A great idea like Mahindra Universe calls for an immediate response and having been associated with the exciting globalisation journey of Mahindra’s Auto Sector, I’d like to start the ball rolling, with some thoughts on what globalisation means to me. Lets together look at what it takes to globalise, generally, and as we go along, we’ll get more specific with regard to the relevance and means available for us - the Mahindra family.

To me, globalisation has a lot to do with the concept “we – the citizens of this world”. Never was any one part of the world completely isolated or insulated from the thinking, happenings and developments in another hundreds or even thousands of miles away, and this is far more so today than it ever was.

Examples abound throughout history, whether it was the Renaissance in 15^th – 17^th century Europe, the French and American revolutions of the 18^th century, the consolidation of the British Empire and growing sea trade of the 19^th century, or the World Wars and the rise of Nazism in the first half of the 20^th century. A quick top of the mind listing for the 2^nd half of the 20^th century would include the rise of the bi-polar world (cold war), two petroleum ‘shocks’, Japanese manufacturing, the birth of the now ubiquitous PC, crisis in the Middle East, collapse of the USSR and the greatly expanding economic prowess of the Chinese.

As is evident, the occurrence of events which impacted the world have been increasing exponentially to the extent that for the last 10 years one has been able to count these on one’s fingers. Starting with the currency crises of S/E Asia, the millennium bug, 9/11, the war against terror in Afghanistan and Iraq, the humungous growth of the Internet and internet communities, the third oil ‘shock’, global warming, waning strength of the USD as a world currency, the coming of age of BRICs …these and several other events that have had an impact on the world are just too many to count. To give you an example closer to home, we are all waiting for the sub-prime crises in the US to blow over so that the BSE reverts back to the meteoric rise we are used to experiencing.

In other words, today, we are truly living in a unified world – a world that is globalising very rapidly.

Let’s just for a moment ponder, and think, why this is happening and if this trend will reverse in the future. I for one believe that it is absolutely irreversible and whether we like it or not, globalisation is an inevitable reality. Is it good or bad for us? Will it change the fortunes of those living sub-human lives? … these are questions that beg to be answered.

Equally important, each one of us in the Mahindra family needs to appreciate that given the inevitability of globalisation we should welcome it with open arms so as to benefit from it, and in the process transform the Mahindra brand into a truly global brand, respected the world over as a responsible global citizen.

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”

These words of Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, describe the global corporate scenario more aptly today than ever before. In a world where availability of traditional factors required for business, such as technical skill, technological know-how, financial resources and productivity enhancement models, are only a matter of economic allocation, rather than opportunity, what truly defines who will determine the rules of the game is innovative ability.

How does one define “innovation”? There are as many definitions as there are proponents, observers and practitioners. This only seems to suggest that innovation is a multi-faceted phenomenon, which can change forms in different contexts and which can be an all-pervading driver of organisational and individual actions. It may be worthwhile then, to focus attention on what makes an organisation innovative. What makes an innovative culture?

It is universally accepted that an ‘innovative culture’, by default, implies that every individual takes responsibility for innovation. However, the initial push in this direction, and it must be a BIG push, has to come from the top. The leadership’s initiative and continued involvement has to be seen by every level of the hierarchy not only in letter, but also in spirit.

Another key ingredient is the way information is handled in the organisation. For teams and groups focussed on delivering innovative projects, withholding of critical information can be a huge impediment and a dampener on morale. Smooth organisational communication flows and effective knowledge management must be a priority for innovation to thrive.

A business is sustainable only if it answers to a (spoken/ unspoken) need of a customer. Innovation simply for the sake of innovating will not gain currency in the market. It must be tied to customer needs. Thus, a focus on customer centricity is a critical ingredient in an innovative culture.

Finally, efforts towards innovation must be not only effective but also efficient to deliver the greatest value. Thus, an accent on technology-enabled processes and systems is crucial. These investments often enhance the synergistic value of innovation.

