February 04, 2012
US proposes changes in F-1 & H-1B visas to attract skilled workforce
4 FEB, 2012, 01.17AM IST, PTI
WASHINGTON: Amidst pending comprehensive immigration reform, the United States has proposed several steps - including changes in the F-1 and H-1Bvisas - to attract foreign skilled workforce, a move likely to benefit professionals from countries like India.
Prominent among these reforms include providing work authorisation for spouses of certain H-1B visa holders, 17-month extension of optional practical training (OPT) for F-1 international students to include students with a prior degree in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, allow for additional part-time study for spouses of F-1 students and allow outstanding professors and researchers to present a broader scope of evidence of academic achievement.
In addition, the Department of Homeland Security(DHS) announced that on February 22, it would launch its 'Entrepreneurs in Residence' initiative with an Information Summit in Silicon Valley.
This will bring together high-level representatives from the entrepreneurial community, academia and federal government agencies to discuss how to maximize current immigration laws' potential to attract foreign entrepreneurial talent.
Finally, a win for India on foreign soil
India win the second T20 against Australia in Melbourne, ending a streak of 16 games abroad without a win.
India’s winless streak on foreign soil began in June in the Caribbean, stretched through the whole England tour and continued in Australia. That’s a total of 16 international games — 10 Tests, four ODIs, and two T20s — out of which India lost 13. But the streak came to an end today in Melbourne, where a rare Australian collapse in the second T20 allowed India the win they had been waiting for.
Gautam Gambhir’s unbeaten fifty and a rare good start of 43 runs with Virender Sehwag set up India’s chase for 132. Virat Kohli controlled the middle overs with Gambhir with a 54-run stand, before MS Dhoni took the chase home. It was the first time on the tour that India had outplayed their opponents in all three departments.
February 03, 2012
Srinivas, Vemuri interchange positions at Infosys
BANGALORE: Infosys Ltd today announced that two of the company's top leaders - B G Srinivas and Ashok Vemuri -- would interchange their positions.
Srinivas, Global Head of Manufacturing & Engineering business, would take over as the new leader of the company's Financial Services & Insurance business. Vemuri, present Global Head of its Financial Services & Insurance business, would now lead the company's Manufacturing & Engineering business.
The changes are effective April one,Bangalore-headquartered, NASDAQ-listed IT major said in a statement.
Vemuri and Srinivas, both members of the Infosys Board of Directors, would continue with their existing regional leadership responsibilities for the Americas and Europe, respectively, it said.
"This change builds on our successful organisation transformation last year to broaden key leadership experiences at Infosys", the statement said.
The transition builds on the significant contributions made by both Srinivas and Vemuri over the past decade as they have successfully spearheaded their respective businesses, incubated new businesses and expanded Infosys' footprint in the American and European markets, the company said.
"This change brings cross industry perspectives to accelerate transformation and innovation for our clients", it said.
Rupee at 3-month high; traders expect 48.60 levels in near term
MUMBAI: The rupee hit a three-month high on Thursday, encouraged by gains in domestic equities, and after manufacturing data in China and Germany boosted investor appetite in high-yielding emerging market assets.
Factory activity in the United States, China and Germany grew in January, data released Thursday showed, raising hopes that the world economy is not deteriorating as seriously as feared before.
The rupee closed at 49.15/16, after touching 48.9425 -- its highest since Nov. 1, according to Thomson Reuters data. It closed at 49.2650/2750 on Wednesday.
The euro rose against the dollar on Thursday after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said China was considering greater involvement in the EFSF euro zone rescue fund and its successor, the ESM, traders said.
"I see more inflows into India, despite the sharp rise in equities and rupee, although the size may be moderate compared with January," a senior trader with a foreign bank said.
Traders expect the rupee to strengthen to 48.60 to the dollar in the near term.
The local currency posted its largest monthly gain in at least 17 years in January, according to Thomson Reuters data.
The rupee's 7.45 per cent January gain followed a 16 per cent drop in 2011 which made it Asia's worst performer for the year.
The 30-share BSE share index closed 131.27 points, or 0.76 per cent, higher at 17,431.85 points, its third straight day of gains.
"Expect sentiment on rupee to remain strong ahead of the budget," said A. Prasanna, economist at ICICI Securities, a primary dealership in Mumbai.
What companies need to do to continue to be successful
3 FEB, 2012, 03.48AM IST, VIVEK KAUL,ET BUREAU
Nitin Pangarkar is a Professor at the NUS Business School, National University of Singapore. He has spent more than fifteen years teaching strategic management in business schools around the world. Putting all that experience together, he has recently authored High Performance Companies -Successful Strategies from the World's Top Achievers (Jossey-Bass. A Wiley Imprint - 2012). In this interview, he gives CD a glimpse into the book and what companies need to do to continue to be successful. Excerpts:
How do you define a high-performance company?
