• Mainstream adoption of mobile web – It seems mobile web is finally here. The tablets has fueled the growth and has also increased the horizon of mobile web from essential info search to default information consumption device, which opens doors for a lot of interesting innovation in days to come. With tablets overtaking the production of laptops and desktops in number, this trend is set to grow.

  We, at Indus Net Technologies has adopted a mandate that we will design sites for tablets and then make sure that it renders well on laptop / desktop resolutions.

• Mobile Transactions – With mobile payment infrastructure, regulations been put together and advent of NFC, mobile payment (or wallet) is a reality. It is however to be seen, who vests the power – the network providers, device manufacturers or the app developers. The collaborative competition will be interesting to watch.

  It shall also gradually replace visiting cards and catalogs / brochures. I have increasingly felt less anxious when I meet people without my visiting card in my pocket. I know, we can connect through mobile (will become easier with NFC / Bump) and social networks.

• The OS / browser war is ON – With Android (from Google), WinMobile (from Microsoft) and iOS (from Apple), the old OS and Browser war is back. This time it is not separate – it is integrated, as web has emerged as the new platform.
• Interactivity is changing – Interactivity has moved on from keyboard to mouse to touch (the last one literally turned around Apple's fortune). And now it is set to move into the domain of voice and gesture. Innovators are working hard to make them mainstream.
• Convergence – Though, there has been talks about convergence for quite some time, but it will be visible in consumer use this year. TV, Internet and Mobile will finally blur with the advent of Smart TV, Android PC and Android based tablets / mobiles. All these can run same apps, which will bring in integrated functionality and give us access to content and functions irrespective of the medium.

  This will have path-breaking impact in the verticals of entertainment, education, home automation, productivity, etc.

• Cloud (IaaS, SaaS and PaaS) becomes mainstream – IaaS, SaaS and PaaS is rapidly becoming mainstream. Though IaaS seems to remain under the reign of the big boys, SaaS will remain a favorite for technology start-ups! However, this year will see the growing popularity of PaaS, which provides a middle path to the enterprises who are averse to adapt SaaS.

  This paves the way for wide adoption and growth of XML based 4GL and 5GL languages. From application development perspective, does it mean the end of the tedious coding cycles, which has fueled the growth of offshore outsourcing industry so far? Only time will tell.

• Social media gets mainstream – From the fancy muse of technology enthusiasts, social media is set to become mainstream. The rising concern among the political circles about the freedom of speech due to the social networks like Facebook and Twitter is a clear indication that they have proven their importance.

  The multimedia part of the social media will continue to evolve and improving intuitiveness of interaction will bring more users contribute / consume content. If my 18 month old daughter can hook on to Youtube for her favorite video, there is no reason why 70 year olds (most of those who found it difficult to adopt to technology, as they had to learn it) cannot.

• Video will emerge as the most popular and common content / media for mass communication replacing text and images as we have on most websites. It stimulates all senses and gets the message across quickly and precisely. In a world with such low attention span, who has got the time to patiently read a 1000 word brief of how a new gadget works or how Company A is changing the world.

• The idea is to reduce improve the signal vs. noise ratio. Something that will allow us to focus on the essential and stay away from the bloat in the age of information overload. There seems to be several attempts, but no product seems to be the "winner" yet. This may be a little far away, but "objectiveness" will become a more and more desired skill.
• After network of sites (Google) and network of people (Facebook), it will be time for network of objects. Technology / platform to leverage the same and get the most of it, thrusting us in the machine age is not far away.

  Several companies are already working on prototypes and proof of concepts and it is not far before innovators will start putting business models around them. Technology is already available – it is about making it easy to use and show the best possible use of the network of objects, so that it becomes a "need" for masses from a "aspiration" or "sci-fiction"

• On a sad footnote, the print publishing industry has been pushed to brink at a faster pace than they (or even I) expected. Try to reflect on yourself – do you really find it difficult to stay away from newspaper. If you have not tried, its worth giving a try.

