Category: business

69% first-time-users for HR Tech solutions during lockdown- Survey

New Delhi, 06 October 2021: On surveying more than 1000 organisations, Qandle: All-in-one HR Tech platform figured different trends that sprouted with respect to the HR domain during and post lockdown. As the new normal hit and organisations shifted to work-from-home, HRs of organisations had to pivot their functioning in order to manage the workforce. During the process, both employees and HRs went through frequent trial and testing of different procedures that would best suit their needs.

While talking about early days during the lockdown, over 21 percent of the respondents, which included HRs and leaders of organisations across all sectors, said that motivating employees daily was the biggest challenge, followed by tracking their productivity efficiently.

While adopting new methods to overcome their people challenges, around 53 percent of the respondents said they switched to HR tech solutions. In addition to this, out of the ones that adopted HR solutions, 69 percent were first-time-users. When asked about the prime factors which drove them towards HR Tech solutions, 29.6% said tracking productivity was their first priority.

“It was evident that the lockdown did fuel the HR Tech industry, however, the prime factor was still not very clear, since there is an array of HR responsibilities, which only grew in the new normal. Analysing the underlying factors had become very difficult. Nevertheless, with the survey some surprising factors have been unravelled as the real catalysts. We will have to wait and see if it is here to stay and grow, or is a temporary trend,” said Mr. Chayan Mukhopadhyay, Co-founder and CEO, Qandle.

After widespread HR Tech adoption, organisations focused on the success of the implemented solutions. Over 37.9% respondents stated to have seen the situation improve, while 48.3% saw only a little progress. The expected reason for this could be the inability of some solutions to serve the primary purpose- tracking productivity of employees. And as the survey revealed, 21% of the respondents felt that productivity tracking could be improved.

“People have been familiar with HR Tech for payroll, hence the chances of getting disappointed there were less. However, tracking employee productivity was a new demand, where the solutions are still not refined enough,” added Mr. Himanshu Aggarwal, Co-founder and CTO, Qandle.

One year down the line, around 55% of the respondents are satisfied with their current HR Tech platform, while 31% said they are absolutely not happy with their solution.

About Qandle

Qandle – All-In-One HR Platform- founded in 2016 is a young start-up focused on re-engineering HRMS from employees’ perspective. Founded by Chayan Mukhopadhyay (Co-founder and CEO) and Himanshu Aggarwal (CO-founder and CTO), Qandle distinguishes itself as a comprehensive solution and covers the entire gamut of HR activities – from hire to retire. It has leveraged technology to develop a modular and extremely flexible solution for organisations and HRs looking to deliver the next-generation experience to their teams. Until now, Qandle has served over 500 clients.

Popular series Home Economics is back with Season 2 exclusively on Lionsgate Play

India, October 2021: Home Economics an American heartwarming comedy series about three adult siblings witnessed huge success across continents early this year. The series was one of the most highly anticipated sitcoms coming out of 2021. It successfully grabbed attention of millennials and generation Z globally and got renewed for a second season. The series did exceptionally well in India as well. Lionsgate Play, the premium streaming service, will be hosting premier of Home Economics season 2 in India on Friday, 8th October 2021.

Created by Michael Colton and John Aboud is based on three adult siblings of the Hayworth family who have different financial backgrounds. The 7- episode series starring Topher Grace, Caitlin McGee and Jimmy Tatro is a binge worthy comedy drama. The series dives into sibling relationships where one is ultra-rich, other is middle class, and third one is barely holding on. Home Economics season 1 was a filled with love, laughter, and awkward conversation about money amongst the siblings. The season 1 of this is slice of life comedy series was well received by critics and viewers across the globe which resulted in a second season.

Some rave reviews received by top publications for both seasons:

• Tell Tale TV “Oftentimes, a show’s sophomore outing can be clunky in trying to find its footing again. Home Economics easily sidesteps that common pitfall with this strong and savvy premiere”
• People “…. One of the nicest new sitcoms in a while.”
• Variety- Home Economics’ is a rare look at class on TV: Review “There are definitely stories ‘Home Economics’ is equipped to tell that hit of the recent past wouldn’t touch…”
• Decider- “… the makings of a really good show” “…the cast has a good chemistry together, and we can immediately see the family dynamic between the Hayworth siblings…”
• The Hollywood Reporter-The kids appear to be solidly cast, one of the hallmarks of the ABC family comedy brand.” “…the balance between siblings’ meanness and sibling love handled well…”
• E News- “Topher grace on recapturing the Magic of That 70s show Home Economics”
• TV Guide Magazine- Cheers to Home Economics for sewing up an A+ Ensemble”

You can download Lionsgate Play on Google Play Store, Apple app store and Amazon Firestick and watch recent releases like The Father, Dr. Death, Vigil, WeWork Documentary and more at INR 99 and INR 699 respectively.

