Syncordis Partners with International Bank for Temenos-Based Transformation

Syncordis S.A., a leading Temenos banking software specialist and a subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd. (LTI) has been selected as the partner for a strategic Temenos T24 Transact engagement by Standard Chartered Bank as the bank transforms and upgrades its wealth platform. This prestigious win further consolidates Syncordis’ enviable reputation as a global, pure-play, one-stop partner for Temenos clients.

As part of this engagement, Syncordis will reimplement Temenos T24 Transact and integrate it with Standard Chartered’s Temenos WealthSuite, Insight and DataSource applications as well as other systems. The implementation will be accelerated by Syncordis’ regulated SaaS solution and LTI’s global system integration services. The benefits of this functionally rich, regulated SaaS solution include automated functional processes, customized, ergonomic and user-friendly menus and dashboards, predefined standard products with an exhaustive set of properties, as well as streamlined life cycle events.

Guillaume Desjonqueres, Chief Executive Officer, Syncordis said “Our Temenos expertise and project accelerators such as our SaaS solution make us the right partner for this transformational engagement. This is one of the largest engagements for Temenos WealthSuite in Asia Pacific and we bring a proven track and complementary services from LTI to it.”

Leveraging on Syncordis’ own regulated SaaS solution, Temenos’ Implementation Methodology (TIM) and a process-led “adopt” model to contain the scope, Syncordis is well-equipped to deliver the project alongside the client. The successful reimplementation will rely on standards to reduce customization and make Standard Chartered’s WealthSuite platform easier to manage and upgrade.

Amazon Prime Video Makes a Selection of Kids and Family Content Available Free to Watch on Prime Video for Amazon Customers

Amazon Prime Video Prime offers incredible value with unlimited streaming of the latest and exclusive movies, TV shows, stand-up comedy, Amazon Originals, ad free music listening through Amazon Prime Music, free fast delivery on India’s largest selection of products, early access to top deals, unlimited reading with Prime Reading, all available only for ₹129 a month

This week, Amazon Prime Video has made a selection of kids and family content available free to watch on Prime Video for all Amazon customers; including Just add Magic, The Dangerous Book for Boys, Wishenpoof, If you give a Mouse a Cookie, and many more. To access the free kids and family content on Prime Video, families without Prime memberships can log in from their Amazon account, and watch the free movies and TV shows on www.primevideo.com or through the Prime Video app which is free to download on compatible smart TVs, mobile devices, Fire TV, Fire TV stick, Fire tablets, Apple TV, game consoles and Chromecast. You can find the full selection of titles available for free in India here.

This week will also mark the exclusive India digital debut of Parasite, the film that created history by winning the most awards at the Oscars 2020, on 27th March.  Directed and written by Bong Joon Ho, the film follows the lives of a poor family, the Kims as they con their way into becoming the servants of a rich family, the Parks. But their easy life gets complicated when their deception is threatened with exposure. Prime Members can enjoy the Award winning Korean Film in Korean with English subtitles, as well as with Hindi dubs exclusively on Prime Video India.

Fashion enthusiasts across the world can now celebrate as Amazon Prime Video brings the much-awaited unscripted Amazon Original Series Making The Cut S1. The American reality television series will be hosted by none other than supermodel Heidi Klum and Fashion consultant Tim Gunn; where they will test the design and business skills of 12 designers as the compete for the coveted prize. Prime members can watch this high fashion fight to the finish starting 27th March.

Prime members can stream some of the latest Indian blockbusters, including Tamil crime thriller Mafia: Chapter 1 starring celebrated superstars Arun Vijay and Priya Bhavani Shankar; Punjabi action film Ik Sandhu Hunda starring Gippy Grewal, Neha Sharma; mystery thriller Madha (Telugu) starring Trishna Mukherjee, Rahul Venkat and Gashmeer Mahajani, Pooja Sawant, Mohan Agashestarrer Bonus, shortly after their theatrical release. Additionally, catch the popular Malyalam comedy Gauthamante Radham starring our Amazon Original Series The Family Man’s starrer Neeraj Madhav, in the lead starting.

