Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

INTERNSHIP REPORT ON COMPARISON BETWEEN THE PREVIOUS AND CURRENT METHOD OF CAPEX DISTRIBUTION AND OPTIMIZATION OF ROBI AXIATA LIMITED

SUBMITTED BY SARWAT SARAH SARWAR ID NO 0304104

SUBMITTED TO SHAWKAT KAMAL LECTURER BRAC BUSINESS SCHOOL SUBMISSION DATE: 28TH NAY 2013

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Letter of Transmittal To Shawkat Kamal Assistant Professor BRAC Business School BRAC University 17th May, 2013 Subject: Submission of Internship Report Sir, This is to inform you that I, Sarwat Sarah Sarwar, a student of the BRAC Business School Of BRAC University, have, under your supervision, completed my three months Internship Program at Robi Axiata Limited. Hence, I am submitting my Internship Report on A Comparison between the Previous and Current CAPEX Optimization Process. I sincerely hope you accept my report and impart knowledge regarding it. Thank you.

Yours Sincerely, Sarwat Sarah Sarwar (08304104)

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Table of Contents Chapter Number ---------------------1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Topic Page Number 5 6 8 8 9 9 10 11 11 12 14 14 18 19 21 22 23 23 23 26 26 27 27

Acknowledgement Executive Summary Prologue Origin of the Report Objectives Scope Methodology Limitations On the Job Experience Abstract of Internship Introduction Overview Of Bangladesh Telecommunication Industry Introduction Of Robi Axiata Limited Parent Companies Of Robi Axiata Limited Management Profile Of Robi Axiata Limited Principles Key Achievements Products Value-Added Services Corporate Social Responsibility Health Environment ICT Comparison of the Previous and Current system of

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

4.0

CAPEX Optimization. Outline of the Previous System of CAPEX Optimization

28 29 31 43 45 46 47 47 47

4.1 4.2 5.0 6.1 6.2

The Current System Of CAPEX Optimization Strategic Importance Of Oikotan Recommendation Conclusion References

------------- Abbreviations ------------- Appendix

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Acknowledgement Before proceeding further with the report, I would like to convey my gratitude to the people who have helped me immensely during my three months Internship Program. Firstly, I would like to thank Mr. Reaz Ul Huq, General Manager of Integrated Planning, part of the Oikotan team and my supervisor, who has guided me along the whole programme and provided me with very relevant information regarding my topic. He has answered my questions with patience and knowledge and given my guidance throughout the formation of my report and for that I am grateful to him. Moreover, I would like to thank General Managers Mr.Zaved Parvez and Shamsur Rahman. Both of them have helped to broaden my knowledge about the CAPEX and OPEX distribution system and provided me with tasks and projects that have increased my scope of Finance and broadened my perspective of the world of Telecommunications. I would also like to thank Mr. Ahammad Jubaer Ali, Executive Vice President of Integrated Planning and team leader of Oikotan, who had often taken the time out of his extremely busy schedule to guide me with information regarding the strategic importance of Oikotan. Finally, I would like to express my academic supervisor, Mr. Shawkat Kamal, for answering my limitless queries with patience and imparting his knowledge and experience in guiding me.

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY RobiAxiata Limited is the third largest telecommunication service provider in Bangladesh and, over time, it is steadily increasing its customer base and number of subscribers. In order to do so, Robi has to constantly increase its investment prospects to get an ideal return on invested capital. The decision to invest and which areas would provide the greatest return and least risk is crucial and must be made with care. So, Robi has to constantly analyze its potential and in which investment areas it is wise to deploy its Capital Expenditures (CAPEX) Previously, the system of CAPEX distribution lay solely in the control of the Market Operations and Technology. Market Operations would routinely send monthly demand forecast to the Technology division. The Technology department would then assess the areas where new technology is required or a new BTS implementation is required to send a budget requirement form to the Integrated Planning department of the Finance division. The finance division would then send the required CAPEX. The CAPEX deployed to these areas would be done without any intervention from the Finance department and there would be no financial calculations conducted, such as calculating the Net Present Value (NPV) or the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of these investment prospects. Thus, there was no way to calculate the required rate of return (RRR) of these projects and whether they will generate a net profit anytime soon. As a result, it was seen that, despite the large amounts of CAPEX deployed in these areas, there werent any profits being accumulated and the CAPEX was being tied down in loss generating investments. Moreover, there was lack of communication between the different departments. Bureaucracy and lack of contact had resulted in a lack of cohesion in decision-

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

making between the different departments, resulting in many large-scale investment failures. In order to make sure that these problems could be avoided, The Integrated Planning department created a team designated to only the assessment and evaluation of Investment cases so that, only the most seemingly profitable investment cases are considered for CAPEX deployment. The Oikotan team

consists of three teams-The Marketing team, the Finance Team and the Technology Team. The Marketing Team forecasts the demand patterns based in all ninety areas of Robi. After creating a forecast, the Marketing team uses more parameters to ensure that these cases are indeed profitable and CAPEX worthy. These parameters include identifying the demand and revenue forecast of surrounding areas, analyzing the demographic patterns of the area and assessing the competitive environment of the area. Moreover, the Marketing team analyzes whether these investment cases have the potential to break-even and if they do, they are immediately taken into consideration. The Marketing team then passes the relevant cases to the Finance Team. The finance team has a very active role to play in CAPEX evaluation. To further filter out the unworthy cases from the prospective ones, the finance team conducts a series of financial calculations such as the NPV and IRR. This is to evaluate which of the investment prospects would give the most return. The ones with a high NPV and IRR are immediately carried out and the ones with low NPV and IRR are evaluated to see whether they will give any long-term benefit. The information is then passed to the technology team. The technology team acts as an intermediary between the technology division of Robi and Oikotan. The technology team sends the filtered data to the radio networking department of the technology department. The radio networking team

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

assesses the forecast and makes a budgetary evaluation of the entire necessary CAPEX requirement. This consists of a detailed financial analysis of the cost of generators, the cost of BTS implementation and so on. The information is passed back to the Oikotan team for further analysis. The Oikotan team then processes the information using NPV, IRR, Payback Period and so on. The Technology Team prioritizes the cases based on the information and proceeds to deploy CAPEX accordingly. Chapter 1-Prologue 1.1) Origin Of the Report BRAC University is one of the top private Universities in Bangladesh and the BRAC Business School of this University has been voted as the top Business School in Asia. The B.B.A curriculum composes of 130 credits. At the end of all theoretical courses, the BBA student has to join a formal workplace to complete the final four credits. For three months, the student is employed in a workplace and imparts his/her theoretical knowledge of business in his tasks and gleans information and practical experience from professionals. At the end of his/her internship period, the student writes a report based on a previously decided topic with his academic advisor and submits it to the advisor. My Internship topic is, A Comparison between the Previous and Current CAPEX Optimization Process in Robi Axiata Limited and I am submitting it to my academic supervisor, Mr. Shawkat Kamal, for his approval.

