Narayana Murthy awarded honorary doctorate by London varsity

Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) by Royal Holloway, University of London, for his outstanding contribution to the field of computer science and the role model he represents in India and on the global stage.

Murthy was awarded at a summer graduation ceremony at the university’s campus in Surrey, where the university’s computer science undergraduate and postgraduate students also received their degrees.

“It is a great privilege to receive this award and I am grateful to Royal Holloway for recognizing me in this way. I am honored to be joining this new generation as they graduate. They are each about to take their next steps in what I hope will be productive and positive careers. Their potential, combined with the knowledge and skills they have gained through their studies, fills me with hope and excitement for our future, and the positive difference they can make in our world,” Murthy said in a statement.

Murthy co-founded Infosys in 1981, with its focus on designing and implementing a global delivery model for IT services which relied on outsourced staff based in India.

A global leader in technology services and employer of 70,000 people globally, Infosys has $3billion in revenues and was the first Indian company to be listed on the US NASDAQ in 1999.

Murthy has been appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). He is also a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, and Legion of Honour, the highest French order of merit.

CloudSEK appoints Bhaskar Nandi as VP of Sales

Singapore-headquartered SaaS-based cyber security startup, CloudSEK, has appointed, Bhaskar Nandi, as Vice President and north region head (India North/ East, Bangladesh, and Nepal).

In his new role, Nandi will be driving CloudSEK’s direct and channel sales efforts, with a focus on expanding adoption of CloudSEK Platform.

With over 17 years of experience in cybersecurity, Nandi has worked across organizations such as Tenable, Deloitte and IBM.

Founded in 2015 by Rahul Sasi, CloudSEK is a cyber security platform powered by machine learning and is being used across financial, e-commerce and transportation sectors. It is now looking to further evolve into sectors like pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals and retail industry.

No salary hike for Mukesh Ambani for 11th year in a row

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani has kept his annual salary from his flagship firm Reliance Industries capped at Rs.15 crore for the eleventh year on the trot.

Ambani has kept salary, perquisites, allowances and commission together at Rs.15 crore since 2008-09, forgoing over Rs.24 crore per annum.

This is at a time when remunerations of all whole time directors of the company, including cousins, Nikhil and Hital Meswani, saw a handsome increase in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2019.

“Compensation of Shri Mukesh D Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, has been set at Rs.15 crore, reflecting his desire to continue to set a personal example for moderation in managerial compensation levels,” RIL said in its latest annual report.

His remuneration for 2018- 19 included Rs.4.45 crore as salary and allowances, which is marginally lower than Rs.4.49 crore he got in the previous 2017-18 fiscal.

Commission has been unchanged at Rs.9.53 crore while perquisites have risen to Rs.31 lakh from Rs.27 lakh. Retirement benefits were Rs.71 lakh.

Venugopal Konchada joins 1-India Family Mart as COO

Delhi-based retail chain, 1-India Family Mart, has announced the appointment of retail industry veteran, Venugopal Konchada, as Chief Operations Officer.

Konchada comes with nearly 32 years of experience in the Indian retail space since 1987. In his previous roles, Konchada was working at retail brands like Vishal Megamart and V Mart. He now envisions to take the manoeuvres of 1-India Family Mart a notch higher towards an exceptional growth ladder in the country’s value retail space.

The hiring is in line with the company’s plans for a rapid expansion where Venugopal will be overseeing the entire operational procedures in terms of retail, in-store opening, visual merchandising, business development and marketing. Venugopal’s leadership, management and vision will further help 1-India Family Mart in growing effectively on the back of its financial strength and operating efficiency.

1-India Family Mart has been planning to add up 40 stores in the current year and 50 stores by 2020.

Reliance Brands completes acquisition of Hamleys

Reliance Brands, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, has completed the acquisition of British toy retailer Hamleys for about Rs.620 crore (GBP 67.96 million) in an all-cash deal. In May this year, Reliance Brands had signed an agreement to acquire 100% stake in Hamleys Global Holdings from Hong Kong-based C.banner International.