HIGHLIGHTS

Parasite

Ki-taek`s family of four is close, but unemployed. With a bleak future ahead of them, the son Ki-woo is recommended for a well-paid tutoring job, spawning hopes of regular income. Carrying the expectations of his family on his shoulders, Ki-woo heads to the Park family home for an interview with Mr. Park, the owner of a global IT firm. It is at this house that Ki-woo meets Yeon-kyo, the beautiful young lady of the house. However, behind this meeting, an unstoppable string of mishaps lies in wait.

Making the Cut S1

In this first season of Making the Cut, Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn take 12 established designers around the world from New York to Paris to Tokyo, as they compete to become the next global fashion brand. Each week, winning looks will be available to buy on Amazon in the Making the Cut store, and the last designer standing will receive one million dollars to invest in their brand.

Mafia: Chapter 1 (Tamil)

Directed and written by Karthick Naren, Mafia is a story of Aryan who is a narcotics officer entitled with making the city a drug free zone. One day, people very close to Aryan get murdered one by one. He feels that this might be the work of the mastermind who is behind the entire distribution network.

Madha (Telugu)

Madha is an intriguing psychological thriller with a lot of mystery and suspense. It is a story of a proof-reader named Nisha (Trishna Mukherjee) who begins dating a cinematographer called Arjun (Venkat Rahul), unknowing of his devious plans for her.

Gauthamante Radham (Malayalam)

The Neeraj Madhav starrer, Gauthamante Radham revolves around revolves around Gauthamam and his journey of getting a driving license and, for the first time in the family, a car of his own. The film follows three stages of Gauthaman’s (Neeraj) life panning in on what a family’s first car means to them. It highlights the emotional attachment they feel for the vehicle.

Ik Sandhu Hunda Si (Punjabi)

To fight the corruption in Punjab university, senior student Sandhu announces his candidacy as Grewal for the election.

Bonus (Marathi)

Aditya runs his family business and he follows a vegan diet. His dream is to take business to another level and wants his workers to be paid well. But his grandfather opposes his decision of paying bonus to his workers and challenges him to live their life for a month.

Selfie With Bajrangi (FVOD)

The first season of Bajrangi revolves around the day to day problems of Ankush and how he overcomes those with his friend Bajrangi's help.

Inspector Chingum (FVOD)

Chingum, the Police in-charge of Shantiwood Police station has a strong South Indian accent. His misadventures leads the character to become comical yet very action oriented. Chingum dreams of a “Zero Crime City”. Chingum is accompanied by Hera, Pheri, Khabrilal, Chatur, Dosa Anna & Bozo. A vicious villian No Baal who secretly owns a Crime University but Chingum always defeats him.

Just Add Magic (FVOD)

(For children ages 6-11) - Kelly Quinn and her two BFF's, Darbie and Hannah, stumble upon her grandmother's mysterious cookbook in the attic and discover some far from ordinary recipes. When the Shut'em Up Shortcake silences Kelly's pesky little brother and the Healing Hazelnut Tart heals Darbie's ankle, the girls discover they have the power of magic.

The Dangerous Book for Boys (FVOD)

The McKenna family must cope with the passing of its much-loved patriarch, Patrick. Hope appears in the form of a book called The Dangerous Book for Boys that Patrick created for his three sons. It becomes a how-to guide that inspires fantasies in his youngest son, Wyatt, enabling him to reconnect with his father and learn lessons that help him navigate real life.

If you give a Mouse a Cookie (FVOD)

In the If You Give a Mouse a Cookie series, based on the beloved books by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond, we get to know Mouse, Pig, Moose, Dog and Cat and their favorite humans. When Mouse and friends get together, one thing always leads to another in the most unexpected ways. You just never know where things will end up, but you can be sure that IF Mouse and Friends go on an adventure together, THEN they will just have to have fun the whole time.

Wishenpoof! (FVOD)

Bianca is just like any other little girl, except for one teensy little thing. Bianca has Wish Magic, so she can make wishes come true. Whether she's at home in Wish World, at the Willow Tree with her fairy friends, or at school with her non-fairy friends, Bianca and her hilarious teddy bear sidekick Bob navigate day-to-day problems with a little help from Bianca's mom and of course, wish magic!

