The truth is no time is a perfect or imperfect time when it’s a matter of fine-tuning a working professional’s job-oriented skills! Especially when corporate growth is slowing and job losses are given, you can make a meaningful contribution to your colleague’s work life with a nice timely gift.

Why not prompt them to update skills, and reorient themselves to tackle unfavorable situation and turn it to their advantage – personally and professionally. Why not help them draw valuable lessons from other’s success stories?

One of the recent releases you can consider gifting is ‘The Fine Print of Life: How Panna Lal Found Happiness Wisdom and Mishri Devi’. The book is written by a “successful life skills facilitator’, showing how to live life in the ‘here & now’ with curiosity, energy and enthusiasm. Perhaps this book will help one of your friends or colleagues help cope with impending job trouble.

Managers might need something steelier so think of gifting Tata McGraw-Hill’s super-timely Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty: The New Rules for Getting the Right Things Done in Difficult Times, by Ram Charan.

To help them build virtual communities in the era of Facebook and Twitter, ‘Know Me, Like Me, Follow Me: What Online Social Networking Means for You’ and ‘Your Business’ (again Hachette), by Penny & Thomas Power, can well come in handy.

If you believe your struggling friend needs some lessons in influencing people, there’s ‘7 Secrets of Influence’ by Elaina Zucker. The book outlines how this vital ‘portable power’ can be acquired, implemented, and mastered. Penguin has another book by Subroto Bagchi entitled simply ‘The Professional’.

And then there are those peculiar self-improvement books, entrepreneurship guides, innovation & change management handbooks, to make apt gifts in the current challenging market. You only need to glance at the new releases to see that the right choice is made.

Bookmark to:

For the design-conscious person, a good looking mobile phone does not necessarily mean that he or she would compromise on its features. This factor should be kept in mind while selecting a device for the purpose of gifting.

Thankfully, there is no dearth of options when it comes to pick good-looking devices with handy functionalities.

Samsung Ultra Touch
An example of this is Samsung Ultra Touch, which is a step up from the plastic slider phones previously released by the company. This one is a nice mix of a full touchscreen interface, a physical T9 keypad and an 8 megapixel camera.

Priced at Rs 27,500, the Ultra Touch model sure has the potential to warm the hearts of the elite fashion-seekers. On the flipside, 2.8” display might feel a bit compressed for internet surfing and e-mailing but other multimedia needs, such as videos viewing and music listening/streaming are well served on a display of this size.

Asus P565
Another option is available in form of the Asus P565. Retailing at just a little more than Apple iPhone, it costs Rs 35,000. Asus P565 gives the same touchscreen you see on iPhone.

Asus has forced out some fairly impressive smartphones in the mobile phone market, till date. It comes with a fairly huge flash memory (256MB, to be precise). P565 has also thrown in a nice program that allows uploading videos and photos to Flickr and Youtube.

A user can directly share pictures and videos from anywhere with an internet connection. A 3 megapixel camera plus the auto-focus feature guarantees good pictures.

Blackberry Pearl Flip 8220
The new Flip is lighter than most other RIM devices. The smooth curves, metal trim plus a glossy embedded front display along with the bundled 2 megapixel camera make it a good pick. It’s priced attractively at Rs 21,990. The new built-in web browser is better than that on Blackberry Curve & Pearl handsets.

Tags: Best corporate gifts, business gifting, low cost gifts, , Popular corporate gifts, Best business gifts, Business Gifting
Corporate gifting, Gifting occasions, promotional gifts, corporate gifting for employees

Bookmark to:

In the previous blog post, we looked at two of the ‘economical’ business phones you can consider for the purpose of gifting. If you are thinking of a high-end smartphone for someone up the hierarchy ladder, we recommend HTC Touch HD.

It is probably one of the costliest you would find among the lot, comprising Nokia E75 and Blackberry Storm 9500. Both are priced in the range of Rs 27,000 to 28,000, whereas HTC Touch HD carries a price tag of Rs 41,990. The price is worth paying for there are some truly inimitable features listed below:

• As a Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone, HTC Touch HD comes with Microsoft’s own useful suite of productivity applications. This helps keeps track of business address book and key appointments to email, even dealing with Microsoft Office files. One using ‘Microsoft Outlook’ at work, can synchronize Touch HD with PC.

