, but a tough act to follow. In the near future, when he joins, UB will try to consolidate its position in every sector,” says an equity analyst in Arihant Capital. From a stage where he was written off by observers, thanks to the burgeoning debt burden of UB group, Vijay emerged as the world’s second largest liquor manufacturer. Can his son do the same in new sectors like infrastructure, and emerge as a strong player in them? Answers Sayed Sagheer, an aviation analyst at PINC Research, “It depends upon what type of grooming he is getting. He could come with fresh insights, and take the group to another level.” Although not much is known about Siddarth, and he’s quite young, there seems to be a business streak in this heir-apparent. After his schooling from Wellington College, London, he’s currently pursuing his graduation from Queen’s Mary, UK. But already, he has acquired the tag of a ‘self-made man’. In his school days, he ran a small business, selling freebies and merchandise to make a quick buck.

People who know him say that Prince Siddarth follows the mantra of ‘work hard, party harder’, which has become common among NewGen middle and upper classes. But he supplements it with a disciplined routine, which he follows as it keeps him on his toes. What’s important is that the son shares a friendly relation with his dad, and is keen to follow his footsteps. Like Senior Mallya, who joined UB at a salary of Rs.400, Siddarth hopes to go through the grind before taking over managerial responsibilities.

Siddharth, who currently resides in London with his mother, has a fetish for sports like hockey (his favourite), squash and cricket. While we know all about Vijay’s love for flying high in his private Boeings, floating rapidly over water in his yachts, and racing fast and furious in his Formula I cars, Siddarth is pinned to the ground. Despite his diamond-like life that includes socialite evenings with the glitterati, he does care to remember the social responsibility work that the UB group is engrossed in.

Fortunately for Siddarth, his father has already done the good job. Today, UB group’s brewing division rules the Indian liquor market with a market share of 37%. As a brand, Kingfisher is globally recognised and sells in 52 countries, including India. In the recent past, the group has acquired national sorghum breweries in South Africa and is aggressively strengthening its market position globally. May be, by the time Siddarth takes over the management reins, the group would have grown manifolds in the liquor business.

At the moment, it seems that Siddarth is likely to acquire the same aggression and ambition. In fact, after Vijay Mallya’s much-hyped takeover of Shaw Wallace, the son was all praises for his dad. Was it just a son-dad obsession, or was the child learning the tricks of globalised business? “He is a young guy and is likely to follow both backward and forward integration,” asserts a liquor analyst. Adds Arpit Agarwal, Research Head, Arihant Capital, “Infrastructure is a huge opportunity for any global player like the UB group. Siddharth would be joining with a lot of new energy.”

However, there are several grey areas that both Siddarth and his group will need to grapple with. The first will be to manage the merger between Kingfisher Airlines and Air Deccan. Although Vijay Mallya will handle the tricky marriage for the next few years, it will be the son who will have to devise strategies to make it the Number 1 aviation player in India, especially after the proposed Indian-Air India merger and the expected Jet Air-Air Sahara integration. Most experts think that the aviation sector will continue to bleed for a few more years. So, it will be up to Siddarth to turnaround the financial fortunes of the airline, which incurred an annual loss of Rs 2,000 crore.

Then there’s a question mark on the future of dad’s dream and pet project of bringing Formula I racing to India through a tie-up with MOI family named as Orange India. The price tag of the deal between the two is a cool €88 million. May be, Siddarth is not involved in the initial stages, but he will need to ensure that the project turns out to be a success, as well as profitable. The son will be the one who will have to establish Formula I in India. Formula I can easily turn out to be Failure I for him.

Clearly, Siddharth has to make the right moves to ensure that UB group reaches newer heights during his reign. Luckily for him, there are many who feel that he has the instincts and the abilities to achieve this objective. “When children take over corporations, they bring about a lot of value addition. Siddharth’s mindset will be different as he is an altogether different personality,” opines R. Vaidyanathan, an aviation analyst at CII. We just hope that the Mysore cub finally roars like a tiger.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

Read these article :-
‘This is one of Big B’s best performances’
IIPM to come up at Rajarhat
IIPM awards four Bengali novelists
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus
The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs

Diplomatically chicaning out of it

IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Ronen will rock if the nuclear deal goes through in 2008

Ronen Sen, India’s ambassador to the US had a tough time in 2007, when he inadvertently described the politicians opposing the Indo-US nuclear deal as “headless chickens.” The ambassador who has been lobbying hard in the US for the deal was obviously peeved at the prospect of deal going down the drain. Although like a true diplomat, he did apologise to the Parliament for his comments, he went back to the US to pursue his agenda, to see that the nuclear deal goes through before Bush Administration is rendered in-effective. He certainly has a task cut out for 2008 & will be busy as the year begins.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

Read these article :-
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus
The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs

Time-please...

IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence

all that they don’t have, is time

The fundamental idea of maintaining a lively, accountable and fruitful Parliament as a central body, is to nurture democracy. Since last few years, the Indian Parliament has been more in the news for needless controversies. Since its inception in 1952, the Lok Sabha sat for over 100 days every year. But since 1988, the Lok Sabha sittings have dropped down to about 80 days a year. As if this decrease was not enough, from the year 2003, the Lok Sabha sat merely for 74 days in a year. Studies reveal that, there were merely 53 sessions in 2004, 85 sittings in 2005 and 77 sittings in 2006, and this year i.e. 2007, just 49 sittings have taken place. Ironically, there essentially hasn’t been improvement in proceedings even after the ascent in the number of educated members in Parliament. Often the educated and the suave do not turn-up for sessions and if they do, their contribution remains minimal. The current winter session of Parliament is also a short one. The government is planning to wrap it up by November 30, 2007 under one pretext or the other. For all the big talks of the aam admi, it is unfortunate that when it comes to debate about their well being, the Parliament finds it difficult to spare time. If it costs about Rs.26,000 per minute to run Parliament, one can gauge the loss that is incurred due to abrupt closing of sessions. Well, if they don’t want, let them not go there to debate. How about using this money to give fodder and shelter to the hungry and homeless instead? Isn’t that better democracy?

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

Read these article :-
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus
The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs

Maharashtra

IIPM’s 36th Glorious Year of Academic Excellence

You might have seen this place in films or you might have heard more about it from someone who knew less. But yes, humans flock to this destination. Surprising though; it’s not the call of the wild! samar sharma on a trip to this human jungle...

When you think of Mumbai, think movies... We’d like to change this one – when you think of Mumbai think Maharashtra, movies and much more! Listen to what gets Hitesh Patel, Executive VP, Kingfisher Airlines glued to the city – “One has to look out for infrastructure before investing. Mumbai and therefore Maharashtra, is the most lucrative destination for investment in the country. Everyone wants to come here and do business...’’ Literally speaking, he is no different from the millions who flock to the ‘land of dreams’, everyday.

According to the Gallup Survey 2003 and FICCI-FDI Survey 2005, Maharashtra has been recognised as the top state destination for investments. The state today boasts of about 58 SEZs in total – one of the largest in the country. The SEZ schemes carry huge incentives and are transparent, therefore attracting capitalists from all across the world. Even otherwise, the government has drafted widely-acceptable policies to create an investor-friendly environment as Vikram Akula, Founder & CEO, SKS Microfinance Pvt. Ltd. asserts, “Maharashtra is the third state we invested in as it has a huge untapped market. The government has always been cooperative & doesn’t interfere in our projects. With an investment of Rs.296 crore and with a member count of 2.3 lakh we will only increase our investments in this state.’’ Textile zones like Butibori and Ambarnath are perfect examples of the infrastructural growth in the sector which commands around Rs.2,400 crore in annual investment at the state level. This top cotton producing state plans to achieve textile exports worth $50 billion by 2010; quite achievable as experts feel. Next, to talk of the Mumbai airport (which controls 35% of the country’s total freights), the Mumbai International Airport Ltd. is doing a good job, connecting Mumbai to the world. Mumbai also accounts for 90% of India’s merchant banking transactions, and yes, the BSE and NSE are bloodlines for India Inc!

IT and ITeS are another platform that Maharashtra banks on today (thanks to the Pune IT hub). Educational institutions, film industry, art and culture, beaches, wildlife and therefore tourism & agri-tourism, these three definitely help the state government earn for all its worth. Of late, the government also has private players to build better infrastructure.

There is however a problem with the state today – that of an ever-growing population. Mumbai is more or less choked and other cities like Pune are following suit.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

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

Read these article :-
ZEE BUSINESS BEST B SCHOOL SURVEY
B-schooled in India, Placed Abroad (Print Version)
IIPM in Financial times (Print Version)
IIPM makes business education truly global (Print Version)
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM)
IIPM Campus
The Hindu : Education Plus : Honour for IIPM
IIPM ranked No.1 B-School in India, Management News - By ...
IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
Moneycontrol >> News >> Press- News >> IIPM ranked No1 B-School in ...
IIPM ranked No. 1 B-school in India- Zee Business Survey ...
IIPM ranked No1 B-School in India :: Education, Careers ...
The Hindu Business Line : IIPM placements hit a high of over 2000 jobs
Deccan Herald - IIPM ranked as top B-School in India
India eNews - IIPM Ranked No1 B-School in India
IIPM Delhi - Indian Institute of Planning and Management New Delhi ...
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs