The liberalization of the Indian economy which started in 1991, has created major upheavals in almost all the sectors of industry. The transition from an inward-looking, protected economy, to one which is globally connected and innovation-driven, is bound to be traumatic and disruptive in the short run. It has, however, created many opportunities for a new breed of entrepreneurs who are establishing world-class companies and competing successfully in the global market.

The most visible examples are in the IT industry. Starting from an annual revenue of a few hundreds of crores in the late eighties, the Indian IT industry today boasts of a turnover of around Rs. 40,000 crores. No other sector (automobile, heavy engineering, chemicals, financial services and alike) has seen such a spectacular growth. Currently the IT sector is growing at a healthy rate of 30-35% in spite of the downturn in the global IT market. The question now is, whether other sectors can show the same type of technological and business innovations to create a niche for themselves in the global marketplace.

There is a clear shift in global markets from ‘managerial’ to ‘entrepreneurial’ modes of working. The name of the game is to proactively create intellectual property, develop products around it and sell those in the global markets. To operate, sustain and thrive in such an environment, it has become absolutely essential to promote start-up culture, innovation and creativity.

The demographic analysis of India brings out a stark and alarming picture. In our culture, we attach great value to education. Parents belonging to poor and middle class families make enormous personal sacrifices to make sure that their children get the best possible education. While this is a great national strength, it creates an attendant responsibility of job creation in large numbers so that the young graduates get good employment opportunities. Therefore, it becomes mandatory to accord highest priority to job creation in the prevailing situation. However, innovative minds should become job creators, rather than crowding the already saturated job markets.

Initiatives at IIT Bombay
A pilot IT business incubator was set-up at Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology (KReSIT) about three years back. Since then, it has been operating successfully and valuable first-hand experience in managing a high-tech incubator has been acquired. Thirteen companies have been incubated so far, three of them with venture funding. Due to limited office space, this facility is at present available primarily for our faculty and students. Recently a proposal has been submitted to the Ministry of Information Technology to finance the expansion of the incubator because IITB’s alumni are also interested in utilizing this infrastructure.

Another initiative in the form of Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) is managed by students; it organizes various programs and events throughout the year for fostering entrepreneurship. Its annual business plan competition ‘Eureka!’ has created a strong brand name for itself and attracts participation from colleges and universities in India and abroad. Last year, E-Cell in association with the students of Shailesh J Mehta School of Management launched ‘Avenues’ - a Business and Entrepreneurship festival. It is likely to grow and become as popular as Techfest, IIT Bombay’s annual technology festival. Besides these events, E-Cell organizes EDP - an Entrepreneurship Development Program and Distinguished Lecture Series, where well-known industry professionals speak on subjects of their choice. Mostly, they share their experiences in starting and managing growth of their own companies........more on next page

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