Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Friday 24 July 2015

If You cannot lick them ; Join them





CAIT stands for Confederation of All India Traders


It has over 4.5 million retailers as its members


Till a few weeks back , CAIT was opposed to e-commerce in retail trade


But when it realized that the e-Commerce tide was unstoppable , it decided to join it !


Recently , CAIT General Secretary , Khandelwal said :


" E-commerce is a reality. We cannot be blind to it. Through ‘e-Lala’, our aim is to retain consumers who were traditionally with brick-and-mortar outlets but are now shifting away to online stores 

We are being forced by circumstances to get into this. We have to move with the times ”


By October 2015 , CAIT plans to launch its own e-Commerce portal " e-Lala" to take on the likes of Amazon / Flipkart / Snapdeal / Myntra etc


But unlike these existing e-Commerce portals , CAIT does not have a war-chest of billions of dollars , to


>   Set up Fulfillment Centers ( Warehouses ) all over the country

>   Advertise online / offline , in a big way



But when you have 4.5 million Fulfillment Centers ( of course small ) , spread all over the entire country , covering every street , then why do you need to build central warehouses ?


And when 10 million delivery boys / girls , deliver a billion packages every day to millions of households , with a plastic bag / card-box carton that reads " YOUR  e-LALA DELIVERY  " , then why do you need to waste money on advertising  ?


Now the bad news :


>   How will e-Lala control the quality of products being delivered by 4.5

     million retailers  ?

>   How will it ensure timely delivery  ?

>   How will it ensure that Member-Retailers do not overcharge ?

>   Existing e-Commerce portals buy in bulk , directly from the         manufacturers ; then offer heavy discounts over the printed MRP . 
     How will e-Lala counter this  ?


>  Today , barely 5 % of the retail buyers , pay thru Credit Cards . 95 % pay in cash

     If e-Lala insists on advance payment using Credit Card thru a online Payment Gateway , will this put-off buyers from using e-Lala portal  ?

          Again , today , almost all buyers pay " Cash Against Delivery " to their neighborhood retailer.

      They may not like to pay in advance of the delivery !

>   To- day, buyers do refuse to accept deliveries for various reasons , such as :

     #   Wrong product or labeling or package size or brand

     #   Expiry date exceeded or about to expire

     #   Even , change of mind !


     All because , there is no online advance payment , and nothing is lost by refusing !

>  To-day , buyers are even able to return the purchased goods to their neighborhood retailer , a couple of days later.

     And the retailer usually accepts the " Return " , in order to retain the

    client on a long-term basis - a client whom , he knows personally !

    This will not be easy to duplicate in E-Lala ecosystem !


This is not to say that CAIT's e-Lala experiment is doomed  !


If anything , e-Lala would do well to think through these issues , then provide answers thru a FAQ page on its e-com web site


And in order to crystallize this thinking , it may not be too late even now , for CAIT to host: TRUE / FALSE : YES/ NO : MULTIPLE CHOICE : online Questionnaires , on its existing web site


One questionnaire for the End-Consumers  and another one for its 4.5 million member retailers


In today's " Dog it Dog " world of e-commerce , one can neither dictate nor predict , a competitor's actions


That kind of wishful thinking just does not work


To stay two steps ahead of the Competitors , you need to think and decide :


"  What am I going to do this morning ? "


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

hemen  parekh

25  July  2015

B2BmessageBlaster

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Thursday 23 July 2015

WILL YOU HELP MSME EXPORT ?



A recently released report by Google + Deloitte is titled :

" Connected Small Business : Unlocking India's Digital Potential "

If India's 30 million MSME get connected digitally , the report sees following changes in MSME eco-system :

>   Growth
     -  revenues could grow up to 27 %

>   Job Creation
    -  employment could grow up to 84 %

>   Innovation
    -  New product offering could go up to 450 %

>   Morale
    -  employee satisfaction could go up by 600 %

>   Productivity
    -  employee collaboration could go up by 900 %

>   Exports
    -  access to International Markets could go up by 65 %


Talking of exports by MSME , I wish report  had mentioned the following annual average export values by :

>  Singapore MSME............ $ 6,700,000

>  Indian MSME.................  $       4,000


Can " Digital Connectivity " help Indian MSME to boost their exports ? If yes , then  by how much ?


That would depend upon our MSMEs to be able to compose a Marketing Message , such as follows and then blast it to the Foreign Importers :


>  I exist and this is where ( Email ID / Phone No ) you can reach me

>  These are my products / services ( attaching photo / video to message )

>  Here are my FOB prices for you to compare with your current suppliers


Then blast it to 8,000 + International Chambers of Commerce ( located in 5,332 cities around the World ), requesting the Chamber Presidents to forward their message to their 8,000,000 Member Firms !


They would be happy to oblige


www.B2BmessageBlaster.com ( B2B ) , will deliver such a message to those 8,000 + International Chambers , within 24 hours


And a MSME would need no more than ONE HOUR to blast it !


You can help MSME exports to go up by 100 % within one year , by just telling them about www.B2BmessageBlaster.com ( B2B ) !


B2B is their " Digital Connection " to International Buyers


Help them announce to the World : Here I come  !


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

hemen parekh

24 July 2015

B2BmessageBlaster

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Wednesday 22 July 2015

Close in India ?



Writing in Hindustan Times ( 23 July 2015 ) , Timsy Jaipuria
provides following information about Scooters India Ltd (SIL) :

*   SIL employs 1000 persons
*   Incurred losses from 2002 to 2012
*   Given Rs 200 crore revival package in 2013
*   Expected to make loss in 2015
*   Government could not find a buyer for SIL in2011
*   If SIL fails to revive , Government will try to divest again

All of these reminded me of the following letter that I wrote to 7,500 employees of L&T Powai Works ( individual copies in English and Marathi ), some 30 years back :
------------------------------------------------------------------------

28 Feb 1986



Dear Friends :

FLOGGING A DYING HORSE

The correct  idiom is  "flogging a dead  horse" but  there is every possibility that  the horse ( Scooters India )  is dead by now.

This is because  the enclosed article ( Dying Horse ) about  SIL  is almost 18 months old.

And  as of  Dec.  31, 1985,  we have  such  93,282 dying  (or dead?)  horses in  our  country.  

These are  known as  " Sick Units " 

 What  I do not  know is whether  the above mentioned figure  includes  public-sector ( Govt.  owned ) sick-units  or not. 

Most of  these are sick - in fact VERY SICK.  If you wish to know how "sick", here are some  "temperature-readings" :

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Government Unit ( PSU ).......... Loss in last 3 years ( Rs Crores )

------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.
Engineering Projects India Ltd. (EPI)...............90

2.
Hindustan Steelworks Const. Ltd. (HSCL)..........67

3.
Cycle Corporation of India Ltd. (CCIL)............   8.8

4.
Scooters India Ltd. (SIL)..............................  50

5.
Tanneries & Footwear Corp. of India Ltd.(TAFCO)..5

----------------------------------------------


I  understand   that  the  Govt.   is  planning   to  wind-up (close-down) the  first  3 units  and merge  the  remaining 2 units with some successful public or private sector company.

From the  "Dying Horse" article, we  find that neither  Bajaj nor HMT wants to even touch Scooters India !


And no  wonder

A similar  company in America  would perhaps employ  500 persons whereas Scooters India  has employed 3500 persons .

Reminds me of Bombay Municipality ! 

IBMC can sack (terminate/retrench)  half  of  its  employees,  productivity would go up FOUR TIMES ! 

If you  do not believe me, next time stop  and count  the number of  persons  pretending to  dig a hole for a faulty telephone cable !

And  talking surplus  labour  (?)  HSCL  has  12000 !  ( See following article )

How long before some of us muster enough courage to ask

"Am I my brother's keeper?"


H C Parekh
General Manager ( Powai )

------------------------------------------------------------------------


It seems , since I wrote the above-listed letter , things have not changed ! May be the " Industrial Sickness " has spread

May be we need to launch another initiative called , " Close in India "  !


And permitting 100 % FDI in sick units could be another " Out of Box " solution worth considering  ! Nothing to lose but something to gain


And , the beauty is , no political party will oppose such " Privatization " !


---  hemen  parekh

      23  July  2015


      B2BmessageBlaster

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Tuesday 21 July 2015

National Career Service Portal


On 20 July 2015 , our PM , Shri Narendra Modi-ji launched a career portal ,

www.ncs.gov.in


NCS claims to bring together on a single platform , Career Centers ( re-named Employment Exchanges  ? ) /  Jobseekers  /  Employers  /  Career Counselors  /  Skill Providers  /  Local Service Providers  etc


Whereas this is a great initiative , it seems the web site has got launched despite any number of glitches , such as :


>   " Site Map " missing

>    Links not clicking

>    Pages not loading

>    Databases missing

>    Content confusing

>    Naming misleading... etc


As if this is not enough , most of the Registration Forms , carried unnecessary and irrelevant data-fields , such as :

>  Aadhaar Number for Employers / Placement Organizations  ?

>  Employer Company Executive to provide personal Aadhaar Number  ?

>  Employer Company Executive to provide Gender / DOB / Father's Name ?


A Local Service Provider does not need to select ( from a drop-list ) , what kind of service does he provide. But he must mention his "Affiliation"  ?


