IndiaThink

100,000 Missing Hotel Rooms--Now What?

The first Four Seasons launched in Bombay recently.  The hotel stands on a piece of land that was previously a slum which is not surprising as most empty areas in India are taken up by those who have little. 

Much has been written about this new hotel but the items I wanted to bring to light speak to the difficulty of bringing new ideas into India through its congested clog of permits and labor issues.  The Four Seasons project is no different from any other as people estimate it opened two years later than planned after fighting with city officials through 165 different permits required for its architecture both inside and out. 

Not only did they require the Four Seasons to jump through the hoops on the books, India decided to make them part of a new plan to relocate some of the people living in the slum they purchased.

" slum-dwellers living on the site were compensated for the loss of their homes and the government wants to use the model for two big slum rehabilitation projects that will transform the city if they are realised."

So for the rest of the hoteliers in the world it looks like India is the place to be planning a new hotel if you can stomach the rules and regulations -- and -- helping move those who have nothing off the land that you may choose to inhabit. There is little written about what "helping" actually means here.  Relocating to a new slum? Moving groups into established housing that were previously living on the street--doubtful.  Very doubtful.  Bombay is one of the most expensive cities in the world--as is evidenced by the prices the Four Seasons commands--around $1000 a night.  Which is two times what the average Indian makes in one year.

On a different note, the quote that caught my eye in this article is: "But there is little social envy. Vishal Doshi, whose shop sells samosas in the slum, says the hotel brings prestige. "Everyone can now say: 'I'm living near the Four Seasons'," he says.

I don't know if I would call this "little social envy" as much as Indians ability to carefully understand their place in the world and see endless opportunity inside the track.  Indians are proud of India's achievements and see themselves as part of the grand scheme of life that is happening all around them.  This is very different from our American way of thinking that we would be envious of the people staying in the Four Seasons instead of focusing on how, inside your set of capabilities, you can be part of this grand hotel. There is a sense of a grand plan or a system in which they all contribute to a better whole.

Pot Holes that Just Won't Quit by Design

Greetings friends....thanks for allowing me to take a bit of a break while I settled into my new home in New York City. Onward!

I have talked before about bribery and corruption in India on a few occasions--and every occasion was met with refutes from the field.  Every time I find an article that supports my position I make an effort to post it so visitors to India can begin to understand how the inner workings of the country effect their everyday lives.  A recent post in the IndianExpress is a perfect match.

Karnataka which is the Indian state the holds Bangalore and Mysore both considered wealthy cities by most standards is looking into the problem of pot holes.  Specifically: why do they keep coming back?  The high court in Karnataka recently stated:

“They (Bangalore Mahanagar Palike) want the roads to remain in good condition only for two months so that they get kickbacks from the contractors for awarding relaying works. The palike does not want the road to be in good condition even for two years.”

I was once driving through Bangalore during a rain storm.  Bangalore does not get the rains of Bombay --- monsoon like rains that happened during this visit.  As we floated over to the call center on roads that were slipping over with water in our SUV we watched with horror as the beautiful lines that bring data into and out of the region were slip--slip--sliding around on the side of the road.  They had been unearthed and were floating there in all of their orange and blue glory. 

Many travelers complain about the infrastructure in India and this opinion piece is a testament to how far India has to go to build a sound foundation around all of the bubbling growth that has brought extensive capitol into the region--this region in particular has highly profited from Western investment into technology and customer service facilities.  Its time for India to take these proceeds and plan for the future needs of their state so they can continue to offer world class talent to the world.

Made in India: Cars that are big/small/cheap/expensive

Tata Motors is building a 2,500 car.  As the New York Times puts it so elegantly "The upside is a car expected to retail for as little as the equivalent of $2,500 or about the price of the optional DVD player on the Lexus LX 470 sport utility vehicle". 

