Corruption at Corporate Level

In India we curse at the corruption in our government. However there is a corruption that is unseen and slithers around like a snake and that is of corruption at the cooperate level. It is not uncommon in India to have a company to pay the government or give ‘incentives’ to the government.

The biggest and the best example is the Bhopal gas tragedy, where many people died, injured and genetics was restructured in that area. Union Carbide the company which was largely responsible had managed to get a safety certificate, and the results did not play up to that certificate. The CEO of Enron who should have been detained in India managed to get out with some questionable help from the Rajiv Gandhi government.

Also not spoken, but commonly known is of Reliance industries success in the early years and its dealings with the government.

However last year and this year it is all changing. The 2G scam and the Neera Radia’s case have been revolutionary in this aspect.

The 2G scam case has seen a number of industrial haunches in the cross-sights of the CBI for giving bribes to the former Telecom Minister and one can only hope that the truth will emerge.

The Nira Radia’s case has revealed a media-political and corporate nexus.

If the Company’s cannot see the trend, then let me say it.

The people are demanding more corporate social responsibility. They don’t want the company’s to be hand in glove with a corrupt government and officials.

Tata has become an image in this case and company’s such as Reliance and such others need to change their image.

The fight against corruption is only getting stronger as we recently seen Ana Anzare’s hunger strike against corruption.

Fiat Logo

Fiat has been a successful car in India. For the past few years Fiat has been trying enter the luxury sector by producing a variety of sedans.

However there is one thing that I feel Fiat needs to change if it is to make a major headway. It needs to change is logo. Fiat’s current and previous logo is to straight forward. It is just the letters FIAT.

A logo in today’s world is supposed to be cool and classy. The logo may work with the older generation, but it will not work with the newer generation.

The newer generation needs something that will enable them to recall. If Fiat is going to just write their name and call it their logo, then a lot of opportunities are lost.

A Logo is important in branding of a product. And Fiat just typing the letter FIAT seems like they took an easy way out.

Whatever it is, if they want to become a big competitor in today’s market one of the things they need to do is change their logo.

A logo plays a big role in Top of Mind Recall. A good logo is easy to remember and a few flash of a logo goes well in reminding the consumers of the brand.

A logo can tell the history of the company. BMW’s logo is of a propeller, which signifies its airplane engines background.

However I understand this is not an easy demand. To change ones logo is to change’s one image. But for Fiat to make a major headway in the market it needs a better logo. A logo that is graphic and visual which would generate high recall. Fiat does not have to change its image if it changes its logo. The logo can come from its history. The logo can be based on Fiat’s image.

LANDLINE SHOULD NOT DIE

With the number of mobile numbers increasing, it is safe to say that mobiles have penetrated through India. However with this increase there has been a decrease. The number of landlines has decreased. This spells bad business for MTNL and BSNL. However both these organization have moved from landlines connection to include mobile connection and internet connection.

While the initiative for mobile connections has not turned out very successful, the internet initiative turned out differently. MTNL as quoted by my friend is “internet ka baap”. MTNL probably has the fastest and most reliable internet connection in India. However for consumer to have an MTNL internet connection will require him/her to have a landline connection.

Many consumers in this present over connected age feel that the mobile connection is suffice compared to landline connection; they do not see the need for a landline connection.

However MTNL and BSNL are missing out on a major marketing strategy that is that in a natural disaster or crisis mobile connections are not so reliable either because their towers get knocked out or they get overloaded. Landlines have time and time again proven their strength against natural disasters or a crisis. If they are reminded of or made aware of that security of connectivity that landlines gives during natural disasters or crisis when the mobile connection is down. Proposing a security to a classical unsecure setting that could happen in the future will definitely get people’s attention.

Google Playing the Fight Very Close

A researcher in Google has once again found a security glitch in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer. Microsoft has requested Google to withhold this information so that it can create a patch to fix this problem. This is the second time such a situation has been created.

