IIPM Publication Article

A plastic start…

2006-12-14T14:35:00.000-08:00

…proved a strong one for Victor(y) anyway!

To understand the true meaning of ‘success’, one doesn’t have to go far. A look at Li Ka-Shing, Chairman, Hutchison Whampoa Limited and the epitome of ‘success’ clears all doubts. From being just an owner of Cheung Kong Industries – a plastic company to becoming the wealthiest Chinese individual - Li’s journey has been studded with challenges & achievements. Li came into the picture in 1979, two years after Hutchison International & Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company merged to form Hutchison Whampoa Ltd.. He purchased Hong Kong Bank’s stake in Hutchison Whampoa in a controversial transaction as the company was already doing well. Li has expanded the operations through both organic and inorganic mode and today, the company stands tall with a handsome turnover of $23 billion with operations in 56 nations and strong presence in sectors like ports, property & hotels, retail and telecom. Li Ka-Shing’s group is structured to retain disproportionate control through pyramid structure, dual-class equities and cross-holdings. His successor will in all likelihood be his eldest son Victor, a Stanford trained engineer and presently MD and Deputy Chairman of Hutchison Whampoa Limited. He is also the Chairman of Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Limited and CK Life Sciences International (Holdings). However, his younger son Richard, preferred to venture on his own - clearing all possibilities of a feud! At 78, Li is one Asian mogul who has carved a niche for himself. And whether it’s Hong Kong or any other nation, he is respected everywhere!

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An IIPM and Management Guru Professor Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative

Source: IIPM, 4Ps, B&E

Rashmi Bansal Editor & Publisher of Jammag Magazine caught Red-handed, read more:

The legend lives on...

2006-12-07T14:35:00.000-08:00

Mukesh’s foray into retail – a befitting tribute to his father’s enterprising spirit and can have a transformational impact He was the Godfather of the ordinary investors who put in their hard-earned savings in Reliance Industries and got much more than their money’s worth. His bold move to raise capital for his gargantuan expansions. He was among the precious few Indian business tycoons who dared to dream big, had the courage to envision global capacities; in a country that was then famous for its risk averse entrepreneurs. When it comes to undertaking large scale, high risk investments, Mukesh’s foray into organized retail looks like a befitting tribute to his father’s enterprising spirit. It is a venture that he states, “Will have a transformational impact on the lives of our people”. After months of razzmatazz, which involved a succession of debates and discussions among industry experts, RIL opened eleven retail stores in Hyderabad by the name of ‘Reliance Fresh’, selling quality fresh fruits and vegetables at highly competitive prices.

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Source: IIPM, 4Ps, B&E

A cornerstone of Murugappa Group’s philosophy has been its social commitment...

2006-12-07T00:02:00.000-08:00

One of the success mantras for this group according to A Vellayan, Senior Director, Murugappa Group is, “There is a climate which fosters professionalism and overall the Group’s management style is characterized by professional competence with a spirit of entrepreneurship.” This maverick group has been juggling brilliantly between 29 group companies! In fact, the juggernaut has decided in its most recent move this October to foray in the fitness arena. TI cycles, one of the renowned brands from the Murugappa stable is opening up BSA Workouts – an entire range of cardio and strength equipment. Truly, the adage ‘the only thing permanent in life is change’ seems to be what the Murugappa family firmly believes in. The parent company has over time changed and adapted its identity by partnering with internationally acclaimed companies such as China Engineering and Exploration Bureau (CEEB) of China, Borg Warner Morsetec of USA, Cargill International S.A. of Geneva, Foskor Ltd. of South Africa, ROCA of Spain, DBS Bank of Singapore, Chimique Tunisien of Tunisia, Morgan Crucible Company plc. of U.K, and Mitsui Tsumitomo Insurance Company Ltd. of Japan. A cornerstone of Murugappa Group’s philosophy has been its social commitment and the group has been at the vanguard of public health, education and eco-conservation amongst the communities where the companies of the group are operational. With a policy of corporate governance that encourages high level of accountability and transparency to each stakeholder, Murugappa Group relentlessly pursues a journey charting a path taken by lesser mortals.

