questions around the cloud -...

A 9.9 MediA PublicAtion

cfo profile PRATIBHA ADVANI, CFO, NIIT TECHNOLOGIES P. 20

i thinkRuPA VORA, GROuP DIRECTOR & CFO - ALTERNATIVES, IDFC P. 08

on wheelSBMW 640D GRAND COuPE P. 42

VOLuME 04 ISSuE 03

75MARCH 2013

What do cFos think about cloud computing? CFO India

reveals the trends, the challenges and the factors

that improve adoption

QuestionsAround

The Cloud

CFO

PRO

FILE: PRATIB

HA

AD

VAN

I 20

TRAV

EL: ZA

NZ

IBA

R 46

CA

SE STUD

Y: RAV

I S GU

PTA 32

ISSUE

VO

LUm

E

03

04

CF

O I

ND

IA


cfo profile PRATIBHA ADVANI, CFO, NIIT TECHNOLOGIES P. 20

i thinkRuPA VORA, GROuP DIRECTOR & CFO - ALTERNATIVES, IDFC P. 08 on wheelSBMW 640D GRAND COuPE P. 42

VOLuME 04 ISSuE 0375

MARCH 2013

What do cFos think about cloud computing? CFO India reveals the trends, the challenges and the factorsthat improve adoption

QuestionsAround The Cloud

I THINK08 RUPA VORAIn trying times, CFOs need to have long term strategies in place to retain a sense of balance. A strong foundation of ethics and governance says Rupa Vora, Group Director & CFO – Alternatives, IDFC

IN pracTIce 24 EnAblER Of CORPORAtE StRAtEgiC ObjECtiVESMergers, acquisitions and alliances will be important in the year ahead for attaining the strategic objectives of corporations and private equity firms. The level is expected to vary by geography and industry

INsIgHT36 tOdAy’S CfO: whiCh PROfilE bESt SUitS yOUR COmPAny Profiles of today’s CFOs show how the role is evolving and raise important questions for boards about talent and leadership development

Cover design atul deshmukh

AD inDex Zenith Computers iFC | sodexo iBC | Falcon (expo 2020 dubai) BC

CFO InsIdem a r C h | 2 0 1 3

thE ClOUd AgEndASenior finance heads may be eager to adopt cloud technologies but as usual they need a strong case for transition. Assurance of security, privacy, compliance and fit with overall business strategy is likely to drive faster adoption

cOVer sTOry14

cfO prOfIlePRAtibhA AdVAniHotels, dotcom, banks, private equity, IT – you name it and she has been a part of it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Pratibha Advani tells us about her journey, the challenges and the vision for her company

case sTUDy32 tOtAl tURnAROUndFood services company, Jubilant FoodWorks has no option but to be a cost warrior. President and CFO, Ravi S Gupta discusses the challenges of fostering a culture of cost and price consciousness.

cfO lOUNge

42 On whEElS | bmw 640d gRAn COUPE

45 m&E | SKKy

46 tRAVEl | zAnzibAR

regUlars

03 lEttERS tO thE EditOR

48 nOt jUSt thE lASt wORd

46

20

leaDers WOrlD 40 ChAnging yOUR lifE in 2013 People around the world want to change their lives in the new year. David Lim tells us how one can do that as the CXO of our own life

Spring iS in the air, and we are certainly scanning the blue skies. As the current financial year winds down, there is a sense of closure to the tough year that most companies and CFOs have had but there is also the promise of fresh green shoots. “What we will become depends on us and on the choices that we make,” pointed out Finance Minister p. Chidambaram in his annual Budget speech. Sure enough, some really tough choices are upon us.

Our cover story this issue tackles one of the top technology choices facing finance heads–cloud computing. To bring out sharply the di-lemma finance heads grapple with, CFO india commissioned a survey in association with Microsoft. The conclusions when juxtaposed with interviews present an intriguing picture. And for a thought leader’s view on the cloud and what it holds for the future of indian companies do check out peter Cochrane’s interview at a conclave of top CXOs, inflexion, held in Delhi in late February.

Another fascinating piece is the column by rupa Vora, group Direc-tor and CFO, Alternatives, iDFC. She explores another tough choice facing CFOs this season--how to utilise the allocations for mandatory spends on Corporate Social responsibility. The concept has generated a lot of sound and fury in the recent months. it is always a choice though, the lens through which we look. Vora takes a fresh, contrarian and very balanced view, we believe. read it and see if you agree with us.

Jubilant FoodWorks and how its CFO ravi S. gupta upped the ante on cost control through the company is another compelling offering on our rich platter. if that has not been enough to pique your interest, then there is the story of another remarkable lady in this issue, who has wrought a great working identity in the world of finance. This is the story of pratibha Advani’s rise to eminence.

Our staples on strategy, technology and leadership, of course, remain stimulating as usual. On a pleasurable note, there is the speed mania of BMW 640D grand Coupe or the sluggish charms of Zanzibar to consider. in this financial year-end issue, we have made a conscious ef-fort in choosing topics that have dominated our collective mindscape or are likely to in the coming months. it is a buffet of stupendous choice. We genuinely hope you enjoy the variety of this issue and find enough to interest you. Do write in to us on what resonated with you.

And here is hoping that god and the government continue to shine some benevolence on us in the financial new year. Wishing you a great year full of growth, profit and good cheer!

All About Choices

from the consulting editor

Shalini S. [email protected]

22 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

subscriber services:

Call +91-120-4010999

visit cFO india’s Website

www.cfo-india.in

MAnAging DireCTOr: Dr. pramath raj Sinha

eDiTOriAleDiTOr: Anuradha Das MathurCOnSUlTing eDiTOr: Shalini S. DagarASSiSTAnT eDiTOr: purva KholeSUB eDiTOr: radhika Haswani

DeSignSr. CreATiVe DireCTOr: Jayan K narayananSr. ArT DireCTOr: Anil VKASSOCiATe ArT DireCTOrS: Atul Deshmukh & Anil TSr. ViSUAliSerS: Manav Sachdev & Shokeen SaifiViSUAliSer: Baiju nVSr. DeSignerS: raj Kishore Verma, Shigil narayanan & Haridas BalanDeSignerS: Charu Dwivedi, peterson pJ, Midhun Mohan, & pradeep g nair MArCOMDeSigner: rahul BabuSTUDiOCHieF pHOTOgrApHer: Subhojit paulSr. pHOTOgrApHer: Jiten gandhi

THe CFO inSTiTUTeeXeCUTiVe DireCTOr: Deepak gargnATiOnAl HeAD, CFO inDiA: Seema MenonASSiSTAnT BrAnD MAnAger: nisha AnandASSiSTAnT MAnAger: Dr leena narainASSiSTAnT MAnAger - COrpOrATe iniTiATiVeS: Deepika Sharma

SAleS & MArKeTingSeniOr Vp SAleS & MArKeTing: Krishna Kumar KgregiOnAl HeAD (nOrTH & SOUTH): rajesh Kandari (+91-9811140424)nATiOnAl MAnAger (eVenTS & SpeCiAl prOJeCTS): Mahantesh godi (+91-9680436623)SeniOr MAnAger (SOUTH): Anshu Kumar (+91-9591455661) SeniOr MAnAger (WeST): Deepak patel (+91-9820733448) BUSineSS DeVelOpMenT MAnAger: Arjun Sawhney (+91-9582220507)

prODUCTiOn & lOgiSTiCSSeniOr generAl MAnAger (OperATiOnS): Shivshankar HiremathMAnAger OperATiOnS: rakesh Upadhyay MAnAger - lOgiSTiCS: Vijay Menon eXeCUTiVe lOgiSTiCS: nilesh ShiravadekarASSiSTAnT prODUCTiOn MAnAger: Vilas MhatrelOgiSTiCS: Mp Singh, Mohamed Ansari

OFFiCe ADDreSSnine Dot nine interactive pvt ltdOffice no. B201-B202, Arjun Centre B Wing, Station road, govandi (east), Mumbai 400088 inDiA.published, printed and Owned by nine Dot nine interactive pvt ltd. published and printed on their behalf by Kanak ghosh. published at Bungalow no. 725, Sector - 1, Shirvane, nerul, navi Mumbai - 400706 printed at Tara Art printers pvt ltd., A-46-47, Sector-5nOiDA (U.p.) 201301

All rights reserved: Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from Nine Dot Nine Interactive Pvt Ltd is prohibited.

33m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

Letters CFO INDIAmarch 2013

03.13 Your voice can make a change: Share your viewpoint on what’s happening in the community and your feedback on the magazine at [email protected]

Happiness Quotient ConneCt thanks for “How Happy are india’s CFos.” My wish is that every Ceo and entrepreneur across the sMe segment should study this article, as it is well articulated with wonderful facts as well as insights. i think it is appropriate to say that the CFo’s role is more like how an entrepreneur perceives the role in an organisation. some entrepreneurs believe in driving the CFo for success while a few believe in giving instructions to CFos. a CFo’s challenge lies in a good balancing act between short term and long term challenges. it was interesting to study that 33 per cent CFos are always looking for a change. Here i would like to express my opinion that, it may be due to challenges in meeting short term targets in an organisation. one needs a lot of patience to grow in and enjoy the role of CFo. —G.T.Kannan, CFO – Dustven Private Ltd, Bangalore.

Keep up tHe good worK! the previous issue was very good. i want to congratulate your editorial team. Your issues are very good, informative and well structured. i will go through your latest issue and convey my views soon. —Robin Banerjee, Bilcare

i would like to congratulate everyone for creating an innovative forum like CFoneXt 100. i would like to mention here that the magazine has good content in every issue focussing on various areas right from areas like soft skills, data security to interviews with tycoons. i am actually learning and practicing the soft skill outlined in articles of CFo india particularly under innovation as it really creates awareness in certain aspects. —Virang Bhatiya, Dy. Manager – Management Audit & Assurance Services, Adani Infra (I) Ltd

soft skill Focus

66 C F O i n d i a f e b r u a r y 2 0 1 3 77f e b r u a r y 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

cover story

future finance leaders unveiled!

One day, as we discussed how critical succession planning had become for the continued success of any corporation we figured it would be good to ask the Chief Financial Officers how they themselves

viewed succession planning. Then came the Eureka moment: why not find out how skilled and capable our future CFOs real-ly are? Can we do something constructive that will help India Inc find out who the top financial superstars of tomorrow are?

It was no easy task mind you! The success of the entire pro-cess depended on the level of engagement, involvement and support our friends in the CFO community gave us.

After receiving over 300 nominations and we put the list through an extensive “age, experience, completed-CV and rec-ommendation re-check filter” before 166 names were short-listed. These 166 finance executives were then interviewed by at least one and in many case two of the 40 jury members

– all of them leading Indian CFOs and many of them past winners of the prestigious CFO100 Roll of Honour. Once the interviews were done, shortlisted candidates had to attend at least one of the three leadership workshops or the webinar we hosted thereafter. A combination of their jury score, participa-tion in the workshop and their overall track record were then added to arrive at the final score.

Finally in a glittering ceremony in Mumbai we recognised and honoured India’s first CFONEXT100 winners, in the presence of several CFOs and eminent guests. We did not want this list to remain only with those present on that day. So as you turn the pages, you will know who India’s future finance superstars are.

As the Chief Guest for the awards ceremony Vice Chairman and MD of HDFC Mr Keki Mistry said: they are not just stars of tomorrow. They are stars today!

CFO India presents the most definitive list yet of India’s top future CFOs, who were nominated by their seniors and peers and finally, interviewed and judged by the nation’s leading CFOs who sat on the jury

Dhiman ChattopaDhyay Design by atUL DeshmUKh

Form IV Statement of ownership and other particulars about the publication, CFO INDIA as per Rule 8

1 Place of publication Nine Dot Nine Interactive (P) Ltd. Bunglow No. 725 Sector 1, Shirvane, Nerul, Navi Mumbai 400706, District Thane

2 Periodicity of its publication Monthly

3 Printer’s nameNationality(a) Whether citizen of India (b) If a foreigner, the country of originAddress

Kanak GhoshIndianYesN/ABunglow No. 725 Sector 1, Shirvane, Nerul, Navi Mumbai 400706, District Thane

4 Publisher’s name Nationality(a) Whether citizen of India (b) If a foreigner, the country of originAddress

Kanak GhoshIndianYesN/ABunglow No. 725 Sector 1, Shirvane, Nerul, Navi Mumbai 400706, District Thane

5 Editor’s name Nationality(a) Whether citizen of India (b) If a foreigner, the country of originAddress

Anuradha Das MathurIndianYesN/ABunglow No. 725 Sector 1, Shirvane, Nerul, Navi Mumbai 400706, District Thane

6 Name & Addresses of individuals whoown the news paper and partners or shareholders holding more than one percent of the total capital

Nine Dot Nine Interactive (P) Ltd.Directors: 1) Dr. Pramath Raj Sinha, 2) Mr. Asheesh Kumar, 3) Mr. Vikas Gupta, 4) Ms. Anuradha Das Mathur, 5) Mr. Kanak Ghosh, Bunglow No. 725 Sector 1, Shirvane, Nerul, Navi Mumbai 400706, District Thane

I, Kanak Ghosh , here by declare that the particulars given above are true to best of my knowledge. Sd/-

Dated: March 1, 2013 (Signature of publisher)

44 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

environment

03.13

(.56 degree C) warmer than the 1951-1980 average and that was enough to increase extreme high temperatures last year. In another recognition of the heat quotient of 2012, it was also the 36th consecutive year with a global temperature hotter than the 20th cen-tury average.

