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MSME

CBIC Introduces ‘Liberalised MSME AEO Package’ for Development of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises

MSME (Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
MSMEs (Representational Image)

In order to promote the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has introduced a new scheme called the ‘Liberalised MSME AEO Package’.  Under this, swift  and easier customs clearance of consignments will be provided to the enterprises, with the option of deferred payment duties .  It will also provide a relaxed compliance criteria on the condition that units have a valid certificate from their line-Ministry. Indian Businesses Aim To Tap Consumers Directly in 2021 via Digital Platforms, Says Report.

MSMEs which have filed minimum 10 Customs clearance documents in one year and which have a clean compliance record over two years are eligible to apply for the scheme. Under it, various documentary requirements have also been simplified. As per the scheme, the CBIC will decide on an application for grant of  Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status to an MSME within only 15 days from electronic submission of all the required documents for AEO Tier T1. Digital Transformation: 4 Reasons SMEs need to go online!

Authorised Economic Operators have various advantages. An approved AEO is entitled to several benefits, including the facility of direct port delivery  of imported containers, direct port entry  of their export containers, high level of facilitation in customs clearance of their consignments thereby ensuring shorter cargo release time, exemption from bank guarantees, priority for refund or discount drawback, as well as a client relationship manager at the customs port as a single point of interaction.

Another important benefit for an approved AEO  is that their payment of Customs duty is deferred and need not to be paid before the clearance of the imported goods by authority.  Various other relaxations have been introduced under the scheme such as reduction in bank guarantee requirements.

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Startup

3 Start-up Challenges Every Entrepreneur Must Overcome

Startup-challenges

From a handful of tech companies to thousands of new ventures, India`s start-up ecosystem has come a long way in the past decade.

According to the report published by NASSCOM, ‘India ranks 3rd globally, with more than 4,200 start-ups, creating more than 80,000 jobs’. The Indian start-up ecosystem remained stable in 2018 and 2019 in terms of funding and investor interest.

Though the global pandemic changed the entire game completely in 2020, by 2025, the number of startups is expected to cross 100K. More than 3.25 million job opportunities will be created in the market.

Although the idea of having a start-up business sounds appealing, entrepreneurs face many challenges in today`s world. However, overcoming these challenges can provide creative solutions to operate the business successfully.

Here is a list of startup challenges that every entrepreneur faces and must overcome in India:

Cash-Flow Management

Getting funds for your business is one of the major startup challenges that every entrepreneur faces. Finding the right amount and kind of investment in a fresh new sector is difficult in the early stages of a start-up.

Steady cash-flow is essential for the survival of the business, thus you always need to have extra funds to take care of the rainy days. Proper planning and financial plan are critical for the survival of the business. Hence, always ensure you have a well-prepared strategy ahead of time.

Marketing Strategy

One of the biggest startup challenges in India is the absence of a good marketing strategy. Many entrepreneurs think their business can thrive on word-of-mouth. However, the truth is far from a cry. If you want to expand your customer reach, you will have to find creative ways to do that.

Thanks to multiple social media platforms, there are ample opportunities to find the right audience even with minimum investment. Shifting your business from offline to online will improve your brand`s presence and increase your customer base.

Lack of Right Guidance

One wrong turn can take you away from your destination. Thus, the right guidance from the right person can do wonders for your business. The right mentor can prepare entrepreneurs for future challenges and can help them navigate through their experiences.

Though business networking can add up to the contact list, people who have experienced failures on the same journey would always add value.

These startup challenges are faced by almost every entrepreneur in the early stages of the business. But with the right guidance, you can take your business in the right direction.

You can learn to overcome these challenges with industry experts. Discover their Secret Mantra with the help of 600 business templates, checklists, and tools to run your business efficiently. Our Problem Solving Courses can help you overcome any business challenge. Click here: https://www.badabusiness.com/psc?ref_code=ArticlesLeads to know more.

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Business motivation

Digital Transformation: 4 Reasons SMEs need to go online!

msme digital transformation

Over the last couple of months, it has become quite evident that digital transformation is imperative for every business, especially SMEs. Digitalization has become a non-negotiable requirement without which companies will fail to run afloat.

