Forming a Company in India

It feels good to express myself every other day…. Similar to working out, it keeps me agile, and we all know how important that is for health and innovation.  As a quick business update, we’re about to release the next version of techTribe next week, and I’m pleased to say the least.  One of the beauties of Web 2.0 is the ability to release new features and capabilities on a monthly basis.  Unlike enterprise software, we can listen to user feedback, and respond in a matter of weeks.

You’ll have to wait for a few days to check out what’s new with techTribe – India’s Innovation Platform (http://www.techtribe.com), but it’s a mix of what we heard from the customers, and some new things we’re looking for feedback on.

Anyway, I’m on a flight back to India to put some final papers together on our Indian company – techTribeNetworks India Private Limited.  I was on a flight the other direction last week, reading an article in India Today about statistics comparing India to the US.  One of the statistics had to do with how long it took to form a company in India vs. the United States.  I didn’t believe the difference, especially since I had heard one of India’s economic ministers on TV speak about how quick and painless it was.  The article said it took 71 days and 11 procedures are required to start a business in India, compared to 5 days and 5 processes in the US.  Having been through it in the US, I had personal experience that confirmed it. 

techTribe retained a premier firm to help with the formation of our Indian firm, and even with some of the best minds at work, we couldn’t get the company formed within 45 – 60 days.  We had to wait for a few weeks for the “Name Search” to clear (do I smell the birth of a new kind of search engine ☺), a few to file the papers since the memorandum of articles of incorporation documents have to be prepared “in print”, etc.  In today’s digital age, I must say I was surprised.  AND, to top it all, we couldn’t open a Bank Account until we have the company all done, so we couldn’t transact at all.  We worked around it by signing out personal checks that were re-imbursed, but try putting on a press launch or two with a campaign to follow without a bank account, and it gets tricky.  I don’t vent, so this is just for information for others looking to do the same.  I guess it’s easier for a woman to get 15,000 bank accounts with a bank under fake names in 3 days or so, but a legitimate firm can’t get an account opened ☺.

Other statistics I found interesting, and which demonstrates the opportunity in India.
➢    17,189 colleges & universities in India vs. 4182 in US
➢    100m mobile phone users in India in 2006, compared to 194.5m in the US in 2005
➢    93,000 elementary schools with computers in India vs. 110,000 in US
➢    350,000 Engineers produced annually and 800,000 Complete MBAs vs. 200,000 in US, plus 200,000 Science degrees are awarded every year in India
➢    9.9m Students enrolled in various colleges across the country

Anyway, now that we have all that corporate and financial stuff squared away, we’re excited about growing our team in India.  We’re trying something different in the industry again – leveraging Indians for their marketing skills instead of sheer labor force.  And I must say, I am very pleased with the level of professional talent in India.  We’ve managed to recruit some bright individuals, and have also come across some amazing people.  I just read a blog by Amit Agarwal, who resides in Agra, which is just perfect for what the Indian market needs.  It’s so great to see Indians innovating to serve the Indian market.  (His blog is Digital Inspiration at http://labnol.blogspot.com ).

The flight is about to land so I need to shut down.  More in a couple of days.

Comments

[Jogi T]

Hi Rohit,

It was funny reading about the Indian company part. When I started off last year, it was rather frustrating at times - the whole name search thing, then the fact that you couldn't open a bank account till you got your company registered!

Wishing you all the best :)

Regards,

Jogi