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the Economic Survey also says that India is doing better on the external front compared to many of its peers as it has inbuilt shock absorbers, such as high forex reserves and robust services sector exports With the budget so close, most people are eager to know what the Economic Survey, which is often seen as the finance ministry’s point of view, has to say about the bloated fiscal deficit. It doesn’t seem to find anything bloated about it at all. On the contrary, it says, ‘A solution to the increased fiscal deficit and debt-to-GDP ratios lies in persistently high growth for a few years.’ Indeed, it goes on to say that even moderate growth will... … [Read more...] about Economic Survey 2023: Fiscal discipline or growth or both?

Indori poha is a no-cook poha with lots of sev and a generous sprinkling of cumin-based Jeeravan spice mix. (Representational image: Shahbaz Ansari via Pexels) Lesser Morsels is an exploration of hidden gems from the great Indian kitchen. “Don’t forget Indori poha and dhania wale aloo,” said a friend as I left for a Children’s Literature Festival to Indore a few years ago. It reminded me of when my brother-in-law Mayank, who lives in Seattle, was craving Indori poha, and he and his wife Abha soon went in search of its magic ingredient – Jeeravan masala – to the Indian stores in Seattle. They were also rewarded with Ratlami sev, and Mayank’s craving was more than satisfied. Turns out the poha is not the thing. The hero is a generous sprinkling of Jeeravan masala. For the uninitiated, Indori poha is a no-cook poha (a Maharashtrian version is called dadpe pohe) elevated by the addition of Jeeravan (a spice mix that contains roasted jeera powder along with 20 odd spices) and … [Read more...] about Indore special:  Jeera isi ka naam hai

Shehan Karunatilaka Ah, where do I begin now? Perhaps, some arrack will help me. No, that’ll only help Shehan Karunatilaka’s protagonists and not this essay that I’m writing. Whether it’s WG Karunasena from Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew (2010), or Maali Almeida from the recent Booker winner The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida (2022, Penguin India, Rs 399, 400 pages), I’ve found out that it’s mostly liquor that keeps them happy. Suffice it to say that reading Karunatilaka’s works is akin to sharing a table at a dive bar with strangers whose desires align with yours. Loud conversations and louder cries for attention are, therefore, inevitable. And in each of his books, dark humour is pinned to the wall of his prose. This brilliant technique allows him to drive through the hard and sticky parts of his country’s descent. Sri Lanka, which has often been described as an island that looks like a teardrop, cannot erase its past. It’s a burden that several generations will have … [Read more...] about The seven moons of Booker winner Shehan Karunatilaka

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Joe DeCosmo has 25+ years of experience in technology, machine learning and AI. He is Chief Analytics and Technology Officer at Enova . Technological change accelerated during the pandemic, leading many people to adopt new ways to complete everyday tasks. Online tools and mobile applications have exploded for everything from shopping to food delivery and even financial services. Fintechs have led the way in providing working people with online access to financial services regardless of where they live, what they look like or whether they have an imperfect credit history. Doing so requires technical innovation. For example, most banks and non-bank financial services companies are looking for a full range of automation technologies, from robotic process automation (RPA) and machine learning (ML) to artificial intelligence (AI) approaches that combine human judgment and AI intelligence. A significant focus of … [Read more...] about Artificial Intelligence Across The Lending Life Cycle

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Toni is a successful, celebrated executive who has been promoted twice within the past year. Throughout the organization, from board members to contractors and across teams, everyone who meets Toni becomes a big fan. But as engaging as Toni seems to be, there’s a major part of his life that no one at work knows about. Toni has been playing what he calls “the role of normal” so as to not jeopardize his career plans or his reputation within the company. Toni is covering, and he believes that it is for the best, especially based on some of the comments and even jokes he’s heard in certain “off the record” conversations. Toni’s story is an example of what the employee experience can look like when workplace cultures have only shards of a sense of belonging. Belonging has been called a DEI (Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion) buzzword lately. And that may be true in some circles, but on a more serious note, it is important to … [Read more...] about 3 Ways To Boost Your Organization’s Culture Of Belonging