Gartner published a report according to which 70% of the organizations during the challenging times in 2020, intend to leverage technology more effectively than ever to reduce TCO (total cost of ownership).

Though there is a basic reluctance, digital transformation for SMEs is a bus that they need to hop-on, more out of necessity than a desire. While big companies have already embraced the change, SMEs need to create a road map.

Although there are many more reasons to take your business online, check out the top 4:

Attract More Customers

Enhanced visibility means more customers! Going digital will increase your engagement with the target audience. Customer relationships will become better as you gain access to statistics and market insights through different tools. This will help you create better products and devise new marketing strategies.

  1. Smooth Operational Process

Technology can automate many core processes and increase efficiency. As a digitized SME, it will help you in better management of the available resources. It will also give you more control over logistics.

  1. Identify Shortfalls

Digital transformation of MSME can figure out the areas that require improvement. Digital tools can enable the smooth tracking of employee productivity, training schedules, and identify other shortfalls in the workforce.

  1. Risk Management

Data is the new oil, which means it is invaluable. Hence, going digital will help you protect the company`s sensitive information. Plenty of security software is available through which you can keep tabs on financial data and physical assets via advanced surveillance.

  1. Reduces Cost

Digital transformation for SMEs can also help reduce operational costs by automating core processes, thus reducing the need for more manpower.

As more and more industries are getting digitalized, SMEs must build an internal strategy to adopt the innovation as they contribute a major chunk to India`s GDP.  Taking your business online is not difficult if you have step-by-step instructions and the correct information.

To tackle all the challenges you are facing in digitalizing your business, you can learn and take the experience of 2000 years of the most successful billionaire businessmen. To find out more about the courses, click https://www.badabusiness.com/psc?ref_code=ArticlesLeads 

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Technology

Indian Businesses Aim To Tap Consumers Directly in 2021 via Digital Platforms, Says Report

Bengaluru, January 7: As the economy limps back to normalcy, India’s focus will now be more on the digital side in terms of growing businesses. According to a new report, as the economy recovers from the lull caused by COVID-19 pandemic, businesses are preparing flexible models that operate in an online-offline mix. Moreover, the focus for digital platforms in India will be on selling directly to the consumers in 2021, the report said. “Small businesses in India are today evolving themselves as per the consumer and industry requirements”, it added.

According to the findings, entrepreneurs today understand the power of online presence and digital operations. “There has been a 3 times growth in unique businesses creating online stores,” the report mentioned. The payment gateway and ecommerce platform has on-boarded more than 2 lakh small businesses from tier II and tier III cities during the lockdown period. Akash Gehani COO & Co-founder, Instamojo, was quoted by IANS saying that small businesses are hungry for growth and much more resilient than we could’ve imagined. “Merchants have come to understand the diverse nature of consumers and that innovation is the key differentiator,” he said.

Instamojo had launched a report on the e-commerce outlook for 2021 which draws the experiences of more than a million small businesses across the country. Explaining how online presence has grown over the years, Gehani explained that small businesses owners are making necessary changes to their brands, to the way they operate, and also the way they deal with their customers online in order to survive in the growing e-commerce space. He said that more than 70 percent of these entrepreneurs had no prior online presence.

The report by IANS said that as a large number of businesses went online in 2020, they also recognised the importance of a wide social media presence. MojoVersity, Instamojo’s e-learning platform for entrepreneurs, saw a 9 times growth in enrolments and 11 times growth in the number of merchants getting digitally certified in 2020. The number of businesses updating their social media handles on their Instamojo online store went up an average of 30 percent (QoQ).

“As more entrepreneurs emerge from smaller towns and cities in India, accelerators and incubators are also expanding their services into markets to help nurture the upcoming businesses. Industry reports indicate that 40 percent of investors will come from Tier II and Tier III cities,” report added.

