MxMIndia

Tag: Citigroup

  • Popular belief is that some amount of politics is an inevitable fact of life. Everyone wants to get ahead fast, everyone wants to retain control, so messing with another group/individual becomes par for the course.

    Anil Thakraney: Dirty corporate politics

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    We will never really know the exact reason behind CEO Vikram Pandit’s abrupt departure from Citigroup. And that’s because there are always two sides to a story. Most of the media reports, however, indicate that Pandit was a victim of organizational politics, that it was unholy play by his boss that led to Pandit’s sacking. And this, despite the officer’s good performance. Apparently, Citigroup’s Chairman, Michael O’Neill, had been planning Pandit’s exit for a very long time.

     

    If indeed that is the case, Pandit becomes just another name in a very long list of senior execs who were shown the door as a direct result of dirty office politics and back-stabbing. Unfortunately, this happens quite commonly in organizations, so you can imagine how many bright minds have fallen by the wayside because they couldn’t play the game, or chose not to participate in it.

     

    I must add here that the No 1 reason I preferred to be a freelance operator was to escape the clutches of politics. I make less money than I would in a full-time job, I get no annual/sick/casual leave, and I have long forgotten what ‘Perks’ means (I am now convinced it’s just a chocolate brand). In addition, I often have to chase payments harder than I chase stories. And yet, I am at complete peace, all the negatives get nullified because I no longer have to put up with shitty corporate power games.

     

    Popular belief is that some amount of politics does get played in all organizations, that it’s an inevitable fact of life. Everyone wants to get ahead fast, everyone wants to retain control, so messing with another group/individual becomes par for the course. This may be true. And yet, I do believe this is a cultural issue. If the man/woman at the top encourages a culture of ethics, mutual respect and integrity, and comes down heavily on back-stabbers, it is possible to build a clean organization. In fact, I am certain there must be many such across the world. That’s why I believe it’s purely a matter of good leadership. And am afraid, if the media reports are accurate, Citigroup has projected a very sad image of itself.

     

    Surely there’s more happiness in achieving goals on one’s own merit, and not by trampling on others? Or am I living in fool’s paradise?

     

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    PS: Haha. I like this ad. Not just because it features the international Hollywood heartthrob George Clooney, but also because the ad is a totally surprising solution coming from a bank. Guess it will take our desi banks like Vijaya Bank and Shamrao Vithal Bank a zillion years to discover such a ‘treasure’. 🙂

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”220″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl8Dh1Yp3aY[/youtube]

     

     

  • Over the last couple of years, India has been seen stamping its presence in the league of global leaders by the strength of its economic power

    Brand India saving grace in time of crisis

    By Namrata Singh & Reeba Zachariah

     

    There’s more to India than just its over-emphasized status of being the most populous democracy in the world. Random economic facts like India being the largest producer of milk, the largest consumer of sugar and spices as also the largest consumer of gold till last year, crop up now and then.

     

    But there have been achievements in the last few years which have put India on the world map. Over the last couple of years, India has been seen stamping its presence in the league of global leaders by the strength of its economic power.

     

    Consider these facts: The Tata Group is the largest manufacturing employer in the UK; Ireland’s richest person — Pallonji Mistry — is an Indian ; Coal India is the single largest coal producer in the world; India is the largest whisky manufacturer in the world and the Taj Group is the largest chain of hotels in Asia.

     

    Despite a generous trickle of negative news, the list of these positives is also getting bigger.

     

    Brand India today is not just about economics. A significant way in which

    India is asserting itself is through its soft power.

     

    According to Bhaskar Chakravorti, senior associate dean of international business & finance, The Fletcher School, Tufts University, this “soft” presence is India’s greatest asset in making sure it counts on the world stage.

     

    Household brand names such as Citigroup, Pepsi and Motorola are associated with an Indian CEO. Clearly, India has moved on from being a nation of snake charmers and appears to be on its way to become an economic power.

     

    Soft power aside, it’s also working its way through innovations. The list includes , Nano, the cheapest car in the world from Tata Motors; Aakash, the cheapest tablet PC in the world, priced at $46; and other cheap tablet PC initiatives by private companies.

     

    However, there are some missing pieces too. “India should surely move forward in the area of innovation where we can capture the value from our intelligent cheap resources from being just a provider of cheap labour. As of today, most companies (Apple, Microsoft, Google, Intel, etc), especially in IT, that generate maximum value from innovation, rely on resources from India and we are clearly not getting the deserved share of the value created,” said Thomas Kuruvilla, MD, Arthur D Little, a consulting firm.

     

    Richard Rekhy, head of advisory practice at KPMG, a global consulting firm, however, believes India has some way to go. “But India, with 100 companies of over a billion dollar market cap, has established its position globally which is why GE set up its first R&D centre outside US in Bangalore. At the same time, Indian banks have only 2 per cent bad loans versus 20 per cent in China,” he said.

     

    In the mid-90 s, on a representation made by Indian exporters, the government had removed the mandatory use of the ‘Made in India’ tag from goods exported. The law still exists on paper. Ostensibly, Indian exporters were embarrassed of using it then. But, today, no one is shying away from using the tag.

     

    Source: The Economic Times
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