Innholdsfortegnelse for 01 January 2017 i Business Today

The past few years have not been easy for corporate chieftains in India. There have been many global pain points and uncertainties, and even within the country, most CEOs have had to deal with enormous flux and a rapidly changing environment because of a host of factors. For some sectors, especially those dependent on commodities, the subdued prices of the past couple of years brought both good news as well as bad. Input prices came down but growth was also affected. The slowdown in China caused an enormous ripple effect in a host of industries, especially the metals sector. Cheap Chinese imports have caused deep impact on the profit margins and general economics of a number of sectors. The Chinese slowdown also had a profound effect on companies that have…

19 -20 INFRA GREEN FUND WHAT: Financing Quality and Green Infrastructure in Asia WHEN: December 19-20, Hanoi WHAT TO LOOK FOR: Asian Development Bank is organising the event to analyse quality and climate change in infrastructure, and identify specific new sources of infrastructure finance, its pros and cons, the impediments and challenges of tapping into these new sources 19- 20 SMART ART WHAT: Smart Cities, Art Cities WHEN: December 19-20, New Delhi WHAT TO LOOK FOR: FICCI is organising the first annual conference to make the creative industry an integral part of smart cities and contribute to their local economies by bringing organisations and individuals to find sustainable solutions and policy changes for art and culture with the help of corporates, civil society groups, government, financial institutions, media and experts…

hen corporate excellence becomes the norm, supremacy is defined – not just in numbers and strategies – but in subtleties. Standout performance on revenue, profits and shareholder returns is the baseline of the annual ranking of India’s Best CEOs 2016. But what they do beyond that is the litmus test of their and their companies’ character and resilience. So, whether it is Sunil Duggal’s tightrope walk running the family-owned Dabur professionally or C.P. Gurnani’s people management skills in buying and integrating numerous companies into Tech Mahindra or Venu Srinivasan cranking the innovation machinery at TVS Motors, the bar just got higher and higher in this year’s ranking. As much as Indo Count’s Anil Jain’s life after corporate debt restructuring will leave you captivated, equally Rajnikant Shroff’s potion for successful global…

TVS has had a long history of several firsts in the Indian context, from small practical touches to technology breakthroughs. While it was not the first moped company in India (players like Luna and Kinetic already existed), it launched the country’s first two-seater moped. Mundane, maybe, but very practical and successful. On the technology front, it was the first to deploy a catalytic converter in a 100cc bike, burnishing its green credentials. These reduced harmful exhausts. It was also the first to offer ABS (anti-lock brake system), a safety feature, which has now almost become a standard. Given the increasing traffic in Indian cities, it offered the first clutch-less motorcycle. Till then, this feature existed only in scooters. Innovation has not been limited to technology but has also revolved around…

BEST CEO (Large Companies) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 58,268.4 cr/ 9.4% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 6,616.5 cr/ 27.7% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 4,571.4 cr/ 24.1% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 50.2% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 15.5% ROE/ ROCE 18.0%/ 25.7% CASH/ DEBT 39.1 cr / 230.9 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 7% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Since Kenichi Ayukawa took over as CEO and Managing Director of Maruti Suzuki Ltd on April 1, 2013, its share price has risen to `5,240 per share (December 8) from around Rs 1,400 at the time, its annual profit has nearly doubled to `4,571 crore in 2015/16 from 2,392 crore in 2012/13, while its market share has gone up by a…

BEST CEO (Auto Ancillaries) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 2,082.1 cr/ 11.1% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 303.8 cr/ 42.7% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 197.2 cr/ 76.8% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 182.2% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 35.2% ROE/ ROCE 56.8%/ 58.9% CASH/ DEBT 12.3 cr/ 131.2 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 8.8% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Three years ago, if one had the foresight and good fortune to pick up shares of Madurai-based TVS Srichakra, one would be sitting pretty today. In spite of recent turbulence in the market post-demonetisation, shares of TVS Srichakra have risen more than 1,000 per cent in the past three years compared to a mere 25 per cent rise in the BSE Sensex.…

BEST CEO (Cement) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 24,342.5 cr / 5.9% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 3,562.3 cr / -4.1% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 2,174.7 cr / -6.4% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 21.6% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 11.5% ROE/ ROCE 11% / 13% CASH/ DEBT 2,235.2 cr / 7,660.7 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 8% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity When the going gets tough, the tough get going. This stands true for O.P. Puranmalka, who retired as Managing Director of UltraTech Cement this March. During his tenure, the cement major went on a buying spree that ensured its growth in tough times. The company increased capacity through acquisitions, be it the 4.8-million tonne plant of Jaypee Cement…