Reliance Brands has completed the acquisition of a 100% stake of Hamleys Global Holdings (HGHL) through a special purpose vehicle company set up in the United Kingdom for cash consideration of GBP 67.96 million, Reliance Industries said in a BSE filing.

Hamleys, founded in London in 1760, is one of the world's oldest retailers of toys and has changed hands several times.

In 2015, China's C.banner International had acquired Hamleys in a GBP 100-million deal. In October last year, Sky News reported that C.banner International, which is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, had launched a strategic review of loss-making Hamleys and was looking to sell it.

BharatPe to unveil new campaign with brand ambassador Salman Khan

BharatPe - the fintech company serving offline retailers with payments, lending and other financial services is set to launch a brand advertising campaign with its ambassador Salman Khan.

The company is on an aggressive growth spree. In the campaign, Salman will be seen in a new avatar that not only shows his passion but also excited to educate the country and make people realise the importance and ease of digital loans and payments.

BharatPe has established operations in 13 cities, serving over 10 lakh merchants across Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Indore, Bhopal, Nagpur, Chandigarh, Mysore and Visakhapatnam. The company is on track to serve over 25 lakh merchants on its network by the end of 2019.

Amit Burman named Chairman Dabur India

Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company, Dabur India Ltd announced the appointment of Amit Burman as the Chairman of the company. Burman, the son of late Gyan C Burman, replaces Anand C Burman, who stepped down as Director and Chairman of the company.

Dabur India Ltd’s Board of Directors also approved the appointment of Mohit Burman as the Vice Chairman and the induction of Aditya Burman as a non-executive additional director on the board.

The board also announced that Dabur’s former Chief Executive Officer, Sunil Duggal, has resigned from the board.

WhatsApp teams up with Niti Aayog to help women entrepreneurs

India’s Niti Aayog entered into a partnership with Facebook-owned WhatsApp to support the growth of a robust ecosystem to promote women entrepreneurs in India.

Under this partnership, WhatsApp, in collaboration with Niti Aayog, will announce an annual calendar of events aimed at capacity building of the women entrepreneurs and evolve specific programmes aimed at addressing challenges being faced by women entrepreneurs.

WhatsApp said it will also provide support amounting to $100,000 for the winners of Niti Aayog’s Women Transforming India (WTI) Awards 2019.

“It’s our honour to partner with NITI Aayog to help support the future women business leaders of India,” said Will Cathcart, Global Head of WhatsApp, at a small business event in New Delhi.

“Small businesses are the backbone of a strong economy and I am proud of the role WhatsApp can play in helping build the next generation of India’s women entrepreneurs,” Cathcart added.

The WTI Awards, which NITI Aayog organizes in partnership with the United Nations, recognizes stories of exceptional achievements by women who are breaking the glass ceiling and challenging stereotypes through businesses, enterprises, and initiatives aimed at solving key societal challenges.

“India has one of the most vibrant startup ecosystems, and the next big disruptions will be driven by women-led enterprises, with digital medium being the biggest enabler,” said Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog.

“This partnership with WhatsApp underlines our mutual commitment to support the aspirations of women entrepreneurs in India,” he added.

Tesla electric cars in India by 2020? Elon Musk thinks so

Elon Musk has put a timeline for the entry of the company’s electric cars on Indian roads. In a recent interaction with IIT Madras students, the Tesla CEO said that the car may run on Indian roads in 2020. The Avishkar Hyperloop team from IIT Madras participated in the finals of ‘SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition 2019’ that was organized by the American company when Musk gave that statement.

According to a statement by IIT Madras, when the team asked Musk when was he planning to bring his electric cars to India, the CEO said that it is probably going to happen in a year’s time.

The Tesla CEO has been trying to enter the Indian market for a couple of years but has been unsuccessful so far. He had also tweeted in March this year that he plans to be in India in 2019 or next year. “Would love to be there this year. If not, definitely next!,” he had responded to a user.