Senator Barbara Boxer, a Califor-nia Democrat who chairs the Senate Environment Committee, said the reports make it clear that the Earth is warming. He also said that one can-not afford to ignore these warnings and plans must be made to address this threat as the health and well being of everyone around the world is threatened. Despite evidence that human activities that emit carbon dioxide contribute to climate change, some skeptics maintain that the rise in global temperatures is due to natural variability or other non-human factors. Others question whether temperatures are in fact rising.

GISS and NOAA also issued their report on global snow and ice cover, finding that the Northern Hemisphere had its 14th largest winter snow cover in 47 years of record-keeping. By spring, though, Northern Hemisphere snow cover shrank to the sixth-small-est size on record, NOAA said.

ACCORDING TO TwO US climate watch agencies, 2012 was one of the warmest years in the modern global weather record. The US space agency Nasa and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration jointly issued two reports on 2012 world temperatures. Nasa ranked last year the ninth-warmest since record-keeping began in 1880, while NOAA found last year was the tenth-warmest.

According to James Hansen, Director, Nasa’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York, the differences in the rankings between the two agencies may be due to Nasa’s extrapolation of temperatures in areas with no weather stations, particularly near the poles. He added, the global surface temperature in 2012, including land and water, was 1 degree F

2012 was among 10 warmest years

HUNGAmA DIGITAl mEDIA Entertainment, the digital enter-tainment company has joined hands with Gameshastra – the game studio to bring an integrated and comprehensive gaming base. Hungama will bring their strength in mobile and online gaming and Gameshastra will deliver localised games across platforms. The company has an expertise in game development across platforms including PSP, PS2, PS3, wii, Nintendo DSm Android, iPhone, iPad, Facebook, Xbox 360 and PC/mac.

The companies will bring their exclusive IP across genres ranging from Bollywood to sports in console gaming and games for the iOS and android platforms.

Neeraj Roy, mD & CEO, Hungama said, “The concept of gaming has caught on across the world and is gaining rapid pace especially in the mobile and connected devices environ-ment. Through our partnership with Gameshastra, we will create a bouquet of games that are engaging and addictive for the average gaming enthusiast. we hope to provide them with the ultimate gam-ing experience in the comfort of whichever connected environment they choose.”

Prakash Ahuja, CEO of Gameshastra added, “The sophisticated devices and seamless connectivity has brought us to a whole new age of gaming. we see a huge demand, for localised content and our partnership shall definitely be the starting point of an emerging trend in the Indian gaming arena.”

GAminG

Hungama, Gameshastra form JV

55m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

THE CFO POLL

Will imposing taxes with retrospective effect scare away foreign investors?

Will the budget be able to revive the economic growth?

WHaT’s aROUND ZONECFO Book: Joydeep Nag ......................................Pg 06

Jargon Decoded: Noodle ......................................Pg 06

CFO Movement .................................................... Pg 07

World’s largest solar sail in 2014......................... Pg 07

vote now at www.cfoinstitute.com/poll

4%No

96%Yes

REsULT

CURRENT POLL qUEsTiON

SCIENTISTS AT KING’S College, london have found a unique way to vaccinate without using an injection. They demonstrated the ability to deliver a dried live vaccine to the skin without a traditional needle. The new discovery involves a silicone mould to cre-ate a micro needle array — a tiny disc with several micro-needles made of sugar which dissolve when inserted into the skin.

The new method could be a potential solu-tion to the challenges of delivering live vac-cines in resource-limited countries without the need for refrigeration.

A cheaper alternative to hypodermic nee-dles, the method would eliminate safety risks from needle contamination.

heAlth

Vaccination without needles

O-ZONE

66 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

lATEST RESEARCH FINDS that diet fizzy drinks can raise the risk of diabetes by 60 per cent. The research with a sample size of over 66,000 women found that those who drank artificially sweetened drinks were more likely to develop the disease than those who indulged in regular, ‘full fat’ versions. Published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the findings fly in the face of conven-tional thinking that regular version of fizzy drinks are always worse for our health. The researchers examined the rate of diabetes among women who drank either regular or diet fizzy drinks and those who drank only unsweetened fruit juice. The research pointed out that the women who drank fizzy drinks had a higher risk of diabetes than the ones who only consumed juice.

food

Diet fizz makes you more diabetes prone

JArGon BUSterTHE PHRASE: NoodlE

THE MEaNiNG The term noodle means to think or ponder about a specific issue.

THE UsaGE You might hear this term very often from your colleagues during or after meetings or an important presentation but at this point it is not about food. After a meeting, you can hear someone saying, “Let me noodle over the issue in the evening and I will get back to you “

cfobook

Joydeep NagWall Info Boxes +

What’s on your mind?

i Read...Les Miserables

Joydeep Nag likes CFO India and two others

National Geographic and The EconomistFebruary 15 at 19.30 · Comments · 14 people Like this

RECENT aCTiviTy

Attach Share

CFo

pro

File: am

lan

datta

ma

jum

da

r 26

on

wH

eelS: tata Sa

Far

i Stor

me 42

i tHin

k: k

eki m

iStry 10

iSSue

vo

lum

e

01

04

CF

o i

nd

ia


71%believe their

current job offers potential for higher roles

19%Are looking for a change of job 25%

cFos feel increasing work load impacts job effectiveness

Feel internal bureaucracy stresses

them the most

32%

of the cFos are engaged in

their jobs

81%

Feel long term initiatives are

below average

50%

15%

58%change

for the better

30%Stay the same

12%Change for

worse

Expectation of Organisations

Performnce

cfo profile amlan datta majumdar , CFO, abb p. 26

i thinkkeki mistry, VC & CeO, hdFC bank p. 10

on wheelStata saFari stOrme p. 42

VOlume 04 issue 01

75january 2013

Feel their compensation is above average

Happy areindia’sCFos

How

128 CFOs reveal secrets of work related happiness and how they view their jobs

“Decision-making at

the right level is a critical

aspect of top management

roles”— tW & cFo india Survey

“the real stress comes from

the internal red tape which is an embarrassment

for a cFo”— Senior cFo of a manufacturing firm

i Listen...Rabindra Sangeet6 comments · 11 people like this

PerSonAl

Zodiac: NA Views: Liberal

WorK

Vice President & CFO, South Asia, GE Healthcare – 2003 to presentPAST General Manager, Commercial,

Godrej-GE Appliances & Godrej Boyce – 1999- 2003Senior Finance Manager,Balagarh Power – 1997-1999

edUCAtion

MBA - Jadavpur University, India CA from ICAI B. Com, St. Xaviers, Kolkata

Joydeep Nag is looking forward to the announcements of the annual Budget for fiscal 2013 February 26 at 20.35 · View all 6 comments · 32 people like this

Joydeep Nag believes the healthcare market will need the right type of financing to expandFebruary 20 at 14.20 · View all 29 comments · 56 people like this

Joydeep Nag wants to lead and support the cause of the girl child against female foeticideFebruary 14 at 7.15 · 31 comments · 42 people like this

O-ZONE

77m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

FOR A wHIlE now Bentley has been making fast four seater luxury cars. The Continental GT Speed is their lat-est addition in this vertical. It is pow-ered by a 6.0 litre twin turbo charged w12 engine that generates 625PS of power and 800Nm of torque. The engine is mated to a close ratio eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox for savage acceleration and impeccable cruising ability. The end result is 0-100 km/h in 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 325 km/h for the latest sporty four-seater Bentley. The company claims the new

beast is also 13 per cent more fuel effi-cient than its predecessor. The chassis has been tuned for the ‘Speed’ spec and the suspension lowered to reduce body roll around corners at speeds. The luxury car gets 21 inch wheels along with a darkened grille and front bumper intakes. To keep all the power in check, it is armed with a host of braking and safety features such as traction control, anti-lock brakes, electronic brake force distribution, hydraulic brake assistance, drag torque control and aquaplane detection.

AUto

BENTLEy’s NEW sUPER CaR in india

enerGy

World’s largest solar sail in 2014 NASA HAS ANNOUNCED plans to launch the world’s largest solar sail in 2014 which will travel an incredible two million miles from Earth. The solar sail will use photons from the Sun for propulsion, paving the way for various exploration missions that could be accomplished through the use of ‘propellant-less propul-sion’ technology.

Dubbed Sunjammer, the giant solar sail will measure about 124 feet on a side and boasts a total surface area of nearly 13,000 square feet. led by industry manu-facturer l’Garde Inc of Tustin, California, the Solar Sail Demonstration mission leverages the successful deployment of the NanoSail-D sail, a 100-square-foot test article Nasa launched to Earth orbit in early 2011.

Sunjammer is potentially applicable to an advanced space weather warning sys-tem, which can provide timely and accu-rate notice of solar flare activity.

Attached to a 175-pound disposable support module, the Sunjammer is easily packed into a secondary payload on a rocket bound for low-Earth orbit. The sail will unfurl in space to catch the sunlight.

Once proven, solar sail technology could enable a host of versatile space mis-sions, including flying an advanced space-weather warning system to more quick-ly and accurately alert satellite operators and utilities on Earth of geomagnetic storms caused by coronal mass ejections from the sun.

New CFO at TCsRajesh GopinathanAs of February 10, Rajesh Gopinathan took over as the new Chief Financial Officer of IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), stepping into the shoes of S mahalingam who retired from his Executive and Board position. An engineer and an mBA from Indian Institute of management, Ahmedabad, Gopinath has been with TCS since 2001.

aircel Ltd appoints anup vikal as CFOTelecom services company, Aircel ltd. has appointed Anup Vikal as chief financial officer. He will report to Chief Operat-ing Officer, Dr. Kaizad B Heer-jee. Prior to this, Vikal was the Group CFO, Head of Strategy & IT, InterGlobe Enterprises.

Essar Oil hires amitabh Bhargava as division CFO Essar Oil has appointed Amitabh Bhargava as the Chief Financial Officer of the Explo-ration and Production (E&P) division which is on the verge of commercial production. A chemical engineer and a man-agement graduate, Bhargava has a rich experience of 20 years. He was earlier managing Director at the Nomura India Infrastructure Fund. Essar Oil is a subsidiary of london Stock Exchange-listed Essar Energy.

Cfo movEmENT

cfo i think

88 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

In the mIdst of a global crisis with inflationary pressures, exchange rate volatility, corruption and regulatory uncertainty dominating the business landscape, it is a game of survival and sustainability. no one any longer is too big to fail. In such trying times, CFOs need to develop strategies to win in and create value in the long term. Building a strong team and a solid foundation of good corporate gover-nance needs to be part of the plan.

For a long term view, CFOs are accountable for “the triple bottom line” and companies should strive to prepare three different (and quite separate) bottom lines concentrating on three Ps: Profit, People and Planet which aims to measure the financial, social and environmental performance of the corporation over a period of time. the CFO is the conscience keep-er of the organisation and is respon-

Strategies to win and to create value in the long term are critical, especially in testing times. It is equally important to have a strong foundation of ethics and governance, says Rupa Vora, Group director & CFO – alternatives, idFC

Rupa VoRaFacts & Trivia

EDUCATION: Bachelors of Commerce

from University of Mumbai

QUALIFICATION: CA from ICAI

FIrsT JOb: Began her independent

practice

“The CFO as conscience keeper of the organisation is responsible for ethical behaviour. it is the lack of ethics which causes failures.”

very beginning. ethical principles have to be so deeply ingrained in the ethos of an organization that they help you take the right decisions at all times, including, of course, difficult ones.

this strong foundation of ethics and governance is an imperative to build an institution that lasts. For us at IdFC, ethics is a given. It is a part of our dnA and our values. For a constant reminder to the entire organisation, we have coined the term InsPIRe which encompasses our uni-verse of values that we cherish--integ-rity, nurturing humility, stewardship, partnership, initiative, responsibility and excellence.

Added to this is our focus on envi-ronmental, social and governance issues. these norms are extremely significant for our institutional investors as well. Reflecting this sig-nificance, IdFC is a proud signatory

sible for instilling ethical behavior in the organisation. It is the lack of ethics that causes failures.

ethical standards have to be simple and unambiguous and instilling ethics in an organisation has to start from the

99m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

JIt

hen

gA

nd

hI

to the United nations Principles for Responsible Investment.

trust is the backbone of any busi-ness. If trust is broken, business cannot succeed. Greed kills the con-science. this was apparent during

and after the global financial crisis. to prevent a recurrence, it is essential for companies to show that you do not need to be unethical to be rich and suc-cessful; says, his holiness sri sri Ravi shankar. I fondly call him “Gurudev”.

