ATEN Opens New Office in B’lore; Expects 30% Growth from India, South Asia Markets

ATEN International, the leading provider of IT connectivity and total management solutions, expects 30% growth in this fiscal year ending December 31^st, 2017 from its India and South Asia markets.

Making this announcement at a press conference held to mark the grand opening of the new ATEN India office and demo room, which provides India customers to experience the future connection of ATEN’s AV and IT convergence solutions. 

Hector Lin, Sales Division Associate Vice President, ATEN International said, “India and South Asia contributes to 10% of total revenues of the company. We have seen a 30-40% growth in India and South Asia market over the last 3-4 years. India and South Asia are important markets for ATEN and we expect to strengthen the connection with South Asia market by our new India office”.

ATEN now intends to vigorously promote two of its main product lines – enterprise KVM solutions and Professional A/V solutions – through the new ATEN India office and demo room in Bengaluru, India.

“India is one of the fastest growing markets in Asia Pacific and ATEN is very pleased to be part of India’s continued growth. ATEN India is looking forward to bringing more local support and even quicker service to help India to reach its smart city goals through ATEN’s A/V and IT convergence solutions”, said Hank Lee, Manager of South Asia Sales, ATEN International.

The company’s new demo room, which opened in the city as a part of its ATEN India launch, will provide systems integrators with hands-on experience of ATEN’s A/V and IT convergence solutions and gain valuable insight into the company’s vision for the future of connectivity. The Bengaluru center, besides offering workshops and training to systems integrators, will also create brand awareness and promote ATEN’s products among potential partners. The Bengaluru operations will further serve as an epicenter for the rest of India as well as South Asia, where ATEN has already made a mark.

ATEN India recently implemented a major systems integration projector for a major retail chain. Its other major customers include Siemens, L&T, Cognizant, NTPC, CISCO, IBM, Apple, Tech Mahindra, TCS, amongst others, in addition to major government projects including Metro, Defense and Aerospace.

Having established global operations in 1979, ATEN entered the India market in 1997 through partnership with CUBIX Microsystems and has successfully undertaken several significant projects in India relating to the fundamental facilities of smart cities, such as data centers, control rooms, digital signage, collaborative meeting rooms and classrooms. 

ATEN International Co., Ltd., established in 1979, is the leading provider of IT connectivity and management solutions. Offering integrated KVM, Professional Audiovisual, and Intelligent Power solutions, ATEN products connect, manage, and optimize electronics in corporate, government, industrial, educational, and retail environments. ATEN has 500+ issued international patents and a global R&D team that produces a constant stream of innovative solutions, resulting in a comprehensive portfolio of products available worldwide. 

Headquartered in Taiwan, ATEN International Co., Ltd. has grown to include subsidiaries in China, Japan, Korea, Belgium, Australia, the U.S., the U.K., Russia, Turkey and India – with R&D centers in Taiwan, China, and Canada.

SVF’s Hoichoi Digital Content Platform Caters Exclusively for Bengali Entertainment

SVF, Eastern India’s largest entertainment company, today announced the launch of Hoichoi, the much awaited one-stop digital content platform which is home to the largest collection of the best in Bengali entertainment.

Vishnu Mohta, Co-Founder - Hoichoi and Executive Director - SVF, said, “Hoichoi is the ultimate destination for Bengali entertainment, with something on offer for every Bengali - young or old, movie buff or music lover, student or working professional. We wish to connect with all of them, worldwide, on Hoichoi.”

Hoichoi’s Original Web Series cuts across genres like Thriller, Drama, Horror, Romance, Comedy, showcasing some of the best acting talent of the Indian entertainment industry, and created by the finest production houses and directorial talent.

Shrikant Mohta, Co-Founder - SVF & Hoichoi said, “We have been entertaining audiences over the last 20 years as storytellers, creators and distributors of the best entertainment content across cinemas and television. With the world moving to mobile, we decided to diversify into digital content with Hoichoi and created exclusive content for the same. The creative freedom this space offers is unparalleled.”

Hoichoi, which means non-stop excitement, is being launched with a strong content portfolio of Original Web-Series, over 500 Bengali movies and more than 1000 Bengali songs for audio streaming to serve the entertainment needs of Bengali audiences globally.

Mahendra Soni, Co-Founder - SVF & Hoichoi said, “We strongly believe in the mantra ‘Content is King’. With our extensive content library, we are sure our subscribers will be spoilt for choice. We plan to invest substantially to make some of the best and freshest premium content available on Hoichoi, to cater to Bengalis globally.”

