Ashok Som

Luxury Round Table in Paris: Growth of Luxury Industry in Emerging Markets: Challenges & Opportunities

2012-01-28T13:17:00.005+01:00

Luxury Round Table in Paris: Growth of Luxury Industry in Emerging Markets:

Challenges & Opportunities

“The luxury industry is built on a paradox: the more desirable the brand becomes, the more it sells but the more it sells, the less desirable it becomes!..."

with:

Agnes Sarah Espinasse, Board Memeber & CFO, Vilebrequin
Alexis Poujade, Head of Business Development at Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouet ,Pernod Ricard
Franck Asenkat, Bartley
Jonathan SIBONI, Consultant

A Word from the Associate Dean of Global MBA: The value of an MBA for students in emerging markets

2012-01-28T10:44:00.002+01:00

As the world as we know it changes and evolves on a daily basis, education and commerce provide the means to embrace the opportunities created by globalization. At the intersection of these two routes to global understanding and success is an MBA, a degree that provides the stepping stone for bridging the gap between the Western World and emerging markets.The choice to pursue an MBA abroad is an important decision, one based on a variety of factors including long-term career goals, location and financial constraints, but for participants coming from emerging markets, this decision can have a lasting positive career impact. During an MBA program, students are exposed to international business and cultural practices that will equip and enable them to contribute to the growth of their home economies through the multi-nationals operating in their home economies and to bridge the gap between the developed nations and the emerging markets.

Today, business practices are in a constant state of evolution and flux. Globalization means redefining what we do, how we do it, and on what playing field it takes place. Emerging markets especially the Big Emerging Marjets (BEM) such as Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Mexico, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Turkey and Kenya have witnessed growth at a rapid pace. . This state of growth and change provides a whole new range of opportunities for entrepreneurs, investors, and business practitioners, assuming they have the knowledge and the skill-set to take advantage of these opportunities. The broad general knowledge of an MBA, combined with the global focus of a program such as ours here at ESSEC, makes participants more proficient to maneuver these changes as the opportunities for success that they are, instead of confronting them as indecipherable challenges. The more one knows about international business practices and diverse cultures, the easier it will be to grow one’s own business and career in an interconnected and globalized marketplace.

In addition to the obvious benefits of the knowledge and network gained during an MBA, there is also often a financial incentive involved for participants from emerging countries looking to go to well-known Western schools. Schools place a considerable premium on diversity, seeking to build connections among students from different parts of the world. This often incites them to offer scholarships to students from the BEM countries, for example, who will add a unique and valuable perspective to the whole class. It also means that the participants will understand and be sensitized to working in multi-cultural teams, will understand hot to think differently and how to critically appraise each other’s potential. During this journey they may fail and in so doing obtain an understanding of a critical element of life-long learning.

In terms of post-MBA career placement, the rise in economic growth in emerging countries, such as BEMs, means a rise in job opportunities, as well, particularly for professionals holding an MBA. Growth is occurring across sectors such as service, retail, manufacturing, luxury businesses. And as multinationals search for growth and profitability they are the one who are first attracted to the emerging countries. These companies require an efficient and competent workforce, adept and fluent in common business practices but also conscious of and conversant in local practices, language, and culture. This means that employers are often eager to hire locally, but from among a pool of local candidates who possess the skills obtained through a world-class MBA program. MBA holders with diverse backgrounds mean more competitiveness on the global playing field for companies with a multinational presence.These businesses are growing in complexity and scope, meaning they need skilled and competent leaders more than ever before.

For entrepreneurs and small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets, MBAs are an invaluable resource, as well. If companies want to grow quickly and with a strategy and perspective that will build their success in the long-term, MBA’s represent an important pool of planners and leaders who not only would lead them grow in the home country but also in the developed markets where they did their MBA and have built their network.

At the Global MBA of ESSEC Business school, our group of students this year represents 12 different nationalities. That means that in any given class, perspectives and practices are being shared between Asian, American, European, African and Middle-Eastern students. The cultural competency gained through these interactions is an invaluable addition to the already rich curriculum of an MBA program.The Global MBA rises to this challenge of offering a program geared towards high-potentials who are eager to bridge the gap between developed nations and emerging markets

2012 First Luxury Round Table, The Leela Palace, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, India, 14th January 2012

2012-01-28T10:31:00.005+01:00

Building an International Indian Luxury Brand

While emerging Asian nations such as China and India have recorded impressive growth in recent years, they have not built impressive brands. Nevertheless, the g rowing importance of the region will demand the use of stronger regional brands and thereby usher in an era wherein the regional companies will pursue a growth strategy rather aggressively. The Speakers were: Sanjay Kapoor, MD & Chairman, Genesis Colors; Tamir Kobrin, GM, The Leela Palace; Ashis Chordia, Importer of Ferrari/Maserati, Porsche, Ducati, a.o. & Andres Deges, Director, Ferari; Deepak Bhagwani, Partner, Three Clothings Limited; Arun Tyagi; Group Head, Media & Business Head, Big Cinema, Reliance ADAG; Piyush Sinha Co-Director, ESSEC-IIMA GMP Luxury: An AMP; Professor in Retailing and Marketing, Chairperson, Centre for Retailing; Ashok Som, Co-Director, ESSEC-IIMA GMP Luxury: An AMP; Professor and Associate Dean, ESSEC Business School, Paris-Singapore.