Corporate culture and spirituality is another aspect that Gurudev dwells on in his discourses. he recounts how a few years ago, it was not considered appropriate for someone spiritual to be working in a business setting.

cfo i think

1010 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Business and spirituality or business and charity appeared to be poles apart. essentially, the notion was that busi-ness is to give less and take more and charity is to give more than you take. Business is about passion and spiritu-ality is about dispassion, such an argu-ment went.

however, there needs to be a balance of passion and dispassion. One needs to balance profit with service; balance aggression to get things with compas-sion to give things. Business, Gurudev says, is about intelligence and intuition and doing the right thing at the right time. Business and spirituality are interconnected. Businesses need to care and share.

“in a sense, mandatory CSR is a particular manifestation of the balanced scorecard. The real challenge will be to ensure that CSR allocations are used judiciously and have social impact.”

that is so true, not just in Gurudev’s sessions but also in the boardrooms. Businesses have been partnering with nGOs and the government to make a difference to society and improve the quality of life. Yet, when the winter session of the Parliament passed the Companies Bill, 2012, that, in a way, mandated a 2 per cent spend on Cor-porate social Responsibility activities; the provision generated a lot of debate and discussion.

While it is right to say that CsR is an investment and the shareholders have a right to decide how much to invest, if we think out of the box, a mandatory CsR can be a boon. In some sense, the mandatory CsR is a

particular manifestation of the bal-anced scorecard.

the same fundamental principle is at work in both the concepts. What you measure is what you get done, because once an activity is measured, it usually attracts more attention and oversight.

Only when companies measure the social impact of their CsR activi-ties will we have socially responsible organisations. Corporates can use this opportunity to put in place a CsR strat-egy that would increase their influence on the market place and also build their goodwill and trust.

While the statute provides the quan-tum and possible avenues for the end use of the funds, the Board will be responsible for oversight and disclo-sure requirements and justification for not using the funds allocated for CsR. the real challenge will be to ensure the CsR allocations are used judicious-ly and have a social impact.

One striking benefit will be that cor-porates will now be more involved in direct volunteer work. their involve-ment and engagement will go beyond just writing that cheque. Promoting social business projects is one of the permitted avenues for CsR spend. this will encourage entrepreneur-ship, provide employment and make CsR sustainable.

the Bill mandates only profitable companies or companies of a good size to spend on CsR activities because they are in a position to share. my suggestion is that companies and the people at the helm should believe in the law of abundance, a universal law that states that there is plenty for every-one. Indian corporates should give with a sense of abundance, and that abundance will come back to them.

CFOs should drive CsR strategy and give back to society. they should be driven by passion about building an institution that lasts.

the views are of the author and not neces-

sarily of the organisation

'The Innovation Steeplechase'In his or her mind, each of us wants to be 'innovative'. Innovation is the new mantra for success for corporations and individuals within them. It is the answer to problems of growth, profitability, productivity, and organisational logjams. It is also the ready response expected from 'leaders' - functional or otherwise.

But like leadership, innovation remains elusive and daunting.

How does innovation come about and how can you bring it about - across the organisation or within your department? Most CXOs feel constrained due to 'too much to do in too little time'... and therefore none left over to innovate or fight deeply entrenched systems that come in the way of change. Equally inertia could result from the feeling that what you do is too mundane to innovate. Misconceptions around innovation only make 'getting started' tougher!

Given how critical innovation is for raising the bar - every time, every day - the 9.9 Leadership Institute is launching a series of 'Innovation Workshops' to help with 'winning the innovation steeplechase' irrespective of where you are in the race - before the start line, in the uncertain middle, or closer to the finish line...

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACTEmail: [email protected]: +91-9999799614Email: [email protected]

What the '9.9 Innovation Team' can do for you...Companies and senior executives are grappling with answers to one or all of the questions below in the innovation context.

The HowHow do I execute and implement?Here we offer our Creativity & Innovation Toolkit to help you kickstart the process to:- Deliver specific outcomes- Sustain the process- Embed programmes to influence the DNA of the organizationIf you are unaware of the one right problem to solve that creates "unfair" advantage for your organization in the marketplace, then "The How" applies to you.We offer Initiation Workshops; Toolkits; Projects and Embedding Programmes - with durations ranging from 2 hours to 2 days to 2 months and beyond.

The WhyWhy should I innovate? Can I be innovative?This question is answered through awareness around innovation, including:- Addressing myths and

misconceptions- And why each one of us can be

'innovative'If you spend all your time making tiny process improvements and watching competitors steal your customers with innovative new products and services, then "The Why" applies to you.

The WhatWhat areas should you innovate for maximum benefit?We outline areas where innovation can deliver serious benefits and identify the most popular application areas across organisations. The most obvious approaches begin with a need for:- Topline growth- Bottomline improvementYour business is going fine, sales and profits are a bit flat perhaps but they will pick up... or will they? If this is your concern, then "The What" applies to you.

Depending on which of these questions dominates your thoughts around innovation, the 9.9 Innovation Team will design a workshop or programme for you and your team.

cover storyCLOUD COMPUTING

1414 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

CloudAgenda

The

1515m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

cover story

shalini s. dagardesign by ATUL desHMUKH

Senior finance professionals across India Inc may be eager to adopt new, high potential cloud technologies but they need a stronger and more persuasive case for the transition. Greater comfort on security, privacy, compliance issues and overall fit with business strategy will likely drive faster adoption

Though cloud-based comput-ing may be the next big ‘high potential’ technology but it will take more than hype

for senior finance executives of large Indian companies to literally take to the cloud. Promises of cost trims and flexibility are important but they need to come attached with other benefits for the CFOs to make up their mind in favour of cloud computing. Overall business strategy, security, privacy and compliance issues may well override the simple cost argument.

CFO India in October 2012 in asso-ciation with Microsoft conducted a poll of senior finance heads of large Indian companies across a spectrum of industries. We found that most finance professionals are keen on smart exploi-tation of these technologies to the advantage of their organizations, but clearly not at additional risk. CFOs are mulling over the cost-benefit trade-offs

quite carefully for now, it seems. Our survey explored the business value that finance heads of large Indian compa-nies see in this space and what their plans and priorities were around this new technology and its applications. The findings evolved from 30 complete survey responses from companies which represent a range of segments and sizes.

The delivery of hardware and soft-ware resources as a service over the network is the essence of cloud com-puting which has gained in popularity across the world over the last few years as organisations and people work-ing in them become more mobile. Vendors who provide cloud services typically point to flexibility, agility and enhanced reliability and security of the IT resources as possible advantages. Improved scalability and reduced cost too can be the happy consequences of moving to the cloud.

1616 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

cover story

1616 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

AverageLowest HighestWhat Do You See As Impediments In Adopting A Cloud Environment For Your Organisation?

Top concerns of CFOs

regarding cloud services

include security,

data privacy, governance-compliance

and the availability of uninterrupted

service

security and privacy of data. Uncer-tainty of service availability and fuzzy cost-benefit equation also deter faster conversion to the cloud. Governance and compliance challenges are other impediments towards transition.

Many of these concerns converge in global pharmaceutical companies where rich data from research and development is involved. Security and privacy of data is mandated by regula-tors in the pharma sector. No surprise then when country CFO, Novartis India, Pramod Gupta says that “globally pharmaceutical companies have taken only baby steps towards the cloud with small scale pilot projects. While there is excitement about the possibilities around the cloud, security, availability of service and reliability are big con-cerns, retarding a move to the cloud so far.” Due to the implementation com-plexity, he believes that the usual argu-ment clincher--cost savings--too better

Cognizant of these claims, CFOs are exploring further, CFO India found. And this is evident from the fact that over a third of the survey respondents (37%) intend to implement a cloud-based solution within the next two years and a similar proportion already have applications running on the cloud. And as they make these experiments, the finance heads are seeking efficiency gains, cost savings, lower cost of owner-ship as immediate benefits apart from standardization and quality control, the survey points out. A deeper exploration of the factors driving their decisions leads to a more nuanced view.

Interestingly, there is a large part of the polled universe that is still waiting. Half the respondents of our survey have not even considered the technology and 13 per cent believe that they will take more than two years to create a cloud environment. Both the experimenters and the fence-sitters are waiting for

65%

25%

10%100

80

60

40

20

0

5%

30%

20%

45%

40%

35%

50%

10%

25%

55%45%

35%20%

45%

30%

15%

35%

35% 63%

16%

65%

35%

25%

40%

20% 20%

35%

55%

30%21%

Secu

rity

co

nce

rns

Dat

a p

riva

cy

Go

vern

ance

is

sues

No

imm

edia

te

bu

sin

ess

nee

ds

Inve

stm

ent

cost

Tim

e re

qu

ired

fo

r im

ple

men

t

Do

n’t

kn

ow

h

ow

to

sta

rt

and

wh

at

Co

mp

lian

ce

issu

es

Serv

ice

avai

lab

ility

Do

nt

kno

w

ho

w t

o s

elec

t th

e ri

gh

t...

No

su

itab

le

solu

tio

n

more validation of the usefulness of the cloud to their own companies. One of the top concerns revolves around the

cover story

1717m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

cover story

“I have not yet seen actual rupee savings versus current costs. However, it helped save on fresh investments on servers which would have been required forour expansion”— Ravi venkateswaR Head Finance and Corporate Services,Godrej Industries

be significant in absolute numbers for global companies to consider moving expeditiously to cloud.

Despite our survey pointing to cost as one of the key decision influencers, anecdotal evidence suggests otherwise. Our survey finds that nearly 80 per cent of CFOs expect cost savings of up to 30 per cent after transition. Ravi Ven-kateswar of Godrej Industries points out that despite having implemented cloud solutions, he is unclear about why costs would come down in case of cloud computing. Godrej Group has managed an early but partial cloud transition due to acquisitions in different geographies. Last year, the group migrated the email and talent management systems to the cloud. “I have not yet seen actual rupee savings versus current costs. However, it helped save on fresh investments on servers which would have been required for our expansion” he says.

Ravi is also appreciative of the other benefits such as quicker ramp-ups and believes that for new businesses it may be a viable option. “Businesses with legacy systems may want to evaluate a little deeper if it is a simple substi-

tution,” he advises. Compliance is a serious issue for many organisations. For example, banks are guided by the regulator Reserve Bank of India’s view

of the cloud points K. S. Narayanan, head, information risk management, ING Vysya Bank. “As of now there is no compelling business proposition for a public cloud. We have not taken a stand either way,” he says though the bank has fully virtualised its own back end and has had a private cloud footprint for the last 18 months. The

bank adopts a risk-based approach. Even over the longer haul, ING Vysya Bank’s Narayanan, does not believe that there will be a case for critical core banking activities moving to the cloud. Non-banking, generic support services such as workflow management may move to the cloud depending on organ-isational requirements.

Strategy and overall business require-ments certainly hold the key in such cases. In case of port operator, APM Terminals Pipavav, cost while impor-tant is not the only parameter that swings the deal, says CFO, Hariharan Iyer. Scalability and flexibility and how well the cloud strategy meshes with the business is central to the logic of imple-mentation. Iyer for instance believes that cost benefits may accrue if the basic assumptions driving the change come true over a period of time. And that only constitutes the perfect hind sight vision. In case of APM Terminals Pipa-vav, the rationale for the cloud draws from the cyclical and volatile nature of the port business. The port operator often sees big spikes and sharp drops in the export-import trade and cloud-based

of CFOs expect to

implement a cloud-based

solution within the next

two years

37%

1818 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

cover story

1818 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

services make enormous sense. Cloud capability allows the company scalabil-ity as well flexibility. The company glob-ally has used the cloud for some time now because as Iyer says, “we choose to invest in our core assets.”

Some companies may find the cloud advantage unbeatable and may be sanguine about outsourcing key activities to an outside vendor. Others may find dependence on an external vendor contentious. These are strate-gic trade-offs which often determine the route to implementation. In such cases, a well known vendor is one form of insurance for the CFO. Other con-cerns include the ability of IT to effec-tively manage utilization and ensuring consistent service quality. A prior map-ping of the vendors’ capabilities to the organisation’s need is certianly useful.