  

Hoichoi, powered by ViewLift, the international content distribution platform and Amazon Web Services, world’s leading cloud computing solution provider, will enable subscribers to stream videos seamlessly. Rediffusion Y&R is the creative agency behind Hoichoi's visual identity and advertising campaigns.

CSPs See Cloud Tech Investments as Critical to Improving Customer Experience

Infosys Finacle, part of EdgeVerve Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Infosys has announced a partnership with ToneTag, a provider of near-field communications, payments and location-based services using sound waves. Through this partnership, Finacle and ToneTag will offer a joint solution that will leverage the latter’s sound wave technology to enable proximity payments and interactions.

Leveraging this joint solution, banks will now enable their consumers to authenticate themselves and transact at bank branches, ATMs and retail outlets, in a highly secure, fast and seamless manner. Consumers can make payments with a tap of their phone, which will expedite the checkout process at the merchant location, and improve the overall shopping experience. Delivered through Finacle digital banking solutions such as Finacle Mobile Banking and Finacle Digital Wallet, the solution will be available for all kinds of mobile devices, including feature phones.

ToneTag is one of the companies that was recognized in the recently concluded chapter of Finacle FinTech Connect, an initiative that builds on ongoing alliances and the Infosys Innovation Fund program to identify promising new FinTechs.

Highlights

· With this solution, banks will be able to offer contactless payments on traditional Point-of-Sale machines without adding any new hardware device

· The solution will empower consumers across segments to enjoy tap and go experience at the merchant location. At the time of payment, the sound based technology will enable the exchange of essential information for payment processing such as merchant id, device id, transaction reference number, and amount, between the Point-of-Sale machines and consumers’ phone. Basis this information, consumers can approve the transaction on their phone, without sharing the card or account information with the merchant. The unique aspect of this solution is that unlike NFC-based proximity payments, which require expensive handsets and new-age point-of-sale-machines, the sound based contactless payments can be offered on all smartphones and feature phones

· The contactless technology from ToneTag, combined with biometrics authentication capabilities of Finacle solutions such as fingerprint or facial recognition, will enable consumers to have a completely frictionless experience while shopping

·  Based on the industry recognized EMVCo technical standard (which facilitates worldwide interoperability and acceptance of secure payments), the solution allows bank customers to make contactless payments using their digital wallets, linked credit/debit cards, or through direct debits from their accounts  

· The solution offers advanced security through three layers of encryption, along with tokenization, Host Card Emulation, and White Box Cryptography to enable secure and convenient payments

Sanat Rao, Chief Business Officer, Infosys Finacle says, “In the emerging NFC-based payments ecosystems driven by Apple and Samsung, banks are being relegated as the back-end payment utility provider. The sound wave based proximity payments solution by ToneTag offers a significant opportunity for banks to gain control of the last mile payment experience, without making substantial capital investments. We are glad to bring this promising startup to our client ecosystem.”

Kumar Abhishek, Founder, ToneTag says, “Customer experience, security, and interoperability will continue to be key for financial service applications. ToneTag brings all of these to the forefront and integration with Infosys Finacle will place our innovation into the hands of more than 800 million consumers across 94 countries.”

Boeing Unveils Second Phase of Aerospace Engineering Facility in Bengaluru

The Minister-of-State for Civil Aviation, Jayant Sinha, inaugurated Boeing’s additional new facility at the Boeing India Engineering and Technology Center (BIETC) in Bengaluru.

The additional facility will enable Boeing to focus on state-of-the-art technology areas such as data analytics, internet-of-things, avionics, aerospace design, manufacturing, testing and research, to support Boeing products and systems, more efficiently in India, and around the world. The center also includes laboratories for research to support next-gen innovations in aerospace.

With this expansion, Boeing has nearly doubled its existing facility in Bengaluru. The number of engineers will also double by the end of 2017.

“Boeing’s commitment to growth of capability and capacity in the Indian aerospace sector is commendable,” said Jayant Sinha, Minister-of-State for Civil Aviation. “I congratulate the team on this brand new addition to the Boeing India Engineering and Technology Center and am proud that Boeing is leveraging India’s engineering talent and its expertise for some of the most advanced aerospace products in the world, and developing complex solutions for the world.”

