Data Centre

https://blog.nexcess.net/what-are-data-center-tiers-explained/  

Industrial visit to Featherlite Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore.

Featherlite, the Rs 500 crores, $80 million, is a name in office furniture in the country since 1965. Students and staff from Operations area of Alliance School of business visited their factory at Bidadi and Experience centre near Cantonment Bangalore on 27 November 2019.

It was a great experience to see the processes that make Fesyherlite a famous name in office furni6in the country besides Godrej.

George 

Easaw to join IESE Barcelona Spain ..

Main building of IESE, Barcelona, Spain.

It was good to learn a few weeks back that Easaw George (Jobin) got selected and was joining IESE Spain in Sept. '20 for an MBA. His long wait to complete employment of four to five years and a GMAT of 710 (though average GMAT at IESE is 686) has finally paid dividends.

Was surprised to find that IESE Barcelona Spain has been ranked among the top 10 Bschools of the world at global rank 10 and the second in Europe for 2019 (click here for the link..). When I checked the 2018 ranking, IESE was at global rank 6 and Europe rank 1. 

The IESE Barcelona campus ..

Jobin was waiting for good four years to get the necessary experience to be able to apply to these top schools. My CET colleague Vaidy whose son studied in HEC Paris, which was at rank 13 this year catapulted itself to #3 globally in 2019 as per the Economist list.

When the IESE representative visited Bangalore in Oct 2018, here is the report of the meeting which I attended with Jobin. 

Click here for IESE report of it's European and global rankings for 2019.. 

Wishing that everything goes well for Easaw.

george..

What ails higher education in the world ? - a deep analysis ..

Having been involved in the higher education industry for more than 30 years by now, I have always wondered when some innovative thinking would disrup
t this sector ?

Frequently I have been pained to understand how faculty members in top academic and elite institutions of the world neglect teaching and instead concentrate on research and grants. Even in the best Indian Institute of Technology at Mumbai where I was fortunate to pursue my studies, on few occasions, I found the teaching wanting. What this results in finally is a group of students who have not benefited from the talent and knowledge of the highly skilled knowledgeable professor and instead have to content being taught by graduate students or junior faculty members. This is very true in high ranking institutions .. 

Recently I happened to go through the November '19 Harvard Business Review article on why the global higher education scenario needs to be disrupted. 

Be it the west, East or Saharan Africa, higher education  is getting a fillip .. courtesy, UNESCO and Times.. 

The article does mention about the exceedingly high costs of higher education in different parts of the world.  Since US presently happens to be the hub of global higher education, it is interesting to know the case there. It is said that cost of higher education has increased by over 200% in the past 20 years. The student debt that has increased over 600 % over the past 20 years at $1.4 trillion is presently more than the credit card debt or vehicle financing debt. 

Another trend contributing to the high debts is the unreasonable demand by the students for the best expensive education and their dreams of hitting it big in corporate circles. Not everyone can finally become a CEO or a Chairman.  Students need to be realistic about their expectations.

Another area in higher education which needs disruption is the area of specialisation of students. Students frequently specialise in areas where they do not intend to continue in the future. So finally it is wasted resources spent on that student who has continued with his passion in other areas. Identifying one's passion early on in life and nurturing it is one way we can set right this anomaly and see that the right students get the right education to the exact depth to be able to specialise in the area and help the society and world at large. For example,   It is seen that students who want to study at the Harvard Business School on not getting admission entering the Kennedy School of government at Harvard, waste the opportunity by joining the corporate world, for other students who would have contributed in greater measure to social governance and administration.

Most of the present day jobs offered by employers are just focused on skills that help complete the jobs. In the short run, it is okay, but not in the long term planning for the organisation. There is a mismatch between this understanding between the new recruits and their employers. Jobs are not just getting some skills like accountancy, engineering design, manufacturing, quality control, building construction etc, it is helping identifying the right skill sets to add value to society and self in the long run.

The final area where our higher education system needs a major resurgence is the search among the students for jobs than the knowledge and exposure it brings. This comes through internships initially. These are taken lightly and results in students not being able to identify their passionate area of working. Students need to cultivate learnability of skills than displaying college credentials that do not add value to the tasks being carried out. Being able to acquire skills and additional knowledge through MOOCs or Khan academy is definitely a step in this direction.

I am sure in the coming years there would be enough disruptions that would help align higher education to the needs of the society and the world at large.

George

Is Gig economy the future ?

We all have been introduced to the concept of working from home. But gig economy is different from working from home. A gig economy is a free market system in which temporary positions are common and organizations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements. Examples of gig employees in the workforce could include freelancers, independent contractors, project-based workers and temporary or part-time hires. Techtarget.com The term "gig economy" refers to a general workforce environment in which short-term engagements, temporary contracts, and independent contracting is commonplace.

The growth of the gig economy represents a shift in the way people view work. Instead of a more traditional system where a worker works full-time for only one employer, some workers choose to enter the gig economy for the flexibility, freedom and personal fulfillment that it provides them.

