Blogs on General Management

It is on record that the Indian economy grew exponentially under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership despite the debilitating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic that had slowed down many world economies, including that of the United States, China, and Japan. In 2023, India’s GDP expanded by 6.4% while China’s GDP only grew marginally at 5.4% and the United States’ GDP increased by 4.9%. 6 Facts that indicate that the Indian economy is doing well under Prime Minister Modi At the current rate of growth, India is projected to surpass Japan as the third-largest economy in the world by 2030. The recent progress recorded in the Indian economy is linked to the following socio-economic advancements recorded under the able leadership of Narendra Modi: 1. Moderate Inflation: The inflation rate in 2013, just before Narendra Modi took off as the Prime Minister was estimated at 9.13 (with the 5-year average topping 10.38). However, he has been able to dramatically bring India’s inflation down to as low as 4.45 (October 2023). With a moderate inflation rate, the purchasing power of an average Indian household has consequently increased. 2. Stable Interest Rate Regime: India’s interest rate regime is relatively stable; it indicates that its interest rate is not affected by any ups and downs in the open markets. In case a nation’s interest rate is market-driven, there are some obvious disadvantages of having a “floating” interest rate: Indian businesses and the government borrowing money from foreign investors have to pay more when the interest rate goes up and it also affects the prices of real estate property; houses may appear unaffordable to most earners except the super-rich. 3. Robust Foreign Exchange Reserves: Since India learned a great lesson from the 1991 near-apocalyptic Balance of Payment (BoP) deficit that made it impossible for the government and Indian businesses to import necessities from overseas, the story has changed for the better. As of October 2023, the Reserve Bank of India reported that India’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $586.111 billion. This allows Indian businesses to import the raw materials they require from other nations without necessarily worrying about the government not allowing them to pay in dollar denomination. 4. Increased Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs): Over the past three to five years, India has witnessed an unprecedented increase in the number of Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) flocking into the country. In 2013, before Narendra Modi assumed leadership, India had received about $34.3 billion in FDIs. Surprisingly, in 2022, that amount is more than doubled to $84.8 billion. This is largely due to the Modi government’s efforts at liberalizing the Indian economy which is now more market-driven and transparent for international investors to bring their funds to jumpstart diverse aspects of the Indian economy. 5. Vibrant Local Startup Ecosystem: India’s startup ecosystem is one of the biggest in the Asian subcontinent, with a total of 61,400 startup companies in operation in the country. The good news is that Indian startups are increasingly hiring more and more professionals than some of the traditional businesses, and they have received foreign investments that are worth about $70 billion between 2014 and 2020. 6. Superb Leadership: What has made all the above-mentioned socio-economic advancements possible is the indefatigable leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has worked laboriously to reform several areas of the Indian economy, from initiating and implementing widespread reforms in banking, education, taxation, farming, trade, healthcare, and other sectors. India has repositioned itself as a nation that is open and willing to do business with other countries. This wasn’t always the case when the Indian economy was purely self-focused and embraced little international trade. What the Prime Minister has achieved is the liberalization of most industries to allow and encourage foreign investment. India’s Road to Transformation: Why Leadership Matters, a book written by Dr. Jagdish Sheth and Gyanendra Singh, two US-based Indian academics who dream of a better and more advanced India, sheds more light on their beloved country’s current rate of growth and the challenges it has to overcome to fully transform as an economic powerhouse. Front cover of India’s Road To Transformation: Why Leadership Matters book Does India have what it takes to become a superpower in the likes of the United States and China in the next 7-10 years? The authors of India’s Road to Transformation: Why Leadership Matters convincingly think that it does, but with a caveat that Indian people must encourage and support a transformational leader to get the job done. Who among the crop of modern-day Indian leaders does the cap of a transformational leader fit? After making some critical analyses, the authors believe that Narendra Modi, judging by his actions and performance to date, is worth being trusted with Indian leadership for another term. To discover how they arrived at this very important conclusion, read the entire book yourself and make your own judgment about the undeniable facts highlighted in India’s Road to Transformation: Why Leadership Matters.   About the Authors Dr. Jagdish Sheth is Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Business at the Goizueta Business School at Emory University and is globally known for his scholarly contributions to consumer behavior, relationship marketing, competitive strategy, and geopolitical analysis. Dr. Sheth has been on the board of several companies including Norstan, Pacwest-Telecom, Cryocell International, Shasun Drugs and Chemicals, and WIPRO Limited. He is the Founder and Chairman of the Academy of Indian Marketing (AIM) which supports research and scholarship among Indian scholars in marketing and management. Gyanendra Singh is a former P&G executive, Managing Partner at The Partnering Group, and Director of the Center for Retail Management at the Kellogg School of Management. His initial career in R&D led to two patents and new products. This was followed by a marketing and management systems career, during which his strategic insights led to many concepts of Category Management. He has authored many articles and books and advised multinationals across the globe— from Argentina to Russia. Subsequently, his work has focused on change management within large organizations, including national transformation.

