It is that time of the year when we all look at making resolutions. It’s the New Year and we decided we needed to make a few of our own. One of them was to raise the bar of our own stories as we strive to keep them relevant to the disrupting times. We plan to keep them brief, new and fresh. For the first issue of the year 2015, we decided to have a very different take on trends—capture some of the major news events of 2014 such as Elections 2014, Mangalyaan’s foray into Mars, the FIFA World Cup, the Ebola Crisis and E-commerce wars and draw out lessons that we can learn from them.
One of the most defining moments of the year were the Parliamentary elections conducted in India. The polls proved that social media has come of age as one of the best communication tools that the parties used to communicate to the masses, besides rallies and meetings. The elections also showed how leadership could make a huge difference. With Narendra Modi at the helm, party workers rallied around to perform like a well-oiled unit. Amit Shah, the second-in-command and the brain behind BJP’s electoral campaign, ensured that BJP could take on its opponents effectively on any issue.
2014 was also a landmark year for the Indian Satellite Research Organization (ISRO). On September 24, an orbiter satellite Mangalyaan was launched into the Mars’ orbit unscathed to the awe and amazement of the world. India was the envy of every country across the globe as it managed to achieve the feat on almost one-tenth of the cost of the US mission Maven. From working on a frugal budget to utilizing one’s resources to the maximum, the Mars mission has taught us never to lose heart in the face of adversity.
Right now, the spotlight is firmly on the Indian scientists as they are preparing to make another dream a reality – sending a manned mission to space. Like these, there are three other instances that we have mentioned – the FIFA World Cup, the Ebola Crisis and the E-commerce wars. Apart from triumphs, 2014 was also a year of sadness. Last year marked the 30th anniversary of the Bhopal gas tragedy. The accident has highlighted that if the local laws do not bind companies, it will disrupt not just the business ecosystem but also the society in unforeseen ways and also raised a lot of questions on corporate responsibility.
In other stories, we have Harsh Mariwala, Chairman of Marico Industries Limited as our Big Interview for the month, where he talks about how he came to set up Marico separately from the family business, his thoughts on innovation and his learnings. In the run up to the Total Rewards Conclave on February 3, we talk to various experts to find out what are the upcoming trends in the Rewards & Recognition space in our Total Rewards supplement.
I leave you with these instances to ponder over and see what your own conclusions about the learnings will be. Like Mahatma Gandhi says, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” As always, please do send in your comments and views about our stories. Here’s wishing you a very Happy New Year and all the best for 2015.
Happy reading!
Esther Martinez Hernandez Editor-in-Chief