Dr. Vijaya Kittu Manda is a multi-dimensional personal. He is a Researcher at PBMEIT, India. He is an Advocate, a Technocrat, an Academician, a Book-writer, Editor, Peer-Reviewer and a stock market enthusiast. He has 11 University Postgraduate Degrees in various disciplines ranging from Arts and Humanities to Sustainability to Regenerative Economy, and from Management to Engineering. He is a Ph.D. in Financial Management. His thesis on Mutual Funds and their Market Competition won the prestigious NSE-IEA Best Thesis Award in 2023. He is currently pursuing his second Ph.D. in Computer Science with focus on Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence. He has nearly 13+ years of experience in capital markets, financial planning, and investing He writes Research Papers and Case Studies, Case Reports (of Medical Journals) and sits on Editorial Boards of various publishers. He has 121+ Google Scholar publications and 785+ magazine article publications so far. He is the Chief Editor for a Management Book Series and the Editor of several Scopus-indexed books. He is a Peer Reviewer and is a Certified Peer Review Supervisor. He frequently reviews for leading publishers including IEEE, Springer, Emerald, Sage, amongst others. He sits as a Session Chair and an Advisor for various academic and industrial conferences. He is a guest speaker for colleges and universities. He serves as the host for a research talk show called PBMEIT Expert Insights. Information about his current research activities is available at www.vijaykittu.com
Business Management Commerce Economics Computer Science Information Science
The aim of this chapter is to analyze brand names and their potential impact on consumer behavior when making luxury fashion purchases. Secondary research was carried out to investigate this issue by analyzing the results of older and modern studies available in foreign language bibliography. The theoretical issue of brand management in luxury fashion marketing was examined in the first section. According to the literature review, brand building is a demanding process that requires the consideration of many critical parameters. A thorough understanding of the target audience and a commitment to maintaining the brand's exclusivity, quality, and popularity are necessary for luxury marketing and branding. Creating a strong emotional connection is a priority for the strategy's focus on brand name factors. After that, we will talk about consumer behavior and the most significant trends in the luxury fashion market for affluent consumers.
Blockchain technology can potentially bring several positive changes in the marketing and advertising domain. This chapter explains the core features and advantages that the technology brings to marketing practices. The chapter examines how Blockchain can improve transparency, security, and trust in marketing and advertising transactions. Few real-world applications of Blockchain in digital advertising, customer data management, and loyalty programs are presented. The core message is that features of Blockchain, such as decentralization, transparency, and security, can fundamentally change how customers interact, manage data, and trust advertisers and brands, especially in the connected online digital world. By integrating Blockchain principles, organizations can enhance customer engagement, optimize marketing campaigns, and prioritize ethical practices. Customers have better control and ownership of data and can decide who, when, and for what timeframe they can access it.
Virtual Reality (VR) is a disruptive technology rapidly advancing as computing hardware and software are getting better and cheaper. This chapter attempts to apprise the scholarly community with five futuristic trends that will shape VR. Immersive Social Experiences with Virtual Reality will make social interaction even better. They allow dynamic and multi-sensory shared environments in which users can engage authentically across geographical barriers. Advances in rendering and GPU technology will bring near-photorealistic visuals to VR. This makes immersion even better. Such VR has several applications in medicine, architecture, and education. Haptic feedback advancements will provide users realistic tactile sensations, enhancing interaction and immersion in virtual environments. Full-body tracking lets users use their entire body to control and interact with virtual spaces. This has applications in rehabilitation, sports, and professional training. AI-powered VR will bring personalized experiences and create intelligent virtual agents. The VR content can be dynamically generated according to the environment. This brings in interactivity and realism that was never experienced before.
Researchers have documented the advantages and impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the field of education well. All stakeholders in the educational sector will benefit from improved outcomes by implementing AI systems. This study discusses the integration of AI into a desired system called “Smart Education.” It explains the transformative potential of customized educational content to individual learners’ needs. AI technologies become assistants to education and help them in instruction design and content development. The system considers each student’s unique pace, preferences, and capabilities and generates content accordingly. Such learning will be more effective and engaging. AI systems in education have three key sub-systems: intelligent tutoring systems, adaptive learning platforms, and predictive analytics. These innovations identify learning gaps, provide real-time feedback, and support differentiated instruction. Students with such content exposure and tools can achieve their full potential. Institutions are concerned with challenges and ethical concerns connected with the deployment of AI in Education. Despite this, there is a need for continued exploration and adoption of AI technologies. They create dynamic, responsive, personalized learning experiences that prepare students for future demands. Educators and Institutions can significantly improve learning outcomes and promote a culture of innovation and adaptability in education by using AI.
This chapter tries to provide an overview of the latest trends and patterns of slow fashion consumption in the affluent market. Slow fashion consumption in affluent markets reflects a growing shift towards ethical, sustainable, and intentional purchasing habits, driven by increased awareness of environmental and social issues. It involves prioritizing quality over quantity, supporting ethical production practices, and embracing a mindful approach to wardrobe duration. Affluent consumers are motivated by the desire to align their purchasing behaviors with personal values of sustainability, ethical responsibility, and conscious living. While affluent consumers are well-positioned to adopt slow fashion due to higher disposable incomes, the movement also faces challenges. The high cost of sustainable fashion can limit accessibility, even within wealthy markets.
Robotics is a futuristic multidisciplinary area to make machines think and work to accomplish specific tasks. It brings innovations from various engineering disciplines, such as computer science and artificial intelligence. The increasing number of research publications over the years shows that the topic interests’ researchers. This chapter explores six cutting-edge and emerging topics in robotics. A literature review and content analysis helped identify six advanced topics on robotics, which this chapter discussed. The topics included are Soft Robotics, Swarm Robotics, Human-Robot Interaction/Collaboration (HRI/HRC), integration of robotics with artificial intelligence, Micro and Nanorobotics, and quantum robotics. A list of 10 more advanced emerging areas of robotics is listed. This chapter identifies future research directions and provides a roadmap for academicians and practitioners to leverage these advancements for societal and industrial impact. This chapter helps academicians and professionals across various industries, especially in computer science, engineering, and electronic engineering, as well as practitioners from various industries focusing on technology applications such as healthcare, manufacturing, and exploration.
Geospatial technologies, both traditional and modern technologies, have changed the way spatial data is collected, stored, processed, analyzed, and visualized for decision-making in Smart cities. Popular geospatial technologies are geospatial information systems (GIS), remote sensing, and global positioning systems (GPS). Computing technologies have undergone rapid development in recent times. Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and others are used alongside geospatial technologies for improved decision-making by city planners and administrators. These technologies help Smart cities offer various services to the citizens, promote a circular economy, and be sustainable. Real-time data processing and predictive analytics help proactively manage infrastructure, optimize resource allocation, and enhance overall urban resilience. The chapter is novel in its comprehensive overview of geospatial technologies and data in smart cities, integrating both traditional and modern technologies and emphasizing the significance of geospatial data visualization.
Modern disruption technologies such as the Blockchain and the Metaverse have promising features that can help businesses offer their products and services to customers in a better format. The Metaverse creates a virtual environment and a new communication path between the customer and the business. As a new marketing channel, it helps customers appear as virtual avatars and have a 3D preview/experience of goods and services before adding them to the shopping cart or signing up subscriptions. Blockchain-based systems allow making payments using wallet money, CDBC, or even cryptocurrencies and securely store personal data in a public immutable ledger transaction, which others will verify easily. Marketers have to address specific issues that come with deploying these systems – such as data privacy, amongst others - to give the best consumer experience powered by the confluence of various technologies. The book chapter will have managerial and practical implications for businesses during customer interactions.
The aim of this study is to analyze the factors that influence consumer referents or reference points and their interaction during the decision-making process, along with the principles of prospect theory in the metaverse with market and retail examples. We conducted an integrative literature review. Consumers’ preference for reference points is determined and structured during the buying process, which can be affected by potential signals and biased decisions. To guide consumers’ shopping experiences and purchasing behavior in the most effective way, marketers and organizations must investigate the factors that influence consumer reference points beyond physical or tangible attributes. Businesses must be adaptable and adapt their strategies to changing consumer preferences based on reference points. Our findings can advance discussions about how reference points are being used in the market by using consumer decision-making claims in the discursive construction of the metaverse. By comprehending this, developers can create better experiences and assist users in navigating virtual risks. Our research aids us in better comprehending the influence of referents on consumer purchasing decisions in the marketing communications field. Numerous opportunities for academic research into consumer reference points have arisen, in which individuals as digital consumers are influenced by the same biases and heuristics that guide their behavior in reality.
