Dear Readers,
It gives me immense pleasure to announce that this is the 100th post of STRATEGYAAN. A blog which started on Feb 2007 succeeded in gathering a religious group of readers who not only enjoys BLOGGING but every bit of STRATEGYAAN. STRATEGYAAN just not believe in talking something new but always been in the forefront of sharing knowledge. STRATEGYAAN has always valued KNOWLEDGE and will continue to do so in the future too, that’s why I call STRATEGYAAN, just not a BLOG, but a “KNOWLEDGE BIBLE”. “Strategyaan” got its name from the combination of two words i.e. STRATEGY+GYAAN (which means KNOWLEDGE in “SANSKRIT”). I really thank to all my readers making STRATEGYAAN a blog worth to read.
Ashutosh
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Laws of BRANDING a CONSULTANCY
Most consultancies are good at selling, but not at branding. In other words, they do a very good job of rounding up prospects and making presentations to sell their services. On the contrary, they do an abysmal job of branding. To build a brand, Consultancies have to stand for something in the mind and need to position them in such a way that they differentiate from others. Advertising could be a good way of branding your firm, but its importance comes only after public relations. The big 4s don’t differentiate from each other; all of them claim to be the best accounting firms but nothing more than that. More than the service you provides, it’s your credibility of service that matters in the market. Position something which is unique to your organization only. Similarly, take the case of Wipro, Infosys, TCS or Cognizant, everyone has a catchy punchline but that doesn’t reflect the kind of work they do or position themselves unique to each other.
PR is generally a more effective branding strategy to establish a position in the mind. After that position is established, and then you can switch to advertising to maintain the position. To build a successful PR strategy, consultancies need a unique position that they can use to try to get into a prospect's mind. They might, for example, pick out a segment of the market that they are the leader in and then position themselves as the leader in that category. If they are not the leader, they need to position themselves as the “alternatives” in the market which can give them the best services as good as the leader. Good publicity requires a lot of time on the part of internal people and sometimes the hiring of expensive PR firms. The major cost of PR, both internally and externally, is the cost of the people involved. Most of the other expenses are relatively minor.
Naming a consultancy is a critical area which has lot of importance in branding the consultancy. Ernst and Young, Mc Kinsey, Bain consulting, do these names trigger an alarm bell?? Yes, you are right; they are named after the owners of the company. That’s the way you brand your company and yourself too. Bigger names are a disaster, so use smaller ones to brand them.
PR is generally a more effective branding strategy to establish a position in the mind. After that position is established, and then you can switch to advertising to maintain the position. To build a successful PR strategy, consultancies need a unique position that they can use to try to get into a prospect's mind. They might, for example, pick out a segment of the market that they are the leader in and then position themselves as the leader in that category. If they are not the leader, they need to position themselves as the “alternatives” in the market which can give them the best services as good as the leader. Good publicity requires a lot of time on the part of internal people and sometimes the hiring of expensive PR firms. The major cost of PR, both internally and externally, is the cost of the people involved. Most of the other expenses are relatively minor.
Naming a consultancy is a critical area which has lot of importance in branding the consultancy. Ernst and Young, Mc Kinsey, Bain consulting, do these names trigger an alarm bell?? Yes, you are right; they are named after the owners of the company. That’s the way you brand your company and yourself too. Bigger names are a disaster, so use smaller ones to brand them.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
CONSULTANCY PRACTICE
In my earlier post, I have highlighted BCG’s approach to proprietary approach to consultancy. So, what exactly is a Consultancy Practice, how to build it, what are the key elements of this practice? Well, this post answers all such queries. Consultancies whether big or small require certain elements in place to be managed successful. And, practices look to balance consultancy delivery to the customer against the need of developing new propositions and services. A consultancy practice may therefore be outward facing i.e. market facing or inward facing i.e. business facing.
Outward Facing:
Clients, their sectors, markets and business trends.
Knowledge of technologies and how those trends and technologies would enable or differentiates business strategies.
Alliances with key suppliers in order to gain an understanding of their products and services to provide new innovative business models to deliver business benefits.
Inward Facing:
Inward facing aspect emphasize that the consultancy practice’s key element is people. The consultancy should focus on enhancing consultant’s skills and competencies. Inward facing aspects includes:
Consultant skills and competencies including credibility, integrity, creativity and ability to influence customers.
Knowledge of markets, sectors, technologies and business trends and how to continually innovate new business models with enabling technology.
Products, models and services that allow consultants to deliver value of their customers.
I will give more insight on practices and some case studies. Keep reading.
Outward Facing:
Clients, their sectors, markets and business trends.
Knowledge of technologies and how those trends and technologies would enable or differentiates business strategies.
Alliances with key suppliers in order to gain an understanding of their products and services to provide new innovative business models to deliver business benefits.
Inward Facing:
Inward facing aspect emphasize that the consultancy practice’s key element is people. The consultancy should focus on enhancing consultant’s skills and competencies. Inward facing aspects includes:
Consultant skills and competencies including credibility, integrity, creativity and ability to influence customers.
Knowledge of markets, sectors, technologies and business trends and how to continually innovate new business models with enabling technology.
Products, models and services that allow consultants to deliver value of their customers.
I will give more insight on practices and some case studies. Keep reading.
Monday, November 10, 2008
DIVERSITY: The new FORMULA for Business Opportunity
“Diversity” is the mantra for business and seen as an opportunity to cash in. Diversity drives innovation and not only that, it drives creativity too. A culture of diversity across functions helps business to strengthen the bottomline in terms of capturing new and diverse markets. By working together, a diverse team of customer service representatives can more effectively understand and meet the needs of customers with a range of backgrounds. A diverse product development team can find ways to expand the use of a product, and ways to make the product more effective for a wider customer base.
According to IBM, workforce diversity is the bridge between the workplace and the marketplace. People tend to do business with people they believe can understand their unique needs. Companies that demonstrate an ability to meet those unique needs are going to win customers in any market. A corporate culture that fosters diversity and inclusion can support recruiting and retention efforts as well. Employees choose and remain in jobs at companies where they feel welcome and comfortable. A company that embraces diversity can offer that kind of work environment, and as a result, can attract and retain top talent with diverse backgrounds. For a successful corporate diversity initiative, sometimes, the corporate culture needs to be changed to suit the lifestyle and working style of people from diverse backgrounds. It’s a proactive and slow process which needs to be tailored accordingly and tied to the company bottomline. These initiatives should be widely focused, leverage technology and should be receptive to change. These corporate diversity initiatives should have a benchmark set and the progress should be continually monitored to check whether the organization is at a right path. Top management must ensure that the commitment to diversity has buy-in at all levels of the organization by making diversity an integral part of company success. It should be taken care that these initiatives are not single handedly responsibility of some particular department. Companies that relegate diversity to a single department miss out on opportunities to improve and integrate the diversity initiative that are offered by other areas of the company. For example, a communications department has the expertise to effectively communicate the initiative company-wide. A purchasing department that already has vendor diversity can offer insight.
When there is a diverse group of people with varied background and knowledge quotient, it gives rise to diverse ideas, and sometimes those vague ideas turn out to be innovative enough when brainstorming occurs and thought process is given. The diversity ranges from people to subjects, knowledge, and creativity, level of thinking, analytical skills, research abilities so on and so forth. That’s why a company like IBM which has a global presence and gives importance to diversity boasts of INNOVATION. So, are you ready to embrace diversity in your work culture????
