IMA Insights

As American tariffs bite and orders dry up, Indian firms exposed to the US are scrambling for options. None is straightforward. Shifting production elsewhere means heavy capital outlays, new supplier risks and the headache of securing components and sub-assemblies. Yet a sudden shift in US policy could render such moves pointless.

The calculation, then, is less about margins than about risk. Which is the bigger danger - losing customers or tying up capital in ventures that may turn sour? The answer varies by sector, by supply-chain reliance and by tolerance for uncertainty. 

One conclusion is hard to escape. In a fractured global economy, supply chains are no longer stable. They are the platform on which strategy is now fought.

This podcast explains.

India’s $2.1 trillion consumer economy is being rapidly rewritten. Aspirations are rising, as the rural –urban divide begins to blur. The digital media now shapes buying decisions, even when purchases stay offline.  

Premiumisation is spreading beyond metros, while health and wellness surge nationwide. Consumers loyalties pivot on relevance and trust, forcing brands to adapt faster. From FMCG to autos, spending patterns are shifting in unexpected ways.

IMA’s latest report decodes these trends with sector deep-dives, data and case studies. For CXOs, it is not just a nice to read, it may in a way be essential for staying ahead. A brief glimpse of the report is contained in this podcast. 

Here is a link to the microsite to purchase the report https://payments.ima-india.com/lp/consumption-report

Your columnist has, over the years, been trained by his better half to visit museums with the noble intent of cultivating an interest in art. Initially reluctant, he is now more attuned to its charms and has even begun to recognise the works of the Greats. Admittedly, he still sometimes wonders what all the fuss is about, but he has evolved into a more willing follower—something of a loyal aide-de-camp, trailing his master with immaculate precision.

On a recent hiking trip to the Alps, however, in the company of old friends, he reversed roles. He cajoled a reluctant band of burly mates into joining him at Zurich’s famous Kunsthaus Museum. The briefing he offered them forms the basis of this podcast.

The new order will be multipolar, fragmented and spiked with suspicion. America will remain strong but unpredictable. China will be powerful but mistrusted. Europe will hedge and Asia will prepare for the worst.  

In this unsettled world, India’s choices, whether it pursues reform, asserts itself diplomatically and balances skilfully, will shape not just its own future but the architecture of the century. The order is not yet written, but Delhi holds one of the pens. The only question is whether it writes boldly or merely underlines the footnotes of others. The coming two to three years will decide. The podcast explains.

Tata Motors has learned to treat disruption as a forcing mechanism. Product disappointments such as the Nano and the Indica, exposed not only poor design but also structural weaknesses in quality control and consumer insight. By 2016 the rot was visible, as market share eroded, customer trust waned and internal morale sagged. The company responded with urgency. The turnaround playbook was rooted in recognising crises not as aberrations, but as catalysts for reinvention. Adit Jain in conversation with Vivek Srivatsa, Chief Revenue Officer at Tata Motors discussed process involved in the reinvention of the company. 

In an era where consumer attention is increasingly fragmented and fleeting, marketing must pivot from persuasive monologues to precise behavioural interventions. At a recent India CMO Forum session in Delhi, Biju Dominic, Chief Evangelist at Fractal Analytics and a pioneer in applying neuroscience to consumer strategy, challenged conventional models of influence. Drawing on two decades of work with global brands and behavioural science labs, he argued that marketers must stop appealing to the rational mind and start designing for the unconscious brain. His message was unambiguous: the future of influence lies in milliseconds, not minutes—and ignoring this truth is costlier than we think.

The attached conclusions paper summarises these discussions, but in brief:

• Marketers continue to rely on outdated assumptions about human rationality, despite proof that decisions are largely unconscious and context-driven.
• The smartphone has become the primary medium of influence, but brands have not adjusted to its millisecond timescales or the fragmented nature of attention.
• MicroStimuli, fleeting but emotionally charged cues, offer a new way to drive behaviour at the point of decision-making.
• Anticipation and memory, not information input, drive most consumer responses; marketing should therefore trigger associations, not deliver full explanations.
• Neuroscience offers a better framework than psychology for understanding decision-making, impacting everything from brand campaigns to digital nudges.
• Marketers must treat each touchpoint as a behavioural intervention—especially in a post-click world where high cart abandonment, low CTRs and weak return rates indicate a loss of influence.
• B2B marketing, often assumed to be rational and linear, is equally shaped by emotion and intuition; MicroStimuli may offer a path to more effective engagement if empathy and experimentation are prioritised.

 The world today is in a state of flux - geopolitical tensions, economic volatility, trade wars and environmental crises are converging into an unrelenting storm. In such a landscape, running an enterprise is no longer about operational excellence alone, it’s about human resilience. The role of a leader has fundamentally changed. From being a figurehead or coordinator, the modern leader is now omnipresent, emotionally available, environmentally aware and prepared to manage failure at multiple levels. Drawing on his rich experience, at a recent IMA India CHRO Forum in Delhi NCR, Suresh Narayan, Chairman and MD, Nestle reflected on how leadership must evolve to meet the moment. His message was clear: crises will come, but how an organisation and its leaders respond can define legacies. 

Sustainability and ethics are no longer optional 'nice to haves’ but an essential element of long-term business success. Today’s organisations must go beyond minimising their environmental impact and actively integrate ethical practices and sustainability into their core operations. Avery Dennison, a global leader in materials science and digital identification solutions, is at the forefront of this transformation. By optimising labour and supply chain efficiency, reducing waste and driving sustainability, circularity and transparency, Avery Dennison is redefining how brands connect with consumers while making a lasting positive impact on the planet. At a recent ISF session, Saurabh Agarwal, Vice President and General Manager, Materials Group, South Asia, Avery Dennison provided valuable insights into building a responsible, future-ready organisation by embedding sustainability into operations, fostering ethical business practices and creating sustainable products.

The pressure of delivering strong results quarter after quarter can tempt even the best companies to be myopic on ethics and fair business practices. Sometimes, this gives rise to the sort of scandals that can destroy the very foundations of a business. While some may view 'fair practices' as resource-draining and growth-impeding, companies that adopt a values-based approach to ethics and compliance gain a long-term competitive edge in the marketplace. At recent combined sessions of the India CEO, CFO and CHRO Forums across India, Sabina Sudan, a corporate lawyer and active speaker on ethical and legal issues, discussed effective strategies for melding profitable growth with ethical practices, and how organisations can embed ethics into the corporate culture, including in their code of conduct, CSR initiatives and whistle-blower policies.