Read about Vibrant’s first year at the pre-eminent annual conference. The 83rd Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management was convened in Boston, Massachusetts, USA from August 4-8, 2023. More than 10,000 attendees from 80+ countries came together to delve into the theme of “Putting the Worker Front and Center” and engaged in 2,300+ scholarly sessions. The conference hosts academics in the fields of management and organization, which include students and practitioners who come together to discuss the most vital issues pertaining to both spheres. It provides a platform for the attendees to present their research, receive and provide feedback, and network with members of the community. Vibrant Publishers was a proud member of the conference where we showcased our Self-Learning Management books, and networked with fellow publishers and practitioners. Our founders at the Academy of Management exhibit   Our range of Self-Learning Management series at Booth #513 The conference was attended by our founders Avani Udeshi and Deep Udeshi. Our booth (number 513) featured our complete array of Self-Learning Management books on topics such as digital marketing, business law, entrepreneurship, economics, operations and supply chain, and human resource management to name a few (check out our complete collection here). Alongside our books were the galley copies of our upcoming titles, namely Macroeconomics Essentials, Social Media Marketing Essentials, Service Marketing Essentials, and Personal Finance Essentials (interested readers who would like to provide feedback on the book before it goes on sale can request a galley copy here). We encouraged management experts to publish with us and management professors to adopt our books in their courses’ curricula. Visitors with our t-shirts   Our interactions with visitors were lively and informative at the same time Avani and Deep got the chance to interact with professors, practitioners, and students from countries all around the world: India, Canada, Israel, Korea, Lebanon, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, and the USA. “We got to interact with them and tell them about our books relevant to their fields of expertise. Most of the visitors were keen on knowing more about our Self-Learning Management series, and we were more than happy to walk them through it. My mentor, Dr. Jagdish Sheth, was the one who recommended that we attend the conference this year. I’m glad we followed through on his advice,” said Deep. A visitor having a go at Spin The Wheel To entertain our visitors, we hosted a fun activity Spin The Wheel, which offered them the opportunity to win goodies such as pop sockets, t-shirts, and other surprise gifts. The visitors were also handed merchandise like bottles, phone stands, t-shirts, and handbags. We also met fellow publishers, conducted fruitful conversations, and exchanged ideas. After a triumphant maiden run, Vibrant Publishers is all set to attend the next iteration of the conference that will be held in Chicago, Illinois, where we hope to bring our personal brand of ideas to champion the theme “Innovating for the Future: Policy, Purpose, and Organization.” Hope to see you at Booth No. 504 next year!  

While a Limited Liability Company (LLC) provides a hybrid structure between a corporation and a partnership, there are questions about the taxation structure to be adopted for this entity. For an LLC, the available options for taxation are whether to opt for taxation as a partnership or an S-Corporation. Either way, one thing is certain - an LLC is a “pass-through” entity. This means that its income is passed on to its owners as their income and the income of the LLC can be reflected in the income tax returns of the owners. Owners of LLCs are called “members”  and the persons managing the operations of the LLC are known as managers. A member of an LLC can be an individual, a partnership, another LLC, a corporation, or a trust. The default mode of taxation of an LLC is that of a sole proprietorship if it is a single-member LLC and a partnership if it is a multi-member LLC. Therefore, if you don’t do anything, your LLC will be taxed either as a sole proprietorship or as a partnership, which means that the income of the LLC will simply be declared on the proprietor or the share of profits will be declared on the partners’ tax returns. What exactly is an S-Corporation? S-Corporation is not an entity form. It is just a manner in which an entity can be taxed. So your entity would have to be either an LLC or a C-Corporation and then you can elect for it to be taxed as an S-Corporation.   What do you need to consider when making the decision? In our case, we are considering if we should elect for our LLC to be taxed as an S-Corporation. An important difference between when you are opting for your LLC to be taxed as a proprietorship or partnership and when you are opting for your LLC to be taxed as an S-Corporation is the manner in which the owner or the member’s income is taxed. When an entity is taxed as a proprietorship or partnership, the income that the owner gets is treated as self-employment income. This is because the owner owns the business, and it’s not considered to be separate from the owner. When an entity is taxed as an S-Corporation, any income that the owner receives from the business is considered to be the owner’s remuneration or salary, not self-employment income. However, this is if the owner is actively working for the business (you don’t get a salary if you don’t work!) and not just drawing passive income from the business. And this is why, the way the taxes are applied on such income changes. Further, you can split the income that you receive from the business into two categories: Salaried income which will be subject to payroll taxes such as social security and medicare taxes. These are payable under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). Distributions, i.e. dividends from the business, which are not taxed in the same way as payroll or self-employment taxes, and therefore, these can be taxed on the normal income tax slabs. By doing this, it is possible that your aggregate tax bill is reduced. However, any convenience comes with its own complexities. First of all, there are some conditions that you need to fulfill if you wish to be taxed as an S-Corporation: You cannot have more than one hundred members. That’s not so difficult to fulfill, considering that most LLCs are single-member LLCs. However, another condition is that you cannot have anyone other than an individual as a member. So if you’re looking for a Corporation to be a member of an LLC (some real estate structures find this useful), then you cannot elect to be taxed as an S-Corporation. Further, you need to have only residents as members. If any of your members are not residents of the US, you cannot elect to be taxed as an S-Corporation. Secondly, being taxed as an S-Corporation requires some formalities to be fulfilled: For a corporation to be taxed as an “S-Corporation”, they must submit Form 2553 with the IRS, provided that they are not financial institutions or insurance companies. Therefore, it is clear that if an LLC meets the conditions for qualifying as an S-Corporation, there may be benefits in choosing to be taxed as an S-Corporation instead of the default mode of proprietorship or partnership. However, such decisions always need to be taken on a case-to-case basis, depending on the business and requirements of an LLC. … This blog is written by Komal Shah, author of the newly launched Business Law Essentials You Always Wanted To Know. She has written this book in the same simple-to-understand language as this blog and has covered a wide range of topics such as basic taxation regimes, employment laws, contract laws, intellectual property laws, data protection laws, etc. Order this book from our website or Amazon if you are a law geek and want a comprehensible guide to learn about the laws in the US.   Also read: Contract for Service: 5 Things You Need to Know What is Entrepreneurship and how do you set up a successful business? Follow These Tips to Get Started (And Succeed) As An Online Entrepreneur  

