Dialing for the bottom of the pyramid

This is an article written by me which appeared in Idea's in-house magazine !-Pratibimb around february/march 2009. Just reproducing it here as well.
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Scene 1: Abhishek Bachchan portrays a Sarpanch and is holding a village meeting in a Village background.

Scene 2: Abhishek Bachchan trying to impart education to students from far off villages using mobile telephony.

Scene 3: Abhishek Bachchan trying to include villagers in the decision making for running a government.

What is the similarity in these three ads? Of course, Abhishek Bachchan for one. But there is something more to it. All the ads are set in the rural background. This represents the changing mindset of the companies in India today. Today more & more companies are trying to woo the customers from rural segments. This love started brewing since Mr. C.K. Prahalad discussed the fortunes at the bottom of the pyramid in his book in the year 2004. But the seriousness of this affair has come to the helm recently. In the last one quarter, the growth in various sectors in rural India was more than growth in urban India by quite a margin. Telecom was one such sector. Well, it could have been a one off event due to the economic downturn but the tremors are being felt.

So what could be done by any company to strengthen its foothold in the rural market? The basic commercial infrastructure suggested by Prahalad and Hart (2002) for the bottom of the pyramid markets constitutes of four things, creating buying power, improving access, tailoring local solutions and shaping aspirations. They also talk about 4As model.



Availability: Availability does not talk only about providing the service in rural market. As a basic rule of marketing, one also has to insure that that the service being provided is beneficial for the user. E.g. If a company is providing “Mandi Live Rates” to the users in a village in western UP, but the information is being provided in English language, it is of no use to the user.

So considering the facts that there is still a major difference in the customer behavior in rural and urban India, it becomes imperative to modify the offerings to suit rural Indian user.

Awareness: Continuing with the example of the VAS given above, such VAS is being provided by the telecom service providers in India for a long time. However, the usage of such services is still very low. Only in places like Punjab & Haryana etc. these services are being used by the customers. In other places, people are not aware of such services at all.

Another aspect to this factor is how easily this service can be used. Is the graphic interface helpful to the customer? If we look at the present scenario, the answer is negative. Handset companies like Nokia are working on this aspect, but the support also has to come from the service providers.

Affordability:
Fact 1‐ India telecom service providers are among the least cost service providers in the world.

Fact 2‐ Majority of the consumers in rural India can still not afford the mobile services due to the high initial costs.

As stated earlier, service providers need to work more closely with handset providers to design handsets which can suit the needs of a villager and also easily affordable. In this aspect, major progress has been made by handset companies; however there is still a lot of room for improvement. Service providers can be of real help because they are closer to the customer and are in a better position to understand their needs & demands.

Acceptability: Mobile telephony as a source of communication does not face the challenge of acceptability now. However, it is the new services which are being launched by the service providers which face the challenge of acceptability. Today a major issue for service providers is the falling ARPU’s. This problem can be sorted out, if people start using more VAS’s and other services. However, in rural India, the acceptability of these services in not very high. To increase the acceptability, the companies need to improve on their communication with the consumer and as well, try to educate the consumer about the benefits & usage of the service regularly.

Around the world we have seen, mobile telephony playing a major role in the development of rural areas. Mobile telephony played a major role in the success of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh as well. There have been many such cases around the world e.g. in Chile, Philippines & Africa.

Thus for success in rural telecom operators have to be innovative in both product which they offer and the ways in which they tackle the challenges posed by rural markets.

So let’s follow what Mahatma Gandhi once said and try to find the real Indian markets in rural India.
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I will love feedback from my friends especially from friends in the telecom sector.

Business of Laughter...

Alright, this blog is a result of a night long debate. We flatmates spent a whole night debating the best 10 comedy movies from Hindi cinema. 9 movies were unanimous choice & these 9 are as follows:

(There movies are not in any particular order)

# Andaz Apna Apna
# Chupke Chupke
# Golmal (Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee)
# Hera Pheri
# Chameli Ki Shaadi
# MunnaBhai MBBS
# Jaane Bhi do Yaaro
# Namak Halal
# Naram Garam

The one remaining spot we could not agree upon. My flatmate insisted that he would chose Mr. & Mrs. Khiladi to complete the list. However I am sure he says so because he has not seen Khosla ka Ghosla as of now (You cann't believe it right?? Neither could I when I heard that).

Please let me know what you think about it. Any movie we missed?

P.S: When you are as vehla as I was for the last few weeks, you will also push your flatmates to these levels of uselessness. Believe me ! !

To pray or not to pray??

vande mātaram
sujalāṃ suphalāṃ malayajaśītalām
śasya śyāmalāṃ mātaram
śubhra jyotsnā pulakita yāminīm
phulla kusumita drumadalaśobhinīm
suhāsinīṃ sumadhura bhāṣiṇīm
sukhadāṃ varadāṃ mātaram

English Translation:


My obeisance to Mother India!
With flowing beneficial waters
Filled with choicest fruits
With cooling breeze
Green with the harvest
O mother! My obeisance to you!
Ecstatic moonlit nights
The plants blooming with flowers
Sweet speaker of sweet languages
Fount of blessings,
Mother, I salute you!