Some of the uncertainty in the minds of the CFOs is also due to insuf-ficient awareness of the possibilities. For instance, 60 per cent of the finance professionals in the CFO India survey were not aware that cloud-based tech-nologies could eliminate security con-cerns in case of employees bringing in their own devices to office--the BYOD trend. As an interesting counter point, a full three-fourths of the CFOs believe that they have adequate or sufficient knowledge of the technologies to take

decisions. And a third of them believe they should lead such an implementa-tion in their own organizations. These findings may well be due to the fact that it is the CFO who needs to ask all the tough questions in case of any transitions. And typically tough ques-tions do not change with technologies. CFOs who intend to implement cloud-based solutions over the next few years believe a stronger case can be made by risk mitigation. Appropriate security measures, disaster recovery plans and

lower total cost of ownership will per-suade the CFOs faster. Private equity firm, Baring is another firm which is currently evaluating the wisdom of moving to the cloud. Neha Grover, head of finance says the cloud has not been relevant to the firm or its port-folio companies just yet given their size and geographic presence. Grover believes better awareness will help. “One realises there are systems and processes to deal with the potential issues that one might have.”

Email, CRM, conferencing systems, web hosting, video hosting, email security and other basic office applica-tions are likely to be the first applica-tions to move to the cloud in the near future, either completely or partially. Like any complex IT or outsourcing project, the adoption of cloud-based systems, should be preceded by care-ful planning and due diligence. Our survey concludes that it would be worthwhile for companies to explore the option of starting the transition with smaller projects--migrating just a few applications on the cloud, evaluating the cost-benefit equation and only then attempting a complete roll-out. As with any technology, cloud computing is only as good as you make it. And CFOs know that better than anyone else.

0

20

40

60

80

100

0

20

40

60

80

100

22.2%

30.6%

30.6%5.6%

8.3%2.8%

21-30%

31-50%

10%Below

Above50%

None

10-20%

How Much Cost Saving Would You Expect Cloud Computing Can Help You Achieve?

0

20

40

60

80

100

0

20

40

60

80

100

50.0%

20.8%

16.7%

12.5%

0-12Months

13-24Months

Over 24Months

No Decisionas Yet

When Do You Plan To CreateA Cloud Environment?

Email, CRM, conferencing

systems, web hosting,

video hosting, email security

and other basic office applications are the first

moves to the cloud

More than 15,000 Members | 85 Chapters Worldwide | 79 Year History

"Member relationships with financial thought leaders from large, highly-diversified global corporations and conglomerates to smaller private companies and non-profits.”

Mary Jo GreenSenior Vice President & TreasurerSony CorPoraTion of ameriCa

"Leading-edge content and objective research for the competitive advantage I need to meet the demands of a multinational computer technology corporation.”

Taylor HawesCfo intellectual Property & LicensingmiCroSofT CorPoraTion

FINANCIALEXECUTIVES.ORG | MEMBER SERVICES 877.359.1070

a newly-established category of fei membership that empowers talented, motivated financial professionals with ongoing opportunities for personal and professional growth as their careers advance

Choose FEI to support your advancing career as a financial professional.

membership Interested in learning more about the Financial Executives

International India Chapter? Contact Tom Thompson at

[email protected]

THE VALUE OF FEI MEMBERSHIP Financial Executives International (FEI) is the professional association of choice for senior-level finance executives.

cfo Profile

2020 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Pratibha advaniChief finanCial offiCer - niiT TeChnologies

Hotels, dotcom, banks,

private equity, IT – you name it

and she has been a part of it

and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Pratibha Advani tells us about

her journey, the challenges and

the vision for her company

PURVA KHOLE

HavIng worked In finance for over 25 years, Pratibha advani has had a pick of roles across industries that include hotels, dotcom, banks and IT and functions that includes audit, corporate finance, legal, shared services and investor relations. She brings her rich and diverse experience to her current role as CFo of nIIT Technologies.

advani spent her initial years in Bihar and then in delhi as her father was in the trans-ferable police services while her mother was a homemaker. She has two brothers, one of whom is a doctor while the other is a banker-turned entrepreneur.

with an artistic bent of mind since childhood, Pratibha advani is a finance leader by default. as we catch up at their nIIT office in gurgaon, she says “when I was in class ten, I was really fond of painting and wanted to join the national Insti-tute of design.” Her father, however, could not come to terms with her career choice because she was always a bright student and he felt she S

ub

ho

jit

Pau

l

withCreativity

Numbers

2121m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

FIRST JOB ITC

BIG BREAK When I joined the hotels division of ITC

AHA! MOMENT When I see my son doing excep-tionally well and getting recongni-tion

LESSER KNOWN FACT I love writing poetry

DREAM To get back to my creative side and begin with painting

Milestones

cfoProfile

2222 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

could have other choices. It was her father who after a chat with her school principal who sug-gested that she take up the Commerce stream in senior school.

with a weakness for not saying no to a chal-lenge ever, advani was nudged into the accoun-tancy field when her father challenged her to clear her Ca exams along with her graduation from Shriram College of Commerce.

This was a nudge that she clearly does not mind. She completely disagrees with the fact that finance is mundane and boring because one can bring in a lot of value to it. She believes that it is possible to bring creativity and innovation to bear in her chosen sphere of work as well.

a finance professional has more insights of the business and the industry than virtually any-body else in the organisation barring the Ceo, says advani. “From that stand point alone it is an extremely rewarding function,” she adds.

Strict timelines, of course mean that there is nothing like a 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 pm job. If one does bit shy away from such time commitment, then the finance function is an extremely excit-ing place to be, believes advani. She would attend college in the morning and train for arti-cleship in the evening. In her last year of college she joined tobacco major, ITC Ltd in kolkata for a stint of industrial training.

That stint was to last a long time. advani was with the company for close to 15 years. as advani grew and matured, ITC also spread its wings into multiple sectors offering advani great work opportunities. Though she began her stint with audit function, she subsequently went through a rotation across all major finance-related divisions of the company. Marriage and a move to delhi also saw her working with the hotels business of ITC. She confesses, “I love working with hotels as it is great fun. It is one place where I would like to go back and work.”

advani’s career took a new turn when she had to give up a move to Bangalore. It was the time of the dotcom boom. and she very briefly joined one owned by Chase Manhattan and the Hindu-stan Times group. within three months it was clear that the revenue model would not work.

The experience was, however, career-enriching because it helped advani get a sense of workable business and revenue models.

after this brief and exciting stint, advani moved to another multi-sector conglomerate. She joined as CFo of a joint venture between

ge Capital and State Bank of India and stayed there for six years. She also took on the role of a Productivity Leader while at ge.

The next switch in her career came via an offer from a private equity firm where her sound background in core, finance function coupled her knowledge of legalese was extremely valu-able. This Pe firm was invest in four star hotels in India with a group called dawnay day. How-ever, the company got sold during the 2008 financial meltdown.

and advani was back in her element. She joined Barclays where she started their shared

ADvANI DISAGREES THAT FINANCE IS MuNDANE AND BORING BECAuSE ONE CAN BRING IN A LOT

OF vALuE TO IT

favouriTe Picks

NEWSpApER The Economic Times, The Financial Express

MAGAzINE The Economist

FILM Breakfast at Tiffanys, Pretty Woman, Arbitrage

MuSIC Ghazals, old Hindi film music, Abba

HOLIDAy SpOT Seychelles and New York

pASSIONS Fitness and pet dogs

cfoProfile

2323m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

services operations in India. It was a large role which included the entire legal, procurement, risk and gover-nance and finance operation. It was also role which kept her away from her family. as we sip coffee, she says, “after Barclays when I looked at my profile, I realised I had not explored the area of Investor relations and luck-ily got an opportunity with nIIT and I love every bit of it.” and it has been an eventful run at nIIT. There has been an acquisition each year ever since she joined, with the revenue rising from 950 crore to 1,500 crore. advani is

hoping that this year, revenues would touch the 2,000 crore-mark despite

the tough overall environment and softness in demand.

“The top line has not been bad, but the real challenge in the industry apart from the demand has been the deal velocity. The entire decision making process has been much slower,” she says. Foreign exchange complexities have put pressure on the pricing mod-els. The company has evolved a Bespoke Pricing to take into account the volatil-ity in the dollar-rupee exchange rates.

Customer expectations too have vaulted in these tough times. To cope with the changed times, the IT indus-try is moving towards fixed price con-tracts which promise efficiencies and

enhanced value to the customers. advani is in a comfortable zone at her present role. Her vision for the com-pany over the next two years is explicit.

“In the next two years, we would like to sustain our growth momen-tum with our revenue doubling. we want to continue and remain in the same focus verticals which are travel and transport, banking and financial services and insurance, manufactur-ing and government. I think more importantly, what we would like to see is much higher profitability and that is one place where we have been chal-lenged.” But then advani has always had a ken for challenges.

“To cope with the changed times, the IT industry is moving towards fixed price contracts which promise efficiencies and enhanced value to the customers.”

in practice Global M&a

2424 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

THOMAS GIRARDI

Mergers, acquisitions and alliances will be important in the year ahead for attaining the strategic objectives of corporations and private equity firms. The level is expected to vary by geography and industry

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) will continue to be a key enabler of attaining the strategic objectives of corporations and private equity firms across the globe in 2013. M&A includes mergers, acquisitions and divestitures; as well as joint ven-tures and alliances. Current recession-ary economic conditions and commod-ity cost fluctuations have fueled a very competitive environment with increased pressure to sustain revenue growth and profit margins across many industries.

M&A is a key part of a financial exec-utive’s toolkit to achieve improved mar-ket positions, portfolio optimisation and hopefully value creation for stake-holders. Among the most prominent impediments to achieving post acqui-sition value creation are due to lack of strategic fit, overestimated synergies, poorly executed integration and over-paying for a target company. The level

EnablEr of CorporaTE STraTEgiC objECTivES

pH

OTO

S.c

OM

in practice

2525m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

of global M&A activity was sluggish in 2012 and may have reached a cyclical bottom in the third quarter (see Chart 1). This reduced level of completed deals reflects the overall political and economic uncertainties that faced busi-ness decision makers in 2012.

With the United States presidential election settled, at least some of these uncertainties will begin to lift. Accord-ing to a recent survey of investment bankers conducted by R.R. Donnelly and Mergermarket, M&A-related issues that may have adverse business inter-pretation under an Obama administra-tion include the direction of long-term tax rates and a more stringent regula-tory/anti-trust environment.

In the U.S., four more years of an Obama presidency will likely trigger some personal and corporate tax policy reforms. If the effective date of imple-mentation of likely higher dividend and capital gains tax rates is deferred until 2014, it should be a catalyst for some privately held sellers. There had been some acceleration of M&A deal flow in the three prior years’ fourth quarters due to threatened tax increases that did not materialise. However, the likelihood of at least some tax increases appears higher now. Private equity firms may also be compelled to accelerate portfo-lio company exits given potential tax-ability on carried interest. Expectations are that despite the split Republican/Democratic control of Congress, some compromises will be reached to avoid ramifications associated with the loom-ing budgetary deficits.

RegiOnal M&a landsCapeThe level of activity in 2013 will vary by geography and industry; influenced as well by macroeconomic and other factors. In Europe, expectations are for a continued reduced level of M&A activity reflecting the repercussions of the Greek debt crisis and bailout across most countries in the eurozone. And though Germany’s underlying economy appears stronger than most

eurozone countries, M&A investment remains muted by associated risk aver-sion. In Asia, expectations are for slow-ing economic growth overall, but coun-tries such as China — with substantial longer term prospects — remain an important target for multinational cor-porations seeking to build their pres-ence. However, there are regulatory, business and cultural hurdles associat-ed with acquiring in China. Achieving success there usually takes years and is often best initiated through a form of joint venture with an established local company. The local M&A mar-ket in Japan will likely remain tepid, which is similar to its economy. How-ever, large Japanese companies have the resources and strategic impetus to make acquisitions abroad. For such firms, the U.S. represents an attractive market given its relevant size, risk pro-file and favorable foreign investment policy. India recently announced a slew of reforms, with the biggest opening of the economy to global investors since 2004, including allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals allowing overseas companies in multi-brand retail up to a level of 51 per cent, up to 49 per cent in insurance firms, and for

the first time permitting foreign invest-ment in pension funds. These reforms may lead to a surge of joint ventures, partnerships and/or increased M&A activity in the region.

Executives should be aware that per-ceptions sometimes drive reality in developing markets. Investment dol-lars will flow toward areas of perceived highest growth, tempered in part by government policy. For example, Myan-mar (formerly Burma) has attracted the attention of large multinational corpo-rations with optimistic expectations for its newly opened economy.

