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Final Research Topics
A RESEARCH STUDY
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SUBMITTED
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am highly thankful to Dr. Nirmala Joshi for giving me an opportunity to conduct A STUDY ON COMPANIES/ORGANIZATIONS CONCENTRATING ON INNOVATIVE INITIATIVES . I am thankful to members of staff of my college as well. Last but not the least I am thankful to all those visible and invisible hands that helped me throughout the successful completion of this project.
ANUP GANDHI M.M.S 2nd YEAR (FINANCE) DON BOSCO INSTITUTE OF TECHLOLOGY-MMS MUMBAI
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INDEX
Company/Organizaion Dabur India Daisy Consortium Damodar Valley Corp Dalkia Dasra Dear Imagination Deepam Department of telecommunication Desert Artisans Handicrafts Desi Crew Type Business Social Business Business Social Social Social Business Social Social Page Number 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 21
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TAKING A NEW INITIATIVE: What sets Dabur apart from the crowd is its ability to change ahead of others and to always set new standards in corporate governance and innovation. The organization has been a strong user of IT systems for a long time and is a firm believer in IT being an important business enabler. The IT department at Dabur has been instrumental in facilitating the planning, testing, and deployment of new ideas for the business. The organizations current IT landscape serves the manufacturing, sales, finance, and procurement functions well with SAP R/3 as the ERP. The company also uses applications for secondary sales tracking, claims management, master data management, media tracking, and employee management. Continuing its tradition of innovation and competitiveness, Dabur began investigating ways to leverage technology to meet this immediate need. Accenture India is IT outsourcing partner of Dabur and was responsible for the deployment of cloud services with assistance from Microsoft Virtual Technical Solution Team.
POST IMPLEMENTATION: To demonstrate the platform capabilities, Dabur built a Proof of Concept (POC) immediately. The POC showcased how the power of cloud can be used to build solutions that reduce costs, improve agility, and enhance global consistency. The Proof of Concept was completed in 15 days and within one and half months, we had 8 locations of Dabur connected on a common platform, at 5 percent of the cost we would have otherwise incurred, says Anil Garg. And, the conventional solution would have taken us at least a year.
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Dabur has a customized design and approach to deploying Microsoft Exchange on the cloud. The company still retains its main Exchange server in its own data center. The international subsidiaries access an auxiliary mail server on the cloud. This server synchronizes with Daburs core Exchange Server at the data center.
With Microsoft Online Services, Dabur can take advantage of a Microsoft Exchangebased email solution that provides employees access to email, calendars, and contacts from any Internet-connected personal computer, laptop, or mobile device for a low monthly subscription fee. Because Microsoft hosts and manages the servers, the company does not have to invest in hardware or the administrative support required deploying and managing solutions in-house. The advantages to us are clear no third-party providers, access through just an Internet connection, email IDs of all locations are @Dabur.com and share the same address book, adds Anil. In addition, with Microsoft Unified Communications, we also have audio and video conferencing all on a single network. Even the sever on the cloud is managed by our data center administrator. With 350 users on this network, Daburs IT has India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Dubai, Egypt, Nigeria, and soon-to-be-integrated Turkey and the United States, on the cloud.
CONSERVATION OF ENERGY: Dabur has been undertaking a host of energy conservation measures. Successful implementation of various energy conservation projects have resulted in a 13.8% reduction in the Companys energy bill in the 2008-09 fiscal alone. What was noteworthy was the fact that this reduction has come despite an 8-9% volume increase in manufacturing, and an average 11.7% increase in cost of key input fuels. The host of measures key among them being use of bio-fuels in boilers, generation of biogas and installation of energy efficient equipment helped lower the cost of production, besides reduce effluent and improve hygiene conditions & productivity. SOURCES: 1. http://www.dabur.com/About%20Dabur-Vision 2. http://www.microsoft.com/india/casestudies/microsoft-online-services/daburindia/leading-fmcg-company-moves-business-critical-application-to-thecloud/4000009995
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DAISY CONSORTIUM
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This is done to prevent unauthorized individuals, such as those who do not have a qualifying disability, from accessing the materials. The organization which offers the content provides a decryption key to the user, which can be installed into a DAISY player to allow decryption. As the encryption schemes are not part of the core DAISY standard, only players which specifically implement the necessary algorithms and key management will be able to access these titles.