Sherazade The Untold Stories (FVOD)

Sherazade: The Untold Stories tells the true story of the classic Arabian Nights tales. One powerful female character, Sherazade, was the real hero of the famous stories. Without her, Aladdin, Ali Baba and Sinbad could not have had their adventures.

Zendesk Announces Partnership with Tata Consultancy Services

Zendesk, Inc. has announced a strategic alliance with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to provide world-class, enterprise grade CRM solutions for large Enterprises. The partnership combines Zendesk’s powerful support, sales and engagement software solutions together with TCS’ deep contextual knowledge and experience in digital transformation. Together, Zendesk and TCS will collaborate and more efficiently solve companies’ increasingly complex technological requirements and provide powerful CRM custom solutions and integrations.

“We are thrilled to join hands with TCS, this partnership will meld TCS’ deep expertise in technology with Zendesk’s CRM product portfolio and equip businesses to connect, serve and engage with their new-age customers across demographics. In India, we can observe an urgency to make enterprise CRM more adaptable and user-friendly to cater to the diverse user base. Accounting for the scope that this need presents, the recent GlobalData report has estimated that India’s overall spending on CRM is set to reach about $2.3bn by the year 2023. The timing for this partnership could not have been better to serve our local customers,” said KT Prasad, Country Sales Director, Zendesk India

“We are excited to work with TCS to better support the needs of enterprise companies,” said Ricardo Moreno, Vice President of Worldwide Partners, Zendesk. “With the combination of TCS’ long-standing history of providing information technology (IT) services, consulting and business solutions to many of the world’s largest businesses in their transformation journey and our service-first CRM offerings, we look forward to helping companies foster a transparent, responsive and empowered customer experience."

In 2020, it is predicted that customer experience will surpass both price and quality of product as a brand's key differentiator. As part of this alliance, global companies will benefit from TCS’ technology expertise and Zendesk’s support, sales, and engagement software to meet customers’ rapidly evolving demands and transform their experience. This includes:

Alignment between TCS' industry leading consulting, implementation and optimization services with Zendesk's CRM product portfolio.
Access to TCS' deep expertise across industries including financial services, manufacturing, retail, and more.

“TCS leverages its domain knowledge and deep customer relationships to contextualize its comprehensive suite of CRM/CX offerings to create bespoke solutions that provide a superior customer experience and create competitive differentiation,” said Akhilesh Tiwari, Global Head, Enterprise Application Services at TCS. “Our partnership with Zendesk brings together the best capabilities of both organizations to help businesses fast-track their digital transformation journeys.”

Today’s partnership announcement with TCS comes on the heels of Zendesk’s recent Support Suite, Sales Suite and Sunshine announcements. These service-first CRM solutions enable service and sales teams to instantly connect with their customers and have natural conversations across all touchpoints. 

The Private Industry is Also Doing its Bit to Help India Fight the COVID-19 Situation!

During this COVID-19 pandemic when the entire world is facing serious crisis and our country India is also on the verge of the same, Government of India in support of the 1.3 billion population is taking serious measures to curtail the deadly virus. While the Government yesterday announced a package of 15,000 crore rupees to fight the pandemic, private organisations such as Reliance and Vedanta have also stood up to help India fight the situation.

Meanwhile the budding private sector of India is also trying to contribute to the community by doing it’s bit.

Hong Kong based logistic gaint; Lalamove is currently planning to support the delivery of essentials in the cities that they operate in and are currently under lockdown. They have reached out to various businesses involved in food, groceries, pharmacies, etc., offering their support in helping them deliver their goods to the people in need.

Another tech-based logistics company 72 Networks has availed a Corona Specific Medical Insurance policy for all our employees in the event of any casualty to cover their financial burden. In case of any casualty (Corona specific), the medical insurance company will bear the total cost of the test & treatment and a payment of 1000 Rs will be given to the infected person during his time of quarantine on a daily basis so that he can meet his daily requirements (as a part of policy).

