CATEGORIES

ESG CHECK-IN FOR RESPONSIBLE HOSPITALITY

The interests of the hospitality industry are deeply intertwined with those of the environment and people. It must prove its commitment to upholding global environmental, social and governance standards for its survival and growth

The Corporate Travel Conundrum

Business travel was once a badge of honour. As corporate soldiers, we once used to march around at airport lounges, dressed in our navy and grey suits, holding on to our leather carry-on bags, with a copy of The Financial Times tucked under our arms.

India's MICE Market Needs an Uplift

India’s booming economy and rising number of business visitors have contributed to the spectacular expansion of the country’s outbound meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) travel sector. Unfortunately, the same is not the case for the inbound MICE market. India attracts less than 1% of the worldwide MICE industry despite its extensive history, tourist attractions and new economic centres.

Corporate Travel Zooms Out to Reality

There are multiple shades and segments of tourism. The most notable among them are leisure, corporate, medical, education- and government-related and special interest travel. The last category includes travel for sports, films, adventure, pilgrimage and so on. Geographically, these forms of travel can be inbounded to or outbound from a country on a short haul or for long distance and for varying periods.

BLEISURE BECKONS

A portmanteau of business and leisure, rapid growth of bleisure in the last two years reflects the evolution of travel and brings hope to the hospitality and tourism industry

THE IMBALANCES IN INDIA'S GROWTH STORY

There is a serious lack of understanding regarding the connections between the real economy and the financial economy, says author Nikhil Gupta. This interconnectedness is what makes the economy a complex subject to understand. In his book, The Eight Per Cent Solution, Gupta harps on the need to make fundamental structural changes if the country wants to attain 8% economic growth rate

FinTech Game Is In The Data Cloud

With customer acquisition and retention as prime drivers, fintech players want data patterns on fingertips. They are embracing data cloud to make a concerted move towards data-informed efficiency and product innovation

TAKING OFF CONVENIENTLY

No place is far away and no travel plan difficult to make, thanks to online travel companies which have redefined convenience with their range of products and services that cater to every aspect of travel. Rajesh Magow, co-founder and group CEO of online travel company MakeMyTrip, describes five ways in which these companies have come of age in India

THE CONSTANT LEARNER

Raghavendra Vaidya, MD and CEO of Daimler Truck Innovation Center India, is a man of varied and deep interests. From riding bikes to automating things at home, from making furniture to constantly studying new subjects and listening to old Hindi songs, he pursues all of them with passion

PAINTING THE ORCHARDS RED

Coca-Cola India's Project Unnati is rejuvenating the agriculture ecosystem with its focus on efficient farming practices like ultra-high density plantation, drip irrigation, etc. This has helped apple farmers in Uttarakhand significantly raise their productivity

EMAMI'S PERSISTENT BEAR HUG

After more than four successful decades, FMCG major Emami, which owns popular brands like Navratna oil, BoroPlus, Kesh King, etc., seems to be losing its charm among retail investors. Why has it lost significant value at the bourses in the last five years?

BYJU ON THE CORPORATE GUILLOTINE

Will educator-turned-entrepreneur Byju Raveendran be sidelined in-or even ousted from-his eponymous edtech as the newly constituted board advisory council struggles to bring the company back on to the profitability path?

PRONAB SEN

'Nothing Can Correct Faulty Sampling Due to Delayed Census'

THE NOWHERE MEN & WOMEN HOW INDIA ABANDONED 14 CRORE CITIZENS ON A POLICY PAPER

The government of India runs the world's biggest food security scheme, which provides free ration to more than 80 crore people. The scheme has won Prime Minister Narendra Modi accolades. But what if we realise that there are over 14 crore people who have been omitted from the benefit of this scheme because the government has not counted Indian citizens in over a decade? Can its intransigence break the welfare structure of governance?

India's First Luxury Hotel: Goes Where Indians Do

Incorporated in 1899 by the founder of the Tata Group Jamsetji Tata, IHCL opened its first hotel, The Taj Mahal Palace, in Mumbai—then Bombay— in 1903. Dubbed as the best hotel east of Suez, it transformed the face of Bombay and introduced authentic Indian hospitality to the world while bringing global luxuries to the country. Jamsetji Tata’s efforts were always to show India what lies beyond the seas, making India’s dreams his own.