If you’re running a business, you will need to avail services from different service providers quite frequently, whether it is for the development of your website or for advertising your products or services, or for drafting contracts itself! These service providers are not employees; they are independent contractors and are hired only for a specific project or task. When you engage a service provider to provide different services to you, you need to lay down the terms relating to the standard or quality or timeline for the provision of services and also the payment of the charges for the provision of services, among other things. You can do this by entering into a “Contract for Service”.  Since these types of contracts are required to be entered into by businesses frequently, founders as well as people supporting the businesses need to know what such contracts need to cover.  Here are five things you need to have inside your “Contract for Service”. Clearly defined scope of services Where the services to be provided or availed are not defined clearly, it can create a problem for either or both parties involved. As a service provider, you may end up doing far more than you are paid for, or as a client, you may end up receiving too less than what you are paying for. The service provider may deliver something completely different than what is expected and this can create problems for both parties, since the efforts of the service provider would be wasted and the client will still not get what was expected.  This is why it is very important that the scope of the services is defined as clearly as possible, with the deadlines for delivery clearly indicated. However, often it is not possible to define the services exhaustively and that is why it is necessary to include an authority to a party to determine the quality of services as acceptable or otherwise.  There also needs to be a procedure for incorporating changes as requested by the client and where excessive changes are requested, a mechanism needs to be set up for providing extra charges to the service provider. Payments based on performance milestones  Often, people make the mistake of hiring service providers with a high advance payment. This may happen because the clients want to get something executed urgently, or where the specific skill of the service provider is difficult to find. However, this would have to be done based on how well you know the service provider. The best way to hire a service provider is if they are referred by someone who is known to you. If that is not the case, then the ideal way of payment is by including performance milestones i.e. payment based on work completed. This way, you will never lose money if the service provider leaves the work halfway. Some points that need to be included within a payments clause are as follows: If you are paying a fixed amount to the service provider monthly or quarterly, or fortnightly, etc. over the period of the project, the amount and period need to be indicated clearly. It also needs to be indicated if the amount is subject to any deductions of taxes. You may do this by clearly setting out the goals for them in a Schedule to the contract to be achieved during the period and marking them as Key Performance Indicators. Alternatively, the better way is to list the fixed amounts payable not periodically, but upon completion of specific milestones.  Clearly set out the process of claiming and reimbursing additional expenses incurred by the service provider (if these are to be reimbursed), including the process of raising invoices and the period within which the invoices will be paid. If you wish, you can also mention any incentives or bonuses which may be awarded to the service provider, if the delivery exceeds expectations. While on one hand, it incentivizes the service provider to exceed expectations, care should be taken that this does not become an obligation for the client. Do not forget to include the method of payment to the service provider and the day of the month till which such payments shall be disbursed. If you are the service provider, you might want to include terms that provide for a penalty or interest on delayed payments. Ownership of intellectual property created by the service provider It’s important to ensure that a client who pays the service provider to create intellectual property gets the ownership of any customized intellectual property that the service provider may create at the request of the client. However, sometimes, the intellectual property being provided by the service provider is standardized, for example, a standard software, and in such cases, the client may secure only a license to use such software and may not secure ownership of the software.  Therefore, it is important to clearly provide in the contract as to whether and if yes, what intellectual property will be owned by the client and what intellectual property will be owned by the service provider.  A few points that need to be taken into consideration while drafting the intellectual property clause are as follows:  Indicate clearly which intellectual property is to be assigned by the service provider to the client and what part is an exception, the ownership of which will be retained by the service provider. Where the intellectual property is to be assigned, state that the intellectual property will be assigned from the moment of its creation. Include an obligation that the service provider must support with any registrations of the intellectual property in the name of the client. Confidentiality, non-compete, non-solicit, and non-disparagement clauses These clauses are added in agreements to ensure that the service provider does not: - Leak out or disclose any non-public information that is shared with the service provider while performing the services - Start a competing business or simultaneously provide services to a direct competitor of the client - Take away the client’s employees, consultants or customers - Bad mouth the company during or after providing the services   A few points to be taken care of while drafting these clauses are: These clauses must be kept as broad as possible from a client’s perspective, and as clear as possible from a service provider’s perspective. For example, what can be considered “confidential information” should be broadly defined, but should be clear, so that there are no doubts about whether something can be considered confidential or not. It might be excessive to ask an independent service provider to not provide services to all businesses which are in a similar space as the client. Therefore, it is essential to define exactly what will be considered a competing business and restrict the service provider from providing services simultaneously to only such businesses. Confidentiality clauses should also include clauses relating to a possible data breach or security breach and also provide for the return of confidential information.  All of these clauses should be valid not only for the duration of the agreement but also thereafter, for a reasonable period to ensure that there are no adverse consequences for the client. Preferred governing law and dispute resolution mechanism This clause is very relevant in any commercial contract, especially in international contracts, because there can be two countries involved, and both parties to the contract would want to choose their own governing laws to apply to the contract. Whichever party has an upper hand in the negotiation will be able to ensure that the governing law for such party becomes included in the contract. However, in certain situations, it might actually be advantageous to include the country where the work is actually performed as the country whose governing law will be applied. Further, dispute resolution mechanisms should be chosen with care. Usually, commercial contracts provide for alternative dispute resolution mechanisms because parties do not want to go through the lengthy process of litigation to resolve disputes. But even in alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, the parties have choices between using arbitrators or arbitration institutions and mediators or mediation institutions. Mediation usually provides greater flexibility and therefore, the trend is to choose mediators or use mediation institutions rather than arbitration.  In addition to the above, there would be other clauses also included in such contracts such as terms of the contract and conditions for termination, indemnification, notices, etc. as well, however, the above clauses are the heart of a contract for service and these should be drafted with a lot of care. Want to learn more about business laws in the US? Read our upcoming book, Business Law Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by Komal Shah. This crisp book includes only the most important and relevant laws that affect businesses in the US in lucid and straightforward language. The Advance Review Copy of this book is now available. Click here to review this book.  About the Author Komal Shah has 20 years of experience in corporate law and corporate governance. She led the Initial Public Offering of Indian Infoline Limited and has worked in various in-house roles in companies like DEPFA Bank, Citibank, and Northern Trust. She is the co-founder of LawSikho, a legal ed-tech company where she leads the business legal clinic and teaches students to work and develop hands-on expertise in international contract drafting and compliance-related work. She has helped numerous startups located in India, the US, UAE, Singapore, Australia, etc with contracts, entity formation in the US, flipping, acquisitions, corporate structuring, and investment transactions. 