According to IBM, workforce diversity is the bridge between the workplace and the marketplace. People tend to do business with people they believe can understand their unique needs. Companies that demonstrate an ability to meet those unique needs are going to win customers in any market. A corporate culture that fosters diversity and inclusion can support recruiting and retention efforts as well. Employees choose and remain in jobs at companies where they feel welcome and comfortable. A company that embraces diversity can offer that kind of work environment, and as a result, can attract and retain top talent with diverse backgrounds. For a successful corporate diversity initiative, sometimes, the corporate culture needs to be changed to suit the lifestyle and working style of people from diverse backgrounds. It’s a proactive and slow process which needs to be tailored accordingly and tied to the company bottomline. These initiatives should be widely focused, leverage technology and should be receptive to change. These corporate diversity initiatives should have a benchmark set and the progress should be continually monitored to check whether the organization is at a right path. Top management must ensure that the commitment to diversity has buy-in at all levels of the organization by making diversity an integral part of company success. It should be taken care that these initiatives are not single handedly responsibility of some particular department. Companies that relegate diversity to a single department miss out on opportunities to improve and integrate the diversity initiative that are offered by other areas of the company. For example, a communications department has the expertise to effectively communicate the initiative company-wide. A purchasing department that already has vendor diversity can offer insight.
When there is a diverse group of people with varied background and knowledge quotient, it gives rise to diverse ideas, and sometimes those vague ideas turn out to be innovative enough when brainstorming occurs and thought process is given. The diversity ranges from people to subjects, knowledge, and creativity, level of thinking, analytical skills, research abilities so on and so forth. That’s why a company like IBM which has a global presence and gives importance to diversity boasts of INNOVATION. So, are you ready to embrace diversity in your work culture????
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Building a PRACTICE:A Boston Consulting Group Approach
For a Consultancy firm, a good proprietary approach promises real and different benefits to the clients that hire the consultancy. It is easy to see the attraction of this for the consultancy as well- that is able to offer something that is uniquely the intellectual property of the firm. The Boston Consulting Group is one of the best examples of a firm that founded a substantial international reputation and business on two original concepts, which were linked to provide a powerful consultancy approach for the first time. The first was its approach to Portfolio Analysis with the terminology of dogs, cash and cows which still remains a part of the management vocabulary. And, the second being the Experience Curve, a phenomenon whereby costs fall by a constant percentage everytime cumulative production of an item doubles. This phenomenon is widely used in Manufacturing Industries.
The Boston Consulting Group did enough research to be able to extend this thinking to the total cost of the firm, enabling consultants to calculate the experience curve effect for any given company. So, the business started with these two powerful and effective tools for strategic decision-making that fitted the strategic issues of the day at a time when little was on offer to aid the systematic analysis of strategy. After Porter’s Competitor Analysis and Value Chain Analysis were accepted by many other firm of consultancy, BCG slowly released its methodology, although the basic concept of portfolio analysis became known quite early on, many of the essential details of how to make its analysis system work only became widely known after the original technique had become outdated. Most Consulting firms that build a business on proprietary methods move on as time passes to avoid the danger of being dependent for too long on something that could lose its value. Thus, the Boston Consulting Group today has a business that has developed new techniques and is not dependent on the success of portfolio analysis. The firms should take care they are not hooked too much to the original concept, so that it is used after its sell-by date has expired, or the technique or approach is used in situations for which it is not particularly appropriate.
The Boston Consulting Group did enough research to be able to extend this thinking to the total cost of the firm, enabling consultants to calculate the experience curve effect for any given company. So, the business started with these two powerful and effective tools for strategic decision-making that fitted the strategic issues of the day at a time when little was on offer to aid the systematic analysis of strategy. After Porter’s Competitor Analysis and Value Chain Analysis were accepted by many other firm of consultancy, BCG slowly released its methodology, although the basic concept of portfolio analysis became known quite early on, many of the essential details of how to make its analysis system work only became widely known after the original technique had become outdated. Most Consulting firms that build a business on proprietary methods move on as time passes to avoid the danger of being dependent for too long on something that could lose its value. Thus, the Boston Consulting Group today has a business that has developed new techniques and is not dependent on the success of portfolio analysis. The firms should take care they are not hooked too much to the original concept, so that it is used after its sell-by date has expired, or the technique or approach is used in situations for which it is not particularly appropriate.
Monday, September 29, 2008
DO’S and DON’TS of EVENT Management
Event Management is a tough task and can get on your nerves when the plan is not clear and precise. Here, I would be specifically highlighting Corporate Event Management. It could be in the form of seminars, workshops, or a cluster of miscellaneous events organized for more than a day. The situation can get gruesome if the communication among the event owners is not clear and the owning of responsibility is not defined. Below are some do’s and don’ts of Event Management.
Do’s of Event Management:
1.Define the Hierarchy: The biggest flaw in the failure of any event is the improper communication flow and reporting. Before the start of event management, select the event owners and specify a clear cut hierarchy of how the communication should flow and who will report to whom. Once it’s done, assigning of tasks is done.
2.Assigning Tasks: How do you assign tasks?? A verbal communication and assigning of tasks always proves to be a reason of confusion in the later stage of Event. Have a plan ready for each event and if there are different event owners assigned, they should take the responsibility for their event right from preparing the plans, listing the pre and post events, allocating tasks to volunteers, communicating their plan to other event owners etc.
3.Allocating Volunteers: Finding and allocating volunteers for each event is a Herculean Task. This should be done even before you plan is ready on papers. An estimation of volunteers should be completed before your concrete plan is ready. Instead of running around the bush during the event, its better to get your volunteers ready and prepare them for the tasks.
4.Handling Volunteers: Once your volunteers are finalized, the immediate action is to communicate your plan with them and allocate tasks to them. Always keep buffer volunteers ready incase some of your volunteers don’t turn up during the event for any reasons. Ask your volunteers to include the updates and prepare a MOM for every meeting that is organized pre event so that the volunteers are responsible for their tasks and everyone included in the event are aware of the proceedings.
5.Handling the Event Owners: The Event Head should be prepared to handle the event owners. Sometimes, there are so many tasks to do that there are heated discussions and arguments which occurs among the event owners. That’s the time when Event Head should play a pivotal role in stabilizing the situation. The success of an event always depends on the coordination among the event owners, event head and the volunteers.
Interesting?? Well, I will post the Don’ts of Event Management in my next post. Till then, keep reading STRATEGYAAN!!!!
Do’s of Event Management:
1.Define the Hierarchy: The biggest flaw in the failure of any event is the improper communication flow and reporting. Before the start of event management, select the event owners and specify a clear cut hierarchy of how the communication should flow and who will report to whom. Once it’s done, assigning of tasks is done.
2.Assigning Tasks: How do you assign tasks?? A verbal communication and assigning of tasks always proves to be a reason of confusion in the later stage of Event. Have a plan ready for each event and if there are different event owners assigned, they should take the responsibility for their event right from preparing the plans, listing the pre and post events, allocating tasks to volunteers, communicating their plan to other event owners etc.
3.Allocating Volunteers: Finding and allocating volunteers for each event is a Herculean Task. This should be done even before you plan is ready on papers. An estimation of volunteers should be completed before your concrete plan is ready. Instead of running around the bush during the event, its better to get your volunteers ready and prepare them for the tasks.
4.Handling Volunteers: Once your volunteers are finalized, the immediate action is to communicate your plan with them and allocate tasks to them. Always keep buffer volunteers ready incase some of your volunteers don’t turn up during the event for any reasons. Ask your volunteers to include the updates and prepare a MOM for every meeting that is organized pre event so that the volunteers are responsible for their tasks and everyone included in the event are aware of the proceedings.
5.Handling the Event Owners: The Event Head should be prepared to handle the event owners. Sometimes, there are so many tasks to do that there are heated discussions and arguments which occurs among the event owners. That’s the time when Event Head should play a pivotal role in stabilizing the situation. The success of an event always depends on the coordination among the event owners, event head and the volunteers.
