A PROJECT REPORT ON

FINANCIAL STRATEGIES OF CORPORTAE GIFT MANUFACTURING

INDUSTRY

SUBMITTED BY

MISS. DEVYANI TAILOR

TYBMS (Semester V)

THAKUR COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND COMMERCE

KANDIVALI (E) MUMBAI

SUBMITTED TO

UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI

ACADEMIC YEAR: 2016-2017

 DECLARATION

I, Devyani Tailor, learner of T.Y.B.M.S. (SEMESTER V), Thakur

College of Science and Commerce hereby declare that I have completed
this project titled ‘A STUDY ON FINANCIAL STRATEGIES OF CORPORATE
GIFT MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY’ in the academic year 2016-17.

The information submitted here is true and original to the best of my

knowledge.

_________________

Signature of the student

DEVYANI TAILOR

Date :
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Miss. DEVYANI TAILOR of Thakur College of Science and
Commerce of T.Y.B.M.S.(SEMESTER V) has completed her project on ‘A STUDY
ON FINANCIAL STRATEGIES OF CORPORATE GIFT MANUFACTURING
INDUSTRY’ in the academic year 2016-2017. The information submitted is true and
original to the best of my knowledge.

Signature of the Principal Signature of the BMS Coordinator

Signature of the Project guide Signature of the External Examiner

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude and thanks towards the
UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI for introducing a course like BMS and giving all the students a
base and a platform to keep abreast with the changing business scenario.

I also wish to extend my appreciation, especially to our Principal CHAKRABOTY

Coordinator of BMS and also for their kind co-ordination and support.

I would like to express my gratitude and sincere thanks to my Project Guide DR.RICHA
JAIN for instilling confidence in me to carry out this study and extending valuable guidance
and encouragement from time to time, without which it would not have been possible to
undertake and complete this project. I would like to thank the college librarian for providing
the books and other valuable data for my project.

Also , this project would not have been possible without the support of my parents, who were
my inspirations throughout; my teachers and friends who helped me find data for this project.

Last but not the least my colleagues for their valuable comments and suggestions for making
this a cherishable experience for me.
CONTENT PAGE:

SR.NO. TITLE PAGE NO.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. INTRODUCTION ON CORPORATE GIFTING 1

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE 8

INTRODUCTION ON ROYALE
3. COLLECTIONS 10

4. THEORY ON FINANCIAL STRATEGIES 13

5. 25
DATA ANALYSIS

6. CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONS 36

7. ANNEXURE 38

BIBLIOGRAPHY
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

As the topic relates to FINANCIAL STRATEGIES OF CORPORATE GIFT

MANUFACTURING COMPANIES, the topic covers the basic brief idea on what is
CORPORATE GIFT and how they help in increasing sales of a company and its goodwill.
Each an every company have their own way of promoting the products. The marketing
people have the innovative gifts which can attract the people for getting the company more
profits. Presenting a gift is now considered another way of saying thanks to clients, as a
reminder, as a promotion just to name a few. Short research on various Corporate gift
Manufacturers is done by preparing a short questionnaire. There were few limitations while
doing this research but therefore we gained lot of information about there working. It covers
the financial strategies in which its important aspects like account handling, sales, advertising
etc.

When an organization plans for giving gifts to its stakeholders, the first thing which comes in
mind is available fund. Proper planning is required for corporate gifting. It should be in such
a way that it doesn’t affects or breaks the working capital of the company. In financial
strategies we cover its advantages and importance.

This topic hereby concludes that Corporate Gifting has become an integral part of any
organization, as it not only increases goodwill but also motivates employees for further
achievement of their goals.
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION
  Royal Collections have their own way of promoting the products. The marketing
people have the innovative gifts which can attract the people for getting the company
more profits. The promotion is good with the innovative corporate gifts. If the
company has to stay in the market then it has to give a lot of advertisements and also
make some innovative gifts which will make the clients and the customers happy. Our
Company will remain loyal to the other companies if they like the products and the
gifts. The best way to promote the company is giving the corporate gifts. They may be
sweets or stationery items.
 Corporate gifts or business gifts as some may call it, is one way businesses use to
attract potential customers or even to present it to current employees. Presenting a gift
is now considered another way of saying thanks to clients, as a reminder, as a
promotion just to name a few.

 Regardless of the gift, be it expensive or a token sum, it is important to take note that
quality is always of utmost importance. We at Design ‘n’ Gifts Pte Ltd always uphold
our image as The Company that delivers in both quality and perfection.
In short there’s nothing that we can’t do to meet the needs of out clients. Tell us what
you need, and we try our best to deliver. In fact, we will deliver!

INNOVATIVE CORPORATE GIFT

“Innovative Corporate Gifts Improve the Sales”

 Each an every company have their own way of promoting the products. The
marketing people have the innovative gifts which can attract the people for getting the
company more profits. The promotion is good with the innovative corporate gifts. If
the company has to stay in the market then it has to give a lot of advertisements and
also make some innovative gifts which will make the clients and the customers happy.
They will remain loyal to the company if they like the products and the gifts.
 The best way to promote the company is giving the corporate gifts. They may be
sweets or stationery items.

 Some of the innovative corporate gifts will have the logos and the name of the
company printed on it. These gifts will increase the number of customers to the
company and also increase the profit to the company. Every company wants to look
unique and attract the customers towards it. If the customers are given promotion gifts
when they purchase the products then the customers will surely not forget it.
 The companies will have some loyal people who will give proper advice to bring the
company to the lime light. They will introduce some innovative corporate gifts
which will give the consumer, customer or the client a pleasant feeling about the
company. The stationeries may be calendar, diaries, pens, pencils, wall hangings and
many other items which will have the company logo printed on it.

1.
  The printed wordings will give a good image to the customers for improving the sales
of the company. So investing in the corporate gifts is not at all a loss. They help in
improving the sales of the company.