Life's journey takes us to places and situations that challenge our ability to manage time. If you are an employee with family responsibilities, you may be juggling time to meet your employer and family obligations. If you are also going to school and are responsible for completing coursework, you have to juggle work, family, and school obligations. You may be wondering then, “how can I meet all obligations simultaneously?”     Importance of time management To juggle obligations and responsibilities and keep all the balls in the air without any of them falling to the ground, you must learn to manage your time. There are many distinct kinds of time management tools to choose from. Some of them help you manage your time while at work. Some of them assist with making a short-term goal list and a long-term goal list and help with prioritizing them so that the goals get accomplished within a given timeframe. Then there are other types of time management methods that aid in making sure each day, week, and month is filled with meeting obligations of work, home, school, and community, and even getting some time for your hobbies. The types of time management methods you use are up to you and what you want to accomplish in your lifetime.   Here are two tried-and-tested time management methods that will help you handle all your obligations without any stress.     Working backward Working backward is an effective method to make sure that you are fully prepared for the event or activity scheduled to take place. This is called working backward because you are making a list of tasks that need to be completed by working backward from the destination date (the date of the event or activity).   For example, there is a special event taking place on May 12th. So, you need to begin planning and preparing for it in January. There is a five-month timeframe in which you plan and prepare to be ready for the event. In this scenario, the event is a camping trip with fishing. You are the one in charge of this event. So, working backward, you start planning for what takes place one week, three weeks, eight weeks, or one month before the event. After making this plan, it is easy to follow through with what needs to be done and when it needs to be done. This way, one week before the event, there is no stress, no fuss, and final preparations are in play for having fun and memorable camping and fishing trip.   Figure 1: An example of working backward       Time Blocking But you might wonder how it is possible to follow through on all the tasks that need to be accomplished simultaneously. Well, that takes place with time blocking. Using the time-blocking method, the tasks are done in specific time frames. It could be within the time frame of a month, week, or even a day. This way, it is possible to ensure that the best intentions for following through with doing the tasks when they need to be done actually get completed on time. Blocking out the time in the schedule of a month, week, or day makes it possible to take action on the task needed to be done intentionally. The opposite of using this method is to leave it up to memory to do it, and that leaves too much chance for the tasks not being done and at the last minute having to scramble to complete it.   Figure 2: An example of time blocking accomplishing home, work, and opening a new business obligations within a week time frame     Figure 3: An example of time blocking for accomplishing home and work obligations for a Claims Adjuster within a day’s timeframe.     Some people would argue that watching the clock all the time is like trying to walk backward and not forward. Some other people would say that not keeping track of time will result in wasting it. How you lean on this topic chiefly depends on your point of view and experience. There may have been times in your life when you did not keep track of time and were unprepared for an event for which you had plenty of time to prepare. Not having the correct paperwork, item, money, or the proper clothing while showing up for an event is embarrassing. On the other hand, keeping track of the time can prevent embarrassing moments and give the amount of time needed for proper preparation. For example, you have a scheduled camping trip for which you need to have all the camping equipment, make camping spot reservations, and purchase food items to be prepared on-site. You may also need to make sure that you have  firewood, smores ingredients, and popcorn which are the family's favorites. With proper time management and using the working backward and time-blocking methods, you can have all the camping equipment, food, and firewood ready with you before the camping day. So, which is the better scene? Having all that is needed for the camping trip due to proper time management, or forgetting something and not being totally prepared to have fun at the campsite? To learn how to manage your time efficiently, the book Time Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know is the perfect resource. This book entails tried-and-tested methods by Dr. AnnaMaria Bliven who is an author, entrepreneur, spouse, mother, and grandmother. She has poured her life experiences of managing time and juggling obligations in the book. The book will be released in April 2023.            

