From the Editor
The age-old debate on the separation between the church and the state is of special significance to us.
The age-old debate on the separation between the church and the state is of special significance to us. That's because a similar principle governs the code of conduct in our business-separation between the editorial and advertising operations of a magazine. The editorial works independently of the business side. Yet, there have been times when the readers have asked if the advertisers knew what the editorial pages in a particular issue were.
For instance, we get such queries on our annual B-school rankings issue. Of the schools we write about, some also advertise in the same issue. Did those institutes know what the editorial was writing about them and then advertise? Some readers ask. The answer is no. So, why do those institutes decide to advertise in that particular issue? Because our advertising team tells them that BT has an annual issue on B-schools and it's, perhaps, the "right" issue for them to advertise in so as to reach the "right" audience. The broad themes is all our advertising team and a potential advertiser knows; never ever the stories inside or its contents.
We flag this subject now because this issue's cover story may raise similar questions. The 18-page auto package (pages 70-92) has stories that would interest everybody from car buyers to automakers. The face of this five-story package is Volkswagen, one of the world's top 3 automakers, whose diverse portfolio ranges from the small car Polo to the legendary Beetle and the world's most-expensive car, the Bugatti.
Through Skoda, VW has been present in India since 2001. But the recent high-decibel launch of VW models and acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in Suzuki Motor Company (Maruti's controlling shareholder) makes the automaker one to watch out for. As we finalised this package, we realised that the automakers have been one of the heaviest advertisers in BT for the last several months-as they have been in several other publications. Will some of BT's ever-watchful readers have doubts similar to those they expressed in the B-school issue? Here is our advance assurance: The church and the state separation continues to hold true and will always do in BT.
There was another dilemma in choosing the cover story for this issue. Pepsi's amazing transformation from a carbonated drink giant into an innovative food company-and India's key role in this global makeover-is one of those "once-in-a-lifetime" stories to tell. The excitement and profoundness of this change puts it in the annals of all-time great corporate transformations. Don't miss Indra Nooyi's interview where she explains how and why India is going to be Pepsi's biggest learning lab.
As we were sending the issue to press, we got an exclusive preview of Captain Gopinath's upcoming book Simply Fly. Even in the tearing hurry that we selected the excerpts, it was very clear to us that Gopinath is, perhaps, an even better storyteller than he is a businessman. This book, about an irrepressible entrepreneur, who changed the face of air travel in India, is actually a manual for every Indian with entrepreneurial aspirations.
For instance, we get such queries on our annual B-school rankings issue. Of the schools we write about, some also advertise in the same issue. Did those institutes know what the editorial was writing about them and then advertise? Some readers ask. The answer is no. So, why do those institutes decide to advertise in that particular issue? Because our advertising team tells them that BT has an annual issue on B-schools and it's, perhaps, the "right" issue for them to advertise in so as to reach the "right" audience. The broad themes is all our advertising team and a potential advertiser knows; never ever the stories inside or its contents.
We flag this subject now because this issue's cover story may raise similar questions. The 18-page auto package (pages 70-92) has stories that would interest everybody from car buyers to automakers. The face of this five-story package is Volkswagen, one of the world's top 3 automakers, whose diverse portfolio ranges from the small car Polo to the legendary Beetle and the world's most-expensive car, the Bugatti.
Through Skoda, VW has been present in India since 2001. But the recent high-decibel launch of VW models and acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in Suzuki Motor Company (Maruti's controlling shareholder) makes the automaker one to watch out for. As we finalised this package, we realised that the automakers have been one of the heaviest advertisers in BT for the last several months-as they have been in several other publications. Will some of BT's ever-watchful readers have doubts similar to those they expressed in the B-school issue? Here is our advance assurance: The church and the state separation continues to hold true and will always do in BT.
There was another dilemma in choosing the cover story for this issue. Pepsi's amazing transformation from a carbonated drink giant into an innovative food company-and India's key role in this global makeover-is one of those "once-in-a-lifetime" stories to tell. The excitement and profoundness of this change puts it in the annals of all-time great corporate transformations. Don't miss Indra Nooyi's interview where she explains how and why India is going to be Pepsi's biggest learning lab.
As we were sending the issue to press, we got an exclusive preview of Captain Gopinath's upcoming book Simply Fly. Even in the tearing hurry that we selected the excerpts, it was very clear to us that Gopinath is, perhaps, an even better storyteller than he is a businessman. This book, about an irrepressible entrepreneur, who changed the face of air travel in India, is actually a manual for every Indian with entrepreneurial aspirations.