Top 5 Indian Video Communication Platforms to Switch Over!

Video Communication platforms have played an important role since the pandemic has emerged. Not only have they helped the world connect, but they also helped transform the work and education sector across the globe. While with the hybrid working model, many of us might be still using global for our day to day personal and professional activities and meet-ups which are quite a threat towards our data. Here we are listing below the top 5 video communication platforms to switch over, not only because they are founded in India and are safe, but also amplify PM Narendra Modi’s message of being ‘Vocal For Local’ and self-reliability as the country.

Jio Meet

JioMeet, is quite similar to Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. The app allows users to set up a one on one call or a conference call with up to 100 participants with enterprise-grade host control. It also allows users to host or join an unlimited number of calls. Free of charge, the USP of the app is that unlike Zoom the duration of call here isn’t limited to 40 minutes and can last up to 24 hours. The ‘enterprise-grade host controls’ offered in JioMeets include password protection for meetings, multi-device, login support, ability to share screen, a waiting room, ability to schedule meetings, and more. One can also access the platform through Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox on computers.

Superpro.ai

Superpro.ai aims to provide simpler, better, automated video communication workflows and turn professionals into ‘super professionals’ by giving them ‘super tech powers’. With no-code video workflow integration, control and flexibility, and end-to-end data visibility, the platform is the first-of-its-kind in India offering superior tech-driven features. A B2B SaaS platform, the company charges businesses on a ‘pay per use’ model and offers a wide array of products including SuperBot – a video communication bot that can be embedded in any webpage and enables businesses to not just capture but engage customers instantly via a video call within the browser itself. Furthermore, Superpro.ai also offers Meeting Apps and Widgets and Webinars API and Widgets for a complete interactive video call experience that can be used over an API or embedded as a widget on any webpage with inbuilt scheduling, email and WhatsApp notifications, and feedback, and ratings.

Floor

Floor lets you conduct one-on-one, one-to-many, and many-to-many interactions with ease and tries to cover various events online for users to join. It comes with various features such as audience polls, Q&A, social forum, user matching for networking, content sharing, etc. essential to keep users engaged and host a valuable live-event. The platform can be used for both video calling and online events management. When looking to host a seminar, one would be delighted to know that the platform can host multiple sessions simultaneously, with up to 1 million participants.

Say Namaste

Say Namaste is a secure, private & encrypted 1:1 and multi-party text, voice, and video conferencing solution. A video call can have up to 50 participants in and comes with features such as screen sharing, text mode, file sharing, and more. The app also allows users to chat via text messages on the app during an ongoing video call. Joining and creating a meeting room is extremely easy, all you need to do is click on Start or Join meeting, create code, and connect. It’s as simple as it sounds.

KL Meet

KL Meet video conferencing app includes features like audio/video calls, chat, screen sharing, recording, personal calendar/ organizer, conducting meetings and contacts. Available for Web, iOS & Android devices. Talking about data security and privacy, it’s quite secure as it is a completely in-house hosted solution for businesses of any size. The entire data resides within the enterprise boundary and this is the USP of the app. There is no need for any external login and this can seamlessly integrate with the Enterprise Active Directory. Additionally, there is no plugin to download like CISCO Webex or Zoom, so the end-user need not worry about any such vulnerabilities.

Equitas Small Finance Bank announces the launch of ASBA facility

India, October 6, 2021: Equitas Small Finance Bank announces the launch of ASBA facility on the its Internet Banking, Mobile Banking and UPI interface for its customers. ASBA (Applications Supported by Blocked Amount) is a process required by India’s Stock Market Regulator SEBI for applying to IPOs, FPOs etc. Equitas Bank continues to create a seamless banking experience for its customers, as they can now directly participate in primary markets through the facility. With ASBA facility, customers can avail the benefit of high savings account interest until the date of allotment of shares. Notably, the facility blocks the bank account for application money and when entire IPO process is complete, the account is debited only to the extent of payment required for final allotment. For this entire time – customers enjoy the benefit of high Savings Account Interest Rate offered by the Bank on entire amount. The blocked amount is also considered while calculating the average monthly balances (AMB). ASBA facility is available at no cost and does not need one to submit any kind of physical documents to activate.