Beyond doubt, the rate of change in technology is accelerating at a pace that is unprecedented. It will be exciting to see how this post / trend spotting matches with the real result in a years time.

It was summarized by a statement made by a friend of mine who is in corporate debt finance -

"I have to work harder, I have to keep reviewing the companies and their state every couple of months now. Gone are the days when companies used to take 10 years to be built and same amount of time to be killed due to mismanagement. 10 years has shrunk to 10 months, if not less"

Question: How to improve marketing for start-ups?

Do while (endless) {
Learn;
Experiment;
Observe results;
Re-execute successful experiments;
Analyze root cause of failed experiments;
Unlearn old concepts based on experience;
}

I will be happy to improve this no-brainer algorithm with your inputs! So do post your comments

So, here are some basics that we follow. Our fellow exhibitors can also benefit from it I call it the "1-2-3 of exhibiting"

Before I talk about the "1-2-3 of exhibiting", a word of caution – Do not exhibit to satisfy your ego. Do not remain self obsessed. You go to a trade show to connect and communicate with your audience. If you fail to do this, the entire exercise and investment is futile.

1) Connect in less than 2 seconds

When a person walks past your stand, you only have 2 seconds to grab his attention (many a times that too in a subconscious state). You got to connect with him within those 2 seconds. Therefore your elevator pitch must be prominent, loud, attention grabbing and clear. That should qualify your visitor and bring him to your stand.

Avoid connecting with visitors who do not qualify. You can only attend 40-60 visitors in a day (if you are a two member team manning the stand at all times). So why waste time on visitors who do not need your service.

2) Knowledgeable communication

It is so frustrating to go to a stand and find that the person manning the stand has very little or no idea about the product or service that they are promoting. The team on the stand must be knowledgeable, passionate and alert. They must know the subject well.

If the stand is manned for the purpose of collecting visiting cards (with a promise to get back later), trust me, it is a waste of time and money. Manning a booth with the right sort of people is not easy, as it needs people from the senior management layer of the organization, who are knowledgeable about the offering, and can answer the queries with confidence.

It is equally important to be compassionate during interaction on your stand. It is so common to find exhibitors to behave uber cool, uninterested and sometimes outright rude. Value these interactions and consider them a vital PR activity. After all, each interaction will build or spoil the image of the company in long term.

3) Getting back in context

It is very rare to see companies getting back (in context) after the show. Some companies just feed the visiting cards into a marketing system which sends out email and mailshots at regular intervals. However, these templated follow-ups are no where close to the discussion that took place on the stand.

Proper notes must be taken during discussion on the stand, and the follow up shall highlight those points (to bring the discussion in context) along with complete set of documents, information, price chart as requested by the prospect.

If you do not get back to them, or get back to them very late, you have lost them!

So, the 1-2-3 of exhibiting is -
"Connect in 2 seconds – Have knowledgeable discussion – Follow up in context"

Happy exhibiting

Happiness is an emotion and hence it’s a very personal thing. It is a state of mind. Different people will be happy (or otherwise) in different situations. Some of them are induced by the workplace and some by their personal circumstances.

Therefore it is very difficult to generalize it for anyone – be it an employee or an entrepreneur.

So, how an employee can be happy?

1)    By not working!

2)    By adapting to organization and people

3)    By aligning needs with goals

Let us try to understand them in a little but more detail:

Not working

Everyone has a desire to achieve something in the given profession. They want to make a difference in a given way and want to make a living out of that. This is a great approach for a perfectly happy work life. Most people use the word “work” to specify something that one has to do for making a living. But, when you do something you are passionate about, you are not working! You are doing it because it makes you happy.

Unfortunately, on several occasions, the immediate need overpowers passion and the dream is lost. The fulfillment of immediate needs, which is mostly derived due to peer comparison, is a great feeling. This mostly revolves around money, benefits, quality of life, position and power. They look so attractive that most people are forced to believe it to be the goal of their career. People end up choosing a job which they are not particularly happy with but it pays well.  Does the story of engineers doing MBAs sound familiar to you?

