Gallagher Insurance Brokers And Almond Solutions Join Hands To Offer Embedded Insurance And Care Protection Packs

Gallagher Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd, a leading US-headquartered global insurance and risk management firm, has announced a partnership with Almond Solutions,  one of India's leading B2B channel engagement solution companies, to offer embedded insurance and care protection packs to over 30 lakh B2B channel partners on Channelverse, a cloud-based channel engagement, loyalty rewards and experience ecosystem of Almond Solutions.

This industry-first initiative will allow Gallagher Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd to leverage Almond Solutions' technology expertise and extend embedded insurance and care protection packs to 30 lakh B2B channel partners like retailers, carpenters, painters, etc., enrolled on Almond's Channelverse. The alliance will also make embedded insurance and care protection packs seamlessly integrated into the loyalty and rewards programs, providing a one-stop solution to the channel partners.

As part of the partnership arrangement, Gallagher India will facilitate easy insurance solutions through leading insurance companies in India across a few segments like lifestyle, SMEs, individuals, short and long-term trips, wellness, gadgets and electronic products. The embedded insurance and care protection packs will be available to B2B channel partners on Channelverse very soon.

Talking about this partnership, Yashesh Sampat, Head - of Affinity and Association, Gallagher Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd., said, "We are excited to partner with Almond Solutions to offer our embedded insurance and care protection packs on Channelverse. This partnership will enable us to provide our partners with a unique value proposition, helping them to differentiate themselves from their competitors and better serve their customers. Such initiatives will definitely help in pushing the insurance penetration”.

Abhinav Jain, Co-founder & CEO of Almond Solutions added, "We are thrilled to join hands with Gallagher, a leading insurance broker in the market Our cloud-based b2b channel engagement and loyalty platform, Channelverse, offers a modern and flexible way for brands to engage and reward their B2B channel partners. This partnership will create tremendous value and trust between our clients and their B2B channel partners. This association marks a significant milestone for Almond Solutions in realizing its vision of becoming India's most trusted B2B channel engagement solution provider." said.

About Gallagher Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd.:

Gallagher is a leading provider of risk management services, general insurance broking and risk solutions in India.. With a heritage dating back to 1927, Gallagher Insurance has grown to become one of the largest insurance brokers in the world. The company has over 39,000 employees and operates in more than 150 countries.

About Almond Solutions:

Almond helps companies efficiently accelerate distribution-led revenue growth. Since 2020, Almond Solutions has been helping enterprises of all sizes empower and scale their channel engagement with their award-winning B2B loyalty and rewards, interactive product education, and online events ecosystem, Channelverse.

Cepheid Announces The Launch Of Its First Manufacturing Unit In India

·         The facility has been set up to manufacture tuberculosis testing cartridges

·         Through this investment the company hopes to aid India in its goal of eradicating tuberculosis by 2025

Cepheid, a leading global molecular diagnostics company, today announced the launch of their first manufacturing unit in India at Mahadeva Kodigehalli, Bengaluru. The 77,000 square-foot facility will manufacture the company’s industry-leading Xpert® tuberculosis testing cartridges for India and other countries. 

The facility was inaugurated by Dr K. Sudhakar, Hon. Minister for Health & Family Welfare and Medical Education, Govt. of Karnataka, and Mr Laurent Bellon, Senior Vice President, Operations, Cepheid USA in the presence of Mr. Srinath Venkatesh, President, Danaher India and Mr. Ravikumar Venkataraman, Vice President, Danaher India Development Center.

The launch of the new manufacturing unit in India represents a significant milestone for Cepheid, as it strengthens the company's commitment to providing accessible and high-quality molecular diagnostic solutions to health care providers and patients in the region.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr K Sudhakar, Hon. Minister for Health & Family Welfare and Medical Education, Government of Karnataka, “I would like to congratulate and thank Cepheid for choosing Karnataka for setting up its first manufacturing facility in South Asia. The CBNAAT device manufacturing unit will also strengthen the Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of making India Tuberculosis free by 2025.”