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

1.2) Objectives CAPEX distribution of Robi Axiata Limited is an extremely important aspect of their Finance Division as proper implementation of CAPEX ensure revenue generation, profit growth and increase in the required rate of return. The objective of this report is to create a comparison between the previous system through which the Integrated Planning team distributed CAPEX and the present system of Oikotan. This report outlines factors such as The general outline of the previous CAPEX distribution system. The methods used to determine investment prospects for CAPEX distribution. The factors that influence CAPEX distribution. After finding out and analyzing the above mentioned topics, this report will go on to analyze the following The process of CAPEX distribution under the current system. The different parties involved in CAPEX distribution and how they play their roles. The strategic importance of CAPEX distribution. 1.3) Scope: The Finance Division of Robi Axiata Limited is larger and multi-functional and the Integrated Planning team itself composes of a large number of inter-functional departments that work on various tasks, projects and business models. However,for my topic, I have limited my scope to the CAPEX distribution process, which is controlled and monitored by the team of Oikotan under Integrated Planning.

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

1.4) MethodologyThe data collected to compile this report came from a combination of primary and secondary resources. The primary data was collected by interviewing the four members of the Oikotan team. Initially, I asked Mr. Reaz Ul Huq, my work supervisor, regarding the process of Oikotan distribution. He provided an extensive supply of information regarding the marketing parameters used to identify, analyze and coordinate investment decisions. I next interviewed Mr. Zaved Parvez, General Manager. He provided the financial perspective of Oikotan and gave information regarding the system of Finance distribution and what methods of calculation they use to analyze the value of an asset. General Manager, Mr. Shamsur Huq, when interviewed, gave a detailed analysis of the technical aspect of CAPEX distribution. Using his experience, he provided extensive details regarding the various types of BTS, the differences between and RTP, RTT, GFRT and IBS. He also highlighted methods of creating business models to increase my depth of knowledge regarding CAPEX distribution from the technical perspective. Finally, I interviewed team leader and executive vice president Mr. Ahammad Ali Jubbaer. He gave me information regarding the strategic importance of Oikotan and how important and valuable this system of CAPEX distribution is to the company. The secondary data regarding the industry and market structure of the telecommunications industry of Bangladesh, the overall economic pattern of

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Bangladesh were collected from the BTRC website and the history, products and the achievements of Robi Axiata were collected from the official Robi Axiata website. 1.5) Limitations This report was published with the full intent of making it flawless. However, due to the following factors, much of my efforts were limited and hampered. These factors are The availability of published and relevant data was scarce. Three months is not an adequate period to understand the whole system, the

mechanisms and functions of the company. The frequent hartals, strikes and political tensions have created breaks in the

routine functions and prevented me from gathering a further level of information. Despite all these barriers, I hope this report is suitable and that very few flaws can be found in it. 1.6) On the Job Experience Robi Axiata Limited has provided me with the opportunity to gain a wealth of experience. Although it was not possible for me to learn the mechanisms of the entire Finance Division of the company, I got the privilege to work under the Integrated Planning department and especially focus on the Oikotan team, which is a huge privilege because this department has an integral role to play regarding Finance. The Oikotan team is very new and was established last year. This section of Integrated Planning is involved in CAPEX distribution and investment decision

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making, so it is a very important section of the department. While working as an intern for this team, I got the opportunity to interact with the Executive Vice President Mr. Ahammad Ali Jubbaer and the General Managers, Mr. Zaved Parvez, Mr. Shamsur Rahman and Mr. Reaz Ul Huq (my supervisor). Under their supervision, I was given the chance to be a part of their activities. I was given various business cases to analyze and evaluate. I was asked to calculate the NPV and IRR of each project and prioritize them based on their values. From then on, I was to create business models based on assumptions given. These are assumptions created by Oikotan based on current business models, such as the cost of rent, cost of generators and so on. Using these assumptions, I was asked to create business models and calculate the CAPEX and OPEX required. This was very tricky to do as a lot of things had to be taken into consideration. For instance, while calculating the CAPEX for BTS site implementation, I had to take into consideration various factors, such as the CAPEX for the radio, CAPEX for the generator and so on. Then one had to calculate whether the implementation was made for BTS coverage or capacity because the costs incurred for these two are completely different. These business models were handed to me to test my skill level in creating detailed analysis. I also had to categorize and organize data for the Marketing team of Oikotan. In this aspect, I had to arrange market information regarding certain cases and sometimes had to go to local markets to gather information regarding various cellphones and other network operators. Finally, I had to assist the GMs regarding the fibre optic routes and various BTS locations and, of course with their assistance, I had to evaluate which areas had the most potential to be gained from BTS implementation.

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1.7) AbstractOf Internship My time spent in Robi Axiata was an overwhelming journey. I had entered a territory that was completely new to me. I was very nervous and my goal was to do the works assigned to me with diligence and with punctuality. Sometimes the work given to me was very monotonous and routine and I had to suck up my pride and continue with it. In one sense, I can say that it was a very humbling experience. My supervisors were very considerate and would give me time-offs if I needed to go to my academic supervisor regarding my term paper. Moreover, the work they assigned me was very helpful as it helped me develop my skills in Microsoft Excel. Previously, I was very weak in Excel and functions such as VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP seemed almost impossible to master. However, with the help of my supervisors, who encouraged me to hone my skills in Excel, I have fairly improved my skills. The environment at Robi Axiata Limited is very professional. Everyone is hardworking and diligent and, initially, it was very overwhelming. However, with time, I have made acquaintances and friends with my colleagues and developed a cordial rapport with my supervisors so the environment seemed more relaxed. Moreover, everyone seemed polite and respectful and willing to help if I faced any stumble.