• It’s a fine combination of a 3.8 inch touchscreen, fast processor, 5 megapixel camera, and excellent battery life. HTC’s user interface (TouchFLO 3D) goes on to make it easier to use just with a fingertip (similar to the Apple iPhone). The phone gives an easy access to all commonly performed tasks like checking email, playing music, documents, surfing the web and so on.

On the other hand, if you are searching for a pocket-friendly phone to gift it to one of your friends or colleagues, you can get the LG KM335 music phone for as little as Rs 9,249.

Importantly, it does not compromise at all on useful features and functionalities, too. Just to brief you, it has a  MP3 player, 3.15 megapixel camera, FM Radio tuner with recording, support for microSD memory slot apart from anti-theft mobile tracker.

Another piece of good news for the users is that the phone offers a sizable 90 MB of internal memory that can be well enhanced up to 8GB.

Bookmark to:

In today’s hectic work life, your friend or colleague sure would appreciate an offering that eases up their workload. Smartphones are essentially for those who demand literally everything at their fingertips from jazzy voice services to handy productivity-enhancing features, and that too without compromising on the cute looks. There are ample handsets to gift in this category as well.

An overwhelming variety of handsets available in the market only makes the decision even more challenging for those looking to gift something to smartphone lovers. To simplify your task, here is a look at two of the most suitable business phones you can consider for the purpose of gifting.

Nokia E75: the complete multimedia offering
It is a good choice because with it users find easier to adapt to a familiar-looking interface. However, the unique feature that sets Nokia E75 apart from other phones is its ability to allow integration of messaging and email services. Follow a simple three-step process and one is all set to support up to no less than 16 email accounts and this along with third party email solutions like Gmail and Yahoo! Another key feature is a 2.4 inch landscape slide-out keyboard. It will make life a little simpler for executives. You can get this device for Rs 26,299.

Blackberry Storm 9500: A good choice in the business phone category
Blackberry Storm 9500 is another excellent choice that closely follows the leader. Priced at Rs 27,990 it is available on Vodafone networks. The device can serve as a valuable upgrade for those who love Blackberry. Storm can though, disappoint conformists who think that a physical QWERTY keyboard is irreplaceable.

The entire screen of Storm acts as a virtual keypad. Browsing the web, playing music and reading emails is a doodle on the 3.25” screen. The Storm has other usual corporate features like push email as well as administrator control.

Bookmark to:

Employers looking to incentivize their employees need not only consider gifts and monetary rewards. There are so many other steps and ideas that they can initiate to strike a rapport with their workforce. 

A case in point is Hindustan Unilever’s recent health initiative for its 15,000 strong team. The program is reaping great rewards. Shyamal Majumdar in an interesting article entitled ‘What’s your vitality index?’ that appeared in The Business Standard gave an insight into the initiative.

Based on an interview with T Rajgopal, HUL vice-president (Medical and Occupational Health), the writer threw light on the employee-driven incentive program at arguably India’s largest fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company.

Rajgopal and his team have indeed been able to implement a ‘personal vitality’ initiative in a phased manner for the employees of HUL in India. The health plan is ahead of the curve and hence is getting a favorable response from the company employees.

Underlining the importance of the move, the article pointed out: “What employees are doing at lunch and also after work can greatly affect their employer. HUL can consider the rewards-ratio of many other global firms that have implemented well-thought-out health plans for their employees. The ratio for Johnson & Johnson is 3.8:1. The same for Pepsico, Motorola and Dupont is equally healthy.

“We are providing employees the encouragement and the necessary tools to change unhealthy lifestyles before these transform into chronic diseases. We do it in a fun way that also allows them to choose the path, which fits them best,” stated Rajgopal.

At the heart of the new HUL initiative is a vitality index - the measurement of the personal vitality of every individual employee. It is based on four parameters - blood pressure, blood cholesterol, the Body Mass Index (BMI), and blood sugar.

Bookmark to:

This post will offer more details on the concept of gold ETF and how this instrument can be an indirect opportunity for buying gold bullion to the person whom you gift it.

