TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

Technology and Innovation are powerful tools for revolution, in both positive and negative ways. As we commence to face up to the multiple economic, environmental and social challenges of our time. The innovation of online shopping has made it easier to buy goods quickly and often much cheaper. Technology has become a positive effect on the economy because consumers tend to make more informative decisions on products with the use of technology. When people make confident buying decisions, the economy typically does better. 

New kinds of technology increase the productivity and thus lower the cost of production. Consumer spending has increased because of technology, which leads to a healthier economy.

How can the Innovative Ideas bring a positive social change?

Coming up with an innovative idea will require some procedures of creating ideas from brainstorming to mind mapping that can help educate up to useful ideas. During this process one must make sure to keep focused on a goal.

If you have no goal, how will you know when you have reached the finish line and are ready for refinement?

·      Start out with an innovative ideas and see what you can come up with

·      Don’t get stuck on trying to come up with different alternatives of the same idea as you will want to develop ideas further later

While there is no exact trail in creativity techniques from start to finish, creating an idea you are happy with and feel has innovative potential is the key. Believing in your ideas innovative ability which will give the confidence you will need later on during pitch time.

It is easy to come up with new innovative idea but if that is the case, then why didn’t we do it? The trick is to come up with them beforehand. That’s the challenge. Once you discover that exceptional innovative idea, try to avoid crucial mistakes that will stop your idea from ever seeing the light. To truly be innovative, you should take challenging opinions and combine them, which spreads the innovative potential of your idea. Innovative ideas can sometimes be volatile but many hypothetical hurdles will arise and just having an innovative idea is not always enough.

In order to take an innovative idea from the start to market, you need to have the determination to push through failure. As motivating as some ideas may be, that is not always enough for users. Receiving the message out that your new innovative idea is essential would gain more consumer attention, especially in more difficult economic times. Always having a short and clear value proposal with an inevitable feeling of necessity can help gain capital, experience and users.

Do not wait until everything is “perfect” as they may never be and this will only further delay your ideas release. Don’t be intimidated by the observed skill of innovative designs, because you are typically seeing the ultimate repetition that has changed compared to its original idea.

 ACT SMART -  DO NOT REST POINTLESS!

Intel Puts $22 million in 10 Startups.

Intel Resources, as we all know the arm of venture arm of tech has announced $22 million in new investment over 10 startups. The news of it has been conveyed at the company's annual global summit and it is also news that it would invest half a billion dollars in total this year.

This is kind of both profit and loss. As fact of comparing the same event of last year, Intel has announced $67 million of investment in 16 startups, but the total of 2014 investments was $359 million.

Just this past September Intel invested in Chinese startups with the same amount $67 million, looks like it's lucky number.

Today’s investments cover a range of companies running from later stages in larger and more established startups through to newer companies and emerging technologies, and come from five countries: China, Israel, Taiwan, the UK, and the U.S. Intel is not disclosing the value of any individual stake today.

China, Israel, Taiwan, the UK, and the U.S are the five countries where there startups running in larger stages, where it is established via newer companies and emerging technologies.

Freedom-Pop, a provider of 'free' wireless voice and data services that makes its money on options like voicemail, extra data allowances and much more. It's strategic investment Freedom-Pop, which is planning to use the money to broadband services that will challenge the Google Project Fi - precisely, it will use Intel's new SoFIA platform to launch a Wi-Fi based smartphone with free mobile services.

There is a part of Intel's $125 million Diversity Fund, it's LISNR maker of Smart Tones, which sends data over audio using high-frequency, inaudible technology that makes speakers and other media into beacon.

Sckipio, the first ever company which delivers 1Gb p/s with a long range. It also announced and ship commercial G.fast chip-sets for G.fast modems.

There is a platform of 'addressing' which provides exact location than GPS, it's 'what3words'.

Body Labs, which is for collecting, digitizing and organizing data of a human body shape, pose and motion. Its job is to transform the human body into a platform which digitalize and designed a goods and services which can be produced, bought and sold.

Micro-program Information, an internet thing startups which is contain a turnkey hardware and software solution and back-end information management services for transportation services like taxis, rental bicycles, and mobile sale systems.

Perfant Technology, out of China, develops imaging and video technologies with 3-D reconstruction and virtual reality for artificial intelligence.

KMLabs, a creator of laser systems for research and industrial applications, including multi-photon imaging, spectroscopy, OCT, THz-generation, CEP, micro-machining and attosecond, coherent soft X-Ray etc, as well as 'tabletop x-ray laser' light source.

Prieto Battery, a 3-D advanced battery provider " focused on commercializing a patented Lithium-ion battery technology that delivers transformational performance at a competitive cost using non-toxic materials with the ability to customize shapes.