BEST CEO (FMCG) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 5,946.6 cr/ 10.2% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,222.6 cr/ 16.8% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 939.5 cr/ 16.7% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 21.6% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 6.2% ROE/ ROCE 37.1%/ 45.1% CASH/ DEBT 54.2 cr / 86.5 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 16.1% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity When Sunil Duggal was offered the CEO’s post at Dabur, one of India’s largest fast moving consumer goods, or FMCG, companies, in mid-2002, it was not the most desirable of jobs. There was unprecedented competition and Dabur, despite strong brand recall, was struggling for growth. The first attempt at transforming the over 100-year-old company from promoter-driven to being led by professionals…

BEST CEO  (Pharma & Healthcare) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 5,706.6 cr / 25.3% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 2,542.4 cr / 53.6% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,902.8 cr / 48.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 63.2% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 19.5% ROE/ ROCE 55.2% / 45.5% CASH/ DEBT 82.4 cr / 2,262.5cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 32.4% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity India’s leading drug companies like Sun Pharmaceuticals, Lupin, Cipla, Wockhardt and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories had forayed into the US, the world’s biggest generic drug market, many years ago – some in the early 1990s and others in the early 2000s. Compared to them, Ahmedabad-based Torrent Pharmaceuticals was a late entrant in 2008. Today, Torrent is one of…

1989/90 Torrent forays into power sector by taking over Mahendra Electricals; renames it Torrent Cables – (now merged with Torrent Power) 1996/97 Acquires management control of Surat Electricity Company 1997/98 Acquires The Ahmedabad Electricity Company and starts combined cycle operations of GTEC 1999/2000 Sells equity stake in GTEC to Powergen India 2004/05 Brings together three group companies – Torrent Power AEC, Torrent Power SEC and Torrent Power Generation – under a single, unified brand, Torrent Power 2005/06 Torrent Power becomes a distribution franchise for Bhiwandi Circle of Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company and the first private sector distributor of electricity in India 2008/09 Was awarded the distribution franchisee for Agra distribution circle and Kanpur distribution circle for 20 years 2009/10 Commissions 1,147.5-MW SUGEN power project 2014/15 Commissions 1,200-MW DGEN power…

1994 Mittal wins GSM licences for mobile service in Delhi NCR 1995 Launches services under the Airtel brand name 1997 Becomes the first mobile service provider in India to cross 100,000 customer mark 2002 Airtel goes public, completes India’s first 100 per cent book building issue 2005 Airtel becomes first private telecom operator in the country to have an all-India telecom footprint 2009 Airtel crosses 100 million customer mark; starts operations in Sri Lanka 2010 Expands operations to Africa with the acquisition of Zain Telecom 2011 Launches 3G services and Airtel Money 2012 Becomes the first Indian operator to launch 4G services 2016 Mittal is elected as head of International Chamber of Commerce…

BEST CEO (Transportation & logistics) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 5,603.8 cr/ 16.3% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 3,745.8 cr/ 17.1% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 2,841.6 cr/ 17.4% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 26.3% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* -23.9% ROE/ ROCE 22.9%/ 14.4% CASH/ DEBT 937.6 cr/ 15,509.4 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 61.4% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity The busiest executive in Adani Group’s flagship business, Adani Ports and SEZ (APSEZ), is promoter Gautam Adani’s elder son Karan. He is in constant travel mode, visiting the operational ports, looking out for new locations and talking to government representatives. The mission is to redesign and transform their traditional port business in India as a global business. Karan Adani, a…

A Aditya Puri Managing Director HDFC Bank Arun Tiwari Chairman & Managing Director Union Bank of India Arundhati Bhattacharya Chairman State Bank of India C C. Ilango * Managing Director Can Fin Homes Chanda Kochhar Managing Director & CEO ICICI Bank D Duruvasan Ramachandra Managing Director Shriram City Union Finance H Hemant Kanoria Chairman & Managing Director SREI Infrastructure Finance J Jatinderbir Singh Chairman & Managing Director Punjab & Sind Bank Jeevandas Narayan# Managing Director State Bank of Travancore Jyoti Ghosh** Managing Director State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur K K. Venkataraman Managing Director & CEO Karur Vysya Bank Kapil Wadhawan Chairman & Managing Director Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Keki Mistry Vice Chairman & CEO HDFC Kishore Sansi Managing Director & CEO Vijaya Bank M M.R. Rao CEO & Managing…