You might have heard some people say that their manager is a gem of a person. At the same time, you must have heard some people say that their managers are tyrants. So what is it that differentiates a good manager from a tyrant one? And how can you become a good manager and a good leader?   Being a manager is more than just assigning and delegating tasks. The challenging role requires a manager to manage people, tasks, deadlines, and the organization's goals, at large. Consequently, managers require a set of more than one skills to make them good managers.   Honing these skills can be difficult; especially, when one is promoted to a managerial role for the first time. Understanding all these different aspects and skills all at once can be a little too overwhelming. To ease this burden of understanding different skills and help managers focus on their core tasks, we have launched a brand new and upgraded edition of one of our most successful books, Principles of Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know.     Principles of Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know For Managers:   Confused about how a book can help? Here’s how:     Communication: Communication plays a huge part in a manager’s duties, not only in terms of his job roles but also in regard to maintaining healthy relations within the organization. This book will give managers an in-depth understanding of communication skills that can help managers build and maintain healthy, formal, and interpersonal relations with their subordinates. This can help managers get the work done by their teams with ease. It can also help managers build an environment of confidence and trust among their subordinates.   The skills and techniques mentioned in the book will also help managers communicate and connect better with the cross-functional teams in the organization. Any organization is successful only when the different teams within the organization work in harmony. By communicating well with cross-functional teams, managers can facilitate this harmony.     Dealing with groups: The organization is made up of several groups, formal as well as informal. Though these groups are small clusters, they can make or mar the organization. Thus, it is important to manage and deal with these groups in time. Every group is different and needs to be dealt with differently based on the needs and issues of the respective group.   This book helps managers understand the different types of groups that exist within an organization. This understanding can help managers develop relevant techniques to deal with those groups and thus facilitate the organization’s goals and development.     Time Management: Whether one is at an executive level or a managerial level, one issue that the corporate world faces the most is time management. As a manager, the importance of time management increases even more, since one is expected not only to practice it themselves but also lead their team with the same.   Principles of Management Essentials teaches you the important and key techniques of time management, that will help you to manage your time better. Managers can learn this crucial skill from this book and thus, lead their team with better management with their own example.     Organizational culture The organizational culture is a complex system. It includes diverse groups with different ethnicities, morals, demography, and even different age and sex. These different areas of the organizational culture can sometimes become so complex that understanding and dealing with them becomes a headache.   The organizational structure, its complexities, and ways to deal with it have been explained in the book. The book will give you theoretical knowledge with real-life examples that can help managers understand the organizational culture, learn how to deal with it, and also use these different and unique groups to the greater advantage of the organization.     Enhancing Culture Although the different aspects of the organization may not be in control, managers play a very vital role in building, maintaining,  and enhancing the existing organizational culture. Addressing the problems of the people in the organization, getting rid of unhealthy practices, stimulating healthy relationships within the organization, and encouraging a work-life balance with the subordinates, are just some ways how managers can help enhance the organizational culture.   Our book will guide you step by step in this regard. From understanding the different facets of the organization to addressing them in the most professional and ethical way, Principles of Management Essentials has got you covered.     Conclusion: These are just some ways in which Principles of Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know can prove to be a great resource for managers, both existing and aspiring. The book introduces you to a whole new world of managerial skills that will not only help you uplift your organization as a manager but also help you level up your own interpersonal skills for your personal growth.

Data analytics has become an increasingly important tool in making decisions. By analyzing data, businesses can better understand their customers, their products, and their markets. Data analytics can help businesses make better decisions and improve their performance.   Data is the new oil, and digitizing business operations is the greatest method for organizations to access and comprehend it.   Digitizing consumer interactions may produce vast amounts of data that businesses can use for research and development, planning, marketing, and communication.   Many developers use the data to understand the business better before they design their websites. If you hire python developers, they would recommend you design a website after understanding business data rather than designing it based on visual appeal.   Companies may micro-target their clients and customize their goods and services by using detailed and granular data.       What is Data Analytics? The definition of data analytics is the examination of data sets in order to discover patterns and trends. By using this information, business decisions can be made more effectively. It can be used to improve how businesses function or to make predictions about future trends. Data analytics can be used in a number of different ways, and there are a number of different tools that can be used to help with the process.     Data Analytics: Its Role in Decision-making Improved Decision-Making One way is to use it to improve decision-making. Data analytics can help businesses better understand their customers, what products and services to offer them, and how to price them.   It can also help businesses understand their competition and what strategies they are using.   Data analytics is essential for making well-informed decisions. By analyzing data, businesses can identify patterns and trends that would otherwise be difficult to spot.   This information can help businesses make informed decisions about everything from what elements to add to a business website to how to optimize their marketing efforts. Businesses can hire a dedicated python developer to help them with data in the development process itself.       Devise Better Strategies Data analytics can also help businesses understand their competition and what strategies they are using.   It also plays a role in risk management. By identifying potential risks, businesses can take steps to mitigate those risks.   Data analytics can help to determine which marketing campaigns are working and which ones aren't so that companies can adjust their marketing strategy accordingly. For example, a business might use data analytics to identify which products are most likely to be returned by customers and then adjust their inventory accordingly.       Improved Customer Insights Data analytics will be useful to understand the customers' needs and wants to provide them with the best possible customer experience   It can help in identifying inefficiencies in the business processes and assessing the effects of the data being gathered and processed and taking the necessary action.   When a corporation participates in data-driven decision management, it acquires crucial skills and consequently improves consistency. Every business gets better in these practices with their experience.   This is how employees can determine whether sales are up or down or whether consumers are satisfied. As a result, the business continually fosters involvement, responsibility, and loyalty.       Increased Efficiency Businesses can also use data analytics to improve their cybersecurity. Data analytics can help businesses identify and respond to cyber threats and can help them understand their risk profile and protect their data.   Businesses can use data analytics in a number of ways to improve their performance. It can help businesses make better decisions, improve their operations, protect their data, and improve efficiency.       New Business Opportunities Making decisions based on data results in the identification of innovative and new business prospects.   Businesses can get a comprehensive overview of the company by using data and by presenting that data in visual formats like graphs, and grids, they’ll be able to take better decisions regarding those business opportunities.   With data analytics, businesses will find possibilities to further their development, make new professional contacts, and develop ideas that will provide them with an essential competitive edge if they are armed with profound insights that will enhance their judgment.       How can businesses use data to make informed decisions? It's best to start with an action plan before you analyze any data. It should provide information on where to locate the appropriate data and how to understand it in order to make the best business decisions.   Businesses should take a look at their objectives and order them. The primary business objectives should always come first in any decision made.   One way is to look at past sales data to make forecasts about future sales. This can help businesses determine how much inventory to order, what prices to charge, and where to allocate their resources.   Businesses can also use data to determine customer preferences. This can help businesses create targeted marketing campaigns and develop new products and services.   Additionally, businesses can use data to improve customer service. By tracking customer interactions, businesses can identify areas where they can improve customer satisfaction.   In his book Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted To Know, Mark Koscinski takes us through the process of making informed decisions using data. He also lists down several methods through which decisions are taken.       Summary Overall, data analytics is a crucial tool for making sound decisions. By analyzing data, businesses can gain a better understanding of their customers and the marketplace, which can help them make more informed decisions and achieve greater success.   They'll be able to adapt to market difficulties more swiftly with a data-driven strategy. It will enable businesses to more accurately forecast outcomes across many business domains and decide things based on actual data.   Businesses need this sort of technology to drive growth, outperform the competition, and draw in devoted consumers. Therefore, it is worthwhile to spend time analyzing data if it can be used to demonstrate that the decisions made may have a good influence on business success.       About the Author Harikrishna Kundariya is a marketer, developer, IoT, ChatBot & Blockchain savvy, designer, co-founder, and Director of eSparkBiz Technologies. His 10+ years of experience enables him to provide digital solutions to new start-ups based on IoT and ChatBot.          

