When DCE turns DTU:- I get the Chance of my life

The 2 best years of my life

I was preparing for giving the prestigious CAT exam next year ,when I get a call from my friend regarding D.C.E. starting a new M.B.A. course just for engineers and I thought to give it a try.

And so here I am, giving the GD and interview for a college, which is there from 100 years, but the programme I was joining has just started and I would be one laying the foundation stone of this programme (only if I get selected). When I with 59 other students joined D.S.M. we had lot of anticipation, lot of dilemma and lot of anxiety regarding where we are going.

Two great friends of mine who joined D.S.M. with me, left the college on its 1^st day only as they found out that there are no proper structures in place, but I stayed as I have ever believed that ‘You should complete the task on which you have put your foot forth’ also I believe a lot in ‘Connecting the Dots’ and imagine everything happening for a Good cause.

FMCG sector and Double Sided Growth

F.M.C.G. Sector is currently going through a drastic change in its approach and the market it is catering, the demand of the customers is changing and so  the need arise for a change in the product or the way it is marketed.

And in this phase of Change those would be severely hit those have least expected it. In this article I am not trying to give some roadmap but just wanted to inform you about the change which the F.M.C.G. sector is currently experiencing and which in due course of time is going to spread in other sectors also.

            Traditionally F.M.C.G. Sector was the one which used to serve through brick and mortar stores located near the homes but over the period of time the Scope of the Kirana Store have started decreasing with the development of Malls in metros and higher expectancy of the consumer. Today, the Share of Shopping Malls is continuously increasing in Big Cities like Delhi, Noida, and Mumbai etc.

            But, there is more in store which these companies have to grasp and that is the ‘Double Sided Growth’ .By Double Sided Growth I mean that on one side the companies have to realize that the average expenditure of a family in Big Cities is increasing and so they do have to offer premium products and a service which these consumers are requiring (sometimes the service becomes a more important component than the product itself) and on the other hand they have to look at the potential of the ‘Bottom of the Pyramid’.  Hereby they have to make their product cheaper so that they are able to offer ‘value for money’ and the medium through which they are selling should be no-frills store, thus adding no extra cost.

            While, on one side Consumers are willing to spend on higher priced and better quality product i.e. “ There is going to be a marked focus on beauty, health and wellness segments, which will definitely be growth drivers for this industry” For instance, one is already seeing a shift from cold creams to anti-ageing creams.  Secondly the Successful example of Fair & Lovely and chik shampoo in villages show the potential for growth at the ‘BOP’. The BOP in rural markets will become an another important source of consumption and it would require more tailored product that can offer more ‘value for money’ and products with No frills or extra cost.

            One More interesting trend to note is in the advertising because we all know a major success reason of any F.M.C.G. product is its advertising. In advertising on one hand we can see that the market of Television with youth is decreasing because of Fast lifestyle and availability of most of the interactive media on Internet. So there is an emerging trend whereby F.M.C.G. players have increased their focus on online advertising which is expected to grow at 30% a year. While on the other hand the inclusion of Television is increasing with the fall in the Television prices and comparative increase in the Purchasing power but still to attract that segment advertising solely on T.V. would be an expensive proposition and its reach would also be limited to the upper strata rural people. So, here companies are employing the rural media to increase their product awareness by employing the rickshaw, auto, Walls of houses and shops banner which have a higher reach and these mediums in village do attract attraction.

As you can see, both the strategies are far apart and both of them have no inter-relation and you can’t substitute one for other, but both are also important for a company to grow. If we look at the BCG (Boston Consultancy matrix) we would find that premium products currently come in the Star Section (having huge market growth rate and high Market Share) while the rural segment is still a question Mark (High Market Growth Rate but low Market Share) which if properly harnessed then would become a STAR for a company but may also end as Dog Section if proper attention is not provided.

Guest lecture on Change Management

Guest lecture on Change Management

9^th October, 2009 this is the day when the students of Delhi School of Management organized a guest lecture on Change Management by Surender Kumar. It was really a great experience to interact with such an eminent personality of industry; he has held various positions in industry retired from the Member of Board, Ordinace Factory Services. He is also an alumni of DCE of 1973 batch.

It was really a interactive session which kept all the students engrossed in the lecture .It was started by our Honourable Vice Chancellor P.V.Sharma, who enlighten us by telling that India lays a great emphasis on elephants and today is moving with the same enthusiasm and will to change the world and we should all incorporate our self in this change.

Then Prof S.k.Garg, Head of M.B.A. dep’t, highlighted the point that the only thing that is constant in this life is change only; and change should always occur for a good cause. He told that ‘If the change is managed and properly directed it always lead in a better direction otherwise its just like a boat in a middle of a river without no handles to control it’s direction. In this regard he cited the example of the ongoing change in environment.

Then the Speaker of the day, Surender Kumar, started the presentation by sharing his experiences and telling about the basics of change, he asked us to put ourselves in the position of Managers and see why the change failed in various situations provided by him to us. It really helped us to learn the fact that’ stakeholders should always first appreciate the change’. Change should be clearly defined from top to bottom (to each individual in an organization) and in today’s scenario it’s also important to include society in your efforts.

Then we discussed two Case Studies one of Ordinance Cable Factory(OCFC) and second of Indian Railways Turnaround, both were explaining how change should occur and how the change managers can facilitate a smooth transition .One important point which the case highlighted was ‘Incentives for change need not always be monetary. Managers must be passionate’.

We, the students of DSM believe that it has really helped us to understand the intricacies of Change Management.

We look forward for more of such interactions with such imminent personality so that we can learn from their experiences and able to bring a controlled and positive change which we want to see in this world.