The by-product of a career becomes the end purpose of the career and the desire is killed. And, in doing so, play is transformed to work.

If people do not let these forces of immediate needs drive them, they can surely have a happy career.

P.S.: To make sure that employees really make the difference, it is most important that the goals of the organization and that of the employee align with each other. Else, it will end up in work, work and more work!

Adapting to organization and people

It is common to see that when someone joins an organization, they shower all praises for the same and its management team. Then gradually he becomes indifferent to the same and takes it for granted. And finally he starts hating it. It is time to look for a new job!

So the question is: Has the person changed? Has the company changed?
Neither of them may have changed.
What has changed? – Perception.

Every organization and human being looks great at the first instance, simply because everyone wants to present their best self. However, as the relationship grows, both learn more about each other. When the person is unable to take the new found perception of the organization in stride, dissatisfaction grows.

No organization is perfect. No human being is perfect. It is critical to adapt.

Similarly, to be happy at work, one needs to see things holistically. When we look at things by stepping in someone else’s shoe, we understand things better and are able to adapt to the members of the organization. Heartaches and frustration can be avoided, and meaningful discussions can be made by doing so.

Aligning goals with needs

A good organization can manage the hierarchy of needs in the workplace. But how can we manage the same beyond that, i.e. in personal life?

This question is more crucial as the demarcation between work life and personal life is rapidly fading in most organization. I do not see this as a problem, because for a happy employee, work and personal life cannot be separated because they pursue work to satisfy their personal goals.

Therefore it is not necessary to demarcate work and personal life. But it is critical that personal goals and needs are well aligned to the work life.

It needs major functional change (and scalability) in the human resource management framework of companies. And the employee needs to have clear unbiased focus on personal and professional priorities.

This is easier said than done!

So, the happy employee is a possibility. There are happy employees, but less in numbers. Even if companies desire, they cannot scale and customize the human resource framework to make majority of the employees happy. Also, it may not be possible for every employee to follow passion and adapt. Both factors put together make “happy employee” a rare phenomenon, thus raising the question – “Is the happy employee a myth?”

[Input from Mr. Mukul Gupta, Head of Operations – Indus Net Technologies]

Here are the slides

It is also available on SlideShare at:
http://www.slideshare.net/indusnet/software-20-transformation-of-software-services

This is updated weekly on our Outsource Gupta website @ http://www.outsourcegupta.com/ and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/OutsourceGupta/ and on Twitter @outsourcegupta

Note added on 7/01/2011: I have deleted all the strips that was posted on this page, as now we have a dedicated site for Outsource Gupta. This is to ensure that the purpose of the blog is not diluted.

1) Speed is critical

When you run a business, your expenses are ON. Your revenue is OPTIONAL (i.e. only available when you close deals!). And, you need to self-sustain within the given means. Therefore speed is critical. You need to experiment fast, learn fast and earn fast. If you don't, you will run out of the little cash box that you have, and the venture will be hit.

2) Start small

Do not hesitate to start small.

There is a fantastic concept called – "compounding". If a number keep doubling itself for 25 times, you will have a big scale. Therefore keep a goal to keep multiplying in a sustainable way. Remember the chessboard problem!

3) Execute, then plan

One common problem I have seen in most startups (or even bigger companies), that make them un-viable (read: un-sustainable) is excessive planning and very little execution. Things are changing faster than before, and therefore many ideas / thoughts get obsolete by the time they are executed. Therefore, prepare a gut based on some "core concepts" or "thoughts" that define your way of doing things (warning: be flexible about changing these core beliefs, if proven wrong!), apply this gut to the sketchy plan that you have on the paper-napkin, and take a call. Then learn from the outcome, feed the gut new info, and repeat the process.