This significant expansion comes soon after Boeing opened its engineering center in January earlier this year, demonstrating Boeing’s commitment to building an innovative, and world-class, competitive aerospace ecosystem in India.

“As a source for innovative and cutting-edge engineering, India offers us tremendous growth potential,” said Pratyush Kumar, President, Boeing India. “This is a winning formula for India and our own global growth strategy for improved productivity, enhanced engineering efficiency and cost advantage, while focusing on quality.”

Recently Boeing announced a partnership with Ministry of Civil Aviation and Air India Engineering Services Ltd. (AIESL) to develop an Aircraft Maintenance Engineers Accelerated Apprenticeship Program. The key objective of the program is to improve the employability of AMEs through training and hands-on experience with actual aircraft.

Boeing’s other contributions to the industry include software tools that are used to support efficient airspace management and decongestion at Indian airports.

In addition to developing engineering capabilities, Boeing is also actively involved in developing skills across the aviation sector by partnering with leading Indian vocational training institutes, industrial training institutes and Indian partners, to train workers for the aerospace industry.

Samsung’s Galaxy J Series Smartphones Consolidates Leadership; Launches Never Mind this Festive Offers

Samsung, India’s number one mobile phone company and country’s most trusted brand, has further strengthened its leadership in Karnataka. Samsung Galaxy J series is India’s most popular smartphone series and the recently launched Galaxy J7 Pro and Galaxy J7 Max have received an overwhelming response. To acknowledge the love and trust of consumers in Karnataka, Samsung India today announced the “Never Mind” offer for buyers of Samsung smartphones.

The “Never Mind” offer is aimed at adding to the joy and excitement of the festive season with a one-time screen replacement offer. Under Samsung’s “Never Mind” offer, consumers can avail one-time replacement of a broken screen within 12 months of purchase by paying Rs 990 at the time of repair. The offer is valid on purchases between September 21, 2017 and October 21, 2017.

Samsung’s “Never Mind” offer brings peace of mind to consumers and extends across popular models above Rs 9,000. This includes the J Series, A Series, C series, On series and flagship S Series and Note Series.

Ahead of the festive season, Samsung recently launched its flagship Galaxy Note8 in India, offering the next level Note for people who want to do bigger things.

“Our focus on consumer-centric innovations and providing superior products and services to consumers have made Samsung India’s top brand. The ‘Never Mind’ offer is our way of thanking the people of Karnataka for their love and trust. Samsung has always believed in creating value for consumers through innovative features and the latest offer bears testimony to Samsung’s commitment to consumer delight,”said  Asim Warsi, Senior Vice President, Samsung India.

“Our exciting new J series of smartphones backed by Make for India innovations have helped us strengthen our leadership in Karnataka,” he added.

The recently launched Galaxy J7 Pro and Galaxy J7 Max are offered with new features that consumers have really come to appreciate. Features like Social Camera, out of the box Android Nougat and Samsung Pay have increased the appeal of Galaxy J. Every third smartphone sold in India today is a Galaxy J.

Samsung Pay: Samsung’s disruptive payments platform - Samsung Pay - is revolutionizing the way people carry out their day-to-day payments & transactions. Samsung Pay allows Samsung smartphone users to simply tap and pay with their phones without needing to carry the physical card. Under ‘Make for India’ innovations, Samsung has also integrated mobile wallets like Paytm and MobiKwik along with the government’s Unified Payments Interface in the Samsung Pay platform.

Social Camera: Both Galaxy J7 Max & Galaxy J7 Pro smartphones come with Social Camera, our latest innovation which brings to the consumers a new way of using their smartphone camera by instant sharing, instant editing and instant discovery.

Make for India innovations: Galaxy J series has also been a flagbearer of Samsung’s commitment to Indian consumers. The J series’ ‘Make for India’ innovations such as Ultra Data Saving, S bike mode and S Power Planning have added immense value to J series smartphones.

Samsung plans to execute the festive bonanza via its wide retail network of more than 6,200 partner stores, 87 exclusive stores and 69 service centers across the state of Karnataka.

Razorpay 2.0 to Double Merchant Count to 90,000 by 2018; Rolls Out New Products

With an aim to revolutionize digital payments for businesses, Razorpay unveiled its new avatar, Razorpay 2.0 and launched a gamut of new products and payment solutions today. Having disrupted the payment gateway industry over the last 2.5 years and being the first to support every new mode of payment for businesses, the Company has successfully evolved as India’s first converged payments solution company.

