Companies Need State And Corporate Leaders To Support Innovation

Innovation is vital for companies to be sustainable and to ensure they can stay competitive in the market. However, it will not be possible without the support of business and government leaders, experts said during a discussion.

Business founders and top executives taking part in a panel discussion at the event "India's National Competitiveness Forum and Porter Prize" agreed that the government must help the businesses trying to manufacture in India so that they can also sell in India alongside global heavyweights.

Amiee Aloi, associate VP of PhRMA, an organization based in Washington DC, represents pharmaceutical and bioscience companies. She said: "With the bio-pharmaceutical industry creating high-skilled, high-paying jobs, it has become a key sector promoted under Startup India and Make in India campaigns."

"India has the infrastructure to promote clinical research-based innovation, however when we surveyed business leaders across the world we learned government policies also matter. So Indian states must look at restructuring for conducive business environment, reward innovation and protect innovation to attract such investments."

Himanshu Jain, MD and VP for Indian subcontinent, Sealed Air, a company whose claim to fame is bubble wrap, explained the mission of the company.

"It’s reimagine key industries we serve. Damage reduction, product improvement in product packaging, food waste management, and public hygiene are key areas we do most of reimagining/innovating in."

He said: "Without innovation you can’t be competitive, lowest price model cannot be sustained forever. You cannot play on cost forever. Example is Nano car, it’s the cheapest car but never sold well."

He said the country lacks science-based innovative products in India and there is tremendous resistance to change from corporates.

Sanjiv Navangul, Managing Director, Janssen India, Johnson and Johnson India, said: "Everyone thinks we are a company with a baby on its ads. However we are more than that. No surgeon can cut open or sew up a patient without Johnson and Johnson products, we are the fastest growing pharmaceutical company in the world."

He said India cannot be competitive without healthcare investments. "Cardiovascular disease is a bigger drag on economy than poverty. Innovation is needed in our improper healthcare system as well."

Amitabh Thakur, CEO of Gamchha, said his company is trying to make "the world's best scarves" and his innovation journey was scattered over 2-3 years.

"I have set up the business in Bihar’s Bhagalpur, a tough place to set up business owing to backward view of commercial activities. Bihar used to have all the infrastructure required a few years back, factories, resources to develop silk everything, all gone kaput," he said.

Amiet Kharbanda, Managing Director, MyBox Technologies said his company is part of Hero Electronics and is the only local maker of set top boxes.

"I wouldn’t say we are very successful but we have made a mark in media compared to lots hardware importers in the industry. I hope whatever regime in power will continue to enable more entrepreneurship from youth who now are so focused on starting up and forget to be restricted by caste, hometown or education level."

Ashim Roy, CEO and cofounder of Uber Diagnostics, said Indian startups have more challenges compared to those in China due to the smaller market size and lower quality of manufacturing industry and very little government support.

"Although we started with the aim to be wholly made in India and sell to India we cannot stick with this strategy anymore. We will stop manufacturing in India and will move to Malaysia, we simply do not have enough support from government. Our sales are 30 per cent in India and, 70 per cent global. If we are to survive at all we are left no choice but to stop making India," he said.

"Everybody was talking about making in India, but nobody thought to create policies to buy in India," he said.

He said local startups cannot compete with more established players and foreign companies selling in India due to lack of promotion of buying from startups.