Tata Group case, written by IIM Bangalore and IIM Tiruchirappalli faculty, wins top honours at 2016 EFMD Case Writing Competition

The awards ceremony will take place on the 7th of June in Berlin

23 May, 2017, Bengaluru: A two-part Tata Group case, co-authored by J. Ramachandran, Professor of Strategy, IIMB Chair of Excellence and Bain Fellow at Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, K S Manikandan, Associate Professor of Strategy, Indian Institute of Management Tiruchirappalli, and K Rajyalakshmi, formerly Research Associate at Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, has won the EMFD Case Wrinting Competition 2016. This year was a record for the number of entries received and the quality was exceptionally high. The Tata Group case won the award in the category ‘Indian Management Issues and Opportunities’.

The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) is an international not-for-profit association, based in Brussels, Belgium. It is Europe’s largest network association in the field of management development and it has over 800 member organizations from academia, business, public service and consultancy in close to 100 countries. EFMD provides a forum for networking in management development.

The awards ceremony will take place on the 7^th of June in Berlin, Germany.

The first of the two-part case, titled ‘Ratan Tata Case’ focuses on Ratan Tata’s leadership of the Tata Group, from 1991 to 2012. Written by K S Manikandan, K Rajyalakshmi and J Ramachandran, this part of the case narrates the Tata Group history and traces the early years of the Tata Group, its management philosophy, the leadership years of its legendary chairman JRD Tata, the DRAMATIC transformation under Ratan Tata’s leadership and passing the baton to Cyrus Mistry as Chairman of the Group in late 2012.

The second part, titled the ‘Cyrus Mistry Years Case’, co-authored by K S Manikandan and J Ramachandran, describes Cyrus Mistry’s leadership of the Group until it ended abruptly with his sudden removal as Chairman of Tata Sons on October 24, 2016, and the reinstatement of Ratan Tata as Interim Chairman.

“We are delighted with this recognition. Diversified business groups, which are widely prevalent in emerging economies, are an important organizational form as they defy received view that unrelated diversification is value destructive. This two-part case study based on an exemplar business group based in India, an emerging economy, is apt for MBA and Executive MBA courses on Corporate Strategy and Strategy in Emerging Markets,” said Prof. J Ramachandran.

For the last thirty years, EFMD has been organising its yearly case writing competition. With a wide selection of categories that focus on specific issues, as well as specific regions of the world, the aim of the EFMD case competition is to encourage and support the writing and creation of new and innovative case material.

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Product dealerships and service providers: The standard problem with their frontlines

Prof. Sreelata Jonnalagedda Faculty of Marketing IIM Bangalore

‘Frontlines’ is the term used for the service/sales force that are at the interface between the customer and the brand.

Article BY Prof. Sreelata Jonnalagedda, Faculty of Marketing at IIM Bangalore.

Article Published @ Forbes India

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Future of Globalization: Integration and Competitiveness

Rupa Chanda
Economics & Social Sciences
Professor
RBI Chair in Economics
IIMB

To coincide with the fifth anniversary of the Global Network for Advanced Management in April 2017,Global Network Perspectives asked faculty across the 29 schools in the network: “What do you think the future of globalization looks like? How will this affect the economy in your country or region? How is your school preparing students for this world?” On April 20, in a session at the Global Network for Advanced Management Fifth Anniversary Symposium, a panel of experts, including former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, will lead a discussion of the future of globalization and the implications for business and management education. Watch the discussion live.

What do you think the future of globalization looks like?

Is globalization on the retreat? Brexit, Donald Trump’s election, and the resurgence of right-wing, nationalist parties around the world have made us question our earlier optimism about the future of an open global economic order. A critical reevaluation of what globalization has delivered and how it has been managed is certainly warranted. In my view, however, globalization will endure, though at a more moderate pace and in a more uncertain and volatile manner, where we alternate between periods of globalization and de-globalization—much as in a business cycle with its peaks and troughs. The two currents may also at times run together, and the friction between growing cross-border activities which require global governance frameworks and national political systems which wish to preserve their sovereignty will only grow.