Integrating Ethical Principles into the development and deployment processes becomes essential for management leaders as AI rapidly transforms workplaces. Ethical AI and Decision-Making ensure the alignment of AI applications with human values and societal goals. Fairness, transparency, accountability, privacy, societal impact, and human values are critical ethical principles that guide AI systems. Ethical decision-making models and methodologies offer structured frameworks for balancing competing ethical considerations. AI Ethics Boards provide governance and risk management. Interdisciplinary collaboration, Stakeholder engagement, and Inclusive processes bring diverse perspectives. Risk assessment, Governance Frameworks and mitigation strategies address potential harms and promote Responsible AI practices. By implementing ethical decision-making practices, promoting transparency and accountability, and engaging in responsible AI governance, organizations and leaders can benefit from AI while minimizing ethical risks and maximizing societal benefits.
This research study examines the use of Blockchain technology for ecological and environmental applications. The study presents a conceptual view aided by a literature survey to identify three major Blockchain themes connecting with the research topic - Transparency and Traceability, Conservation and Incentives, and Data Management and Monitoring. The goal of the study is to use the features offered by Blockchain Technology for sustainability, ecology, and environmental applications. As this research shows, technology can help in conservation and incentive practices such as conservation finance, tokenized rewards for ecosystem services, and rewards for sustainable practices. Blockchain has good data management and monitoring practices that can help secure environmental data, monitor various environmental parameters in real time, and provide a decentralized platform/infrastructure for environmental data analytics. Findings from this study can help environmental practitioners and researchers, research bodies, and Governmental agencies keen to use technology to preserve ecology and the environment and encourage sustainable practices.
Governments and market regulators are debating and deliberating on matters of concern and benefits of treating cryptocurrencies as an asset or a currency so that they can tax them accordingly. 2022 has shaken the financial markets with the onset of the worst crypto winters in cryptocurrency history on one hand and the collapse of a few cryptocurrencies and the exchanges that facilitate investing and trading in them. These events brought chills to the stakeholders, who began questioning the stability of the cryptocurrency and the functioning of various exchanges. Cryptocurrencies promise to be the future of currency, and hence, there is an immediate need to protect investors by regulating them – especially those cryptocurrency exchanges running in a centralized form. The case examines the collapse of FTX and other financial institutions because they exposed the structural weaknesses existing in the system. The case also examines competitor business strategies to protect themselves from such incidents and stresses the need for governmental and regulatory interventions.
Decentralized finance is an innovative use of blockchain technology in financial services. Because of its transparency and lack of intermediaries, it brings several advantages to the traditional finance ecosystem. Features like tokenization, total value locked (TVL), oracles, and data aggregation help in building a variety of DeFi products and services. Decentralized apps (dApps) run autonomously atop distributed ledger networks. Decentralized stablecoins, decentralized exchanges (DEX), decentralized credit and lending, derivates, and even decentralized insurance are offered on DeFi platforms. The chapter takes through three forms of decentralized insurance models. Case studies and examples for successful and unsuccessful claims are explored. However, the implementation of DeFi comes with its challenges and regulatory hurdles. Similarly, governance and security aspects are of increased importance.
Blockchain is a promising technology that can help organizations improve their cybersecurity. Blockchain has many inherent features that can help enhance data security, improve threat detection and response, strengthen authentication and authorization, and enhance cyber threat intelligence sharing. This is possible because of the innovative approach that Blockchain uses, such as immutable ledgers to store transactions, monitor assets, and build trust by providing access only to authorized participants. The chapter discusses cybersecurity best practices related to smart contracts, key management, network security, user education and awareness, incident reporting, privacy challenges, software updates, and decentralization. Key regulatory compliance aspects, such as GDPR and HIPPA, are discussed. The increasing interactions of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and the Internet of Things (IoT) with Blockchain can further provide improved cybersecurity services and hence form the discussion of the trends and potential future research section of this chapter.
Studying current trends and opportunities in geospatial technologies for Smart cities helps city planners and administrators understand technology advancements and aids in better implementation practice. Similarly, understanding future research directions enables researchers and policymakers to harness these technologies fully and anticipate upcoming developments. Overall, this approach supports the creation of more livable, sustainable, and equitable cities for all. This chapter explores the current trends, emerging opportunities, and future research directions. Geospatial AI is supported by several cutting-edge technologies such as IoT, digital twins, and 3D/4D urban modeling. Future geospatial research should use advanced AI models, real-time analytics, and privacy-preserving technologies. Understanding the technologies' ethical and inclusive implementation is essential to support long-term urban sustainability and citizen well-being. Such Smart cities can ensure more sustainable, resilient, and equitable urban environments for future generations.
Through the lens of established marketing and technology adoption theories, this paper examines the complexities involved in marketing smart consumer products to global millennial consumers. It discusses the key challenges and opportunities that marketers face, which are supported by academic literature. Digital interconnectivity, data abundance, AI integration, and evolving consumer expectations are the driving forces behind the complexity of marketing smart consumer products, as demonstrated in the review. To manage this complexity, marketing practices must be strategically, data-informed, and human-centered. Further, the findings highlight the significance of cultural sensitivity, global-local positioning, and adaptive marketing strategies that cater to the distinct desires and expectations of millennials in diverse regions. To advance both theoretical and practical understanding, future research should investigate the longitudinal effects, cross-cultural dynamics, and ethical considerations in AI-driven marketing.
Learning disabilities in adults can have significant adverse effects on both cognitive and social-emotional development of an individual, according to the World Health Organization. Pattern design is an algorithmic process that involves points, lines, measurements, and calculations, which may be challenging for individuals with developmental disorders. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the methodology for designing cutting patterns, by providing guidelines to individuals with special learning difficulties on how to improve their performance in the demanding design of cutting patterns and to gain self-confidence. Additionally, our study examines the principles and practical tactics of inclusive marketing in adaptive handmade clothing and addresses its broader implications for the fashion industry.
This chapter explains the use of Deep Learning Models from Artificial Intelligence (AI) that take Structural and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (S/FMRI) data to classify Alzheimer's disease (AD) progression stages. Early and accurate diagnosis of AD is necessary for timely intervention, treatment planning, and providing personalized healthcare. Current limitations in diagnostic methods necessitate using AI methods such as Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN) to extract features from MRI data and develop models for predicting Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), AD, and Dementia. Initial results from a case study that applied the methodology demonstrated improved classification accuracy over traditional methods in accurately classifying disease stages and developing patient care. With more refinement as AI technologies progress, these computational approaches can drastically and positively change patient care. Healthcare professionals benefit from this chapter by understanding how AI can be implemented to deal with neurodegenerative diseases.
This case study examines cultural sensitivity in film marketing through an analysis of the movie Joker (2019). Using Arthur Fleck's character as a focal point, it explores how the film's marketing portrays systemic inequalities and social injustice. The research employs qualitative methods, combining critical theory and discourse analysis to examine how personal trauma transforms into collective unrest. Through the lens of Fleck's evolution into the Joker, the study analyzes themes of poverty, mental illness, class division, and social alienation. The findings reveal how the marketing campaign highlights marginalized populations' potential for destructive behavior when overlooked by society. The study demonstrates how economic disparity and institutional failures act as societal destabilizers, with the Joker serving as a mirror reflecting contemporary social issues. This analysis calls for investigation into policies that could prevent social alienation and unrest in modern society.
The purpose of this chapter is to evaluate Amazon and Apple's market penetration of smart products by analyzing their CSR and digital marketing strategies, while taking into account leadership factors that could assist their organizations in moving toward a sustainable society. The focus is on issues related to worker treatment, environmental impact, and social responsibility initiatives. We conducted a case study analysis to look at their ethical behavior and the actions and initiatives they take about CSR. Both Amazon and Apple have succeeded in achieving sustainable progress in their smart consumer products, as we found, by reconciling the difficulties of globalization with their marketing strategies for CSR and the establishment of a circular economy in global markets.