Commenting on the milestone, Laurent Bellon, Senior Vice President, Operations, Cepheid USA, said, “We are thrilled to announce the launch of our first manufacturing unit in India. The Make in India program represents our vision of furthering India's growth and development in the molecular diagnostic ecosystem. We are proud to be a critical partner in the country's efforts to improve healthcare outcomes and eliminate TB. This new manufacturing facility illustrates our strong commitment to India.”

The Cepheid manufacturing project in India was initiated in 2018 to support the dynamic India market. In line with the Government of India’s "Make in India" policy, the local manufacturing of components will make Cepheid's MTB kits more accessible while strengthening the broader molecular diagnostics production capabilities in the country.

“We are proud to contribute to India’s long-term sustainability goals and help eradicate TB by 2025”, said Jai Shankar Krishnan, President – High Growth Markets, Danaher Corporation. “This initiative is driven by our honorable Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi. Towards this cause and Danaher’s commitment to India, we are excited to leverage the “Make in India” initiative by opening a manufacturing site in Bangalore for Cepheid that will help more than 10 million Indian population to be tested for TB along with other tropical diseases.”

Cepheid has almost 50,000 GeneXpert® Systems installed globally, including systems across 35 states and union territories in India.

“The manufacturing site provides a fantastic Gemba for our product developers – understanding how our products are built helps us design next generation products,” stated Venkataraman Ravikumar, Vice President, India Development Center. “And for the manufacturing teams, India Development Center (IDC) provides a window into future products and solutions that are anticipated in the market.”

Cepheid is the molecular diagnostic provider of choice in every one of the 30 high burden TB countries (as defined by WHO). The Cepheid GeneXpert® system and Xpert® test cartridges are a flexible testing platform that can deliver accurate and fast results that are simple to operates, where they are needed – from the lab to the point of care.

Jaguar Land Rover Partners With Tata Technologies To Accelerate The Digital Transformation Of Its Industrial Operations

* The collaboration with Tata Technologies will enable Jaguar Land Rover to deliver its modern luxury vehicles and experiences faster, using advanced digital technologies

Partnership with Tata Technologies is the key driver of Jaguar Land Rover’s fully connected, digital industrial strategy

* Tata Technologies will implement cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software solutions that will revolutionise operations for employees and suppliers, delivering advanced interfaces, increased efficiency, and enhanced collaboration

* Further example of the development of strategic relationships with the wider Tata Group as part of Reimagine strategy

Jaguar Land Rover is partnering with Tata Technologies, the global engineering, product development and digital services company, to accelerate the digital transformation of Jaguar Land Rover’s industrial strategy. The first phase will include UK core production facilities, with solutions subsequently deployed to other global locations.

Tata Technologies will deliver end-to-end integrated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) to transform Jaguar Land Rover’s manufacturing, logistics, supply chain, finance and purchasing modules by bringing data and knowledge from multiple departments into one single source.

The intuitive new user interface of Tata Technologies award-winning software will drive stability in operations, improving visibility both between teams and for suppliers. The net result for the company will be a more agile, faster-to-market capability for new vehicles.

ERP is key to streamlining and consolidating information across core business areas. Creating a dedicated home for data and management processes across departments is fundamental to the transformation of how a business functions. ERP systems are also capable of aggregating, storing and interpreting data to provide insights instantly, helping companies respond to issues, challenges and opportunities in an agile and timely manner.

The agreement furthers Jaguar Land Rover’s alignment with the Tata Group of companies as part of its Reimagine strategy. Tata Technologies brings more than 30 years of experience in product and digital engineering, with a global network of over 11,000 employees and clients across multiple countries.

Speaking on the collaboration, Barbara Bergmeier, Executive Director of Industrial Operations, Jaguar Land Rover, commented: 

“The partnership with Tata Technologies will allow us to accelerate the transformation of our core ERP infrastructure to deliver the efficiency and usability we require for the future and our transformation objectives. It also demonstrates the power of being part of the Tata Group to help us to achieve targets for our supply chain and wider industrial operations.”

