On Setting up an India Development Center (GCC - Global Capability Center)

 Setting up an India Development Center (IDC) or a Global Capability Center (GCC) has been a preferred and well proven avenue for MNCs across the world looking to expand their business in a cost-effective way. Further, the burgeoning Indian economy and its affluent middle-class makes India a very attractive market. Most MNCs do have a specific “India Strategy” and use the GCC to develop products very specific to India market. Lately, geo-political considerations are also playing a major role in setting-up or expanding the GCC in India. While the advantages and rewards come in the form of vast talent pool, the cost-structure which is a fraction of the cost of developed countries and a pool of engineers that are flexible and learning all the time, there are enough challenges that needs to be overcome (and some key decisions thereof) for a GCC to be successful. This paper focusses more on some of the key challenges companies face and need to be aware, particularly while setting up. Key decisions and actionable best practices for this critical are discussed. 

The top critical decisions and challenges include:

• Location within India
• Choice of the Site Leader
• Regulatory approvals
• Hiring the core team
• Hiring enabling team
• Infrastructure
• Scaling up and Staffing models
• Setting-up the India team to succeed
• Cultural Sensitivity

 

In the next few posts, we will discuss the above in detail.

*Note: This document comes directly from my experience in setting up and growing several IDCs/GCCs over last several years. This is an attempt to document my experience as and when my help and opinion was sought by my network. As such, the emphasis is more practical and actionable, than academic.

 

Customers First and Systems Thinking

 A loved one was in hospital for better part of last 5-6 weeks. I got to observe many things having spent most of my time as primary attendant. This is one of the better known hospitals and does indeed have an impressive mission statement that aims to put the customer (patient in this case) first. Doctors are very good, nursing staff excellent, administrative staff are very helpful, so are the lowest rung of staff. 

One problem is that each set works within their own framework:

• No one knows what time does the Doctor would come for rounds. When they come, and they definitely come, they are very patient, answer all the questions etc., Because they can't or don''t want to stick to a committed time, planning things become difficult. 
• Due to specialisation, it is very common to hear "my part is fine, you need to check with X for that other problem". At one time there were 4 specialists taking care, but I wondered whether they talk and co-ordinate amongst themselves. Hope they were, but it wasn't apparent.
• Nursing staff have their own pre-defined timetable to check vitals, draw blood, give medication etc., It doesn't matter to them whether the patient has just slept, or having some pain or need something else etc., I have to plead with them to come some 30mins later as my loved one might be fast asleep having completely missed the sleep the previous night! Ofcourse they are understaffed and it becomes difficult during weekend and holidays. 
• Billing, Insurance and other admin related are in their own world. It takes about 7-8hrs from the time the Doctor approves discharge for the patient to get home. They need to complete billing etc., write a lengthy discharge summary, send it to insurance company and they have to approve etc.,
• Insurance companies do not go over the bill incrementally say once every 2-3 days or so, even if they are all available. Everything has to happen on the day of discharge. 
• I met with the PRO (yes they have one) and gave him multiple suggestions. Guess his job is to only say "great suggestion sir, I'll see how best I can implement" and really not worry about it.

While each actor is doing fine within their own specialisation, no one seem to care about how the system as a whole is working and how does it affect the customers (patients and attenders).

No need to pick just on hospitals. We see such a thing happening in best of the organisations. Every group thinks that they are indeed doing well and perhaps are when looked from a narrow angle of their own department. However the overall result may not be satisfactory. 

Many organisations want to put their customers first, respond to customer's needs, be customer centric etc., etc., But when the goal/intent gets trickled down the systems perspective gets lost. Someone at the top cannot fix it. It calls for every person in the chain to see whether their actions are in line what the CEO wants to achieve and whether they can be open to let go of their "authority" for the greater good of customer. 

What RamP's Reading: Nov'20

 

  

Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder
Antifragile is a standalone book in Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s landmark Incerto series, an investigation of opacity, luck, uncertainty, probability, human error, risk, and decision-making in a world we don’t understand.

A Tour of C++
In A Tour of C++, Second Edition, Bjarne Stroustrup, the creator of C++, describes what constitutes modern C++. This concise, self-contained guide covers most major language features and the major standard-library components—not, of course, in great depth, but to a level that gives programmers a meaningful overview of the language, some key examples, and practical help in getting started.

"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!": Adventures of a Curious Character
Richard P. Feynman, winner of the Nobel Prize in physics, thrived on outrageous adventures. In this lively work, Feynman recounts his experiences trading ideas on atomic physics with Einstein and cracking the uncrackable safes guarding the most deeply held nuclear secrets―and much more of an eyebrow-raising nature. In his stories, Feynman’s life shines through in all its eccentric glory―a combustible mixture of high intelligence, unlimited curiosity, and raging chutzpah.

Think on These Things - Jiddu Krishnamurthy
Thing on These Things was chosen by Parabola magazine as one the 100 best spiritual books of the 20th century. This is an excellent introduction to Krishnamurtis teachings for the young and the old. Consisting of Krishnamurtis talks and discussions with students, teachers and parents, these talks touch upon areas such as education, ambition, love, creativity, ambition, beauty, conflict, relationship, God, learning etc

What RamP's reading: Oct'20

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness

Naval Ravikant is an entrepreneur, philosopher, and investor who has captivated the world with his principles for building wealth and creating long-term happiness. The Almanack of Naval Ravikant is a collection of Naval’s wisdom and experience from the last ten years, shared as a curation of his most insightful interviews and poignant reflections. This isn’t a how-to book, or a step-by-step gimmick. Instead, through Naval’s own words, you will learn how to walk your own unique path toward a happier, wealthier life.

