During the last decade, the pace of change has been mind-bogging the world over, more particularly in India. Economy and industry have been both, the cause and effect of these changes. Today, an Indian investor watches the movements on NASDAQ with equal interest as on the BSE, and a dean of a British University is really concerned about the choices of an Indian student. 

TASMAC Management Review is a small step in this direction. Conceptualized as a serious management journal, TASMAC Management Review will cover a wide range of management subjects, various aspects of economy, sociology, psychology and many other disciplines that have a bearing on management and its performance. It will introduce the reader to new theories, tools and techniques, books and research papers and many other things. 

TASMAC with its unique international education model is in an advantageous position to bring out such a magazine. Continuous interaction with the industry stalwarts and a close association with renowned scholars in prestigious universities worldwide, allows us to source the latest in management thought in India and the world over. Meaningful dissertation work done by students is a distinguishing feature of the management programme at TASMAC. This, together with the insights provided by research scholars here, is a vibrant source for TASMAC Management Review. 

Over 15,000 copies of TMR are mailed to leading corporates, universities and management institutes in India and abroad.

All of us are at the forefront of India’s success and future. To any observer it is evident that India has got a glorious past and an exciting future. But we are now in the globalized world and competition is fierce. A lot is happening in this country but there are  certain questions that we need to answer:

• How long will this dream-run continue?
• Whether the impressive growth rate of over 8% is going to be sustainable?
• To what extent is the common man going to be benefited out of this?

Sustainable Growth needs a Self Belief that it can happen, and in the Organizational context, a Shared Belief that it can happen, the (self and shared) tenacity to make it happen, the (self and shared) perseverance to see it happen. And without this no managerial lessons can help direct growth. 

Sustainable competitive advantage allows the maintenance and improvement of the enterprise’s competitive position in the market. It is an advantage that enables businesses to survive against its competition over a long period of time.

Seaton is the brainchild of Michael Miles and Hugh Farrington, which started in 1988. It is ranked among the top most Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) companies in the US by HRO Today (July/August 2006) 

Michael Miles and Hugh Farrington revamped `candidate processing system’ (CPS) and vendor-on-premise staffing’. Some of the factors which led to the birth of CPS were, decentralized and non- standardized processes, inadequate response management, long pre-screening & hiring cycles, inability to meet ramps & achieve fill rates, various technology constraints, lack of specialized industry expertise, cost escalations involved and managing retention & attrition. 

Seaton addresses the state of the temp help industry, where there is no dominant leader. People Scout believes in recruiting the “right people; right now” as Recruitment is a business issue and not just an HR issue, said Mahesh. We have developed software and systems to keep our recruitment engine moving.

A new challenge: dual certification

Accustomed to delivering of a rapid pace, the F&S team looked for a new challenge in 2006. Understanding Accenture’s commitment to incorporating environmental best practices into its business operations, the team sought to attain two prestigious certifications: International Organisation for Standards (ISO) 14001 for environmental management, and Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001 for occupational health and safety. At first, the goal of the project was to motivate the team. Achieving these certifications would not only allow the team to work on a highly visible project but also prepare them for delivering the next site or managing the next set of escalations.

But can you teach an old dog new tricks? Often, it’s not that you can’t teach old dogs new tricks; you can’t teach some dogs any tricks at all. What often holds a company back from growth is the company itself. Like the in-house top appointee who maintains the status quo, the corporate being can become “deeply conservative, very unwilling to change and, even worse, loath to concede that change is required. In any turnaround, it’s real reform of the human relationships which determines performance.

What would you call on innovation that converted waste into profit? I would call it brilliant and that’s what our team of Natural Search achieved with the application of Six-Sigma technique. 

It all started one afternoon when a senior manager at the NS group walked into my office with pages of tabulated material. `Have a look’ he said, waving the sheaf at me. “I just discovered that we are wasting a lot of leads that we generate, on which we are spending good money, time and energy. We need to do something about it.” 

Let me give you the background. Natural Search is in the business of lead generations through internet. That is, we optimize the content of the websites and create online advertisements for our clients so that they get people to click on their links/ads, visit their sites,fill up the on-line application form and avail of the client’s services. Mainly, our UK based clients are mostly into mortgages and financial solutions, and also telecom, automobiles, fashion accessories, travel etc.