Interesting?? Well, I will post the Don’ts of Event Management in my next post. Till then, keep reading STRATEGYAAN!!!!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Reconceptualization of ACAP
If Firm 1 has a low efficiency factorcompared to Firm 2, it is still possible that Firm 2 may have a higher RACAP than Firm 1, in spite of Firm 1 having a higher PACAP. Firms that achieve or maintain a high RACAP-to-PACAP ratio would be well positioned to gain value. This point underscores the importance of separating potential from realized ACAP in order to account for the contributions of this construct. Thus, distinction between potential and realized ACAP provides an explanation of why certain large firms, in spite of their greater investments in developing their ACAP, may lose out to smaller firms that can more efficiently convert their potential capacity to realized capacity. This discussion suggests the following two propositions:
Proposition 1: A firm's absorptive capacity is composed of potential and realized
capacities wherein PACAP is a function of acquisition and assimilation capabilities, and RACAP is a function of conversion and exploitation capabilities.
Proposition 2: A high realized-to-potential absorptive capacity is positively associated with future value creation.
It has been observed that companies do not always foster the sharing or integration of knowledge. Structural, cognitive, behavioral, and political barriers may stifle the effective sharing and integration of knowledge. Integration can take place informally (e.g., communication) or formally (e.g., use of coordinators). Informal integration is useful in building bridges and exchanging ideas. However, more formal ways to integrate knowledge have the advantage of being more systematic. They can be more useful in distributing information within the firm, gathering interpretations and identifying trends. Firms that use formal integration are, therefore, likely to be better equipped to make their members aware of the types of data that make up their PACAP. This can expedite the process of converting and exploiting knowledge and make it more efficient. Sharing and integration of knowledge can increase efficiency factorby reducing the gap between PACAP and RACAP. These observations suggest the following proposition:
Proposition 3. Knowledge integration reduces the gap between potential and realized ACAP, thereby improving the efficiency factor.
Exploiting technologies (or technological knowledge) requires different skills from those that constitute ACAP. These skills are termed “transformative capacity,” defined as “the ability to continually redefine a product portfolio based on technological opportunities created within a firm.” This capacity centers on selecting different technologies, nurturing and developing these technologies over time, and synthesizing these technologies as needed to accomplish the firm’s strategic goals. These activities differ from the acquisition, assimilation and conversion of externally acquired knowledge.
Proposition 4: A firm’s transformative capacity reduces the gap between potential and realized ACAP, thereby improving its efficiency factor.
Proposition 1: A firm's absorptive capacity is composed of potential and realized
capacities wherein PACAP is a function of acquisition and assimilation capabilities, and RACAP is a function of conversion and exploitation capabilities.
Proposition 2: A high realized-to-potential absorptive capacity is positively associated with future value creation.
It has been observed that companies do not always foster the sharing or integration of knowledge. Structural, cognitive, behavioral, and political barriers may stifle the effective sharing and integration of knowledge. Integration can take place informally (e.g., communication) or formally (e.g., use of coordinators). Informal integration is useful in building bridges and exchanging ideas. However, more formal ways to integrate knowledge have the advantage of being more systematic. They can be more useful in distributing information within the firm, gathering interpretations and identifying trends. Firms that use formal integration are, therefore, likely to be better equipped to make their members aware of the types of data that make up their PACAP. This can expedite the process of converting and exploiting knowledge and make it more efficient. Sharing and integration of knowledge can increase efficiency factorby reducing the gap between PACAP and RACAP. These observations suggest the following proposition:
Proposition 3. Knowledge integration reduces the gap between potential and realized ACAP, thereby improving the efficiency factor.
Exploiting technologies (or technological knowledge) requires different skills from those that constitute ACAP. These skills are termed “transformative capacity,” defined as “the ability to continually redefine a product portfolio based on technological opportunities created within a firm.” This capacity centers on selecting different technologies, nurturing and developing these technologies over time, and synthesizing these technologies as needed to accomplish the firm’s strategic goals. These activities differ from the acquisition, assimilation and conversion of externally acquired knowledge.
Proposition 4: A firm’s transformative capacity reduces the gap between potential and realized ACAP, thereby improving its efficiency factor.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY
Absorptive Capacity or ACAP as it is widely known as is a “less- heard” term. This is because the definition of ACAP and the measurements are still a matter of arguments for most of the researchers. Organizations view ACAP from different perspectives but what remains a matter of discussion is the true meaning of ACAP and its value addition to the organization.
CAP is an organization's capability (or set of capabilities) required to manage knowledge for the purpose of value creation. These capabilities involve the abilities to acquire, assimilate, convert, and exploit knowledge. It also highlights value creation as the dependent variable or outcome of ACAP, which can help explain a firm's motivation to develop and maintain these capabilities. Now the question comes, how to measure ACAP? The measurement is quite simple, you have a potential ACAP and then you have a Realized ACAP.
Potential ACAP makes the firm receptive to acquire and assimilate external knowledge developed elsewhere. It corresponds to the ability to value and acquire external knowledge but does not necessarily guarantee the successful exploitation of this knowledge. The ability to acquire is a function of three factors: experience, assimilation and effort Realized ACAP centers on converting and exploiting the same knowledge.
PACAP * h = RACAP; where PACAP >= RACAP, h is the efficiency factor, and h<= 1
The efficiency factor denotes the difference between potential and realized capacities.
Interesting?? Keep reading, I will continue on APAC in the next posting….
CAP is an organization's capability (or set of capabilities) required to manage knowledge for the purpose of value creation. These capabilities involve the abilities to acquire, assimilate, convert, and exploit knowledge. It also highlights value creation as the dependent variable or outcome of ACAP, which can help explain a firm's motivation to develop and maintain these capabilities. Now the question comes, how to measure ACAP? The measurement is quite simple, you have a potential ACAP and then you have a Realized ACAP.
Potential ACAP makes the firm receptive to acquire and assimilate external knowledge developed elsewhere. It corresponds to the ability to value and acquire external knowledge but does not necessarily guarantee the successful exploitation of this knowledge. The ability to acquire is a function of three factors: experience, assimilation and effort Realized ACAP centers on converting and exploiting the same knowledge.
PACAP * h = RACAP; where PACAP >= RACAP, h is the efficiency factor, and h<= 1
The efficiency factor denotes the difference between potential and realized capacities.
Interesting?? Keep reading, I will continue on APAC in the next posting….
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
CRM for Financial Institutions..Continued
As promised, I will discuss the remaining parameters that the financial institutions should give importance to successfully get the benefit of CRM.
Innovative Product Management: Product Managers must adopt a modular approach to product development, creating products and services that can be combined to become personalized offers for the customers. This will deliver maximum flexibility to the segment owners, the channel organizations and customers in creating a package of financial services that meets the customer’s needs.
Process Leadership: Financial Institutions must commit to ongoing process management and disciplined execution. Process Executives must be assigned to manage end-to-end process performance, especially with customer facing processes. Their role is to ensure the process is performed consistently, reliably and delivers value to financial institutions, its customers and its employees.
Customer Interaction: Gather and use customer information effectively and streamline the integrating processes from the customers’ perspective.
Customer Profiles: Identifying customer information necessary to manage customers’ needs and drive value-added customer relationship management strategies. Unify the customer data to create profiles of the customers which will act as a roadmap for capturing and retaining relevant customer information.
Customer focused Processes: Financial Institutions must redesign their processes from their customers’ perspective, mapping processes end-to-end across the financial institutions. The outside-in process view will create insight into the gap between financial institutions is delivering and what customers require. Once this is known, financial institutions can redesign their processes to meet customer needs.
Courtesy: Van De Laar
Innovative Product Management: Product Managers must adopt a modular approach to product development, creating products and services that can be combined to become personalized offers for the customers. This will deliver maximum flexibility to the segment owners, the channel organizations and customers in creating a package of financial services that meets the customer’s needs.
Process Leadership: Financial Institutions must commit to ongoing process management and disciplined execution. Process Executives must be assigned to manage end-to-end process performance, especially with customer facing processes. Their role is to ensure the process is performed consistently, reliably and delivers value to financial institutions, its customers and its employees.