Warren Harris, MD and CEO, Tata Technologies, commented:

“The ERP transformation collaboration with Jaguar Land Rover is another milestone in a nearly two-decade relationship with Tata Technologies. The trust awarded by Jaguar Land Rover reaffirms our long-standing expertise in automotive engineering and digital solution offerings. We believe this collaboration will help Jaguar Land Rover to build innovative and sustainable vehicles and achieve faster time to market using new-age digital technologies. We are delighted to strengthen our existing engagement with Jaguar Land Rover and are fully committed to deploying our digital engineering capabilities and assisting with the launch of their new generation of vehicles.”

Anthony Battle, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Jaguar Land Rover, commented:

“Jaguar Land Rover’s digital transformation will play a pivotal role in the business becoming more agile as part of Reimagine and fulfilling its potential as a tech leader. As part of our Digital 2024 programme, we are transitioning to a cloud-native digital landscape and the partnership with Tata Technologies enables us to take another important step on that journey.”

In addition to establishing a standard operating model, Tata Technologies will integrate SAP S/4 HANA and SAP BTP with the existing software to upgrade Jaguar Land Rover’s architecture as part of the company’s digital transformation strategy. The SAP S/4 HANA software package represents a shift from legacy ERP solutions to a modern cloud-based system, driving operational efficiencies and stability.

Adani Cement Wins Multiple Awards For Safety At OHSSAI Awards 2022

·         Adani Cement has been felicitated with a Gold Award in Road Safety and Silver Award for Safety by OHSSAI in the Manufacturing Sector.

·         Adani Cement’s Leaders have also been recognised for their contribution towards Safety and Sustainability over the years.

Adani Cement has been honoured with multiple awards for safety by the Occupational Health, Safety & Sustainability Association of India (OHSSAI). OHSSAI is a leading not-for-profit organization that focuses on innovative ideas in occupational health, safety, environmental & sustainability areas and recognizes companies and the leaders who demonstrate exceptional commitment to safety and health of their employees.

Adani Cement received awards in several categories in the Manufacturing Sector, including:

•                      OHSSAAI Road Safety Gold Award

•                      OHSSAAI Safety Silver Award

In the individual awards segment,

•                      Mr. Sukuru Ramarao, COO has been honoured with HSE Leadership Award for his immense contribution towards supporting the cause of HSE and Sustainability over the years.

•                      Mr. Pankaj Singh, Head – Safety, Manufacturing & Logistics has been recognized as the HSE&S Mentor of the Year for his contribution towards OHS and Road Safety.

Mr Ajay Kapur, CEO, Cement Business, said "We are proud to be recognized by OHSSAI for our safety achievements. Safety is an integral part of our overall business strategy, and we are committed to continually improving our safety performance and achieving excellence in all areas of our operations. Safety is everyone's responsibility, and we are committed to maintaining a safe and healthy workplace for our employees."

The awards presented to Adani Cement and its leaders are a testament to the Company's dedication to safety and the efforts it has made to create a safe and healthy work environment. These recognitions highlight Adani Cement’s commitment to sustainable practices in the manufacturing sector, and its focus on implementing best practices in health, safety, and the environment. The Company's safety initiatives have led to a significant reduction in accidents and injuries and have helped create a safer workplace for all its employees.

Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Bank ETF AUM Surpasses Rs 2,000 Crore In February; Registers 25x Growth In FY23

* Total AUM in ETF space managed by the fund house surpasses Rs 4,000 crore in February

Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Limited, a subsidiary of Aditya Birla Capital Limited, an investment manager to Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund, further strengthened its presence in the ETF space. The Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Bank ETF registered a growth of over 25x in its AUM during from 1st April 2022 to 28th February 2023 and surpassed the milestone of Rs 2000 crore.

The Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Bank ETF, an open-ended exchange-traded fund tracking the Nifty Bank Index, launched on 23rd October 2019 is for investors looking for long-term capital growth.

Nifty Bank Index is comprised of the most liquid and large-capitalized Indian Banking stocks. It provides investors and market intermediaries with a benchmark that captures the capital market performance of Indian Banks.

Commenting on ETF’s milestone and growth, A. Balasubramanian, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd. said, “We are thrilled to see a tremendous response from investors for Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Bank ETF. The strong performance of the banking sector has played a significant role in the success of the fund, and we believe that the trend will continue in the future. I firmly believe, a robust banking system is a must to support India’s growth.”

The asset under management for Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd in the ETF space has grown over 3x to over Rs 4000 crore as on the end of 28th February 2023 since the start of the current financial year.

In addition to Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Bank ETF, the other ETFs offered by the company have also witnessed substantial growth in AUM demonstrating the company's commitment to providing investors with a diverse range of investment options that cater to their needs.

FY23 Highlights of other ETF’s offered by Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd

1.      Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty 50 ETF’s AUM up 72% at Rs 1095 crore

2.      Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold ETF’s AUM up 50% at Rs 534 crore

3.      Aditya Birla Sun Life Silver ETF’s AUM up 76% at Rs 169 crore

For disclosures of quarterly AUM/ AAUM and AUM by Geography, please visit our website: https://mutualfund.adityabirlacapital.com/

Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully.

Mahindra Automotive Becomes Title Sponsor of IBA Women's World Boxing Championships

The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) on Monday unveiled India’s leading SUV manufacturer, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd as the Title Sponsor for the Championships along with legendary MC Mary Kom and Bollywood star Farhan Akhtar were announced as the brand ambassadors of the Mahindra IBA Women’s World Championships 2023, scheduled from March 15 to 26 at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi.

India is hosting the event for the third time in the history and the country is set to be gripped by boxing fever as several top-notch pugilists are headlining the Championships.

Ajay Singh, President, Boxing Federation of India said, “We are delighted to welcome Mahindra Automotive as our lead sponsor. BFI and Mahindra share a common vision of women empowerment through sport and I am happy to see them as our partner in this mission. And the presence of Mary Kom and Farhan Akhtar as the brand ambassadors for the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships will add immense value to our mission of encouraging women participation in boxing. Mary Kom is a legend of our sport and Farhan Akhtar is a Bollywood icon who has made several inspiring sports movies including one about boxing. The association with these two youth icons will enhance the prestige of this World Championship and help in the promoting the sport across the country. The event will also help showcase to the world India’s potential as a host for big global tournaments.”

The partnership is in line with Mahindra Group’s initiatives to empower women in fields such as sports. Mahindra has partnered with the IBA Women's World Boxing Championships, with the XUV300 TGDi and All-New Thar as official SUVs for the event. This collaboration offers Mahindra a unique opportunity to showcase its commitment to excellence, innovation, and performance, all of which align with the women boxing values. Additionally, Mahindra will be hosting exciting contests for customers to enjoy the championship and create unforgettable memories. Mahindra is proud to extend this association to Indian women boxers in their quest for glory on the global stage during the tenure of the sponsorship.

Veejay Nakra, President – Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, "We are delighted to be associated with the IBA Women's World Boxing Championships, which is a significant step towards promoting women's boxing globally. We acknowledge the tremendous growth in viewership and followers of women's boxing over the years, as it reiterates the belief of people that women embody strength, resilience, and toughness in the face of challenges. As a company dedicated to promoting diversity and empowering women, we are honored to be associated with this groundbreaking sport and its athletes. Our SUVs, such as the Thar and XUV300 TGDi, symbolize the tenacity and determination that women display, and we are thrilled to be a part of their journey."

Mary Kom, a bronze medallist in the London Olympics, is the most decorated boxer in the history of Women’s World Championships, having clinched the title six times along with a silver and bronze.