Intel has also invested in Parallel Machines, for the machine learning startup on an early-stage predictive analytic, but they didn't contained in $22 million/10 startups total.

Why Values (Not Perks) Define Your Startup Culture.

Entrepreneurship has exploded in the U.S. market in recent years. According a recent Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report, there are now over twenty four million entrepreneurs in the U.S., making up 14% of the total population.

There may be a number of contributing factors to this trend. Entrepreneurs are often cited as modern day adventurers and explorers. They are willing to takes risks and push innovation. And for many, they exemplify the American Dream. That is, everyone has the opportunity to be successful, no matter how you started or where you might be from.

Unfortunately, glamorizing entrepreneurs—while flattering—doesn’t tell the whole story of what founding and growing a sustainable company entails.

Live With Purity, You Are Going To Be Success Anyway

Despite the number of entrepreneurs in the U.S., the country now ranks 12th among developed nations in terms of business startup activity. American business deaths now outnumber business births, according to Gallup and the U.S. Census Bureau.

As a leader of a growing startup, there are some brutal realities to face. These can include challenges obtaining capital to drive growth, an inability to attract the right talent, or the constant struggle of trying to manage an organization that looks fundamentally different every six months.

In order to grow a successful organization, knowing where to spend your limited resources is critical to success. Startups—especially in Silicon Valley—are often lauded for their culture. And unfortunately, “culture” in this case is many times defined by a set of borderline unbelievable perks.

You Are Not Your Perks.

With so much on the line for your growing business, you cannot put your perks above what you value. Perks seem great at the start, but they tend to lose their luster over time, leaving you with little of substance to sustain engagement, excitement and purpose.

With competitors grappling to offer some wild new perk in an attempt to attract talent, companies are getting sucked into a doom loop. Everyone will end up losing as they try to keep up with the Jones. The perks that were once on the cutting edge become the standard expectation, which only serves to put startups in an even worse position to compete for talent and sustain growth.

Disclaimer :- Following article come from Forbes

3 Ways To Accelerates Your Startup... Where? Obviously Success!

When it comes to running a startup, spreading your brand awareness should be your primary goal. Depending on your startup’s industry, a multi pronged social media attack may appeal to it and build loyalty in your customer base.

However, a more nuanced plan is much more effective than simply blanketing the market. Sites such as Facebook have more than a billion users, but a high-tech startup may be wise to work with a network such as Spice works, which caters more to tech consumers. Startups with well-conceived social media strategies aren’t as hampered by sparse funding and other issues that plague young companies. Remaining educated and engaged in social media is a great way to become a known quantity and make your startup viable.

Here are three reasons a high social business IQ can help your startup in the long run:

1. It builds credibility. 

A startup has to hustle to create buzz, or even be taken seriously by established companies. Social media is where a young company can distinguish itself as an expert in its field, rather than just a new competitor. Startups make waves by creating original, industry-relevant content and dispersing it through their chosen social media platforms. Pertinent content can also be something as simple as commenting on industry trends or corresponding with competitors.

But a strong social business approach isn’t just for startups looking to get their names out there. Companies such as Hertz, Life-Lock, Group-on and Red Bull all launched successful campaigns that helped them construct credibility with wider audiences.

Building a consistent social media presence for your company is a good start to establishing it -- and you -- as a thought leader.

2. It builds relationships.

A strong social media base can exponentially grow a startup’s limited initial network. Social media’s loose environment helps young leaders connect with industry veterans in an easier, more informal manner.

Receiving a tweet or re-tweet from an industry leader isn’t equivalent to closing a business deal, but it does make you visible to a person of importance in your field.
Additionally, social media can build internal relationships with employees and external connections with investors and prospective talent. A presence on social media is as valuable a tool as any startup has to build bridges inside and outside of the company.

3. It builds knowledge.

In the past, it was difficult to gain timely product feedback. But with the emergence of social media, a business leader can track and assess a product’s movement and engagement while also forecasting possible trends.

Social media can track lead growth, brand perception, brand search volume and the number of inbound links established by your company. Klout -- a service that uses social media metrics to tally engagement -- is an insightful tool for measuring your social media reach.

Researching inbound links reveals how site and product traffic fluctuate due to social media campaigns, contests and other variables. Understanding how particular social media trends affect your company will, ultimately, improve your understanding of which specific strategies yield the best ROI.
An active social media presence benefits startups in three major ways: it builds credibility, relationships and knowledge -- all of which play crucial roles in making a startup profitable. Social media is an extension of your company’s brand. Understanding it and using it well will only make your brand stronger.

