Next-generation innovation for the fast growing Small & Medium Enterprises

  

Fast-growing small and medium enterprises have an unending desire for the right solution. With a host of features and several advantages, including ROI, flexibility, and efficiency, SMEs with a multi-location presence are looking to invest in budget-friendly and multi-featured ERP systems that will help with the company's growth. SMEs understand the rewards of implementing an ERP system, and leading ERP players have introduced custom solutions to meet the demands. 

 

Their investment in IT infrastructure restricts SMEs due to the cost involved. SAP, a front runner in the world's ERP offerings, understood the market gap and introduced SAP Business ByDesign that offers the features and flexibility of Tier-1 solutions while considering the industry structure and requirements. 

 

Overview 

SAP Business ByDesign is a cloud-based management software tailor-made for SMEs. The product includes a plethora of features for different departments, including finance, customer relationship management (CRM), Human resources (HR), Project management, procurement, supply chain management. Designed to make business functioning easier, SAP Business ByDesign can be customized to support its growth across industries, including professional services, manufacturing, and wholesale distribution. 

 

Features

This end-to-end business suite aims to unify all the organization's core functions and gives the business the freedom to grow without increasing the investment cost in IT. The entire company can leverage the software features to streamline processes, improve efficiency, and understand business with real-time analytics based on insights across devices.

 

To achieve the same, SAP built the software on five key features:

 

- Security 

Data security is paramount to cloud solutions. SAP Business ByDesign has a strong AES - 256 encryption, SOC 2 compliance with geographically distributed data centers. The network is safe from internal and external threats with 24*7 security monitoring and is compliant with GDPR. 

- Deployment 

Available on the public and private cloud, SAP Business ByDesign can be deployed on either of the two to suit the organization's needs without compromising speed or efficiency. 

- Architecture 

SAP understands the needs of a fast-growing company. To support the growth of the business, the architecture is designed to be deployed as a platform. On-demand solutions, on-premise expansions can be easily adapted without any bottlenecks. 

- Integration 

The software can be easily integrated with third-party solutions both on cloud and on-premise, thus increasing the 

- Flexibility 

Using Business ByDesign studio, users can create custom applications and solutions for their preferred verticals. The software comes with a host of prepackaged applications for quicker adoptions across locations. 

 

Benefits 

An ERP system designed exclusively by adopting industry-level best practices for fast-growing businesses, SAP Business ByDesign helps build a formidable foundation that can be scaled up without complexities and additional costs. Some of the benefits of the solution are:

•    Quick-to-implement package with an average implementation time of 8 - 12 weeks 

•    Powered to grow from 20 to 10,000 users with easy re-configuration process 

•   Adaptable to tax requirements, languages, and currencies for quicker entry to the market 

•  Brings transparency to business with built-in standard reports, KPIs, and Excel integrations

•  Allows easy connection to pre-built integrations with SAP products and others like Office 365, Concur

 

Cost

Licensed through monthly subscription fees, SAP Business ByDesign is billed on a named-user basis. The subscription includes all core services offered by SAP, such as recovery, upgrades, troubleshooting, backup. 

 

Phoenix Business Consulting is an SAP Silver Partner consulting firm providing implementation, training, production support, and audit review services for the SAP Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform. Through the measured application of our expertise, industry Leading Practices, and the SAP ERP software platform, we help organizations transform their business processes and legacy infrastructure into a modern, fully integrated solution that enables them to better serve their customers, constituents, employees and shareholders.

 

To know more about the services or for business consultation, please write to us info@phoenixteam.com or visit: https://phoenixteam.com/products-sap-partner/sap-business-bydesign

IndusInd Bank successfully completes integration with CRMNEXT across all its customer touch points

IndusInd Bank adopts a smarter, faster and deeper customer engagement strategy with an agile technology platform

Mumbai/New Delhi : IndusInd Bank has announced its successful integration with CRMNEXT, the leading enterprise solution provider for banks and financial services. This integration will enable the Bank to simplify the process of customer on-boarding, introduce new products and meet customer demands by automating and customizing processes to fit the modern-day financial requirements.

The CRMNEXT platform will empower IndusInd Bank with an intelligence driven ‘Customer Action Center’ which will provide complete information on customers acquired from multiple sources, and make it available on a single intuitive screen. This will give the Bank a holistic view of customer relationships across product offerings, thereby enabling the Bank officials to build smarter relationship programs, and also initiate activities for faster sales and service fulfilment.