In a gig economy, temporary, flexible jobs are commonplace and companies tend toward hiring independent contractors and freelancers instead of full-time employees. A gig economy undermines the traditional economy of full-time workers who rarely change positions and instead focus on a lifetime career. Gig economy workers may need health, disability or retirement benefits.  A similar strong sense of mission comes through in discussions with major gig economy companies, including Airbnb and Lyft. Both have established "future of work" efforts within their companies (as has Uber).(Feb 12, 2019 Forbes)

The gig economy is when individuals offer their services on a part-time basis to companies both small and large. The sharing economy allows for individuals and families to take advantage of assets they possess and rent them out to people who need them.. Zoomcar is a perfect example of a sharing economy platform.

Over the last several years, the gig economy has grown significantly across the country. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in US, in 2017, 55 million people, or more than 35 percent of the US workforce, were participants in the gig economy. By 2020, that number is expected to jump to 43 percent.(Sep 11, 2019 fee.org)

We find gig economy jobs are interesting, with more of responsibilities and less authority. Health benefits, insurance etc. are the lookout of the employee. The 10 Highest-Paying US Gig Economy Jobs of 2018

It can be added to that broad definition that the workers in a sustainable economy are financially healthy, which can be defined as able to pay bills, save and plan for the future financially. In this context, the gig economy may not be sustainable. (Ref-Medium.com)

Click here to read an article from Harvard Business Review on Thriving in the gig economy..

Some examples of gig economy jobs are given here. 

Driving and delivery gigs are a popular part of the gig economy job sector 

Freelance Writer. 

Rent a Room in Your Home. 

Rent Your Parking Space 

Rent Your Storage Space 

Handyperson Work 

Landscaping/Lawn Care 

House or Office Cleaning 

Babysitting/Petcare

According to one definition, it is "a labour market characterised by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work, as opposed to permanent jobs". And - taking opposing partisan viewpoints - it is either a working environment that offers flexibility with regard to employment hours, or it is a form of exploitation with very little workplace protection. (www.bbc.co.uk)

Click here to read an excellent BBC article on the gig economy ..

A gig economy is a free market system in which temporary positions are common and organizations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements. Examples of gig employees in the workforce could include freelancers, independent contractors, project-based workers and temporary or part-time hires. www.techtarget.com

One of the biggest upsides of the gig economy is that it offers flexibility to the employees. Unlike traditional employees, gig workers are free to choose what types of jobs they do and when and where they do them. The ability to work from home helps in balancing work and family schedules and demands. A gig is a temporary job. The employee often works on a specific project for a company, either as an independent contractor or a freelancer. Sometimes these gigs are full-time, and other times they are part-time. One downside to gig jobs is that they typically don't offer health insurance or other benefits. Balancesmb.com

The decision makers in society should discuss with local educational authorities to find how the gig economy concept could be popularised among the masses. Gig economy creates millions of entrepreneurs with great flexibility and infinite creativity. The downside of not having a permanent job with employee benefits could be offset with possibility for accepting highly specialised and highly remunerative jobs that need intense knowledge and training for execution with flexible and often intense working hours running into 12-16 hour work days. 

Knowledge is more valued in a gig economy that education. While education gets one a job, knowledge and skills can get the person a livelihood. Will the external environment be matured enough to accept the redefinition of job and assignment ? Every task becomes an assignment that needs to be assigned to properly qualified and skilled people who can do it satisfactorily to the customer's needs and desires.

Some of the gig jobs and rates of payment are given here..

Deep Learning/Artificial Intelligence: $115.06 Per Hour.
Blockchain Architecture: $87.05 Per Hour.
Robotics: $77.46 Per Hour. 
Ethical Hacking: $66.63 Per Hour.
Cryptocurrency: $65.37 Per Hour.
Amazon Web Services, Lambda Coding: $51 Per Hour. 
Virtual Reality: $50.18 Per Hour.
ReactJS Developers: $40.75 Per Hour. (Ref- Thebalancesmb.com)

Click here for the case I wrote on the gig economy for classroom discussion ...

George..

Why the new one - Samsung Galaxy M30S .

Last week I got the new Samsung Galaxy M30S from Amazon for Rs 17 K /-. Great value for money.

Display - The 6.4" Super Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (S-AMOLED)  display consumes less power, is more sensitive to ouch and offers a more vivid, colourful display. 

Camera - is a 48 MP triple camera at the rear and a 16 MP camera at the front

CPU Processor - The CPU is 2 nos. quadcore of 1.7 GHz and 2.3 GHz each making it in effect equal to an octacore processor of 2GHz capacity for each core .. 

RAM, Internal Memory - The 6GB RAM and 128 GB internal memory makes it super fast with lot of real estate for data storage.

Battery - The 6000 mAh battery makes for a longer battery life. Given the super efficient S-AMOLED display, the life of the battery is extended still further, for example 29 hours of video playback. 