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Chapter 2- Introduction 2.1)OVERVIEW INDUSTRY Bangladesh is a rapidly developing market-based economy and, despite all the political and economic hurdles, this country still attracts a large pool of potential investors. Over the years, Bangladesh has undergone rapid structural changes and improved its infrastructural development immensely. The low tariff rates and the reduced barriers to entry and exit in this country has led to many globally established investors being attracted to this small but rapidly developing country. In 2010, Bangladeshs per capita income was established as US$1700 (adjusted as purchasing power parity) and its GDP growth rate was settled at 6.3% (Before the political conflicts of early 2013). Bangladesh is listed in the Next-Eleven countries by Goldman Sachs and a member of the D-8 countries. These factors have contributed to the fact that many foreign investors aim to invest in the RMG sector, the Infrastructure sector and the Telecommunications sector of Bangladesh. The Telecommunications sector of Bangladesh is rapidly developing into a market hub full of potential for local and foreign investors. Unlike most other countries, this sector is still new and rapidly growing and thus has not reached maturity level yet. The telecommunications sector has seen growth in mobile penetration that has exceeded all expectations by having over 65.1 million subscribers in September 2010 compared to only 4 million in 2004. While initially most network operators focused on the economically bustling cities like Dhaka and Chittagong, as the market in these countries expanded and matured, many network operators are OF BANGLADESH TELECOMMUNICATIONS

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focusing on other districts, tapping new territories, far-flung villages and remote areas for mobile subscribers. This rapid growth in mobile telephony has had a colossal effect on the economy in terms of aggregate investment, FDI and productivity levels, not to mention improvements in communication, networking and social cohesion. Foreign investor confidence has further increased due to the introduction of IPO by Grameenphone, the largest market shareholder in the telecom industry and the industry has taken on much greater significance in Bangladeshs capital markets development as a result. The recent addition of increase potential for Value Added Services (VAS) and 3G offerings has created a further scramble to enter the telecomm hub of Bangladesh. The growth in the telecommunications industry can mainly be attributed to factors such as the deregulation of the telecomm industry, lack of a fixed legal infrastructure in the industry and extremely high competition between the major market leaders of this industry. Reduced barriers to entry due to collaboration with local and foreign investors have also led to global companies entering the market and creating huge levels of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by telecom giants like Telenor, Axiata-Berhard, Orascom, Singtel and, most recently, the entrance of Bharti telecommunications in the form of Airtel.Bangladeshs huge potential in WiMAx and submarine cable, although relatively developed and maturing in most countries, is still new and emerging in Bangladesh and many foreign investors are entering this market to take full advantage of this resource. Currently, there are six telecommunication companies in Bangladesh. These are: 1) Airtel Bangladesh Ltd. Branded as Airtel, formerly known as Warid Telecom. 2) Grameenphone/Telenor Bangladesh Ltd. Branded as Grameenphone.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

3) Orascom Telecom Ltd. Branded as Banglalink. 4) Pacific Bangladesh Telephone Ltd. Branded as Citycell. 5) Axiata Bangladesh Ltd. Branded as Robi 6) Teletalk Bangladesh Ltd. Branded as Teletalk. The Telecommunications market is dominated by three mobile network providersGrameenphone, Banglalink and Robi Axiata. Grameenphone is the current market leader amongst the three, with more than 40% of market share. GP has a strong position in the mass market, youth segment and enterprise segment. With the power gained from being the first telecommunications company to set up in Bangladesh, they have slowly gained a strong popularity amongst all the demographic sectors of Bangladesh. They have also advanced towards 3mn EDGE subscribers and are currently in the process of providing 3G services.GP has the most significant strength in terms of network coverage as it has the largest number of base stations. GP also has the best distribution network, the highest Average Revenue Per Unit (ARPU) . GP is also in a strong position to penetrate the market to mobile internet by using its EDGE service. Banglalink comes second, with 27% of Market share. Amongst the three, Banglalink achieved 27% of the market share on account of aggressive price wars, substantial marketing investment through advertising, extensive focus on public relations and communications. It too has a large presence in the mass market and theSME market. Banglalink is also perceived to have invested heavily and added staff substantially to focus on its marketing campaigns. Amongst the three, Banglalink has focused the most intensely on its marketing and promotional

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features, such as the Banglalink Desh slogan and focused on an aggressive growth campaign. Robi Axiata is the third largest mobile phone operator in the telecommunications industry and holds 21% market share. Robi Axiata has focused more on improving their network connections and outreach, building marginal subscriber additions through aggressive marketing campaigns. Robi is also perceived to be the most strongly placed to develop more sophisticated Value added services (VAS) products as well as for 3G installation. This is due to the fact that NTT DOCOMO owns 30% of the shares of Robi Axiata and DOCOMO are a leading telecomm company in Japan and also the global pioneer in 3G data and VAS services. Recently, they aim to focus on the untapped, rural areas of Bangladesh, where network connectivity and mobile phone operations is less, and shift away from the saturated markets of Dhaka and Chittagong.

MarketshareofMobilePhone Networkprovidersinthe Telecommunicationsmarket

Source: - BTRC Website

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2.2)INTRODUCTION OF ROBI AXIATA LIMITED Robi Axiata limited is a joint venture between Axiata Group Berhard of Malaysia which is one of the leading telecommunications companies in Asia and NTT Docomo Inc, the predominant mobile phone operator of Japan. Formerly, it was known as Telekom Malaysia International (Bangladesh) and commenced operations in Bangladesh under the brand name AKTEL. On 28th March, 2010, the service rebranded and became known as Robi Axiata Limited and commenced operations under that name. Robi is the third largest network operator in Bangladesh, dominating 21% of the telecommunications market. Robi Axiata has 7400 base stations in more than 5300 sites all over Bangladesh in order to satisfy growing customer demand and increase its market share. Robi Axiata is also striving to upgrade its base stations from 900 MHZ to 1800 MHZ to ensure efficient mobile telecommunication services and retain customer satisfaction. Under the guidance of its international operators, Robi has drawn from the international expertise of both Axiata and Docomo and strive to achieve a strong foundation in leading-edge technology. Robi has the largest international Roaming coverage in Bangladesh and connects 600 operators across more than 200 countries. Robi Axiata Limited is a joint venture company between Axiata Berhard with 70% of the total share and NTT Docomo which owns 30%. Below is a brief outline of Robi Axiatas parent companies.

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2.3) PARENT COMPANIES OF ROBI AXIATA LIMITED a) AXIATA BERHARD

Axiata is an emerging telecommunications company in Asia and one of the leading companies in Asia. Created in Malaysia, Axiata has operated in many Asian countries such as Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Cambodia and has entered Bangladesh successfully. The Malaysian grown company has strategic and non-strategic holdings in India, Singapore, Thailand, Iran and Pakistan. Currently, Axiata Berhard and including its subsidiaries and associates, have approximately 120 million subscribers in Asia. Due to its large market coverage and dividend return, it is also listed in the Malaysian Stock Exchange. i) AxiataBerhard has subsidiary holdings in: ii) Celcom (100%)-Malaysia iii) XL (66.55%)-Indonesia iv) Dialog (84.97%)-Sri Lanka v) Robi (70%)-Bangladesh vi) Smart Mobile (100%)-Cambodia Axiata Berhard also has minority stakes in i) ii) Idea Cellular(19.96%)-India M1(29.12%)-Singapore

b) NTT DOCOMO

Docomo is the predominant mobile phone operator in Japan and a leading mobile communications network globally. Docomo is spun off from Nippon Telegraph

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and Telephone on August 1991 to take over the mobile cellular operations. NTT controls 33.71% shares of Docomo and has a customer base of more than 53 million subscribers, which is more than half of the cellular market of Japan. NTT provides a variety of mobile multimedia services such as the I-mode which provides email and internet access to 50 million subscribers and on 2001, Docomo launched as the worlds firs 3G mobile service based on W-CDMA.In addition to wholly owned subsidiaries in Europe and North America, the company is also expanding its strategic alliances through partnerships developed with mobile phone operators and telecommunications services in Asia-Pacific and South East Asia.

