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It’s a strange scene in the <keyword id="585270" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-job-market">Indian job market</keyword>. While on one hand, some startups are laying off their staff, there are some <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Govt-Industry-and-academia-join-forces-to-guide-harware-startups/articleshow/53595068.cms">hardware startups</a> that are finding it hard to hire and retain skilled <keyword id="6357081" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Employees">employees</keyword>. 
 The <keyword id="1951795" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Hardware-startups">hardware startups</keyword> sector in India is now thinking of hiring talent using unconventional strategies. 
 
"After the initial screening process, we shift our focus on skills over and above software, which is easier said than done," Ather Energy cofounder Tarun Mehta told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/layoffs-in-some-startups-others-struggle-to-find-talent/articleshow/57422852.cms">ET</a>. "What makes it tougher is that even if you identify someone with 15 plus years of experience in a specific engineering discipline who could potentially be a right fit for the company, they would have most likely switched to some kind of managerial position in their previous organisation and prefer to continue in that capacity. That is hurtful because in the process our industry loses out on real talent," he adds. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/s/articleshow/57393342.cms">The 3 Commandments to Hiring your first Employee/s</a> 
 
He adds that hiring a recruit with the right mindset is of crucial importance to the employer. The recruit should have an operational understanding of the building process that a product goes through. This kind of mindset holds comparatively more significance than other skills that can still be acquired. 
 
Fitting position Another trend that can be seen is the hiring of people who are part <keyword id="53533" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="entrepreneurs">entrepreneurs</keyword> themselves, willing to create their own hardware one day. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Startup-Job-Seeking-for-Freshers-and-Pros/articleshow/53114024.cms">How young startups can use automation as a growth hack</a> 
 
"We like to hire people who are passionate about solving problems and are driven enough to build an impeccable product. Thereby, we tend to overpass those that are merely looking for the next job they can find," says Somnath Meher, co-founder of Bengaluru-based consumer IoT startup Witworks. 
 
"Building a physical device comes with its own set of complexity and development cycles and hence, requires a certain amount of perseverance. Yes, education, experience and expectations are parity checks for us, but we try to ensure that they have their priorities in order before hiring them to join our team," he adds. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Startup-Job-Seeking-for-Freshers-and-Pros/articleshow/53114024.cms">Want to work for an Indian Startup? Here's how to go about it</a> 
 
Another issue that hardware startups deal with is that the investors are yet to realise their true potential, leaving behind their classic mentality of expecting immediate returns. 
 
"Hardware is a new frontier which 99% investors do not understand," says Mehta. "This is because most have grown up in an investment climate that typically works this way - They invest 'x' into a startup, which it uses to show 'x'+'y' revenue. Commonly, the company will show 2x or 3x revenues, which will be used to invest another 2x to show 5x revenue, etc. This can also be quantified in the form of increasing users, but a hardware startup will not be able to do any of this," he adds. 
 
(Image source: PCH)

Chasm in Indian startups; some are laying off employees and some can’t find talent

If someone laughed at your idea of launching a startup and gave you an economic lesson that the Indian <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=startup">startup</a> bubble would burst soon, this is going to come at you rescue. 
 
The startup fad is going to last quite longer as <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=executives">top-level executives</a> are giving fuel to new ventures. 
 
In a poll of randomly selected <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=executives">C-Suite</a> occupiers across companies, it was revealed that as many as six in 10 CXO-level executives in India have invested a portion of their wealth in startups. 
 
The names of the executives have been concealed as the information was revealed on the condition of anonymity as the CXOs don’t want to reveal their personal investments. 
 
The first-of-its-kind poll asked executives from different sectors like banking, finance &amp; insurance, FMCG &amp; retail, manufacturing, technology and consulting. 
 
The survey revealed that 60 out of 100 CXOs had invested sums ranging from a few lakhs to several crores in startups. 
 
As the promoters have a risk of launching a startup, even investors see it as a risk but are undeterred. 
 
As many as 79 CXOs said they would recommend <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=investment">investing</a> in startups to others, with a word of caution. 
 
A formal financial skeleton for such investment has to be evolved and till then executives are investing in startups founded by friends and acquaintances. 
 
(Image: Thinkstock)

If you thought the new players would soon go bust, Indian startups are here to stay!

