simple elegant young annamani athinarayana in mib june 2015
TRANSCRIPT
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EDITORArikrishnan [email protected]
DEPUTY EDITORAnand Naidu
SUB EDITORKishor Subramaniam
WRITERSGanesh Murugan Geetha K. Maran Nandan SithambaramPalani MurugappanPrasath KanagarasShanthini SubramaniamSK SundramThevi Sinnadurai
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SOURCE OF NEWSBERNAMA
EDITOR’S NOTE
The workforce composition has changed
and become more diverse, with equal participation by men and
women. Evidence strongly suggests that by unblocking and
maximizing women’s contribution stronger economic growth can be
achieved. However, women’s contribution either for economic or social
development are always been neglected. Malaysian Indian Business
Magazine jointly with Malaysian Innovative Business Club (MIB-Club)
is organizing Women Achievers Assembly, a gathering of some 1000
women across diverse community segment including dynamic, influential
and accomplished women to appreciate them. Help us to disseminate this
information to your loved one and friends.
In this issue we feature simple, independent and elegant Ms. Annamani
Athinarayanan a promising woman entrepreneur from Johor as our cover
story personality. She shares with us how a friend’s guidance assisted her
to reach current position. Along with the guidance, her responsive action to
navigate the challenges brought her success. Readers are most welcomed
to meet her in person together with prominent a south Indian actress during
Women Achievers Assembly (WAA) scheduled on 24-26 July 2015 at
A’Famosa Resort Malacca.
Continuing to appreciate women, this month MIB introduce Women’s
View column with first article by Shanthini Subramaniam. Elsewhere in the
magazine, we update readers with latest business news from Malaysia,
India and Singapore and not to miss out our niche articles on Eastern
Management–BhagavadGita,ThirukuralandIndianmythology.
There’s a lot more in this issue, browse through for stunning facts and
figures, quotes, business jokes and other noteworthy articles.
As your deed is, so is your destiny.
Chairman & Managing Editor
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the articles published are those of the authors and do not necesarily reflect the views of MIB. While every reasonable care is taken in compiling this publication, MIB does not accept any liability whatsoever for possible errors, inaccuracies or omissions or the consequences thereof. The Publisher also accepts no liability in respect of the content of any advertisement in the magazine. All rights reserved. The reproduction, duplication, or republication of this magazine or any part thereof in any form whatsoever without the expressed written permission of the publisher is prohibited.
www.mibtimes.com
CONTENT
04 LIFESTYLE
Steps to Success
07 Today I Learned: Veda Business Model
08 Singapore Business News
10 Did You Know
12 COVER STORY
Simple and Independent: Miss Annamani Athinarayanan
20 EASTERN MANAGEMENT
9 Principles of Management from Hindu Mythology
24 ANCIENT WISDOM
Acting With Forethought And Planning As Guided In Thirukural
26 FACTS AND FIGURES
Business News in Figure
28 WOMEN’S VIEW
20 Questions I Ask Working On My Goals
31 EVENT COVERAGE
Lets Meet up
32 EVENT COVERAGE
Grand Opening of Nature’s Essence Premium Showroom
34 LEADERSHIP
Leadership Lessons from the Bhagavad-Gita: Part 10
38 BRAND
Deciding On A Rebranding Strategy
40 QUOTES
Quotes From Harish Manwani
42 India Business News
44 TRADEMARK
Reaping Riches In The Creative Industry
46 TECHNOLOGY
4D Printing : The Real Transformers
49 Business Jokes
50 Malaysia Business News
52 HEALTH
Stay Healthy and Wealthy,A Cancer Survivors Practical Guide
56 MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
Handling Charts in Excel
60 EMERGING MARKET
Doing Business in Nepal
64 Press Release
40
Singapore Business News
Did You Know
COVER STORY
and Independent: Miss Annamani Athinarayanan
12
Rebranding
Business 52
LIFESTYLE • by Thevi Sinnadurai
Steps to success
The first step in making a significant life change is to explore what a change might be. That means being able to acknowledge your wants,
your desires and your feelings and to express them to yourself. Here are some daily procedures and habits you can follow which are foundations to change, self-mastery and success.
• Set Aside Some Time, Preferably An Hour Every Morning For Self-Development
Do the things that make you feel blissful, optimistic and empowered so that you can set a positive tone for your day.
• Meditation is a practice that is very effective to start the day. In this modern world where everyone is so connected to everything else via cell phones, TV and internet, most people rarely enjoy the beauty of silence. The ability to quiet your mind and relax your body is an art and skill that everyone should develop.
• You can visualize your day, the way you want it to happen with positive vibes and energy.
• Read inspirational messages or text to set the tone of your day. This has become a good practice through Whatsapp and other social media messaging platforms.
• Listen to motivational talks using CDs, online downloads or any other medias available to you.
• Starting the day off well is a powerful strategy for self-renewal and personal effectiveness.
• Expressing gratitude is another great way to center yourself and get the proper perspective before heading to the office. Writing down the people, places, and opportunities that you’re grateful for takes just a few minutes but can make a real difference in your outlook.
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LIFESTYLE
• Have you ever started keeping a journal? Your journal offers self-insight. Set aside a period of ten minutes to write a journal entry every day. Even when you don’t think you have anything interesting to say, honour that commitment and write something. Some people are inspired by writing prompts, famous quotations, or simply picking a topic (work, family, health, goals).
• The quiet hours of the morning can be the ideal time to focus on an important work project without being interrupted. What’s more, spending time on it at the beginning of the day ensures that it gets your attention before others (kids, employees, bosses) use it all up.
• Since our mind creates our reality we need to get in control of our negative thinking. Your self-talk determines your self-image. Your self-image, in turn, determines your performance or behavior.
Unwanted Thoughts? Snap the Rubber Band!
• Place a loose, but comfortable sized rubber band on your wrist. It should be large enough that you are able to notice it throughout the day.
• Whenever you catch yourself engaged in negative thoughts or about to do something
wrong, such as in the middle of swearing, snap the rubber band and say “STOP IT!”, “OUCH!”. You are initiating mindfulness, and you begin to associate pain with swearing, which makes you not want to swear.
• Then replace the negative thought or action with a positive one immediately.
• Examples: If catching yourself swearing, say “I don’t do this anymore. I am calm and relaxed.” If you have a deadline on a project and you catch yourself thinking, “I will not succeed”, or “I’ might fail”, immediately snap the rubber band and rephrase that sentence to something positive such as, “I am in control”, “I can do this” or “I am successful.”
• Finally, it’s important to use your imagination and see yourself being successful: “finishing your project magnificently,” or “receiving praise from your boss for a work well done,” or whatever the appropriate scene is for your goal.
''The mind is like a garden - as you sow, so shall you reap. When you cultivate it and nurture it, it will blossom beyond your wildest expectation. But if you let the weeds take over, you will never reach your potential. What you put in is what you get out. So avoid violent movies, trashy novels and all other negative influences. Peak performers are meticulous about the thoughts they allow into the gardens of their minds. You truly cannot afford the luxury of a single negative thought.
'' – Robin Sharma
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Thevi Sinnadurai is a Practitioner in Clinical Hypnosis, Practitioner in Cognitive Behaviour Hypnotherapy, NS-NLP Master Practitioner, Certified Law Of Attraction Trainer and Emotional Freedom Technique Practitioner (EFT). She can be reached at:
LIFESTYLE
• Plan your day
Top performers never allow the day to end without building out their list of objectives they intend to accomplish the next day. This is by far the easiest task you can do to improve your performance.
Things are always created twice. There is always the mental creation which precedes the physical creation. Just as plans for a house must first be set down on paper before the house is started, so too should your day be planned within your mind early in the morning before the day begins. Visualize the wonders you desire this life to bring and they will materialize as your subconscious mind starts to focus on the attainment of goals.
• Memorize something every day. Not only will this leave your brain sharp and your memory functioning, you will also have a huge library of quotes to bust out at any moment. Poetry, sayings and philosophies are your best options.
• Keep your mind focused. Do not let your mind float like a dried leaf in the wind. If you’re like most people, before long your attention will wander away into fantasy or analyzing, at some point, you might realize that your mind is no longer focused. With this awareness, you proceed to disengage from the thought that had drawn your mind away, and steer your attention back to your breath. The cycle may repeat. Refocus on your breadth again
• When doing a task, think of nothing else. When walking to work, count the steps that it takes to get all the way to the office. This is not easy but your mind will soon understand that you hold its reins and not vice versa. Your mind must eventually become as still as a candle flame in a corner where there is no draft.
• An exercise for today. Write down the seven best qualities of individuals who you admire and post this list where you can view every day in the morning. Each morning as you rise, focus on a new quality which you will strive to implement during the day. Who do you look up to and why?
How are they making the world a better place to live in, and how can you do the same? What qualities do you admire in them, and how can you develop the same ones? Think of ways that you can better embody these qualities you admire. Think of how to apply those qualities in your work, creative pursuits, personal relationships, diet and lifestyle.
After one week, you will notice small differences in yourself. In one month, these traits will become firmly embedded. After two months, all those important qualities will be yours.
For further reading reference: The Top 200 Secrets of Success and the Pillars of Self-Mastery by Robin S. Sharma.
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V.E.D.A stands for Vision, Enlightment, Devotion and Action, a model of transcendental leadership and management having roots in Vedic thought that are
useful for the corporate and other entities.
Transcendental leaders convert their vision into reality through enlightenment, devotion to the cause and through action or nishkam karma (refer to MIB October 2014 issue). The idea of transcendental management emerges with the acceptance of the need of “spiritual values” in management, thereby leading to a holistic approach in management.
The four margas (or path) fund an integration as Vision (V) is indicative of raj-yoga, Enlightenment (E) is indicative of Jnana yoga, Devotion (D) is indicative of Bhakti Yoga and Action (A) is indicates Karma yoga.
VEDA model also provides a basis for integration of Dwaita, Vishista adwaita and adwaita, wherein Vision(V) connotes the “Mountain Top of Adwaita,” Englightenmen( E) correspondstoadwaita,Devotion(D)toVishista–adwaitaand Action (A) corresponds to Dwaita.