Disclaimer : Following article come from Entrepreneurs

Unexpected Cities Thrived A Startup Scene

Starting your own business, like i am writing this on my own after studying. So you should know before Starting Your Own Business. Every single human being wants success in their job, business, investments, finance, life. For your Own Business you want a better team, resources of wealth and many more to get through your early years of ownership. Many Entrepreneurs congregate to different cities with a reputation for thriving startup.

How an Entrepreneur can start a business and keep it in a flow for more than a year?

* Funding from Government and Sponsors and their Programs and resident venture capitalist.

* The other startups and entrepreneurs,who are present in a kind of intensifying trend, attracts more new entrepreneurs and they can be mentor promising candidates.

* Programs should be there like incubators, competitions, accelerators and many others for attractive innovations.

* Customer Base like in bigger cities there are wealthy and richer residents for support to new business, more consumer purchase than smaller, poorer counterparts.

Business Is Boring Without Challenge

There are many cities which are densely populated, while population is on increasing Masha Allah, there are some cities which are startup mecca and they give it a nice run for money.
1. Seattle city make a good impression by their geographical positions to entrepreneurs. They served as a Strong city and stands apart on its own. The emerging of successful startups from the city also attract to the entrepreneurs like Microsoft, Amazon etc. then it won't stop the new initiatives have emerged in recent times to make the cit more popular and better for small business development.

2. The city like Boston ever-increasing number of startup organizations and programs, like MassChallenge, claim to be the world's largest startup accelerator. The Foundation of Boston, invested in non-profits and aids the region's economic development.Educational Institutions makes the city more adorable for new entrepreneurs.

3. Cleveland in the heart of Midwest, this city too emerging in multiple accelerator and incubators like Flashstarts and Jumpstart. Like Boston there are multiple colleges and university so this is so steady for a entrepreneurship hotspot.

4. Locating in a state that is stereotyped for its many retirees, the Florida city Boca Raton have educated population, there are 47% of residents are just BA and higher, so think about the rest. Also home of IBM plant, this city hosts dozens tech professionals who emerged a startups and branching off on their own.

5. Raleigh has a long way for a new Silicon Valley, but it have an awesome start of summits innovation, it has a young educated talented population, with a better universities and colleges like University of North California, Meredith College etc, which gives a perfect attention.

Making a Startup Scene Thriving, all it need is a right people to make it happen.If you are an entrepreneur and want to be like spark and you lack as a healthy scene for startups, there are actions and strategy you can take and improve your  environment. The city may have unknown variables and subjective factors and there is no way to measure that what does entitle a city as friendly for useful startups.

Publish about your startup make people aware of it. Tell Colleges and Universities about an entrepreneurship make students to talk about it. Contact other popular and successful Entrepreneurs in your region, even if it's a informal to or small to start you better do programs and workshop for new entrepreneur.

The Activity is the important part and chance to make an impact impression as entrepreneurs and survive in your economic climate.

All of us can find success, if we will work together in better environments.

His Highness Amir Encourages Advanced Ways To Attain Development

His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah said Saturday the world should explore innovative means to implement sustainable development beyond 2015 in order to end poverty by 2030.

The world should engage in a collective work and active partnership while taking into consideration burden-sharing in order to achieve sustainable development, His Highness the Amir said in a speech before the Sustainable Development Summit.
He added the targeted sustainable development was facing big challenges "due to the patterns of conduct of man throughout the ages, in addition to impact of natural disasters and the rise in earth's temperature thus increasing our responsibilities." Leaders taking part in the summit had adopted yesterday the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aimed at primarily eradicating poverty by the year 2030 and further push development worldwide.


His Highness the Amir highlighted Kuwait's contributions to helping developing countries worldwide, calling upon developed countries to honor their commitment and contribute 0.7 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) to enable sustainable funding for developing countries.
Kuwait, he added, has been living up to its regional and international responsibilities towards achieving sustainable development and addressing related problems.
"My country has hosted a number of high level meetings - economic, development and humanitarian - and launched many initiatives to boost partnership in development and humanitarian fields, and continue to make sure they are implemented," said His Highness the Amir.
Kuwait, added His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad, did not spare any effort to provide aid to developing countries and least-developed nations through its institutions, foremost Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), which provided grants and soft loans to carry out infrastructure projects in the developing countries.
"My country continue during the past few years to provide development assistance that amounted to 2.1 percent of its GDP, which is more than double the percentage agreed-upon internationally," he said.