Trilogy of ESSEC-IIMA Luxury Round Tables 2012

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Dear Sir or Madam,

ESSEC Business School - IIM Ahmedabad is proud to announce the second series of Round Tables - 2012 in Luxury Management. A trilogy has been planned in Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai at The Leela Palaces and Resorts respectively. The three Round Tables would focus on bringing out the issues related to building sustainable luxury businesses.

Trilogy of ESSEC-IIMA Luxury Roundtables 2012

6.30-8:00 pm, 14th January, 2012

Building an Indian International Luxury Brand

The Leela Palace, NEW DELHI

6.30-8:00 pm, 3rd February, 2012

Managing Talent in Luxury Business
The Leela Palace, BANGALORE
Event Sponsor: DFS, HK

6.30-8:00 pm, 28th March, 2012
Watches, Jewelry, Wine and Spirits
The Leela MUMBAI

Event Sponsor: LVMH Watches & Jewelery, India

The discussions are designed as a Roundtable. The participants will hear from the experts from industry, academia and policy makers and interact with them on an individual/small group basis to address concerns facing the respective companies. The round tables would be moderated by faculty from ESSEC Business School and IIMA.

Best wishes for a happy new year,

Ashok Som

Professor and Associate Dean, Global MBA

Director, ESSEC - IIMA Global Management Program on Luxury

ESSEC Business School, Paris - Singapore

A Word from the Associate Dean of Global MBA: Considering MBA Rankings

2012-01-28T10:20:00.002+01:00

During the last ten years, business education as an industry has grown in leaps and bounds and so has ranking as an ancillary industry. Ranking business schools follows some statistical criteria but also is an art. There is much to gain for the media outlets that publish them such as The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Forbes, and The Economist, as well as many non-English and private publications and internet education portals. In Europe, The Financial Times is the most referred to as they publish at least 6 different ranking of different programs all the year round.

As education becomes more and more global, accreditation and rankings are two important criteria that prospects look at. Prospects from far away nations (especially from emerging economies) usually do not have the time and the resources to travel to the US or Europe to do campus visits to actually supplement their research while choosing business schools. So how do they chose or short-list the business schools to which they apply? My experience of starting the Global MBA of ESSEC Business School, which is a one-year, full-time post-experience MBA program, in a super-saturated market tells me that the primary criteria for these students include ranking, accreditation, average GMAT, price, financing, and reputation based on word-of-mouth from friends and colleagues. These are the starting reference points when prospective students start their short-lists.

Ranking is a necessary evil for business schools. Because business education has become global in nature, one cannot be outside the rankings that provide prospects a first impression of business schools. On the other hand, if and once ranked, the position in the rankings might not reflect what the individual schools feels they are worth. Ranking represents a danger in that the methodology used, such as survey tools, might create response biases, data point selection biases which can provide diverse results. Also the rankings process is resource intensive and repetitive. Once one is inside the game, one needs to play it year after year. And the rules of the game can change a school’s focus from providing sustainable quality education, rich in pedagogy and experiential learning to matching criteria defined by the media.

My take on rankings has been that within the diverse multitude of information that exists between different programs, numbers simplify and make it easy to get noticed. They are just a starting point. The most important criteria for us are the VALUES of the school and the program. Those are the core competencies of a school that are valuable, rare, and difficult to replicate or substitute in the short- term. After the initial screening of schools is over, it is also important that students consider carefully the type of environment in which they are ready to invest.

How to interpret the rankings and how to understand their limitations

Continuing from the above discussion, one must interpret and use the rankings not only intelligently but also with caution. Otherwise one risks comparing apples and oranges. For example, not all of the rankings available today differentiate based on the duration of the program, be it full-time MBA, EMBA, MSc., etc. Thus a one-year program and a two-year program are ranked in the same category. If not properly taken into account, this means the price, opportunity cost, career opportunities, internship opportunities, etc. are all skewed in the decision-making process.

The best way to understand the rankings of business schools is to try to understand the criteria and the limitations.

Understanding the criteria and making the choice:

1. Understand the criteria of rankings of different media publications. Note them down. Make acomparative table of the rankings that you want to follow to start the selection process.2. Note down your criteria of choosing a set of business schools where you want to spend 1 or 2 yearsof your most valuable time.3. Match your personal competencies with both the above criteria.4. Prioritize your own criteria in terms of the objectives you want to achieve in your MBA program.5. Go back and fine tune the schools that match with your objectives and the value system that youbelieve you will be comfortable with.

