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1. Mumbai dabbawalas case study 1

2. ( Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association) History : Started in 1880 Charitable trust : Registered in 1956 Avg. Literacy Rate : 8th Grade Schooling Total area coverage : 60 Kms Employee Strength : 5000 Number of Tiffin's : 2,00,000 Tiffin Boxes i.e 4,00,000 transactions every day. Time taken : 3 hrs 2

3. Structure Three tier structure: Executive committee Mukadams Dabbawalas Role of Groups (a profit centre with 8 mukadams) Culture similarity of the staff Distinct local entity of dabbawalas Known for reliability and work ethic Helped by commuters 3

4. APPROACH DISCIPLINE : No Alcohol Drinking during business hours Wearing White Cap during business hours Carry Identity Cards WOMEN: Mrs. Bhikhubai of Borivali(East) Mrs. Anandibai of Andheri(East) LATEST MARKETING STRATEGY: Marketing message in the “dabba” 4

5. How do they do it…? Organizational structure Executive Committee (5 members) Teams of 20-25 headed by a group leader Individual Dabbawalla workload = 30 tiffins Operations War against Time (10.30 – 1.00) The Code Case Study : TBSA Tiffin Box Suppliers Association 5

6. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE The service is uninterrupted even on the days of extreme weather , such as Mumbai's characteristic monsoons . The local dabbawalas at the receiving and the sending ends are known to the customers personally, so that there is no question of lack of trust. Also, they are well accustomed to the local areas they cater to, which allows them to access any destination with ease. Occasionally, people communicate between home and work by putting messages inside the boxes. However, this was usually before the accessibility of telecommunications 6

7. PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT GENERAL SECRETARY TREASURER DIRECTORS(19) MEMBERS(5000) MUKADAM 13 MEMBERS 7

8. PRESIDENT & GENERAL SECRETARY NUTAN MUMBAI TIFFIN BOX SUPPLIERS ASSOCIATION 8

9. FINANCIAL DATA OF A GROUP 1 st group – Rs 125000 Total earnings -20 People Rs 35000 Maintenance cost Tiffin luggage basket pass – Rs 180 per person. Maintenance of cycles – Rs 300 – 2 cycles per month. Maintenance of wooden boxes – Rs 100 per person . T.C , police robbery of Tiffin Rs 500 yearly. Organizational fee Rs 15 per head. Puja held per station Rs 50 per head. 9

10. Awards and Felicitation Ø Shri.Varkari Prabhodhan Mahasmati Dindi (palkhi) sohala – 4 th march – 2001. Ø Invitation from CII for conference held in Bangalore. Documentaries made by BBC ,UTV, MTV, and ZEE TV Dabbawalla services are popular with the Indian IT developer community in Silicon Valley , California , USA In literature One of the two protagonists in Salman Rushdie 's controversial novel The Satanic Verses , Gibreel Farishta, was born as Ismail Najmuddin to a dabbawallah. In the novel, Farishta joins his father, delivering lunches all over Bombay (Mumbai) at the age of 10, until he is taken off the streets and becomes a movie star. Dabbawalas feature as an alibi in the Inspector Ghote novel Dead on Time . 10

11. Some Achievements World record in best time management. Name in “GUINESS BOOK of World Records”. Registered with Ripley's “ believe it or not”. 11

12. LOGISTICS Logistics is happening 24 hrs a day,7 days a week and 52 weeks a year. Logistical competency is achieved by coordinating the following: Network Design Information Transportation Inventory Warehousing 12

13. Coding VLP 9E12 E 3 VLP : Vile Parle (Suburb in Mumbai) 9E12 : Code for Dabbawallas at Destination E : Express Towers (Bldg. Name) 12 : Floor No. E : Code for Dabbawallas at Residential station. 3 : Code for Destination station (E.g.. Nariman Point) 13

14. MR. RAGHUNATH MEDGE 14

15. 10:34-11:20 am This time period is actually the journey time. The dabbawalas load the wooden crates filled with tiffins onto the luggage or goods compartment in the train. Generally, they choose to occupy the last compartment of the train. 15

16. 11:20 – 12:30 pm At this stage, the unloading takes place at the destination station Re-arrangement of tiffins takes place as per the destination area and destination building 16

17. In particular areas with high density of customers, a special crate is dedicated to the area. This crate carries 150 tiffins and is driven by 3-4 dabbawalas! 17

18. 1:15 – 2:00 pm Here on begins the collection process where the dabbawalas have to pick up the tiffins from the offices where they had delivered almost an hour ago. 18

19. RETURN JOURNEY: 2:00 – 2:30 pm The group members meet for the segregation as per the destination suburb. 19

20. 2:48 – 3:30 pm The return journey by train where the group finally meets up after the day’s routine of dispatching and collecting from various destination offices Usually, since it is more of a pleasant journey compared to the earlier part of the day, the dabbawalas lighten up the moment with merry making, joking around and singing . 20

21. 3:30 – 4:00 pm This is the stage where the final sorting and dispatch takes place. The group meets up at origin station and they finally sort out the tiffins as per the origin area 21

22. THE ROYAL VISIT: Recently, the dabbawala’s had royal company at Churchgate station. The Prince of Wales himself had visited them when he came down to Mumbai. He took keen interest in their way of functioning, expressed surprise at their efficiency and was struck with awe when he was told that they didn’t employ any technology. The prince was presented a small memento, accompanied with a garland, a Gandhi topi and a trophy by the dabbawalas. 22

23. RICHARD BRANSON CHAIRMAN VIRGIN ATLANTIC AIRWAYS MUMBAI Sir Richard Branson, Chairman, Virgin Atlantic Airways, meeting the Mumbai's famed 'Dabbawalas' at their nodal point, the Churchgate Railway Station in South Mumbai, on April 1, 2005. 23

24. Order through SMS Although the service remains essentially low-tech, with the barefoot delivery boys as the prime movers, the dabbawalas have started to embrace technology, and now allow booking for delivery through SMS . A web site, mydabbawala.com , has also been added to allow for on-line booking, in order to keep up with the times. An on-line poll on the web site ensures that customer feedback is given pride of place. The success of the system depends on teamwork and time management that would be the envy of a modern manager. Such is the dedication and commitment of the barely literate and barefoot delivery boys (there are only a few delivery women) who form links in the extensive delivery chain, that there is no system of documentation at all. A simple colour coding system doubles as an ID system for the destination and recipient. There are no elaborate layers of management either — just three layers. Each dabbawala is also required to contribute a minimum capital in kind, in the shape of two bicycles, a wooden crate for the tiffins, white cotton kurta-pyjamas, and the white trademark Gandhi topi (cap). The return on capital is ensured by monthly division of the earnings of each unit. - [email protected] 24