GrowthEnabler, which mentors startups, wants to look beyond the Valley
Suparna Goswami Bhattacharya
March 24, 2015: Every year, millions of young minds come up with ideas that they feel can culminate in a startup. However, many fail to see the light of the day. Come to think of it, China sees 1.3 million startups every year. London sees about half a million whereas India registers around 100,000 startups every year. However, over 85% of these startups drop out within the first 12 months of their formation.
 Aftab Malhotra |
“I am not saying every startup has to go through to the next stage. But 85% is a massive number. And this is the global average. Imagine what happens in countries where the ecosystem is immature; the number certainly will be higher,” says Aftab Malhotra, co-founder, GrowthEnabler, a London-based online platform designed to give startups growth advice and mentoring from business leaders and domain experts, in a practical and affordable way. |
The team operates through offices in London, Copenhagen, Hong Kong and Bengaluru and delivers its services to startups across the world — any time — using online collaboration and e-monitoring tools like webinars, video etc.
 Rajeev Banduni |
Unlike popular belief, lack of funds is not the main factor for the failure of a startup, especially the early stage ones. “See, I have always believed that ideas are aplenty, but it is the execution that matters. And without guidance, things can get tough,” says Rajeev Banduni, co-founder, GrowthEnabler.
Though there has been a spurt of incubators and accelerators with companies like Microsoft, Google and Intel among others coming forward to mentor startups, they are insufficient given the fact that startups needing mentorship are far more than the companies offering the same. |
“Scalability is the problem. These companies offer only a limited number of seats. Of the thousand applications that come, probably only a few hundred get selected. We would love to make the whole process more democratic,” says Banduni.
The former Gartner employees have turned startup growth and personal mentoring into a step by step process. “We have produced curated information coming from C-level executives and created products based on the behavioural pattern of startups. From our experience with Gartner, where we advised many CIOs, we know people tend to spend a lot of time in decisions they think are important but in reality are not. We help startups prioritise their decisions,” says Malhotra.
Since their model is online-based, there is no limitation in terms of the number of startups they can mentor at one point in time.
The subscription-based model can be renewed as and when one requires advice and mentorship. This helps startups save cost, feels Malhotra.
Look beyond the Valley
Both Malhotra and Banduni refuse to buy the argument that the best startups in the world are from the Valley.
“See, you hear more about startups from Silicon Valley because they mainly have a technology background. Obviously one gets to use, read and hear more about a technology company than say a defence or a manufacturing firm,” says Banduni.
For instance, the dynamic Israeli startup ecosystem is no secret. “Why do you think the ecosystem there is so successful? In Israel, they don’t encourage billions of ideas going through. They only focus on a few brilliant ideas and make sure that they see the light of the day. This is what is needed in countries like India — a good support system,” says Malhotra. For a long time now, Israel has been building their capability through constant interaction with the US — a reason their conversion rates are high.
“Similarly, Japan is known for its gaming and cartoon startups. Denmark is known for clean energy startups. Even in China, Xiaomi, Huawei have given tough competition to the US,” says Banduni. Likewise, Israel is known for successful startups in the security space.
Problems are common
Startups across the world face same problems and issues. “It is not that startups from the Silicon Valley do not face any issues. It is just that they know whom to approach for guidance as the ecosystem is mature,” says Malhotra.
He shares an anecdote wherein he met a young man from India, four of years ago, who wanted to start a social media help desk. “Basically, he created an algorithm wherein companies can pick up negative comments about them on the social media and address those issues. Today, I have no clue where he is. But I know of this Californian company, which does exactly the same thing and has over 50,000 customers. So, it is not that people in the Valley are more innovative, they just know how to execute better, thanks to the proper guidance available,” he says.
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