Understanding the limitations:

1. Criteria differ from ranking to ranking. The rank is how good the fit is between the school and thecriteria defined by the media publication, not necessarily how good the school is.2. Ranking involves data collection. Whatever the data collection methodology (surveys, interviews,archival data, etc.) it is ultimately a statistical model. This data generally has a positive bias as therespondents of the data collection are mostly alumni of the school.3. Ranking data does not match your personal requirements and your individual definition of businesseducation.4. Ranking also does not measure the subjective measures and the values of the school.5. Overall ranking cannot identify the strengths of a school in functional and particular research areasand fields of expertise such as Chairs / Institutes.

Invoking the Nobility of the Noble Sector by H.E.Thakur S. Powdyel, Minister of Education, Royal Government of Bhutan, October 27, 2011

2011-11-05T10:01:00.014+01:00

Invoking the Nobility of the Noble Sector

- notes for a dialogue

India Research Centre, ESSEC Business School, France

_____________________________________________

I like the idea of a university – it lifts your mind and expands your heart, but when I accepted your invitation, I had no idea of what lay before me. And discovering that ESSEC Business School ranks eighth in the world, I am already disarmed. How would a GNH idea fare in a Business School in one of the most advanced countries in the world? The only consolation has been that the foundational vision of ESSEC was very close to the ideal of Gross National Happiness.

There is much we need to be thankful for in life. The genius of the human race has laid down the foundations of our many civilizations and extended the frontiers of knowledge to a level unprecedented in history. The promise of unlimited progress, unimpeded dominance of nature, hitherto unknown material abundance, and the new-found personal freedom, among others, have made our race the undisputed masters of the universe and ushered in a brave new world.

We have built smart service delivery systems, fashioned state-of-the-art tools and technology; we live longer and more comfortable lives, enjoy a far greater range of choices than our parents could ever think of. Our world is more educated and the people better informed. Judged by these standards, we should have legitimate reasons for satisfaction, even happiness!

Despite all these achievements, however, our world seems an anxious place. The comfort of earlier certainties are no longer so. We have managed to pollute the land, sea and sky to a level never known before. Our formidable-looking financial systems show their limits as do political and social arrangements. With all the progress we have made, we have reasons to worry. In the language of the Nobel Prize winning Albert Schweitzer:

Man has become a superman. But the superman with the superhuman power has not risen to the level of superhuman reason. The degree to which his power grows, he becomes more and more a poor man… It must shake up our conscience that we become all the more inhuman the more we grow into supermen.

It is not much of a flattering statement on the human condition. Where did the rains start beating us? With all the discoveries and inventions, expanding knowledge and accumulated wisdom, our lot might have been much better! How did our world manage to get the way it has? What happened to the Shakespearean vision of man being “…noble in reason, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like and angel, in apprehension how like a god - the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals…”

We seem to have Faustian knowledge, Faustian science and Faustian technology. But our world looks devoid of Faustian music. Things fall apart and the centre does not seem to hold! “Sharpening of tools and confusion of aims is characteristic of our age” This warning by Einstein looks far more dire today than it might have been when he made it.

Do we have an alternative? Can our having mode also include a being mode? Let’s follow Voltaire and move on: “Life is thickly sown with thorns and I know no other remedy than to pass quickly through them. The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us…”

For a world long accustomed measuring progress by the linear, uni-dimensional economic yardstick of GDP, any suggestion to the contrary might smack of the pious and the philosophical, too idealistic for a time largely defined Dickens’ Fagin:

“In this world, nothing counts,

But in the bank large amounts”!

But Bhutan’s fourth King, His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, saw life and saw it full. The youngest monarch in the world then articulated a fundamental fact about all of us humans when he declared that “Gross National Happiness is more important than Gross National Product.” Having gone through a catharsis of sorts, a more chastened world seems to be listening. Bhutan’s proposal to include the pursuit of happiness as a goal for the UN family of nations having been endorsed by the General Assembly, the human race might find itself engaged in more sublime preoccupations.

The ideal of Gross National Happiness is rooted in the belief that:

· The ultimate desire of all human beings, on all parallels and meridians, regardless of time and space, is to be happy. This being the case, it is the responsibility of governments to create the necessary conditions to support the experience of happiness.

· The profound needs of human beings are not necessarily material or physical, but that there are other deeper dimensions of life – natural, social, cultural, spiritual, psychological, aesthetic, moral that make life worthwhile and meaningful and that they need to be nurtured.

· There is no necessary relationship between the level of material wealth and the level of happiness – they could in fact be antithetical to each other.

· The goal of life cannot be limited to an endless cycle of production and consumption and more production and more consumption…

· The conventional, linear, uni-dimensional measure of progress, otherwise called GDP, is too limited and reductionist as it leaves out other significant, non-economic or non-material factors. Gross National Happiness is, therefore, a more holistic, integrated and balanced approach to development.

