EMBARK JAN 2016

embark Jan 2016

Bulid Your Empire

N O W

Build Your Empire‌ Now!

Disclaimer The views & opinions expressed in Embark are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of Team Embark, Entrepreneurship Development Cell or Department of Management Sciences (PUMBA), University of Pune. Few images in this magazine are taken from the internet and are used purely for academic purpose without any intention of copyright infringement.

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now!

Head of the Department’s Address

First and foremost, I would like to congratulate Team Embark and ED Cell for bringing this edition of Embark.

Department of Management Sciences, S.P University of Pune (PUMBA) provides students with a plethora of skill development programs. I firmly believe that self-initiative and dedicated hard work will bring students close to success. But success can’t be achieved if efforts are not blended with continuously building and utilizing our very own skill sets. Motivating students to do activities while enriching and exploring themselves, is something very close to my heart. Embark, a Studentpreneur Magazine, is one such activity.

In this less explored field of Entrepreneurship, we try to provide a platform where students exhibit their creativity and bring the real life Entrepreneurs experiences on the table. The students get great deal of motivation and inspiration while learning and understanding about the entrepreneurs. PUMBA understands the very importance of Entrepreneurship in this fast changing business scenario and thus it is our effort to promote entrepreneurship through this magazine. Our motive is to groom students to consider entrepreneurship as a career option and also guide them in fulfilling their aspirations.

I also appreciate the efforts of Dr. Rajesh Pahurkar – the Faculty Coordinator of ED Cell and members of ED Cell who have ensured the success of Embark through their co-ordination, contribution and hard work. I wish the team all the very best for their future endeavors.

Warm Regards, Dr B.V. Sangvikar Professor & Head Department of Management Sciences Savitribai Phule Pune University e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now!

Faculty Coordinator’s Address

In Indian environment the basic purpose of educational system is to create the manpower to fit in existing job market only. The majority of the students passing out of universities and colleges have the tendency to get a safe salaried job and very few students could take decision to start their own ventures. Basically we cannot blame our students because of our existing educational system which do not have any major focus on creating more and more entrepreneurs.

Universities need to be more innovative and entrepreneurial as against traditional way of teaching and research. Traditional universities focus on transfer of knowledge through education and advancement of knowledge through basic research. This traditional approach is leading to produce graduates with no any special inclination towards entrepreneurship. The output of university should not be measured only on the basis of the number of students enrolled and passed out with degree. The social and economical contribution of universities must be considered for its evaluation. Universities must emphasize on those activities which will lead to economic and social development, while doing so there must be synchronization among university–industry–government such university can be called as an ‘entrepreneurial university’.

Entrepreneurial universities have primary role in developing the human capitals of the nation along with this it plays vital role in transfer of technology from academics to industry. The research work development may results into spinoff ventures. It also supports to existing business operations by offering its innovative research solutions to industrial problems. Entrepreneurial universities can undertake various entrepreneurial activities as bellow• Establishing Technology Park • Protecting Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) through patents • Contract research • Executive Education/Industry training courses • Contract research • Executive Education/Industry training courses • Consulting assignments • Research funding and grants • Collaborations and networking with other research institution Arranging and participation in international research exhibitions, conference All this or may be some in addition to above needs to be develop along with traditional way of teaching to me more entrepreneurial through education.

I would like to give my best wishes to start the entrepreneurial journey at PUMBA. All the very best!!!

Warm Regards, Dr. Rajesh Pahurkar, Faculty Coordinator of ED Cell, Department of Management Sciences Savitribai Phule Pune University e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire‌ Now!

Foreword

First of all, I congratulate Renuka and Team Embark for bringing this edition of Embark – the biannual magazine of ED Cell.

MBA has always been considered as a gate pass to enter into the business world. When we get into a management institute most of us have a crystal clear target of getting a highly paid job in a prestigious company. It is right though considering the traditional thinking. Earlier business was considered as the last option from the point of view of career. But with the changing scenario entrepreneurship can be said to be the new wave. It is the era of start-ups.

ED Cell is the place where we, with the guidance of our teachers focus to develop a sustained platform that supports students of PUMBA in starting up; showcasing their skills and structuring their thoughts in the less explored field of entrepreneurship.

ED Cell aims to hone the entrepreneurial skills by not just learning theories but implementing them practically. We conduct n no of activities such as E-days, Hall of Fame where students present their B-Plans, speaker sessions, industrial visits, entrepreneurial discussions, treks, Entrepreneur talks and the Flagship National Level Event YUKTI. Through all this, we learn we fall we dare we innovate we disrupt we built

we explore we fail we fight we incubate we play we conquer

All the above activities are carried out by and for the students. We look forward to continue this with your active participation.

Opportunities are like butterflies. One who catches them becomes a great professional but one who creates such opportunities becomes a great entrepreneur.

With Best Wishes, Nikita Chavan Coordinator ED Cell, PUMBA

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now!

From Editor’s Desk…

It gives me immense pleasure to present you with the second edition of EMBARK– a bi annual magazine of ED cell, Department of Management Sciences (PUMBA), Savitribai Phule Pune university for the academic year 2016-17.

'Entrepreneurship Development Cell' is an initiative by the students of Department of Management Sciences, SPPU (PUMBA), Pune. Under the guidance of our esteemed faculty, our prime focus is to develop a sustainable platform that supports students of PUMBA in starting up; which would give students the opportunity to come together, to share the ideas, knowledge and experiences. This helps in enriching the intellect of the students as they learn from each other, acquire various traits, build relationships. Embark, as a part of ED cell, is a platform where students can express their ideas and thoughts and share their experiences with others.

I would like to express my gratitude to our HOD Dr. B. V. Sangvikar Sir for giving us the opportunity to bring out “Embark”. I also thank our faculty coordinator Dr. Rajesh Pahurkar Sir for his valuable feedback and support that he offered from time to time. Without Embark team, all this would not have been possible. I thank all the team members and cell members who have contributed in making this process full of learning and fun, for all the suggestions and help.

I hope this magazine will add to your knowledge and give insights and would make your thoughts linger on the amazing adventure and excellent learning that is “Entreprenaurship”.

With Best Wishes, Renuka Karmarkar Editor, Embark

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Build Your Empire… Now! Company Name: Fizzible Tech PvtLtd Entrepreneur’s Name: Mr.Rohan Saswadkar

Chase Your Idea….