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2.4) MANAGEMENT PROFILE OF ROBI CEO/Managing Director Michael Kuehner

CTO A.K.M Morshed,

CMO Pradeep Shiravstava

CFO Mahtabuddin Ahmed

CHRO Naushad Kamal

CSO Yoshishije Hasegawa

Country Head, Executive Vice President, Vice President,

General Manager, Manager, Assistant Manager

Specialist, Senior Officer, Junior Officer, Senior Assistant, Junior Assistant

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2.5) PRINCIPLES We are there for you, where you want and in the way you want, in order to help you develop, grow and make the most of your lives through our services.-Robi Axiata Limited. Robi Axiata follows the following principles based on their clients and employees physical and emotional needsa) Emotional- Robi values passionate employees, creativity, respect and openness in the work environment. Openness in the work environment was particularly highlighted during the corporate restructuring of Robi in 2010, when two new office concepts were introduced- The paperless office and the open office culture. As one of the leading companies in the highly competitive telecommunications industry of Bangladesh, creating a paperless office culture was of utmost importance to Robi in order to follow the standards of its globally established parent companies. The new office was created; complete with a wireless environment and no desk phones. This was created in tune with Robis deep obligations to its CSR activities. Robi is an environmentally conscious organization and, therefore, were vital for the work space of Robi. Besides cost reduction, it promotes the eco-friendly policies of the company. b) Functional- Robi follows the four functional attributes; Simple, Ethical, Transparent Ownership

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In addition, Robi follows these company philosophies when dealing with their clients and customersa) Being respectful towards everyone b) Being trustworthy by action. Being passionate and creative in all that they do c) Keeping things simple in their work performance and process. d) Being ethical and transparent. e) Demonstrating individual and collective ownership. f) Practicing an open culture in communication and interaction. 2.6) Key Achievements of RobiAxiata Limited A detailed summary of all current and previous achievements of Robi Axiata are included in the Appendix. 2.7) Products A detailed summary of all the products offered by Robi Axiata are included in the Appendix. 2.8) Value-Added Services In a widely competitive industry, the Value-Added Services (VAS) a telecommunications service is essential to help position the company favourably in a customers mind. Value-added services are those services that make up the noncore services, that is, all services beyond standard voice calls and fax transmissions. A network operators VAS greatly helps to increase customer

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preference and loyalty, thus increasing the Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) of the company. Robi Axiata Limited offers the following Value-Added Services to its subscribersa) Robi Circle-Robi Circle is a new service introduce by Robi in Bangladesh. Unlike web-centric networks such as Facebook, Robi Circle is more mobilecentric. This liberates the experience from a web connection and makes it available to anyone with even the most basic mobile phone. Robi Circle also lets the user access social networks like Facebook from anywhere and whenever the user wants to, creating a more lasting impact in the users mind. b) Robi Goongoon-Robi Goongoon is a caller ringtone service that allows the user to set a song, tone, music or funny messages as a ring-back tone for callers. c) Robi Radio- Robi Radio is a pocket FM radio that allows the subscribers to listen to whatever music they want to hear whenever they want to. d) MMS e) Voice SMS f) International SMS g) Stock Information, MPay, and RobiDwasa Bill Payment- RobiAxiata created the Value-Added Service of Stock Information. This is a mobile phone based application that allows Robi subscribers to gain stock information of DSE and CSE. It also allows the subscriber to gain information regarding the going price, lowest price, highest price and price index of the stocks.

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Robi MPay is a service that will help the subscriber pay his/her utility bills through mobile phones. Dwasa Bill Payment- Robi has created the Robi Ortho VAS that has the Dwasa bill payment option. This option helps to allow smooth payments of WASA bills to subscribers. h) Bima Mobile insurance- The Bima insurance policy is a life insurance policy with a cumulative life insurance cover offered for free to Robi prepaid subscribers who register for the offer. Each registered Robi subscriber earns insurance cover each calendar month, depending on his airtime usage. The more airtime usage, the more insurance cover earned. Currently, Robi provides two insurance policies under the Bima Mobile Insurance schemeThe General Insurance Policy and the Islamic Insurance Policy which is invested in Sharia approved schemes.

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Chapter 3-CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Over the years, Robi Axiata Limited has contributed a great part of its profits and assets on the improvement of society and nature, thus promoting itself as a socially active company. A large number of the companys resources have gone into it Corporate Social Responsibility activities. This is aimed at the uplifting and up keeping of society. Robi drives its CSR activities in the domains of health, environment and the spread of ICT education all over the country. The company has various outreach programs all over the country. 3.1) Health: Robi has provided purified drinking water supply facilities at key railway stations of the country. With the collaboration of Bangladesh railways and the global organization WaterAid, Robi has set up water treatments at Kamalapur Railway Station and Airport Railway Station in Dhaka and also in stations located in Chittagong, Sylhet, Rajshahi and Khulna. These facilities have a capacity of 5000liters of water per hour and are providing thousands of passengers with pure, arsenic and germ free water. Robi has also been conducting a wide range of activities like blood donation camps, primary health check-up sessions and safe drive campaigns for the employees. One such program was notable for its treatment of hundreds of clubfeet children. This program was established in 2012 and concentrated in nine districts of Chittagong. The aim of this program was to treat and improve the health of a thousand clubfoot children.

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3.2)Environment: Robir Alo- as Bangladesh continues to develop and grow into a bustling nation; many areas of this country are still struggling due to their remote locations and poverty stricken conditions. In these areas Electricity, an essential resource in todays modern culture, is still something new and is rarely available. These areas are off the grid and still rely on wax candles and kerosene at night to go about at night. Robi has penetrated these areas and provided solar panels to 590 homes in remote villages of Kurigram, Rangpur. This has not only improved the lives of the poor villagers significantly, but it has also reduced their carbon footprint. Moreover, it has decreased the cost of villagers as they can save up on fuel and not have to buy wax candles anymore. 3.3) ICT: Robi Axiata Limited has taken the responsibility of providing basic computer training to areas of Bangladesh where people cannot get IT. Information Technology has infiltrated our lives and, in this generation, plays a very important aspect in all aspects of our lives. It is important that all members of this nation have a right and access to information and can augment knowledge without biasness. Thus, with all these aspects in consideration, Robi has installed 72 colleges in far flung locations, facilitating the right of students to gain access to a vast reservoir of knowledge and education. Robi has also established Internet Corners at all divisional libraries. This is to coincide with the governments vision of creating Digital Bangladesh by 2021.