Create a “founder’s mentality” scorecard. Manage it as a strategic asset. Does your mission keep you fighting on behalf of your customers? Does your company focus on the front line of the business? Do employees embrace an owner’s mindset that eschews bureaucracy, is focused on speed, and demands personal accountability? Benchmark against your most successful upstart competitors. Are they winning on speed and cost? Commit as a leadership team to closing the gap. Launch a campaign against bureaucracy. Look for management layers and processes that have outlived their usefulness. Eliminate them. Get the leadership team out of the office. The front line is where the answer to a growth stall-out is most likely to reside. Re-examine the precepts and practices of your founders or early leaders. When was the company…

The book does not merely put forth theories, but presents solid examples Mainstream opinion about which nations are rising or falling typically gets the future wrong By Ruchir Sharma PAGES: 464 PRICE: 799 Penguin UK Over the past year, several befuddling developments have occurred globally. We are seeing a surge in anti-globalisation or de-globalisation forces, a rise in anti-immigrant sentiments and fear of losing jobs. Events such as England exiting the European Union and Americans voting for Donald Trump have perplexed the world. The Rise and Fall of Nations, by Ruchir Sharma, weaves a pattern by piecing together these extraordinary events. In his earlier book, titled The Breakout Nations, he had predicted a slowdown in the emerging markets – Brazil, Russia, India, and China – after years of high growth.…

DEMONETISATION LIKELY TO CHANGE FISCAL DEFICIT OUTLOOK FOR BETTER The outlook for interest rates for the next year is shaping up to be a slugfest between the forces of macroeconomic growth and the impact of the demonetisation of high-value notes. On the economic front, there was good news to be expected. After two failed monsoons, we had a normal rainy season. Agriculture output and consumption was expected to rise in the coming quarters. On a broader level, consumers were spending again, as low inflation since 2014 allowed real incomes to rise. Even government spending was looking up, thanks to infrastructure spending in sectors such as roads, railways and defence. All this pointed to the end of the rate-cut cycle as stronger growth would eventually reduce the need for monetary policy…

Health has been one of the fastest growing categories in the general insurance industry. During 2015-16, the gross health insurance premium collected by non-life insurance companies was Rs. 24,784 crore, an increase of 22 per cent from 2014-15. Over the past five years, there has been a marked increase in the share of individual health insurance premium collected. While many who did not have a health insurance cover have started purchasing them, those with existing health insurance plans are moving beyond just ‘hospitalisation covers’ to more comprehensive covers that include benefits such as expenses related to OPD treatments, physiotherapy, dental care, maternity covers, and alternative treatments. Today, higher sum insured, disease-specific covers for ailments such as dengue and cancer, and significant emphasis on wellness and health maintenance are offered. In…

An Audacious Move This refers to your cover story on demonetisation (Turbulence, December 18). It is the best thing that has happened to India, post Independence. This announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8 gave little time to the black marketers and must have given them a rude shock. Perhaps, this is the most effective way of curbing the instances of black money in circulation and terror funding that have over the period assumed dangerous proportions. There is no denying the fact that corruption is rampant, and for many vested interests it has literally become a way of life to make quick bucks through illegal means. There is a near parallel economy of black money running, which is retarding the growth process. No doubt, the common people may…

“THE UNORGANISED PLAYERS WILL BE IMPACTED AS THEY DO NOT HAVE ONLINE FACILITIES. WE HAVE SEEN A DECREASE OF 40% IN LOAN DISBURSEMENTS AND 50% IN LOAN REPAYMENTS,,GEORGE ALEXANDER MUTHOOT, MD, Muthoot Finance “CUSTOMERS IN RURAL INDIA REPAY LOANS MOSTLY IN CASH. THE LOAN REQUIREMENT HAS FALLEN AFTER DEMONETISATION. IT MAY TAKE SOME TIME FOR THE ECONOMY TO RECOVER,,RAMESH IYER, Vice Chairman and MD, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services In the first four days of the demonetisation announcement, the 31 District Central Cooperative (DCC) banks in Maharashtra collected `4,000 crore as deposits in banned currencies through their 3,800 branches, mostly in rural villages. Their customers were largely farmers and daily wage earners. Usually, DCC banks park the deposits received with state co-operative banks. But when the Reserve Bank of…

If the social media chatter ahead of the US presidential election was anything to go by, it was clear which way the wind was blowing. Donald Trump’s win, therefore, was shocking, questioning once again the credibility of social media content. At the crux of this volley of unverified content on social media is an algorithm that delivers ‘relevant’ content to us based on our preferences. Continuously reading content that reinforces one’s point of view, with the other facet hidden, leads to the creation of the bubble of half-truth in which we all happily live, until it bursts, like in the case of America’s election result, explains Siddharth Deshmukh, Associate Dean, Area Leader - Digital Platform & Strategies, MICA. This problem has exacerbated as Facebook and Twitter have become the go-to…

CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS AND BEST CEO (Mid-sized Companies) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 11,296.9 cr / 16.2% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 613.9 cr / 41.8% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 432.1 cr/ 27.8% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 137.30% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 17.3% ROE/ ROCE 24.1%/ 22.5% CASH/ DEBT 32.8cr / 902.3cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 3.5% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Honne Gowda, 43, runs a small provision store in Doddaballapur, an hour’s drive from Bangalore. Most people here either depend on farming/dairy or do odd jobs in the country’s information technology capital. Every Friday, the store’s operations are taken over by Gowda’s wife, as he goes to the city for fresh supplies on his trusted steed —…

BEST CEO (Super large Companies) BEST CEO (Oil & Gas) TOTAL INCOME/3-YR CAGR 1,82,516.8 cr / -4.5% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 6,378.2 cr / 30.2% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 3,862.7 cr / 62.2% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 66.9% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 36.7% ROE/ ROCE 22.6% / 16.8% CASH/ DEBT 19.7 cr / 21,336.8 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 1.9% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity During her two-year stint as Chairman and Managing Director of HPCL, Nishi Vasudeva’s ability to steer the public sector oil company through periods of uncertainty and make hay of the positive developments helped the company reap the benefits over the long term. Within a couple of months of Vasudeva taking over the…

BEST CEO (Small Companies) BEST CEO (Automobiles) TOTAL INCOME/3-YR CAGR 6,366.3 cr/ 79.8% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,771 cr/ 116.7% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,229.9 cr/ 104.0% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 100.3% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 14.9% ROE/ ROCE 72.7%/ 104% CASH/ DEBT 44.5 cr/ `22.6 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 17.6% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Siddhartha Lal, MD & CEO of Eicher Motors, wants to create a global brand. And, going by the diverse appeal of his Royal Enfield motorcycles, now sold across five continents, his ambition may not be out of place. This comes after he generated enormous wealth for his investors – each share clocked `26,601.95 at its peak on 29 September, from…

BEST CEO (BFSI) TOTAL INCOME/3-YR CAGR 14,877.6 cr / 21.2% PBT/ 3-YR CAGR 3,469.3 cr / 30.1% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 2,286.5 cr / 29.2 % 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 34.8% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 32% ROE/ ROA 16.6% / 1.9% NET NPA 0.4% NET INTEREST MARGIN 3.8% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; PBT excludes provisions and contingencies Source: ACE Equity When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the recall of 500 and 1,000 rupee currency notes at 8 pm on November 8, those working at One Indiabulls Centre in Mumbai’s Lower Parel rushed to the ATM of one bank — IndusInd Bank. This despite the fact that the premises also have ATMs of three other banks. The reason:…

BEST CEO (CHEMICALS) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 3,855.1 cr/ 10.3% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,064.7 cr/ 36.3% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 355.6 cr/ 26.1% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 40.6% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 31.8% ROE/ ROCE 45.9%/ 53.7% CASH/ DEBT 477.9 cr/ 41.6 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 19.4% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity HM. Bharuka, the MD of Kansai Nerolac Paints (KNPL), puts things in black and white when asked about his struggles after he took up the top job 16 years ago. The company’s wooden and worn-out units, he recalls, were in bad shape, the focus was on industrial paints (for automobiles and white goods) and margins a paltry 3 per cent. The best corporate…

BEST CEO  (IT & ITes) TOTAL INCOME/3-YR CAGR 22,195.7 cr / 54.3% PBIT/3-YR CAGR 3,976.6 cr / 62.5% PAT/3-YR CAGR 3,220 cr / 70.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 31.1% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* -17.5% ROE/ROCE 26.9% / 31.8% CASH/DEBT 3,284 cr / 228.5 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 15.4% *For Oct 2015-Sept 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity A 30-hour train journey from the town of Chittorgarh in Rajasthan, where Chander Prakash Gurnani lived, to Rourkela in Odisha, where he studied chemical engineering, turned out to be life-changing. During that journey, Gurnani met a few Rotarians, a meeting that eventually led him to start a Rotaract Club (Rotary clubs sponsor them) in Rourkela around October 1976. He organised fund-raising…