Q. Please elaborate about the business that you are into.

Fizzible Tech Pvt Ltd is into B2B and B2C sourcing of all kinds of core electronic and semiconductor components. We are also into product development. We have our own in-house Smart Home automation System too and we are integrating several innovative things into the same.

Q. What all you services & products you provide?

As mentioned above, Fizzible is a specialized platform for core electronics and semiconductor component sourcing all over the world. It is a marketplace with more than 5 lakh products available. Ranging from Passive/ Active products to batteries, sensors, modules, IC's, motors, cables, connectors, DIY kits etc., Fizzible can source all types of products through our efficient supply chain and a swift logistics and delivery mechanism.

We are also launching our SMART HOME AUTOMATION product nationwide within the coming few weeks. Along with that we have a couple of exciting new products in pipeline too. *stay tuned to

our website for more news on the same*

Q. How did your journey begin?

We started off when we were pursuing our graduation. All of us met through various "meetups" wherein one can contact people who are of a similar interests etc Q. To Start any new business raising funds is crucial and equally difficult how did you manage this?

This is the most difficult task to achieve for any upcoming entrepreneur. We have been completely bootstrapped till now. However we found out many sources of income to manage the funds. Initially we used to conduct workshops and training programs for students as well as faculty. We used to participate in as many B-plan competitions as possible (wherein we used to win most of them *wink*) and fund through its prize money. We have our own e-commerce website where we sell all kinds of semiconductor components.

That is where the majority of our revenue came from. e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Q. How do you market your product?

Our core target segment is SME's (Small and medium scale enterprises). The semiconductor market is an extremely complex market. There is no one stop solution for the same. Our team has done extensive research as far as marketing is concerned.

Knowing the needs of the target segment is the most important thing here.

That is what our team has tried to find out and thus cater accordingly. Apart from that marketing comes from sponsoring various events, conducting workshops and training sessions, word of mouth publicity, targeted e-mail marketing, meet-ups, through extensive contacts gained in the industry till now etc.

Q. What are your Marketing and branding strategies you have used till now?

We have placed a lot of focus on attractive packaging of our products. We also provide attractive discounts on products via coupon codes etc. We have separate sections on our website

Build Your Empire‌ Now! known as "FizzLearn and FizzStory" wherein under FizzStory we promote inspirational stories of young professionals who have achieved success in their respective fields.

FizzLearn section of our website is a huge store house of innovative projects and ideas that we have implemented at our workspace. We have provided part time and full time internships to students. We also introduced our program known as "FizzLabs" wherein we helped set up research laboratories in engineering colleges wherein students can implement their ideas which in other cases would not have been possible. We have provided title sponsorship to various technical events in Pune city and thus increase our brand value.

We provide special discounts and features for Robocon teams all over India and also provide guidance for the same. We were part of PuneConnect wherein we showcased our products held at WestIn Pune.

Q. Who have you tied up with?

We have tie ups with most educational institutes in Pune and Nasik region. We have tied up with NHK Japan who were the runners of International Robocon 2014. We have also tie-ups with most of the biggest distributors of electronic components in the world.

Q. What all difficulties did you face while building up your customer base?

Like any start-up we faced innumerable obstacles during our initial phase. During the initial phase we did not have a office of our own to carry out day to day operations. There were already established players in the sector. Not many people knew what Fizzible was. Lack of funds was haunting. Had to create an awareness about electronics and technology through tremendous marketing techniques such as training sessions, event sponsorships, social media presence etc. Our team used to do extensive ground work to promote Fizzible as a one stop brand for all

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Electronics purposes all over the country. All this was extremely resource consuming Q. What do attribute your success to?

Currently we are a team of 15 hardworking and extremely talented professionals all below the age of 25. Our entire team attributes our success to extreme smart work. We have a technically sound team and have done an extensive amount of ground work to reach the stage we currently are. We at Fizzible have a vibrant work culture wherein we promote exchange of innovative ideas which further helps in efficient growth of business.

Q. What are the challenges in this line of work? How do you deal with them?

Challenges are going to be faced at all points. Our team is capable enough to tackle them.

Q. What are your future strategies for expansion? Have you thought about exports?

Build Your Empire‌ Now! We are working on a marketplace model. Earlier we were solely into the B2C segment. As time passed we have successfully entered into the B2B segment.

Our next step is creating innovative B2B marketplace wherein we will connect the sellers to the plethora of buyers through innovative features introduced on our website. We are already into import and export. Be it any place in the world.

Fizzible aims at connecting all types of sellers to their respective buyers in a hassle-free and transparent way.

Q. Where do you see your company in 5 years?

Our goal is to be the leading company in B2B supplies. Apart from the semiconductor segment we will be expanding into other sectors such as industrial automation, Power tools,machinery, etc. We aim to make Fizzible as the unifying factor to organize the existing unorganized market.

Q. What is your Mantra for Success?

This may be done a thousand times till now but hard work, hard work and hard work combined with smart strategies and efficient execution has helped us reach where we are.

Along with that building a strong core team is equally important if a business has to sustain.

Q What advice would you like to give to the budding entrepreneurs?

Always pursue your dream without paving in to peer pressure. If you believe your business idea is ingenius, have the courage to pursue it. The government of India has taken a lot of initiatives for promoting entrepreneurship amongst youngsters. Do take advantages of the same.

Socialize a lot, meet new people, discuss your ideas. Chase your idea like there is no tomorrow.

Interviewer: Ms. Aditi Deodhe

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire‌ Now! Company Name: EL-tech Controls Entrepreneur’s Name: Mr. Milind Chincholikar

Take Control‌ Milind Chincholikar is a sole proprietor of EL-Tech Controls which manufactures LBSF (load break switch and fuse) and CSS (compact substation). He is a Mechanical Engineer. He also has other firm Shree Engineer Services which does the LT and HT electrical installation.

Mr. Milind says that when he was determined to start his business when he was pursuing his degree. He never liked the concept of going to the office with his Tiffin and working for somebody else. Hence, he was always seeking an opportunity of doing some work on his own.

