Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Let us work together for peace...

Though cultural and religious ties between India and Sri Lanka are very old, it was only until recently that both started developing good relations. An exclusive conversation with Sugeeshwara Gunaratna, senior Embassy official in India testified that Sri Lanka is more worried about India’s vulnerable relations with China and Pakistan than others. Some excerpts:

“5 things Sri Lanka appreciates about India...”

HARMONY IN RELATIONS: 30-40 years back, relations were limited to political contacts, religio-cultural tourism. Relations were also hindered by the ramifications of the ethnic conflict. But now there is harmony in the relationship with the political leadership of both countries staying in close contact. The relationship has also become multifaceted with increased trade, aviation links, tourism and people to people contact.

TRADE RELATIONS: It is very progressive. India and Sri Lanka were the first to initiate a Free Trade Agreement in the region. Trade volumes also went up from just $600 million to $3 billion. Many Indian MNCs have set up businesses in Sri Lanka in oil and lubricants, telecom, healthcare etc. Aviation has seen a sea change.

POLITICAL LEADERSHIP: The relationship has also reached a level where top level political leadership does not need to go through cumbersome bureaucratic procedures. India’s political leadership directly contacts top level Sri Lankan political leadership bypassing bureaucratic channels today.

JOINT INITIATIVES AGAINST TERRORISM: Both the countries initiated many joint anti-terror initiatives. India provides training to around 1,500 members of the Sri Lankan armed forces annually, the largest foreign contingent. India has also provided a few naval vessels to the Sri Lankan navy.

“And the 5 things we dislike...”

SECURITY ISSUES: Though infiltration is not a big problem today as the LTTE is destroyed, it is possible that remnants of the LTTE may try to regroup using Tamil Nadu, with support of pro-LTTE elements there. Sri Lanka wants India to maintain a continuous vigil of its maritime borders.

INVOLVEMENT OF CHINA: The issue of China’s involvement in Sri Lanka is a sensitive issue in India. Media or academic think-tanks are slightly to blame as they often over-hype issues. For example, many analyse China’s investment in developing Hambantota Port as a step to use Sri Lanka against India. However, Sri Lanka’s position is that it will never allow a third party to use its territory against India. Its engagement with China is purely commercial in nature.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012. An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Roach’s good face!

Why you have no idea what’s going on in the Arctic and the Antarctic!

When it comes to environment and environmental concerns, nothing can beat the global warming issue. Global warming already contributes to anything above 150,000 deaths and five million illnesses annually, as per research reports by the World Health Organisation and the University of Wisconsin. But then, as they say, there’s a good face to every roach that lived. Since civilisation, the Arctic and the Antarctic were the only two regions that did not experience any kind of colonisation. How much longer, you ask? We say, a question too late. A few countries are all set to turn the tables in their favour and commercially exploit this melting issue. With global warming intensifying, new resources and new avenues of commercialisation are gradually getting exposed. So what, you ask again – well, weren’t countries already studying penguins in these caps? Wake up Rip, you really have no idea what’s going on!

The North Pole first. The Arctic icecap is rapidly melting, thus opening up access to massive natural resources and creating shipping shortcuts that could save billions of dollar. It is estimated that over 50% of the ice cover in the Arctic region has disappeared since the last 2-3 years, resulting in the opening up of new sea routes. Countries like Russia, Canada, Denmark and Norway are leaving no opportunity to claim their control over this area. Since August 2007, strategic bomber patrol flights (predominantly Russian) are a regular affair over the region. Not for anything else, but to keep an eye over the activities of other countries over this region. In the same year, in 2007, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper also showed his interest in sending naval patrol vessels to Arctic and setting up a training centre along the Northwest Passage. He further announced the building of a deep-sea port (at Nanisivik) and a military base (at Resolute Bay). The very next year, in 2008, Canada conducted its largest military exercise ever. A few months back, in July 2009, Denmark’s MPs approved plans to set up an Arctic military command and task force. Likewise, Norway is also considering exploration for oil and natural gas in its Arctic volcanic island of Jan Mayen.

