Chittranjan Choudhury: Is a printing press, an asset or a liability

A printing press - an asset or a liability?
This is a question innumerable print firm CEOs tend to ask. Well, a printing press is definitely an asset. If you buy a brand-new printing press and use original spare parts from the manufacturer, the value of the press does not erode for a long time. At CDC in Kolkata, we have been using a few such presses for as long as 15 years with no signs of it getting eroded.

What is the future of a business that yields less than 18%?
Gone are the days when this truism was relevant. It was definitely relevant 20-25 years ago. This was during a period when the year-on-year inflation was approximately. 10%. In the current scenario, a yield of 10-12% is brilliant. I think survival with this yield is no problem at all.

In the good old days, business persons kept aside 50% of what they earned. Prudent or not?
During the pandemic months, we realised many firms that survived the storm had an emergency fund they could dip into. The question many CEOs asked is: how much should one keep aside? Well, it is true that firms which had strong reserves had little or no difficulty in overcoming the pandemic storm. During the pandemic months, many firms that survived the storm had an emergency fund they could dip into.

Having said that, the concept of the good old days of businesses keeping aside 50% of what was earned has lost relevance since 1990 when the economy of the country opened up. Today, keeping aside any percentage of earning is not possible. As long as you are able to keep your debts under control, you are in a safe zone.

Should one chase money? Or let money chase you?
There is an idiom that says “Money makes money”. For that to happen, you have to first chase money for a very long time and accumulate adequate sums of it. And if God is kind and you have accumulated huge, then and only then money will chase you. 

A price tag for time - since a lot of print CEOs fritter away their most important equity.
Time management is a huge science. The better it is managed, the better will be your success.

Always, think business first.
Yes, check the stock price of your client’s business every morning, but try to go beyond – be in lockstep with your client, their business needs to be your business. The key is to immerse yourself deep into the client’s business, and co-locate and co-create together.

Why is the mathematics of GST refund so complicated? Wasn’t it supposed to simplify the process?
If your GST consultant is efficient and smart, the mathematics of GST refund is not complicated.

Incentivise to drive client growth.
Managing an account has never been as challenging as it is today. Try to redefine and re-incentivise this key role around client business growth.This will require you to shift gears, invest in a team and try to take account management from delivery to a growth mindset. In this pandemic era, embrace change. Remember; connectivity is key, and collaboration is your trump card.