I found two kinds of technology suppliers at CISMA, one who are flexible and ready to customize to
the needs of the industry and also negotiate on price, and the other who says that the entrepreneur
is being immature and price-driven with no interest to invest in the right technology solutions
(which incidentally is his technology solution)!
Among them also there are two kinds of solution providers, one who will keep on blaming the entrepreneur for his short-sightedness, primarily for not adopting his technology, for which he ‘dooms’ the industry and the company. But there are others among them who would want to wait for the market to mature and with it the entrepreneur to be ready mentally and infrastructure wise for his technology and only than would start offering his products to that particular country or region.
As a businessman, I would say it is the entrepreneur’s prerogative on how he conducts his business and it is not your (technology provider’s) place to advice the entrepreneur and predict that he is doomed if he does not do certain things or buy his technology... I think such technology providers base their information on limited knowledge of the entrepreneurial attitude and approach of that particular region, the mindset of the workers and their upbringing, and the Government’s measured support to the industry.
I would give credit to an entrepreneur for his understanding of his people, the cultural and economic influences of their behaviour and attitudes. All these insights give him better understanding of his business and also the insight on the process which requires technology interventions and how much to invest, and in which technology, to run his business successfully.
It is also interesting to note that although the major consumption point of technologies is in Asia, majority of technology suppliers and solution providers have a development centre in Europe or US, which results in disconnect with the customer. In case of hardware technology, a major reason behind non-adoption is the failure in understanding the technology ecosystem of the country, which may include education level, availability of trained labour or even availability of consumables at the right time and at the right price. A software solution may have issues like transparency, flexibility, multi-tasking and other such cultural issues behind resistance to adoption.
The right way or the way I propagate induction of new technology in developing manufacturing bases, is to first guide the industry to the need of such technology, this can be done through regular workshops not only for the organized industry, but also for the unorganized garment sector which is much larger than the organized garment sector. Secondly, the solution providers need to be flexible and create something which is a value proposition.
From my experience I can say that the Indian industry in particular is responsive not only to the new technologies, but also forward-thinking concepts. Only recently my team visited Mahajan Overseas – a Panipat-based home furnishings manufacturer and exporter that has reset the frontiers for the rest of the home furnishings industry with its 4-acre green factory at Barhi Industrial Area/Textile Park (Sonipat) and the best part is that the initiative is NOT buyer-driven! In our next edition, CISMA show will be reviewed in detail. If any one of you was there and wants to
share his views, please do write to me…
Among them also there are two kinds of solution providers, one who will keep on blaming the entrepreneur for his short-sightedness, primarily for not adopting his technology, for which he ‘dooms’ the industry and the company. But there are others among them who would want to wait for the market to mature and with it the entrepreneur to be ready mentally and infrastructure wise for his technology and only than would start offering his products to that particular country or region.
As a businessman, I would say it is the entrepreneur’s prerogative on how he conducts his business and it is not your (technology provider’s) place to advice the entrepreneur and predict that he is doomed if he does not do certain things or buy his technology... I think such technology providers base their information on limited knowledge of the entrepreneurial attitude and approach of that particular region, the mindset of the workers and their upbringing, and the Government’s measured support to the industry.
I would give credit to an entrepreneur for his understanding of his people, the cultural and economic influences of their behaviour and attitudes. All these insights give him better understanding of his business and also the insight on the process which requires technology interventions and how much to invest, and in which technology, to run his business successfully.
It is also interesting to note that although the major consumption point of technologies is in Asia, majority of technology suppliers and solution providers have a development centre in Europe or US, which results in disconnect with the customer. In case of hardware technology, a major reason behind non-adoption is the failure in understanding the technology ecosystem of the country, which may include education level, availability of trained labour or even availability of consumables at the right time and at the right price. A software solution may have issues like transparency, flexibility, multi-tasking and other such cultural issues behind resistance to adoption.
The right way or the way I propagate induction of new technology in developing manufacturing bases, is to first guide the industry to the need of such technology, this can be done through regular workshops not only for the organized industry, but also for the unorganized garment sector which is much larger than the organized garment sector. Secondly, the solution providers need to be flexible and create something which is a value proposition.
From my experience I can say that the Indian industry in particular is responsive not only to the new technologies, but also forward-thinking concepts. Only recently my team visited Mahajan Overseas – a Panipat-based home furnishings manufacturer and exporter that has reset the frontiers for the rest of the home furnishings industry with its 4-acre green factory at Barhi Industrial Area/Textile Park (Sonipat) and the best part is that the initiative is NOT buyer-driven! In our next edition, CISMA show will be reviewed in detail. If any one of you was there and wants to
share his views, please do write to me…