INDIA BUSINESS PAST 40 years in market; started the concept of niche marketing and growth through neuro and cardiac therapies in the early years PRESENT Features among the top 15 companies in India by revenue FUTURE Aiming for best-in-class margins driven by specialty focus, entry into new therapies in nephrology, respiratory, etc., and strengthening presence in cosmetic dermatology and biosimilars US BUSINESS PAST Late entry into the US market through generics PRESENT Among the top 10 Indian companies in the US and wide product portfolio across therapies FUTURE Ramping up ANDA (product marketing applications) filings, inorganic opportunities and complex generics in dermatology and oncology EUROPE & LATIN AMERICA PAST One of the early entrants to Europe with an acquisition in Germany PRESENT Currently the biggest Indian company in German tender…

BEST CEO (Real estate & Construction) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 2,770.5 cr / 19.9% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 613.3 cr / 8.6% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 361.8 cr / 9.4% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 8.8% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* -24.3% ROE/ ROCE 8.9% / 8.7% CASH/ DEBT 250.8 cr / 3,629.7 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 13.6% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Post demonetisation, the prognostications from experts have been coming in thick and fast. One uniform forecast seems to be – this move is likely to lead to a 20-30 per cent fall in real estate prices. So, one would expect the head of India’s third-largest listed real-estate company to be worried. However, when Business…

BEST CEO (Textiles & Apparel) TOTAL INCOME/3-YR CAGR 2,070.8 cr/ 21% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 434.7 cr/ 75.4% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 250.7 cr/ 80.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 428% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 83.7% ROE/ ROCE 58.2%/ 58.6% CASH/ DEBT 19.4 cr/ 288.3 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 12.3% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity If you have shopped at Walmart, Macy or JC Penny in the US, chances are that the bed linen you bought were manufactured at the `2,200-crore Indian textile major Indo Count’s Kagal plant at Kolhapur in Maharashtra. The manufacturing unit, which churns out 68 million metres of bed linen per year, ships over 90 per cent of those to retailers, big…

This is Business Today’s fifth annual ranking of India’s best CEOs. We published our first edition in partnership with INSEAD and Harvard Business Review in 2012. Since, BT has joined forces with Pricewaterhouse-Coopers (PWC) India for the study. Last year, we took into account total income, net profits, market capitalisation and return on equity for our calculations. This year, we focused on the operational performance of companies and their shareholders’ returns. For better comparability, the companies were split into four categories based on their total income – super large, large, mid-sized and small. Companies with total income of `1 lakh crore and above were in the super large group, while those between `50,000 crore and `1 lakh crore were considered large. Mid-sized companies were between `10,000 crore and `50,000 crore…

 From the surprise Brexit vote to the recent anti-trade flavour in the US elections, battle lines are being drawn in a world that was seen as intimately interconnected. Going forward, will international business be more connected by free flow of ideas, people and trade; or will we see the drawbridges of protectionism being erected afresh? In recent months, national narratives are fiercely critical of large companies and individuals who benefit from globalisation. The upswing in the blue collar rust belt vote that swept Trump to power is only one indication of this trend. Other economies like Russia, Turkey and Philippines are also scripting similar narratives that highlight national interests and give pause to the international flows of goods and s ervices we have been used to. The question is not…

JSB HF23 BACK & NECK MASSAGER Forget the discomforts of driving by investing in this car massager. JSB HF23 has two kneading neck massage heads and four kneading infrared massage heads to ease backaches and cervical aches. It claims to improve blood circulation and relieve stress. It comes with a full-function remote control that can be used to adjust the settings of the massager and customise it. The highlight of this massager is its four massage section modes — upper, middle, lower and full back. If you are tired after a long drive, a five-to-ten-minute massage can help you de-stress. PRICE: 8,900 NAP ZAPPER This is a life saver for late-night drivers. If you tend to fall asleep when at the wheel, get your hands on this compact gadget (approximately…

Grassroots Innovation By Anil K. Gupta Price: 599 In the book, Professor Gupta insists that to fight the largest and most persistent problems of the world we must eschew expensive research labs, and instead look towards ordinary folk. The Unusual Billionaires By Saurabh Mukherjea Penguin Price: 499 Alibaba: The House that Jack Ma Built By Duncan Clark Ecco Price: 599 The Rise and Fall of Nations By Ruchir Sharma Penguin UK Price: 799 Deep Work By Cal Newport Little, Brown Book Group Price: 399 Bulls, Bears and Other Beasts By Santosh Nair Pan Macmillan India Price: 499 *Top books by sales for Nov 21 - Dec 5, 2016; Includes only books released after Jan 1, 2015; Information provided by…