If Russia thought it had had a head start, today, the region is covered by strategic bomber flights of Canada, Norway and Denmark too – of course, with the Russian navy patrolling the waters. This unconventional growing interest of various countries over ‘dead’ region can be explained through researches conducted by the US Geological Survey (USGS) and the Norwegian company StatoilHydro that predicts that the Arctic hides 25% of the world’s undiscovered oil and gas deposits.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Monday, October 29, 2012

“I would resign if I were to fail...”

Infosys CEO Kris Gopalakrishnan talks to B&E’s Editor and Deputy Editor about recession, recovery and succession planning

Call him a gadget freak or a nerd. That’s how Infosys CEO Kris Gopalakrishnan likes to describe himself. However, ever since he took over as CEO, Infosys, along with other IT companies, found itself at the wrong end of the technology cycle. This man who runs India’s seventh most profitable corporation accepts that Infosys is loathe to recruit outsiders as leaders and believes Infy has a long way to go...

B&E: Have you made decisions as CEO that you believe have changed the course of the company?

KG: Unfortunately, when I took over, there were a series of crises. The focus was on managing through the crisis rather than looking ahead. We first had tremendous volatility in currency, then after that there was the downturn. When I took over in June 2007, it was the peak of the asset bubble. When the downturn happened, my focus initially was actually to manage the business in a volatile environment and manage the different moving parts from a financial perspective and then it moved to manage client relationships. I was lucky that most of Infy’s relationships survived the downturn. I also decided to honour all our hiring commitments at campuses, something that our competitors did not do. It was a big decision. I used the recession opportunity to build the bench.

B&E: CFO Balakrishnan told us that your focus was not intending to be the largest organisation...

KG: Largest does not necessarily mean you are world class. And we have a long way to go from a size perspective. We want to build an organization that is there for the long haul. Business is a marathon, not a sprint. It is not about having spectacular performance for a year and not being there the next year.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Saturday, October 27, 2012

“Ours is a tough industry”

B&E: You’re celebrating 100 million subscribers. What’s the status quo?

SM: We’re currently in the 15th year of operation and although Airtel has managed to be profitable, we’re yet to be cash flow positive. We recently announced the maiden dividend of the company after 15 years. Our stakeholders were actually looking at waiting for another year for us to turn cash flow positive. However, due to the de-merger of our private company, we had the headroom this year and hence were able to announce a dividend. One has to remember that Airtel has invested Rs.700 billion in setting up hard infrastructure. Infrastructure alone takes Rs.200 billion per year. It should always be remembered that this is a tough industry and one needs to keep on investing. This way, profitability is always measured along with investments.

B&E: What then would be the future growth drivers for Airtel?

SM: Well, we’re hoping that 3G would be available soon, which will lead to better data services. Music-based services are already quite popular and we hope that their popularity will continue to increase in future.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Friday, October 26, 2012

Shall we change?

The first symptom of a not-so-great nation is its ungratefulness

For once, it was incredible to see the Indian media playing a stupendous role in reliving the memories of the Kargil War; a pyrrhic war that India should not have had in the very first place. And once again, it was vindicated as to why the Indian Army is one of the finest institutions of the country. So while the debates of the worst kind over the commemoration of the Kargil War continued – from which party’s victory it was to which party’s loss – for a change, it was great to see that for two consecutive days, i.e. July 25-26, 2009, many significant channels in the television media didn’t bother too much about other issues and allocated a reasonable amount of their energy and prime time for the martyr soldiers and their families.

Sadly for the family members of the martyrs, the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces (read: The President of India) failed to keep her date with India’s national heroes of Kargil War. Although we do believe the same was due to unavoidable circumstances, one also has to realise that the occasion means something that is significantly historic; and absence in the same is surely expected to raise hackles of critics and supporters alike. So while Pratibha Patil remained conspicuous by her absence in Drass where the commemoration was being held, the media took it to the people at large all across the nation.

Amongst all the ceremonies, what has been conveniently forgotten in between – or should we say, relegated to the bottom cabinets – is the loss of numerous lives in the summer of ’99. Those lives were not just valuable, it is a fact that many of those who died were also young officers and jawans freshly out of military academies who willingly gave up their lives for a nation and for the reason that without that victory, the strategic paradigm of India and perhaps even the map of India could have changed forever.