- adapted from Gurukul Business Review, 2005
Vision Devotion Enlightment Action
VEDA Business ModelTODAY I LEARNED 9
SCOOT TO LAUNCH FLIGHTS BETWEEN SINGAPORE AND KAOHSIUNG
Scoot will launch flights between Singapore and the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung from Jul 9 this year, the budget airline announced in mid April
2015. The airline’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft will operate the thrice-weekly flights, said Scoot in a news release. The Singapore-Kaohsiung flight will depart at 7:55am on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from Jul 9. Meanwhile, the flight from Kaohsiung to Singapore will depart at 9:30pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from Jul 9. Scoot currently operates daily flights betweenSingaporeandTaipei.–CNA
41% SPIKE IN MAY-JULY COE QUOTA
There will be a whopping 41.1 per cent more certificates of entitlement (COEs) from next month onwards. The quota for May-July 2015 will have a total of 19,912 COEs, or 6,637 monthly. Of these, there will be 2,853 Category A small car COEs per month, or a 44.6 per cent increase from the previous February-April 2015 quota. Category B - for bigger cars, ie those above 1,600cc or 130 hp - will see a 28.5 per
cent rise to 1,856 COEs each month, while Cat E - the open category which currently tracks Cat B in terms of premium - will enjoy a 54.4 per cent jump to 539 COEs monthly. But it is Category C - for goods vehicles and buses - which sees the biggest percentage increase of 99.5 per cent to 736 COEs per month. Meanwhile, Cat D - for motorcycles - gets the smallest hike of 14.6 per cent to 653 COEs.-The Business Times
| May 2015
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SINGAPORE BUSINESS NEWS
SME PAYMENTS IN Q1 SLOW TO NEAR THREE-YEAR LOW
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Singapore took 44 days to settle their accounts in the first quarter of this year - translating into the slowest
rate of payment since the second quarter of 2012, data from DP Information Group showed on Tuesday. By comparison, the time taken by SMEs to pay their bills in the fourth quarter of last year was 42 days. A quarter before, it was 36 days.Among the industries, financing companies had the biggest deterioration in the pace of payment, from 44 days to 51 days. The biggest improvement in payment behaviour came from the shipping and marine sector, where companies paid their first quarter bills 12 days faster than in Q4 last year. "The trend is towards slower payments by SMEs but there are no indications yet that any sector is experiencing any critical issues. However, problems may occur if the trend continues throughout the year," said Lincoln Teo, chief operating officer of DP Info. The Business Times
SMRT AND OMG TEAM UP TO BID FOR SINGAPORE'S 4TH TELCO LICENCE
Transport operator SMRT has announced that it has entered an agreement with OMGTEL (OMG) to work exclusively with OMG in connection with OMG's bid for Singapore's fourth wireless telecommunications (telco) carrier licence. OMG is a company incorporated by
local tech firm Consistel on Oct 20, 2014, for the purpose of bidding for the telco licence. It had originally announced its intentions to be the Republic's fourth telco in October. Under the announcement posted on the Singapore Exchange on Wednesday, SMRT and OMG will collaborate on the provision of goods and services, and will seek to leverage SMRT's extensive media presence and commuter reach. The transport operator also announced that it was offered an opportunity to invest up to S$34.5 million via an option to subscribe for shares in OMG. The exercise of the option will be at SMRT's election, and subject to OMG obtaining the telco licence, satisfactory due diligence on OMG, and the execution of definitive agreements between SMRT and OMG, among others, it said. "OMGTEL believes SMRT will make a significant and strategic contribution to making OMGTEL a success in the years to come," said OMGTEL chairman Masoud Bassiri in a statement on Wednesday. In preparation for the bid, OMG said it has appointed an advisory board, which includes former Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo, former Commissioner of the Singapore Police Force Khoo Boon Hui, as well as former deputy CEO of the Media Development Authority Michael Yap.
GRABTAXI TO INVEST US$100M IN SINGAPORE
Mobile phone transport app GrabTaxi has invested US$100 million (RM364.2 million) into its first research and development (R&D) Centre in Singapore. The centre opened
in Cecil Court in the Central Business District and will eventually house 200 engineers and data scientists. It will focus on analysing data and spotting trends from multiple sources. The 200 staff comprises the majority of its technical staff and engineers from around the world. GrabTaxi Group chief executive officer Anthony Tan said that while the firm remains focused on Southeast Asia, talent is global in nature and GrabTaxi has recently hired senior talent from companies such as Facebook and Amazon. Singapore provides an ideal location for their new technology hub, he said. “The strong existing infrastructure and conducive business environment are ideal for us to build and develop this global pool of talent,” said Tan.
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SINGAPORE BUSINESS NEWS
VALUE AND RESPECT EMPLOYEES AS PERSON Indra Nooyi, chairwoman and chief executive officer of PepsiCo was quoted saying “You need to look at the employee and say, ‘I value you as a person. I know that you have a life beyond PepsiCo, and I’m going to respect you for your entire life, not just treat you as employee number 4,567.”
Indra NooyiCEO PepsiCo
FOCUS ON DELIVERYRakesh Kapoor, CEO Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC was quoted as saying "Innovation is not a process; it is more of a way of delivering on our purpose and how we do business. This means we put our customers at the center of our business and constantly ask, 'How can we make a real difference to them at those crucial moments when our products are being put to use to clean their dishes or remove the tough stain on their favorite garment?"
Rakesh KapoorCEO Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC
Sanjay Kumar Jha is the CEO of GlobalFoundries and former chairman and chief executive officer of Motorola Mobility that plans produce 20- and 14-nanometer nodes. A study by St. Gallen University, Switzerland Indian managers feel company genuinely cares for its employees, provided a strong bond of loyalty that went beyond financial rewards thus works to create proven track record in consistently delivering shareholder value and be one of the most respected leaders in the technology industry.
Sanjay Kumar JhaCEO of GlobalFoundries
WHAT MAKES INDIANS AS THE MOST PREFERRED CEO? Many Indians from India, been appointed as
chief executive officer or to key position by American and European multinationals.
Companies such as Microsoft, Mastercard, PepsiCo, Adobe Systems, Diageo, GlobalFoundries and Reckitt Benckiser run by India originated managers. What makes them as the most preferred?
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DID YOU KNOW
Indians to be particularly future-oriented, focused on long-term strategies. Shantanu Narayen of Adobe says: "If you can connect all the dots between what you see today and where you want to go, then it’s probably not ambitious enough or aspirational enough".
Shantanu NarayenCEO Adobe
DRIVE CHANGES Ivan Menezes,chief executive of Diageo, which makes Johnnie Walker, Guinness and Baileys put the company's emerging markets business at the heart of its strategy and believes the drinks giant could exceed its 2016 sales targets. The graduate of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad played a key role in Diageo's $2.1 billion stake buy in United Spirits and played a leadership role in streamlining Diageo North America's business processes while focusing on marketplace execution.
Ivan MenezesCEO Diageo
Most of those Indian origin CEO’s had the patience and persevere to rise through the ranks at their companies, learning their business thoroughly from every angle. The company's rank-and-file for 22 years was cited as a major reason for Satya Nadella’s promotion to the helm Microsoft replacing Steve Ballmer.
Satya NadellaCEO Microsoft
One of most respected Investors in the world, chief executive of Toronto based Fairfax Financial Holdings Prem Watsa recognize that there are many needs in the communities in which we live.The Hyderabad born Blackberry investor believe we operate our business profitably, we have the means to assist in taking care of those needs. Doing well in your business gives you the ability to make a significant difference by doing good in the world and within the communities in which you operate.
Prem WatsaCEO
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DID YOU KNOW
SIMPLE AND INDEPENDENT
There is a myth that the women are always less qualified and inexperienced when it comes to business; however, the women of today have
proven the myth wrong. It is not about the gender anymore, but about broader personal goals and benchmark for successes. Malaysian Indian Business Magazine (MIB) was pleased to interview Miss Annamani Athinarayanan, the founder of the successful Mega Octopus Cybercafé.
MISS ANNAMANI ATHINARAYANAN
MIB Now available Online read it @
www.mibtimes.com
| May 2015
ANYTHING IS poSSIBLE
The Taiping-born entrepreneur had a long way journey before ending up in a cybercafé business. As a child she spent most of the time growing up with her grandmother and then continued her secondary school life first in Taiping and later at Alor Setar, Kedah. As soon as finishing her upper sixth form, she joined local polytechnic, POLISAS, Kuantan, and graduated in Law of Business Management.
Upon finishing the tertiary education, her first career begins with Singapore Airlines, and then with Kuwait Airlines based in Kuwait before returning to Singapore and that is exactly when she decided to foray into cybercafé business.
Firstly, the thought of doing cybercafé business came from a good Chinese friend, Steven, as she is closer to Chinese friends. “Steven has about 5 years of experience in cybercafé and who is also owner of Red Island cybercafé has more than 10 branches. He advices, consults and setup software for my cybercafe,” Anna shared with MIB.
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COVER STORY
Cybercafé business looked easy at her first glance, but the process was harder than what meets the eye. The process includes the setup, renovation, software and involves many other things. She followed a step-by-step process before running the business, as skipping any one of the steps will eventually lead to a business that lacks professionalism.
Most of the young girls at her age and women would be opting to do beauty salon or cash and carry, with the most choosing to do bridal. She had a different opinion, wanted to do something different, and made her mind to do something challenging, and she was prepared to face the challenge and take the risk ever since she was a young girl.
NAVIGATE THE CHALLENGE “Many youngsters of my age, mostly would opt to set up, bridal business but I want to do a challenging business since my young age, I grew up with that
mind thought so I picked cybercafé”. She opted for cybercafé business and began the setup process through Steven.
Her initial setup consists of 50 computers. Moreover, the process also includes securing the approvals and licenses from the local Fire and Rescue department and the District Council. She was also required to submit multiple documents and paperwork about the location, the business plans and strategy, photos of shop lot, and the exact statistics of residential houses in that particular area.
She also had to make sure that the area has the adequate and satisfactory internet requirement and supply ports such as the Streamyx or Unifi, as the internet services are the most important infrastructure services for a cybercafé business. As for the games and software settings, she had the best coming through Steven.
“The important thing is cyber won’t run without internet, other than that is the
gaming software, my friend Steven has a company to do with the settings based out of Kuala Lumpur, and so we did every game settings through them and so many things that beyond what normal people thinks about establishing cybercafé business”.
The rest of the process includes renovation, wiring, suitable furniture, personal computers and other gadgets such as the microphones and headset. After much of the struggle, the first branch of Mega Octopus was finally opened for business.
She explains that she was an investor type than a saver, as she began the processes for the second branch as soon as the first branch was proliferating with profits and the processes was repeated to open third branch. With all the hard work and successes, she already opened three branched in three years, with the third being the largest of all that occupies 100 personal computers.
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COVER STORY
Anna, a young entrepreneur of this modern era, already achieved her goals with three branches of cybercafé within three years, but that doesn’t stop her from looking forward into the future, that holds the more possibilities of business. Her plan for the future includes giving business opportunity to Indian youngsters that are interested in cybercafé business.
THERE IS ALWAYS A WAY
“For our upcoming Indian youngsters, we want to give opportunity for them, who are interested in cyber and who are thinking to run, anytime, they can come and propose. And we have plans for them to run under our brand, anyone anytime can come and look for us, and if they want more information, they can always contact us through email and phone calls”.
The Indian youngsters can approach her to propose their business plan. She is willing to help build their company through her company and under her brand. By going through this plan, the Indian youngsters will get the answers for full specification, capital, cost and company licence. She will help them open their own cybercafé with one condition, that the first investment is their own.
The Mega Octopus was her main priority of business, but she intends to open multiple business under the present stable company. As the option she is considering on franchising, licensing and partnership that may boost up her revenues. She also added that the Indians have more business opportunities if they can borrow or follow multicultural business trend, for example from the Chinese.
“If you look at the Chinese way of doing business, they will open 10 shops in a year, how they can do it? Are they giving out franchise, licence, or partnership? Why we cannot do that with our Indians, I want to give them the opportunity through Mega Octopus. We will do the full setup and even run it for them, this is my future plan”.
As for her role model, she named Dr. Alice Prethima Michael, the well-known Aesthetic Physician and Cosmetic Surgeon Anti-aging and Total Wellness Specialist that pioneered cosmetic surgery in Bangsar, KL. “My role model is Dr. Alice and I like her very much. She is a busy woman and a cosmetic surgeon. Cosmetic surgery is a kind of business, and not just a service. If you look at her, she is very successful, rich, independent and brave. I really salute her and admire her”.
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COVER STORY
She advises the young Indians not to waste their time. For her, the youngster who does monthly paid job and spendthrift the earnings should change their mind. She emphasized that the youngsters should take the Chinese as an example and ventures into business, and they should learn to take the challenge and face the risk.
