"Emerging Economies & Management
Practices"
Introduction:
On
the 6th of October, 2012 The Department of management Studies at IIT
Roorkee, hosted one of its biggest events of the year in collaboration with the
THDC (Tehri Hydro Development Corporation), A Symposium on “Emerging Economies
and Management Practices”. The event is conducted annually based on a
particular theme. This event was organized in collaboration by the First and
Second year students at the Department of Management Studies. India
emerged from the shadow of socialism in the last decade of the last century,
although it may seem as if this was eons ago, it has been barely two decades.
In 1991 our then honourable Prime-minister, P.V. Narsimharao ushered in an era
of liberalization which saw a rapid growth in the GDP of the country. India
thus emerged from a cocoon of the permit raj system that sparked a revolution
that made this country shine. Various policies were put in place which opened
the doors to international trade, foreign investment, privatization, tax
reforms etc.
Over
the past two decades, India has been hailed along with Brazil, China and Russia
as the “emerging economies” that will be the engines of future growth.
Thus an emerging economy may be defined as a
country that satisfies two criteria: rapid pace of economic development and
government policies favoring economic liberalization.
Even
though the BRIC nations have made significant progress economy wise, we have
witnessed a slack in India over the last few years. What has changed? What
needs to be done? What changes are required in today’s businesses to get us
back on track?
To
unravel some of these issues and come up with viable solutions, The Department
was graced with the presence of some eminent speakers from the Industry. Some
of the topics that were scheduled to be covered were:
• Business Strategy.
• Public Private Partnership
• Role of Business Groups in Emerging Economies.
• Industrial Dynamics and Managerial Networking
• Transformational Leadership
• Human Resource Management, Training &
Development
• CSR Practices and Sustainability
• Interaction between Industry and Academia and the impact these have on emerging economies.
The Event was sponsored
by the Quality Improvement Program which was represented by Professor Rama
Bhargava.
The Quality Improvement Programme (QIP) Centre at Indian
Institute of Technology Roorkee has started in 1971 under the Ministry of Human
Resource Development and the Department of Education, New Delhi. Since
its inception it has been endeavouring to improve the quality of technical
education in the country. From 1994, the Centre has been transferred under
A.I.C.T.E. This Centre has been constantly making efforts to upgrade the
teaching curricula and enhance the knowledge of teachers of various engineering
colleges/ institutions. Being one of the seven QIP Centers in the country, the
center at Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee has been pursuing all major
objectives of QIP which include:
1. Degree Program
(M. Tech and PHD)
2. Short Term Courses.
3. CD Cell Activities.
This Centre has been
assisting many institutions across the country by publishing technical
literature in the form of text books, monographs, laboratory manuals etc. and
also keeping regular interaction with them for improving the standards of
technical education. Various departments at IITR are participating in the
activities sponsored by various QIP schemes.
Till date, the
Centre has helped in upgrading the qualification of about 348 teachers in
Master of Engineering and about 477 teachers in Ph.D. programme from all over India. Further, it has conducted 206
Short Term Courses in which 3629 technical teachers have participated. Also the
Centre has published 114 Monographs/Books, prepared 82 Multi-mode teaching
aids, organized 70 Workshops/Seminars, prepared 21 Curricula and conducted
several Special Lectures. This is the only QIP Centre in India, which has been given the
responsibility for undertaking activities related to the Technical Education,
Vocational Training and Skill Development of the disabled.
Brief Summary:
The
session commenced with the traditional lighting of the lamp. The forum was then
addressed by the distinguished Head of Department Dr. S. Rangnekar. He shared
some insights about the institution and the department in particular. This was
followed by a brief talk given by Prof. Rama Bhargava who is the coordinator of
the Quality Improvement Program at IIT, Roorkee. She briefed the forum
regarding the latest developments and achievements of the QIP center.
The
First speaker of the day was Professor D.K. Nauriyal from the humanities and
social sciences department at IIT, Roorkee. Mr. Nauriyal’s session focused
mainly on the BRIC Nations and how they would soon become a formidable force.
According to him there is a considerable amount of industry growth in China as
compared to India. Countries like Brazil, India and Russia rely more on the
service sector where as China relies more on the Industry sector. As a result
China as a country provides more employment than all the other BRIC Nations.
The unemployment rate in China is around 2.8 % whereas in countries like Brazil
and Russia it is around 6%.
The
Table below shows a comparison of the BRIC nations.