The platform will be implemented across IndusInd Bank’s wide network of nearly 2000 branches, call centers and processing units for sales and service operations. It will also integrate and power all  digital and physical banking touch points including ATMs, WhatsApp Banking platform, Email, SMS, Mobile apps etc. as well as over 150 integration touch points including core banking, loan systems, credit card system, Aadhaar, credit bureaus among others.  

Speaking about the integration, Mr. Soumitra Sen, Head - Consumer Banking, IndusInd Bank, said, “Technology and innovation have always been a critical focus area for the bank and that has been key towards achieving customer satisfaction. In keeping with this vision, we are delighted to integrate our banking systems with the CRMNEXT platform which will help automate and personalize processes, so that we can focus on meeting the unique needs of every customer and be even more strongly able to deliver stellar user experiences across the board.”

Talking about the integration, Mr. Anil Rao, Head – Operations and Solution Delivery, IndusInd Bank, said, “Transitioning to a high impact digital platform has been a massive, yet seamless experience with CRMNEXT. It will help us to drive our digital strategies in an agile and scalable environment efficiently, with faster fulfilment, delivering superior customer experience. Building on the robust new customer management platform, we aim to cement our position as a digital first bank."

Mr. Biswabrata Chakravorty, Chief Information Officer, IndusInd Bank, said “The launch of the next generation CRM platform is in line with IndusInd Bank’s vision to transform to a Digital Bank focussed in providing best-in-class banking services enabled through innovative use of technology. The Bank has created a digital customer experience and action platform leveraging the elasticity and resilience of the Cloud and through a robust API led integration with all customer touch points.  This platform will provide a unified view of the customer across the lifecycle by incorporating the principle of a golden customer profile from lead/prospect to after sale service. This platform will be accessed by all customer facing channels and staff, making it challenging from a design point of view. IndusInd Bank has leveraged partnership with industry leading platforms like CRM Next, VmWare and Amazon to deliver on this ask and architected it for a seamless client experience.”

Mr. Sushil Tyagi, Director, CRMNEXT, said, "With the increasing influence of digital in customers’ everyday lives, it’s critical for banking institutions to deliver a delightful and consistent digital experience. CRMNEXT is the leader in digital customer experience platform for banks with an exemplary delivery track record, we are confident to further power IndusInd in its growth strategy bringing efficiencies with large scale optimization and smart automation."

Appended below, are some of the benefits of the integration with CRMNXT:

·         The integration will enable the Bank to anticipate customer needs well in advance, and craft personalized offerings, thereby enhancing customer loyalty.

·         Codeless, visual digital journey designers enable personalized sales, service offerings with significantly faster turn-around-time and lower operational costs.

·         Guided actions will help the teams at IndusInd Bank to curate their engagement activities, and build long term relationships with stakeholders.

Google to invest Rs 75,000 crore to accelerate India’s digital economy

• Google plans to make this investment over the next 5-7 years

Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai on Monday announced a $10 billion (roughly Rs 75,000 crore) “Google for India Digitisation Fund” in a bid to help accelerate India’s digital economy. The announcement was made during the sixth edition of Google for India virtual event. Google plans to make this investment over the next 5-7 years through a “mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments.”

The Google for India Digitisation Fund will focus on four key areas, Pichai said in his keynote. Firstly, Google is looking to “enable” affordable access to information in local languages including Hindi, Tamil, Punjabi and others. Secondly, it is looking to “build” new products and services relevant to the country’s unique needs. Google is also looking to empower businesses and leveraging AI for social good in areas like health, education, and agriculture.

“As we make these investments, we look forward to working alongside Prime Minister Modi and the Indian government, as well as Indian businesses of all sizes to realise our shared vision for a Digital India,” Pichai said adding that the Google for India Digitisation Fund is “a reflection of our confidence in the future of India and its digital economy.”

Earlier in the day, the Google and Alphabet CEO met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the different ways in which the technology can be used to transform the lives of India’s farmers, youth and entrepreneurs.

“This morning, (I) had an extremely fruitful interaction with Sundar Pichai. We spoke on a wide range of subjects, particularly leveraging the power of technology to transform the lives of India’s farmers, youngsters and entrepreneurs,” PM Modi shared on Twitter.

Financial Express

Covid-19 boosts digital payments in India where cash ban failed

The coronavirus outbreak may finally accomplish what India’s shock demonetization four years ago failed to achieve: Use of digital payments is soaring for everything from groceries, electricity bills and cab fares.