This view of an alternating and at times co-existing form of globalization is based on two factors—technology and demographics—which I believe will be the key drivers shaping our world in the future, and which are irreversible. Both these forces inherently contain within themselves the seeds of both globalization and de-globalization. While technology will continue to spur the dispersion of production of goods, services, and ideas across geographies and further the growth of global value chains, it will simultaneously also act as a disruptive force within and across countries by accelerating changes in the methods of production, delivery, ideation, and the associated distribution of economic and social benefits.

Likewise, while demographic imbalances across countries—with the associated implications for wages, production costs, and comparative advantage, will continue to spur outsourcing, foreign direct investment and the international mobility of students and workers—they will simultaneously sow the seeds of protectionism, nationalism, anti-immigration sentiments, and xenophobia, and pose threats to national security and culture. Demographics are also likely to result in a longer-term slowdown in growth and productivity in some parts of the world, thus altering the economic balance across countries and creating heighted concerns over the loss of economic and political supremacy.

How will this affect the economy in your country or region?

India stands to be adversely affected by the current wave of protectionism and anti-immigration, especially at a time when it is focusing on enhancing participation in global production networks, improving its business environment, and skilling its manpower to realize its demographic dividend and tap the opportunities thrown up by the global market. Although India is less integrated than many other countries in the region and thus may not be as adversely affected by de-globalization as others, it still needs an open global economic order in terms of movement of goods, capital, technology, ideas, and people to sustain and improve its growth prospects. Recent developments such as the stricter conditions on skilled immigration visas in the U.S. or the U.S. trade review, which targets countries like India on issues of intellectual property, state subsidies and tariff and non-tariff barriers are of concern to major sectors of the Indian economy.

Such developments may give rise to two possibilities. On one hand, they may lead Indian companies to re-examine existing strategies and consider new markets and business models and the Indian government to re-examine some of its distortive practices, focus more on competitiveness, and give a renewed thrust to multilateral, regional, and bilateral discussions. On the other hand, such global currents may lead to more calls for protectionism, retaliation, and incentive-based policy support for industry in India. Most likely, mirroring the global trends, both of these dynamics will play out in India as well, depending on the sectors and issues concerned. The challenge for Indian business and the Indian government will be to continue with recent efforts toward integration and global competitiveness, against the current headwinds of de-globalization.

How is your school preparing students for this world?

Recognizing the importance for any manager of understanding and confronting global issues and challenges, the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore has been making concerted efforts to provide its students, across all programs, with global exposure. IIMB has an exchange program that enables students to spend one term learning at foreign partner institutions in Europe and the U.S., and also brings foreign students from these partner schools to our campus. There are courses such as Business Planning for International Markets which provide IIMB students with an opportunity to spend some time in countries such as China, the UAE, Singapore, Israel, Vietnam, and Japan, and to work on projects targeted to those markets.

There are also global immersion modules with partner institutions in Asia, Europe, and the U.S., where students learn from policymakers, industry chambers, and overseas businesses. Students participate in global case and writing competitions where they confront issues of global concern. They intern with global Indian and foreign companies and get exposure to their global strategies and practices. There are courses which specifically address themes such as cross-cultural management and international business strategies, as well as courses which highlight the current economic scenario and provide perspectives on global developments and their impact on global and Indian businesses. The objective of all these efforts is to make our students capable of operating across cultural, economic, and geographic boundaries so that they can become effective and sensitive managers and global citizens.

Article Published @ Future of Globalization: Integration and Competitiveness

2 PGPEM students, from IIMB, work with AP Govt. on IPR framework to strengthen its Innovation & Start-up Policy

Mentored by Prof. A Damodaran, Anitha Botta and Jyothi Ganiger, from the PGPEM Class of 2016, are working on ways to safeguard innovators’ ideas, open up new revenue streams, create job opportunities and contribute to economic growth.

