A Year In Nepal
Just finished a year of working in Nepal, each month half month, the other half being in India largely, and UAE at times.
It has been a roller-coaster journey, good fun, good learning, and perhaps made some impact as well along the way.
Four organizations I have worked with here as Senior Consultant include two educational and two media houses.
First is the larger of the two Business Media groups here, named New Business Age group with a daily Aarthik Abhiyan (www.arthikabhiyan.com.np) and a Business monthly New Business Age (www.newbusinessage.com) and a business weekly The Corporate weekly.
The key-learning here: the pace of work can be faster, perceptions matter more than the reach, you can build relationship, business and content all through round-table discussions of stakeholders of any business in an area and cover it through special supplements, etc.
The key outcomes I am trying to bring herein are: that events can be a viable and strong division of an integrated media organization and can lead to effective branding, reasonably profits and great content; that standard operating processes must define functions of all divisions in a media house; and that continuous training is must; that ensuring assured revenue through annual deals with patrons is must in today's media revenue uncertainty times, the role of online media and its reach in practice, organizing Best B-Schools and Best HS Schools ranking and awards, etc.
The second organization is the young and fastest growing television channel, Himalaya TV. Key-lessons: concept of composite info-tainment channel with multiple programming genres, even in two languages, in a nation of 17 channels and waking up only in this decade to private television viewing.
The key outcomes I am trying to bring herein are: events as an independent division of the group, viable and necessary; concept of multiple and yet well defined and differently branded programming bands in the channel; and a few other things.
The third organization is the fifth best ranked business education institute King's College of Management to help develop their Quality Policy, their visual merchandising, and soon will start work on their re-branding strategy and action-plan and their Journal of Management: the first ever by any B-School in Nepal.
The fourth organization is International Centre of Academics, ICA, engaged in the mission of Online & Distance Education, being a Partner Institute of IGNOU of India, and having been the best partner institute of IGNOU outside India twice, 2011 and 2013.
My work here in centering around special sessions, upgrading of systems and academic processes, bringing in guests from abroad, developing the concept of ICA as the Knowledge Partner of many corporate, and now will move towards making Corporate Training division and PhD Doctoral Research division of ICA.
As I come for the 12th month, I wrote this Post on my Facebook wall, which is pertinent to note here:
Back to Nepal. For the next 15 days. Not very cold this time. Now may be 11 degrees. But chill. Pleasant. Still with an overcoat. Have to warm up the dinner. I like the expanded roads. The first work on them started exactly a year ago, in Jan 2013, when I had come for the first month for media consulting. So I complete a year of half-months in Nepal, and roads complete their construction-time! Met one-to-one at least five hundred people (going by visiting cards!), addressed at least 3-4000, including campuses and Chambers etc, anchored 8 episodes on Himalaya TV, emceed 4 major events, wrote a dozen major pieces, visited four cities of the country, befriended many, took up assignments with four organizations, and now I am in love with this nation of breathtaking natural beauty, cheerful people and a great climate-food-culture. I can sense an urge of the youth to evolve to the next level and fast. Can I devote the next one year to decipher that evolution and its contours through a book and a documentary? I hope I can make an honest attempt....
Just finished a year of working in Nepal, each month half month, the other half being in India largely, and UAE at times.
It has been a roller-coaster journey, good fun, good learning, and perhaps made some impact as well along the way.
Four organizations I have worked with here as Senior Consultant include two educational and two media houses.
First is the larger of the two Business Media groups here, named New Business Age group with a daily Aarthik Abhiyan (www.arthikabhiyan.com.np) and a Business monthly New Business Age (www.newbusinessage.com) and a business weekly The Corporate weekly.
The key-learning here: the pace of work can be faster, perceptions matter more than the reach, you can build relationship, business and content all through round-table discussions of stakeholders of any business in an area and cover it through special supplements, etc.
The key outcomes I am trying to bring herein are: that events can be a viable and strong division of an integrated media organization and can lead to effective branding, reasonably profits and great content; that standard operating processes must define functions of all divisions in a media house; and that continuous training is must; that ensuring assured revenue through annual deals with patrons is must in today's media revenue uncertainty times, the role of online media and its reach in practice, organizing Best B-Schools and Best HS Schools ranking and awards, etc.
The second organization is the young and fastest growing television channel, Himalaya TV. Key-lessons: concept of composite info-tainment channel with multiple programming genres, even in two languages, in a nation of 17 channels and waking up only in this decade to private television viewing.
The key outcomes I am trying to bring herein are: events as an independent division of the group, viable and necessary; concept of multiple and yet well defined and differently branded programming bands in the channel; and a few other things.
The third organization is the fifth best ranked business education institute King's College of Management to help develop their Quality Policy, their visual merchandising, and soon will start work on their re-branding strategy and action-plan and their Journal of Management: the first ever by any B-School in Nepal.
The fourth organization is International Centre of Academics, ICA, engaged in the mission of Online & Distance Education, being a Partner Institute of IGNOU of India, and having been the best partner institute of IGNOU outside India twice, 2011 and 2013.
My work here in centering around special sessions, upgrading of systems and academic processes, bringing in guests from abroad, developing the concept of ICA as the Knowledge Partner of many corporate, and now will move towards making Corporate Training division and PhD Doctoral Research division of ICA.
As I come for the 12th month, I wrote this Post on my Facebook wall, which is pertinent to note here:
Back to Nepal. For the next 15 days. Not very cold this time. Now may be 11 degrees. But chill. Pleasant. Still with an overcoat. Have to warm up the dinner. I like the expanded roads. The first work on them started exactly a year ago, in Jan 2013, when I had come for the first month for media consulting. So I complete a year of half-months in Nepal, and roads complete their construction-time! Met one-to-one at least five hundred people (going by visiting cards!), addressed at least 3-4000, including campuses and Chambers etc, anchored 8 episodes on Himalaya TV, emceed 4 major events, wrote a dozen major pieces, visited four cities of the country, befriended many, took up assignments with four organizations, and now I am in love with this nation of breathtaking natural beauty, cheerful people and a great climate-food-culture. I can sense an urge of the youth to evolve to the next level and fast. Can I devote the next one year to decipher that evolution and its contours through a book and a documentary? I hope I can make an honest attempt....
