For a Suitable Boy...

HR is the best profession for women’ said an elder in the

family and my career choice was made. HR it was. Recruiting was unknown then.

While management books spoke of various theories, least did I

realize that in practical life, I would actually be qualifying for some very

interesting and important professions…like that of a marriage broker.

God alone knows the number of meeting of hearts (and families

in the Indian context) I helped happen and the agony I saved by giving relevant

references to curious and eager relatives. As the days progressed, I realised

that I was becoming the relatives’ favourite, what with me watching over 700

young eligible men who would soon be on H1B for good. 2001 was seen as a

distant, joyous millennium year and not for what we know it by now.

The questions that I faced were equally interesting and had

less to do with the general conduct of the employee and more to be with

"when exactly I thought the person would go overseas? What kind of a salary

I thought he could get and yes, would the company help in getting a green card?

I remember enjoying this importance so much that I actually

started looking forward to get an invitation to attend such meetings, where the

backdrop whispering of grannies behind the curtains would be "Shhhh… but

does he have an H1B? Did you check that with her?"

I later heard that the grannies’ concerns back home these

days have shifted to green card status and more recently to project extension

dates and how long the contract is; Smart grannies…they adopted to economic

changes and its effects on international careers faster than any one of us. And

someone said "education adds intelligence to mankind " who is that

someone?

On the one hand, I was helping families and hearts come

together, while on the other, I found myself reinforcing the true human values

in parents, whose sons were not so fortunate to be in paradise and were sent to

some other so-called less privileged locations overseas. But thanks to such

parents, I had world currencies and their Indian denominations on tip of my

finger. I remember attaching the world currency ticker on the right hand side of

my desktop just to be up to date.

As I was getting qualified for a serious role of a marriage

broker, the intelligent Indian parents had company policies on the tips of their

fingers, especially relocation ones. I often got queries like why had I not

relocated X when Y had got his relocation orders and so on. Such is peer

pressure. Thankfully, none of them ever asked me for the "Employee

Handbook"!

The world over now, we are seeing unheard of career switches.

I have heard that my counterparts in HR are laughing all the way to the bank. It

all took one board outside their homes…Marriage Bureau…. XYZ, experience in

HR, IT.

As an innocent student of management, I had thought that

"economic change theories" would always remain within 500 pages of

Kilter’s to be reproduced during exams. If only I had known that they would

become such a powerful tool for me to contribute to progression of mankind, from

my own office!

Sujata Singh is the

manager, human resources, RedBrigade.

 

PROMOTERS’ BACKGROUND:

In the absence of a track record, this is the key area that a VC investor looks

at. The background should provide the educational and professional history of

the promoters. It should highlight the contribution and strength of the

promoters and their commitment to the venture.

BUSINESS PLAN:

The plan section should indicate projections of income for the next three to

five years, ratio analysis and the proposed investment plan. It should also

provide an industry analysis, the different participants, a study of theÂ

competitors and the proposed promotion and marketing strategy.

EXIT FOR THE VC:

The final aspect that VCs look at is how they can exit from the investment. The

exit section should highlight the possible exit options for the VC, whether it

can be through a strategic sale, or through an IPO.

Choosing the right VC

Once the

homework is done, the next stage is to identify a suitable VC investor to

fund the project. While deciding on the source of capital, remember that VCs

bring more than just funds to the table. This concept of bringing along a bundle

of capabilities along with funding is called ‘smart’ money. The VC can

contribute in any of the following areas:

MANAGEMENT CAPABILITIES:

VCs can bring in management expertise, which the technocrat entrepreneur may

lack. Angel investors and other VCs can play a prominent role in taking the

start-up from conception through operation till expansion in the market. VCs can

nominate senior people on the board to provide direction or they can themselves

be involved in day to day operations–an approach called hand-holding. They can

also help investee companies to identify proper people for key positions in the

organization. Therefore, depending on the expertise required, the entrepreneur

can look for angel investors, seed capital investors or institutional investors.

MARKET ACCESS:

VCs, by their extensive networks in the industry, can help start-ups get their

initial business. Providing such initial breakthroughs can be critical for the

start-up in its struggle to gain credibility and a foothold in the market.

A

DURING IPO OR SALE:

Before deciding on the VC

investor, the entrepreneur should also decide on the nature of funding required

for the venture, whether it is seed capital, start-up capital or later-stage

funding. Seed capital is the initial funding required to validate the idea and

finance the initial feasibility studies. Start-up funding is required for

product development and initial marketing. Later-stage funding is required for

working capital finance and business expansion. As different business stages

would demand different business capabilities, the nature of the VC investment

would depend on the type of funding sought. While seed capital and start-up

funding can be obtained from angel investors, incubators and start up venture

capital funds, later stage funding can be obtained from institutional venture

funds and mutual funds.

The future is now

Several new

initiatives have been started like the India Venture 2000 and the e-mahamillionaire

project of NIIT to nurture and guide prospective entrepreneurs to obtain VC

funding. Notwithstanding the recent developments, the VC industry is in a

nascent stage in India today. With the prospect of more growth in the IT

sector, a lot more activity can be expected in the VC industry with the

availability of more investible funds. Some of the recently launched technology

mutual funds have earmarked a portion of their funds in unlisted companies,

which make them more like VC funds. All this is happy news for the entrepreneur.

Venture funds have been an engine for economic growth for over a decade in

countries like USA, Israel and Taiwan. The situation is now ripe to be

replicated in India.

Dr Thillai Rajan