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Chapter 4- COMPARISON OF THE PREVIOUS AND CURRENT CAPEX DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM(OIKOTAN) OF ROBI AXIATA LIMITED Foreword CAPEX, or Capital Expenditures are expenditures that are thought to create future benefit for the company. A capital expenditure is created when a business spends money either to buy fixed assets or capital equipment, or to add value to a fixed asset with a useful life to extend it beyond the taxable year. CAPEX is mostly spent on the buying, importing and leasing of equipment, physical goods, assets and high-powered electrical towers that are thought to bring future return for a company. Every year, Robi Axiata locks down the CAPEX needed for the next year. This is done by collecting budgetary data from all departments, regarding various projects, investments and cases. The Integrated Planning department is responsible for the CAPEX distribution. Along with the budgetary requests, the Integrated Planning also receives a large number of business proposals from various departments and external bodies. These business proposals (or cases as they are called in Robi) range from propositions such as changing the corporate dcor of Robi to large scale investment plans such as installing a new BTS tower in a rural area. They are also used to refer to strategically important investment decisions for the company. For instance, currently, the Integrated Planning team is considering two business cases-the prioritization of either In-Build Systems (IBS) or the companys 3G rollout plan.

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4.1) Outline of the Previous System of CAPEX Distribution Previously, the decision to distribute CAPEX was made by the Market Operations and Technology Department. CAPEX distribution for a particular year is decided by the company the year before. Therefore, it is very essential for the company to make sure that there are no unnecessary losses and that most of the capital is distributed to business cases where there is potential return. In the old system of CAPEX distribution, the decision-making was centralized between the Market Operations department and the Technology division. Regarding the demand for network coverage and capacity in different areas of Bangladesh, the Market Operations department would collect information from call centersregarding the marketdemand of the particular area and conduct a routine demand forecast on the data collected. The demand forecast would include data regarding all 90 areas of Robi Axiata. There was no systematic structure in it. Moreover, Market Operations would not conduct any background check regarding the verification of the data and whether the information collected was accurate or not. This was a monthly routine demand forecast conducted and then sent to the Technology division. The Radio and network planning department of the technology division would collect the market operations data and conduct their own methods of calculation on it. They would then identify areas where there is necessity for BTS implementation, areas that need financing for maintenance of the capital equipment and so on. They would send these requests for approval directly to the SCM board. Then, they would send their budgetary demands to the Integrated Planning

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department. The Integrated Planning team would then deploy the necessary CAPEX to those areas. Throughout the whole decision-making, there is no consideration of the profitability of the ventures and whether there would be any probable returns from the approved business cases. In fact, the demand forecast sent by market operations was not properly filtered to include those areas are actually achieving a break-even point and which areas are emerging or developing and exclude those that are lossmaking or give no return. Moreover, the Finance division had no LOA (Limit of Authority) to approve or disapprove of the business cases. They were approved by the technology division and the final approval was given by the SCM or the board of Directors. Thus, because of this, there were no financial calculations made such as the NPV value of these investment prospects, the Payback period calculated or the IRR valuation. Every decision made was more qualitative than quantitative, without any contact with the overall market. The lack of cohesive decision-making between departments and the exclusion of the finance division from all decisions made, created bottlenecks and large levels of bureaucracy in the line of authority. Much information was lost in the chain of command, valuable financial data was tied down in red tape and most officers and specialists were uncertain about the proper procedure of CAPEX distribution. Due to the many bureaucratic problems, the lack of joint decision-making and the unavailability of financial advice from the finance department, it was seen that most of the CAPEX deployed was involved in areas where there was no return or profit. After locking the CAPEX, it was found that either the competition in the

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

area was too great, or the level of demand was fluctuating or low and the revenue forecast was under or over-valued. Moreover, unnecessary BTS implementation in different areas created huge expense and maintenance costs that had to be cut from the annual CAPEX budget. This led to budget crunches for Robi Axiata.

MO (Demand Forecast)

Technology (Capacity Requirement, Budget requirement)

SCM (Board Approval)

(Distribution of CAPEX before the introduction of Oikotan) 4.2) The Current System of CAPEX Optimization(Oikotan) The various problems and loss accumulations faced due to the old CAPEX distribution system has led the Integrated Planning team to change the whole pattern of decision-making and data analyzing. In the year 2012, they have implemented the system of Oikotan. Oikotan is a new system of capital distribution that was introduced to promote more involvement from all departments in decision-making processes and reduce the level of bureaucracy and bottlenecks found in the old system. It allowed a more fluid form of communication where ideas and information flowed amongst all departments and where they all performed together. Moreover, it allowed the finance division to allow a properly coordinated and calculated method for researching potential areas to invest in. The

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Oikotan method of CAPEX distribution consists of three teams-the Marketing team, the Finance team and the Technology team. These teams coordinate with each other and with other departments to bring in data that would help in creating more return for the company. The investment prospects considered refer to large scale plans such as the viability of a 3G rollout plan, the prospect of in-building systems (IBS) and implementation of new BTS in areas or increasing the current network capacity of existing BTS. A brief analysis of the functions of the three teams are described belowi)Marketing The Integrated Planning department created the new system of CAPEX distribution(named Oikotan) in 2012. Oikotan is a collaboration of three sectionsMarketing, Finance and Technology. The Marketing section of Oikotan creates an interface between the Integrated Planning and Market Operations to further increase cohesion. As mentioned before, there was no cohesion between Market Operations and Technology, thus each performed their duties without any assimilation. As a result, many investments were distributed without any verification or further analysis of the market, creating loss of funds and resources. So, the marketing section was created to be a middleman or an interface between the two departments. The Marketing team of Oikotan is concerned with identifying and analyzing profitable areas in the market for Robi Axiata. It conducts research to identify areas for market penetration. This is composed of various tests and filters conducted by this section, in order to truly gauge the investment potential of each business site. This is done in the following ways-

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

1) The Market Operations team collects data for the Integrated Planning team. This is a collection of primary and secondary data, collected from the field level operations of Robi Axiata. The data collected is through extensive market research and analysis. Most of this data is collected from either personal interview with subscribers, written questionnaires or customer feedback from call centres. All the queries, feedback and complaints of the subscribers are collected and analyzed for future data forecast. The Market Operations team then conducts a demand forecast based on this data. The demand forecast is created to identify which areas of Robi Axiata have profit potential. Robi Axiata has 90 territories in which it distributes its network and installs BTS. These 90 territories are divided and segmented based on the population demographics of that area such as religion, ethnicityand income status and so on. These are further segmented according to their level of demand and in which areas the demand for network coverage is higher or lower or the same. The Market Operations team also identifies potential areas where there is hardly any network coverage and Robi Axiata could benefit by penetrating the market first and take advantage of the untapped market. As Robi is now venturing away from the saturated markets of Dhaka City and Chittagong, and other major cities of Bangladesh, where most major telecommunication companies are focused, this is particularly important as there are many unmarked remote, rural areas in Bangladesh where there is very little, if any, network coverage. The Market Operations team thus creates this demand forecast and sends it to the marketing team of Integrated Planning. As the amount of market information received from all 90 areas is huge, it would not be possible to

