Tech to empower business for future

NEW DELHI, INDIA: With a phenomenal mobile penetration and 100-million Internet-enabled individuals in the country, information and communication technology (ICT) promises a plethora of business opportunities for entrepreneurs.

The focus of the sessions at TiEcon Delhi was the need to leverage innovation with the help of technology-driven tools. The two-day TiEcon event concluded on Saturday.

Harpreet Duggal, SVP at Genpact, said that technology is a facilitator to several businesses. “There are various potential areas that include e-commerce and remote healthcare, and entrepreneurs should explore such domains,” he said.

HS Bedi, CMD, Tulip Telecom, said that connectivity is available across cities and towns, where demand for services is enormous. “The government is planning to put up fiber optic throughout the country in next 2-3 years that can help entrepreneurs reach every consumer,” he said. 

In the days to come, every consumer will be online and there is an immense opportunity for entrepreneurs as well as service providers to use IT in their businesses, Bedi said. “With the advent of 3G, the Indian landscape is changing, while 4G will be primarily used for delivery of content on cellphone,” he said.

Bedi also believes that entrepreneurs should go into niche areas but have to innovate constantly.

“Cloud has enormous potential and entrepreneurs should leverage it for quick service delivery in a cost-effective fashion,” he added.

Rajan Ananadan, MD Google India, said that despite various challenges, India has 100 million Internet users and has become the third largest user base nation in the world today.

“There are massive opportunities. Trends suggest that there are some mega trends like e-commerce, digital content and cloud-based services which are going to stay," he added.

Manish Dalal, VP at Verisign India, said there are a lot of non-English speaking Internet users who should be noticed and content should be delivered in a way that consumers like. "There is a need to offer services that are relevant to society such as entertainment, financial inclusion and government services."

Sunil Dwivedi, country head, London & Partners, believes that Indians have innovation skills and there are many enterprises in the country that have operations overseas.

“Today, technology has truly broken the barriers and entrepreneurs can become world-class leaders with business acumen,” Dwivedi said.