Quite often, high performance is associated with profitability, for e.g., in the pre-financial crisis days, Goldman Sachs or GE would have been considered high performers because they exhibited excellent profitability. One potential problem with defining high performance based on profitability is that average profitability levels differ across industries, e.g., the airline and retailing industries are notoriously difficult ones to make money in, but the average profitability in soft drinks tends to be much higher.
Facebook-type site to change calculus of maths teaching
CHENNAI: In 2005, American writer Thomas Friedman was so impressed with Chennai-based online mathematics education platform HeyMath that he featured it in his book The World is Flat and wrote that "HeyMath's mission is to be the math Google".
Gold rises to two-month high, eyes US payrolls
NEW YORK/LONDON: Gold rose on Thursday for a third consecutive day on a larger-than-expected fall in new US claims for unemployment benefits, but analysts said bullion could pull back due to an upcoming US jobs report.
India's floundering top order overdue!!!
Match facts
February 3, Melbourne
Start time 1935 (0835 GMT)
Start time 1935 (0835 GMT)
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Big Picture
A change of formats seems to have not helped India, who struggled in the first Twenty20 at Stadium Australia on Wednesday night. Again it was a case of the top order failing to give the side a good start, and the batting will need to improve if they are to avoid a 2-0 defeat. Australia's new-look outfit, which has more of a Twenty20 specialist feel than any side they have previously fielded, displayed enthusiasm and talent, and they worked well together under the captain, George Bailey. The second and final Twenty20 at the MCG gives Bailey an opportunity to secure a series win in his first series as Australia's leader.
Australia relied heavily on spin in Sydney, and it was a ploy that slowed India's scoring to the point that they were unable to fight their way back into the chase. The MCG might offer a little more for the fast men, and it also offers the chance for an enormous crowd after a Sydney record of 59,659 turned out for the first game. A Friday night game in Melbourne means people can wander down to Jolimont after work and take in the action, and far more will be expected at this match than at the first ODI that follows on Sunday, also at the MCG.
Form guide
Australia WLWLL (Most recent first)
India LLLWW
India LLLWW
How to invisibly waterproof your iPhone?
Last week, while covering an unrelated event in Park City, Utah, we stumbled upon a demonstration by a couple of guys from the company Liquipel, who we'd been hearing about for a few days and had been attempting to book for "This Could Be Big" since first seeing their video of an apparently waterproofed iPhone.
5 game genres on the decline!
The circle of life doesn't stop -- even in the video game world. No matter how popular a game genre might be, it's always in danger of becoming irrelevant.
Sometimes, that's due to oversaturation, or perhaps interests have simply shifted elsewhere. While no video game death is permanent, several genres are in deep hibernation -- and others are threatening to join them. Here are five game types in serious need of some extra lives.
Racing games
Blur (Activision)As much a staple of a healthy video game diet as sports, racing games have been popular for nearly as long as video games have existed. But troubling sales have led to dwindling interest at the publisher level.
Two once-powerful racing game developers -- Black Rock Studios (Pure, Split-Second) and Bizarre Creations (Project Gotham Racing, Blur) -- have closed down, leaving things a bit up in the air for racing fans.
There's still an occasional blockbuster in the genre (Nintendo's Mario Kart, Microsoft's Forza and Sony's Gran Turismo still demand attention), but in general the titles don't sell like they used to. And in a hit-driven industry, that's scaring most publishers away.
Science behind 'negative image' illusion!
Stare at the red dot on this woman's nose for thirty seconds. Then, look over at a blank white space (a piece of paper or an empty browser tab will do). Did you see the "correct" version of the image? Here's how it works: stare long enough at an object and the eye's photoreceptors (particularly the color-sensitive cone cells) lose sensitivity from overstimulation.
Treasure hunter finds $3bn-worth platinum in shipwreck!
Moscow, Feb 2 (IANS/RIA Novosti) A US treasure hunter has announced a record find of Soviet platinum in a sunken World War II era shipwreck, BBC reported Thursday.
The wreck - of a British merchant vessel - is located 80 km off the US Atlantic coast in waters 213 metres deep, Greg Brooks of Sub Sea Research said.
Brooks said he had discovered the SS Port Nicholson, sunk in 1942 by a German torpedo, four years previously but delayed the announcement while he negotiated salvage rights.