BOTH CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND: Outlook ESGBHARAT: SURVEY 2023

The speakers at the survey release deliberate on how the ESG agenda is moving up the corporate agenda, the challenges it faces and the way forward

ZUBIN SAXENA: MANAGING DIRECTOR AND SENIOR AREA VICE PRESIDENT, SOUTH ASIA, RADISSON HOTEL GROUP

An Interview with Zubin Saxena

FOLLOWING THE CULTURE TRAIL

Amitabh Dube, country president of Novartis India, has travelled extensively, but it is his stay in Vietnam that he most fondly remembers, not just for its food, people and landscape but also for the footprints of Indian culture in the southeast Asian country

CRISIS IN THE COURTROOM

The Supreme Court's jurisdiction extends to a population of over 1.4 billion. Does the court make access for the disadvantaged a priority? To what extent is it responsible for the adage 'justice delayed is justice denied'? Are some lawyers more influential than the others? Authors Aparna Chandra, Sital Kalantry and William H.J. Hubbard discuss these and several other topics concerning the country's highest court in their book Court on Trial

Local Business Leader Falls Short OF GLOBAL STANDARDS

The landscape of leadership in Indian corporates has evolved over the years, mirroring the dynamic shifts in politics, business, technology, customer expectations, societal demands and globalised markets.

When a Corporation Traverses 100 YEARS SANS A FORMULA

Centennial companies have weathered the storms of time, evolving their ownership structures to adapt to the changing dynamics at the macro, meso and micro levels and at socio-economicpolitical-institutional, business, society and family levels. A few factors include the institutional framework of the country, industry-specific dynamics, profitability and earnings trends, corporate governance practices, family, state or foreign multinational company ownership and mergers and acquisitions.

The Company that Catches PATRON'S EYE FOR 100 YEARS

My definition of a brand is simple. The brand is a thought that lives in a person’s mind. As many people, those many different thoughts of this one brand in question. And that is brand complexity, something that brand-custodians within companies grapple with all the time.

FROM TEXTILES TO REALTY: Raymond Grew with the Nation

The year 2022 was a momentous one for India as it surpassed the UK as the fifth-largest economy in the world.

GIVING BACK TO SOCIETY IS WHAT KEEPS HAMDARD RELEVANT: HAMID AHMED

Hamdard, meaning a companion in pain, made a humble beginning in 1906 as a small affordable Unani clinic. Less than half a century later, it was converted into a trust, with a pledge to use profits for charitable purposes. Hamid Ahmed, who is the great-grandson of founder Hakeem Abdul Majeed, and CEO and trustee of Hamdard Laboratories India (Food Division), tells Rajat Mishra about the company's expansion plans, strategies and hopes for newly launched and upcoming products

BRITANNIA IS LOOKING AT THE FUTURE OF FOOD: VARUN BERRY

Since inception, Britannia has changed hands several times. Amid the challenges that come with changes in ownership, the brand remains steadfast in its focus on consumer preferences and is currently a leading FMCG brand in India. Varun Berry, managing director and vice chairman of Britannia, talks to Suchetana Ray and Rajat Mishra about the company's thrust areas, strategies and plans to add more food categories to its portfolio in the coming years

'ORGANISATIONS THAT CAN QUICKLY ADAPT TO CHANGE WILL FLOURISH'

Sayajirao Gaekwad III, the king of the erstwhile princely state of Baroda, set up several institutions to modernise the state. One of them was Bank of Baroda, which completed 115 years of operations last month. It is India's second largest public-sector bank as per total business as of March 31, 2023. In an interview with Rajat Mishra, its MD and CEO Debadatta Chand talks about its glorious past and the transformational changes that continue to keep it relevant

ITC NEXT IS OUR ANSWER TO GLOBAL UNCERTAINTIES: SANJIV PURI

From making tobacco products to becoming a multi-sector corporation, ITC has come a long way since its inception in 1910. This year, it became the seventh listed company in India to cross Rs 6 trillion market cap. It is now deploying sustainable solutions and Industry 4.0 measures to create seamless networks with retailers and customers. Sanjiv Puri, company MD and chairman, tells Suchetana Ray and Rajat Mishra about ITC's planned growth trajectory

TATA STEEL IS ORIGINAL MAKE IN INDIA STORY, SAYS GLOBAL CEO

Tata Steel has become one of the leading steel manufacturers across the globe in the last 116 years. The company is hopeful of lasting another 100 years on the back of its multi-generational employees and a people-centric work culture. With clear focus and targets in sight, T.V. Narendran, chief executive officer and managing director of Tata Steel, tells Suchetana Ray and Rajat Mishra how a large part of its future growth will take place in India due to the infra push of the government and its investment in future and sustainable technology

A CENTURY & Counting

Building a company is difficult anywhere in the world. Nurturing it for 100 years takes a combination of philosophy of growth, astute understanding of headwinds and the determination to survive the deadliest of down cycles. What makes this survival story in India more interesting is the cross-currents of everyday politics and ideology Rajat Mishra

THE SPOTLIGHT ON NATURE

Natural capital underpins the wellbeing of humans and deserves a central place in our economic framework, author Siddarth Shrikanth argues. The current system has improved living standards but gone far in the direction of environmental destruction. Having made this point, The Case for Nature attempts to show ways of shifting to a 'nature-positive' economy