Introduction

It gives me great pleasure to present this paper on entrepreneurship at the UGC sponsored seminar at Government College Mohali. As an Entrepreneur and Management trainer, I have come a long way since the inception of my training institute at sector 45-C, Chandigarh. When I left my job to start my academy from home, everybody was apprehensive. We middle class Indians are a security loving breed that generally discourages risk-taking behaviour. However, I started with virtually nothing and today my institute boasts of world class infrastructure and quality services that match the best in the business. We are a name to reckon with in the area of English Language Teaching (ELT) and Self-development. It has always been my dream to provide quality services and teaching that can match those of the native speakers themselves. In fact we hold a definitive edge over the native speakers because of our rich experience in the region. We have acquired unique expertise in teaching English to the Indian students because of our meticulous analysis, application and evaluation of the effectiveness of global teaching methods in the regional context.

We are the first in the region, and probably in the country, to launch full-time study programmes for the IELTS and the TOEFL students. We are trend setters in the field and our phenomenal success has forced our competitors to imitate our methods. Not only have we innovated to enhance service quality and teaching effectiveness but have also managed to do it at remarkably low prices. Our website www.anants.org is currently ranked among the top sites by both Google and MSN. We successfully launched and established a unique interpersonal skills and Personality Development programme which has helped hundreds of teachers, entrepreneurs, professionals and managers in the region gain confidence and enhance their people skills. This ‘unique product’ became so popular that we received requests from diverse organizations ranging from media to banks, to numerous management colleges, professional training institutes and schools in the region to run the said course for their clients, staff and students. We see in this ‘exclusive product’ of ours the potential to transform society and help solve some of the most difficult problems facing the world today. We perceive ourselves as agents of social change and strive hard to eliminate some deep-rooted evils in our society.

The Opportunity

India has grown at 8.1% this fiscal, which is considered a phenomenal growth second only to China’s. Consequently, we are likely to see a further spurt in foreign investment which has been increasing steadily over the last few years. Our strengths are a rapidly growing class of English speaking skilled workers and our willingness to work hard. Our major weaknesses while competing with global players are lack of capital, technological disadvantages and deficiency of soft skills. While we have competitive disadvantages in capital and technology intensive industries, we have clear advantages in services. In fact the growth in the service sector is a major contributor to the current boom. People are the key component of any service sector organization hence this resource needs to be tapped. In order to do so we must educate our work force not only in the English language but also in self-development and soft skills which, according to me, are particularly lacking even in our highly skilled technical work force.

The Benefit

Developing Entrepreneurs is more important now than ever before. Firstly, an entrepreneur does not wait for jobs instead she creates them and thus makes significant contributions to the economy. Secondly, large numbers of entrepreneurs create a more equitable society, thereby helping tackle numerous social and political problems. Thus, by promoting an entrepreneurial spirit among the people we can help India grow faster and solve many economic and social problems being faced by the country. For example, by promoting women entrepreneurs the government can achieve its long standing objective of women’s emancipation and at the same time tap a largely untapped human resource. Further, the consequent empowerment of women will help alter a patriarchal mindset that is largely responsible for numerous social evils like female foeticide, for example.

How to do it?

When people talk of entrepreneurship, they harp on the need for making money and resources available to individuals. As a successful entrepreneur I can state with confidence that capital is not the key requisite for entrepreneurship; expertise and attitude are.

Entrepreneurs without expertise will not last in the quality conscious global arena which has almost merged with the local. And those who lack the right attitudes will wilt under pressures or react inappropriately to problems or setbacks. Thus, the first and most important thing for an entrepreneur to do is to acquire the required expertise. Now, since the service sector is growing fast and most opportunities are likely to emerge in this sector, I suggest the aspiring entrepreneurs to identify services people need, or are likely to desire in the near future, and set about the task of providing these very services. It cannot be overemphasized that the entrepreneur must be very clear about quality issues concerning her services. My suggestion is that we try to match or exceed global standards. If the entrepreneur, however small she may be, functions with a global perspective she has better chances of surviving the eventual onslaught of foreign players. Moreover, with such a perspective she has better chances of satisfying her clients and creating a loyal niche.

Role of Educational Institutions

Educational institutions like this one have an important role to play in helping students acquire an entrepreneurial spirit. Merely conducting seminars and giving lectures on entrepreneurship is not enough though it can be a good beginning. What happens after the speeches and presentations is more important. In an earlier paper on ‘quality of management education in India’ I had recommended that innovative teaching methods and activities must be made part of regular course curricula. No matter what the course, some entrepreneurial activities must be incorporated so that a vocational angle is given to education. The present status is that even management students from leading colleges are mostly incapable of setting up entrepreneurial ventures, probably because teachers themselves lack motivation or cannot conceptualize entrepreneurial ventures. To bring a positive change in the scenario I suggest involving teachers and students in conceiving and implementing commercial activities that will contribute toward the overall development of the town. For example, teachers can help students set up entrepreneurial ventures and ensure that they generate surpluses.

