New Delhi: This has been a tough year for start-ups—grappling with multiple challenges from funding squeeze to valuations downgrade. In an e-mail interaction, Manish Choudhary, senior vice president, global innovation & Managing Director, India, Pitney Bowes discusses the start-up ecosystem in India and its association with Nasscom 10K start-ups.
Q: What are the challenges in the startup ecosystem in India?
A: Even after the big idea, one of the greatest challenges that start-ups face is the need for constant reinvention. Startups that are not constantly evolving their product or offerings will stagnate. Continuous innovation is the key to success.
Talent : Apart from the right skillset it’s very important for founders to gauge the motivation and passion required to work in a start-up. People who join startups are not only looking for inspiring work, they’re looking for inspiring work culture as well. Startups should invest in people first and technology second.
Right investment at the right time : When it comes to choosing between raising funds or generating revenue, many startups often go for the former instead of spending time in building on their idea and strategy. Many successful companies were bootstrapped when they began and spent time on their product and business models before going in for funding.
Too many young start-ups participate in premature funding conversations. Investors are willing to bet on promising ideas, however, its far more strategic for a start-up to demonstrate the concept before participating in funding conversations.
Accelerator programs are valuable to the technology ecosystem in India. Both start-ups and corporations benefit from the open collaboration. Innovation thrives when start-ups can share ideas with their peers and with seasoned technologists at established companies. Pitney Bowes has identified early stage entrepreneurs who revealed new kinds of business models and techniques. The knowledge gained from mentoring new talent helps us identify best practices and methodologies that power our own innovation and performance.
Q: How is Pitney Bowes associated with the Nasscom 10K initiative? What does it do?
A: In 2014, Pitney Bowes partnered with Nasscom’s 10K start-up initiative for the launch of our corporate accelerator program. Nasscom 10K supports our accelerator program by providing with application processes, and networking/partnering opportunities with other corporate accelerators.
Source: The Economic Times
Image Courtesy: Analytics India Magazine
