Part A
Aditya Birla Group has interests in telecom, financial services, metals, cement, chemicals, fertilizers and so on. It is a significant presence in branded fashion as its Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, which has nearly 2,000 brick & mortar stores, owns India’s largest fashion chain, Pantaloons.
The Group's entry into online fashion retail is appropriate as India has just a few established players like Myntra (part of the country’s Number One online retailer, Flipkart), large retailers like Amazon India and Snapdeal as well as fashion-only startups like Jabong and Limeroad. Fashion and apparel make up the largest slice in India’s organized retail pie projected to grow at 18% annual rates in the coming years. As per Google’s research, India’s fashion e-commerce will generate $35 billion by 2020 out of a total of $100 billion.
UltraTech Cement Limited is the largest manufacturer of cement in India and ranks among the world’s leading cement makers. UltraTech’s vision is to be ‘The Leader’ in Building Solutions. The company has a consolidated capacity* of 102.75 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of grey cement. UltraTech has a strong presence in international markets such as Bangladesh, UAE, Sri Lanka and Bahrain. UltraTech is a founding member of the Global Cement & Concrete Association.
Hindalco Industries Limited is the metals flagship company of Aditya Birla Group. It is the world's largest aluminium rolling company and is also a leading producer of copper. Along with its global subsidiary Novelis Inc., Hindalco has a presence in 12 countries. The company operates across the value chain – from bauxite mining to alumina refining, aluminium smelting, rolling and extrusions. It services key industry sectors such as building & construction, automotives, packaging, electrical, consumer durables, refractories, and ceramics.
Part B
One of the major challenges I faced in my life was during my first job. Being from South India it was pretty daunting to live alone in Pune primarily due to the language barrier. Also after I joined work, my department was shifted to one which primarily focused on an area of technology that I wasn't comfortable with. After struggling a lot I decided it was time to take things into my own hands. I spent weekends learning skills essential to my job and also picking up Hindi for daily life. Two short months later I was given an award for being the best performer in the team and daily life wasn't problematic anymore as I was comfortable with Hindi as well. It was my drive to perform at work and not give up on facing challenges that truly got me this far.
