Mobile learning with over a million learners across the globe
EnableM (http://www.enablem.com ) is among India's fastest growing M learning company, a fact well validated by over a million learners across the globe. EnableM (EM) has 5 patents to its credit across integration of learning with wireless connectivity and works with partners like Pearson Education, Britannica, Onmobile, Nokia, Qualcomm, Vodafone, Airtel, Media Lab Asia, Aditya Birla Group etc. across devices, operators, channels, Government & Publishers. EM has deployments across 7 operators in India & works with the Nokia Life Tools, has a strong 3G lab for learning besides working with multiple corporate houses, skill development institutions & publishers for CUG training, blended solutions & more. In conversation with YourStory, serial entrepreneur Amit Zaveri talks about the journey so far and gives us an inside view of what it takes to create a high growth venture.
YourStory : What does EnableM stand for? Can you share your business model?
Amit : The business model is structured around enablement across the value chain in the learning eco-system. EM empowers publishers to manage and monetize not only digital assets but also make better the current physical channels. It seamlessly integrates these into various distribution channels like operators, devices and closed users group platforms and empowers the distribution chain with rich content, services and ideas. It furthers this by allowing end users to pay for the services through its monetization platform thus completing the cycle. In a nutshell, EnableM has a proprietary learning platform that allows publishers to design and publish mobile courses as well as monetize the same across various distribution channels. The platform is highly scalable and is supported by multiple partners across its integration.
EM also has 2 patents and 4 others filed across various areas of combing learning and wireless technology making it real competitive.YourStory : How did you fund the venture? Any plans of raising more money?
Amit : We self funded EnableM initially and then received capital from Artheon Ventures. Thereon we raised again a round from Pace Ventures. We are looking at funding, however largely from strategic partners and across players from either the telecom or education space.
YourStory: What differentiates EnableM and how do you plan to scale up?
Amit: EM has very strong partnerships and a well defined business structure, each of the areas it operates in, is backed by very large complementary partnerships be across content, development, distribution or monetization.
The key idea was to conceptually prove the business model and then scale it to size. In effect we have been highly successful in working out frameworks that work with respect to the end consumers across various segments. It is now about working closely with existing and new partners globally to multiply the opportunity into other geographies, consumer segments and form factors while keeping the research ongoing for a better learning experience for all.
YourStory: Tell us about your journey as an entrepreneur? Hardships, challenges and what keeps you buckled up to entrepreneurship?
Amit: I passed out of NMIMS in 2000 and started my first company Indbazaar.com which was among the top portal in the country. It was a funded venture which eventually succumbed to the dot com bust. It was a very rich learning experience that allowed us to feel the highs and see the lows.
In a business there are multiple challenges across various areas including capital, resources, finding great people, market acceptance etc. As a venture our larger challenge is to see the shift in mindset. Education in India and even globally is a very strong subject of debate and most decision makers in this area have firm views on the same. To move people from fixed cost to sachet pricing, from institution centric to learner centric solutions, from time and space based structures to anytime, anywhere frameworks etc. continues to be a challenge
Having said that, luckily we have been able to successfully demonstrate (through our deployments, primary research etc.) value to a lot of these stakeholders regarding the usage of a mobile platform for delivery. We have seen fantastic adoption with all our partners and with more interest shown by global players the future looks very promising.
YourStory : What would you say has been the biggest achievement of EnableM so far?
Amit : The biggest achievement is in terms of being able to pin-point what we wanted to achieve and being able to draw up a structured plan to be able to achieve that. I think a dedicated and committed team and some great partners have been instrumental in helping us realise our early goals.
The energy and drive of Amit Zaveri is hard to miss. He is pushing all the right buttons to propel his venture ahead. Ask him about what at the end drives him? Quick comes the reply from this young man, “the one thing that drives me and my colleagues is a strong vision of being able to find ways of marrying education to very rapidly changing mobile technology keeping the nuances of both intact, however the real high is in being able to bring ideas to market that can influence millions across the globe.” We at YourStory come out suitably charged up after this interview and hope to revisit the entrepreneur soon to get the adrenaline rush going. We wish him all the best and hope EnableM goes on to build a global benchmark in m learning.