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Motivational

Ratan Tata Impresses Netizens Again by Visiting Ailing Former Employee in Pune!

ratan tata meet ex employee
Yogesh Desai shared this picture

Social media platforms are generally in the news for all the wrong reasons. However, it has a brighter side too!
The internet went crazy and was hijacked by none other than Ratan Tata- the most celebrated name in the business world. However, the reason was heart-melting, something that is rare in today`s time!
One such incident is when Yogesh Desai shared a picture of Ratan Tata interacting with one of his former employees, who was not keeping well for the past two years. The picture is doing the rounds on the internet and people are all praise for the living legend.

While sharing his experience, he posted the story on LinkedIn, “Sir Ratan Tata (83) living legend, greatest businessman alive in India, visited the Friends Society in Pune to meet his ex-employee all-the-way from Mumbai who is ailing for last 2 years. This is how legends are made of. No media, no bouncers only commitment towards loyal employees. There is a lot to learn for all entrepreneurs and businessmen that money is not everything. All that matters is being a great human being. Hats off, Sir!! I bow my head in respect”.

Indian industrialist Ratan Tata is often known for his generosity. Known for his compassion and empathetic approach, he has once again garnered everyone’s attention. Since the picture was being shared online, it has been flooded with comments from people appreciating the kind gesture by Ratan Tata. The post has received more than 1.9 lakh reactions and over 4,600 comments.

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HR & People Management

3 Offbeat Career Paths: How Millennials are breaking the monotony of 9 to 5 jobs!

off beat career

If millennials had their way, 9 to 5 jobs would have become a matter of the past. In the changed parameters, today, the new normal for millennials and Gen Z is to find offbeat career options. They are looking for career skills and opportunities that are in-demand and break the monotony of mundane 9 to 5 jobs.

According to a Deloitte Global Millennial Survey 2020, ‘despite the individual challenges and personal sources of anxiety that they are facing, the millennials and Gen Zs have remained focused on larger societal issues, both before and after the onset of the pandemic’.

The report also revealed that if anything, the global pandemic has reinforced their desire to do something for the community that will help to drive the positive changes around them and across the world. The young generation continues to push for a world in which business and governments echo that same commitment to society. A world where the interests of people are put ahead of profits and environmental sustainability is a priority.

Two trends are having an impact on their career choices. The first is choosing work & workplace flexibility over salary packages. Secondly, a job that has a greater purpose and can leave a positive impact on society.

Here are 3 offbeat career options to kill the monotonous 9 to 5 jobs:

  1. Jobs in Social Sector

Passion combined with professionalism, Social Sector is the new kid on the block! It has emerged as a professional space in the past few years and offers challenging, meaningful, and financially viable career choices.

From strategy planning, value-based fundraising, government advocacy, corporate social responsibility, behaviour change communication, collaborative partnerships, and ethical and pragmatic M&E etc can be opted for.

Contrary to the popular belief, the Social Sector is more than just ‘volunteering’ and offers an amazing off-beat career path that can make a difference in the real world.

  1. Political Campagin Manager

Another extremely dynamic, interesting, and critical field to work in is ‘Political Campaign Management’. A political campaign manager needs to put his best foot forward by using his analytical part of the brain. The working conditions can be quite stressful due to the nature of the job.

Being a campaign manager will require to work at the core and provide services like political consultation, fundraising, marketing, crisis management, and public relations.

  1. Radio Jockey

If you have unmatched communication skills that can engage the listeners for hours, then becoming a Radio Jockey is an excellent career path. As the name suggests, a Radio Jockey works at the radio stations. From presenting music programs to celebrity interviews, providing commentaries, and storytelling, a radio jockey is required to keep their listeners entertained. If you have a good voice and communication skills par excellence, you can work your charm in this industry too.

Apart from picking the career option we have mentioned above, you can also become an Independent Business Consultant. Not only you can earn lakhs, but you can also work remotely! You can also get free access to Lifetime Membership, worth Rs 1.25 lakh. To know how you can become an IBC, click here https://www.badabusiness.com/ibc?ref_code=ArticlesLeads

Categories
Strategy

5 Tips Firms Should Follow for Hiring the Right Employee

Tips for Hiring the Right Employee| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Tips for Hiring the Right Employee| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

The success of any business is not only the responsibility of the owner or founder. Efficient and dedicated work of the entire team leads to the attainment of firm’s objective. Despite several bottlenecks such as low finance, stiff competition, unfavourable external environment among others, with the right team  a business can easily sail through tough situations. Therefore, it is important for the businesses hire the right person for the job.Women Entrepreneurship Cell Launched by Maharashtra Govt to Boost Female Engagement in Startups.

