ServiceNow Reports First Quarter 2020 Financial Results

ServiceNow, the leading digital workflow company making work, work better for people, today announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2020, with subscription revenues of $995 million in Q1 2020, representing 34% year‑over‑year growth, 36% adjusted for constant currency.

During the quarter, ServiceNow closed 37 transactions with more than $1 million in net new annual contract value (ACV), representing 48% year‑over‑year growth. Deals included the company’s second‑largest new customer transaction ever, as well as the Asia Pacific region’s largest customer service management deal ever. The company now has 933 total customers with more than $1 million in ACV, representing 30% year‑over‑year growth in customers.

"This pandemic has allowed us to engage our customers in new ways, enabling them to focus on their most critical workflows,” said ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott. “Businesses are splitting apart old value chains and reassembling them in end‑to‑end, mobile‑first experiences on the Now Platform. Our Q1 results are a direct reflection of ServiceNow’s unique position as the workflow platform to create great employee and customer experiences ‑ even in these challenging conditions. With our outstanding team and culture, I am extremely confident in the long‑term growth trajectory of this company.”

“We are working closely with our customers to support them in this challenging environment,” said Gina Mastantuono, ServiceNow CFO. “In Q1, we exceeded the high end of our guidance for subscription revenues and billings and delivered another strong quarter of operating profit and free cash flow. With our recurring revenue model, we are in a strong financial position to manage through near‑term uncertainties and for long‑term growth. We continue to focus on customer‑driven innovation and remain confident in our path to $10 billion in revenue and beyond.”

Financial Outlook

While we believe we are in a strong financial position to weather impacts caused to our business by COVID‑19, many of our customers are now operating under very challenging circumstances, especially those in industries highly affected by COVID‑19, and may re‑evaluate their spend. As such, the second quarter 2020 guidance and updated full‑year 2020 guidance we are providing today factor in the expected impacts of COVID‑19 based on information available to us today. Our guidance is also based on the assumption that generally the most significant headwinds will occur in the second and third quarters of 2020 and there will be increased uncertainty around new business, renewal timing or billings terms, particularly with customers in these highly affected industries. We are further assuming that economic conditions will begin to open up more broadly by the end of the year. Significant variation from these assumptions could cause us to modify our guidance higher or lower.

Our guidance includes GAAP and non‑GAAP financial measures.

Hyatt Announces Global Care and Cleanleanliness Commitment in India

Focusing on the safety and wellbeing of colleagues and guests during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, Hyatt’s commitment includes Global Biorisk Advisory Council accreditation, hotel-level sanitization specialists, and a working group of trusted medical and industry advisors

Guided by its purpose of care and experience delivering world-class hospitality for more than 60 years, Hyatt today announced a Global Care & Cleanliness Commitment to further enhance its operational guidance and resources around colleague and guest safety and peace of mind. The multi-layered commitment builds on Hyatt’s existing rigorous protocols and will include an accreditation process by the Global Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC) at all hotels around the world, colleague training and support resources, and a cross-functional working group of medical experts and industry professionals that will contribute to various aspects of the hotel experience.

“The world as we knew it has been fundamentally changed by COVID-19 and when we are all ready to travel again, we want to make sure that every Hyatt colleague and guest feels confident that each aspect of our commitment is designed with their safety in mind, and that we’re putting their wellbeing first,” said Mark Hoplamazian, president and CEO, Hyatt. “To do this, we must critically examine the hotel experience from every vantage point – from our rooms and our lobbies to our spas and dining – bringing in the latest research, technology and innovation to make that happen. Hyatt’s Global Care & Cleanliness Commitment is an important expression of our purpose to care for people so they can be their best – now and in the future.”

Global Cleanliness Accreditation

Hyatt remains committed to providing safe and clean environments and upholding the highest standards of cleanliness for colleagues and guests at all hotels globally. In May 2020, Hyatt plans to introduce a GBAC STARTM accreditation through a performance-based cleaning, disinfection and infectious disease prevention program that will focus on establishing hotel environments that are sanitary, safe and healthy. GBAC is a division of ISSA, the worldwide cleaning industry association, and is composed of leaders in the area of microbial-pathogenic threat analysis and mitigation, designed specifically to deal with biological threats and real-time crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. Hyatt is the first hospitality brand to announce plans to commit to GBAC STARTM accreditation which will include detailed training at more than 900 Hyatt hotels worldwide. Hyatt intends to complement this with regular internal and third-party auditing.