A Jobseeker does not need to provide :

>  Edu. Qualifications / Institute attended / Exams passed - and when

>  Previous Employment History ( for experienced job-seekers )

>  Years worked / salary drawn / designation held , in each previous job


I suspect , there is some another form hidden somewhere , which , a job-seeker will be asked to fill in later , just when he is ready to click " Apply " against a job searched after several hours !


But , these are minor defects that can be rectified soon - and without much difficulty


But here is the worst part !


Apparently the web site does NOT want  job-seekers  and employers to get motivated enough to register  !


Here is how :


#  EXPERIENCING  THE  FEATURES


    Job portals all over the World , enable any casual jobseeker to be able to search the online database of posted / live jobs , even if he is not registered

But he cannot " Apply Online " , unless he is registered and logged in

It is no different than a shop-keeper allowing you to roam free thru the entire shop , without asking to see your Credit Card !

He knows that a customer gets motivated to " Buy " , only if he gets to see the goods on sale !

Ditto with a casual Employer Visitor

Job portals allow anyone to search and look at resumes

But he can download only if he is registered / logged in

Usually , job portals " hide " contact details on the resumes , when viewed online but downloaded resumes carry full contact details

This is because , job-portals , make their money from Subscriptions from Employers ( usually 95 % of the incomes of Indian Job Portals )

They cannot afford any casual visitor to reach out to the job-seekers , bypassing them !  They make their money , by acting as " Gate-keepers " between the job-seekers and the employers


I am sure , this ( making money by acting as an intermediary ) , cannot be the intention of National Career Service - since , rightly , it is FREE for employers as well !


I believe NCS intention is to ensure that no vacancy remains un-fulfilled for more than a few hours  !



#   JOB /  RESUME  ALERTS  ON  MOBILE


On the web site , I could not find any provision ( downloadable Mobile App ) thru which ,

>   A jobseeker can " pull " job alerts " matching his resume and can apply online , directly , from his mobile

>   An Employer can pull " resume alerts " matching his posted job and download those resumes with just one click on his mobile


We must remember that millions of jobseekers in remote corners of India have no access to a PC


But , soon , all of them will have internet-enabled smart phones  !




#    JOB   FAIRS


On the site , there is a provision to search for info on ground-based Job Fairs taking place in different parts of India

But , for a job-seeker located in Coimbatore , there is no use getting info about a job fair taking place in Kolkata  !

Same with an Employer

Why have portal designers shied away from a " Virtual Job Fair " , where both , the job-seekers and the employers can conduct Online Interviews , using Video ?

Not difficult , considering that all mobile phones / tablets carry a camera and Skype / Face Chat are free !


Technically , it is a simple task to create a million Interview Cabins online , which any registered Employer can " book " for a specific date / time / period and conduct  online interviews


A million online interviews can take place simultaneously , with no constraints of either time / space / distance !


That would encourage even employers located anywhere in the World to conduct interviews of Indian jobseekers

If , India wants to train 40/50 million youth who will constitute " Export Surplus " , as per Shri Modi-ji , then this feature is a must



#   COMMON   SHARED   DATABASE



 Today , in India , there are hundreds of job-portals , each having its own database of Jobs and Resumes

And , barring a few big ones , most of these offer FREE service to both , the jobseekers and the employers

Many have only " local clientele " ( both job-seekers and employers )

But a jobseeker who is registered on portal A , can search only those jobs which are posted on that portal

Same with employers searching for resumes


Neither resumes , nor jobs posted on portal B can be accessed by visitors of portal A  ! 

Like a MTNL subscriber not being able to dial anyone other than another MTNL subscriber  !


This severely limits their usefulness


NCS should enable ALL such job portals to ,


>  Deliver their jobs and resumes , into the CENTRAL DATABASE  of NCS

>  Deliver / display  all of these to any visitor of any participating partner portal


Within a short period , this feature would generate a database of millions of jobs and hundreds of millions of resumes , accessible from a thousand partner job portals

Just imagine the exponential increase of usefulness thru " Network Externality "



#    MOBILE  APP - " JOB-POST "


Today , NCS web site boasts of only 1684 registered employers  !

India's 3 major job portals show some 50,000 + registered employers

Then there are approx 50 million MSME , who have never advertised their vacancies on any job portals  !

May be because they don't have PCs / broadband connections

Let NCS web site enable them to post their jobs , using a simple Mobile App , " Job-Post "

There is no reason why their 12 million vacancies every year , should remain " Un-Announced "  !


Then there are many other features that can bridge the DIGITAL DIVIDE between the jobseekers and the employers


If desired , I would be happy to share my thoughts / notes / codes etc with NCS or Ministry of Labour and Employment


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

hemen  parekh

22  July  2015

CustomizeResume

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Make    Yourself    Heard

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It is time for YOU to speak up - and demand that YOU are heard

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