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"We are proud that Kuwait, even through it is a developing country itself, has been ranked in first place in providing humanitarian assistance in 2014 according to the global humanitarian assistance report," he noted.
Kuwait's total assistance in 2014 amounted to 0.24 percent of the country's Gross National Product (GNP), the highest among all donor countries in the world," His Highness the Amir.
His Highness the Amir, meanwhile, said Kuwait was proud of the UN achievements over the past decades, through which it enhanced international cooperation against challenges and crises.
He said the SDGs' three dimensions - economic, social and environmental - represented a starting point to support global development.
"Our success in achieving sustainable development reflects our responsibilities towards the world," concluded His Highness the Amir.

Back To Business

Ahmad al Mutawa's 'awakening' moment, as he likes to call it, was when he was living the life in Dubai - drawing a big salary and staying in a big apartment.
The University of Southern California graduate had, towards the end of nearly two years' employment at an oil services major, an epiphany of sorts: that he needed to pursue his passion as his career.

Within two weeks of having his 'moment', he quit his job, went back to his home country Kuwait and started his own initiative.

He returned in 2007, a year after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's downfall when much of the uncertainty that had plagued Kuwait as an investment hub was slowly beginning to lift.

More and more Kuwaitis have since begun to take the big leap to entrepreneurship in the oil-rich state, where jobs for life for nationals in the public sector have long been an established mechanism to distribute state largesse. Of the 410,000-plus Kuwaitis in employment, nearly 75 per cent work for the government. In comparison, only 21.8 per cent work in the private sector, according to Kuwait's Public Authority for Civil Information. There has been an upward trend in the number of Kuwaitis employed in the private sector in the last couple of years, however - only 18 per cent were employed in the sector in 2012.

Kuwait has long emptied its state coffers to pay high public wages and that situation is unlikely to change even in the current environment of low oil prices that is likely to make the country incur a deficit of $27 billion for the first time in 15 years, for the 2015-2016 financial year.

In fact, Kuwait is considering a bill to standardise wages to provide the nearly 45 per cent of state employees currently earning below the proposed pay scale an increase of 18 per cent in a massive spending exercise that will cost the country KD350 million ($1.16 billion) in the first year of its implementation.

However, despite high public sector salaries, Kuwaitis are making the transition into private business. Like anywhere else in the world, it is mainly "for independence and having a sense of purpose," says Kuwaiti-based venture capital (VC) investor Mijbel al Qattan.

Mohammad al Meer, who is founder of Google Developer Group Kuwait, says that part of the reason for Kuwaitis seeking to be their own employers is a tendency by state entities to delegate work to private sector contractors.

"Usually in the government, it is the third-party contractors who are implementing the actual solutions," he explains.



"Some engineers think that it might be better starting their own projects or businesses instead of working for either government or a bank, and only be in charge of looking or watching the third-party company doing the actual work."

With Kuwaitis no longer content to sit in government jobs and watch others do their work, many in the country are organising events to spread awareness and hone skills to start their own businesses.

Al Qattan, for instance, co-founded Startup Kuwait, an active initiative he says is aimed at enabling tech-fuelled entrepreneurship to flourish in the country.

Al Mutawa's consulting firm Mubaader Services also helps Kuwaiti small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) develop business plans and succeed. The firm, he says, has supported a portfolio of 850 clients and projects over the past six to seven years in Kuwait and helped more than 80 businesses to establish themselves in the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC).

When it comes to supporting entrepreneurs most of the initiatives in Kuwait have largely been private sector-led and funded. However, this is set to change this October when the government is expected to launch the delayed $2 billion National Fund for Welfare of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, which had been approved by the parliament in 2013. The intention is to provide entrepreneurs with 80 per cent financing for their projects, with the remainder 20 per cent guaranteed as a loan by Gulf Bank, Kuwait's second-largest lender.

Al Mutawa, who consults on the fund project, says when it does come into force it will be good news for Kuwait's entrepreneurial community.

"What they're formulating right now is the new businesses fund. For example, if you have a new idea, you want to establish a business and you want a loan or something.

"They will launch it within the next three to six months. They're hiring people now. It's a very positive step. It is one of the biggest funds in the world [for SMEs]."

Another important feature of the fund grants is "project leave", Al Mutawa explains. This allows a government employee who may be unsure of taking the risky step of leaving his comfortable job to start his own venture the option of returning to his old employer should his new business not prove successful.

While the government's latest incentive takes time to be refined, the private sector in Kuwait, like most sectors of the country's economy, also enjoys a degree of government subsidy.

The government guarantees bachelors with university degrees a minimum of KD690 to work in the private sector, over and above the salary paid by the employer. The amount rises incrementally for those who are married, and those with children. In contrast, Bahrain provides between BD50 to BD100 for their nationals employed in the private sector.