This chapter aims to give a brief overview of the most recent trends and patterns of green and sustainable entrepreneurship in the global fashion market by outlying the potential and future trends of smart fashion consumer products. Issues pertaining to green and sustainable entrepreneurship are discussed, with the goal of achieving growth and profitability while also taking into account the importance of protecting the environment and minimizing climate change. Research and development of green technologies and practices is the key to achieving this through appropriate investments. The chapter explains how PROMETHE's methodology tackles and solves marketing problems related to global fashion challenges by suggesting the best alternative decisions for marketing tactics and strategic actions. In addition, the analysis highlights new trends and challenges that marketer and decision-makers in the fashion industry are facing.
The Digital Markets Act (DMA), enacted by the EU in 2022, regulates anti-competitive practices in digital markets by targeting influential tech gatekeepers. Despite originating in Europe, these regulations affect companies globally, including those in the Gulf. This article examines the DMA's impact on Gulf e-commerce through a Souq.com case study (now Amazon Middle East). The study reveals how Souq.com responded to key DMA provisions by modifying algorithms for fairer competition, restructuring data management to meet privacy standards, and redesigning platform policies to improve third-party vendor access. These changes highlight both challenges and opportunities for Gulf companies adapting to extraterritorial regulations. The findings emphasize the importance for regional businesses to comply with global regulatory frameworks to maintain competitive advantage and build consumer trust. This article offers valuable insights for Gulf-based companies navigating international digital regulations in an increasingly regulated global marketplace.
The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the previous decade has generated a heightened interest. A rise in scholarly articles on computer science and management was seen. This paper uses a computational literature review method with an abstract-based sampling methodology to examine the current state of the management literature and assess academic research from the last twenty years. 6536 publications (1990-2020) are analyzed across five management categories, identifying 41 unique subjects showing research development before and after AI. The results indicate that the early 2010s integrated the fragmented topic network structure. The increasing trajectory of management research began from 2014 to 2015. The results offer a thorough understanding of the potential of AI in management compared to developing sectors. The era between 2021 and 2025 was primarily about sustainability and generative AI, and a separate discussion was carried out. They also give recommendations to management scholars and practitioners.
The convergence of luxury and technology has redefined consumer expectations. This necessitated innovative, collaborative strategies in the smart luxury industry. This chapter examines how co-creation, co-marketing, and co-branding strategies drive value creation, consumer engagement, and competitive differentiation in this sector. The role of digital platforms, AI-driven personalization, and cross-industry partnerships in shaping modern luxury branding is analyzed. A synthesis of theoretical frameworks, industry case studies, and empirical research is done. Key findings highlight the importance of strategic alignment, brand compatibility, and technology adoption for successful collaborations. The chapter also explores crisis management and future trends, such as sustainability and metaverse integration. By bridging theory and practice, this work offers actionable insights for academics and luxury brand managers navigating the evolving digital landscape. The chapter demonstrates how smart luxury brands influence collaborative strategies, innovation, and sustainability initiatives.
Reverse Logistics (RL) has become a critical challenge in supply chain management, especially for retail and e-commerce. With online shopping growth, product returns have increased due to sizing issues, quality concerns, and unmet customer expectations. This study analyzes return causes in online apparel shopping and proposes cost optimization strategies. Our findings show that understanding return drivers—fit issues, quality mismatches, and delivery delays—helps businesses reduce returns and enhance customer satisfaction. The research emphasizes adopting AI, blockchain, and IoT technologies to improve reverse logistics efficiency. Recommendations include implementing centralized return centers, automating supply chains, and educating customers to minimize costs. The study highlights RL's role in sustainability through recycling, refurbishment, and waste reduction practices. This research provides valuable insights for students, academics, and industry professionals seeking to address RL challenges and enhance supply chain sustainability in the apparel industry and beyond.
The Ports and Maritime industry has long utilized technology interventions. This study examines the relationship between Blockchain technology and shipping operations in Nigerian ports. It evaluates Blockchain's role in the supply chain and its potential to improve information dissemination and efficiency. Two key roles of Blockchain technology are focused: Shipment Tracking and Smart Bills of Lading. The study used the survey method to collect data through questionnaires from a sample size of 120 respondents, including shipping company representatives and port workers in the commercial unit. The study finds a positive correlation between Blockchain technology and shipment tracking and between Blockchain technology and Smart Bills of Lading. It concludes that Blockchain technology is relevant in the Nigerian shipping industry for Shipment Tracking and Smart Bills of Lading. The study integrates various theories to explain adoption trends and supports findings. Government policy support and public-private collaboration can accelerate Blockchain implementation in Nigerian ports.
Matera, a city in the Basilicata region, represents one of the most emblematic cases of cultural and tourism-driven revitalization in Italy. The primary objective of this chapter is to identify and analyze the tourism marketing strategies that enabled Matera to transform from a forgotten city into a premier tourist destination. Specifically, this study aims: o examine the role of UNESCO recognition in the enhancement process; to analyze destination branding campaigns and tourism promotion initiatives; to assess the impact of the European Capital of Culture 2019 title; to reflect on future challenges and opportunities for sustainable development. Furthermore, this chapter aims to provide insights and replicable models for other Italian tourist destinations seeking to enhance their cultural and natural heritage. The examination of Matera's revival holds both academic and practical significance.
International trade facilitates efficient resource allocation and economic growth but is highly sensitive to external factors such as Exchange Rate Fluctuations (ERV). ERV represents frequent and unpredictable changes in currency values that can increase transaction costs, reduce competitiveness in export markets, and discourage cross-border investments. This research investigates the relationship between ERV and International Trade in Emerging economies. The gravity model of trade model is used to analyze panel data collected from 20 emerging market countries over 2000-2022 to examine the effect of ERV on export and import flows. The results indicate a significant negative impact of exchange rate volatility on exports and imports, with exports being more sensitive to volatility. Macroeconomic stability and financial development are found to moderate the adverse effects of volatility on trade flows. These findings have important implications for policymakers in emerging economies seeking to promote international trade and mitigate the risks associated with exchange rate fluctuations.
The differential effects of Corporate social responsibility (CSR) dimensions—Environmental Sustainability (ES), Community Engagement (CE), and Ethical Practices (EP)—remain underexplored in the hospitality and tourism industry. This study examines how the CSR dimensions impact customer loyalty, brand image, and satisfaction, and investigates the mediating roles of perceived value (PV) and customer trust (CT) among hospitality and tourism customers in Ghana. A customer sample of 486 participants is picked from select hotels, resorts, and travel agencies. The collected data is analyzed using PLS - SEM. The study finds that CSR dimensions strongly impact customer outcomes. ES and CE increased brand image, value, trust, loyalty, and satisfaction. However, EP negatively correlated with perceived value. The study shows how perceived value and customer trust mediate CSR efforts to meaningful customer outcomes. These findings suggest that companies must focus on functional and psychological CSR benefits to increase brand loyalty and customer satisfaction.
Culture and Information Technology (IT) influence each other. This chapter uses cultural epistemology (CE) perspectives to explain the four dimensions of Culture and IT that influence each other. First, a discussion on the impact of Culture on Information Sharing and Communication is included. Then, Culture and its impact on the Digital Divide and Global Access to Information are discussed. Information Bias and Algorithm Fairness are vital considerations for IT developers when building culture-rich applications. Finally, a discussion on Artificial Intelligence and Cultural Understanding is covered to catch up with the emerging theme. Each dimension raises three questions, which are discussed using the CE approach. This study benefits many stakeholders by providing new insights into the relationship between Culture and IT. This knowledge can be used to develop more effective policies, practices, and systems that promote the equitable use of IT and address the digital divide.
Blockchain technology can make a transformative impact on marketing and communications strategies. The technology has several applications, including tamper-proof influencer metrics, tokenized loyalty programs, and transparency in the community. A comprehensive analysis of recent academic literature and thematic content analysis helps identify theories connected to the topic and a practical implementation gap. Smart contracts enable verifiable transactions between stakeholders, while immutable ledger technology enhances brand credibility through authenticated communications. The chapter provides a structured implementation framework for marketing professionals, addressing technical integration requirements, resource allocation considerations, and anticipated return on investment. Generative AI offers new tools for content creation, while blockchain ensures its provenance and integrity. Challenges and future research directions are discussed. This work contributes to blockchain technology's theoretical understanding and practical application within an evolving Web3 paradigm.
