New mantra for innovation
What is new ? The new mantra for global innovation is , design in India and manufacture in China. Several MNCs like Motorola have tried this model and apparently benefited from it. Read more in Business Week online special – China and India:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/toc/05_34/B3948chinaindia.htm
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Friday, October 21, 2005
Discovery of India
Discovery of India by Warburg Pincus
Private equity investor Warburg, which invested nearly $300 million in Bharti between 1999 and 2001, walked away with a profit of $800 million from selling two-thirds of its holdings. At Bharti's current share prices, Warburg's remaining 6% stake in the company is worth some $700 million, or more than twice what it originally invested.
Warburg is the largest private equity investor in India by far, having ploughed $811 million into the country as of mid-2005. This amount is more than twice the $362 million Warburg has invested in China, according to data provided by the National Venture Capital Association in Arlington, Va. And the investment in India generated returns in "the mid-30s over 10 years," making it most attractive place in invest. As for that vaunted Indian bureaucracy, Warburg repatriated its profits in 48 hours.
Read the story of riches : http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1305.cfm
Private equity investor Warburg, which invested nearly $300 million in Bharti between 1999 and 2001, walked away with a profit of $800 million from selling two-thirds of its holdings. At Bharti's current share prices, Warburg's remaining 6% stake in the company is worth some $700 million, or more than twice what it originally invested.
Warburg is the largest private equity investor in India by far, having ploughed $811 million into the country as of mid-2005. This amount is more than twice the $362 million Warburg has invested in China, according to data provided by the National Venture Capital Association in Arlington, Va. And the investment in India generated returns in "the mid-30s over 10 years," making it most attractive place in invest. As for that vaunted Indian bureaucracy, Warburg repatriated its profits in 48 hours.
Read the story of riches : http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1305.cfm
Thursday, October 20, 2005
R&D investment
Why payout is better for R&D investment in India?
Indian drug firms like Ranbaxy, Reddy Labs debunked the notion that new molecule discovery needs a billion dollar . This is not an isolated event is proved by research carried out at Booz Allen Hamilton, which concluded that new players in India and China with a set of different innovation effectiveness curves , need lesser resources to produce similar results than long established MNCs based in Europe, USA. The laws of diminishing returns had already set in for those MNC firms.
Read: http://www.strategy-business.com/media/file/rr00007.pdf
Indian drug firms like Ranbaxy, Reddy Labs debunked the notion that new molecule discovery needs a billion dollar . This is not an isolated event is proved by research carried out at Booz Allen Hamilton, which concluded that new players in India and China with a set of different innovation effectiveness curves , need lesser resources to produce similar results than long established MNCs based in Europe, USA. The laws of diminishing returns had already set in for those MNC firms.
Read: http://www.strategy-business.com/media/file/rr00007.pdf
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
THE WORLD FOOD PRIZE
THE WORLD FOOD PRIZE (2005)
Dr. Modadugu Vijay Gupta , an Indian scientist, has been named winner of the $250,000 World Food Prize for his work to enhance nutrition for over one million people, mostly very poor women, through the expansion of aquaculture and fish farming in South and Southeast Asia and Africa. He pioneered the development and dissemination of low-cost techniques for freshwater fish farming by the rural poor, providing farmers and their families with a nutritious food source they had not previously had. Dr. Gupta’s pioneering breeding of carp and other pond fish adaptable to a variety of different environments in rural areas—from Bangladesh to the Mekong Basin countries—combined with his tenacious efforts to help millions of small-holder farmers gain access to innovative aquaculture techniques to produce a vital supply of nutritious food brought a “Blue Revolution” to Southeast Asia and beyond.
Click on the links below for more details:
http://www.worldfoodprize.org/Laureates/05Laureate/index.htm
Dr. Modadugu Vijay Gupta , an Indian scientist, has been named winner of the $250,000 World Food Prize for his work to enhance nutrition for over one million people, mostly very poor women, through the expansion of aquaculture and fish farming in South and Southeast Asia and Africa. He pioneered the development and dissemination of low-cost techniques for freshwater fish farming by the rural poor, providing farmers and their families with a nutritious food source they had not previously had. Dr. Gupta’s pioneering breeding of carp and other pond fish adaptable to a variety of different environments in rural areas—from Bangladesh to the Mekong Basin countries—combined with his tenacious efforts to help millions of small-holder farmers gain access to innovative aquaculture techniques to produce a vital supply of nutritious food brought a “Blue Revolution” to Southeast Asia and beyond.