Hotel-Level Sanitization Specialists

The wellbeing of colleagues is at the heart of Hyatt’s business and core to advancing care for guests and

customers. In response to COVID-19, Hyatt is continuing to develop new work procedures and mandatory trainings in an effort to ensure safety for colleagues and guests. Daily colleague surveys will be introduced to measure colleague comfort, a hotel’s cleanliness, working order and customer service, enabling hotel leaders to address opportunities, make adjustments as necessary and meet colleagues’ needs in real time.

Further, as part of Hyatt’s Global Care & Cleanliness Commitment, by September 2020, every Hyatt hotel will have at least one person on property trained as Hygiene Manager who will be responsible for their hotel adhering to new operational guidance and protocols, some of which may include:

* Colleague certification, trainings and recertification process for hygiene and cleanliness
* Increased frequency of cleaning with hospital-grade disinfectants on all high-touch surfaces, guestrooms and shared spaces
* Implementation of enhanced food safety and hygiene protocols for restaurants, room service and group meetings and events
* Prominently placed hand sanitizer stations throughout hotel public and employee areas and entrances
* Exploring purification and sanitization device installation in an effort to ensure enhanced air quality
* Protective masks and other equipment for hotel colleagues
* Social distancing guidance in public areas across hotel properties

Cross-Functional Panel of Industry Experts and Professionals

At the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, Hyatt assembled a global cross-functional response team and engaged infectious diseases and occupational health experts to support efforts with COVID-19 research findings and information, which enabled Hyatt to promptly update detailed guidance to hotels and address specific needs and situations.

Hyatt continues to engage additional medical experts and leading industry professionals as part of its commitment. The goal of the working group will be to provide counsel on key areas of Hyatt’s business, challenging Hyatt to act even more holistically in this new environment. Topic areas and advisors in discussion include:

* Health & Hygiene: Dr. Daniel Lucey, M.D., M.P.H., Infectious Diseases Professor, Georgetown University Medical Center; Fellow, Infectious Disease Society of America
* Colleague Safety: Dr. Charles Yarborough, M.D., M.P.H., Preventive/Occupational Medicine Expert; affiliated with Johns Hopkins Department of Medicine and Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
* Food & Beverage Safety: Dr. Elaine Black, Ph.D., Food Science and Microbiology, Ecolab
* Travel Journey:
* Julie Rath, Vice President, Customer Experience, Innovation and Delivery, American Airlines;
* David Peckinpaugh, President, Maritz Global Events
* Space Design: Tom Ito, FAIA, LEED® AP, Global Hospitality Leader, Principal, Gensler
* Technology: Ahmad Ouri, Chief Executive Officer, Sonifi
* Wellbeing: senior leadership from the Global Wellness Institute

“As a key part of our loyalty collaboration with Hyatt, we are committed to looking at the holistic experience of our customers with a special focus on their wellbeing,” said Julie Rath, vice president, customer experience, innovation and delivery American Airlines. “The benefit of this collaboration is that we can share insights from our enhancements to cleaning and protective procedures while applying best practices from Hyatt to elements of our operation.”

Additional COVID-19 relief efforts underway by Hyatt include The Hyatt Care Fund, a program designed to support colleagues with the most pressing financial needs due to COVID-19, through a series of coordinated efforts around the world. Impacted Hyatt colleagues in owned, managed and franchised hotels and in Hyatt’s corporate offices around the world are eligible to apply.

For more information about Hyatt's Global Care & Cleanliness Commitment, please visit www.hyatt.com/info/global-care-and-cleanliness-commitment.

The term “Hyatt” is used in this release for convenience to refer to Hyatt Hotels Corporation and/or one or more of its affiliates.

About Hyatt Hotels Corporation 

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 20 premier brands. As of December 31, 2019, the Company's portfolio included more than 900 hotel, all-inclusive, and wellness resort properties in 65 countries across six continents. The Company's purpose to care for people so they can be their best informs its business decisions and growth strategy and is intended to attract and retain top employees, build relationships with guests and create value for shareholders. The Company's subsidiaries develop, own, operate, manage, franchise, license or provide services to hotels, resorts, branded residences, vacation ownership properties, and fitness and spa locations, including under the Park Hyatt, Miraval, Grand Hyatt, Alila, Andaz, The Unbound Collection by Hyatt, Destination, Hyatt Regency, Hyatt, Hyatt Ziva, Hyatt Zilara, Thompson Hotels, Hyatt Centric, Caption by Hyatt, Joie de Vivre, Hyatt House, Hyatt Place, tommie, Hyatt Residence Club and Exhale brand names, and operates the World of Hyatt loyalty program that provides distinct benefits and exclusive experiences to its valued members. 