If you do not go out and do things, you will never understand how it works. If you are putting together an assumption that you can get X number of customers by sending a blast mailer to 1 million users, then do a trial on 1000 and see if you get 1/1000th of the estimated numbers? If not, then re-validate your theory. If you keep thinking and guessing and planning, you will end up being in a dream land – with no fundamentals.

4) CEO = Chief Everything Officer

If you do not believe in the above equation, do not even think of starting a business (forget about bootstrapping it!).

You got to do everything that the business needs. It can start from cleaning your office to negotiating a deal with the biggest retail outlet in your town, from calling prospective employees to installing the server.

5) Barter / Trade

You will be amazed to discover how many things you can barter – and save cost and build strong relationships. Look at opportunities with your vendors where you can swap services / products. It will not only save you money, but will give you new customers / clients / consumers. Make sure that you:

• put a clear $$ value to your offering
• are not too pushy
• are offering something that is relevant to the other person

Barter / trade may not happen in the exact form as it used to happen in stone age. What you can expect is to get a "heavy" discount on your purchase bill from your vendor for the services you are offering.  Also, you may not get barter deals from very well established players. You may have to look for vendors who are good, but do not have a very big order book – difficult but possible.

6) Negotiate, then re-negotiate

It is okay to negotiate. Many-a-times, we just feel embarrassed to negotiate. There is always a better deal / bargain / price waiting for you. You just need to take the initiative to offer a price that you feel is fair for the product / service (or what you can offer). Sometime, you may have to start below your comfort zone, so that both of you can meet at your comfort zone.

And yes, do not feel embarrassed to re-negotiate, if need arise. There is no set rule and the deal is not finalized, till you sign the dotted line. You deserve the best.

Just be fair!

Note: I strongly advice that you research the prices (caution: compare apples with apples – specially while buying services). Sometimes this can result in big savings.

7) Invest in technology

If technology can be deployed properly, it can save a lot of money. It can also improve organizational efficiency, which can become an important differentiator and help you garner more business. Spend time to understand different technologies available, which can reduce cost, enable collaboration, improve communication and make you look / work smart.

Technology need not necessarily cost a lot of money. Adopt open source and free software. There is one for almost every possible business application Cheer up!

8) Extra-ordinary income

There are some indirect avenues from which your business can generate cash.

• Sub-lease part of your office space / give out desk space / invite others to come and work with you and share costs
• Do garage sale – do not hang on to things that you may not near in near future (specially computers!)

9) Get your accounting right

Everyone will probably suggest that – get a good accountant.

I will say that – spend time in learning as much about accounts as you can. Accounts let you see and listen into your business. If you do not understand it, you will be at a loss of control over your business. You should know your numbers like the back of your hand. And you should be constantly analyzing ratios (over a time line) like turnover, profit, current ratio, acid test ratio, solvency ratio, debtors / creditors turnover, etc. This will let you know the direction of your business, so that you can steer it clear of accident prone zones!

Set up management information system and decide upon core organizational metrics to measure key parameters such as sales performance, customer satisfaction, customer distribution, product quality, etc. And, take action to streamline things which look out of place. Else, all the effort is a waste.

Imp Note: It need not be the most expensive software system on the planet. You can simply use spreadsheets to manage that!

10)  Sell without spending

There are several ways in which you can generate sales without spending a lot of money in advertising. You will discover your own set of tricks while you do business (relevant to your business). Some very common ways are:

• Social media
• Networking events
• Word of mouth referral
• PR / Media

These methods will result in lowest "cost of sale" and will give you your "most loyal customers". Keep your eyes (and mind) open to make deals. They will happen.

11) Hire for attitude / Appraise for performance

When you end up hiring – hire for attitude / talent. The degrees do not matter.

Spend time in developing them (I think this is why they call it Human Resource Development) – aligning them to company requirements / goals – and then measure their performance – and give feedback.

If you sustain the wrong people, they wont probably let your company sustain – hence killing the idea of "bootstrapping".

Conclusion

I hope these small random ideas about bootstrapping will help you in a small way. If you have an interesting tip to share, please post it as a comment, and I will be happy to include it. Feel free to share them!