“GDP does not register the beauty of our poetry, or the strength of our marriages, or the integrity of our public debates. It measures everything “except that which makes life worthwhile”. So said Robert Kennedy. “Material things were necessary but subordinate and fell by the way... There were limits to material resources. It stands to reason that material things do not last a thousand years…”. This comes from an old Japanese belief.

There is an urgent need to advance an alternative paradigm that ensures a more balanced and equitable socio-economic development, that supports the integrity of our natural environment to support life, that acknowledges the wisdom and value of our heritage and culture, that promotes good governance at all levels - personal, family, institutional, social, national, international.

Archibald MacLeish had said: “There is no possible way of getting world peace except through education” In the same vein, we can say: How do we advance the goal of GNH except through education?

If a nation has a dream, its education system must own it and advance it. What kind of education are we talking of? Not the kind that is limited to churning out thousands of graduates every year who are unsure of who they are and where they are going; not the kind that produces people who are merely career-conscious and character-oblivious; certainly not the kind that sends out young men and women who are devoid of the virtues either of usefulness or gracefulness. A lot that goes on in the world in the name of education today hardly has anything to do with education!

Bhutan expects its education system to support and serve a goal that is allied to the goal of the nation – we are educating for Gross National Happiness by nurturing green schools for green Bhutan. We are invoking the nobility of the noble sector.

What are the elements of a green school, a green college or a green university, for that matter?

The elements of a green school are the same elements that make us who we are. And because the society is an aggregate of each one of us, it is these elements that make the society what it is. Our green schools therefore, encompass natural or environmental greenery, intellectual or mental greenery, academic greenery, social greenery, cultural greenery, spiritual greenery, aesthetic greenery, moral greenery.

This programme of educating for GNH is in essence a call to return to the core purpose of education, its true function. We owe it to our young men and women to show them that life is more than qualification and careers as important as they are. We owe it to our societies and our nations to provide a vision of the future and build personal and intellectual foundations.

We are looking at a new ethic of education, indeed a new civilization, call it an educational civilization, if you will. It is instructive to listen to the young hero in Thomas Mann’s Magic Mountain; “For the sake of goodness and love, man shall let death have no sovereignty over his thought”

GNH has been the North Star for the Land of the Peaceful Dragon. It can be an answer to the need of our times, an anodyne to “still the tooth that nibbles at the heart”.

The dream of one man, the dream of all humanity – GNH is an act of faith, an appeal, a prayer.

Young scholars of ESSEC, even as your world is opening up and expanding, may you all be happy and be the cause of happiness wherever in the world you may be!

Thank you! Tashi Delek!

3rd Luxury Round Table Conference, Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai, 9th April 11, 2011

2011-05-23T02:02:00.004+02:00

Achieving Leadership through Operational Efficiencies

The Mumbai Round Table discussed issues such on: (a) rationalization of retail formats (b) network optimization (c) brand management (d) technology enablers and internet based marketing and promotion strategies (e) sourcing, and (f) splendour among squalor – sustainable luxury. Speakers: Pierre Tapie, Dean & President, ESSEC; Ashok Som (Co-Director), Professor & Associate Dean, ESSEC Business School, Adjunct Faculty, IIMA; Darshan Mehta, Reliance Brands President & CEO; Alban Belloir, Middle East & India Brand Director, Van Cleef and Arpels; Ashok Minawala, Ex Chairman and Founder-Mermber All India Gems & Jewellery Trade Federation; Neelesh Hundekari, Principal, AT Kearney; Deepa Misra Harris, VP -Marketing, Taj Hotels Resorts & Palace; Manishi Sanwal, General Manager, Indian Sub Continent, LVMH Watch & Jewellery; Piyush Sinha (Co-Director), Professor in Retailing and Marketing, Chairperson, Centre for Retailing, IIMA;

2nd Luxury Round Table Conference, Taj West End, Bangalore, India: 18th March, 2011

2011-05-23T01:32:00.005+02:00

Building Global Luxury Brands: Lessons from Emerging Economies

Some of the key issues that the Round Table discussed was on (a) Insights to make a Global brand (b) Global brands investing in local brands (c) corporate strategy, philosophy and mindset to build and sustain the making of a global brand (d) Issues of Global Brands to survive and be a key player in emerging markets. Speakers were: Ashok Som, Associate Dean of ESSEC Business School Harish Bijoor, Brand Domain Consultant Suresh, Marketing Director of Ganjam (along with Dushyanth Ganjam) J. Suresh, CEO, Arvind Lifestyle Shailesh Chaturvedi, CEO & Executive Director of AMBPL - Tommy Hilfiger Apparel India Sana Rezwan, Managing Director of 23 Carat Bijou Kurien: President & CEO, Lifestyle, Reliance Retail Limited Piyush Kr. Sinha, Professor and Retail Chairperson, IIM Ahmedabad

1st Luxury Round Table Conference in Delhi on behalf of ESSEC-IIMA GMP Luxury Program: An AMP

2011-02-11T23:21:00.003+01:00

Luxury Markets: Does it need a Rethink?