The Most Important Thing : Uncommon Sense for the Thoughtful Investor
The Most Important Thing explains the keys to successful investment and the pitfalls that can destroy capital or ruin a career. Utilizing passages from his memos to illustrate his ideas, Marks teaches by example, detailing the development of an investment philosophy that fully acknowledges the complexities of investing and the perils of the financial world. Brilliantly applying insight to today's volatile markets, Marks offers a volume that is part memoir, part creed, with a number of broad takeaways.

The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business
True leaders aren't made by business schools-they make themselves, seeking out the knowledge, skills, and experience they need to succeed. Read this book and you will learn the principles it takes most business professionals a lifetime of trial and error to master.

Ramen Profitable

As a budding and a small-time Angel Investor I often get to hear passionate founders of start-ups. Their energy, conviction and optimism rubs on anyone around and I'm no exception. 

This week I saw a tweet from Paul Graham of Y-Combinator, in which he had shared an old mail from the founders of AirBnB, when they became Ramen Profitable. Ramen Profitable means the start-up is making just enough money to pay founder's living expenses as Paul describes in his essay.

A flurry of thought entered my mind as I read the tweet, the original essay, and things I had read about AirBnB in the book Upstarts. It just means laser focus, continuous tinkering till you get it right, not getting distracted and keeping it lean and mean. For investors, it cannot get any better and what a joy to work with such founders and both help and learn from them.

It also brought back memories of my failed investments. As an Angel one should expect and be ready to lose entire investment. But then there are a few founders who fought and fought to keep it afloat and some wound-up without any fight after squandering investor's money. The first will have no trouble raising monies again when they move on as their integrity remained intact and their demonstrated grit made them even more valuable in the eyes of investors. The latter might have burnt all the goodwill and likely to struggle raise monies again - they are well advised to internalise being Ramen Profitable. 

What RamP's Reading: Sep'20

Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur

When Derek Sivers started CD Baby, he wasn’t planning on building a major business. He was a successful independent musician who just wanted to sell his CDs online. When no one would help him do it, he set out on his own and built an online store from scratch. Sivers didn’t need a business plan, and neither do you. You don’t need to think big; in fact, it’s better if you don’t. Start with what you have, care about your customers more than yourself, and run your business like you don’t need the money.

How to change your mind - Michael Pollan (reco'd by Naval)
A unique and elegant blend of science, memoir, travel writing, history, and medicine, How to Change Your Mind is a triumph of participatory journalism. By turns dazzling and edifying, it is the gripping account of a journey to an exciting and unexpected new frontier in our understanding of the mind, the self, and our place in the world. The true subject of Pollan's "mental travelogue" is not just psychedelic drugs but also the eternal puzzle of human consciousness and how, in a world that offers us both suffering and joy, we can do our best to be fully present and find meaning in our lives.

Stumbling on happiness
In this fascinating and often hilarious work – winner of the Royal Society of Science Prize 2007 – pre-eminent psychologist Daniel Gilbert shows how – and why – the majority of us have no idea how to make ourselves happy.
We all want to be happy, but do we know how? When it comes to improving tomorrow at the expense of today, we're terrible at predicting how to please our future selves.

The War of Art: Winning the Creative Battle
Bestselling novelist Steven Pressfield identifies the enemy that every one of us must face, outlines a battle plan to conquer this internal foe, then pinpoints just how to achieve the greatest success. The War of Art emphasizes the resolve needed to recognize and overcome the obstacles of ambition and then effectively shows how to reach the highest level of creative discipline. Think of it as tough love . . . for yourself.

Naval's Jewels

I found myself frequently referring people to works of Naval Ravikant. I thought I will put all my recommendations in a post here.

Twitter: 

• @naval (https://twitter.com/naval), 
  
• @NavalBot (https://twitter.com/NavalBot). (maintained by a fan)
  

Web sites: 

• https://nav.al (Naval's new web site, all his content is getting consolidated here)
  
• https://theangelphilosopher.com (has lot of his thoughts, don't know who maintains it)
  
• Angel List: India US  (democraticizing angel investing)
• Books recommended by Naval 
• Almanack of Naval Ravikant (This (free) book collects and curates Naval’s wisdom from Twitter, Podcasts, and Essays over the past decade).

Popular podcasts and fireside chats: 

• With Tim Ferris  (nominated for best podcast of the year)
  
• With Joe Rogan
  
• With Farnam street
  
• With Nassem Taleb
• With Marco Angelo (On Investing, Happiness and Meaning of Life)
• Naval on Meditation
• Naval on Getting Wealthy (giant episode - collection of all interviews on "How to get rich without getting lucky")
• Naval - "Taming your desires makes you unbeatable"
• .... and many more at nav.al

Interesting articles:

• Navalisms - quotes and perceptions
• Naval Ravikant - 15 timeless thoughts
• Naval - How to get rich without getting lucky

Shameless plug-in: My post on my 60d meditation streak (interesting more for copy-paste of Naval's tweetstorm on meditation)