TVS Credit And IIM Trichy Sign A MoU To Boost Innovation And Create Solutions For Financial Inclusion

India's leading financial services provider TVS Credit Services Limited and the Indian Institute of Management Trichy (IIMT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost innovation, R&D, and collaboration for designing new solutions for promoting financial inclusion in the country. Being one of the fast-growing NBFCs in the country, TVS Credit's partnership with the leading B-school, IIMT, will create an avenue to leverage the collective talent and expertise from both institutions for product development, knowledge creation and research in the areas of management and public policy.

Speaking on the collaboration, Venkatraman G, Chief Executive Officer, TVS Credit, said, "The signing of the MoU with IIM Trichy will create the foundation for future collaboration between the two institutions. TVS Credit has been successfully empowering people across sectors and helping them fulfil their aspirations. It has been a constant endeavour of TVS Credit to steer industry growth and national development by encouraging product innovation and nurturing young talent. The outcomes from such initiatives will help us drive organisational growth and serve our customers and the nation better for years to come. The collaboration will help boost innovation, R&D, and help in designing new solutions to promote financial inclusion in the country."

The partnership would bring together academic and industry stalwarts and professionals who would jointly design, develop and deliver cutting-edge technological solutions in areas of management and financial inclusion. The strategic collaboration will also be a platform to train and mentor young professionals.  Speaking on the collaboration, Dr. Pawan Kumar Singh, Director, IIM Trichy, said, "We welcome this significant initiative that formalises and strengthens our relationship with the leading market player, TVS Credit, a company which is well-known for its services and values. We look forward to make the collaboration fruitful on multiple platforms and focus on mutual knowledge exchange initiatives. Such partnerships will help construct concrete and innovative solutions, thereby creating a long-lasting impact."

Additionally, Dr. Prashant Gupta, Chairperson of Executive Education and Consulting, IIM Trichy, said, "We are pleased to be associated with TVS Credit. This partnership could lead to a mutually benefitting journey in the coming time with a special focus on programmes such as Management Development Programme (MDP) and  Leadership Development Program (LDP).Furthermore, it will mentor the students at IIM Trichy and offer them immense industry exposure."

Under this collaboration, both organisations are creating a seamless ecosystem between industries, academia and government agencies by leveraging analytics and technology. It aims to provide these solutions in consulting, research projects, placements, management development programmes, and case studies.The first beneficiaries of this initiative will be the TVS Credit employees and the students of IIMT. The pact holds a strong potential to revolutionise the industry at large. In addition, it is expected to help the NBFC sector improve resource efficiency and productivity. 

About TVS Credit Services Ltd

TVS Credit Services Limited is a leading Non-Banking Financial Company with over 32,000 points of presence across India. Being the number one financier for TVS Motor Limited and one of the leading tractor financiers, TVS Credit has a fast-growing footprint in used cars, consumer durable, used commercial vehicle and business loans segment. Over 6.5 million happy customers have been served with the help of 19,000+ motivated employees and robust tech and analytics powered processes. TVS Credit is driven by a mission to empower Indians to dream bigger, secure in the knowledge in the fulfilment of their aspirations. With new products on the anvil and an unwavering commitment to customer service and constant improvement, TVS Credit creates value for the customers, employees and partners.

Know more about TVS Credit at www.tvscredit.com

ABB India Turns Its Nelamangala Campus Water Positive Certification From TERI

 

•      Total annual rainwater harvesting potential of more than 200 million liters

•      The campus has achieved close to 85% water recyclability

•      Water positivity index is 1.24

ABB India today announced that its Nelamangala unit has received a ‘Water Positive’ certification from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). In place of simply replacing the amount of water taken from the environment, the unit implemented an Innovative 6R approach towards ‘Water Positivity’ to replenish more water than it consumes at the location.

The unique 6R approach includes initiatives such as rainwater use and recharge, reduction in the use of freshwater, water recycling, and real-time monitoring of water consumption, recharge, and saving. The Nelamangala unit currently has 17 rainwater recharge wells, 2 recharge ponds along with 5 cross wave technology-based recharge tanks. ABB products such as water flow meters were installed in the rainwater recharge system to capture real-time data.

