Monday, October 14, 2019

Recession the Best Time for An Organisation to Grow, says Jason Jennings at BFW’s Manufacturing Day 2019




Bharat Fritz Werner Ltd (BFW), a leader in the manufacturing sector in India, organised the Manufacturing Day 2019 with the theme “Towards Agile Manufacturing”. Mr. Jason Jennings, an eminent international speaker and an Authority on Leadership, Growth, Culture & Innovation, delivered the keynote address titled “Innovation & Reinvention with focus on Manufacturing”.

Mr. Jason Jennings shared the wealth of his knowledge he acquired over many years researching for his bestselling books. He screened more than 220000 companies studied more than 80000 companies and interviewed more than 18000 CEOs, MDs, Owners and Highly successful entrepreneurs. Based on his learning he enumerated 6 leadership secrets of the best agile and people driven companies in the world.  He said that these companies are purpose driven built around doing well by doing good, they exist to grow so as to attract and engage with the right people, they are not afraid to let go of yesterday’s bread winners, they make a lot of small bets, they simplify and systematize everything and these companies are led by good stewards.

Mr. Jennings said that in most developed nations manufacturing contributes to about 50% of GDP. In India this number is just 15%, by boosting manufacturing’s contribution to 25% as envisioned by the government, millions of families will acquire middleclass status, bringing India on par with China and making the country an economic superpower.

Mr. Jennings advised the vast gathering of CEOs and decision makers to spend a minimum of 50% of their time talking to customers as this would bring them in tune with every strata of business. He said that recession is not to be feared as it is the best time for a business to grow. According to him letting go of people during an economic slowdown is bad for an organisation as it releases a great knowledge base that the company will require when the economy picks up.

Mr. Jennings said that millennia today are not just concerned with just food shelter and clothing, they want something more, they want to feel good about what they do for a living, they want growth, they want to feel wanted, they want to achieve their full potential. Only companies that are mindful of their employee needs will sustain over time as people, not technology is the real differentiator.

In preparation for BFW’s Manufacturing Day 2019, Mr. Jennings interviewed 32 Indian CEOs across industry verticals to understand the prevailing business environment in India. Based on his findings, Mr. Jennings keynote address is customised to assist Indian industry in a global scenario.

Mr. Ravi Raghavan, CEO & MD, Bharat Fritz Werner Ltd said “Bharat Fritz Werner Ltd, a leader in the manufacturing sector in India, conceived the idea of Manufacturing Day, with an objective to bring together all leading stakeholders, key decision makers, thought leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs on  single platform, to facilitate exchange of knowledge, flow of ideas,  learnings and inspiring intellectual discussions through engaging panel sessions & presentations.  In a nutshell, BFW Manufacturing Day provides an environment for all stakeholders to network and discuss various aspects related to manufacturing knowhow”.

BFW’s Manufacturing Day 2019 also saw two high powered and intense panel discussions on Sustainable Mobility – The Opportunities and The Future of Manufacturing – Smart Automation. Industry leaders including Mr. Naveen Munjal, MD, Hero Eco Group, Dr. S Devarajan, Sr. VP, TVS Motor Ltd, Mr. Kamal Bali, President & MD, VOLVO Group, India, Mr. James Mckew, Regional Director, APAC, Universal Robots, Mr. Rajendra Abhange, Director Technical, Gabriel India Ltd, Mr. Bhaskar Mandel, Executive VP, Country head Digital Industry, Siemens Ltd led the panel discussions. Over 350 top CXOs, leading stakeholders, key decision makers, thought leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs from across industry verticals will attended the power packed sessions at the mega event.

Mr. Jason Jennings

Jason Jennings is a researcher and one of the most successful and prolific business authors in the world. The more than 1,200 motivating and inspirational keynote speeches and seminars he’s delivered around the world have consistently and positively changed lives, careers, and companies forever.

He travelled the globe in search of the world’s fastest companies for his landmark book, It’s Not the Big That Eat the Small – It’s the Fast That Eat the Slow and, within days of its release, it hit the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and New York Times Bestsellers Lists, USA TODAY named it one of the top 25 books of the year and it was eventually published in 32 languages.

