110th Learning Session on the topic: The Habit of Savings and Investments

Dear Viewer,

I had given a guest lecture on the topic: "The Habit of Savings and Investments", during 110th Learning Session, organized by Disciples India Learning Forum in association with Srilakshmi College of Management and Science, Bengaluru. Date: Saturday, 13th May 2023; Time: 5:30PM to 7:00PM You can find the same video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE2KzhO3tvg&t=2923s Thank you for your support, comments and encouragement. Best wishes, Prof. Dr Shashank M Hiremath. Academician, Researcher & Stock Market Analyst.

GIG ECONOMY AND GIG WORKERS IN HIGH DEMAND!! – DR SHASHANK M HIREMATH

Dear Readers,

Greetings to everyone!! I would like to share an interesting development happening around us silently, and massively. It is about the 'GIG economy'. A gig is a job that lasts for a particular time duration, as long as the project life cycle exists, or as long as the company has a specific assignment. At the end of this article, I have mentioned the details of several Gig jobs available in India, cost of education, expected salaries etc. Just give 10 minutes of your time and read through this article which could change the lives of someone you know.

What are Gig Jobs?

In the 2000s, the digitalization of the economy and industry was carried out rapidly due to the development of information and communication technologies, such as the Internet and the popularization of smart phones. As a result, on-demand platforms (ODP) based on digital technology have created jobs and employment formats which are completely different from existing offline transactions by the level of accessibility, convenience and price competitiveness. Nearly, 36% of U.S. workers join in the gig economy through either their primary or secondary jobs.

 

Gig economy in India

In India, there are about 3 million (30 lakhs) gig workers. There are temporary workers including independent contractors, online platform workers, contract firm workers and on-call workers. The number is certainly small if one were to compare it with India’s 500 million workers. However, the good part is that an estimated 56% of new employment is generated by the gig world.

 

Gig workers in India

Delivery boys, cleaners, consultants, bloggers, etc are part of the gig economy. For example: Uber, Ola, Zomato, Swiggy etc, are all part of this labour platform. As the work is job-specific, workers have the flexibility to work for more than one contractor and choose the hours of work. This has encouraged women in labour force participation.

Indian cities with highest number of blue-collar workers - related to 'Gig Economy' is shown below:

Projected gross volume of the Gig Economy is shown below:

Global Scenario of Gig Work

A global survey of platform companies found that there are about 180 platform companies valued at $4.5 trillion. For example: Uber not only provides taxi rental services, but also has Uber Eats, a food delivery service. There are other related benefits. People are using apps such as Google Pay and Amazon Pay for buying goods and services. Even in advanced economies like Singapore, studies show that the advent of the gig economy has led to an increase in credit card sales.

 

Benefits of Gig Economy

The lower price of service associated with the gig economy has generated consumer surplus, which can be spent on other sectors, with a multiplier effect on income and employment generation. Taxi services by, say, Uber and Ola, have reduced taxi fares in major cities in India. There has been a reduction in alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents and traffic congestion. Carpool and car-sharing have environmental benefits, as they contribute to a lower carbon footprint.

 

No Entry Barriers

Anyone and everyone can participate from anywhere. This has led to a demand for bloggers, researchers and consultants from developing countries such as India, the Philippines and Bangladesh. Their returns have gone up, as they are getting paid in dollars. There are also no barriers based on caste, religion, gender and location.

 

COVID-19 has impacted everybody

The beginning of the year 2020 saw the spread of COVID-19 pandemic across the world. India went into a nationwide lockdown from 24 March 2020 and a subsequent phase-wise unlocking from 1 June 2020. Among all the other sectors that were immensely impacted by the pandemic, even the platform economy and On-demand gig workers were impacted.

 

Future of Gig Economy

Companies such as Google, Facebook and Microsoft are now investing in start-ups, and even training workers, to make the best use of the online market. Several gig workers are the ones who are displaced from their earlier occupation because of online competition. For instance, does a cab driver or a delivery boy who earlier used to run a retail shop, is now in this profession because their shops got closed because of the platform economy. During initial years when Uber was operating, there were stories of software professionals leaving their jobs and working as Uber drivers. However, these days, the men in this profession complain that the reward has gone down substantially. On an average every month close to 1 million Indians are entering the labour market. Wage rates for the low-skilled gig workers, like the delivery boys are likely to remain stagnant if not go down further.

Who can work as Gigs?