SHAREit, Akshaya Patra Foundation Join to Provide Cooked Meals, Grocery Kits to People Affected by the Ongoing Pandemic

SHAREit, in an attempt to help fight the adverse effects of COVID-19 in India and with the intention to provide aid to vulnerable families impacted by the pandemic, has partnered with The Akshaya Patra Foundation. The global content discovery, consumption and sharing application has committed to donate INR 1 crore as a part of the initiative which would help feed 500,000 people in need.

“The world is going through extremely harsh times at the moment and we at SHAREit believe that it is times like these that demand everybody to join hands to help each other. While the world is trying to find a way out of this pandemic, it is crucial to ensure that the people affected by the crisis are taken care of. Providing meals and groceries to these people is our way of showing that we are all in this together”, said SHAREit spokesperson Hitesh Dhingra.

Expressing his gratitude, Mr. Shridhar Venkat, CEO - Akshaya Patra, said, “We are immensely grateful to SHAREit for their support in these crucial times. Their generous contribution will enable us to serve freshly cooked meals and distribute essential groceries kits to thousands of people from vulnerable communities, affected by the nation-wide lockdown. In these testing times, only collective efforts in the service of those in need will carry us through as a nation.”

SHAREit has also taken steps to increase awareness about the virus by setting up a live updates section on the application. The application updates the consumers about the number of cases discovered both in India and globally as well as the state wise bifurcation of the spread of the virus. The application also offers a helpline number to ensure safety.

SHAREit is available both on Google Play Store and iOS App Store. 

Securing Farmers with Technology: How Agritech Can Be a Solution to Farmers’ Produce-Related Woes

By Amith Agarwal, Co-Founder & CEO, AgriBazaar

Contributing about 15% to India’s GDP, the agricultural sector sustains almost half the population of the country. Interestingly, more than 265 million people in India are engaged in farming, which also makes it one of the largest employers in the country. More than 70% of rural India is employed in this space, running their daily expenses with income generated through agriculture. However, there are some significant challenges that the small farm-owner community faces in their day-to-day operations. These hinder the growth of farmers’ income and keeps the sector from flourishing to its full potential. 

To begin with, farmers in our country do not get the deserving returns on their produce. The reason? The presence of intermediaries and the high price of carrying out physical transactions in the local mandi. It leaves farmers with fewer returns. While this remains a major concern for this sector, many more challenges go unacknowledged. 

In a bid to address these challenges, the government has, fortunately, taken several laudable initiatives over the past few years. Pradhan Mantri FasalBima Yojana (PMFBY), Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY), E-NAM, and Soil Health Management (SHM), among others, are some of the top schemes that came as a significant relief to the farming sector. However, the sector yet calls for more attention. It is where agri-tech startups come to the picture.

How can startups address the farming challenges using technology?

The small size of farmlands – Unlike the west, size remains a crucial challenge for this sector. Still, the sector houses a vast population of farmers who own highly fragmented agricultural lands. They produce in small quantities and eventually earn less income. With the help of agri-tech, these farmers can take their produce to an online marketplace and sell it across India. Through these online platforms, they can reach international buyers and sell their produce at attractive prices at a global level.

The presence of intermediaries – Most Indian farmers fail to get excellent prices for their produce due to the presence of intermediaries which increases the cost per transaction – mostly 2-3% of the value - for conducting offline transactions in local mandis. However, through online agri-tech platforms, this can be brought down to almost 0.5% of the produce while eliminating intermediaries. In an online platform, the money is directly transferred to the respective accounts of farmers, allowing them to benefit from a healthy payment cycle.

Crop Traceability – From a buyer's point of view, crop traceability is a challenge that they majorly face in an offline mandi. For instance, today, when you visit a local mandi for buying vegetables, you have no idea about the actual producer. In case you face any challenge with the quality of the produce, you have no option to identify the farmer. Agri-tech can bridge this gap by creating transparency between the consumer and the original farmer. It means that any future requirement based on factors like quality, produce or consumer needs, can be efficiently ascertained through online platforms. These technology-driven platforms also give large Indian or global institutional buyers access to small farmers through an aggregation model. 