“Demonetisation is definitely going to have an impact” What does your business climate survey among Norwegian companies in India say? It captures the slowdown in the heavy industries sector. Companies across renewable energy to hydro-power to the oil and gas sectors, and big maritime businesses, have been talking about the slowdown – 62 per cent consider the present business climate as favourable, and 75 per cent believe it will become better in the years to come. And one reason for that is India’s huge population. We believe in India; it is a long-term game. Is the slowdown due to demonetisation? The slowdown is happening for the past six months across port development and big energy projects. We don’t quite understand why, but it’s probably because of the NPAS of banks.…

INCREASED TAX MOP-UP DUE TO DEMONETISATION SHOULD LEAD TO FISCAL PRUDENCE Indian equity markets went through a volatile phase in 2016. Aggressive guidance by the US Fed spooked them in January and February. Commitment to fiscal prudence provided support from March 16 onwards. Good monsoon, GST rollout and lower interest rates also helped. US elections and demonetisation triggered a correction in the last quarter of 2016. In 2017, stock markets are unlikely to behave differently than in 2016. They will be influenced by the following events: Impact of demonetisation on corporate earnings: The market is factoring in a return to normalcy in three-six months and will correct in case of a delay. If Indians adopt to the cash-less economy, earnings will recover fast. The RBI is likely to get a…

The affordable housing segment is not likely to suffer a major blow due to demonetisation. Besides, the move may bring down interest rates on housing loans Four or five year ago, when demand and supply was at its peak, property prices were rising on a daily basis. In fact, a weekly jump of 10-15 per cent had become the new normal. The fear of losing a good deal saw investors lapping up every offer that came their way with the hope of earning double-digit returns. Cut to 2016. The property market has come to a grinding halt. Developers are sitting on unsold inventory – catering primarily to the middle and upper class segments – of about five years, new launches are few and far between, and end-users are still waiting…

India’s life insurance sector is at the cusp of a major transformation, led by digitisation, factors like multi-distribution, product innovation, innovations in claims management and regulatory reforms. Amid growing uncertainties about life and emerging risk factors like lifestyle disorders and rising incidence of accidents, not having an insurance cover is not an option, especially for those with dependents. Yet, when it comes to insurance penetration, India ranks way lower compared to its global counterparts – the deficit of trust between insurers and consumers being the chief reason. But things are changing for better. There has been a conspicuous shift towards digital and customer-focused strategies amongst insurers. They are focusing on the customer-facing elements of their processes, like faster, intuitive websites, and user-friendly apps. Insurers are also leveraging technology to strengthen…

50 million subscribers in just 83 days for Reliance Jio, or 1,000 customers per minute, or 600,000 subscribers per day, since its commercial launch on September 5 4 lakh crore of debt for 85 Indian companies, says a report by ratings agency Fitch, adding that the companies’ ability to service their debt is limited, and a significant proportion of their assets are also non-productive QUOTE “A smartwatch has no soul” – Jean-Claude Monachon, Vice-President, Product and Customer Service, Omega, on why the company’s mechanical pie pan dial will never get old because of its emotional connect, and why smartwatches are not a threat to the watchmaker “Paytm means Pay to Modi” – Rahul Gandhi, Vice-President, Indian National Congress, on the government’s demonetisation move and the subsequent growth in business for…

Calling the Bluff Facebook recently asked its users in a survey to indentify misleading posts in what seems to be an effort to curb fake news. In the survey, Facebook asked users to rate news posts on the basis of their headlines, and say whether they were using misleading language. Users could choose from five options — not at all, slightly, somewhat, very much and completely. The question appeared in a bar below the posts. Facebook has been under fire recently for the way in which it handled fake and misleading posts during the US presidential elections. In a Facebook post, Mark Zuckerberg recently said that 99 per cent of the posts on the social networking site are authentic, and only a small number comprises fake news and hoaxes. Icebreaker…

Set up in 1978 Launches its first vehicle in 1980, the TVS 50 moped Enters into a technical tie-up with Suzuki of Japan in 1982 First motorcycle launched TVS Scooty, its iconic scooter, launched in 1994 In 2001, Suzuki and TVS part ways Launches India’s first indigenously-designed and manufactured four-stroke bike, Victor Wins Deming Prize, considered the Nobel Prize for quality, in 2002 In 2007, enters the three-wheeler market In 2014, Chairman Venu Srinivasan’s son Sudarshan Venu appointed Joint MD…