In its new avataar, Razorpay 2.0 is effectively equipped to resolve all business problems related to the payments ecosystem. Today, payment acceptance is not the only problem. There are other big challenges, such as managing cash flows, disbursement of money, automating NEFT and bank wires and collection of scheduled payments  among others. Only a comprehensive and innovative solution built over robust technology will address the entire length and breadth of the payment journey for any business.

The event unveiled four new products, Razorpay Route, Razorpay Smart Collect, Razorpay Subscriptions and Razorpay Invoices - all these will solve for managing the entire money movement for India’s huge under-served business community and embrace cash-rich traditional sectors such as Education, Government, Insurance and new age e-commerce companies.

Says, Harshil Mathur, CEO and Co-Founder, Razorpay, “It’s an exciting evolution for us from being a pure payment acceptance layer to a holistic and converged payments solution. We now manage the what, when, where and how of payments, right from the moment a payment is initiated to the point it is fully reconciled and disbursed to the final destination.”

“Throughout this evolution, I believe what has helped us the most is being open to feedback from our merchants, we like to keep them as our centre of commerce, and enable convenience and ease. We aim to make payments accessible to any business with a bank account and a phone number.”

In an exciting new journey to follow, Razorpay is geared up to double its merchant count to 90,000 by the end of next fiscal year. The company has clocked in a healthy growth rate of 40-50% month-on-month and aims at impacting lives of 25 million end consumers by 2020. Razorpay expects more than 10x growth in volume & revenue by next fiscal year and predicts the newly launched product suite to contribute 30% of its revenue.

Shashank Kumar, CTO and Co-Founder, Razorpay shares how technology has been Razorpay’s key differentiator from day one. He says, “We are looking to solve all pain points related to the flow of money for businesses in India. We aim to marry intelligent technology solutions with the payment needs of businesses to deliver a sound, cohesive and comprehensive payments experience.

Harshil concluded stating, “As far as I can tell, we are the only fintech company that can manage the entire flow of money for a business in India.”

According to a recent report on Digital Payment in India 2020, the total payment via digital instruments is expected to touch $500 billion by 2020. To supplement this growth, digital inclusion and sustained growth is a priority. With payments forming the lifeline of any business, it is key to innovate and evolve with a choice of solutions. For Razorpay, it's not just about launching a suite of products, but about how they are bundled together to create an intrinsic value in a simplest form to any business.

Global Financial Data Platform Envestnet | Yodlee Partner Home Credit India to Digitize Loan Processing

Envestnet | Yodlee, a leading data aggregation and data analytics platform powering dynamic, cloud-based innovation for digital financial services, today announced its partnership with Home Credit India, one of India’s leading consumer finance providers that is committed to driving credit penetration and financial inclusion. The tie-up has enabled Home Credit India to digitize its loan approval process with Envestnet | Yodlee Aggregation API, a technology that enhances traditional credit reports with consumer-permissioned aggregated data from over 15,500 sources, including banking, investment, loan and credit information. 

Designed with bank level security, the Envestnet | Yodlee Aggregation API eliminates the manual loan process, where lenders require borrowers to provide bank statements in order to approve a loan. By integrating with Envestnet | Yodlee FastLink, consumers can add and link their financial accounts on any device within seconds. With this transaction information, Home Credit India will use this powerful financial data to supplement traditional credit reports.

“We are pleased to associate with the pioneering consumer finance provider Home Credit India and thrilled with the unprecedented response of consumers to aggregate their financial data for the loan application with Envestnet | Yodlee Aggregation API,” said Arjun Singh, Managing Director of Envestnet | Yodlee in Asia. “In order to accelerate financial inclusion, it is necessary to have credible and secure digital solutions. The Envestnet | Yodlee Financial Data Platform brings together massive data and intelligence to address those needs in India.”

“While typical credit risk reporting is heavily focused on past payment history that furnishes a limited view of the consumer’s financial condition, Envestnet | Yodlee Aggregation API enables lenders to gain a holistic and verified view of the consumer’s true financial picture in a more comprehensive and accurate manner than other methods available today,” said Dhruv Manga, VP of Sales, Envestnet | Yodlee in Asia and the Middle East.

“Our partnership with Envestnet | Yodlee is a game changing opportunity for us to become disruptors in the area of online lending,” said Milan Dolansky, Head – Online, Home Credit India. “Considering the scale at which we operate, optimizing the loan process with financial data has allowed us to streamline our operations, and expand our offerings to digital-savvy customers. We have been approached by leading private banks to share our successful digital lending model powered by the Envestnet | Yodlee platform.”