Customer Interaction: Gather and use customer information effectively and streamline the integrating processes from the customers’ perspective.
Customer Profiles: Identifying customer information necessary to manage customers’ needs and drive value-added customer relationship management strategies. Unify the customer data to create profiles of the customers which will act as a roadmap for capturing and retaining relevant customer information.
Customer focused Processes: Financial Institutions must redesign their processes from their customers’ perspective, mapping processes end-to-end across the financial institutions. The outside-in process view will create insight into the gap between financial institutions is delivering and what customers require. Once this is known, financial institutions can redesign their processes to meet customer needs.
Courtesy: Van De Laar
Thursday, July 24, 2008
CRM for Financial Institutions
How can financial institutions ensure that they get a return on their CRM investments? It has been observed that in most of the financial institutions, there is a gap between the strategic intent of financial institutions, their CRM infrastructure and their operational reality. In order to realize full potential of CRM and the customers, financial institutions must restructure their organization and invest in professionalizing their customer interaction to close the gap. Financial institutions need to look at these parameters to successfully implement CRM and get the benefits out of it. They are:
1. Customer Advocacy
2. Customer Behavior Management.
3. Innovative Product Management
4. Process Leadership
5. Customer Interactions
6. Customer Profiles
7. Customer focused Processes.
I will highlight the first two parameters in this post and will write about the other parameters in my next post.
Customer Advocacy: CRM must have dedicated leadership at board level, naming a single executive to be responsible for creating the customer-centric culture. This person will be responsible for financial institution’s customer relationship vision and must define the strategy, restructure the organization, develop the channel capabilities, manage KPIs, and build the technical CRM infrastructure to realize the vision.
Customer Behavior Management: Behavior Management Strategies define key customer benefits and behavior objectives for a specific customer segment in order to drive the desired behaviors, such as:
1. Buy new products and services
2. Increase overall investment.
3. Make appointment
4. Use internet instead of branch
5. Feel good about their choice of financial institutions.
By defining behavior change strategies financial institutions can leverage the power of their CRM technology to effectively integrate and manage messages, offers and results.
1. Customer Advocacy
2. Customer Behavior Management.
3. Innovative Product Management
4. Process Leadership
5. Customer Interactions
6. Customer Profiles
7. Customer focused Processes.
I will highlight the first two parameters in this post and will write about the other parameters in my next post.
Customer Advocacy: CRM must have dedicated leadership at board level, naming a single executive to be responsible for creating the customer-centric culture. This person will be responsible for financial institution’s customer relationship vision and must define the strategy, restructure the organization, develop the channel capabilities, manage KPIs, and build the technical CRM infrastructure to realize the vision.
Customer Behavior Management: Behavior Management Strategies define key customer benefits and behavior objectives for a specific customer segment in order to drive the desired behaviors, such as:
1. Buy new products and services
2. Increase overall investment.
3. Make appointment
4. Use internet instead of branch
5. Feel good about their choice of financial institutions.
By defining behavior change strategies financial institutions can leverage the power of their CRM technology to effectively integrate and manage messages, offers and results.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
DIRECT Marketing
As promised,I am posting an article on Direct Marketing.Direct Marketing is any advertising activity which creates and exploits a direct relationship between you and your customer as an individual.The purpose is to isolate your prospects and customers as individuals and build a continuing relationship with them to their greater benefit and your career profit.The advantages of Direct Marketing are:
1)Treating Clients as Individuals:By isolating your prospects as individuals,you can find out what makes them tick and use the knowledge you gain about them to help you select the ones you feel confident you can serve and ignore those who are less likely to want to work with you.You need to understand and calculate the likely income you could gain from each prospective client and likelihood of being able to win that business.Then a decision of which individuals to invest can be taken.
2)In Control: With Direct Marketing,you are in control.You can test your message, change it for each person you are addressing.You can contact your prospects at times you think will be likely to elicit the best response.If you record every communication and its response on your database, you also then have the data that is necessary to make good decisions and you can learn from each promotion.
3)Cut down on Risks: Most of the consultants are success oriented and record their wins effectively but fails to understand the failures.However,to make the most of the investment, you need to find out exactly why you did not win and make sure that the lessons learnt are incorporated into your planning for future pitches. Direct Marketing helps you to understand the failures and work on it so that it does not affect your future endeavours.
1)Treating Clients as Individuals:By isolating your prospects as individuals,you can find out what makes them tick and use the knowledge you gain about them to help you select the ones you feel confident you can serve and ignore those who are less likely to want to work with you.You need to understand and calculate the likely income you could gain from each prospective client and likelihood of being able to win that business.Then a decision of which individuals to invest can be taken.
2)In Control: With Direct Marketing,you are in control.You can test your message, change it for each person you are addressing.You can contact your prospects at times you think will be likely to elicit the best response.If you record every communication and its response on your database, you also then have the data that is necessary to make good decisions and you can learn from each promotion.
3)Cut down on Risks: Most of the consultants are success oriented and record their wins effectively but fails to understand the failures.However,to make the most of the investment, you need to find out exactly why you did not win and make sure that the lessons learnt are incorporated into your planning for future pitches. Direct Marketing helps you to understand the failures and work on it so that it does not affect your future endeavours.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
HUMAN Behaviour in BUSINESS Schools
Should the business schools teach HUMAN BEHAVIOUR as a subject?? Quite interesting and a relevant question posed by one of my friends in Linkedin.It inspired me so much that I decided to write a post in Human Behaviour.
Human Behaviour is often considered as one of the important traits to test during HR interviews. It includes they way a person talks, his body language, his views about the people and organization and a lot of factors which influences him to act/react in a certain way.But,as a matter of fact, human behaviour is not stable. The way a person portrays himself during an HR interview might react in a different way under different situations.This gives rise to two important questions:
1)How to train business graduates on "Human Behaviour"? Whether there should be a different subject for them the way they learn about organizational behaviour?
2)How the HRs can use this aspect to hire the best talent?
One of the effective ways to access a particular person and make a person understand human behaviour is Case Studies.There should be case studies on various situations and how a particular person should react given a particular role and situation.This might vary from organization to organization and one role to other.Framing of right questions is important.The case studies should be categorized on the basis of fields chosen by the candidates like Sales/Marketing,Customer Support,Client Interaction/Presentation,Client Interviews in Business Analysis or Business Consulting etc.
Human behaviour can be altered or measured using stress tests.For example,the reaction of a particular employee can be monitored putting pressures on him in different levels.It will give an insight of the employee's stress taking abilities.The same could be applied to the managers in the organization.
Human Behaviour is often considered as one of the important traits to test during HR interviews. It includes they way a person talks, his body language, his views about the people and organization and a lot of factors which influences him to act/react in a certain way.But,as a matter of fact, human behaviour is not stable. The way a person portrays himself during an HR interview might react in a different way under different situations.This gives rise to two important questions:
1)How to train business graduates on "Human Behaviour"? Whether there should be a different subject for them the way they learn about organizational behaviour?
2)How the HRs can use this aspect to hire the best talent?
One of the effective ways to access a particular person and make a person understand human behaviour is Case Studies.There should be case studies on various situations and how a particular person should react given a particular role and situation.This might vary from organization to organization and one role to other.Framing of right questions is important.The case studies should be categorized on the basis of fields chosen by the candidates like Sales/Marketing,Customer Support,Client Interaction/Presentation,Client Interviews in Business Analysis or Business Consulting etc.