Certainly, the Pakistani intrusion was not an impulsive one and it was clearly aimed at cutting off NH-1 and thus Siachen. A prolonged war instead of a quick victory would have spread the war beyond Kargil to other fronts in Rajasthan and Punjab. The situation then could have gone completely out of control and with the threat of a nuclear war looming large, India would have been forced by international community to negotiate with a recalcitrant and cunning Pakistan. The quick and decisive victory was thus critical and came at a price.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Thursday, October 25, 2012

“ We invested before time”

B&E: What factors have worked for you in India?

VT: We have been in the Indian market for 14 years now, and believe that our foresight and belief in the country and commitment to the telecom market, along with work with the government have helped grow the telecom industry. Nokia devices today straddle a comprehensive range of products at every price point for all segments. India is not only its second largest market globally, but is also one of the only three countries, where Nokia has an end-to-end presence, including a manufacturing unit, R&D centres and over 10,000 employees.

B&E: What strategy did you adopt in the initial days to help you penetrate the Indian market?

VT: Nokia had a holistic approach towards developing the market and growing its consumer base. Our strategy has hence been focused on investing before time, understanding different consumer needs, building a strong product portfolio that caters to all segments of the market and making our products and services relevant to the Indian market. We were the first to invest in setting up a robust distribution network, to understand the potential of having an effective after sales network. Today, our reach and scale is amongst the best in consumer durable industry, let alone handset industry. Nokia has 1,90,000 outlets and a retail point for every 20 sq. km and 800+ centers across 400+ cities.

B&E: What, according to you, are the biggest strengths for Nokia India ?

VT: One of our greatest strengths has been our power to localise our products and services. In India we have used our understanding of the Indian consumer to create handsets, applications and services that answer the needs of the consumer and deliver value.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

LAW AND ORDER: INDIA

The legal environment reflects the larger shame of Indian venality

The entire country was shocked when Manu Sharma, the accused in the Jessica Lal murder case, was acquitted by Delhi High Court. The accusation clearly pointed towards the Joint Police Commissioner for tampering evidence and trying to hush up the case. There was strong demand to involve CBI, but that was turned down too at that time.

CBI, too, is not beyond blame; its inefficiency was clear, for instance, in the Priyadarshini Mattoo murder case. The accused was let-off due to lack of evidence. The judge called it ‘deliberate inaction’ by the investigating agency. Then the kidney racket in Gurgaon led by Dr. Amit Kumar comes to mind. As per indications, he was tipped off by some insiders about possible police action (which helped him escape, though he was later caught). It is immaterial to call ourselves a rising superpower if we can’t provide swift, fair and efficient justice. 



Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Monday, October 22, 2012

HEADS OF STATE: NO MORE

Sigh... I resign with a heavy ‘head’

Joining the inglorious recession casualty club is the Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme, who along with his government, resigned at the start of this year over a legal banking scandal amidst the breakup of Fortis Bank and its sale to BNP Paribas amidst the severe banking crisis. The recession and related industrial issues has also led to street demonstrations in Iceland forcing the Prime Minister Geir Haarde to reign. Hilariously, not to be left out, the Hungarian prime minister has also threatened to resign (though to his credit, he has not yet forwarded his formal resignation letter).

And on the other front, for a change, the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown refused to resign despite his party’s shameful defence (or lack of it) of the expenditure bills of many MPs. What is the learning from all these? Jefferson, the author of America’s Declaration of Independence, had famously quoted, “A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where 51% may take away the rights of the other 49%..” Interestingly, there is not even one reference to ‘democracy’ in the said Declaration. Thankfully, there are a million references to democracy in all the reports we presented to you... Democracy lives, like how...


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Friday, October 19, 2012

Drink Up!

They were Pepsi’s 5 years of fame

Warren Buffet. It’s the name that markets would swear by to the death. And a name that Coca Cola loves to have on its list of investors. That should end the debate, right? But 2000 was the year when Coca Cola faced a not-so-Warren-Buffet moment. It was the time when both Pepsi and Coca Cola were struggling hard for a prized catch – US-based Quaker Foods, owner of Gatorade, the world’s most popular energy drink brand. The then Chairman and CEO Douglas Daft was not being ‘daft’ when he suggested that Coca Cola must do whatever possible to acquire Quaker, but Warren Buffet vetoed Daft’s proposal. Result: Quaker went to Pepsi. Then began a most dramatic turnaround unprecedented in the history of the long drawn Pepsi-Coke war. In year 2000, Pepsi was languishing with its Mcap at 1/3rd of Coca-Cola’s.