Envestnet, Inc. is the leading provider of intelligent systems for wealth management and financial wellness. Envestnet’s unified technology enhances advisor productivity and strengthens the wealth management process. Envestnet empowers enterprises and advisors to more fully understand their clients and deliver better outcomes.

Envestnet enables financial advisors to better manage client outcomes and strengthen their practices. Institutional-quality research and advanced portfolio solutions are provided through Envestnet | PMC, our Portfolio Management Consultants group. Envestnet | Yodlee is a leading data aggregation and data analytics platform powering dynamic, cloud-based innovation for digital financial services. Envestnet | Tamarac provides leading rebalancing, reporting, and practice management software for advisors. Envestnet | Retirement Solutions provides an integrated platform that combines leading practice management technology, research, data aggregation and fiduciary managed account solutions.

More than 57,000 advisors and 2,900 companies including: 16 of the 20 largest U.S. banks, 39 of the 50 largest wealth management and brokerage firms, over 500 of the largest Registered Investment Advisers, and hundreds of Internet services companies, leverage Envestnet technology and services. Envestnet solutions enhance knowledge of the client, accelerate client on-boarding, improve client digital experiences, and help drive better outcomes for enterprises, advisors, and their clients.

Infinix Debuts on Flipkart’s Big Billion Day Sale this Festive Season

With the festive season around the corner, Infinix Mobile, the premium online smartphone brand from Transsion Holdings, will be available first time on Flipkart Big Billion Days sale from September 21 to 24, 2017. Both Infinix Note 4 and Hot 4 pro are now available at a special offer discount of Rs. 1000 pricing them at Rs. 7999 & Rs. 6499 respectively. In addition to this there is 10% instant discount on SBI debit and credit cards.

Anish Kapoor, CEO Infinix India said, “It’s been a month since we launched Infinix in India and we have received an incredible response from the consumers, making Infinix the highest rated smartphone brand on Flipkart in India on debut. Big Billion Days Sale is the most awaited online shopping festival for consumers and we are excited to be a part of India’s biggest festival. Our vision has always been to create new possibilities for our customers and through these special offers, we hope to give them another reason to buy their favorite Infinix smartphone and make their festivities more memorable.’’

Infinix Note 4 is an all-rounder smartphone which packs the best features in this price segment. It comes with   4300mAh battery with 18W unique Xcharge technology which charges 75% of battery in just 60 minutes. A large Full HD IPS display of 5.7-inches with 500 nits enables an unbelievably clear and colorful screen. The 2.5D curved glass on the front and metal print back body creates a sleek exterior and great style. It comes with latest Android Nougat operating system and further has a customized XOS UI layer for enhanced user experience. It has 32GB of internal storage and is powered by an Octa-Core processor with 3GB RAM for superior performance. It is equipped with a 13MP rear camera and 8MP selfie camera. Note 4 is available in exciting colours of Ice Blue, Champagne Gold and Milan Black.

Infinix Hot 4 Pro comes with a vivid 5.5 inches HD IPS screen with 4000mAh battery. Users can enjoy prolonged multitasking powered by 4000mAh battery paired with 3GB RAM & 16GB of internal storage. Music enthusiasts are set to be captivated by dual speakers powered by Dirac Stereo Widening™ technology which produces more immersive, clearer and louder sound with powerful bass. The 80db+ Ultra loud receiver and Noise Reduction Technology in the smartphone allow users to listen conveniently even in the noisiest of surroundings. It comes with a 13MP rear camera and 5MP  selfie camera supported by a soft light flash to avoid washed out selfies. It is available in exciting colours of Bordeaux Red, Quartz Black and Magic Gold.

Both the Infinix smartphone supports 4G LTE bands with VoLTE support for HD calls and faster call connection. It also comes with 2-SIM card slots and one dedicated expandable slot, which can support up to 128GB of memory card. The stylish smartphones come equipped with a fast fingerprint sensor for secure phone unlocking and can also be used for taking pictures, accepting calls and browsing pictures with ease.

Freshworks’s Freshchat Help Internet, Saas Companies Drive Better Lead Generation and Conversion

Freshworks, the leading provider of cloud-based business software, today announced the launch of Freshchat, a next-gen messaging product that helps businesses better communicate with their customers. Freshchat provides a suite of website and in-product engagement capabilities which help businesses capture more leads and drive sales.