33

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

distribute capital to all of them. So, the information gathered from Market Operations is passed through the Oikotan system and a series of tests is conducted by which the less profitable ones are channeled out and the ones that have potential are retained. 2) Through Oikotan, the data is further analyzed to glean out the most profitable ones out of the loss accumulating ones. This is done through a series of filtering processes. The first in this series is calculating the breakeven point of these business cases. This is the most primary level of filtering conducted by Oikotan and the most essential. Along with the demand forecast, the Market Operations team also sends a revenue forecast of the 90 areas. This was initially not available and only recently provided due to the Oikotan CAPEX distributing system. The revenue forecast highlights the demographic pattern of the areas, the income status of the people living in the area, the level of education and so on. It also identifies the amount of revenue that would be generated from these areas if network capacity was increased. Using this accumulated information, the Marketing team of Oikotan gathers the relevant data needed to conduct the break-even point of the areas. Then, the BEP is compared to the National BEP created by Robi Axiata. The National BEP is a standard parameter created by Robi to compare the BEP potential of all areas. This was created because of the erratic market and demographic patterns of Bangladesh, not to mention the unstable demand patterns for network connectivity amongst the residents of this country. As the BEP of Dhaka and Chittagong are too diverging and high and thus cannot be used as a benchmark for the BEP of other areas, which are acceptable but very poor compared to the two major cities of the country, a

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

standard national BEP is used to allow a fair comparison for all areas and to attain a more or less uniform BEP trend. Using this comparison, the cases where the BEP more or less matched with the national BEP is kept for analysis of roll-out requirement and CAPEX deployment, while the ones that are shown to have BEP which is lower than that of the National BEP is rejected or kept aside. It should be noted, however, that not all the cases that were dismissed due to low break-even points are completely rejected. These cases are kept for further evaluation to make sure whether these have potential to become an emerging market for Robi or are capable of growing in the future and earning revenue. In this way, because their main priority is increasing their network viability and access, this new system makes sure that all the business cases get a fair chance at evaluation. 3) Once the BEP of the investment prospects are calculated and the most potential of the cases are gleaned from the rest, these prospective ventures are further dissected and filtered. To make sure that the market potential of these areas is not over-valued, the surrounding areas and districts are also taken into consideration. The Marketing team assumes that the benefit of increasing network in one area will also affect its neighbouring areas. For instance, a BTS is implementedin Nuria, Shariatpur. This will not only increase the network coverage of that particular area, but the effect will spread to its neighbouring areas too such as Janila. So, the revenue pattern, demand, minutes per unit of call and network coverage of the neighbouring areas of the areas are taken into consideration and used as parameters. This is to see whether there is a uniform trend in the demand pattern around the particular region and to make sure that the demand and revenue forecast was

35

Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

not over-valued to create a higher than actual BEP. The areas where the BEP value is seen to be over-valued and not compatible with its surrounding areas are rejected or not prioritized. 4) The cases are then compared to standard parameters of Robi Axiata. These parameters are used to verify the level of network capacity needed in each area. The parameters divide the areas into different stages of development. By comparing the areas with the parameters and highlighting the level of BTS availability and network coverage, these stages highlight areas where there is need for network connectivity, where the growth prospect for Robi is high and where markets are saturated and where markets are still untapped. Moreover, the Marketing team identifies where there are emerging markets and undervalued markets for future market penetration. In this way, the areas where there is scope for return are segmented and categorized and sent to the Finance and Technology section for further evaluation on their part. Once the potential areas that have a high scope of return are evaluated and separated, the marketing team sends the information to the finance team of Oikotan. The finance team investigates how the information gathered by the marketing team can be financed properly and whether it is feasible to distribute CAPEX in the forecasted areas. ii)Finance Under the previous system of CAPEX distribution, the finance division was rarely involved in decision-making. The data received from Market Operations was not properly verified and Technology division solely decided on the CAPEX distribution. As a result, the ventures were done without verification of the market information and a large amount of capital investment was tied down.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

To remove these bottlenecks, Integrated Planning added the finance division in an effort to monitor and control the CAPEX distribution so that the burden does not fall solely on the Technology division. Thus, was further created to add structure to the CAPEX distribution process and is basically a link between technology and market both of which were operating independently before. The Finance section of Oikotan follows a more process-oriented approach for CAPEX distribution1) The Marketing team of Oikotan verifies the data received from Marketing Operations and, after filtering out the unprofitable business cases, sends the prospective cases to the Finance team for analysis. The finance team evaluates the business cases and divides them into two parts-The Immediate Budget and the Non-Immediate Budget. In the immediate budget, the cases which are thought to provide immediate benefit and return are placed here. These are cases regarding strategically important prospects such as where the area has prospect for growth and there is scope to increase network capacity. The finance team analyzes how far the growth prospects of these areas lie and whether the market can be expanded further, such as whether more BTS towers should be added or whether the current BTS towers are adequate to meet the network demands of the people. While doing so, they measure the benefit that would be attained from both aspects and the resulting costs to see which option has the most comparative advantage and the least opportunity cost. 2) Once the costs and added benefits of these cases are conducted, the finance team focuses on the valuation of these cases. They calculate which business case would give the most return once CAPEX is deployed. This is done

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

through a series of different valuation methods. The primary method used is the payback period. In the payback period, the finance team calculates the period of time needed for the return on an investment to pay back the original amount of invested capital. If the payback period is more than two years, then the business case is kept aside and the finance team focuses on more immediately profitable cases. 3) However, for business cases which are seen to have a potential for development and growth and prospect for return, despite having a high payback period are taken into consideration. The finance team conducts the NPV method of valuation over a period of ten years. This is a more accurate measure of efficiency than the payback period as the time value of money is also included. The business cases with high levels of NPV are given more preference and are immediately carried out for approval. NPV is a measurement of efficiency. However, some decisions are qualitative and conducted with a managerial decision. These are business cases which may not provide any immediate, monetary expansion but have potential to provide non-monetary or intangible benefits. So, managers come to a qualitative decision about these factors and then distribute the budget accordingly. 4) Finally, the IRR method is used to further gauge the internal rate of return on a project. The internal rate of return (IRR) is used by the Finance team to measure the rate of profitability of the investment. The business cases where the IRR is higher than the cost of capital or equal to it are immediately carried out, given more priority than lower ones. 5) Once the projects that are projected with the highest rate of return, NPV and IRR, the finance team focuses on cases where the NPV was lower than

