Business Today

A leading business magazine read by the business leaders for staying ahead and managing challenges that comes right away in the ever changing world of business.

Long Live The Back Office!

Business Today

THE STATE OF WELFARE • Social sector spending by states has risen steadily over the past decade, led mainly by bigger states with high own-tax revenues. Many state governments are now increasingly relying on cash transfer, especially through women-focused schemes. While welfare coverage has improved, limited revenues are reducing the funds available for development and infrastructure projects. Here is what the data shows:

THE BUZZ

‘‘Era of AI-led experimentation over” • Sudhir Singh, CEO & Executive Director, Coforge, on AI-based innovations, transitions in the IT services industry, and more

THE AI THREAT • India’s IT outsourcing firms are gearing up to meet the AI challenge by reducing their dependence on labour arbitrage and focusing on other core strengths-

At The Deep End • FOR INDIA’S DEEP-TECH COMPANIES, FUNDING MOMENTUM IS NO LONGER ENOUGH. THEY ARE BEING FORCED TO MOVE INTO A REAL-WORLD ENVIRONMENT AND MAKE A BUSINESS CASE FOR THEIR SOLUTIONS. HOW THEY MANAGE THE TRANSITION WILL DECIDE THEIR FUTURE

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW • Post-investment, start-ups that break out are those that have the ability to find product–market fit

PROFITS AT THE BELL • THE SUDDEN PROFIT TURNAROUNDS AT A RAFT OF START-UPs COMING UP WITH IPOs ARE RAISING A CRITICAL QUESTION: ARE IPO-BOUND COMPANIES TRULY MATURING OR GETTING BETTER AT MANAGING OPTICS?

“GOVERNANCE CENTRAL TO HOW WE BUILT COMPANY” • Prateek Maheshwari, Co-founder of Physicswallah, on whether the shift towards profitability among start-ups is a sign of business maturity, or simply a reflection of changing investor expectations

“ONE CAN DRIVE GROWTH EVEN BY SELLING AT 0” • J.N. Gupta, Managing Director of proxy advisory firm Stakeholders Empowerment Services, and former Executive Director of Sebi, on why compliance must be approached as a safeguard and not an obligation

STATISTICS BIG DATA, BIG OVERHAUL • INDIA’S STATISTICS HAVE BEEN UNDER A CLOUD, WITH THE IMF RECENTLY GIVING THE COUNTRY’S GDP DATA A ‘C’ RATING. THE GOVERNMENT IS UNDERTAKING A MASSIVE REVISION. WILL THIS REFLECT GROWTH MORE ACCURATELY?

“THE IMF HAS NOT RAISED ANY ISSUE ABOUT DATA QUALITY” • Saurabh Garg, Secretary, MoSPI, on base year revisions, the IMF rating and plans to further improve India’s data quality

SEIZING THE GOLDILOCKS MOMENT • THE INDIAN ECONOMY HAS WITNESSED HIGH ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH LOW INFLATION, WHICH IS LIKELY TO CARRY FORWARD IN FY27. WILL THE GOVERNMENT CAPITALISE ON THIS OPPORTUNITY TO KICK OFF MORE REFORMS?

Uncertainty Looms • INDIA INC’S SPIRITS IN Q3FY26 REMAINED LOW DESPITE HIGHER-THAN-ANTICIPATED GDP GROWTH IN FY26 AS US TARIFFS HIT HOME

The BOLLYWOOD Makeover • THE HINDI FILM INDUSTRY IS MOVING AWAY FROM THE HIGH-STAR-FEE-DRIVEN MODEL TOWARDS A GREATER FOCUS ON CONTENT AND A MORE REFINED BUSINESS STRATEGY

SAVE BIG WITH OUR ANNUAL OFFER

ALPINE DISRUPTION • DAVOS 2026 PRESENTED A SHARP DEPARTURE FROM THE PAST WITH GEOPOLITICS TAKING CENTRE STAGE

YOUR CULTURAL CALENDAR FOR 2026 • January may be over but art lovers and cultural aficionados have a lot to look forward to for the rest of the year

Garden City GLORY • THE THIRD LEG OF BT GOLF UNFURLED AT THE ICONIC KARNATAKA GOLF ASSOCIATION, WHERE THE CITY’S CORPORATE TITANS SWAPPED BOARDROOM STRATEGIES FOR FAIRWAY FINESSE

Management Advice