Many women have established various small businesses i.e. traditional handicrafts, food, and packaging online that supported artisans in rural Karnataka. After quite some struggle, they had a decent number of orders and have been looking forward to advancing the manufacturing equipment and scale the effect of their business by offering chances to local talent.
COVID-19 Impact
But all of this ceased to exist in March 2020. There were severe restrictions applied on business and travel due to the pandemic and the eventual lockdown. Unfortunately, the new equipment being ordered could not be delivered and had no means to move their existing inventory.
This has made it unsure about the way they would continue to offer basic income to their employees/artisans and staff and was slowly losing their savings too. Additionally, lockdown also added the extra responsibilities of their families.
Lifestyle Changed
2020 declares as 25 years since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action that was once declared as the most progressive blueprint for the advancement of women’s rights. Regardless of the years that have passed, this has become the reality of many working-class women, especially entrepreneurs, who had to adjust to considerable lifestyle changes in the face of the pandemic.
We all know that women are disproportionately affected during these crises. A huge percentage of health and social care workers are women and are in professions that are constantly on the frontline to battle against the pandemic. It has been proven historically that economic crises expand the existing inequalities for women around key occupations such as education, finances, and healthcare.
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Esta historia es de la edición December 2020 de Small Enterprise.
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Job Creation: Startups Starting Up!
Do startups create jobs? This could unarguably be one of the most sought after questions in recent times. While it is out and clear that startups make way for employment opportunities, the discussion boils down to the importance of startups in creating jobs. The startup ecosystem indeed plays a major role in job creation and is touted as an economic panacea.
Importance Of Technology For SMEs
We, humans, by nature, tend to be lazy. We always try to make tools, machines, gadgets, etc., to save us time and energy and give us satisfactory results. Technology is the charisma that kept changing our way of living and our style of doing things drastically. Our way of conducting business is also not spared by the Tsunami of technology.
Importance Of Digital Economy
Economic activities that result from billions of interactions between individuals, businesses, data, devices, and processes constitute a digital economy and India is well on its path to becoming a digitally advanced economy. Driven by cheap data cost, faster connectivity, and affordable smartphones, India had over 1,160 million internet subscribers in February 2020, as per the Telecom Regulatory authority of India (TRAI), second only to China.
India's Economic Growth – Can The Startups Redefine?
Recent years showed a considerable rise in the startups of India. During globalization, MNCs or Multi-National Companies had a massive role in India’s economic growth. Now, it seems that startups are revolutionizing the Indian economy. These startups are amplifying the revenue generation and enriching the GDP.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION FOR BUDDING MINDS
In the present economic situation, having knowledge of an academic subject is no longer sufficient for a new graduate. Students are increasingly required to have skills and abilities which will increase their employability, such as: the retrieval and handling of information; communication and presentation; planning and problem solving; and social development and interaction.
CHALLENGES OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA
The Economic survey in 2019-20 using World Bank’s data on entrepreneurship stated that India ranks third in the number of new firms created. However, India ranks significantly lower in terms of intensity when compared with countries like UK and US.
HOW INNOVATION PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE PERFORMANCE OF SMEs? WHAT ARE SOME INNOVATION FACTORS TO FOLLOW?
Innovation in a business must respect the business strategy in terms of the SME's long-term missions, visions, and goals and is systematic implementation procedures and changes to improve the products and services your company offers. The innovation implementation ensures an appropriate response in terms of increased sales and enhanced customer satisfaction. The image strengthening of your firm will lead to better customer relations with your company and at the same time provide financial stability for the company.
ECONOMIC REFORMS THAT CAN CHANGE THE ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM
The year 2021 marked 30 years since economic liberalisation surfaced in India and writing on this occasion, the richest man of India; Mukesh Ambani said that bold economic reforms such as ending the license –quota raj, liberalisation of trade and industrial policies, freeing up capital markets and financial sector helped our GDP grow ten folds since 1991 and India transformed from an economy of scarcity in 1991 to an economy of sufficiency in 2021.
ROLE OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN INDIA – THEN AND NOW
As per the 2019-20 annual report of the MSME ministry, among 63.3 million MSMEs that India has, women–owned 20.4% of them up from 13.72 % in 2013-14. This data supports the fact that there has been growing acceptance of women in entrepreneurial roles but it hasn’t always been the case.
TECHNOLOGY AN ENABLER FOR SMALL BUSINESSES
Today times are such that firms operate in a dynamic environment and they must act dynamically too, at least firms should keep an eye on obsolete processes and technologies and replace them with updated versions to stay competitively ahead.