Human behaviour can be altered or measured using stress tests.For example,the reaction of a particular employee can be monitored putting pressures on him in different levels.It will give an insight of the employee's stress taking abilities.The same could be applied to the managers in the organization.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Culture of the KNOWLEDGE based Company
A knowledge based company values knowledge workers rather than employees who work from 9-6.Most of the knowledge based companies send their employees to seminar,workshops conducted by creme B Schools and other associations.The employees in a knowledge based company just not focusses on his work rather takes interest in different roles so that he can swap roles if ever the organisation demands.A knowledge based company conducts training and workshops and encourages their employees to take training that can enhance their skill sets and knowledge benefitting the organisation. Apart from that, the Senior Management/Manager conducts meetings where he discusses the initiatives of the organisation with their.his employees and ask their feedback thus involving them in the whole process and make them responsible for their organisation.Carrying this activity,they make sure that the lower level employees are aware about their organisation and are taking keen interest to work in the organisation. Sometimes,knowledge sharing presentations are conducted where the employees are asked to prepare a presentation on different topics and share it with their respective teams.Such initiatives makes the employees more confident and enhance their communication skills.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
First Ever CONSULTING MEET in Mumbai
I am thinking to organize a Consulting Meet in Mumbai where like-minded people can gather and discuss topics on Business/Strategy/Management Consulting. The idea is to gather people from varied backgrounds under one platform and organize Consulting Meets in Mumbai once a month where we can know each other,discuss topics related to business consulting and do some business networking.If anyone is interested, reply to the topic and if we have substantial number of people,we can decide the venue and time for Consulting Meet. People nearby Mumbai or outside Mumbai can also join and attend the Consulting Meet.
Well,the common mail id for all the interested participants is
consultingmeetmumbai@gmail.com
and the Password:consult11
All the interested,please drop a mail to this e-mail id or add yourself to the Contact List.
Please do share your views.
Well,the common mail id for all the interested participants is
consultingmeetmumbai@gmail.com
and the Password:consult11
All the interested,please drop a mail to this e-mail id or add yourself to the Contact List.
Please do share your views.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
CONSULTANCY Marketing Strategies
How do we define the term "Marketing" in Consultancy language.Put in simple words,Marketing is a way of looking at doing business,promotional activity and a location.Infact, most consultants would associate the marketing approach as being able to understand the clients point of view-the issues they have in their industries,in their companies and in their own roles.The marketing concept involves meeting three requirements which are:
1.decisions about what your business should do are based on your clients' needs and wants.
2.you select the best way to meet the needs of your clients and prospective clients.
3.your organizations' performance objectives are achieved by meeting clients' needs in a way that satisfies them.
Generally,in a Consultancy,the consultant enters the client's domain to learn all there is to know about the client's fears and desires and then uses that information to design and supply the service.Marketing in the consulting language is being able to createa product or service that fits the client so it will sell itself.
I would post on one of the most important aspects of Consulting i.e. "DIRECT MARKETING" in the next post...So keep reading
1.decisions about what your business should do are based on your clients' needs and wants.
2.you select the best way to meet the needs of your clients and prospective clients.
3.your organizations' performance objectives are achieved by meeting clients' needs in a way that satisfies them.
Generally,in a Consultancy,the consultant enters the client's domain to learn all there is to know about the client's fears and desires and then uses that information to design and supply the service.Marketing in the consulting language is being able to createa product or service that fits the client so it will sell itself.
I would post on one of the most important aspects of Consulting i.e. "DIRECT MARKETING" in the next post...So keep reading
Monday, April 21, 2008
Essentials of a PROPOSAL
Last time I discussed about proposal and presenting the proposal,but,preparing the proposal is a challenge and it has to fulfil all the purposes of the entry phase,in particular
1.specify the objectives for and the approach to the assignment,based on an agreed understanding of the problem.
2.be a persuasive selling document.
3.be the basis of a legally binding contract.
The below mentioned should be described clearly in the proposal.
1. The problem described in the context of the client's business situation,strategy and competitive position.
2.The anticipated benefits of the assignment.
3.The methods and approaches the consultancy will use.
4.The results that are expected from these approaches.
5.The experience and the staffing of the consultancy.
6.Experience and capability of the firm.
7.Professional Staffing.
8.Standard terms and conditions.
9.Professional fees and expenses.
10.billing arrangements.
11.Standard terms and conditions.
I will try to elaborate on each of these points in my forthcoming posts..So,keep reading and putting your valuable comments and suggestions.
1.specify the objectives for and the approach to the assignment,based on an agreed understanding of the problem.
2.be a persuasive selling document.
3.be the basis of a legally binding contract.
The below mentioned should be described clearly in the proposal.
1. The problem described in the context of the client's business situation,strategy and competitive position.
2.The anticipated benefits of the assignment.
3.The methods and approaches the consultancy will use.
4.The results that are expected from these approaches.
5.The experience and the staffing of the consultancy.
6.Experience and capability of the firm.
7.Professional Staffing.
8.Standard terms and conditions.
9.Professional fees and expenses.
10.billing arrangements.
11.Standard terms and conditions.
I will try to elaborate on each of these points in my forthcoming posts..So,keep reading and putting your valuable comments and suggestions.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Formal PRESENTATIONS to the Clients
A proposal is something which gives an insight of your consulting firm and the consultants to the clients.This is probably the first formal interaction between the Consultant and the Client.And, as someone truly said "First Impression is the last Impression", you need to look certain things before you approach your client.Typically,some consultancies may be eliminated when the proposals are received and others may be invited to make presentations to the clients and discuss the proposal in depth.A presentation is required even when the client has either eliminated the other bidders or never invited any others in the first place.
WHAT TO FIND OUT IN ADVANCE
1)What the client's expectation from the presentation are.
2)Whether or not a formal presentation is wanted.
3)The time allowed for a formal presentation and for discussion.
4)Who will be there and what their interests are.
5)Which other firms have been asked to present.
6)What's the order for presentations.
The PRESENTATION
1)Prepare the presentation carefully.
2)Rehearse the presentation and make the presentation client-centered,stressing what is important to them.
3)Make sure all visual aids are of a high quality.
4)Do not follow the presentation literally:keep to key points and change the order to suit the situation.
5)Decide who is to attend and the role of each and encourage discussion.
Hope this post helps and you give your best whenever you approach client with a presentation.
WHAT TO FIND OUT IN ADVANCE
1)What the client's expectation from the presentation are.
2)Whether or not a formal presentation is wanted.
3)The time allowed for a formal presentation and for discussion.
4)Who will be there and what their interests are.
5)Which other firms have been asked to present.
6)What's the order for presentations.
The PRESENTATION
1)Prepare the presentation carefully.
2)Rehearse the presentation and make the presentation client-centered,stressing what is important to them.
3)Make sure all visual aids are of a high quality.
4)Do not follow the presentation literally:keep to key points and change the order to suit the situation.
5)Decide who is to attend and the role of each and encourage discussion.
Hope this post helps and you give your best whenever you approach client with a presentation.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
TECHNICAL Analysis and DOW Theory
This post is dedicated to the basis on which the investor takes his/her investment decisions.While fundamental analysis and security evaluation explain why share prices fluctuate,what to buy and sell, the Technical Analysis helps when to buy and sell.Technical Analysis of the market is based on some principles,the first one being, all fundamental factors are discounted by the market and are reflected in prices. Secondly,these prices move in trends or waves which can be both upward or downward depending on the sentiment, psychology and emotions of traders.Thirdly, the present trends are influenced by the past trends, and the projection of future trends is possible by an analysisof past price trends.
Certains tools used to Technical Analysis are Daily fluctuation and trends data, floating stockand volume of trade,price trends and volume trends,Rate of change of prices,Japanese Candlestick method,dow theory,elliot wave theory,theory of gaps,Advance decline line,relative strength index.
Dow Theory postulates that prices of industries securities tend to move in tune with the business cycles of the boom,depression in the economy.If the business conditions are good,demand increasing,industrial performance will be good and the corporate share prices will be on the upswing.The reverse is true in times of recession and depression in the economy.The trends in the economy are reflected in the market average prices of shares.All fundamental factors are discounted by the market, and get reflected in average prices. A study of these average market prices is what is attempted in technical analysis and its trends are in the form of peaks,troughs and cycles.
