Assessment

On
Mumbai Dabbawala

Submitted By:

Aman Abhishek
Roll No. 21epgp011b2
Section A, ePGP Batch 2
Indian Institute of Management, Raipur
 Mid-Term Assessment
Operations Management - I

Document Identification

Document Title Assessment on Mumbai Dabbawala

Document Author EPGP Batch 2

Date Created 23 January 2022

Submitted By Name: Aman Abhishek

Roll No. 21epgp011b2
Section: A

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 2

 Mid-Term Assessment
Operations Management - I

1. PREFACE

As a part of the EPGP (MBA) Curriculum of Indian Institute of Management, Raipur and in
order to gain practical knowledge in the field of Operations Management, we’re required to
make a assessment report on “Mumbai Dabbawala”. This objective behind this
assignment report is to co-relate the theories taught by the professors in the lecture vis-à-vis
how Mumbai Dabbawala strategized their operations with minimal error or inefficiency.

In this report, we have incorporated various aspects of operations principles, strategies,

frameworks which includes the following:

1. How Dabbawallas System works?

1.1. Different Frameworks of Dabbawalas systems such as organizational,
management process, culture and people and how these frameworks reinforce each
other?
2. How Mumbai Dabbawallas achieve its high service performance and what are its
success mantras’?
3. How world class leading logistics firm like FedEx study Mumbai Dabbawallas
system and what’s their learning expectations?
4. A consultant wants to move the dabbawalla system to the twenty-first century while
proposing several changes. How should Raghunath Medge respond?

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 3

 Mid-Term Assessment
Operations Management - I

1. About Mumbai Dabbawalas

Dabbawala system alias lunch delivery service was started back in 1890 by a man named Maadeo
Havaji Bachche with an initial team of 100 men. As of today, Dabbawala employees more than 5000
members, serving 350,000 + delivery per day.

The different process / stages involved is illustrated below:

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 4

 Mid-Term Assessment
Operations Management - I

1.1 Frameworks – Mumbai Dabbawalas

There are four basic pillars if this system which are mutually reinforced together leading to the
success of this system and achieving it’s highest operation efficiency. The pillars are as follows:

i. ORGANIZATION

 Dabbawalas' operations are a function of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, one of

the world's most extensive, complex, and heavily used commuter lines. Their basic layout
allows them to travel short distances between stations with bicycles and handcarts, and saves
them time.

 Dabbas change hands several times a day. In the morning, a worker picks up the dabba from the
customer's home and transports it to the nearest train station where it is sorted
and placed onto wooden crates according to where it is going.

 As part of their efficient business model, the dabbawalas have organized themselves into

roughly 200 units of about 25 people each. These small groups are autonomous at
the local level. A flat organizational structure is optimal for achieving low delivery costs.

‘’At  major  stations,  unloading  dabbas  only  takes  40  seconds,  while  at  interi
m  stops  the  task  takes  just 20 seconds ’’

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 5

 Mid-Term Assessment
Operations Management - I

ii. MANAGEMENT

 With respect to hiring, logistics, customer acquisition and retention, and conflict resolution, the
dabbawalas manage their businesses themselves. This enables them to operate efficiently, keep
costs low, and provide an excellent level of service.

 Dabbawalas are independent contractors who negotiate their own prices with their customers.
Although governing committees set guidelines for prices, they take into account factors like the
distance between the customer's residence and office and distance between the office and
nearest railway station

 Each group of workers has a supervisor, referred to as a muqaddam, who supervises coding,
sorting, and loading and unloading of dabbas as well as handling disputes, overseeing
collections, and troubleshooting.

 There are two managing committees made up of selected muqaddams that meet monthly to
address operational and organizational issues and problems that cannot be resolved locally.

iii. PROCESS

 In order to communicate information, the dabbawalas use a simple

system of symbols – simple color codes. The lid of a dabba has
three basic markings.
 The coding system contains just enough information to allow
people to know where to deliver the dabbas, but it does not allow
for complete addresses to be included.

 In the center, there's a large, bold number, which indicates the neighborhood where the dabba
should be delivered.

 In the next row there is a set of characters on the edge of the lid: a number for the dabbawala, an
alphabetical code (two or three letters) for the office building, and a number for the floor.

 The third indicator is a combination of color and shape, and in some cases, a motif, which
signifies the place of origin.

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 6

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Operations Management - I

iv. CULTURE

 Dabbawalas, who range in age from 18 to 65, usually remain with their groups throughout their
working lives. (There is no mandatory retirement age.)

 As a result, team members care deeply about one another.

 Typically, new workers are friends or family members of existing members, and Mumbai is a
melting pot of religions, ethnicities, and dialects, yet many dabbawalas share the same culture,
language, values, work ethic, diet, and religious beliefs

‘’The dabbawalas show that with the right system, an organization doesn’t
need extraordinary talent to achieve extraordinary performance.””

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 7

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Operations Management - I

2. High Service Performance of Dabbawalas & Success Mantras’

The 120-year-old dabbawalas have an excellent distribution system due to their flat structure.””

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 8

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Operations Management - I

3. FedEx study of Dabbawala Systems and their learning expectations

 FedEx relies heavily on technology but is not as

synchronized and integrated as Dabbawallas.

 Because of Dabbawalla's flat structure,

decision-making is quick. FedEx can easily
adapt this structure into their organization.

 Delivery was handled by Dabbawalla as part of

its supply chain and transportation, while FedEx
owned multiple vehicles and airplanes. They may not be able to completely eliminate this
method of delivery, but they can certainly integrate public transport.

 The dabbawalla company does not perform work as an employer but as a partner and therefore
takes responsibility for the results.

 FedEx can improve its service level and maintain customer relationships by studying customer
relationships likely Dabbawalas

 FedEx can also hire local employees to leverage local language and know-how just like
Dabbawalla.

 FedEx can learn from Dabbawalla by doing what it does best: sticking to its core competencies.
Generally, companies strive to achieve economies of scale through vertical integration or
backward integration.

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 9

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Operations Management - I

4. A consultant wants to move the dabbawalla system to the twenty-first century

while proposing several changes. How should Raghunath Medge respond?

Rahgunath Medge should discuss the consultant's recommendations with the executive team and
identify what changes are feasible and appropriate. Only those changes should be implemented
which are in alignment with the CTQs (Critical to Quality).

Here are some changes that can be implemented into the Dabbawala system based on an evaluation:

I. An improvised method of connecting dabbawalas: Since many dabbas change hands

throughout the process, the dabbawalas can be connected differently so that they are
informed of the exact location of their fellow dabbawalas.

II. Tracking of customers: A mechanism can be designed so that dabbawalas can keep track of
their clients and they can also incorporate an update model where customers can update
their delivery requests to a database.

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 10

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Operations Management - I

III. Transport: Currently, dabbawalas use hand-powered carts, bicycles, etc. to transport dabbas
from the place of preparation to the place of consumption. As lives get faster in the 21st
century, dabbawalas can choose other transportation techniques like e-carts (electronic
carts) to transport dabbas to different locations while keeping the environment less polluted.

IV. Payments: It may be possible to design a payment collection model that gives dabbawalas
the ability to track payments received from clients on a monthly basis.

V. Presently, dabbawalas have around 130,000 clients spread throughout Mumbai, however,
they can use a referral model so that new clients may enrol themselves to avail the services
of dabbawalas.

Submitted by Aman Abhishek Confidential pg. 11