Categories
|
Brazil
|
Russia
|
India
|
China
|
Area
|
5th
|
1st
|
7th
|
3rd
|
Population
|
5
|
9
|
2
|
1
|
GDP (PPP)
|
7
|
6
|
3
|
2
|
GDP (PPP) per capita
|
71
|
51
|
127
|
93
|
 |
| A comparison is shown below of the GDP in the coming years. |
The figure clearly shows a larger increase in GDP of the BRIC nations as compared to other nations. It is estimated that by the year 2050 India and China will top the world in terms of GDP.
Professor Nauriyal also stated that there may not be any miracles in terms of per capita GDP, although the standard of living is expected to increase drastically.
Some additional interesting facts were also shared as mentioned below.
BRIC basic factors
1. They hold 45% of world population
2. 44% of workforce
3. 25.9% of world’s land
4. 26% of global GDP which will become 40% by 2050.
He also threw light on the fact that
four summits had already taken place and the fifth was scheduled to take place
in South Africa in 2013. The question on everyone’s mind obviously was why
South Africa? According to Prof. Nauriyal China currently dominated the BRIC
nations and was looking to expand its markets. The BRIC nations also have a
superior purchasing power. FDI has also been on the increase in such nations,
the reasons for this being a large population which leads to a large amount of
unsatisfied demand.
The one problem according to Prof. Nauriyal was
that the BRIC nations were not unified. There were border related issues
between India, Russia and China.
We
were also joined by Mr. N.K. Gupta (G.M. (H.R.) from BHEL. The vision of the
company is “A global engineering
enterprise providing solutions for a better tomorrow”. The Mission is “Providing sustainable
business solution in the field of Energy, Industry and Infrastructure”. Values
of company comprise Governance, Respect, Excellence, Loyalty, Integrity,
Commitment, Innovation, and Teamwork.
He
told us about the different opportunities at BHEL. BHEL is one of the Navratna
PSU’s in India. According to him in an Emerging Market Economy, a country
experiences development, Industrialization and economic growth. BHEL is
basically an engineering company not a manufacturing company. They are more
prominent in the Power, transportation, transmission, renewable energy resource
and oil &gas sectors. This is an ISO-certified company. The total turnover
of the company is approximately 50000cr.The Business Model of BHEL is divided
into 3 parts that is the Power, Industry and Overseas sectors. The Industry
sector is further divided into Transportation, Transmission and Inventory
sectors.
BHEL
is the Leader in providing technology to various companies. It develops its own
technologies. Its manufacturing strategy
is to increase production, rate of stock removal and decrease cycle time. Its
manufacturing Prowess can be compared to Organizations in China.
HR
functions of the company are Personal Relations and the HR development center.
Personnel consists of Recruitment & Manpower planning, Executive
establishment, Non-executive establishment, Industrial relation, Welfare,
Terminal benefit cell, New initiative cell, Canteen, Administration &
Sports, Corporate social responsibility etc. The HR Development Centre has
skills in the areas of Management training, Research, Consultancy,
Organizational Development and Manpower Planning. BHEL provides Non statutory
welfare service through Township facilities, Medical services, RECHES (Relieved
employee contributory health services), Educational services, Sports, Clubs and
the Community center.
We were also fortunate enough to have Mr.
Manoj Sadavarte, Unit Head at Godrej & Boyce, Bhagwanpur with us. He
started by addressing problem in our society like Poverty and a complete brain
drain faced especially by our youth today. According to him another concern was
a large number of undergraduates moving away to other countries. This is a
major problem today. Our country gives us the education we need, however
instead of giving back we head out to serve other countries. He stressed on the
importance of guidance that should accompany the regular curriculum in institutions
to instill a sense of belonging and national pride in students such that they
choose to work for the betterment of our country.
He also threw light on the fact that
students in our country often study just from an examination point of view. The
competition in our country has reached a level where getting grades has become
more important. Somewhere along the way we have lost out on the need and
importance of studying for knowledge. It is this knowledge that helps improve
the condition of society. Those who have gained sufficient knowledge seldom
work for the betterment of society. Most of them work for monetary gains.
According to him a complete transformation is needed.
Interview:
At the end of each session
Interviews were conducted by the Newsletter team at the Department of
Management Studies.
 |
Mr.
Vineet Suri
Profile-
Chief Training & Quality Officer at SPANCO.
|
Mr.
Vineet Suri is currently working as the Chief Training and Quality Officer at
SPANCO. He has previously been associated with organizations like Tata Sky Ltd.
and Mahindra & Mahindra. He has earned an MBA Degree in Operation
Management from Punjab University.
He is a specialist in fields like Operations Management, Customer Service, After Sales Service, Call Center Management, Quality Management, Business Excellence, Customer Satisfaction, Vendor Management, Six Sigma, BPR, Learning & Organization Development, Change Management etc.