17 April 2017, Bengaluru: Two students from IIM Bangalore’s Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management (PGPEM) Class of 2016, Anitha Botta and Jyothi Ganiger, have begun a project with the Government of Andhra Pradesh in the area of IPR in order to further strengthen the existing Innovation and Start-up policy in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

As part of their course at IIM Bangalore, Anitha and Jyothi had made a detailed study of the existing AP Innovation & Start-up Policy 2014-2020. They then made a proposal to the Andhra Pradesh government, expressing their interest to work on the identified gaps in the existing policy such as connecting the existing AP Innovation & Start-up Policy to an IPR system, addressing funding of start-ups and entrepreneurs in particular at seed and early stages, and a roadmap for innovation.

Anitha and Jyothi went on to have a meeting with P. Pradyumna, IAS (2004), Joint Secretary to the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, and K. Vijayanand, IAS, Joint Secretary for Information & Technology Electronics & Communication, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, where they explained why it was necessary to address the identified gaps and how it could help the State and the innovation ecosystem.

They have now got cracking on a 4-month project on connecting the existing AP Innovation & Start-up Policy 2014-2020 with a new IPR framework, under the guidance of Professor A Damodaran, IPR Chair on IP Management (MHRD) at IIMB and faculty in the Economics & Social Sciences area.

“We were interested in Innovation and Intellectual Property Rights. We were aware that the Government of Andhra Pradesh is aggressive in promoting start-ups and innovation,” said Jyothi.

Anitha further explained, “We made a study of the current AP Innovation and Start-up Policy 2014-2020, and identified that Intellectual Property Rights were not being addressed fully. IPR not only safeguards innovators’ ideas, but also opens up new revenue streams, creates job opportunities and contributes to economic growth. National IPR policy alone will not suffice and it is important to have a solid IPR framework as part of every state innovation and start-up policy.”

Jyothi and Anitha submitted a proposal to include an IPR framework to the existing AP Innovation & Start-up Policy 2014-2020 that could enhance the destination advantage of AP state and support MSMEs to innovate and develop their IPs through the process of commercialization. “The proposal was appreciated, accepted and we are now working on the project. Our final report should be ready in four months,” added Anitha.

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IIMB welcomes 78 students to the two-year Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management (PGPEM) on April 08, 2017

Photo Gallery: PGPEM 2017-19 Inauguration

Prof. G Raghuram, Director, IIMB, lights the ceremonial lamp to inaugurate Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management (PGPEM) batch 2017-19 on April 8, 2017. (L-R) Vinay and Puneet Khurana; PGPEM 2017-19; Prof. G Raghuram; Debahuty, PGPEM 2017-19; Ramya Tarakad Venkateswaran, PGSEM Alumna & Faculty, IIM Calcutta; Dr. Seema Gupta, Chairperson, PGPEM, IIMB.

Dr. Seema Gupta, Chairperson, PGPEM, IIMB, welcomes the incoming students.

Ramya Tarakad Venkateswaran, PGSEM Alumna & Faculty, IIM Calcutta, delivers the inaugural address.

Prof. G Raghuram, Director, IIMB, shares his insights about industry needs and the programme.

Prof. Sourav Mukherjee, Dean of Academic Programmes, IIMB, gives an overview of the programme and life at IIM Bangalore.

The PGPEM Batch of 2017-19.

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IIMB welcomes 73 students to the one-year fulltime Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (EPGP) on March 31, 2017

Photo Gallery: EPGP 2017-18 Inauguration

(L-R) Revathi, Founder, INSPIRE, Anuj Gupta, Sakshi Suppal and Nikhil Dhar, participants of the one-year fulltime Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (EPGP) Batch IX, Prof. Sourav Mukherji, Dean of Academic Programmes and Prof. U Dinesh Kumar, Chairperson, EPGP, at the inauguration of Batch IX of EPGP on March 31, 2017.

EPGP Chairperson U Dinesh Kumar welcomes students to EPGP 2017-18.

Dean of Academic Programmes Sourav Mukherji offers an overview of the programme and life at IIM Bangalore.

Mukundan Srinivasa, Managing Director, NetServ, delivers the inaugural address after the inauguration.

