Sustainability, health, ecosystems: test your business creativity with Edition 161 of our weekly quiz!
This insightful feature from YourStory tests and strengthens your business acumen! Here are 5 questions to kick off this 161st quiz. Ready?
Lateral Sparks, the weekly quiz from YourStory, tests your domain knowledge, business acumen, and lateral thinking skills (see the previous edition here). In this 161st edition of the quiz, we present issues tackled by real-life entrepreneurs in their startup journeys.
What would you do if you were in their shoes? At the end of the quiz, you will find out what the entrepreneurs and innovators themselves actually did. Would you do things differently?
Check out YourStory’s Book Review section as well, with takeaways from over 355 titles on creativity and entrepreneurship, and our weekend PhotoSparks section on creativity in the arts.
Q1: Climate sector
The climate sector requires skilled people with passion. But there are many misunderstandings about this space, such as the need to take a pay cut. How can these issues be tackled while also proving job opportunities in climate space?
Q2: Tech opportunity
Market-leading technology and sustainable business models are key success factors for innovators in frontiers like GenAI. Investments in the form of patient capital also help. What else is required for a country to succeed in disruptive technologies?
Q3: Supply chain innovation
Supply chain innovation is crucial to improve performance across important parameters like customer satisfaction and profitability. How are startups succeeding in this space?
Q4: Pet health
Pet owners often face challenges during vet visits such as a lack of comprehensive data that can help with accurate diagnoses. This can lead to health issues and sudden illnesses. How can this information gap be tackled?
Q5: Bamboo products
In sustainability space, bamboo is being used to replace wood, cotton and plastic to make products like toothbrushes, combs, towels, and kitchen utensils. What are some other sectors where bamboo can make significant inroads?
Answers!
Congratulations on having come this far! But there’s more to come – answers to these five questions (below), as well as links to articles with more details on the entrepreneurs’ solutions. Happy reading, happy learning – and happy creating!
A1: Climate sector
Founded by Aastha Bharadwaj, Climate Hires is a climate-focused recruitment firm that helps job seekers who want to transition into the climate space. It also helps companies, including startups, to recruit talent in climate roles.
“Skills in finance, marketing, or communications are in high demand among climate-focused startups, but many people aren't aware of the opportunities—and they don't always have to take a pay cut,” Bharadwaj explains. Read more here about she has helped clients like Sentra.world, a B2B SaaS carbon accounting software company.
A2: Tech opportunity
“Collaboration between the tech industry, startups and high education institutions will help India's tech landscape evolve,” explains Sandeep Agarwal, MD & Global CTO, Visionet. But only 29% of Indian corporates actively engage in partnerships with startups and academic institutions.
“Startups bring fresh perspectives and disruptive ideas, while established companies provide resources, mentorship, and a platform for scalability,” he explains. Read more here about success factors for collaboration, such as a shared vision and establishment of trust through clear agreements.
A3: Supply chain innovation
“New-age companies like Indicold are revolutionising cold chain warehousing through advanced automated racking systems and more,” explains Ratna Mehta, CEO, Fundalogical Ventures. Players like Ofbusiness and Zetwerk have transformed how sourcing happens across the business value chain.
“While quick commerce has paved the way for quick 10-minute deliveries, it has opened up opportunities for new-age companies that enable same-day delivery to customers,” she adds. Read more here about how investors are funding early growth companies in the supply chain landscape.
A4: Pet health
VETiNSTANT, started by Vani Aiyer and Vivek Srinivas, connects pets, vets, and pet parents for timely diagnosis through non-invasive devices and a mobile app. For example, its Pets Administration and Workflow System (PAWS) digitises clinic management by automating payments, billing, and creation of notes.
The startup also offers a non-invasive pet health monitoring device called ExamD, which integrates with the VETiNSTANT tracker app. Read more here about how the startup has been incubated at IIT Madras Research Park Incubation Cell, and has received its first round of pre-revenue funding.
A5: Bamboo products
“We wanted to go beyond small, everyday products and think bigger. Bamboo has the potential to replace conventional materials in sectors like construction, where sustainability is critical,” explains Agni Mitra, who co-founded Amwoodo along with Sourav Dey and Avijit Rajak.
Amwoodo offers over 200 products in different categories, and is projected to generate a revenue of Rs 60 crore in 2024. Read more here about its hospitality partners, D2C brand clients, and collaborations with state governments to provide bamboo-based infrastructure solutions such as flooring, wall panels, and facades for airports.
YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).