In fact, firms like NIIT Technologies and EXL Services are already reaping the benefit of the first- mover advantage with over 20 per cent of their revenues coming from non-linear business in the quarter ended September 30. A non-linear business' focus moves away from the tendency to measure growth on the basis of headcount or the concept that the more the number of people working, the more the revenue.
UK, Australia numbers could pick up instead.
Travelport has decided to make holidaying an over-the-counter experience, where the customer can plan his travel. It will launch about 150-200 travel solution shops by tying up with malls, multiplexes and retail chains. Online travel company Cleartrip.com tied up with the Indian Railway and Catering and Tourism Corporation in September. SOTC plans to hold a six-day long Great Holiday Bazaar across all its outlets from November 3-8, with discounts between 4 and 20 per cent.
India's mid-cap software companies may shed as much as 10 per cent of their workforce as revenues and margins have shrunk owing to a global slowdown, analysts say.
A refiner embarking on an alternative fuel strategy may end up selling bottled water to quench the thirst of millions.
Wary of the times ahead in the job market, business schools are working on a risk-minimisation strategy and looking at doubling the pool of companies on the campus for the summer placements scheduled in November this year.
Indian clean technology businesses are finally catching the attention of investor community. New Ventures India - founded by World Resources Institute and CII-Godrej Green Business Centre - aims to fund 50 entrepreneurs in this segment by 2010 with a target investment of $250 million
State power boards incur fixed cost of Rs 3,500 crore (Rs 35 billion). About 5,000 Mw of gas-based electricity generation capacity, built at a cost of about Rs 20,000 crore (Rs 200 billion), is lying idle due to the shortage of gas in the country.
It's time for the famous B-school fests. But the zing is somewhat missing this time.
With India's two leading IT outsourcing companies, Infosys and HCL Technologies, vying to acquire the UK-based consulting firm Axon, SAP implementation is back in focus.
"The MoU between the (Ambani) brothers is in the private domain and has never been produced in the court. Agreements between the brothers were entered into on the basis of negotiation and decision on the case cannot be taken on this basis," Milind Sathe, senior counsel for Mukesh Ambani's RIL had told a division bench in July this year.
Apart from the increase in the number of players entering the sector -- there were just 25 entities two years ago -- the scale of operations has also increased substantially, with 30 companies planning large-scale operations, experts said. The capacity of biodiesel plants set up by these companies will range between 30 tonnes per day and 300 tonnes per day. Based on the capacity, it will cost between Rs 300 million and Rs 3 billion to set up these plants.
With America's fourth largest investment bank Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy protection and Merrill Lynch being bought over by the Bank of America, placements at the Indian Institutes of Management will be affected.
The venture, on the lines of Kishore Biyani's Future Ventures India, will focus its investments in the information technology sector, said a source familiar with the development.
The hotel giant is looking at having an exclusive arrangement with Pune-based Mulshi Springs -- a company that bottles natural spring water. The brand will be called Oberoi Spring Water and a formal announcement is expected soon. The packaged spring water will be available in 200 ml, 500 ml, 1 litre and 1.5 litre pet bottles priced between Rs 50 and Rs 200 respectively. "Water will be sourced from a rain forest near the Sahara Amby Valley," added the official.
The company is in talks with a few private banks and has signed on Citibank as one of the bankers to raise these funds, said sources. HCL Technologies and Citibank declined to comment saying that 'they do not comment on market speculation'.
Plans another $1-billion fund, wants to expand core team in India.
With the telecom industry aiming to increase its rural subscribers base and the central bank asking banks and financial firms to cater to the rural sector, businesses will have to find ways of servicing customers, say analysts. Most of the rural BPOs have a seating capacity of below 100 per centre, as they are situated in remote areas.
Fertiliser, power plants plan expansion in anticipation
A slowdown in the global economy and sub-prime crisis in the banking, financial and insurance services sector, its major revenue earners, force the domestic IT industry to take a relook at its hiring strategy.