“Never go into business purely to make money. If that’s the motive you’re better off doing nothing.” Richard Branson
No business model is a sure-shot success. It is multifaceted and evolves rapidly. Every business needs to embrace a hell lot of changes. Copying someone’s idea or business model does not take us anywhere. What works for someone may not work for others. The first and frequent question every entrepreneur should ask is why am I into this business?
Well, having good hold in a specific area, Freedom and Independence are few answers but they are not enough. The first reason always should be I love it. Second, it should involve your creative instincts and expertise and third, business has to be for benefit of everyone involved and in that sense inclusive.
Pallavi Kharkar, founder and proprietor of IPRAM Intellectual Property services is one such entrepreneur who believes in employing the best skill one can in each project one handles.
Pallavi is a hard worker and meticulous in her approach. She is an industry veteran with over 19 years’ experience in Pharma and global IPR. Her aim is to turn the stumbling blocks of legal aspects into stepping stones for the businesses. Under her guidance, IPRAM has been offering the most innovative solutions and, it has never stopped experimenting for the same. Also, it emphasizes not only on resources but also on resourcefulness.
She believes in the following quote by Henry Ford.
“The man who will use his skill and constructive imagination to see how much he can give for a dollar, instead of how little he can give for a dollar, is bound to succeed.”
Pallavi says “It is comparatively easier to achieve success as an Individual and as a professional, but achieving success at an organizational level demands far more efforts and thinking. When clients approach an organization, they evaluate several factors such as trustworthiness, competence, competitiveness, consistency, delivery on time etc. and quite often the first project makes quite lasting impression for many”.
From Challenges to Opportunities through Core Values
When it comes to an organization, value of a founder shall become value of hundreds and thousands of people involved in business. That is why core values of any organization are so important. Dilution of core values often takes place when employees observe practices not in accordance with core values. Coining organization’s name around values has provided greatest strength to IPRAM’s core values.
The second challenge is sustainability. IBM Institute for Business Value recently conducted a survey in collaboration with Oxford Economics and noted that 90 % Indian start-ups fail within first 5 years. “This is very scary and demands sustainable business model” says Pallavi when Ipram is completing its 5 yrs in 2017.
Sustainability requires patience and perseverance. What we produce must have a market. It requires continuous evolution. In IP services, interacting with clients is very insightful to develop new areas of business. One should be able to think from their perspective, their needs. This is a key to long term business relationship and sustainability.
Another way to achieve sustainability is “Adding value” to your work. Values do not matter unless demonstrated. Adding value should become our identity. It is extremely satisfying when this core value is put to use.
Perseverance to achieve something and Consistency to maintain what you have achieved and then again perseverance to achieve something better continues. IPRAM just make themselves better and more resourceful. They believe that continuous evolution is always necessary and natural.
Consistency in providing service is yet another challenge. The quality of service should not depend on the person who provides service. Once you start providing quality service, clients get accustomed to receive insightful advice. Your repeat orders are the results of the quality with consistency. Employing appropriate resources can only do right justice to the project. At our end, it means training our resources to make them appropriate. Mentoring is one such value and you are never overinvested in training your people.
Ipram believes in contributing to IP awareness in society. Ipram is associated with many institutes and colleges for several IP training programs. This year alone 16 students from Government Law College, Mumbai have successfully completed Internship with Ipram. Ipram is approached by many individual innovators who passionately pursue their dreams to innovate and bring breakthrough products in market at an affordable cost. Ipram believes in “Reaching out” and caters to the IP needs of anyone from an individual to a corporate and become a part of their progress.
You may have all desired qualities in the world such as competence, consistency, perseverance, competitiveness, all such values would require just one leader to follow a proper direction which is Integrity. It is ultimate leader and it is a key value that shows you a path in every challenge you face. Integrity is who you are and that should not change just because circumstances become dire. Integrity and Perseverance are such integral parts of your character and if you just don’t give up, sooner or later something always clicks for everyone. Nothing is more inspiring than reading and knowing about great people and the difficulties they faced and overcame in their lives. IPRAM is all about its values. Their internal operating system is designed around these values which are Integrity, Perseverance, Reaching Out, Adding Value and Mentoring which stand as the pillars of IPRAM. So far, they are working on each of these values, they are never overinvested.
Keep Moving Forward
- Institutionalize your Expertise
Pallavi perceives current industry scenario as exotically hectic and it is practically impossible for any industry experts to work on every project. The key is to institutionalize your expertise in the system so that precision products are generated automatically. In a growing economy like India, as competency is on the verge, companies are enjoined to be cautious about the quality of products and services that they deliver if they wish to garner a good position in international markets.
- Innovative approach
Pallavi believes that there is no scarcity of innovation. People are already innovative, it is just that they need to be cautiously more innovative or direct their innovative minds in a focused way.
- Client Interaction is insightful
Client satisfaction is a key to business growth and sustainability. Repeat orders from existing clients and introduction to new clients by existing ones should happen effortlessly. We should strive to be the first and natural choice. Taking client’s feedback and implementing changes to cure our deficiencies is extremely vital. Delivery of projects on time, giving client sufficient time for calls and discussion is essential. Clients often do not come from IP background and we should be sensitive enough to this fact. A “Thank You” note from client is the best reward. Moreover, if you expect your team to deliver quality product and get good feedback, you have to lead by example.
- Growth is inclusive
Few of IPRAM’s clients have brought their innovative products into market and doing really well. There are many who will do so in next year or two. IPRAM has helped many clients to file their products outside India. They have extended support in crucial matters such as patent litigations and oppositions outside India.
Pallavi states the best benefits clients have gained from their services include:
- Awareness and respect for IP
- Willingness to innovate and protect IP
- Readiness to challenge weaker IP
- IP education