“There’s no business without profits and losses. Take a role model, look at their path and see what they have been through in life and change to be more like them”.
She also advises the young Indian girls with family problems, divorce problem or problematic husband that they should start to think how they could be a successful woman that can contribute to the society.
“I am a girl and I’ve been through failures, problems and big tragedies in my life. I just want to say, every successful person failed many times before they succeed. Put a full stop for the past and think of present and future. This is how I started back
Far Right : Anna's father, DSP Tuan Athinarayanan Subramanian Naidu
“There’s no business without profits and losses. Take a role model, look at their path and see what they have been
through in life and change to be more like them”
~ Annamani Athinarayanan
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COVER STORY
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COVER STORY
my career. I keep all that thoughts away from myself. I only thought about being somebody in the society and a respected person and that’s the reason I ventured into business and be where I am today.” Her policy is very simple, be independent do not depend on anyone and make it simple.
Her father, DSP Tuan Athinarayanan Subramanian Naidu, who is a police officer at the Police Academy of Langkawi, is another role model for her and never discouraged her for anything. He put a lot of trust in her and she has never failed to make him proud. Her mother, Mrs. Asaimani, is an ex-teacher and she is the one that encourages her every day to follow her dreams.
Besides that, she grew up with her grandmother Appalanarasu since both of her parents were too busy in career after graduating from university and her grandmother has encouraged her a lot too. I would like to thank all business friends who supported me as well.
Now she is more determined and fuelled up to become the next number one business person as she is named as the Young Entrepreneur Business Woman, Johor.
“The pain and tough times I’ve been through encouraged me to become the number one businessperson and that is my target. I hope everything will go as planned with God’s blessings and I wish to receive another award probably through MIB."
Her experience will be a groundbreaking story for all the women in business during the MIB Women Achievers Assembly (MIB-WAA) 2015 right around the corner. She declared herself as a MIB - WAA participant and as one of nominee for the award for the evaluation of a panel of juries.
TOP :
Mega Octopus Cybercafe
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COVER STORY
21
1 SELf MANAGEMENT
A person who can control his anger is better than a person who performs Yagna for 100 years. An angry person cannot judge anything. Bhagavad Gita says that a person performing his duty with detachment and as an observer (Sakshibhav) is Karma Yogi. Such performer will be free from burden of failure. Such a person is enjoying the work and not the result. So result cannot frustrate him. This will make him rational. While, western management focus on others to get work done while Indian mythology says that management begins from inside, self-management.
2 SpECIALIzATIoN
Tasks performed by different workers and that precise observation has given birth to the concepts of specialization. These concepts were limited up to performance at one business unit level i.e. micro level. In Indian mythology “Varn Vyavastha” was developed based on the activities performed by different classes that are broadly bifurcated into four classes. According to attributes these four classes have been made:
a) Brahmin (Wise people)
b) Kshatriya (Administrator)
c) Vaishya (Businessmen)
d) Shudra ( Servants)
9 Principles of Management
from
Hindu Mythology
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EASTERN MANAGEMENT
3 pLANNING, STRATEGIES ANd poLICIES
In Mahabharata, it is explained that any activity should begin with clear understanding of objective behind. Not only this but the results after and how does it contribute to your development should be kept in mind before you decide it. To take any decision regarding any activity, input output ratio should be compared. If output or gain is considerably high then one should start that activity earliest. The application of strategic planning and implementation in context to army was present.
Bhishma addressing Kauravas in Virat Parv that you must have clear measurement about the strength and weaknesses of your army. If they are highly satisfied and having high morale then war can be declared against enemy. But if satisfaction level is average then war should be avoided and compromise should be made. For amicable solution four strategic options in form of policies can be applied named Sama, Dama, Bhed and Dand. Policy of Sama focusing on convincing, Dama stands for paying money, Bhed explains dividing while Dand is punishment in any suitable form may be sometimes in form of paying more tax. These four policies should be applied according to time, situation, person. A tactful application will result in healthy environment.
Any activity performed by Brahmin, Kshtriya, Vaishya or Shudra, the aim is to achieve Moksha.
4 oRGANISING
In Shanti Parva of Mahabharata, pyramidal structure state organization is explained. A head is appointed in every village. Head of the village has to report activities of his village to his superior who is in charge of 10 villages. The reports of 10 villages will be submitted to his higher authority that takes care of 100 villages. He has to report his chief who is in charge of 1000 villages. The chief of 1000 villages
will directly report to the king. They are assigned duties and given authorities in a balanced form to work effectively. One more person can be appointed as minister to administer chiefs of 1000 villages.
5 STAffING
To run any organization good and competent persons are needed. Finding appropriate person, testing him and appointing a right one with handsome salary and freedom of work is the key of success. This group of activity is called staffing. It was applied in the same manner in the time of Mahabharata. The King should
be very much clear on the expected qualities for different positions and
their characteristics such as honesty, dedication, loyalty, having good family background and ability to plan. Family background was given due importance because that was one the important factor that decides his behavior in adverse situations. All these done in very ethical manner as the aim of any kingdom is welfare of the society. Compare to western literature, the basic difference is emphasize on family background is given in Indian mythology as our behavior pattern is highly motivated by our family environment.
6 CoNTRoL
Indian mythology emphasizes self-control rather than imposed control. One should be able to control his organs rather than being controlled by the needs of organs. For this, all the efforts are made by the surroundings to create the environment of ethics and morality. ‘Panchatantra’ Stories are the best way to inculcate values in person. Though due to situation, lack of self-control may lead to commit some misconduct like theft, malpractice or crime. It should be controlled and protected by king. The provision of punishment should be there. The security should be given to the informer as well.
Any activity performed by Brahmin,
Kshtriya, Vaishya or Shudra, the aim is to
achieve Moksha.
23EASTERN MANAGEMENT
7 CoMMuNICATIoN
Communication in today’s era focuses on media, types and flow of communication means upward, downward, horizontal etc. While in era of Mahabharata, it is in context to the quality content, type of words we use and tone that we use. This will decide the feedback and approach the receiver. In Vidur Neeti it is explain that a wise man should avoid charismatic words and make use of easy, simple and soft word to make it effective. Harshness in speech should be avoided. This may lead to disaster.
8 LEAdERSHIp
Indian mythology is full of spiritualism. So the examples of great leaders are having spiritual and holistic aspects in their personality. In Mahabharata we find two types of leaderships. On one there is an unethical, negative leader – Duryodhana. On theother hand there are positive leaders like Krishna, Yudhisthir and Arjun. The qualities of these leaders can be found even in today’s world.
Positive leaders are inspirational and role models irrespective of time.
i. Krishna–Aspiritual,practicaland persuasive personality. Ability to motivate a surrendered person in winning temperament.
ii. Yudhisthir, knows very well what should be done ethically in any situation. He has ability to explain calmly but firmly the truth.
iii. Arjun. Having winning temperament to fight against unethical practices and still loved by all. Sensitive enough to understand the feelings.
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EASTERN MANAGEMENT
9 dECISIoN MAKING
The Bhagavad Gita gives following steps for taking decision:
1. Environmental scanning and searching.
2. Understanding the problem.
3. Develop strategic options and consulting experts if necessary.
4. Comparing and choosing the alternatives with rationality means while we choose the alternative we should be free from anger, greed, selfishness, revenge, jealousy and affection.
5. Put the alternative on ethical ground. It should not be harmful for any class or spirit of the society. It’s a test on holistic ground.
6. Execution of decision with brilliancy and skill. Efforts should be made as if we are offering something to God that means egoless.
7. Acceptance of result as ‘God Gift’.
8. Sharing the results with parties involved like suppliers, employees, customers, investors, government and the society.
g This article is extracted from Indian Journal of Applied Research
ANCIENT WISDOM • by Maran Nandan Sithambaram
Thirukural
Kural: 464
“Thelivu ilathanai thodangar izlivuenum Ethapaadu anchuvar”
Explanation:Those who dread derision and disgrace will not commence a task that is unclear Thiruvalluvar touches on the importance of a clear objective, policy, procedures and schedules to carry a work a task in hand. Objectives are the targets to be accomplished. Policies are guidelines to achieve targets. Schedules are the
amount of work to be done and fi xing the time procedures are guides to action. A
budget is a statement of expected results expressed in numerical terms.
Kural : 466
“Seithaka alla seyakkedum seithakka Seyaamai yaaqnum
kedum”
Explanation:To do that which ought not to be done
will bring ruin, and not to do that which ought to be done will also bring ruin. He
will perish who does what it is not fi t to do; and he also will perish who does
not do what it is fi t to do. We should think deeply before commencing an
action and then be bold and persist since questioning our ability and doubtful
thereafter is disastrous.
An effective planning reduces the necessary time and effort of achieving the goal. A plan is like a map and when following a plan, one sees how much
have progressed towards the goal and how far from the destination.
In unplanned activities, 80 percent of the effort gives lesser than 20 percent of the valuable outcome. With careful planning one can see if at some point likely to face a problem. It is much easier to adjust the plan to avoid an upcoming crisis, rather than to deal with the crisis when it comes unexpected. Thiruvalluvar uses the word ”Therinthu seyalvagai” (Act with forethought) when referring the importance of consideration and pre-planning.
ACTING WITH FORETHOUGHT AND FORETHOUGHT AND PLANNING as guided in
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| May 2015
ANCIENT WISDOM • by Maran Nandan Sithambaram
This article penned by Maran Nandan Sithambaram, LLB (Hons) ,(UK) CLP ,BA (Hons), (Malaya ) Dip.Edu. Dip. Translation , Dip. In law (Sydney). CEO and Principal Lawyer of Marsh Lawyers, Sydney, Australia. Mr. Maran Nandan is also an advocate and solicitor of High Court of Malaya.
He can be reached through phone or by email below:
+ 61413 990 550 [email protected]
ANCIENT WISDOM
In conclusion, the father of Modern Management, Henry Fayol has identified planning, organization, command, coordination and control as part of six activities which are essential elements for an organizations. It is amazing to note that Thirukural mentions these aspects some 2000 years ago.
There is always a methodology to carry out work. If one ignored the method and continuing, such work is doomed to fail.
Kural 461
“ Azlivathuthum aavathum aagi vazhlipayakum Oothyamum
soolunthu seyal “
ExplanationLet a man refl ect on what will he be
lost,what will be acquired,and from these what will be his ultimate gain,and then
let him act.
Kural: 467
“Ennith thuniga karumam thuninthapin ennuvam enbathu
izlukku “
Explanation:Think fi rst and then begin your work; after you have begun, to say, “ let us
consider,” is a reproach. A leader who has given much thought, proactive and empowers the right work
to the right people at right time will win.
Kural: 483
“Aruvinai enba ulavoh karuviyaan Kaalam arinthu
seyin”
ExplanationIs there anything diffi cult for him to do ,who acts,with the right instruments at
the right time?
Kural: 468
“Aatrin varuntha varutham palarninru Potrinum
pothupadum”
ExplanationThe work, which is not done by suitable methods, Will fail although many stand
up to protect it
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May 2015 |
ANCIENT WISDOM
28
| May 2015
28
UP TO 30% GROWTHUOB Asset Management (M) Bhd aims to grow its asset under management (AUM) by 20 to 30 per cent this year from RM5.16 billion currently, mainly driven by its new products in the pipeline. Its executive director/chief executive officer, Lim Suet Ling, said the company would introduce six products this year,
with each product to be launched in weeks’ time.