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Source: IIPM, 4Ps, B&E

In today’s times, so many films get released every Friday...

2006-10-27T13:39:00.000-07:00

All thanks to the growing multiplex culture, there is an aggressive scramble for targeting various niche audiences through unique offerings. The denizens of the film industry have entertained us with intense drama like Omkara, a string of comedies like Golmaal and Malamaal Weekly, thrillers like Gangster and even one day capers like Taxi Number 9.2.11. As far as innovation in film making goes, 2006 proved to be an improved sequel (naturally!) over 2005. Long gone are the days when pasting film posters around city streets and regular teasers were all that producers did to get crowds to theatres. As prerelease controversies become more or less non-controversial and the once reliable ‘formula films’ become unreliable, every one in the industry now swears by the powers of ‘marketing’ and how! Thumps Sameer Joshi, Head, Marketing, Mukta Arts, “In today’s times, so many films get released every Friday, there is a lot of clutter. To get noticed and occupy consumer mind space, one needs to be smart, clever & innovative in marketing efforts.” Says Subho S. Bhattacharya, CEO, Planman Motion Pictures, “With silver & golden jubilees becoming rare, the latest trend is to get maximum Return on Investment (ROI) before the film even hits the screen and ensure good first week collections”. And for that, filmmakers are using every trick of the trade. For complete information on IIPM Articles, please click here... , Also visit: Arindam Chaudhuri Initiative

Source: B&E and IIPM Publications

A society that recognizes the value of distributed entrepreneurship...

2006-10-12T16:00:00.000-07:00

Yet, how many of us have walked away from Microsoft, Google, Intel, Reebok and dozens of other American brands and companies just because we happen to dislike Uncle Sam? Many analysts during the 1980s predicted the end of American dominance in the world of business because nations like Japan and South Korea were driving American manufacturing literally out of business. Forget going out of business, exploiting cross-border cost competencies, American companies now completely dominate even the world of information technology and services. And this will be the century of information technology. A society that recognizes the value of distributed entrepreneurship, regardless of geographical boundaries, is bound to consequently profit exorbitantly. On the cynical wave, people who regard the quest for money, profits and corporate success as unworthy goals could well ask themselves a few questions. Could Sabeer Bhatia have made $400 million in India? And, despite the wealth of intellectual prowess in India, how is it that companies like Google, eBay, My Space & Yahoo all have American origins? Profits matter. The pursuit of profit matters even more. In a medieval society, people whispered, gossiped about and envied the most successful warriors and knights. In modern society, the entrepreneur and the CEO have replaced the Samurai and the knight at the top of the popularity charts. For complete information on IIPM Articles, please click here...

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Source: IIPM Editorial and B&E

The highs & lows of love

2006-10-05T15:01:00.000-07:00

A duo who could do without the dope

Have you felt lately that your life’s a roller-coaster of thrills and spills, soaring to the skies one moment and then careening towards the earth the next? If you are living in the same fiercely competitive, fast paced world that we are in, guess your answer to that would be in the affirmitive. This supposed joyride is even more pertinent for drug users (or abusers), who slip into the roles of Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde with consummate ease. If that’s not bad enough, here’s where it gets worse… what if your better half falls in that category? Dickens made light of it with fiction. He said: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” for couples where one partner stoops low to get his (or her) highs. Nothing could be further from the truth. Caught between the extremes of ecstasy and agony, it becomes increasingly cumbersome to hold close someone who sways like a pendulum from one mood to the next. This cataclysmic cesspool sucks in anyone who dares flirt with it, and even celebrities do not escape its clammy clutches. Take Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, where Whitney’s love of the ‘high’-flying life proved to be the beginning of the end for their teetering marriage (on the brink of collapse anyways). Their now-nixed nuptials have had to contend with deviant dosages of drug – apart from domestic abuse. Excruciating as it sounds, most drug devotees, well past the point of no return are beyond redemption. Trying to salvage shreds of a resultant relationship can be as painful as bailing water out of a sinking cruise liner with a beaker! Heed Brown, when he says ‘crack is wack’. He’s learnt it the hard way!