N.T)
You have pursued an MBA in operations in 1990. What prompted you to take the
decision as it was an uncommon choice of higher education back then?
V.S) I mainly did it because I wanted
enhancement of skills along with improvement in leadership and interpersonal
skills. I also wanted jumps in my career.
N.T)
Having worked in such diverse fields and positions of responsibilities, how
have you been able to manage the organizational cultural change from one
organization to another? And where did you find the transition to be the
easiest?
V.S) My main transition was from
manufacturing (working for 15-16 years) to the service industry. What I have
noticed is that there is no difference in principles; the basics remain the
same whatever the domain may be. The change is felt by the customer only.
N.T)
A leader must be equipped with a set of competencies necessary to perform
his/her role. Which one would you say are the most important abilities a leader
should have?
V.S) According to me, a leader should
be a good team player. His interpersonal skills should be great and he should
be a good time manager.
N.T) If you could
instantly change any aspect of business, what would it be?
V.S) If it
were possible, I would like to change the
mindset of people because in my career, I’ve noticed that people lose hope very
quickly.
N.T)
As conflict management with clients is an essential part of your work, can you cite
an example where you were successful in negotiating and resolving a critical
issue?
V.S) I was the Unit Head of National
Panasonic at Noida, U.P. way back in 1998. We used to manage problems by
revolving workers and introducing incentive based programs (increase in salary
if a worker stays for six months, one year etc; there were different slabs). We
had a transparent system comprising newsletters, e-mails, bulletins and most
importantly, our workers used to repeat the mission statement every day. This
improved their awareness. The workers were also asked about their expectations
from the management.
N.T)
Sir what would your suggestion be for any B-School, which wishes its students
to be closer to the industry expectations?
V.S) Focus of studies should be more
on applications. I believe that we need to bridge the gap between theory and
practical in order to make budding managers like you industry-ready.
N.T)
Thank you for your cooperation Sir.
Mr. ParveenBansal is currently working as the
regional head at IL&FS Education and Technology Services Ltd. He has worked
with 3i Infotech Limited previously. He has earned his MBA Degree from The
Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee. His domain of specialization
includes Education, Skill Development, eGovernance, UID, Health and Cluster
Development initiatives etc. He has also played a vital role in strategic
planning and business acquisition.
 |
|
Mr. Parveen Bansal
Profile- Regional Head at IL &FS.
|
N.T)
How much you have been able to impact the education sector w.r.t.
infrastructure?
P.B) Our major emphasis is on the PPP
model. We’ve been setting up computer labs in govt. schools across the country.
We hope that this will make an impact on the education of young children.
N.T)
How have you dealt public-private partnership and what is your basic business
model?
P.B) Essentially, our business model
is two-faced. We charge from industries
(infrastructure, machines etc.) for giving them skilled manpower. We also
charge from interns for giving them skilled training. We have three verticals:
Physical infrastructure (roads, bridges etc.), financial infrastructure
(planning, analysis etc.) and social infrastructure (CSR, rural development
etc.). However, infrastructure is a long term investment and major players are
coming up to challenge the paucity of funds.
N.T)
Can you explain more about your Strategic Business Unit?
P.B) Our new SBU consists of trainers
that are provided by us, but all the other facilities are provided by the
industry. We train basic workers and equip them with the knowledge to work at
par with industry standards. This is a niche task that we perform for our
industry partners as skilled labor is very much required for their specific
tasks. We get the benefit of getting paid for both the ends.
N.T)
In your opinion, what are the major roadblocks that are there in improving the
education sector in India?
P.B) Slow decision making by the govt.
is a major roadblock. Moreover, there is no upfront payment since the return is
only after five years and the risk is borne by the private partner only because
of the revenue sharing agreement.
N.T)
How would you define “success” for your career? How has life been for you post
DoMS, IIT Roorkee?
P.B) Success means the enjoyment of
the work that I do. And my definition of success is evolving every day. As far
as life post DoMS is concerned, I’ve learned one thing: Management is not
rocket science. Keep everything simple and apply common sense irrespective of
your domain!
N.T)
Sir what would your suggestion be for any B-School, which wishes its students
to be closer to the industry expectations?
P.B) Curriculum should be based on the
basis of industry interaction, like we have this 8 year “skill development”
project in collaboration with BSNL in Haryana. Students should have exposure to
such projects in order to understand “management concepts” better.