 There are many gift items in the market. There are stores which are meant for the
corporate gifts. The company can order for the best quality products and then print the
name of the company to give as a corporate gift. There is a lot of competition in the
market and the company should have some innovative corporate gifts ideas to stand
unique from the other companies.

 The corporate gift items are there in the market which can be got in a minimum
budget. The printed logos and the company name will advertise the company name.
The people will become familiar with the name of the company.

 The bags, bottles which are given as corporate gifts should have the name of the
company with good ink. The print should look attractive with colors. The print should
last long. The people who carry this will be advertising the company. The marketing
people who are working for the company will have many innovative corporate gifts
ideas for improving the sales of the company.

 Giving gifts is a way of improving the market sales wise. The gifts may be sweets or
stationery, they should serve the purpose.

OBJECTIVES:
 The main objective of the study was to investigate the use of corporate gifts in
the industry and to examine the role of corporate gifts in the marketing
communications. The empirical research in the form of postal questionnaire
survey was carried out to find out the following information:

1. To understand the role of gifts and their actual usage.

2. To study the types of gifts chosen and whether they are customised.

3. To study the ethical considerations in gifts giving.

4. To understand the current expenditure and future trend.

2.
SELECTION CRITERIA:
 The study being undertaken is Descriptive in nature. The term descriptive research
refers to the type of research question, design, and data analysis that will be applied to
a given topic. When it comes to online surveying, descriptive is by far the most
commonly used form of research. It often uses visual aids such as graphs and charts to
aid the reader in understanding the data distribution.

 There are different ways by which data can be collected. The data that has been
collected directly from the source for a study purpose is called Primary Data. In this
research project, both primary and secondary data were collected and used. Two sets
of hypothesis were also made, each consisting of a null hypothesis and an alternate
hypothesis. Appropriate statistical tools have then applied to establish correlation
among the variables and for hypothesis testing.

a) PRIMARY DATA:
The primary data was collected by administering structured questionnaire. The
questionnaire is one of the most significant and widely used data collection methods. For
conducting this research, a questionnaire has been designed keeping in view the general
uses and problems that a consumer faces when using corporate gifts. The survey was
specifically focused on respondents who used corporate gifts.

b) SECONDARY DATA:
Besides the primary data, secondary data was collected from books ,companies
information provided on the official websites of respected companies, reference books,
research papers, articles, and websites to gather work prior to the study.

SAMPLE DESIGN:
 The study involves primary data collected through a questionnaire. The sample was
selected by the Stratified Random Sampling Method in such a way that it consisted of
consumers including students, working professionals, government officials, house
makers and senior citizens and their responses were recorded.
 The study was conducted by taking a sample size of 30 RESPONDENTS. A
questionnaire is set of questions used for gathering information and data from
individuals. Questionnaire was used as an instrument for collection of data from 30
respondents and in the questionnaire there are 10 QUESTIONS which were asked to
respondent.

3.
SCOPE OF STUDY :
 Before the corporate gifts would consist of some memento and would be of no use to
the receiver. But these days the people are thinking to give the gifts which will be
useful to the person who receives it.

 There are modern corporate gifts ideas which will help the people to get the idea of
what to give to the people whom you feel very close or who have helped you a lot.
These gifts will help to build the relationships to a certain extent.

 Before the corporate gifts would consist of some memento and would be of no use to
the receiver. But these days the people are thinking to give the gifts which will be
useful to the person who receives it. There are modern corporate gifts ideas which
will help the people to get the idea of what to give to the people whom you feel very
close or who have helped you a lot.

 These gifts will help to build the relationships to a certain extent. The gifts can be sent
for any type of occasion. For sickness, offer condolence, to share happiness and also
to appreciate. For every occasion or anything we can give the corporate gifts.

 Both the male and the female will have the same corporate gifts. There is no sex
distinguishing in the gifts. All the ages also will have the same gifts to only tell that
we still remember them and their relationships.

 Mostly the corporate gift ideas may be basket will be full of the things which are
liked by the recipient. The companies will sometimes give the jackets which have the
company seal on it. The logo of the company is also displayed on it.

 The employees will have the jacket and the name displayed will give the
advertisement of the company. The name of the company may be in the front or on
the back of the jacket. The people who attend the seminars and the conferences will
be given the T-shirts which bear the seminar’s name on it. It is a pleasure to have such
T-shirt as it is unique.

4.
  The employers also will have many corporate gift ideas for giving the employees the
gifts which will encourage them to put more effort for making more profits for the
company.

SIGNIFICANCE OF CORPORATE GIFT MANUFACTURERS:

 Giveaways and business industry are usually strongly connected. Each time these
companies will be needing to do marketing and advertising of their brand name or
even items, they will need the aid of corporate gifts in numerous ways. Free gifts are
wonderful advertising accessories that set up exciting influence on the prospective
buyers.

 Furthermore, promotional products are additionally offered to the vendors to call to

mind of their relationship or maybe to exhibit gratitude. With the increasing issues as
well as rivalry experienced by corporations, vast majority of them make use of
various strategies to lift shareholder worth and also corporate profits.

 A large number of companies today have identified the significance of promotional

items. Learn more details about how to get gift cards for staff.

 Corporate giveaways are necessary for business firms. When corporations release
fresh merchandises, subsequently it becomes evident for these firms to publicize it to
be able to draw in highest prospective customers and even boost earnings.

 With no product promotion as well as marketing, they are unable to achieve the
familiarity with typical individuals, which is really needed for marketing
merchandises. Immediate interaction with buyers is definitely advantageous for item
promotion and corporate gifts play key factor in collecting potential customers.

 Giveaways are something which consistently entice men and women making these
individuals feel really special and it actually does miracles for trade name or maybe
product marketing promotions.

5.
  The requirement for advertising campaign is evident and business executives often
choose to provide some special gifts on normal periods to accumulate clients for their
products or maybe every time they carry out some organization implementations.

 This may be a superb technique that sets remarkable effects on the mind of customers.
By prudently deciding top quality and type of special gifts, business enterprises can
dramatically enhance their organization devoid of putting further efforts.

