What it takes to hyperscale in India: Experts share insights and strategies in a recent webinar

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What it takes to hyperscale in India: Experts share insights and strategies in a recent webinar
In collaboration with BCG and the Delhi Chapter of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE Delhi-NCR), Times Bridge recently launched a report on hyperscaling in India, which focused on the success stories of India’s late-stage startups.
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To extract the key takeaways from the report, Business Insider India hosted a webinar featuring leaders from the three organisations, who discussed the crucial factors behind setting up a successful business model, expanding the target audience, and aligning unit economics with hypergrowth.

Covering the bases



The route to hyperscaling starts with understanding what any enterprise should get right as a first step. Alok Mittal, Board Member, TiE Delhi-NCR, commented, “One of the things that have gotten re-emphasized over the last 12-18 months is the fact that there should be a viable business model.” According to him, startups must revisit their premise around profitability and gear up for growth.

Nimisha Jain, Managing Director & Senior Partner, BCG, agreed and said that solving for a core need and delivering a distinctive value proposition make up the most important foundational block.

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Team and talent stand out no matter which part of the hyperscaling journey a company is at according to Abhinav Bansal, Head of Strategy, Times Bridge. “Growth and profitability have to walk in harmony; they are not at loggerheads,” he adds.

The art of capital management



While deploying capital, it is important to understand whether the time is right for hyperscaling or fine-tuning the current stage.

“While there might be an instinct to go out and build a full stack, especially in a capital-rich environment, leveraging through partnerships has immense potential in creating a complete customer proposition,” said Alok Mittal.

Building a winning team



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The report also looked at hyperscalers who have been able to build positive unit economics and gauge how the Indian startup ecosystem was fairing in this regard.

“The startups which have been successful have ensured distributed leadership, a strong sense of ownership and not having a blanket approach to expectations on performance,” said Abhinav Bansal. He also added that striking a balance between generalists and specialists is an important way to ensure hyperscaling success.

It came to light that constructing career paths and engaging more strongly with the current teams is essential rather than only focusing on recruiting more talent. Thus, it is not just about getting the right talent, but retaining them, motivating them, helping grow them over time and building a level of dexterity where people are moving across roles.

“To evade price wars with others, it becomes supercritical to be distinctive and create profitable modes,” said Nimisha.

Lessons learned and preparing for the future



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The report also tried to come up with a framework for emerging startups to help them align their priorities and hyperscaling aspirations to the new realities.

Startups which have become unicorns do not stop with their first layer of advantage. “You need to keep refining the value proposition over time and coming up with ways to deliver it,” advises Nimisha Jain to startups in their early stages. Thus, not letting oneself become complacent is crucial.

Abhinav Bansal has a different perspective and wonders whether becoming a unicorn is a milestone or a means to an end. He advises, “Creating products in India for India would help a startup distinguish themselves in the market. India is a very strong domestic consumption economy and thus, thinking in a localized and culturally sensitive manner would help set one apart.”

Overall, the report emphasised the importance of stronger business models, unit economics, and focus on growth for startups to emerge as leaders in the hyperscaling journey. You can download the report here and gain insights on unlocking the hyperscaling potential in India.
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