Equitas Small Finance Bank’s ASBA feature provides customers with several salient benefits, all whilst prioritizing convenience, security as well as enhancing overall usage experience. While ‘Demat account’ is a pre-requisite for making IPO applications, Equitas Bank has a ready answer for those who could be investing in Share Market for the first time in their lives. In association with Aditya Birla Money Limited, Bank provides the facility of instant Trading cum Demat Account which can be activated digitally in a matter of few minutes.

As Equitas continues to expand rapidly, it is also enhancing its best-in-class services for retail investors. While bringing the most advanced banking facilities to its platform, the security of customers is of prime interest to Equitas. To ensure the same, the company has eliminated the time to refund cheques/ ECS credit as well as unblock the IPO application money in case the application is rejected, there is no allotment, or the issue is withdrawn. For this, the Bank will receive instructions from the registrar of the issue.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Murali Vaidyanathan, Senior President and Country Head – Branch Banking – Liabilities, Products & Wealth, Equitas Small Finance Bank Limited, said: “We firmly believe that the future growth plans of the Bank and the well-being of its customers are inexorably interlinked, and they need to reinforce each other. Post our 3-in-1 account launch, we are continuously working to offer our customers the very best of modern banking, with users now being able to enjoy daily interest while the amount is blocked, through the ASBA feature. The move will also significantly help retail and HNI investors. With contactless banking becoming the need of the hour and omnichannel delivery critical to future readiness, our continued investments towards building world-class digital assets have become a key differentiator. The incorporation of the ASBA feature in the mobile application reflects our efforts towards the path of financial inclusion, increasingly leveraging the power and reach of digital technologies and optimal business growth through collaborations.”

As Equitas Small Finance Bank continues to witness thousands of success stories of enabling customers to create a substantial financial footprint, the ASBA feature is another step in the right direction. It provides customers with the fiscal roadmap to realising their long-term economic goals. The bank’s customers, who wish to avail the benefits of ASBA, can proceed with their application by providing accurate information regarding PAN card number, DP ID (depository participant identification) number, client identification number or the client’s ID from the broker’s account, bid quantity and bank account number.

Ru-Bar-Ru Planning To Open 5 More Outlets In Near Future

October 2021: Situated at Ground Floor, Garden Galleria Mall, Noida, Ru-Bar-Ru is all set to take the nightlife of Noida by storm with its amazing Cafe-Restro-Bar setup. In the coming 5 years the Founder of Ru-Bar-Ru, Saurabh Agarwal, a management consult for 20 years and someone who has more than 10 years of experience in F&B business, visions at expanding Ru-Bar-Ru and give at least 5-6 outlets of the best out there, PAN India. And Delhi is his first target.

Not only do they plan on being present in every metropolitan city but to give them the best of both worlds by giving them lavish food and a luxurious bar menu. Elevated version of the outlet with mouth-watering menu and exotic drinks will be witnessed as much Ru-Bar-Ru will expand.

Ru-Bar-Ru is a fascinating place with the most beautiful interior that sets it apart from the rest of the lot. It is one of a kind. Live music at the outlet will make you groove on the beats of top DJs.

If good food and stunning chic ambience are what you vibe with, then Ru-Bar-Ru is just the right place for you.

While speaking on the expansion, Saurabh Agarwal, Founder of Ru-Bar-Ru, mentioned that “The outlet aims at giving its audiences memories of a lifetime if they give Ru-Bar-Ru a chance to be the host for them. The concept and theme of this Cafe-Restro-Bar is the USP for the outlet which aims at giving the fine-dine experience to its customers at a pocket-friendly budget.”

The place is best either for day or night parties. Visit with your family for a chic lunch or party hard with your friends at dinner.

What are you waiting for, book a table now.!!

