NOIDA, INDIA: ICICI Bank in association with CyberMedia conducted the nation-wide SME CEOs Knowledge series program in Noida to address IT and ITeS cluster.

The event got an overwhelming response with over 150 SMEs attending the sessions. The event started with the Finance Clinic where the entrepreneurs were offered customized expert advice on how to raise capital for business depending on the stage of business and the optimal level of capital mix their business needs, through a discussion on a wide array of topics like-debt financing, private equity, IPO, M&A, Forex Advice and other risk management products.

This was followed by a one-on-one mentoring session with the experts from Marketing & Branding from IIM Kolkata; Taxation from Deloitte; HR, Finance from ICICI Bank; Voice & Data solutions from Airtel and Business solutions from SAP.

The program concluded with a panel discussion, where the panel in addition to the experts also included successful entrepreneurs like Col HS Bedi, Chairman & MD, Tulip IT and Rajendra Kumar, Executive VP, HCL Systems to share their experiences and knowledge with the aspiring SMEs.

Speaking on the occasion, Sanjeev Mantri, GM, ICICI Bank said, "SME is one  of the key focus areas for ICICI Bank. We have taken various initiatives, which go well beyond banking to positively influence the eco-system. Emerging India Awards, SME Toolkit (India), SME Dialogue, SME Expo are some of the initiatives in this direction. Noida, the epicenter of IT revolution in India, with its abundance of skilled and professional manpower is ideal for SMEs in this sector to thrive. Therefore, Noida was a pertinent choice for us to host our SME Knowledge Series for the sector. This will offer us an opportunity to cater to the entrepreneurs at the root level with specific knowledge and guidance thereby strengthening the industry as a whole."

Commenting on the occasion, Pradeep Gupta, Chairman and MD, CyberMedia Group said, "Our entrepreneurs have a great hunger for growth. The SME CEO Knowledge Series will prepare these entrepreneurs for a growth momentum that will propel them into the next stage of growth. In present day and time, a Knowledge Economy demands knowledge-intensive enterprises, which alone can survive in the ongoing process of globalization and international competition. IT and ITeS SME's, particularly of Noida have great potential to grow; they just need little guidance. We hope the series facilitates this process."

The Knowledge Series will spread over 26 cities across India. It is a effort towards promoting an entrepreneurial culture in the country and is a sincere effort to provide a platform wherein problems faced by the SMEs will be analyzed, discussed and workable solutions will be offered.

The Knowledge Series telecast on CNBC TV 18 and CNBC Awaaz has been launched and will be telecasted on alternate Saturdays at 4.00pm and Sundays at 5.00pm, respectively. ICICI Bank has initiated several programs like the SME Dialogue, Emerging India Awards and SME Toolkit to help SMEs interact and transact among themselves, thereby providing a complete ecosystem to the SMEs to scale up to the next level of growth.