India’s first woman chairman of any non-bank PSU, globally joined the league of Karen Agustiawan of Indonesian state firm Pertamina, Maria das Gracas Silva Foste of Brazil's Petrobras, Sumayya Athmani of Kenya's National Oil Corporation, Lyn Elsenhans of US-based Sunoco and Sara Ortwein of ExxonMobil Upstream Research Oil prices crashed from $110 a barrel barely four months after she took charge to $37 a barrel the day she demitted office Focused on reducing costs to maximise profits Brought in more scientific planning Implemented Integrated Margin Management (IMM) system to add value to crude oil purchases, systems at refineries and marketing-distribution. It helped maximise profits and improve net corporate realisation HPCL under Vasudeva, like its peers IOCL and BPCL, benefited from freeing up of diesel to market prices, and direct benefit…

BEST CEO (Agriculture & Allied) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 6,441.3 cr / 16.5% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,038.9 cr / 37.6% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 706 cr / 50.2% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 66.2% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 19.7% ROE/ ROCE 18.7% / 19.9% CASH/ DEBT 72.8 cr / 1,527.8 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 11.2% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity The big leap for Rajnikant Shroff, Chairman & MD, UPL, came in November 2006, when UPL purchased French pesticide maker Cerexagri. The same year, it also acquired seeds producer Dubai-based Advanta. In 2011, the company acquired 50 per cent stake in Sipcam Isagro Brazil and 51 per cent stake in dva Agro Do Brasil (dva Agro…

2008-11 Focus on restoring financial health, lowering NPAs, and increasing profits 2011-14 Doubling of profitability, big focus on vehicle finance, fee-based income 2014-17 Doubling the business further by focusing on market share. Purchase of the diamond financing business of ABN Amro Bank. Plans to dominate diamond and MFI financing 2017-21 Rebalancing the book between retail and corporate by focusing on retail and reducing dependence on vehicle finance, digitisation, rural banking through MFI, cross-selling among customers…

BEST CEO (Consumer Goods) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 1,715.3 cr / 19.3% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 200.5 cr / 32.9% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 116 cr / 37.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 94.9% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 22.2% ROE/ ROCE 28.4% / 30.3% CASH/ DEBT 2.4 cr / 236.4 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 6.9% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity For Ramesh Kumar Dua, MD of Relaxo, learning never stops. The 62-year-old admits that he regularly visits his factories and meets distributors “to learn”. He joined the company, a very small enterprise back in 1976, at the behest of his father, while prepping for MBBS exams. At 17, he was helping his older brother run the manufacturing…

BEST CEO  (Media & Entertainment) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 4,452.7 cr / 18.4% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 1,330.9 cr / 11.8% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 859.3 cr / 10.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 22.4% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 20.7% ROE/ ROCE 30.7% / 27.6% CASH/ DEBT 385.1 cr / 1.8 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 20.4% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity The year 2016 has been action-packed for Zee Entertainment. During the year, not only did the `5,850-crore media giant expand its core broadcast business by acquiring Anil Ambani’s Reliance Broadcast Network, it also expanded its international operations by entering the US Hispanic market with the launch of a Spanish channel. It also re-entered film production with…

BEST CEO (Power) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 11,906 cr / 12.9% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 2,283.4 cr / 30.3% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 823.4 cr / 28.8% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 29.8% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* 25.9% ROE/ ROCE 11.3% / 16.1% CASH/ DEBT 778 cr / 8,443 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 7% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Ahmedabad-based Torrent Power’s solid performance in the past three years, despite the turbulence in India’s energy sector, helped Chairman Sudhir Mehta, 62, bag the ‘Business Today Best CEO 2016’ award for the power sector. Analysis of the integrated power company’s key figures indicate efficient running of its generation plants, better cost control and profitability. The company generates…

BEST CEO (Telecom) TOTAL INCOME/ 3-YR CAGR 61,785.8 cr/ 9.7% PBIT/ 3-YR CAGR 13,598.8 cr/ 18.8% PAT/ 3-YR CAGR 8,226.4 cr/ 17.3% 3-YR AVERAGE TSR 7.7% AVERAGE MCAP YOY GROWTH* -11.8% ROE/ ROCE 9.3%/ 11.8% CASH/ DEBT 52.1 cr/ 45,743.5 cr NET PROFIT MARGIN 12.5% *For Oct 2015-Sep 2016 Standalone data; Total Income, PBIT & PAT net of extraordinary items; TSR: Total shareholder returns; Source: ACE Equity Life comes full circle. Nearly 40 years after starting his entrepreneurial journey, Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman of the $14.3-billion Bharti Airtel, is standing at the crossroads. The business that he has built from the ground up is under attack from Reliance Jio, the $20-billion venture of Reliance Industries. For Airtel, the most unsettling aspect of Jio’s launch in September is the free…