 Furthermore, placing the logo of the business on the free gift may further boost the
worth of branding which could inspire and draw in the masses.

LIMITATIONS OF RESEARCH:
1)Limited outcomes in a quantitative research

Quantitative research method involves structured questionnaire with close ended questions. It
leads to limited outcomes outlined in the research proposal. So the results cannot always
represent the actual occurring, in a generalised form. Also, the respondents have limited
options of responses, based on the selection made by the researcher.

2) Expensive and time consuming

Quantitative research is difficult, expensive and requires a lot of time to be perform the
analysis. This type of research is planned carefully in order to ensure complete randomization
and correct designation of control groups (Morgan 1980). A large proportion of respondents
is appropriate for the representation of the target population. So, as to achieve in-depth
responses on an issue, data collection in quantitative research methodology is often too
expensive as against qualitative approach.

3) Difficultly in data analysis

Quantitative study requires extensive statistical analysis, which can be difficult to perform for
researchers from non- statistical backgrounds. Statistical analysis is based on scientific
discipline and hence difficult for non-mathematicians to perform.

6.
Quantitative research is a lot more complex for social sciences, education, anthropology and
psychology. Effective response should depend on the research problem rather than just a
simple yes or no response.

4) Requirement of extra resources to analyse the results

The requirements for the successful statistical confirmation of result is very tough in a
quantitative research. Hypothesis is proven with few experiments due to which there is
ambiguity in the results. Results are retested and refined several times for an unambiguous
conclusion (Ong 2003). So it requires extra time, investment and resources to refine the
results.

CONCLUSION:
We all know that sales primarily depend on various factors and it cannot be achieved if you
are blindly following just few methods which directly benefit you. There are several indirect
methods which can be used to increase sales; one of them is corporate gifting. Many people
don’t understand the importance of corporate gifting and they just keep limiting it as a
behavior of ethics. There is a direct relationship between sales and corporate gifting.

Corporate gifting covers every part of business. There are three aspects of that. We have
majorly divided it in three groups’ i.e. employees, clients and market. If you want to know
how to identify right kind of gift read our another article about how to identify unique
corporate gift

Employees: Employees recognition is very important in any organization. Employees

always eagerly wait for corporate gifts and by providing right kind of gift you can make them
happy and a happy employee would work efficiently.

There are several kinds of corporate gifts available for employees like awards, trophies,
mugs, sippers and they are pocket friendly also.

Clients: Corporate gifting is important for clients as it gives them a brand recall. Whenever
there is any meeting with your important clients and you don’t want them to forget about
your company easily you can give them customized gifts like power banks, pen drives etc so
that they can remember you for the long time.

Now there are two types of gifts that are available for clients which are old kind of and new
kind of

Old kind of gifts includes:

  Calendars
 Diaries
 Pens

New kind of gifts includes:

 Power banks
 Pen drives
 Gift sets( that includes key chains, pens, diaries )

Obviously new kind of gifts are more appealing and trending in the market as it increases the
value of the firm’s in the eyes of clients.

Market: Market includes the third most important sector for any organization i.e. consumer.
Corporate gifting, again, can give consumer a brand recall.

7.

CHAPTER 2

REVIEW
OF
 LITERATURE

ARTICLES :
“Corporate Gifting : an ethical way of giving and receiving”

The end of year festive season can have an impact on business life beyond office parties and
time off work. Ethics and compliance specialists may dread this time of year, as the subject of
gifts and hospitality bring up a number of ethical challenges. You may feel like the office
Grinch dictating that gifts and hospitality cannot be given or accepted.

There is no doubt that the giving and accepting of gifts has an important role in facilitating
business relationships and practice. A pen with your firm’s name on it can remind a customer
of you when they need a quote.

At times however, the line between what constitutes a gift and what constitutes a bribe, can
be unclear and the acceptance of gifts, services and hospitality can leave an organisation
vulnerable to accusations of unethical, or even unlawful conduct.

“Corporate Gifting: Increase in expectations of Staff” :

It goes without saying that if the aim is to create an expectation of a “favourable” act in return
for the gift or hospitality, then it probably isn’t a gift.

Timing is also of key importance. Are you on the brink of closing a large deal with a
customer that if secured, would increase your end of year bonus by a not insignificant
amount? Or are you being offered a gift shortly before or during a tendering process? It is not
just giving but also the accepting of gift.

What constitutes a “lavish” gift can be difficult to judge. For example, the duties of senior
staff may require them to attend or sponsor events where gift is generous. What may seem
minor to a senior manager could be significantly more valuable to a junior employee.
Sometimes, the exact value of a gift or hospitality can be hard to determine. There are also
cross cultural considerations; a gift valued at £20 may be considered as low value in the UK,
but could be considered as lavish in some less developed economies.

8.

“Corporate Gifting : A Cultural tradition in organizations for staff and employees?” :

Who is the gift for? Giving gifts to certain persons, for example public officials, is often
construed as a facilitation payment and arouses suspicions. However, definitions of what
constitutes a public official can vary. In many countries, it can be difficult to tell the
difference between an employee in a state owned enterprise and a member of the government
who is also working within the state owned company.

How can companies support staff? Many companies take a zero tolerance approach to gift
giving and receiving. However, this isn’t always the most practical approach and can mean
employees find themselves in awkward situations having to publically decline the gift or
hospitality.

This is particularly true for employees of multinational companies operating in countries

where gift giving is an important cultural tradition and instrumental in building professional
relationships such as the giving of red envelopes for Chinese new year. Some companies
have opted not to implement a global blanket ban, but rather they have set out locally
determined limits for the value of gifts and hospitality that may be given or received.

“Corporate gifting : does it requires any policy ?”

Employees need guidance on the company’s protocol on giving or accepting gifts or

hospitality. This includes seeking approval from their line manager or someone more senior,
recording it in a gifts and hospitality register. Sometimes gifts of a high value might be
required be donated to charity or to the company. Gifts of high value can then be auctioned at
the end of the year to raise funds for charity, for example.

