Nihas KM
Partner & CEO
In India, remittances are the second major source of external financing for low and middle-income countries after foreign direct investment. During 2016-17 to 2020-21, major remitting nations became vulnerable to the twin effect of economic slowdown and slump in oil prices. RBI’s Fifth Round of Survey on Remittances for 2020-21 titled 'Headwinds of COVID-19 and India's Inward Remittances' published in July 2022 brought out some revealing insights.
Below is an excerpt of Nihas KM’s exclusive interaction with CEO Insights magazine.
How did India fare?
It was predicted that being a top reci-pient country, India was likely to be one of the worst affected. However, as per the RBI survey, India remained the top recipient country, accounting for 12 percent of total global remittances, recording a marginal decline of 0.2 percent in 2020 and a growth of 8 percent in 2021. The survey also brought to light major changes in the remitter's pattern. In 2016-17, the UAE was the top remitter to the country at almost 27 percent, followed by the USA (23 percent). Saudi Arabia was the third
largest remitter at 11.6 percent. In 2020-21, UAE slipped to the second position to just 18 percent while Saudi Arabia slipped to the fifth position (at 5 percent) behind the UK and Singapore.
And how did Kerala fare?
When it comes to Kerala, the story takes a different turn. Kerala’s dependency is extremely high on GCC countries. Foreign inward remittances by Keralite emigrants (working in foreign countries, mainly in the Middle East) annually contribute more than 20 percent of GDP. As per the RBI survey, the share of remittances from the GCC region in India's inward remittances is estimated to have declined from more than 50 percent in 2016-17 to about 30 percent in 2020-21!
In 2016-17, Kerala was the no. 1 state receiving remittances at 19 percent while Maharashtra followed at no. 2 with 16 percent. Five years hence, Maharashtra rose to the no. 1 position with a whopping increase in its share to 35 percent while Kerala plummeted to a meager 10 percent share. The GCC countries are now very investment-friendly, enc-ouraging Indian expatriates to invest there, further affecting the remittances to Kerala.
In a de-growing market, what should be our approach to steer our businesses onto the growth path?
This is what I do in the businesses that I own, let me specifically speak about the automobile business. To help the team improve productivity, firstly, we do analysis and effective use of data alone will facilitate incremental sales like never before. A.M. MOTORS has existed for decades now and it has access to its huge database from multiple verticals like newcar sales, pre-owned car sales, service, body-works, insurance business, and more. Today, we have many options to integrate the data to understand
And how did Kerala fare?
When it comes to Kerala, the story takes a different turn. Kerala’s dependency is extremely high on GCC countries. Foreign inward remittances by Keralite emigrants (working in foreign countries, mainly in the Middle East) annually contribute more than 20 percent of GDP. As per the RBI survey, the share of remittances from the GCC region in India's inward remittances is estimated to have declined from more than 50 percent in 2016-17 to about 30 percent in 2020-21!
If you take care of your team, if you provide them the right ways & means to work, if you trust your team, no slowdown can hamper your business
In 2016-17, Kerala was the no. 1 state receiving remittances at 19 percent while Maharashtra followed at no. 2 with 16 percent. Five years hence, Maharashtra rose to the no. 1 position with a whopping increase in its share to 35 percent while Kerala plummeted to a meager 10 percent share. The GCC countries are now very investment-friendly, enc-ouraging Indian expatriates to invest there, further affecting the remittances to Kerala.
In a de-growing market, what should be our approach to steer our businesses onto the growth path?
This is what I do in the businesses that I own, let me specifically speak about the automobile business. To help the team improve productivity, firstly, we do analysis and effective use of data alone will facilitate incremental sales like never before. A.M. MOTORS has existed for decades now and it has access to its huge database from multiple verticals like newcar sales, pre-owned car sales, service, body-works, insurance business, and more. Today, we have many options to integrate the data to understand
the journey of our customers and to understand their likelihood of upgrading their existing cars. We can therefore empower our teams by providing them with exact data of existing customers who can be approached and assisted to make their next purchase from us.
Secondly, provide business intelligence tools like Power BI and Google Data Studio to the leadership team to identify loose links in real-time and initiate corrections to achieve planned business outcomes by design. Your employees in leadership roles do not have to spend lots of time and energy analyzing huge spreadsheets if you can make available such tools to them that can provide useful and timely insights for them to act. Furthermore, to enhance training to make qualitative improvements in how the team makes their sales pitch.
Our products keep getting upgraded at a very fast pace. So do the products of competition. It is therefore a challenge to ensure that the team is updated on the changes and can provide the right information to their prospects so that purchase decisions can be made faster. At A.M. MOTORS, we have digital sales kits that are regularly updated and easily accessible by the sales team.
These are the times to stand with your team.
When markets do not respond well, most business houses opt for knee-jerk responses like laying off unproductive manpower. Rather than help things, such measures can further make matters worse. My learning from decades of experience is that your team is your biggest asset. If you take care of your team, if you provide them the right ways and means to work, if you trust your team, no slowdown can hamper your business.
Nihas Km,Partner & CEO, A.M. MOTORS
Nihas KM, Partner and CEO of A.M. MOTORS, is a visionary leader with over two decades of experience in the automotive industry. Renowned for his strategic acumen, he fosters innovation and drives the company's growth with a relentless com-mitment to excellence.
Secondly, provide business intelligence tools like Power BI and Google Data Studio to the leadership team to identify loose links in real-time and initiate corrections to achieve planned business outcomes by design. Your employees in leadership roles do not have to spend lots of time and energy analyzing huge spreadsheets if you can make available such tools to them that can provide useful and timely insights for them to act. Furthermore, to enhance training to make qualitative improvements in how the team makes their sales pitch.
Our products keep getting upgraded at a very fast pace. So do the products of competition. It is therefore a challenge to ensure that the team is updated on the changes and can provide the right information to their prospects so that purchase decisions can be made faster. At A.M. MOTORS, we have digital sales kits that are regularly updated and easily accessible by the sales team.
These are the times to stand with your team.
When markets do not respond well, most business houses opt for knee-jerk responses like laying off unproductive manpower. Rather than help things, such measures can further make matters worse. My learning from decades of experience is that your team is your biggest asset. If you take care of your team, if you provide them the right ways and means to work, if you trust your team, no slowdown can hamper your business.
Nihas Km,Partner & CEO, A.M. MOTORS
Nihas KM, Partner and CEO of A.M. MOTORS, is a visionary leader with over two decades of experience in the automotive industry. Renowned for his strategic acumen, he fosters innovation and drives the company's growth with a relentless com-mitment to excellence.