However, the big question on everyone's minds is whether Kuwait can afford such a scheme at a time when its finances are squeezed.

Al Mutawa says it is only natural for Kuwaitis to rediscover their natural entrepreneurial instincts as that is how the nation has always done business.

"I had people coming to me and telling me - you have oil, $10,000 salaries [per month], so why would you want anything like this in Kuwait where there are high salaries and people enjoy luxurious lives?" he said.

"I responded by saying that Kuwait, from the beginning, since the nineteenth and into the 20th centuries, in our blood we have this entrepreneurial spirit.

"Kuwait has always had open trade, they speak languages, they go to India, they go to the west. This is part of our culture, from the very beginning."

Optimistic as that may sound, access to finance remains difficult for SMEs in Kuwait. An article on the Kuwaiti entrepreneurial scene in Forbes noted how the country needed to develop a "more entrepreneurial culture" that encompasses its expatriate population as well.

Premlal Pullisserry, an expatriate entrepreneur who began warehousing SME BoxIt in Kuwait was able to develop his business idea thanks to the help provided by Kuwait-based business accelerator Sirdab Lab.

Pullisserry, who recently succeeded in attracting more funding to expand BoxIt across the region, says that other expatriate entrepreneurs have not been so successful.

"Being an expat has lots of pressure, because we are here on a very short term visa and it could be that if I [as an investor] give you certain amount of money, the person could disappear in no time," he says.

"If you are a Kuwaiti person, it is much easier for you to get some angel funding because you can invest a sure amount every year."

Another challenge for entrepreneurs in Kuwait is the difficulty in attracting foreign investment into a country, which is infamous for being one of the world's worst places to do business. It ranks 150 on the World Bank's Doing Business 2015 index.

"We tried to raise funding from Kuwait, but it is proving extremely difficult for us to get that moving," says Pullisserry.

"Even one of the Kuwaiti VCs who recently approached us said that, even if you have to receive our funding, you have to move your legal entity out of Kuwait, which means that even the Kuwaiti VC firm will not be in a position to fund us with our legal entity being in Kuwait.

"So that really opened our eyes, in terms of where to place our legal entity as a startup and we had to look at options outside Kuwait. The natural option was Dubai."

The UAE is the go-to option for many Kuwaiti SMEs that want to grow. A report by research firm Marmore noted that in Kuwait an entrepreneur has to deal with 11 government interfaces to do business, while that figure ranges from four to seven in other GCC countries.

Raghu Mandagolathur, who heads research at Kuwait-based asset manager Markaz, says that despite much development on the small businesses front, there is a lot more work that needs to be done to develop the sector in Kuwait.

"Though there is official support for SMEs in Kuwait, the concept of successful startup SMEs is still new to the Kuwaiti business culture," he says.

"Thus, rather than completely fresh startups, investors and banks may like to fund franchises, wherein there is a proven brand backing the investment, and there is operational support and training available for the applicant.

"The archaic bankruptcy laws can also unnerve new entrepreneurs."

For a country that is now realising the perils of a lack of diversification from oil, the low crude price era could ironically prove to be a boon - as well as a bane - for SMEs development, adds Mandagolathur.

"On the one hand, the government is likely to bolster attempts to grow the SMEs ecosystem in order to strengthen non-oil growth," he says.

"On the other hand, falling oil receipts may tighten funding available for SMEs, both in terms of private and public sector channels."

Should the Kuwaiti government succeed with its new initiatives to help the entrepreneurial community, it would be a win-win for its economy as well as its long term future stability.

Top 10 Things For Building A Startup Incubator

A year ago we had a long thin space in South Delhi, a network of mentors and a bunch of willing startups. Today we have a budding incubator and four successful startups who’ve gone on to seed-round funding. Here’s what I’ve learned along the way.


1. Most startups fail

We named our incubator-accelerator ‘Startup Tunnel,’ as a joke about eventually seeing the light at the end. But I now think ‘Startup Funnel’ would have been just as appropriate. Most startups fail. That’s a truth that one can’t really appreciate until one has gotten wet with this game, and even many successful startups will never realise how lucky they really are.

We interviewed 220 startups between December 2014 and February 2015, out of which we made 14 offers. Twelve startups accepted our offer and began working with us. We graduated five startups with our credentialed seal of approval in April 2015. Four of those are now negotiating seed round funding at valuations between Rs 8 crores and Rs 25 crores.

What of the rest? We haven’t followed up carefully, of course, but I would guess that no more than half are still around, and many more of them will fold over the coming year. The odds of coming through with your original team and idea intact are very, very, small, which is why I encourage teams to keep their ear to the ground and to stay nimble, and open to reacting to new opportunities and options as they may reveal themselves.