Holidays are a time to sit back, chill, and spend time with your family and friends. But, they are also a great opportunity for you to learn new and in-demand skills to keep on improving. Nowadays, it is crucial to have technical as well as soft skills to excel in your career. It does not matter if you are from IT, management, engineering, or arts, here are the top 5 in-demand skills that you must learn for your career as well as yourself.     Leadership skills Leadership is famously linked with being charismatic and having a downright extroverted personality. So if you have an introverted or quiet personality, you may think “I cannot be a leader because my voice is too low” “I am not confident enough” or “I don’t have people skills.” But, guess what. Some of the most influential and powerful leaders in the world like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Mahatma Gandhi, and Eleanor Roosevelt are introverts!   Not everyone wants to be a leader and that is okay. Some want to contribute and not manage or lead. But, leadership is not only about leading. It is also about being a problem-solver, a strategic thinker, a good communicator, and a team player. Being a problem-solver will help you tackle the daily challenges of working at your job/business and strategic thinking and planning will lessen the uncertainties.   The book Leadership Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by Dr. Carrie Picardi, an organizational psychologist for over 20 years, is an excellent guidebook for learning more about the traits and qualities of leaders and different styles of leadership.     Decision-making skills If you find yourself stuck on everyday questions and not able to decide which path to go on, you may benefit from developing your decision-making skills.   You may need to take several decisions at your job and for your company too. While being thoughtful and cautious with your decisions is a good thing, you do not want to come off as an indecisive and confused person.   Developing your decision-making skills will make you confident in your own abilities. Mark Koscinski in his book Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted To Know gives an accurate representation of how decision-making works and how correct decisions are made.     Project Management skills Whether you are handling a big project at your company with multiple people involved or a freelancing project all by yourself, it will be a mess if you lack the skills to manage it properly.   There are several aspects to a project from planning, execution, monitoring progress, keeping track of expenses/income, coordinating and engaging stakeholders, and of course, ensuring that the quality of work in the project is not compromised at any level. This requires you to have technical as well as soft skills.   Nowadays, an Agile way of working is gaining momentum as a new way of handling projects. Kalpesh Ashar, author of Project Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know and Agile Essentials You Always Wanted To Know says, “Project Management is a skill that each one of us needs - not just at work but also at home. We take up several projects in our professional as well as personal life. Although several project management skills can be intuitive in nature, others need to be acquired.” His books are perfect guides if you are looking to get a headstart in understanding what project management is and the various tools used in the field.     Financial skills This is one of the most important life skills that people of all ages should master. It may be a tedious task for many people who do not have a knack for finance and accounting to compute their debits and credits but learning how money works and flows in businesses (and your personal life) will make all the difference.   You can educate yourself by picking up Financial Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know which explains fundamental financial concepts in lucid language. You can also watch financial videos on Youtube from The Financial Diet or read educational articles on Investopedia.     Marketing skills Big companies like Nike, Apple Inc., Zara, etc market their products by connecting with people on an emotional level. Marketing is a group of processes or procedures for connecting with and providing value to customers.   From researching your target customers, developing a marketing strategy, executing it, and being updated with the current trends in the industry, a marketing manager has a fun job. If you want to become a marketer, it is important for you to learn technical as well as people skills.   But in order to get started on your marketing journey, you need to know its components. For that, you can pick up Marketing Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by industry expert Callie Daum. In this book, you will learn the fundamentals of traditional as well as digital marketing. For learning more about digital marketing, you can also pick up the Digital Marketing Essentials book.       Vibrant’s Self-Learning Management series is a compilation of management books for students and professionals alike. Pick them up to upskill yourself!            