10 Smart Ways to Use Social Media in Your Job Search!
Use Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to Network Your Way Into a Job.
Everyone’s talking about using social media for job-hunting. But how, exactly, should you do that? Here are 10 smart and strategic ways to network your way into a job using three popular online tools: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
How to Use Twitter to Land a Job?
Are you using Twitter for your job search? If you have yet to see results, don't give up! Using the social-networking tool, you can find real jobs and connect with real people who are hiring.
One of Twitter's most useful aspects is the access it provides you. Recruiters, HR representatives, hiring managers, and executives all use Twitter on a daily basis. Unlike an online job posting where you can only apply via the information provided, Twitter allows you to interact with these people directly by sending them an @ reply or a direct message. Your resume is much more likely to be seen and seriously considered if you’ve interacted with a company representative rather than applying to a job post along with hundreds of other job seekers.
Tips to get noticed and hired on Twitter:
February 02, 2012
Why brands have been unable to sell Tablets to Indian consumers!
1 FEB, 2012, 11.46AM IST, RAVI BALAKRISHNAN,ET BUREAU
"We were very bullish about this category and thought it would be an addition to a business phone or laptop. But it's not taken off," says a disappointed Nilesh Gupta, managing partner, Vijay Sales. Gupta is not the only one who expected tablet PCs aka tablets to take the Indian market by storm.
It seemed likely considering they worked their magic elsewhere. A Gartner report in September last year estimated total global tablet sales at 63.6 million for 2011 and 326.3 million units by 2015. In its last quarter, Apple sold 15.43 million iPads, a 111% increase from last year.
After over a decade or so in development and many cumbersome metamorphoses, tablets suddenly took the market by storm with the success of iPad. It made just about every electronics/computer brand bet on its own version of a tiny touchscreen powered device.
Many of these reached India, some of them via simultaneous global launches. And yet, the category's performance has been lacklustre. Depending on who you ask the total sales hover between 150,000 and 180,000 units in India; everyone is in agreement the number is well below 200,000.
The most obvious obstacle is price. Apart from aberrations like the ultra low budget Aakash tablet (Rs 2,999 for the Ubislate 7+), most products start at a little over Rs 15,000 and go up to near Rs 45,000. Some of today's budget tablets were launched at twice the price just a little over six months ago.
The BlackBerry PlayBook offered a massive 50% discount towards the end of 2011. While initially advertised as a week long scheme, the price cut was still in effect at the time of going to print. PlayBooks flew off the shelves and some retailers even reported shortages. Krishnadeep Baruah, director, marketing, BlackBerry, says the schemes had begun as early as Diwali when a free entry level smartphone was bundled with the PlayBook: "The tablet by itself is an indulgence. We wanted to make sure there was a good value."
With the year end gifting season looming, BlackBerry decided to fill the market with PlayBooks and halved its asking price, doing away with the free phone. The price tag on Samsung's Galaxy Tab plummeted shortly after launch. Ranjit Yadav, country head - mobile and IT, Samsung explains, "The tab came bundled with some special offers. After a couple of months, those introductory offers were taken away, and the product sold at a price which has remained more or less consistent." Even the notoriously premium Apple made its original iPad more affordable once the iPad 2 was launched.
Change of format, but no change in result for India!
Dhoni's men lose first T20 in Sydney. This time, it's Australian spin that defeated them. Cricket news– 3 hours ago
Sydney: The format changed, but not India’s fortunes. In the first of the two T20 Internationals, Australia won again in the near absence of a challenge from India’s batsmen who finished 31 short chasing 172. The damages were minimised by skipper MS Dhoni’s 48, but the contest had ended in the eight over when India were reduced to 53-4. This time, they weren’t undone by Australian pace, but by the spin bowling of the 40-year-old Brad Hogg and part-timer David Hussey. India have lost 13 of their last 14 international fixtures abroad, an immense worry since the under-fire veterans had a hand in eight of those. They had young players in the other games. Compare that to Hogg, who is making his international comeback having retired in 2008. He was named in Australia’s T20 squad after a prolific run in the Big Bash League.
Australia’s score was set up by Matthew Wade’s breezy 72 and Hussey’s 42 that maintained the pace David Warner had set with a quick 25. After India elected to bowl, there were two major takeaways from Australia’s innings. The first was the energy and the body language of the Indians on the field.
The generational difference was all too visible: in the Tests, India displayed a calm, emotionless resignation to their fate. But the limited overs squad is different. The average age of the eleven Indians playing in Sydney today is 26 years. They dived around, gave the hard chase, and when wickets fell, they celebrated with palpable energy. When Rahul Sharma bled from his right hand after dropping a difficult return catch off Travis Birt, he went off the park, got taped up and returned to finish his overs. Unfortunately for India, the energy ceased to exist once they came out to bat.