Crop Wastage – Farmers usually have no access to scientific data that they can leverage for better decision making associated with crops and fields. However, agri-tech companies have crop advisory teams that provide in-depth insights on soil health based on the past analysis. These experts are also adept at predicting weather conditions using tech advances such as artificial intelligence (AI) and drones. It helps farmers minimize crop wastage due to natural factors such as heavy rainfall, drought, etc. Moreover, with such technological assistance, farmers can have a better idea of when to plant and harvest a particular crop for the highest-quality yield.

Low Crop Yield – Agri-tech can also address and improve the crop yielding capacities of farmers by studying the history of farmers, crops and their lands. By leveraging this data, experts can develop tailor-made seeds, agri-nutrients and other pre & post-harvest inputs for farmers and help them deliver higher yields from their farms.

Financial Inclusion – By registering with agri-tech platforms, farmers can digitally upload their records in a convenient and hassle-free manner and apply for credit. It will free him from the clutches of the local money-lender who charges exorbitant interest rates. Based on the credit history and quality of the produce, farmers can secure loans, also termed as warehouse collateral agri-financing. Hence, these platforms can help the farmer community attain their growth objectives through easily-accessible financial instruments.

At a time when the entire world is disrupted by COVID 19, electronic mandis can be a great way of conducting buying and selling transactions between farmers and customers while also ensuring compliance to social distancing norms in the post-COVID world. Moreover, it can be an efficient solution to farmers’ several woes and add transparency and efficiency to the entire marketplace. Given these advancements in the farming space, agri-tech can be a newfound opportunity to bring back glory to Indian farmers and help them ramp up their contribution to India’s GDP.

Amith Agarwal is the Co-founder & CEO of www.agribazaar.com, one of India’s pioneering and largest agri-tech platform; views expressed above are his own. 

28 Indian States Set to Lose Tourism as an Industry During 2020-21

Key Pointer

* 1.8 billion+ domestic tourism footfalls, 10.5 million + foreign tourists and 6 million + NRI tourist footfalls hit
* Each foreign tourist has a multiplier effect of 2.8 times across Indian states, hence 10.5 million foreign tourists lead to 28 million +foreign tourists footfalls across states
* COVID-19 Pandemic has jeopardized all top performing foreign source markets for tourism impacted (USA, Canada, UK, Germany, China, Japan, Singapore, Russia, Italy, Spain), interstate domestic season which is almost 60%+ in the April - July period has collapsed for the FY 2020-21

Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism & Hospitality (FAITH), the policy federation of all the national associations representing the complete tourism, travel and hospitality industry of India (ADTOI, ATOAI, FHRAI, HAI, IATO, ICPB, IHHA, ITTA, TAAI, TAFI) has appealed to the Chief Ministers of each state for coming up with a state specific package.

FAITH has shared with each state their share of domestic and foreign tourists and how most of those total tourist footfalls will now not be available for 2020-21.

This tourism business has almost completely come to a standstill in FY 2020-21. Almost all of India’s top performing foreign source markets for tourism (USA, Canada, UK, Germany, China, Japan, Singapore, Russia, Italy, Spain), are severely impacted and are not likely to travel before FY 2021 - 22.

The interstate domestic season which happens almost 60%+ in the April - July period has collapsed for the year FY 2020 - 21 and will be negligent for the rest of year with stringent travel restrictions and reduced connectivity across Indian states. FAITH has been repeatedly saying to all key Government bodies that the Tourism industry of India first needs to SURVIVE, then needs to REVIVE and then only can it THRIVE.

FAITH has appealed to the Chief Ministers of each state for coming up with a state specific package.

* A complete waiver of all fixed electricity and other utility charges for FY 2020-21 without any penalties.

* A complete waiver of all excise duties for FY 2020-21 without any penalties.

* A renewal of all licenses, permits, permissions which were expiring in FY 2020-21 without any financial charges or penalties.

* A refund of the FY 2019-20 of SGST collected from all travel agents, tourist transporters, hotels, tour operators, restaurants and any other tourism, travel & hospitality enterprises in the state which will help manage their working capital crisis. This can be paid back in subsequent years interest free and without any penalties.

