Reporting on cola wars can be as exciting and thrilling as covering a war. They have strategy, suspense, secrets, drama, winners, losers and- believe it or not-covert operations. It's not as if companies in other sectors don't engage in such battles; but cola companies do it with greater frequency, flourish and fanfare.
Our cover story for this issue can be seen as one such report from the frontlines. It chronicles how Coca-Cola India has finally put its house in order after almost two decades of struggle. The story is interesting- and instructive. What does one do when high sales result in high losses? How do you motivate your team when their salaries are lower than the industry and the image of the company is in tatters? How do you tell your business partners that taking a hit on volumes is the right thing not just for you, but also for them? How do you face a society that feels you are exploiting its resources to maximise profits? Lastly, how do you address all these questions at the same time? These were exactly the issues that Atul Singh, Coke's current Country Head, had to address when he took charge of the India operations in 2005. Find answers to these questions. A bonus: a lesser-known story of one of India's iconic home-grown brands that survived-and thrived-despite neglect from its owners and attack from rivals.
Over the years, the public relations exercise by India Inc. has not only become more critical but also more sophisticated and complicated. Media is the platform through which companies do both kinds of communication-paid (advertising) as well as news-driven (news reports and articles). For the past five years, BT-Cirrus annual survey of India's biggest newsmakers has tracked how companies and their CEOs are talked about and how much. The sixth installment of this study (page 76) not only provides a list of the biggest newsmakers, but also explains the strategic importance of corporate communications when the very definition of media is open to different interpretations.
The global economy is facing the consequences of a large section of people living beyond their means. Some of the biggest names in Indian industry bought businesses that were way beyond their ability to pay. On page 62, we bring you an update on their funding plans. By the time this issue reaches you, the process of government formation in Delhi would have begun. On page 26, we take a quick look at the agenda the new government- irrespective of the colour of the coalition-will have to get cracking with in the first 100 days.
