traditional way of film making in Nepal

Today i am writing about the Nepalese film and its tradition. Till the date i have seen more than 50 nepalese movies and i hardly found a movie without a song in so called "Mela". In each and every film they have at least one song in Mela without necessity. It is only to make lengthy film. Further they have fight scene without any cause. Yes in each film songs and fight scenes are required to attract the viewer but if it is in unnecessary places they are like drama and viewer think that they have spoiled their hard earned money.
I have also seen many english and hindi movies but they hardly have songs and fight scenes in unnecessary places. So we always talk about that our film industry is underdeveloped and still infant. But if we start to improve from today it will grow up early and soon we can say that nepalese film is the best

Environment Protection

Again about the business. When i was reading the business journal i came to know that world business leaders are also considering the environment protection. As i have already mentioned in my previous blog that Bank of America has announced to spend more than 20 billion US dollar for environment protection. Here i give you more example of environment protection initiation taken by corporations and if not are punished either by locals or governments.
SUBARU a small vehicle production company has announced that its 99% waste is recycled and 1% is turned in to electricity therefore producing null waste. SUBARU's Indiana plant got this reputation. Further the emission made by SUBARU vehicles (some models) are cleaner than the air we breathe. So if taken initiation corporation can make difference to protect the environment.
Cargil, world food supplier has to shut down its soy processing and shipping plant in Brazil because of amid public outcry that it was contributing to the destruction of the Amazon rain forest.
These are only some example. But in Nepal environment protection is still considered as waste and non productive expenses for the corporations. Carpet industries are dumping their waste in rivers polluting water, other manufacturing companies are emitting smoke in the air. Many people think that we are not developed so we should not care about these things but if we consider these things from the very beginning we will considered as developed and will rise as a nation which is committed for environment protection. So corporations should take initiation and should use environment friendly technology which will reduce the natural resource consumption and protect the environment.

An Hour with Korean National

There is a proverb that never say what the country has given you, say that what you have given to the country. Today I totally agree with this proverb and one Korean national made me to accept that fact.

I met him in Germany during my college time and we were talking about study and other normal things. When I asked him about his schooling he told me that he went to US for his schooling as his father had to move from one country to another because his father is an army. During 1997 he was in the US and at the same time there was Asian economic crisis which made Korean economy downward. Many companies went bankrupt. So his father told him to go back to Korea. I asked him why ? And answer was amazing and shocking for me. He told me that he was spending scares dollar at that time is US which makes Korean economy further down. Therefore his father told him to go back to his country and save dollars.

I was really surprised and felt guilty that even my country is in economic crisis and I am spending Euro here. I wanted to salute his patriotism and thinking. Though he told me that it was bad for his career but for country sake it is ok. Then I felt I also should follow his way of thinking but I am compelled to stay here because I can no return without completing my study here. But there are a lot of people who have already settled in foreign can contribute to the nation not only by providing dollars or Euro or other hard earned money. So I urge them to return to the country and contribute as much as they can. I have decided that after completion of my study I will return to Nepal and will contribute at least by spending nothing in foreign country.

corporate responsibility in Nepal

Profit is the main goal of any corporation, no matter it is Nepal or in any other country. However how responsible the corporations are in Nepal? is the major question for their stakeholders and how Nepalese corporation can improve their corporate responsibility? Is another one.

Corporate responsibility can be defined as the responsibility of corporations towards its stakeholders such as shareholders, employee, customers, government and environment. Each and every stakeholder has its own expectation and corporation should fulfill all the possible expectation of its stakeholders. For example corporation should provide dividend to the shareholders, quality product at reasonable price to the customer, safe and equal working environment to employees, fair tax to government and use of environment friendly technology for environment.

All above responsibilities can be divided in to three broad categories and these are: Corporate financial Responsibility, Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Environmental Responsibility. Are Nepalese corporations are performing all these responsibilities properly or not? We will discuss in following paragraphs and also how they can improve their responsibility toward stakeholders?