Islamic media platforms such as Salam TV have reshaped religious broadcasting, influencing both public discourse and religious identity. However, research has largely emphasized audience impact, with little attention given to how editorial and institutional processes shape da’wah content, particularly in campus-based platforms. This study adopts a qualitative case study approach to explore agenda-setting within Salam TV’s da’wah programming. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, document analysis, and focus group discussions involving 140 informants, including broadcasting managers, content producers, Islamic scholars, and viewers. Thematic analysis was employed to identify recurring patterns in editorial decision-making and institutional influence. Findings reveal that Salam TV’s editorial priorities are strongly shaped by theological imperatives rooted in the Salafi tradition. Programming themes consistently emphasize aqidah, akhlak, and Islamic jurisprudence, supported by structured mechanisms for theme selection, script development, and theological review. While audiences value the program’s theological precision, younger viewers express a preference for more inclusive language and contemporary framing. The study highlights the tension between theological rigor and communicative adaptability in campus-based Islamic media. To remain relevant and credible across diverse audiences, Islamic broadcasters must integrate theological accuracy with responsive communication strategies.
Computational modeling approaches evolved due to financial technology innovation within the green bond market. Green bonds are debt products that finance environmental and sustainability projects. Their global popularity and increasing investor interest make investors use them to align their portfolios with their sustainability goals. This chapter has three main sections. An overview of the green bond market, discussing various types along with their issuance levels and geographical distribution, is discussed in the first section. The second section discusses the reasons for the green bond market growth and the challenges that impede its development. The final section discusses specific computational models applied to green bonds in detail. These include financial pricing models, life cycle assessments, risk assessment models, scenario analysis, portfolio optimization models, agent-based modeling, and network analysis. The chapter argues that as the market evolves, computational models will play an increasingly crucial role in pricing, impact assessment, and performance tracking, ultimately contributing to the financial sustainability of green investments. All financial services industry stakeholders benefit from inputs and insights drawn from this chapter on how computational models provide insights into green bonds.
India's demonetisation of November 2016 has become a major trigger for the country to move towards digitization and become a cash-free country. Though in their nascent stages, newer and potentially disruptive innovations such as Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain have the potential to replace paper money with digital currency providing a de-centralized and secured environment. Blockchain features such as distributed computing, confidentiality, authenticity, non-repudiation, data integrity, and data availability can help a populous country like India to turn into a cash-free economy. Blockchain make tremendous impact on the financial sector, particularly in speeding up and simplifying cross-border payments, in share trading, by way of smart contracts, improving online identity management and in loyalty and rewards (Deloitte; 2018). This paper is an attempt to check out some of the blockchain implementations in India done so far in regard to embracing the technology, both within and outside the financials domain.
Motorcycles are progressively becoming a well-known mode of transportation in Ghana, especially in the northern region. Their affordability and easy movement on our rough roads make them a choice many users prefer. Nonetheless, the increase in the number of these motorcycles brought some concerns connected with safety and security. To resolve these issues, the improvement of the security framework is fundamental. Real-time monitoring is part of the Internet of Things (IoT), which permits distance monitoring. Different tracking technologies such as RFID, Internet tracking, cellphone triangulation, GPS, and other technologies. This research work expects to plan a far-reaching motorcycle security and global positioning framework utilizing an Arduino microcontroller Uno r3, Neo-6mGPS, and GSM SIM800L modules. The GPS module obtains the location area while the GSM module works with interaction between the Arduino Uno and the client's cell phone, showing the area on Google Maps. The framework comprises a locking component and a global positioning framework. The motorcycle's ignition system is controlled by a locking mechanism that enhances protection against theft. Besides, the scarcity of these security systems and the existing motorcycle tracking systems are very costly to purchase and maintain. There is restricting openness for the overwhelming majority of bike users. This prompt is a high pace of bike theft, making recovery challenging. One of the project's goals are to decrease power utilization in the global positioning framework, upgrade GPS following precision, and use SMS as the essential means of communication. This research work adopted the Agile Methodology of designing applications. While this research work presents various benefits, it additionally has limits. These incorporate the expenses of equipment parts. Restricted accessibility of Arduino components in the Ghanaian market and time. Regardless of these restrictions, the exploration attempts to create powerful and open bike security in the Ghanaian market.
The metaverse is an emerging virtual frontier that is becoming a new marketing channel for brands to showcase their products and services. Brands can now use the services of influencers (both human and virtual) to influence consumer decisions. The metaverse and other new-generation Web 3.0 technologies are used in marketing campaigns to take advantage of immersive and augmented reality environments. Influencers use strategies different from traditional e-commerce, B2B, and social media marketing. Virtual showrooms, events, and product launches engage with consumers to co-create products and give a memorable consumer experience. The metaverse provides opportunities for community building and user-generated content that is more social proof. As technologies improve, influencers get more engaged in the metaverse. Measuring and evaluating influencer campaigns, ethical considerations, legal and regulatory frameworks, and long-term implications of influencer campaigns are some areas of future study.
The financial asset management industry is constantly looking for ways to reduce the cost of running funds by simplifying their processes and making it easier to comply with regulatory requirements. Blockchain provides a feasible solution to these requirements. This paper explores the operational and implementation aspects of the business-grade version of the enterprise blockchain technology that benefits all stakeholders in the asset management industry using a theory-driven approach. Implementation technology, procedure, regulation, and social dimensions for practical implementation are discussed. Enterprise Ethereum Alliance's (EEA) Ethereum Architecture Stack describes the architectural framework in the technical implementation. This paper explains how EEA features give the asset management ecosystem a value proposition from a practical implementation perspective. Hence, stakeholders (regulators, asset management companies, registrars) and financial intermediaries get directions on migrating to the blockchain network.
Blockchain and other business disruption technologies have created a buzz in the last few years and have become an inevitable discussions topic in the financial circles. It will have game-changing impact on businesses, particularly on the banking and financial services. Consortium or Enterprise Blockchain is the latest technological evolution allowing us to build hybrid blockchains (public and private) using features such as permission restriction and multiple controlling authorities. These hybrid features allow easy yet controlled information sharing between various stakeholders. After getting acceptance in areas such as remittance & supply chain financing, blockchain is now making inroads into sub-sectors such as asset and wealth management. This article demystifies blockchain concepts and demonstrates an implementation for the mutual fund (MF) industry. MF industry is plagued by slow processing. For example, it takes days together to onboarding a new investor, transactions take a date to appear on statements while NAV computations takes hours to compute and show up for registrars to process transactions. We explore how smart contracts can help cut the transaction processing but will blockchain provide high speed and latency necessary? Can investor statements be accessed dynamically? Will distributed information sharing and decentralization system save costs and time for the stakeholders, particularly in client onboarding, NAV dissemination? How can blockchain help in KYC and other compliance related activities? Can MF scheme portfolios and factsheets get constructed automatically and available with real time updates? How can regulators and auditors have easy access to information as and when they want? Finally, we will examine some of the challenges or hurdles that come in way towards the implementation.
The competitive Indian Mutual Fund Industry requires the use of Marketing 4.0 principles owing to changing marketplace dynamics and increased competition. Traditional advertising forms got saturated with mutual funds, and the new redefined marketing principles reinforced the need to move to digital media. The recent addition of the fifth A (Advocacy) to the marketing jargon became necessary because of the increased connectedness and social nature of the customers (investors). The O-Zone factor increasingly influences investor decision making and helps in driving loyal investors from Aware to Advocate. This article discusses the social media marketing of Indian Asset Management Companies (AMCs). Improving brand curiosity and extending product reach to prospective clients are some potential advantages of the activity. Engagement marketing practices, marketing expense impact, four C's marketing mix, and online customer care are some new marketing principles. AMCs can use these to build better marketing campaigns for building investor-centric financial products. Different dimensions of social media usage are specified, and their utilization by various Indian mutual fund houses is measured. This understanding can help in better marketing of financial products and services, particularly that of mutual funds.
The Metaverse is an immersive virtual world facilitated by virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). It is a backbone technology for Web 3 in which users interact using avatars in a digital content environment. Metaverse as a platform enriches Web 3 with its decentralized, interactive, and immersive experiences, allowing newer forms of collaboration, innovation, and entrepreneurship. A quick historical background and its evolution are discussed. Being a content-rich environment, upgraded high-speed connectivity is necessary. Internet 3.0, decentralization, and VR/AR technologies will help build the foundation. Metaverse requires special hardware, software, content, networking, and governance. The Metaverse promises economic models in which cryptocurrencies and Metaverse Coins are traded. Metaverse is still evolving as research is increasing and associations are focusing on standards. Robust governance and regulations are still nascent. Certain negative aspects include privacy and security, addiction, cyberbullying, and disinformation, about which users must be cautious.