To reduce consumption of water, ABB India installed water-efficient fixtures, restricted the use of turf in the landscape area, and planted drought-tolerant plants in 81 percent of the landscape area. The unit has provisions of rainwater tanks for rooftop runoff along with TERI-approved filtration to get suitable water for a variety of end-uses. The campus has achieved close to 85 percent of water recyclability with the help of efficient Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) and recycling the treated wastewater for use in gardening and washrooms.

The water positivity index for Nelamangala plant is 1.24, which demonstrates our contribution towards replenishing much greater quantity of water for the environment than withdrawals for our operation. The index also shows our enhanced dependency on secondary water sources such as treated wastewater, rainwater, etc. and lesser dependency on groundwater sources for our operation.

“At ABB, ‘sustainability in practice’ is at the core of everything we do. It is a key part of our company’s purpose and of the value that we create for our customers, employees, and all our stakeholders. Our Nelamangala unit turning ‘Water Positive’ is a step towards continued resource conservation, in line with our 2030 global sustainability commitments.  We are committed to implementing various other similar environment-friendly measures across our ABB India locations to bring about a sustainable change,” said Sanjeev Sharma, Country Head and Managing Director, ABB India.

“In times of a severe water crisis in India, I am pleased to acknowledge that TERI has awarded India’s first water positivity certificate to ABB India, for one of their six factories in the country. I look forward to witnessing more partnerships in the sector and development of innovative solutions to manage and monitor natural resources on Earth,” added Sanjay Seth, Senior Director - Sustainable Habitat Programme, TERI, & CEO, GRIHA Council.

ABB’s Nelamangala unit, comprising of nearly 1500 employees, houses a state-of-the-art robotics facility spread over 3600 sq mt that delivers robotic applications and digital solutions for a variety of Indian industries. The Nelamangala unit also houses one of the first smart factories in Bangalore to produce ABB’s entire range of smart power products. 

ABB India’s water management initiatives at the unit were vetted by renowned external organizations such as GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) Council, Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) along with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). Assessment parameters included water monitoring system & KPI management, rainwater recharge and usage, water reduction initiatives, wastewater treatment and recycling system, and impact on the community.

ABB India currently recycles almost 95 percent of the waste generated across all their facilities within their premises to achieve long-term sustainability goals of zero waste to landfill. They have also enhanced the water recyclability by 4 percent in 2021 as compared to the year 2020 which resulted in reduction of freshwater withdrawal and overall water footprint of the company.

ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a leading global technology company that energizes the transformation of society and industry to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. By connecting software to its electrification, robotics, automation and motion portfolio, ABB pushes the boundaries of technology to drive performance to new levels. With a history of excellence stretching back more than 130 years, ABB’s success is driven by about 105,000 talented employees in over 100 countries. www.abb.com.

NeoGrowth Strengthens Board; Appoints CEO Arun Nayyar As A Whole-Time Director

NeoGrowth, India’s leading SME digital lender, recently appointed its Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Arun Nayyar, to the company’s Board of Directors, with effect from January 6, 2022. He has been designated as Whole-time Director & CEO, and with this appointment, the Board now comprises nine members.

Mr. Arun Nayyar, 45, has more than two decades of rich experience in the BFSI industry, and has spent the last 12 years in leading early and growth stage MSME lending businesses. Prior to NeoGrowth, Arun Nayyar was with Edelweiss Financial Services where he had been the ‘Chief Executive Officer – SME Lending’. He has also worked with Citibank and CRISIL. He is a Chartered Accountant by qualification.

Mr. Arun Nayyar has served as CEO of NeoGrowth since August 2018. Under his leadership, the company has been focusing on innovation with proprietary technology. He has played an instrumental role in advancing the digital loan journey for NeoGrowth customers, increasing its branch network, adding to its product range, and growing the portfolio. The company has also navigated through multiple challenges including the outbreak and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been a clear focus on building technology, use of analytics and staying at the forefront of latest industry developments.