Hiring people is not an easy task. It involves a lot of time, money and resources. Reaching to the right set of employable candidates and choosing the person who fits the job as well as the business’ internal environment is always tricky. Here are some points firms should remember while hiring employees-

Financial Position of Enterprise

Before hiring new employees, it is important for the firm to have a sound financial position. The business should have enough free funds to provide for the new member on board. Hiring employees not only involves paying the salary, the firm is also responsible for employment taxes, worker’s compensation fees, additional insurance requirements among others.

Comprehensive Job Description

Another important thing while undertaking the hiring process is to make a comprehensive job description. It helps the business to determine duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. It helps to figure out right candidate and necessary skills for the job role and makes the hiring process more efficient. 3 Tips for Setting Better Business Goals for Employees.

Reach the Right Candidate

The firms also need to make sure that they are able to reach the right set of candidates. Businesses should list the opening at various online platforms, placement agencies, employment exchanges for reaching a wider base of potential employees. While listing the role, the firm should clarify various employments terms like whether they are looking for fresher, for experienced person, for part time or full time positions among others.

Carefully Examine the Applications

Once the firm receives applications from all the potential candidates, it should carefully screen all the profiles. Firms should choose the employee whose skill set matches the requirements of the firm or nearest to it. After shorting listing the application, candidates should be called in for aptitude tests and interviews, based on which the firms should pick the most deserving candidate.

Employee Orientation
The process of hiring an employee does not end with bringing the person on board. Once the person joins the firm as an employee, it is the responsibility of the employer to conduct proper orientation for her, so that she is able to understand and adapt the business environment of the organisation. The firm should also impart necessary training to the new employee wherever required.

Hiring new people is a lengthy and tiresome process. But if the right candidate is not picked up, the firm as well as its employees are likely to experience difficulties. While selecting a person, business should not only look at the academic or professional qualifications of the person but also ensure that the person’s attitude and thinking are in line with that of the organisation.

Categories
Finance

5 Smart Solutions to get your Small Business out-of-debt

debt free business

The experience of being in debt can be scary as well as overwhelming. However, most entrepreneurs begin their start-up by arranging funds through debt funding, equity funding, loans, or through other less formal sources like friends & family.

If managed smartly, borrowing funds can help you accomplish your goals. On the other hand, mismanaged small business debt can not only affect your financial wellbeing but can also cause mental stress, especially to small business owners that are worse affected due to the Covid-19 pandemic.


In a bid to rescue the small business owners, the Indian government had offered relief to MSMEs in the form of subordinated debts, collateral-free loans, and equity infusion through its Fund of Funds (FoF) scheme in 2020. This scheme proposes to purchase up to 15% growth capital in high-credit MSMEs.

If you have a well-thought financial plan, you can solve the cumbersome process of taking your business out of debt, just like others. Here is how you can chart your way out of debt:

  1. Take Stock of your Debts

The first step that will take you closer to managing your debt is to organize all the details of exactly what you owe. Make a list of your debts with EMIs, interest rates, and tenures. This will help you recognize the costliest debts.

  1. Settle Urgent & Costliest Debts First!

After sorting out your debts, pick the costliest one! Costly debts, if not paid on time, will extract the highest interest. This can drain your finances. Hence, settle your costliest debts on a priority basis.

  1. Plan Monthly Budget

One of the most vital debt management techniques is to have a monthly budget, planned! Make a list of your income & expenses while deciding your monthly budget. This will give you a window to think about ways to reduce your daily expenditure. Having details of monthly cash-flow can help you save money that you can use to clear your debt.

  1. Consolidate Loans

Sometimes keeping a track of all the loans can be difficult. If you have too many loans, consolidating them into one can be a good idea. This will leave you with just one EMI. Business loans, personal loans, and credit cards provide you with this option. It will remove various debts and leave you with just one loan to track.