2. What’s in the Pitch has to be in the Product

When you’re starting out all you really have is your vision, and you have to communicate that vision through your pitch. You get into Startup Tunnel on the strength of your pitch and you graduate into seed-round funding the same way. We spend a lot of time helping startup teams with their pitch, because what you envision and articulate will actually describe the business you go on to build.

But what’s in the pitch must eventually translate into your product as well. So we look for teams who have the ability to describe what they want to build in detail, in ways that show they know with precision and clarity what they’re going to try to do. Pitch and product have to hang together, else the startup will sputter and fail.

3. Straight-up e-commerce and on-demand plays are over

I don’t know how many on-demand service pitches I’ve sat through. People are serving you groceries, hot food, half-cooked food, coming over and making drinks for you at home, giving you massages and perms and doing your make-up, fixing your car, watering your plants, and really taking over every aspect of your life. I don’t say this isn’t the way our economy is trending — I only say that it’s impossible for me to evaluate which of these many competing services will eventually win out. And if there isn’t a clear differentiator, I’m afraid I’m not playing.

4. The best startup pitches aim to help people in real ways

After you’ve seen party apps, event discovery apps, and dating apps fill up your pitch slate, you really want to bite your teeth into something meaningful. You want to see startup pitches that will really change things for people, even if they’re hard to achieve. Those are also the spaces in which new opportunities are hiding, two standard deviations from what’s hot right now. As an early-stage incubator we are hungry and thirsty for bold new propositions that might feel like a brainfreeze the first time we hear of them. We look to take risks and go places where angels may fear to tread.

5. Data has to be part of the story

While many startups are focused on their short term play, there is also the question of managing the data they produce. If startups can’t think strongly about analysing and monetising their data they will eventually be edged out by competitors who can. So this has become a really hard line for me: are you thinking about collecting, analysing, and monetizing your data in ways that will give you differentiation and prevent your business from becoming someone else’s lunch?

6. Growth is to be hacked not bought

The other side of a strong product is the ability to reach audiences, convert users and drive traffic through your platform or to your product. This cannot be a spend item for a startup team — founders must have the smarts, and be savvy to be able to connect with their market for negligible costs, or else the startup will burn through all the money that’s ever put into them.

7. Teams win over even the most gifted individuals

Paul Graham of Y Combinator deserves all the credit for articulating this insight first in the startup space. But I suppose every investor has to validate this general truth for themselves. We have backed individuals and we have backed teams, and in general teams perform better. This is because teams can possess a greater diversity of skills and abilities, the manpower to fundraise and work on product at the same time, while also enjoying more objective, reality-based decision making, and a better validated initial business concept.

But this is just a high-level generalization. There are still successful single-founder companies that come along and of course there many, many multiplayers teams that will still go belly-up.

8. Incubators can help with seed-round funding

Over the past year, I’ve sat on multiple meetings with our startups as they’ve pitched to angels and institutional investors. It’s surprised me how much of a difference my presence has made. In some cases I’ve been in a position to give feedback to the startup about what parts of their pitch were working and where they needed to refine things further. In other cases I’ve heard chatter from the prospective investor that I’ve back-channeled to the startup, which has helped the two sides come closer to an agreement. In all cases, having someone in the room who has spent a lot of time with you, who has your back, is an advantage that can only come from an institutional incubation process.

9. There’s a lot of ‘stupid money’ out there

Yuvraj Singh and Kapil Dev have become angel investors, along with Bollywood actors and the sons and daughters of every other industrial house. Every old family seems to have some young gun trying to increase its corpus through a few quick deals. Needless to say, most of this money will be spent in subsidizing your car rides, funding your discount coupons and in chasing you around the Internet with redirected advertizing until it is all gone, gone, gone. Even though much of this money will never see any return, I’m glad it’s floating around. Easy money is the only thing that can change our old industrial-feudal ways of doing things. In the process, we’re seeing a less risk-averse society where failure isn’t quite the devastating condemnation it once was.

All the same, for first-time investors in startups, it’s important to learn about the space, learn about the sector you’re taking a stab at and develop the ability to evaluate startup teams. People who invest seriously need to spend a lot of time with a lot of startups and a good deal more time with those they actually invest in. Failing that, you’re shooting in the dark with two blanks out of three.

10. Funnels mitigate risk

At Startup Tunnel we really believe we’re helping build better startups on account of the emphasis we put in product, user and market orientation, data analytics and growth hacking. We also perceive that our startup teams are savvier with investors and with their long-term planning going forward several rounds of investment funding. So every pea coming through this pea shooter is going to be a better pea.

