Articles 1 to 10 of 40
Firstsource's Ananda Mukerji: In BPO, 'There Is a Strong Need to Specialize'
Firstsource Solutions, India's third-largest pure-play business process outsourcing (BPO) company, has always been slightly ahead of the curve by setting up centers abroad and diversifying into sectors such as health care. However, the sailing hasn't been completely smooth the last couple of years, largely because of the global economic slowdown. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, CEO and managing director Ananda Mukerji says that despite the falling margins that come with focusing on the domestic BPO market, Firstsource has positioned itself well overall, and its prospects are good for serving the U.S. health care industry.
Polar Mobile's Kunal Gupta: Helping Mobile Media Come in from the Cold
The turbo-charged proliferation of mobile phones -- including "smartphones" -- means that the demand for sophisticated, efficient mobile software platforms for news and information is growing in leaps and bounds. That's not news to Kunal Gupta, co-founder and CEO of Polar Mobile, a startup that develops proprietary content for mobile devices for a range of customers, from Time magazine to The Hockey News. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Gupta discusses his upbringing in Canada, his early exposure to entrepreneurship and what the future holds for mobile software
Building Brickwork: How a Former Government Official Found His Entrepreneurial Niche
When Vivek Kulkarni was the IT secretary for the government of Karnataka in southern India, he worked to attract the world's top IT firms to Bangalore. After leaving his post in 2003, he set up Brickwork India, an outsourcing firm that caters to the needs of individuals and small businesses by providing virtual executive assistants for US$8 to US$14 an hour. Brickwork's future, however, lies in combining this business with value-added projects such as a study on the quality of health care in small hospitals, being done in collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania's Center for the Advanced Study of India. India Knowledge@Wharton looks at Kulkarni's entrepreneurial journey and the lessons it has taught him.
Essel Group's Subhash Chandra: First Movers 'Smell Opportunity before Others'
Subhash Chandra, the founder and executive chairman of Essel Group, has built up a diverse conglomerate with sales of more than US$2.5 billion and interests in packaging, television broadcasting, direct-to-home (DTH) television, amusement parks, online lotteries and a lot more. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Chandra discussed the launch of his latest venture -- Veria, a health and wellness TV channel, website and chain of retail outlets in North America -- and shared his views on how entrepreneurs recognize opportunities, among other topics.
The Accidental Entrepreneur: Atul Jain, Founder and CEO of TEOCO
It's not too surprising that some businesses are actually thriving during the downturn. A case in point: software and services house TEOCO (The Employee Owned Company), which helps other companies cut costs and streamline processes. Set up 15 years ago in Virginia by a young entrepreneur from India, TEOCO counts all the major U.S. telecom companies as clients and is looking to expand organically and through global acquisitions. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Atul Jain, TEOCO's founder and CEO, discussed his upbringing in Kolkata, his decision to not attend India's prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, and the lessons he has learned about entrepreneurship.
Dial 'M' for 'Mackerel': Can New Mobile Services Promote Economic Empowerment?
Jawahar Kanjilal, Nokia's global head of emerging market services, refers to the launch this summer of Nokia Life Tools (NLT), a mobile information service in India, as the beginning of "an historic journey that will take mobility to the grassroots" -- one that is helping to bridge the digital divide between developed and developing economies. How that journey ends remains to be seen, but for now, new mobile offerings such as NLT seem to be a win-win for providers and their customers: Nokia and others in the mobile phone industry are gaining a foothold in some of the fastest-growing market segments in the world, while farmers in rural India are reaping the benefits of having real-time market information at their fingertips.
eClinicalWorks' Raj Dharampuriya: 'Our Goal Is to Make a Big Impact on Health Care Delivery'
It's true that being at the right place at the right time is critical for a start-up to succeed, says Raj Dharampuriya, co-founder of eClinicalWorks. Amid the current debate about health care in the U.S., the Westboro, Massachusetts-based health IT company specializing in electronic medical records is well positioned to benefit from President Obama's stimulus package, which includes US$19 billion for a national rollout of electronic health record systems. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Dharampuriya talks about what this means for eClinicalWorks' strategy and U.S. health care in general, and he shares his experience as an Indian entrepreneur in America.
Power Trading Corporation's T.N. Thakur: 'Today, Power Is Recognized as an Essential Commodity'
When Tantra Narayan Thakur was appointed to head a government-initiated public-private partnership to develop India's electricity market, critics told him he was wasting his time and that India was not ready for commercial power trading. "[People] at the highest level were telling me that it would not work," he said. Ten years later, Power Trading Corporation (PTC) has done the seemingly impossible, purchasing unused power and selling it to locations in need of more, while helping to launch India's first power exchange and financing numerous infrastructure projects. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton at the 2009 Wharton India Economic Forum, Thakur, who is chairman and managing director of PTC, discussed the state of India's power sector, how PTC has evolved over time, and the satisfaction that comes with proving naysayers wrong.
Advice from Entrepreneur Sabeer Bhatia: 'Provide the Same Value at a Cheaper Price'
Sabeer Bhatia is a pioneer in the field of web-based email, having co-founded Hotmail Corp. -- which today boasts more than 220 million registered users -- in 1996. After Microsoft acquired the company in 1998, Bhatia moved on to new projects, including Arzoo.com, an online travel services company for Indian consumers, InstaColl, which offers web-based office tools, and SabseBolo, an audio-conferencing platform for developing markets. Along the way, Bhatia has learned some critical lessons about starting businesses and keeping them going, even during difficult economic times. At the 2009 Wharton India Economic Forum, Achal Mehra, editor of Little India, interviewed Bhatia for India Knowledge@Wharton.
Abhishek Bachchan: 'Filmmaking as an Enterprise Has Become More Efficient and Professional'
If Bollywood superstars are like royalty, actor Abhishek Bachchan is a crown prince. The son of Amitabh Bachchan, who ruled over Bollywood filmdom since the 1970s, and actress Jaya Bachchan, the younger Bachchan came into his own with the massively popular Dhoom in 2004. Since then, Bachchan has seen his movie career take off, with recent hits such as Dostana, which grossed Rs. 90 crores (US$19 million). While Bachchan and his superstar wife Aishwarya Rai are often in the media spotlight, what is less known is his involvement in AB Corp, his father's film production company. During the Wharton India Economic Forum in Philadelphia, Bachchan discussed his views about the business of filmmaking in an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton.
