Marico founder Harsh Mariwala says that it’s the entrepreneurs who will take India to a USD 10 trillion economy. “While the government will have to act as a catalyst, it’s the entrepreneurs who will drive growth”.
“It’s the entrepreneurs who will take us to a USD 10 trillion economy. Of course, the government has to create the right environment in terms of policy framework, availability of infrastructure, taxation issues, but beyond that, I think, ultimately the initiative will have to be taken by entrepreneurs to drive growth,” Mariwala said, in response to a question, in an interview with BW Businessworld.
“The government’s is more (of) a catalytic role, but ultimately, we need more and more entrepreneurs to drive growth. We are seeing a big change in the overall entrepreneurial ecosystem in the country – we are seeing more and more entrepreneurs coming in from smaller towns. We are seeing more entrepreneurs from non-business families, which is very different compared to what we saw, maybe, five or ten years ago,” he says.
“I think for the (entrepreneurial) ecosystem to be developed, we need more people to help entrepreneurs scale up, because scaling up is a completely different ballgame. When you start a business, you are doing things on your own, but when you scale up, you are getting things done from others. That’s a big shift and many entrepreneurs are not able to make the shift,” he adds.
Mariwala stresses on the need for hubs for entrepreneurship. He says: “Currently, the biggest hub for entrepreneurship, I think, is Bangalore (Bengaluru) but increasingly we are seeing entrepreneurs coming in from other centers. If you have to start a new business, especially tech business, you have to go to Bangalore to attract the talent. We need more Bangalore-type ecosystems.” He mentions Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune as major upcoming centres.
Mariwala would also like management consultants to get involved, and further help drive the entrepreneurial ecosystem. He says: “You need management consultants. There are so many management schools in India but I find that the professors who teach management are not a part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Internationally, most professors are consultants, but here I don't see that. I see a very strong role being played by so many people who are teaching management to help entrepreneurs scale up businesses. I think that's something which is lacking (here).
Full text of the interview to follow. |
