New Delhi: As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll, the entire economic machinery has been brought to a standstill. Except for a few life sustaining essential services, all else has been shut down. The entire hierarchies of organization are worried about the future – the executives are worried about the survival of the company that seems to be dangling by a thread, and the employees are worried about being laid off. Needless to say, the Indian startup industry is taking the brunt of it.
India is one of the global centres of the startup revolution. The startup industry has grown with a robust CAGR of 40% in the last five years. More than 1,300 startups were added in the year 2019 alone. But this unprecedented crisis has been a major setback to the industry. Still in their stage of infancy, the startup companies do not have pockets deep enough to sustain their workforce if business isn’t happening and their fate depends on uncertain variables beyond their control. However, among these dark clouds, there have been a few silver linings.
Risers Accelerators, a Delhi-based conglomerate of young entrepreneurs, aimed at empowering promising start-ups, is pushing back against the wave of destruction by coming up with innovative ideas. Notwithstanding the crisis situation, far from laying-off employees, Risers Accelerator is recruiting new talent. Of course, since face to face interviews aren’t possible, the recruitment process is being managed via telephonic interviews and video conferencing.
Upskilling and Training: Since business has slowed down, they are taking this extra time to upskill and train their employees. By connecting their employees with the help of technologies like Skype and Zoom, they’ve provided a platform where their employees can share information with each other and develop new skills. The training sessions are held daily and last one hour, in which the industry experts interact with the employees and educate them about the skill set that an employee should possess in order to excel in the industry and the ways to develop it.
The organization is also working remotely with clients to chart out their future strategies once the market reopens. Much like their own team, Risers Accelerator is also imparting training to its clients as well, to help them develop strong business acumen and familiarize them with every nook and cranny of the business world.
Increasing productivity: To increase productivity one needs to extract maximum output with minimum input. Usually, due to copious amount of work, no one has the time to study the workflow in detail and as a result, many lacunae can go overlooked. With extra time on its hands now, the leadership of Risers Accelerators is examining the work process with a magnifying glass, and revamping it to make it more efficient.
Solving Case Studies: Another approach that Risers Accelerator is taking for business growth during this time of lockdown is that they’re solving case studies. By studying the successful businesses and the ones that failed, it can be deciphered more clearly what it takes to excel and make a lasting impression in the market.
Planning for the future: The shutdown of business hasn’t demoralized the team at Risers Accelerators. Instead, they have decided to follow the mantra of “where there’s a will, there’s a way”. Since the lockdown prevents business, they’re collaborating with their top clients and are charting out strategies that would help them propel the businesses once the curfew lifts.
Economists are predicting that the businesses are going to feel the effects of this 21-day lockdown for more than six months after it is over. Preparedness and farsightedness can go a long way into keeping the business alive and afloat during such a scenario.
Hopefully, all this will be over soon and things will return to their normal pace. Meanwhile, it is essential for companies to keep themselves busy by exploring new horizons and strengthening their foundation during this unexpected break that they have got.