Book Launch of Shobha De in Loius Vuitton Showroom, St. Germain des Pres, March 2010

2010-03-29T06:45:00.003+02:00

Speaker & Recipient of "Pride of HR Profession Award" at the World HRD Congress, 10-12 February, 2010 at Taj Lands End, Mumbai, India

2010-03-29T06:16:00.007+02:00

With H.E Prime Minister of Bhutan, Lynda Gratton and Dave Ulrich

Receiving the Award
http://www.worldhrdcongress.com/ashok_som.html

Book Review from The Hindu: Organization Redesign and Innovative HRM

2008-12-23T12:50:00.007+01:00

Date:23/12/2008 URL:

Redefining strategic business initiatives
M. S. S.VARADAN http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/br/2008/12/23/stories/2008122350011300.htm
ORGANIZATION REDESIGN AND INNOVATIVE HRM: Ashok Som; Oxford University Press, YMCA Library Building, Jai Singh Road, New Delhi-110001. Rs. 545.

This book is an analysis of five large firms, French and Indian, which are market leaders — Lafarge a global leader in cement and construction materials; Renault-Nissan and Maruti Suzuki, two leaders in the automobile industry; Mahut Group, an Indian multinational company in cements; and Bharat Petroleum (BPCL).

Case studies
An earnest attempt has been made by the author in the first part of the book to provide an interesting organisation redesign model, including differentiation, integration and uncertainty avoidance mechanisms, coupled with human resource management (HRM) strategies. The author has indeed exhaustively quoted all the leading researchers very meticulously throughout the book, which is also interspersed with the earthy observations of practising managers.
The case of BPCL illustrates organisational change from a functional to a divisional enterprise with strategic business units. As a director of the firm pointed out “BPCL has undergone a very interesting HRD-powered transformation process… Some 2500 managers participated in the envisioning exercise. It was facilitated by trained individuals, many of them volunteers from functions other than HRM.” After the redesign, each strategic business unit had an empowered “embedded HRM”.

In the case of Maruti, having adopted a Japanese work culture with Suzuki’s joint ownership, it struggled with cross-cultural, political and social issues. There was also a change in leadership. The organisation ran smoothly as long as it was a market leader. When competitive pressures mounted, internal communication being historically weak, union unrest was brewing and the organisation turned to the inadequate HR department for support. The case is all about having the HRM itself redesigned.

The case of Lafarge which had as its origin humble French roots and which is now a world leader in the building construction materials industry is a very interesting one. It took over Tata Steel’s cement division and Raymond’s cement plant as well. Lafarge is a storehouse of best practices and best specialists among the industry. But, the style had to change: “The style is a very traditional, technology-minded one. It is based on repeated evaluations. French people have rules for everything, accurately and methodically documented, but no one follows the rules.” To be global leaders, they have even two official languages – French and English. Lafarge had institutionalised special recruitment processes for various categories. The retraining and redeployment cycle was critical for effectively managing local business units. They did not believe in downsizing.

Redesign
Priorities for organisational redesign at Renault were clearly laid out – flexibility, reducing cost and management of competencies. With the Renault -Nissan alliance, the objectives of the HR department were to improve the performance of its management, reduce the costs, adapt the management of HR to the changing qualifications of the personnel, reduce dysfunction between different levels of HR management and to master the challenges of the redesign programme. In other words, they believed that “charity begins at home.” How it coped with French legislation to cut the work week from 39 to 35 hours makes an interesting story. Renault has a joint venture with Mahindra and Mahindra in India for manufacturing the Logan model.

Even the failed case of Mahut Group finds mention. In the concluding parts of the book, the author has analysed the cases and anchored them to the redesign model. Pradip N. Khandwalla’s foreword to the book is a good curtain raiser.

It may be apt to add that when changes in organisation are made without attention to HR issues, problems snowball into the national scene like what happened to the airlines industry recently. Thus the importance of proper HRM going hand in hand with any organisational redesign becomes paramount. The author must be commended for this publication, coming as it does in troubled times, attempting to provide a redesign approach for effecting organisational changes without pain.