Apart from the Logistics sector; Edtech platforms like Edubrisk are also rising up to the occasion to help solve the educational crisis in the country. They are running free learning sessions for teachers/institutions so that they can take online classes for their students. Also, they are providing free demo entries for students who need to finish their courses on their platform.

Another reputed institute in the country for skilled-based courses i.e The Academy of Pastry & Culinary Arts is taking classes on Zoom for their students and are also doing a Insta Live/Facebook Live session daily for the normal crowd and are teaching them home friendly recipes so that they are occupied in this time of lockdown. These recipes are taught by world renowned and award winning chefs.

The dating/gaming industry is also not far behind as during this time of lockdown, dating apps like Gleeden are providing alternatives for individuals to spend their time at home doing something that they find pleasurable. The platform has registered a hike of over 70% on its platform during this period. The gaming platforms are also not far behind and are giving lucrative offers to woo the customers. Falling the suit, Fantasy & Online gaming platforms like the Baazi Games have also witnessed a hike of 8-10% on its online poker platform; PokerBaazi. These platforms are proving to be very handy in order to divert the attention of the masses locked at their homes.

Another important sector Fintech; whose importance is only going to increase with the coming time as due to the lockdown less and less people will venture out of their homes and the facility to avail handy loans from your homes or through your mobile phones is going to garner traffic soon. Shubh Loans; a fintech lending company (NBFC) is also fully prepared for the future challenges and is more than willing it play its bit in supporting the Government of India and its people. They are also encouraging their employees to work & stay at home and support the Government’s initiative fully. Apart from this they have also provided comprehensive medical insurance plans that include coverage for parents which will prove to be extremely valuable at times like these.

vHealth by Aetna Begins 30 Days Free Virtual Doctor Consultantion During Covid-19 Pandemic for General Public

People willing to do a virtual doctor consultation can call 1800 103 7093 (toll-free) to speak to a vHealth expert or give a missed call at 90290 96186 for online registration

vHealth by Aetna (www.vHealth.io) has announced a special initiative of providing free access to its virtual doctor consultation service, until 15th April, to help ensure people haveaccess to health care during the COVID-19 outbreak. vHealth provides professional and confidential medical consultationsby telephone and video for people across the country.

The announcement comes at a time when governments and healthcare authorities, around the globe, are recommending social distancing, in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. Without having to travel to a clinic or hospital, people can speak to a doctor about any aspect of their health, such as the management of chronic conditions, treatment of minor illnesses, advice on alternate treatment options, interpretation of diagnostic reports and guidance on staying healthy.

The service will not only help people who are concerned about visiting a hospital or a clinic at the moment, but it will also help the elderly and patients with ongoing health conditions to manage their health needs from home, thereby potentially reducing the risk  of catching infections

The free vHealth virtual doctor consultation service will be available for 30 days from the date of registration. People who register for the service can also utilise the benefit for up to four family members. To register for a virtual health consultation call the toll-free number 1800 103 7093 or give a missed call at 9029096186 to register online. The medical consultation service is available from Monday to Saturday from 8AM to 8PM, except national holidays.

Talking about the initiative, Dr Sneh Khemka, President of Population Health, Aetna Internationalcommented, “As the nation’s top leaders are urging people to stay at home and even avoid going to the hospitals unless in an extreme emergency, virtual consultation can be a single, trusted point of contact, for all their medical concernsfor many in the country. As a primary health care service provider, we feel there is a need for us to step up and support the community at large.”

vHealth by Aetna, India offers a broad suite of health services and solutions that is focused on preventative and primary care to behavioural health and wellness counselling. Its ecosystem includes a sizable team of in-house physicians and dieticians in addition to a physical provider network for hospitals, diagnostics, pathology, dental and pharmacies. Currently, vHealth is serving over 3million members in India and has a Net Promoter score of +65.

JK Tyre's Leadership Team Takes Voluntary Pay-Cut Due to COVID-19 Pandemic

JK Tyre, pioneers of Radial technology in India, has diversified and multinational presence.

Tyre Industry has been passing through difficult times owing to unprecedented slow down and disruption in supply chain. This has been aggravated by the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. It is anticipated that the situation may worsen further.