Guidance is usually found in a company’s code of ethics or gift policy. This will outline the
company’s position on gifts, what constitutes gift giving and set out good practice for
employees. A gifts policy needs to be consistent with all other aspects of an organisation’s
ethics programme in encouraging high standards of honesty and integrity in decision-making
and behaviour.

So, there’s no need to be a Grinch. Communicate your gifts policy to employees and others
you do business with; encourage employees to consider the ethical implications before giving
and receiving gifts; and offer additional support for those who work in cultures with different
gift-giving norms.

This will save both sides embarrassment and, potentially, your organisation’s reputation.

(Judith Irwin is a senior researcher at the Institute of Business Ethics)

9.

CHAPTER 3

ROYALE
COLLECTIONS
 (MANUFACTURER
OF CORPORATE
GIFTS)

INTRODUCTION :
Royal Collections have their own way of promoting the products. The marketing people have
the innovative gifts which can attract the people for getting the company more profits. The
promotion is good with the innovative corporate gifts. Our company has to stay in the
market then it has to give a lot of advertisements and also make some innovative gifts which
will make the clients and the customers happy. Royal Collections remain loyal to the
company if they like the products and the gifts. The best way to promote the company is
giving the corporate gifts. They may be sweets or stationery items.

Some of the innovative corporate gifts will have the logos and the name of the company
printed on it. These gifts will increase the number of customers to the company and also
increase the profit to the company. Every company wants to look unique and attract the
customers towards it. If the customers are given promotion gifts when they purchase the
products then the customers will surely not forget it. The corporate gifts should have some
standard. They represent the company, so it is better to maintain some standard in the gifts.
The promotional gifts should portray the products, name or the logo of the company.

The companies will have some loyal people who will give proper advice to bring the
company to the lime light. They will introduce some innovative corporate gifts which will
give the consumer, customer or the client a pleasant feeling about the company. The
stationeries may be calendar, diaries, pens, pencils, wall hangings and many other items
which will have the company logo printed on it. The printed wordings will give a good image
to the customers for improving the sales of the company. So investing in the corporate gifts is
not at all a loss. They help in improving the sales of the company.

There are many gift items in the market. There are stores which are meant for the corporate
gifts. The company can order for the best quality products and then print the name of the
company to give as a corporate gift. There is a lot of competition in the market and the
company should have some innovative corporate gifts ideas to stand unique from the other
companies. The corporate gift items are there in the market which can be got in a minimum
budget. The printed logos and the company name will advertise the company name. The
people will become familiar with the name of the company.

The bags, bottles which are given as corporate gifts should have the name of the company
with good ink. The print should look attractive with colors. The print should last long. The
people who carry this will be advertising the company. The marketing people who are
working for the company will have many innovative corporate gifts ideas for improving the
sales of the company. Giving gifts is a way of improving the market sales wise. The gifts may
be sweets or stationery, they should serve the purpose.

10.

Today, ROYAL COLLECTIONS stand tall with more than ten associates, and the turnover
crossing to Rs.10/- crore for the year 2011-12 has proved Royal collection’s supremacy in
this segment.

Our business is growing steadily. New business development cell is already established for
further momentum at a faster rate.

Spreading Branches and its working:

Royal Collections is spreading its reach in each and every required corner of the assigned,
diversified and /or selective market –area segment. The urge to deliver the best service to the
customers, clients has made us open different divisions. We have 1 operating office and 2
working factories.

There are 15-20 employees working in the office with complete guidance of their seniors.

The accounts working here are responsible for making VAT & CST bills and DELIVERY
NOTE in TALLY ERP.

Royal Collections also issues inter - state road permits for transportation of material which is
being sold.
Issue of C Form for inter-state purchase @ 2%.

FEW CORPORATE GIFT ITEMS :

11.

FIG.1
Fig. 3
 Fig. 4

12.

CHAPTER 4

INTRODUCTION ON
 FINANCIAL
STRATEGIES

HISTORY:
Financial inclusion or inclusive financing is the delivery of financial services at affordable
costs to sections of disadvantaged and low-income segments of society, in contrast to
financial exclusion where those services are not available or affordable. An estimated 2
billion working-age adults globally have no access to the types of formal financial services
delivered by regulated financial institutions.

In the Indian context, the term ‘financial inclusion’ was used for the first time in April 2005
in the Annual Policy Statement presented by Y.Venugopal Reddy,the then Governor, Reserve
Bank of India. Later on, this concept gained ground and came to be widely used in India and
abroad. While recognizing the concerns in regard to the banking practices that tend to
exclude rather than attract vast sections of population, banks were urged to review their
existing practices to align them with the objective of financial inclusion. The Report of the
Internal Group to Examine Issues relating to Rural Credit and Microfinance (Khan
Committee) in July 2005 drew strength from this announcement by Governor Y. Venugopal
Reddy in the Annual Policy Statement for 2005-06 wherein he had expressed deep concern
on the exclusion of vast sections of the population from the formal financial system. In the
Khan Committee Report, the RBI exhorted the banks with a view to achieving greater
financial inclusion to make available a basic "no-frills" banking account.

The recommendations of the Khan Committee were incorporated into the mid-term review of
the policy (2005–06). Financial inclusion again featured later in 2005 when it was used by
K.C. Chakraborthy, the chairman of Indian Bank. Mangalam became the first village in India
where all households were provided banking facilities. Norms were relaxed for people
intending to open accounts with annual deposits of less than Rs. 50,000.

General credit cards (GCCs) were issued to the poor and the disadvantaged with a view to
help them access easy credit. In January 2006, the Reserve Bank permitted commercial banks
to make use of the services of non-governmental organizations (NGOs/SHGs), micro-finance
institutions, and other civil society organizations as intermediaries for providing financial and
banking services.

These intermediaries could be used as business facilitators or business correspondents by

commercial banks. The bank asked the commercial banks in different regions to start a 100%
financial inclusion campaign on a pilot basis.