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

expected. This is part of the Integrated Planning teams policy to give all the business cases that come to them a thorough evaluation. Cases with low NPVs are not immediately rejected as they are checked to evaluate whether there is scope for further growth. These cases may not have immediate benefit like the others with high NPVs. However, they might provide future value in the long-run. Thus, their long-term value is weighted and calculated before they too are sent for approval. 6) Once the business cases that require immediate budgeting are distributed and carried out, the finance team then diverts its attention to the secondary items for future value. These are business cases that fall in the non-immediate budget. They may not provide any return in the short run; however, these business cases may have a deep value which is realizable in the future or long run of the business. For instance, the paperless, wireless structural change of Robis corporate office does not have any short run impact on the market. However, implementing this look into the corporate office has resulted in increased work performance of employees, reduced paper trails and less time consumption due to less time spent on manual calculations. So, it can be seen, that secondary items such as this, which are not related to market expansion, can provide long-term benefit that is not immediately recognizable. Recognizing these prospects is a challenge for the finance team as they receive a long list of cases from all departments. They thus have to weigh in the costs of implementing these ideas against the future benefit that could be achieved from the implementation. While conducting analysis for the non-immediate budget and secondary items, often the finance team encounters the same budget requirement from different departments. For instance, often the marketing department requires budget for

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

market penetration in small towns and the technology department requires for the same amount for IBS (In-Build System) and BTS. When that happens, the overall CAPEX requirement becomes overinflated and the demand for CAPEX becomes higher than necessary. In that case, extensive budget summaries are conducted and a critical cross evaluation is conducted where a series of questions and negotiations are done regarding how much both the departments really need and a list of all their costs and expenses. Finally, a truce is reached where both parties agree to a negotiated amount. However, the inflated budget becomes more concentrated and stable once the amount is settled and optimized. All this has to be done before the Integrated Planning team sends a request for CAPEX which is sent to the CEO in the beginning of every year. For instance, right now the CAPEX requirement for 2013 is already locked. The team is now focusing on the 2014 quarter one CAPEX.The finance team is given the right to control and maintain the budget requirement of a department when necessary and if that is the case, they are given an LOA (Limit of Authority) by board members and assigned specific guidelines to ensure that the budget is being monitored and controlled properly. Thus, if a certain amount of money is required for a business venture, the team has the right to approve, reject or reduce the level of CAPEX requirement for that venture. These are business investment decisions and not budgetary decisions. Technology The Technology team of Oikotan is involved in analyzing the requirements needed to improve the mobile network capacity of Robi Axiata in different areas of the country. This is done by validating and verifying the data sent from the Marketing and Finance team. The Technology team then coordinates with the Radio Networking Department of the Technology division to collect and analyze the

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

various projects they have outlined for the year. For the data received from the Marketing and Finance team, the technology team gathers information regarding the cost of the capital equipment of the projects approved. This includes the depreciation cost, the cost of maintenance and the technical feasibility of the projects. This information is passed back to the finance team for further approval of the costs. Once approved, it is sent to the Radio and Networking Department to seek their approval. If in the off-chance that the RN department were seeking to implement the same projects, they would send this information back to Oikotan. This would prevent the CAPEX optimization need from being overstated. The technology team works as an interface between the Technology division and Oikotan and collects business cases for project approval from the RN department of the Technology Division too. The data they collect from the Radio Networking Department is very extensive and detailed. This consists of a detailed analysis of their projects, why they want to implement them. For instance, if they are keen to set up another BTS in a particular area, they have to give a detailed summary to the Technology team of Oikotan why they feel it is necessary to carry out the project, the benefits that can be obtained from carrying this project out and the costs incurred. The RN department then sends a list of all the costs that has to be incurred if the project was carried out. This includes the cost of setting up the BTS, highlighting whether it will be an RTT, and RTP, a GFRT or an IBS. Moreover, they have to send information whether the BTS is used for extending the network coverage or increasing the network capacity. Network coverage is when Robi Axiata has to implement a new BTS in an area and Network Capacity is when they increase the level of maintenance and operation cost to improve the condition and operation of the current BTS towers.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

All this information is passed to the Technology Team of Oikotan. Oikotan then prioritizes the various business cases. The technology team makes calculations regarding the business cost of the technical requirements of the various business cases. This is done by measuring their CAPEX requirements. The CAPEX requirement consists of the Radio CAPEX, the Generator CAPEX and the duty accrued on these as most of these items are usually imported. Next, an evaluation is conducted on whether this equipmentare used for coverage purposes or capacity purposes. This is important because the cost of implementing a new BTS (coverage) is greater than the cost of improving the current BTS towers (capacity). After verifying whether the BTS are RTT(Rooftop Tower) ,RTP(Rooftop Pole), GFT(Greenfield Tower) or IBS(In-Build System), the technology team makes a list of all the expenses incurred. This includes the cost of electricity, the cost of maintenance of BTS and generator, cost of rent and, if the BTS site is shared with other telecommunication networks, then the cost of leasing. The technology team then passes the collected and evaluated data to the finance team for prioritization. The Finance team prioritizes the business cases received from the technology team by calculating their NPV and IRR as mentioned above. The projects that create the highest NPV and IRR are given top priority and the information is passed back to the technology team. Here the team reduces the cost levels and cuts down on what is thought to be unnecessary expenses on the approved business cases. It then sends back the approved cases to the RN department so that they can carry out the approved projects. Overall it can be seen that there is unison in decision-making. All the respective costs and expenses are assimilated and business cases that have a high NPV, IRR or Payback Period are given top priority for commencement. Once the budget for

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

these cases have been evaluated and configured and the cases themselves have been prioritize by Integrated Planning and the other departments using Oikotan, the Integrated Planning team sends a request for approval to the SCM board. The SCM board has the power to make the final decision for approval. 5.0) STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF OIKOTAN Oikotan is an essential and strategically important tool for Robi. While the old system was still implemented, the company was investing in projects which did not bring any return. These projects were thought to be profitable initially, but due to lack of information from the key departments, the true state of these projects has been found to be over-valued. Thus, there was no return gained from these project and most of the Capital was tied down when they could have been invested somewhere more lucrative. This process allows Robi to invest in more profitable business projects that were not possible before when the CAPEX was tied down. With Oikotan, because it is a process-oriented approach, the CAPEX is distributed after more cohesive decision-making between the departments. Moreover, ideas are passed back and forth so that all the costs, expenses and benefits were questioned and evaluated. The information attained is more realistic than the overvalued data previously received. One of the main benefits attained from Oikotan is that this system is not solely dependant on Market Operations for information regarding customers and area subscribers. The marketing team of Oikotan conducts its own tests and research on the market. This makes the company closer to the customers when before the data collected was perfunctory and not in tune with current customer opinions. In this way, Oikotan allows the company to align its future investments based on the customer reports received and their preferences, allowing more profitable decisions