Since the start of the pandemic, the popular medical device has been indispensable for measuring oxygen in the blood, but dangerously inaccurate in patients with darker skin. Now the FDA is in the hot seat and Black researchers are working on a cure. A t the University of Maryland Medical System, which has 11 hospitals in and around Baltimore, about half the patients are Black. So as discussion about how medical devices called pulse oximeters—the plastic hinges that clamp onto your finger to measure the oxygen content of your blood—don’t work as well for Black people and other people of color came to the forefront last year, the hospital system decided to assess the scope of the problem. The results were mindblowing: In the 12 months that ended in July, the hospitals estimated that they’d sent home 1,012 African Americans from emergency rooms who had potentially life-threateningly low oxygen levels in their blood despite normal readings from pulse oximeters. Dr. Roderick … [Read more...] about A Quick Remedy Proves Elusive For Life-Saving Pulse Oximeter’s Problems With Darker Skin

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Rachel is a Systemic-Change Coach & Executive Mentor; APAC CXM CGO, and DEI & Sustainability Champion at Dentsu. Henry Ford once said, "If it doesn't add value, it's waste." Surely, all that is consumed from our Earth to create a better life is not a waste. But when we selfishly waste it for profits, that is a crime—at least to the next generations. As a corporate achiever who has helped many multinational corporation (MNC) clients generate those profits for the last 25 years, let me—and my fellow boomers/Gen X leaders—say that we are so sorry to the next generations. We have come to a point of no return but a hopeful awakening and urgent intervention of quick systemic change toward a circular net-zero economy. It is, therefore, now a repenting responsibility for all business leaders to reframe value and participate in the making of the circular economy. With consumers' voices rising toward greener … [Read more...] about Let ESG And RX Be Your Pivotal Business Imperatives

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Social media is filled with countless scammers trying to capitalize on Elon Musk’s name. Just take a look under any of Musk’s tweets and you’ll see people promising crypto giveaways, which are actually just scams that siphon money away from users. But does anyone actually fall for these? Yes, they really do. And I’ve obtained the stories to prove it. I often file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests with the FTC to learn about different complaints that consumers have with particular companies. Previously I’ve done this with FTX , Tinder and Canon just to name a few. It’s an interesting way to learn about customer service problems. But when I recently filed a FOIA request for complaints about Tesla, I received some documents that I didn’t expect. Many of the complaints were about Tesla, of course, and issues people were having with their cars, warranties and financing. But consumers were also complaining about … [Read more...] about 25 Elon Musk Impersonator Scams On Social Media People Actually Fell For

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Over the last few years, despite the investment in self-service tools and technology to help drive proactive, predictive and pre-emptive service, live, and asynchronous, customer support channels have remained solidly important, especially when a customer's issue is urgent, concerning or complex. These interactions often carry heightened expectations of a swift and positive resolution, especially if a customer has tried and failed to self-serve or has had to wait for any length of time. Moreover, these interactions can make or break a customer's relationship with a brand if handled poorly. An additional complication is that urgent, concerning, or complex customer queries often require somebody in the middle office, back office, or another team to do something to help solve their problem or resolve an issue. That can introduce problems into the process due to a lack of intra-organisational connectedness and coordination. … [Read more...] about Dialpad Is Betting That TrueCaaS Is The Future Of Customer Service. They Might Be Right.

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Sam Reiman, the director of the $3.4 billion Pittsburgh-based Richard King Mellon Foundation, has given two careful interviews about the circumstances of his childhood. The director of one of the world’s 50 largest foundations, he is also the son of a single mom; he grew up poor and dropped out of high school. But Reiman says he’s never told this particular story to a reporter. It goes to the heart of what it means to be poor in America, the lack of choices, the emotional devastation visited on children and their caregivers, and the narrowing paths for climbing out of poverty. We both get a little bit emotional when he tells it in his well-appointed office, housed in the BNY Mellon tower high above Pittsburgh. The story’s setting is Lancaster, Pa., a down-at-the-heels apartment complex where his mom struggled to pay the rent. Sam was 11 then, one of three children; his parents had divorced when he was young. The only … [Read more...] about The Son Of A Single Mom, He Rose From Poverty To Lead One Of The World’s Largest Foundations