Creative efforts are necessary as global efforts seek to undertake projects focused on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives. Among various financial products that provide funding for projects, green bonds, particularly sovereign green bonds (SGB or SGrB) issued with sovereign guarantees by central governments, have gained prominence. Proceeds from SGBs are used to finance green projects such as non-conventional and renewable energy projects, alternative energy solutions, greenhouse gas emission reduction, climate change mitigation, or reduced use of carbon-based energy sources. SGB will receive increasing global attention as governments attempt to meet UN climate change goals. This research uses descriptive research methodology to examine the evolution, operational aspects, challenges, and investor expectations associated with SGrBs by taking India as a case. The study period is taken from 2016 to 2023. It used a conceptual approach to discuss the market's evolution. The findings highlight how SGBs provide an unconventional way to link green finance with ecological priorities by combining fiscal policy, investment and science-based solutions. The insights are intended to inform future SGB frameworks and strategies to target funded green growth towards pressing global sustainability issues.
Neuroleadership has emerged as a field combining neuroscience and leadership. It has gained increasing attention recently, attracting interest from academics, researchers, and practitioners. It refers to the brain functions that affect leadership abilities and how they make decisions and solve problems. Cognitive enhancement with neurofeedback and neurological assessment tools are discussed. Though evolving, virtual reality/augmented reality (VR/AR) is helping with real-time neural data. All these tools are helping organizations in their leadership with neuroscience optimizing leadership behaviors and decision-making. Organizations must build strategies for using available research to implement neuroleadership, learn from the adoption, refine them, and then future-proofing leadership practices. Several methodological issues will be encountered in the research journey, but by staying focused and constantly optimizing, the organizations can decide what works best for them. The ethical use of tools and methods and the regulatory restrictions are to be watched.
Sustainable transportation practices are essential for any country. Electric vehicles and their infrastructure can substantially impact the greenhouse gas emissions of a country. India recently witnessed an enormous upsurge in its two-wheeler electric vehicle (2WEV) manufacturing capabilities and sales. The key drivers of growth in the 2WEV sector, such as rising fuel costs, government subsidies and policies promoting electric mobility, falling battery prices, and technological improvements, are discussed. The current size of the Indian 2WEV market and its projected future growth are studied. It also profiles major players in the 2WEV space and technological advancements that have made EVs more viable alternatives to petrol-powered vehicles. Government schemes like FAME and other policies impact the 2WEV sales. It also highlights the importance of EV infrastructure, backward integration, and the EV index in promoting the growth of the 2W EV segment. The case of a pioneering startup in the 2W EV industry illustrates the entrepreneurs' challenges and opportunities in this field.
The chapter examines the ethical landscape of AI, focusing on the development and deployment of Responsible AI systems. The increased deployment of systems powered by artificial intelligence technologies necessitates making work more predictable, trustworthy, and ethical. The development and deployment of such systems require the use of Responsible AI. A healthcare system, for example, is a classic system where AI is used in healthcare collaborations and decision-making. Studying the ethical landscape of AI allows us to understand the historical context and evolution of AI Ethics and the challenges and risks associated with such systems. Ethical frameworks examines the six AI assurance goals, the existing ethical frameworks and guidelines, and the core principles behind them. Future challenges and considerations for further research that emerge because of evolving concerns and potential misuse of AI systems are discussed.
The convergence of traditional media with metaverse technology has revolutionized interactive broadcasting by blending immersive experiences with real-time interactivity. This study explores the integration of media convergence and metaverse-driven platforms, highlighting their transformative impact on audience engagement, technological innovations, and the challenges related to infrastructure, cost, and ethical considerations. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining qualitative and quantitative research. A comprehensive literature review established the theoretical foundation, while case studies of metaverse-enabled events, such as virtual concerts and immersive news reports, provided real-world insights. Semi-structured interviews with industry professionals offered expert perspectives on adoption barriers and strategies. Quantitative metrics, including audience retention rates and interaction times, were analyzed alongside industry reports to validate findings. The findings reveal a significant increase in audience engagement, with metaverse-driven platforms achieving 150% longer interaction times and a 20% higher retention rate than traditional formats. Technological enablers, such as VR, AR, Blockchain, and AI, were identified as key drivers of this transformation, facilitating immersive storytelling, secure digital transactions, and personalized content delivery. However, challenges persist, including high infrastructure costs, regional disparities in technological access, and ethical concerns over data privacy and intellectual property disputes. Metaverse broadcasting redefines audience interaction by enabling users to participate actively in content creation and exploration.
The Automobile sector is an important pillar of the Indian Economy. Being a major contributor to GDP, and a big job creator facing a slowdown, the crisis in the Indian automobile sector has far-fetching consequences. This research study examines the reason leading to the decline in automobile sales with specific reference to Indian automobile companies from a two-wheeler, passenger, and commercial vehicles. An overall economic slowdown, liquidity issues, weak consumer demand, disruptive entry of new players are observed to be the prime factors forcing automobile companies to declare plant non-working days, employee wage cuts and even retrenchments, delaying expansion plans and technology upgrades apart from being pushed into a deep financial crunch. Findings and recommendations from this research can strengthen our understanding of the issues surrounding the sector and can potentially help companies to find a way out of the crisis.
Managing one-fifth of credit in the country, the Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC) is a vital sector for the Indian economy. A series of problems are hurting the Indian NBFC sector since the default of infrastructure finance major IL&FS in September 2018. What seemed to be a liquidity crisis is looming into a solvency issue. Some major players backed by reputed promoters are going out of business. Though the downgrades & defaults do have a considerable impact on the banking and finance industry as a whole, there is sufficient panic-triggering turbulence in certain pockets of the industry. The Housing Finance Companies (HFCs) and the Asset Management Industry are found to be vulnerable and got highly hurt by the crisis. A central issue that led to the liquidity issues in the industry is the asset-liability mismatch. Regulators prefer tweaking macro-economic variables to curtail the problem rather than providing a special liquidity window. The crisis highlighted the need for much closer interaction and the interplay between regulators such as RBI, IRDA, NHB, and SEBI to avert such possibilities in future failing which bubbles like these could culminate to become a systemic risk. Findings from this paper can help various stakeholders from the NBFC, the regulators, and the Government in better preparedness.
Shortage of Coal led to a power crisis, first in Europe, then in China, and later in India. Quick recovery of economies from COVID pandemic lockdowns and resumption of industrial activity, higher temperatures leadings to increase power usage at night, global increase in coal prices have led to a surprise shortfall in coal mining activity. While the event got averted because of the quick intervention of the authorities, it highlighted the need for quick reforms in the sector and an increasing need to increase renewable energy usage manifold. Inferences drawn from this research can help various stakeholders in energy management (such as power generation companies, coal mining companies), policymakers (such as power regulators), the Government in better handling crisis-like situations that would come in the future.
The U.S. Banking Crisis of 2023 is reportedly different from previous crises. The well-expected failure of Silvergate Bank is because of its crypto-friendly business. This study examines the events that led to the bank's collapse granularly that led to its bankruptcy. A qualitative examination uses historical research and case study method to examine the background of the bank, the series of events that led to its rise, and the eventual collapse of the bank. Discussion and findings from the study explain the various forms of risks that banks face in the course of their business. The study contributes to the literature on bank crises and failures and will be useful to the banking industry and regulators
India has recently witnessed several allegations of corporate governance lapses and failure. The alarming situation prompted the government and the regulators to take serious note to make the companies accountable for the allegations and to bring in regulations to contain the policy leaks. The governing body and the board of directors must abide by ethical standards, demonstrating an unwavering commitment to discipline, transparency, fairness, and accountability for their actions. This work uses a case study approach to examine various recent corporate governance failures in India. The examination is made in the following dimensions: accountability, transparency, equitability, responsibility, ethical conduct, board independence, risk management, corporate social responsibility, stakeholder engagement, and regulatory compliance. The study scrutinized various classic and recent corporate governance lapses in established corporate entities and startups and in Indian banks. The measures implemented by regulatory bodies, including the RBI, SEBI, and the MCA, were analyzed.
This study introduces a descriptive analysis to carry out the transformation of the Dubai smart city as a case study in the GCC region with reference to the Barcelona smart city. Furthermore, to investigate how the Dubai smart city will deal with the huge amount of the collected personal data through Internet of Things devices and applications. The theoretical analysis shows that the Barcelona smart city can be represented as an effective model, its innovations recommends to be used in Dubai smart city. The analysis founds that the classification of the collected data inside smart city to open and shared data did not provide sufficient privacy for personal data. Therefore, the personal data should be classified explicitly in order to be processed separately under the rules of the data protection law.