For startups to grow they must garner funds from investors; and to gather funds, startups need to have a robust product-market fit along with a promising team and a solid business plan with the potential to scale. Then comes the role of angel investors and <keyword id="6357097" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="venture-capital">Venture Capital</keyword> (VC) <keyword id="6357455" type="EVENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Funding">funding</keyword> that usually surfaces when larger amounts are required to grow a business. 
 Lately, major <keyword id="982553" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-startups">Indian startups</keyword> have seen a tremendous boost from venture capitalists. To start with, we saw how Tiger Global Management, Softbank Corp., Morgan Stanley, Sequoia Capital, Accel Partners, IDG Ventures India and SAIF Partners managed to support promising Indian startups like that of Flipkart, Snapdeal, Ola, Zomato, ShopClues, Urban Ladder and many others. Moreover, it is not only the bigger firms who are eyeing VC funds, relatively younger and smaller firms like OYO Rooms, Swiggy and Grofers have also joined the race. 
 Apart from ruling the e-commerce and fashion industry, <keyword id="153868" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="VC-funding">VC funding</keyword> is now gradually moving into other sectors too, such as agriculture, healthcare and education. As per the data from the upcoming Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF), which is all set to launch the Wharton India Startup Competition (WISC) with over 500 entries, though majority of applicants (around 25%) belong to the e-commerce industry, the healthcare segment is not far away with around 22% applicants. Moreover, most of the participating startups already have pre-seeded and seeded funding arrangements and around 31% of them have listed themselves as social enterprises. 
 
The ecosystem for VC funding for Indian startups would be discussed at length at the Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF). WIEF is a two-day event starting from January 6, 2017, which will bring together the best entrepreneurs, investors, distinguished Wharton faculty, students and inspirational speakers. Attendees will not only have numerous opportunities for interaction and networking across the board but will also witness in-depth discussions in terms of understanding the evolving business landscape in India and the need for business model innovation from the government, various industry leaders, and distinguished Wharton faculty. 
 
The relevance of this summit doesn’t end there. It is also known for hosting the Wharton India Startup Competition (WISC) which is giving Indian startups the opportunity to present themselves in front of an esteemed panel of judges and also win cash prizes of over $25,000 and unparalleled mentorship of up to 4 months from some of the most renowned names in the industry on strategy and funding. The jury for WISC comprises top-notch personalities with the likes of Bharati Jacob (Co-founder of Seedfund), Nipun Mehra (Investor at Sequoia Capital India), Rehan Yar Khan (Managing Partner of Orios Venture Partners), Tarun Davda (Managing Director of Matrix Partners), Aditya Nair (Investor at Nyca Partners), Ajay Hattangdi (CEO India &amp; Group COO of InnoVen Capital Group), Ankit Shah (Vice President at Unilazer Ventures), Sameer Verma (Director &amp; Junior Partner of Nexus Venture Partners), Saurabh Joshi (Strategy Manager at PayPal) and Shantanu Gangal (Head – Analytics at Fundbox). Also, past finalists of this prestigious event includes names such as Ketto, Haptik, Zoomcar, Zostel, Targeting Mantra, Qlicket, Samaan and Ambitioni. 
 
Needless to say, such competitions and summits go a long way in not only promoting upcoming startups but also in educating the audience and the participants regarding the funding scenario. Not many seem to be aware about the types and rounds of funding, the know-how of VC funding and even the right way to go about securing such funds, hence this is surely going to be one the most-sought after events at the start of the next year. 
 
(Image Credits: Thinkstock) 
 
(About the Author: This article has been authored by Aman Jain, Chairperson WIEF 2017)

How VC Funding Fuels the Indian Startup Ecosystem

The landscape of Indian startups in the recent times has interesting mix of businesses that provide an important indicator into the future. NASSCOM in its recent report said that <keyword id="770060" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-start-ups">Indian start-ups</keyword> are coming up with <keyword id="3070390" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Unique-Business-Solutions">unique business solutions</keyword> to meet the requirements of a geographically vast, diverse and a chequered society. With technology maximizing its potential, solutions that merge both possibilities of domain and tech are gaining ground. Geographically, minds that have been focusing on unexplored possibilities are making it to the list of some of the exciting <keyword id="121946" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="start-ups">start ups</keyword> that India needs to watch out for! 
 
Here are a few start ups that have caught the fancy of the nation for gaining popularity. 
 
Meet the chef everyday! 
<a href="http://www.holachef.com/">HolaChef</a>, a cloud-based restaurant aims at bringing best of cuisines created and crafted by some of the best chefs from across the world. It is operational in various areas in Mumbai. HolaChef strictly focuses on titillating your tastebuds only with masterpieces delivered each day in form of food! 
 
A startup in the food technology space, HolaChef raised a seed funding of Rs 2 crore from India Quotient early this year. Ratan Tata has made an investment of undisclosed amount in this startup, boosting its growth potential by a great extent. This bright spot among the startups also aims to raise an additional Rs 20 – 30 crore in the coming months to realize its full potential. 
 
A technology to track your sugar! 
<a href="http://diabe.to/">Diabeto</a> is a solution that was most needed in the times when diabetes is turning out to be a silent killer on the prowl. It is a hardware device which plugs into existing glucometers to transfer the sugar reading from the sugar testing machine, using Bluetooth to an Android device that has the diabeto app installed. 
 