As a result of the campaign, states or union territories like Puducherry, Himachal Pradesh and
Kerala

announced 100% financial inclusion in all their districts. Reserve Bank of India’s vision for
2020 is to open nearly 600 million new customers' accounts and service them through a
variety of channels by leveraging on IT.

13.

However, illiteracy and the low income savings and lack of bank branches in rural areas
continue to be a roadblock to financial inclusion in many states and there is inadequate legal
and financial structure.

The government of India recently announced “Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna,” a national
financial inclusion mission which aims to provide bank accounts to at least 75 million people
by January 26, 2015. To achieve this milestone, it’s important for both service providers and
policy makers to have readily available information outlining gaps in access and interactive
tools that help better understand the context at the district level. MIX designed the
FINclusion Lab India FI workbook to support these actors as they craft strategies to achieve
these goals.

In India, RBI has initiated several measures to achieve greater financial inclusion, such as
facilitating no-frills accounts and GCCs for small deposits and credit.

INTRODUCTION ON FINANCIAL STRATEGIES:

To get the most out of your financial resources and achieve sustainability you'll need to
successfully manage all your funding and financing sources in an overarching strategy for
your organisation. Find out how to go about this and who to involve.

Many organisations manage income from a number of different funding and finance sources -
from donations, grants, contracts and income generated from trading.

A financial strategy enables your organisation to assess your financial needs and the sources
of support required to meet your objectives and fulfil the organisational mission, whilst also
planning for continued growth to enable stability.

You're financial strategy will derive from your mission. So the first step is to clearly define
why you exist and you plan to achieve your mission before preparing any budgets.

"If you don't know where you are going, you might not get there."
Yoda - Star Wars

A mission statement is a brief declaration of an organisation's purpose and values - the reason
why it exists. Your mission should be a long-term statement of intent deriving from the vision
that originally inspired the organisation to form. It shouldn't be a detailed list of what you will
do, how you'll do it and when.

14.

Focusing on your mission will help you move your focus from what you do, to what you
want to achieve.
Once your mission is clear you'll be able to set strategic goals (both medium and long term)
that set the direction of your organisation.

With your direction clear you can create a costed, timed and detailed work plan that outlines
the operational activities necessary to achieve each goal down to the day to day activities.
This will ensure that your mission and financial goals are complementary to each other rather
than in competition.

Rather than being seen as a separate function, just doing the books, your finance function
should be integrated within, and add value to, the overall planning and management of every
organisation.

Your finance function - whether that is a team or an individual - can add value to both
planning and management. The key roles are:

 Providers of information for decision-making

 Business management.
Financial managers will need to assess what information they have, particularly on costs and
income projections to be able to control or plan the future.

The financial management role of a voluntary organisation trustee board is quite different to a
commercial organisation. The three main financial management functions of the board are
financial monitoring, procedures and management.

Most voluntary organisations are financially accountable to a far greater number of

stakeholders that commercial organisations being funded by a combination of tax concessions
and money from the general public, local government and charitable trusts.
The goal of maximising shareholder value - which can be measured objectively - is not
relevant to non-commercial organisations. Instead, the whole trustee board must demonstrate
value for money and effectiveness, which by their nature are more subjective criteria.

A large part of the business plan for any small business is the financial section of the plan.
The financial section includes the income statement, cash flow statement and balance sheet.
For new businesses, these financial statements will be projections, whereas for an existing the
business the section will contain several years of history as well as projections. In addition to
statements, the plan should include the financial strategies of the business in how finances
will be handled.

15.

ADVANTAGES OF FINANCIAL STRATEGIES:

1)RESEARCH, TIME AND KNOWLEDGE

Financial management requires a significant amount of information, which takes time to
collect. Once the data is gathered, you must take time to analyze it properly and discuss it
with others involved. If you aren't sure how to approach a financial question, you must either
learn about it or call in an expert, especially as company objectives change or the market
shifts.

2)COST

The expertise, information and time involved with financial management has a very real price
tag your company must take into account. You must pay those in your accounting department
or the consultants you hire, and even if you handle the finances of the business alone, you
cannot work for free.
3)REVISION AND ATTENTION

The financial needs and situation of a business shift constantly, based on market variables
and the results of internal controls. For example, you may find that the cost of a part rose 10
cents from the previous budget period -- this drives up your cost of production and forces you
to evaluate your budget. Financial management, therefore, is not a do-it-and-leave-it task.

4)POWER

Managers often have to make the final call on where money goes in a business. Employees
may take it personally if you don't allot money to them or their projects. This can lead to bad
relations within the company.

5)MONEY AVAILABILITY

When you manage your finances well, you know exactly what you're spending and what
you're earning. You also know when funds will be available. With this knowledge, it's much
less likely that you'll run into debt or be unable to pay back what you already owe. You know
that money will be available when you need it.

16.

6)PLANNING

When you manage your business funds, reviewing the financial data allows you to identify
specific trends and make some forecasts for the future. Because your finances connect
directly to what you can do in the business, this lets you develop new strategies for your
operations and plan what you're going to do from both the short- and long-term perspectives.
You also can assess your areas of risk and take steps to fix problems.

7)ACCOUNTABILITY

Financial management forces you and everyone else in the business to make a case for
everything on which they're spending. With proper financial controls, you also can prevent
instances of fraud. Financial management thus is a major tool for keeping everyone in your
business accountable.

8)CONFIDENCE

Proper financial management usually means that a company can grow in one or more areas,
or at the very least, remain stable. It also provides you with an opportunity to follow through
on your policies and plans. When these things happen, your employees and investors may
have more confidence in you as a business leader. This often translates into continued loyalty.
THE ROLE OF FINANCE IN THE STRATEGIC-PLANNING
AND DECISION-MAKING PROCESS:
Any person, corporation, or nation should know who or where they are, where they want to
be, and how to get there. The strategic-planning process utilizes analytical models that
provide a realistic picture of the individual, corporation, or nation at its “consciously
incompetent” level, creating the necessary motivation for the development of a strategic plan.
The process requires five distinct steps outlined below and the selected strategy must be
sufficiently robust to enable the firm to perform activities differently from its rivals or to
perform similar activities in a more efficient manner.

