Tuesday, October 14, 2008

INDIA INC GOES GLOBAL

Indian economy has gone through a dramatic transformation in the last five years or so. And nowhere is this more visible than the boardrooms of India Inc. The high brow discussions on economic and business issues in board meetings has given way workshops on abstract topics such as integration, cultural fit and diversity management. What's more these discussions are often moderated by exexpat CEOs who are most likely to be affected by its outcome. Blame it on the new wave of globalisation that is sweeping through India Inc.
Though globalisation is now a cliché, this new wave is unlike any other. While in the past Indian companies participated in it as low-cost exporters, or say technology seekers or at best a local partner to MNCs, the same companies now found these strategies stifling. They are now breaking free to seek a place at the global high table. This is the new face of India Inc and we have captured in its full glory in the latest edition of ET500, which will hit the stands two days from now.
And we don't bring you just heaps of data and analyses. India's Inc top minds will be there to tell you the story of their globalisation drive, its strategic rational and the ways to make it successful. When talking about globalisation the first name that comes to mind is Tata Group. Their recent acquisitions -be it Corus or Jaguar Land Rover or General Chemicals-has put India on the global map.
So it was but natural for us to begin the journey the with an hour-long interview with Mr Alan Rosling, Tata Son's executive director and the brain behind the Group's globalisation drive. And we start from the ground zero, the genesis of the group's recent moves in the international market. If he is to be believed, Indian companies are better placed to make their overseas acquisitions successful. "Thanks to their unique history and culture, Indians find it easy to assimilate with new people and cultures. They don't usually force their way of life on others and this makes integration easier," says Mr Rosling. The softer issues play a key role in the success of an acquisition. And no one is better placed to flag the subject than Tata Group's HR head Mr Satish Pradhan, who is tackling this issue on everyday basis. Next we turn our attention to individual companies -Tata Chemicals and Tata Communications, to get their side of the story.
However globalisation fever is not limited to Bombay House only. One of the most talked about globalisation stories have been that of Avantha Group (formerly L M Thapar Group). Under the leadership of Mr Gautam Thapar, the group has transformed itself from a laggard to one of fastest growing and the most globalised of its peers. We caught up with Mr Thapar to get a first hand account of this journey. We followed it up by chatting with Mr Sudhir M Trehan, managing director of Crompton Greaves, the group's flagship company.
Globalisation is not only about having production facilities abroad, it also involves tapping global sources of finances and most importantly creating a global talent pool. We tackle the issues in two separate features.
Last year, we changed the ranking parameters to make its simpler and brought it in line with the globally accepted definition of size i.e revenues in last financial year. We have stuck to it and its amazing to see the resulting dynamism in ET500. Many companies made it the list this year thanks to IPOs. And as we found out some of most prominent of them are public sector undertakings, just another indicator of the rising presence of PSUs in India Inc. A long-term investor should keep a close watch on them.

No comments:

Post a Comment