Now let me get some points cleared here:

# This is the part of “Vande Mataram” which is accepted as the national song of India. Now would somebody please tell me, how could this be offensive to anyone? Seriously, I want to know. To me it seems to be a prayer in praise of your motherland. Now how could that be against any religion? I understand if you say that your religion allows you to worship to God only. But religion does not stop you from giving respect to your parents or your motherland. Or does it?

# Somebody comes out with a fatwa against the “National Song” of our country. Is this not going against the constitution? If it is possible, can somebody come out with a religious decree against Ashok Chakra tomorrow, saying it is against their religion?

# When courts have ruled that nobody can be forced to sing this song, what was the logic & need behind coming up with a fatwa against it?

# Though I am not in any position to question the judgment of courts of India, though when they say that one may or may not sing “Vande Mataram”, is it also implied that it is also a personal choice whether to stand up to pay respect to national anthem? Then why did we raise hullabaloo when a similar (not same) thing happened in Infosys a few years back?

# This fatwa was reportedly supported in the presence of our “Honorable Home Minister”. Even if it wasn’t & if all my above concerns are valid, why hasn’t the GOI reacted to it till now? Or are they waiting for some other extremist group to react and then they would rise from their slumber?

No, I’m not just babbling incoherently, I would really appreciate if somebody could answer these questions for me.

To my Parents

“Father! To God himself we cannot give a holier name.” said William Wordsworth.

“God could not be everywhere and therefore he made mothers.” goes a Jewish proverb.

This one has been long due. So I wanted to write more, I wanted to write lot. At least that was the thought when I started. But I realized that all I may write, I would never be able to describe parents or get better & appropriate words. So I will not get into any incoherent babbling et all.

Love you Mom & Dad…

& thanks for everything (also for things you never said…)

A confession

Reasons why any person continues in his job, though he may want to do something on his own:
--> Fear of failure?
--> Risk of uncertainty?
--> Financial obligations?
--> Inertia (i.e. you are too comfortable in your current situation and don’t want to make any effort to change the situation)?
--> Lack of a right opportunity? (Though on a personal note, I think this is just an excuse. I have used it long enough)

I recently quit my job and decided to become a partner in a thriving business. This offer was made to me about three years ago. I always wanted to be an entrepreneur; I loved the work; the time spent there is the best time of my professional life; People involved are like a family to me. Still I did not accept this offer right away. Why?

From the reasons mentioned above, financial obligation was definitely a reason. & for most of would-be-entrepreneurs, the reasons mentioned above should sum it up. But my personal experience forces me to add two more to the list.
# Greed
# Ego

The offer, made about three years ago, was to do my MBA and then decide. But then as one of the guest speakers in an entrepreneurship meet said “These b-schools don’t prepare you for entrepreneurs; they prepare you to work under them.” I believe no school does it knowingly. But then, the dreams of hefty pay packets, opportunity to work with big names in big cities & glamorous job titles make you greedy & you simply stop thinking about it seriously. You talk about it because it is trendy. But:
- Who wants to go back to Patiala, when I can spend the rest of my life checking out swanky restaurants of Pune?
- Why bother when a job in HUL or ITC or Citibank etc. will be offered in a platter?
- Who would want to leave the “opportunity” to be a CXO, VP or GM in an MNC?
The greed clouded my eyes and I walked over.

But I had forgotten that nothing is offered in a platter; came the time of placements midst the worst economic times of our era and all I saw was companies coming to campus and moving out without my name in their recruitment list. I knew I was not the brightest but I could not accept that no company wanted me. Somewhere down the line, it became an ego issue for me to get a job from campus. Though the offer was made again, my ego had inflated too much for me to look beyond it.

Now 6 months down the line, I have realized that this corporate life is not for me. The companies which were not selecting me were doing me a good. They were pushing me towards what I wanted to do. They realized that I was not made for them. I hope that this is “Better late than never” moment of my life.

P.S.: This is post is only meant for those, who want to do something on their own. There are many very knowledgeable, qualified and successful people, who have their calling somewhere else. When I talk about greed, ego and other reasons, it is only for people like me. For some the same corporate life, I couldn't adjust to is the real life & that is where there calling is.

Wo Pal...