Similarly, Latin American M&A markets are anticipated to continue to benefit from multinational corpora-tions’ aspirations of achieving higher growth and establishing a presence in developing countries. In fact, some corporate strategists and consulting firms are operating under the prem-ise that mature consumer markets in North America and Europe will remain relatively stagnant for the next decade. Their expectations are that most growth will be generated from developing economies. This has been particularly evident to date in Brazil, the largest and most developed economy in the region.

global m&a tRaNSaCtIoNS

2007

43,102

$3,633

38,736

$2,273 32,971

$1,848

$2,310

42,397

47,319

$2,543

40.399

$1,898

Nu

mb

er o

f Tr

ansa

ctio

ns

Glo

bal

Tra

nsa

ctio

n V

alu

e ($

bill

ion

s)

2008 2009 2010 2011 YTD 20120

50,000$4,000

$3,500

$3,000

$2,500

$2,000

$1,500

$1,000

$500

$0

45,000

40,000

35,000

30,000

25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

Source: Capital IQYTD 2012 is up to Octobter 31, 2012

in practice

2626 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

M&A deal levels there have been robust despite relatively high valuation multiples. The activity is expected to remain strong amidst some alignment of sellers’ valuation expectations with an economy that has slowed at least in the near term. Conducting M&A trans-actions in Brazil has challenges similar to China. As such, local tax, legal and due diligence support is integral. Also, initial investment may involve less than full control or be in a joint venture structure. According to a study of cor-porate executives recently conducted by law firm Kelley Drye and Mergermar-ket, 80 per cent of respondents expect M&A between the U.S. and emerging markets to increase. BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are increasingly prospective acquirers of U.S. firms, given factors similar to Japan cited earlier; along with favour-able currency trends.

industRy seCtOR ViewThe level of M&A activity will also vary across industry sectors in 2013. While all industry sectors enjoyed a signifi-cant rebound in 2010 and 2011 from levels during the financial crisis; there was a decline in most sectors during 2012, as the energy, financial services, health care and utilities sectors expe-rienced double-digit declines last year.

These sectors are significantly influ-enced by the political and regulatory environment, which is not anticipated to change significantly this year. The materials industry also declined but was primarily influenced by commodity cost factors. As such, improved economic conditions could boost activity in mate-rials, industrial and consumer sectors.

OtheR M&a dRiVeRsThere are other factors that should posi-tively drive the level of M&A. The U.S. debt markets remain fluid and interest rates remain at historically low levels for qualified borrowers. This funding availability along with deferral of busi-ness investment has resulted in many large corporations having lean balance sheets and strong cash positions. As such, these companies have substantive capacity to proactively pursue acquisi-tions, especially if overall economic conditions improve. Initial public offer-ings (IPOs) are an alternative exit for owners of privately held companies. However, the U.S. IPO market was relatively choppy in 2012 and some planned issuances were put on hold. These conditions will probably remain, at least through mid year, unless there is a significant equity market catalyst. The funding picture is equally favorable for private equity (PE) firms. PE firms

have comprised an increasingly signifi-cant portion of M&A deal flow for the past decade. According to Pitch-Book, approximately 30 funds closed with $35 billion in capital commitments in the third quarter of 2012 alone. This, coupled with existing funds’ capital availability, represents a significant overhang that needs to be deployed in the near future. Similarly, many current portfolio companies have reached the typical PE holding period of three-to-five years. Therefore, PE firms will also be active sell-side parties in 2013, espe-cially if there is a tax-related impetus to accelerate exits. Valuations of consum-mated transactions on an enterprise value/EBITDA (earnings before inter-est, taxes, depreciation and amortiza-tion) multiple basis have improved in all geographies since 2009.

The chart (above) illustrates this valu-ation trend in the U.S. Valuation mul-tiples reached an average of around 10x EBITDA in 2011. This average reflects the inclusion of technology transactions that typically experience higher multi-ples. Multiples were in a similar range in Asia and somewhat lower in Europe. Transaction multiples should stay in a similar bandwidth during 2013. M&A sale process timelines were often pro-tracted in 2012; as acquirers exercised selectivity and caution. This dynamic is likely to continue in 2013 and pro-spective sellers are advised to prepare accordingly. Naturally, higher quality assets with solid profitability and reve-nue growth potential will command the greatest interest. Overall, expectations are that M&A activity will accelerate in 2013 due to various underlying catalysts for both prospective sellers and acquir-ers. Investment bankers are observing a rise in activity at the front end of the prospective deal pipeline.

Thomas Girardi ([email protected])

is Managing Director at HT capital Advi-

sors LLc, a middle market investment bank

focused on M&A advisory. He is a member

of FEI’s New Jersey chapter.

uS tRaNSaCtIoNS ebItda multIpleS

Q1 2010 Q2 2010 Q3 2010 Q4 2010 Q1 2011 Q2 2011 Q3 2011 Q4 2011 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q3 2012

11.00x

10.00x

9.00x

8.00x

7.00x

6.00x

Source: Mergermarket

in practice technology

2828 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Rachit Kinger catches up with Chris Potts – a corporate strategist, a mentor to CIOs and portfolio managers. He also happens to be an award winning speaker

The discussion started with the premise that the role of the CIO is changing but the real question is - to what and more importantly to what end? “The official designation of most people who turn up at CIO conferences is often not CIO. Actually, there are very few CIOs. So we are talking about a role that’s mostly an idea.” Potts says. From a company’s perspective the dynamic of change is something like this: the CEO, CMO, COO and CFO are people who want to make changes in the com-pany, the CIO, on the other hand, must represent the changes that others want to make. This is more of a conclusive statement so let’s go back a little and see how we got here.

At the annual conference in Kerala in August 2011, Chris Potts delivered the keynote session where he talked about the first and second generation of CIOs. He explained it like this: the

A CIO must be A stOryteller

role of the CIO, for the last 10-15 years has been considered an efficiency role. His job was to make things more effi-cient, to deliver faster and cheaper. So the CIO’s role as a whole, with some degree of generalisation, is an efficien-cy role. CIOs are inherently spending people and they are very good at it. In fact, we need people who can do that. So where is the problem then, it’s a wonderful thing to have someone in the company who can deliver products and services cheaper and faster. Why does the role need to change? “Because the race to increase profits by purely focusing on efficiencies is a race to the bottom. You cannot get growth from that,” Potts says. There was a time, not very long ago, when growth was hard to come by and companies were striving to keep their heads above water. That is when the role of the CIO became important. He mapped processes, removed inefficiencies, automated tasks and outsourced work to make the company run faster, more predictably and on lesser resources. Today howev-er, companies everywhere are betting

on growth, especially in developing countries. “You get growth from peo-ple who have the determination, the enterprise, the knowledge to take what-ever little they have and whatever they can lay their hands on and turn it into something radical. That’s an invest-ment agenda,” Potts says while raising his can of Coke Zero as a toast to the statement. A CIO handles budgets and his job has primarily been to spend that money to deliver efficiencies.

Over time, CIOs have mastered the ‘spending’ agenda but that does not necessarily make them good at invest-ment because at the heart of growth is the art of investment not spending. Does that make the CFO the growth man in the company? “No. Not nec-essarily. Finance and investments are two related disciplines but it takes a lot more than money and finance to deliver growth and value.” Potts is very clear about that and he is right, it is what money buys that creates value for the company. “Growth is about managing a portfolio of change. It is not about one project being right but the sum total of

in practice

2929m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

all investments constantly giving you the best answer they can,” says Potts. All that is very good but where does the CIO fit into that? “Most markets have become highly integrated with IT so any structural change in IT will definitely alter the structure of other markets,” says Potts. That is where the CIO comes in because technology is always going to change and change rapidly, what the CIO should do is help the company understand how the change is going to alter market struc-

tures. And how does he do that? “It’s all about telling stories,” says Potts and gives a beaming smile hinting that he is about to reveal a secret. In one of his speaking engagements Potts provoca-tively announced, much to the ire of the conference organizers, “There is a party and it’s in my bedroom.” He pauses for the theatrical effect and takes a sip of his Coke Zero before he explains fur-ther, “Now what I meant is that people like you and me, around the world, are sitting in our bedrooms or our coffee

shops holding devices deciding what to buy and whom to buy it from. That’s the party that’s on. So if the CIO can make sure that people know that he has a story about how to create value using IT then he has an opportunity to be on the growth agenda. If people think that the CIO is most interested in how much to spend in IT, and who would supply it and what model it would be then he won’t be on the growth agenda, he will be on the spending agenda.” Easier said than done, storytelling is not everyone’s cup of tea. Focusing on creating stories does not look like a dependable solution for the CIO. Potts disagrees, “If you are not a professional story teller, it does not matter. What matters is that you tell a story that the board needs to think about, in which customer experiences and IT are integrated. It must be about your customers, why they buy your products and not your competitors.

The board is not looking for how well you tell stories, it is looking for change leadership, about how it should be thinking about IT and where you fit. How you paint pictures with money is very important. We take known num-bers, even if we just know how much we put into different IT projects, we can draw a different picture with those numbers that shows how much of the company’s investment is going into growing the company versus making the company more efficient versus making it more compliant. What we do is put numbers in front of execu-tives, numbers that they know but which tell a different story. A good story starts with the customer and ends with profits.”

It is important to note that CIOs don’t have money, they look after money on behalf of others. So their job is to influ-ence other people to put not just the money but also the energy, the emo-tion and the time, investing in things that will grow the company and not just make it more efficient. As he finished the Coke he said, “It’s about influenc-ing others to change the way they bet on change.

Chris Potts, Corporate Strategist

in practice technology

3030 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Peter Cochrane delves deeper into the latest technology and business trends in Cloud Computing with Geetha nandikotkur

“There are about 700 million customers using the Cloud and almost none of them are in India. And we have to ask the ques-tion Why? The reason is security,” says Dr. Peter Cochrane, CEO & Chairman at Cochrane Associates who was the keynote speaker at the Inflexion 2013 conference in New Delhi late February.

Former Chief Technical Officer to British Telecom who is now an entre-preneur based in the U.K., Cochrane is a passionate cloud evangelist.

He believes that that cloud com-puting is the most secure and most creative environment we have expe-rienced so far. And that in the new world where corporate rules and loy-alty to a company do not matter, where Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is a big trend, where business is social, the Cloud and its attendant security risks offer enormous opportunity to Indian

“The Cloud isn’T a single enTiTy..”

companies to once again sell new ser-vices to the world.

Q What do you think are the major factors hindering the

adoption of cloud?The biggest factor that prevents a com-pany from adopting the cloud is the old mindset of the managers in the IT department. These IT departments have to go. They have no future in a world that is fast moving, very innova-tive, where young people are taking ini-tiatives and working in groups in and out of the company. IT departments are way behind. Security systems are not working when you have young people coming into the company who know more than the IT department. So the challenge is to get the board and the management of the company to understand this and to make the nec-essary changes. There is a funny para-dox here, the IT department will insist that there should be a control on com-puters and mobile phones and board members and managers do not care about this. The will insist on connect-

ing their iPhone or iPad to connect to the corporate network. So it is not such a big step to make people understand the change but we have to change the mode of operation.

Q In your work have you suggest-ed to senior managers to make

cloud a part of corporate strategy?I like to ask questions when we are looking at corporate strategies. Wheth-er they suppose their IT department and their people are as good as Google or CISCO or IBM or HP? Do you really think they can provide the level of service and security to these giant corporations for people who specialize in the subject? I personally don’t think so. Very often the IT departments are blissfully unaware about what is hap-pening and the security departments cannot keep up. The sophistication of the security attacks now is way beyond the hacker in the bedroom. We are now talking about organized crime. Huge resources are used to get into cyber espionage. One does not even know when such attacks come, they

in practice

3131m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

just come, take your secrets and walk away. These are the things we should really worry about.

Q What are the tips for IT man-agers so that they can have a

good cloud strategy because there have been instances where the high end companies are not willing to go on to a public cloud. Where do you see this heading?My worry is people will run (transi-tion) into the cloud and just change nothing. They will continue doing the same things that they have always done which would be close to fatal. If the move to the cloud has to succeed we have to think and act differently. If we continue doing what we have done, the security risks are going to get worse. Going to the cloud will amplify the risks in some sense.

Whether we actually outsource or build the security systems ourselves we have to think differently of how to do it. The cloud isn’t a single enti-ty, it isn’t fixed, it comes in different elements. You can have government clouds, corporate clouds, personal clouds, institutional clouds. They can be either fixed or mobile, they can be visible or invisible. When security is the priority one can choose to be invis-ible. Technology is in place, people just have to think.

Q What are the easy steps that people can take?

I would suggest corporations to think about cloud in the following way. They should think about what is it that real-ly needs to be secure in their compa-ny? Is it the email, or source engineer-ing, or the management? Information is really important to the company. The research, the strategic decisions, investment details, M&A details. I think it is important to free the peo-ple because what they are doing is a necessity. One must be careful as we get to the core and heart of the com-pany. We must not give away the keys to the kingdom.