The situation changed in late 2005 to the extent that Pepsi overtook Coke in terms of market cap for the first time ever. The key to this turnaround lay in Pepsi’s more successful diversification strategy, of which Quaker was an important part. Pepsi stole the march from Coca Cola in terms of moving away from soft drinks into other territories. This was apt as the Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSD) sector is declining, primarily due to health concerns. In 2008, CSD case volume declined by around 3% yoy (Beverage Digest) to touch 9.6 billion 192-oz cases.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Rick swings, GM misses

...and the shareholders get their pants walloped!

Rick Wagoner during his 8-year term as the CEO & Chairman of GM has oft been described by industry experts as a leader who lacked the “ruthless streak” needed to make the tough decisions... Well, allow us to be crude. Many do claim that he tried his best to revive the lost glory of the wounded auto-maker. Sadly, his best wasn’t enough, and today, his successor, Fritz Henderson, is fighting hard to present a viability plan before the Senate, by June 1, 2009. There is no denying that GM has proved to be Detroit’s biggest blunder in these recessionary times, and all because Wagoner behaved like the wicked kid who skipped classes at Harvard (by the way, he’s an HBS Alumni) and played baseball, trying to hit home runs every ball; but he failed [And guess what, many are blaming the recession for GM’s miserable state]. So here are the bull-headed swings that failed to deliver the so-called homies and which make up for one of the biggest business blunders in the past 100 years.

Swing & Miss #1: Being the CEO of a First World brand, his ‘American legacy’ ego prevented him from shifting units to emerging nations. Swing & Miss #2: Axing of the EV1 electric car project in 2003, which Wagoner admitted was one of his “greatest blunders.” The product, which was the world’s first electric car, could well have become the future of GM. But then again, isn’t GM all about brawns and hefty Hummers? What Wagoner forgot was that fuel-efficiency is something that leaders like Toyota and Honda have focussed on besides offering powerful engines... [Rick, you skipped your market segmentation lessons too?]


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Thursday, October 18, 2012

Why ‘divorce’fication hurts...

Mahindra & Mahindra is a case of success in diversification; all others have stumbled at some point

Let’s start with a quick test – from the following three statements, choose the one that's false: Statement #1 – Ratan Tata, K.M. Birla, Anand Mahindra, Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani are all men [now, was that a tough one?!]. Statement #2 – Ratan Tata and Anand Mahindra completed their MBAs from Harvard, Anil Ambani from Cornell, while Mukesh was simply a Stanford dropout [now that's an educationally inclined, degree laden lot!]. Statement #3 – All three lead diversified entities and are bearing the brunt of having their tentacles stuck in many cracks on the wall of capitalism. Alright, so going back to our IQ test, which one is false? Well, the first statement is indeed true [again, no controversies here, please], and the second one is not false. So that leaves us to test whether the third one is actually false; well, almost! Confused? By the time you get to the last paragraph, you would have completely understood why our confusion stands justified.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going... Yes, that's a cliché oft repeated to describe how the best and the biggest are able to walk to tight rope under any magnitude of pressure; but in the business game, all except one of the aforementioned names have taken a slip. Factor this: Mukesh Ambani’s retail venture (which includes his petroleum retailing gig), Ratan Tata’s ultra-expensive (a total price of $14.2 billion) Corus and JLR deals, Anil Ambani’s expansion plans and K.M. Birla’s retail and Spice Mobile acquisitions are all facing rough weather! Didn't someone say, "diversification rocks!"? Well, actually, it does... but only if you take Anand Mahindra's case study! So what makes us lay such a strong claim over the unrighteousness of this strategic term? Let’s take the case of Ratan Tata. He bought Jaguar and Land Rover (the two popular brands from Ford’s stable) for a whopping $2.3 billion in March 2008. Today, only a year later, we wonder, couldn't Tata have waited a tad longer? Yes, given the situation that prevails in the auto industry today, he could have captured majority stakes (upto 100%) in giants like the $1 billion worth GM (in terms of Mcap) , which at the moment is reeling under pressures of reduced consumer spending and inflated costs, having lost 98% of its value in a matter of just eight years! Then there is the classic case of K. M. Birla opting to acquire Spice Telecom.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Riga regale...