When asked what capital he had to start his business, he says "I didn't even know what a business requires. All I had in my mind was to start my own business". He says that he never had the capital to start the business and even now he doesn't have much. He used to attend an entrepreneurship development program when he was a student and this was during the 80s. He got most of his answers only because of experience.

The journey of his business started in Pune when he had clashed with his boss and he

realized that job is not his cup of tea. So he used all the contacts he developed during his job in Bhosri area to start doing small job work for different parties. He says that initially he never got the money in hand, but on pieces of paper. But he was successful in this work and he came to Nashik.

While he was searching for new business opportunities he tells "Saying no to any kind of work was never an option because I had to earn money on a daily basis to meet my basic needs".

Most of the job work he used to get was electrical and hence the involvement in that field increased. With mechanical and electrical experience he gained confidence for doing big jobs.

Then he came across the electrical contracting which includes design to installation.

But this became monotonous and Mr. Milind started thinking about developing an electrical panel, which serves its purpose in every electrical installation. He always used to visit and still visits the electrical exhibitions from where the inspiration came to develop this unique product. He says "I literally purchased a panel from an exhibition which was not at all related to my product concept, but only to use some of e m b a r k | Jan 2016

its parts which were required for my panel". It took around 4 years to develop this product because he had to do his regular job work and then used to concentrate on this product in his extra time. To learn more about the product, visit www.eltechcontrols.com.

He installed his first panel in Mahindra Sona Ltd. He proudly says that they trusted in him and gave him job order. And after six months he got the first cheque in his life. He got the boost as his product was launched in a reputed big company. Today his product is installed in L&T, Atlas Copco and many big industries.

When asked about how and why does he continue to do his old and new work which is contracting and manufacturing of his own panel he explains that these both jobs are two sides of a coin. His soul of panels are the result of contracting and vice versa. He believes that saying no to any work is not professional in Business.

After asking about the difficulties in managing both things simultaneously, he says that business cannot happen without difficulties. There is no business in the world which doesn't have difficulties and not a single

Build Your Empire‌ Now! businessman which doesn't face it.

His future plans for the firm is to enter in 22KV range from 11KV range. With more than 8 years of experience it was not a big deal for him to enter into this range.

There is an increasing competition in every field, but Mr. Milind says that "Competition must be there. It makes you increase the standard of your product with great pace and it makes you feel alive in the market".

A thing to observe about his firm is it had and has a very little manpower, even though the firm has grown with extensive. He tells that too much manpower reduces output, things just happened with this little manpower and he never needed more and believes in optimum

management of resources rather than departmentalization with more manpower.

When asked about the take on the slow growth of Nashik in industry compared to Mumbai and Pune, he says, location really doesn't matter today if you have passion. He himself covers contracts in Pune and today's strong media and social network has made possible for taking business to far places. Talking about salary and lifestyle, he says people complain that Nashik offers less salary but they forget that this salary is very sufficient to live a good lifestyle here because people do not get to live an even average lifestyle with high salaries in Pune and Mumbai. "I love Nashik and I always will"

give to the new generation who are a bit impatient, expecting high and going for start-ups rapidly.

He says today's generation concentrates for higher education for getting high salary jobs, but they don't realize that the real education happens after getting the job. And when this knowledge and experience combines, "You don't need to work for money. Money itself will work for you. Keep less expectations and more patience initially and concentrate on gaining experience rather than money. One needs to realize his competence before expecting and if he is not, he can always reach there with knowledge and experience. Anyone can do a business if he knows these things." says Mr. Milind with this ending note.

The last question I asked him was about the advice he would Interviewer: Mr. Ameet Jagtap

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now! Company Name: Food Funky Entrepreneur’s Name: Mr. Raviraj Poojary

Entrepreneurship… Food for Soul Q. Please tell us about the new venture you are starting.

Raviraj: It’s a food home delivery venture, where we’ll deliver food prepared at home as well as at restaurants. We’re also going to come up with our own kitchen.

The basic idea is to provide people with good quality food at an affordable price. If you visit any 5 star hotel, you’ll get good quality food, but at a very high price. You wouldn’t find that quality of food at any local restaurants. Here, we’re trying to provide that quality of food in a normal price variant that is cooked in our kitchen.

quality of the service. So ‘discounting’ is the parameter today. This industry has evolved from going to a restaurant and ordering food to ordering online.

Our competitors’ Zomato and FoodPanda have invested in inculcating that habit in the customer, so we’ll utilize that to our benefit. And of course, the differentiator is going to be the quality of product, which will be affordable to middle class and upper middle class families. In terms of service, there would be a differentiator in terms of packaging and system of delivery.

Q. How did you come up with this idea?

Q. When did you decide, that you wanted to have a business of your own?

Raviraj: I come from a long line of family that is in hotelier business, so there was nothing new about it. This is the industry that I chose, and I want to carve a niche for myself in it. Just how FoodPanda, TinyOwl, Zomato, started out small and went on becoming huge ventures, we also intend to do the same.

In this industry, you’ll be facing competition from all the start ups you mentioned above, how are you planning to tackle them?

Every business has an edge over the other business, whether it is the quality of the product or the

Raviraj: When I came to Pune in 1996, many of my uncles owned hotels here. So I used to visit them, watch them minting money, and that triggered me to start something of my own. From that point my interest in business took a front seat. Soon after my graduation, I had my two hotels, but I gave them up, and asked my uncle to handle them, while I went on to complete my MBA since I wanted corporate exposure.

After working for 4 years at Bajaj Tempo, I started pitying myself, and kept questioning why I came e m b a r k | Jan 2016

here. At the age of 30, I left my job and started Wagons Learning with my partner.

Q. So far, what all challenges did you face?

Raviraj: It is very difficult to find the right taste when it comes to finding chefs. When it comes to making a website, dependency on any tech guy is a big challenge, since I’m not a tech guy myself. Second, each and every tool you want to build keeps changing or improving and the tech guys always want a standard process of work. Third is getting right human capital, because we are building a team.

And last but not the least is, working capital to make it big.

Q. How many members does your team consist of?

Raviraj: Currently, in house we have 4 people working on this, while we have outsourced around 50 people including the tech team.