Management subjects are known for having fat and heavy books that overload the learner with overwhelming information. While these detailed books are just what majors of business and management studies need, graduates, entrepreneurs, and professionals require handy guidebooks that have all the ‘essential’ information on the subjects to later brush up on.   Vibrant Publishers’ Self-Learning Management series is one such compilation of ‘Essentials’ books that comprise just the information you need on the subjects. In this blog, we have listed 6 self-learning management books that were launched in the month of August and are must-reads!         #1 Business Plan Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by Dr. AnnaMaria Bliven     Before starting a business, the wise thing to do is not dive straight into manufacturing the product or think of ways to market it. The first thing to do is create a game plan for your business. This game plan is called a Business Plan. This business plan will comprise the company’s overview, business description, market analysis, operational plan, marketing and sales plan, financial plan, and an appendix. You can read more about the components of a business plan in this blog.   In Business Plan Essentials You Always Wanted To Know, you will learn to build a pragmatic business plan for your organization or business. This book contains business plans not only for businesses but also for nonprofits, project developments, and manufacturing businesses. Unlike other books, it guides you step-by-step with practical examples and sample business plans. These sample business plans are given for you to get a clear idea of the differences between each business plan and why they are different in the first place. With this book, you get access to a Business Plan Template that can be used to create a plan for your business.          #2 Diversity In The Workplace Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by Jaquina Gilbert       Lately, people have become more accepting of the differences between each other. The ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement was an eye opener for everyone to put a stop to the stereotypes and discrimination towards people different than us. In workplaces where we encounter people from diverse backgrounds, harmony has become more important than ever. For this purpose, more information and education is needed on these issues.   Diversity In The Workplace Essentials You Always Wanted To Know educates the reader on topics like identity, diversity, inclusion, and equity in workplaces. It thoroughly navigates through the less-spoken issues at the workplace and shows ways for organizations to overcome them.         #3 Microeconomics Essentials You Always Wanted To Know by Prof. Amlan Ray     Imagine that you are hungry and your stomach is craving a cheese-filled sandwich. You buy a sandwich for yourself. The sandwich has 6 pieces in total. When you take the first bite, you will be immensely relieved and will try to eat the sandwich as fast as possible. After you’ve eaten 4 pieces, your stomach starts filling up. By the time you reach the 6th piece, your hunger will subside and you won’t get the same satisfaction that you received upon taking the first bite. This is called the Marginal Utility of a product which is one of the concepts taught in microeconomics. Unknowingly, we use microeconomics in our daily lives – budgeting for our households, determining our needs and wants, deciding which product to buy and how much to buy, etc.   The concepts of microeconomics are explained in a simple and straightforward manner in Microeconomics Essentials You Always Wanted To Know. This book includes all essential concepts like demand and supply, elasticities of demand and supply, consumer behavior, utilities, theory of firms, and international trade to help you understand how the economy works at an individual level. This book will be instrumental for undergraduates, graduates, and budding entrepreneurs to comprehend the effects of demand and supply on the economy as a whole.         #4 Financial Accounting Essentials You Always Wanted To Know (5e) by Kalpesh Ashar     Words like income statements, balance sheets, cash flow, and accounting cycle are enough for one to take a step back and forget learning about it. But, a very important aspect of being a management student or an entrepreneur, or a person living in the 21st century for that matter, is to understand how accounting works. Knowing the basics of financial accounting goes a long way to not only managing your personal finances but also understanding how money flows.   Financial Accounting Essentials You Always Wanted To Know introduces all the basic concepts of financial accounting in simple and easy-to-understand language. We recommend reading this book because unlike the daunting books on accounting, this book simplifies concepts without going into a lot of detail. It also includes solved examples as well as practice exercises for the learner to better understand the concepts.         #5 Cost Accounting and Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know (5e) by Kalpesh Ashar     Looking after the costs of an organization is just as important as monitoring the revenue. Cost accounting is an important function of decision-making in a business. Decision makers of an organization analyze cost data and think of strategies to lessen it. Cost data also enables them to actively think of creative ways to save costs. For example, IKEA, a company known for its furniture products, saves costs by selling parts of furniture that the customers can assemble at home. This way, they save costs on labor and transportation.   In Cost Accounting and Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know, you will learn the different types of costs, how to control them, and make wise decisions based on them.         #6 Financial Management Essentials You Always Wanted To Know (5e) by Kalpesh Ashar     “Money is a terrible master but an excellent servant.” This was said by P.T. Barnum, an American showman and one of America’s first millionaires. The key to attaining and retaining money in a business or your life is to learn to manage it.   With a third book on finance, Kalpesh Ashar gives an insight into the important aspects of managing the finances of a business. He touches upon concepts like capital budgeting, working capital management, managing debts, and much more. The book is a great resource for beginners to start their journey to managing their own or their business’ finances efficiently.   All these books come with practical examples, case studies, fun facts, and online resources like downloadable templates to enrich the learning process. Add these books to your personal collection and read up on the essential concepts whenever you need to.   Want to read more books like these from the Self-Learning Management series? Check them out here.

Sitting at home with nothing to do? We all are aware that the COVID-19 has taken the world by a storm. With the fear and the number of people affected rising every minute, many countries and daily lives have come to a standstill. Health Ministries and Governments with a view of keeping their citizens safe have taken decisions to temporarily shut down schools, colleges, cinema halls and even offices. Staying indoors during the times of this outbreak is advisable and safe. But who likes staying at home all day, isn’t that boring? So how about using this time to learn something new, instead of spending your precious time binging on your favorite TV show again for the nth number of time. Equip yourself with knowledge that will not only upgrade your skills but also add extra brownie points to your CV. Let us help you! Have a look at some of the options below to find out how you can make your time productive.   Learn a new technology: Newer technologies are speeding their way into the world today. Artificial Intelligence, Python, Blockchain, BIG Data, Virtual Reality, Cloud Computing and the list won’t stop. They may sound technical but learning them isn’t that difficult. There are several online courses and certifications both free and paid that can help you learn these from the scratch.   Prepare for your next job interview: Nervousness and a bit of fear are inevitable during an interview. But if you are confident and well versed with the possible questions you’ll be asked, you certainly have a competitive edge. You can refer to some of the finest books from Job Interview Questions series. Vibrant Publishers offers over 75 job interview books in this series dedicated exclusively to IT sector.   Take up work from home internship: An internship gives you a hands-on experience of your technical knowledge, along with the opportunity to get to know the real industry closely. So why miss the benefit of working from the comfort of your home during this time of quarantine. And a few extra pennies of pocket money is always good, isn’t it?   Work on your Vocabulary: Fluent English is always impressive, so why not use this time to polish your vocabulary. Also, good vocabulary is a must for most entrance tests as these tests have a vocabulary section. So, if appearing for an entrance is what you are planning, then this could be on your to-do list. Or perhaps you could learn a new language!   Learn basic management skills: Learning management skills is never wasted, these skills can come handy in both professional and personal life. This is the best time to acquire skills that are otherwise outside of your purview of studies – basic management skills like accounting, finance, marketing, operations, project management and supply chain management. Best way to get a grip on these is to get your hands on the Self-Learning Management Series of books by Vibrant Publishers. The books are compact, concise and easy to understand – replete with real life examples one can relate to immediately. Remember to stay safe and take every precaution to keep yourself and your loved ones away from this threat.