“India is hosting the World Championships for the third time and it is a special and rare honour. It will underline India’s strength as a sporting nation in front of a global audience. I am delighted to be a part of this tournament and I am certain that this will be a golden page in India’s sporting history,” said Mary Kom.

A biopic depicting Mary Kom’s journey in 2014 put boxing on a big screen and also encouraged country’s women to take up boxing. On the other hand, Farhan Akhtar—a passionate sports lover, also popular for his lead roles in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and Toofaan, which showcased the journey of a boxer.

During the event, Farhan will engage with the boxers and will spread the excitement of the tournament through his social media handles too.

Talking about his association, Farhan Akhtar said: “I am honoured and excited to be a part of such a prestigious event. It is a matter of personal pride that India is hosting the World Boxing championship for Women. My love for the sport goes back long before I started training for my film, Toofaan, and now to be here celebrating this event is a wonderful feeling. As an avid sport lover, I have followed the journey of our girls, cheered and applauded every time they brought glory to India in this sport! I hope that all of you will watch the exciting bouts and get inspired by these women from around the world. I would also like to give a special mention to BFI who are doing a tremendous job by encouraging and supporting women in the field of boxing. And finally, good luck to all the players participating in this event. Todun taak!”

A total of 350 plus boxers from 74 countries have registered so far for the biennial event which has a prize pool of INR 20 crore for the very first time.

About Mahindra

Founded in 1945, the Mahindra Group is one of the largest and most admired multinational federation of companies with 260000 employees in over 100 countries. It enjoys a leadership position in farm equipment, utility vehicles, information technology and financial services in India and is the world’s largest tractor company by volume. It has a strong presence in renewable energy, agriculture, logistics, hospitality, and real estate.

The Mahindra Group has a clear focus on leading ESG globally, enabling rural prosperity and enhancing urban living, with a goal to drive positive change in the lives of communities and stakeholders to enable them to Rise.

Learn more about Mahindra on www.mahindra.com / Twitter and Facebook: @MahindraRise/ For updates subscribe to https://www.mahindra.com/news-room.

About Boxing Federation of India

Boxing Federation of India (BFI) is the governing body of Boxing in India. BFI’s athlete first approach helped the Indian pugilist’s remarkable journey of growth and dominance in becoming world-beaters and history-makers. Led by Mr Ajay Singh as president of BFI , it is under his guidance that BFI has managed to grow leaps and bounds. Indian boxing’s global ranking has catapulted from 44th a few years back to becoming World No 3 in 2023 as per the latest IBA World Team Rankings . With two Olympic Medals, Indian boxers have won 16 Elite World Championships medals across men’s and women’s categories since 2016 and have 140 medals to their name since 2008 in top international events. BFI had the privilege of hosting the prestigious Women’s World Championships thrice now, most by any country and they have also hosted Youth Women’s World Boxing Championships in 2017. Nurturing young talents through various developmental programmes and providing necessary exposure across all age categories have been a priority for the Federation. India has excelled in the junior and youth level categories too having 22 medals from the last two Youth World Championships. Our continuous efforts have garnered tremendous results in last few years. The Indian teams have been consistently finishing in top 5 counties at most global and multinational tournaments such as Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships. The Indian boxers have won an unprecedented 16 medals in the last two Commonwealth Games.

Follow on Instagram: @bfi_official_ | Twitter: @BFI_official | and Facebook: @BoxingFederationIndia for all live updates on the Mahindra IBA World Women Boxing Championships.

Air India Collaborates With Technology Industry Leader Salesforce In Its Journey To Provide A Delightful Experience To Customers

* Airline adopts Salesforce products embedded with artificial intelligence capabilities to deliver a unified customer experience 

* By working with Salesforce, Air India aims to see major improvements to customer experience and higher productivity of its customer-facing staff 

Air India, India’s leading airline and a Star Alliance member, today announced their work with Salesforce to transform its customer service technology stack. Through their work with Salesforce, Air India will be able to optimize the customer experience across all key touchpoints - online, on the ground and in the air. By working with Salesforce, Air India’s customer-facing staff across all touchpoints will be empowered with a unified data platform for its customers and AI-assisted tools to excel in every customer interaction.   