Contact: 9810856466

Omega Seiki Mobility partners with Exicom for its lithium-ion batteries to provide environment friendly and long cycle life battery solutions

New Delhi, October 06, 2021: Omega Seiki Mobility Pvt. Ltd. (OSM), part of Anglian Omega Group of companies, today announced their partnership with Exicom Tele-systems for Lithium-ion batteries for OSM’s wide range of electric L5 cargo vehicles. Exicom Tele-systems is a 27 years old Indian Company, which is aligned with the thought of ‘Make-in-India’ with Omega Seiki Mobility.

Omega Seiki Mobility – a company strongly committed to an all-electric future; is a leading last-mile solution provider to many fleet & individual owners and is co-developing solutions with technology partners to make EV’s more affordable and reliable. Under this partnership, Exicom will be supplying its recently launched 10.8 kW fixed batteries that will give a range of 120km on a full charge and added features of real-time battery analytics, long cycle life, high environmental protection, and very rugged design.

This partnership also marks the commercial introduction of Exicom Tele-systems flagship BMS namely Exicom “MEXX” which has industry-leading features of safety, accuracy, SoX prediction algorithms, and many more which give users the desired performance and safety.

Speaking on the partnership with Exicom Tele- Systems Mr. Uday Narang, Founder and Chairman, Omega Seiki Mobility, said “OSM believes that the way to develop faster EV Vehicle Technology is through creating alliances. We are elated to partner with Exicom Tele systems as they share the same values as OSM, by creating Made-In-India and Made-for-India products. This partnership is giving new hopes for the future of the EV Ecosystem in India. The benefit of this technology is that Exicom Tele system Li-ion batteries are for all types of vehicles with technology that is global, cost which is affordable, a quality that is world-class”.

Mr. Anant Nahata, Managing Director, Exicom Group said “We are delighted to have this partnership with Omega Seiki and contribute to their electrification journey and sustainable last-mile operations. Exicom is the industry leader in providing battery and charging solutions for light electric vehicles and has integrated its latest 10.8 kW battery in the range of OSM’s delivery 3Ws. It will benefit all Indian customers by offering reliability and consistency of performance they are looking for.”

Exicom is supported by an in-house team of amazing R&D engineers for all our core markets who continuously strive to build state-of-the-art solutions for its customers and thus help accelerate the faster transition to a greener environment. The development efforts focus both on leading technologies, & incremental improvements of existing designs and always with an overall aim of increasing performance while reducing costs. Almost all of Exicom’s revenues are derived from in-house developed products. Exicom Group has a skill set in areas of power electronic design, firmware, mechanical & thermal design, systems engineering, customized solutions, battery design, and product validation.

Omega Seiki Mobility believes in creating sustainable mobility solutions with an integrated approach of connecting Automobiles and Society. The brand’s focus is to eventually create a clean ecosystem with eco-friendly, safe, and congestion-free mobility. OSM is one of India’s leading clean energy incubators and has become synonymous with India’s sustainability success. The electric vehicle manufacturing company aims to fast-track future mobility, with green energy at its core, by implementing data-driven, smart engineering.

Omega Seiki Mobility, which has its EV manufacturing plant in Faridabad, launched its first electric three-wheeler in the country in early 2020 and the company aims to become a complete mobility solutions provider in the EV market.

HID Global Opens Warehouse in Bangalore to Strengthen Base in India

Bangalore, India, October 6, 2021 ̶ HID Global, a worldwide leader in trusted identity solutions, today announced the opening of a warehouse in Bangalore to support the company’s strategic growth in the Security Issuance identity business in the region and support partner community. With this facility, HID Global is better positioned to serve the growing needs of the domestic market and create new jobs.

Located in the center of the business hub, local and regional customers will benefit from faster supply chain management, avoid the challenges of international logistic distribution, save on import duties and taxes costs.

“As the Indian market witnesses exponential growth in five years, the addition of a 16,000 sq. ft. warehouse will promote the expansion of the workforce, improve service level commitments, and grow partnerships in the community. We want to be part of the journey and contribute to the identity market by introducing the latest technologies with best practices locally,” said Wei Jin, Lee Regional Business Director, Secure Issuance APAC.

“With this opening, all Secure Issuance products for desktops, including FARGO® printers, consumables, and related accessories, will ship from Bangalore. The local warehouse at Bangalore will keep us closer to the market, serving our partners better and strengthen our position in India,” said Vishal R. Soni, Director for Secure Issuance, HID Global India.

