The bigger the size, the harder the fall

Infighting is not something that channel partners are unaccustomed to. At a
time when their margins are steadily going down, they resort to all means to
hold on to their customers. Best friends turn to worst foes when they have to
ensure that their clientele is not poached.

But it is really surprising to see infighting taking place in associations as
well. A leading association of the country has been in the eye of the storm for
quiet a while now, with a good portion of its own executive council members
openly denouncing the practices that are prevalent within it. Surprisingly, if
ordinary association members want to contest the elections for key positions
they are dissuaded, sometimes forcefully.

The reason is that some of the old timers do not want to let go of their
positions and are averse to any change s that are proposed. In most cases,
associations are run like fiefdoms by some of the key people in its governing
body. This is also probably why they are reluctant to relinquish their positions
to new people who might be interested in bringing about change s in the body and
actually making it work.

This in turn ended up isolating most of the body's members, which is usually
how most of the associations slip into ignominy. And when there are issues that
need resolution, association members prefer working things out on their own
rather than relying on the body. Which then makes one wonder-why is the
association there in the first place?

Vinita Bhatia

In some instances, after the initial euphoria of having created an
association dies down, most of the executive council members lose their
commitment to make it work. Or they use their positions to get better bargaining
power with vendors or show their peers that they are at the top. This aspect is
very evident in the cover story of this issue.

Of the 24 odd associations in North India, only three of them are active. The
rest exist but only on paper. There have been marginal, if any, meetings that
have taken place in most of these associations. In some cases the elections took
place more than two years ago, making it more than a year overdue!

This does not mean that the channel in the country do not want these
associations to exist. They simply want a more transparent and proactive body
that will work for their collective benefit, rather than an individual's
personal profit.

They want a body which assembles regularly, disseminates business
information, lobbies with vendors and government when needed, and acts like an
arbitrator. Some associations in the country have managed to do it, and do it
well. It would be heartening to see other associations emulate their examples.

Vinita Bhatia

vinitavs@cybermedia.co.in