Mr. Dhruv Khaitan, Founder & Chairman, NeoGrowth, said, “Arun’s stewardship has resulted in delivering tremendous business value to all stakeholders, in spite of the pandemic distress. Under his leadership, NeoGrowth’s business volumes are back to pre-COVID levels. I look forward to have him on the Board as we continue to work together in this journey for NeoGrowth to reach newer heights.”

Mr. Arun Nayyar, Chief Executive Officer, NeoGrowth, said, “I thank the Board for reposing their faith in me. At NeoGrowth, we continue to introduce tailored products and services that make digital lending easy and effective for all small businesses and meet their holistic business needs. With the support of the Board, I look forward to driving NeoGrowth to its highest potential.”

During the pandemic, NeoGrowth was one of the first non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) to create a customer outreach program, Sanjivni, as a measure to combat COVID-19 efficiently. Over the last three years, NeoGrowth has introduced several digitally enabled products like NeoCash Insta Loan, Plus secured loans, and several digital assets including a customer app to support the customer throughout the loan journey. The company has also put in place a very responsive and proactive risk management approach to overcome business challenges.

Mr. Nayyar will continue to lead NeoGrowth and strengthen its unique digital payments-based lending model with a customer centric approach. 

About NeoGrowth:

NeoGrowth Credit Pvt. Ltd is an SME- focussed lending fintech, leveraging the digital payments ecosystem. It is a systemically Important, Non-Deposit taking NBFC driving innovation with proprietary technology. NeoGrowth’s data science and technology led approach enables it to offer quick and hassle-free loans to MSMEs across 65+ segments. NeoGrowth offers a unique daily repayment option to its customers with multi-channel repayment modes. The company not only helps its customers grow but also drives financial inclusion making a positive social impact. NeoGrowth is backed by renowned investors, namely Omidyar Network, Lightrock, Khosla Impact, Accion Frontier Inclusion Fund – Quona Capital, IIFL Seed Ventures Fund, WestBridge and Leapfrog Investments.

KFin Technologies Launches Its New Corporate Brand Identity

KFin Technologies Private Limited (“KFintech”), an established SaaS company in India has announced the launch of its new corporate brand identity reflective of its corporate ethos.

The new brand identity has been indigenously designed to symbolise KFintech’s transformation and evolution as a company with foundational tenets of trust, technology and thought leadership. The triskelion motif represents a trifecta of the mentioned tenets culminating in Transformation representing rotational symmetry, usually denoted by three interlocking spirals.

The Golden Ratio incorporated in the logo ensures that the three arms in the design proportionately follow it, to depict a perfect symmetry and interdependence among its communication pillars. The letter ‘K’ represents Kinetic energy symbolizing the innate energy of the entity in motion. The tagline, ‘Experience Transformation’ reinforces KFintech’s role as a TechFin company.

Sreekanth Nadella, CEO, KFin Technologies Private Limited, said, “With the financial services participants embracing digital – transformational technologies curated with trust and thought leadership have been playing a pivotal role in redefining the new normal. The positioning of our identity is to reflect our organization’s purpose, strategic direction and strong execution capabilities in transforming mission critical financial infrastructure solutions to be most preferred and proactive solutions provider. The new logo symbolises perpetual transformation and the infinite loop of evolution.”

“We are deeply honoured for the trust that our clients and other stakeholders have reposed in us. As they say, “the best brand you can wear is your own identity” our new brand identifies itself with our unwavering commitment to transform the solutions and better the outcomes for the common good of all stakeholders.” Nadella added.

Hanisha Vadlamani, Chief of Brand & Corporate Communications, KFin Technologies Private Limited said, “KFintech as a brand has affinity and resonance to transform and meet the growing expectations of the consumers. The new brand identity and the ‘triskelion’ in the logo embody the corporate ethos of KFintech. While retaining the legacy of our brand name, the new look and feel of the brand are designed to internalize the core tenets and to convey to the world our coming-of-age transformation to be a critical pillar in the asset management industry.”

