There has been a lot of discussion lately, at least in India, on whether brands should stay quiet during Covid or continue to communicate with their customers. I think much of the dilemma stems from the fact that certain industries have been hit so hard during Covid, either from pandemic fears or from the lockdowns… Continue reading Brands and Covid: Long Time, No See!
With the phenomenal growth of China over the past three decades and its adoption of capitalism and private enterprise, albeit with Chinese characteristics, we have to question many of our assumptions about capitalism, communism, free market economies and state control. Not only are some Chinese companies beginning to enjoy high market shares and market valuations,… Continue reading Brands and Democracy: Freedom of Choice Helps Brands Thrive
Let us not mistake today’s economic crisis in India for a purely Covid-related one. The Indian economy has been in slowdown mode since 2015. The past 5 years have been marred by one economic blunder after another, causing untold hardship and misery to millions of Indians. I won’t go into the details of those bad… Continue reading What Can Help the Blundering, Comatose Indian Economy?
This is an article I wrote for LinkedIn as it was prompted by a share there. However, the subject of educational institutions as brands has been on my mind for quite a while now. Especially India's institutes of excellence in engineering and business management, the IITs and IIMs. Like many companies, educational institutions don't see… Continue reading Educational Institutions as Brands
As businesses slowly try to get back to work and shops and establishments open after the Covid-lockdown, it will be a while before people get used to the idea of moving around freely in our cities. Post-Covid, the automobile industry in China seems to be seeing a reasonable uptick in sales, though it is not… Continue reading Time for Automotive Industry to Change Lanes
It is human connections with each other that make us who we are. And an integral part of that is personal, face-to-face interactions, which technology only allows so much of. But at least we have that; people who suffered the Black Death or the Spanish Flu didn't know what was happening to their family members… Continue reading Writings On The Wall #8: Staying Human
Covid-19 has been a time of turning inward, of withdrawal from the world. But it's also been a time of binge-watching, binge-streaming, binge-listening and more online. Now that lockdowns are being relaxed, people have already begun talking of binge-shopping. I am not so sure about that yet, but it's just the time to discuss the… Continue reading Owl About Words: Made for Post-Lockdown
As countries start relaxing their Covid lockdowns, we are also aware that Covid has still not left us. It will be many months, say scientists and medical researchers, before Covid-19 is vanquished. Not until a vaccine is discovered, that is. In my previous podcast edition on Covid-19, I had looked at the enduring effects of… Continue reading All Not Equal Before Covid-19: Owl Wisdom Podcast
As India and many other countries gradually lift or relax lockdown conditions in their towns and villages, no one would welcome this more than the women who suffer domestic violence and abuse in their homes. They will finally have a chance to breathe free. At least for most of the working hours that they or… Continue reading What End of Lockdown Means for Women
We have allowed so much technology into our lives, we are hardly conscious of it. From checking our mobile phones for messages from the time we awake, to streaming a film before going to bed, our entire day is lived in a technology bubble or envelope. We have never ever questioned its relevance, nor the… Continue reading Open Sesame… Big Other is Here
Peripatetic Perch 