Dr. Raghupati Singhania, Chairman & Managing Director, JK Tyre & Industries Ltd, said, “Presently we are witnessing unprecedented difficult times, with both sales and profitability getting impacted due to Corona virus. The TEAM JK TYRE is putting together its might to emerge as winners in this challenging situation. In response and acting in a show of solidarity in this critical time, it has come forward for a reduction in their salaries.”

He further said, ”Chairman and Whole time Directors of JK Tyre have taken a voluntary cut in their salary of 25% and other senior management personnel have also taken a voluntary reduction in their salary by 15- 20%.   Pay cut also applies to its global operations.”

The company has also taken extensive steps to ensure safety and welfare of its employees and their families.

Organizations Should Follow a Five-Phase Approach for Resilient Business

A five-phase strategic and systematic approach to strengthen the resilience of organizations’ current business models is key to business continuity during the coronavirus pandemic, according to Gartner, Inc.

“Companies tend to have traditional business continuity strategies and plans that focus on the continuity of the resources and processes but omit the business model,” said Daniel Sun, research vice president at Gartner. “However, the business model itself can be a threat to continuity of operations in external events, such as the global outbreak of COVID-19.”

CIOs can play a key role in the process of raising current business model resilience to ensure ongoing operations, since digital technologies and capabilities can influence every aspect of business models.

Phase 1 — Define the business model: Facing the contingency of COVID-19 outbreaks, companies should first focus on their core customers that are essential to their continuity of operations, and then refer to a process of defining their current business models by asking questions focused on their customers, value propositions, capabilities and financial models.

Although CIOs do not normally lead the process of defining business models, they should proactively engage with senior business leaders to run through 10 key questions regarding current business models. This is foundational for CIOs to actively participate in modifying current business models.

Phase 2 — Identify uncertainties: This step can be carried out through a strength, weakness, opportunity and threat (SWOT) analysis, or by brainstorming. Given the wide range of uncertainties and threats, this step can benefit from a heterogeneous group of participants with diverse backgrounds and interests, particularly where IT is normally involved. Companies should focus on the risks that the uncertainty poses to the components of the business model.

“CIOs should participate in, or coordinate, the brainstorming sessions to identify any uncertainties from COVID-19 outbreaks,” said Mr. Sun. “CIOs can share some of IT’s potential uncertainties and threats, such as issues with IT infrastructure, applications and software systems.”

Phase 3 — Assess the impact: Multidisciplinary members should form a project team to assess, or even quantify, the impact of the identified uncertainties. CIOs can provide the potential impacts from an IT perspective.

Phase 4 — Design changes: At this point in the process, the emphasis is to develop tentative strategies rather than estimate their feasibility. Selecting and executing changes will follow in the next phase. CIOs and IT should leverage digital technologies and capabilities to facilitate the designed changes.

Phase 5 — Execute changes: The decision on which changes to execute is principally a decision for senior leadership teams. The strategies for changes defined in Phase 4 provide essential input for this decision process. Senior leadership teams should select the strategies they feel most compelling to implement, which is often based on both economic calculations and intuition.

“Once senior leadership teams select the business and IT change initiatives, CIOs should apply an agile approach in executing the initiatives. For example, they can form an agile (product) team of multidisciplinary team members, enabling the alignment between business and IT and ensuring delivery speed and quality,” said Mr. Sun. “In crises such as the COVID-19 outbreak, agility, speed and quality are crucial for enabling the continuity of operations.”

Gartner clients can learn more in the report “React to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak via Raising Business Model Resilience.” Additional analysis on the actions CIOs and IT leaders should take to remain resilient during coronavirus business disruptions is available in the Gartner webinar “How Your Business Can Respond to Coronavirus (COVID-19).” 

Learn more about how to lead organizations through the disruption of coronavirus in the Gartner coronavirus resource center, a collection of complimentary Gartner research and webinars to help organizations respond, manage and prepare for the rapid spread and global impact of COVID-19.

*Apart from exercise and meditation it is work that adds a meditative quality to our life, if we let it.