But not every pea is going to come out. And this is where I see that we have an advantage that other investment vehicles just can’t match: we have the opportunity to sit and wait out the process of startups maturing and either crumbling or coming good. We spend time watching founders deal with different kinds of challenges in the course of trying to build their product and business. That’s the sense in which the funnel of Startup Tunnel gives us a ring-side view into who are going to be the winners coming out of each cohort of startups.

Disclaimer :- Following article came from YourStory

Some Helpful Information For Successful Start-Up (Australia)

Bondi mother Belinda Everingham stopped using commercial cleaning products when she realised they were causing her headaches. She started cleaning with some ‘natural’ cleaning products on the market but noticed they contained ingredients that were not so natural.

So she came up with the idea of Bondi Wash -- a range of genuinely all-natural cleaning products.

Just two years down the track, Bondi Wash is stocked in 76 retail stores across Australia, as well as China, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Taiwan; with more than 50 stores in Japan.

As a successful CEO, Everingham is regularly inundated with start-up businesses asking her for advice.

“I love seeing others go through the same journey I’ve been on, people investing time and energy so their creativity comes to life,” Everingham said.
“I’ve learnt a lot since I launched the business in 2013 and, while I’ve made some mistakes, I’ve gotten plenty of things right too. So I’d really like to share some of my tips.

"The first step is all-round creation and concept. How do you know if your idea is good or not and how do you get started?

Tips :-

1. Try to develop something that is innovative across a number of dimensions, such as design, functionality, scent and packaging. Bondi Wash has a number of levels of innovation -- the scent, the anti-bacterial qualities, the product packaging and the natural ingredients.

2. Focus obsessively on product (or service) design -- customers will always be attracted to a great product regardless of marketing. I was asked by a friend how I was going to market the business and I had no answer at the time, other than I hoped the product would sell itself. It did.

3. Look for simplicity and symmetry -- I used these principles to help guide decision-making. Bondi Wash launched with three products in three fragrances.

4. Understand where your competitors are but don’t copy -- create your own style and own path. People love authenticity and you can’t replicate this.

5. Create for the long-term -- will the business still be relevant in 50 years? Our vision for the product design was something that could still be relevant in 50 years.

Brand and culture

1. The first 18 months are critical for a new company. Be aware that every decision affects your brand in these early days, from packaging design, products you launch with and pricing, through to where your products/services are stocked or seen. Saying no can be just as important as saying yes.

2. Find the best possible people to work with. You cannot expect to have all the answers. Find talented and like-minded experts to help with what you know you are not so good at.

3. Create some guiding principles to help with decision-making. We used the concept of simplicity to guide key decisions. In the long run, having simple solutions will make the company stronger.

4. Don’t rush things. Often time solves problems and a better solution becomes clear. At the same time, it is important to feel like you are in a hurry to get your products/services out there as fast as you can. Every product or service can be improved on -- launch with what you have. And continue to perfect it over time

5. Creating a company means creating a culture. Think through what’s important to you and how you want your organisation to behave. For us, that meant building a company based on high integrity, doing the right thing in every regard and building strong trust-based relationships. This means we treat others with kindness, we pay bills on time or early if we can and we offer strong support to those we choose to work with (staff, stockist and suppliers).

6. Treat mistakes as opportunities. Without fail, whenever we have faced what has seemed like a problem or failure, it has led to a better outcome in the long run. Believing this also helps us in dealing with mistakes. People do make mistakes and moving forward from them is far better for everyone than reprimanding or making someone feel bad.

NIESBUD Programme

Objectives :

* Identify and train the potential entrepreneurs in region;

* Impart basic managerial knowledge and understanding;
* Provide post-training assistance;
* Develop and strengthen entrepreneurial quality and motivation;
* Analyze the environmental issues related to the proposed project;
* Help in selecting the right type of project and products;
* Formulate the effective and profitable project;
* Enhance industrial development
* Acquire necessary managerial skills required to run the industrial unit.
* Acquaint and appreciate the required social responsibility / entrepreneurial discipline.

Start To Finish

Important Topics :

Small Business Planning : Market Survey , Project Report Preparation & Basic Startup Problem.

Small Business Opportunities : Project AppraisingTechniques, Marketing Opportunities & Competition, Financial Feasibility Analysis.

Small Business Management Skills : Fundamentals, Financial With Costing & Accounting, Raising Funds, Marketing Management, Taxation.

Legal Business Structure : Sole Propietorship, Partnership, Corporation, Co-operative, Limited Liability.

Regulatory Requirements of Business : Statutory Compliances, Clearance & Approval.

Banking Process.

Banker Involvement.

