Strategia'21

Panelist Details:

COVID-19 has taught an important lesson to India. With businesses having to reimagine their processes and ways of working, strategy leaders had to change their trends more than any other field.

These were the opening notes given by the Moderator, Mr. Varun Dhamija

He built up the flow and created the connection. He focused on the dynamic nature of the company’s strategy and its dependence.

Important Points added to the panel discussion by:

Mr. Kaushik Mitra
Move out of the victim phase quickly, it happens to all of us. “This is not happening; I am not responsible for it are typical signs. CFO perspective: when things change you need to bring dynamism in the resource plan, the role of a CFO is to look beyond the tip and be the navigator along with the CEO

Ms. Shikha Upadhyay

When the fishermen are not out fishing, they are fixing the net. Building leadership muscle and communicating it clearly to all stakeholders (employees, partners, etc.) is crucial to the success.

Mr. Azeez Narain
A crisis is also an opportunity, so positivity is extremely important and so is passion. When you look at things passionately you will sail through the toughest of challenges.

Mr. Jaideep Dang
Plan for the bad times in good times, that’s where your company’s philosophy stands out. If you have a strong bond with your clients, then they need you both in good times and bad times.

Mr. Ravi Teja Bommireddipalli
When you are amid the crisis you need to see where the opportunities are going to open up and how you would need to react with agility. So, see where the puck is going to be not where it has been.

Mr. Arif Patel
Agility is of extreme importance in such times. While matrix organizations support global presence it is important to allow local organizations to take charge and do what is important in the local market. Collaboration is another key area.

Mr. Varun Agarwal
Data and analytics are key support to solving today’s challenges both in and outside of crisis situations

Mr. Jai Daga
Think of Digitization vs Digitalization, they are two different things. Digitalization is a given think how your company will address the future as it is changing.

Mr. Ankit Bhargava
Organizations working with the government can become major suppliers and supporters of solutions during crises like pandemics. Solving these local issues also opens up global markets. The shelf-life of communication is an important lesson from COVID. How does information get tagged as expired? (E.g., availability of plasma)

Panelist Details:

COVID-19 has taught an important lesson to India. With businesses having to reimagine their processes and ways of working, Consulting leaders had to change their trends more than any other field.

These were the opening notes given by Mr. Anil.

Anil sir said that consulting has grown, and type of consulting has changed over the last few years due to the following reasons: much younger employees in consulting now even in higher designations. Earlier clients expected solution and adaptive solution with direction. Issue faced because of Covid is that now consultants can’t visit the site and the technological use in consulting will only increase.

Important Points in the panel discussion:

Bobby sir talked about digital consulting and shift towards more use of technology. He talked about new start-up’s brining in AI based consulting. Very interesting stage. He talked about how there’s going to be higher need as client is pushing for even better results. He talks about unlearning and learning that needs to be in consulting. He talks about landscape changing and client expectations changing.

Adamah sir talked not only about why but also how, how the way consulting is conducted has also changed. Consulting is becoming a big sector due to higher FDI. By the end of 2022, there would be more than 10,000 consulting firms in India.

Anupam sir how organizations survived in this remote environment which is going to be a great accelerator. 1. Organizations are forced to do things differently because of Covid disruptions. 2. Adoption of technology, particularly AI. Cyber, forensic, analytical, ERP, etc. are going to be the key driving factors. Therefore, sector wise consulting will different, but the future is there. Anupam sir talks about not only growth but the challenge I.e., enriched content, just as Kingshuk sir said.

Arin sir talked about the larger picture. The driving force would be 1. Insane amount of uncertainty and how to make business more resilient. 2. Along with pandemic, consumer behavior has changed in terms of consumption of product and of service. How to retain customers differently. 3. How work gets done. Every business is trying to figure out the hybrid model, will vary from industry to industry, how to make model more fluid. All these will put a lot of emphasis on core IT part. Positive outlook on future of consultancy.

Kingshuk sir says that future is great. India is growing in terms of impact but also the complexity of industries, which will lead to growth of consulting. We are on a growth path but also need to keep an eye on specialized expertise. A. Content B. Creativity C. Collaboration. A is critical because now when you need technical expert knowledge of that field, it’s not about solution but also solution outcome and solution sustainability. The substance of your solution must be focused on what really is important.

Shravan sir says that he’s a consultant by accident. He enjoys helping small organizations which couldn’t have afforded big consultants’ firms. Youngsters shouldn’t try getting into consulting right after b-school because the core knowledge isn’t there as that will hold them throughout the journey. Take time to build the expertise and use your skill set to get into consulting. Consulting will grow because there aren’t many experts around and the country needs experts. He talks about companies needing a consultant firm to guide them, not just provide solution and how developing markets need that guidance through the entire process. Importance of outcome in consulting and how it’s a challenge but also an opportunity.

Saurabh sir talks about the Indian market, customer and client expectations being different in India. In India it takes time to become a trusted advisor. How the American and Indian markets are totally different due to the regulatory framework. In India you need to be specific about details and deliverables. In India it takes a lot of time and negotiations. ROI is what people are looking at in India. We need to be different with Indian customers and create an ecosystem around them.  Large transformation projects in India are rare to come by.

Q & A Session:

Shravan sir says that take the help of whoever can help you with minimum cost.

Saurabh sir says that consultants can guide you about moving parts and non-core parts. Those areas are wherein consultants can really guide you.

Arin sir says that the big organizations are trying to rapidly innovate and operate like a start-up which is hard. Moving at start-up speed, high growth rate, is extremely important which is why many organizations are trying to adopt this model.

Anupam sir says that clients are scared about input and communication they’re receiving from the government as government is operating much faster than organizations. Government is spending a lot in consulting. Government advisory is going to become a big sector.

Bobby sir talks that government consultancy is highly outcome based and payment is never the challenge. Amazing projects with large impact are given from governments. You need to have strong leadership to make the project work out.

Shravan sir talks about mission 2022 and how the targets have been achieved, 85% of those targets.