It Happened In India

Book by : Mr. Kishore Biyani

The pantaloon way

In the business the human capital and creative capital is as important as financial capital. According to KB, and many other companies like GE, working with trained people is okay, but they can’t help in generating new ideas. You need to have creativity there.

Characteristics of BusinessTraditional Characteristics of a business:

HierarchiesDecision-makingWorking through defined systems and processesFollowing a water tight structures

The pantaloon way :

Fluid organizationAnyone could take new responsibilityGetting into new areasEmployees executing responsibilities the way they want.

Being in fashion business, design is creative activity that connects the dots initially seemed to be unrelated, connecting the emotions and feelings of customers.

Marriage of ApproachesThe Analytical and the Creative Approach :

Organization dominated by systems, analyses and processes are efficient in working of repeated task performing.

In order to create something new and innovative, creativity is required.

Analytical approach helps business to work efficiently and in discipline.

Creativity alone can not drive business, and being analytical cannot keep you alive for long term business.

Happy solution

Marriage of both these aspects which represents both halves of brain : the Left ( Analytical) the Right ( Creative)

Features and Strategy

Features :

Design is user-focused.

Design is prototype based development tool.

Adaptive to fast changing external environment.

A creative design providing deep understanding and empathy of human behavior.

Strategy :

Always keep a back up plan ready to avoid the failure risk.

Prototyping: concept or format, always went through a prototype phase.

Designing strategy documents often in pictorial ways. Images and concepts , rather than test and figures.

KB believes that every big or small idea are given shape by idiom, design group. This team doesn’t appoint market research, instead the team spend time on streets and observe people. And then they engage in collective idea-making.

IDIOMIdiom is an independent design and consultancy firm, based in Bangalore.

Team of over a hundred and eighty designers from multiple disciplines works out.

Works in a highly experimental manner : working on small ideas rather than focusing on big ones.

Working : Members get into a team and blend into crowds to watch and observe them.

Aim : To get social, economic, cultural and psychological insights rather than just members.

Idiom incubates the ideas for some time, develops insights and then expand on them.

He believed in twin idea of constant growth and allowing others to grow. Upon this they came up with PANTALOON GENES.

Business of Life

“Give till it hurts”

Mother Teresa

Family and Business

This chapter mainly talks about his personal as well as the business family.

Family and friends-managing the family is no less important than managing the business.

In their family there are a certain set of standards which no one can cross it even him.

SUCCESS IS THE SENSIBILITY, FAILURES ARE STEADY STEPS TOWARDS SUCCESS. ITS AN OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE, LEARN AND MOVE ON.

Approach to business

One of the most necessary step they took was to completely separate ownership, governance and execution.

Within organization their family members mostly concentrate on building and nurturing relationships with business partners and providing an overall guidance to the business.

they may have different views, different approaches to the business but their overall feelings are in the best interest of the company they call this collective individualism multiple belief but a single goal.

' If you approach your business with this framework in mind, then you shall see benefit in all interactions.'

Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance ?

“Survival and success depend on speed and imagination” N. R. NARAYANA MURTHY

Creator and DestroyerEvery organization needs a Brahma, a Vishnu and a Shiva --- a Creator, a preserver, and a destroyer.

Idea : Created new things and subsequently launched a few brands. Established our own retain chain for our fashion products and slowly thereafter built multiple retail businesses.

Reached out directly to consumers and a thorough understanding of customer segments.

Forming Pantaloon Knowledge Group and created a knowledge office within the company to act as the key driver and assimilator of information.

Destroyed the earlier structure to create a new design that can serve as a platform for multiple ideas and businesses in consumption space.

Organization is now based on scenario planning, design thinking, innovation and ideas.

Areas for new research are been looked upon like memetics.

Built a team that believes in vision, values and ethos.

As a leader, played a role to provide a holistic picture and a strategic direction to the group.

Strong belief and Approach

Conclusion

In 2006, they took the next big leap. Future group was the outcome of new thinking that has come into the organization. The organization is now based on scenario planning, design thinking, innovation and ideas and new area of research like meme tics.

From this I’ve learned endless no. of things. It has enhanced my interpersonal as well as commercial skills. The most important characteristic that I observed in Kishore Biyani is that he grabs each and every opportunity and applies them at right time. In addition to that he doesn't mind following rules or ideas initiated by others, i.e., he traps every good or positive things into his pockets (Saravana stores, Sam Walton)