Click on the links below for more details:
http://www.worldfoodprize.org/Laureates/05Laureate/index.htm
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Technology for entrepreneurs
Biopesticide technology
The Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad developed a process for biopesticide formulation (10,000 ppm) from the seeds of custard apple and karanja. This technology developed at one kg batch process has been transferred to one small scale industry and is available for transfer to other entrepreneurs. Any takers?
The Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad developed a process for biopesticide formulation (10,000 ppm) from the seeds of custard apple and karanja. This technology developed at one kg batch process has been transferred to one small scale industry and is available for transfer to other entrepreneurs. Any takers?
Monday, October 10, 2005
Venture capital
Mature capital
Venture capital may soon be called mature capital, as a recent report found that smaller startup companies are seeing less VC funding than more established companies. The report came from a joint United States Department of Commerce and European Commission working group on venture capital. The findings call for more public sector and policy maker involvement in the VC process.
“Small firms need investment capital but the market has failed to provide it — public sector support is needed,” the report stated. “The work of the group confirmed that there is a fundamental market failure in the provision of early-stage financing in both the U.S. and the EU. Venture capital funds are concentrating on larger and larger deals, leaving the small and risky early-stage deals aside.”
That is due to the more attractive returns and lower risks that come with later-stage investments in more established firms and in buyouts of larger companies, the report said, warning that this can become a self-reinforcing cycle.
“Because few venture capital funds are active in the seed and early stage area, they don’t have any longer the necessary knowledge to operate there. The few remaining seed funds and the business angel investors cannot by themselves cover the demand for equity investments. The recognized benefits from the birth and growth of innovative small firms to the economies are such that public sector measures are justified to overcome this market failure in seed and early stage investments.”
Overall, the working group believes the VC industry is healthy, reporting recent total VC investment in the U.S. was $20.5 billion and in Europe $13.4 billion. Nevertheless, the report concluded that: “The discussions made it clear that each country needs to develop its own approach to venture capital, suitable to its market conditions. The policy goal, however, is common: providing growing companies with the benefit of large liquid venture capital markets.”
The joint report calls for three action items to correct the current situation. First, policy cooperation on venture capital on a cross continent basis. “Leading players are competing globally for funds and investing where return potential is high. The benefits for economic growth that venture capital brings make it essential that policy-makers recognize impediments, like administrative regulations about establishment and taxation rules, to venture investment and take action to facilitate cross-border investments. This policy process should take place in a global context, learning from best practices irrespective of their provenance.”
The U.S./EC’s second recommendation is a VC handbook for policy makers. Hopes for the handbook are that it would be forward-looking in nature, pointing to industry trends and penitential opportunities, helping to buck the cyclical venture capital industry.
And the third action item noted in the report is a resource center for policies on venture capital to facilitate VC investments and to spread information about investment conditions. To do so, the report’s parties believe that the VC industry and the public sector could cooperate to provide information about the prevailing rules, regulations and documents on venture capital on a country-by-country basis.
(Source: VC Seed Money on the Down Slope, By Suzanne Deffree -- 10/10/2005, Electronic News)
Venture capital may soon be called mature capital, as a recent report found that smaller startup companies are seeing less VC funding than more established companies. The report came from a joint United States Department of Commerce and European Commission working group on venture capital. The findings call for more public sector and policy maker involvement in the VC process.
“Small firms need investment capital but the market has failed to provide it — public sector support is needed,” the report stated. “The work of the group confirmed that there is a fundamental market failure in the provision of early-stage financing in both the U.S. and the EU. Venture capital funds are concentrating on larger and larger deals, leaving the small and risky early-stage deals aside.”
That is due to the more attractive returns and lower risks that come with later-stage investments in more established firms and in buyouts of larger companies, the report said, warning that this can become a self-reinforcing cycle.
“Because few venture capital funds are active in the seed and early stage area, they don’t have any longer the necessary knowledge to operate there. The few remaining seed funds and the business angel investors cannot by themselves cover the demand for equity investments. The recognized benefits from the birth and growth of innovative small firms to the economies are such that public sector measures are justified to overcome this market failure in seed and early stage investments.”
Overall, the working group believes the VC industry is healthy, reporting recent total VC investment in the U.S. was $20.5 billion and in Europe $13.4 billion. Nevertheless, the report concluded that: “The discussions made it clear that each country needs to develop its own approach to venture capital, suitable to its market conditions. The policy goal, however, is common: providing growing companies with the benefit of large liquid venture capital markets.”
The joint report calls for three action items to correct the current situation. First, policy cooperation on venture capital on a cross continent basis. “Leading players are competing globally for funds and investing where return potential is high. The benefits for economic growth that venture capital brings make it essential that policy-makers recognize impediments, like administrative regulations about establishment and taxation rules, to venture investment and take action to facilitate cross-border investments. This policy process should take place in a global context, learning from best practices irrespective of their provenance.”
