In many sectors, SMB owners play a hands-on role in daily operations, allowing them to maintain tight control. However, as these businesses scale, they often face principal-agent problems, leading to potential moral hazards. Some examples In the absence of the owner, salon employees might underreport foot traffic, affecting collections. Bar owners regularly
In certain sectors, SMBs have the advantage of navigating local regulations more easily, which can put larger, organized players at a disadvantage. Wholesale markets often operate in cramped, unsafe buildings, avoiding the higher costs associated with adhering to safety norms. Street vendors and small footpath shops typically avoid rental expenses, although they
A common startup pitch revolves around consolidating fragmented industries dominated by SMBs. The idea? Leverage economies of scale to grow faster and more profitably than standalone small businesses. While this strategy has seen success in sectors like medical labs, it’s been less effective in others, such as groceries, fashion retail, farming, and
🚀 Vivek embarked on a new journey at ABC Inc. as Group Product Manager. His prior stint was with a mature global firm with a very people-friendly culture. In contrast, ABC Inc. was known for its aggressive culture – long work hours, type A personalities etc. Within months, things started going south.
Fixed costs hit startups harder than anything else. Full-time engineers and office spaces, for instance – use up cash regardless of their utilization. This downturn is making founders acutely aware of this reality. Here’s a common scenario I have observed a few times: Founders realize that their idea isn’t gaining traction and
“Indians don’t want to pay for software”. I heard this from a few SaaS entrepreneurs serving the SMB market (especially ones focused on efficiency). They have either shut down or exited the Indian market. They allude to “cultural” reasons (cost-consciousness) as to why their products failed in this market. However, a detailed
On the face of it, B2B and B2C firms’ structures and processes appear completely divergent. When thinking about B2B, one visualizes large sales teams (in suits), dedicated account managers, conferences, customer meetings etc. In the B2C world, we think of scale, branding, mass marketing etc. The case for confusion: However, looking a
Creating visibility for yourself in an organisation goes hand in hand with building credibility (through impact, delivery etc). Many mid-level professionals wrongly believe that they can continue growing in their careers by positioning themselves as “sages” (high on credibility but low on visibility). The truth is that only very few roles allow
One of my mentees (a Senior PM in a large corporation) told me, “Venkat, I am particularly bad at evangelising myself within my firm. I do not do enough of it.” This is a common complaint many PMs have about themselves for not creating “visibility” for themselves or their work. Having known
Many leaders hesitate to let go of poorly performing team members even after giving them enough time to improve. Few postpone the decision indefinitely and live with the problem despite being fully aware that this affects their own performance and the team as a whole. Why do they do this? To avoid