One of the offshoots of 2016 demonetization of Indian high denomination bank currency notes is that the country can progress towards becoming a cashless economy. Several countries around the world are trying cashless transactions in one form or the other for various reasons and with reasonable success. This paper examines the global practices and analyses end-user perception in the Indian context. Data collected from survey is analysed to understand the various problems faced by payment and transaction making consumers. What factors such as (age, gender, occupation, income levels and problems) impact customers to do a transaction in cashless mode? What are the major deterrents for making a cashless transaction? What can various stakeholders such as the public, banks and financial institutions, regulators, central banks and governments do to accelerate India to turn into a fully cashless economy? These are problems are examined and suggestions for the same are provided.
Indian banks have a dual challenge of dealing with bad loans on one hand and hurrying to be fully BASEL III compliant on the other. Both the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Government of India are using various approaches over the past two decades to help banks. Several different experiences are obtained by domestic and global banks in handling the non-performing loans (NPL) problem. Yes Bank Limited is India’s 4 th largest private sector bank. It has the industry-best NPA ratios and is renowned for its best practises in the banking industry. Can risk management practices and focus on asset quality help banks maintain loan quality and even stop loans from not slipping into the vicious Non-Performing Asset (NPA) cycle?Data from quarterly & annual reports and other reports is collected to understand management philosophy and asset quality dimensions such as NPA ratio, provisioning coverage ratio, concentration of NPAs, priority sector lending and restructuring of accounts. As the bank evolved from a mid-size bank into a large-size bank in the last 14 years, it gives an opportunity to pose the question - Will NPA size increase as bank transformed from a mid-sized bank to a large bank? Will knowledge-driven sectoral approach to assist customers in their business by lending and offering industry specific financial solutions help the bank? Can technology be used to predict and give early warnings before loans turns sour?
The book on "Innovative Teaching and Learning Process during COVID 19" is a very good effort in bringing novel ideas at the time of pandemic. The engagement with academic fraternity leading to this wonderful outcome is laudable. As the editors of this book, we are fortunate to go through every article and found few interesting aspects in teaching and learning process. Innovation has been the most buzzed word in the world today. In fact, academia across the globe are potentially involved in INNOVATION at every possible level. We wish this race with this pace towards innovation in teaching and learning mechanism drives us to "INNOVATION 5.0" in near future. This book will be instrumental in polarizing the thoughts of reader towards this process of innovation, particularly, in delivering lectures using online platforms and e-resources. Congratulations the authors in this book touched upon diverse topics related to the paradigm shift in teaching and learning process. Various tools, innovative practices were presented vividly in the articles of this book. Congratulations and wishes to authors and publishers for bringing out this productive outcome in the most critical transition time of educational reforms.
Personal Finance, Investing, and Trading are life skills that prepare individuals to become financially comfortable in their lives and lead happy life. While some of these skills can be acquired from family members or can be drawn from first-hand personal experiences, training programs are found to make a profound positive impact. A questionnaire is administered to 278 stock market participants to understand the impact of stock market training programs conducted in the form of seminars and webinars. The study finds that the training programs have given substantial edge in their trading and investing activities and are worth spending time and money on them. Self-experiences, training programs, and stock market books are the most significant sources of stock market wisdom. Findings from this research can help financial intermediaries in better building investor awareness programs.
Electronic voting systems are increasingly becoming popular globally for political and non-political purposes. The three key constraints for lack of trust in e-voting systems are security, transparency, and voter privacy. Blockchain is a promising technology that addresses these needs. This study uses a meta-analysis approach to identify key themes, trends, and considerations from current blockchain-based electronic voting system research. The study lists topics that are of potential future research interest and benefit various stakeholders, including researchers, government agencies, election commissions, and electoral bodies.
Payment systems play an essential role in the financial well-being of an individual. This chapter explores the connection between the two from India's payment revolution perspective. A multi-dimensional typology encompassing psychological factors and financial outcomes provides comprehensive knowledge of financial well-being. The digital payment ecosystem in India, driven by the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), is a compelling case study. The chapter underscores the significance of access to financial services, financial literacy, financial inclusion, and financial protection in promoting overall well-being. Recent trends highlight the growth of fintech startups and their contribution to expanding access to financial services. Adopting digital payment systems has influenced spending patterns, saving habits, and credit behavior, shaping individuals' financial behavior. However, challenges such as financial inclusion, literacy, and consumer protection need to be addressed.
The Indian banking and financial services (BFS) ecosystem uses artificial intelligence (AI) primarily in five major areas—customer service/engagement (chatbot), robo advice, general purpose/predictive analytics, cybersecurity, and credit scoring/direct lending. While initial AI applications focused on support functions, they evolved to help in decision-making over time. As web servers capture and collect a huge quantum of customer data, companies are taking advantage of artificial intelligence, big data analytics, and machine learning. The technology trio is helping financial companies, particularly startups, build innovative products, monitor, manage risk, and provide superior customer services. Indian startups made their mark by successfully demonstrating AI use cases that suit the Indian atmosphere. On the other hand, financial regulators promote and recommend using AI in a limited way (such as in regulator sandbox areas) that fosters innovative financial engineering and product development and brings in the safety and security of customer data and monies. This research article updates how the Indian financial ecosystem uses artificial intelligence in various dimensions.
Global automaker Tata Motors Limited (TaMo) transformed its business by betting on manufacturing cars with sustainability and innovation in its heart. Braving the 2020 Indian automobile sector slowdown, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the semiconductor chip shortage, TaMo took India's just-emerging electric vehicle (EV) as a transformational opportunity. It took the early mover advantage by launching EV-based cars and commercial vehicles for the Indian market, apart from making similar moves to its global brand, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). The decision to move to EV is expensive and risky, more so considering the financial crunch the company is facing. However, backed by the parent's—Tata Sons—support and blessings, and having risked its global market share earlier when Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) delayed EV migration, the company decided not to leave any stone unturned in its turnaround bid. This case study examines the various sustainability and innovative practices that helped the company emerge as a market leader in the Indian EV market. This case study draws inputs from secondary sources to examine the events that led to the turnaround. The case helps strategy practitioners, such as strategy managers and business school students pursuing strategic management courses, to understand how companies work on the dual legs of sustainability and innovation to rebuild and survive in the competitive automobile industry.
The Internet of Things (IoT) has evolved into a worldwide infrastructure that facilitates advanced services through the interconnection of diverse entities, both tangible and intangible, utilizing information system technology. This study is an analysis of the impact of Internet of Things (IoT) technology on business and marketing. The study provides a comprehensive examination of IoT technology, encompassing important aspects, operational domains, and many applications within the realms of business and marketing. Companies globally are increasingly directing their attention towards the Internet of Things (IoT) due to its capacity to provide remarkable growth prospects rather than being influenced just by the prevailing buzz surrounding it. This chapter presents an introductory overview of the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) on marketing and business domains.
Marketing professionals collect data from numerous sources, place them into variables, and subject them to various statistical and analytical tools to arrive at decisions. Due to the complexity of decision-making due to complex criteria, a branch of tools called multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques is used. While numerous variants of MCDMs are available, this chapter focuses on three variants – Classical methods, Pairwise comparison, and Hierarchical methods. Classical methods are used when direct measurements are available and have a simple decision structure. CBA, SMART, MAVT, and WSM/WPM are popular techniques. Pairwise Comparison and Hierarchical methods are preferred when there are complex relationships in which many criteria are qualitative and require expert judgment. AHP, ANP, BWM, and FUCOM are popular methods in this class. As technologies progress, new MCDM methods that can be applied to other disciplines will evolve. Decision makers (DMs) benefit from understanding the use and applications of these tools in various marketing decision scenarios.
This book consists of a glimpse of many professors’ ideas towards improvement of teaching practices in India. The vital concept includes strategies in teaching, modernization in education, art of teaching, flipped class room, brain storming, active teaching and learning, challenges in teaching, creative teaching and design thinking. A collection of research letters presented over here has main intention to help the student community by adopting innovative teaching. Around 95 articles were contributed through research letters all over India. Notably, 68 articles were reviewed and presented in this book.