A good strategic plan includes metrics that translate the vision and mission into specific end
points. This is critical because strategic planning is ultimately about resource allocation and
would not be relevant if resources were unlimited. This article aims to explain how finance,
financial goals, and financial performance can play a more integral role in the strategic
planning and decision-making process, particularly in the implementation and monitoring
stage.

17.

The Strategic-Planning and Decision-Making Process :

1) VISION STATEMENT

The creation of a broad statement about the company’s values, purpose, and future direction
is the first step in the strategic-planning process. The vision statement must express the
company’s core ideologies—what it stands for and why it exists—and its vision for the
future, that is, what it aspires to be, achieve, or create.

2) MISSION STATEMENT

An effective mission statement conveys eight key components about the firm: target
customers and markets; main products and services; geographic domain; core technologies;
commitment to survival, growth, and profitability; philosophy; self-concept; and desired
public image. The finance component is represented by the company’s commitment to
survival, growth, and profitability. The company’s long-term financial goals represent its
commitment to a strategy that is innovative, updated, unique, value-driven, and superior to
those of competitors.
3) ANALYSIS

This third step is an analysis of the firm’s business trends, external opportunities, internal
resources, and core competencies. For external analysis, firms often utilize Porter’s five
forces model of industry competition, which identifies the company’s level of rivalry with
existing competitors, the threat of substitute products, the potential for new entrants, the
bargaining power of suppliers, and the bargaining power of customers.

For internal analysis, companies can apply the industry evolution model, which identifies
takeoff (technology, product quality, and product performance features), rapid growth
(driving costs down and pursuing product innovation), early maturity and slowing growth
(cost reduction, value services, and aggressive tactics to maintain or gain market share),
market saturation (elimination of marginal products and continuous improvement of value-
chain activities), and stagnation or decline (redirection to fastest-growing market segments
and efforts to be a low-cost industry leader).

Another method, value-chain analysis clarifies a firm’s value-creation process based on its
primary and secondary activities. This becomes a more insightful analytical tool when used in
conjunction with activity-based costing and benchmarking tools that help the firm determine
its major costs, resource strengths, and competencies, as well as identify areas where
productivity can be improved and where re-engineering may produce a greater economic
impact.

18.

SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) is a classic model of internal and
external analysis providing management information to set priorities and fully utilize the
firm’s competencies and capabilities to exploit external opportunities, determine the critical
weaknesses that need to be corrected, and counter existing threats.

4) STRATEGY FORMULATION

To formulate a long-term strategy, Porter’s generic strategies model is useful as it helps the
firm aim for one of the following competitive advantages: a) low-cost leadership (product is a
commodity, buyers are price-sensitive, and there are few opportunities for differentiation); b)
differentiation (buyers’ needs and preferences are diverse and there are opportunities for
product differentiation); c) best-cost provider (buyers expect superior value at a lower price);
d) focused low-cost (market niches with specific tastes and needs); or e) focused
differentiation (market niches with unique preferences and needs).

5) STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION AND MANAGEMENT

In the last ten years, the balanced scorecard (BSC) has become one of the most effective
management instruments for implementing and monitoring strategy execution as it helps to
align strategy with expected performance and it stresses the importance of establishing
financial goals for employees, functional areas, and business units. The BSC ensures that the
strategy is translated into objectives, operational actions, and financial goals and focuses on
four key dimensions: financial factors, employee learning and growth, customer satisfaction,
and internal business processes.

19.

The Role of Finance

Financial metrics have long been the standard for assessing a firm’s performance. The BSC
supports the role of finance in establishing and monitoring specific and measurable financial
strategic goals on a coordinated, integrated basis, thus enabling the firm to operate efficiently
and effectively. Financial goals and metrics are established based on benchmarking the “best-
in-industry” and include:

1) FREE CASH FLOW

This is a measure of the firm’s financial soundness and shows how efficiently its financial
resources are being utilized to generate additional cash for future investments. It represents
the net cash available after deducting the investments and working capital increases from the
firm’s operating cash flow. Companies should utilize this metric when they anticipate
substantial capital expenditures in the near future or follow-through for implemented projects.

2) ECONOMIC VALUE-ADDED

This is the bottom-line contribution on a risk-adjusted basis and helps management to make
effective, timely decisions to expand businesses that increase the firm’s economic value and
to implement corrective actions in those that are destroying its value. It is determined by
deducting the operating capital cost from the net income. Companies set economic value-
added goals to effectively assess their businesses’ value contributions and improve the
resource allocation process.

3) ASSET MANAGEMENT

This calls for the efficient management of current assets (cash, receivables, inventory) and
current liabilities (payables, accruals) turnovers and the enhanced management of its working
capital and cash conversion cycle. Companies must utilize this practice when their operating
performance falls behind industry benchmarks or benchmarked companies.

20.

4) FINANCING DECISIONS AND CAPITAL STRUCTURE

Here, financing is limited to the optimal capital structure (debt ratio or leverage), which is the
level that minimizes the firm’s cost of capital. This optimal capital structure determines the
firm’s reserve borrowing capacity (short- and long-term) and the risk of potential financial
distress. Companies establish this structure when their cost of capital rises above that of
direct competitors and there is a lack of new investments.

5) PROFITABILITY RATIOS

This is a measure of the operational efficiency of a firm. Profitability ratios also indicate
inefficient areas that require corrective actions by management; they measure profit
relationships with sales, total assets, and net worth. Companies must set profitability ratio
goals when they need to operate more effectively and pursue improvements in their value-
chain activities.
6) GROWTH INDICES

Growth indices evaluate sales and market share growth and determine the acceptable trade-
off of growth with respect to reductions in cash flows, profit margins, and returns on
investment. Growth usually drains cash and reserve borrowing funds, and sometimes,
aggressive asset management is required to ensure sufficient cash and limited borrowing.
Companies must set growth index goals when growth rates have lagged behind the industry
norms or when they have high operating leverage.