Building a strong base for customer service and designing a world-class warm and professional customer experience via pioneering innovations is a key part of the Vihaan.AI initiative that Air India has embarked upon. Given the ambitious growth plan of Air India that will result in a rapid increase in the volume of customer interactions, deploying robust and scalable technological solutions that incorporate the latest in Artificial Intelligence technologies becomes imperative. Air India’s work with Salesforce will enable this accomplishment. 

“Providing a delightful experience to our customers across all touchpoints is the most important responsibility for every one of us Air Indians. We need to be able to understand our customers’ needs proactively and take care of them with utmost diligence. When things don’t go as expected, we want to be able to address the challenges faced by our customers with speed and take them to comprehensive closure. Having a scalable technology platform that enables us to accomplish the above effectively is critical to our business. We are delighted to work with Salesforce, a Silicon Valley pioneer, and leverage its Einstein Artificial Intelligence capabilities and a unified customer data platform so that we can elevate our customer service to world class levels,” said Air India’s Chief Digital and Technology Officer, Dr. Satya Ramaswamy.  

Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairperson and CEO, Salesforce India, said, “Today, technology is at the heart of any ambitious organisation's business strategy. It is a force multiplier, and a catalyst to deliver growth and increase value. For Air India, this transformation is the beginning of a historic journey and to many - an emotional one. We are honoured to be a part of this journey with Air India, reimagining the customer experience and delivering excellence.”   

“At Air India, we are committed to elevate our customers’ experience. In line with our strategy to deliver a world-class, omni-channel experience for our customers, we are working with Salesforce to introduce various service features that will make it easy for our customers to engage with us. Our contact centre plays a crucial role in the customer’s journey, both before and after the actual flight. Our deployment of Salesforce in the contact centre and in other channels marks a step in our endeavour to provide a seamless, contextual and personalized customer experience across multiple touchpoints,” said Air India’s Chief Customer Experience and Ground Handling Officer, Mr. Rajesh Dogra. 

The technology being deployed from Salesforce will allow Air India to track customer interactions across its contact centre, mobile, web, chatbot, email, social media and other channels to provide a single source-of-truth of customer asks as well as challenges. This will also give Air India’s customer facing staff and its automated systems the ability to act on challenges proactively and track them to closure, assisted by Artificial Intelligence technologies. One of the biggest benefits of this technology rollout is the availability of a 360 degree view of customers in a unified customer data platform that enables Air India to deeply understand its customers. This knowledge will then be leveraged to enrich customer interactions in touchpoints across the ground, online and in-the-air. 

For more information,  visit www.airindia.in   

About Air India: 

Founded by the legendary JRD Tata, Air India pioneered India’s aviation sector. Since its first flight on October 15, 1932, Air India has an extensive domestic network and has spread its wings beyond to become a major international airline with a network across USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Far-East, South-East Asia, Australia, and the Gulf. Air India is a member of Star Alliance, the largest global airline consortium. After 69 years as a Government-owned enterprise, Air India and Air India Express were welcomed back into the Tata group in January 2022. The present management at Air India is driving the five-year transformation roadmap under the aegis of Vihaan.AI to establish itself as a world-class global airline with an Indian heart.  

Vihaan.AI is Air India’s transformational roadmap over five years with clear milestones.  It will be focussing on dramatically growing both its network and fleet, developing a completely revamped customer proposition, improving reliability and on-time performance. The airline will also be taking a leadership position in technology, sustainability, and innovation, while aggressively investing in the best industry  talent. Vihaan.AI is aimed at putting Air India on a path to sustained growth, profitability and market leadership. 

About Salesforce  

Salesforce, the global CRM leader, empowers companies of every size and industry to digitally transform and create a 360° view of their customers. For more information about Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), visit: 

www.salesforce.com .