"Bootstrapping or booting refers to a group of metaphors that share a common meaning: a self-sustaining process that proceeds without external help. The term is often attributed to Rudolf Erich Raspe's story The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen, where the main character pulls himself out of a swamp, though it's disputed whether it was done by his hair or by his bootstraps." – Wikipedia

This definition busted two myths that I had about "bootstrapping"

Myth 1) Bootstrapping is for startups

The keyword is "self sustaining" and "without external help". Since many startups think that they need external help, this term might be used to tell (some of) them – you are on your own!

Besides this, bootstrapping is something that every business should practice. Even a Fortune 500 company can bootstrap! And it will be good for the economy. We will have a more stable economy, where people self-sustain without external help to the greatest possible extent. In my opinion bootstrapping results in self-check (real viability of the project) and makes the organization self reliant, result oriented (i.e. if there are no results – no profits – no turnaround, then you do not survive) and disciplined.

So, conclusion is – bootstrapping is for ALL.

Myth 2) Bootstrapping = cost cutting – low spend

Bootstrapping is NOT about cost cutting or spending less. It is about spending in areas, which get you best ROI. In other words – "Invest. Don't spend".

It is important to make clear demarcation between investment and expenses for your business. Choose your investments wisely and and be frugal with your expenses. Anything, which has a DIRECT correlation with increasing your revenues, or satisfying a set of clients, or getting better technology (to get you an edge), can be a good investment (in that order). Since you have to self sustain, if your cash reserves are low, do not look at long term revenue impact!

Anything that wont make a difference in your revenue (medium of travel, hotel etc.) is an expense. I do not claim this to be a perfect definition, but it should work in most practical cases.

Instead of "low spend", think of "being cash positive" – "being profitable" and "good ROI".

Last but not the least, bootstrapping looks less glamorous and exciting, but in my opinion, the returns are worth the effort. It helps you retain most of the control / ownership of the company, which you can later dilute to get better returns for the "bootstrapped" effort that you have put in. And, yes – it makes you wiser and a grounded professional for sure.

So, happy bootstrapping!

Let me get straight to the story -

Here is an extract (super summary!) and synopsis from one of the chapters (Yuddha Kand i.e. the 'War Episode', which describes the war between Rama and Ravana) of Ramayana.

Having received Hanuman's report on Sita, Rama and Lakshmana proceed with their allies towards the shore of the southern sea. There they are joined by Ravana's renegade brother Vibhishana. The monkeys named "Naal" and "Neel" construct a floating bridge (known as Rama Setu) across the ocean, and the princes and their army cross over to Lanka.

The incident goes like this:

The challenge in building the bridge was to make the stones float (as all stones will sink the moment it is thrown into the ocean). It is said that a solution was offered by supporters of Lord Rama, i.e. inscribe the name "Rama" on the stone and then throw it in the ocean. The same was done and it worked!

Lord Rama was watching the progress and Naal and Neel progressively built the bridge.

At one point, Lord Rama decided to extend a helping hand.  So he picked up a stone and threw it in the ocean (i.e. which an expectation that it will flow). Surprisingly it sank without a trace!

Why?

Because the stone was not inscribed with "Rama"

Lord Rama was confident that he do not need to use his "brand" as he was THE "brand" and tried to repeat the magic. But it did not work. It was not "branded" with "Rama".

Moral of the story: Brand is bigger than the "owner" of the brand.

Subtle Moral of the Story: Feel good, when people recognize you by the name of your company i.e. brand. This means, your brand is becoming bigger than you. And this may stay beyond you.

Winning Strategies

What is your formula for incredible success in any field that you decide to work in? Technical skills, right connections? If you ask me, I will suggest you try 'passion'. This is your secret USP for success. If you have a job and are looking for a raise, demonstrate your passion in executing your assignments and your team leader cannot help noticing your attitude and recommending you for that coveted promotion. If you have an entrepreneurial venture, develop some great products or deliver passionate customer service and you are sure to have lots of business all the time.