India is the hub of HID Global’s 25,000 sq. ft. R&D center based in Chennai, which has grown tremendously over the past few years. The center provides solutions and services for physical and logical access, goID™ and cloud-based solutions, web, and mobile application development. The R&D center contributes significantly to HID Global’s strategic focus for cloud and mobile solutions and innovative industry-leading solutions implemented in more than 80 countries.

ICICI Bank launches contactless payment solution through iMobile Pay

Mumbai: ICICI Bank today announced the launch of a contactless payment service through its banking app, iMobile Pay, that enables customers to tap their smartphones to pay at POS (Point of Sale) machines of merchant outlets. The service offers improved convenience to over 1.5 crore debit and credit card customers of the Bank as they will no longer need to carry their cards for payments at retail stores. Based on the Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, the innovative payment service empowers customers to create digital versions of their physical ICICI Bank debit and credit cards on the iMobile Pay app. Using the digital cards, customers can initiate electronic payments at merchant outlets from NFC enabled Android smartphones by just waving their phone near a contactless POS device.

Mr. Sudipta Roy, Head- Unsecured Assets, ICICI Bank said, “We, at ICICI Bank, focus on technological innovations to offer unique, fast and convenient solutions to our customers. We were first to introduce ‘Tap to Pay’ facility five years ago by digitising cards and offering secured contactless payment through our digital wallet app, Pockets. Now we have extended this facility through our mobile app, iMobile Pay. This contactless mobile payment solution offers cashless payments to the Bank’s customers using just their smartphones, thereby eliminating the need to carry cash or debit and credit cards.

We believe, with ‘Tap to Pay’ payment solution, customers will experience enhanced convenience as it provides instant, safe and secure payments. Additionally, the solution offers enhanced security as the customer’s card details are not shared during the transaction process and are stored virtually in the Bank’s secure cloud server. We thank our partners Visa and Comviva who have enabled this collaboration. We will continue on our endeavour to improve cards payment experience for our customers through innovation and excellence with focus on safety and security.”

The facility of ‘Tap to Pay’ through iMobile Pay is now available on Visa cards and it will soon be activated on Mastercard cards too.

Mr. T. R. Ramachandran, Group Country Manager, India and South Asia, Visa said, “Contactless payments are becoming the go-to way of paying instantly and securely at merchant outlets, today accounting for 1 out of every 2 face-to-face Visa transactions in Asia Pacific. We are delighted to strengthen our strategic and innovation-focused partnership with ICICI Bank by enabling contactless payments on iMobile Pay banking app, embedding the ease of tapping to pay into the mobile banking experience for millions of Visa cardholders of the Bank.”

Mr. Srinivas Nidugondi, EVP and Chief Growth and Transformation Officer, Comviva, said, “We are thrilled to partner with ICICI Bank to modernize payments and evolve the digital landscape in India. As one of the world’s leading digital payment platform provider, Comviva is extremely excited to offer swift, secure and convenient payment experience to ICICI Bank customers. iMobile Pay ‘Tap to Pay’ will accelerate the growth of safe and hygienic contactless payments and contribute towards India’s growing digital economy.”

To avail this service, customers need to update the new version of the iMobile Pay app from Google Play Store on their NFC enabled smartphones of OS- Android 6 and above. Customers will have to do a one-time activation through iMobile Pay to start using the ‘Tap to Pay’ service and then make the payment securely and conveniently at retail stores. As per the RBI guidelines, customers can make payments upto Rs 5,000 per transaction with just tapping or waving the phone near the POS device. For transactions above Rs. 5,000, customers will have to enter their card PIN along with waving the phone near the POS device.

Customers can follow below given easy steps to avail the service:

1. One time activation:

• The customer has to login to iMobile Pay app and click on ‘Tap to Pay’ icon on the login page or ‘Shop’ section.
• Thereafter, the customer needs to select registered debit and credit cards to make a digital version and then click on ‘I Agree’ to accept the terms & conditions.
• The customers can create virtual cards against each of their ICICI Bank Visa credit and debit cards

2. Making a payment:

• Log in to iMobile Pay app and click on ‘Tap to Pay’ on login page or ‘Shop’ section
• Select a virtual Visa card to make the payment and wave or tap the phone near the NFC enabled POS device
• A message of ‘Payment initiated successfully’ appears on the phone confirming the transaction

For news and updates, visit www.icicibank.com and follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ICICIBank