Being a profit oriented entity, business has obligation to provide return to its shareholders which is regarded as financial responsibility of the corporation. Further corporation should do all these activities to increase the value of share so that wealth of share holder will maximize. Let have a close financial market scenario of Nepal. Only a bunch of financial institutions are able to perform financial responsibility providing sufficient dividend annually and market price of share is also sky rocketing. Last year Standard Chartered Bank provided 120% dividend which is amazing to the shareholder and due to this share price standard chartered stock have been growing. Same is applicable for all A rated financial institutions but even some so called joint venture banks and financial institutions are failed to even maintain its growth and in the verse of bankruptcy. NB Bank, NCC Bank and Nepal Sri Lanka Merchant Bank are some example to take. These institutions have been suffering from loss since last some years. They do not only fail to provide dividend but also fail to maintain their market price of share. NCC stock even went down below its face value.

Further Nepal Bottlers Ltd and Uniliver ltd are some fine example of excellent financial performer. Uniliver also provided 400% cash dividend which is unbelievable and bottlers Nepal is also maintaining its share price. But at the same time other manufacturing company Birat Shoes Ltd. And Hari Siddi Brick and Tiles Ltd. Are in the verse of extinction. They are now days in ventilator and any time they could die sinking all the investment of shareholders. These are some example of poor performer of corporate financial responsibility.

Another important responsibility of corporations is social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility is the responsibility beyond profit. This is comparatively new phenomenon but almost all the reputed companies in the world are performing social responsibility. When a corporation make donation it is not regarded as social responsibility. It includes respect of human rights, labor right and consumer rights etc. When companies fail to perform these responsibilities they will be swiped out from the business arena. Human right and labor right have been always like a taboo in Nepal. Still in companies specially in manufacturing companies gender discrimination is exist. Discrimination in work, salary wage, and in other area women are suffering. Though the situation is satisfactory in financial institution but still they use ladies in front office and customer service centre to attract the customers. This is simply exploitation. One can easily see that in banks and finance companies ladies are serving for customers not gents. Why ? ladies are only showpiece. If the corporations publish , we are equal opportunity provider then why this kind of discrimination? Further in Nepalese corporations labor right is almost prohibited. Only one bank has labor union and that is NABIL Bank which respects human right as well as labor right. But in other banks either employees are transferred or sacked who wanted to form labor union is their organization. Again NB Banks labor union case in court can prove it. No labor union can find in other companies except government corporations. However in some manufacturing companies blue color employees are free to join labor union. This shows the clear performance of social responsibility of Nepalese corporations. Moreover consumer right is like “Hauguji” in Nepali which means no consumers knows that and companies are far behind to perform this responsibility. Some consumer right activists and organizations have been working toward this.

Third responsibility of the corporations is environmental responsibility. Every companies in developed countries are doing their best to perform this responsibility. For example Bank of America has planned to spend $20 billion towards environment protection. It does not spend all money to protect the environment but will lend money to these corporations who are really working for environment protection and using environment friendly technology. But in Nepal no company is doing such activity. All the manufacturing corporations are emitting their waste water to the nearest river polluting the ecosystem. Is it not possible for Nepalese bank?

Why Nepalese companies are failed to perform their responsibilities towards their stakeholders? The answer is lack of corporate governance, lack of investors’ protection act and negligence to the environment. In Nepal there is no corporate governance codex which is now a days common in other countries which ensures the authority and responsibility of different level of management in any organization. It ensures the delegation of authority and transparency which it ultimate goal of any corporation. Normally public do not know what is happening inside the corporation and minority shareholders are misguided by majority. No employee can represent him/herself in board of director. So government should initiate toward the formulation of corporate governance codex and should compel the companies to abide by this codex. Nepalese corporations are operating under company act which is not sufficient for internal control and investors protection. There should be special act or law for investors’ protection so that investor can invest their hard earned money without hesitation in their dream company. Like in US Sarbanes Oxley Act 2000, Nepal should also enact the same type of law. Though Nepal is a signing party of human right and labor right but why corporations are not following such rules? Are these laws coercive so? If then UN Global Compact may be another solution. This is voluntary initiation taken by former secretary general of UN, Kofi Annan shouting the attention of corporate world to respect human right , labor right and environment protection. This is not a law. It’s pure voluntary initiation and once joined this compact corporations should be obliged to the norms of Global compact.

