Baniyas are the businessmen of Northern India...They are the most successful community pan India with their businesses spread in every nook and corner of India & abroad...They are as intelligent as the Tam Brahmin but are much better several notches in terms of being money savvy ...They occupy the seats of power, business & education with aplomb...Here is an analysis of the community
[FONT="] The business success of Baniyas; What can we learn from the community’s resounding success [/FONT]
[FONT="]What's with the Bansals?[/FONT]
[FONT="]Indian techie Jyoti Bansal made history by selling his start-up company to tech major Cisco for a whopping $3.7 billion. He is just 38 years old. While Baniyas—the community Bansal belongs to—have dominated traditional business in India, now the next-gen Baniyas are dominating e-commerce and start-up space.
Why are Baniyas always successful in business? [/FONT]
[FONT="]Who are the baniyas?[/FONT]
[FONT="]The word 'Baniya' comes from the Sanskrit 'vanik' which is derived from 'vanijya' which means trade. Baniyas have several sub-groups such as Aggarwals, Marwaris and Maheshwaris. Baniyas are predominantly a merchant caste.
They can be found in both Hindu and Jain religions and in the whole north, central and west India. India's biggest businessman, Mukesh Ambani is a Baniya from 'modh' sub-group, and so are the Flipkart founders Rohit Bansal and Binny Bansal.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Biggest baniyas[/FONT]
[FONT="]Mahatma Gandhi, who emphasised the virtue of thift, was a Baniya—from the same caste as Mukesh Ambani. Indian business has been dominated by Baniyas. Most of the top businessmen and industrialists are Baniyas such as Lakshmi Mittal of Mittal Steel, Shashi and Ravi Ruia of Essar group, Gautam Adani, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Sunil Mittal of Airtel, Naveen Jindal of Jindal Steel and Anil Agarwal of Vedanta.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas take over new-age economy[/FONT]
[FONT="]Initially, it was believed that e-commerce and new-age economy will displace the traditional Baniya stronghold on business. But Baniyas have managed to dominate even the new economy. India's leading e-commerce companies such as Flipkart, Snapdeal, Ola, Naaptol, Yebhi and Myntra have been founded by Baniyas.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The secret of baniya success[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas were not able to beat western corporations because the baniya businesses emphasise personal ethics which work best in family-held firms or small enterprises. But when the global economy created space for small entrepreneurs and start-ups, the Baniya ethic won.
Baniyas focus on thrift and are very savvy accountants. They can keep a sharp eye on expenditure—even the small change—while not losing the big picture. Appetite for risk and a knack to deal with daily uncertainty are other traditional Baniya skills.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Tradition+education[/FONT]
[FONT="]In pre-liberalisation India, the Baniya community had flooded the top engineering and medical colleges. The new Baniya entrepreneurs combine their modern tech education with family business culture they had imbibed effortlessly at home.
That's why they have come to dominate even the new-age economy. The success of Baniyas in the new-age economy testifies to the high adaptability of the community to new business environments.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]The Midas touch of the Baniyas[/FONT]
[FONT="]People from the Baniya community typically dominate the busines world. Whatever they touch turn into gold. Let's take a look at what makes them exceptionally good with money[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniya-nomics[/FONT]
[FONT="]The baniyas can be largely categorised as the traditional entrepreneurial and trading classes of north and west India. In the list of Forbes billionaires, eight in the top 10 of India's richest, are baniyas.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Typical Indian billionaires[/FONT]
[FONT="]The richest Indian in the world is a Baniya - Mukesh Ambani with a net worth of ($21.5 billion) followed by Lakshmi Mittal ($31.1 billion). Others are Shashi and Ravi Ruia, Savitri Jindal ($13.2 billion), Gautam Adani ($10 billion), Kumar Mangalam Birla ($9.2 billion), Anil Ambani ($8.8 billion), and Sunil Mittal ($8.3 billion). Even with all this, the Baniya community represents just 1% of India'a population.[/FONT]
[FONT="]It's all in the genes[/FONT]
[FONT="]Flipkart.com, was started in 2007 by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal. In 2015, the largest online retailer in the country clocked a reveneu of Rs 102.4 billion. Founder of Snapdeal.com, Rohit Bansal was also born into a business family. His father was a grain merchant and uncles being traders.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They are risk takers[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas imbibe risk-taking abilities from a very young age. Allahabad-born Manmohan Agarwal started out on his own when he was just 15. He was quoted as saying: "My father instilled in me the ability to take bold decisions, the courage to take risks and to give one's 100 per cent to anything one does." For next 8 years he did small businesses and eventually built an online empire called Yebhi.com.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Undisuputed accountants[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniya is derived from the Sanskrit word banijya, meaning commerce. Baniyas religiously keep their accounting books up-to-date on a daily basis. These books are called chopdis and it is a tradition in the baniya community to mark the start of the new year at Diwali by opening new account books.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They smell money[/FONT]
[FONT="]These business-minded people never miss out on opportunities to make money. They involve themselves 24X7 with business. They have the nose for a profit-making venture and are single-mindedly focused on their business almost at the cost of not having a social life.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They conquer any fields[/FONT]
[FONT="]Other than business, they have the leadership skills to pursue any field. Two of India's top politicians, Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal, belong to the mercantile community of west and north India.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]What makes Marwaris so successful in business?[/FONT]
[FONT="]
According to Thomas A Timberg's book, The Marwaris: From Jagath Seth to the Birlas, there are seven secrets of Marwari businessmen which are still valid "and perhaps will remain so".[/FONT]
[FONT="]1) Watch the money[/FONT]
[FONT="]There are two key functions performed by the Marwari business firms and business groups - strategic management of investment funds by moving them to where they are most productive in the long term and close financial monitoring of the enterprises in which they have a share.