As per the 2016-17 Gartner CMO Spending Survey, nearly two-thirds of marketing leaders plan to increase digital ad-spend in 2017. Marketers are spending more on digital marketing to attract customers to their websites and apps, but end up converting only 2 to 3 percent of these visitors into customers.

To solve for this, Freshchat enables businesses to target visitors with highly contextual messages to increase engagement and thereby conversions. Once the end user responds, an intelligent bot screens and qualifies leads effortlessly before bringing in a sales rep. This information is auto-synced into the CRM, providing context for sales reps and enabling intelligent conversations.

Freshchat breaks from legacy live chat tools to deliver a modern messaging experience that customers expect, similar to personal messaging apps like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger. Leveraging technology from recent acquisitions, Freshchat enables smarter conversations without the burden of traditional live chat on either party - no missed chats or sessions timing out for the customer, and no staffing up during peaks for the business.

Freshchat can integrate into websites, web-apps, native mobile apps, and other messaging products like Facebook Messenger. Freshchat offers in-product campaigns for onboarding and engagement, a unique integrated FAQ experience to encourage self-service, and advanced features to route and manage conversations for customer support.

“Businesses today want to provide their consumers with contextual, intelligent and personalized chat experiences,” said Girish Mathrubootham, CEO and Founder of Freshworks. “We believe there is a huge gap that live chat products don’t address compared to consumer messaging apps, which are creating high benchmarks for user experience. Sales and support agents need to be empowered with a single platform that provides the flexibility to engage with prospects and customers who are always multi-tasking. We are excited to offer a game-changing chat offering with unique sales and support capabilities that push the boundaries of an already well-established business communication channel.”

“At MakeMyTrip, we are always looking to use innovative technology to make travel seamless and hassle-free for our customers. We are using Freshchat to solve for our customers’ needs with precision, in real time. Not only has it ensured that our customers receive prompt personalized experiences, it has also brought in operational efficiencies that make assisted buying extremely scalable,” said Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and CEO-India, MakeMyTrip.

In addition to the standalone chat offering, Freshchat will integrate into Freshsales and Freshdesk, making it easy for sales and support teams to adopt the product into their workflow. Freshchat is available to businesses of all sizes, with a free plan for companies with less than ten team members in sales and support.

Australian Chocolate Café ‘The Chocolate Room’ Opens 5th Store at HSR Layout, Bangalore

India’s distinctive boutique café, The Chocolate Room launched its much awaited 5^th store in Bangalore, center of India's high-tech industry.

The new store is located in HSR Layout, relatively new suburb located in south-east Bengaluru. Seen gracing the grand launch was Indian Paralympic swimmer from Bangalore, Sharath Gayakwad.

The store is renowned for being a specialist chocolate indulgence café, offering customers a unique chocolate experience. For over 10 years India’s most famous chain of chocolate café is delighting its customers with irresistible treats and has been creating a new wave of chocolate culture worldwide. The Chocolate Room store has completed 10 years in the industry and is one of the most loved cafes in India.

Speaking at the launch of the store,  L.C. Kumar, Managing Director, The Chocolate Room said, “The launch of our second Bangalore outlet marks the 10^th anniversary of The Chocolate Room. Since past 10 years, we have endeavored to create an unmatched chocolate experience. Today with over 240+ stores spread across geographies we are extremely pleased to have received an immense response by chocolate lovers across the globe. We aim to open another 10 more stores in Bangalore by end of 2018 and another 260 stores by end of 2020 to reach 500 stores mark pan India.”

A treat for all foodies from all age groups, The Chocolate Room is an ideal café for everyone with a passion for not only chocolate but also mouthwatering offerings such as Mexican Bells, Fusion Sandwiches, Burgers, Mouth Watering Pancakes, Frozen Coffee, Fruit Frappers, Chocktails, Side Serves, Sundaes, Colada, Iced Tea, Waffle Wonders, Affogato, Pastries & Desserts to name a few.

The Chocolate Room India Pvt. Ltd. entered the Indian Market in 2007 and is now on an expansion spree with over 242 stores with 250+ variety of food product at stores across the country.

The Chocolate Room is present Pan India across 63 cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Chennai, Gurgaon, Lucknow, New Delhi, Pune, Vijayawada, Vishakhapatnam and many more.