Riga – the city of inspiration – is the capital of Latvia and one of the most dynamic cities of Northern Europe. Strategically located next to the Baltic Sea and amidst the famous continental European nations, Riga is the largest Baltic city and it brings with it the fascinating fusion of proud Latvian tradition and influences of the various countries that have occupied it. More than 800 years have shaped the city’s unique appearance and rich traditions. It presents an interesting blend of medieval centre and a modern city in such a manner that it caters to everyone’s taste as well as acquaints them with the charm of old times.

Riga has the finest art and architecture in Europe. It is nuzzled amidst Art Nouveau buildings and is situated on both banks of the river Daugava, which separates the city into two parts, Vecriga (Old Riga) and Pardaugava. Riga and its architecture suffered the blows during the wars. But the sheer love for art, culture and creativity is so deeply instilled that its heritage has been carefully preserved with a conscious effort. A walk in the streets of Old Town would be evidence enough to observe that. Today’s Riga would have far more to offer to its visitors, this vibrant and fast-evolving modern city has a booming nightlife with bars, clubs, live music and casinos. Riga sways to tunes of folk music as well as contemporary compositions. Melody plays an important role in everyday life, and whenever one finds the need to unwind or relax one could attend a music festival or a concert. Riga’s music festivals have an international reputation for their variety and high standards. Riga also offers cultural happenings for all age-groups! Every year Riga hosts large international cultural fests, and the most renowned and largest is the National Song and Dance Festival that is held once every four years with over 30,000 participants. Riga has experiences for every taste ranging from art, music, theatre and design to a wide range of cultural activities all year around.

Riga’s Art Nouveau centre has won accolades such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site and has given way to mass tourism. For the culture aficionado, Riga has several art galleries, drama and theatre groups such as the Latvia National Opera, Latvia Philharmonic Orchestra, many concert halls and more than 40 different museums like the popular State Museum of Fine Arts, Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation and the Latvian Museum of Nature, etc.

 Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Learning to live with Terror

Fighting terror can’t be held ransom to vote bank politics, believes Ranjit Bhushan

The spectre of terror, which has haunted India for a better part of the last three decades – first Punjab and then Kashmir, and then onto mainland India – was never brought out more starkly than it was in November 2008 when the deadly attacks in Mumbai were brought home by live media coverage to a disbelieving Indian public.

The sheer audacity and scale of the slaughter and the impotence of the Indian security mechanisms to put deterrents in place until a lot of damage had been done exposed people to their own vulnerabilities as never before.

Have lessons been learnt? More importantly, is there a bipartisan approach on terror attacks? By the looks of it, some more time would pass before such a consensus emerges. While leader of opposition, L. K. Advani, and Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, have traded charges on whose government is more prone to terror attacks – UPA 2004 to 2009 or NDA 1999 to 2004 – it would be safe to say that the Mumbai attacks remain UPA’s Kandhar. There may have been no shameful ministerial escorts for hardened killers as in Kandhar, but the shifting of IPL, which had the potential to be a sporting brand as big as Wimbledon, on grounds that India was unsafe for hosting such events, falls in the same category of ‘crawling when asked to bend’. In other words, there is now no difference between India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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MANKIND PHARMA

Man is not on the earth solely for his own happiness. He is there to realise great things for humanity, famously remarked Vincent Van Gogh. Such is the belief of Mr. R C Juneja.

Mr. Juneja, is the driving force behind this rising juggernaut, whose vision and unrelenting perseverance has made Mankind a force to reckon with. In fact, his personal life could be a source of inspiration to many. A science graduate (BSc), hailing from Meerut, Mr. Juneja started his career in 1974 with Kee Pharma as a Medical Representative. Then at Lupin, he worked at the capacity of a Manager before setting up his own outfit – Mankind Pharma in 1995.

The first successful venture by him was that of BestoChem Formulations. It was a joint venture by the three brothers of the family and presently, it is managed by Mr. Vijay Prakash Juneja.