ACHIEVEMENTS: 1. The 25 Tech Awards Laureates were honored at The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, California on November 12, 2008 where Hiroshi Kawamura, President of the DAISY Consortium accepted the award trophy on behalf of the Consortium. The DAISY Consortium was named a 2008 Tech Awards Laureate for the Katherine M. Swanson Equality Award for the development of AMIS, the open source DAISY reading software. 2. Benetech which operates Bookshare.org, a Member of the DAISY Consortium, has been awarded the AT&T Technology Innovation Award. This award recognizes an outstanding assistive technology company that has created lasting impact through the development of assistive technologies. Bookshare.org offers more than 36,000 digital books, newspapers and magazines in the BRF (Braille) file format and DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System ). For the full story, read the press release on the Benetech Web site. SOURCES: 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DAISY_Digital_Talking_Book 2. http://www.daisy.org/news-detail/470?NewsId=470 3. http://drupal.digitaltalkingbook.com/news-detail/384
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The upper valley consists of the districts of Hazaribagh, Koderma, Giridih, Chatra, Dhanbad, Bokaro and some sections of Palamau, Ranchi, Lohardaga and Dumka districts in the state of Jharkhand. The lower valley consists of the two districts of Bardhaman and Hughli, and some areas of the Howrah,Bankura, and Purulia districts in the state of West Bengal. DVC will produce 11,000 MWatt Of power by 2012. ADDITIONAL FACTS[4]: DVC has a total installed generating capacity of 2551.5 MW Hydel-144, Thermal 2325 & Gas 82.5 MW, of which 830 MW capacity is located in West Bengal, the details is as follows : Hydel : Maithon on river Barakar in Burdwan District : 3x20 = 60 MW (1957-58) Thermal : Durgapur in Burdwan District : 1x140 + 1x210 = 350 MW (1966/1987) Mejia in Bankura District : 2x210 = 420 MW (1997-98) Total 830 MW 3rd Unit of 210 MW of Mejia will be commissioned during 1998-99. The DVC plays an important role in the industrial sector of the State by supplying power to coal fields, electric tractions and some other major industries (33 kV and above) in its command area. It supplies power to meet the system requirement of the WBSEB and the CESC Ltd. as per agreement. CURRENT NEWS: 04 September 2011[2]: The Power Ministry has written to the Coal Ministry seeking review of its decision to deallocate blocks awarded to Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC). 08 September 2011[3]: Damodar Valley Corporation to carry out advanced research in power technology which has invested 120 crore funding in IIT Kharagpur.
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DALKIA ABOUT THE COMPANY: Dalkia is an energy service company that offers management and maintenance services to operators of industrial production sites, public utilities, offices and hospitals.[1] Dalkia is a subsidiary of Veolia Environnement (66%) and lectricit de France (34%). In 2009, Dalkias turnover was listed as 8.14 billion, with 52,577 employees around the world. The CEO of Dalkia is Olivier Barbaroux. HISTORY: Dalkia was created in 1998 with the merger of Esys-Montenay and Compagnie Gnrale de Chauffe. In 2001, Dalkia became a subsidiary of the Veolia Environnement Group. It signed an agreement with lectricit de France to build an international presence and expand its range of services. Dalkia also bought the Clemessy Group, which specialises in systems for automation, mechanisation and electronics. In 2008, Dalkia sold Clemessy and Crystal to Eiffage, an energy and construction company. In 2009, the Mitie Group PLC, a UK holding company that focuses on providing strategic outsourcing and asset management services, bought the facilities management arm of Dalkia UK. The company is now based in Saint-Andr-lez-Lille, France.