Remember – “One passionate person is better than 40 people casually interested!”

I will now do something that people don’t do on academic and business platforms. I will be sharing with you, 2 spiritual tips for winning almost any battle of life – be it studies, job hunting or business success.

1. Forgiveness:

Forgive everyone who has done anything bad to you. Yes, your girl friend who has ditched you, your friend who avoided you when you needed his help, your brothers and sisters who played loud music when you were studying – get rid of all the anger, frustration and resentment and you will feel a tremendous relief. Your mind and body will feel very light and you will be able to achieve your future targets so much more easily. This is an abstract thought – difficult to accept and act upon – but you will feel the difference in a day when you apply it.

2. Gratitude:

Be thankful to everyone around you. Be thankful to your institute which gave you the education that prepared you for a successful career ahead, to your parents who brought you in this wonderful world and your clients who ordered your services.

Think a little and you will be able to find ‘at least one’ reason to thank anyone you come across. And to follow my own dictum, I thank you – heartily – to have visited this blog and read my ‘tips’.

I will like to close with this parting message. We humans have great potential and are capable of achieving a lot. Believe in yourself and get on your job. Some French general once said “Difficult problems are no worries for us; it is the impossible that takes some time!”

Here is the link:
http://www.sitevisibility.co.uk/blog/2010/02/09/a-crash-course-in-seo-outsourcing-offshoring-with-abhishek-rungta/

1. As an IT entrepreneur what do you feel are the key strengths of Bengal as an IT investment destination?

Most environmental parameters can be offset using technology, so it is useless to compare any destination based on those parameters. Therefore 'people' become the biggest differential factor for any geography. People are different in different parts of the world and they become the competitive advantage and the differentiating factor. The same goes for West Bengal.

2. Please share with us your experiences in Kolkata as an IT entrepreneur.  What are the major advantages & challenges you faced as an IT entrepreneur in Bengal?

I have a mixed bag of experience in West Bengal.

Pros:

• Availability of talent
• The tightly knit peer community
• There is lack of serious competition and therefore you get clear visibility and rapid growth

Cons:

• Local market potential is lacking
• There is a proven apathy of state government towards local companies
• General lack of professionalism and dynamism

3. Tell us about Indus Net Technologies.  When and how it was set up? What is the total strength of the company?

Indus Net Technologies was set up in 1997 as a hobby. In 2002, I decided to build it into an organization and started building a team. We started with web hosting and gradually diversified into web design, web development, Internet marketing and recently into Internet strategy consulting. We did not find big enough local market and therefore pioneered the concept of selling web services through Internet. We generated a very good traction based on our innovative marketing and rock-solid project delivery mechanism. Today we are around 300 people strong and have offices in Kolkata, Chennai and London.

4. Who are the major clients of Indus Net Technologies? How big is the company in revenue terms? What are your targets? Do you have plans to increase the headcount in the coming years?

We have 8000+ SME clients worldwide. Besides them, we also serve (We cannot disclose the name due to privacy reasons).:

• Major Insurance and Financial Service companies from the UK
• Major global publishing houses in Europe and India

Our expected turnover for 2009-2010 on the lower side is Rs. 150 million. We expect this to grow at a pace of 75-110% per year on year for next five years. It is difficult to plan on revenue terms in a dynamic market scenario such as Internet services.

Our headcount will also increase accordingly. However, we are looking at breaking the link between headcount and revenues.

5. 'Seeders', a brain child of yours have been helping 'young brains' to set up IT start-ups.  Can you elaborate on the activities of 'Seeders'? What necessitated the setting up of 'Seeders'? How it is helping IT entrepreneurs in 'germinating' their business ideas and plans? Tell us about some of the major projects funded by 'Seeders'? How big is the Corpus Fund?