“Very often the IT departments are blissfully unaware about what is happening and the security departments cannot keep up. The sophistication of the security attacks now is way beyond the hacker in the bedroom. We are now talking about organized crime.”—Dr. Peter Cochrane, CEO & Chairman at Cochrane Associates

Case Study

3232 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Project MaP

The challenge: Improving cost consciousness and volume management

TIMelIne: Ongoing PeoPle Involved: HR, Finance, IT,

Operations KeY cFo TaKeWaYS: Cost optimisation

plays a key role in bringing in cost consciousness. Bottomline focus is crucial

Case study

3333m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

TotalTurnaroundFood services company Jubilant FoodWorks has had its fair share of cost battles. Ravi S. Gupta, President and CFO, Jubilant FoodWorks discusses the challenges of a high transaction business and the importance of cost consciousness

PuRva KHOle

Way back in 2002, a year before Ravi S . Gu p t a h a d joined Jubilant FoodWorks the

number of stores at the company had almost tripled from 35 to 100 , within a period of nine months. The expectation was that the market was ready for the pizza offerings from the company. There was a belief in deep latent demand. Sustained marketing campaigns would generate enough momentum. Those expectations, however, were to fall flat due to weak execution capabilities. At that point, the necessary systems and processes were just not in place. “The thinking then was let us open stores and then we will manage them. Whether one looks at that scenario from a finance and

accounts perspective or from supply chain and operations perspective, it was not bound to work,” says Gupta.

The ChallengeExpenses in the food retail business occur at the store level. It is the store manager who is at at the forefront in incurring and controlling costs. Most often this manager has a generic back-ground as a college graduate or is from the hospitality sector and does not have requisite exposure to finance-related issues. The store managers then need to be sensitised to not just topline enhanc-ing issues but also bottomline con-cerns. The challenge then is to ensure that this message of cost conscious-ness percolates down the organisation. In addition, this relentless pressure on costs should be translated equally well

by every employee--neither adding to unnecessary costs nor undercutting or compromising customer service in any way. Another challenge which is typical of the business is the high volume and small ticket size of transactions. Each transaction then is a potential area to save or to splurge. Efficiency is critical at each step because as the business grows so will the stores and the transactions.

how was iT TaCkled?“To bring in cost consciousness among store managers, we did budgeting for each store separately. For each of them apart from top line, each expense item was compared month after month so as to sensitise managers. A store Profit & Loss statement was managed every month. This was prepared by the finance team but to bring organisational N

ITIs

H s

Ha

Rm

a

3434 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

Case study

alignment was weighed in by the opera-tions team,” explains Gupta.

Gupta points out how such rigour creeped into his organisation gradually. “There are two benefits that are possible out of such analysis. You have a certain budget based on historical data. The sec-ond benefit is that the manager knows that he is not supposed to exceed the budget and has to stay within cost.”

Such analysis helped the store manag-ers to increase sales for which she was duly incentivized and it also helps her focus on costs. Over time the store man-agers understood each and every line item in the P&L statement. This brought overall alignment between store employ-ees and organisational goals.

Gupta and his team tackled the second challenge of managing large volume transactions too. He says, “One way is to focus on increasing efficiency but I believe work cannot be completed only by doing it but it can be done faster by

eliminating the need for doing some parts of it. There are two possible ways to accomplish this. Process improvement is one way and the other possibility is automation. At Jubilant, both the possi-bilities were exercised.”

A simple example of cash manage-ment follows in case of process manage-ment. Typically, a store incurs expenses on weekly basis. Usually a statement is made and then sent across every week for reimbursement. When he joined the company Gupta recalls, “there was a backlog of about five months for this sort of reimbursement. I looked at the international best practices.” Gupta’s fix for this problem was innovative to say the least. He adds, “Since there was cash lying at each store, I asked the store manager to use this cash for expenses with the balance being deposited in the bank.” This practice eliminated steps like preparation of cheques, getting them signed by two signatories, cheque

dispatch and reconciliation at the bank. Soon the backlog was eliminated and future work became simpler.

When the company was not able to improve a difficult process, it consid-ered automation as an option. The com-pany developed their own Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) application because implementing such changes at the store level is quite challenging in terms of costs as well as training. “After developing the internal application, today sitting here in this office I know the previous day’s sales, how much of it was on credit and how much cash was accepted,” says Gupta. With the imple-mentation of the new system, there was total control over the cash flows. Simultaneously, the sales accounting process was also automated. With these changes we could analyse the fluctua-tion in sales faster and take immediate steps leading to decline of sales. Con-trol on cash improved. From the earlier positive working capital arena (due to inefficiency and lack of transparency in the system) the company moved to negative working capital regime. Today, the negative working capital of the company is `60 crore, which means that much idle money has now been invested back in business.

Teams involved“Everything was possible due to team-work, there isn’t something like a spe-cific team that worked on setting things straight,” says Gupta. People across functions like HR, Finance, IT, Opera-tions were involved in the entire process.

key lessonsCost consciousness across the company is very important because this principle gets lost quite often. Price consciousness too is important because despite quarter on quarter fluctuations we can cut only so much cost. It is also vital that there is consistent improvement in processes and efficiencies too. Focus on the bot-tom line is crucial. Our previous experi-ence showed us what happens when we focus on the top line alone.

An efficient cash management system has led to a negative working capital cycle and additional investment income

ANNOUNCING THE MUMBAI CHAPTER OF

THINK TANK

Date: March 15, 2013

Time: 10 am to 5 pm

Venue: Hyatt Regency, Mumbai

Organised by Knowledge PartnersPresenting Partner

Join a select group of 25 - 30 CSOs and find answers to: Network Security Risk in 2013: Emerging Trends, Threats and Mitigation.

Developing an Application Security Center of Excellence.

Is your security plan board-ready?

Establishing a Data Breach Response Process.

Managing Identity and Access in the Hybrid World.

Register Now ! http://tinyurl.com/apwtnoc

FOR ANY QUERIES, PLEASE CONTACT: Astha Nagrath Khanna , [email protected]

CSO_Think tank_Ad.indd 40 2/22/2013 4:07:17 PM

insight Corporate FinanCe

3636 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

ph

oto

s.c

om

Profiles of today’s CFO show how the role is evolving and raise important questions for boards about talent and leadership development

Most readers are well aware that the role of the CFO generally has broadened over the past decade. Beyond the core responsibilities of financial reporting, audit and com-pliance, planning, treasury, and capital structure, many CFOs are playing a stronger role in corporate portfolio man-agement and capital allocation. Others have become prominent as the voice of the company in investor relations and in communications to the board, as lead-ers in performance management, and as exporters of finance-experienced person-nel to the rest of the organization.

Where does it end? It’s unproductive to stretch the role too far and unrea-sonable to expect a CFO to be good at everything. How can the CEO and the board—through the audit committee—shape a manageable profile for the posi-tion? It’s an important question, both

TOday’s CFO: WhiCh PrOFile besT suiTs yOur COmPany?

Ankur AgrAwAl, John goldie, And Bill huyett

insight

3737m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

for companies hiring a new CFO and for existing CFOs who see their roles expanding without a broad perspective. To get a more detailed picture of how the role continues to evolve, we ana-lyzed the experience, credentials, and backgrounds of CFOs of the top 100 global companies by market capitalisa-tion. Our review, while not definitive, suggests that companies are shaping the role to meet their current needs. Indeed, we identified four distinct pro-files of the role defined by the breadth of the current CFO’s experience in finance or in non finance functions; his or her professional focus, whether it’s an internal focus on operations or an external focus on strategy; and the sources of the CFO’s expertise, whether from years of experience at the current company or another one, for example, or whether it includes a traditional accounting degree or some other.

The four profiles include what we would characterise as the finance expert (or numbers guru), the generalist, the performance leader, and the growth champion. And while there is no sin-gle CFO profile that will fit the needs of every company—each must target candidates with competencies that best fit their strategy, the composition of the rest of the company’s top team, and current finance-function capabili-ties—these profiles do offer a glimpse into how the role is evolving and where peers are looking for talented and inno-vative CFOs. They raise questions for board audit committees thinking about CFO development or the profile of the person they would like to hire, as well as for executives seeking to shape their current role or considering new ones.

FOur prOFiles OF tOday’s CFO Management roles vary by organisa-tion, depending on a company’s his-tory, the characteristics of its industry, and the demands of investors. And although fitting CFOs into a clear-cut typology may seem artificial, we found

it useful to understand how companies are filling the role to get a clearer pic-ture of how it’s changing. Based on our research, we categorise CFOs into four general profiles.

The finance expert: Typically internal hires, these CFOs have years of expe-rience rotating through multiple roles within the finance function—control-ling, treasury, audit, financial planning and analysis, or business unit finance. They tend to have intricate working knowledge of the company and are often experts in relevant finance and accounting issues, such as financial regulation, international accounting, or capital structure. Many have advanced accounting degrees or experience at

an auditing firm. This type of CFO is particularly well suited to highly decen-tralised companies with stand-alone businesses or early-stage ones scaling up and professionalising the finance function. Their strong finance-function knowledge across a broad spectrum of activities is critical to effective compli-ance and standardisation of processes. The finance-expert profile may also be best for any company whose top team otherwise lacks strong finance leader-ship—or whose finance department is inefficient or in disarray.

The generalist: Companies in highly capital-intensive industries, such as basic materials, oil and gas, and tele-communications, put a high premium

on operational capabilities. So they naturally look for executives with broad experience—including CFOs who have spent time outside the finance organ-isation—in operations, strategy, market-ing, or general management. Indeed, among the 51 CFOs in our sample who were hired since 2009, 31 of them have such experience, up from 17 of those hired prior to 2009. Among all the CFOs in our sample, 62 have MBAs or other advanced degrees, compared with only 28 with advanced accounting degrees—reflecting a premium for management and communication skills over deep technical expertise. CFOs that fit this description tend to engage heavily in business operations and strategy and

often bring strong industry and com-petitive insights. They are often found in companies in mature sectors, such as financial institutions, where operational similarities across business units pro-vide a good platform to rotate managers among businesses and eventually into functional leadership roles; most are internally hired and already fill an exec-utive function, often being groomed for a CEO role. These rotations give managers insights about different busi-nesses that they need to support tightly run operations, allocate resources, and influence peers—which, regardless of industry or strategy, make them ideal for companies where personal influence is needed to get things done.

“While there are certain trends in the hiring of new CFOs generally, CFO profiles often reflect the structure, conduct, and performance of a company’s industry”

insight

3838 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

The performance leader: CFOs with strong track records in transformations both within the finance function and throughout the organisation are what we have dubbed performance leaders. They tend to focus on cost manage-ment, to promote the use of metrics and scorecards, and to work to standardise data and systems. They are often hired externally, and many have previous experience as CFOs. Most have worked internationally—explaining in part why, among the 51 CFOs in our sample hired in the past three years, 30 have signifi-cant experience in multiple geogra-phies, up from 21 of those with longer tenures. Companies employing these CFOs are often diversified companies requiring rigorous analytics to compare performance across businesses, compa-nies with aggressive growth or cost tar-gets that must be met in the near term, or companies with scarce resources that must be carefully allocated.

The growth champion: Externally hired professionals are the least com-mon type of CFOs, but they have risen to account for nearly 25 per cent of new CFO hires. They are most common in industries with frequent disrup-tions that require dramatic changes in

resource allocation—and in compa-nies that plan to grow considerably or reshape their portfolio of businesses through aggressive M&A or divestiture programs. Such moves make external hires especially valued for their signifi-cant experience in M&A, as well as for their external networks, independent thinking, and strategic insight. Many

profiles often reflect the structure, con-duct, and performance of a company’s industry. Stable sectors with large global footprints and extensive supply chains—such as oil and gas and con-sumer packaged goods—are more insu-lar in their CFO selections. Only 4 of 28 CFOs in our sample in these industries were hired externally, and only 2 had significant experience outside the sec-tor. However, international experience is very important, with 9 of 13 CFOs in oil and gas and 10 of 15 in consumer packaged goods having worked in mul-tiple geographies. At the other end are industries with rapidly changing tech-nology and significant R&D, such as pharmaceuticals and medical products (PMP) and technology. Companies in these industries tend to have CFOs with more experience in strategy and trans-actions, and they are much more likely to select CFOs from outside the com-pany or the sector. For example, of the 14 PMP CFOs, 8 were hired externally, 6 had consulting or investment-bank-ing back-grounds, and 9 had general-management backgrounds. Over half of CFOs in both the PMP and technology industries have experience outside their sector. In addition to industry context, companies must consider how certain CFO characteristics might best support their own strategic plans. Leadership teams of companies following inor-ganic (M&A) growth strategies require a higher degree of market insight and strategic orientation. Senior executives of companies following organic growth strategies, meanwhile, exhibit a high competency in people and organisation-al leadership. So regardless of industry characteristics—and as long as candi-dates meet the threshold of finance expertise and performance-manage-ment skills—a company embarking on an ambitious M&A program, for exam-ple, would want to give a strong prefer-ence to those with significant transac-tion experience and industry insight, more akin to a growth champion. A company lagging in profitability or undergoing significant industry consol-

“Companies must consider how certain CFO characteristics might best support their own strategic plans”

growth champions are among the nearly one-third of new CFOs who have spent a sizable portion of their career in investment banking, consulting, or private equity, up from one-fifth with a similar background prior to 2009.

aligning the rOle with the COmpanyThese profiles are obviously not pre-scriptive; it would be simplistic to sug-gest definitive rules prescribing a spe-cific CFO profile for general categories of company. That said, with the profile characteristics in hand, companies can more explicitly weigh them against the capabilities they expect to require from the CFO as they shape, refine, and implement their strategy for the future. Whether this means selecting a new CFO or rebalancing the existing role, they will need a candid assessment of their current corporate strategy, the skills and temperament of the CEO, the composition of the senior-management team, the current capabilities of the finance function, and organisational and reporting structures. We propose four questions (by order of importance) that CFOs should answer when plan-

ning their own career-development—or that CEOs and boards should answer when starting the search for a new CFO.

