The Business of Spreading Cheer

Lakshmi Subramanian looks at how corporate gifting during the festive season is becoming de rigueur among corporate houses

John D Rockefeller Jr once said, "Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege." Most corporates today appear to agree with Rockefeller Jr, when it comes to giving gifts during the festive season. Consider the information technology multinational Cognizant where the practice of giving corporate gifts is tied to the company's celebration of every important milestone on its path to success. It provides its employees the option to choose from a canvas of gifts, each year. Employees have received gifts such as portable color television, Discman, camera, digital diary, color television, VCD, mobile phone, microwave oven, strolley with an executive bag, sunglasses, cordless phone, exer-cycle, color printer, food processor, soft suitcase with a laptop bag, etc.

These days all companies, MNCs or otherwise, are actively involved in giving away gifts to employees, clients, dealers, suppliers and so on. This exercise of giving gifts is known popularly as 'Corporate Gifting' and has assumed great significance in today's business circles. It takes a balance of personal sentiment and professional etiquette to send just the right message in just the right way. The phenomenon reaches its peak during the festive season, Diwali being the main occasion.

Why do companies fuss about giving corporate gifts during this season? Primarily because gifting is an expression of goodwill and the concept of giving gifts during the festive season has been a traditional practice in India. Also, it is a way of building a personal rapport with clients and employees.

According to Bhaskar Das, vice-president - human resources, Cognizant, "Corporate gifts are generally a goodwill gesture coinciding with an important milestone or any other festival."

According to V Balasubramanian, president, Srinivas Fine Arts, the concept has now come of age in India. He says, "Corporate gifting is for extending good wishes and season's greetings. With Diwali, the festival season begins and everyone looks forward to receiving gifts. In the past, gifting used to mean mainly sweets or dry fruits at the low end and at the high end, it would have been jewellery. Now gifting for Diwali has gone beyond this to include premium products like home decor, writing instruments, electronic gadgets, lifestyle items, paper products, crystals, glassware and books, along with jewellery and mithai or sweets and dry fruits."

Companies focus on corporate gifting to build and maintain an excellent relationship with everyone. It comes under the wide ambit of goodwill management. And what better occasion for this than the Diwali season, one of the biggest of Indian festivals. Gifts given during the Diwali season has a lot of sentiment attached to it. It is the only time when the family of the employee/client/dealer look forward to receiving gifts from the company. "We believe that Diwali is an auspicious day for prosperity. Therefore, we give something new to every employee. It encourages the employer-employee relationship and binds the family into the company. I totally vouch for this concept," says Dr. K Gopalakrishnan, chief executive officer, Fourrts India Ltd.

The number of people who believe in the efficacy of corporate gifting is also fast increasing. "Earlier we never used to give gifts as we were pre-occupied with setting up the business. Then we realised the importance of giving gifts and have been doing so for the past four-five years. Our gifts range from air-conditioners to sweets," says T S J Sankar, chairman, Chemech laboratories.

Gift Shift

With the revenue of Indian companies on the rise, the type of gifts and packaging has undergone a metamorphic change. The gifts given vary across industries and depend largely on the earnings and company practices. According to Jessie Paul, global marketing head, iGATE Global Solutions, "Instead of a traditional box of mithai, if a company-branded USB flash disc is gifted, it gives the employee a feeling of distinction. Some of these changes also have to do with the fact that there is a phenomenal increase in standard of living and increase in purchasing power over the past decade. Now employees want the emotional connect and pride of belonging and personalised gifts."

The ubiquitous items such as sweets, nuts, dry fruits, calendars and crackers during the Diwali season do not stand out any more. Today the hot gifts are gold plated clocks, crystal vases, candle stands, ashtrays, decanters, porcelain tea sets, figurines, branded pen sets, crockery, marble idols, antique show pieces, silver cutlery, wrist watches, CDs, books… the list never ends. Some companies even give household items such as mixers, air conditioners, fans, microwave ovens etc. Several companies are very particular about the kind of gifts they give, particularly to employees. They go to the extent of conducting an audit to find out what gifts the employees want rather than giving something which is of practically no use and which the employee does not appreciate. Corporate gifts convey the true intention of the person giving the gift, the company's standing and goodwill, the atmosphere of the business and most importantly the nature of the relationship. An ideal corporate gift is one which the receiver would like to keep and cherish for a long time.

Outsourcing Here Too

Companies today have the luxury of outsourcing their corporate gifting to those who specialise in it. There are firms that select, wrap and deliver your corporate gifts for you. Of course, these services are not particularly economical. Kesar Jewel Craft is one such company, which specialises in 24-carat gold plated items such as tabletops, watches, car frames, wall hangings, clocks, pens, agarbatti stands, mobile phone holders, computer mouse pads, key chains, visiting card holders, certificates, mementos, glasses and goblets and a host of other items. They have over 200 varieties of gift items to cater to the varied demands of corporate clients. Temenos, Ford India, Hyundai Motors, Cavin Kare, TVS Group, Murugappa Group are some of the major companies which purchase gifts during the festive season. These companies place bulk orders for personalised gifts bearing the company name and logo throughout the year particularly during Diwali and New Year. The gifts range from about Rs 125 to about Rs 40,000. However, items between Rs 3,000-Rs 4,000 sell the most. Eurogold Premiums, Asian Adores, Meryl Leathers and Promotional Gifts Ltd, Silver Gifts, India Ethinica, Adora Gifts, Ambika Exports are some of the other corporate gift manufacturers.

Gifting Sans Hierarchy

An interesting trend being witnessed in corporate gifting is that companies today are trying to ensure that they give uniform gifts to everyone, be it the managing director, chief executive officer, manager or office attendant. Savera Hotels Ltd, Chennai gives traditional sweets and crackers to all their employees irrespective of their positions in the company. Likewise for companies such as Chemech Laboratories, Fourrts India Ltd, Cognizant Technologies, Srinivas Fine Arts which do not have a hierarchy system when it comes to giving gifts during the Diwali season. This is but in keeping with the spirit of the season where we do not celebrate differences. Pure joy, as they say, does not recognise classes.