Students

Professionals

Homemakers

Jobs, Qualifications & Duration of the course:

1. Web Designers - B.Sc in Multimedia and Web Design (3 years), Diploma in Web Designing & Software Development (2 years), Certificate Course in Web Designing (18 months to 2 years)
2. Catalogue Specialists - Bachelor's / Master’s degree in Operations, Business, Project Management, Engineering (2 to 3 years)
3. Content Writers - Bachelor's / Master's degree in Journalism or Literature but degree holders in other specializations are also eligible (2 to 3 years)
4. Digital Research Specialists - Bachelor's Degree in business, marketing, or statistics preferred (2 to 3 years)
5. Digital Marketing Specialists – Bachelor’s / Master's Degree in Digital Marketing, BBA or MBA in Digital Marketing (2 to 3 years)
6. Machine Learning & AI Analysts - PG Diploma in Machine Learning and AI (12 months), PGP in Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning (1 to 2 years), M.Tech in Data Science and Machine Learning (2 years)
7. Coders - Bachelor's / Master’s degree in Coding & Programming (2 to 3 years)
8. App Developers - Certificate in Mobile App Development (12 months), PG Diploma in Mobile App Development (2 years)
9. Data Analysts – PG Diploma​ ​in​ ​Business Analytics​ (2 years), M.Sc Data Analytics (2 years)
10. Cyber Security Analysts – B.Tech / M.Tech. in Cyber Security (2 to 3 years), PG Diploma in Information System Security (2 years)

 

Cost of Education:

1. Web Designers – 2 to 5 lakhs p.a.
2. Catalogue Specialists – 1.5 to 2 lakhs p.a.
3. Content Writers – 10 thousand to 2 lakhs p.a.
4. Digital Research Specialists – 1.5 to 4 lakhs p.a.
5. Digital Marketing Specialists – 2 to 4 lakhs p.a.
6. Machine Learning & AI Analysts – 3 to 5 lakhs p.a.
7. Coders – 50 thousand to 2 lakhs p.a.
8. App Developers – 10 thousand to 1 lakh p.a.
9. Data Analysts – 3 to 5 lakhs p.a.
10. Cyber Security Analysts – 4 to 6 lakhs p.a.

 

Expected Salary:

1. Web Designers – 3 to 5 lakhs p.a.
2. Catalogue Specialists – 2 to 14 lakhs p.a.
3. Content Writers – 3 to 8 lakhs p.a.
4. Digital Research Specialists – 4 to 9 lakhs p.a.
5. Digital Marketing Specialists – 3 to 6 lakhs p.a.
6. Machine Learning & AI Analysts – 8 to 15 lakhs p.a.
7. Coders – 3 to 10 lakhs p.a.
8. App Developers – 4 to 10 lakhs p.a.
9. Data Analysts – 3 to 9 lakhs p.a.
10. Cyber Security Analysts – 5 to 11 lakhs p.a.

 

Useful Websites for finding Gig Jobs are as follows:

1. https://in.indeed.com/Gig-Jobs-jobs-in-Bangalore,-Karnataka 

2. https://www.snypjobs.com/gig-jobs-bangalore.html

3. https://www.shine.com/job-search/work-from-home-jobs-in-bangalore

4. https://www.naukri.com/gig-jobs?k=gig

5. https://www.monsterindia.com/srp/results?query=gig&searchId=442b7b0e-bca9-4145-b239-8b2fb88af0ab

Going forward gig economy is expected to expand and it would help many individuals to take up the jobs of their choice. Obviously, the probability of it's success or failure in future depends upon the global, national and regional market conditions.

Kindly share this article with your family and friends.

Thanks for your valuable time!!

Best regards, 

Dr. Shashank M Hiremath,

Associate Professor, Sindhi Institute of Management,

Kempapura, Hebbal, Bengaluru-24

Ph: 9845239036, Email: shashankmh2000@gmail.com

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7Ydp53iTxiGnO-1rSAz-qA

DISCLAIMER:

I am NOT a SEBI registered advisor. Investment or Trading in Securities Market is subject to market risk, past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. None of the content published on my YouTube Channel, Blogger site etc constitute a recommendation that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person.

MUST READ!! BEFORE YOU INVEST IN THE SHARES / STOCKS OF LOSS MAKING COMPANIES – DR SHASHANK M HIREMATH

Dear Investors, 

            While we invest or think of investing our money in the stock market for any duration, certain key aspects are to be considered. In this article, I have tried to explain the circumstances wherein many investors, including day traders make mistakes in their stock selection and keep shouting slogans on the entire stock market for making losses. After reading this article, you might find a reason, as to why I would like to invest or say no to the loss making companies for investments. Just like a doctor, an investor should identify the pulse and symptoms of a loss making company and stay away from investing in such companies.

Now, let us examine the important factors: 

Why do investors or traders incur losses in stock market?

•  According to the research more than 95% of the Indian traders loose their capital in the stock market.
  
•  In the stock market, more than the news, the reaction and sentiments of the investors play an important role.
  
•  Most of the times, the company would have reported profits in its quarterly or yearly results, yet the stock price falls.
  
•  Similarly, the company would have reported losses in its quarterly or yearly results, yet the stock price rises. It is not strange, although it looks like.
•  Stocks usually follow the cyclical trends. 

Symptom-1 of a Loss Making Company

•  Companies that make losses Year on Year (YoY), Quarter on Quarter (QoQ) usually tend to burn their cash very fast.
•  Example: Net profits of Vodafone Idea Ltd have been declining YoY since 2015. 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

•  NIFTY 50 Vs Vodafone Idea Ltd 

Symptom-2 of a Loss Making Company

•  Companies keep loosing money if they are unable to pay the interest on debt, despite increase in the revenues.
  
•  Example: Interglobe Aviation Ltd (Indigo) has Debt-Equity ratio of 13.91
•  Such stocks are highly volatile and not good for investing

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

•  NIFTY 50 Vs Interglobe Aviation Ltd

Symptom-3 of a Loss Making Company

•  Any inconsistency in the gross sales (also known as top line), cash flows etc shows poor growth of the business.
  
•  Example: Coal India Ltd shows declining cash flows
•  Investors should not just look at the attractive dividend yields of such companies. 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

• NIFTY 50 Vs Coal India Ltd 

Symptom-4 of a Loss Making Company

•  Decreasing profits before taxes and net profits.
•  It shows how efficiently the company management is running the business.
•  Ex: Yes Bank Ltd shows losses in the year 2020 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

• NIFTY 50 Vs Yes Bank Ltd 

 Symptom-5 of a Loss Making Company

•  Investors should look for a positive / negative trend in the bottom line.
•  Ex: ITC Ltd share prices started falling since July 2017 from it’s lifetime high of Rs. 335 till date, because GST council levied 28 per cent tax plus compensation cess on cigarettes.
•  Due to such events the companies cash flows get affected. 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

•  NIFTY 50 Vs ITC Ltd

Symptom-6 of a Loss making Company

•  Earning Per Share shows a decreasing trend.
•  EPS = Net Profits / Outstanding Shares in the Market
•  Ex: Shipping Corporation of India Ltd shows decreasing EPS 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

•  NIFTY 50 Vs Shipping Corporation of India Ltd 

Symptom-7 of a Loss Making Company

• Poor quality of leadership and management in companies like Punjab National Bank are not good for investors.
• Several problems like increasing NPA’s, Scams etc will affect the future prospects of businesses.
• Ex: Punjab National Bank Ltd never went up after October 2010 

Effect on the Stock Price Since past 5 years

•  NIFTY 50 Vs PNB Ltd 

Other Symptoms of Loss Making Companies

•  Reduction in the dividend payouts.
• Changes made in the key positions at senior level.
• Possible financial scam in the company.
• Increased pledging of shares by promoters.
• Insider trading like dumping of shares before bankruptcy, especially in small-cap companies.
• Legal concerns raised by stakeholders of the companies like employees, government, public, customers etc.
• Failure of merger, demerger and acquisition activity.
• Changes in the consumer tastes and preferences.

Apart from the above mentioned there would be many more factors affecting the stock prices and performance of the listed companies. I will be happy to read your valuable comments about this article. 

Happy Investing!! 🙏😎

Dr. Shashank M Hiremath,

Associate Professor, Sindhi Institute of Management,

Kempapura, Hebbal, Bengaluru-24

Ph: 9845239036, Email: shashankmh2000@gmail.com

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7Ydp53iTxiGnO-1rSAz-qA

DISCLAIMER:

Investment or Trading in Securities Market is subject to market risk, past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. None of the content published on my YouTube Channel, Blogger site etc constitute a recommendation that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person.