1. What are your corporate strategy and aspirations—especially consid-ering the nature of your industry?While there are certain trends in the hiring of new CFOs generally, CFO

insight

3939m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

idation may require a CFO more simi-lar to the performance leader—strong in performance and cost management.

2. What is the composition of your top-management team? The selection of a CFO cannot be made in isolation; companies must pay specific attention to its blind spots and missing capabilities. Recent research has found that the top teams of high-performing companies score higher on all measures of leadership competencies—including thought leadership, people and organisation-al leadership, and business leader-ship—than those of low-performing companies. Finding the right leaders is clearly an important determinant of corporate performance. This means that the specific profile of your CFO may need to be different from that of other companies—even those in the same industry or those that have simi-lar strategic goals—in order to create a robust top team.

Companies with a disproportionate share of leaders with a few areas of deep expertise—so-called spiky lead-ers—tend to outperform those whose leaders have a broad range of more general skills. This requires members of the top-management team to build on one another’s strengths and com-pensate for one another’s short-falls. A company with a visionary CEO may require a CFO with a firm grasp of the economics of the business and enough influence capital inside the organisa-tion to provide a counterbalance against potentially risky moves. Or a company that recently hired a CEO from outside may require a CFO with deep com-pany expertise and a firm grasp of the numbers, such as a CFO who fits the finance-expert or generalist profile.

Myopic top teams can undertake risky or costly acquisitions, fall behind on innovations in the market, or fail to retain key talent. High-performing CFOs must have the integrity and con-viction to challenge the CEO and other members of the top team on key strate-

gic and financial decisions and hence steer the company to a higher perfor-mance trajectory.

3. What is the current level of capa-bility in your finance function?As long as a CFO’s profile fits with a company’s strategy and complements

the top team, further considerations are tactical. The current level of capability of the finance function is the most impor-tant of these, since the CFO’s primary responsibility is to ensure the execution of core functions of the finance group, especially strong compliance and con-trols, accurate data, and systems inte-gration. If a company struggles with efficiently performing the basic finance functions (relative to peers), then it may be necessary to promote candidates for CFO with considerable experience in a variety of finance roles and a track record of performance improvement.

However, if strong capabilities are already present in the organisation, a company may consider candidates with other competencies. Companies that do so typically pair such a CFO with a senior finance executive who manages account-ing and other traditional finance roles.

4. What is the organisational and reporting structure of your compa-ny? Which areas report to the CFO?It is also important to consider the com-

pany’s reporting structure—that is, does it have solid or dotted-line reporting to the CFO—and the breadth of formal CFO responsibilities. For example, a CFO in a global company with a complex matrix structure and only dotted-line reporting must be able to exert a consid-erable amount of personal influence to

be successful. In this situation, it may help to hire a CFO internally—regard-less of which general profile he or she fits—who has the networks and insti-tutional knowledge necessary to drive change. It is also important to define the areas of responsibility that may lie beyond traditional finance areas, such as IT, procurement, and transformation, which demand day-to-day hands-on management and people skills.

The right fit between a company and its CFO involves complex trade-offs reflecting its strategy, the skills and abil-ities of top management and the finance function, and a given individual’s ability to drive change. Under-standing how the role is evolving can prompt useful conversations that shape the CFO’s role at your company in the future.

this article was originally published in

mckinsey Quarterly, www.mckinseyquar-

terly.com. copyright (c) 2013 mckinsey &

company. All rights reserved. reprinted

by permission.

“Companies with a disproportionate share of leaders with a few areas of deep expertise—so-called spiky leaders—tend to outperform those whose leaders have a broad range of more general skills”

leader’s world

4040 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

All over the world, people want to change their lives in the new year. The thought sounds amazing and incredibly ambitious and you as the CXO of your life can do so! DaviD Lim

ABOUT THE AUTHORDavid Lim, Founder,

Everest motivation Team, is

a leadership and negotiation

coach, best-selling author

and two-time mt Everest

expedition leader. He can be

reached at his blog http://

theasiannegotiator.

wordpress.com, or

[email protected]

Changing Your Life in 2013

WhAT dO TV talk show host, Oprah Winfrey, former President George W Bush, member of the supergroup ABBA, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Bollywood actress and model Lisa haydon have in common? Make a guess.

If you guessed that they have all run a 42km marathon, you are right. Marathons have a way giving mere mortals a shot at personal glory, of accomplishment in an ever complex and frustrating world. A few years ago Roger Wright. aged 47, wanted to change his life, and help others in the process as well. he had a simple quest to change his diet, change his lifestyle, lose a significant amount of fat and help his niece Julia, who has Cystic Fibrosis. Roger weighed over 125 kilos, and couldn’t run a mile without getting totally out of breath. his journey and one of the videos he made became a YouTube hit with nearly four million views. his journey, complete with videos and photos of his shrinking body is an inspiration and can be found at www.runningformyexistence.com

Over a period of ten months he lost 50 kilos, completed the Boston Marathon, and continues his quest to raise awareness and funds for his niece’s disease. In 2012, after several years of incurring various musculoskeletal injuries on my

4141m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

leader’s world

“ Fundamentally, you cannot claim to be successful in life if your health is bad—and whatever success you have built won’t last long as you might not live long enough to see it”

climbs; I changed my life by eliminat-ing 70 per cent of my mountaineering training regime, replacing it with a totally different approach. Gone were the long, slow hikes with big loads. In came high intensity weights circuits; flow yoga and Pilates. After two decades believing what had always worked for success would continue to bring me success, I woke up to opening my mind to new things that would bring greater success. The culmination of this was a successful ascent of my seventh virgin peak, and, at 6000-metres, the highest virgin peak yet climbed by Southeast Asian mountaineers.

The point is that there is a champion in each of us, seeking accomplishment and balance in life. But fundamentally, you can’t claim to be successful in life if your health is bad – and whatever suc-cess you have built won’t last long as you might not live long enough to see it. A few months ago the Managing director of the multinational, SAP, Ranjan das, had a heart attack and died. Although he was an avid runner, he may have failed to look at other issues such as rest and diet.

Ready to change your life in 2013? If you are even entertaining the idea, read on, as this is what you will need to succeed:

1) PiCk a gOal that really mOtivates yOu I am not talking about fantasy land goals that you have been talking about for years but haven’t taken any action. No action means it doesn’t mean enough for you to change. The goal has to be a substantive goal that can somehow be measured.

2) Find a Partner tO share this jOurneyRoger picked a personal trainer who checked in with him from time to time to make sure he was on track. Your partner could be someone who would support you, push you when you need it, and cheer you on, whatever the difficulties.

3) traCk PrOgress, Celebrate milestOneshow will you know you are making a difference to the goal? Keep a diary, a blog, and a series of set milestones en route to the goal. Roger mentioned that his first ‘big’ goal was to run three miles without stopping, and not die from the effort.

4) PiCk a hOlistiC liFe imPrOving gOalSo, if you are a stressed executive, don’t pick a series of pro-fessional goals. Some key goals include getting enough sleep. A sleep-deprived body produces cortisol, a stress-related hor-mone, which reduces its ability to build muscle, and encour-ages it to store fat. Cortisol is also bad for your blood pressure. A lack of sleep also leads to toxins accumulating in your body, and reduces your ability to think clearly, even when awake.

5) yOu are what yOu eatNo matter what your life-changing goal is, understand that what you drink and eat is what you are. If you wish to lose fat, consider a gradual exercise regime, combined with changes in your eating habits. For example, reducing carbohydrates can be done a meal at a time. Or limited to once or twice a day.

Changing your life is not for the few, or the exceptional. It’s for every single one of us who has the clarity of the moment., and translates into dogged determination one day at a time. Or in some cases, one step at a time. Good luck in 2013 in chang-ing your life. I’d love to hear about your successes.

CFO03

.13

We test drive the latest BMW 6 series Gran Coupe, a sporty and practical vehicle. For a quaint and spicy holiday, Zanzibar could be the next destination this March. Try out the recently opened Skky if you want a break from the regular fare and ambience

The BMW 6 series Gran Coupe is a superb combination of breathtaking design and exhilarating performance rolled into a sporty, yet practical package. Amit Chhangani

The BMW 640d Gran Coupe is the first ever four-door coupe in the history of BMW. An exhilarating fusion of earth shattering performance, extraordinary design and cutting edge tech, the 640 Gran Coupe emphatically reminds us why we love automobiles so much. hang on to the handles, as we share with you our invigorating experience with this unique driving machine.

The Sinful SeductressBMW 640d Gran Coupe

DID YOUKNOW?

Lounge

Founded in 1917, BMW is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars

Design Long, low and extremely sharp – the 640 Gran Coupe, visually, is like a blade, potent enough to slice through whatever comes its way. Inspired by the idea of a sharp object cutting through water, and the resultant lines and forms, the

4343m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n D i a

CFO LOUnge ON WheelS

Gran Coupe is an embodiment of forward motion, even while being at a standstill. The long bonnet, the low roofline, the extended wheelbase – that blade like form lends the 640d a sense of dynamism rarely witnessed in the relatively tall modern cars. The Sporty character carries over to the rear end with a boot which looks rather stubby as compared with the rest of the car – a virtue, for it adds to the resolute forward motion exuded by the car.

Engine and transmissionAt the heart of the 640d is a 3.0 liter straight-six twin turbo power plant dishing out 313bhp of raw diesel power, complemented by 630Nm of torque capable of moving mountains. While the peak power is attained at 4400 rpm, that tsunami of torque is available from as low as 1500 rpm and upto 2500 rpm. If that amazes you, here’s the clincher – the car has an ARAI fuel efficiency rating of 18.8kmpl. And you may officially start scratching your heads now. Mated to that diesel power house is an eight-speed automatic transmission. Silken smooth and flashing fast – the trans-mission works beautifully well with the engine. You can choose from four drive modes – eco Pro, Comfort, Sport and Sport+, all of which have various mappings for transmission behavior, steering stiffness, suspension stiffness and throttle response.

Performance, ride and handlingThe 640d is a special car as re-gards performance. BMW claim a 0-100km/h sprint time of 5.4 seconds for this machine. In practice, it means a churning sensation in your stomach, increased blood pressure and outbreak of grin inducing chemicals in your brain. double ton shows up on the speedo in a blaze. As the rev needle swings past 4000 rpm, the subdued burble of the engine sounds like di-vine symphony emanating from a dis-tance. Shouldering the responsibility

of being a cross between a limo and a coupe, the Gran Coupe cannot take the liberty of being an all out sports car, and that’s exactly what the engine sound denotes – exciting, but without mimicking an all-out sports car. The power is sent to the rear wheels, and even with the wide rubber providing shiploads of traction. With the eSP on, in Sport mode, the 6 series digs its fangs in the tar and offers a drive feel which is incredibly reassuring and quite unmatched in the segment. The ground clear-ance of the Gran Coupe is an issue though, and the only remedy is to be extremely cautious.

Cabin quality, comfort and featuresThe dashboard, center console and instrument panel for the 640d Gran Coupe has been lifted from its 640d Coupe cousin. Like the 6 series coupe, the Gran Coupe too features a modern, tech laden, hi-quality and distinctive interior. draped in high quality leather, the dashboard and the rest of the upholstery looks and feels exceptional. It has an optional Infra Red Night Vision system which improves visibility significantly in dark conditions. Then there are four cameras which present a 360 degree picture of the car’s surroundings while reversing. The list of toys is almost never ending.

sharp and sophisticated, the Gran coupe is a wonderful, if

expensive beast to ownLoungeBMW 640d GraN COupe

EnGinE: 2,993cc / 6 cylinder / twin turbo /

diesel

Max. ouTpuT hp: 313 / 4,400 rpm

Max. TorquE nM: 630 / 1,500-2,500

Top spEEd kM/h: 250

0–100 kM/h in s: 5.4

priCE: rs 86.4 lakh ex-showroom

positives•Mindblowing

performance•Breathtakinglooks• Loadedwithfeatures

and technology

neGatives• Lowgroundclearance•Headroom•Stiffride verdictWith a tag of nearly rs 1 crore it is a no holds barred extravaganza. More expensive than its perceived rivals – the CLSandtheA7,itisdecidedly more dynamic

4444 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

cfo lounge Gizmos

new launches

Xperia Tablet Z

powered by

India’s M

ost Read

MAGAZIN

E

TECHNOLOGY

Ultra Hd

was the

buzzword

this year

at CeS.