As we eagerly await for the launch of this car, Tata Motors has been shopping for a luxury brand vehicle and has found it: Jaguar and Land Rover.  "Ford Motor Co. has picked India's Tata Motors Ltd. as the top bidder to buy its Jaguar and Land Rover units, the Detroit automaker said Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008"

Things are happening in this world and I wonder if people are paying attention.  I laugh at the idea of people driving around a car branded with British ideas being subsidized in the land the Brits abandoned in 1947.  Who is having the last laugh?

What is striking is the unbelievable thinking that went into designing this cheap car that works for India.  It does not work for any country with strict emission standards (please don't write to me and tell me I should not support this innovation because it harms the environment) or maybe any standards at all.  This being said, it will provide transportation to Indians who currently cart their family around on a motorcycle.  For those of you who have traveled to India you know exactly what I am talking about.  Four people crammed on one motorcycle. 

The car is nicknamed the "people's car" and apparently some very large accommodations were made to crank out the cheapest car out there.  It is designed to go about 44 mph.  This should not be a problem as India roads roam very very slowly.  The trunk has room for a briefcase, and thats it.   No radio, power steering, and only one window wiper.  It has only a gas gauge, speedometer and odometer on its control panel.   The engine has 30-35 horsepower. 

So its small and its slow and no one in India is going to care.  This is the most amazing invention and one that shows the true spirit of innovation that is happening inside India.  They are developing things that work for them that their obvious competitors never thought up.  I have a personal feeling about this invention being from the land of cars that is Michigan.  I wonder how the car companies that used to rule the world feel about missing this boat as well as selling off one of the grandest luxury brands on the planet. 

Now all India has to worry about is learning how to drive...which in itself is a formidable challenge. One reporter said the typical test for obtaining a license in India "consisted of turning on the ignition and driving in a wide circle that took about a minute."  Having personally been struck by a motorcycle on the streets of Bangalore I am not the least bit surprised to hear this account.

Outsourcing: Coming to a city near you

A recent article in the New York Times , "Outsourcing Works so India is Outsourcing Jobs", made me wonder why us "ingenious" Americans are not taking advantage of the outsourcing trends that Wirpo, Infosys, and other heavy hitting Indian players.  I wonder if the US as a whole has written off the positibility of providing back-end services in-country or starting a US based firm to compete with the powerhouses in India.  Do we need to travel to India to learn "how its done"?

Yes apparently.  Indian companies see the global economy clearly.  Perhaps more clearly than we want to see it.  And why?  Is it the one stop shop that is most attractive?  Here is one example from the article:

Such is the new outsourcing: A company in the United States pays an Indian vendor 7,000 miles away to supply it with Mexican engineers working 150 miles south of the United States border.

I fear what the end of the article portrays through a cute story is actually what most Americans think is happening in India:

And yet, even as outsourcing takes on new directions, old perceptions linger.

For instance, when Jeff Rand, a 23-year-old American trainee, told his grandmother he was moving to India to work as a software engineer for six months, “she said, ‘Maybe I’ll get to talk to you when I have a problem with my credit card.’ ”

Said Mr. Rand with a rueful chuckle, “It took me about two or three weeks to explain to my grandma that I was not going to be working in a call center.”

Its time to think globally and act locally.  This means US companies should be concerned that companies like InfoSys are investing in Phoenix and Atlanta locations to increase the spread of their reach.  American companies should be called to jump into the outsource game with the same veracity that has caused the India explosion.

The Vision of IndiaThink

I have taken the last 1 month plus to sit out writing and start thinking instead.  Thinking about where IndiaThink is going and where I want to take it.  I have come up with a vision that I hope to steer the ship to over the course of 2008: 

IndiaThink offers a platform for professionals to find solutions to outsourced project problems, strategies for implementing best practices, and guidance for those considering entering the India market place. 

Over the coming months this focus will be relayed through my posts.  As I realign my strategy around IndiaThink I hope you will find the answers that you seek out through this site. 

Namaste
Brandi