Certains tools used to Technical Analysis are Daily fluctuation and trends data, floating stockand volume of trade,price trends and volume trends,Rate of change of prices,Japanese Candlestick method,dow theory,elliot wave theory,theory of gaps,Advance decline line,relative strength index.
Dow Theory postulates that prices of industries securities tend to move in tune with the business cycles of the boom,depression in the economy.If the business conditions are good,demand increasing,industrial performance will be good and the corporate share prices will be on the upswing.The reverse is true in times of recession and depression in the economy.The trends in the economy are reflected in the market average prices of shares.All fundamental factors are discounted by the market, and get reflected in average prices. A study of these average market prices is what is attempted in technical analysis and its trends are in the form of peaks,troughs and cycles.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Top 5 Company Mistakes That Cost You Money
Even if your business is moving along in a seemingly smooth manner, someone in the company may be dropping the ball in certain areas. It only takes a few small holes to eventually sink a ship, so now is the time to assess how many mistakes are being made.
When you add up all the little problems, you may find you are losing major money because of them. Here are the top five "little" company mistakes that cause big problems:
1.Invoice Errors – Your accounts receivable department has a very important job on their hands. Are you sure they aren't slacking off or making mistakes? From typos on invoices to failure to mail out invoices, there is no room for error when it comes to getting paid.
2.Misfiling Documents – Your administrative team should be diligent about keeping accurate, orderly files. You need to have back-ups for everything and those files should be easily accessible. When something falls between the cracks, major problems could occur later.
3.Running Out of Stock – If you have customers who are getting frustrated by your constant lack of stock, then it's time to increase production. Otherwise, you may find they stop returning altogether.
4.Delivery Problems – Whom are you depending on to deliver your goods? It starts with your own company, so make sure everything is properly packaged and sent out in a timely manner. Then, make sure the delivery service you offer is fast and dependable. If something is damaged or lost in shipping, you will pay for it.
5.Poor Customer Communication – Customer service is paramount to your business, so don't ignore or disrespect your patrons. Hold everyone in your company to the same standard when answering phones or contacting customers in any way.
Perhaps a few of the above mistakes only happen from time to time, but that is enough to slowly whittle down your business' profits. While no one enjoys working for a micromanager, it is very possible that you are being too passive about your company's "little" mistakes.
Heather Johnson is a freelance business, finance and economics writer, as well as a regular contributor at Business Credit Cards, a site for best business credit cards and best business credit card offers. Heather welcomes comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address heatherjohnson2323@gmail.com
When you add up all the little problems, you may find you are losing major money because of them. Here are the top five "little" company mistakes that cause big problems:
1.Invoice Errors – Your accounts receivable department has a very important job on their hands. Are you sure they aren't slacking off or making mistakes? From typos on invoices to failure to mail out invoices, there is no room for error when it comes to getting paid.
2.Misfiling Documents – Your administrative team should be diligent about keeping accurate, orderly files. You need to have back-ups for everything and those files should be easily accessible. When something falls between the cracks, major problems could occur later.
3.Running Out of Stock – If you have customers who are getting frustrated by your constant lack of stock, then it's time to increase production. Otherwise, you may find they stop returning altogether.
4.Delivery Problems – Whom are you depending on to deliver your goods? It starts with your own company, so make sure everything is properly packaged and sent out in a timely manner. Then, make sure the delivery service you offer is fast and dependable. If something is damaged or lost in shipping, you will pay for it.
5.Poor Customer Communication – Customer service is paramount to your business, so don't ignore or disrespect your patrons. Hold everyone in your company to the same standard when answering phones or contacting customers in any way.
Perhaps a few of the above mistakes only happen from time to time, but that is enough to slowly whittle down your business' profits. While no one enjoys working for a micromanager, it is very possible that you are being too passive about your company's "little" mistakes.
Heather Johnson is a freelance business, finance and economics writer, as well as a regular contributor at Business Credit Cards, a site for best business credit cards and best business credit card offers. Heather welcomes comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address heatherjohnson2323@gmail.com
Sunday, March 9, 2008
FINANCIAL Planner
What makes a good Financial Planner or what are the fundamental traits of a successful Financial Planner.
1. Building trust with the client by empathizing with them and understanding their aspirations,concerns and needs.
2.Familiarity with taxation and estate planning issues.
3.Good knowledge of financial products and options, their risk-return profile, and a strong understanding of the behaviour and track record of various investments and asset classes.
4.An understanding of the various stages in a client's life and wealth cycle and the asset allocations that make sense of each of these stages.
5.An organized way of working, with one of the critical elements being a written financial plan which documents client needs and resources,a specific investment strategy and the progress made towards achieving these objectives.
6.A clear focus on the overall financial well-being of a client,rather than on individual transactions.The financial planner should link his remuneration to the overall achievement of client goals,rather than relying on a fee from each transaction.
1. Building trust with the client by empathizing with them and understanding their aspirations,concerns and needs.
2.Familiarity with taxation and estate planning issues.
3.Good knowledge of financial products and options, their risk-return profile, and a strong understanding of the behaviour and track record of various investments and asset classes.
4.An understanding of the various stages in a client's life and wealth cycle and the asset allocations that make sense of each of these stages.
5.An organized way of working, with one of the critical elements being a written financial plan which documents client needs and resources,a specific investment strategy and the progress made towards achieving these objectives.
6.A clear focus on the overall financial well-being of a client,rather than on individual transactions.The financial planner should link his remuneration to the overall achievement of client goals,rather than relying on a fee from each transaction.
Friday, February 29, 2008
I INVITE!!!
I invite any budding business or strategy consultant to be a co-author of my blog. I need writers who are good in industry analysis and possess knowledge in consulting practice. They should be able to analyze the happenings in the business world and can present their opinions with facts and figures. Interested people can write to me at ashutosh11.bose@gmail.com and I would appreciate if you can send some of your articles so that it would be easy for me to select the best writer for my blog. Looking forward to meet some really interesting people. So, what are you waiting for?
Thursday, February 28, 2008
CORPORATE IDENTITY
Corporate identity merges strategy, culture, and communications to present a memorable personality to prospects and customers. The term is closely linked to corporate philosophy, the company’s business mission and values, as well as corporate personality, the distinct corporate culture reflecting this philosophy, and corporate image. The main objective of corporate identity is to achieve a favorable image among the company’s prospects and customers. When a corporation is favorably regarded this is likely to result in loyalty. If the corporate identity is the self-portrayal of a company, then the corporate image is the perception of an organization by the audience. The closer the corporate image is to the corporate identity; the closer the public’s perception of a company is to how the company defines itself, making for superior corporate communication. For example, most companies have access to the same technology. If they want to further distinguish themselves, the strategy must rely on another factor than technology: the user experience. As the audience’s focus changes constantly, corporate strategies must move in the same direction as the customer. The consumer s impression of a company, or the corporate image, is highly influenced by how he or she experiences the company’s products. The product identity, the sum of the products formal and functional properties, will help the user shape a mental image of the product manufacturer. Therefore the corporation needs to carefully plan what it wants to communicate through its product, and how.
The type of corporate identity will determine the characteristics that link the product to its company or brand. The identity can be monolithic, meaning that the whole company uses one visual style and that the consistency between the corporate identity and the product identity is very strong, the product reflecting the corporation directly. The identity can also be endorsed where the subsidiary companies (brands) have their own style, but the parent company remains recognizable in the background. In this case, the link between the corporation and its different brands may take the shape of a common factor, tying the different brands together. Finally, there is the branded corporate identity in which the subsidiaries have their own style, and the parent company is not recognizable. The products represent the brand identities rather than the corporate identity. All the same, a strong general corporate identity remains of great importance, as it defines the guidelines and strategies of the subordinate brands. Therefore the identities of the products of each brand are consistent with the main corporate identity and values. The consumer s impression of a company, or the corporate image, is highly influenced by how he or she experiences the company’s products. The product identity, the sum of the products formal and functional properties, will help the user shape a mental image of the product manufacturer. Therefore the corporation needs to carefully plan what it wants to communicate through its product, and how.