It is perhaps the changes in Harsh Goenka and Kumar Mangalam Birla's business styles that point to a dilution of finance-centric strategies in present times.[/FONT]
[FONT="]2) Delegate but monitor[/FONT]
[FONT="]Successful business have to learn how to delegate, otherwise the span of economic activity can engage in will be limited.
They also have to know when to intervene, fully aware that a decision to intervene is costly. Usually it is easier to replace an unsatisfactory executive rather than turn him around. Ineffectual executives and family members are gently moved out to cushy and uncritical positions.[/FONT]
[FONT="]3) Plan, but have a style and a system[/FONT]
[FONT="]This is somewhat ambiguous as we clearly see a transition from an intuitive style to a more systematic one. However, this may be, as some suggest, a product of the transition from business founders to inheritors.[/FONT]
[FONT="]4) Lead to expand and do not let the system inhibit growth[/FONT]
[FONT="]A key characteristic of successful businessmen is a drive to expand. Many forms have expansion in their mission statements but few implement it.[/FONT]
[FONT="]5) The right corporate culture[/FONT]
[FONT="]The firm or group must have a style which befits its market and the times. Changes or adjustments constitute one of the most difficult tasks.
Corporate culture in a firm is critical in inspiring loyalty, especially of competent managers. Financial incentives can go only thus far, and are sometimes counterproductive.[/FONT]
[FONT="]6) Don’t get blown away by fads[/FONT]
[FONT="]The shelf life of half the management fads is six months. Professors, including those from business schools, devise striking and attractive theories which bear no responsibility for success.
A responsible manager has to be more tentative and experimental in his approach. As any school debater knows, there are usually at least two sides to any question, even multiple sides as in the Anekantavada of Jain logic. The problem is to decide which is right in a given situation.[/FONT]
[FONT="]7) Do not miss new developments[/FONT]
[FONT="]Some businesses describe themselves as 'knowledge businesses'. As a matter of fact, all are. The world's oldest family businesses have had some very successful ventures and a lot of failed ones because of missed opportunities.[/FONT]
Source: Economic Times
[FONT="] The business success of Baniyas; What can we learn from the community’s resounding success [/FONT]
[FONT="]What's with the Bansals?[/FONT]
[FONT="]Indian techie Jyoti Bansal made history by selling his start-up company to tech major Cisco for a whopping $3.7 billion. He is just 38 years old. While Baniyas—the community Bansal belongs to—have dominated traditional business in India, now the next-gen Baniyas are dominating e-commerce and start-up space.
Why are Baniyas always successful in business? [/FONT]
[FONT="]Who are the baniyas?[/FONT]
[FONT="]The word 'Baniya' comes from the Sanskrit 'vanik' which is derived from 'vanijya' which means trade. Baniyas have several sub-groups such as Aggarwals, Marwaris and Maheshwaris. Baniyas are predominantly a merchant caste.
They can be found in both Hindu and Jain religions and in the whole north, central and west India. India's biggest businessman, Mukesh Ambani is a Baniya from 'modh' sub-group, and so are the Flipkart founders Rohit Bansal and Binny Bansal.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Biggest baniyas[/FONT]
[FONT="]Mahatma Gandhi, who emphasised the virtue of thift, was a Baniya—from the same caste as Mukesh Ambani. Indian business has been dominated by Baniyas. Most of the top businessmen and industrialists are Baniyas such as Lakshmi Mittal of Mittal Steel, Shashi and Ravi Ruia of Essar group, Gautam Adani, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Sunil Mittal of Airtel, Naveen Jindal of Jindal Steel and Anil Agarwal of Vedanta.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas take over new-age economy[/FONT]
[FONT="]Initially, it was believed that e-commerce and new-age economy will displace the traditional Baniya stronghold on business. But Baniyas have managed to dominate even the new economy. India's leading e-commerce companies such as Flipkart, Snapdeal, Ola, Naaptol, Yebhi and Myntra have been founded by Baniyas.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The secret of baniya success[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas were not able to beat western corporations because the baniya businesses emphasise personal ethics which work best in family-held firms or small enterprises. But when the global economy created space for small entrepreneurs and start-ups, the Baniya ethic won.
Baniyas focus on thrift and are very savvy accountants. They can keep a sharp eye on expenditure—even the small change—while not losing the big picture. Appetite for risk and a knack to deal with daily uncertainty are other traditional Baniya skills.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Tradition+education[/FONT]
[FONT="]In pre-liberalisation India, the Baniya community had flooded the top engineering and medical colleges. The new Baniya entrepreneurs combine their modern tech education with family business culture they had imbibed effortlessly at home.