Venue :- NIESBUD, A-23 Sector-32, Noida.

Date :- 12th Sept To 13th Sept 2015.

Time :- 10:00 am To 5:00 pm

Email :- satish.niesbud@gmail.com

Website :- NIESBUD

Kuwait Infra Push to Growth and Development

Government plans to generate 15% of energy via renewable sources 

Kuwait has approved the construction of a series of power plants, desalination facilities and other infrastructure projects worth a total of around 3 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($9.9 billion), the finance ministry said yesterday. Like neighboring Gulf countries, Kuwait is struggling to meet soaring demand for electricity and the planned projects will add around 3,580 megawatts of capacity, as well as waste treatment and developments for the education ministry. The ministry did not set a timescale for most of the initiatives, except for a sewage plant which will start by 2020. It also did not say how they will be funded beyond saying 50 percent of the finance will be raised through stock market offerings.

Kuwait National Day Liberation Day Celebration

Among the projects, Kuwait plans a second phase of the gas-fired Az-Zour North power and desalinated water plant that has an initial capacity of 1,800 megawatts. It will also build the first phase of the Khairan power plant with 1500 MW of capacity, which will use different types of fuel, and the Al Abdaliyah power plant with a capacity of 280 MW, of which 60 MW will be from solar energy while the rest will be fed by gas. Kuwait plans to generate 15 percent of its energy needs via renewable sources by 2030, with the first of up to 100 solar-powered fuelling stations operating by 2017, Oil Minister Ali Saleh Al-Omair said in June. A pilot 70 megawatt project in the Shagaya desert zone west of Kuwait City was expected to be completed by next year.

The minister also said that preparatory works of partnership projects between Public and private sectors have borne fruit - 'thanks to the legislative and executive authorities that enacted a law to set up a body to run these projects.' The body has formed its structure in accordance with the international standards to help Kuwait implement projects in a competitive and professional manner, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance said.

 

Growth Harmon 

The body's higher committee has approved six projects and their tenders were offered at the beginning of this month, he added. He affirmed that these projects will be co-implemented by both Public and private sectors as the State of Kuwait seeks to boost the participation of the private sector in sustainable development. Kuwait also plans to create a quantum leap in terms of technologies used in these projects and services provided to citizens; transfer knowledge; create jobs for nationals; attract investment opportunities in the country and support local economy to alleviate burdens on the budget, he noted. This move will be in favor of the local economy, he expected.

Startup Strategy

KUWAIT, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Kuwait has approved the construction of a series of power plants, desalination facilities and other infrastructure projects worth a total of around 3 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($9.9 billion), the finance ministry said on Saturday. 

Like neighbouring Gulf countries, Kuwait is struggling to meet soaring demand for electricity and the planned projects will add around 3,580 megawatts of capacity, as well as waste treatment and developments for the education ministry. 

The ministry did not set a timescale for most of the initiatives, except for a sewage plant which will start by 2020. It also did not say how they will be funded beyond saying 50 percent of the finance will be raised through stock market offerings. 




Among the projects, Kuwait plans a second phase of the gas-fired Az-Zour North power and desalinated water plant that has an initial capacity of 1,800 megawatts. It will also build the first phase of the Khairan power plant with 1500 MW of capacity, which will use different types of fuel, and the Al Abdaliyah power plant with a capacity of 280 MW, of which 60 MW will be from solar energy while the rest will be fed by gas. 

Kuwait plans to generate 15 percent of its energy needs via renewable sources by 2030, with the first of up to 100 solar-powered fuelling stations operating by 2017, oil minister Ali Saleh al-Omair said in June. 




A pilot 70 megawatt project in the Shagaya desert zone west of Kuwait City was expected to be completed by next year.

Kuwait awards re-tendered airport project to same consortium at cheaper price

DUBAI, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Kuwait's government said it had awarded a contract to build a new terminal at Kuwait International Airport to the same consortium that had an earlier more-expensive bid dismissed. 

Turkey's Limak Holding and local construction firm Kharafi National won the deal after bidding 1.312 billion dinars ($4.34 billion) for the work - 74 million dinars cheaper than the offer it submitted in November. 

The government dismissed all bids proffered in November without explanation - though Kuwait's Al Watan newspaper quoted ministry sources saying they had been too expensive and had not met technical specifications. 

 

Small Business Development

The government's Central Tenders Committee said late on Monday the Limak-Kharafi consortium had submitted the lowest bid during the re-tendering process. 

Kuwait has planned tens of billions of dollars worth of infrastructure projects in recent years but many have been held up by bureaucratic delays, political tensions and allegations by some members of the parliament of corruption and inefficiency.