The U.S./EC’s second recommendation is a VC handbook for policy makers. Hopes for the handbook are that it would be forward-looking in nature, pointing to industry trends and penitential opportunities, helping to buck the cyclical venture capital industry.
And the third action item noted in the report is a resource center for policies on venture capital to facilitate VC investments and to spread information about investment conditions. To do so, the report’s parties believe that the VC industry and the public sector could cooperate to provide information about the prevailing rules, regulations and documents on venture capital on a country-by-country basis.
(Source: VC Seed Money on the Down Slope, By Suzanne Deffree -- 10/10/2005, Electronic News)
Friday, October 07, 2005
Globalization
Globalization Is Changing the Ways Which Companies Can Create Value
While some companies are already enjoying the fruits of globalization – e.g., Israel-based Teva in pharmaceuticals, India's Infosys in information technology, and Rolls-Royce in engines and turbines – most others are a couple of years behind the globalization curve, according to Adrian Slywotzky, a director of Mercer Management Consulting. Slywotzky points out that although many managers know that building a global business model is fundamental to success, they're not yet clear how it matters, how dangerous it can be, and how big the upside could be.
Globalization is no longer an extrapolation of the experience of the past 40 years in textiles, apparel, steel, electronics, and so on, Slywotzky says. Nor is it just about low costs, outsourcing, or engineers in India and China. The real opportunities, he says, lie in the proliferation of ways to design a better business – ways to source, create new customer segments, collaborate with other firms, and carry out innovation. "Globalization makes strong business models stronger," he says. "At the same time, it makes weak business models weaker, what with more competition, less differentiation, more risks, and greater disconnect from customers. And it will create more no-profit zones for companies and even entire industries." Mercer's research has uncovered several globalization trends that are having the greatest impact on companies.
First, new competitors are combining low cost and high technology to build market share very quickly. Apex, a Chinese manufacturer, sold its first DVD player in 2000, focusing on low price and special features as well as building relationships with major retailers such as Circuit City. Just two years later, Apex surpassed Sony to become the U.S. market share leader.
Second, the traditional sources of strategic control that protect profits from poaching by competitors – such as patent, brand, manufacturing scale, access to talent, and a two-year lead – will erode or disappear. Slywotzky maintains that companies must find and create new sources of strategic control, possibly in their ability to synchronize their activities super-efficiently or in creating a culture that retains and motivates the best and brightest.
Third, determining the right mix of common and custom business designs, products, and brands will become critical. Globalization involves greater heterogeneity (different income pyramids and customer priorities in each geography), plus greater complexity (different infrastructure such as telecommunications networks, highways, and distribution channels) multiplied over many more customer segments. Slywotzky comments: "Customize too much, and a firm will go broke. Too little, and nobody will buy – so the firm will also go broke. Customize in the wrong places, and it will go broke even more quickly."Finally, the areas where companies can create value are changing on a global economic stage, moving away from the traditional activity chain. For many established players, there will be three fundamental routes to add value:
Adrian Slywotzky is based in the firm's Boston office and can be reached at 617-424-3200 or Adrian.Slywotzky@mercermc.com.
While some companies are already enjoying the fruits of globalization – e.g., Israel-based Teva in pharmaceuticals, India's Infosys in information technology, and Rolls-Royce in engines and turbines – most others are a couple of years behind the globalization curve, according to Adrian Slywotzky, a director of Mercer Management Consulting. Slywotzky points out that although many managers know that building a global business model is fundamental to success, they're not yet clear how it matters, how dangerous it can be, and how big the upside could be.
Globalization is no longer an extrapolation of the experience of the past 40 years in textiles, apparel, steel, electronics, and so on, Slywotzky says. Nor is it just about low costs, outsourcing, or engineers in India and China. The real opportunities, he says, lie in the proliferation of ways to design a better business – ways to source, create new customer segments, collaborate with other firms, and carry out innovation. "Globalization makes strong business models stronger," he says. "At the same time, it makes weak business models weaker, what with more competition, less differentiation, more risks, and greater disconnect from customers. And it will create more no-profit zones for companies and even entire industries." Mercer's research has uncovered several globalization trends that are having the greatest impact on companies.
First, new competitors are combining low cost and high technology to build market share very quickly. Apex, a Chinese manufacturer, sold its first DVD player in 2000, focusing on low price and special features as well as building relationships with major retailers such as Circuit City. Just two years later, Apex surpassed Sony to become the U.S. market share leader.