This startup initially raised $70,000 in total, and was offered an additional $500,000 in case the business was interested in staying in Chile. Well, India being the better and lucrative market of the two, the minds behind Diabeto decided to be home in India. Now, time can reveal whether this decision was a good one or otherwise. 
 
Love across technology 
<a href="http://www.trulymadly.com/">Truly Madly</a>, in short, is a dating app that helps connect lovelorn people who are looking to meet the ‘right’ kind of partners who could be separated by mere geography. Worry no more! Started by Sachin Bhatia, Truly Madly is a dating app that was meant to cater to the love needs of people between age group 18 and 26 years. What’s the greatest cut the app has been able to make above the rest of the players in the same space? TM is about being a responsible app that connects people only after verifying their identity. No space for grasshoppers here. This app raised nearly Rs 35 crore funding early this year. 
 
Tasks? Don’t worry! 
<a href="https://www.taskbob.com/">TaskBob</a> conceived by Aseem who wanted to help average Indians meet their needs to run chores by way of roping in some experienced and reliable handymen was a dream come true for many people who simply find such tasks time consuming and exhausting since they have a long history of being conned at getting small jobs done. Now, no more sweat about menial tasks because TaskBob takes care of the entire gamut of requirements that need the attention of an expert plumber, painter, carpenter or just about anyone who is not on your friends’ list! The startup raised $ 1.2 mn from Orios and Mayfield in April this year. TaskBob is focusing on Mumbai right now, and has plans to expand soon. 
 
No teething problems! 
Mumbai-based <a href="http://www.mydentist.co.in/">MyDentist</a> conceived by Vikram Vora, is a chain of over 103 dental clinics spread across Greater Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad and Surat. With over 3 lakh cases that have been successfully treated much to the pleasure of both founders and users, MyDentist has addressed a crucial problem faced by most parents and youngsters by running nearly 100 clinics across cities. MyDentist, apart from its most successful run, also raised funds up to Rs 50 crore recently. 
 
When the trade is of a drink 
Mihir Desai of <a href="http://barstockexchange.com/">The Bar Stock Exchange</a> came up with the idea of setting up India’s first stock market based pub chain where drink prices changed based on the real-time demand and supply. Drinking at TBSE does not only give you a high on the drink alone, but also the empowered kick of having monitored the stock market at the same time. One of the most promising, innovative, fun and unique start up of our times that is bound to catch the fancy of more than drinkers alone. Go, savour that crash!

These Indian start-ups are revving up the Indian business scenario

Taiwanese electronics maker <keyword id="168792" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Foxconn-Technology-Group">Foxconn Technology Group</keyword> is looking to invest in Indian startups and is gaining deep insight into Indian startup ecosystem. 
 For this, <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword> founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal are helping the Taiwanese electronics maker to scout for the best deals in the <keyword id="2902522" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="indian-startup-market">Indian startup market</keyword>. 
 
Over a dozen Indian startups met Wen-Hsin (Vincent) Tong, Chairman and Director of investments at FIH Mobile Limited, an investment arm of Foxconn, at the New Delhi office of Snapdeal recently, according to two people with direct knowledge of the initiative. 
 
The meetings were designed as fact-finding missions and were set up for Foxconn to gain a deeper insight in one of the world's most dynamic startup hubs. 
 
"(However) they could potentially lead to investments in these ventures," said the sources who briefed Economic Times on the developments. 
 
Though names of the startups were not known but sources told ET that among those present were several mobile-based ventures that offer on-demand services. "All the startups who met (Tong and Bahl) have raised significant amounts of venture capital funding and several of them are already in talks for a new round of equity financing," one of the persons quoted above told the financial daily. 
 
Foxconn, however, declined to confirm the meetings. 
 
"As a matter of company policy, we do not comment on rumours or speculation. As we have stated in the past, we would consider investments in India if they made commercial sense," a Foxconn technology group spokesperson said in an emailed reply to ET's questionnaire. 
 
Snapdeal also declined to comment on the developments. Foxconn's interest comes at a time when several Asian corporate behemoths are looking to invest in consumer-focused technology startups. 
 
Earlier this month ET had reported that Foxconn was one of the frontrunners to invest in Jasper Infotech, which owns and operates Snapdeal.com. 
The Taiwanese manufacturing giant is a contract manufacturer for a number of iconic brands, including Apple, Amazon, Sony and Microsoft. 
 
Strategic investors scouting for investments in India have increased over the last two years. Apart from South Africa's Naspers, which is an investor in India's biggest e-Commerce company Flipkart, others such as SoftBank have promised to invest close to $10 billion in the country. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

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Chasm in Indian startups; some are laying off employees and some can’t find talent

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If you thought the new players would soon go bust, Indian startups are here to stay!

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How VC Funding Fuels the Indian Startup Ecosystem

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These Indian start-ups are revving up the Indian business scenario

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Snapdeal founders are helping Taiwanese company to get best deals in Indian startups

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