Rohit Agarwal:The making of an Entrepreneur

TechTribe has been in the news since its launch and I was very fortunate to speak to the CEO during Rohit Agarwal during BarCamp Bangalore.I still remember his words "Every Indian is an innovator" and you can find what he spoke at BarCamp,Bangalore here

I am an avid user of TechTribe and I would not like to miss a chance to network with you.You can connect with me here.Returning back to business,this post is regarding one of the interviews given by Rohit Agarwal,CEO of TechTribe in Express Computer, where he speaks about "Rising wave in Indian Entrepreneurship".The main reason why this interview featured here is:"After reading this it,I felt it is true keeping in mind the Indian context"

I have divided the interview in a Q&A kind of session...It contains only important excerpt of the conversation
(NOTE: "I" in the interview refers to Rohit Agarwal)

What should India to do to shift from"Service based" to "Innovation based Economy"?
Entrepreneurs are made, not necessarily born.The growth in the Indian technology and services industry (IT and BPO) has created a strong “service-centric economy”.It is that India needs to shift from a service-based economy to an “innovation-based economy” and that’s very new to us.
I believe India will claim the title of the global hub of IT and will be the de-facto destination for innovation and entrepreneurship in software and services. I also believe that in order for that to come true, India will have to “make” many more entrepreneurs.
Every Indian is a born entrepreneur.entrepreneurs in technology make a living out of “short circuiting” a process—something that the world was used to doing a certain way, they figure out how to do it in less time, with less resources, or with better efficiency/accuracy.The combined revenue of the Indian biggies is less compared to the revenues of Google which itself answers the question.

What India needs to focus on to create more Entrepreneurs?
In order for us to make more entrepreneurs, we need to focus on creating an environment where innovation thrives and entrepreneurship can be developed. This innovation environment will be the backbone of what will make India claim it’s position as the global IT superpower.
There’s an inherent entrepreneur in every one of the workers, which isn’t being brought out by the same old work, every single day.

What companies need to do to promote Entrepreneurship?
a. To make entrepreneurs, we have to educate people about how they fit into the innovation ecosystem, and what it takes to build companies.
b. They’re expected to do their daily work, but discouraged to venture into anything creative, sometimes for security reasons, mostly for corporate paranoia.
c. Companies block access to chat, message boards, and other forms of collaboration with peers, which is a requirement for the employee to tap into their creative energies. They’re not encouraged to think outside the box and come up with innovative solutions of any kind, and I mean encouragement in tangible form, not just words. I don’t expect Indian IT companies to require employees to spend 20% of their time on “innovation projects” like Google does, but do expect them to reward “collaborative innovation”—within and across corporate boundaries to innovate and be entrepreneurial.

To make entrepreneurs, we have to encourage people to connect with others, showcase their work, and promote themselves.

You can read the complete article here

You can also find Rohit's guide to startups on this personal weblog
Do have a look at TechTribe news section for more of such motivating and entrepreneurial stuff!!!