Musk had also earlier stated that the government policies and the FDI norms are behind the delay in the electric car’s entry into the Indian market. Tesla was expected to enter the Indian market with the Model 3 that is priced at nearly $35,000. Chennai-based automaker Ashok Leyland had said in May this year that it is open for a partnership with Tesla to help the company bring its vehicles to India.

“We are open to Musk’s offer. I truly believe that it’s not just one partner who can contribute to the electric car dream in India. There are multiple agencies who will be involved in this. We will be lucky to be part of that consortium,” said Venkatesh Natarajan, Senior VP and Chief Digital Officer, Ashok Leyland. However, the company had later clarified that it is not in talks with the US electric carmaker.

Anand Mahindra goes for glass jars after Twitter user advises to junk plastic bottles

Anand Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra Group, has kept his promise to bar plastic bottles from company’s boardrooms after a Twitter user advised the use of steel bottles instead. In line with this, the company has ceased branded plastic water bottles in all its boardrooms substituting them for glass jars, glass bottles and glasses, a company spokesperson told The Economic Times.

Mahindra, who is known for being vocal on social media, had won the hearts of netizens when he posted a picture of the KC Mahindra Education Trust (KCMET) scholarship selection board meeting on Twitter, in which he was seen with other members of the KCMET institute. Along with the picture, he tweeted, “The KCMET scholarship selections are amongst the most energizing engagements in my calendar. The incredible intelligence and self-belief displayed by these youngsters is staggering.”

Miten Mehta Joins CleverTap As Chief Alliance Officer

Mumbai-based mobile marketing platform, CleverTap, has appointed Miten Mehta as Chief Alliance Officer. He will be leading the company’s strategic alliance and partnership programme across the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions.

Mehta is a senior digital transformation and innovation leader. With over 25 years of experience, he has been in technology leadership across strategic alliance and partnerships, corporate development, M&A and product innovation. Prior to joining CleverTap, he worked at Google as a consultant where he supported their strategic partners and customers for Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and community ecosystem programme. Previously, Mehta was the co-founder of Spinta Global Accelerator, KD, eComLive (acquired by InfoSpace) and MoConDi (acquired by Mobile- Media) and served on board / advisory board of companies in USA and India.

In his new role, Mehta will relocate to Mumbai from Silicon Valley to drive the next phase of growth at CleverTap .

Founded in 2013, by Anand Jain, Sunil Thomas and Suresh Kondamudi who quit their lucrative jobs at Network18 to build the customized platform which could analyze user behavior, group them into multiple groups and on the basis of what they have done or not done, send them push notifications, emails, SMSs, etc.

GMR appoints Tushar Makkar as Group Head, Corporate Communications

GMR Group has appointed Tushar Makkar as Head of Corporate Communications. In his new role, Makkar will handle the entire range of corporate communications for the group covering all businesses from airports to urban infrastructure, transportation and energy and the firm’s overseas businesses. This includes corporate communications, branding, social media and new media. He will be based in Delhi.

Prior to this role, Makkar was leading communications at Arvind Ltd. He has also served stints at Microsoft and IBM and has over two decades of experience in the communications domain.

LimeRoad hires Pankaj Jain as new CFO

Gurugram-based fashion platform, LimeRoad, has appointed Pankaj Jain as the company’s Chief Financial Officer. With over two decades of experience in finance and business management, Jain was last working as CFO of ibibo group. He started ibibo’s online travel business - Goibibo in 2009 and helped the new business to rapidly scale up. He has also played a pivotal role in concluding one of the largest acquisitions in the online space in India – Redbus. Prior to ibibo, Jain was the Finance and Strategy Director at Corning Inc, where he was responsible for setting up the company’s commercial operations in the Middle East. He handled the India investment of Corning. He was also responsible for tax audits at Price Waterhouse.

In his new role at LimeRoad, Jain will be responsible for driving rapid growth, improving efficiency and delivering profitability. At LimeRoad, Pankaj Jain will be a part of the core management team, where he will lead the finance functions, enabling growth, better management and scalability.

LimeRoad is an online clothes and accessories platform that has a unique network of 400K women community members from across the country.