That's why they have come to dominate even the new-age economy. The success of Baniyas in the new-age economy testifies to the high adaptability of the community to new business environments.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]The Midas touch of the Baniyas[/FONT]
[FONT="]People from the Baniya community typically dominate the busines world. Whatever they touch turn into gold. Let's take a look at what makes them exceptionally good with money[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniya-nomics[/FONT]
[FONT="]The baniyas can be largely categorised as the traditional entrepreneurial and trading classes of north and west India. In the list of Forbes billionaires, eight in the top 10 of India's richest, are baniyas.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Typical Indian billionaires[/FONT]
[FONT="]The richest Indian in the world is a Baniya - Mukesh Ambani with a net worth of ($21.5 billion) followed by Lakshmi Mittal ($31.1 billion). Others are Shashi and Ravi Ruia, Savitri Jindal ($13.2 billion), Gautam Adani ($10 billion), Kumar Mangalam Birla ($9.2 billion), Anil Ambani ($8.8 billion), and Sunil Mittal ($8.3 billion). Even with all this, the Baniya community represents just 1% of India'a population.[/FONT]
[FONT="]It's all in the genes[/FONT]
[FONT="]Flipkart.com, was started in 2007 by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal. In 2015, the largest online retailer in the country clocked a reveneu of Rs 102.4 billion. Founder of Snapdeal.com, Rohit Bansal was also born into a business family. His father was a grain merchant and uncles being traders.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They are risk takers[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniyas imbibe risk-taking abilities from a very young age. Allahabad-born Manmohan Agarwal started out on his own when he was just 15. He was quoted as saying: "My father instilled in me the ability to take bold decisions, the courage to take risks and to give one's 100 per cent to anything one does." For next 8 years he did small businesses and eventually built an online empire called Yebhi.com.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Undisuputed accountants[/FONT]
[FONT="]Baniya is derived from the Sanskrit word banijya, meaning commerce. Baniyas religiously keep their accounting books up-to-date on a daily basis. These books are called chopdis and it is a tradition in the baniya community to mark the start of the new year at Diwali by opening new account books.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They smell money[/FONT]
[FONT="]These business-minded people never miss out on opportunities to make money. They involve themselves 24X7 with business. They have the nose for a profit-making venture and are single-mindedly focused on their business almost at the cost of not having a social life.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They conquer any fields[/FONT]
[FONT="]Other than business, they have the leadership skills to pursue any field. Two of India's top politicians, Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal, belong to the mercantile community of west and north India.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]What makes Marwaris so successful in business?[/FONT]
[FONT="]
According to Thomas A Timberg's book, The Marwaris: From Jagath Seth to the Birlas, there are seven secrets of Marwari businessmen which are still valid "and perhaps will remain so".[/FONT]
[FONT="]1) Watch the money[/FONT]
[FONT="]There are two key functions performed by the Marwari business firms and business groups - strategic management of investment funds by moving them to where they are most productive in the long term and close financial monitoring of the enterprises in which they have a share.
It is perhaps the changes in Harsh Goenka and Kumar Mangalam Birla's business styles that point to a dilution of finance-centric strategies in present times.[/FONT]
[FONT="]2) Delegate but monitor[/FONT]
[FONT="]Successful business have to learn how to delegate, otherwise the span of economic activity can engage in will be limited.
They also have to know when to intervene, fully aware that a decision to intervene is costly. Usually it is easier to replace an unsatisfactory executive rather than turn him around. Ineffectual executives and family members are gently moved out to cushy and uncritical positions.[/FONT]
[FONT="]3) Plan, but have a style and a system[/FONT]
[FONT="]This is somewhat ambiguous as we clearly see a transition from an intuitive style to a more systematic one. However, this may be, as some suggest, a product of the transition from business founders to inheritors.[/FONT]
[FONT="]4) Lead to expand and do not let the system inhibit growth[/FONT]
[FONT="]A key characteristic of successful businessmen is a drive to expand. Many forms have expansion in their mission statements but few implement it.[/FONT]
[FONT="]5) The right corporate culture[/FONT]
[FONT="]The firm or group must have a style which befits its market and the times. Changes or adjustments constitute one of the most difficult tasks.
Corporate culture in a firm is critical in inspiring loyalty, especially of competent managers. Financial incentives can go only thus far, and are sometimes counterproductive.[/FONT]
[FONT="]6) Don’t get blown away by fads[/FONT]
[FONT="]The shelf life of half the management fads is six months. Professors, including those from business schools, devise striking and attractive theories which bear no responsibility for success.
A responsible manager has to be more tentative and experimental in his approach. As any school debater knows, there are usually at least two sides to any question, even multiple sides as in the Anekantavada of Jain logic. The problem is to decide which is right in a given situation.[/FONT]
[FONT="]7) Do not miss new developments[/FONT]
[FONT="]Some businesses describe themselves as 'knowledge businesses'. As a matter of fact, all are. The world's oldest family businesses have had some very successful ventures and a lot of failed ones because of missed opportunities.[/FONT]
Source: Economic Times