Harvard Business School Students to collaborate with DY Works and Reliance Retail for hands-on programme

A team of students from the Harvard Business School will be working closely with DY Works and Reliance Retail India in January to understand cultural trends and consumer triggers in the Indian context. The experience is part of a required first-year course at Harvard Business School called FIELD, which stands for Field Immersion Experience for Leadership Development. DY Works is one of 156 FIELD Global Partners spanning 13 countries around the world. Together they will host more than 930 students in all.

“We are looking forward to this engagement. As a company that bases its work on culture and semiotic enquiry, this experience falls seamlessly into our vision of research”, said Alpana Parida, President DY Works.  “We are pleased to be working with Harvard Business School to provide students with a real-world learning experience in Mumbai, India. We feel certain that the students will gather insights here that they would never be able to glean from a classroom discussion alone.”

FIELD has three modules that run through the entire first year of the two- year MBA program. The first module focuses on developing individual leadership skills through team feedback and self-reflection. The second focuses on developing global intelligence by immersing them in a foreign country to develop a new product or service in the country for their Global Partner organization. The final module brings all the lessons together by challenging students to develop and launch their own micro-business as part of a small team back in Boston.

This collaboration includes India’s retail giant, Reliance Retail who will facilitate the engagement of the students with consumers and their purchase environments. DY Works executives have been working with the team remotely in the months leading up to their arrival in country. While here, they will pitch their ideas to the leadership team, conduct field research with consumers around Mumbai and present their final recommendations to management.

Harvard is quick to acknowledge that this important learning experience would not be possible without the Global Partners.

 “We are extremely grateful to DY Works, Reliance Retail and all the FIELD Global Partner organizations for all they do on behalf of our students,” said Professor Tony Mayo, the faculty head of FIELD. “The students benefit immeasurably from this experience and we hope the partner organizations do as well.”

Get Wellness Soon!

Consumer experience is evolving at every moment. With the advent of this evolution, the consumer market has got better in terms of quality, technology and in terms of providing exhilarating consumer experience. As a result, wellness as a category spawned in the process of making “the experience” better for people. Spas and resorts form a major part of wellness sector in India.

                                                             
The International Spa Association (ISPA) defines Spas as “places devoted to overall well-being through a variety of professional services that encourage the renewal of mind, body and spirit”.

The ISPA further categorizes spas as:

Day Spa: A spa offering a variety of professionally administered spa services to clients on a day-use basis.

Destination Spa: A destination spa is a facility with the primary purpose of guiding individual spa-goers to develop healthy habits.

Resort/Hotel Spa: A spa located within a resort or hotel providing professionally administered spa services, fitness and wellness components.

Club Spa: A facility whose primary purpose is fitness and which offers a variety of professionally administered spa services on a day-use basis.

India, with its deep-rooted traditions, is known for being a hub for alternative treatments dominated by ancient healing –Ayurveda & spirituality. In recent years, enormous growth has been identified in the Indian spa industry. With over 2,300 spas, the industry makes around $400 million annually.

According to a report release by Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, the Ayurveda and yoga segments, alone, were expected to earn a business of 600 Cr and revenues prospects for medical tourism predicted to be around 400 Cr.

Despite these numbers the wellness sector is largely underdeveloped in India especially because it is unorganized & there is less awareness about the services offered by this sector. There are a very few wellness brands which have succeeded in positioning themselves in line with the modern consumer’s need for a wellness experience. The core problem which one can identify is right branding in the right place.                                          
A lot of upcoming wellness brands entering this segment position themselves as rejuvenation destinations which offer authentic traditional treatments. India’s destination resorts, wellness retreats and spas address body, mind and spiritual wellness through the traditions of yoga, ayurveda and numerous other healing practices. Their branding is also strategically done. Ananda in the Himalayas is one of the examples. Have one look at the website and you will realize how strongly it represents the essence of India and its traditions.  The font style used in creating the identity also has a certain feel of ethnicity.

                                                                                                               

Vivanta by Taj is another example. Their spa brand is identified as ‘Jiva Spa’ which is in line with the spirit of India. Major components of Branding like the attire of the staff inside, the aroma; the products used, strengthen the essence of India and create a unique experience for the customer.                                                                                                              

                                                       
Subtle branding as one can understand is the key to create the right awareness by wellness brands among their target audience which still has a long way to go. Once, the power of branding is realized by the wellness sector, there should be no looking back as the consumer waits for “the experience”.