* A complete waiver of any other taxes, fees, cesses or levies such as the property taxes or interstate tourist transport taxes levied at the level of the state, municipal, district or panchayat on the tourism, travel & hospitality industry.

Additionally, FAITH has also requested the Chief Ministers for their support with the following:

Request to the Finance Minister, of Govt of India for a complete waiver of income taxes, GST, PF & ESI and any other statutory taxes, fees, cesses or levies on the tourism, travel & hospitality industry for FY 2020-21
Request to Governor RBI for increasing the moratorium period on loans from three months to full financial year of 2020-21 without any penal or accumulated interest.
Request to Finance Minister, Govt of India & Governor RBI for setting up a Tourism COVID 19 fund for 10-year interest free loan for enabling tourism, travel & hospitality industry to meet salary costs. This could be for a minimum fund size of Rs. 50,000 crores which is almost equal to the gross banking credit to Indian tourism, travel & hospitality industry. This will help retain jobs, ensure that tourism business don’t go bankrupt and also will protect the principal amount of loan and overall banking exposure.

This crisis emanating from COVID 19 is the worst ever to hit the tourism industry, bigger than the combined financial impact of 9/11 and economic downturn of 2009 and said to be even bigger than the impact of world war 2 and the Great Depression.

FAITH has thus appealed for urgent support to prevent mass bankruptcies and unemployment in tourism, travel & hospitality industry in each state.

care.fit and Columbia Asia Collaborate To Enhance Teleconsultation Services Across India

care.fit, cure.fit’s primary healthcare vertical, announced that it has partnered with Columbia Asia India, one of the largest and fastest-growing healthcare companies in Asia, to enhance its teleconsultation services in the country. As part of the collaboration, doctors from more than 20 specialties and super specialties from Columbia Asia will be available on the care.fit platform for a tele-consult.  Customers can also book an appointment on demand for Columbia Asia doctors via the cure.fit app or website.

Speaking about the partnership, Madan Somasundaram, Head care.fit said, “We are delighted to collaborate with one of the most trusted and high quality hospital chains, Columbia Asia India to provide quick and easy medical consultation to those in need, during these testing times. We are trying to pool every resource we can, to help serve people. Our association with Columbia Asia India will help in making health easy and touching more lives.”

This announcement comes weeks after care.fit launched telemedicine services across the country. The organization offers primary care services, including both online and offline consultation services along with full-body check-up in its state of the art clinics and customized health plans for various specialties.

Dr. Nandakumar Jairam, Chairman and CEO from Columbia Asia India said, “As a leading healthcare provider in the region, we are always looking to find new ways of connecting with patients in the country. care.fit’s teleconsultation service is the apt platform to bridge the gap between patients and doctors. This will surely enable us to provide optimized services to our patients. “

Columbia Asia India is one of the leading hospital chains in the country with hospitals in Bengaluru, Pune, Ghaziabad, Gurugram, Kolkata, Mysore and Patiala.

Twitter Brings Fans Closer to their Favourite Hockey Players with #AskTeamIndia and Behind-the-Scenes Action

Sports and socialising go hand in hand so how is it faring during this time of social distancing? Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) takes you behind-the-scenes on Twitter with live Q&A and a rare peep into the day of players amid COVID-19.

As the world combats the COVID-19 pandemic, all the major sporting events in India and across the globe have either been postponed or cancelled including 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which the Indian hockey fans had been eagerly awaiting. While there is no live on-field action, Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) took to Twitter to engage with fans of the game and bring the players from both the men’s and women’s national teams to answer questions from passionate followers of the sport. This unique, open and real-time action harnessed the positive power of Twitter in the form of real-time engagement.

During the lockdown, @TheHockeyIndia conducted a special Twitter Q&A, #AskTeamIndia, and went live on the service with four players - India women's hockey captain Rani Rampal (@imranirampal), India men's hockey captain Manpreet Singh (@manpreetpawar07), India men's hockey goalkeeper PR Sreejesh (@16Sreejesh) and defender Harmanpreet Singh (@13harmanpreet) - all of whom interacted keenly with their fans.

PR Sreejesh (@16Sreejesh) shares, “Twitter has always been a great service to engage with our fans, we are happy to have their support in #AskTeamIndia initiative which is fun, meaningful and also in some way I hope we are motivating fans to stay positive and active during these difficult times.”