Generally, the price of one unit of gold ETF represents roughly one gram of gold. These are passively managed funds hence their NAV will basically track the gold price in the open market.  The holder can buy and sell the units just like one would buy and sell shares.

Despite recent correction after a sustained rally, gold prices are expected to firm up further over the coming few years. This will lead to a corresponding increase in the NAV of gold ETFs. Especially owing to the debasement that many countries are subjecting their respective currencies to, bullion would emerge as a valuable asset.

Investment expert Sandeep Shanbhag noted in a recent article: “In times of turbulence, gold has gained over almost 57% in the last couple of years. The moot question is: does it really make sense to invest in the metal at current levels? Look at gold ETF as an investment essentially as a hedge against inflation and its virtue of negative correlation with other asset classes such as fixed income securities, commodities and stocks during uncertain times.

When markets are erratic and unpredictable, the wise thing to do is just to step up exposure to an asset, which would infuse a semblance of strength and stability to the portfolio. The simplest and probably the most efficient way to do this is investing in a gold ETF.”

However, you should weigh its pros and cons. For example, investors should not look at gold on the basis of returns in a small time frame. Give them a long enough period to multiply your wealth. This won’t happen overnight. Someone looking to give a meaningful gift sure should consider gold ETFs.

Bookmark to:

In one of our previous blogs, we have checked mobile devices worth gifting. In this post, we shall check more mobiles to gift.

Clamshell shaped Samsung E1310 will cost just about Rs 2,650. It has a battery that promises to lasts up to 7-9 hours on trot. Another strong point is its stereo FM. It includes a mobile tracker feature that is an added bonus and so is its impressive speakerphone.

This is another mobile device worth gifting for travelers with a blend of music, camera and abundant memory to stash away the user data. The 3.2” touchscreen-based Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is worth considering. It comes with a plastic casing, which ensures that the device will survive the occasional drops and jolts during travel.

A 3 megapixel autofocus camera comes with a dual-LED flash, along with music attributes, such as the 3.5mm headphone jack and 8GB memory to store songs and music pieces. The features make it a worthy travel companion for someone whom you gift. You can buy it for around Rs 20,000 so this will make a high-end gift. However, the battery tends to run down rather quickly if power-hungry features like GPS and Wi-Fi are used extensively.

The Sony Ericsson W705 Walkman is Nokia’s closest price match. It’s a slider phone, which retails at roughly Rs 18,000. However, a 2.4” display might seem inadequate for viewing pictures snapped on its 3.2 megapixels camera. The W705 also has more jazzy features, including shake control that will enable you to toggle music tracks as well as control volume with a simple flick of your wrist.

The music player almost matches what you expect of the Sony Ericsson Walkman series, inclusive of the packaged in-ear earphones, which produce a responsive sound with ample depth. Note that W705 does not carry GPS, or a touchscreen.

Tags: Business etiquette, Corporate gifting, promotional products, business gift baskets, Corporate gifting India, Popular corporate gifts, low cost gifts, Gifting events, business gifting, gifting to clients

Bookmark to:

As we are discussing gold ETFs, we just went through our archives and managed to dig out an interesting post, entitled A golden gift to secure your partner’s financial life.

It would be pertinent to reproduce this post we published on eve of the Valentine’s Day. The idea is just to reemphasize the importance of your gold ETFs in your financial planning.

“The painful slowdown may have curbed your gifting instincts and might have shelved Cupid’s arrow this Valentine’s, points out an Economic Times report.  In this season for roses, love notes and cards, your best gift to someone you really care would be to ensure the person’s financial security, it adds.

“You can gift your partner gold ETFs as well as gold deposit schemes that are floated by jewelry houses. For example, Gold Harvest Scheme accepts small deposits on monthly for a specified period that can later be used to purchase jewelry.
“Nikunj Kedia, director of PARK Financial Advisors, suggests that gold is among the best suited investment options for challenging occasions like these, as it will result in a successful marriage of consumption needs and investment objective.
“Sunil Raj, marketing manager of Tanishq’s pure gold division, has been quote as saying: “Customers who enroll for this scheme can pay in easy installments for 11 months. The company will bear costs for the 12th month. Effectively, depositors stand to get around 15% of return on their savings.”
“India Post, in association with Reliance Money and World Gold Council, is planning to come out with a gold accumulation plan that will facilitate buying small quantities during a particular month when investors have the money.
“The ET report quotes financial planner Kartik Jhaveri as saying: “A gold fund or ETF would be a better option compared to buying jewelry as a gift. The underlying asset is gold that has shown steady returns even during the uncertain times. Just to sum up, this is a gift that your partner will showcase with pride and its glitter will never fade away!” 