The value of transactions on the Unified Payments Interface, a platform created by India’s largest banks in 2016, reached an all-time high last month as people feared to handle banknotes amid the pandemic. Electronic fund transfers from banks, which had dropped in April as economic activity slowed almost to a halt, have also rebounded.

“People who have never paid a bill online are paying online, people who have never bought groceries online are buying online,” said Nityanand Sharma, chief executive officer of Get Simpl Technologies Pvt Ltd., which allows people to order groceries and food online and pay every two weeks. “What would have taken five years has happened in the last three months.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has long sought to push digital payments for India, where three in four consumer transactions are handled in cash. In November 2016, Modi suddenly invalidated most of the country’s high-value currency notes — a move aimed at curbing corruption that would also, he later noted, help encourage a move toward digital commerce.

Digital payments initially did surge as people struggled to get banknotes, but they reverted to cash as the amount of notes in circulation rose again. Now the pandemic, which has made people wary of close personal interactions, is giving online payments a fresh boost.

The Story has been carried from Bloomberg.

COVID-19 impact - Air India withdraws job offers for around 180 trainee cabin crew members

Air India has withdrawn job offers for around 180 trainee cabin crew members amid the economic slowdown in the Indian aviation sector due to the coronavirus pandemic, said airline officials on July 11.

"The airline has taken a decision to withdraw job offers for about 180 trainees who were to join as cabin crew after completing their training as the aviation sector has been hit hard due to the coronavirus pandemic," said an airline official.

In a letter sent to one such trainee cabin crew member on July 6, the airline said, "In view of the current aviation scenario, it would not be possible for Air India to impart any further training to you for engaging your services."

The letter also said, "In view of above reasons, which are beyond the control of the company, it has been decided to discontinue your training arrangement and dispense with the offer of engagement with immediate effect."

It further said the bank guarantees furnished by the individual trainees at the time of joining were being returned.

The aviation sector has been significantly impacted due to the travel restrictions imposed in India and other countries amid the coronavirus pandemic. All airlines in India have taken up cost-cutting measures such as pay cuts and firing employees in order to conserve cash flow.

India resumed domestic passenger flights from May 25 after a gap of two months due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

The Story has been carried from PTI Feed.

Over half of Indian firms 'vulnerable' on wage payments: Crisil

Over half of Indian companies are "vulnerable" from a wage payments perspective, which will lead to a sharp cut in paychecks and delay the overall economic recovery as demand resumption takes time, ratings agency Crisil said on Friday. Ashu Suyash, the managing director and chief executive of the agency, said it has done an analysis of 40,000 companies having a collective wage bill of Rs 12 lakh crore, which revealed the grim situation.

"We see vulnerability in 52 per cent by size (of wage bill) and 68 per cent by numbers (of companies). This should not result in all layoffs or redundancies, but a sharp cut in the paycheck. That simply means that recovery is going to be slow," she said at an economics conference organised by SBI.

The comments concur with reports of numerous companies resorting to layoffs. Multiple efforts are being mounted from the policy side to arrest the trend, with reviving demand being the topmost priority.

She further said the agency expects companies' revenues to fall by 14-17 per cent and it shows that demand is "significantly impacted".

Suyash said the economy was anyways facing problems with slowing consumption, which had put a question mark on employment growth, adding that the pandemic will slow down recovery.

"We are actually saying that even in three years, we are not going to come back to the levels from a GDP growth perspective. There will be a 10 per cent permanent loss of GDP," she added.

She, however, said the impact on companies will not be as bad as that seen in the aftermath of the global financial crisis of 2008. This is because the number of companies which can be classified as highly leveraged are a fraction of what they were then on the back of massive de-leveraging of the last four years.

The strength of a company's balance sheet and liquidity position will be the key factors which will determine a company's ability to withstand the ongoing difficulties, she said.

The Story has been carried from PTI feed.

HDFC to rope partner to fund finance stressed realty projects

• HDFC will not have any active role in working of the proposed fund as it will be in conflict with its lending activity

Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) will use part of the fresh capital it plans to raise to set up a real estate fund, in collaboration with other investors, to finance stressed projects.

It will also use the fresh capital to fund inorganic opportunities and investments in existing group businesses, its Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Keki Mistry said.

 

HDFC is yet to approach shareholders to seek their approval to raise funds. The exercise will be conducted soon after the approval is received, said Mistry.