Revathi, Founder, INSPIRE, addresses the programme participants.

Prof. G. Raghuram, Director, IIM Bangalore, addresses the students of the incoming batch.

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598 students graduate from IIMB with 8 bagging gold medals.

In his inspiring Convocation address, chief guest Uday Kotak, Executive Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, describes IIMB as ‘IIM Best’

20 March, 2017, Bengaluru: “Today, we have 598 students graduating – 20 from the Fellow Programme in Management (FPM), 18 from the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management (PGPPM), 75 from the Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management (PGPEM), 4 from the Post Graduate Programme in Software Enterprise Management (PGSEM), 70 from the one-year full-time Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (EPGP) and 411 from the two-year full-time Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP),” announced Professor G. Raghuram, Director, IIMB, at the institute’s grand 42nd Annual Convocation ceremony, held on March 20, 2017.

The students graduated from the prestigious institution this year in the presence of chief guest Shri Uday Kotak, Executive Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Kotak Bank Limited, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson, Board of Governors, IIMB, Professor G. Raghuram, Director, IIMB, and members of the faculty. The graduates were cheered by their proud families too, many of whom had made the trip to Bengaluru to capture the joyous moment forever.

While sharing a selection of the successes and achievements of students and faculty of IIMB during the past year, Prof. Raghuram said, “Two of our faculty have been awarded as distinguished alumnus/alumna from their own schools as well. Our faculty are not just world-class academicians and researchers, they also excel in pursuing their interests and passions. We are delighted by their success. I take this occasion to acknowledge their outstanding contributions.” He highlighted the contributions made by IIMB faculty in publishing in A category journals and said that it was a matter of great pride and visibility for the institution.

He had a special word about the 20 graduating FPM students as the number is an all-time high, equalling an earlier record set last year. “It gives me great pride to report that among the 20 of you, there are 17 peer review publications, including 5 in top tier journals. Out of the known 13 placements, 10 are joining academic institutions of which 6 are in other IIMs, a matter of great satisfaction for us.”

Wishing the graduating students success, he said, “Dear graduating students, you continue to do us proud. You are committed, active, and energetic. Please put your all into serving the nation for its development agenda and to making the world a better place for humanity. As you move on to become alumni of this wonderful institution, I hope you will continue to cherish the eternal bond and remain connected with us. Go dream and pursue your passion with gusto!”

For the full text of the Director’s report, click here

Among the graduating students this year, eight have been awarded gold medals. In PGP (Batch 2015-17), Udit Jalan, Dharmendra Hiranandani and Vaibhav Gupta received the gold medals for first rank, second rank and best all round performance, respectively.

In PGPPM (Batch 2016-17), Pranav Kumar Mallick has won the gold medal for best academic performance.

From PGPEM (Batch 2015-17), the gold medal for first rank and for best all round performance went to Shishank Gupta and Suresh Ganesan, respectively.

In EPGP (2016-17), Nikhil Goyal has won the gold medal for first rank, while Kushal Nitin Dalal has won it for best all round performance.

In his inspiring address, Uday Kotak, Executive Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, who was the chief guest at IIMB’s 42nd annual Convocation, described IIMB as IIM Best, to loud applause. He shared with the management graduates a few of his life experiences and career journey.

He listed the attributes for successful leaders as the 5 Cs: character, conviction, commitment, creativity and capability. “Kotak would not be what it is today if we did not think differently. As you move out of your cocoon, you will need to find creative solutions – dare to be different, test yourself, be ready to encounter challenges and also for failure, learn from your mistakes, and know that committed execution is the key to capability. You have huge opportunities, but will face tough and challenging times as well. You have to be bold but keep your values intact. You need to be resilient, and stand up for defending what you believe in.”

Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson, Board of Governors, IIMB, in her address, highlighted the institute’s milestones during the academic year 2016-17, the global rankings IIMB achieved, the important partnerships it entered into, IIM Bangalore being the convener school of the Common Admission Test (CAT) 2016, IIM Bangalore mentoring the new IIM at Visakhapatnam, the surge in demand for case studies developed by IIM Bangalore’s faculty which are distributed through Harvard Business Publishing, an affiliate of Harvard Business School, IIMB’s increased focus on Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) to provide access to a wide range of quality courses through blended learning programs for people who cannot afford regular management programs, IIMB’s initiatives in enabling a ‘start-up culture’ in the country and making ‘entrepreneurship’ an integral part of the school’s academic agenda, etc.

She had a special word of appreciation for IIMB’s incubation centre, the N.S. Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning (NSRCEL), which has consistently played a key role in seeding, nurturing and promoting entrepreneurship with an emphasis on early-stage start-ups. “As women remain highly underrepresented within the entrepreneur ecosystem, IIMB’s NSRCEL & Goldman Sachs have joined hands to launch the ‘Women Startup Programme’, the first blended-learning customized programme involving a MOOC and classroom training, as well as business incubation, to support the next generation of women entrepreneurs. The programme, which was offered at no cost, encourages and supports women to start their own businesses through a customized, three-phase model which incorporates online and classroom training as well as business incubation. The coursework is designed to teach both entrepreneurial and managerial skills, provide mentoring and networking opportunities, and access to capital to help empower women navigate their early ventures as well as equip them with tools to strategize and grow their businesses. I am proud to share with you that 15 women with great business ideas are now being incubated at NSRCEL for 12 months”.

She made a special mention of another initiative of IIMB’s NSRCEL. “The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has supported NSRCEL to set up a start-up incubator, with the objective of nurturing early-stage non-profit organizations. This non-profit incubator will select and nurture at least five early-stage organizations over the next two years, helping them become world-class non-profits that deliver disproportionate impact and become magnets for talent and funding. This initiative aspires to create a proven template for non-profit incubation in India, developing a playbook for nurturing and scaling early-stage organizations. Such an approach can be replicated at other academic institutions and incubation hubs across the country”, she pointed out. She also mentioned that NSRCEL has been selected by NITI Aayog to receive INR 10 crore as scale-up support over the next two years, which will enable the centre to upgrade and expand its infrastructure and thereby its services to entrepreneurs.

Welcoming the new IIMB Director, she said that it was a privilege to have a person of his stature and experience at the helm of this institute. While acknowledging the immense contribution made by Professor Raghavan Srinivasan in his role as Director Incharge, over the past one year, she said that Prof. Srinivasan has enabled a seamless transition from the previous Director Prof. Sushil Vachani to Prof. G. Raghuram.

Lauding IIMB’s alumni she said, “IIMB’s alumni continue to do the school proud with their achievements and their connect with the school. I take this occasion to put on record that the alumni from the Batch of 1991 raised over INR 2 crore for Ganga Trust that works with survivors of spinal cord injuries. The PGP Class of 1996 also made a substantial contribution to the school”, she added.

To the graduating students, she said: “I am sure there are great takeaways for you from your time here with us. I wish you all the very best and hope you continue to live out your dreams with courage and conviction.”

For the full text of the Chairperson’s report, click here.

Click here for the photo gallery

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IIMB celebrates 42nd Convocation on March 20th, 2017

Date & Time: 20 March, 2017 & 5.30pm

Venue: IIMB Campus

Chief Guest: Shri Uday Kotak

Executive Vice-Chairman & Managing Director,

Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited

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IIMBAA hosts Saturday Musings on ‘Disruption in the Services Sector’ on March 25

The third edition of Saturday Musings will feature a talk by Prof. G Shainesh of IIMB on ‘Service Innovations’ and a panel discussion

14 March, 2017, Bengaluru:

The Alumni Association of IIM Bangalore will present the next edition of ‘Saturday Musings’ themed on ‘Disruption in the Services Sector’ on March 25, 2017, from 10 am to 12.30 pm, at the IIMB auditorium.