Tags: Business Gifting
Corporate gifting, Gifting events, promotional products, business gift baskets, Corporate gifting, low cost gifts, Cheap corporate gifts, Popular corporate gifts, business gifting, corporate gifting for employees

Bookmark to:

As we checked in the previous blog post, gold ETFs are very much similar to a diversified mutual fund plan. Instead of investing the corpus in equity, the money is invested in gold. We learnt about gold ETF schemes on offer from UTI, Quantum, SBI mutual fund, Kotak and Reliance.

Just to elaborate and simplify the concept further, ETFs are essentially mutual funds that are listed on the stock exchange. Here, the underlying core asset is standard gold bullion. You can use this instrument to buy gold bullion on someone else’s behalf, and present a meaningful gift. Corporates can consider gifting them to their employees as well.

Let us check the various features of gold ETFs and how they are managed:
• As for denomination, one can buy even one gram at a time. With Quantum, you can purchase half-a-gram at one time.

• When one wants to sell back the gold in physical form, the making charges of jewelry are wasted as they cannot be recovered. In fact, the gold in physical form is mostly sold at a discount to its original price owing to depreciation. Coins and bars suffer from similar issues. On the other hand, units of gold ETFs can be sold by either with a few clicks in case you have an online trading account or by a call to your broker.

• Tax benefits is one major advantage of gifting gold in the electronic form. It’s free of wealth tax. It attracts just 10% long-term capital gains tax as against 20% in case of physical gold.

• Again, there is absolutely no doubt on the count of purity because impurity risk is non-existent with gold ETF. This can be an issue with the gold in physical form

• Security is of course taken care of by the fund, unlike in the case of jewelry or other forms of physical gold where the threat of theft always looms.

Tags: Best corporate gifts, Worst gifts, low cost gifts, Gifting occasions, Best business gifts, gifting to clients, gifting etiquette, Business etiquette, Cheap corporate gifts, Corporate gifting India

Bookmark to:

The market has been in an uptrend since hitting a bottom in the month of March. However, when the stocks were beaten down, one asset class that had drawn huge attention was gold ETF. This particular fund was in spotlight because gold prices had zoomed. Since then they have lost their shine just a bit!

For savvy investors this offers a good opportunity to enter these schemes at a lower price level with their NAV (net asset value) having fallen. You can sure consider gifting someone gold ETFs.

ETFs are quite similar to a mutual fund scheme. Instead of investing the corpus in equity shares, the money collected is invested in gold. There are schemes on offer from Kotak, Reliance, UTI, Quantum and SBI mutual fund for buying gold ETFs. Unfortunately, investors are still unaware of buying and gifting gold in the electronic form. If you strike early, it will make a worthwhile present.

Buying gold in electronic form requires a shift in mindset, something which shouldn’t be difficult considering most of us already possess other valuable assets in a similar form. As tax consultant Sandeep Shanbhag mentions in a recent article, ‘Think of the money lying in a bank account. Whether Rs 10,000 or Rs 10 lakh or a crore, it’s your bank passbook that indicates the amount you own.

“Similarly, not too long ago, physical share certificates were required to be delivered and kept. Then we gradually shifted to electronic holding. An investor’s life thus became more convenient. Similarly, gold too can be owned in the dematerialized, electronic form. It is a safer and more efficient way to own it.”

As we have mentioned above, there are many good schemes on offer from reputed fund houses. If you can gift gold ETFs to someone dear to you, the glitter of gold will remain with the person forever and add to his or her wealth as well.

Tags: , business gifting, gifting india, promotional products, Gifting occasions, low cost gifts, Business etiquette, corporate gifting for employees, Best business gifts, business gift baskets

Bookmark to: