Is it for me?
It is good to know that only a very small percentage of people in a general population are cut out for entrepreneurship. Most people are happy with limited scope, good salary, and security that comes with corporate employment and comfortably settle for average existence. If this describes you, then techno-entrepreneurship is possibly not for you.

But if you think you are far more capable, strongly feel that your creative potential is being underutilized, get itched when some one builds a business around what you had already thought, have certain technology knowledge in your field, understand customers, markets, costs, and like to work with people, have a good circle of friends you trust, and have a supportive family, then chances are you identify with role model entrepreneurs and while you may not say so publicly, internally you feel that “if they can then I too can .. I just need a breakthrough”. If the above makes sense to you, you have the potential.

When is the right time?
The earliest you feel you are ready is the best time. For some this could be right after their graduation, for others it may be after few years of experience, for some it may be later in life when they know the markets and niches and are in a position to entertain risks.

Then why not as late as possible?
Procrastination is the greatest deterrent to entrepreneurial plunge. Look at it this way you would not plunge just for trying it out. You have to be resolute that you are going to succeed. And every success paves the way for more as it builds a platform for bigger and better possibilities. If you think you are capable of leveraging technology to build lasting companies, why wait and let others build as you watch.

So plunge as soon as you feel that you understand what it takes and can “afford the risks”.

Risks!! … How risky can it be?
If the very thought of uncertainty troubles you, then, techno-entrepreneurship is perhaps not right for you. If you are comfortable of evolving a general direction and then enjoying the journey as you take the firm next step … with constant vigil yet resolute faith that every step taken firmly and in the right direction will surely get you where you want to go, then the way you look at risks will be different.

Entrepreneurs do not mind taking risks but they do not invite risks. They carefully think through what can possibly go wrong, and how one can mitigate against such possibilities. This approach does not eliminate any unknowns, nor does it ensure that you will be able to think through all unknowns, but such preparedness helps you navigate the situations with lot more ease and composure.

Most techno-entrepreneurship involve 18 to 36 months of “difficult” times, and then a year or two of “demanding” times before you get time to breathe and look back. The upside within the first 18 to 36 months is that you are able to build a convincing case for getting needed finances to build and grow your venture, and then you are on your way to build your first company. The downside is that your efforts failed to build a solid “value proposition” either due to technology failure, market failure, or competition or changes in the operating environment.

What happens to me if I fail?
One way to evaluate this is as follows. For most capable people with marketable skills, going back to employment is always possible. What you may have lost is perhaps the time - but this, you would have exchanged for very rich experience, which should enhance your productivity and hence marketability if you were to re-visit the employment option. Reconciling to working for some one after tasting the heady feeling of “being one’s own boss” can take some effort, but you must recognize that the normal work environment requires and expects a different pattern and this insight will enable you to get adjusted to corporate work enabling wider scope for your enhanced capabilities.

How can I improve my chances of success?
Now we are asking the right question. Entrepreneurs want to pursue the path they believe in and then they work on mitigating risks and identify missing elements to line up needed resources.

NirmaLabs is conceived and designed to help techno-entrepreneurs in their journey on both these fronts.

While any techno-entrepreneurship involves risks, one can improve the “odds” by identifying “right fertile ground”, with right “product - opportunity gap”, appropriate with conducive “socio-economic-techno factors”, and consistent with “one’s own sweet spot” aided by a strong team with complementary and comprehensive skills with good chemistry backed by a well reasoned detailed business plan. NirmaLabs works with potential techno-entrepreneurs to impart this knowledge in a way that it is not only understood but internalized and creates enabling conditions to evolve a solid business plan. Further, NirmaLabs helps in executing your plan through incubation with involvement of mentors, seed funding up to Rs. 20 lakhs and through networking with industry leaders. When the projects are ready for VC funding, NirmaLabs involvement ensures far better terms and involvement of better VC’s who are able to add significant value through advice and contacts. NirmaLabs gets its returns only from your venture through its success and thus continued association with the venture will ensure adding value. It is important to note that this model significantly nullifies any personal final liability.

Will it involve a lot of hardship?
Guaranteed ... Techno-entrepreneurial journey is tough. Only people with strong confidence and self-belief can enjoy the journey. You have to be prepared to give up lot of “comforts”. It involves long hours of work as you try to get to the market at the earliest. It involves containing all avoidable expenses to “preserve the gas” so as to maximize your staying power. It involves paying employees well, while you have to skimp. It involves periods of loneliness. It requires patience, while dealing with impatience from every one around you, your investors, your family and your near and dear ones. If the joy of achieving something that you set your mind to, making a better world in some ways and having played a significant part in bringing about the change does not seem compensation enough, the hardship will never seem justified.