The new European Union (EU) data protection law - General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)that is enforceable on all entities, within and outside the territory of European Union requires that follow entities dealing with private data of EU individuals should follow due procedures in regard to safe data handling and storage. This regulation is forcing all countries globally, including those in the Islamic countries to take special precautions. Islamic banks and financial institutions are key intermediaries fostering smooth foreign trade between Islamic and European countries. Lack of sufficiently strong data protection legislation in most of the Islamic countries is hampering conformity with GDPR. This leads to non-compliance and thereby paves way to heavy monetary penalties in the short-run and hurts business prospects with the European counties in the long-run, both of which are detrimental. This paper helps institutions in building frameworksby taking them through a series of compliance checks, build teamsto enforce standards, make knowledge repositories and to undertake necessary technical measures. Findings from this study can help Islamic companies in general and Islamic Banking & Financial institutions in particular in meeting GDPR compliance.Finally, this paper makes some key recommendations to the Governments, Regulators, Financial Institutions, Organizations and Individuals so that they can become GDPR complaint.
Indian Mutual Funds are managing assets worth Rs. 24.12 trillion (Jan 2019). 29% of these assets are in debt schemes. 54% of these debt fund investments are individual investor monies. Indian debt market is under severe pressure in recent times and this is cascading into mutual funds segment. Higher exposure to debt securities of Non-banking Finance Companies (NBFC), defaults by IL&FS and its associate companies, trouble at DHFL and Zee groups and depletion of collateral value of loans given to company promoters because of the downslide in the equity market etc. are some reasons forcing debt schemes to mark-to-market their exposure. Individual investors who perceived debt mutual funds to be “as safe as fixed deposits” are now experiencing brief negative returns. Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) introduced a series of regulations including re-categorization of schemes, side-pocketing etc. to strengthen the market. This paper examines the recent trends and issues surrounding the debt mutual funds. A survey is done to understand the individual investor perception towards debt mutual funds and statistical findings are presented. Findings from this research can help the mutual fund industry and the market regulator in building debt fund products.
Tax planning strategies are important for tax payers whose aim is to reduce their tax outgo on various types of income and capital gains. While there are several tax saving instruments that qualify under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961, Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) has a special importance. It provides the least possible lock-in period among all tax saving instruments besides providing equity asset investment exposure making it a good long-term tool for wealth creation. This paper studies the investment behaviour of a typical ELSS mutual fund investor. Primary data is used to identify preferences of tax saving instrument by Indians and to understand if diversification across multiple ELSS schemes is done. Understanding the mode of investing helps us get insight on investor behaviour. Finally, we get to know if ELSS is being used by other family members. Secondary data study allows us to understand the trends and dynamics of ELSS. Our study checks scheme Average Assets Under Management (AAUM) data to understand if investors delay and thereby hurry their investing just before closing of the financial year. These findings are of significance for Asset Management Companies (AMCs) in their product positioning and building promotional strategies. Market regulator SEBI and the Association of Mutual Fund Industry (AMFI) can use it to improve the product offering and expanding its reach. Government and Ministry of Finance can use these findings for tweaking tax laws so as to promote investment culture.
US retail giant Walmart acquisition of 77% controlling stake in Flipkart in May 2018 has set a new chapter in the Indian online retail market. The deal gave the much-needed confidence to online retail stores who are already cash starving after giving away highly competitive deals and offers for the Indian shoppers. Walmart wishes to use this opportunity to enter the India market where its global competitor Amazon is already present. On the other hand, Flipkart wishes to use the much-needed cash infusion to smoothen out its operations and to get access to international markets. This research article is an attempt to study the dynamics of the Indian online retail industry and factors contributing and determinantal for its growth. The Walmart style of going global is examined and why this Indian acquisition is important. The Flipkart story is examined to understand how it rose from being a simple online bookseller to become gigantic challenging even global giants. This study is of significance in understanding the dynamics of the online retail sector and derives implications for various stakeholders.
Emerging trends such as the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Business Disruption Technologies will change the way businesses do things. Specialized skills and learning is needed for our managers to handle such changes. There is an ever-increasing expectations gap between career-oriented students and work-oriented employers. This forces business schools to offer employer specific customized courses and allowing workspace to be future classrooms. In the globalization context, mangers will have to balance between ‘local’ and ‘global’ views. Soft skills need to be complemented with social media and social networking skills. This paper uses descriptive content analysis method to identify some emerging trends that will influence our management education so that these institutions can make appropriate changes to make their students future ready.
Security market regulation violations should be dealt seriously because it involves public money and deviations will lead to large scale economic repercussion. Mutual Fund (MF) stakeholders such as Asset Management Companies (AMC) have the duty and responsibility to adhere and comply with the rules and regulatory stipulated by the regulators, run in accordance to governance standards, maintain transparency and make money and wealth for its investors. However, at times, they are found to be deviating norms and causing loss to investors and putting investor trust and confidence to test. This paper examines and documents some deviations found in the mutual fund industry and now regulators dealt with them. We study several deviations that got unearthed from the famous 2003 US Mutual Fund Scandal and later from the 2010 front-running episodes in India. We also examine several incidents as observed in the Indian mutual fund industry and how SEBI dealt with them. This study is significant in the Indian context because it is witnessing increased inflow of money, mostly from small retail investors. Strong regulations act as essential foundation and the architectural plan of an investment building which investors build by pooling up their hard-earned money as bricks with the help of a mason called the fund manager. This paper gives some suggestions to regulators to make the foundation much stronger and everlasting.
Governments of developing and agrarian-intensive economies such as India depend on banking channels to extend farming and agriculture credit. Agricultural credit is a priority sector lending in such countries and banks have to invariably have a part of their loan book pie allocated it`. Statistical trends show that some farmers who take these benefits are turning smart and intentionally delaying loan repayments with the expectation of a loan waiver, particularly few months ahead of the elections. They feel that their loan will get waived once the political party for which they voted comes to power. Overtime, it gets revealed that a very small number of farmers actually get the loan waiver benefit as promised. By then, the loan account balloons because of interest and penalties - too big for him to ever repay. The helpless farmer shows his inability to repay while the deficit budget-driven Governments could not reimburse. This puts banks into a difficult situation and have to mark the loans as Non-Performing Asset (NPA)s and to eventually write-offs. This paper examines the various dimensions surrounding the agriculture loan waiver. The problem is examined from a bank-specific perspective. Loan waivers can turn into epidemic and spread to other segments causing a systemic risk to the economy. We study the economic implications with a specific focus on the impact on the banking system. The findings of this study will be of importance to policy makers, the banking regulator and banks.
The Indian Stock market undoubtedly experienced tremendous growth in the trading activity in the last twenty-five years. The Derivatives segment of the market began its operations with the launch of Index Futures by the National Stock exchange of India (NSE) in the year 2000. The Derivatives, as a financial product, derives its value from an underlying asset and is primarily designed to reduce the risk which businesses and individuals face due to the fluctuations in the asset prices. It helps individuals and companies to undertake risky projects with high returns and use derivatives as a tool to hedge risk, which can potentially lead to wealth creation. The popular instruments of equity derivatives market are- Forward, Future, Option, and swaps. This paper presents the legal framework and regulatory aspects by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) involving derivatives that is based on the recommendations of the L.C. Gupta Committee. SEBI laid its objectives in regulating derivative markets to ensure transparent trading environment, safety, and integrity.
Tightening mutual fund regulations, particularly those of debt mutual funds, by the Indian securities market regulator – the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) are making Arbitrage funds get attention. Low risk, attractive tax treatment, and convenience caught investor interest, and thereby, increased fund flow into these schemes. Fund managers can load their arbitrage schemes with a minimum of 65 percent exposure to equity and equity-equivalent exposure to explore arbitrage opportunities in the stock market for hedging or portfolio balancing. This paper examines if the fund managers of Indian arbitrage schemes form their equity and derivatives portion of their portfolio keeping in mind the Nifty Arbitrage 50 index. The market volatility factor Nifty VIX is examined against the scheme composition. This research finds that there exists a low degree of a positive correlation between the equity and derivative holdings of mutual fund schemes against the Nifty Arbitrage 50 Index and the Nifty VIX index. Further, only in the case of the HDFC Arbitrage Fund (equity holding) and Nippon India Arbitrage Fund (debt holding) make a significant impact based on the Nifty Arbitrage 50 Index and the Nifty VIX index. Results show that fund managers use their native or in-house methodology of formulating the portfolio and the weights independent of the Nifty Arbitrage 50 and Nifty VIX value. Further, fund managers prefer participating in the stock futures segment (over the options) of the Indian derivatives market.