Godrej Consumer Products Limited Ranked No.1 Among India’s Top Companies For Sustainability And CSR 2021

Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL), a leading FMCG company, was ranked number 1 among the top 100 companies in India, for sustainability and CSR initiatives in 2021. This ranking is based on a survey conducted by Futurescape and published by The CSR Journal, and analyses a list of 100 companies that have mapped their business goals to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2021.

The Responsible Business Rankings of India’s Top Companies for Sustainability and CSR in 2021 show that around 80% of the top 100 companies incorporate SDGs into their responsible business actions. All the top 25 companies map their business goals with SDGs. The Top 10 ranks cover a range of industries — information technology, FMCG, chemicals, life sciences, textiles, power, steel and mining. GCPL is ranked among companies like Infosys, Wipro, Tata Chemicals Limited, ITC Limited, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited, Grasim Industries Limited, Vedanta Limited, and Tata Power Company Limited.

GCPL has ranked number 1 for the first time with a spending of INR. 34.08 Crore on CSR initiatives in fiscal year 2020-21. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the company recognised the urgent need for corporate support to be extended to communities to ensure immediate relief. GCPL diverted 63% of its CSR budget to reach over 2.77 lakh of the most vulnerable communities in India and initiated medium and long-term support to over 9,000 nano entrepreneurs. By March 2021, over 1,000 people re-established their businesses or received entitlements.

Commenting on this recognition, Sudhir Sitapati, Managing Director and CEO, GCPL, said: “At Godrej Consumer Products, we are committed to building for a more sustainable future, while placing our planet and people alongside profits. In fiscal year 2020-21, as the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the world, we focused our efforts to ensure immediate relief and mid-to-long-term rehabilitation support. We worked in partnership with local authorities, the national government, and our communities, to provide support to the last mile. We continued to support our existing CSR programmes and pivoted our approach to the changing context on-ground. We have now partnered with local healthcare providers to raise awareness on vaccination among low-income and underserved communities. We aim to reach over 1, 00,000 people in India by March 2022. Going forward, we have bolder CSR goals, and aim to drive impact for over 13 million people by 2025.”

Another key area of focus in pandemic relief was strengthening public healthcare. GCPL donated medical equipment worth INR 2.36 Crore to the governments in Mumbai and Assam. In India, GCPL donated 21 lakh units of sanitation products in response to requests from local authorities, hospitals, and NGOs for frontline workers and communities.

Under its Sustainability and CSR initiative, Good & Green, GCPL has been working towards enhancing the employability of beauty professionals by providing employment to micro and nano beauty influencers, protecting people from vector-borne diseases through its EMBED programme, ensuring judicious use of natural resources, and implementing a range of environmental sustainability and community development initiatives.

GCPL also ranks among the top 15% within the industry for excellence in sustainability as part of the Sustainability Yearbook 2021 by S&P Global CSA.

About Godrej Consumer Products Limited

Godrej Consumer Products is a part of the over 124-year-young Godrej Group. We are fortunate to have a proud legacy built on the strong values of trust, integrity, and respect for others. As an emerging market company, we have witnessed rapid growth and are pursuing our exciting and innovative aspirations.

Today, our Group enjoys the patronage of 1.15 billion consumers globally, across different businesses. We rank among the largest Household Insecticide and Hair Care players in emerging markets. In Household Insecticides, we are the leader in India, the second largest player in Indonesia and are expanding our footprint in Africa. We are the leader in serving the Hair Care needs of women of African descent, the number one player in Hair Colour in India and Sub-Saharan Africa, and among the leading players in Latin America. We rank number two in Soaps in India and are the number one player in Air Fresheners and Wet Tissues in Indonesia.

But for us, it is very important that besides our strong financial performance and innovative, much-loved products, we remain a good company. Approximately 23% of the promoter holding in the Godrej Group is held in trusts that invest in the environment, health, and education. We are also bringing together our passion and purpose to make a difference through our Good & Green approach to build a more inclusive and greener India.