More and more Indian corporate houses, including Mahindra & Mahindra, are now beginning to appreciate the critical role that innovation will play in their ability to take the lead in the marketplace. Some others, like the Tatas, have demonstrated such breakthroughs already. It appears that there are exciting and innovating times ahead for India Inc.

‘Climate Change’, ‘Global Warming’, ‘Sustainable Development’, ‘Carbon Credits’ have become buzzwords not only for progressive, concerned individuals, hippies and environmentalists but also for entrepreneurs, large corporations and serious business people all over the world. You cannot pick up a newspaper or magazine or turn on the TV today without encountering something related to these topics. So much so that they are beginning to enter the mindsets of people who would not normally consider themselves “eco-conscious”.

In this country we pride ourselves on the fact that recycling is ‘inherently Indian’, a notion that is reinforced by the presence of the neighbourhood ‘raddiwala’ or scrap dealer who collects and stores everything from old magazines and newspapers to radios, keyboards, and light bulbs. We also tend to be quite particular about turning off unused lights and fans and making sure the tap is completely turned off so no water is wasted. It is debatable whether we do this out of our environmental consciousness or because it will actually save us some money in the long-run. To some extent frugality also defines our ‘Indianness’. These are no doubt important habits but they can best be described as ‘baby steps’ in the realm of sustainability and are most certainly not enough. Very few people actually go beyond these initial ‘baby steps’ and end up making this consciousness a part of their daily lives.

If you truly wish to improve the quality of life around you and make your surroundings safer and cleaner then it is important to ask “What is my individual impact on the earth and its finite resources?” There are several resources available online that calculate your ‘ecological footprint’ or ‘carbon footprint’ based on the responses you provide. Your ecological footprint is basically a calculation of how much of the earth’s resources it takes to support your lifestyle. I encourage you to visit http://www.myfootprint.org/en/ and find out your own footprint. It is an interesting exercise and the results will definitely surprise you. My own results are below.

I like to think of myself as an environmentally conscious individual and was disappointed to know that if everyone in the world lived like me, we would need 1.02 Earths which implies that my current lifestyle is not sustainable. My footprint in global hectares is 16.08 hectares which is well above the country average of 6.7 hectares. This is due to 3 major factors:

1) I drive a car often,

2) I travel in airplanes several times a year

3) I am non-vegetarian.

These are the three main reasons why I’m living unsustainably and by simply making changes in one or more of these areas I could definitely reduce my footprint. Being vegetarian for example would lower my footprint dramatically.

According to a study by Redefining Progress (the creators of this particular ecological footprint quiz), “humanity is exceeding its ecological limits by 39%. Or, put another way, we would need to have over one third more than the present biocapacity of Earth to maintain the same level of prosperity for future generations.”

Another online resource enables you to quickly calculate your carbon footprint and compare it with the average for your country. It only takes a minute to calculate so check it out at http://oneminute.zerofootprint.net/. Below is an illustration of my own carbon footprint which shows that I annually contribute approximately 13.81 tonnes of CO₂ (the average Indian’s is less than 2 tonnes of CO₂ per year). Like the Ecological Footprint Quiz this high number is a reflection of my travel and commuting methods as well as my eating habits.

Find out what your impact on the earth is today and you can begin to identify areas in which you can improve your footprint. Both websites provide suggestions and tips to help you to achieve this.

India’s economy has grown at double to triple the rate of the United States and the European Union in the past five years, sparking a reverse brain drain from countries that lured away many of its best engineers, computer scientists and doctors in earlier years.  These coconuts – brown on the outside, white on the inside – are drawn back to India by the rapidly growing economy and increasingly world-class lifestyle. 

And then there’s the cappuccino crowd, which novelist and Financial Times journalist Gautam Malkani describes as “outwardly white and brown inside.”  Sue of Rang De Basanti is the standard-bearer of this group, but these days there are plenty of Americans and Europeans attracted less by India’s remarkable history than by its exceptional economic prospects.  Institutions and individuals from the West are entering India in ever greater numbers, drawn by a dynamic economy that is only beginning to tap into its vast human and natural resources and its rapidly growing consumer base.  I’m one of a dozen Americans who have joined Mahindra & Mahindra’s offices in India over the past three years to participate in Mahindra’s growth story. 