US$19 billion SEMICONDUCTOR SPENDING
SEMI, a global industry association serving the nano and micro-electronic manufacturing supply chains, estimates spending on semiconductor equipment and materials in the Southeast Asia to reach US$19 billion by 2016. "Southeast Asia is a vibrant and changing market for the semiconductor industry. For 2015 and 2016, SEMI estimates spending of almost US$5.0 billion on front-end and back-end equipment in the region, and another $14 billion in spending on materials, including $US11 billion on packaging-
related materials," its Southeast Asia president Ng Kai Fai said in a statement.
RM30 million GST Habib Jewels Sdn Bhd has absorbed the entire cost of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) at six per cent to enable consumers to enjoy the prices of its jewellery at the pre-GST level. Managing director Datuk Seri Meer Sadik Habib said the company would absorb up to RM30 million from its earnings and planned to offset it by lowering costs and increasing efficiency.
RM6 billion PROJECTSProperty developer, LBS Bina Group Bhd aims to launch about RM6 billion worth of new projects in the next three years. Managing Director Datuk Seri Lim Hock San said 60 per cent of the residential and non-residential projects would be located in Selangor, 15 per cent in Pahang and 25 per cent in Johor.
RM200 million FOR WOMEN
SME Bank has allocated an initial RM200 million for its newly-launched Women Entrepreneur Financing Programme (WEP) fund, tailored for women entrepreneurs. Group Managing Director Datuk Mohd Radzif Mohd Yunus said the financing would be tied together with capacity building and the allocation would be increased depending on the demand and needs from capable young women entrepreneurs. The financing is for between RM500,000 and RM2.5 million, with margin of financing for working capital
of up to 100 per cent except for renovation, and up to 90 per cent for business assets.
FACTS & FIGURES
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May 2015 |
29
£222 billion DEBTEach UK citizen has amassed a debt of £3,400 ($4,976) without even knowing about it. This is due to a UK government scheme that signed controversial deals with private companies to borrow money on behalf of the public and pledging to pay it back later. The deals, which are known as Private Finance Initiatives (PFIs), were used by London to pay for public infrastructure, such as schools and hospitals. Signed with private enterprises, they would allow the government to “buy now, pay later,” the Independent on Sunday reports.
US$24.8 trillionU.S. Department of Agriculture's latest macroeconomic projections that go out to 2030, projected U.S. will just barely remain the global leader, with $24.8 trillion in annual output. Gross domestic product projected for 2015 projected at $16.8 trillion on next 15 years contributing only 20% to world economy in 2030 down from 25% in 2006.
RM86 billionEPF FUND OUTSOURCEDFunds outsourced by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) to external fund managers rose 19 per cent to RM86 billion last year from RM72 billion in 2013 as part of its diversification strategy. EPF chairman Tan Sri Samsudin Osman said the outsourced funds were invested in both equity and fixed income instruments, representing approximately 14 per cent of EPF total investment assets. He said external fund managers helped contribute to the increase in EPF dividend rate at 6.75 per cent last year, the highest rate since 2000.
20 PCT OF REVENUE FOR IMPROVEMENTAirAsia Bhd allocates about 20 per cent of its revenue every year as part of continuous efforts to improve operational efficiency as well as travel experience for customers. Its Chief Executive Officer Aireen Omar said there were many plans in the pipeline to promote seamless travelling experience for customers."Every year, we are continuously improving our services. We always innovate the way we do business, always ahead of the game as well as finding ways for passengers to have a pleasant travel experience with us," she told reporters after the launching of new self-service features at Senai International Airport recently.
90% MEDICAL EQUIPMENTSMalaysia is the leading supplier of medical equipment among the 56-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), supply 4% of medical equipment to the world and out of that percentage; Malaysia manufactured 90% of the total. “Our medical equipment supplied to the world market includes machines and hospital furniture,” Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahya said.
FACTS & FIGURES
As a woman entrepreneur, it is quite challenging to find a balance between both worlds - as a mother/wife and an entrepreneur. My beliefs
and perceptions that formed the basis of who am I, were first thing that challenged me when I started a business. Hence, the first step towards being an entrepreneur was to sincerely observe myself and decide where I wanted to CHANGE.
I created this habit of asking questions; the 'right' questions
To keep myself grounded and focussed, I created this habit of asking questions; the 'right' questions. It's quite an arduous journey and each experience gives a different lesson no matter how similar they may seem. These are the most common questions I will ask while working on my goals:
1 do I Know How To do This?
If I am in doubt of my expertise and skills in certain areas, I make sure I own up to it in the beginning itself and plan how to go about it. Mostly, if it's not my department, I would work with someone who is good at it. This is where team work comes in.
2 Can I deliver?
I don't promise unnecessarily unless I am definite I can keep up to it; this involves company credibility.
3 Am I following my heart?
I act immediately when I 'know' I just had to do it even though there is no logical explanation to it. When I don't follow my heart, things can get frantic and messy. Later, I would have to pay dearly in terms of time, money, emotion and health. This is what we call 'a lesson learnt the hard way!
20 QUESTIONS I ASK WORKING ON MY GOALS
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| May 2015
WOMEN’S VIEW • by Shanthini Subramaniam
4 Am I judging this person or situation?
Judgement only leads to energy drain. By disciplining my emotion, I learn to be patient enough to wait for the real answer to appear. Creating from harmony and joy is what true creation is all about. When I am working based in fear, all my negativities surface and take control i.e. inferiority, jealousy, anger, guilt, shame, fault-finding, judgement, etc. this situation would eventually paralyze me physically, emotionally and intellectually.
5 Is my goal clear enough for me to move forward?
I started my business with a vague goal; to just make money to pay our bills and buy whatever we desired. Somehow, as I pursued working on 'making money', I was guided to the real mission of my business. The idea is to just start somewhere.
6 Am I clear of my role, here?
Before starting a project, I identify first my role in the team so that I can be a better team-player.
7 Am I taking enough efforts to ground my goals?
I keep taking efforts until I am definite that I have planted the seeds of my goals deep inside my mind. Through thoughts, words and action, I consistently and constantly take efforts relevant to the growth of my business.
8 Am I focussed enough on my goals?
I ask this question with almost every breath I take. I have learnt to run my own race by focussing ONLY on my path and not get distracted by another's path. Old habits that don't serve our present goals will always try to catch up to divert our attention. Therefore, it helps to have someone beside us to pull us out every time we are out of focus. In my case, family members and a like-minded group of friends have always been a great support.
9 Am i attracting the right people, event, resources and opportunities to achieve my goals?
I constantly check what I consciously and unconsciously attract in my daily life whether they support my goals or not. If not, I would immediately correct my thoughts, words and action.
10 Am I fully utilizing my time to concentrate on my business?
In the beginning, I limited my involvement to conversations and activities that only support my goals.
11 Am I sharing my knowledge with anybody?
I take an effort to share with people what I have learned. I realized that keeping knowledge and experiences to myself retards my progress.
12 do I know my team members, enough, to work on the same goal?
'People' is the key word here and understanding my team members is equivalent to getting to know myself. True success, to me, is how I have treated the people around me, how I have treated myself and how grateful I have been over the experiences gained.
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May 2015 |
WOMEN’S VIEW
13 What am I creating in this moment through my thoughts?
I check my thoughts, religiously, whether they are contributing to my goals or otherwise. I would immediately alter my thinking pattern the moment I know they have wandered away from my true goals.
14 Am I conscious of my decision- making?
This helps in taking responsibility over my actions and creates a genuine atmosphere for me and my team to work in. With personal responsibility from all team members, there would be no more blaming, work half-done, or delays.
15 How do I correct this?
When things don't work out the way planned, instead of finding fault in others, I work on how to handle it from there onwards.
16 What is the lesson am I supposed to learn, here?
Obstacles will keep repeating until we learn the lesson we have come to learn.
17 Should I let go?
In my experience, the moment this question comes, it's clear enough that doubt has crept in. There is no point in holding on because your belief has been shaken and continuing would only drain your energy. Just decide; 'yes' or 'no'.
18 Am I practicing what I believe in?
'Practicing' and 'knowing' are two different things. The moment I started practicing what I believe in, I could identify what don't serve me anymore, eventually, discarding them.
19 Am I relaxed enough?
I have learnt to take one small step at a time so that I do not pressure myself and end up making unwanted mistakes. Staying calm and relaxed help me keep healthy in mind, body and emotion.
20 Am I true to myself?
At the end of it all, what matters the most is whether I am being myself. From what I have been experiencing, the closer I am to being my true self, the faster I manifest what I desire!
Shanthini Subramaniam runs her own publishing business and is humbled, here, to share the experience and wisdom gained as an entrepreneur over the years. She welcomes communication via
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WOMEN’S VIEW
Let's Meet Up!GET CONNECTED
Venue : Eastin Hotel, Petaling JayaTopic : Finding Tomorrow's CustomerA program to stimulate entrepreneurship supported by Malaysian Indian Business Magazine, jointly with Advance Vision Services Sdn Bhd.
22 April 2015 Photos: Courtesy of Agenda Suria A Communication Sdn Bhd
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May 2015 |
EVENT
Nature’s Essence premium Showroom Launched
Nature’s Essence distributor of quality of body care products launched their premium showroom at Johor Bahru on 18th April
2015. The political secretary to Y.A.B Dato Menteri Besar Johor, Tuan Hj Mohammad Khairi A Malik officially opened the showroom. Also present to the launch was Dato Balakrishnan, Mr Rasa Rasik , MIB Chairman, Mr. Nagaraju ,Great Vision Travels,and few other local dignitaries.
Dato K.Elumalai, Chairman of Nature’s Essence Sdn Bhd and his spouse Datin Nagamma accompanied the guest through the showroom at the ground floor and premium Luxury Spa on the first floor of the building, which consist of all kind of Facials, Hair spa, Body massage, pedicure and Medicare.
Invited guest and members of public was entertained by popular talents such as Maran of THR Raaga, Era Dancers , Jokers Street. singer O.G Dass, Moxshaa, comedian Gunseh followed by Indian flavoured gala dinner.
The company also launched Nature’s Essence Membership card that offers discount 30% to 50% discount.
Grand Openingof Nature’s Essence Premium Showroom
Nature’s Essence
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| May 2015
EVENT
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May 2015 |
EVENT
Vedantic Management: Leadership Lessons from the Bhagavad-GitaPart 10 - The Art of Cultivation
Majesty
Anchoring
Cultivation
‘One can learn from many, like a bee that attends on every fl ower,but no knowledge is accrued that is not extracted like honey.’ ~ Kapila
LEADERSHIP • by Anand Naidu
Read MIB Magazine Online @
www.mibtimes.com
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| May 2015
Welcome to the May 2015 edition of the Malaysian Indian Business Magazine, now available online. We look further in this
article into the art of cultivation, the second limb of the ancient art of king-making.
Na prahrishyet priyam praapya nodwijet praapya chaapriyam;
Sthirabuddhir asammoodho brahmavid brahmani sthitah.
When a person rests undeluded in the truth, he neither rejoices at pleasantness nor venoms at
sadness.
Bhagavad Gita 5:20
If a person is anchored well, then the art of cultivation hopes to lay the foundation for even more greatness. It does that by encouraging further the virtue of even-mindedness.
Even-mindedness is actually a form of spiritual patience. The Gita talks of ‘withstanding’ pain and pleasure as a means to rising over adversity and trouble. It is a constant principle that requires on-going nurturing and care.