Having been recognized by The Times of India, Times Food award in the category of Best Dessert for the year 2009 & 2011. Additionally in 2012, it was ranked among the organization that provide top 100 franchise opportunities and received Indian Power Brand and The Rising Star award in 2012. In 2014, The Chocolate Room was awarded with the Indian Restaurant Award 2014 for best regional café of the month, and in 2015, it was recognized as Café Franchisor of the year. Recently the café has been awarded as “Fastest Growing Café Chain 2017 by 94.3MY FM”.

‘Humans and Robots to be Comfortable Coworkers by 2020, But Skills and Culture Gaps Pose Hurdles’

A large majority of global companies that are leaders in artificial intelligence (AI) expect their employees will work comfortably with robots by 2020. Despite this optimistic outlook, a significantly smaller fraction of businesses is providing adequate reskilling and training to address technology disruption, according to a new survey of C-suite and senior executives. The study shows a striking disconnect between the expectations of how AI will impact the future of work, and the actions companies are taking in preparing their workforces and organizations for that future.

The research, Is Your Business AI-Ready?, conducted by Genpact, a global professional services firm focused on delivering digital transformation, and FORTUNE Knowledge Group, also underscores that even in AI’s early days of enterprise applications, large gaps in behavior and performance exist between AI leaders (companies realizing the most impact from AI) and laggards (those reporting the lowest business outcomes from this technology). While 82 percent of respondents plan to implement AI-related technologies in the next three years, these disparities in success will only widen without adoption of critical widespread organizational change.

“CxOs often struggle with how to achieve strong business impact from AI. The survey findings underscore what we see with our clients daily – success won’t come simply from technology alone,” said N.V. ‘Tiger’ Tyagarajan, president and chief executive officer, Genpact. “Companies must train their workforce – at all levels – and encourage the right corporate culture. Collaboration between humans and machines has the power to improve customer experiences, grow revenue, and create new jobs – but only if senior management has the vision to proactively prepare and embrace change.”

Resistance more from corner office than cubicles

While recent news reports raise alarms about the average worker’s wariness of AI, the study shows the C-suite’s view is the exact opposite: close to one-third (32 percent) of respondents indicate senior management is the group that most strongly resists AI. This compares with only 13 percent who cite middle management, and a mere five percent who say entry-level workers resist most.

Breaking barriers: Leaders embrace talent + technology

According to the research, the top three barriers to AI adoption are information security concerns, lack of clarity about where to apply AI most effectively, and silos within the organization, especially between information technology and other functions. AI leaders clearly understand that overcoming these barriers requires much more than just having leading-edge technology. Leaders dramatically excel over AI laggards in encouraging a culture that fosters success. For example:

• Nearly three quarters (71 percent) of leaders allocate sufficient resources and funding toward AI-related technologies, compared to only 9 percent of laggards.
• More than half (53 percent) of leaders foster a training and development culture to learn new skills, compared to 15 percent of laggards.
• Almost 60 percent of leaders say their middle managers think out of the box and encourage innovation, compared to only 14 percent of laggards.
• AI leaders also have a strong focus on process:

• Two-thirds of leaders have processes and systems that are well documented with standard operational procedures, compared to 20 percent of laggards.
• Leaders are more than four times more likely to have large amounts of customer data they can easily share across all departments (58 percent of leaders versus 14 percent of laggards).

“Process design and talent are keys to success with AI,” said Sanjay Srivastava, chief digital officer, Genpact. “One provides the catalyst for extracting the value from AI technologies; the other provides the amplifier to drive it at scale for the enterprise. Without one or the other, the chemistry of AI success just doesn’t work.”

Aiming AI for topline growth: Leaders excel in customer experience and revenue impact

When looking at AI benefits, leaders have the clear edge in moving beyond the more expected cost-cutting measures. While a third of all respondents cite cost savings as a benefit, more than 40 percent of leaders say AI improves the customer experience. Leaders also are almost twice as likely to achieve increased revenues from AI (45 percent of leaders, compared to 25 percent of all respondents) – a clear indication that using AI to transform the customer experience also delivers competitive differentiation.

Moreover, when asked to fast forward three years, 87 percent of all respondents expect that AI will bring better customer experiences. This underscores how companies increasingly plan to throw out their old playbook and replace it with AI – a nod toward the importance of imaginative, personalized, and immersive customer experiences.

The research also addresses companies’ investments in and use of AI and other technologies, and further trends on reskilling and workplace issues. To access a copy of the report, Is Your Business AI-Ready?, In addition, in a separate forthcoming study, Genpact will explore AI’s impact on consumers, both in their personal and professional lives.

