So finally the unthinkable has happened. Tata Motors has acquired Jaguar Land Rover and one of the strongest symbols of British supremacy is now owned by a former colony. Reverse imperialism? Jokes apart, this is really a very welcome development, not because of jingoistic reasons, but simply because it shows that India is finally a global player, able to match steps with the best of them. Of course, this is not the first time this has happened (think Corus, Stokes Forging, Tetley Tea), but somehow, maybe due to the aura of the brand involved (Jaguar/Land Rover), the impact seems to be stronger. This will also go a long way in emboldening others, who will now go forth and grab whatever there is on offer, the logic being 'if Tata can do it, why not us?’
 

These takeovers also drive home a point - if you think you are the best (or can be the best) in a given field, then you should look at players who are better than you, rather than gunning for the smaller fish in the pond. That way, your trajectory will always point north. Also, this way a company gets the latest technologies, which help in giving better value to customers and, of course, to shareholders. Some naysayers would point out that the brand is in its sunset years and not worth the price, but what one needs to remember is that the advantage is not in just absolute terms, but goes much beyond that. Sure, some of these takeovers have not been successful (both Ford and BMW have been owners of JLR in part or full), but this has never reflected badly on the company taking over.

 

I hope we see many more such takeovers, which will keep the flag of India Inc. flying high.

Do keep the feedback rolling in about what you think.

Note: Jaguar was initially named 'Swallow Sidecar Company' and they were in the business of refurbishing and overhauling motorcycles and sidecars of other makes. From there, they moved to developing their own automotive engine and coaches (car bodies)

At M&M, we can clearly see the connection between our brand image and that of our country. Just like our country, we as a company have broken the shackles of a stereotypical image and are being taken seriously as a global player. Not to forget that we started off almost in the same time period - when our country attained independence. Both of us have transformed a lot in the past six decades and have shown great potential and fuel to go further.

As a kid I had a great fascination with the globe. Observing it and trying to figure out details about strangely named places, it was all about giving food to my thoughts...to my dreams.

What is it that fascinates a business-conglomerate to go global? Business, growth, money... some will even say fame and brand building. But then there is also another aspect to it - recognition. Recognition for both the company itself and for the country it belongs to. The very fact that a company calls itself a 'German-Multinational' or a 'Japanese-Multinational' reflects this point. You may call it some sort of symbiosis, where the company uses its country as an initial brand-ambassador and then thrives to become a brand-ambassador for the country itself. For example, one of the first thoughts that came to mind on mentioning Japan is its electronics heavyweights. For automobiles pioneers it's Germany and Italy.

MNC Products as a reflection of Culture and Ethos

The Scorpio: Mahindra's global SUV

Mahindra & Mahindra is experiencing the same in the automotive sector with its increasing global presence. Today, when we enter a new global market, we are seen as an Indian company. A company that brings, with its name, the images of Indian culture, colours, tradition, hospitality and even music and spices. M&M today stands as one of the few foremost flag bearers of a changing India. An India that is developing into a major superpower, an India that is ambitious and an India that is now prepared to embrace the world with open arms.

Catching the attention of customers in a new market can be a tricky deal and converting that attention into sales is a step further. The question is, "what is it that a customer searches for in a multinational product?" It's the cultural footprint of a different country, a country that holds a specific image in some part of his brain. He looks for the values that the company brings with it.

Being an Indian company we have the biggest advantage of our country's image as a very hospitable country, a country where one gets welcomed with a lot of warmth and love. We are also seen as a country with much diversity, shaping the expectation of getting something very different from what other companies and countries have to offer.

Former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dr. Shashi Tharoor, addresses students and faculty of the Mahindra United World College of India (MUWCI) in Pune, India. Dr. Tharoor was a special guest at the inauguration of the Van Vihar Biodiversity Park & Reserve which aims to preserve and protect the flora and fauna of the Western Ghats region.

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.