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Some other IIPM Editorial Articles:

The convergence dream

2006-09-23T16:02:00.000-07:00

As far back as 2001, Reliance Infocomm had been laying optical fibre cables across the country at a speed of about 100 kms per day, way ahead of other competitors. The dream was to emerge as a leader in the sector by providing requisite bandwidth for tapping opportunities in computer services, entertainment and value-added telecom services. Till date, the company has laid about 80,000 kms of optical fibre cable network all over the country, which has the capacity to carry voice, data and video. But with the government now having denied RCL the strategic last-mile connectivity, will Anil’s dream to reach out to Indian homes with audio, data and video through a single cable prove to be just a mirage? Plain questions; but with the power packed in them to decide the fate of his most dynamic interest and perhaps the future of his entire group!

For complete IIPM Research & Publication Article, please click here...

Editor: Arindam Chaudhuri; Source: IIPM Publication and Business & Economy

2006-09-15T14:49:00.000-07:00

Companies can use existing legal mechanisms to enforce judgments against a contracting government outside its home country in cases where local courts have frustrated attempts to collect arbitral awards. Firms can also state that obtaining political-risk insurance or other types of insurance is a condition for proceeding with a contract. When changed circumstances or attitudes destabilize long-term agreements, companies have two choices: Renegotiation or formal dispute resolution. Contracts that combine shock-absorber and safety-net clauses can guarantee a better outcome in either case. For companies looking at the high-risk, high-reward prospect of taking on major projects abroad, these types of contracts provide the starting point for a trust-based partnership – and an ending point should trust ultimately fail.

For complete IIPM Research & Publication Article, please click here...

Editor: Arindam Chaudhuri

Source: IIPM Publication

Half the stuff from Afghanistan goes to Europe via Iran...(IIPM Editorial)

2006-09-12T16:55:00.000-07:00

The addict can’t go to a consumer court, so he is in a lose-lose situation. In India, the quantity of drugs in circulation has also gone up. One reason is the increased Heroin supply from Afghanistan. “Half the stuff from Afghanistan goes to Europe via Iran. Around 30-35% goes via countries like Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. Another 15% goes to Pakistan,” says Verma. It follows that when more Heroin gets into Pakistan, there’s a corresponding increase in the drug reaching India from Pakistan. Part of the problem is the friendly border policy India has been pursuing with Pakistan. When there are more people coming in, there will be more contraband and drugs. This means more enforcement is needed. The job of reducing supply is handled by the NCB, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the Customs and Central Excise departments, all under the finance ministry, the Central Bureau of Intelligence (CBI), the state police and the border security (which has powers to seize but not to investigate drug cases).

For complete IIPM Research & Publication Article, please click here...

Editor: Arindam Chaudhuri

Source: IIPM Publication

A religious militia that calls itself “the party of God”...

2006-08-29T04:05:00.000-07:00

Now we’ve seen the Hezbollah leader, Hasan Nasrallah, take all of Lebanon into a devastating, unprovoked war with Israel, just to improve his political standing and take the pressure off Iran. America should be galvanizing the forces of order – Europe, Russia, China & India – into a coalition against these trends. But we can’t. Why? In part, it’s because our President and Secretary of State, although they speak with great moral clarity, have no moral authority. That’s been shattered by their performance in Iraq. The world hates George Bush more than any US President in my lifetime. He is radioactive – and so caught up in his own ideological bubble that he is incapable of imagining or forging alternative strategies. In part, it is also because China, Europe & Russia have become freeloaders off US power. They reap enormous profits from the post-Cold-War order shaped by the US, but rather than become real stakeholders in that order, helping to draw and defend redlines, they duck, mumble, waffle or cut their own deals. This doesn’t bode well for global stability. A religious militia that calls itself “the party of God” takes over a state and drags it into war, using high-tech rockets – mullahs with drones – and the world is paralyzed. Those who ignore this madness will one day see it come to a theater near them.

