Wit Wisdom and Whoop

The Wikipedia defines crony capitalism as “Crony capitalism is a term describing an economy in which success in business depends on close relationships between business people and government officials. It may be exhibited by favoritism in the distribution of legal permits, government grants, special tax breaks, or other forms of state interventionism.[1][2] Crony capitalism is believed to arise when business cronyism and related self-serving behavior by businesses or businesspeople spills over into politics and government,[3] or when self-serving friendships and family ties between businessmen and the government influence the economy and society to the extent that it corrupts public-serving economic and political ideals.” With the pages in my passport having been exhausted and with still 6 years of validity left I had to obtain a new passport. It is still considered a new passport (fine), I still had to submit an application like a new passport with all details (OK it is online) BUT I...

  One fateful day in October 2009 I met the senior management of Hexagon, Norway. That was the first time in my life I had even heard that name. My ONLY task was to escort them from their hotel to our office because my boss Vasudev Avadhani was out of town. Their meeting didn't go as well as planned, they left post lunch & Dev was not happy when he heard about it. He called me to go meet them in their hotel and say sorry for the failed meeting & reluctantly I did so. On that same day I had quit my job and honestly wasn't in a good mood. But I went, apologised & spoke for a while & said that I had quit my job & wanted to leave. Next thing - Hans Henrik Oyvind Hamre Erik Espeset huddled speaking in Norwegian & then Hans called up somebody (it was Dev) & I stood around feeling stupid and "ignored". Few minutes later Oyvind asks me if I was joining elsewhere & I say nothing decided yet. He said give us a chance to talk to you before you...

  Advertising and branding, a western concept since long started becoming popular in India especially after the hugely popular AMUL hoardings with its topical one liner’s. But when it came to politics, this has been a topic not often discussed as a subject and if at all discussed, is more for the criticism of one or other political leader. A political party usually advertises to inform and sell an idea to garner votes, but they consciously try to create a brand connect – in their family name.   The reason being that they will need to keep conveying different messages to different voters at different times, regions etc. Unlike a brand that will convey some tangible benefit consistently, a political party does not have that luxury. So, what is the option? The ONLY common connect they can create is the credibility/ reputation/ trust that their name (family) evokes – a political brand. But first, let’s analyse how our systems work and the focus is only on the political system ...