Most of us are working from home – and wondering how best we can utilize this time, not only for personal fulfilment but also for taking some career enhancement measures. The best way to do this is to enhance and upgrade your management skills. You can either hone your soft skills or functional skills.Vibrant Publishers’ Self Learning Management Series helps you to upgrade your functional skills in management.     Brush up your Marketing skills to win over both internal and external customers:   Whether you are an executive eyeing that managerial position or an existing manager looking to brush up on your marketing skills – you need to market to internal as well as external customers. Tools like SWOT analysis will help you in the more challenging aspects of a managerial position and will strengthen your negotiation skills. Marketing Management Essentials provides you with a thorough understanding of the relationship between strategy and marketing. This enables better decision making skills based on the business environment and overall company strategy.The book is replete with real life examples so that one can relate to the concepts easily.     Financial Management skills to take prudent decisions for every situation:   The financial aspect of any business is one of the most important. No matter which function you handle, if you are a manager or an entrepreneur, you will need to keep track of finances, accounts and cash flow at the least. Most business owners struggle in this aspect because they are not finance and accounts savvy, by training. Three books from Vibrant’s stable – Financial Management Essentials, Cost Accounting and Management Essentials and Financial Accounting Essentials will equip you with strong basic fundamentals of financial management and accounting. You can learn costing, break even analysis, cost allocation and control, cash flows, income statements and mo re such fundamentals essential to having a grip on business finances.     Manage any Project like a Pro: As employees first move towards management, they typically take on management of critical projects. With Project Management Essentials acquire project management skills that help you manage the complexity of modern projects, right from planning to execution to closure.       Get equipped with the latest in Operations and Supply Chain management:   Supply Chain management is the function which is said to be the defining function of the future. Moreover, in these troubled times, it is this function which develops the maximum roadblocks, and one needs to think of newer ways to navigate them.Operations and Supply Chain Management Essentials uses a hypothetical company and the consumer product they make, to explain how the various functions within the Supply Chain intertwine so that you can contribute to bring the best finished product to life for consumers in the market. Be ready to take on the challenges of new demands, changing preferences, and unforeseen circumstances.Each of these books will help you in your quest to better your career prospects, no matter which level of management you are in. You can order these books from our online shop or from Amazon either in the paperback or e-book format.        

Often the words “Leader” and “Manager” are used synonymously but there is a difference between the two. The primary difference between management and leadership is that managers hold recognized positions of authority in the organizational structure whereas leaders may not. A leader can be anyone in the organization, but they frequently hold managerial positions. As you may have encountered, not all managers may qualify as good leaders. When this happens, people tend to follow orders not because they are motivated but because they are obliged. Managers hold positions in the organization that give them line authority to compel employees to follow their directives. Their main goal is usually strictly aligned with meeting organizational goals and objectives. Managers are accountable for their own activities as well as the activities of those who report to them. Inherent to their role, they are given the ability to judge employee performance and promote, reward, correct, hire and fire employees accordingly. People follow leaders not because they are compelled by formal authority from the organization, but because they feel moved to do so. People choose to follow leaders due to the leaders’ personality, principles, and behaviours. Leaders are passionate about their work and as a result they dive into their work with full force. They care about others especially those who follow them. They want others to feel the passion they do, so they invest their time into helping others to be successful and satisfied in their work. One way to distinguish between a manager and a leader is by the traits they possess. Below are the important traits of both managers and leaders.   Traits a manager possesses: Accomplish a vision: Using a roadmap for their team to follow, a manager successfully implements a strategic vision. A talent for directing: Anticipating needs and course correcting where needed on a day to day basis is critical to a managers’ success. Ability to manage processes: With their role, managers have the authority to implement rules, standards, procedures and processes. People Centric: In order to build the trust, loyalty, and productivity of employees, managers stay up to date on their employees’ needs and check if they are being met. To do this, managers practice active listening, engage employees in critical decisions, and make every effort to meet any sensible requests for changes.     Traits a leader possesses: Ability to see the big picture: Leaders see the forest for the trees. They know where they are going and how to get there from where they currently are. They engage others to help them identify the course of action to take, to get to their desired state. Trustworthiness and reliability: People follow leaders because they are honest and have integrity. Believing in their leader motivates them to journey down the path the leader lays out. Stimulation: Leaders can stimulate or inspire others to see how their day to day work affects the bigger picture. Communication Skills: Leaders communicate well and so often so that their team knows the current happenings, future endeavours, and possible hurdles in the future.     How do you know if you are inspiring others to follow rather than ordering them to? Calculating Value v/s Generating Value: Since managers are heavily focussed on meeting organizational goals and objectives, they tend to count or calculate value rather than try to create it. Leaders are free of this obligation, therefore they put their energies into creating value. Are you calculating value or creating it? Circle of Influence v/s Circles of Power: Managers have subordinates which lead to their circle of power where their employees are compelled to follow directions given. Leaders have followers which creates a circle of influence where people are intrinsically motivated to follow. Of the people who come to you for guidance, do many of them not have a reporting relationship with you? If yes, then you are a leader. Leading People v/s Managing People: Managers control employees with their organizational authority or power given to them in order to meet goals and objectives. Leaders inspire, motivate, encourage and enable others to give back to the organization without control or power. Are you controlling your employees or encouraging and enabling them to do their work?     This is an excerpt from the book- Principles of Management Essentials you Always Wanted to Know. To know more about the principles that govern management today, grab a copy of the book now.