The Business Environment of India: Mumbai and Hyderabad with an Emphasis on Entertainment, Finance, Tech and Biotech

Management 458A/B: Global Immersion: India

THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT OF INDIA: MUMBAI AND HYDERABAD WITH AN EMPHASIS ON ENTERTAINMENT, FINANCE, TECH AND BIOTECH

(Academic Year 2019-2020: Fall 2019/Winter 2020 Quarters)

UCLA Instructor: Professor Romain Wacziarg

Course Overview

This course will familiarize students with India’s business environment. Since experiencing a severe balance of payments crisis in 1991, India has engaged in several waves of economic reforms that have resulted in high rates of growth over the last 25 years. Aided by strong fundamentals such as a democratic political system, a vast and youthful population, a culture of entrepreneurship and a large cohort of well-trained engineers and scientists, India is emerging as one of the major economic powerhouses of the 21st Century. Yet challenges remain: an inadequate infrastructure, rampant corruption, growing income inequality, the permanence of the caste system and a dysfunctional political economy have conspired to hinder the strides that India was poised to make. The government headed by Narendra Modi, who was recently reelected to a second term, had initially rekindled the flame of reforms, tackling taxes and the business climate. But will this modernist agenda be stymied by the regime's populist tendencies? With a vibrant entrepreneurial class and a new business-friendly government, will India be able to meet the many challenges that she faces? In this course, we will explore both the risks and opportunities offered by the Indian market for foreign investors and domestic entrepreneurs alike.

Course Structure

The course consists of four 3-hour on-campus class sessions and one week of in-country sessions. The first three on-campus sessions will be held before the travel week and the last session will be held following the in-country week as follows: 1) On Campus Pre-Travel Classes: Friday, October 4 (6:00-9:00 p.m.); Friday, November 1 (6:00-9:00 p.m.); Saturday, November 23 (6:00-9:00 p.m.). Locations TBC;

2) In-Country Dates: Sunday, December 15 (arrival) to Saturday, December 21 (departure). The academic portion will begin the morning of December 16. The course will begin in Mumbai (3 days), and we will then travel to Hyderabad for the second half of the week. A detailed schedule of the time in India will be provided by the CGM office in due course;

3) Final On-Campus Post-Travel Class: Friday, January 10, 2020 (6:00-9:00 p.m.). Location TBC.

Attendance Policy

You are expected to attend all Mgmt. 458A/B on-campus classes and in-country sessions. If there are extenuating circumstances and you find yourself unable to attend a class or an in-country session, you must notify the CGM Global Immersion staff IN ADVANCE prior to the class or session and they will discuss your situation with the professor. The professor has the authority to determine if the absence is excused or not. In the event of a missed class, you will be

required to view the recorded video of the class session and complete a mandatory make-up assignment. Absences may negatively affect your course grade. Job or distance related absences are subject to review and approval by the CGM office. In-Country Sessions in Mumbai and Hyderabad: While in India, you are responsible for attending all scheduled sessions and activities. NO EXCEPTIONS. However, there are some cultural events, which, while not required, will enrich your educational experience while in India. Business attire, please.

Course Grade The course grade will be determined as follows:

30% of your grade will come from two team-level assignments: 1) In-class presentations and a PowerPoint report on one of 6 topics. Assuming a class size of 40 students, the class will be divided into eight learning teams of 5 students each. The CGM office will determine the team composition and assign teams randomly to each of the 6 broad topics. Teams will have considerable latitude to pick more pointed subjects within these broad topics. Teams can also freely trade topics. The deliverable is the final version of the slide deck used for the presentation, and is due on the same day as the final exam by email to the professor (Friday, January 17 at 11:59 p.m. P.S.T.). The topics and the due dates of presentations are as follows: a. The macroeconomy of India (November 1) b. India’s economic reforms process (November 1) c. Multinationals operating in India (November 23) d. The IT, biotech or finance sectors in India (November 23) e. India’s large industrial conglomerates (January 10) f. Demographics, urbanization and infrastructure (January 10) 2) Briefing sheets for each of our meetings in India, and debrief sheets. This is to create a lasting record of our meetings in India. The briefing sheet for each meeting should be between 1 and 2 pages, and include a list of thoughtful questions to ask during the company visit. The debrief sheet should be of a similar length, and focus on lessons learned. The briefing sheet is due by the start of our trip. The debrief sheet is due by Friday, January 10, the day of the final on-campus class. 20% of your grade will come from class participation. Class participation includes thoughtful contributions to the on-campus class sessions, active involvement during the week in India, and participation on the India entries on the course blog (http://blogs.anderson.ucla.edu/gem/) 50% of your grade will come from the final exam. The final exam will consist of a short case or press article posing a business problem in the context of India. You are to analyze the problem and propose a response in light of the lessons learned in the country. Past exams will be posted on CCLE. You will have 3-hours to complete the take-home final exam and submit it on CCLE. The window to take the exam will open on January 14 in the morning and will close on Friday, January 17 at 11:59 pm PST.

Schedule of Class Sessions

As noted earlier, there are four on-campus-based class sessions, three occurring before the in- country week and one following the in-country week. The first three class sessions will provide us with important background information and a framework for examining and analyzing the various facets of our visit to India. The fourth class session will enable us to synthesize the information and lessons learned throughout the course.

Date Topic Description

This session will focus on historical and cultural features that are central to understanding the world of business in Cultural and 1) Friday, October 4, 2019 India. Themes will include religious legacies Historical (6:00 – 9:00 p.m.) and values, the caste system and the Patterns specificities of the nonmarket environment of business in India, including the political system.

We will examine a wealth of data on the macroeconomy of India, going back to the The 1950s but focusing mostly on the recent 2) Friday, November 1, Macroeconomy growth experience. The goal of this session 2019 (6:00 – 9:00 p.m.) of India is to develop familiarity with India’s economy, including an understanding of the economic reform process and its limits.

This session examines how India fits in the global economy. We will identify fast growth sectors, examine the potential for their continued expansion, and approach the operation of these complex entities in a 3) Saturday, November 23, India in the comparative way, stressing in particular the 2019 (6:00 – 9:00 p.m.) World Economy contrast with China. Despite two decades of economic reforms, India remains much more closed to trade and FDI than China. We will explore how to strategically overcome these barriers and succeed in doing business in India as a foreign entity.

In this session, we will summarize the various lessons of the class sessions and the 4) Friday, January 10, 2020 Debrief and in-country program. We will also develop (6:00 – 9:00 p.m.) Scenarios detailed scenarios regarding the likely future path of the Indian economy.

Class 1 will feature the course introduction as well as a lecture and discussion on the culture and history of India. The next three classes will be divided into three parts:

1. A lecture on the main topic; 2. A classroom discussion that addresses various aspects of the main topic; 3. Two 25-minute student team presentations on a specific aspect of the topic (each followed by class discussion).

Sessions in India Sessions in India will include meetings with business leaders and relevant members of the civil society as well as visits to places of historical and cultural importance. Due to our destination cities being centers of finance and entertainment (Mumbai) as well as tech and biotech (Hyderabad), these sectors will be the subject of some emphasis. Details of the India sessions will be provided at a later date.

About the Instructor Romain Wacziarg is Professor of Economics and the Hans Hufschmid Chair in Management at UCLA Anderson, where he teaches the core course "Managerial Economics" as well as a number of electives on business economics. Prior to joining UCLA in 2008, he taught for 10 years at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He grew up in India for the first seven years of his life, and travels there several times every year. This will be his fourth global immersion course to India. Professor Wacziarg's research is concerned with studies the macroeconomy and political economy of emerging economies, and within those he focuses on the Indian economy. He is a citizen of the United States, a citizen of France, and an Overseas Citizen of India.