Venture capital indutry is a decade old in India, and is showing signs of structural changes. Though strated with the specific role of supporting pioneering new firms, venture capital companies (VCCs) have now started investing in firms at different stages in their life cycle. There has hardly been any effort made to study the management startegies of such hi-tech. firms in India. The importance of such an effort needs hardly any emphasis as some understanding and appreciation for the management strategies is critical to enable VCCs to make useful contribution to the success of the investee firms. Also, VCCs need to build necessary capabilities and orientation to make their investments attractive. The presentation will share findings from studies undertaken by the author on the management heuristics of entrepreneurs which form the bases of their startegies. Some of the key areas of concerns and expectations of entrepreneurs from VCCs will be shared to highlight the areas to be strengthened by the VCCs to improve their performance. Three case studies of firms where VCCs have made investments at different stages in their growth, and their performance so far will be shared to emphasise the implications of the above.

About the Speakers

Kavil Ramachandran is the Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. He joined the IIM in 1986 after completing a PhD from the Cranfield School of Management , UK where the thesis was on small enterprise policies in the UK, Japan and India. Prof. Rmamachandran has authored one book, edited two books, and published several articles in refereed and non-refereed journals in India and abroad. He is a consultant to companies, government and development agencies in India and abroad.