The nature of the venture can depend upon the amount of money a student can invest. In fact, there are numerous services that students can provide that need negligible investments. Teachers must be compensated for their extra efforts by paying them 10% (or any suitable amount) of the profits from each successful venture they have helped setup, for a period of say five years. In this way both teachers and students will get tangible monetary rewards for their innovation and involvement in the economic development of the nation. It will also help restore the faith of the people in educational institutions. In fact such activities will be a major incentive for the economically backward classes to send their children to school and to pursue higher education. It is pertinent to note that most poor people avoid sending their children to school because they do not perceive any monetary benefits emanating from education and consider it to be a liability. The best part is that such practices will help develop young entrepreneurs providing India an edge in a global business environment dominated by the service sector.

What must students do?

A good way to begin is to identify some problem that one is particularly good at solving. Then to find others who face similar problems and help solve them. For example, if you are good at math you can help others who aren’t and charge a fee for it. This is exactly what we do. There are scores of other services one can provide. If you can identify a service which you can provide that few can match either in terms of quality or price or better still, both, you have a good chance of making it rich. Unlike jobs, entrepreneurship does not ensure an income right from the start but if one has the patience and persistence to sit it out and keep chipping away then one is likely to succeed. At UBS, where I am a visiting faculty, I find many students unhappy even with starting salaries of 5 lakhs a year. This attitude is an impediment to entrepreneurship. Phillip Kotler, the legendary management guru once said, “What matters in a job is not what you earn but what you learn”. An entrepreneur may make less cash than a salaried employee or professional initially but is likely to acquire more real world problem solving skills and above all a sense of self-efficacy.

Thus he experiences greater job-satisfaction and is more adept at handling people and situations. In fact, even the cash flows that the smallest of business ventures can generate can be mind-boggling. I once enquired from my garbage collector, who used to charge us Rs. 20 a month, about the number of houses he covered. He said that he operated at phase 3 only. Now, phase 3-B-1 itself has approximately 7000 houses out of which many are three storeyed. This means that between 7000 and 14000 families live in this area of 2 square kilometers. It should not take more than a few hours to cover this area and that is probably why the collector works only mornings. Assuming that only 2000 families out of the potential 14000 utilize his services, it can be expected that he earns Rs. 40000 a month and if 4000 families avail of his services then he would earn Rs. 80000. Many highly educated professionals in Chandigarh do not earn that much in a month. Similarly, if you can identify a twenty rupees worth of service that 10000 families would like to buy from you every month then you could earn Rs. 200,000 a month! The hitch is that initially, no matter how good your product or service or how economical, it is difficult to convince most people to buy. This is why it is necessary to acquire sound communication and personal selling skills.

Qualities an entrepreneur must possess

• Honesty ::
Entrepreneurs prosper only when they build long term relationships with their clients. Hence, they must serve honestly and sincerely help solve peoples’ problems.
• Creativity ::
Problems have a tendency of being novel and one needs to learn to think innovatively in order to beat the competition.
• Courage ::
Entrepreneurship is not for the weak hearted but neither is the corporate world so one might as well be one’s own master.
• Initiative ::
Entrepreneurs are typically people who act first rather than wait for divine intervention and if you are indecisive then go get a job.
• Sociability ::
No one is self-made; neither does one work alone – however small an entrepreneur one might be. If you can’t get along with diverse people then it is a definite weakness.
• Sense of purpose ::
I personally feel that one should visualize one’s role in the larger scheme of things rather than focus on making money. Let me put money in perspective. Your prosperity does not depend on the amount of money you make. Money is just a facilitator of economic activity. All business activities are driven by man’s desire to maximize satisfaction. All economic activities are therefore just ways of maximizing satisfaction and are in fact nothing more than an exchange of goods or services leading toward that end. Money simply makes that exchange possible. So, in the end, satisfaction is the objective, isn’t it? And what we need to realize is that money alone cannot get us that satisfaction. What we really need is the feeling of having accomplished something, having helped something fructify. If the money earned is itself a barrier to the maximization of satisfaction, then we can surely do without it. For example, if I earn money by cheating you, you are likely to complain or at least talk ill of me. Now, I cannot conceive of a human being who will feel satisfied if others talk ill of him or fight with him. Consequently, the ill-gotten money becomes a source of dissatisfaction and we lose focus in life trying to amass and preserve such pathological wealth. This is the trap of entrepreneurship and I will advise aspirants to beware. With technological advancements redefining the very boundaries of time and space, we are likely to see more facilitators of economic exchanges both in the flow of humans as well as goods.

Summary

The example of my academy which was setup with modest resources is provided as a case in point to explain some principles and essentials of entrepreneurship. Besides being a tool for economic development, entrepreneurship can be a potent weapon against social evils and can help solve a range of social and political problems.

The growing Indian economy, especially the service sector, provides unprecedented opportunities for entrepreneurs. Expertise, attitudes and an understanding of quality issues are the key prerequisites for successful entrepreneurship. Educational institutes must take initiative and attempt to launch innovative Entrepreneurship Development Programmes involving students and teachers. Students must start small business ventures with their teachers’ guidance and seriously consider entrepreneurship instead of seeking salaried jobs.

Over a period of time even the smallest business ventures can generate huge cash flows. However, amassing wealth alone will not provide satisfaction which is the main motive of economic activity. Enhancing quality of life and providing genuine services to the satisfaction of all is the main focus of sensible entrepreneurs. Thus, they must be honest, courageous, sociable and creative. An Entrepreneur must initiate action to solve problems and grab opportunities thereby generating wealth for the nation.