MBAs During Recession : Advice From Gautam Ghosh

Its a great pleasure to present a guest post from Mr Gautam Ghosh on a topic which is currently on the top of the mind of all MBA students who are facing a dull placement season this year.

Gautam Ghosh is an HR Consultant based out of Delhi. An MBA in HR from the prestigious XLRI Jamshedpur, Gautam had an illustrious career in organisations like Deliotte and Touche, Hewlett Packard, Dell and Satyam before venturing into the field of HR Consulting.

An expert in the field of Human Resources Management, Gautam is also an avid blogger. His HR Blog is listed among the top 25 best HR blog by HR World. You can read his blog at gauteg.blogspot.com and gautamghosh.net

I am sure that readers of marketing practice will greatly benefit from the insights and advice from Gautam Ghosh.

How to prepare for placements in tough times .

First of all Harish, thanks for giving me this opportunity to write a guest post. As we all know the economic scenario worldwide is yo-yo'ing and is not one for the faint hearted.

When Harish asked me if I could write a post for students who are looking at graduate into a tough job market, I wondered what I could say to these young bright students.

Then it struck me. Placements are a time for marketing yourself, and in this tough market the principles of marketing become relevant more than ever.

So here are a few thoughts:

1. Be a quality product. As any marketer worth his salt will let you know, there is only so much you can do to sell an average product. Being an outstanding product goes a long way to make the marketing easier. That means not just raw intelligence but a lot of emotional quotient also. The ability to build relationships and get things done. The courage to take decisions. All these matter in addition to your ability to analyze numbers and define processes.

2. First generalise then specialise. Brands and marketers live and breathe segmentation. However, as an individual in the brand bazaar it's always better to generalise more and more and then decide on when to specialise. The upsides of specialisation is that during boom times you can command a premium, but the downside is that during a period of slump the generalists are the last to get laid off. Take the decision depending on how much risk you can take

3. Keep developing and evolving - Brands need to continuously develop and be relevant to the context. As a professional that is imperative too. Building skills and keeping an open mindset (to new horizons, mobility etc) is key to developing as a professional.

4. Prove your worth. As the economy slows, people's perception of what you can do would be different than what they would have assumed a year ago. Their risk taking propensity would have reduced, so be prepared to prove your worth before any additional work is given your way. Credibility would have to be earned and not assumed.

5. The start is just the start not the end. I know how stressful placement days can be. I lived through some of the most harrowing days of my life from days 1 to 3 in my campus placement season when 'dream company' after 'dream company' rejected me. Looking back, I can only see what seems obvious now. The first job has little or no bearing on where you are in ten years. The only case where it has a bearing on is you're lucky to join a job which you stick to for decades. Yes even in this day and age. There are some lucky folks like that too.

Gautam Ghosh



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MBAs During Recession

Brand Update : Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots

Dairy milk has launched a new product called Dairy Milk Shots. The product is not a bar chocolate but a candy. The ball shaped candy is milk with chocolate cover. The new variant is being promoted in various television channels

Watch the TVC here : Mann Mein Laddoo


The product is being equated to Laddoo ( an Indian Sweet ) and is being promoted using the tagline " Mann main Laddoo " .

Diary Milk had earlier extended itself into Eclairs. This is another stretch for the brand which is synonymous with Bar Chocolate in India.

Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots has already been in existence in other parts of the world. The brand is currently priced at Rs 2 for a pack of two shots.

Earlier the rival Nestle's brand Munch had launched a similar kind of product called Munch Pop Chocs.

I personally have negative opinion against too many brand extensions . But in a product category like confectioneries , one is forced to get into various extensions inorder to keep the product in the limelight. Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots will attract those who want little doses of Chocolate and its a good one to share too.

Related Brand
Cadbury's Dairy Milk

Bio Fresh : Making Fruits and Vegetables Healthy

Brand : Bio Fresh
Company : Blue Saffire Trading Corporation


Brand Analysis Count : 355

Bio Fresh is a new product that has been launched in Kerala recently . Marketing is about meeting needs profitably and successful marketers are able to identify the needs by closely watching the marketing environment. Bio Fresh is such an initiative by a little known company.