ACTIVITIES: The companys activities involve energy infrastructure operation, the design and management of high-efficiency systems, and energy consumption management. Dalkia offers the following services: Heating and cooling systems (34% of revenue): heat, hot water and air conditioning for public and private facilities Multi-technical and thermal services (34%): services for heating and cooling systems and energy facilities Industrial utilities (13%): a range of services for industrial customers (automation, engineering, cogeneration of energy, etc.)
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Comprehensive building management (7%): general site management, including maintenance, service provider management, occupant services, and cleaning services Special services (12%): Dalkia owns a number of subsidiaries delivering an array of other services
RENEWABLE ENERGY Dalkia provides innovative solutions that contribute to sustainable development. The company has invested in the following technologies: cogeneration (generation of both electricity and heat), biomass,solar power (photovoltaic as well as thermal), geothermal and heat source capture from incineration. BIOMASS: The companys efforts to build a larger presence in biomass technology have mainly been in Europe. They include: the development and network connection of Frances largest biomass energy generation plant in Cergy Pontoise, which provides heat and water for 70,000 people; the reuse of 2.4 million tonnes of biomass in Dalkia plants worldwide.
Its website provides the following figures: Nearly 120,000 energy installations managed around the world 7,467 MW of independent power production capacity, of which 5,000 is through cogeneration (combined heat and power production) Over 5.7 million living quarters/units in collective housing served 4,505 industrial sites around the world 6,159 healthcare sites (and 495,000 hospital beds) served
CURRENT AFFAIRS: Dalkia to install France's first geothermal heating network for an eco-neighborhood[3] Frances Dalkia to invest $60.7m into regional housing projects[4]
DASRA Dasra Social-Impact is not just a professional development program, but a pioneering international network of advisors, mentors, and social entrepreneurs, who help visionary social change makers, build the skills required to operate their organizations at scale. Each year we take 40 social entrepreneurs through this program, which combines classroom teaching with mentoring, peer-to-peer exchange, networking and funding. We focus on providing participants with the knowledge, the tools and the confidence to develop solid business plans, and tactical execution plans. In addition, they develop a greater understanding of financial options and get an incredible network of relevant contacts. Dasra Social-Impact was created to solve a fundamental problem: donors want to fund organizations with a clear plan for growth but most non-profit organizations and social businesses are too busy running day-to-day programs to develop effective business plans. Last year, we were successful in attracting over INR 9 crore of funding to the most highperforming organizations on the course. This effort allowed the organizations to begin executing their growth plans.
QUICK FACTS: Number of Participants Program Length 40 7 months 10 hrs per month Course Attendees 1 person Typically 50% non-profit models and 50% forprofit/hybrid models. From September to March Residential program (October, January, March) Online for mentorship and homework Each selected organization with either a for-profit or non-profit model will be required to nominate 1 representative to attend the residential workshops. Representative from the organization should be in a key senior management role. The course will cost the organization INR 75,000 up front. Accommodations and meals during the residential workshops are included in the fees. Participants will have to arrange for their own travel costs to and from the workshops.
Cost
INR 75,000
INR 3.5 lakhs The actual costs are subsidized by Dasra Social-Impact and donors who sponsor entrepreneurs. 15 July 2011 Dasra will be reviewing applications as soon as we receive them, so we encourage early applications.