If I say all this you might as well forget family support … No?
From family view point, it seems kind of crazy to chase a dream which involves lots of risks, hard work, and uncertainties especially in light of the option of highly paid regular salaried jobs for talented individuals like you. From their view point, you are misguided and taking a wrong turn and they have to “protect” you from making a mistake. The more you discuss, the more they harden their position.

The most important thing for you to know is that it is critically important to ensure family support before you embark on techno-entrepreneur journey. So much so, that you may have to let go of your dreams if you cannot get them to appreciate your view point. So you must take time and get them on your side.

Also unfortunately success stories are yet in the making and general awareness of the prospects of techno-entrepreneurship are not yet widely understood or appreciated. While this will change over time, your task is a bit more demanding for now.

Can you provide inputs for the family to see your view point?
If they take unthreatened, dispassionate look at the prospects they will discover that techno-entrepreneurship will be the “right thing” for those capable and inclined especially in the days ahead. First of all they will appreciate that the current scene of “India shining” is due to India’s technical people. Some of these people will have to learn to leverage these technologies to generate much larger wealth for the country and become job providers rather than job seekers.

Such initiatives are greatly encouraged by the Indian government and systematic efforts are made to facilitate their endeavors. Such benefits are available to early starters and first movers primarily because the journey is fraught with risks, difficulties and still the end goal is desirable. Once techno-entrepreneurship becomes more common, such encouragement and such support will not be required and will not be forthcoming.

The advantage on the other hand for the early entrants is that they will build a platform to leverage their capabilities (consider the benefit that Infosys enjoys today because they got started early at the “right time” ... scale, size, recognition, network etc.)

Once your family has all the inputs, and you are able to convince them that you have the stuff in you to succeed, but their support is vital, you then explain how NirmaLabs improves your chances of success and how practicing entrepreneurs are pitching in this with a passion to spawn global techno-entrepreneurs and that they are willing to facilitate your efforts to line up all the missing elements to help you succeed. Also explain that “if they have trust in my potential and are willing to bet their efforts on me with possibility of pay back only through success of “our” venture ... there must be a good chance. If I was to do this at all, (and I want to do this), this is the right time and NirmaLabs is the right vehicle”.

If you get this far the rest is downhill.

It is possible that they may argue that it is all a ploy for getting “grooming fees” just get them to see who is coming to NirmaLabs, who is supporting it, what risks are being taken, and how fees can hardly be the motivation, since any technical institute can design tens of courses where people would line up for admission and gladly pay hefty fees ... so any one who understands business would hardly ever try this route to get “fees”. And as a last straw, you can tell that if this is the make or break point, you will be able to make a case for NirmaLabs to even consider carrying the fee component to your project costs as debt.

I think I can go for it ... what do I do next?
Look up all the details of our program. If you have questions, talk to Thyagrajan (Tyagi) or any participant of NirmaLabs. Convince yourself that this is “made for you”. Mentally prepare yourself for the striving. And then fill the form for us to assess your suitability. Our mission is to help “every” deserving candidate to “go for it” and therefore our model stresses betting on individuals.

The time between interview and batch commencement is 30 days ... and most of it will be used in phasing out - So plan out now.

Once time is ripe for an idea the world changes ... first yours, then ours, then everyone’s. Good luck.

Do I necessarily need to have a technology background?
While a majority of the participants are expected to have an educational background and/or experience in technology/engineering, we do encourage individuals from other backgrounds to also apply. You could therefore be from science, commerce or management background but have a fair understanding and appreciation of technology business. We do consciously select a batch that is not wholly skewed by technologists. In order for us to provide opportunities for creating complementary teams, we generally take a mixed batch of individuals with varying backgrounds. Importantly, the individual must have a strong entrepreneurial drive and fair amount of liking for technology business.

What is the admission procedure?
Once you fill in the application form and send it to us in the requisite manner, it will be screened and short-listed candidates will be called for a written test cum interview that is administered on the same day at Ahmedabad. The tests are to examine your general knowledge and aptitude, emotional quotient, adversity quotient, some understanding of technology and business acumen. The interview is conducted by a diverse panel and in an informal environment. It is to assess your ability, keenness and resilience to pursue the techno-entrepreneurial journey. The results of the tests do not influence the interview or vice-versa but the eventual selection would be based on the assessment of both.