Mr. Jennings and his research teams identified the world’s ten most productive companies for the bestseller, Less Is More. That was followed by, Think BIG – Act Small, which profiled the only ten companies in the US to have organically grown both revenues and profits by double-digits every year for ten consecutive years. His book, Hit the Ground Running – A Manual for Leaders, reveals the tactics and strategies of the ten new CEO’s who created the greatest amount of value during their first five years on the job. His New York Time’s bestseller, The Reinventors – How Extraordinary Companies Pursue Radical Continuous Change, reveals the secrets of those leaders and organizations that have successfully reinvented and transformed themselves. His latest book for his publisher Penguin Random House is, The High-Speed Company – Creating Urgency and Growth in a Nanosecond Culture.

Mr. Jennings’ books are consistently described by critics as, “extraordinarily well researched, insightful, crisply written, accessible, intriguing and a vital resource for everyone in business.

USA TODAY has called Jason one of the three most in-demand business speakers in the world. Jennings is well-known for the exhaustive research that goes into customizing every speech or workshop that he delivers. Before taking the stage, he’s poured over every bit of information available about the company, will have spent time interviewing the CEO or business owner and conducted another dozen telephone interviews with other leaders within the firm.

In preparation for BFW’s Manufacturing Day 2019, Mr. Jennings interviewed several Indian CEOs across industry verticals to understand the prevailing business environment and come up with a prescription to help Indian companies in a global scenario.

Engineering Students from India, UK to Showcase their Innovative Ideas at QuEST Ingenium in Hyderabad

Highlights

* Projects to be evaluated based on innovation, relevance to industry and society, and marketability
* Industry experts from GE Power, Medtronic, MAN Truck & Bus India Pvt. Ltd. and QuEST Global are part of the jury
* Winning team to get first-hand engineering experience at the Bombardier Transportation facility in the UK and an exciting cash prize

QuEST Global, a global product engineering and lifecycle services company, will host innovative project ideas from engineering students across India and the United Kingdom at their flagship annual applied engineering contest, “Ingenium”. The winner of Ingenium 2019 will be selected after evaluating projects presented by the finalists from India and the UK at the grand finale to be held on October 19, 2019 in Hyderabad. The projects will be judged based on innovation, relevance to industry and society, and marketability by the jury consisting of industry experts from GE Power, Medtronic, MAN Truck & Bus India Pvt. Ltd. and QuEST Global.

The projects that will be presented at Ingenium finale are spread across Software & Digital, Power, Healthcare, Automotive, Embedded & Electronics and Mechanical streams. The finalists were selected after screening more than 6,500 registrations submitted by final year students from over 800 engineering colleges across India and the UK. The project ideas submitted by aspiring engineers were around solving the various challenges around digital transformation and Industry 4.0. The winners of coveted competition in the engineering community will be entitled to a jackpot of exciting prizes, including a visit to the Bombardier Transportation facility in Derby, the UK, along with a cash prize and an opportunity to work with QuEST Global.

This year, QuEST Global’s endeavors in nurturing engineering talent is being supported by Bombardier Transportation and Siemens Digital Industries Software. Ramesh Loganathan, Professor, Co-innovation and Head of Research Outreach, International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad will be the chief guest of the event. The project presentation by the finalists will be evaluated by an eminent panel of judges which include Parag Marathe, Executive – Engineering, GE Power & Site Leader, Hyderabad Technology Center, Divya Joshi, Site Director - Medtronic Engineering & Innovation Centre, Hyderabad, Ashish Dugar, Chief Technology Officer, MAN Truck & Bus India Pvt. Ltd., and Venugopalan C. V., Chief Engineer, QuEST Global.

