{"id":284,"date":"2015-03-09T14:02:49","date_gmt":"2015-03-09T14:02:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/?page_id=284"},"modified":"2023-05-12T06:12:42","modified_gmt":"2023-05-12T06:12:42","slug":"amitabh-pande","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/amitabh-pande\/","title":{"rendered":"Amitabh Pande"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1425396743070{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/4″]

\"\"

Amitabh Pande<\/h2>

Consumer Insights
\n& Strategy Professional<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>[\/vc_column][vc_column width=”3\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\n
Winning individually is something that the education system has historically propagated \u2013 for someone to come 1st in class, someone else has to come 2nd…and there is an in-built hierarchy in this approach. Whereas the idea of a win-win, where we could both work together and deliver together as a team, is something that is rarely taught\u2026 and that’s what works in the real world of business…<\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Starting out in market\u00a0research at Research International India in the late \u201990s, Amitabh went on to join the corporate world proper at PepsiCo India in 2000. Responsible for setting up the Consumer Insights division\u00a0for the foods business, Amitabh spent close to 15 years at PepsiCo,\u00a0about three of those in UK,\u00a0growing brands across multiple categories (snacks, soft drinks, juices, breakfast) by\u00a0translating deep consumer\u00a0understanding into brand strategy and ideas.\u00a0Amitabh quit his job at PepsiCo earlier this year as Senior Director,\u00a0Consumer Insights & Strategy for India Region,\u00a0choosing to strike out on his own as an Independent Consultant,\u00a0in this discipline that he is passionate about.<\/span><\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1426164912816{margin-top: 10px !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108697680{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What sort of formal education is an absolute essential for your profession? Also, could you share with us the kind of internship or experience that would be helpful for a young person considering this line of work?<\/span> <\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Consumer Insights & Strategy is a specialist function that typically falls under the Marketing wing of any consumer goods company. The role of this function is to bring the voice of the consumer onto the decision making table of the organisation.<\/p>\n

Typically this profession will have a team led by a Consumer Insights leader whose day job it is to understand what the business and brand priorities, issues, challenges, objectives, goals are\u2026 and then go out and through process of research, thinking, knowledge mining and good old analysis and deep thinking, find out what the consumer-answer for the business or brand problem is. To answer questions like – \u2018What ad should we make for Colgate next?\u2019, or \u2018I\u2019m losing market share to my competitor, how do I win back share?\u2019 etc.<\/p>\n

For my profession, typically you need a post-graduate diploma\/degree in one of the following fields \u2013 management, brand, advertising, communication, market research\u2026 However, there are non-MBA routes to enter into this profession as well. You could do a post graduate specialisation in areas like sociology, anthropology and related disciplines and join a market research agency (like IMRB, Nielsen, TNS, Quantum, Millward Brown, Mode, GFK, Hansa, etc). Market research agencies have grown a lot in the past and are always in search for good talent that is keen on this profession. And some of the big agencies now also pay reasonably well, so it can be a valid career option.<\/p>\n

An archetypal career path for a Consumer Insights person in a marketing organisation\/corporate is: Post Graduation \u2013 Market Research Agency \u2013 Corporate Organisation.<\/p>\n

But, apart from training and the formal degrees, the most important thing for anyone considering this line of work is to gauge whether they are really passionate about it.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108721207{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]If you simply had to draft that elevator pitch for your profession, what would it be?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If you like to think, if you like to figure out how things work and why they do that way and not any other way, if you have a curious mind, and if you like asking questions, and discovering new answers, if you like to understand and then use that understanding to make a difference to people and organisations\u2026.<\/p>\n

If you love brands and the meaning they have for people in their lives, if you love understanding people around you and how the world works, if you like analysing and drawing patterns between related and unrelated events for a larger meaning, if the quest for meaning is somewhere a driver of your life\u2026<\/p>\n

If strategy and long term thinking towards sustainable growth and development is your goal\u2026<\/p>\n

Well, then this profession is for you![\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108734193{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What are the new trends you notice that are changing the complexion of your profession?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The biggest thing that is changing the nature of my profession is the easy access to data and information that everyone has. When everyone has access to the same information and at the speed of thought, then the value is in how you process it, how you analyse and synthesise all the information such that it makes sense to the business\/brands and allows them to make a decision based on that.<\/p>\n

Data is commodity, information is plenty, but insight is rare and precious.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg”][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1425906721247{margin-right: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-right-width: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429261774101{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Show me the money! How do you see this profession faring 20 years down the line?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1426018850823{margin-right: 0px !important;border-right-width: 0px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;}”]<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \"\"It will transform to more of a \u2018consulting\u2019 sphere where money will be made by those who can enable decision making.<\/li>\n
  2. More and more companies will realise the criticality of having this function in-house and not outsourced.<\/li>\n
  3. It will not be a specialisation for marketing, but be insights and strategy for business, and be part of the CEO\u2019s agenda\u2026 so not just consumer insights and strategy\u2026 but business insights & strategy<\/li>\n
  4. The \u201cask\u201d from this function will be more about understanding and predicting the future through deep analytics and path-breaking thinking and creativity.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429261790903{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What do you do when you are stuck with a problem?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If it\u2019s a problem that I\u2019ve encountered before, then I try the solutions that I would have tried before and see if they work in solving the problem.<\/p>\n