Dedicated to those few who made those two years worthwhile...
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• First day of induction in Vishwabhavan
• First day in flat 12 (The guy at the roof of house facing our flat)
• First flat eat out at Peppinos
• Placement team presentation… vrooooom… or was it the pillars? (& a name Vineet will never forget again )
• Midnight GD’s over college politics, tea, maggi & who forgot to wash his plate??
• The (in) famous kiss – Identity of the people involved will never be revealed & I request my readers (if there are any) to not to post any hints/ direct references/ pointers of any kind towards them in the comments section.
• The pre-fresher’s party and the auto ride which followed
• Council/Associate teams interviews (& stories told during interviews  )
• First hour in ASR room
• “Mere facts alag hain or tere facts alag hain...”
• Adi’s Mumbai trip & Vineet’s alarm services
• Delhi Kitchen (Beta, ye to aapki problem hai…)
• (10)Grand ASR induction party at Flags
• SIRP, GD’s, Interviews & my Wipro Interview
• SIRP Day Zero & the drunken CS champion who later became a pilot…
• Daily CS competitions in Flat 12 & 13
• Me, My bed & My Laptop
• McD orders
• METALMELON still rocks ;-)
• Adi pukes & Anna watches (& almost does a ‘matrix’)
• Preparations for “SIBM LIVE”
• ASR sessions over “Coffee with SIBM”
• Dinners at China Gate
• “Last Man Standing” (by the end of which none of us was standing)
• The whole admission process for Juniors
• The day ASR got that email from Council President and the days leading to it.
• Hussain’s one song i-pod, Chintey’s temper, Reenu’s pranks, Sid’s HR skills (with some special people on 4th floor), Pranav’s resourcefulness & Innova, Dipti’s cheerfulness
• Varun’s jokes, DeeDee’s passion, Purna Bhai’s balance of mind & coolness
• Declaration of Senior Council Teams
• Ovation for ASR on Management Day-2008
• Play at Alumni Meet
• Tea in the evening in front of mess along with a lot of views for eyes ;-)
• Monsoon in Lavale
• Extra-curricular activities of Marketing B
• PMC ke nazare (PMC doesn’t stand for Pune Municipal Corp)
• Symbiosis Premier League
• CRP (Bas naam hi kaafi hai…)
• Early morning movie shows
• Last few Breakfasts, Lunches & Dinners

Heads or Tails???

We all want to be free, liberated and not bound by any rule or regulation. There is varying level of independence in each country and society, but one can be assured that the level of ‘freeness’ has increased over last few years/ decades around the world. Many things have moved from the societal arena to personal arena. Issues which were important on societal level are now being dealt at personal level & any interference by society is not welcome. & we all relish the thought of being free birds.

But really what is the difference between a human society and animal kingdom? Is it not the same laws, social rules & bonds? Take these out of our system and will we not be thrown back to the dark ages?

There is a very important law in Physics – Law of Entropy (also known as II law of thermodynamics). In simple words, this law states that everything in this universe will keep trying to achieve the state of complete randomness & will not stop till that state has been reached. This state will be of complete chaos.

On similar lines, if we continue on the path of liberation, would we also achieve the state of complete randomness/chaos? Let me take an example (Example taken is just for the sake of argument)

“Supporters of homosexuality claim that nobody has the right to comment on what goes inside the bedroom of two consenting adults. In that case, if some consenting adults, hundreds of miles away from any kind of flora, fauna or humans (so that they are not in a position to do any harm to anybody), decide to build a nuclear bomb in their bedroom, should we react or not?”

But we have already seen the other extreme as well, e.g. Taliban, Shri Ram Sene etc. This is the other side of the coin, another dark age.

So if both the extremes are dangerous, where do we draw the line & who draws that line? Or do we even realize that we need to draw a line?

Is it making any sense or is it just adding to incoherent babbling?

Sho(e)w of Democracy....

Yup, you guessed it right, it's abt the latest attack on Chiddu yesterday by one of the journalists. It made me think.

• It made me think abt the situation of our democracy. Where have we reached in our quest for "people's govt."? Today to make ourselves heard we have to throw a shoe at the "Home Minister" of India, otherwise the voice of a common man keeps fallinf on deaf ears of CBI, who even after being given the proof of something chooses to ignore it. What else do they want??? A VIDEOTAPE?? But naah it may be doctored as well. (As claimed by many of the young guns ! ! !)
• Before I go ahead, I must acknowledge the thought of my dear friend, Yuvraj Singh(my roommate during my MBA) . Yes UV, you were right abt Narendra Modi.Today when i think abt Tytler or Sajjan Kumar, I can feel your anger.
• Next is it right for a person to show his emotions even if they go against wht he is supposed to do? I think, in some conditions YES. There are times when you have to do something extraordinary for what you are passionate abt. I pity those who criticised Jarnail Singh for he did, 'cause they are unable to understand the emotions & passions of a person.
• Praises were showered on Chidambram on his restrain and composure after the event. Wht other options he had? Considering the fact that there is an election around the corner what else would a politician do? Press charges against the member of a minority which could decide elctions in atleast two states, Punjab and Delhi? (I'm sorry to use the word minority)
• After the show was over, BJP demanded that Congress shud withdraw candidature of Tytler and Sajjan Singh. Then shouldn't Narendra Modi, LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and others be measured on the same yardstick? or how are they different?

Will love to hear the comments of my follow Indians on my incoherent babbling of this empty mind(Empty, since i joined my MBA

Au Revoir...