Courtesy: CEONEX
The type of corporate identity will determine the characteristics that link the product to its company or brand. The identity can be monolithic, meaning that the whole company uses one visual style and that the consistency between the corporate identity and the product identity is very strong, the product reflecting the corporation directly. The identity can also be endorsed where the subsidiary companies (brands) have their own style, but the parent company remains recognizable in the background. In this case, the link between the corporation and its different brands may take the shape of a common factor, tying the different brands together. Finally, there is the branded corporate identity in which the subsidiaries have their own style, and the parent company is not recognizable. The products represent the brand identities rather than the corporate identity. All the same, a strong general corporate identity remains of great importance, as it defines the guidelines and strategies of the subordinate brands. Therefore the identities of the products of each brand are consistent with the main corporate identity and values. The consumer s impression of a company, or the corporate image, is highly influenced by how he or she experiences the company’s products. The product identity, the sum of the products formal and functional properties, will help the user shape a mental image of the product manufacturer. Therefore the corporation needs to carefully plan what it wants to communicate through its product, and how.
Courtesy: CEONEX
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
BANKING on the BRAND: HSBC
HSBC, Europe’s largest bank by market value, has been named the world’s most valuable banking brand according to the Banker magazine’s Top 500 Financial Brands listing. It was also the only bank featured in the study to achieve the highest possible triple ‘A’ brand rating. The strength of the band depends on the bank’s focus on emerging markets. A great example of this was the launch of HSBC Premier in September last year. Premier customers now have the ability to open accounts in 37 different countries and HSBC assist them wherever they are in the world using their network of branches and dedicated relationship managers. The benefits offered by Premier Banking Services include free travel insurance, preferential lending rates, and improved customer service.
But, what it takes to be the best banking brands?? Credit card oriented bank brand display the highest proportion of brand value to market capitalization. This is because emotional and image related factors are significant drivers of demand in this sector. Consumer-focused banks generally display a higher brand value to market cap than corporate-focused banks. This is because consumer banking involves more emotional and image related factors than business and wholesale banking. Investment and wholesale banks display surprisingly large brand values. This is because banks of this type do not need large retail networks, infrastructure and similar tangible assets. Much of their value is intangible and the two main assets are key personnel know-how and the corporate brand itself.
HSBC as a brand has been always on the forefront of creating and subsequent sponsorship of a new advertising channel: the ‘airbridges’-the gateways linking aeroplanes and passenger terminals - at major international airports. The bank’s ‘Managing for Growth’ strategic plan has reaped huge rewards in growing the earnings, shareholder returns and the overall global footprint of the business in the past.
But, what it takes to be the best banking brands?? Credit card oriented bank brand display the highest proportion of brand value to market capitalization. This is because emotional and image related factors are significant drivers of demand in this sector. Consumer-focused banks generally display a higher brand value to market cap than corporate-focused banks. This is because consumer banking involves more emotional and image related factors than business and wholesale banking. Investment and wholesale banks display surprisingly large brand values. This is because banks of this type do not need large retail networks, infrastructure and similar tangible assets. Much of their value is intangible and the two main assets are key personnel know-how and the corporate brand itself.
HSBC as a brand has been always on the forefront of creating and subsequent sponsorship of a new advertising channel: the ‘airbridges’-the gateways linking aeroplanes and passenger terminals - at major international airports. The bank’s ‘Managing for Growth’ strategic plan has reaped huge rewards in growing the earnings, shareholder returns and the overall global footprint of the business in the past.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
CEO’s and SUCCESS
Everything is in a constant change. The business and the way the business is conducted has seen a sea change, a complete transformation in the last decade. To ensure success is consistent, CEOs balance the risks and opportunities of competing and collaborating in a world where globalization, technology, and rapid social change are transforming the business landscape. There are many factors which contribute to the change in business environment and are definitely the point of contention for the CEOs. These include Business Confidence, Mergers and Acquisitions, Global Risks, climate change and North America/Asia Pacific region. The fear of a global downturn has emerged as the number one threat to growth because of the recent global credit crunch and the heightened risk of recession on business confidence. The countries in the south Asia are turning to be a major contributor to the global growth. Last year, China overtook the US as the greatest contributor to global growth, measured at market exchange rates. It’s interesting to see that the developing countries in Asia are turning out to be the major hubs for business success. Despite fears of an economic downturn, CEOs continue to recognize the strategic importance of overseas expansion. However, interest in M&A is highest in Asia, where CEOs are the most confident, and where Asian companies have increasingly become acquirers rather than the acquired. Obstacles to M&A activity were headed by cultural issues and financial considerations. It’s a fact that the global risks has fallen in the past 12 months. The world turning to be a global village has resulted in diversifying the opportunities and thus diluting the dangers occurring due to local difficulties. The CEOs believes that climate change is less of a threat to their business than last year, with only 34 percent of them worried about the impact of climate change. But, as expected, CEOs are concerned about energy costs, although they are also taking notice of the impact on the environment.
CEOs continue to believe that people are a key factor in achieving success, but that it is difficult to find people with the right combination of skills. CEOs globally said that combined technical and business experience, global work experience and leaderships skills are the most difficult areas for their companies to recruit. As far as collaborative business networks is concerned, CEOs now regard them as a defining principle of the organization of the future, although actual implementation is still lagging behind these expectations. They also stress the fact that governments and regulators could make significant improvements ― particularly in matters of labour law, tax regimes and, to a lesser extent, education. However, despite all the talk about Sarbanes-Oxley and other financial regulations over the last few years, CEOs are less concerned about requirements for listing of public companies for new listings.
For more, please visit “Emerging markets and economies: The 11th Annual Global CEO Survey”, PWC.
CEOs continue to believe that people are a key factor in achieving success, but that it is difficult to find people with the right combination of skills. CEOs globally said that combined technical and business experience, global work experience and leaderships skills are the most difficult areas for their companies to recruit. As far as collaborative business networks is concerned, CEOs now regard them as a defining principle of the organization of the future, although actual implementation is still lagging behind these expectations. They also stress the fact that governments and regulators could make significant improvements ― particularly in matters of labour law, tax regimes and, to a lesser extent, education. However, despite all the talk about Sarbanes-Oxley and other financial regulations over the last few years, CEOs are less concerned about requirements for listing of public companies for new listings.
For more, please visit “Emerging markets and economies: The 11th Annual Global CEO Survey”, PWC.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
If I say....
There are certain things which we do not say thinking of the consequences. Everytime we are asked of something, we tried to portray as if everything is fine and the reasons cited are extremely honest. But do things changes or what is the probability that if I say what I wanted to say will not affect my life and it will go smoothly. Why you want to leave the company was a question I was asked by Ernst and Young and my answer was because the line of business of Ernst coincides with my interest area which is true but not enough to give me a job. But, if I would have spoken the truth, can it guarantee a safe place in the organization. If I would have said about the politics played with me in my previous organization by my ex-manager and the mental trauma I underwent because of that and my current company is nothing more than a compulsion to me just because I left that company and didn’t have a job, will Ernst and Young would have recruited me??
There are lots of things which you come across when you are in an interview. And, being in the corporate field for the last 2 years and having attended numerous interviews, I could say there is no way a company could judge the real potential of an employee asking these questions. There is no specific way to measure whether the candidate fits in an organization. Even if I had a bad experience with my ex company I can never abuse or malign it in front of the other company who is taking my interview as it is not politically correct. What seems to be correct is purely a fake picture that the HRs considers as the valid reasons for an entry in an organization.