Mistry said, “These investments will continue to be in the financial sector, which is the core business. One of the things we would look at is the establishment of a real estate fund”.

The fund is expected to be functional by the later part of the current financial year (FY21). HDFC will not play an active role in the working of the proposed fund, as that will be in conflict with its lending activity. It will rope in partners to run the fund instead.

Last week, HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh had said in a letter to shareholders that group firms have an opportunity to grow through mergers and acquisitions (M&As) because of the current crisis. The subsidiaries need additional capital to prepare for this, he had said.

“We are now emerging into a scenario where there may be inorganic opportunities for our group firms. Some of our subsidiaries will need additional capital for expansion. We have also identified new investment opportunities to help build the next generation of value creators,” Parekh wrote in the annual report

BS

Rs 62,361 crore to be refunded by I-T department : CBDT

"In order to help taxpayers in a Covid-19 pandemic situations, the department has issued tax refunds at a speed of 76 cases per minute during this period which had 56 weekdays," the Board said. Income tax department has issued Rs 62,361 crore of pending refunds to 20.44 lakh taxpayers between April 8 and June 30, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said Friday.

Completely electronic refunds will be issued and have been directly deposited into the bank accounts of the taxpayers. Information like bank accounts number and reconciliation of defect/mismatch prior to issue of refund should be provided by the Taxpayers seeking their outstanding demand

Rs 50-60 lakh crore foreign investment is needed in the country - Nitin Gadkari

NEW DELHI: India needs foreign direct investments worth Rs 50 to 60 lakh crore and the money can be tapped mainly through infrastructure projects as well as MSME sector to accelerate the wheels of coronavirus-hit economy, according to Union minister Nitin Gadkari.

Emphasising that at this juncture Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is the need of the hour, the senior minister said such funds would benefit the country as there is a need for pumping in liquidity into the market.

"Country at this juncture needs liquidity. Without liquidity our economy's wheel will not accelerate... Rs 50-60 lakh crore foreign investment is needed in the country under present circumstances to boost the economy," the Road Transport, Highways and MSME Minister told PTI in an interview.

Infrastructure sector including highways, airports, inland waterways, railways, logistic parks, broad gauge and metro, apart from Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises can attract large scale foreign investment, he noted.

Gadkari further said that talks are on with investors from Dubai and the US for various sectors, including MSMEs.

"Some MSMEs are already listed on the BSE. I have talked to investors in Dubai and the US to come and invest in such MSMEs based on their three-year turnover, GST track record, IT record and good rating. Investing in these can result in rich dividends as these do exports also," he said.


Besides, the minister said that 22 green highways were being build, including the Rs 1 lakh crore Delhi-Mumbai Expressway on a new alignment.

PTI

Bajaj Finance Launches Online Fixed Deposit for New Customers

Bajaj Finance Limited, the lending & investment arm of Bajaj Finserv and one of the most diversified NBFCs in the Indian market, has now launched online Fixed Deposit facility for customers. Using this convenience, new and existing customers can invest in Bajaj Finance FD from the comfort of their homes.

Servicing more than 2.5 lakh happy FD customers with a deposit book of more than 20,000 crores, Bajaj Finance Fixed Deposit is a preferred investment option, owing to its assurance of lucrative returns.

Despite recent repo rate cuts and reduction in interest rates, Bajaj Finance is offering lucrative FD interest rates of up to 7.85%, which are one of the highest in the market. These high returns don't come at the cost of stability or convenience, as deposits by Bajaj Finance are accredited with the highest ratings of FAAA by CRISIL and MAAA by ICRA. Along with these high ratings, Bajaj Finance is also one of the only NBFCs to have '0 unclaimed deposits' - which indicates the measures taken by this company to ensure safety of depositors' money.

Benefits of availing online FD facility

In today's times of high market volatility and falling interest rate regime, customers can lock into the prevailing high FD interest rates by filling Bajaj Finance online FD form and reap these benefits:

• Quick online process: When investing in this online FD, investors need not worry about visiting Bajaj Finance branches, as this end-to-end online process enables them to book an FD immediately, without any hassle.


• Easy online and paperless process: With this online FD facility, customers can carry out the entire process online, from start to finish. This saves them the trouble of multiple visits to branches or the need to submit documentation. While existing FD customers need not even submit their documents again, new customers can verify themselves through the cKYC repository, and complete the documentation process without any hassle.