Google refused to do so. To some this may be seen as irresponsible of Google, even childish that in the name of competition it is not willing to compromise and is willing to go to the edge and start pointing fingers at Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is the most widely used internet browser and since Google has introduced Chrome it is doing everything in its power to upset Internet Explorer’s number one position.

By announcing the glitch before Microsoft can fix it, is announcing also to lot of hackers of the potential security hole. Users will also realize this. Google is simply forcing them to change their internet browsers.

Is this viable? In the short run, yes. Maybe for a moment if the users are bothered they will switch their browsers and it may not be necessarily be Chrome. Even if users switch, it is highly possible that they will switch back to Internet Explorer once the glitch is fixed. It will take Google more than such a rash tactic to put Chrome in the number one seat. They are forgetting that though they have won brand loyalty of many people, as they move into other areas from Search Engine they will have to play from square one which is dominated by many more mature companies. 

Nano Wasting Money

Nano has started an advertising campaign, focusing on how families can be fitted and focussing on the price angle of less than one lakh. However it is of my opinion that Nano is wasting their time and money. The reason why Nano has unleased this campaign is because during the Diwali holidays the auto-industry sales incereased by 38% compared to last year, however Nano's sale barley rose about 2% compared to last year. There are a few reasons for this:

-- For one the car does not cost a lakh as projected. With the addition of taxes the car cost one and a half lakhs. 

-- Saftey measures. There have been a varitey of cases where the car has caught in flames. Though Nano claims that there is nothing wrong in the saftey measures of the car, it has offered Nano owners an upgrade in the saftey package. 

-- Avalability. Nano has depended on Nano mirco-sales. 

Nano's claim on the saftey measures does not offer any legitamacy simply beacuse one end it is saying that the car does not have any defect and at the side it is offering saftey packages. The public just does not buy this statment of Nano. 

The dependence on micro-sales is all wrong. What is needed is for the car to have a major precence in car show rooms and shops. However to do such a thing it needs to increase it's production output and for this it needs to have more industrial units. Hence it needs to stop wasting money on advertisment.

People know of Tata Nano, many people want to aquire this wonder car. However these various issues need to be dealt with. 

MISSCOMMUNICATION

MISSCOMMUNICATION

The reason news of the Coal India. Recent IPO is a great welcome, but what is disturbing is the opportunity lost out by the employees who were offered shares at 5% less cost. The reason for this being is that the Labour Union was against this the company becoming an IPO and to show this it refused to buy any of the shares.

I have always disapproved the government’s disinvestment in any public company, simply because that was the one defense that prevented a full scale lash of the western economic crisis. With the help of a balanced mixed economy of public and private companies such a crisis being created in India can be averted.  However becoming an IPO this public company has opened itself up to scurrility and at the same time it is still controlled by the government.

However I am deeply disappointed by the reaction by the labour. To some extent the blame must go to the management who has failed to communicate properly to the labour would mean and the opportunity it offered of 5% less the cost of shares which would reap so much more.

Such a result of the IPO will only set to harden the relation between the management and labour. 

DISSAPOINTING NOKIA

DISSAPOINTING NOKIA

Nokia is handling the competition poorly in India. The market it has approached is saturated. It has spread from urban to rural areas. The one of the main reasons that is has been a success and a great appeal with the public because of its user friendliness, but once the public gets the understanding of using a mobile phone handling a Sony Errikson or a Mottorola will not be difficult.

It is dissappointing with the enviromental angle it is taking with the use of Sharuk Khan. India has a country still needs time to develop into a enviromental caring country. This ad may target mainly urban people, but then Nokia is forgetting the bigger picture. The bigger picture is that this ad is played on television which is now in almost every household in India or if not atleast everyone has acess and the majority of the people in are rural and such an advertisment will not appeal to them.

The competition against Nokia is very strong. Their number one stand is being attack from all sides. They desperately need a makeover. Whatever customers they have they need to make them brand loyal.