© Copyright 2000 - 2008 The Hindu

India: http://www.oup.co.in/search_detail.php?id=144739
Europe: http://www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780195696493
US/Rest: http://www.amazon.com/Organization-Re-Design-Innovative-Hrm-Ashok/dp/0195696492/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228584595&sr=8-1

Book Review: Education Times, Times of India (22nd December 2008)

2008-12-23T12:43:00.005+01:00

Publication: Times Of India Delhi; Date:2008 Dec 22; Section:Education Times; Page # 40

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/Skins/EDU/navigator.asp?Action=view/issue&section=Education%20Times&Daily=CAP&BaseHref=CAP/2008/12/22&Issue=CAP/2008/12/22&Page=40

TURK TALK
New strategies to keep up with the times
Ashok Som, director, India Research Centre at ESSEC Business School, Paris, in his recent book Organization Re-design and Innovative HRM, says that firms need to re-design and align themselves with the environment in which they operate
Surbhi Bhatia/TNN

The current economic downturn has brought about significant changes in the way organisations work. In fact, most of them are thinking of new strategies of operating in the market. But according to Ashok Som, professor at the ESSEC Business School, Paris, it is not the economy alone that affects the manner in which organisations function. “Organisations get affected by the environment they operate in. There are four types of environment — political, economic, technological and social. Any change in any one of the elements can affect the way in which organisations operate. So, it is imperative that organisations re-design their strategies in order to align with the environment. Hence, designing is an ongoing activity and all designs are merely transient states in this activity with respect to the environment in which the firm operates,” Som elaborates. Som adds that the Mumbai attack is reason enough for the luxury or retail organisations to think about the way they operate. “It is a change in social environment. Many international organisations will henceforth find it risky to do business in the city or send people to Mumbai. Those who expanded earlier will now have to think of ways to survive. It is the same with technological changes. For instance, the launch of Nokia Iphone will change the way mobile phones operate and many organisations will have to re-design their strategies with the Iphone in mind,” he says. When it comes to changes in the economic environment, it is all the more important for organisations to re-think or redesign. “Each act of designing produces routines that generate systems about how the organisation in the designing process perceived and interpreted the system they were trying to influence. Therefore, with the economic downturn that has resulted from the systems that are today “misunderstood and misperceived,” it is very important for the firms to re-design themselves in keeping with the change,” he says. In the present scenario, an increasing number of companies will have to confront the essential question: given the changing business environment, how do we redesign the organisation for superior performance? “It has been observed from the case narratives that the role of innovative human resource management (HRM) practices and its alignment with re-design mechanisms is probably the key to enhanced performance. Identification of these innovative HRM and re-design mechanisms is a critical factor for improving organisational performance,” Som says. However, there are three main strategies to keep in mind while redesigning — uncertainty or risk avoidance, differentiation in terms of recruiting people and spending money, and integration of various company processes so that the control is more centralised. While listing some of the innovative HR practices, Som mentions that with the economic downturn, the HR has to be even more prudent because employees either leave organisations or, even if they stay on, are not confident. “In either of the case it is the role of the HR to instil confidence. It can do it by sharing information from top management to the employees. But then, it has to be extremely wise. The HR of an organisation can think of recruiting more professionals than spending more money on making people professional. The managerial personnel can be given choices in terms of working hours, workplace or parttime service, rather than being sacked altogether.”

New Book: Organization Redesign and Innovative HRM

2008-12-23T12:28:00.006+01:00

Description: This book documents an empirical, longitudinal study of the process of organizational redesign during changing environments brought about by globalization, liberalization and deregulation. It portrays through detailed description the challenges organizations face responding to these changing environments and how those organizations respond by integrative mechanisms to cement redesign changes within themselves. One of the processes identified is the role of innovative human resource management during organizational redesign.The book, while describing key processes of design and the subsequent innovative human resource management initiatives undertaken by five firms, draws on the rich data set of two environments, India and France, which are emerging into more liberalized and international regimes. It discusses an emergent HR model in a hyper-competitive market in the global system. While describing the organizational redesign process from an organization theory perspective, the book presents a contingency framework based upon both specific policies and actual practices as perceived by top management from a cross-national point of view. This volume brings together five well researched case studies of globally active multinationals that integrate theory and practise—Lafarge, world leader in cement and construction material; Renault–Nissan and Maruti Suzuki, two automobile giants; Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), one of the largest petroleum companies in India with global interests; and the Mahut Group, an Indian multi-national corporation.The book provides a theoretical framework for a better understanding of the link between organizational redesign, the role of HRM, and organizational performance. This is followed by discussions on human resource management in emerging economies like India as well as professionalized HR practices and redesign mechanisms. The study leads the author to support the belief that a proactive role of human resource management is a necessity for superior performance during an organizational redesign process.

Readership: This book will interest students and teachers of management, professional managers and entrepreneurs, as well as HR professionals and consultants.

Review Comments: ‘...a novel account of the key role of HRM in driving effective change and ultimately superior performance for global firms. This book will be of interest to both academics and practitioners.’ —Ranjay Gulati, Harvard Business School‘...five interesting case studies of business firms that undertook significant changes in organizational structures [that] demanded concomitant changes in human resources practices.’ —William H. Starbuck, Lundquist College of Business, University of Oregon‘...a much needed refreshing perspective on innovative approaches to HRM during organizational redesigns... highly recommended for researchers, practitioners and students in the field.’ —Pawan Budhwar Aston Business School, Aston University, Birmingham

