On 26th January 1950, India witnessed the birth of its Constitution—a historic moment that set the foundation for our democracy and gave us the “rules of the game” to govern ourselves. Today in my weekly article, as we celebrate our 76th Republic Day, I am reflecting on another set of rules—those that could unleash the true potential of our manufacturing sector.
Manufacturing is the beating heart of any thriving economy, yet in India, its share of GDP has not grown as envisioned, despite years of effort. This challenge weighs heavily on my mind because I see the untapped potential, the opportunities waiting to be seized. I firmly believe that through a disciplined approach, rooted in what I call CORE—Common Understanding, Ongoing Pledge, Regular Audit, and Endless Retraining—we can create a wave of excellence in our manufacturing sector and increase its share in our GDP.
This framework is inspired by the Deming Cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act) and, for me, represents the essence of what it takes to succeed in manufacturing with so many ordinary people needing to consistently outperform routine activities. Let me take you through my thoughts, structured using the RADAR framework of the EFQM Business Excellence Model: Result, Approach, Deployment, Assessment, and Refinement.
Where We Stand Today: The Result
India had set an ambitious goal—to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25% by 2022. But as I look at the data, I see a different picture. While the absolute value added by manufacturing has grown, it hasn’t kept pace with other sectors, and the share of manufacturing in GDP has declined.
For me, this isn’t just a number—it’s a reminder of the immense potential we are yet to unlock. It’s a call to action to look beyond what’s been done and reimagine what can be.
What We’ve Tried: The Approach
Over the years, India has launched several initiatives to uplift the manufacturing sector:
- Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme (2000): To facilitate technology upgradation in MSMEs.
- Dedicated Freight Corridor (2006): A transformative project to enhance logistics.
- Make in India (2014): A flagship initiative to attract investments and position India as a manufacturing hub.
- Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme (2020): To boost production across key sectors.
- Atmanirbhar Bharat (2020): A vision for a self-reliant India.
- ZED Certification (2017): Encouraging Zero Defect, Zero Effect practices in SMEs.
Each of these efforts is like a seed planted with care. But as I see it, the soil—the ecosystem—isn’t fully ready for these seeds to flourish.
Learning from Experience: Deployment
When I look at how these approaches have been deployed, several patterns emerge:
- Many initiatives are communicated through trade associations but fail to reach the grassroots.
- Promotion and awareness campaigns are often sluggish, leaving target markets uninformed.
- Technology adoption remains limited, with intermediaries still playing a major role.
- Companies sometimes use schemes as a means to raise funds rather than to improve competitiveness.
- Sector Skill Councils have prepared repositories of job descriptions, but their practical impact on skilling remains inconsistent.
- While most companies have documented systems and processes, they lack the discipline of daily excellence practices.
To me, this highlights a critical gap—a lack of alignment and awareness at every level. I see this as an opportunity to create a culture of excellence, where policies and standards are not just implemented but deeply embedded into daily practices.
A Sobering Reality: Assessment
Here are the hard truths about India’s manufacturing sector as I see them today:
- Less than 0.5% of large/multinational companies have won excellence awards, and only about 7% have embarked on the excellence journey.
- Only <0.2% of SMEs have achieved ZED Gold certification, and about 15% are on the ZED journey.
- Basic daily excellence practices—like Daily Pledge/Drill, Jishu-Hosen, Visual Management, Real-time Performance Monitoring, Rolling Planning, Daily Work Management, Routine Audits, Regular Kaizen and Consistent Training—are missing in most organizations.
- Many contract manufacturers aim for growth but struggle with poor defect rates and on-time delivery performance.
- Digitalization is at a low level across the sector, limiting productivity and competitiveness.
- While the Skill India Portal boasts over 1,46,755 registered trainers, the disciplined practice of success routines in manufacturing is largely absent.
These findings make one thing clear: while progress has been made, the foundational routines that drive sustained excellence are still missing in many organizations. They inspire me to push for a change—a transformation grounded in simplicity and common sense.
A New Way Forward: Refinement through CORE
As I think about solutions, I keep coming back to CORE. To me, it’s not just a framework—it’s a way of life for organizations striving for excellence. Here’s what CORE stands for:
- Common Understanding
I’ve learned that shared clarity is the foundation of success. Teams need to understand the ideal state, the current reality, and the gap between them. This alignment shapes a company’s mission, vision, values and the rules of the game—its guiding stars.
- Ongoing Pledge
When I think back on my school days, routines like morning prayers instilled a sense of discipline and purpose. In manufacturing, a daily pledge to the organization’s purpose and the rules of the game can have the same effect. It reinforces commitment to excellence every single day.
- Regular Audit
Audits, to me, are like compasses—they help us stay on course. By conducting daily audits, teams can turn conscious efforts into subconscious habits, building a culture of disciplined conformance to the rules of the game with sustained improvement.
- Endless Retraining
Learning never stops. Weekly retraining sessions can address gaps, refine strategies, and internalize lessons. This step ensures we’re always ready to face challenges, much like sharpening tools before battle.
CORE in Action: A Simple but Powerful Practice
I’ve seen world-class companies where CORE is second nature—woven into the fabric of their daily operations. No one talks about it; they just do it. In struggling companies, however, CORE often feels like an afterthought.
For me, this practice is akin to a strategic time-out in sports—a moment to regroup, realign, and recharge. It’s a game-changer. It’s simple, but its impact is profound.
My Vision for the Future
As we step into the 76th year of our Republic, I feel a deep sense of urgency to act. Manufacturing in India has the potential to be a global powerhouse. By embracing CORE, we can build not just products, but a culture of pride, discipline, and excellence.
The Constitution laid the foundation for our democracy. I believe CORE can lay the foundation for manufacturing excellence. Let’s make this Republic Day not just a celebration of our past, but a commitment to our future—a future where excellence becomes second nature for Indian manufacturing.
How is the CORE in your organisation?
Happy Reading!
The article Unleashing Excellence in Indian Manufacturing is a Comprehensive coverage of the statis of Indian Manfacturing sector. Resplendent with facts & figures and logical statements this article makes one understand the problem s and issues faced buy the manufacturing enterprises in India. It also provides recommendation for all the stakeholders involved and gives prescription for unleashing the potential of the Indian manufacturing companies. A lot of insights based on decades of expereience,exposure and strong foundational education of the author has led to the author writing this article, Congratulations to the author. Hope the dream comes true to make the Indian manufacturing a beacon for contributing to India’s economic growth while instituting globally revered manufacturing instituted to obtain excellence both in theory and practice.
Dear Dinakar as always, this time too, I agree what you have shared in the article.
However, let all of us accept the fact that general mindset of Asian & Indian in general is that “We are Traders” largely.
Second, even so called Best Manufacturers of the world have Strong Marketing Budget & efforts (both strategic & taget oriented) to penetrate & garner market share – which is also missing in our country.
Lastly, you have alreday mentioned about approaches by our Administrators, Industry body, people, etc. and have hardly taken it as Top priority on consistent basis, the ecosystem is not fully aligning current needs, & the Zeal to conquer is not exhibited, neither accorded due importance.
That said it will be better for India & countrymen in making required efforts _ _