With the start-up culture in India growing exponentially, India now has the second largest startup ecosystem in the world. The English Press Club spoke to Dr. Satyendra Sharma—Faculty In-Charge of the Centre for Innovation, Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE) and Joint Secretary of the Pilani Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development (PIED) Society—to find out more about the process of an idea turning into a full-fledged start-up, specifically at BITS Pilani.

PIED, erstwhile the Technology Business Incubator, is an independent society that takes care of all incubation-related activities at BITS Pilani and is currently being funded by the institute. It was formed in 2013 and its ultimate aim is to make itself sustainable. ‘If we are able to put our money in some good-quality startups that eventually turn out to be successful companies, then the institute can get some equity share in those companies,’ said Dr. Sharma. PIED provides worthy startups with funding, guidance, lab facilities and other resources, on campus.

The first phase of seed funding by PIED was for eight BITSian startups in 2014, when BITS Pilani received a grant of INR 1.55 Crores. The students who were the core members of those startups have graduated since, and while a few of them have flourished, the others are still struggling to make it big in the market. According to Dr. Sharma, the startup ecosystem can be unpredictable that way and it’s important to push through the struggle to emerge as a reputable company.

Almost every university in India now has an incubation centre or an Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell), and startup culture is being promoted by the government as well. In Dr. Sharma’s opinion, the startup culture is booming and there is a great platform for budding startups who can seek advice from the founders of successful companies, due to an increase in ease of networking. ‘The startup ecosystem in India and BITS Pilani is propagating at a very fast pace,’ he said.

During the interview, Dr. Satyendra took the opportunity to shed light on some of the stages of a startup’s life. The “pre-incubation period” for a startup is when it is still a brainchild, an idea of one or more individuals. It is in this period when the budding entrepreneurs draft proposals, make roadmaps, etc. This usually lasts for no longer than six months. On the other hand, the ‘incubation period’ is when the startup has been incorporated into a company by the founder and is slowly developing through management training while being fully operational. PIED society helps startups at BITS Pilani during both their incubation and pre-incubation periods.

The process for a BITSian for taking a startup from an idea to a company was elucidated upon by the Dr. Satyendra. ‘The PIED Society calls for applications in the form of B Plans, or business plans, twice in a semester. We received 23 proposals last semester itself, and one round of acceptance for B Plans has already been completed for this semester,’ he said. ‘When we receive a proposal, the Project Review Committee judges each idea on the basis of two important factors—feasibility of the idea in the current market, and how the idea is going to solve the problem/issue that was identified by the student,’ he added.

The Project Review Committee comprises of the Director, the HOD of the Management Department and a panel of professors. After a short pitch in the form of a presentation is made to the committee, they decide on which proposals are to be taken forward, based on whether a student has identified the current market correctly.

Of the first few startups that were ever funded by the then Technology Business Incubator, many are doing extremely well in the market today, such as SnapChai, iDream Education and Phyzok Learning.

When asked about why the B Plan proposals for incubation through the PIED Society were limited to students in their second year or higher, Dr. Sharma explained that this time the Chancellor has approved a 10 lakh rupee fund for new, budding startups. Such decisions require a certain level of maturity which freshers can easily gain by observing and interacting with their senior colleagues. ‘Nonetheless, we did get two or three proposals for first years as well, and we put them under the same process. I believe that a great idea can come to anyone,’ said Dr. Satyendra.

While PIED is more focused on boosting a student-led startup, the Centre for Innovation, Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE) works more along the lines of inculcating the entrepreneurship culture amongst students and faculty alike. They are a unit of BITS Pilani and work in tandem with the student-driven Centre for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL) in organising seminars, projects, and even major events such as the E-Week, which is due to commence on February 4. ‘We also work towards Faculty R&D projects. Whenever any faculty wants to file for a patent, CIIE takes it forward.’

On the topic of how PIED and CIIE plan to expand their horizons, Dr. Sharma talked about the need for a well-defined faculty entrepreneurship draft policy, making it easier for faculty to propose for incubation through PIED. Further, there are many queries related to finance and legalities. Although CEL’s startup community exists, the CIIE plans to make a pool of financial and marketing experts on campus; a mentorship program of sorts that can provide better guidance to novice enthusiasts.