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Source: IIPM Publication, Editor: Arindam Chaudhuri

Reservoirs of Lucre

2006-08-14T03:11:00.000-07:00

EditorWhat is continuously fuelling the growing economy of Saudi Arabia is the fact that in addition to its large reserves of crude oil, it is also extensively rich in mineral resources. Gold, silver, bauxite, copper, iron, lead, tin et al are found in huge quantities in the country. There are around 600 sites where gold has been found. The Saudi government has realised the importance of its position, and thus, started a ministry dedicated to mining in 1997. Thanks to this initiative, more than 400 tonnes of minerals are mined everyday, at present. Undoubtedly, this is precisely the reason behind the growing attractiveness of the region for power generation. In 2005, Saudi Arabia exported metals and minerals worth $1463.1 million. China, US and India have emerged as major importers over the years. The government is proceeding with the sale of some assets of state-owned Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) to private players to bring about a boom in the sector. Both local and foreign investment is being encouraged.

For complete IIPM Editorial Article, please click here...

Source: IIPM Publication, Editor: Arindam Chaudhuri

IIPM Editorial : Curse Cast in Stone

2006-06-14T02:14:00.000-07:00

The colossal tombs of civilisation and the enigma within...
Standing alone, dwarfed amid the seemingly endless stretch of barren land with huge creaky tombs of all dead, buried in all preparatory paraphernalia – in the hope of those waking up to life any time, and ‘any time’ implies even the moment I stand, numb and petrified, in the ancient ‘valley of kings’ on the western bank of the rasping river Nile. The echo of drilling and hammering bestirred me close and as I walked towards it, looking around at the marked tombs, I saddened at the once poshand-formidable pharaohs now reduced to serial numbers. At the site, later named KV62, I abutted English Archaeologist Howard Carter, observing him break the seal of the doorway of the recently revealed chamber of King Tutankhamen.

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Source: IIPM Editorial

Thermo Electron fishes for a new deal (IIPM Publication)

2006-05-22T22:29:00.000-07:00

Thermo Electron Corporation and Fisher Scientific International have entered into a definitive agreement to merge the two companies in a taxfree, stock-for-stock exchange. The merger will create a behemoth that will be providing laboratory products and services in the high-growth life, laboratory and health sciences industry. The new merged entity will be named Thermo Fisher Scientific and is expected to achieve revenues of more than $9 billion by the year 2007. Thermo Electron Corporation is paying about $10.6 billion in stock for the larger sized Fisher Scientific International Inc.

For complete IIPM Editorial Article, please click here...

Source: Publication, IIPM

General Electric won plenty of negotiations with Wal-Mart (IIPM Editorial)

2006-05-08T05:34:00.000-07:00

General Electric won plenty of negotiations with Wal-Mart, and lost a few. But losing had its upside. It forced GE to look inside itself to see how it could do its job better – to lower its manufacturing costs, for instance, or to be more flexible in how a product was designed or packaged. Ultimately, prices stayed low and the customer won. And that is what drives Wal-Mart – keeping its customers satisfied – and that’s why it keeps increasing its sales and profits. Yes, there will be “casualties” because of Wal-Mart’s success. Some competitors will certainly fold to its business model, and some jobs will be lost in the process. But in that way, Wal-Mart is no different from Toyota in the automotive industry.

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Source: IIPM, Business&Economy

The Indian Roadblock

2006-05-04T04:37:00.000-07:00

Minimum infrastructure but more and more cars: we are on a collision course
James Bond driving his Aston Martin V12 Vanquish may feel that the World is not enough for him! But, ask a car-owner, about the claustrophobia on roads, and he too will agree! According to the Wall Street Journal, there will be 1 billion cars globally by 2020 or nearly one car for every 6 people! What repercussions will this have on India which has a penetration of less than 7 cars per 1,000 people at present? Saba Khan of SIAM says “tremendous headroom for growth in this country is the key.” Not out of context when compared with growth in India’s auto market, expected to hit regular double digits by 2007. Countries like the US and Australia may not find the automotive explosion unsustainable, thanks to their lower population density. But the developing world, more so India & China (with their skyrocketing populations) will have to face the music.