7) RISK ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT

A firm must address its key uncertainties by identifying, measuring, and controlling its
existing risks in corporate governance and regulatory compliance, the likelihood of their
occurrence, and their economic impact. Then, a process must be implemented to mitigate the
causes and effects of those risks. Companies must make these assessments when they
anticipate greater uncertainty in their business or when there is a need to enhance their risk
culture.

21.

8) TAX OPTIMIZATION

Many functional areas and business units need to manage the level of tax liability undertaken
in conducting business and to understand that mitigating risk also reduces expected taxes.

Moreover, new initiatives, acquisitions, and product development projects must be weighed
against their tax implications and net after-tax contribution to the firm’s value. In general,

performance must, whenever possible, be measured on an after-tax basis. Global companies

must adopt this measure when operating in different tax environments, where they are able to
take advantage of inconsistencies in tax regulations.
 22.

WHAT FINANCIAL PROBLEMS MAY AFFECT FINANCIAL

PLANNING:
Strategic planning for any business involves allocating resources toward long-range goals.
Almost without exception, long-term planning involves depending on certain financial
assumptions, whether they relate to product success, marketing costs, key employees, the
outcome of litigation matters or any number of contingencies. Accordingly, various
unexpected financial problems may arise which will impact strategic planning.

1)STRATEGIC VISION

The strategic vision for a company often comes from its executives. They are charged with
evaluating the competition, identifying corporate opportunities and developing and
implementing the business plan. A strategy may relate to certain markets (product markets or
geographic markets) or it may relate to the improvement of internal work processes and
overall efficiency of the enterprise, or a myriad of other goals. Regardless of the objective or
objectives a corporation may have, it is important to plan for financial contingencies and be
able to adapt since unwelcome surprises can frequently occur.
2)FINANCIAL PLANNING

The success of strategic planning is largely dependent on the success of financial planning.
Without access to capital, plans cannot be put into action. So, if a company is relying on
credit to finance an expansion, and suddenly credit is unavailable due to adverse market
conditions, strategic planning will suffer.

Likewise, if a company is depending on equity capital to fund its strategic objectives, it may
be disappointed if cash is misappropriated, or if due to an emergency the capital must be
allocated to more urgent matters. Furthermore, assumptions about profitability may be overly
optimistic, thus there may be insufficient retained earnings available for re-investment in
strategic objectives.

3)OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE

Management frequently is responsible for the capital budgeting process. This involves
forecasting sales and related expenses, and making financial estimates for future comparison.
Inherent in these estimates are assumptions about financial performance, which may prove to
be unreliable. For instance, sales can be down dramatically from previous years, costs of
doing business can increase without notice, the sales cycle may be longer than expected, and
market demand may be smaller than expected. These operational issues cause immediate
financial problems that adversely impact strategic planning.

23.

4)STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT

Sophisticated management knows that strategic planning requires being able to adapt to
innumerable changing operational and financial variables. Thus, if a company is experiencing
financial problems, management may implement measures to lower its "burn rate," or
negative cash flow, by cutting expenses until the unwelcome problems are resolved.
Continuous dynamic adjustments of the strategic plan and its financial constraints make it a
work in progress, not an all-or-nothing proposition. Accordingly, best practices in change
management suggest that the optimum strategy is to diversify strategies, since depending on
only one to work out may be overly optimistic.
 24.

CHAPTER 5
 DATA ANALYSIS

Q1) Who in your Company makes decision regarding corporate gifting?

Sales manager Marketing Sales promotion other

Manager Manager

18.2% 63.6% 18.2% 0%

 Decision making

sales manager
marketing manager
sales promotional manager

INTERPRETATION:
When asked about decision regarding corporate gifting ,people accounted Sales Promotion
Manager to 18.2%, Sales Manager to 18.2% , and through Marketing Manager 63.6% .
Thus, decision regards to corporate gifting done by Marketing Manager is generally preferred
by majority of the crowd.

25.

Q2) How long have you been in this business ?

0 – 5 years 5 – 10 years

36.4% 63.6%
 How many years

0 - 5 yrs
5 - 10 yrs

INTERPRETATION:
When asked the manufacturers about establishment of their business.

Majority of manufacturers are been in the market for 5-10 years.

There were even few manufacturers who are in this business for 5 years.

26.

Q3) What type of corporate gift do you prefer selling?

Desk items Jewellery clothing

 50% 40.9% 9.1%

Type of gifts

Desk items
jewellery

INTERPRETATION:
When asked manufacturers about what kind of gifts they prefer selling most , they responded
as desk items are demanded most as compared to jewellery and clothing.

Desk items by 50% , jewellery by 40.9% and clothing by 9.1%.

27.

Q4) On which occasions do you prefer giving corporate gifts ?

Christmas At launch of new service At press events

 36.4% 63.6% 0%

Occasions

Christmas
At launch of new service
At press events

INTERPRETATION:
When asked about on what occasions does their sales increase the most , they
responded during launch of new service to 63.6% and during Christmas 36.4%.

28.

Q5) How do you handle your books of accounts?

Computerized Manually
 77.3% 22.7%

Handling of books of accounts

Computerized
Manually

INTERPRETATION:
When asked the manufacturers about handling of their books of accounts , many
manufacturers handle their accounts in computerized form and few small scale manufacturers
handle their accounts manually.

30.

Q6) Does online marketing affects your business ?

 Yes No

50% 50%

Online marketing

yes
no

INTERPRETATION:
Many manufacturers responded that due to growing competition in the market and due to
presence of online marketing , people started buying online .

This affected their business by 50%. They also responded that it sometimes doesn’t affects
their business.

31.

Q7) How do you overcome competition ?

 Offer discounts Attractive Schemes

40.9% 59.1%

overcome competition

attractive schemes
offer discounts

INTERPRETATION:
Due to growing competition in the market , manufacturers need to retain their customers as
much as possible. Therefore when asked about overcome of competition , few said by
offering attractive schemes and few replied by offering discounts.