In March 2016, Indo Count forayed into the fashion, utility and institutional bedding categories with brands such as Boutique Living, Revival and Pure It also acquired licences to sell British furnishing and wallpaper brands such as Harlequin and Sanderson across the globe Entry into the B2C segment with fashion bedding and furnishings has helped Indo Count further grow its B2B business, as its customers have started looking at it as a serious player in the $10-billion fashion bedding market Fashion bedding in the US alone has a $5-billion retail market…

A A.A.V. Ranga Raju Managing Director NCC Abhijit Roy Managing Director & CEO Berger Paints India Aditi Kare Panandikar Managing Director Indoco Remedies Ajay Bijli Chairman & Managing Director PVR Akhil Gupta Executive Chairman Bharti Infratel Alluri Indra Kumar Chairman & Managing Director Avanti Feeds Alok Tandon CEO Inox Leisure Anand Deshpande Chairman & Managing Director Persistent Systems Anant Goenka Managing Director Ceat Anil Kumar Jain Executive Chairman Indo Count Industries Anil Kumar Mittal Chairman & Managing Director KRBL Anoop Kumar Mittal Chairman & Managing Director NBCC India Arun Bharat Ram Chairman SRF Arvind Uppal Chairman & Executive Director Whirlpool of India Ashok Kajaria Chairman & Managing Director Kajaria Ceramics Azim Premji Chairman Wipro B B.N. Kalyani Chairman & Managing Director Bharat Forge Balram Garg Managing Director PC Jeweller Bhadresh…

When stall-out occurs, it is almost always connected to creeping complexity Most successful companies eventually face a predictable crisis that we call stall-out – a sudden large drop in revenue and profit growth or a collapse of once high shareholder returns to well below the cost of capital. Stall-out occurs when the growth engine that powered a company to success stops working. This rarely happens because the business model has suddenly become obsolete – a common misconception. Rather, our research shows that the business has almost always become too complex, most often owing to bureaucracy that slows the company’s metabolism, or internal dysfunction that distorts information and hampers managers’ ability to make rapid decisions and take swift action on them. When we talk to executives about the symptoms of stall-out,…

By Linda Spedding Eastern Book Company At the core of the ongoing Tata- NTT DoCoMo legal tussle is a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) rule that forbids a foreign direct investor in an Indian company to make an exit at a pre-determined share price. The case – with NTT DoCoMo approaching international arbitrator – has assumed such significance that insiders cite its mishandling as one of the reasons for the ouster of Tata Sons Chairman Cyrus Mistry. However, many legal experts blame it (the Tata-DoCoMo row) on unclear and unsettled buyback rules when the two parties entered into a contract. It is always difficult for a foreign entity to start a business in a country like India that has a maze of (sometime loosely worded and ambiguous) laws and a…

Indians adore gold and real estate. For some reason, their interest in these traditional assets has always been higher than in financial assets. India is the world’s largest consumer of gold. It imports around 1,000 tonnes gold every year. This is one of the reasons for its traditionally high current account deficits. This also explains India’s low market cap-to-GDP ratio of 68 per cent. In the US, it is as high as 138 per cent. However, after demonetisation, tighter norms for gold and real estate transactions are expected to encourage people to invest in financial assets. Also, given the low yields on physical assets, especially gold, Indians stand to gain by shifting to financial assets. If you are one of those who wish to make a start this year and…

REFORMS INITIATIVES BY THE GOVERNMENT WILL IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY The government’s recent move to promote transparency and fight corruption, along with a host of other policy and regulatory initiatives, will have a positive impact on the real estate sector, otherwise notorious for lack of trust and credibility. In the near-term, land prices are likely to be hit the most by the government’s demonetisation drive, as the cash component had, so far, dominated such transactions, especially in the unorganised sector. Transactions in the secondary market may also be impacted negatively. There might also be liquidity concerns, especially for smaller developers, which may result in delays in construction. It is, however, expected to result in increased affordability, particularly for the housing sector, in the long run. The long-term outlook for the real estate…

GOLD WILL GIVE POSITIVE RETURNS IN INDIA OVER A FEW YEARS Historically, gold has been a safe-haven, and any turmoil – natural, economic or political – drives gold demand not just in India but across the world. The US Presidential elections, for instance, led to wild gold price swings as campaigns progressed. It is only in relatively uneventful times that gold stagnates. There are a lot of factors that will help predict the likely price trajectory of gold in 2017. The primary driver of gold prices is the relative strength of the US dollar. A weak dollar makes for higher gold prices, and vice versa. The benchmark US dollar Index is at a 14-year high at 101.27 and indicates weak gold prices. However, this gets a new angle in India…