It was in only in 1995 and with a capital of INR 50 lakhs, that the seed of Mankind Pharma was sowed. A reminiscing, Mr. Juneja says, “Mankind was launched as a very small entity in Meerut with about 20 products, which mainly included vitamins, pain-killers and antibiotics. The goal for this pharmaceutical organisation has been the same since day one, which is to help the community to lead a healthy life through two parallel objectives: formulating, developing and commercialising medicines, and delivering affordable and accessible medication that satisfy urgent medical needs.” Click here to read more...

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Monday, October 15, 2012

Lets talk now!

US finally realised it for a change

Well let’s look at it this way. Finally Iran and its intransigence is of some use to the world. At least it’s helping to bring some sanity in the US’s way of looking at the world and solving some key global issues. The US for once realized that Iran is no Iraq and that it cannot solve this issue on its own but would require the help of its erstwhile bete-noire Russia’s help in this case. Obama’s confidential letter to the Russian president Medvedev exemplified that. It was stated in the letter that the US will shelve the interceptor missile system that it plans to install in Poland with a hi-tech radar facility in Czech Republic, provided Russia successfully pursues Iran to shelve some of its nuclear ambitions. While Bush offered it as a direct quid pro quo, Obama on the other hand is trying to involve Russia as a strategic ally not only in the Iran issue, but also in war on terror in Afghanistan. It also talked about renewing arms treaty between the two countries that is expiring this year. However, Russia’s pride and Cold War hangover was instrumental in their refusal to the offer (denying being a second fiddle to the US), albeit expressing desire to talk on missile defense plan with the US. Obama is also considering a Russian proposal (which Bush refused) to install a part of the missile defense system on their own soil, so that it cannot be used against them. He is likely to respect the proposal only if it is effective and affordable.

Time since the Soviet disintegration, Russia has never got the right kind of treatment from the US that it always deserved. Even when Russia was included in G8, a certain antagonism still prevailed. If Obama succeeds in mending the relationship between the US and Russia by giving the latter its due respect, it’s for certain that many of the world’s major predicaments would be solved much more amicably.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Brother, I love you, but...

Raul Castro is finally taking over in Cuba, US must now take notice

B lood keeps them related for life, but when it comes to working styles, the brothers seem to be miles apart. A year has passed since Raul Castro replaced his brother, Fidel Castro as President of Cuba. And to mark his anniversary, he has shuffled the cabinet, replacing many ministers close to Fidel. More recently,the foreign minister and economic minister have changed. Experts believe this is a sign that Raul is trying to consolidate his position in power. This not the first time that Raul has tried to do away with what his brother had built up in Cuba. Raul has removed some of the small yet significant restrictions on the Cubans. More importantly, he has, in a way allowed private firms to do away with restrictions that the government has been putting on them. Raul has been expectedly trying to open the economy during his tenure. More importantly, Cubans seem to say 'I do' to Raul. Col. Lawrence B. Wilkerson (Retd.), Cuban expert at New America Foundation & Co-Chair, US-Cuba Policy Initiative, told B&E, “Cubans have acknowledged the regime change and anticipate, with no small degree of enthusiasm, that their new leader will restructure the island’s financial system.”


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Friday, October 12, 2012

Move ‘back’ men!

Reliance needs to engage with a global partner for its back end

The travails of Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), have been the stuff of corporate legends. But he is in more than a spot of bother at the moment. A glance at the financial results of Reliance Industries for the quarter ending December 2008 reveals that its net profits stood at Rs.350.1 million as opposed to Rs.807.9 million recorded last year – a drastic fall of 56.67%. While RIL’s petroleum business got pummelled last year (as many as 1,432 petrol pumps were shut); the retail business too is not giving a moment’s relief. After deferring the launch of its wholesale market earlier, Reliance Retail finally scrapped its cash & carry (C&C) model and showed the door to the entire team of 36 professionals headed by Harsh Bahadur (erstwhile CEO of Metro AG’s C&C business in India). This was followed by news that Reliance Retail is planning to shut down 40 of its non-performing stores and rationalising its retail space of around 4.2 million sq. ft. In 2008, Reliance Retail axed almost 600 support jobs to manage costs. It was also speculated that the back-end operations as well as management of its hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience stores would be merged to cut costs. Will Mukesh’s Rs.250 billion retail venture be able to sustain?


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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