shivashetty

Unsustainable Business Models

My one favourite place when in London is a Borders Bookstore. I have spent many pleasant hours is their flagship store on Oxford Street. The third floor there has a Starbucks where you can, after you have vacuumed for your favourite books from the stores’ aisles below, ordered a latte, proceed to waste the dayContinue reading “Unsustainable Business Models”

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Medocrity is inevitable. Resistence is futile.

Or is it ? Why ARE most solvent companies mired in mediocrity ? Why do companies start in a burst of creative big bang and then slowly atrophy? Microsoft. IBM. Xerox. Yahoo. GM. Is it Risk aversion ? A concept in psychology, economics, and finance, based on the behavior of humans whilst exposed to uncertainty,Continue reading “Medocrity is inevitable. Resistence is futile.”

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Trust Your Customer

I shop occasionally with Amazon and iTunes online but I am a Über-customer of Airtel, India’s communication behemoth. I have been with them over a decade and use pretty much every damn service they provide : Mobile Service. Broadband Service. BlackBerry Service. iPTV service. GPRS service. Landline service and two mobile numbers. They sell itContinue reading “Trust Your Customer”

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Systems Thinking Primer

I just finished reading a piece by the always thought provoking Paul Krugman of the NYT. An Article entitled ‘Eat the Future’ , talking about how the GOP is sacrificing the future for the present over in US. It bought back to mind an article a while ago about free TV sets distribution by a corruptContinue reading “Systems Thinking Primer”

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Weak Moats in Business

Recently I wanted to buy a book a blog recommended. The book sold in India for 1300 rupees online. It was available in Amazon UK for 240 rupees, gbp converted to inr. I had friends in the UK who could get it to me quickly. A good test of the fundamental strength of your business/Continue reading “Weak Moats in Business”

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Book Review : Hitch-22

Today you are ‘Just Another Customer’ of Christopher Eric Hitchens’ memoir. Right off the bat I am going to come out and state that this is easily one of the smartest books I have read in the last few years. It is a rich nuanced book that will not disappoint. I suspect you will improveContinue reading “Book Review : Hitch-22”

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Year End Review : 2010

2010 has drawn to a close, the lists and best/worst awards are all being punctually distributed. I am going to add mine to the mix. 2010 was an awesome year and here is to 2011 making it look ‘meh’. Happy New Year. Here goes the totally gut based unscientifically selected winners …and added bonus for me:Continue reading “Year End Review : 2010”

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An end to Information Asymmetry

Think about how you and I book tickets today before you fly. Then think about how your dad booked his tickets 40 years ago. We open Kayak, farecompare.com and airasia.com on 3 seperate tabs and it’s the data, our preferences and the credit card in a silent poem to the reality of low prices whenContinue reading “An end to Information Asymmetry”