In previous editions of this magazine we’ve discussed the different ways in which people are anchored and cultivated. There are many other methods that might aid the art of cultivation including meditation, meaningful observance of life and ritual as well as even breathing right. These serialized articles tend to deal more with a cerebral diet. That is to say, it’s not about intelligence but more about thinking. Notice at Verse 5:20 of the Gita, Krishna refers to an undeluded person resting in the truth, or rather that a person is undeluded because he or she rests in the truth. We are of course tempted to ask what the truth is.
In this context (that is, in the context of the art of cultivating oneself), the truth is referred to in the
verse itself. Neither rejoicing nor frowning on life is the actual key to this understanding. It is in fact the very basis of the art of cultivation; keeping an even-handed disposition. The interesting this about this recommendation is not that even-handedness is of itself an end. It’s actually not. Many people assume that if they can become even-handed, they will be happy because of that fact. Because of that, they also assume achieving this ‘state’ of consciousness is very difficult.
This is not the truth. The fact is that the state of even-handedness is not an end in itself. It is merely the means to becoming a better person. And it is very easy to do, because it is not an end in itself. What does happen in fact, is that even-handedness cultivates other good qualities including patience, fairness and compassion (at its highest). And no person is superior to a compassionate human being.
In the previous article we noted that ‘drawing your own pictures’ was a means of creating your own dreams, a feature peculiar to human beings. We also saw that, to the ancient Indians, self-reflection was an important aspect of the art of cultivation.
What indeed was self-reflection supposed to achieve?
The answer is even-handedness; equanimity;
Ihaiva tairjitah sargo yeshaam saamye sthitam manah;
Nirdosham hi samam brahma tasmaad brahmani te sthitaah.
Even in this world everything is overcome by the settled mind;
They know the Brahman is spotlessly equal, they are so established.
Bhagavad Gita 5:19
Achieving equanimity also allows us to transpose our worries to the Brahman, in the same way that worrying less or communing with the Brahman
LEADERSHIP 37
May 2015 |
Anand Naidu is a Malaysian-born barrister and law lecturer based in Melbourne. He has had a long association with the teachings of Hinduism and is currently preparing a series of seminars based on drawing leadership and management principles from Eastern teachings.
[email protected] +61 425 627 116
does. In the business world, achieving equanimity allows us to, in turn, make decisions with a calmer disposition, using our mind as opposed to our heart. Cutting our passionate decision making rules out errors and false impressions, something that usually clouds the mind.
In the previous article we have discussed a further method of art of cultivation by avoiding external stimuli. All of the aims of the various methods are identical; the very same equanimity referred to above.
The words in Verse 5:19 are extremely valuable. Everything is overcome by the settled mind! It’s a wonderful turn of phrase made even more profound by the fact of its truth. A settled mind is the crucible of proper judgment, reason, direction and objectivity.
The Gita even assures a kind of intellectual freedom for those that can practise equanimity, saying:
Kaamakrodhaviyuktaanaam yateenaam yatachetasaam;
Abhito brahma nirvaanam vartate viditaatmanaam.
Th e self-controlled may achieve absolute freedom;Th ey are free from anger and desire and have
control of their thoughts.
Bhagavad Gita 5:26
Of course, no one is truly free from anger and desire. Here Krishna is referring to being ‘free’ of the effects of anger and desire. This is achieved through careful consideration of the consequences of indulging
anger and desire. Indulging in them leads invariably to destruction. Refusing to allow these emotions to control us, leads inevitably to equanimity.
Chapter 5 of the Gita then goes on to discuss the proper art of meditation, having already given to us the wonderful (and lost) art of concentration.
LEADERSHIP38
| May 2015
WHAT YOU THINK? Email us
The book ‘A Whole New Mind’ encourages businesses to be more right-brained in their thinking. As women are generally regarded to be more right-brained than men,
Do Women Make Better Managers?
This is an important topic that perhaps is one of the most relevant one in our current & down-time economically affected business market.
What is “rebranding” means at the first place?
Wikipedia says “Rebranding is a marketing strategy in which a new name, term, symbol, design, or combination thereof is created for an established brand with the intention of developing a new, differentiated identity in the minds of consumers, investors, and competitors.”
Besides, “rebranding” is a unique strategy that marketers should take note seriously. Often I’ve seen case stories that brands refuse to execute “rebranding” strategy due to their brand’s reputation. Professional this need to be viewed as a traditional practice that works as a solution to brands that didn’t meet the expected marketing outcomes.
Even “Apple” went through a rebranding process!
To understand if you need a “rebranding” strategy in your business, you need to ask the following questions to yourself & marketing department.
Why are we executing a “rebranding” strategy?
1 Why are we executing a “rebranding” strategy?
2 What are the main problems (in business) are we attempting to solve?
3 Has there been a change in the competitive landscape that impacts growth potential?
4 Have your customers profile changed?
5 Does your brand tell the wrong (or outdated story? What do you want to convey?
6 To whom? Why should anyone care about your brand?
7 Is your brand associated with something that is no longer meaningful?
8 Is your brand out of step with the current needs and desires of your customers?
9 Are you leading with your brand direction? Are you following with your brand direction?
10 Will this solution work in 5, 10 and 15 years from now based on what you can anticipate?
In basic, if your company is operating the same way today as it did when it was first launched, then you are stagnant, which means you are losing business. Change is very important. Whether it is a complete overhaul or a few adjustments, every company can stand a bit of improvement.
My next article I will share more on how to do a proper “rebranding” exercise. Stay tune for that!
Prasath KanagarasBrand StrategistPoint Blank MediaworksVeep Social Communications
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| May 2015
BRAND • by Prasath Kanagaras
Source : StatistaBrand value of the leading 15 most valuable Malaysian brands in 2014
(in million U.S. dollars)
In Search ofMOST VALUABLEMALAYSIAN INDIAN BRANDS
www.asean-india.org
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May 2015 |
BRAND
Vision is not about target. Vision
is about a compelling destination that
both internally and externally you feel
energized
Companies cannot afford to be just
innocent bystanders in what's happening
around in society
We can spend endless hours defi ning
roles. Great organizations work
on relationships
W e ' r e not going to change the world alone. There are plenty of you and plenty of us who understand this. The question is, we need partnerships, we need coalitions and importantly, we need that leadership that will allow us to take this from here and to be the change that we want to see around us.
Digitization is now advancing even more
rapidly and fundamentally changing the way business
and society works, it presents both opportunities
and challenges and the companies that adapt to this reality will succeed in
the future
You may have a great fi rst innings.
But if you don't declare the innings in time, you may not have a second innings. There are things that you want to achieve for which
you want to give yourself time. If you get into it too early, you may
not have the satisfaction from your fi rst innings. Equally, if you
are too late, you may not have the time
both internally and externally you feel
energized
Companies
to change the world alone. There are plenty of you and
I am 100% confi dent that we
have a leadership bench strength which is going
to be even stronger, even bigger. I feel really good about that. You have to
build leaders bigger than yourself, otherwise you
have wasted your time
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| May 2015
QUOTES
May 2015 |
By 2050, there will be another 2.3 billion people on earth sharing the same
space we have today. Almost all of them will be in the
developing world. We will need somewhere 3-5 planets to
meet the needs of developing world then
Harish Manwani
Chairman of
Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL)
Harish Manwani, 63 is the chairman of Hindustan
Unilever Ltd (HUL). Joined Unilever as management
trainee in 1976, he joined HUL Board in 1995. He was
appointed as President - Home & Personal Care (HPC),
Latin America Business Group in 2001. In 2004, he was
appointed President and CEO of the HPC North America Business
Group and in April 2005 was elevated to the Unilever Executive as
the President - Asia & Africa and the region was later extended to include
Central and Eastern Europe. Mr. Manwani was appointed Chief Operating
Officer of Unilever in June 2011 and subsequently retired from Unilever as the COO
on December 31, 2014. In 2008, Mr. Manwani received the CNBC Asia Business Leader of
the Year Award.
4 G'S OF GROWTH i. Growth that is consistent,
quarter on quarter; ii. Growth that is competitive, better
than the other person; iii. Growth that is profi table, so you continue to make more and more
shareholder value. iv. Growth that is responsible, not just
creating economic value but creating social value
In our business, our report card is written every time
the consumer goes shopping, which is
every week or every month
Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL)
Harish Manwani, Harish Manwani, Unilever Ltd (HUL). Joined Unilever as management Unilever Ltd (HUL). Joined Unilever as management
trainee in 1976, he joined HUL Board in 1995. He was
appointed as President - Home & Personal Care (HPC),
Latin America Business Group in 2001. In 2004, he was Latin America Business Group in 2001. In 2004, he was
appointed President and CEO of the HPC North America Business appointed President and CEO of the HPC North America Business
Group and in April 2005 was elevated to the Unilever Executive as Group and in April 2005 was elevated to the Unilever Executive as
the President - Asia & Africa and the region was later extended to include the President - Asia & Africa and the region was later extended to include
Central and Eastern Europe. Mr. Manwani was appointed Chief Operating Central and Eastern Europe. Mr. Manwani was appointed Chief Operating
Officer of Unilever in June 2011 and subsequently retired from Unilever as the COO Officer of Unilever in June 2011 and subsequently retired from Unilever as the COO
on December 31, 2014. In 2008, Mr. Manwani received the CNBC Asia Business Leader of on December 31, 2014. In 2008, Mr. Manwani received the CNBC Asia Business Leader of
ii. Growth that is competitive, better
iii. Growth that is profi table, so you continue to make more and more
iv. Growth that is responsible, not just
43QUOTES
INDIA TO CLOCK 7.5% GROWTH, WILL OVERTAKE CHINA: IMF
In d i a w i l l overtake China as the fastest
growing emerging economy in 2015-16 by clocking a growth rate of 7.5 per cent on the back of recent policy initiatives, pick-up in investments and lower oil prices, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said. "India’s growth is expected to strengthen from 7.2 per cent in 2014 to 7.5 per cent in 2015. Growth will benefit from recent policy reforms, a consequent pick-up in investment, and lower oil prices," the IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook. China will witness a deceleration with growth rate sliding from 7.4 per cent in 2014 to 6.8 per cent in 2015 and 6.3 per cent a year after, it added. IMF's growth projection of India, however, is lower than the estimates of the Finance Ministry and the RBI. The Finance Ministry expects GDP growth to be 8-8.5 per cent in 2015-16, while the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has estimated it at 7.8 per cent. The report, released at IMF headquarters on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank, said lower oil prices will raise real disposable incomes, particularly among poorer households, and help drive down inflation.-Rediff Business
INDIA TOPS IN REMITTANCES, RECEIVES $70 BILLION: WORLD BANK
The World Bank has said India continues to be
the leading nation in remittances pulling in USD 70 billion from its global migrant workforce in 2014. World Bank’s study of remittance, the money workers and professionals working in foreign lands send back to their native countries, attributed this mainly to weak economic growth in Europe, deterioration of the Russian economy and the depreciation of the euro and ruble.Remittances to the developing world are expected to reach USD 440 billion in 2015, an increase of 0.9 per cent over the previous year. Global remittances, including those in high income countries, are projected to grow by 0.4 per cent to USD 586 billion. United States, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Russia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) remained the top five migrant destination countries and apart from India, China, Philippines, Mexico and Nigeria are the top five remittance recipient countries, in terms of value of remittances, the report said. “Total remittances in 2014 reached USD 583 billion. This is more than double the ODA in the world. India received USD 70 billion, China USD 64 billion, the Philippines USD 28 billion. With new thinking, these mega flows can be leveraged to finance development and infrastructure projects,” said Kaushik Basu, World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice President. - The Financial Express.