The finalists for Ingenium 2019 are as follows:

* University of Kent, United Kingdom
* Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Tamil Nadu
* P.E.S. Institute of Technology (PESIT), Karnataka
* Marian Engineering College, Kerala
* Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, Punjab
* Jayawant Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Jayawantrao Sawant College of Engineering, Maharashtra
* Dayanand Sagar College of Engineering (DSCE), Karnataka
* Akshaya College of Engineering and Technology, Tamil Nadu.
* SCMS School of Engineering Technology (SSET), Kerala
* Vishnu Institute of Technology, Andhra  Pradesh
* Vel Tech Multi Tech Dr. Rangarajan Dr. Sakunthala Engineering College, Tamil Nadu

Robert Leclerc, Head of Global Engineering at Bombardier Transportation said, "Bombardier and QuEST Global look back on a successful partnership, which is also based on QuEST’s attractiveness for talent. Therefore, we are happy to support their engineering innovation platform, Ingenium - an event to unearth hidden talents among the student community. And, we look forward to further build up on our partnership to grow the Bombardier presence in the railway industry, with 500 million passengers that our products transport daily, in 200 cities around the globe.”

“Every year, we get to see top engineering talent participating in the event, and we are proud to facilitate global exposure for them by providing them with an opportunity to be hired by world’s leading engineering companies. This year, we have successfully completed Ingenium in Japan and the UK, which has evoked tremendous response from industry pioneers and students in these countries,” said Dr. Ajay Prabhu, Chief Operating Officer, QuEST Global. “In the coming years, we are planning to launch Ingenium in the key global markets where we operate from and build regional talent pool in these regions and improve the industry academia connect. By taking Ingenium globally, we aim at encouraging engineering students from across the globe to solve complex engineering problems in the society and across various industries.”

Aiming to build enthusiasm and passion for engineering among the academic community, Ingenium is a global confluence for budding engineering talent to showcase their path-breaking ideas that could leave a lasting positive impact on this world and lives of people. The event has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few years and has also become one of the most strategic ways through which QuEST Global hires its future engineering talent to solve complex engineering challenges to its customers.

Birlasoft to Accelerate Invacare’s Business Transformation Services

Invacare Corporation and Birlasoft Ltd, part of the USD 2.4 billion diversified, The CK Birla Group, have signed a multi-year agreement wherein Birlasoft will deliver IT-as-a-Service to Invacare, the world's leading manufacturer of wheelchairs, bariatric equipment, disability scooters, respiratory products and other homecare products.

Birlasoft will accelerate Invacare’s business transformation by modernizing systems, taking responsibility for the provision of service desk, applications, server, network and telephony support. Birlasoft will build a new analytics platform and move the Invacare data center to the cloud. 

As a part of the IT transformation, Birlasoft will implement a new Product Lifecyle Management system and Invacare customers will benefit from a new ecommerce portal to access products, spares and supplies. Birlasoft will support Invacare in global implementation of SAP S/4HANA and associated SAP solutions, harmonizing business processes and information flows worldwide. New systems and processes will help drive innovation and operational excellence, in compliance with regulations.

“I am extremely excited about this partnership with Birlasoft as I believe it will allow us to harness the latest in process expertise, digital innovation and design thinking to connect our operations, move to the latest technologies, while making Invacare easier to do business with,” said Angela Goodwin, Chief Information Officer of Invacare.

“A business transformation of this magnitude requires significant capital investment. We want to improve customer experience and IT Operating Costs through automation and digitalization. By having Birlasoft deliver IT-as-a-Service through an Achievement-Based agreement, we have a partner in this transformation that is invested in our success,” said Matthew Monaghan, Chairman, President CEO of Invacare Corporation.

“At Birlasoft, we are completely committed to Invacare’s successful business transformation. We bring our focus on Enterprise Digital, and our strengths in transforming ERP and operations in both business and IT,” said Dharmender (DK) Kapoor, CEO & MD of Birlasoft Limited. “We are delighted to work together with Invacare to achieve our goals.”

TECNO Revolutionizes India’s Budget Smartphone Segment with CAMON 12 Air Priced Under 10K

TECNO, the premium smartphone brand from TRANSSION India, is known for its ahead of the curve approach towards bringing premium smartphone features at most compelling price points. Today the brand has taken yet another disruptive step by offering revolutionary dot-in display selfie camera at just INR 9999, letting today’s youth experience more while spending less.

Last month, the brand made its entry into an affordable entry-level segment with launch of its best-selling global ‘SPARK’ series in India, consisting of 3 phones – TECNO SPARK Go, TECNO SPARK 4 and TECNO SPARK 4 Air, all in the price range of 5K to 9K which has witnessed remarkable acceptance by the consumers led to sharp rise in demand.