Bio Fresh is an organic cleanser which can be used to clean fruits and vegetables. We all are aware that there is an indiscriminate use of pesticides and harmful chemicals on fruits and vegetables . There are cases where fruits like Apple are waxed inorder to preserve it and make it look fresh.

Although there are many incidence of poisoning reported because of this indiscriminate use of harmful chemicals, nothing has been done by government or authorities to check such contamination. Infact India does not have a regulatory and infrastructural framework to check such contamination on vegetable and fruits.

One one hand, doctors and health practitioners exhort public to eat more fruits and vegetables and on the other hand there are growing concern about the harmful chemicals being present on raw fruits and vegetables.

It is in this context that a product like Bio Fresh gains importance. According to the company website and newspaper reports :

" Bio Fresh is an organic cleanser made of extracts from microbes and citric acid which has the ability to clean fruit and vegetables from pesticide and insecticide residues. It is even able to clean the waxing on fruits . The product does not leave any after tastes or residues"

The pesticide and insecticide residues normally cannot be cleaned effectively using running water. The company claims that Bio Fresh can clean fruits and vegetables from such contamination.

The brand is currently available in select cities in Kerala. Bio Fresh is retailing at Rs 79 for 200 ml bottle.
The company has been running some print and visual campaigns in Kerala.

My first impression about this product is highly positive. It really address a common problem faced by households. But that does not guarantee the success of a product.

Although most of the households are aware of the problem of contamination, Bio Fresh has the tough task of convincing the homemakers that this brand is the savior.

The problem I see is that how will Bio Fresh convince the customer that it cleans these fruits and vegetables from pesticides ? The benefit cannot be visually seen by the consumer. Hence convincing the homemaker is not going to be an easy task . For a brand to be able to convince the customer about its benefits, the benefits must be observable.

Although I have not used the product, I feel that the benefits cannot be observed by the consumer. ( I will use it an update on this soon ). And if it is not observable, will the consumer pay and use this brand continuously believing the claims ?

So how can a marketer be able to convince a customer on some intangible un-observable benefits ? The idea will be to tangibilise and make it observable. The brand can use clinical and laboratory tests to prove its efficacy and use those test results to convince the customer.

Using influencers like doctors and health specialists can go a long way in building trust among the consumers. Brands like Colgate and Johnson and Johnson use doctors ( or models posing as doctors) to build the trust for their products. Bio Fresh also need endorsements from such trust -worthy source inorder to break into homemaker's mind.

If the claims are true Bio Fresh is a product that can give lot of homemakers relief specially in households where there are kids .

MBAs during Recession

Lot of readers of this blog are MBA students so I thought I would share my thoughts about the tough times ahead for aspiring management graduates.

This is placement season in most of the business schools and the worried look on the face of my colleagues in placement team confirm the fact that things are not rosy out there. Companies have cut back on their campus visits and jobs are slowly but surely drying up.

I think its time to do some reality check.

All the students who are now sitting for placements this season entered the MBA course when things were nothing but perfect. Last five years was the best period for any professional students.
Irrespective of the size and quality of the school, recruiters came in and took people in bulk. I used to tell the students that this is the right time to enter the job market armed with a management qualification.

Suddenly things are not the same.

Accept the Reality

I would urge my students across the campuses to please accept the fact that times are going to be tough. There is no need to deny the inevitable. We are in a slowdown. There will not be mass recruiters coming in and taking 50 or 100 students at a time.

According to placement co-ordinators, the number of companies visiting the campus may see a 50% drop.

Companies are going to be choosy

Having said that , I don't think that there will not be jobs. There will be lot of jobs. Even during economic slump, corporates need people. But the demand for human resources is going to come down drastically .

So companies are going to be choosy. Earlier during growth period, companies used to recruit in plenty because they were expanding very fast and time was short to pick and choose.
So the HR departments took the " Swim or Sink " approach where they recruited plenty without much scrutiny ( cannot afford to be because demand is huge ) . The idea is that those who can swim will survive and others will move out .

At one point of time, talk of the town was that anybody who can speak well will get a job. But now corporates cannot afford to splurge.

