AIRA Consulting Private Limited is a Go-to-Market Consulting Company based in Mumbai India. True to our tagline Partners in Growth © we work with companies that are at the cusp of growth but need consulting assistance to get on to the growth trajectory.

Background:

The economic growth in India is unprecedented. India has emerged to be the fourth largest economy in the world in PPP terms and the tenth largest on nominal GDP. No economic report is complete without the mention of India as an economic powerhouse in the making. India is therefore at an interesting phase of growth, challenges and opportunities. This is enabling small companies to look for avenues for growth and professionals to disregard comfort of employment and plunge into the uncertain world of entrepreneurship through start ups. AIRA Consulting focuses on both these types of client segments where the hunger for growth is at its peak.

1. Small and Medium Enterprises (SME):

It is a well known fact that while there are many large companies with widespread visibility contributing to the growth image of India, there are also thousands of small and medium businesses that are driving the growth of the economy be it in engineering, auto, pharmaceuticals, and consumer products or in services.

There are over 13 million SMEs in India. Many of these SMEs enjoy growth rates in excess of large established companies. The importance of SMEs to the India success story cannot be overstated.

All SMEs typically start with the entrepreneurial zeal of one or a few persons with sound product, market and technical knowledge and a range of contacts in the targeted segments. With Venture capitalists, Private equity funds and growing liquidity with banks, financing is not very difficult for the right business model and entrepreneur credentials.

While the initial years of operations are relatively easier given the right contacts and knowledge base of products and markets, the scale up stage faces serious challenges. At this stage the SME is at an inflexion point. The company aims big. Yet there are constraining factors. The scaling up of the dream into a plan and conversion of a plan into reality requires resourcing and professional intervention. Financial resourcing is usually not a constraint given the track record of SMEs however every other resourcing becomes a challenge. Unlike large companies SMEs find it difficult to attract and retain seasoned professionals who can translate the vision of the SME founders into a plan and a plan into reality. In some cases compensation also becomes a constraint for candidates at senior management levels.

It is at this stage that SMEs can benefit from external professional assistance on a turnkey basis. While there is enough help available in the areas of finance and legal, key areas of intervention to spur growth viz. business strategy, marketing, sales, distribution and processes have very little. There are some professionals working in these areas, more as retainers or advisors, but consulting organizations that offer these services in an integrated fashion are very few. Fewer still are firms that not only consult but also guide and handhold SMEs during plan implementation.

It is this opportunity encompassing business strategy and planning to implementation that AIRA Consulting addresses and assists its clients to give shape to their ambitions.

2. Start ups:

By their very name, start ups are new organizations. India is going through a fundamental paradigm shift. It is common place today to find young management and engineering graduates to opt out of campus placement for the uncertain world of entrepreneurship. Increasingly many professionals, in an effort to leverage their skill sets, competencies and relationships built over years of professional career are moving out of well paying jobs to venture out on their own. With VCs willing to find and fund innovative business propositions, the will to start 'something new' has only grown stronger. The technology bust of the '90s has made VCs more discerning. Today apart from the business model, VCs want to know the leadership team, revenue drivers, growth plans, customer acquisition and retention strategies and business processes before they decide to invest. Even post the investment, today more than earlier, the VC, as part of the board, plays an active part in the ongoing business.

The problems of start ups are very similar to the ones faced by SMEs. Typically started by technology or domain specialists, the startup faces challenges in business strategy, marketing, people processes and sales and distribution (in a B2C environment). AIRA Consulting addresses these very needs.

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