Chaebol : The Korean Way of doing Business

Well, guys !! Your weekly dose of enlightenment is long overdue. Those of you who wonder where I had been all this time, just wait for my next post, to be titled "How I missed the Olympics bus" !! For now, let me lecture you on something called "Chaebol". Before you do a wiki on it and send my weekend blogging efforts into oblivion, Chaebol is a Korean word which means "a business group". Since the earlier post was on my Alma Mater, the next honour/disgrace naturally goes to my roji-roti provider, which happens to be a Chaebol.

In a broader context, Chaebol refers to the well-known and family controlled South Korean corporate houses like Samsung,LG,Hyundai,Daewoo etc.The fact that a country as small as South Korea has churned out such internationally reputed brands, naturally calls for a closer look at the way these bigwigs operate.

To understand their meteoric rise in Korean as well as world economy, we must go back to 1940s when Korean economy was in shambles from long Japanese occupation. After the Japs left,many start-ups sprouted independently or by acquiring left-over Japanese businesses. To help them rise,these companies were provided special privileges by the government.In a span of mere 30 years, the chaebol-government cooperation turned around the Korean economy. Capital Seoul,once a city of ruins under the japanese regime, grew rapidly to become the second biggest metropolitan in the world.South Korea was hailed as the new Asian Tiger.

Just as the future was starting to look bright and rosy, the Asian Financial Crisis of late 1990s reared its ugly head. Many of the Chaebols went bankrupt overnight, Daewoo being the most prominent victim. To fuel their explosive growth,these Chaebols had focused heavily on overseas markets and were deep in debt.So when worldwide economies faced a slowdown, they took the hardest hit. Government forced them to adopt more transparent corporate policies and reduced the stakes of the controlling families in their businesses.Lead by Samsung,the world's second largest conglomerate, the chaebols recovered quickly. South Korea is today regarded as one of most technologically advanced countries of 21st century.

However all is not well today. Recently some of these chaebols have been plagued by scandals and tax issues,resulting in implication and resignation of top management. Back home,Indian chaebol like entities like Reliance, Birla are also facing scandals and bitter in-house rivalries. Even in namma Bangalore, Nilgiris, the country's oldest super-market chain was handed over to Actis, a UK based PEI by its controlling family in 2006. A recent survey has claimed that such family controlled businesses rarely remain in control of their owners beyond 3 generations. All these have put a question mark on the futures of these family controlled businesses.Only time will tell whether they will be able to preserve their unique identity and grow in 21st century economy.

So guys,whats your take ? Next time you plan to start a business,think hard as to whether keep it a family affair or promote it as a public business. Unless you are as fortunate as me, who don’t have the money for such a venture and hence need not worry about those trivial issues..:-) !!

Tezpur University : Why It Matters

For those uninitiated,Tezpur University is a central university located in Tezpur district of Assam,inaugurated in 1994 by erstwhile PM of India, P V Narasimha Rao.Yours truly has the honour of being an alumnus of this institute per excellence. So through this article, I intend to share the wonderful experience I had there during my PG years.

Why It Matters: The first thing that strikes you about the place is the bevy of facilities offered to the students for a nominal fee. State-of-the-art computer centre with V-SAT internet connection, well furnished library, spacious hostels equipped with Wi-Fi connectivity, indoor stadium, multi-gym are just a few of its highlights. The university boasts of a dedicated power line, guaranteeing virtually uninterrupted power supply. The student teacher ratio in this University is one of the lowest in the country, which means closer attention to the students. It offers a vast range of under graduate and post-graduate courses in engineering, management and literature.Tezpur university is the first university in India to offer M.Tech. courses in Computational Seismology and also in Bio-Electronics. Another aspect worth mentioning is TU's (as we fondly call it) transparent exam grading system. RTI act has been invoked these days all over India to bring more transparency into the grading system of academic institutes. But TU was ahead of its time, already having such best practices in place.

My Days: I did my MCA course under the Department of Computer Science and Engineering which was quite an enriching experience. The highpoint of those years was the grooming we received there. Learning under a host of esteemed faculties, combined with the access to a well-equipped lab which remains open 24 hours a day, we were ready to face the challenges of the corporate world by the time of our graduation. Same can be said of other departments as well, when it comes to the quality of education and facilities they offer. Outside the classroom, the atmosphere was equally fun. Cultural and sports events were organised throughout the year, providing an ample stage for showcasing one's extra-curricular talents. I took an active interest in them and that really helped me in honing my soft-skills. A vibrating campus life kept us all in high spirits, there was not a single dull momment both on and off the classroom. When I look back now,the environment was very reminiscent of the corporate life that we live today, albeit far less stressful. After 5 days of classes, it was time to party, the beautiful and bustling tezpur town providing great weekend bistros.

However TU is yet to reach the status of a frontline Indian academia, its location in a geographically backward region like Assam being a big drawback. Campus recruitments have been few and far in between, although the quality of education makes sure that you never have to struggle much in off-campus interviews.In recent times,the placement cell is taking new initiatives in this regard,with active help from its alumni. Lets hope in coming days,Tezpur University will find its righteous place among the crème de la crème of Indian academica.

So guys, if you have not checked out this happening place as yet, do it now(www.tezu.ernet.in) . And if you are an alumnus, feel free to share your valuable views and experiences.Tezpur University matters and lets make an effort to spread words about this wonderfull place. After all it changed our lives, and changed for better :-)

Hello World !!

Hello World !!
Any software engineer worth his salt starts his coding life with the above lines. Since yours truly also falls in that category, so its befitting that I start my blogging life with the very same lines. However I intend to share, bare and preach much more than plain Hi's n Hello's. You might wonder what an Indian SE has to offer other than copy-pasting techniques, but no worries. To use Calvin's(being an ardent fan, I will often quote him thruout my bloglife...so beware !) famous words "I am not dumb, I just have a command of some thoroughly useless information". So its high time that I offload some of these junk to your brains as well.

To keep myself busy during office hours, I take an active interest in a wide and random array of subjects such as economics, politics, films, world affairs, sports, cartoons, environment, gadgets, defense etc tec. Over the time, I intend to lecture and enlighten you on any such topics which catch my whims and fancies. You may ask "in this fast-forward life,who has time to read your garbage ?" The asnwer lies in my motto "Enlightenment in 21 seconds". You have tasted instant coffee, now you will taste instant enlightenment. I will serve crisp n hot, while being simple n short !!

So guys, anytime you feel bored n drowsy n clumsy, just hop across my blog. Gratification will be quick and sure.
Presto :-) !!