I attended Mr.Bill Gates’ talk– heard some very interesting ideas from Mr.Gates about opening wallets for research on the world’s pressing problems. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is practically “giving away” US $100,000 grants to researchers based on 2-page summaries of innovative ideas. I didnt post the longer article/snaps in venturewoods- because I felt […]
Navigating through the Economic Blues
Like many other small to medium companies we are also being tested in the economic conditions – delayed payments, delayed sales decisions, delayed cash inflow. I would like to share some thoughts on how we can counter this situation. We are implementing many of the following to gear up for the rough weather. I hope […]
Lessons in Service Management – The Airtel mChek fiasco
(UPDATE: Sanjay Swamy has posted that they have fixed this problem) This is first in series of posts where I will share some of my (unfortunately, mostly negative) experiences with brands, with a purpose to highlight my learnings in designing services and managing customer experience. Will welcome contributions and experiences from others as well. This […]
Paul Graham on starting at a bad economy
Paul Graham on starting at a bad economy. The context is – technology startups in USA etc http://www.paulgraham.com/badeconomy.html Please note:-Indian economy is NOT in bad shape yet.
Top 10 Disruptive Techs for 2008-2012(Gartner)
According to http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=681107&format=print Top 10 Disruptive Technologies for 2008-2012 Multicore and hybrid processors Virtualisation and fabric computing Social networks and social software Cloud computing and cloud/Web platforms Web mashups User Interface Ubiquitous computing Contextual computing Augmented reality Semantics
Tighten up
I had done this post six months back with some experiences from the bust, and a promise to come back with more if things worsened. That the financial world is in turmoil is old news now. Recapping some lessons for startups from a crunch: Cash is king – raise money if you can; don’t vacillate […]
Entrepreneur Journeys (Volume One) Now on Amazon
Friends, I have embarked on writing a book series to help you navigate your own personal entrepreneurial journeys by listening to entrepreneurs who have come before. Volume One of the series is now available on Amazon.com. You can read more on the project here. Take a look, and I will be inviting some of you […]
Software As A Service: Is India ready for it yet?
In the 80s & most of 90s, paying for software (at-least for personal use) was considered a waste of money, at-least in India. Now with most people being able to afford to pay for software as the prices have also become more reasonable, I have heard people buying licensed software more than what they used […]
“The Best Years of Outsourcing Are Ahead of Usâ€
Despite the current challenges, the best years of outsourcing are ahead of us, according to speakers at “IT Services & BPO Connect ‘08â€, a conference focused on the road ahead and investment opportunities in these sectors. The event was organized by my firm Venture Intelligence last month at Mumba. Here are a couple of extracts […]
NASSCOM EmergeOut Conclave 2008
NASSCOM has extended discounted entry fee for the VentureWoods community for its upcoming NASSCOM EmergeOut Conclave 2008 scheduled for 29th Sep 2008. Please find attached the registration form. Please email to avinash@nasscom.in for any clarifications.
Dare Interview – Recapping Canaan in India
Krishna has done a good interview to recap how Canaan is looking at India, over two years after we entered the market. I am not easily given to cross posting my own interview :), but this one was successful in bringing out some new elements: No change is good news – over past couple of […]
Imbuing the Public Service with Entrepreneurialism
Cross-posted from The Subaltern Studies (An interdisciplinary studies in media and communications). Pardon me if it sounds a little off-topic. I was just keen to explore the commercial realm of public policy, civil administration, professional advocacy and political lobbying in India. A recent spat between the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and Union Public Service Commission […]