As per the analysis table , 59.1% manufacturers overcome competition by offering attractive
schemes.

32.

Q8) What is the purpose of giving Corporate Gifts ?

 Loyalty To increase sales Advertise

50% 18.2% 31.8%

Purpose of giving

loyalty
to increse sales
advertise

INTERPRETATION:
When asked about the purpose of giving corporate gifts , manufacturers responded to create
loyalty . Few responded to increase sales and very few responded for advertisement.

But as per the above analysis corporate gift manufacturers purpose is to increase loyalty.

33.

Q9) What is the pricing strategy of your company?

 High Medium Low

50% 40% 10%

pricing strategy

high
medium
low

INTERPRETATION :
When asked few companies about their pricing strategy.

50% of companies adopt high pricing. 40% of companies adopt medium pricing strategy that
is not very high and not very low. Only 10% of the companies adopt low pricing strategy.

34.

Q10) How much percent of your profit goes to Reserve Account?

 10% of profit 20% of profit 30% of profit

60% 20% 20%

profit in reserves account

10%
20%
20% or more

INTERPRETATION :
When asked about how much percent of their profit retain into reserves account .

60% of companies responded as they keep only 10% of their profit into reserves account.

20% of companies responded as they keep 20% and sometimes 20% or more of their profit
into Reserves account.

35.
 CHAPTER 6

CONCLUSIONS
AND
SUGGESTIONS

CONCLUSION:
Corporate gifts are widely regarded as an effective means of strengthening corporate
relationship and creating goodwill.

Marketing managers are the principal decision makers in deciding whether there is a need to
use Corporate gifts and incentives. The main recipients of those gifts and incentives are
existing customers. The majority of airlines surveyed prefer to use customized gifts that
feature the company logo.

The main objective in the use of corporate gifts and incentives is to promote the corporate
image and engender goodwill. The companies believe that the most important time to use
gifts is at the launch of new service. With regard to the cost of gifts , half of the companies
surveyed paid such offerings from their marketing budget while the other half paid from
special promotion budgets.

Most of the companies purchase a mixture of gifts of different value to suit different needs.
They believe that gifts and incentives have always achieved their desired objectives and
expect that the expenditure on business gifts will remain the same in future.

The research has illustrated the important role that corporate gifts and incentives play in the
marketing communications. However, the key to the successful use of gifts lies in making
sure that they add value to their service offerings, enhancing their corporate image and
creating goodwill. Companies, who use corporate gifts should use them in co-ordination with
other tools in the marketing communication mix , and should have a well-defined objective
for their use and ensure that they are correctly targeted , creative and ethically accountable.

Future research is needed to examine the role of corporate gifts and incentives from the
recipient perspective as there is very little published academic research.

In particular , it needs to establish whether corporate gifts are only a tactical tool in marketing
communication mix or whether they could play a more important part in developing and
maintaining long-term business relationship with both customers and employees and other
stakeholders.

This survey was carried out in single industry with a small sample so caution should be
exerted when the findings are generalised.

It would be interesting to conduct similar survey in other industry sectors to find out whether
there is any significant difference between sectors or different sized companies in terms of
corporate gifting behaviour.

36.

SUGGESTIONS:
Giving corporate gifts to employees is the best way to retain employees interest in the
business and for their motivation. Apart from giving desk-items or stationery items to your
employees there are also other ways to gift your employees they are as follows:

1) Write a note
2) Help customers learn something new
3) Wow one customer
4) Spend quality time together
5) Give a great read
6) Start loyalty program
7) Reward social media savvy customers
8) Spotlight customers
9) Send a treat
10) Give a charitable gift
11) Offer a surprise upgrade
12) Throw a party
13) Distribute free goodies
14) Send cards on unique holidays
15) Refer customers
16) Show your value feedback
17) Excel at customer service daily
18) Discount their bill
19) Send gift cards
20) Honor an achievement
21) Celebrate a major milestone

The above stated points are few suggestions regarding corporate gifting to employees so as to
create goodwill and retain employees interest.

37.
 CHAPTER 7

ANNEXURE

ANNEXURE:
Q1) Who in your company makes decision regarding corporate gifting?

 Sales Manager
 Marketing Manager
 Sales Promotion manager

Q2) How long have you been in this business?

 0 – 5 years
 5 – 10 years

Q3) What type of corporate gift do you prefer selling?

 Desk item
 Jewellery
 Clothing

Q4) On which occasions do you prefer giving corporate gits?

 Christmas
 At launch of a new service
 At press events

Q5) How do you handle your books of accounts?

 Computerized
 Manually

Q6) Does online marketing affects your business?

 Yes
 No

38.

Q7) How do you overcome competition?

  Offer discounts
 Attractive schemes

Q8) What is the purpose of giving corporate gifts?

 Loyalty
 To increase sales
 Advertise

Q9) What is the pricing strategy of your company?

 High
 Medium
 Low

Q10) How much percent from your profit goes to reserve account?

 10%
 20%
 20% or more

39.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Fan, Y. (2006). Promoting business with corporate gifts-major issues and empirical evidence.
Corporate communications: an international journal, 11(1), 43-55.

Klein, W. A., & Coffee, J. C. (1996). Business organization and finance: legal and economic
principles. West Group Publishing.

Katz, D., Caplan, A. L., & Merz, J. F. (2010). All gifts large and small: toward an
understanding of the ethics of pharmaceutical industry gift-giving. The American Journal of
Bioethics, 10(10), 11-17.

Silverman, D. (2013). Doing qualitative research: A practical handbook. SAGE Publications

Limited.

Andrews, M., Squire, C., & Tamboukou, M. (Eds.). (2013). Doing narrative research. Sage.

Myers, S. C. (1984). Finance theory and financial strategy. Interfaces, 14(1), 126-137.

Li, D. D., & Li, S. (1996). A theory of corporate scope and financial structure. The Journal of
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40.