At the heart of it all, is our talented team. We take much pride in fostering an inspiring workplace with an agile and high-performance culture. We are also deeply committed to recognising and valuing diversity across our teams.

www.godrejcp.com

78% Bangaloreans Pplan To Switch From Renting To Owning Assets: Post ‘Generation-Rent’ Study By Godrej Housing Finance

Key Findings

* 25% feel purchasing house of their own is crucial to securing their future, second to job security (45%)

* 40% respondents feel buying a new house is the best investment option at present compared to the national average (32%)

* Flexibility on policy, timelines and credibility are the factors most important while choosing a home loan provider

78% people in Bengaluru have now become more inclined towards asset building and property purchase as an investment option in the post-pandemic world, revealed the latest study, Post 'Generation-Rent' commissioned by Godrej Housing Finance (GHF). The study was commission to gain insight into the shift in consumer's preference and the factors thereof that drive the decisions for considering property purchase, asset creation, and investment avenues by Indian consumers to secure their future in a post-pandemic world. 

The study further revealed that 25% of people in the city feel purchasing house of their own is crucial to securing their future second to job security (45%). Additionally, 40% feel buying a new house is the best investment option at present compared to national average of 32%. 

‘Generation-Rent’ is a well-documented phenomenon associated with Millennials across the world who prefer to rent over asset ownership of consumer durables and even housing. In stark contrast to earlier assumptions, the study found around 76% of Indians highlighted that they now plan to switch from renting to owning assets as an investment and lifestyle choice.

The Post ‘Generation-Rent’ study by Godrej Housing Finance revealed that almost half of Indians (49.13%) had started making headway in their house-hunting aspirations and reaching out to housing finance companies in the past year. 32.9% believe that buying a new house is the best investment option at present, while 16% mentioned owning a house is a top priority as work from home is the new normal.

The study also found that 25.5% of the Indians consider owning a home the second-most important aspect defining 'personal security', with job security leading the chart with 40.6% voting for it.  

Commenting on the findings, Manish Shah, MD & CEO, Godrej Housing Finance, said, “The pandemic has brought about a clear shift in preference amongst Indian consumers. They are gravitating towards future-proofing through long-term investments. With affordability at an all-time high, there has probably never been a better time to buy a house, which is both an important element of asset allocation and a key pillar of financial security. That said, customers believe that this change requires enhanced support from their financial partner to advise and guide them through this long-term commitment. The study re-affirmed our need to double down on offering innovation, flexibility and digital alternatives in both product design and delivery to facilitate homeownership better and ease the customer's financing journey.” 

The study further revealed that flexibility on policy, credibility and transparency of the brand, digital offerings, and relative turnaround time for processing are the top factors that drive the selection of financing partner. This can be attributed to consumers becoming accustomed to the on-demand gratification of their requirements aided by digital technology. 

The study also found that digital-first and frictionless processes are perceived as both an advantage and a starting point for consumers while choosing today's financing brands. Companies and services that offer end-to-end digital solutions gain an edge in consumer preference over more traditional financing models. 

About Godrej Housing Finance:

Godrej Housing Finance (GHF), a part of Godrej Industries Ltd., aims to build a long term, sustainable retail financial services business in India, deeply anchored around the Godrej Group's 124-year legacy of trust and excellence.

With a keen focus on product innovation, a digital-first approach, data-driven decision-making, and strong risk fundamentals, Godrej Housing Finance offers home loans and Loans against Property to customers across Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Pune and Ahmedabad

It follows a fair, fast and transparent process that enables Indians to purchase their dream homes - with flexible, affordable, and hyper-personalized loans to their financial capability and convenience. 

Godrej Housing Finance is committed to creating a great people organization built on the fundamentals of inclusivity, diversity and equality for all its employees, partners and stakeholders.

Methodology of the report: The report is based on interviews conducted by Innovative Research Services (India) Pvt. Ltd., with over 2000 Indians between 18-60 years of age across Bengaluru, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, and Ahmedabad.