    If that doesn\u2019t work or if it\u2019s a problem that I\u2019ve not encountered before, then I first spend time in making sure I\u2019ve really understood the problem.<\/p>\n

    A lot of times the problem as it appears is not really the problem that you\u2019re solving. And getting to a clearer understanding of the problem sometimes is a good enough place to find the answer. For eg – you see that the bathroom is flooded and despite there being a trap-hole in the floor, the water is not flowing out. So, you immediately think there is a problem with it and you try to pump it out to clear the trap-hole. But if you had looked carefully, you would have seen that the trap hole is actually clearing the water fine, it\u2019s the fast leak from the tap near the shower that is releasing water faster than the narrow hole of the trap. The problem would be to solve the leak in the tap and not the trap-hole!<\/p>\n

    If that doesn\u2019t work, then I try to break down the problem into many sub-parts and problems and then look for a solution of each of the parts and then see if that adds up to the whole and solves the problem. To run with the bathroom flooding problem again, once you\u2019ve identified that the problem is the leak in the tap next to the shower, how do you solve it? Do you put an M-seal and that\u2019s it? Maybe not. You break down the problem into parts \u2013 the leak is coming from the side of the tap, the side of the tap has a screw-nut, a steel pipe, a rim, and an inlet pipe inside the wall\u2026 any of these parts could be responsible. So you check each of the parts one by one to isolate where the leak is and then fix the leak in that part.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429261842380{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]When we\u2019re in school, we\u2019re told cheating is bad \u2013 \u2018Don\u2019t talk to each other, don\u2019t discuss.\u2019 And then as we come out of it, we begin to realize that there\u2019s something called \u201ccollaborative thinking\u201d and it\u2019s not bad! What\u2019s your opinion?<\/b><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Cheating and Collaborative Thinking are two different ideas \u2013 Cheating is a one-way process, like stealing, where I take something from another person to my advantage, is often at the expense of the other. But the latter concept by definition is understanding how you can get to a win-win, which can come by discussing and talking to each other. But a more important lesson to be taught in schools and learnt by students would be that of empathy and emotional quotient \u2013 How can I truly understand where the other person is coming from so that I can contribute to him so that he wins and get him to contribute to me, so that I win too?<\/p>\n

    Winning individually is something that the education system has historically propagated \u2013 for someone to come 1st in class, someone else has to come 2nd, and 3rd<\/sup>, and there is an in-built hierarchy in this approach. Whereas the idea of a win-win, where we could both work together and deliver together as a team, is something that is rarely taught\u2026 and what works in the real world of businesses and professions is how you can win with<\/em> your teams, because in large organisations, no one can do it alone, everyone has to play their part in the overall mosaic of skills and talents that come together for the final action plan.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1429261915723{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108786442{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]How do you overcome roadblocks in your profession?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If it\u2019s task related, then the problem-solving mode of the earlier question would apply.<\/p>\n

    If it\u2019s a personal or people related roadblock, then I try to again first analyse the cause and then try to talk it through with someone to get to some sort of resolution.<\/p>\n

    I\u2019m also always open to the idea that it may be a roadblock that may not have a solution, and something that I may have to take in my stride.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner]

    <\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
    \n
    I try to force myself to think of changing the lens from \u2018What the hell am I doing with my life\u2019 to \u2018What else<\/em> could I be doing with my life?\u2019<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n
    \n

    [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108797482{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Did you ever want to change the world?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I think I didn\u2019t want to change the<\/em> world, but I always wanted to change my<\/em> world\u2026 which is about learning and pushing boundaries\u2026 stretching my own self\u2026 I\u2019ve always been an explorer seeking to get to the next and the next\u2026 and that\u2019s been a big driver of change in my world.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108833755{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What would your advice be to a young person at the start of his or her career and confused about pursuing passion versus being pragmatic?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]This is the million dollar question isn\u2019t it? I\u2019d probably say, at the risk of giving a convenient answer, pursue something that is \u201cpragmatic passion\u201d. When you\u2019re young, it is not very easy to know the<\/em> passion that you want to pursue as a career for the rest of your life. However, typically, a young person has multiple<\/em> passion points\u2026 I would say don\u2019t be in a hurry to narrow down on one and go after it\u2026 I\u2019d say try to explore a couple of those areas and see which ones have the potential to convert into a pragmatic career for you. One of those may turn into a full time career and some of the other passions may become hobbies or active amateur pursuits, and you can get the best of both worlds.<\/p>\n