BHARTI RETAIL AND FUTURE GROUP MULLING A JOINT FUTURE ON RETAIL FRONT
Bharti Retail and Kishore Biyani-led Future Group are said to be in advanced discussions for a possible merger of their retail businesses in what could lead to the biggest consolidation in the
sector by a wide margin. The talks, which have been on for several months, gathered momentum recently, said multiple sources with knowledge of their progress.The plan involves the larger Future Group absorbing Bharti Retail in a largely stock deal. After this, the promoters of Bharti Retail - brothers Sunil, Rakesh and Rajan Mittal - are expected to get a minority stake in the combined entity or in one of the Biyani-promoted entities that controls his businesses, said the people cited above. The swap ratio and other key details are yet to be worked out, they said. One of them said due diligence is expected to be completed by end - May. In the past three years, Biyani has streamlined his retail empire into three separately listed
entities - Future Retail Ltd, Future Consumer Enterprises Ltd and Future Lifestyle Fashion, an apparel retailing company. The hyper and supermarkets - food and grocery retail chains Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar and Food Hall - are included in listed flagship Future Retail. The convenience stores - Nilgiris, KB's Conveniently Yours, Big Apple and Aadhaar - are part of Future Consumer, also listed.Future Consumer also owns food parks and more than three dozen FMCG brands- The Economic Times
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INDIA BUSINESS NEWS
MICROSOFT'S SATYA NADELLA TOPS GLOBAL CEO PAY CHART WITH $84.3 MILLION
With a pay package of USD 84.3 million (Rs 525 crore) a year, technology giant Microsoft's
Indian-origin chief Satya Nadella has emerged as the top-paid CEO in the US, as per a new list. The Equilar 100 CEO Pay Study, an analysis of CEO salaries at the 100 largest public US companies as measured by revenue, was last year topped by Oracle's Larry Ellison, who has been now pushed by Nadella to the second position. Another Indian-origin CEO, Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo, is ranked 19th with USD 19.08 million. Legendary investor Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway is ranked last at 100th position with a total compensation of USD 464,011 million. Ellison (USD 67.3 million) is followed by Steven Mollenkopf of Qualcomm at the third place on the list with USD 60.7 million. Others in the top-ten include Robert Iger (Walt Disney), Larry Merlo (CVS Health), K Rupert Murdoch (Twenty-First Century Fox), W James McNerney, Jr (Boeing). James Gorman (Morgan Stanley), David Cote (Honeywell International) and Kenneth Chenault (American Express). Equilar said that the median pay for 100 CEOs was USD 14.3 million, a rise of 5 per cent, in the past year, while base salaries ranged from USD 7.1 million for Rupert Murdoch at 21st Century Fox to nil for Richard Fairbank at Capital One.
SHAH RUKH KHAN'S KKR TOPS IN BRAND VALUE
The stress of the cricket match fixing and betting controversy and the resulting lawsuit in the Supreme
Court seem to have taken a toll on the brand value of India Cements-owned Chennai Super Kings (CSK). According to the latest American Appraisal report, the MS Dhoni-led team has lost its number one position to Shah Rukh Khan’s Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). KKR’s rise to number one (it was number three in 2014) is the result of CSK’s loss of brand value and a soaring increase in its own, on the back of a clean image and its second Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament win in 2014. CSK, valued at $72 million in 2014, slipped to number three with
a valuation of $67 million. KKR, at number three in 2014 (value $69 million), had its valuation shoot up 25 per cent to $86 million, taking it to number one. Mumbai Indians retained its number two spot and valuation of $72 million. This is, of course, a far cry from valuations of basketball teams in the US National Basketball Association and football teams in Europe.- Rediff Business
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May 2015 |
INDIA BUSINESS NEWS
Books, music, pictures, videos and other creative works have special intangible rights attached to them, known as “copyright”. These rights are owned by the
creators of the work – authors, producers, photographers,musicians,songwriters,artistsandsuch–whocanchooseto do anything they wish with their exclusive rights.
The copyright owners have the right to prevent others from reproducing their work (or a substantial part) in any material form. The translation, adaptation and transformation of their work can also be prevented, so owners of copyright essentially have broad rights to their pieces of work, which can be exploited in many profitable ways.
The only criterion for a creative work to be eligible for copyright is that there is sufficient effort put into the work to make the work original and the work must be reduced to material form (so they can be “seen” or “heard” by others). Works are eligible for copyright regardless of the quality and the purpose for which they were created.
As the prerequisite for copyright is easily met, almost everyone owns some form of copyright. By gathering my thoughts and writing this article, I own the copyright in this article. Anyone who wants to publish the article would first
need my permission. I can either charge the person seeking to use my work a certain fee in return for permission to do so, or provide consent without a fee. Likewise, if anyone wants to translate my work into a different language, my permission is again required. Usage of copyright without the owner’s permission is an unlawful act termed as “copyright infringement”.
What Constitutes As Copyright Infringement?
There are many different ways copyright owners may find their copyright infringed. Infringement of copyright can happenwhenworks–suchaspaintings,books,computersoftware,filmsandmusic–arereproducedorcommunicatedwithout permission from the copyright owners.
Unauthorized reproduction and distribution of music content, unauthorized downloading of copyrighted material and sharing of recorded music over the Internet are common types of copyright infringement. Making copies of a book and selling them is also copyright infringement. Taking photos off the web and using them without proper attribution is copyright infringement and so is making prints of a painting. Infringement can also occur when works such as plays and
REAPING RICHES IN THE CREATIVE INDUSTRY
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| May 2015
TRADEMARKS • by Geetha K.
An author of a book might get a publishing house to publish his books and even exploit the creative
work further if the book is successful enough and he authorizes a movie studio to produce a movie based
on the book. A famous instance is author J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter book series, which was turned
into a wildly successful series of movies by Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Her books made her an overnight
billionaire and accorded her worldwide fame, which was further catapulted by the movies. In 2010, the Harry Potter theme park at Universal Orlando Resort opened tothepublic–afurtherexampleofhowcopyrightcan
be capitalised on! The theme park was built by General Electric Co.'s Universal Parks & Resorts (which won the rights after beating Walt Disney Co. to build the theme park) and christened “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter”.
Don’t forget that Bill Gates made and still makes his money fromcopyright–incomputersoftware.Similarly,WaltDisneycharacters–MickeyMouse,DonaldDuckandtheothers–have generated a multibillion dollar business, all based on copyright!
Geetha K. is the
Director of Trademarks
and Designs Division
at KASS International.
She has extensive
e x p e r i e n c e i n
handling all aspects
of trademarks and
designs in various
industries, including
p h a r m a c e u t i c a l ,
food & beverage,
property development,
automot ive and
apparel industries,
a n d m a n a g e s
local, regional and
international portfolios. She has written articles for various
local and overseas publications and her comments on case
law in Malaysia and Singapore have also been quoted in
publications abroad. If you have any queries or need more
information, please visit the website or drop an e-mail below
www.kass.com.my | [email protected]
Disclaimer: This article is by no means comprehensive and should not be treated as legal advice. For specific and detailed advice, do consult experienced IP professionals.
films are performed or screened without permission from the copyright owner. A person who sells infringing versions of a work, even if somebody else made them, is in breach of copyright as well. In general, any use of an original work created by someone else is off limits without their prior consent. Use without the owners’ consent may cause serious legal implications.
In Malaysia, copyright owners could rely on the Copyright Act 1987 and sue the copycats, claiming for remedies against the copyright infringement. Among the remedies is obtaining an injunction to prohibit future copying or to compensate for loss of sales and damages.
Those in the creative industry – the creators, designers,authors, composers, songwriters, film makers and their investors–shouldbeawareofthespecialrightssubsistingin their creative works. This way, the results of their hard work will be safe (or at least more guarded) from the threat of merciless copycats trying to making a quick fortune off other people’s toil and effort.
So how do those in the creative industry exploit their copyrights?
To maximise its wealth, the creative industry relies on exploiting copyright to the fullest extent. Licenses to use copyright owners’ works and adaptations thereof are common in the book publishing, music, film and TV industries. A scriptwriter approaches film and TV industry players with his original work in view of sealing a copyright licensing contract, whereas a songwriter or composer will similarly approach a music production or record company with original ideas reduced to musical notes and melodies.
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May 2015 |
TRADEMARKS
More than three decades 3D revolutioned our medias as a all-rounder.So we believed that 3D is the maximum possibility that could
entertain us media-wise and printing-wise, but could you ever imagined things, that could change their shapes overtime along their lifespan usage. These transforming things which is not only useful for top notch technologies, but also in our day-to-day lives.
As Albert Einstien quoted wisely,
“Your imagination is your preview of life’s
coming attractions”
Imagination and creative thinking makes human life on earth better that ever before.In this article, let us take a snapshot of 4D printing which is so much cool when compared to that of 3D.
g 4D printed abstract decorative model
TECHNOLOGY • by Ganesh Murugan
4D Printing : The Real Transformers
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| May 2015
48
INTRoduCTIoN: 4d pRINTING
In a unique research collaboration between Stratasys’ Education, R&D departments and MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab, a new process is being developed, known as 4D Printing.
The 4D printing a new design of complex self-evolving structures that vary over time due to environmental interaction. In conventional 3D printing systems, materials are meant to be stable rather than active and fabricated models are designed and printed as static objects. Here, researchers introduce a novel approach for simulating and fabricating self-evolving structures that transform into a predetermined shape, changing property and function after fabrication. The new locally coordinated bending primitives combine into a single system, allowing for a global deformation which can stretch, fold and bend given environmental stimulus.
We imagine there’s a wide range of applications such as home appliances and products that can adapt to heat or moisture to improve comfort or
add functionality. Childcare products that can react to humidity or temperature, for example, or clothes and footwear that optimise their form and function by reacting to changes in the environment.
There are also uses for pre-programmed self-deforming materials in healthcare – researchersare printing biocompatible components that can be implanted in the human body. There are many more uses these could be put to if they can be manufactured to change shape and function without external intervention from a surgeon. Individually designed cardiac tubes are one good example.
TECHNOLOGY
BELOW:
4D Printing: Cube Self-Folding Strand
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May 2015 |
TECHNOLOGY
Penned by Ganesh Murugan, MBA, PMP (IIT Delhi), PhD (Perusing) Business Analyst, Solution Architect and CEO of eSolutions Webbers Sdn Bhd
Skype : esolutions_ganesh
: ganesh murugan
HoW IT WoRKS : oVERVIEW
Imagine dropping a flat stretchable cloth onto a randomly shaped object, where the cloth moulds over the shape beneath it. In geometrical terms, as the curvature of the cloth changes to fit the object, the distances and areas alter. Researchers took this into account by providing a solution that copes with bending and also expansion in size, and came up with several designs that demonstrated that this is possible.
This was a proof of concept for self-transforming materials, with an easy production process and an available suite of tools to customise and analyse the process. But even so, this is just scratching the surface – in the future we aim to producelarger structures which can handle more complex transformations, as well as smaller, miniaturised models which can be used in the body. While we found the deformations could be applied and reversed repeatedly, the material degraded after a while, so we need to improve its long-term durability.And their applications will be limitless. Imagine medical devices that can transform their shape inside the body, water pipes that expand or contract depending on water demand and self-assembling furniture.
fuTuRE AppLICATIoNS
Although not commercially available, self-assembly is just a beginning of a whole innovative world of manufacturing with minimum energy. As environmental, economic, human and other constraints continue to fluctuate, we will eventually need dynamic systems that can respond with ease and agility. 4D Printing is the first of its kind to offer this exciting capability. This is truly a radical shift in our understanding of structures, which have up to this point, remained static and rigid (think aerospace, automotive, building industries etc) and will soon be dynamic, adaptable and tunable for on-demand performance.