Second, the traditional sources of strategic control that protect profits from poaching by competitors – such as patent, brand, manufacturing scale, access to talent, and a two-year lead – will erode or disappear. Slywotzky maintains that companies must find and create new sources of strategic control, possibly in their ability to synchronize their activities super-efficiently or in creating a culture that retains and motivates the best and brightest.
Third, determining the right mix of common and custom business designs, products, and brands will become critical. Globalization involves greater heterogeneity (different income pyramids and customer priorities in each geography), plus greater complexity (different infrastructure such as telecommunications networks, highways, and distribution channels) multiplied over many more customer segments. Slywotzky comments: "Customize too much, and a firm will go broke. Too little, and nobody will buy – so the firm will also go broke. Customize in the wrong places, and it will go broke even more quickly."Finally, the areas where companies can create value are changing on a global economic stage, moving away from the traditional activity chain. For many established players, there will be three fundamental routes to add value:
- Customer connections – understanding and addressing local customer priorities more deeply than competitors do, as Lever does in India.
- A proprietary information chain – that is parallel to and governs the activity chain-better data (on customers, supply, service, and technology) combined with better application systems and a culture that knows how to use them.
- Science and innovation – -particularly customer-relevant innovation. Half the employees at telecom equipment maker Huawei work in development, many on the customer's site. Slywotzky argues that companies will have to step up the pace of university alliances and global talent sourcing, while inventing new ways to protect their intellectual capital in the process.
Adrian Slywotzky is based in the firm's Boston office and can be reached at 617-424-3200 or Adrian.Slywotzky@mercermc.com.
Thursday, October 06, 2005
Technology for Women
Technology for Women
Government of India, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, started a new program “ Technology Development & Utilisation Programme for Women”. Under this program , grants will provided for promoting adoption of new technologies by women and skill up-gradation of women entrepreneurs.
Interested, mail to srv@nic.in for details.
Government of India, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, started a new program “ Technology Development & Utilisation Programme for Women”. Under this program , grants will provided for promoting adoption of new technologies by women and skill up-gradation of women entrepreneurs.
Interested, mail to srv@nic.in for details.
Kauffman Fellows Program
Kauffman Fellows Program
Want to work in a Venture Capital firm? The Kauffman Fellows Program has been grooming the future leaders of top-tier venture capital firms and venture-backed businesses since 1994. It is one of the few in this category.
Interested? See their web site : http://www.kauffmanfellows.org/kfp/index.asp
Want to work in a Venture Capital firm? The Kauffman Fellows Program has been grooming the future leaders of top-tier venture capital firms and venture-backed businesses since 1994. It is one of the few in this category.
Interested? See their web site : http://www.kauffmanfellows.org/kfp/index.asp
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Incentives for research
Incentives for scientific research under Income tax Act
Ministry of Finance , Government of India, has set up a committee to look into the incentives/ deductions under income tax rules and evolve ideas for more focused spending on genuine research activity. Dr R A Mashelkar, Secretary, DSIR is the chairman of this committee. The committee has to submit its report by end of November 2005.
Any suggestions?
Ministry of Finance , Government of India, has set up a committee to look into the incentives/ deductions under income tax rules and evolve ideas for more focused spending on genuine research activity. Dr R A Mashelkar, Secretary, DSIR is the chairman of this committee. The committee has to submit its report by end of November 2005.
Any suggestions?
Monday, October 03, 2005
Goverdhan Mehta
Goverdhan Mehta
Noted scientist Goverdhan Mehta has been honoured with the Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) award by the French government. French Ambassador to India Dominique Girard will confer the award on Mehta, the former Director of the Indian Institute of Science, at a function in New Delhi Tuesday, a French embassy release said. Mehta has been honoured with the award "in recognition of his talents and major contribution to Indo-French ties", it said.
During his tenure at the IISc, the Indo-French cyber university based on the cutting edge satellite technology was set up between the institute and Toulouse. The Indo-French scientific collaboration reached a new high during his stint at the IISc and several projects in Mehta's area of specialisation -- Organic Synthesis and Solid State Chemistry -- were initiated by the institutes in the two countries.
Noted scientist Goverdhan Mehta has been honoured with the Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) award by the French government. French Ambassador to India Dominique Girard will confer the award on Mehta, the former Director of the Indian Institute of Science, at a function in New Delhi Tuesday, a French embassy release said. Mehta has been honoured with the award "in recognition of his talents and major contribution to Indo-French ties", it said.
During his tenure at the IISc, the Indo-French cyber university based on the cutting edge satellite technology was set up between the institute and Toulouse. The Indo-French scientific collaboration reached a new high during his stint at the IISc and several projects in Mehta's area of specialisation -- Organic Synthesis and Solid State Chemistry -- were initiated by the institutes in the two countries.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)