Outliers innovation

© Zeus Numerix Pvt. Ltd.

Outliers: Pains and Pleasures

What it is to be an outlier and remain one

Abhishek Jain

[email protected]

Outliers: Pains and Pleasures2

Slide titles

Consumer – In India and world

Funds and allocation of funds

Process of innovation

Budget for R&D

Outcome of R&D is blurred

How to start-up in innovation centric space

Tips for entrepreneurs in Innovation – donkey image

Outside IITians start up

Government of India


Overview

Phase I

Who are we

The technical stuff

Phase II

How others see it: The importance of Vocabulary

Customers: Where and how

Money for R&D

Tips

Phase III

Don’t go MAD


What’s in PPT

Please bear

Bad jokes: PJs

Poor English

Uninteresting tech stuff

But in between that

I will share our experience

May be tell you what not to do

Inspire you to innovate

This is strictly personal opinion and not my company’s so any brickbats are on me!


INTRODUCTION

Brief introduction of what we do and how

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Who are WE

Zeus Numerix is the first and only company in India to have developed indigenous software in the field of numerical simulations IITZeus

CFD Group (1992)‏

SINESociety for Innovation & Entrepreneurship

IIT Bombay DSTDepartment of Science & Technology

Zeus Numerix Pvt Ltd (2004)‏


What is Simulation

Something that was to happen actually is predicted on computer

Obviously, there are many types of simulations

Computer games

Ones based on actual physics and used for developing real life products are complex

Solve millions of equations on supercomputer to find the actual happening within some accuracy

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Sample Results

Bomb falling from an Aircraft

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Sample Results

Building on Fire

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Comparison with the World

Most companies make one type of software

We try to make all

Buying companies to make one pool of software

We develop on our own

Give off the shelf software

Customize to the extent possible

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The Medal

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OUTLIERS

Pains and pleasures that you get while having an innovative business

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The Vocabulary

Engineering services pitch

We do high end design and modeling and are capable of providing end to end services

Design?

Most CAD data handling or text book design

Modeling?

Making 3D CAD files

End to End?

Give me the low end work and I will support you till the end

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The Indian Customer

Have you done it before

Do you have an experience in doing this kind of stuff

How many people do you have

Who are your customers

Play safe policy!


The Foreign Customer

Do you have the required wherewithal to do it?

Are your people qualified enough?

See, we do our own R&D, but we are outsourcing something else if you are interested

If it is so expensive here, we might as well get it done at our place

What if you don’t deliver?

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Funds

Innovation requires a lot of funds – where do we get that

How do we monitor the progress of an individual

Which employee is on tougher problem

Do we have fixed budget or a variable budget for R&D

Can we afford a budget for R&D

Where will that money come from

What if the outcome is not as great

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The People

How do you recruit and from where

Peer pressure

My dost Gajodhar earns twice as me doing simple work

How to maintain their motivation

Handling separation

How do you fire people

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Marketing

Find some bold customers

He is just a go getter

He is annoyed with previous vendor’s work

He doesn’t find anybody willing to provide such service

Grab him, at any cost

Create reference

While negotiating keep cost aside and bargain for better advt

Do pilots if time allows

Make the previous customer a demi-god

Give confidence that result will match with research

Foreigners pay for pilot studies, just ask for money

Please try to find out the competitor18


HR

Recruitment should not be done on the basis of score card

If a person is very money oriented, better not to have him

Have interns and then try to offer them job

Incentives also have to be non-monetary

Check for dosti and jodidar

Work is challenging but it must appear doable

People are people, they may have downs in life you don’t have that luxury

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Technology

Get projects that also do technology development

HR is aligned towards the goal and hence less chances of blurred outcome

Market need is known as someone is paying you for doing the work

Karenge ya kaise bhee karenge: New August Kranti

Don’t let customer own your IP

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Finance

I suggest no fixed allocation for R&D

How do you ascertain which one can be monetized

Take projects that involved Research

Charge prohibitively high for IP in case customer demands it

Reward the people generating IP

Get DSIR recognition and save on tax

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Tips for Entrepreneurs

“To carry his load without resting, not to be bothered by heat or cold and always be content: these three things we can learn from a donkey” – Indian proverb

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Tips for Entrepreneurs

Have a good team

Marketing, Accounts, Finance (Ghatiya) are all non-tech brainless activities

You know I can write a 1000 line code in a week

So what – phone call to kiya

Know the law

Network a lot

Meet people: Meeting never hurts but it can open up opportunities

Give your employees manageable challenges

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Sarkar Raj

There is a hell lot misconception that India does not support innovation

Our 80% revenue is from Government

There are lot of schemes for grant

Convincing is difficult

It takes time but it comes

Know the right contact

There is TDB, DST, NEN, Incubators

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GENERAL GYAN

How to maintain sanity while innovating

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Think and go MAD

Why don’t these buggers buy my product

Heck, am I selling so expensive?

This with a gora would have cost five times more

Tender was mine now this company has spoiled the whole process

Why cant people understand I am not sitting on pile of money

Ok if you don’t do it I will do it

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Unsolicited Advice

Attend parties and ask friends that you can’t contribute; eat as if you contributed most

Go to Jinalay/Temple/Mosque/Church/Gurudwara/Synagogue if you are a theist or do some Yoga

Sleep properly; don’t bring tension at home, it anyways doesn’t solve the problem excepting combing

Beware of intoxications like drinking/smoking

If you are short tempered or with high BP or have a lot of self pride then do a job, entrepreneurship is not for you

Exercise is a must

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Unsolicited Advice

All great men were great readers; Gandhi, Bose, Dhirubhai, Narayanmurthy …..

Just reading business does not help; diversify

Most important ideas come from very different subject –Genetic Algorithms in design

Know your surroundings – Newspapers are a good medium for the same; Pokharan could affect my company

Reading removes a lot of tension – (Auto)biographies are very good

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Read

Crossing the Chasm – Geoffrey Moore (For start-ups)

Mahanayak – Viswas Patil

Maverick – Ricardo Semler

Why men don’t listen women can’t read maps – Allan & Barbara Pease

Foods that fight pain – Dr Neal Barnard

I Dare – Kiran Bedi

Wings of fire – HE Dr APJ Abdul Kalam

Straight from the Gut – Jack Welch

In search of excellence – Thomas Peterson

Built to last – Jim Collins

Good to Great – Jim Collins

Scientific American Magazine29

Thank You

Outliers innovation

Business

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