Samsung’s

latest is S9 Ultra Hd 4K TV has an

easel design, 120 watt speakers

and a quad-core processor.

Available March onwards at an

insane price of US$ 38,000.

The X-e1 has a 16 MP aPs-C sen-sor complimented by the eXR Pro-cessor. It’s designed as a rangefinder camera, but unlike the bigger X-Pro1, it doesn’t include a hybrid viewfinder. Instead, the X-e1 has an electronic only viewfinder with a 2.3 million dot resolution. The screen on the back is a 2.8 incher with a 460K dot resolu-tion which is surprisingly good, even under the bright mid-day sun. ergonomically, the X-e1 has a rather hard-cut rectangular shape, and may not be to everyone’s liking.

We spent a lot of time shooting with the X-e1 at parties and our general outings and for once, it was nice to not have to shoot in RaW. The X-e1 does an amazing job at metering the light just right, which is some-thing we had a tough time achieving on the X-Pro1. The film simulation modes on the X-e1 are present and we personally love the look of the Velvia film, so needless to say we had

many of our images follow that look. The new 18-55mm f/2.8-4.0 optically stabilized lens is actually really good in itself and that is not something we often say for kit lenses.

The X-e1 does take amazing photos, but we had issues with the aF. It’s actually pretty fast and incredibly accurate, but moving the aF points around was quite annoying. The only way to change the aF from one point to the next is using a combina-tion of the aF button and the direc-tion buttons. We really wish there was an easier way. This makes our love for the X-e1 a little less. But that wouldn’t stop us from getting one for ourselves.

SpecificaTionS:

Sensor: 16 megapixel APS-C; Lens: X-Mount compatible; Maximum Burst Mode: 6 fps; Movie Resolution: 1920x1080 at 24fpsprice: 70,000 (body only)

big things in small packages Swapnil Mathur

Hot Spot

Fujifilm X-E1 fujifilm X100S

At 6.9mm

this is the

thinnest

tablet in the

world and at 495 gms,

much lighter than the ipad.The

10.1-inch Xperia Tablet Z having

a 1920x1200 pixel resolution is

powered by a 1.5 GHz quad-core

processor, 2 Gb of rAM, runs

on Android 4.1 and sports a 8.1

Mp rear camera. pricing will be

known at MwC.

Fujifilm

updated

their retro-

looking

X100 with the

X100S at CeS 2013. It houses a

16.3Mp ApS-C X-Trans CMoS II

sensor, a hybrid optical / electronic

viewfinder, 2.8-inch 460k dot

LCd. It is expected to hit the

markets in March at US$ 1399.95.

Samsung S9 UHD 4K TV

4545m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

cfo lounge M & E

With the Stars Tantalise your senses and set yourself free as you dine with stars smiling at you at the latest open air restro lounge that Powai offers you. Purva Khole

IndIa’s coolest new MeetIng & eatIng places

Thailand, China, Japan, Malaysia and Vietnam apart from the regular kebabs and gourmet pizzas.

Though we went there on a Friday evening, we settled in comfort soon enough and achieved a pleasingly cosy al fresco setting to begin our gas-tronomic journey. In tune with the times, we were offered an iPad to scroll through the vast menu options from various parts around the globe and make our choices offered.

Our intial orders of a Kiwi Martini and a Straw-berry Margarita looked great and tasted equally well. Both the cocktails were fruity and stiff – the way we prefer our cocktails. Following up with a Sichuan Spiced Chicken Salad and Vegetable dimsums stimulated our taste buds. The salad was light and crisp while the dimsums were delicately flavoured with mildly spiced pepper and cabbage.

Moving to the main courses, we ordered Grilled salmon prepared in bean sauce. The salmon was cooked well but was a little dry when it reached us. The Thai Chicken Curry which was served with mildly flavoured jasmine rice was up to to the mark. For dessert the recommendation was good old Philadelphia Cheese cake which was good but usual. What is perhaps really worth trying is their specially handcrafted Green Tea ice cream. It simply is not to be missed.

There is more than one reason to come back to this place apart from the food. The service is great, the staff is friendly without being over the top. The water bodies that uniformly flow through the space innovatively divide the dining area offering privacy to diners. The ambience, a mix of elegant and rustic, presents an interesting contrast to the elements of fine dining.

SKKY

Location: MumbaiWhere: Ramada Powai, 16/17, Paspoli, Saki Vihar Road, PowaiUSP: Open air terrace loungereServationS: 022 28585100, 022 67776000

WITh The PleaSanT nip in the air, if one is looking for a new dining experience with the stars, Skky is a great option. The latest offering from Ramada Powai hotel and Convention Centre, the restro lounge and bar is spread across 8,500 sq ft with one of the longest bars in the city that serves the finest liquors.

With stars twinkling above and a scenic view of the surrounding hills, Skky offers an ideal setting for an evening drink, din-ner or a get-together.

The open kitchen offers Pan asian cuisine bringing together flavours from

One Of the appetisers - hed crOb are basically batter

fried mushrOOms tOssed in black pepper sauce, this is tOtally wOrth giving it a shOt

cfo lounge travel

4646 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

ZanZibar is a name most of us recognise — though may be hard pressed to pinpoint it on a map — as it con-jures up the sights and sounds of an african island on the old spice route. Though the very word africa conjures up images of wild animals and grasslands that is not the case with Zanzibar — it’s more a sandy-beaches-and-sparkling-sea sort of destination. For those who want their safaris, it’s a great destination to club with a wildlife holiday with serengeti and ngorongoro reserves barely an hour-long plane ride away. The two main islands of Zanzibar are Unguja and Pemba, but there are about 51 other small islets.

Zanzibar has a long and diverse cultural history — assyrians, egyp-tians, Phoenicians, Chinese, Persians, Omani arabs, the Dutch and british have all settled here at some point. and let’s not forget the indians, who have lent their own flavour to the is-land. it’s a sparsely populated, largely muslim state, but churches, temples and mosques all cluster together.

People usually see Zanzibar by dividing it into ‘town’ and the ‘outskirts’. stone Town, on the western coast of Unguja, is what they call ‘town’ and it is a UnesCO World Heritage site. The name stone Town comes from the use of coral stone as the main construction material; this gives the town a reddish-warm colour — and gives the visitor great pictures! Traditional buildings have a baraza, a long stone bench along the outside walls; these are used as elevated

Dive into sparkling waters, idle on sun-kissed beaches or walk through history in Zanzibar Amee Misra

sidewalks or benches to sit down on. The most well-known feature of Zanzibari houses are the finely decorated wooden doors, sometimes with big brass studs in indian tradition. You also see high-ceilinged houses painted pristine white, with dark wooden beams. The country’s past is reflected in almost every corner of stone Town. a lot of the buildings date back to the 19th century, many of them not restored. stone Town was a big hub of the slave trade and it has

ZANZIBAR

To Paradise: via the Spice Route

4747m a r c h 2 0 1 3 C F O i n d i a

Taking The road To nowhere. zanzibar has Two islands, numerous isleTs and Tons of The leisurely life. for indian Travellers iT is comforTably home wiThouT being Too familiar. and iT is ulTimaTely all abouT The sea

how To geT There: Fly to Dar es Salaam airport and then either take a scheduled flight or ferry to Zanzibar

climate: An endless summer. Typical tropical climate

Town. You can be satiated on a meal of smoothies, bunny chows (a south african specialty) and an amazing lemon spaghetti with prawns. if you’re staying a night in stone Town, it is definitely worth visiting Tatu for an after-dinner drink. This pub is the lone (but great) place to party, and has one of the best collections of whiskeys in the world — an observation confirmed by many samplers! Zanzibari street food would remind an indian traveller of home food. You could munch on a sambusa (samosa), a chapatti (more like a parantha made of flour) and a kachori (which is more like an indian pakoda). The kuku (chicken) curry and biryani also taste like the indian versions, except that you would be more likely to find beef in the biryani here. spice farms dot the Zanzibari islands. You could head off on a spice Tour, spend time sniffing vanilla beans, picking pepper and rubbing cinnamon sticks. The cloves, called karafu, from Pemba are quite famous.

Despite its many attractions, ultimately Zanzibar is all about the sea. its beautiful coral reefs — morogo reef, bor-ibo reef & Turtles Den, the reefs accessible from nungwi and matemwe — are especially good for diving. Paje, a vil-lage on the south-east coast, has the most beautiful beaches, with sand as fine as flour! so if living life ‘pole pole’ (Kiswa-hili for ‘at a leisurely pace’) in tropical surroundings is your idea of a vacation, then Zanzibar is the destination.

places which were holding houses for the slaves before being sold or sent further. no shopper should leave without visiting Kanga street and buying a Kanga, a brightly patterned piece of cloth with a slightly obscure line of general advice woven in as part of

the fabric. (You could, for example, find your kanga carrying the words ‘Wache Waseme’ or ‘Let Them Talk’. (Here’s a tip, especially when shopping in the alleys of stone Town: claim to be a resident. almost all prices are negotiable and you often do better as a ‘resident’. also try and pay in Tanzanian shillings and not dollars.)

if your stomach wants sustenance of a different kind, headed off to Lazuli, which is a popular restaurant in stone

The busTling sTreeTs, The fragrance of spices and a quainT charm is whaT zanzibar offers in oodles. for The well Travelled iT promises The old and The new TogeTher

cfo lounge travel

4848 C F O i n d i a m a r c h 2 0 1 3

not just

the last word

9.9 Media successfully concluded hosting Inflexion: Next steps to the Cloud – a gathering of 500 C-level

executives exploring how their organisa-tions could make better use of cloud com-puting. Some fascinating facts emerged and, personally, I was struck by a number of them cited by Peter Cochrane, a cloud evangelist and our keynote speaker for Inflexion 2013 on why the cloud is inevi-table and how it can be adopted.

Here are some of my favourites. The era of sitting at a desk and using a

corporate PC is dying. Computing power, creativity and innovation are migrating to the periphery, towards the individual and going global. As an illustration, a large majority of apps are being developed by individuals not large corporations.

Next consider this. New generations have never connected a computer to any-thing with a wire, other than for power. Technology is a part of their norm; they see life as having no boundaries. They are cooperative, networked, and trusting. They share everything – devices, apps, information, pictures, music.

The cloud is not singular – its plural; it is not solid but vacuous; it is not fixed – it is mobile; and not permanent but tran-sient. It could be public, private, commer-cial, government, open, closed, visible, invisible, global, local, and the list goes

on. Given its very nature, the cloud is more secure and resilient than anything organisations have experienced before. It is also cost-effective and empowering.

The cloud is enabling trends and offer-ing solutions that are unprecedented. Management attitudes, working and operational practices have to change if companies are to compete on the world stage.

For example, the younger generation that inhabits workplaces today is happy to by-pass existing corporate culture and IT departments. They want to work in nimble and innovative companies and see IT as ‘personal’ not ‘corporate’. They freely move their work from the cor-porate world to their own space using sticks, email, dropbox and the cloud; and social networking is a vital tool for them. They are flexible and capable – and don’t

Anuradha Das Mathur, Editor, CFO India

lend themselves to traditional ways of control. In some ways, this is antithetical to the way the corporate world has been. In a nutshell, this new workforce - with access to the cloud - demands a deep transformation in organisational and personal mindsets...

Attempting such change while keeping the wheel turning – which is the demand of modern day businesses – creates what my partner and colleague, Pramath Raj Sinha, elegantly refers to as ‘transforma-tion schizophrenia’. Can organisations continue to deliver on ‘business as usual’ while doing what it takes to reinvent or rebuild themselves? Given quarterly per-formance pressures, the luxury of waiting for ‘things to settle’, is at best illusory.

The successful adoption of the cloud depends on how well we manage this ‘transformation schizophrenia’. Given how difficult organisations find it to even make small and simple changes, I sus-pect more will stumble than succeed… but I could be wrong.

What do you think?

living in the Cloud: transformation schizophrenia?

WHEN YOU RUN THE NUMBERS, DUBAI MEANS BUSINESS.

[email protected]

SEE THE FILM AT VISION.AE/VIDEOS/NUMBERS

EXPO2020DUBAI.AE

MILLION* PEOPLE VISITED DUBAI WORLD TRADE CENTRE LAST YEAR

SQUARE METRES OF EXHIBITION SPACE IN ONE BLUE-CHIP VENUE

PER CENT OF THE REGION’S SHOWS HAPPEN IN THE UAE. WELCOME TO THE WORLD’S EVENTS HUB

1.65100,00050

*Source: DWTC, 2011 figures latest available.

FalconDubaiEvents_CFO_277x210_AW.indd 1 12/02/2013 21:36

questions around the cloud -...

Documents