MAM
Pixar’s Jobs takes potshots at Eisner post break up
MUMBAI: Just a few days have gone by since Disney and Pixar announced that they would go their separate ways and already the barbs are flying forth. Pixar’s CEO Steve Jobs has hit out at his counterpart at Disney Michael Eisner stating that the little big mouse was suffering from a lack of creativity.
Jobs understandably was also peeved at Pixar being treated by Disney in the last few months of their relationship as a sort of “second class citizen”.
Jobs has been quoted in a Reuters report as saying, “Not even Disney’s marketing and brand could turn its last two animated films, Treasure Planet and Brother Bear into successes. Both bombed at the box office. We feel sick about Disney doing sequels because if you look at the quality of their sequels, like The Lion King 1-1/2, Peter Pan sequels and stuff, it is pretty embarrassing.”
Jobs also criticised the lack of creative collaboration at Disney. An AP report quotes him saying,”You can compare the creative quality of Pixar’s last three films, for example, with the creative quality of Disney’s last three animated films and gauge each company’s creative abilities for yourself.”
Disney issued a statement saying, “It is sad and unfortunate that he has resorted to insults and name-calling in the wake of the disagreement. We expected better of him.” Meanwhile Pixar reported net income of $84 million for the quarter ended 3 January compared to $17 million in the same quarter last year. The sharp difference was due to the performance of the Oscar nominated Finding Nemo. The irony here is that before the film’s release Eisner had told his board not to expect a blockbuster. He went so far as to suggest that Pixar was heading towards a reality check.
Another report in the Los Angeles Times stated that while Disney maintained that financial terms were the main reason for the break up people within and outside the two companies felt that the situation could have been retrieved had Jobs and Eisner not allowed their egos to get the better of them.
MAM
Beacon Group appoints Dr Rajesh Patel as Group CEO
36-year healthcare veteran to lead Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek, Biogeny.
MUMBAI: A new chief, a fresh diagnosis and a sharper prescription for growth. Beacon Group has appointed Dr Rajesh Patel as its Group Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2026, signalling a decisive push to scale its presence in the diagnostics and IVD space. Patel steps into the role with 36 years of experience across the healthcare and diagnostics industry, bringing a career shaped by leadership roles spanning sales, marketing, business development and operational strategy. His mandate is both expansive and precise: to steer the group’s overall strategic direction while tightening coordination across its three core entities Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek and Biogeny Diagnostics.
In practical terms, that means driving cross-company synergies, accelerating market expansion and strengthening organisational capability areas increasingly critical as diagnostic players compete for scale in a fragmented yet rapidly evolving healthcare ecosystem. The group is positioning itself to capture unmet demand across chain laboratories, key accounts and standalone labs, segments that remain underserved despite growing diagnostic needs.
The appointment comes at a time when the In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) sector in India is entering a more competitive and innovation-led phase, with companies focusing not just on product pipelines but also on service delivery, integration and customer-centric models. Beacon’s leadership appears to be betting that Patel’s execution-focused approach can help translate ambition into operational momentum.
Welcoming the appointment, Chairman Dr D K Joshi described Patel’s induction as a strategic move aligned with the group’s long-term vision, emphasising the role of leadership depth in navigating the next phase of growth.
For Beacon Group, the message is clear, in a sector where precision matters, leadership is the new differentiator—and this appointment is intended to set the tone for what comes next.