4D film is a marketing term for an entertainment presentation system combining a 3D film with physical effects that occur in the theatre in synchronization with the film. Effects simulated in a 4D film may include rain, wind, strobe lights, and vibration. Seats in 4D venues may vibrate or move a few inches during the presentations. Other common chair effects include air jets, water sprays, and leg and back ticklers. Hall effects may include smoke, rain, lightning, air bubbles, and smell.
Sure the world is looking forward to enable the 4D printing enabled items that could transform shapes and gives us a magical world to live in.
TOP:
Dress printed using 4D printing system
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Extracted from the internet.
An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the thing he predicted yesterday did not
happen today
Seeking his first job, a young man wrote this question on his
application form: “Are the salary increases here automatic or do you have to work to
earn them.
An optometrist was instructing a new employee
on how to charge a customer. “As you are fitting her glasses, if she
asks how much they cost, you say ‘$150.’ “If her eyes don’t flutter, say, ‘For the frames. The lenses will be $100.’ “If her eyes still
don’t flutter, you add, ‘Each.’”
A large company, feeling it was time for a shake-up, hired a new CEO.The new boss was determined to demonstrate his decision making ability and wanted to
immediately take action to rid the company of all slackers.
On a tour of the facilities, the CEO noticed a guy leaning on a wall. The room was full of workers and he wanted to let them know that he meant business. He walked up to the guy leaning against the wall and
asked, 'How much money do you make a week?'
A little surprised, the young man looked at him and replied, 'I make $300 a week. Why?' The CEO then handed the guy $1,600 in cash and screamed, 'Here's four weeks' pay, now GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE and don't come back.'
Feeling pretty good about himself, the CEO looked around the room and asked, 'Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?' From across the room came a voice, 'Yeah, he's the delivery guy from Domino's Pizza.
Alarge company, feeling it was time for a shake-up, hired a new CEO.The new boss was determined to demonstrate his decision making ability and wanted to
immediately take action to rid the company of all slackers.
A little surprised, the young man looked at him and replied, 'I make $300 a week. Why?' The CEO then handed the guy $1,600 in cash and screamed, 'Here's four weeks' pay, now GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE and don't come back.'
Feeling pretty good about himself, the CEO looked around the room and asked, 'Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?' From across the room came a voice, 'Yeah, he's the delivery guy from Domino's Pizza.
A new business was opening and one of the owner's friends wanted to send him flowers for the occasion. They arrived at the new business site and the owner read the card,.... "Rest in Peace."
The owner was angry and called the florist to complain.
After he had told the florist of the obvious mistake and how angry he was, the florist replied, "Sir, I'm really sorry for the mistake, but rather than getting angry, you should imagine this: somewhere, there is a funeral taking place today, and they have flowers with a note saying,... 'Congratulations on your new location!'"
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May 2015 |
BUSINESS JOKES
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| May 2015
MALAYSIA BUSINESS NEWS
MAYBANK FOUNDATION TO EXPAND R.I.S.E PROGRAMME NATIONWIDE
Maybank Foundation aims to expand its corporate responsibility programme or Reach, Independence and Sustainable Entrepreneurship (R.I.S.E) nationwide, and
gradually move to other markets within two years. The R.I.S.E programme is a corporate responsibility initiative by Maybank Foundation and aimed at expanding the business capabilities of the disabled through a structured mentoring programme. Maybank Foundation Board of Trustees Chairman Tan Sri Megat Zaharuddin Megat Mohd Nor said the programme was concentrated in the Klang Valley at present. As part of the expansion exercise, he added, the foundation was eyeing countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and Cambodia. "The problem is, our own resources are not enough. We need to coordinate not just what we have, but also look for partners in other states to enable us to run the programme there," Megat Zaharuddin said. Maybank has also ventured into creating micro financing campaigns, catering specially to selected people with disabilities, enrolled in the R.I.S.E programme to expand their business further. Megat Zaharuddin said the R.I.S.E programme had seen very encouraging outcome as the average income per participants had increased by 179 per cent. Participants are selected from over 30 homes based on ability, as well as interest in the business world, to participate in a three-day entrepreneurship and financial training followed by a three to six month mentoring period. R.I.S.E participants, aged between 18 and 60 years are trained in strategic business and selling skills which includes innovation, process and operational movements and sales strategies.
SMES URGED TO APPLY FOR FINANCING FACILITIES UNDER GUARANTEE SCHEMES
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are encouraged to apply for financing facilities under two guarantee schemes, namely, the Services Sector Guarantee Scheme (SSGS)
and the Flood Relief Loan Guarantee Scheme (FRLGS). The SSGS is for SMEs in the services sector which is expected to contribute
more towards Malaysia's International trade, while the FRLGS is open to all SMEs affected by the floods. The SSGC enables SMEs to have access to working capital expenses financing at a minumum of RM100,000 and up to RM5 million per company. A total guarantee of RM5 billion is allocated for this purpose and the scheme is managed by Syarikat Jaminan Perbiayaan Perniagaan (SJPP), a company under the Minister of Finance, Incorporated.
ASEAN MEMBER COUNTRIES POISED TO BECOME ECONOMIC HOTBEDS
ASEAN member countries are poised to become economic hotbeds, as the region is seen as the primary investment destination by Asia, Europe and others, says Minister in the
Prime Minister's Department Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong. "If ASEAN is a single economy, it would be seventh largest in the world with a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$2.4 trillion in 2013, and could be the fourth largest by 2050 if growth trends continue," he said. With a nearly 650 million population, Wee said ASEAN's potential market was larger than that of the European Union and North America, and next to China and India. He added that ASEAN also had the world's third largest labour force that remained relatively young. Touching on the Asean Economic Community (AEC), he said it was not an instant economic bloc like the European Union, as ASEAN countries continued to have different political and cultural structures. "However, all countries must work together to create an ASEAN single market and production base comprising five core elements that would grow over time, including free flow of goods, services, investment, capital and skilled labour," he added. Wee was speaking at the launch of the Rise of Asean Conference and 8th Global Entrepreneurs Roundtable here, today.
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May 2015 |
MALAYSIA BUSINESS NEWS
TIME MAGAZINE NAMES TONY FERNANDES AS 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN THE WORLD
TIME Magazine named AirAsia's Group Chief Executive Officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes to the 2015 TIME 100, the magazine's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. "It's a tremendous honour to be included in
TIME's top 100 list - I was shocked when I first received the news, but I am very proud and humbled," he said in a statement. The Time Magazine's list, now in its twelfth year, recognizes the activism, innovation and achievement of the world's most influential individuals. "This has been a challenging year but my entire career has been about challenges and with every obstacle, we learn and become even better. I believe we are making forward strides and I am excited about the future," he said. This year will be about refocusing attention on the core businesses starting with AirAsia, he said, adding that the airline company was committed to strengthening its core proposition of providing the highest value product and further expanding its network across Asean and beyond. "My hope is that the work we do through AirAsia and Tune Group enables and inspires the next generation of ASEAN entrepreneurs and SME owners and propels them into success," he said. He also thanked his staff across all his businesses in AirAsia, Tune Group, QPR and Caterham for their tremendous support and hard work.
TIME MAGAZINE NAMES TONY FERNANDES AS 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN THE WORLD
TTIME's top 100 list - I was shocked when I first received the news, but I am very proud and humbled," he said in a statement. The Time Magazine's list, now in its twelfth year, recognizes the activism, innovation and achievement of the world's most influential individuals. "This has been a challenging year but my entire career has been about challenges and with every obstacle, we learn and become even better. I believe we are making forward strides and I am excited about the future," he said. This year will be about refocusing attention on the core businesses starting with AirAsia, he said, adding that the airline company was committed to strengthening its core proposition of providing the highest value product and further expanding its network across Asean and beyond. "My hope is that the work we do through AirAsia and Tune Group enables and inspires the next generation of ASEAN entrepreneurs and SME owners and propels them into success," he said. He also thanked his staff across all his businesses in AirAsia, Tune Group, QPR and Caterham for their tremendous support and hard work.
EPF REVISES LIST OF UNIT TRUST FUNDS FOR 2015/2016
The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has revised the list of fund management institutions (FMIs) and unit trust funds for 2015/2016 EPF Members Investment Scheme (EPF-MIS). In a statement, the EPF said the list would take effect between April 1, 2015 and March 31, 2016. Its deputy chief executive officer (investment), Mohamad Nasir Ab Latif, said the scheme allowed members to use part of their
savings in Account 1 for investments in approved unit trust funds through the FMIs, offering them the option to enhance their retirement savings. He said for the 2015/2016 period, 216 unit trust funds from 21 FMIs were qualified to be offered under the EPF-MIS, compared with 230 unit trust funds for the period of 2014/2015. The list of funds is available at http://www.kwsp.gov.my/portal/ms/web/kwsp/member/members-savings-investment-withdrawal/appointed-fund-management-institutions-unit-trust-fund-under-the-epf-d-members-investment-scheme.
We have all experienced those turning points in our lives. The moments when we make a decision which changes everything. Where we know that
right then and there, we are re-defining ourselves and shifting the course of our life.
That moment happened to me 5 years ago when I had cancer at the age of 57. I was lost and confused going through the whole process of surgery and chemotherapy. My close friends and family members were also in the dark on how to handle this situation as this was a new experience for us.
That was the defining moment when I decided to learn more about cancer and generally on health. I started to read up books, articles, consult doctors and talk to cancer patients. I was overwhelmed to find there where so many information scattered around. This led me to sort and arrange the information in a structured manner while going through my treatment.
After successfully going through chemotherapy, I decided to come up with a series of simple and practical steps that a cancer patient should follow while undergoing chemotherapy which if done right will speed up their recovery process and chances of survival. I started to meet up a few cancer patients and guided them through chemo with my method. As they slowly recovered I was convinced the method works. To date I have guided more than 100 patients who have completely recovered and I wish to share my knowledge and experience with more people. As the number of patients keep increasing, I have recently set up an NGO called Lif-On Well Thru Cancer that serves as a day care and recovery centre for cancer patients.
What I discovered is not something new but are basic principles practised by our ancestors. It turns out, being healthy is no rocket science but just comes down to this 4 basic principles:
Stay Healthy and Wealthy,
a Cancer Survivors Practical Guide
"To date I have guided more than 100 patients who have completely recovered and I wish to share my knowledge
and experience with more people." - SK Sundram
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| May 2015
HEALTH • by SK Sundram
1 HoW To EAT
“Make sure you chew your food.” Didn’t we all hear this statement countless times growing up?
The last time you had something to eat, did you give any thought to how long you chewed? Most likely not, as chewing is done, for most people, almost as a habit or unconscious reflex. As soon as a piece of food enters your mouth, you chew and swallow, probably far too quickly (especially if you’re in a hurry or eating on the run).
The chewing process, also known as mastication, is actually extremely important and serves as the first step in your digestive process.
Chewing breaks your food down from large particles into smaller particles that are more easily digested. This also makes it easier for your intestines to absorb nutrients and energy from the food particles as they pass through, while also preventing improperly digested food from entering your blood and causing a wide range of adverse effects to your health.
Also, the longer you chew, the more time it will take you to finish a meal, and research shows that eating slowly can help you to eat less and, ultimately, to avoid weight gain and even lose weight. Also, remember not to drink liquids 30 minutes before or after meals and use smaller sized plates to reduce food intake.