  1. Protect yourself Against Economic Shocks

The future is uncertain and it is wise to protect yourself from uncertainties that you might be exposed to. E.g. a loss of a job could lead to delayed EMIs. So, to avoid such situations, create an emergency fund to help you sustain during a bad phase. Ideally, this fund should be 3-6 times more than your current monthly income.

Repaying loans is a moral, legal, and also a financial obligation. With smart and effective debt management strategies, you too can get your business out of debt. Learn how to manage your debt with the top-industry leaders from our Problem Solving Courses. To know more, click here: https://www.badabusiness.com/psc?ref_code=ArticlesLeads 

Categories
Technology

3 Technological Trends that will define the future!

tech trends

Hijacked by a pandemic that affected millions, 2020 has been quite a year. The world has experienced a lot of uncertainty and some of the most devastating moments.

But as every challenge brings an opportunity within itself, this global pandemic also brought impressive future technology trends. There have been leaps and bounds in innovation as the organizations are accelerating their initiatives at breakneck speed.

For better as well as for the worse, we can all agree that the past year will be memorable. As we all have entered 2021, here are 3 top future technology trends that are going to define the next normal:

Cloud Technology

Even before the COVID-19 could strike us, the ‘cloud technology’ had established its value. Be it a small business or giant companies, it provided scalability, agility, and enhanced cost efficiency across multiple industries.

According to a report by ‘business today’, the cloud computing industry is expected to grow from $371.4 billion in 2020 to $832.1 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 17.5%.

In the changed scenario, where employees are working from home, cloud technology has emerged as one of the future technology trends. This sudden shift in working habits has made cloud`s place an integral part of every enterprise.

Artificial Intelligence

With speech and image recognition, personal assistants in smartphones, navigation apps, ride-sharing apps, etc, Artificial Intelligence or AI, has already created a lot-of-buzz. However, this technology trend will remain one of the most popular future software technology. Due to the effects, AI has on how we live, work, play, and think, it will continue to evolve.

Machine Data Revolution

As consumer behavior has changed drastically, for the companies who are trying to keep up with this sudden shift, the stakes are high.

According to a Deloitte report, ‘the end-users have less and less patience for the kind of latency that legacy systems and data models often deliver. The optimum latency time between click and desired response is less than 50 milliseconds—any longer and users become irritated by the delay and make “executive decisions” themselves.’

Hence, to achieve the benefits of implying AI, data must be generated for machine consumption, and not humans, to increase their competitive advantage.

The year 2021 is going to be the year of constant learning, unlearning, and relearning with these tech trends that will grow exponentially. So what does this mean for you? It means you will have to stay abreast with these innovative future technology trends for a safe and better tomorrow. Make the most of today by upgrading yourself to mint the growing job opportunities or scale-up your business with these tech trends.

Learn some of the most effective strategies from leaders on the front line with our online business training courses. To know more visit https://www.badabusiness.com/psc?ref_code=ArticlesLeads

Categories
Startup

Women Entrepreneurship Cell Launched by Maharashtra Govt to Boost Female Engagement in Startups

Women Entrepreneurs in India (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

In a bid to give a major boost to women entrepreneurship in Maharashtra, the state government has announced of establishing of a woman entrepreneurship cell. The special cell that has been launched will work towards enhancing, guiding and training the female entrepreneurs in startups and different entrepreneurship-related sectors. The news was announced by Maharashtra Employment and Entrepreneurship Minister Nawab Malik. The cell is established to improve the innovation-driven entrepreneurship ecosystem in Maharashtra.

The Minister said that there will now be a “Girl-Student Entrepreneurship Club” at schools and universities levels. In these clubs, appropriate coaching will be given to college students who aspire to be budding entrepreneurs in their career. Further, it’ll additionally create incubators for women entrepreneurs and will help them in organising accelerated packages. The Minister further added that the monetary help might be supplied to start-ups established by these women entrepreneurs.

In December, the state government of Maharashtra decided to provide financial assistance to innovative startups which wish to file for patents. Malik had said that in the first phase of the scheme, 125 to 150 startups will be supported with financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. He said in order to survive in a competitive world, it is important for startups and early-stage entrepreneurs to protect their Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).