• Invest anytime, anywhere: Bajaj Finance online FD facility also enables investors to invest from any device with an internet connection. This offers them with the flexibility to invest in a Fixed Deposit from their office desk, or from their homes.

Apart from the convenience of investing online through a paperless process, investors can choose to auto-renew their deposits and reap the benefits of multi-deposit facility or avail a Loan against Fixed Deposit. Amid falling interest rates and increasing market volatilities, it is best to lock into this Fixed Deposit offering one of the best FD interest rates.

Additionally, for those looking to determine their returns online, Bajaj Finance FD interest calculator can be a great way to determine maturity amount, interest payouts and maturity date before they invest.

Edelweiss Tokio Life on Pandemic-Proofing Financial Portfolios

The Coronavirus pandemic has left everyone scrambling back to drawing boards to design and accept a new normal for families, businesses and economies. With heightened health concerns across the globe, people are increasingly recognising the importance of insurance and India is no exception.

After all, this is an opportune time to relook and redesign financial portfolios, looking through the lens of three critical elements - protection, savings and wealth creation.

Here's how insurance can make financial portfolio robust and ready for any unforeseen financial challenges in the future:

Protection

Protection or Life Cover strengthens a long-term financial portfolio, as it mitigates potential risks and challenges. There are enough anecdotal references which show how unforeseen health expenses or loss of income due to the death of the breadwinner make a massive dent in a family's savings.

Protection products help loved ones to retain their lifestyle and long-term financial goals, without disruption. With innovative solutions now offering cover for both customers and their spouses at affordable costs, the future aspirations of loved ones can be easily secured. Similarly, some insurers offer critical illness plans that cover major or terminal illnesses like cancer.

It is ideal to buy protection products as soon as one's professional career is started. It is a fallacy that the young do not need life insurance, when, in fact, buying insurance early helps to lock into lower premium, which, in turn, results in considerable cost-saving in the long-term. Check out Edelweiss Tokio Life - Zindagi Plus, a term insurance plan which offers an industry-first feature, Better Half Benefit - an option to get additional life cover for spouse.

Savings

It is advisable to set aside at least 10 percent of financial portfolio towards savings products. These plans are an ideal way for wealth accumulation, irrespective of risk appetite.

Amid heightened market volatility and a reducing rate cycle in the country, this product category has now become a far more attractive instrument for long-term savings. These products, such as Edelweiss Tokio Life - GCAP can give a steady returns of 5-6 percent annually with Tax Benefits.  

Wealth Creation

Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIPs) have emerged as one of the leading options for wealth creation, with insurers facilitating ease of buying through digital platforms.

New-age ULIPs such as Edelweiss Tokio Life - Wealth Secure+ which subsequently has been ranked as the No.1 ULIP by CRISIL, offers flexibility in switching funds, systematic withdrawals, and life cover up to 100 years and starts with premiums as low as Rs 1,000 per month.

In fact, ULIPs can also be effectively used for child's future or legacy or retirement planning.

As the fight against COVID-19 is continued, protection will see a marked increase in terms of customer consideration. People will be more cognisant of buying insurance, complemented by increased awareness driven by the industry. With insurance penetration in India still in single digits, it will be interesting to see how increased digital penetration creates an impact.

About Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance

Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance is a joint venture between Edelweiss Financial Services, among India's leading diversified financial services companies, and Tokio Marine Holdings Inc, one of the oldest and largest insurance companies in Japan. Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance launched its pan-India operations in July 2011, offering proprietary need-based solutions to help customers meet their life stage financial goals. Its lineage brings together a deep understanding of customer needs and international expertise. The company is headquartered in Mumbai serving over 2.02 lakh customers through 43,681 personal finance advisors as on March 31, 2019, across 121 branches in 93 major cities.

Awards:

Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance has been consistently recognized for its Product Innovation capabilities at several forums, namely Outlook Money Award for Best Life Insurer 2016, Golden Peacock Awards 2018, Golden Globe Tigers Awards and ET NOW - BFSI Awards for Best Product Innovation 2018, Times National Award for Marketing Excellence 2018, India Insurance Summit 2019 and Skoch Awards 2019.

To learn more about Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance, please visit www.edelweisstokio.in

You can follow Edelweiss Tokio Life on:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/edelweiss-tokio-life-insurance/?viewAsMember=true

https://twitter.com/edelweiss_tokio

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Financial News Bureau