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HOW IT WORKS:
Crucial for any social entrepreneur to get funding, is to be able to think like a funder. Dasra Social-Impacts peer funding program does just that, it helps the leaders of non profits and Impacts social businesses to put themselves in the shoes of a funder and judge a peer funding competition that they are themselves a part of. Impact Dasra Social-Impact now implements the program in partnership with First Light Ventures and has instituted alongside their program, a peer funding competition for non profits, following funding the same process and funded by the KL Felicitas Foundation. Six to eight entrepreneurs form a team in the duration of Dasra Social Impact (DSI), thereby Social-Impact creating four teams in total. Two teams of organizations pitch for grant funding and two teams pitch of organizations pitch for social investment funding. Throughout the year, entrepreneurs within each group will stay in close touch with one another, exchanging ideas and advice. Each team is self governed and strives to vote for the o strongest business plan. At the conclusion of DSI, the teams self select one social enterprise from each group to receive self-select either equity from First Light Ventures (we expect the equity amount to be up to US$75,000) and two teams will receive an unrestricted grant of $15,000 each. The voting processes will be comprehensive and social enterprises cannot vote for themselves. Dasra, or for that matter, any third party, has no role in selecting the winning organization. The value of the peer fund program includes: funding 1. Developing relationships amongst social entrepreneurs to facilitate the exchange of knowledge identifying (through a self selecting process) social enterprises capable of self-selecting effectively utilizing equity funding. 2. Receiving ongoing valuable feedback on your business plan from peers. e 3. Learning to think like a funder or investor. 4. The four best organizations will receive funding!
SOURCES:
DEAR IMAGINATION OVERVIEW: Dear Imagination is a not-for-profit organization addressing a pressing social problem - the lack of a platform for the pursuit of creativity among several demographics, and particularly among underprivileged children. It was founded in April 2010 DESCRIPTION: To that end, it holds art workshops for them through which they get to know their imaginations and be as free and creative as they'd like, for art - true art - has no restrictions. GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOUNDERS: Sana Khan is sixteen years old and attends Ecole Mondiale World School. She has been interested in art for as long as she can remember, supplementing this interest with her passion for literature and writing. Abhik Bhattacherji works at Godrej, and he has previously been a Fellow at Teach for India, a freelance writer, and a Britannia employee. His interests are wide-ranging - and predominant among them is art. MISSION: Dear Imagination was created with the aim of providing a platform for creativity to those who would not ordinarily get that opportunity - acquainting, and occasionally recquainting people with their imaginations. We believe in the transcending, transporting, empowering and gladdening power of imagination.
AWARDS: The Economic Times Power of Ideas PRODUCTS: While we are not product-oriented, we sell objets d'art at a variety of forums to raise money for our cause and several other worthy ones like Teach for India and Prajwala. CONTACT: E-mail: abhikabhik@gmail.com, sana95@gmail.com Phone Numbers: +91 9619580005, 09967921144
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POSTS ON FACEBOOK: July 25 at 12:56am Meetings with fabulous animators and artists, story boarding over chai, photographing and tripping on colors - Dear Imagination is busy, busy, busy this week creating short film(s) from children's art work - We're taking this to a whole new, exciting level ! We hope you can be there to soak in the magic and positivity of art. July 20 at 1:59pm Dear Imagination painted a library in Hyderabad that was written - and raved - about. We were not, however, credited. We feel this as a slight to our creative integrity, and urge you to read the article (http://makeadiff.in/blog/2011/07/04/the-biggest-ta-dah-moment-inmad-hyderabad-history/) and show your support for our unacknowledged work. June 24 at 6:55am Today third grade children at Mumbai's Gandhi Gram School expressed tribal motifs through pointillism; experimenting with q-tips and poster paint! We've been working with them for a year now, and are proud to note that they are developing much confidence in creative expression. Pictures will soon be put up. June 15 at 10:33am Painted Rainbow Aman Vedika Girls' Home Library today. Tomorrow DIY-ing furniture. #we've got the power May 31 at 4:12am The CEO and Co - Founder of Dear Imagination Sana Khan just won the International Student Award for Community Service. While we congratulate her, we also remember the joy of service and the power of creativity. Dear Imagination is proud of you. March 11 at 8:35am Dear Imagination is doing a commemorative workshop on the earthquake in Japan, titled "A Different Kind of Incredible." It's to pay homage to the dead and the injured, through the transcendent ability of art. If you would like to contribute, volunteer or participate, comment here/call us on +919967921144. The workshop is open to all. SOURCE: 1. www.facebook.com/pages/Dear-Imagination/111417415575525