Bolstered by the success of SPARK series and with Diwali just around the corner, TECNO once again is stepping-up the overall mobile experience targeted specifically fast-paced digital natives who are looking for top of the line specs at affordable pricing. TECNO CAMON 12 Air comes with segment-first 6.55 inches Dot-in display, AI powered 16MP+2MP+5MP triple camera with category defining Quad flash, backed by a powerful Octa Core Processor, 4GB RAM and 64 GB ROM and Android 9 pie out of the box. Together, these features will enable the youth from taking stunning photos with unprecedented clarity to delivering larger than life theatrical experience while viewing videos.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Star India Announces ‘Tyohar Ka Upahar’, a Special Festive Offer for its a-La-Carte Channels

In keeping with the festive spirit, Star India announces ‘Tyohar ka Upahar’, a promotional offer for its 16 a-la-carte channels including its popular channels -- Star Plus, Maa TV, Star Jalsha, Vijay, Asianet and Hungama TV. The festive offer prices will be available with immediate effect.

“The Star network is known to offer best-in-class content inspiring a billion imaginations, making us a household name today,” said Sanjay Gupta, Country Manager, Star and Disney India. “With this promotional offer for the festive season, we hope to spread even more cheer and get more families to experience and engage with our varied entertainment offerings,” he added.

Viewers can enjoy an exciting content line-up across the network including ‘Nach Baliye’ finale, ‘Yehh jadu hai jinn ka!’, ‘TED Talks India Nayi Baat’, ‘Dance Plus’ on Star Plus,  ‘Manasi Chi Choodo’ along with the World TV premiere of ‘Vinaya Vidheya Rama’, ‘Bigg Boss Telugu’ finale, ‘Sixth Sense’ on Maa TV, ‘Sreemoyee’, ‘Dance Dance Junior’ and ‘Mohor’ on Star Jalsha, ‘Kaatrin Mozhi’, ‘Thazampoo’ and ‘The Wall’ on Vijay, the World TV premiere of ‘Ambili’ and ‘Vanambaadi’  on Asianet, and ‘Upin & Ipin- new season, ‘Selfie with Bajrangi’- new season, ‘Shinchan’- new season and movie premier ‘Pokemon – Arceus Aur Jeevan ka Jewel’ on Hungama TV to name a few.

BIBA Expands Retail Footprint with 25 Stores in Bengaluru and Another 10 in Karnataka

Highlights

* BIBA spreads across geographies and touches 278 stores in 110 cities across 26 states
* The Brand continues with designer tie ups to offer innovation to its portfolio
* Successfully expands into standalone retail format for BIBA Girls and adds BIBA Jewellery to its portfolio

BIBA, the leading pan-India ethnic label, achieved a landmark in its retail journey as it touched 25 stores in Bengaluru city alone with another 10 in other parts of Karnataka, taking a total retail count to 83 stores in Southern India.

The largest and the newest flagship store of the brand is situated at Jayanagar and is spread across 2300 Sqft in the city. To celebrate the brands retail journey and add festive excitement to its extensive portfolio the brand announced the “BIBA by Anju Modi “collection with the acclaimed designer Ms Anju Modi. 

Ms. Anju Modi is the award winning Bollywood designer who’s known for her rich ethnic designs and  has designed outfits for some of the  biggest movies such as “Bajirao Mastani “ and “Ram Leela”. BIBA By Anju Modi is targeted at those consumers who are looking at designer designs and styles at smart pricing. The range starts from Rs.5995 and goes upto to Rs. 29,950.     

Since inception, BIBA’s journey has been a fascinating one. The brand has managed to evolve and innovate with its offerings, styles and digital communications. In 2011, taking a cue from the highly unorganised kids ethnic segment, BIBA launched a standalone dedicated line‘ BIBA Girls’; a vertical which caters to the ethnic apparel requirements for kids aged 2-15 years.

Today, BIBA Girls is available across 255 stores, along with being available through a shop in shop format in56 stores. The evolution did not stop with apparel as in 2017, BIBA successfully steered itself into launching a fashion jewellery line ‘BIBA Jewellery’ which has been launched in metro cites and so far is doing extremely well.