As this category is growing, the players are growing stronger with their branding, and there certainly is a lot more for us to observe.
                                                   


By
Avani Bapat,
Integrated Corporate Practice,
DY Works

Give Your Career Break A Break

We all have a starting point and we all get to the end. Most keep walking. But some take a pause. A large population being the corporate women. And it’s for these women that Cerebrand, Times of India takes an initiative to get them back @ work. Or rather Workplace. Hence, P.inc. This initiative launched in March 2014, through seminars, training workshops and access to employers will provide career resources and a service support system to mid-career professional women enabling them to overcome challenges and return to working life.

We too at DY Works believe in setting the ball rolling. Building the brand by manifesting the corporate identity through logo and website template design of P.inc and P.inc Talking Tour, a unique look and feel was developed.

 Our challenge was to create a progressive P.inc brand that balanced empowerment and endeavor, yet contemporary - positioning P.inc as the ‘restart platform’. In order to create the brand framework, we had to understand its objectives and nuances: ambitious, desirous ex-working women wanting that one push towards their career. Next we deciphered the triggers and deterrents of our target audience to establish the logo design that depicts the vision, mission and values of P.inc clearly.

The use of colors, Grey & Pink, inspired from the corporate world and womanhood, was the perfect branding exercise. P.inc is an initiative to help women reclaim their professional identity. The logo brings out the true spirit of a woman without undermining her confidence and aspirations. It’s a strong visual identity, hard to miss. Just like the women it talks to.

This was translated to the entire brand framework which included a new brand identity, clear brand positioning, stronger brand architecture and definite brand guidelines.

And, taking it forward, the first Talking Tour was held at WeSchool, Mumbai, a significant engagement program where a team of expert panelists discussed important aspects in the areas of female employability and gender balance to a 700+ audience.

With everything revolutionizing around us, it’s time that women on sabbaticals go back and get the life and career they deserve. And we in our own capacities should keep motivating and encouraging them to do so. Like we say it at DY… Don’t  Stop.

By
Prabha Kadam
Brand Partner
Integrated Corporate Practice
DY Works

Ashish Jain & Pertash Koul makes DY Works proud by reaching 3rd for Tata Cruciable 2013 prelims

Tata Crucible - Often known as the“Wimbledon of business quizzing” seeks to bring together sharpest young
corporate minds in India to take on the heat of the toughest business quiz
in India.

 Ashish Jain & Pertash Koul of DY Works,Delhi tried their hands at the Gurgaon edition of the quiz this year. 

Out of a total of 150 odd corporate teams, they made it to the top 6
on stage representing DY Works. 

Although they were new to corporate quizzing where the level of quizzing is generally very tough they succesfully rose to 3rd position for the prelims. 

Congrats Ashish & Pertash for making all of us at DY  proud!!

LESS COMMON, MORE SENSE

 DY Works has been known for their talent and talent is bought by people.

We are talking about a creative creature.. called Arnab Roy, who was known in DY Works for his unique philosophy which is: 'LESS COMMON, MORE SENSE'.

A few of his stories talked about, Saving ants while having bath to relishing non-veg food to balance the biological cycle on this planet.

His famous 'Brit Accent' in his conversation made him approachable and friendly, well certainly setting a charming aura around him.

Arnab Roy, moved on... or rather grew from DY Works to take his philosophy of 'LESS COMMON, MORE SENSE' into his full-time profession.

He spreads his art in the form of badges, frames, cushion covers, etc.

To get connected to this Man Of Heart and ART.. please log onto :

http://www.lesscommon.co.in


By
Mamta Saighal
Jr Creative Group Head
DY Works

&

Imran Patel
Sr Creative Group Head
DY Works

A ‘Brand’ New Experience!

After a half hour journey in the Mumbai locals and several failed attempts to get a taxi to office, I reach DY Works every morning. And here begins a good new day, with a proper balance of work and fun (more fun sometimes!)

The month of June passed by in a flash; time flies when you’re doing what you like, and actually enjoying everything you’re doing! It was my first time in Mumbai, my first internship, and my first experience in a Design and Marketing firm, and it’s right up there in one of the good summers I’ve had. I did take some time getting used to the office and how things run here, but in a week’s time, I felt at home, and a part of this company!

Just as much as I enjoyed it, being in the Creatives Team was a learning process, and working with design pros like Dharam and Kiran added to that. Over the five weeks I was here, I worked on quite a few projects, allunlike each other, and that really opened up my mind to how design can work in different ways!