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DEEPAM Deepam is an NGO working to empower lesser-privileged children with access to information and opportunity. We hope to light the spark in the childs mind and make them curious for life, through computer classes, English lessons and personality development. VISION AND MISSION: Deepam is a registered non-profit organization conceived with the goal of bridging the divide between literacy and education among less-privileged children in Chennai. We work to instil in a child the curiosity to learn and to give him the keys to the greatest pool of knowledge out there- the Internet, by suitably augmenting school curricula. We transfer four sets of practical skills to these children: computer and internet usage; language and communication skills, particularly in English; current and social affairs awareness; and personality development. The first of these computers, and the internet lies at the core of our effort, and is used to drive the other three. These four skills, we believe, will give them a base of tools and help the children understand, identify, and access opportunity for themselves. Deepam reaches out to over 240 children through 6 centres around Chennai. We have over 50 regular volunteer members (drawn from our volunteer pool of over 300 members). We use netbooks, laptops, and the Internet as teaching tools and resources, even as we teach children the skills needed to use them.
HOW DID DEEPAM START? Deepam as an idea was initiated in January 2008 when Ram Viswanathan discussed givingback to the society, over an early morning run with Karthikeyan. Since then, a bunch of enthusiastic volunteers have made the idea, a reality. As we realised since the start, it has been us, volunteers, who have benefitted the most out of the interaction with the children. We ran a pilot program in April 2008 at Perungudi in Chennai, with the help of Nalamdana a SHG. Every weekend during this period, the children who gathered at Nalamdanas centre in Perungudi played with the laptops, with guidance from Deepam volunteers. The children were hooked to the idea of playing with the computers they were taught to browse the internet, send e-mails and work with the Office tools. The enthusiasm shown by the children inspired the Deepam team to take this idea to other parts of Chennai.
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We celebrated our first anniversary in April, 2009 when we issued certificates to children who completed our course. We were officially registered as an NGO in the same year. Currently three and half years old, we operate 5 centres in Chennai and hope to touch as many as 1000 lives by 2015 over > 10 centres. TASKS UNDERTAKEN: At Deepam, we work on four pillars to help children unlock opportunities to better themselves with: Computer-skills & Technology, English language skills, Personality development and General Awareness. More information about our approach to teaching can be found here. Currently, we operate out of five centres in Chennai. In addition, we also operate projects in relation to the kids we work with.
INITIATIVES TAKEN: 1. DEEPAM STARS: A scholarship program aimed at identifying highflyers who are in need of continued support for money and resources. Deserving kids will be shortlisted and supported with Mentorship Volunteer who stays in contact with a kid and help guide ideas and interest of kids for excellence in different fields Scholarship Provide monetary support in terms of Tuition fees / Other support and resources required in their education 2. DEEPAM READ: Deepam Read is a planned project involving set-up of a community library, to cultivate the habit of reading and to improve general awareness quotient of kids. The aim is to provide books that impart practical knowledge, widen the horizon of children, encourage and enhance creativity and constitutes an interesting reading for children in the target age group.
SOURCE:
http://deepam.org.in/
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DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATION Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in the executive branch of theGovernment of India.