Though Nepalese corporate world is not developed but it is the time to take such initiation to work for society and environment which in future turn to be fruitful not only for nation but also for the corporate world.

Need of Business school in Nepal

Economic development of the country depends upon the growth of business and business activities. And business growth directly depends upon the qualified business graduates who can found or run a business well. But the backbone is business school and Nepal lacks that.

Normally every country had its reputed business school whose product can act as economic catalyst. Let’s take the example of Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) and Indian School of Business (ISB). These are only example and the products of these business schools are really incredible to lead a business. We can take the example of the CEO of Asian Paints Nepal, who is IIM (Ahmadabad) graduate and there are many more to name.

Lets take the example of business heaven i.e. USA. Wharton Business School, Kellogg School of Management, Harvard Business School, Stanford school of Management and many more. Now a days the product of these schools are leading the world business. Millions of people dream to enter these business schools and after graduation they come outside to lead, to make difference.

In Europe INSEAD is referred as Harvard Business School and there are another business school such as EDHEC in Paris, London Business School (LBS), ESADE France etc. These schools are world renowned. To get admission in these schools only academic excellence is not enough but also leadership skills and many things to consider.

In Nepal there are lots of schools and colleges offering business education but have we ever heard that any company had visited Shanker Dev campus which is consider as Business School of Nepal, and offered any job? Have we ever heard that students of Nepal Commerce Campus got scholarship in Harvard and Stanford? Never and it will not happened in future if the trend is same.

Above mentioned business schools have long tradition of quality education and best products. So to keep their reputation and tradition they have strict admission procedure. But in Shanker Dev Campus and Nepal Commerce Campus student union decides who will get admission and who will not. Admission is the main agenda of student politics and if someone does not get admission union announces strike which spoils the others lives. During these days I had opportunities to interact with students from IIM, IIFT and professors of Wharton and Kellogg business schools and the methodology they use to teach and experience they share really help to develop future business leaders. Students themselves are really eager to learn and they can even contribute to the learning process while teaching. They always discuss the real time business problem and get solution as well. When I was in Shanker Dev, I had heard about Harvard and Stanford and other business schools. And I used to think that what kind of “Jadibuti” they eat or they feed to the students that they will become the world’s leaders? But after meeting some students and some teachers I got to know that they teach no books they teach reality and they teach to solve the problem. In classes they discuss the cases and make presentation to learn from the cases. Group work and group discussions are other major tools to teach. During group work students learn how to work with group and how to develop leadership skill. Further one major thing is cross cultural learning environment. In foreign business schools there is real world. Students can interact with Asians Europeans .Americans and Africans and learn from their experience. In this way students develop their skill which they apply in business to make difference.

In Nepal Katmandu University and some private business institutions have been offering graduate program in business of still it is not so effective. Tribhuvan University, being the largest and government university it should opt for the establishment of business school which will produce qualified business graduate. It should start from the beginning i.e. designing of course and entrance procedure. Current entrance procedure either should be eliminated or improved so that only cream students get admission and no political pressure from either side. In Shanker dev Campus and Nepal Commerce Campus we can see the huge number of students in one class which makes the learning environment worse. In one class there should be not more than 30-40 students so that teacher student contact can be made and both side can contribute the learning process. Curriculum should be based upon the real world problem. If one students is doing major in Marketing school should teach how solve the marketing problem of products. If the student is doing major in Finance then school should teach real banking problem, share market problem and other financial problem. In Nepal, even in whole 2 years, Masters students do not get chance to visit one company, stock exchange or any other corporate world. Then what can they learn after joining the business school? Nothing. After graduation when they get job, the company should provide training from the very beginning. Then what is the need of these business schools? Now a days, graduates of our business schools are searching for job taking their certificates in hand and corporate world are denying offering them job because they do not know the business. They only know the book

There is a proverb, “It’s never too late”. We can improve and we should do that. If Government University can not do that private sector should do that. After all business schools are making also profit and it is also a business. So corporate world another business opportunity is knocking your door. There is burning example near to you that is Indian School of Business whose total fee for the course is around two million INR.