The second was Australia’s dismantling of Indian spinners. Ravichandran Ashwin tossed some up to Warner and Wade who took full advantage and provided the template for attacking batting. Their confident forward stride was followed by a lovely straight swing of the bat. The ANZ Stadium – hosting its first international cricket fixture today – has long straight boundaries, nearly 90 metres on both sides. But Wade and Warner could clear them with ease several times. Wade struck three sixes, Warner two – including one switch-hit over extra-cover off Ashwin.
This sits in contrast to India’s defensive approach to Nathan Lyon in the Adelaide Test, and how they played Australia’s spinners today. Australia ended the contest after taking three wickets in three overs. Gautam Gambhir mistimed a drive to cover, Virat Kohli hit a short ball to long-on, and Rohit Sharma – who’d been waiting since December to play for India – was bowled first ball by a quicker one from Hussey. The shot-making was tentative and the strike rotation poor. There were no partnerships in the top-order. The young team has much to learn and it is unlikely things will get easier for them in the one-day internationals to follow.
Bill Gates: If kids never develop mentally, suffer from diarrhoea, then what good is Facebook?
1 FEB, 2012, 07.47AM IST, SUDESHNA SEN,ET BUREAU
Bill Gates on improving healthcare, governance, education & philanthropy in India
As a country like India struggles to balance its poverty and inequality with high growth, what is the role of private sector and corporations? How can businesses work with governments, and do you think the Indian corporate sector is doing enough, especially in terms of philanthropy?
Providing basic food and education is the role of the government. The biggest issue in India is not lack of philanthropy; it's the quality - of the vaccination system, distribution system and nutrition.
Philanthropy's a nice thing, but no way a substitute to what the state isn't doing. India is lucky to have some philanthropists -people like us and Premjis. Historically you've got the Tata family - Ratan Tata has done a great job carrying on that tradition. You've got Nandan Nilekani, who's gone to work for the government, to work on something important, despite the knowledge that people will not make that all that easy for him.
There's room for more philanthropy but the real imperative is when you grow as much as India has, and have its level of economic performance, you can do a lot better on health and nutrition and education.
Philanthropists can help the government. But they're not the ones in charge of the programmes. That's a state role. There's no country in the world that relies on anyone but the state to do basic education and vaccination.
Sensex to touch 20,000-mark by June: Survey!!!
1 FEB, 2012, 09.11PM IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: The stock market barometer Sensex could rise to the 20,000 points-mark by June, up from the present 17,000-level, despite subdued business confidence, a survey by JP Morgan Asset Management has said.
"Indian investors and advisors appear unaffected by the recent volatility in stock markets. Forty-eight per cent of retail investors and 76 per cent of advisors expect the benchmark index to trade between 17,000 and 20,000 in June, 2012," JP Morgan Asset Management said in a report titled, 'Investor Confidence Index'.
JP Morgan AMC said investment by retail investors in mutual funds has revived significantly since the last quarter. The index showed no signs of revival in the current quarter and remained almost flat between July and December, 2011.
"Although the overall investment sentiment currently appears subdued, the optimism about global and Indian economic growth is improving marginally. Most interestingly, corporate, advisors and HNIs are now more optimistic than they were in July, 2011, even as the mass of retail investors have become more pessimistic," the survey added.
The survey conducted among 1,635 retail investors, 50 corporate treasuries and 282 advisors said retail investment activity in mutual funds has picked up by 9 percentage points vis-a-vis the previous quarter to reach 70 per cent, while in stocks, it fell by 6 percentage points.
Risk-averse investors have shown less preference for stocks (down from 70 per cent in March, 2011, to 56 per cent in December), but increased preference for mutual funds (from 44 per cent to 68 per cent), according to the survey.
In addition, rising gold prices appear to have affected investment activity in gold. As a result, the percentage of investors investing in this asset class has fallen by 19 percentage points since December, 2010.
"The weak investment sentiment is probably a reflection of volatility surrounding the country's macroeconomic environment. "The Sensex downslide, rupee depreciation, a ballooning fiscal deficit, high inflation rates, combined with rising global uncertainty, triggered by deepening of the euro zone crisis, have hurt the investment sentiment," JP Morgan Asset Management MD and CEO Nandkumar Surti said.
The index published jointly by JP Morgan and ValueNotes, was conducted in December across Mumbai, the Delhi/NCR, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad. The survey focused on business and investment outlook for the following six months.
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