New Delhi : In a first of its kind private initiative to help put the Indian economy back on a growth path, EdTech startup Bada Business has reached out to 50 million entrepreneurs, MSMEs and wantrepreneurs under its ambitious ‘India Revival Mission’ to help them revive their COVID-hit businesses. The pioneering initiative lasting three months not only elicited participation of a record number of small entrepreneurs but also received support of industry leaders and Union Ministers Shri Nitin Gadkari and Shri Kiren Rijiju.
Dr. Vivek Bindra, CEO & Founder, Bada Business, the ‘India Revival Mission’ was launched in April after a country-wide lockdown forced businesses to down their shutters, having a devastating impact on the MSME sector. According to a recent report by credit rating agency CRISIL, a 5% contraction is expected in the Indian economy this fiscal which “will significantly hurt MSMEs”. The fall in revenue “will be steeper at 17-21%” for MSMEs compared to the formal sector, it added. In such circumstances, the sector needs growth, development and skill support to revive itself and cross its 30% contribution in GDP. A quick revival of India’s economic backbone – the MSMEs – can also help shorten the phase of contraction.
As the only EdTech startup that works primarily for the growth & development of the MSME sector, Bada Business considered it a social and nationalistic responsibility to train, equip and skill small businesses to lift them out of the financial morass. The objective of the ‘India Revival Mission’ was to help businesses reinvent their strategies to thrive in a post COVID world and infuse fresh energy into the economy.
Millios of MSMEs joined this country-wide economic revival movement, displaying their resilience and strength in the face of an unprecedented crisis that has brought the global economy to its knees. The Mission imparted business skill training to entrepreneurs through a series of online training lessons over three months helping them to bounce back. A total of 10 million people received the business training while the impact of the mission reached a total 50 million in different ways. Total training hours equivalent to 152 years were delivered and consumed in Hindi language across diverse geographical locations. Among the people who attended the business skilling workshops, 60% were MSME businesses and self employed individuals while 40% were students with entrepreneurial ambitions. MSMEs from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat led from the front with maximum participation.
In an unparallel global achievement, Indian MSMEs created three new Guinness World Records in online space under the initiative. In fact, Bada Business became the first Asian company to achieve this fete.
“We launched the India Revival Mission at a time when the economy had hit a rough patch and the MSMEs were facing an uncertain future. We designed a series of business management lectures incorporating the skills most relevant at this time for businesses to survive the crisis. Indian entrepreneurs, small business owners and students responded with a remarkable will to fight back and joined the movement. We managed to reach out to as many as 5 crore people and succeeded in unleashing a mini economic revival movement at the grassroots. Many businesses have bounced back after undergoing our training; many others are on course. The resilience and vigor displayed by the Indian MSME community gives an immense hope for a national economic revival,” said Dr Vivek Bindra, Founder & CEO, Bada Business.
Some top business leaders who attended the business training sessions and backed the Mission:
- Mr. Radhey Shyam Dixit, CMD Ananda Dairy
- Mr Atul Bhatnagar, former COO, NSDC
- Mr. Hari Om Rai, Chairman and MD, Lava Mobiles
- Mr. Pankaj Munjal, CMD Hero Cycless
Major lessons offered under the India Revival Mission:
- Skill training for digital transformation
- Management training to optimize costs
- Reconfiguring business models for a contactless world
- New sales strategies for the new normal
- Adopting digital marketing techniques and data analytics
- Optimizing resources during remote working
- Marketing and leadership in a post COVID world
Harvard of India
Bada Business has been playing a pioneering role in making business management education accessible to all. By creating an alternative and the world’s most affordable ‘Business education’ model, Bada Business has also earned the adage of ‘Harvard of India’. With the India Revival Mission, the startup has played a leading role in infusing new energy and hope in the Indian business community at a time of a global downturn. The total subscribers to Bada Business courses has crossed landmark of 100,000 subscribers.
India’s Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports (Independent Charge) and MoS for Minority Affairs Shri Kiren Rijeju lauded and shared an online lecture under this series delivered by Dr Bindra, and advocated people to follow it. Union Minister for MSMEs Shri Nitin Gadkari also backed the India Revival Mission in a conversation held with Dr Vivek Bindra.