Author Details: Ashok Som is Associate Professor and Chair in Management Area at ESSEC Business School located in Paris & Singapore. He is the founder of the India Research Centre at ESSEC, Director of the Global Management Programs on Luxury and Retail Management (in partnership with Indian Institute of Management (IIM Ahmedabad) and co-ordinator of the module Managing International Business. He received his Ph.D from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad, M.Sc and M.Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, and bachelors degree from Presidency College, Calcutta, India. Ashok’s three main research areas are in organization re-design, innovative HRM and innovation in Asia. His research has been extensively published in international journals. He has been featured in Who’s Who of the World (2008, 2009). He is a regular Visiting Professor at GSB, Keio University (Tokyo), IIM Ahmedabad (India) and Tamkang University (Taiwan). He was nominated as one of the 2000 Outstanding Intellectuals of the 21st Century in 2008-2009. He is the author of the books “Organization-Redesign and Innovative HRM”, Oxford University Press (2008) and “International Management: Managing the Global Corporation” McGrawHill (forthcoming in 2009).

US/Rest: http://www.amazon.com/Organization-Re-Design-Innovative-Hrm-Ashok/dp/0195696492/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228584595&sr=8-1
Europe: http://www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780195696493
India: http://www.oup.co.in/search_detail.php?id=144739

Featured on Luxury Sector in India, CB News, No.994, 8 Dec 2008: 26

2008-12-09T22:33:00.003+01:00

Centenary celebrations of ESSEC & 25th anniversary of ESSEC-IIM Ahmedabad partnership during the visit of Mr. Nicolas Sarkozy 26th January 2008

2008-02-05T08:28:00.000+01:00

Celebrating with M. Nicolas Sarakozy, President of France and Ms. Valérie Pecresse, Minister for Higher Education, Government of France

Speaker: Mr. Narayana Murthy, Chairman Board and Chief Mentor Infosys (From R to L)

Dr. Ashok Som (MoC and Moderator)
Dr. Vijay Kapur, Prof. FMS/Delhi University
Dr. Pascal Morand, Managing Director ESCP-EAP
Mr. Arun Maira, Chairman of Boston Consulting group (India)
Dr. Samir Barua, Director, Indian Institute of Management of Ahmedabad (IIM A)
Dr. Pierre Tapie, Dean & President of ESSEC
Mr. Richard Descoings, Director, Sciences Po Paris
Mr. Prshant Lahoti, Curator of Krishnakriti Foundation
Mr. Jean-Luc Placet, Chairman of ESSEC Alumni Association
Mr. Jerry Rao, VP-EDS, ex- CEO, MphasiS & past Chairman, Nasscom and Chairman of IIM A Alumni Trust

Key Note Speech and Main Speaker at AMP, GSB, Keio University held at Osaka, 29th July - 4th Aug, 2006

2006-09-03T20:27:00.000+02:00

With Kenji Wada (left), Associate Professor and Kazuhiro Asakawa, Professor and Associate Dean of Executive Programs, GSB Keio at Imperial Hotel, Osaka. The AMP was titled "Mnaging Business in India" and delivered to 73 senior-managers of Japanese corporations. Other than the main topic, the AMP discussed European firms and their experiences in Chinese and Indian markets.

Third India Seminar Series with Mr. P. Chidambaram, Minister of Finance on "India: Looking to the Future" at CNIT, ESSEC La Defense Campus, 13.06.06

2006-06-13T23:49:00.000+02:00

Kapil Sibal, Cabinet Minister, Science and Technology, Ocean Studies at Maison des ESSEC, 2nd May 2006

2006-05-05T21:36:00.000+02:00

Fresh from the successful launch of the India Seminar Series in mid-March, Dr. Ashok Som was also to the fore in helping organize a frank intervention by Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister of Science & Technology for the Indian Government, at the Maison des ESSEC on Tuesday May 2nd. Accompanied by H.E.M. T.C.A Rangachari (Ambassador of India), Mr. Sibal offered a broad and challenging view of modern-day India in a speech entitled “India in the 21st Century: Contrasts, Achievements and Opportunities”. This formed a part of ESSEC International’s “Cercle Diplomatique” program and was chaired by Pierre Daban, President of ESSEC International.

Launch of India Seminar Series at ESSEC

2006-04-14T13:00:00.000+02:00

The Management Department, ESSEC Business School offered its Inaugural India Seminar Series with Saumitra Chaudhuri, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India, on March 15, 2006. An economist by training, Chaudhuri spoke about India’s Growth Experience and Constraints, giving a forthright assessment of developments over the past 20 years, discerning trends as well as explaining the Indian government’s plans for the near future.

Feature in a French Business Magazine: Challenges 22 Feb 2006

2006-03-03T18:57:00.000+01:00

Key Note Address IISc Bangalore February 15 -18, 2006

2006-03-03T15:53:00.000+01:00

Delivering the Key Note Speech on "Enabling Execution Excellence through Innovative HRM practices: The Emergence of Indian Firms in the Global Landscape" at the Academic-Practitioner's Forum in Track 2: Building Global Workforce, at the International HRM Confluence 2006 on 'Enabling Execution Excellence, Global Concerns - Emerging Agenda', at Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India, February 15 -18, 2006

Hyderabad House India, Signing Ceremony of Strategic Partnership 20th February 2006

2006-03-03T15:47:00.000+01:00

Pierre Tapie, President of ESSEC Business School, Paris; Bakul Dholakia, Director, IIM Ahmedabad and myself before the Signing Ceremony
Signing Ceremony with Jacques Chirac, President of France and Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India

Eric Pradon, CFO of Canal Plus discussing the Case TURNAROUND OF CANAL PLUS: BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA with ESSEC students 24th November 2005

2006-03-03T15:36:00.000+01:00

2005-06-24T12:23:00.000+02:00

Meeting with Mrs. Rajashree Birla, Director of the Board, Aditya Birla Group, Ms. Corinne Forasacco, Director Training, Caisses d'Epargne and Dr. Pragnya Ram, Group Executive President, Communications

2005-04-27T23:54:00.000+02:00

NRN with Students

The Lafarge Case: An interview of Bertrand Collomb

2005-03-25T02:00:00.000+01:00

LAFARGE: From a French Cement Company to a Global Leader
This is a video series built around an interview of Bertrand Collomb, Chairman of Lafarge. This teaching material completes the Lafarge Case. The Lafarge company is presented from a Strategic and International Management point of view.

Case (304-019-1), teaching note (304-019-08)
and slides (304-019-9) are available at the
European Case Clearing House

Dr. Bertrand Collomb, Chairman of Lafarge at ESSEC

2005-03-14T17:52:00.000+01:00

Dr. Bertrand Collomb, Chairman of Lafarge was discussing the Case "Lafarge: From a French Cement Company to a Global Leader" with ESSEC MBA / MS SIAI students, as a part of Ashok Som's International Strategy and Management course.

>>> Lafarge web site

N.R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman and CEO of Infosys Technologies, a Guest Speaker at ESSEC

2004-01-27T17:40:00.000+01:00

Chairman and CEO of Infosys Technologies, a firm he helped found in 1981, N.R.N. Murthy was a guest speaker at ESSEC on January 27, 2004. Students of the International Strategy & Management course, taught by Ashok Som, studied the Infosys case, presenting a summary of the factors explaining the current success of this firm, which received accolades from The Economic Times in 1999 as the most admired company in India. Following a review of the firm?s history, assets and challenges presented by the participants, Chairman Murthy outlined his vision for the company, briefly reviewing its history and development plans, and summarizing the philosophy and values that have guided it along. Infosys has been a trailblazer in Indian IT and today has a market valuation of $2B. It was the first Indian firm to be quoted on the NASDAQ.

Chairman Murthy expressed the Infosys vision clearly. The company is powered by intellect and driven by values. For a professional services firm, he feels, the quality of the people is a survival imperative. Senior employees interact informally with juniors. The products billed to firms are the Infosys employees. He noted that it took 20 years to grow from 0 to 10000 professionals; 1 year to grow from 10 000 to 19 000. He was confident that as long as the company innovates, it will survive and succeed. The biggest challenge is to build a first class company in a third world country. “To become a global firm, we need not only the art of selling internationally but also the art of recruitment, compensation, training and the art of teamwork across borders.”

In 2003, The Economist voted Infosys the best company in Asia; L’Oréal was best in Europe and Johnson & Johnson best in the US. In the year ending in March 2004, Mr. Murthy expects a profit of 27% on a turnover of $1 B. To limit risk, Infosys avoids having any one customer providing more than 10% of its income. With 30 offices on all continents, Infosys has a customer base of 650 global corporations. The firm has grown from 42 employees in 1987 to 23 000 today. It offers end-to-end (concept to implementation) services for technology-driven business transformation initiatives. These include consulting, e-business strategy, systems integration, product engineering services, application development and package implementation.

Narayana Murthy is a board member of several organizations, including the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade & Industry, and the Reserve Bank of India, where he is Director of the Board. He is also Chairman of the Board of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, with which ESSEC has exchange agreements. He has personally received several honors and awards and has been featured in Asiaweek’s Power 50, a list of Asia’s most powerful business people. Mr. Murthy trained as an electrical engineer at the University of Mysore and holds a master’s in Technology from IIT Kanpur.

He identified some specific challenges for the firm as the need to become more global, to go from a reactive problem-solving mode to a proactive definer of roles, as well as the need to retain margins and control costs. It is not enough to be a nice guy; the shareholders expect performance. “Profit is a mind-set; the only real thing is cash in the bank.” At the moment Infosys has about $ 600 M in the bank. The need is to create a vision that is articulated often enough for everyone to understand it. He ended by saying that he is “a capitalist in mind, a socialist at heart. I believe in free markets; at the same time we need fair trade. Governments cannot create jobs. The only way to solve the problem of poverty is to create jobs.”