Q. How are you planning to market your product?

Raviraj:

Start-ups

that

have

Build Your Empire… Now! already made it big, have huge budgets for TV ads, Print media, social media. We’re trying to pitch it fundamentally from social media sites, and on a secondary note from promotional activities in societies, malls, school so that it attracts kids. If you see our logo, it’s a character, which will attract kids. In our soft launch, we’ve got a very positive response from kids, hence our idea is to pitch it to kids, so the parents automatically get familiar with it.

Q. Apart from this, how are you planning to build your customer

base?

Raviraj: Today, there are two types of classes we are planning to tap, one is family, and another is the working class. So we’re planning promotional activities in offices through their HR and we’re also going to provide them lunchbox kind of approach.

Q. What advice would you give to young entrepreneurs?

Raviraj: Everyone is getting into the start-up race today, people are only planning to build an app, bring in investors and mint

money in a short run, which is a wrong approach. Getting app and an investor is fine, but the next step should be building a sustainable business. Most folks wind up the business within one year since, they have no customers, but the important thing is to wait for 2-3 years to let the business settle in. Also, there is a need of corporate culture, which you understand only when you work in corporate. So my advice would be, study well, work in a corporate for 3-5 year and then start a business.

Interviewer: Ms. Aditi Deodhe

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire‌ Now! Company Name: ESDS Entrepreneur’s Name: Piyush Somani

From a Free Electron Piyush Somani, a first generation entrepreneur, personifies ESDS's commitment to customer satisfaction and high quality of deliverables. Piyush Somani has earned a degree in Electronics Engineering and joined a meter manufacturing industry in Mumbai in the year 2002 and then switched to a Software company in Nashik in the year 2003. He started 'Web hosting support' business in the year 2004 with 6 Partners. Piyush then decided to get on his own in the year 2005 and registered "ESDS Software Solution Pvt LTD"

in 2004. We had huge success because we had customers like large web hosting companies in US and UK. They all were getting their back end and Outsourcing hosting done from us. This showed that we were very good in giving the support services and that made me realize that why not become a company which itself is a Web hosting service provider! With this level of support we could reach to much bigger scale.

Q. What is ESDS?

Piyush: No, I did not have any capital at all. I started with just one computer and my partners brought their own computers.

Whatever we earned from the business, we kept investing it back into it and that's how the business grows from the self funding.

Piyush: It is managed cloud hosting service provider and data center service provider and we have a headquarters in Nashik. We also have an upcoming corporate office in Mumbai. Currently we have branch offices in Delhi, Bangalore, Pune and Gujarat. We have Leads in UK, Chicago and US. Q. When was your company established? And how did this concept come into your mind?

Piyush: Our company got established in 2005. With a couple of my friends I started outsourcing of web hosting jobs

Q. Did you have any capital while starting this business?

Q. What was the biggest problem that you have faced while starting this business?

Piyush: The biggest challenge was that there was no knowledge of finance, of operations and of bringing an inorganic growth by getting external Investments. I didn't have that knowledge in those days. There was a golden period e m b a r k | Jan 2016

in storing with the help of which we could have actually pumped up the money, invest it back into the business, earn more money.

The business could have grown more aggressively with this, but that didn't happen. There was a bad patch in the year 2006, for around 6 months. Customers were not paying. I also started cancelling the Outsourcing of other clients because I had to focus on my own company.

There was a mismatch in the revenue incoming and the revenue outgoing. However, fortunately the companies which we acquired in the UK in 2005 and one company in US starting doing very well for us. At the end of the year, everything changed!

We made a lot of money in the next couple of years and from that money in India we built this headquarters in Nashik and now

Build Your Empire‌ Now! the 2nd headquarters in Mumbai which will be launched in the second week of Jan 2016.

Q. We all know that Nashik is lagging behind when it comes to IT sector. How did you choose place like Nasik to start IT company?

Piyush: In Nashik I had good technical staff and our requirement was also very low. It was in just tens and twenties. So, we had the best talents from this place and with proper HR policies that we formed, we got very good people. We were not dependant local business because our business was totally focused on the UK and US markets initially.

Q. The work culture in your company seems to be a little informal, due to which one must be feeling relaxed to work.

What is unique about this?

Piyush: It is quite Simple. When our employees come to the office, they don't feel like they are coming to an office at a specific time and going home at a specific time. They just come, enjoy their work and sometimes even sit for a longer time. There are some people who work for 24 hours when there are technical issues with our network. So, we leave these decisions regarding work timings to the employees. The important thing is people should enjoy working and that is the reason we have facilities like swimming

pool, Table Tennis court, Volleyball court, Gym, Snooker, Badminton. Employees would hardly be able to give time for these spots after going home from the office.

Q. The growth in Nashik is less compared to Pune and Mumbai for an employee for an employer. What is your take on this?

Piyush: Yes. People who are looking for financial growth, for them Mumbai and Pune are a better option. But those who are looking for a career growth, with happiness as the priority, for them Nashik is a really nice place. I started this company in 2005. Right now there are 10 employees in the company who just completed 10 years and 30 employees in who have completed 9 years. I think this was possible only because they are happy, satisfied and they don't compare it with the lifestyles which we find in Mumbai and Pune. People who live in Metro cities, often scale up in terms of money, but not in terms of quality of the life.

Q. Tell us about your cloud technology.

Piyush: We have a patented cloud Technology and auto scaling Technology. There are so many clouds available in the market today, but they all are designed purely for e-Commerce platforms or internet companies.

These are not designed for bank, Telecom operators, Gas e m b a r k | Jan 2016

companies, shipping companies, aviation companies and most of the SMEs cannot host themselves on these clouds. The reason is only horizontal load balancing in these cloud Technologies. What we have done is, we have developed a cloud platform which can grow vertically and can also scale itself as per requirement using multiple machines. This is our unique feature and it is only possible because we are in Nashik. We have a research team which has been working on this since the last 6 years. In cities like Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore it is very difficult to retain such team for 6 years. I believe that Nashik has helped us to form such a team and to be more innovative.

Q. What is your take on work life balance in a company?

Piyush: Now people in Bangalore have started taking mid-breaks.

Mid-breaks means they take a break on Wednesday or Thursday and then again on the weekends. That means they are getting over exhausted and are not able to live a good quality of life in Metro cities. But here, there are employees who come in 7 days a week to work. There are no restrictions. They can work as long as they want and if someone wants a 15 day break during the Christmas period, they can take it. There is always someone who takes on the responsibility for another person who is off for a break. This

Build Your Empire‌ Now! improves teamwork and creates bonding which is necessary for a company to grow. This doesn't happen most of the IT companies.