Commenting on retail growth, Mr. Siddharath Bindra, Managing Director, BIBA said, “BIBA as a brand has grown with its consumers and has kept its consumer’s needs very close to its heart. We are extremely excited to reach a count of 25 stores in Bangalore and would like to thank all our patrons for helping us reach this milestone and giving us such a great response. It’s an honour to be in Bangalore and to launch the Biba by Anju Modi collection which is our new offering for the festive season. Constant innovation and providing the best in style and quality to our customers is our endeavour at Biba.”

Over the last few years, BIBA has been adding layers to its portfolio by tying up with designers such as Rohit Bal, Manish Arora and recently launched an Indie Mickey range.

‘BIBA by Anju Modi’ is a fine amalgamation of Anju Modi’s signature design sensibility married into BIBA’s ethnic brand lineage which is a great combination  for the upcoming festive season. The range comprises of metallic and floral prints, intricate hand embroidery and fine zari work on pure fine fabrics like silk, chanderi, velvet and modal. 

Speaking on the association, Anju Modi said, “Working with BIBA has been great- as this association has allowed me to showcase my designs across the massive retail network of Brand BIBA. BIBA enjoys a great geographical spread and this partnership allows many more people to experience my designs and a good quality product. I am really excited and looking forward to a fruitful and a meaningful association going forward.”   

Friday, October 11, 2019

Tata Motors Announces Countrywide Customer Dialogue Programme and Service Campaigns


Key Highlights:

* Initiated the Grahak Samvaad Campaign to apprise customers about the 30+ initiatives for an enhanced after sales experience from 10th to 21st October.
* Celebrating “National Customer Care Day” on 23rd October where in customers and channel partners are greeted and felicitated for association with company.
* Grahak Seva Mahotsav, a free service check-up campaign will be organized from 4th – 11th November across 1500+ dealer & Tata Authorized Service Stations (TASS) in India.

Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle player, is set to organize Grahak Samvaad campaign, exclusively for Tata Motors’ commercial vehicle customers between 10th to 21st of October. During this period Tata Motors employee will engage with customers and fleet owners to update them on the various initiatives company has taken for enhancement of customer experience. The team will also collect feedback form customers on their experience and expectations.

Grahak Samvaad will be followed by celebrations of “National Customer Care Day” on 23rd October. Tata Motors CVBU division celebrates National Customer Care day on 23rd October every year to commemorate the day the company got its first customer. On this day the 1st truck rolled out from its Jamshedpur plant in 1954. Associated channel partners staff and customers are felicitated by company for their long association and contribution.

Grahak Seva Mahotsav, a countrywide free service camp is also being organized for Tata Motors’ commercial vehicle owners. This unique customer centric initiative will take place across 1500+ Tata Motors authorized workshops between 4th November and 11th November 2019. At this service camp, commercial vehicle owners will be able to avail attractive discounts on spare parts & labour. The Grahak Seva Mahotsav conducted last year received an overwhelming response with over 1.5 lac customers visiting the camp.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr. Ramki Ramakrishnan, Global Head Customer Care, Commercial Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors Limited, said, “The trucking industry plays a major role in keeping a country’s economy moving. As the largest commercial vehicle brand, it is our responsibility to make sure our customers are provided with top quality products and hassle-free experience. The Grahak Samvaad initiative coupled with Grahak Seva Mahotsav is a perfect opportunity for CV customers and fleet owners to ensure smooth functioning of their vehicle along with complete peace of mind to the driver. The success of these initiatives over the years have been extremely instrumental for us in developing fine products while providing world-class customer service. Through the unique initiative of Sampoorna Seva, we hope to deploy top quality customer experience and convenience across our network partners.”

The company aims to achieve complete customer satisfaction and sustain it throughout the life cycle of the vehicle. To achieve this, Tata Motors has launched a revamped version of Sampoorna Seva 2.0, a comprehensive and complete solution for the maintenance and smooth functioning of the vehicles. This umbrella of after-sales services include maintenance, all type of repairs along with highway support or any breakdown which is attended to through dealers/ Tata Motors Authorised Service Stations (TASS) network free of cost.

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