5 steps to chewing
1. Take smaller bites of food to begin with2. Chew slowly and steadily3. Chew until your mouthful of food is pasty or lost all of its texture4. Finish chewing and swallowing completely before taking another bite of food5. Wait to drink fluids until you’ve swallowed Chew your food until its pasty and enjoy better health.
2 WHAT To EAT
The idea is that heating food destroys its nutrients and natural enzymes, which is bad because enzymes boost digestion and fight chronic disease. Therefore it’s good to adopt to raw uncooked food where you'll mostly be eating raw fruits, vegetables, and grains.
At the same time it is also not practical to adopt to raw uncooked food diet on a daily basis. Thus you could shift one of your daily meal to include raw uncooked food. I do it for my breakfast which looks like the picture below.
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HEALTH
Besides eating raw uncooked food, try to make this small changes in your diet:
1. Avoid processed food2. Minimise eating fast food3. Eat more alkaline food and less of acidic foods4. Eat fresh
3 WHEN To EAT
Certainly what we eat has an enormous impact on our health and weight status. But did you know that when we eat also make a huge difference? Eating at the appropriate times throughout the day will help to maximise fat burning and keep hunger at bay.
You might be familiar with the saying “Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper.”
Today I would like to share another saying which goes like this, “Eat whenever you are hungry”. Yes, that’s right, eat whenever you are hungry. Don’t set a time to eat, your body knows the best time to eat and when it’s ready for food, it
signals you. This is the feeling you get when you are hungry.Also, never eat within 3 hours of bedtime. Eating too close to bedtime raises your body temperature, increases blood sugar and insulin. All these factors interfere with the quality of your sleep and the natural fat-burning benefits of a good night’s rest. Instead, always carry small biscuits packets so
that you eat something light before reaching your food plate.
4 EXERCISE
Have you ever heard the expression "use it or lose it"? It's true! If you don't use your body, you will surely lose it.
Your muscles will become flabby and weak. Your heart and lungs won't function efficiently. And your joints will be stiff and easily injured. Inactivity is as much of a health risk as smoking!
We all know by now that maintaining an active lifestyle should be one of our top priorities in life. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Work, in particular, can get in the way of working out. On one hand, we struggle to find time to work out; on the other, we can’t afford to not exercise because it is integral to sustained success.
After trying out a few exercises like going to the gym and jogging, I find that yoga is the most easiest and practical form of exercise. This is because you just need a yoga mat to practise yoga anywhere in the world.
Ultimately you just have to squeeze in just a few minutes of physical exercise a day which has huge benefits on your health, gives you energy and perks up your mood. Try taking the stairs more often, occasionally get away from your desk to do some stretching or try the 7-Minute Workout App.
SK Sundram is 61, cancer survivor who live healthy without taking medicines and supplements . He does regular talks on health. Subscribe to more such articles at his websites at www.lifonwell.com and www.cancer.lifonwell.org. He could be reached for comments and feedbacks at
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HEALTH
uNdERSTANdING BAR CHARTS
In the last article, readers were introduced to column charts. In this article, you shall learn and understand when you should apply a column chart as compart to a bar chart. Basically, a bar chart is a horizontal version of a column chart. It is used for one main purpose i.e. if you have a text column with long sentences of data, a bar chart is a better representation of the data. The following example will illustrate this.
Handling Charts in Excel
BAR CHART
Handling Charts
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MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
If we opt to create a column chart of the above data, you will see somewhat the following chart created. To the untrained eye, this may look proper. However, to the trained eye, a few “flaws” are observed. Firstly, the text data of column A is displayed in the X-axis. Notice that the text is not displayed in full due to space constraint within the chart area. Secondly, note that due to the space constraint, Excel tries its best to display most of the data at an angle (approximately 450).
A better approach is to create a clustered bar chart to represent the data as in the following chart.
Notice that the in the above clustered bar chart, the data in the Y-axis is in reverse order (not as that displayed in column A of the original data). The user has the option of reversing the Y-axis values. After enhancing the appearance of the chart, the final result is as follows.
The above is the basis of creating a simple clustered bar chart. Now let us look at the creation of a side by side usage comparison bar chart. The data below is a product usage of an item based on gender by different age group. How best should we represent the data using a chart?
By highlighting all of the data (excluding the last row 9), a stacked bar chart is created.
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Note that the X-axis values are displayed as negative numbers (from the left) all the way to positive numbers (on the right). The user has the option of converting the negative X-axis values to positive numbers as follows.
Again, if you observe the chart, the Y-axis is positioned in the center of the chart. The user also has the option of moving the Y-axis to the left as illustrated.
Further observation of the chart above reveals that the “gap” between each of the bar is very large. This gap can be reduced to be displayed as follows.
At the end of the day, any chart created should tell a story to the audience or reader. By formatting and refining the look of the above chart, one can portray it as in the illustration below (by formatting the bars within the chart; adding chart title; adding axis titles; and giving it a 3D effect for the bars)
Yet another variation of a bar chart that is most commonly used is the Gantt chart. A Gantt chart is most commonly used in project management to keep track of the time (or days) required for each task to be performed. The length of the bar is an indicator of the amount of time (or days) required to accomplish a task.
Let us assume you have the following data provided.
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Based on the data above, let us create a simple Gantt chart. Note that should all of the data be selected, the stacked bar chart appears as follows, which is not accurate.
The trick is to highlight only the first two columns and eventually add the last column of data as illustrated.
With the basic “skeleton” created, the user need to make minor changes i.e. reversing the Y-axis order to follow the original data, and changing the angle of display of the X-axis column.
Finally, to present the chart, you need to format and refine the looks of it to display it somewhat as illustrated.
Penned by : By Palani Murugappan
A HRDF certified trainer and author of 51 books to-date on various software applications, Palani is passionate on what Excel can do, and how best to present data in different formats. More information is covered in his website. He can be reached at:
www.avimursolutions.com
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Offi cial Name Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
Capital Kathmandu
Total Population 27,797,457
Banking Hours 10:00 am to 3:00 pm - Sunday to Thursday 10:00 am to 1:00 pm - Friday
Currency Nepalese Rupee (NPR)Bank Note
Denominations Rs. 5, Rs. 10, Rs. 20, Rs. 25 Rs. 50, Rs. 100, Rs. 500, Rs. 1000
Offi cial Language Nepali (English is widely used in business and profession) More than 100 ethnicities are represented in Nepal, and approximately 70 languages are spoken
Time Zone GMT + 5.45
Comparative Nepal is located between two of the world’s most Advantage populous countries, India and China, with easy access to both vibrant markets
ECONOMY
Since the 1950s, Nepal has made progress toward sustainable economic growth, and the country
remains committed to a program of economic liberalization. Agriculture remains Nepal's principal economic activity. This sector occupies almost one third of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with about two third of country’s population are dependent on this sector. The Contribution of this sector to GDP was 33.87 percent in fiscal year 2012/13, which is expected to remain at 33.10 percent in fiscal year 2013/14. In fiscal year 2070/71, the annual growth rate of agriculture sector is expected to be 4.72 percent at constant prices of 2000/01. Approximately 25% of the total area are cultivable; another 33% is forested and the rest is mountainous.
DOING BUSINESS IN NEPAL
MIB was deeply saddened to hear the loss of life caused by the powerful magnitude-7.8 earthquake. MIB teams members and readers prays for all those caught on this tragic disaster.
Bhaktapur Durbar Square
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Source: Worldbank
Rice and wheat are the main food crops. The lowland Terai region produces an agricultural surplus, part of which supplies the food-deficient hill areas.
Real GDP at basic prices is estimated to grow by 5.2 percent in fiscal year 2013/14 against the target of 5.5 percent. Such growth rate in the previous fiscal year was 3.5 percent. Economic growth rate reached over 5.0 percent in fiscal year 2013/14 after last five years. There has been some progress in economic growth rate in current fiscal year due to favorable monsoon, gradual improvement in the investment environment, the environment of political consensus and cooperation, among others. (source: Investnepal)
OPPORTUNITIES
1 Agro Business
• Diversified topography and agro climatic conditions for growing multiple crops in different seasons.
• Government grants and subsidies on land lease, plant material, tools and machinery, and loans.
• Large scope for expanding production area, increasing productivity and quality in the Terai belt due to the fertile soil and climatic conditions.
• High demand in both domestic and export markets.
• Higher yield possible through adoption of improved production technologies.
• Agricultural products with a lot of export potential include Cardamom, Honey, Ginger, Lentils and Tea.
2 Handicraft
• Nepali handicrafts have potential markets in all continents of the world like Europe, America, Oceania and even Asia itself.
• Export oriented products with variety and range, and large and diversified potential markets.
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• Cheap labor rates, low production costs and competitive pricing.
• Niche market opportunities as most products are handmade with no use of machinery which is a unique selling point.
• Demand for handmade handicrafts from Nepal is very high, therefore a high potential for exports. Traditional knowledge and low labor costs.
• Low capital investment required, but high barriers to entry due to the niche nature of business.
3 Health
• Suitable climatic conditions for establishment of medical colleges, and availability of a nursing workforce for establishment of institutions such as old age homes.
• Certain cases of accessible and affordable health care systems such as Tilganga Hospital specializing in eye treatments, with inbound health tourism from India.
• Availability of unique traditional Ayurvedic and medicinal herbs for and health tourism.
• The natural resources and medicinal herbs, Nepal is endowed for creation of world class health care institutes; alternative medicine, and healing and wellness centers.
• High outbound health tourism from Nepal is a ready market to be tapped.
4 Tourism
• Nepal’s natural beauty, rich biodiversity, uniqueness, rich cultural and religious heritage, and hospitable people continue to attract tourists to visit the country more than once.
• Established as a tourism destination for adventure tourists with attractive trekking areas.
• Innovative services, experienced tourism sector and service oriented and courteous population.
• Opening up of new mountains, trails, and trekking routes in previously restricted areas of Nepal.
• Immense possibility of developing eco-tourism and adventure tourism in the mountains and rivers of Nepal.
• Gradual growth in tourist arrivals leading to increasing establishment of hotel industries
• According to ‘Vision 2020’, the government has accorded top priority to the tourism sector and has promised to launch special programs to promote the sector consistently through these years.
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5 Waste Management • Waste management is one of the inevitable issues and
a big challenge to all established and emerging towns of Nepal
• The Government of Nepal made the policies of management of waste simple and effective
• Involvement of donor agencies in the landfill site management, waste collection, processing of the waste, etc.
• Currently there are no major waste management companies operating in Nepal.
• The capital city Kathmandu alone produces 300 tons of waste daily.
6 Business Process Outsourcing
• The Government of Nepal identified BPO as one of the potential export sectors in Nepal.
• Proximity to India and China (growing IT portfolios).
• English language proficiency among the workforce and improvement in skills and education levels.
• Basic policies/laws/acts in place such as investment policies (both foreign and private).
• Labor cost advantage in comparison to India. Maximum flexibility in repatriation of foreign investment. Less affected by political and other disturbances, such as strikes and bandhs, as compared to other sectors.
• Increasing level of strategic focus on part of International agencies in this sector
• Wide range of services, from low-skilled services, such as data entry or call centers to high-skilled services, such as software development, graphic designing or medical prescription transcribing, etc.
#PRAY FOR
NEPAL
This is the moment people of Nepal needs our support.
Thoughts and prayers to the families of the more than
4000 estimated killed in a major earthquake in Nepal.
MIB sends it thoughts and condolences to all those
affected.