Q. Now-a-days most of the people are thinking about startups. The first reason is this generation follows its heart and secondly, our generation is not good with patience. They prefer doing business hoping for fast money. What is your advice for these people?

Piyush: My first advice is those who are in their teenage, is, they should plan their start-up from now. There are many students who are just 14 years, have already registered their company, are the CEOs and directors of their own companies. This is the new trend in India now. If you observe the start-ups in the US, which are started by young entrepreneurs, they all have been started In teenage. There was a culture,

that you cannot start a business until and unless you complete your education. Parents never allowed their kids to start earning on their own. There was also a myth that one cannot start a business without capital. Also the parents were more interested in the numbers and grades their children were getting in the class. But now parents are encouraging their children for starting up their own business. I think they should be able to earn, then learn, and earn again, and this cycle should continue throughout the life.

Start-up also means doing an outsourcing job and providing services to other people. You can always do a job to get a firsthand experience in order to gain knowledge required for your start-up.

Q. Are you afraid of growing competition?

that you also need discipline and management.

The rising entrepreneurs are failing in management skills. They are impatient and due to that the chances of failure are more.

Hence, being optimistic and having a positive thought is very important. I think the new generation will phase out the old generation in the next 10 to 15 years.

Q. How do you see India in the next 20 years when it comes to growth?

Piyush: We will be number 1 in the world in the next 20 to 25 years. We have the youngest population in the world. Hence we will likely be the most developed country in the world.

There are no more sorry politics like those in the early years.

People are getting aware of things and our young generation is helping a lot for it.

Piyush: In our country you have to be innovative and along with Interviewer: Mr. Ameet Jagtap

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now! Company Name: SamarthShree Entrepreneur’s Name: Mr. Shrikrishna Dhobale

Constructing Your Own Future Mr. Shrikrishna Dhobale, Head of the SamarthShree Promoters and Developers a first generation entrepreneur and a technocrat.

“SamarthShree” believes every home has a story behind it. A story of immense struggles, hopes and dreams a story unique to each and every one of us.

“SamarthShree” came into existence in 1986 with its debut scheme in Dombivli. Eventually spreading its wings it has completed more than 30 housing development projects in Pune and many more are lined up in Pune and upcoming areas surrounding it.

Mr. Shrikrishna Dhobale was a meritorious student throughout his school life. Earned rank in the merit list in 10th and 12th board exams. He replicated similar success in degree education when he completed B.E. In Civil engineering, from COEP, with 2nd rank in Pune University.

Q. When did you start your business and Why? Shrikrishna: It all happened when I was in IIT Powai in the year 1986 pursuing my PhD. Going for the PhD was my natural choice after I completed

M. Tech from the same institute.

I always had a penchant for starting or doing something of my own. This was because of my family’s business background.

One day my father said to me “be an employer rather being an employee and it will be a noble thing if you could provide jobs to other people” a value or a thought that my father always believed in.

business, you need a comparatively larger capital. My father supported me financially with Rs. 1 Lakh to start the business.

Also, I had to fight against the prejudice which my community had about this particular business.

So, next thing, I left my PhD study and started ‘SamarthShree promoters and developers’ in partnership with my brother-inlaw who is an Architect and my guiding force.

Shrikrishna: There is one beautiful Marathi proverb imprinted on a wall of my house, (This time also will pass) This keeps me motivated and grounded at times.

It appeases me when my customers say that I helped them in achieving their dream, dream of having their own house.

My education made me passionate about the field and so I entered into construction instead of family business. I started my office in a small room in Dombivli. Launched my first housing scheme in 1987 in Dombivli.

Q. What were the difficulties you faced while starting your business?

Shrikrishna: Capital was the biggest problem that I had to face while starting SamarthShree. In those days it was very difficult to get finance from banks. In construction e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Q. What keeps you going in your difficult time?

Q. How do you manage to stay calm and composed in this stressful environment?

A. The credit goes to my family.

My wife has always supported me in difficult times. We plan family outings, go for movies such things rejuvenate me. I like to write poems (Charoli) sometimes. Listening to classical music and old melodies are a major stress buster for me.

Build Your Empire… Now! Q. What are the new challenges and upcoming trends in the construction business?

Shrikrishna: The major challenge is to survive in this business because of stringent government policies and rigorous

competition. You have to be innovative in what you do. For this, we have come up with new

strategies such as providing the interiors for flat at the time of possession itself.

Corporatization is a key factor for the future of construction business. We often see that construction giants such as Trump, DLF etc. spreading their roots in India. So in the future, it is going to be a tough time for small players to survive and difficult for new players to enter the market.

Q. What is your Success Mantra and Advice for budding entrepreneurs?

Rational. Judge your capabilities because it’s better to under commit and over deliver than to over commit and under deliver.

Business requires 15% of technical skills and 85% of people skills. So always maintain good relations with your customers and employees, but make sure you abstain yourself from people who create a nuisance in your life. The most difficult thing we Indian find is to say “NO”. We must learn to say NO to activities which do not contribute to our goals.

Shrikrishna: Be Reasonable and Interviewer: Mr. Rahil Parab

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now!

MANUFACTURING IN DEFENSE SECTOR: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR SMEs & START UPS Genesis of the Manufacturing:

Defense

1. India has the third largest armed forces in the world. The defense services account for nearly Rs 2.29 lakh crore of the Central Government Budget which is nearly 2.5 per cent of the GDP and 13 per cent of the Central Government expenditure. As on today, 31.5% of its budget is spent on capital acquisitions and a staggering 60% of its requirements are met by imports.

2. This was the outcome of a string of policy decisions over a period of time. The postindependence industrial policy, which placed the production of Defense items in the Reserve List making it mandatory for production to be taken up only by the Public Sector. The policy of reservation of all defense equipment manufacture, for the public sector, was jettisoned in 2001-02. The sector for the first time was opened to Indian private sector participation, with Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 26 percent, both subject to licensing. Through progressive amendments to Defense Procurement Procedure since 2002 and announcement of Defense Production Policy in 2011, Government enabled private sector participation and

increased focus on domestic production. A major amendment was made in DPP 2013, which gave a thrust to indigenous manufacturing. The table below shows impact of policy changes in the form of AoNs approved by the Government in the past five years. The proportion of “Buy (Indian)” and “Buy and Make (Indian)” categories in the AONs accorded have increased significantly in 2013-14 and 2014-15 (Table 1).