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

made by combining customers interests in and the overall business strategy of the company. Robi is competing in a highly charged and competitive environment. Therefore, it needs to make sure that its capital is distributed in areas which would provide them with great returns. With this new system of distribution, it allows more informed decision-making and ideas about the market and the technology available to Robi. It can also help the company understand which aspects of the market is growing, the disadvantages faced by the company and thus help make qualitative decisions. Using this, Robi can invest in sound projects that would benefit the company by increasing its company revenue and growth through an increased return on capital investments. The reduction of bureaucratic barriers is in compliance with Robis open working policy. Oikotan creates a fluid channel of communication between all the departments and territories of Robi. Moreover, it allows all departments to share their ideas and discuss their projects so that the Integrated Planning department can come to a more informed decision regarding where best to deploy capital. Oikotan helps to maintain organizational agility and strengthen divisional collaborations. Benefits Achieved by Oikotan Investment is aligned with customer requirement and business strategy. Improves growth prospect of the company with increased ROIC. Improved quality in investments and technology. Organization is agile and divisional collaborations are improved. Process Oriented Approach.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Chapter 6 6.1) Recommendation From the above report, it can be seen that Robi Axiata is trying to learn from its past mistakes and improve its CAPEX distributing process through better investment decisions. In this brief period, it is not possible to minutely diagnose the full effect and system of Oikotan. However, the few recommendations that I would suggest are these: i) The Oikotan team should not completely discard the business cases that have a low NPV. NPV is a measure of efficiency, not predicted profit. Therefore, sometimes Oikotan should use qualitative decision-making to ensure proper investment.

ii)

Oikotan should ensure that the parameters used by the Marketing team are indeed efficient and that they represent the true state of the market. They should also include external variables that contribute to systematic risk of the telecommunications industry, such as the political climate, the economic situation of the country and the investment climate in Bangladesh.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

6.2) Conclusion In conclusion, it can be said that Robi Axiata has potential to gain a large market share of the telecommunication industry. However, due to the dominance of Grameenphone and Banglalink and their monopolizing methods of market control, Robi Axiata still has a long way to go. In order to contend with the market share, Robi Axiata has decided to venture out into more untapped territories of Bangladesh, using a more patriotic theme to attract the subscribers, case in point being the new Deshpremik advertisement. In order to make sure that the goals and priorities of Robi Axiata are achieved, the company has to ensure that it invests in proper resources and activities. Previously, it invested in many wrong investments which resulted in a tying down of much resources and no return. To prevent this from happening in the future, the Integrated Planning team created Oikotan which created a whole new version of CAPEX distribution and system. This was created to increase the Return on Invested Capital of business projects and to prevent further losses. In this sense, hopefully Oikotan will help to reduce loss potentials for Robi Axiata and increase its number of subscribers in Bangladesh.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

6.1) REFERENCES www.google.com.bd www.wikipedia.com www.robi.com.bd www.btrc.gov.bd

6.2) ABBREVIATIONS CAPEX- Capital Expenditure OPEX- Operational Expenditure BTS- Base Transceiver Station RTP-Rooftop Tower GFRT-Green Field Tower IBS-In-Build Solution

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

6.3) Appendix
2.6) Key Achievements OfRobi Axiata 2012 a) In 2012, Robi Axiata has crossed the landmark of 2 crore (2 million) subscriber base. b) Robi was reassessed and rewarded with ISO 9001:2008 certifications. Past Achievements a) Robi Axiata limited has received the Star News HR Excellence Awards for Innovation in HR. b) Robi Axiata has been conferred the prestigious Frost and Sullivan Asia Pacific ICT Award 2010 for Emerging Market Service Provider of the Year. c) In 2009, Robi has been ranked within top 6 global comparable telcos in A.T Kearney benchmarking exercise in 2009. d) The Bangladesh Mobile Phone Businessmen Association has awarded Robi Axiata as the best service provider in Bangladesh for 2008-2009. e) Robi Axiata crossed the 10 million subscribers mark in 2009. 2.7) PRODUCTS OFFERED BY ROBI AXIATA Robi offers the following products to customersi) Prepaid Service Prepaid Service offers the following benefits Emergency Balance Facilities

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Highest 7 FnF numbers facility Priyo Number Facility (Super FnF) Cluster of packages to fulfill desired benefits. Simple package change facility through Recharge and USSD codes. Range of special Bundle and Combo offers to fill customers Voice VAS desires. Full BTCL connectivity with FREE BTCL incoming. Extended and simplified recharge validity for ease and freedom Nationwide easy load facility Nationwide High speed internet connectivity All available Value-added services. ii) Postpaid service iii) Robi Corporate Robi Corporate Offers the following benefits Wide range of corporate packages to fulfill subscribers needs. Zero security deposit with no monthly line rent. Convenient bill payment options. Robi Corporate Insurance Policy. Cutting-edge value added services such as GPRS, EDGE, Personal Assistant, Corporate Messaging, Platform with short code, Data and Fax call services, Call Center Solution, Fixed rate group talk plan, Customized SMS based solution. and

iv)

International Roaming

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Benefits of Robi International Roaming Use of the existing Robi number for roaming in all partner networks abroad. Global network coverage with over 573 operators and 207 countries. The network coverage spans over six continents. No additional monthly charge for availing the service. Sending and receiving SMS to and from Robi. Internet access and web surfing through GPRS Roaming services. a) Itemized bill without additional charge. b) International roaming tariff information through SMS. v) Wholesale Business Robi Axiata also conducts wholesale business regarding their BTS equipment. In the Infrastructure Sharing Guidelines and in accordance with the regulations of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commision (BTRC), telecom

operators are required to share their network elements with other interested operators or business entities. The purpose of such directive is to lower increasing cost of network investments and thus helping the operators design sustainable and diversified business models for more effective and efficient sercives to the subscribers. The Wholesale Business of Robi Axiata Limited is the business that focuses on the transaction of telecom products and services between two business entities within the regulatory allowed boundaries. A technology company may share the passive infrastructure (Tower, space, power, BTS rooms, shelter, etc) with a business entity to accommodate its equipments and sustain its business in certain areas.

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Comparison of Previous And Current CAPEX Distribution Process

Currently, Robi focuses on the BTS Infrastructure and offers the following products to their customersa) Roof Top Tower (RTT) b) Green Field Tower (GFRT) c) Roof Top Pole with AC power d) Rooftop pole with DC Power

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