That means there will be less number of jobs and more candidates.

IIMs and top tier 1 business schools may not suffer much but the hit will be taken by the tier 2 and lower level business schools.

So What should MBA students do now ?

I am giving certain thoughts and would urge you to please put in your thoughts too in the comments section.

Be Realistic

Its time to crash- land. Please accept the fact that salaries are going to be low this time. You cannot blame either the college or the industries for doing that . The fact is that most of the corporates are tightening their budgets.

Hence be prepared to work on a reasonable package. I have to emphasis on the term " reasonable " because most of the students have their salary expectations based on the time when they joined . What I learn is that the salaries offered to freshers have come down by 30 %.

Most of the companies are now linking salary to performance ( usual practice !) and hence be realistic in your expectations. So when an offer comes to you with a reasonable salary, accept it. The focus should be on survival.

Start your workout

Its time for the students to have a self- assessment about the skills and knowledge . When the jobs are less and competition is more, you have to be prepared to fight hard to convince the recruiters that you are worth it.

Please accept the fact that No recruiter will take you because you have an MBA degree . They will take you for your skills . If you are able to prove your worth, you will win the job.

So do the following activities :

Be aware
Read business dailies and magazines and prepare notes on the major issue that are haunting global economies .
Brush up your communication skills.
In the past you will be recruited if you have good communication skill. But now you will be rejected if you do not have communication skill. ( Have you understood the difference ? ) .

Know the funda well
Those who tell that theory and practice are different is giving you wrong ideas.
How will a recruiter check whether you work hard ?
He will ask you fundas .
If you cannot answer then it shows that you cannot do your work well. So make sure that you are prepared to face funda questions .

Don't hate sales jobs, start loving it
I teach a course on Sales Management and I know the negative vibes from the students towards sales jobs. But remember that sales jobs are easy to get especially during recession times. If you can prove the recruiter that you can give him good volumes, he cannot resist taking you .
So be open to selling insurance , soaps or beedis whether you are a finance pro or an HR diva ( pun intended)

Attitude
Even if you lack communication skills, one factor that can land you a job is having the Attitude. But alas no business school teaches how to have that attitude. I have seen many students with funda and communication skills fail because of attitude.

What are those critical soft skills that recruiters look for :

Confidence in yourself. But make sure that you understand the difference between confidence and arrogance.

Ability to do basic work : Recruiters love people who can DO Stuff. So if you can convince them that you love getting dirty on the field to get things done, you can get that dream job.

Clarity of thought : Are you clear about what you are and where you want to be ?

And the most important of all is

Proof /Evidence
Can you give proof that the person that the recruiter is looking for is you. If not then try to get those proofs.
Give recruiters proof that you are hardworking .
Give them proofs that you are a leader .
Give them proofs that you can deliver what is expected out of you.

Evidence can be in the form of awards , accolades, stories , personal reference, project reports , activities etc.
If you do not have proofs or evidence to support your claims then you will have tough time convincing the recruiters.

Its not late , so start building your case with stories and evidences.

All the very best.

Omega : The Choice

Brand : Omega
Company : SMH

Brand Analysis Count : 354

Omega is a leader in the Rs 600 crore luxury watch market in India. The brand which is an aspirational brand has a long history dating back to 1848. The brand had its origin in Switzerland in 1848 when a young man named Louis Brandt started assembling high precision watches.

But it was in 1894 that Omega as a brand was created. The brand and the company went through lot of turmoils through these periods. In 1930 during the depression, the company merged with other watch makers to form SSIH. The merger was to withstand the economic turmoil at that time.

In 1980 , the brand again went in to financial crisis. SSIH then merged with another watchmaker ASUAG to form ASUAG-SSIH. Now ASUAG-SSIH is owned by a private group and the company has been renamed as SMH. SMH owns some of the iconic watch brands like Tissot, Swatch , Longines and Rado.

Omega has been very active in the Indian market for the last four years. The brand was present in the country through imports but now with the government allowing single brand retail formats for foreign brands , Omega is in full swing to tap the Indian market.