Opportunities 3. There is an opportunity to avail defense offset obligations to the tune of approximately INR 250 Billion during the next 7-8 years. The offset policy (which stipulates the mandatory offset requirement of a minimum 30% for procurement of defense equipment in excess of INR 3 Billion) introduced in the capital purchase agreements with foreign defense players would ensure that an eco-system of suppliers is built domestically.

4. The country is now entering into the next phase of reforms in Defense manufacturing with a more proactive e m b a r k | Jan 2016

industrial policy captured in the ‘Make in India’ call. Several initiatives have been taken recently to promote the entry of private sector into defense manufacturing. A few highlights which can be the drivers for start up eco-system are as under:(a) The FDI policy for the defense sector has been reviewed and as per the revised policy, the composite foreign investment upto 49% is allowed under automatic route and beyond 49% with the approval of the FIPB. (b) The Defense Products List for the purpose of issuing Industrial Licenses (ILs) under IDR Act has been revised and most of the components, parts, sub-systems, testing equipments, and production equipments have been removed from the List, so as to reduce the entry barriers for the industry, particularly small & medium segment. (c) The Defense Security Manual

Build Your Empire‌ Now! for the private sector defense manufacture units has been finalized and put in public domain. It clarifies the security architecture required to be put in place by the industry while manufacturing defense equipment. (d) To establish a level-playing field between Indian private sector and the public sector, the anomalies in excise duty/ custom duty have been removed. As per the revised policy, all Indian industries (public and private) are subjected to the same kind of excise and custom duty levies. (e) The list of military stores has been finalized and put in the public domain to make the process transparent and unambiguous. (f) The Department has issued a comprehensive Outsourcing and Vendor Development Guidelines to all the DPSUs and OFB in May 2015, so that the private industries, particularly SMEs are closely integrated into the supply chain of defense manufacturing.

Some of the salient features of the guidelines are:

(i) DPSUs and OFB to have shortterm and long-term outsourcing and vendor development plans with emphasis on gradual increase in quantum of outsourcing from private sector including SMEs. (ii) Involvement of Indian Industry, including SMEs for indigenous development of parts/components/sub-systems, which are presently being imported. iii) Joint or co-development of systems or sub-systems between public and private sector. (g) Under Skill India initiative, DPSUs have been asked to use CSR funds for imparting training to the labor force. They have also been asked to define eligibility criteria for all positions in terms of National Skill Qualification Framework by amending the recruitment rules.

This should remove the disconnect between demand and supply of skilled manpower. (h) The Start Up-India, Stand UpIndia initiative is supposed to encourage entrepreneurship among the youth. It is envisaged that creation of a robust

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

ecosystem will get a boost under this initiative.

Challenges: 5. Though entry barriers such as licensing have been removed for most of the components, parts and sub-systems, a lot needs to be done to provide assurance to the SMEs and Start ups to take the plunge. Major challenges envisaged are as enumerated below:(a) Support from the Industry.

While the Government is making necessary policy changes and is committed to create an ecosystem for the domestic industry to grow at the desired pace, such initiatives would bring results only with the active support from industry. (b) Funding. This remains a key challenge for any start-up that plans to raise funding for their vision. Many hurdles are encountered even if an entrepreneur wishes to source seed capital. (c) Testing Facilities. Presently, there is no mechanism available in the defense sector for testing

Build Your Empire… Now! and evaluation of the products developed by the industry on its own. . Majority of facilities like laboratories and ranges, for such qualification testing are presently held by DRDO, DGQA, DPSUs or Army/Navy/Air Force and these facilities should be made available to the private sector.

Conclusion 6. The initiatives are still in the nascent stage and if effectively implemented, this framework should result in increasing the

indigenous content in the procurements from the current level of about 40% to nearly 70%, development, thereby giving the much needed boost to the SME and Start up eco system. This will not only take us towards the goal of self-reliance in defense production but will also create tremendous entrepreneurship and employment opportunities. With the unveiling of the Start up India Stand up India guidelines in mid January there is a likelihood of further encouragement to start ups in defense

manufacturing.

Bibliography 1. Website of Ministry of Defense.

2. ‘Make in India’ in Defense Sector: The Dhirendra Singh Committee Report (Extracts) 3. Extracts of 'Y.B. Chavan Memorial Lecture' at IDSA, Delhi

by Shri AK Gupta on "Make in India: The Way Ahead for Indigenous Defense Production in India"

Compiled by: Renuka Karmarkar

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire‌ Now!

Where is the RISK? The first thing that comes in the mind of everyone while making the list of the colleges for the CAP round of MBA or Engineering is, which college has got what placement history. The grade, quality of education and lifestyle of the crowd coming to the college is completely perceived on the companies visited to that college for campus interviews last year.

First semester passes, making a cool dude impression, being a part of the coolest group in the batch and scoring the "Na bhuto na bhavishyati" grades in the exams... and Last semester in filling up slam books, sending FB requests, getting phone numbers and talking about the companies in the campus!

This campus placement thing has hammered such a deep nail in the minds of young aspirants that they forget about their last semester and they might never be college students again in their lives...

Thinking about the career and taking decision wisely is always essential to draw the road map of your life. But are we doing it the best possible way? Is there any better way to do it?

The human tendency is to find security in whatever plans they make by reducing risks from their lives. Students behave on the same philosophy and put

their hard efforts to avoid risks and get placed in any company coming their way in the campus interview with luring packages.

But is it really the secured way?

Has it really reduced the risks of your life?

Prima face it sounds true to be in a salaried job. The most important reason for this is the SMS that you get on 1st date of every month: "Your account has been credited by xxx/-" Getting a fixed salary every month gives a sense of security to pay all the fixed bills month to month. Every week you can manage visits to the mall, movies, a long trip at least once a year and EMIs for your house and car.

After a few years, you realize what are you doing sitting in a cubicle and scrolling the same mail box 100 times up and down.

The lavishness of the coffee from the coffee machine fades away and it becomes just a reason to be away from your chair and screen.