The Department of Telecommunications is part of the Telecom services have been recognized the world-over as an important tool for socioeconomic development for a nation and hence telecom infrastructure is treated as a crucial factor to realize the socio-economic objectives in India. Accordingly, the Department of Telecom has been formulating developmental policies for the accelerated growth of the telecommunication services. The Department is also responsible for grant of licenses for various telecom services like Unified Access Service Internet and VSAT service. The Department is also responsible for frequency management in the field of radio communication in close coordination with the international bodies. It also enforces wireless regulatory measures by monitoring wireless transmission of all users in the country. CURRENT UPDATES:
1. Department of Telecommunications is looking into the recommendation of rejecting Qualcomm's licence for broadband wireless services(BWA) in four circles on grounds that the company did not apply for licence in time. "But in all cases, matters will be taken strictly in accordance with the provisions of the licence conditions, allocation of spectrum in accordance to law," DoT Secretary R Chandrashekhar told reporters on the sidelines of an event here. "NIA explicitly requires new entrants to apply for an ISP licence in the specified service area, in case the applicant is declared successful in that service area. DoT, however, seems to have a different interpretation," Qualcomm said in a statement. WBBS applied for licences nominee of Qualcomm in each service area where the company won the spectrum. 2. NEW DELHI: The telecom department (DoT) has decided to issue showcause notices to nine companies for 85 of the 122 mobile permits awarded by former telecom minister A Raja, based on the findings of the national auditor that these licences were 'illegal'.
A showcause is the first step towards termination of the licence, and enhancement of the Rs 2,625-crore bank guarantees submitted by each of these companies. Last
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year, the Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) had sought an explanation from the DoT for giving mobile permits to Unitech Wireless, Loop, Videocon, STel, Etisalat DB and Allianz Infratch and said these companies did not fulfill 'the eligibility criteria for obtaining the permit'. SOURCES:
1. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/9990513.cms
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DESI CREW DesiCrew Solutions is an Indian Business process outsourcing (BPO) company. HISTORY: It was started in 2005 by Saloni Malhotra as a test project sponsored by Ashok Jhunjhunwala's TeNet group from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. It was registered as a Limited Company in 2007 ABOUT THE COMPANY: The DesiCrew story is of a rural BPO pioneering a new vision for stimulating inclusive growth in India. With a decentralized business model providing competitive outsourcing solutions to clients and meaningful employment opportunities, we have established a technology driven, profit making social enterprise. Our story has only just begun but is already proving to be a meaningful and prosperous journey. Click on the links to the left to know more.
WHAT DOES IT DO? Our services at DesiCrew provide significant scope for maximizing business value through cost management, operational efficiency and innovation. The rural service delivery model leverages people, process and technology to deliver global service standards across the following sectors: 1. Insurance 2. E-Governance 3. Market Research 4. Internet & Mobile 5. Social Sector
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SOCIAL IMPACT: DesiCrew aims at creating knowledge jobs by outsourcing to educated but socially, economically, and/or geographically disadvantaged Indians. Across the board benefits of employment at DesiCrew are visible for employees and their families. The increase in income levels has provided basic sustenance and spiked investments in homes as well as higher education. Employees hold great pride in their work and the new skills they have acquired at DesiCrew, which has translated into higher confidence levels and greater aspirations for the future. All of these factors have encouraged rural workers to stay rural thereby initiating a trend of reverse migration. On a macro level, the rural BPO model has potential for greater impact given that approximately 70% of India's population resides in rural areas. If 50 people working in 1000 towns/ villages earn Rs 5,000 (~100 USD) per month - that is Rs 250 million (~5 million USD) per month being infused into local communities through local residents. On a comparative scale, average monthly household income of these employees would have been Rs 1,500 (~30 USD) per month. With a social mission driving our business, we are focused on harnessing our business model for generating wealth in the rural economy rather than extracting wealth from the rural areas. FUTURE PLANS: In the coming year we are looking to expand our workforce to 1000 employees across different states of India. Continuing this expansion year on year, we would like to establish ourselves as the preferred BPO of leading companies across all verticals in which we work. Moving ahead we also plan on increasing our scope of work with the newly created "DesiCrew Foundation." The DesiCrew Foundation funds various initiatives like social impact assessment, marketing of the rural BPO model, stock-sharing and benefits for employees, the community service events, etc.
SOURCE: http://www.desicrew.in/
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