EMPOWERING ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP

Among the progressive strides India had taken after gaining independence sixty years ago, two major developments that took place in the last one and half decade stand out significantly, viz: sustained economic growth and emergence of entrepreneurship. On both, India is now being counted at the top of the nations.

Barring certain communities that always had its key focus on business, in the early years, Indians in general and the middle class in particular had its career choice very clear, either to be working in MNC and corporates or in Government and public sector. Security in career was top priority than creating and distributing wealth. Business as a vocation, therefore, was the last resort. Closed economy and License raj that was prevailing in the country at that time, discouraged those with entrepreneurial ambitions.

Lately things had changed, rapidly at some places, though slow in states such as Kerala, west Bengal and North Eastern States. Whether it is slow or not, the positive outcome is that the people have started looking at the entrepreneurial route. Youngsters and students, taking global and national examples before them, have started embracing entrepreneurship. These youngsters are considering the lone soldiers of yester years; the Dhirubhai Ambani and the Narayana Murthy as their role models. These individuals dared, at a time when India had nothing going for her globally. They desired, dreamt, took it to heart, acted with clear focus and achieved greatness, which is now giving the courage and confidence to anyone who is willing to look at an entrepreneurial career.

A consistently growing economy, a huge internal market that is bigger than the whole of Europe, a flattening world, an internet based global knowledge economy, availability of money and mentors in the form of angel investors and venture capitalists, are all acting as catalysts for the Indian entrepreneur to evolve and grow. To put it bluntly, entrepreneurs never had it so good before.

A little on Kerala. A state beset with self inflicted financial crisis year after year, a state where socialistic thinking got deep rooted from the 40s, a state whose denizens still look at Government for employment and wealth creation, a state whose legislature, executive and citizenship find entrepreneurship as anti people and the act of profiting as criminal, got stuck for decades and rotted. Whereas people and countries, even the underdeveloped ones such as Bangladesh and Srilanka started realizing entrepreneurship as the solid foundation of a growing economy, thereby encouraging entrepreneurs to set up and get going, Kerala which found the change management very difficult, has been growing backwards in the matters of enterprise building and wealth generation.

It is time we realize the folly and come out of the unrealistic hopes of the state providing everything for its citizen. For the state to come out of the economic maladies that are affecting the forward movement, Malayali has to be competitive and entrepreneurial. With so many business & economy encouraging factors happening within the state (Technopark. Infopark, Kinfra Parks, Smart City, Vallarpadom Container Terminal, LNG Terminal, CIAL Expansion, Kannur Airport, Special Economic Zones at Cochin, Kannur and other places, Higher Education Sector opening up etc), the need of the hour is developing an entrepreneurial attitude on the people of Kerala.

On this hope, I rest.