'Seeders' has been set up as a partnership firm between myself and Pallav Nadhani of Infosoft Global Private Limited. 'Seeders' has been formed to provide the right eco-systems to startups to help them grow from an idea stage to expansion phase. Most startups struggle for the right kind of mentoring, connections, guidance besides infrastructure and capital. 'Seeders' offers the complete package. The entrepreneur needs to walk in with the right attitude and a bright idea.

We are IT entrepreneurs and therefore we can effectively mentor and guide IT related ventures. Considering this, we only entertain business plans and proposals for IT projects. It can be of great help to IT entrepreneurs as they can get the complete eco-system in a single package. It will accelerate their pace and give wings to their ideas.

The corpus fund is of 2 crores to start with. We will continue to add to it with time as situation demands. We have reviewed over 25 business plans so far. We are in advanced level of discussion with 2-3 entrepreneurs and will soon close few investments.

6. How can one avail of the facilities of 'Seeders'?

They simply need to visit http://www.seeders.in and fill in the paper-napkin business plan. We do not want people to create projections and detailed plan for us, unless we believe in the idea and the capability of the entrepreneur. This makes everybody's life a lot simpler.

7. How pro-active is the State IT Department / Webel to the needs of IT entrepreneurs like you?

WEBEL did helped me very proactively when I relocated my business from power starved Dalhousie to Sector V by providing me space in SDF Building. They have always tried their level best to help us in all operational issues which was in their capacity. I will also like to highlight the help extended to us by STPI Kolkata and TiE.

State IT Department has always had the best intentions for us (IT SMEs). However, for some reason we remain deprived. To quote you a simple example – State Government is trying their level best to woo investment from Wipro / Satyam and Infosys by offering them big stretches of prime land at discounted prices. However, local companies do not get the same equal treatment. I am echoing the sentiments of a big segment of IT SMEs in Kolkata as I have interacted extensively with them and they believe it is a lost cause.

8. How you have benefited from your association with IT organizations like TiE?

TiE is a great learning and networking platform. I would say that it is like doing an "Executive MBA" in true sense. There are so many helpful and passionate people around in this wonderful organization, who passionately drive the cause of entrepreneurship. I find like minded people who feel (like me) that entrepreneurship is the only way poverty can be abolished.

9. Future plans??

Indus Net Technologies is looking at a rapid growth trajectory in 2010. We are looking at firming our base in the UK and taking our footprints beyond.

• I was born in Kolkata.
• When not in office, I like to be at home.
• Favourite holiday destination – Darjeeling.
• The quality that impresses me most in people is honesty and professionalism.
• Book I recommend others to read Getting Things Done & My Experiments With Truth
• If I were not an entrepreneur or professional I am today, I would be a mountaineer
• My pillar of strength is my family, my integrity and my persistence
• Top 3 ingredients that go into making a successful venture are hard work, customer focus and innovation
  
• My leadership style/mantra is atomic fission – do not let organization become too big. Break when needed and get new leaders grow and manage each new atomic unit.
• Entrepreneurship is a state of mind

1. To build a successful Internet technology company which can enable millions of businesses
2. To bring mass scale change in education system in terms of quality, content, reach and cost
3. To become an investor with a difference!

To make sure that my journey at least start off to fulfill all the three ambitions, I (along with my partner Pallav) started up a technology specific angel fund and incubation center called Seeders. This is our attempt to bring finances, infrastructure, resources, connections and mentoring (technical + business) to the aspiring and daring ones.

For the more curious ones -

We will be investing in technology companies which uses Internet as a strategic enabler. These can be software product companies, SaaS projects as well as niche knowledge services. Any wild idea that makes business sense is also welcome! And yes, the venture must be based out of Kolkata or must be willing to shift its base to Kolkata (at least for incubation phase).

More on this project will be soon posted on http://www.seeders.in

So keep tuned in.

The main reason for this paradoxical feeling is its education system. A proper education system can be the difference between both. The biggest advantage India has its population dividend. This can propel or backfire based on the direction we set. Education and cultural upbringing plays a very important role in setting the right direction. If set wrong, the momentum will be so high that changing the direction will be a monumental job – a project which will be nothing less than the Indian freedom struggle.