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Source: IIPM Editorial

Tommy reaches the top of hill in India

2006-04-22T00:23:00.000-07:00

The international premium apparel brand Tommy Hilfiger has massive plans of expansion in India. With one new store in Chennai, the company has plans for three more stores by April 2006 in Bangalore, New Delhi and Ahmedabad. It already has three stores in Mumbai and one each in Chandigarh and Gurgaon. The showrooms will be showcasing sports and casuals wear for both men and women. The brand is currently being promoted in India by Arvind Brands Pvt. Ltd., which is a joint venture between Arvind Brands Ltd. and the Mujrani group. For complete article, click here...

Source: Business & Economy, IIPM

There is more trouble in store for Boeing

2006-04-14T23:33:00.000-07:00

Though Asian airlines are booming, the big American ones like Delta and United have gone bankrupt—endanger boeing a potentially huge market. But the real blow came in mid September when the US Defence Department unhappy with the company decided to reduce Boeing’s role in a $20 billion project for new age satellites and transferred the business to rival Lockheed Martin. Boeing simply has no option but to settle the strike as fast as possible if it doesn’t want Airbus to again walk away with all the honours. Playing ego wars with trade unions can be postponed.

Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

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The Charlatan

2006-04-04T02:33:00.000-07:00

Musharraf’s hypocrisy exposed

Pakistan has been wrecked, with above 40,000 people grievously injured and more than 20,000 estimated dead. Moreover, Pakistan has one of the weakest infrastructures in the world; and the quake has further broken about $5 billion of public and private infrastructure.

Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

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The Congress can generate tremendous amount of goodwill...

2006-04-03T03:37:00.000-07:00

The strains in the coalition are already showing because of this looming deadline. This can be converted into a great opportunity for Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh to display statesmanship of the type that can kill two birds with one stone. By letting Sayid continue as the Chief Minister, the Congress can generate tremendous amount of goodwill in the valley. Just as Sonia Gandhi’s renunciation of 2004 dramatically raised her stature without affecting her power position, another renunciation can go a long way towards resolving the valley’s political problems.

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Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

Thorn of Africa

2006-03-31T01:17:00.000-08:00

Stalemate between Ethiopia and Eritrea threatens to escalate
Whether it is the backlog of an imperialist past or its obsession with US, Terrorism and World economy, the world community continues to ignore Africa. That is probably why, the warning by Eritrean Finance Minister, at the recently concluded UN General Assembly, that a “renewed armed struggle” was possible, if it failed to settle border disputes between the two ‘Horn of Africa’ nations, fell into deaf ears. And now that Eritrea has unilaterally decided to ground UN choppers, the 15 member Security Council is crying foul. Speculations are rife that both sides are preparing for another border war.

Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

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Profit Before Tax - Arvind Mills

2006-03-27T01:53:00.000-08:00

Detractors might be quick to latch on and also mention that the PBT (Profit Before Tax) of Arvind Mills has actually fallen in the quarter ending September 2005 (Rs.410 million) compared to the previous quarter (Rs.490 million).

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Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

Patron Saint of Scotland

2006-03-23T21:00:00.000-08:00

Of a week-long celebration in fond and faithful remembrance of the patron saint of Scotland St. Andrews the festival makes this charming medieval town come alive during the busiest times of the year here. With the diagonal Cross believed to have borne the apostle in his dying moments when he was crucified, emblematized on the very national flag of the country, the reverence and rejoicing sweeping through the city isn’t too difficult to explain. Culminating on November 30 with a grand feast, various programmes including music, balls, dramas and church services through the 7 days of the tradition are looked forward to by all Scots. Finally, the tartan that Aunt presented last Christmas could come in handy now.

Source: IIPM - Business & Economy

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