In June 2017, Genpact and FORTUNE Knowledge Group conducted a survey of 300 senior executives (C-suite and one level below) from around the world, seeking insights into the strategies respondents and their companies use when adopting artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. 

Fifty-one percent of the respondents’ companies earn annual revenues of US$1 billion to $5 billion; 28 percent between $5 billion and 10 billion; 17 percent between $10 billion and 25 billion; and 5 percent between $25 billion and $50 billion. One-third of the respondents are based in North America, and the remaining two-thirds are evenly split between Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. The study also differentiated between “AI leaders” –respondents who achieve strong positive business outcomes from AI, scoring 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale -- and “AI laggards,” who scored 1 through 6 on the same scale.

Pluralsight’s New Suite Measures and Verifies Technology Skills

Pluralsight, the enterprise technology learning platform, today announced a new skills assessment and development suite that replaces traditional methods for assessing and benchmarking technology talent. The new suite, which includes Pluralsight IQ, advanced skills analytics, and advanced channels analytics, is designed to provide technology professionals and leaders with a fast, accurate, and affordable way to measure technology skills. The new suite uses machine learning and modern testing theory to significantly reduce the amount of time and cost usually dedicated to validating technology skills.

Software engineers must re-develop their skills every 12 to 18 months to keep their skills from becoming antiquated, according to Deloitte. This fast pace of technological change makes it difficult for technologists and organizations to remain relevant and competitive. Pluralsight’s new skills assessment and development suite empowers individuals and enterprises to identify where their knowledge lies and to develop a plan for acquiring new or strengthening existing skill sets.

“Pluralsight IQ is the most advanced assessment solution for technical skills in the market, and will be rapidly adopted by IT professionals to validate their technical expertise,” said Cushing Anderson, program vice president at IDC.

"Learning only matters if it turns into skills that can be used on a project, to solve a problem or to build a product," said Aaron Skonnard, Co-founder and CEO of Pluralsight. “We developed these new capabilities to give technology professionals and leaders real, quantified and actionable insights for developing the skills required to create world-changing products and solutions."

The new suite includes:

·         Pluralsight IQ — provides technology professionals with a free, easy and consistent way to measure and verify their current aptitude in a specific technology. 

Pluralsight skill assessments are now available to anyone for free. In as little as five minutes and 20 questions, technologists around the world can measure their current skill level and receive a verified Pluralsight IQ, which provides a quantified measure of their current skill proficiency, a timestamp that reflects the relevancy of their score and an easy way for them to showcase it. With plans to grow the collection, Pluralsight currently has 45 skill assessments available across a variety of subjects, including Angular, C#, JavaScript and Python. 

·         Advanced skills analytics — gives technology leaders unprecedented visibility into individual technologists’ skill sets and current levels of proficiency.

With the release of Advanced skills analytics, CIOs, CTOs and technology leaders will gain a deep understanding of the technology skill sets of each member of their team. With insights into all the Pluralsight IQs for their teams, technology leaders will now be equipped to effectively assign technologists to projects where their strengths will create the most impact. Bypassing the manual, time-intensive and expensive process of traditional benchmarking—which results in a static output, CIOs will now have real-time skill data to inform their strategy and ensure their success.

·         Advanced channels analytics — allows technology leaders to track the progress of each technologist’s skill development as it relates to strategic objectives. 

Advanced channels analytics allows technology leaders to see how each member of their team is progressing through the customized learning tracks they created. This information empowers CIOs and CTOs to help their teams acquire the mission-critical skills needed to meet strategic business objectives. It also helps them address skill gaps that may prevent the team from meeting their goals.

“Traditional testing methods don’t work when it comes to measuring tech talent; they’re tedious, costly and quickly become obsolete,” said Nate Walkingshaw, Chief Experience Officer at Pluralsight. “With Pluralsight IQ and our advanced analytics, we’ve built an assessment and development suite that will disrupt resumes, certifications, degrees and endorsements while providing a true understanding of the skills each individual possesses."

More than 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies rely on Pluralsight to enable technology leaders and teams to keep up with the pace of technological change and deliver key innovations on time, on budget, and securely. Through its technology learning platform, Pluralsight makes it possible for technology leaders and their teams to learn directly from world-renowned industry experts on the most important trending topics, including cybersecurity, big data, cloud, and AI.