External Memory - The external memory can be extended to 512 GB. 

Cost - Just Rs 17000/- Great Value for Money ..

Considering the pace at which mobile phon technology is growing day by day, this mobile is definitely an add-on to my existing iPhone 8S which is a 2GB RAM, 64  GB memory great phone..

Enjoying the leaps of technology ..

George..

Challenges of the Indian Automotive sector..

At a function organised by Travancore Management Association (TRAMA) felicitating my friend Saji Varghese on his new assignment as Sr. GM of MRF in Gujarat, I found his talk to the TRAMA audience in Kottayam on the challenges faced by the Indian Automotive sector very informative. .. 

It was very well researched and insightful, educative too 👌👌 He touched on five main aspects, 

1. Impact of BS VI norms - the strict BS VI (Bharat Standards) norms by-passing the BS V, straightaway from BS IV, to be made compulsory on all vehicles sold in India from 1st of April 2020, has made quite a few heads turn, causing great uneasiness with auto manufacturers who are on a run to see that their inventory of BS IV vehicles is done away with before the cut-off date. This has resulted in automobile and heavy vehicle manufacturers cutting off their production and getting ready to bring in new environmentally superior variants.

2. Impact of auto aggregators like Uber and Ola in India - It is for sure, no doubt, Uber and Ola has changed the personal travel landscape efficiently and cost effectively for ever in the country. Even though in India, Ola presently caters only to the population in 110 cities with ten lakh ( a million) driver partners and Uber to forty cities, the cost effective value addition it has brought to the passenger experience is something beyond explanation. Particularly in big cities like Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore, it has made a big difference to the way people commute daily to their work and back and plan inter city visits and so on.

3. Rapid introduction of Electric vehicles - complying with India's adherence to the 2015 Paris Treaty on Climate Change, it is required that by 2030, we transition to EV range of vehicles to reduce the Carbon footprint of our vehicles and try level best to limit climate change. People like me, have taken decision to postpone our new vehicle buying decision till more efficient and cost effective EV models come to the market.  By 2020, Indian market will have Tata with their INR 10-12 lakh EV, Mahindra with their 10 lakh EV, Hyundai with their INR 25 lakh Kona and so on. Toyota is also planning to enter the market later in 2020, while Suzuki is trying with it's Wagon R EV model anytime early 2020.

4. Market uncertainty forcing prospective buyers to postpone their purchase decisions- most of the buyers who were planing to buy their cars after studying the market have decided to postpone the buying decision till the air is cleared regarding governmental support and pricing structures of the automotive companies. Also setting up of the necessary support infrastructure across the country will also consume some time.

5. Poor economic growth of Indian economy over the past six years - With change of government in 2014, the country's economic progress has been low, resulting in slow automobile industry growth in general.

6. Trend among new-age youngsters to avoid hassles of car ownership with rise of Uber and Ola - Who wants to invite trouble and headache in the cities driving cars, when the whole driving experience can be outsourced to startups with enterprising individuals ready to connect the people with the driver and owner of cars at very low and effective rates. In the bargain the passengers avoid the expenses and hassles of insurance, fluctuating fuel prices, frequent maintenance and replacement of spare parts, headache of going behind police cases, courts etc in the case of an accident etc ? I do not own a car in Bangalore for the past two and half years, how peaceful it has been ??

7. The second hand vehicle market facing a glut of old vehicles - with few buyers and high supply has had an impact and raised doubts on the resale value of cars on the second hand vehicles market,

My former MRF tyres boss felt the main reason was mishandling of economy by the new government over the past six years. He was of the opinion be it Ola or Uber, they also need cars, it also results in sale of cars. India car population is one tenth that of China. So there is great scope for sale and growth.

As BS VI introduction is mainly on fuel, the automobile should be able use cleaner fuels. Though automobile changes are much less , mostly tighter piston clearances etc. why should automobile sales plummet ? Nobody prevents selling BS VI cars before April 2020. 

Good planning will make cars available, so that you need worry about inventory of old cars, it will be sold out. Major reason for lower sale of commercial vehicles is low growth. That is the main reason for other vehicles too.

The concern made about the Electric vehicles is the same arguments people made when computers were introduced. There are also allegations that EVs being blocked by Petroleum industry bigwigs and auto industry captains, But will that strategy work when India has already committed to the international community at the 2015 Paris Treaty on Climate Change to bring in radical changes in the automobile vehicle pollution to help achieve UN goals of limiting global temperature change to within 1.5 deg Celsius to slow down climate change.

The difficult automobile industry changes have made families limit their spends on dress, eating and socialising, this has got cascading effects on other sectors of the economy too.

Overall the illness in the automobile sector is not only pulling back the auto ancilliary industries sector, it is also impacting other areas of the economy, pulling them back.

Hope our leaders take sensible economic actions that can help revitalise the economy and get the automobile industry back on track.

George.