    What I\u2019d definitely advise against is pursuing something that is only pragmatic and something that everyone else tells you you should<\/em> be doing, but you have absolutely no<\/em> interest in\u2026 Also, as advice, one must spend time actively searching and finding things you like\u2026 \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d is not<\/em> an option.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108844475{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]If you could do some time-travelling and go back to meet yourself at 17, 25, 35, what would you say to your selves then?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]\u201cIt was a good thing you listened to the voices inside your head more than the voices around you!\u201d Economics, not<\/em> engineering, market research, not<\/em> brand management.<\/p>\n

    What I could have done more is read more kinds of books, developed the ability to read fast\u2026that\u2019s something that will come really handy later. Also, I would tell myself to learn a few more languages, to build alternate thinking processes, and definitely not give up on the guitar.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1429109447082{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108854271{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What are the pitfalls of your profession and how do you mitigate them? Did you have any fears when you were just starting out about this line of work, and were any of them justified?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I had many fears when I started out because this profession wasn\u2019t a well-known one at all, the rage was all about doing brand management and marketing and sales, and here I was, the topper of the batch, taking one of the lowest paying jobs on campus!<\/p>\n

    In hindsight, the fears were not entirely justified, because the key thing that I was doing was choosing something that I felt I would enjoy doing as part of my work. And no matter what the uncertainty of the job and how much money I would make and what the career path I would choose, I felt sure of one thing, that at least I will be happy doing work through the day and how I spend my time through the day.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429108864274{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What is the kind of supplementary informal learning that will give you that edge on this job? Is there any specific reading that you engage in, any other resources?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Constantly reading about what\u2019s happening around your world is critical. Being aware not only of the news, but over time trying to get to an informed point of view on it is needed.<\/p>\n

    Any source that gives you understanding on brands and businesses is a good read – Economic Times and its supplements, Business Standard, Business Today.\u00a0I’m also very\u00a0partial\u00a0to\u00a0Harvard\u00a0Business Review and The Economist.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429261975900{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What is most rewarding about your job?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I get paid to understand what makes people tick.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1429109457836{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner]

    <\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429186636412{margin-right: 5px !important;}”]<\/p>\n
    \n
    If you\u2019re a graduate working as a manager in a bank, no matter how much you write \u201cthat you have led a team of 10 people towards developing a strategic process of cash flow management to enable profitable delivery of the branch\u2019s targets for the month\u201d, the recruiter will still read \u201cyou cleared cheques really fast.\u201d So, don’t go OTT (on your resume).<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n
    \n

    [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429261991135{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Do you still have days when you think, \u2018What the hell am I doing with my life?\u2019 How do you get over that, if you do?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Of course! Whenever I get to a question like that, I try to force myself to think of changing the lens from \u2018What the hell am I doing with my life\u2019 to \u2018What else<\/em> could I be doing with my life?\u2019<\/p>\n

    Invariably that question leads to a set of answers and options, which then allows me to evaluate whether those options are better than what I\u2019m doing right now or not. Whenever the answer has been that those options are better\u2026 it has meant, it is time to consider those options as potential directions of change for my work, which is what I recently did when I quit PepsiCo and went independent.<\/p>\n

    But, whenever the answer has been the alternatives are not<\/em> better, I\u2019ve told my mind to shut up and \u201cjust keep swimming\u201d – as Dori reminds us wisely![\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1429262883154{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429262006683{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What\u2019s your advice for a resume that\u2019s just about to enter circulation?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Make sure all the information is updated and there clearly.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t let the flowery words overtake the essential information that a company is looking to see.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t go over the top: If you\u2019re a graduate working as a manager in bank, no matter how much you write \u201cthat you have led a team of 10 people towards developing a strategic process of cash flow management to enable profitable delivery of the branch\u2019s targets for the month\u201d, the recruiter will still read \u201cyou cleared cheques really fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t come across as inflexible in what you\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n

    If you\u2019ve changed jobs too often, you better have a damn good reason for it and something that\u2019s the truth.<\/p>\n

    And think about it yourself – Why should anyone hire you? What makes you, you? Whatever the answer is, make sure you write that well.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1429262018990{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]How does one network in the beginning to get that initial presence felt, in this profession?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Attending seminars related to marketing, brands, research, the consumer \u2013 there are lots that happen these days. Meet people at these seminars. Reach out to relevant people on LinkedIn, don\u2019t<\/em> spam them asking for a job\u2026 just connect to network.[\/vc_column_text]

    <\/div>[vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
    Interview conducted by Pooja Pande.<\/h6>\n

    [\/vc_column_text]

    <\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/section>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    [vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1425396743070{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”3\/4″][vc_column_text] Winning individually is something that the education system has historically propagated \u2013 for someone to come 1st in class, someone else has to come 2nd…and there is an in-built hierarchy in this approach. Whereas the idea of a win-win, where we could both work …<\/p>\n

    Amitabh Pande<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"plain-container","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=284"}],"version-history":[{"count":67,"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2025,"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284\/revisions\/2025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}