It’s time to think beyond the traditional paradigm of foreigners as customers and start thinking of them as colleagues.  I’ll focus on what I know: working with foreigners in the first ten years of their career.  How can India Inc. derive the most value from them? 

1. Learn to hear ‘no’.  Many Americans and Europeans are allergic to hierarchy and are quick to speak their mind.  They may come off as arrogant or rude to colleagues who haven’t worked for them before, but their objective is productive – to move projects forward on schedule, to play devil’s advocate, and to question and cast aside weak ideas.  Don’t take offense, but be prepared to listen and respond to their analysis.

2. Philosophy is the new finance.  India’s education system separates students into clear-cut tracks based on their core discipline, while most Americans receive a liberal arts education that exposes them to a wide variety of disciplines.  Plenty of history and philosophy majors in the US go on to prestigious roles in investment banking and management consulting after graduation.  Likewise, Americans and Europeans working in India may not have paper qualifications in business or finance, but you can take advantage of their versatile skills by engaging them across strategic, financial and technical domains.

3. Get to know your customer.  A foreign employee can be a fount of wisdom on culture and communication when you need to understand customers, suppliers or partners from the same region.  They naturally have a more intuitive understanding of what drives preferences and decision-making.  Keep in mind that there are limits to the insight created by a shared culture.  If I wanted to size the market for SUVs in Spain I’d much rather have a market research consultant on hand than a Spaniard.

If this mini-treatise on working with Westerners isn’t relevant to you now, give it a few years.  The cappuccino trend is here to stay, bolstered by the world’s new flatness and the rapid growth of Asian economies.  When you do end up working with one of us, don’t get frustrated – get some value out of it.

Although the word ‘sustainability’ seems to be appearing everywhere lately, it nevertheless remains a multifaceted issue which resists definition at every turn. Undeniably, however, the basic tenets of sustainability – in which economic, environmental, and social capital are given equal value – are essential to any well run business.  Here at M&M, as is true at nearly every company, we have always stressed the importance of sustaining our economic capital, i.e. promising increasing returns for our shareholders.

 

However, in this changing global business (and environmental) climate, environmental and social issues are now a key concern of many stakeholders. Employees, customers, investors, government agents, the media and numerous others are all keenly aware of how companies impact the environment and the communities in which they operate.

Mahindra and Mahindra has addressed these difficult issues informally in its business plan for a long time. From our Mahindra Hariyali initiative to plant 1 million trees and our forays into alternative fuel vehicles and biodiesel tractors, to our Nanhi Kali programme to provide education for underrepresented female students, we have made great strides to sustain the environment and society, while always working towards economic growth.

In today’s world, however, there is increasing pressure to do it more formally and officially. Sometimes this means putting a name to something that is already occurring; sometimes this means restructuring our business to account for changes in the market related to sustainability issues.  The drivers of these new pressures are many and varied.  Sometimes we are forced to change because of new statutory requirements, so our response is essentially risk mitigation, i.e. we don’t want to face sanction or fines. Sometimes the pressure comes from NGOs or the media, so we are managing a different risk, a blow to our reputation.  When consumers’ evolving demands drive a change (e.g. we offer a new green product or service) we are taking advantage of an opportunity.  While managing the risk associated with sustainability is indispensable for a high performing business, it is the opportunity presented by sustainability that is perhaps most exciting and hopeful.       

In subsequent posts on Mahindra Universe we will discuss how M&M tackles both the risks and opportunities of sustainability issues and how that relates to India as well as the rest of the world.  Additionally, we will explore how the rest of the world and others in India are tackling sustainability and discuss what M&M and others in its situation can learn.

We hope to delve into a diverse array of issues, mirroring M&M’s dynamic and expansive market presence. Architecture and real estate, automobiles, agriculture, information technology, microfinance, and more can, should, and will all be analyzed through the lens of sustainability. We look forward to using this web spot to spark stimulating dialogue, expand our collective learning and possibly even catalyze change in the coming months.