Mega Forces; Society & Politics: Managing The India Millennium

Where do we stand at the beginning of the New Millennium? Let us begin by looking at the political context. We had 3 general elections, 5 governments, and 5 prime ministers in the 3 years leading up to the millennium. The political mood was one of flux and uncertainty. The economy too had its share of troubles. There was unprecedented global turmoil in the wake of the Asian financial crisis; the competitive environment became tougher; several countries imposed sanctions on India following Pokhran-II; and our fiscal and revenue deficits reached unsustainable levels.

Mega Forces
Society & Politics
Bajaj Auto's Rahul Bajaj
CERA's S.L. Rao
MEA's Pawan Verma
JNU's Irfan Ahmed
Universalisation
M&M's Anand G. Mahindra
IndAsia Fund's Pradip P Shah
IGIDR's Kirit Parikh
DSE's Rameet Kaur
Wired World
Satyam Infoway's R. Ramaraj
IBM Consulting's Sanjeeva S. Dubey
FMS' M.L. Singla
FMS' Anjani Kumar

All is not gloom, though. The good news is that the Indian economy is entering the New Millennium on an upswing. Indicators point to a GDP growth of 6 per cent in 1999-2000. The outlook for most industries looks bright. This has been borne out by a Business Outlook survey conducted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), and by sectoral production information by various industry associations. And the CII has adopted Managing Globalisation In The New Millennium as its theme for 2000.

Globalisation isn't just inevitable, it is desirable too. India will soon be part of a boundaryless world with an unhindered flow of capital, technology, products and services, and, hopefully, people. Rapid advances in the areas of infotech and telecommunications will redefine distances between peoples and countries. Business will be transacted in real-time: there will be no waiting period, and no concern over time-differences.

Globalisation comes with responsibilities. It calls for better management of a multi-cultural environment; faster responses to change; and subscription to globally-accepted standards of quality delivery, and price. It also calls for an attitudinal change in government, business, and society. I believe that this century will see the redefinition of the interplay between business, politics, and society. It will bring about a new paradigm of cooperation and coexistence. Let me try and forecast the altering equations as I see them.

Indian industry will work harder at becoming globally competitive. It is a matter of survival. Through the 1990s, industry sought to enhance its competitiveness by adopting several operational effectiveness techniques that included the innovative management of quality, energy, and technology.

Industry also moved towards internationally-accepted norms of corporate governance by the end of the previous millennium. Several organisations have either accepted intact, or adapted to, the various models of good governance that were suggested. And a few other companies have begun reporting their compliance to a particular model of corporate governance in their financial reports.

Business itself will undergo transformation in this millennium. Pressure from shareholders, customers, competitors, and peers will ensure that companies focus on competitiveness, better disclosure-standards, and customer-orientation. For instance, social and legal imperatives will drive the Indian automobile industry towards global emission norms and safety standards.

What about the interplay between business and politics? There seems to be a new partnership that is developing between the government and industry concerning governance and all matters economic. The CII, for instance, has a National Task Force on Governance, which includes several political leaders. Industry is also trying to introduce the government to the operational improvement techniques that it employs with so much success. There are efforts to introduce TQM in government. At the 1999 Quality Summit in Delhi, an entire day's session was devoted to the theme Quality In Government. Over 100 government officials participated and discussed the importance of enhancing the quality of governance.

Even towards the end of the previous century, industry made its view on economic policies known to various political parties through representations from industry associations. The party manifestos did reflect these inputs. This happens not just at the national level, but also at the states level. Today, the CII has Joint Task Forces in Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, and Jammu & Kashmir co-chaired by the State Chief Ministers and the President of the CII. In this millennium, we will continue to see positive, constructive partnerships between business and politics. At the CII, we have embarked on a process to forecast the development of the country. This is called scenario thinking. Working with different segments of society, we have created 3 alternate scenarios of the country's development depending on the series of probable action. The scenario-thinking process will cement the relationship between business, politics, and society.

What about society? I believe that Indian industry cannot live in isolation. It has to be an integral part of the society in which it operates and from which it draws resources. This philosophy of the CII has led us to set up an exclusive Social Development & Community Affairs Council in the confederation. This will work in areas such as community development, population, education and literacy, and the development of rural crafts and skills.

We have also added a significant dimension to this work by helping, with small loans, the disadvantaged youth of this country to set up micro enterprises. These potential entrepreneurs will also be helped by providing them with mentors.

Our work with society spans activities such as advocacy for aids-prevention, adult literacy, and corporate support to primary education and community development. In the recent past, our country has had to cope with some major human issues-notably the Kargil conflict and the Orissa cyclone. These have impacted people and society at large. The corporate world has come forward tocontribute to the relief and rehabilitation efforts in both these cases.

In this millennium, there will be times when Indian industry will have to participate actively to mitigate the sufferings of society, and I am sure industry will not be found wanting. The new millennium will see a more powerful, economically-strong India, supported by a competitive and globally-oriented Indian industry. As the nation progresses, I foresee the development of a stronger bond between business, politics, and society. There will be a new ethos of partnership in the larger interest of India's growth and development.