The book on "Innovative Teaching and Learning Process during COVID 19" is a very good effort in bringing novel ideas at the time of pandemic. The engagement with academic fraternity leading to this wonderful outcome is laudable. As the editors of this book, we are fortunate to go through every article and found few interesting aspects in teaching and learning process. Innovation has been the most buzzed word in the world today. In fact, academia across the globe are potentially involved in INNOVATION at every possible level. We wish this race with this pace towards innovation in teaching and learning mechanism drives us to "INNOVATION 5.0" in near future. This book will be instrumental in polarizing the thoughts of reader towards this process of innovation, particularly, in delivering lectures using online platforms and e-resources. Congratulations the authors in this book touched upon diverse topics related to the paradigm shift in teaching and learning process. Various tools, innovative practices were presented vividly in the articles of this book. Congratulations and wishes to authors and publishers for bringing out this productive outcome in the most critical transition time of educational reforms.
The book on "Innovative Teaching and Learning Process during COVID 19" is a very good effort in bringing novel ideas at the time of pandemic. The engagement with academic fraternity leading to this wonderful outcome is laudable. As the editors of this book, we are fortunate to go through every article and found few interesting aspects in teaching and learning process. Innovation has been the most buzzed word in the world today. In fact, academia across the globe are potentially involved in INNOVATION at every possible level. We wish this race with this pace towards innovation in teaching and learning mechanism drives us to "INNOVATION 5.0" in near future. This book will be instrumental in polarizing the thoughts of reader towards this process of innovation, particularly, in delivering lectures using online platforms and e-resources. Congratulations the authors in this book touched upon diverse topics related to the paradigm shift in teaching and learning process. Various tools, innovative practices were presented vividly in the articles of this book. Congratulations and wishes to authors and publishers for bringing out this productive outcome in the most critical transition time of educational reforms.
The book on "Innovative Teaching and Learning Process during COVID 19" is a very good effort in bringing novel ideas at the time of pandemic. The engagement with academic fraternity leading to this wonderful outcome is laudable. As the editors of this book, we are fortunate to go through every article and found few interesting aspects in teaching and learning process. Innovation has been the most buzzed word in the world today. In fact, academia across the globe are potentially involved in INNOVATION at every possible level. We wish this race with this pace towards innovation in teaching and learning mechanism drives us to "INNOVATION 5.0" in near future. This book will be instrumental in polarizing the thoughts of reader towards this process of innovation, particularly, in delivering lectures using online platforms and e-resources. Congratulations the authors in this book touched upon diverse topics related to the paradigm shift in teaching and learning process. Various tools, innovative practices were presented vividly in the articles of this book. Congratulations and wishes to authors and publishers for bringing out this productive outcome in the most critical transition time of educational reforms.
The book on "Innovative Teaching and Learning Process during COVID 19" is a very good effort in bringing novel ideas at the time of pandemic. The engagement with academic fraternity leading to this wonderful outcome is laudable. As the editors of this book, we are fortunate to go through every article and found few interesting aspects in teaching and learning process. Innovation has been the most buzzed word in the world today. In fact, academia across the globe are potentially involved in INNOVATION at every possible level. We wish this race with this pace towards innovation in teaching and learning mechanism drives us to "INNOVATION 5.0" in near future. This book will be instrumental in polarizing the thoughts of reader towards this process of innovation, particularly, in delivering lectures using online platforms and e-resources. Congratulations the authors in this book touched upon diverse topics related to the paradigm shift in teaching and learning process. Various tools, innovative practices were presented vividly in the articles of this book. Congratulations and wishes to authors and publishers for bringing out this productive outcome in the most critical transition time of educational reforms.
The cognitive dissonance theory, formulated by Psychologist Leon Festinger, revealed that inconsistency in beliefs or behaviour among individuals causes psychological tension or dissonance due to exposure to new information. Investor behaviour is prone to several biases that refrains them from making rational decisions. They often reluctantly stick to their original decision even though it is costly. An online and offline survey using a structured questionnaire was used and data was collected from 250 stock market investors of Visakhapatnam, India. With the use of mean and one-way ANOVA - the relationship between independent variable (income, investment amount, education qualification, age, gender and investor experience) and dependent variables (cognitive dissonance) - it was revealed that investors were prone to cognitive dissonance bias. The research shows that cognitive dissonance bias causes investors to make sub-optimal choices. Based on the findings, recommendations were put forth to help investors mitigate their susceptibility to cognitive dissonance bias.
The Quick And Sudden Pace Of The Worldwide Spread Of The Covid-19 Virus Outbreak Caught Many By Surprise. Owing To The Rapid Spread, Theworld Health Organization (Who) Upgraded The Epidemic Into A Pandemic On March 11, 2020. (WHO, 2020) By The End Of March 2020, There As Many As 118,000 Registered Cases In 114 Countries, 4,291 Lives Already Lost, And Thousands More Battling For Incarnate In Hospitals By March 2020. Experience And Lessons From The Spanish Influenza Of 1918 Claimed 50 Million Lives – The Previous Scariest Pandemic Seemed To Have Been Forgotten.(Saqr & Wasson, 2020)The Covid-19 Pandemicis Predominantly A Health Crisis, A Mass Trauma, A Collective Woe, And Appeared To Be Questioning Humankind's Existence. Everything Overturned Suddenly - From Social Lives To Working Places And Tours And Travels. With Vaccine Availability Not In Any Immediate Insight, Global Lockdowns Appear To Be The Only Safeguards Available, Thereby Confining Everyone To Their Own Homes.(Verma, et al., 2020) As A Part Of The Response To The Pandemic,Travel Restrictions And Border Closures Have Been An Important Part Of The Initial Policy Response To The Covid-19 Pandemic, And These Measures Have Directly Affected Trade In Goods And Services,The Note Said. (Business Standard, 2020)
Stock market traders can be successful by picking the right financial security/instrument to invest/trade and then prepare and executing the trading plan. However, the success rate from doing so is only partly. The other part of success, which, unfortunately, is mostly ignored, comes from emotional and behavioral balance and control. Research already proved the connections between emotions and the mental health of individuals. Objectives: This paper explores the mental health aspects of a typical Indian stock market trader. Design: A self-constructed questionnaire is administered on a sample of 250 where 140 respondents were taken for the study on four dimensions-general trading stress profile, general mental and health profile, general lifestyle profile, and general financial status profile. Method: Data thus collected is statistically measured and tested using Chi-square, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. The research finds that age and marital status influence the stock market trader experience along with the highest, moderate, and lowest areas where the trader is affected on the above-mentioned dimensions. Findings from this research can help traders in bettering their mental health and thereby improve their trading outcomes.
Stock market traders can be successful by picking the right financial security/instrument to invest/trade and then prepare and executing the trading plan. However, the success rate from doing so is only partly. The other part of success, which, unfortunately, is mostly ignored, comes from emotional and behavioral balance and control. Research already proved the connections between emotions and the mental health of individuals. Objectives: This paper explores the mental health aspects of a typical Indian stock market trader. Design: A self-constructed questionnaire is administered on a sample of 250 where 140 respondents were taken for the study on four dimensions-general trading stress profile, general mental and health profile, general lifestyle profile, and general financial status profile. Method: Data thus collected is statistically measured and tested using Chi-square, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. The research finds that age and marital status influence the stock market trader experience along with the highest, moderate, and lowest areas where the trader is affected on the above-mentioned dimensions. Findings from this research can help traders in bettering their mental health and thereby improve their trading outcomes.
Financial Education is an essential life skill and is a specialization module in adult education and training. Within the financial education domain, a sub-module would be on financial instruments, such as Mutual Funds. Mutual Funds are small retail investor-friendly investment tools. They are increasingly getting investor interest worldwide because they can provide potential solutions for short- and long-term investing. However, like any other financial/investing topic, teaching mutual fund concepts is challenging because of its unique vocabulary, jargon, and investment processes. The paper highlights broad modules that can be part of a typical mutual fund curriculum. Pedagogical Action Research is used to build the teaching modules focusing on narrativity, pupil's agency, curriculum development, practical theories, and ethics. Findings from this work can help teachers and trainers in the financial domain, mutual fund distributors, asset management companies, and the capital market regulators in building financial products that are easier to understand and invest in by small retail investors.