The 10-12 hrs shifts feel like 24 hrs a day, Mondays become a killer and every Tuesday you start thinking about coming Weekend. Your dream company for which you were ready to work at any salary, becomes enemy company who's not appreciating your efforts and your boss becomes heartless. e m b a r k | Jan 2016

These series of consequences (even without taking risks) turns the things stressful and you start thinking about switching to something better. And the series continues...

Then one fine day, you meet one of your old roomies who never attended lectures in college, whole night spent playing games on laptop and whole day sleeping, now continuing with his dad's business and calling himself an entrepreneur. He also did not take risk, but now so called running a business. Ask him whether he is really happy with what is he doing or just took that path because it was the easiest way he had to earn money for his survival.

Now take another case. You dreamt to set up something on your own and now drafting the plans execute it. Things will be new and challenging for you, but you'll get a wide opportunity to handle all the different areas of an enterprise and make your own way the way you want.

Build Your Empire‌ Now! This will never change the importance of each mail you receive and the taste of your coffee. You'll never feel tired, every day will become a working day and every day will turn to be a holiday. Each and every brick of your building, witnesses the way you changed, architect yourself

and created an example in front of your family, friends and society. Coming out of your comfort zone and watching the things falling in place which you racked in your mind and dreamt to see it happening is the most secure way to keep yourself going, remaining composed and

satisfied till the end.

The biggest risk in life is not taking risks in life! Keep taking risks and make your life worth living!

Good luck!

Written by: Mr. Digvijay Khairnar

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now!

If There Is a Will, There Is a Resource!

“Start-up”… The most used word for Twenty Fifteen!!

From 3100 start-ups in 2014 to a projection of 11,500 by 2020 the numbers are telling this is certainly not a passing trend, but a revolution which is going to change the way business is working in India.

“Indian Start-up Ecosystem is very conducive.”

What initiatives are making the start-up ecosystem conducive?

Purpose of writing this article is to highlight some of these initiatives taken by Government and other organizations so as to enable our young and enthusiastic entrepreneurs to make use of the resources available.

A lot of young entrepreneurs who wish to begin business are held back due to mesh of regulations. Right now, the process of compliances comes under the wide umbrella of 22 diverse laws, hence the process is quite tedious. The government is aiming to condense the whole process into a 2-page start-up Act, and the single window clearance system.

Mumbai and Delhi have been featured in the list of world’s top 30 most powerful, connected, productive and commercially attractive cities making India a prospected Manufacturing Hub. Many Business tycoons are showing keen interest in investing Start-ups. Ratan Tata, our nation’s most decorated businessman, has invested in more than 20 start-ups till the date.

State Governments are coming forward to give boost to startups.

Recently, Karnataka government made Start-ups eligible for Government Contracts and Government Procurements. And many more state governments are in plan to take such steps.

Government of India Launched “Indian Aspiration Fund” and SMILE (SIDBI Make in India loan for enterprises Scheme) with an initial corpus of 2000 crores for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises sector.

Unfortunately Most of the people associate start-ups with E-commerce (all ready a saturated). But looking at the switch in view of the global community towards greener solutions to businesses, there

are many other areas where start-ups can be established.

Recently concluded Paris Climate Conference highlights the Importance of Environment Protection and lessen the Carbon emissions.

There are many Areas other than E-commerce where immense of opportunities are available. Areas like Renewable Energies where the Government is looking at potential driver of the economy are the best places to invest in. In fact Wind energy is the field where Many Big Investors are investing. (Ratan Tata Invested in Altaeros Energy this year- a Wind Energy Startup).

Start-ups in Waste Management and Recycling wastes into useful products through innovations are fetching good investment for venture and angel Capitalists.

Almost 25 Such start-ups fetched near about $1 billion investment in 2015.

Start-up in Such Categories will help in reducing the carbon footprints and fetch huge investments in near future.

Written by: Mr. Sumit Patil

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Build Your Empire… Now! Company Name: Horizon Adventures Entrepreneur’s Name: Sankalp Shinde

Adventure is out there!!!

Q. Tell us about the venture that you have started?

proficient person aspects of life too.

Sankalp: Horizon Adventures started in 2012 by 3 adventure enthusiasts who converted their passion into business. The firm deals in providing equipments for adventure sports such as hiking, rock climbing, rappelling, etc. It was formed with an idea of sharing the passion for hiking with like-minded people.

Horizon started with an initial capital of just Rs. 30,000 and now it’s net worth is Rs. 7, 00,000. It organizes Group and corporate Adventure activities and recreational outings. The USP of Horizon Adventures is, it’s founders are professionally trained and certified from reputed government Mountaineering institutions. We feel proud that our equipments are used in many Himalayan Expeditions.

Q. What ignited the spark in you to start a new business venture?

Q. What is your entrepreneurship?

idea

of

Sankalp: Entrepreneurship is to believe in yourself and pursuing your passion. It is more than doing just a business. Being an entrepreneur obviously provides you a fair chance to work on your own interests in your own way. It is a key to become a

in

other

Adventure activities like Hiking, rock climbing, rappelling are always been into my passion list.

Whenever I used to get free time I prefered to pack my bag, get my gears and enjoy my outings.

All these activities need some kind of professional equipment.

All such equipments are very costly and difficult to maintain.

And there was no one providing these gears on rent . That’s where I got an idea of providing such equipment on rent at affordable cost.

Q. What made you prefer Entrepreneurship over job?

Sankalp: There are several reasons that made me prefer Entrepreneurship to job. I am a kind of person where I like to take control and make decisions.

This can be best achieved in Entrepreneurship. One of the most oft-cited benefits of owning a business is the flexibility that comes with it, be it working from wherever you want or setting your own hours.

Thus I can maintain my own work life balance. I have a e m b a r k | Jan 2016

freedom to choose people to work with. Some people thrive on the routine of their job – performing the same tasks day after day. As an entrepreneur, you can bet that each day will be filled with new opportunities to challenge yourself, be creative and learn something new. Long hours I use to invest in growing my business do not feel like work because I am actually having fun in what I am doing.

Q. What was your feeling when you got your first seed?

Sankalp: I got my first seed 15 days after posting online advertisements on olx.in and just dial. It is one of the best feelings I’ve ever had and will be cherished throughout my life.