The event will include a talk by Prof. G Shainesh, faculty from the Marketing area, IIMB, on ‘Service Innovations’. This will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Anurag Saboo (PGP ‘96), Co-Founder, Gumption Labs, (Fintech sector); Siva Ganapathi (PGP ‘94), COO, Idea Cellular (Telecom sector), and Dr. Charit Bhograj, Co-Founder, Tricog, D.M. in Interventional Cardiology from Sri Ramachandra Medical College 2009 (Healthcare sector). The session will be moderated by Parag Dhol (PGP ’93), Managing Director of Inventus Capital Partners.

To register, please visit https://goo.gl/forms/MH4xbEsUWIFF4hv92.

The program will be livestreamed to the global alumni of IIMB. The event will also be archived for future viewing and reference. To join the webcast, please visit http://bit.ly/2kEwJZW.

‘Saturday Musings’ is a monthly meet which acts as a forum for interaction, discussion and sharing of ideas between industry leaders, alumni, faculty, students and staff of IIMB. The sessions are held on the third or fourth Saturday of every month.

Topic: Disruption in the Services Sector

Date: Saturday, March 25, 2017

Time: 10 am – 12.30 pm

Venue: IIMB Auditorium

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FPM student Ankita Dash wins Best Paper Award at IIT KGP Management Doctoral Colloquium

The paper titled ‘To Be or Not To Be in Global Value Chains – Empirical Evidence from Indian Automotive Sector’ focuses on an examination of factors affecting participation of firms in India in automotive global value chains

06 MARCH 2017, Bengaluru: Ankita Dash, a student of the Fellow Programme in Management (FPM), the doctoral programme of Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB), has won the Best Paper Award for her paper titled ‘To Be or Not To Be in Global Value Chains – Empirical Evidence from Indian Automotive Sector’ at the IIT KGP Management Doctoral Colloquium, held recently. Professor Rupa Chanda, RBI Chair in Economics, IIMB, is Ankita Dash’s faculty mentor.

Ankita’s paper focuses on an examination of factors that affect participation of firms in India in Automotive Global Value Chains. It is based on the first chapter of her dissertation.

Congratulating Ankita on her achievement, Dr. Rejie George Pallathitta, Chairperson, Fellow Programme in Management, said: “Ankita’s intense preparation, dedication, focus and analysis on the subject has shown results. Her study can serve as a framework for further in-depth research on the topic.”

Abstract of paper: Global Value Chains (GVCs) are the latest paradigm in production and trade as businesses gain from comparative advantages offered by different geographies through international operations. Rising trade in intermediates has made GVCs central though India’s presence is yet not substantial. GVCs are still a nascent field of study, both in academia and in practice, and more so in developing countries like India where their impact is anticipated to be both significant and essential. The study, through a combination of in-depth discussions and a firm-level survey, aims to explore and understand the factors that either encourage or hinder participation of firms in India in the sectoral GVCs for two chosen sectors – automotive and electronics.

This paper presents the findings from the firms’ perspective as to which factors aid or deter them from participating in Automotive Global Value Chains. The gamut of broad factors covered under this study and analysed using PLS-SEM include institutional, regulatory, financial, trade-related, technological, sectoral and input-related elements; then further categorized into sub-factors. Apart from firm-level characteristics (like firm size, ownership type and location) having an effect on participation, other factors like inputs (vis-a-vis their availability, quality and cost), public institutions (in terms of their efficiency, transparency, etc.), and sectoral traits (like consolidation within the sector and importance of brands) were found to significantly influence participation in auto GVCs. While trade-related factors (tariff and non-tariff measures) have a positive bearing by encouraging participation, financial factors (especially credit, taxes and foreign exchange rates), technology (ease of access and transfer restrictions), market barriers (market entry costs, capital costs, gestation time of projects, etc. ) and product-related factors (like standards compliance, timely delivery) posed major challenges to participation. The study also ascertains the impact of the existing relevant laws for the automotive sector with the manufacturing policy, Motor Vehicles Act 1988 and state government incentives having the most positive impact and with labour laws having the most negative impact. In short, bringing out a comprehensive picture of the factors influencing participation of firms in India in the automotive global value chains has been attempted through this study.

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