This opportunity (or problem) compounds in the global, connected and highly unpredictable world that we live in. Call it World 2.0 if you want! I recently came across a presentation, which explains the world which we live in:

There are many battles to fight, there are many fronts to be won. But, how can we set our aim on something which is constantly moving – so rapidly that it outpace our thought.

Where will we be by 2020? Any idea?

A fortnight back, I was having some communication with Kamanashish Roy (@doubts) and he told me about his interest in organizing a Kolkata Bloggers' Meet. The idea struck a chord in my mind as I always wanted to organize an "Internet Strategy Summit" in Kolkata. So I thought let us start with the Bloggers' Meet and check out if there is sufficient demand for the mega show that I was dreaming of! And I chipped in with the required funds to organize the event.

The discussion started off on twitter and soon the idea picked up steam with a steady flow of people showing interest. The list of attendees kept on growing and soon it crossed 160+ registered blog addicts who showed interest to turn up! The interesting thing was use of twitter for spreading the word and coordinating the entire event. We hardly exchanged emails!

The event was organized at Cafe Coffee Day in Sector V, Salt Lake. 125+ blog enthusiasts turned up to share their passion and ideas about blogging. It had talks by Arun, Saptarshi, Aji, Vikas (via video conferencing) and yours truly.

There was energy in the air as the most vocal and active Kolkata + Web2.0 citizens gathered to learn, make friends and speak up! It started with a cake-cutting ceremony by the youngest blogger who turned up for the event – definitely a great way to encourage someone. Participants were given an opportunity to do a one minute elevator pitch. Very few could actually do a 'real elevator pitch' and hardly anybody maintained the one-minute deadline. But nobody complained. Everyone was enjoying the experience. This was followed by presentation by speakers and ended with product demo of FusionChart (by Sanket Nadhani) and HeadStart (by Mitesh Ashar). Throughout the event, networking was ON.

We all got to taste the de-facto Cafe Coffee Day cold / hot coffees and snacks. When we thought all is over, we were surprised by the dinner (surprised – since we were so engaged in the event, we felt that 'we are full'). This was topped up with t-shirts and an ELearning CD (from Indus Net Academy) as a parting gift.

The success of the event is evident from the fact that even after 10 pm, participants were in no mood to return home

My small presentation was on blog monetization. I tried to cover both the audience – i.e. a blogger who blogs for a company and as an individual. Here are the slides for you!

The four people behind the success of this event (in my opinion) are the guys who represent a virtual organization called Webreps.in. In fact I was amused to know that there is no structure, format, legal existence of the organization. But then I realized – who cares! I have myself flouted the 'conventions' so many time. And this is cool. There guys are Anirudh Lohia, Kamanashish Roy, Shimul Aich and Saikat Sengupta.

Photographs of the event are at: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/album.php?aid=128692&id=129612851702&ref=nf

Can someone share the video links to all the presentations?

I will be speaking @ Internet World in the Web2.0 theatre on 28th April 2009 from 16:40 hrs on "Three Dimensions of Internet Strategy"

The talk will revolve around an approach that let businesses put together a comprehensive Internet strategy order to optimize their revenues and profitability by connecting – communicating and collaborating more effectively with the stake holders of the business.

The slideshow is attached

So, do drop in. 

Regards

Abhishek

P.S.: Internet World will take place @ Earls Court in London between 28th-30th April 2009

I will be holding a FREE Website Clinic from 28-30th April at Internet World (Earl's Court, London) at our booth.

I will be helping website owners improve their website one-step-at-a-time by giving them up to five actionable tips specific to their website after analyzing the same and understanding their online business goals.

Website Clinic is absolutely FREE of cost and there are no strings attached to it.

There will be a lot of rush as we have started getting request for booking time slots. So I suggest that you send an email to talash@indusnet.co.in and book your time slot in advance to avoid disappointment.