Mr. D. Bhattacharyya
is presently working in the capacity of Sr. Executive Director (HR), MKCO at Corporate Office, New Delhi. He joined IFFCO in New Delhi in
March 1988. Prior to his joining IFFCO, he has worked in Hindustan Motors Ltd.,
Kolkata, Heavy Engineering Corporation, Ranchi and Hindustan Zinc Limited,
Udaipur. He has over 36 years of experience in the field of Industrial
Engineering and Human Resource Development.
 |
|
Shri D. Bhattacharyya
Profile-Advisor at IFFCO, Gurgaon.
|
D.B) What I believe is that we
shouldn’t blindly follow PMS, KPI etc. The performance should be connected to
one’s values i.e. the concept of social boundaries. This basically means that
we need to see soft skills along with technical skills.
N.T)
Sir what are your views on FDI? Do you think it should be implemented or are
there better measures?
D.B) I believe that these foreigners
come for “their” economic interest. Merely bringing FDI won’t help farmers. FDI
shouldn’t be at the cost of the lack of governance at our end. We need to
improve our existing infrastructure. Why can’t Indian traders give a better
price? The need is to reach the grassroots level and improve our education.
This will help eradicate child labor too.
N.T)
What do you think are the problems affecting the rural population, particularly
farmers?
D.B) Migration of rural population to
urban areas causes pressure on urban infrastructure. Thus we need to create
employment in rural areas. Govt. should have strong vocational training
programs for people below poverty line and the govt. should also invest in
cooperative societies. Besides, we need to focus on irrigation facilities and
also on improving the yield of the land. We shouldn’t be dependent on the
monsoons! This will help the plight of the farmers.
N.T)
Can you tell us something about the organizational culture at IFFCO and how do
you promote employee engagement?
D.B) I have always believed that IFFCO
is not an organization: it is like a big family. Let me share an example with
you. I’m treated like a father figure and many a times, I even counsel in the
family matters of employees. So you can guess that we follow a very open
culture. We organize trips for the workers from time to time. Thus, you can say
that we are one close knit family.
N.T)
Can you please shed some light on leadership identification and development?
How do you define leadership?
D.B) According to me, “Lead yourself
first, others later”. I believe in Servant leadership model i.e. selfless
service to others because serving people equals serving God. You need to be a
sage by heart and a king by action.
Choose the right mentor and exhibit
positive emotions!
N.T)
How would you define “success” for your career? At the end of your work life,
what should be present for you to feel as if you had a successful career?
D.B) Success as I already mentioned is
the feeling of contentment you get on serving others. The satisfaction you feel
is immense. My pride is the pride of IFFCO.
Mr.
Pranay Kumar is currently working with Asma Energy (P) Ltd and
VasudhaecofriendsProjects (P) Limited.
He has previously been a part of Landmark Education Inc. He has studied
Entrepreneurship and Strategy at Harvard University.
 |
|
Mr. Pranay Kumar
Profile- COO at VasudhaEcoFriends.
|
N.T)
Can you elaborate on the entrepreneurial ventures you own and manage?
N.T) Thank you for your cooperation Sir.
P.K) We are mainly concentrating on
three major verticals:
EcoPure: Bio degradable plastic additive
GreenWorks: Consultancy Product Implementation
TruBlu: Bio remediation (products for water
treatment)
N.T)
What are the entry level barriers in the sustainability innovation field?
P.K) Customs rules for Bio degradable
plastic additives are a big hindrance. Besides, here in India there’s a mindset
of “non-innovation”. Also, my partners are in different countries, so there can
be such problems too.
N.T)
Sir as a young entrepreneur, what has been the most challenging decisions you
have had to make in your professional career?
P.K) No doubt, the biggest challenge
is selling. If there’s anything associated with cost, the customer needs to be
convinced. In our business model, we’re ready to innovate if the customer
wants!
N.T)
Sir what according to you is the need of the hour for the field of
sustainability and renewable energy in India?
P.K) Definitely the need of the hour
is: good marketing teams who can innovate! Also I think that people shouldn’t
lose their heart too soon.
N.T)
As in your business the need for innovation is of paramount importance, what
steps have you taken to promote innovation at your company?
P.K) This is rather easy. Our whole
team believes in the principle: “Anything is possible by asking how it can be
done.” We encourage debate and subsequent questioning!
N.T)
How would you define “success” for your career? At the end of your work life,
what should be present for you to feel as if you had a successful career? What
message would you like to give the students of DoMS, IIT Roorkee?
P.K)
For me, the Definition of success is: How much impact has been made? I
enjoy doing my work, so for me, the level of enjoyment is a success. For this
field, your personality should mimic nature! You should go for two things in
life: Self- belief and self-inquiry. Have fun coz everything is a matter of
perception!
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