DECEMBER 20249skills for every first time entrepreneurs in India who should acquire certain essential skills before launching their startup journey."The Government is partnering with stakeholders including educational institutions, non-government organizations, academic institutions, and the private sector in the development of skills for the youth to enable best possible results", - Sanjay Bahl, CEO & MD, Centum Learning.Industry Knowledge & Market Research: Understanding the market which you are going to thrive is the first foundation stone to lead a successful startup. Before getting into business, one should conduct thorough market research to spot the industry gaps, grab opportunities, consumer desires, and the cut-throat competition. This segment includes identifying the customer pain points and how the product can cater them, understanding competitors and their services to position your startup in an innovative way, remaining aware about current industry trends and regulations that has potential to impact your business. When it comes to first-time entrepreneurs, getting mastered in market research is a key to launch a new product that booms with targeted audience."Up skilling and creating employment opportunities in both urban and rural areas is essential. Apart from this, a continued focus on ease of doing business and building flexibility in the regulatory framework will help attract global investors",- Mayank Khandelwal, CFO, NEC Corporation India.Financial ManagementIn the startup ecosystem, financial management is a powerful skill that can make empires or break it even in the initial stages. Understanding the regulations of taxations, cash flow management, and budgeting & forecasting are crucial for entrepreneurs planning to dive into the business. Firstly, they need to develop their financial literacy through analyzing the balance sheets, and profit & loss statements. They should master the art of budgeting and know how to allot the funds strategically across diverse business segments such as marketing, operations, and R&D. They need to research well and be aware of funding rounds, government schemes focused on startups, angel investors, and venture capitalists in the industry. Even learning the basics of financial management will greatly empower the first-generation entrepreneurs to manage their existing resources effectively and gain potential fund attraction from investors.Critical Thinking & Problem SolvingUniversally, startups are unavoidable to face expected as well as unexpected challenges, be it market threatening or product failures. As a strong missioned entrepreneur, the person must be capable to think critically and handle the problems smoothly with creative solutions. Critical thinking includes detecting the challenges in prior and plotting practical solutions, being flexible & adaptive, and ready to articulate business strategies according to the user feedbacks and reviews, taking informed and data-driven decisions to make sure the solutions are efficient and accessible. The main motto of acquiring problem-solving skill is to get the power and potential to overcome the uncertainties of market with utmost confidence. In order to turn your dreams to reality, `Mastering the skills' is very much essential. Thus, equip yourself with groundbreaking innovations, willpower, and overcome every hurdle as a stepping stone for your entrepreneurial journey"Rather, how we critically think and collaborate on a topic in any school subject is influenced by what we know about the topic. Simply put, this means that subject knowledge precedes social skills", - Naveen Mandava, Co-Founder, ClassKlap. Column
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