Are there any specific technology areas where you are encouraging applicants?
NirmaLabs is interested in promoting technology entrepreneurship in general, emphasizing on leveraging knowledge that could generate large scale wealth. We would encourage projects where we see synergy and where we are able to contribute/add value. Projects in the area of IT and related fields, telecom, industrial automation, electronics, mechatronics, biotechnology and life sciences, nanotechnology, material science, etc. would be encouraged. The focus generally is in emerging technology areas.

Is it necessary to have only products? Or services sector are encouraged?
The project could be a product or a service. As long as it leverages technology, is scalable and has the potential to generate large scale wealth on a sustained basis.

Does it need to be innovative or breakthrough all the time?
Not necessary. Innovative or breakthrough products do have an edge but it is not essential that everybody looks at such products all the time. Also we are not looking at typical “research and development” projects. It is always possible to leverage on existing technologies to build products or services that are commercially viable, have expanding markets and good growth opportunities

Is grooming an academic course like an MBA program? Is there an exam and a degree?
The objective of grooming is to give a holistic exposure to various aspects of setting up and managing technology ventures. Importantly, the whole process enables you to improve the “odds” by identifying “right fertile ground”, with right “product - opportunity gap”, appropriate with conducive “socio-economic-techno factors”, and consistent with “one’s own sweet spot” aided by a strong team with complementary and comprehensive skills with good chemistry backed by a well reasoned detailed business plan. NirmaLabs works with potential techno-entrepreneurs to impart this knowledge in a way that it is not only understood but internalized and creates enabling conditions to evolve a solid business plan.

It is not a classical academic program-it is largely anchored and conducted by practicing entrepreneurs and professionals. Participants are provided with the tools and wherewithal to discuss and deliberate and expand their horizons. There is no exam or a degree-although a certificate of having gone through the program is awarded at the end of it. The end point of grooming is creation of a business plan cum incubation proposal (by an individual or a team) that is evaluated by an external panel.

Of course, one could consciously join for only the grooming program and not choose to incubate. Although this is not normally encouraged (as NirmaLabs wants to eventually create incubatable projects), if there is a strong case for just for grooming candidature, it would not be ruled out. A few fresh graduates, those wanting to join an existing family business or its diversification or early start-up entrepreneurs may wish to pursue this option.

I am a MBA or / and I have work experience do I still need to undergo grooming?
While several modules may seemingly sound like those covered in an MBA program, it is important to note that the material used and the manner of conduct is vastly different. It is aimed at creating an entrepreneurial mindset rather than a managerial one. Also the exposure to various ways of ideation and opportunities to form teams is possible only when one cultivates the requisite mindset and becomes part of an entrepreneurially conducive environment.

What is the guarantee that once I finish grooming I will get selected for incubation?
The selection of a business plan cum incubation proposal as well as the individual or team (as the case may be) rests with an independent panel. While the onus to make a deserving case lies with you (and the team), the grooming phase would have ironed out a lot of unknowns and hence the chances of making it to the incubator are reasonably good, although not guaranteed.

Do I need to have an idea?
Not necessary…although having some idea of what you wish to pursue in terms of space or technology always helps.

I have an idea/business plan, how quickly can I incubate?
If you have a ready business plan then it could be evaluated within the first 10 weeks of the grooming phase…indeed once every 10 weeks you could get a chance. If the business plan and the incubation proposal get selected then you could undergo concurrent grooming and incubation. Typically you would spend 2/3rd time in grooming and 1/3rd time in incubation. This would also enable you to get project funding and sustenance and your work on the project can get started.

I think I am fully ready with the business and need just funds and mentoring. Can you help?
NirmaLabs is not a venture capitalist. The funding we provide is early seed funding to support the journey from idea to proof-of concept. At the present moment we are not in a position to offer any remote incubation.

Has the company to be set up only in Gujarat?
No. While incubation has to be physically undertaken at the NirmaLabs’ campus in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, subsequent company can be set up anywhere in the world.

What is the current status?
NirmaLabs started with its first batch of grooming in July 2004. So far 8 projects consisting of 15 individuals have been incubated. Three companies have spun-off from the incubator – Orizin Technologies in Mysore, RapidRadio Solutions in Ahmedabad and Acton Biotech (India) Pvt. Ltd. in Pune. All these companies have been funded by Venture Capitalists/Angel Investors. We expect a couple of more projects to be spun-off by the end of 2007. Our 5th batch of grooming commences in July 2007

You are welcome to interact with our previous and current participants to know their experience and also for you to seek any clarifications. Their contact particulars are available on this website.

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