Indian market is a unique market for the watch category. I was surprised to find that the penetration of watches among Indians is abysmally low. According to reports the penetration is only 27 %. That means only 27% of Indians own a watch. The total watch industry is around Rs 2500 crores in terms of value.

The market is broadly divided into low, mass market , premium and luxury segments. 85% of the market is for watches below Rs 500.

Although the bulk of the market is at the bottom of the pyramid, the top the line watch market is growing at a rate of 25 - 30 % . Most of the growth is attributed to the economic growth witnessed by India. With new jobs and profiles taking Indians to new heights of luxury, accessories like watches gain importance in the shopping list.

Its in this context that Omega began its aggressive campaigns in India. Now most of the business and lifestyle magazine have atleast one Omega print advertisement.

Omega's marketing practice is heavily depended on Celebrity endorsements. Its a brand that has successfully used celebrities to create differentiation. Its celebrity endorsers contain the who is who of the world. Some of the celebrity who has endorsed Omega are
Cindy Crawford
George Clooney
Michelle Wie
Michael Schumacher
Nicole Kidman
Ellen Macarther
Ian Thorpe
Michael Phelps
Eugene Cernan and
our very own Abhishek Bachchan

But the most celebrated and famous brand ambassador for Omega is James Bond. I think its the first brand that has a brand ambassador in a movie character rather than the actor. Bond has been wearing Omega watches since 1995 with the movie Golden Eye. The association has been strong and Omega celebrates the launch of the Bond movies through events and special editions. In the latest Bond movie , Daniel Craig wears an Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600m Co-axial Chronometer with a black dial.

These brand ambassadors give a special touch of luxury to the brand. But Omega is not dependant on any of these brand ambassadors and has a personality of its own. Omega is a classic case of a brand using celebrities to its advantage.

Along with the ads, the brand is also active in connecting to the customers through events. Like any other luxury brands, Omega also sponsors sports events because sports form an important part of lifestyle.

Omega was successful because of the secondary association of its country of origin ( Switzerland). The brand has its strength in quality, brand and its heritage. What has made this brand aspirational is the consistent campaigns with a common theme. The brand is positioned as the preferred choice or the rich and famous.

Omega has a distinct advantage derived out of its heritage and strong brand equity. Since Indian consumers are well connected with the world outside, the brand's campaigns using international iconic stars works well with Indian consumers. The brand has also added a touch of local flavor by adding Abhishek Bachchan to the list.

Brand Update : Clinic All Clear

Yesterday when I visited a local shop, I noticed the new Clinic All Clear shampoo sachet. I was quite surprised by the new look of the brand. On close look, I had a feeling that the brand is silently going for a rebranding and repositioning exercise but a very discreet one.

Clinic All Clear brand is the Indian version of 'Clear ' brand which is the global brand from Unilever. By looking at the new packs and logo and the way Clinic All Clear is written on the pack, HUL is slowly rebranding Clinic All Clear as Clear.

As we know Clinic All Clear has couple of line extensions. There is Clinic Plus positioned as a family brand and also a variant for men.

Clinic All Clear is now running a new campaign featuring the brand ambassadors Bipasha and John . You can watch the new commercial at the brand's website : Clinicallclear.com.

The new ad reveals the new positioning of the brand. The brand has moved from ' No Dandruff ' to " Soft and Silky Hair " which is a major change in its positioning.

Does it mean that the brand has discarded its core positioning of being an anti-dandruff shampoo ? The faq in the website say that the brand retains its core positioning of no-dandruff but is adding additional benefits of soft and silky hair . In line with the global positioning, the brand now have Vita-Ace that fortify the hair against hair fall .

I think that Clinic All Clear wants to expand the user base to a larger audience . That may be the reason for diluting the anti-dandruff plank.

HUL is also trying to distance Clinic Plus from Clinic All Clear. Clinic is now a standalone brand with the positioning of a Health shampoo.

I think that over a period of time, Clinic All Clear will be rebranded as Clear Shampoo . Right now the typology is such that "Clear " is made prominent and " All Clear " is in a small font size. It may be a precursor to the rebranding.
HUL has been grappling with the problem of too many line extensions and brands and is finding it difficult to get the right positioning for their brands.

Related Brand
Clinic All Clear

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