That first seed gave me motivation to go ahead with my decision.

Q. What are the challenges in industry of your start-up?

Sankalp: The foremost challenge is it is one of the most unorganized industries in India.

I find this sector to be professionally underdeveloped in India. To get the professionally trained manpower is still a

Build Your Empire… Now! difficult task to us. The gears are not manufactured in India. So it is difficult to get required gears within time and also servicing and maintenance of it is an issue.

Q. What keeps you going in difficult times?

Sankalp: I consider myself very fortunate to have very supportive family and friends.

Especially my wife’s constant support and encouragement keeps me going through all troughs and crests. My passion is the integral quotient that helps me to sail through difficult times.

Q. What are the key company milestones for the next 6-12 months that need to be Achieved?

Sankalp: Along with retaining old customer we focus on increasing our customer base by at least 100 %. For this we are developing various promotional strategies to attract more and more IT professionals. We want to expand our service outside Maharashtra in areas such as northern India where we have a huge scope. We are also in the process of tying up with ‘PODAR INTERNATIONAL’ school.

What is that one piece of advice you would share with other entrepreneurship enthusiasts?

Sankalp: Listen to your heart.

We want to but we get so scared of it. We may take the first step, but to take the second and third step becomes difficult; continue to listen to it.

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

The first step that I would recommend to an entrepreneur is to figure out the why. Why are you doing what you’re doing?

There will be moments as you grow your business that will challenge your decisions and if you have a ‘why’ to go back to as a foundation, you can overcome a lot of these challenges on that basis.”

Make your own future! Create and be part of something that is bigger than yourself. Nobody is going to give it to you; you have to work for your dreams. There are no guarantees on success. In order to win big you have to take calculated risks. You will find that nothing great just happens on its own, you can't sit on the sidelines and wait for it. Be ruthlessly persistent and have razor focus!

Build Your Empire… Now! Company Name: SmarTease Entrepreneur’s Name: Tanmayee Varpe

Wear Your Smartness with Ease Q. Tell us about the venture that you have started.

What was your feeling when you got your first seed?

Tanmayee: Smartease.in is an online brand for TV serial & Pop Culture inspired T-shirts, Phone Covers, Mugs, Key Chains, Coasters & Mouse Pads. We also provide customized merchandize and alumni memorabilia for schools, colleges and companies.

Tanmayee: Absolutely elated!

Motivated me to keep working hard & gave me the confidence to dream big.

Q. What is your entrepreneurship?

Tanmayee: Since there are already many start-ups in similar line of business, the first challenge is coming up with new, attractive and unique designs that would differentiate us from others. Second would be, setting up a channel, considering the ease of the buyer, through which we are able to supply our merchandize at different locations. The third and the most ongoing challenge is dealing with suppliers from different backgrounds and dealing with buyers with different requirements.

idea

of

Tanmayee: Turning what excites you in life into capital, so that you can keep doing more of it and keep growing with it!

Q. What ignited the spark in you to start a business venture, preferring Entrepreneurship over job?

Tanmayee: You get a job, so you can afford a life you always dreamt of, but instead you end up with no time to live the life you’re working for. You spend all your time at work, making someone else’s dream come true. Instead why not work for yourself?! After pondering over this thought for a few years, I finally decided to take the plunge.

Q. What are the challenges in industry of your start-up?

days keeps me going.

Q. What are the key company milestones for the next 6-12 months that need to be achieved?

So far, we’ve been able to provide delivery services in Maharashtra. Our next target would be providing it all over India and expanding our customer base.

Q. What is that one piece of advice you would share with other entrepreneurship enthusiasts?

Tanmayee: It's not about the ideas; it's about making ideas happen. You need not wait for any unique idea to strike; you just need to be good! And there is nothing wrong with starting small; you can make it big even with a small team. Just don't ever give up on your dream!

Q. How do you define success?

Q. What keeps you going in difficult times?

Tanmayee: There are seven days in a week; sometimes it’s just not your day! Knowing it will pass and make way for better

e m b a r k | Jan 2016

Tanmayee: Doing what you’ve always loved and being happy and satisfied!

In Loving Memory‌ THE MAN

To all those who knew Him very well, They'll say," Like Him, there will The Man was a brute, never be another."

The Man was unforgiving; But He gave us such sweet wisdom: To honour Him let us work hard daily, It made our life worth living.

As His ashes meet the seas; The man worshipped Time, Dear Prof. Agashe, thank you for The man loved Knowledge; To daily share facts and news with everything.

Sleep well, Forever Rest in Peace!!! us, Kenneth Thomas That was His firm pledge.

How to save your money?

How to make your business grow?

Gods may not even know the answer, But, By God, did He know!

In the walls, he was dreadful, Outside he was a friend; In our generation of things, He aced in social media trend.

Never had we known that we could love and hate Agashe Sir was one of the most The Man, influential faculty during my MBA We believed it only existed in course. His criticism was the romance novel and such stuff; learning lesson and his praises were For a man who didn't believe in the ultimate trophies one could Gods, achieve. His teachings are not just restricted to academics but beyond.

He was like one sent from above.

Then one day He said,"Thank You, #Respect This lecture is my last."

We thought the portion was over; Harshad Jain We still don't believe He had (Alumnus) passed.

Time heals wounds but stings us with memories, Memories that we had with Anil Sir;

_____________________________ _ Every building has its premises on which it's built up and made firm.

Prof. Anil Agashe, the master of B-Plan, with no doubt have had his part in shaping our personality and showing us amateurs our path to ingenuity. I owe one of my biggest successes to him. No one could have ever imparted wisdom in knowledge in such a prodigious manner.

We cherish the aura Prof. Agashe created in campus with full of enthusiasm and his enrapting classes. We shall miss you Sir, now and forever!

Mansi Sachdev ___________________________ Punctuality, enthusiasm, boldness, bluntness, evenness and integrity defined him! Open to criticism, open to criticise, open to voice his opinions made him what he was!

He was Professor Agashe! Miss you Sir! Punit Thole (Alumnus)

#PUMBATweets

Yukti… Amusement, Enjoyment, Enlightenment!

“I Create. I take Risks. I live my Passion. I am an Entrepreneur.�

Design Credits- Renuka Karmarkar & Soham More