INNOVATION SPECIAL.... Ease of Doing It Better, Adding Value

Ease of Doing It Better, Adding Value

Presenting the innovation leaders who through efficient processes, out of the box thinking, designing new products and addressing sustainability concerns are creating customer value and enriching lives

MOST INNOVATIVE LARGE COMPANY RELIANCE JIO

“There is a huge innovative spirit in our country, especially in the young population. A common thread among all companies has been to facilitate the innovation among young people. Our objective has been to connect 1.5 billion people not just internally but globally so that our collective voice is heard around the world.”

SUNIL DUTT, PRESIDENT, RELIANCE JIO INFOCOMM

Has completely revolutionised the telecom sector with the introduction of 4G LTE technology by making calls and data cheaper Continued with innovations such as JioFi, JioPhone, JioTV and JioInteract Boasting of a strong subscriber base of over 250 million, the company has no plans to stop

MOST INNOVATIVE STARTUP URBANCLAP

The home services startup has become the one stop destination for hiring handymen, beauticians, yoga trainers, home tutors, etc.

Spread across 8 cities, the company has recently expanded to Dubai

Works closely with individual service professionals — transforming them into micro-entrepreneurs who act as its ‘de-facto franchisees’

“When we started UrbanClap in 2013, most people told us that we are getting into an old and boring industry. But we saw a great opportunity. There are 20 million working women professionals in our country who earn ₹10,000 to ₹20,000 a month. We gave them an opportunity to become mini-entrepreneurs and now we have 25,000 women partners who earn more than ₹40,000 monthly.”

VARUN KHAITAN, CO-FOUNDER & CEO, URBANCLAP

MOST INNOVATIVE MID-SIZED COMPANY

PVR

By using formats like Audit-Air-Ium — clean-air cinemas using green tech, 4DX, IMAX, P [XL], PVR Onyx, and PVR Privilege, it has brought global standards of cinemaviewing to India

Introduced the first unique 15-screen multiplex in the country

Launched a luxurious segment with Gold Class and Director’s Cut

“We believe innovation to be the core of our DNA. In today’s digital age, you need to innovate to stay ahead of the curve. There is no other alternative.”

CHANDRESH DAFTARY, SENIOR VP-VALUE FORMAT CINEMAS, PVR

INNOVATION TO DRIVE SUSTAINABILITY

ULTRATECH

UltraTech Litecon, a lightweight concrete made out of coarse flyash — an industrial waste and an environmental menace — reduces environmental footprint

Provides same strength and superior performance as of normal concrete

Company expects a revenue jump of ₹1,000 crore in the next five years

“We generally think of innovation as a Eureka moment. As a company, I believe we think of innovation as an everyday process. We seek to come up with disruptive ideas to create cheap and innovative products.”

K K MAHESHWARI, MD, ULTRATECH CEMENT

INNOVATION IN INCLUSIVE GROWTH

FIRST STEP DIGITAL

Created PeeBuddy — India’s first female urinating device which helps women to stand and pee Launched in 2015, the patented product has already found a place in the Limca Book of Records Sold 1 million units — 60% of which came in the last year

“When we started in 2013, we never thought we could enable so many women get over their daily struggles. We seek to continue our growth with innovation solutions.”

DEEP BAJAJ FOUNDER, PEEBUDDY (FIRST STEP DIGITAL)

BUSINESS MODEL INNOVATION RIVIGO

Revolutionised the trucking business with their global-first driver relay model and cutting-edge technology to provide faster and reliable delivery Operates over 2,100 trucks and has a Pan-India network across 150 locations Model ensures drivers are not away from their homes for more than 12 hours, thus helping them maintain a work-life balance

“Innovation has to solve human drudgery. Our mission is to make logistics human. We aim to bring all truck drivers to their families. Through our tools and applications, all of the pilots — the name we give the truck drivers — will come home to their families every day.”

DEEPAK GARG, FOUNDER AND CEO, RIVIGO

MARKETING & BRAND INNOVATION

CEAT TYRES

Created relevant brand differentiation through its media campaigns focusing on road safety

Projected how its tyres are the safest bet to avoid last-minute accidents

Campaign arrested decline in sales and helped CEAT win back lost volumes across two-wheeler and passenger vehicle segments

“Innovation to us means doing things in a new way that adds value to the customer and makes life easier for him. There are fatalities on Indian roads every four minutes. The number is higher than deaths from terrorism, warfare etc. Our marketing initiative was therefore based on safety.”

ANANT GOENKA, MD, CEAT TYRES

SERVICE INNOVATION BHIM-UPI

This mobile payment app developed by NPCI revolutionised the payments landscape in India due to its simplicity

An easier way to access your bank account to make payments, transfer and receive money

You don’t need to add money to BHIM, as it is basically your bank account

“Consumer choice has been a design principle for UPI. When we created UPI, the idea was for the customer to have hundreds of applications to choose from to carry out a transaction. We thought we will leverage the whole ecosystem strength to provide the consumer choice.”

DILIP ASBE, MD & CEO, NPCI

PRODUCT INNOVATION SAREGAMA INDIA

Created Carvaan — a simple radio that also comes loaded with a range of melodies from the 1950s-1990s, evoking the romance of a bygone era Vintage feel and simple navigation (with bigger fonts) makes it a preferred choice over cloud-sourced options Absolute hit among music lovers in the 50+ age bracket in India

“I am a firm believer in innovation. But I always believe that anthropology is more important than technology. You really need to understand your customer. While coming up with Carvaan, we asked the fundamental question: How does the customer want to consume music?”

VIKRAM MEHRA, MD, SAREGAMA

PROCESS INNOVATION RENEW POWER

Deployed high-precision wind sensors and algorithms to predict wind direction, which helped achieve higher efficiency of power generation

Helped solve two key issues of managing too much data and unsolved equipment issues

Also, helped achieve cost benefits and higher revenue

“When you do anything that is not business as usual — it could be a process change, a new product, a new technology — I think all of that is innovation. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a new product. Even the way you hire people and access resources could constitute innovation.

ET18MAR19