Microsoft Highlights Trend Toward AI Driven Business Applications With Disruption In Customer Journeys

* Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, Eureka Forbes share insights on digital transformation efforts reimagined for an AI-first and collaboration-first world

As technology intensity accelerates in India, Microsoft shared insights into the growing trend of companies adopting AI driven solutions across its business applications stack with customer journeys being disrupted by the pandemic and evolving customer expectations. Speaking at a roundtable hosted by Microsoft with the participation of senior executives from Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail in addition to Eureka Forbes, Microsoft executives commented on how customers are leveraging the power of unified data and applied intelligence through Microsoft Business Applications, the integrated service that help companies unleash their potential by breaking down data silos to connect customers, products, people, and operations.

According to Irina Ghose, Executive Director, Cloud Solutions, at Microsoft, “Business leaders are constantly looking for new ways to optimize operations, transform products, empower employees, and engage customers. With Microsoft Business Applications, we help organizations access vast data sources, use AI to understand and generate insights and help people collaborate better. As a result, customers no longer need to experience the friction and inefficiencies created by static products and siloed data that lives in fragmented, monolithic software suites. They can move to a more empowered environment where they can nurture ongoing relationships with their customers on one platform that brings together all kinds of interactive, highly tailored experiences to ultimately transform their business.”

She further added “Every month over 500,000 companies including 57% of the Fortune 500 use Dynamics 365 to transform businesses, get more value for their assets and ensure a resilient supply chain by engaging customers differently. Today, more than 4500 organizations are using Dynamics 365 ERP to manage their operations successfully”.

Reflecting on the impact of the pandemic which was clearly the turning point for the Indian retail industry, Praveen Shrikhande, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd spoke about the rapid transformation needed to fulfil online orders which led to significant changes in their business process. Mr. Shrikande added, “In a period of 6 months, we enabled almost a thousand stores where the orders could be sent from our online site to the store and the store could dispatch the order directly, thereby setting the foundation for a hyper local model. Taking it a step further, we are now reimagining how the customer journey can be made truly omni- channel where a customer could come online, discover a product, and then pick it up or try it in the store and buy it there. Microsoft’s support with the Dynamics 365 platform has been pivotal in helping us integrate our front end and backend systems to make this tech transition happen.”

Khushru M. Mistry, Chief Information Officer, Senior Vice President, Eureka Forbes Ltd shared his perspective about embarking on the gig economy worker strategy and the fundamental changes needed for a tech perspective of human capital management systems. He said, “All our tech enablement is going to be on a frontend which is the mobile of the gig worker, ensuring that we are able to develop the applications rapidly, quickly, efficiently and gamify it, so that the engagement with the gig economy worker is much more relevant to what they do. With Dynamics 365 Service, we now have the advantage of a powerful CRM, packed with the latest technology and features that can facilitate new ways of working such as enhanced analytics to assist our field service staff in making quick decisions for our customers along with dashboards that reflect real-time dynamic capacity augmentation. Most importantly, the Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform will become the cornerstone for our future growth with the gig economy.”

“The ground reality is that every business function – including marketing, sales, customer support, and supply chain – will need to be reimagined for an AI-first and collaboration-first world, “said Praveen Mellacheruvu, Country Head -Business Applications, Microsoft.  “With Dynamics 365, we’re building a new generation of business applications to help organizations adapt to this new reality and break down silos between communications, collaboration, and business processes. We also see low-code/no-code as another key enabler of the digital transformation taking place across Indian organizations. With the Microsoft Power platform, business users can now drive process automation at a scale and pace that is not possible with traditional development models.”

Business Applications is Microsoft's integrated service which provides customers purpose-built apps to help manage specific business functions - sales, customer services, field service, finance, and operations among others. Microsoft Power Platform is a low code platform that allows organizations to analyze data, build solutions, automate processes, and create virtual agents, to meet business challenges effectively. The platform includes Power Apps, Power BI and Power Automate.

About Microsoft

Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Microsoft set up its India operations in 1990. Today, Microsoft entities in India have over 16,000 employees, engaged in sales and marketing, research, development and customer services and support, across 11 Indian cities – Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, New Delhi, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Noida, and Pune. Microsoft offers its global cloud services from local data centers to accelerate digital transformation across Indian startups, businesses, and government organizations.