Where do I see myself after 5 years is a question posed by most of the employers? Well, I saw myself as a person who could easily go up the ladder just because I was quite confident about my abilities when I joined HSBC and yes, I made it a reality giving my 100% to the project I was working for, took initiatives and maintained a good rapport with all employees. But, due to a dirty trick played by someone, now I am somewhere else trying to build my career again from scratch, just to have something in my resume which can earn a job which I want. I have lost my 2 years in an attempt to see myself what I thought. Did my honesty pay?? No…..But, I have to fake everytime whenever someone asks me the question and my obvious answer is “ Well, I would like to see myself as a strategic consultant in an organization where I could exercise my existing talent and benefit the organization”.
Taking the right candidates is a challenge for sure when it comes to the HRs. But, more than that posing the right question to the candidates is much more important. Don’t judge a candidate asking a wrong question but judge them asking a question where they can do justice to themselves and to the organization. Commitment to an organization comes only when there is a mutual benefit. Attrition exists everywhere but that can be tackled when proper employee counseling takes place in an organization by the HRs. The first round of interview before selection is just an attempt to read the profile and not judging the person.
The next time when you ask, “How do you fit in the organization??”, think twice. Because, fitting in the organization is just not what the candidate thinks, it also depends on the project he works for, his line manager, circumstances around him and a lot many factors.
There are lots of things which you come across when you are in an interview. And, being in the corporate field for the last 2 years and having attended numerous interviews, I could say there is no way a company could judge the real potential of an employee asking these questions. There is no specific way to measure whether the candidate fits in an organization. Even if I had a bad experience with my ex company I can never abuse or malign it in front of the other company who is taking my interview as it is not politically correct. What seems to be correct is purely a fake picture that the HRs considers as the valid reasons for an entry in an organization.
Where do I see myself after 5 years is a question posed by most of the employers? Well, I saw myself as a person who could easily go up the ladder just because I was quite confident about my abilities when I joined HSBC and yes, I made it a reality giving my 100% to the project I was working for, took initiatives and maintained a good rapport with all employees. But, due to a dirty trick played by someone, now I am somewhere else trying to build my career again from scratch, just to have something in my resume which can earn a job which I want. I have lost my 2 years in an attempt to see myself what I thought. Did my honesty pay?? No…..But, I have to fake everytime whenever someone asks me the question and my obvious answer is “ Well, I would like to see myself as a strategic consultant in an organization where I could exercise my existing talent and benefit the organization”.
Taking the right candidates is a challenge for sure when it comes to the HRs. But, more than that posing the right question to the candidates is much more important. Don’t judge a candidate asking a wrong question but judge them asking a question where they can do justice to themselves and to the organization. Commitment to an organization comes only when there is a mutual benefit. Attrition exists everywhere but that can be tackled when proper employee counseling takes place in an organization by the HRs. The first round of interview before selection is just an attempt to read the profile and not judging the person.
The next time when you ask, “How do you fit in the organization??”, think twice. Because, fitting in the organization is just not what the candidate thinks, it also depends on the project he works for, his line manager, circumstances around him and a lot many factors.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Sensex says, STICK to your STOCKS
The market is volatile. A sudden fall initiated a fear in the mind of the investors. Reliance IPO excitement almost resulted withdrawal of from the secondary market. The market noticed large outflows of FIIs adversely impacting market sentiment. In such a scenario, what could be recommended investment strategy for long-term equity investors?
The strategy is to remain unfazed by near-term market movements and invest in mid-cap funds. Key is to maintain a balance of mid-cap funds and actively managed funds in building long-term portfolios, alongside themes such as Infrastructure, natural resources and gold. The market is uncertain and definitely there is no reason to worry about your portfolio if it is diversified. In a volatile market, mid-cap funds have always performed better and if the funds are managed by fund managers having knowledge on which funds to invest, and then surely it’s a win-win situation for the investors. It’s necessary to keep a close look in the sector funds which are not sensitive to global trends which potentially give rise to such fluctuations. It gives an indication of the sectors performing in a volatile market situation and when the market is stable or upbeat. India is surely in the midst of strong domestic growth. With a positive indication of conducive global monetary environment coupled with stable domestic macroeconomic factors, monetary policy going forward is widely expected to support economic growth. Market performance over the medium term will thus benefit from the strong growth story as well as the increased investment interest it shall attract from both domestic as well as global investors.
The strategy is to remain unfazed by near-term market movements and invest in mid-cap funds. Key is to maintain a balance of mid-cap funds and actively managed funds in building long-term portfolios, alongside themes such as Infrastructure, natural resources and gold. The market is uncertain and definitely there is no reason to worry about your portfolio if it is diversified. In a volatile market, mid-cap funds have always performed better and if the funds are managed by fund managers having knowledge on which funds to invest, and then surely it’s a win-win situation for the investors. It’s necessary to keep a close look in the sector funds which are not sensitive to global trends which potentially give rise to such fluctuations. It gives an indication of the sectors performing in a volatile market situation and when the market is stable or upbeat. India is surely in the midst of strong domestic growth. With a positive indication of conducive global monetary environment coupled with stable domestic macroeconomic factors, monetary policy going forward is widely expected to support economic growth. Market performance over the medium term will thus benefit from the strong growth story as well as the increased investment interest it shall attract from both domestic as well as global investors.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
JUST PUNCH IT
Business is a catchy affair!! Glamorizing business certainly helps to boost the profits. The best way to glamorize is Punchline. Before anyone could think of what you want to sell, your punchline should convey the message. Sometimes, a punchline makes a lot of difference in selling of a product in the most unconventional market. If I think of selling a Deodrant in a cold country, how would I sell it through a punchline?? I might market it something as “ Let the Fragrance matter more than the Odour”. This simple punchline solves two issues:
1)Deodrants should not only be used as a Odour removing spray.
2)And, your deodrant’s fragrance is too sensual.
Sometimes, a catchy punchline conveys your organization’s vision and mission.Sometimes its easy to differentiate a product's target market just by seeing the punchline for e.g.
Kingfisher:Fly with the good times
Deccan Airlines:Simplyfly
Deccan is an airlines for masses and Kingfisher for Classes.For a common man, there can nothing be more attractive than "Simplyfly" and for the men of class,they obviously fly with the King and its always a good feeling with Kingfisher.A punchline conveys more than a product use or value.It reflects sometimes an organization's culture.Just make your product near to your customer just by saying "LOCAL" wherever they are in the world.A simple punchline just convey the organization's message accurately.Nike-"Just do it"-There is no other better way to boost the self-confidence the way Nike has put through their famous Punchline. Thus the ad line simply communicates that using Nike can improve your performance by enhancing the self-confidence.IBM ThinkPad- " I think, therefore IBM"-Here IBM tries to say that if you have the capacity to think then you should go for IBM ThinkPad, the Punchline exactly conveys the message.
So,ready to punch!!!
1)Deodrants should not only be used as a Odour removing spray.
2)And, your deodrant’s fragrance is too sensual.
Sometimes, a catchy punchline conveys your organization’s vision and mission.Sometimes its easy to differentiate a product's target market just by seeing the punchline for e.g.
Kingfisher:Fly with the good times
Deccan Airlines:Simplyfly
Deccan is an airlines for masses and Kingfisher for Classes.For a common man, there can nothing be more attractive than "Simplyfly" and for the men of class,they obviously fly with the King and its always a good feeling with Kingfisher.A punchline conveys more than a product use or value.It reflects sometimes an organization's culture.Just make your product near to your customer just by saying "LOCAL" wherever they are in the world.A simple punchline just convey the organization's message accurately.Nike-"Just do it"-There is no other better way to boost the self-confidence the way Nike has put through their famous Punchline. Thus the ad line simply communicates that using Nike can improve your performance by enhancing the self-confidence.IBM ThinkPad- " I think, therefore IBM"-Here IBM tries to say that if you have the capacity to think then you should go for IBM ThinkPad, the Punchline exactly conveys the message.
So,ready to punch!!!
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