Why India’s Startups Demand A New Breed of Leaders

India has witnessed a seismic shift in its business landscape in the last decade. The rapid acceleration towards a digital-first economy is not just a trend, it’s a revolution that is fundamentally altering the way businesses operate. 

As India races towards a $1 Tn digital economy, startups are leading the charge in redefining industries, disrupting traditional business models and driving unprecedented innovation. 

This means, India’s digital economy is not a distant dream – it’s an imminent reality!

With over 900 Mn active internet users by 2025 and more than $150 Bn in startup funding since 2014, the growth momentum of Indian startups is undeniable. 

The Changing Rules Of The Game

Every company is on the road to becoming a tech-enabled and digital-first business. Even the largest corporations like Reliance Industries are embracing a digital-first approach. For context, digital and new commerce business verticals now contribute 18% to Reliance Retail’s revenue. 

In this landscape, startups will dominate every industry. In fact, we’re already seeing the battle lines being drawn:

• Ecommerce: Giants like Flipkart and Amazon with the startup DNA are constantly innovating to stay ahead, while legacy conglomerates like Reliance with Ajio and Tata with Tata Cliq are only playing catch up. 
• Quick Commerce: An entirely new business model has disrupted traditional retail to cater to the changing consumer behaviour in urban India. Zepto, Blinkit are prime examples. 
• Stock Brokerage: Startups like Zerodha and Groww are democratising trading, overtaking legacy players like ICICI Direct and Sharekhan.
• Platforms: Platforms like Ola, OYO and Paytm are disrupting old business models and creating new job opportunities.

The startup ecosystem in India is not just surviving, it’s thriving and outpacing traditional sectors at an unprecedented rate. Indian ecommerce led by Flipkart, Meesho and Nykaa is projected to grow at a CAGR of ~12% in the next 5 years while the traditional retail giants will see 7-8% annual growth.

The success of these startups is a testament to the changing rules of the game. 

In this new world, success isn’t determined by textbook knowledge or corporate ladder-climbing.

There Will Be Big Winners & Losers In The Digital Economy

The shift to a digital-first economy is not just a change in technology – it’s a change in mindset.

Up until a few years ago, hard skills used to be the differentiating factor for ambitious professionals, but not anymore. With the proliferation of AI and automation, skills have been commoditised, and professionals need a new edge to build a successful career. 

However, the unfortunate reality is that traditional business education is struggling to keep pace with this rapid change, leaving a critical gap in preparing leaders for the fast-paced digital world. 

The comfort of accreditation is leading to outdated curricula, especially in India’s management institutions. It’s painful to witness it in real-time. 

On the other side, the winners in this new world are the ones who not only strategise but also execute, manage diverse teams, and navigate the unique challenges of high-growth environments.

The Chilling Reality: The startup workforce, currently at 1.2 Mn, is expected to surge to 5 Mn by 2030. These numbers aren’t just statistics, they represent the future of work.

The consequences are clear – those who fail to adapt to the new world will be left behind, while those who embrace it will emerge as the new leaders in the digital age.

What Success Looks Like In The Digital Economy 

Picture yourself at the helm of a fast-growing startup – disrupting an industry, creating jobs, leaving a lasting impact and being an admired and respected leader. 🚀

Or imagine transforming a nascent idea into a million-dollar venture within a year. 🔥

This is not a fantasy. Situations like these happen every day in the startup ecosystem. And at the helm of these success stories are the high-impact startup leaders. 

What do these leaders achieve? (that you can as well)

🔥 Impact – They revolutionise industries and create groundbreaking solutions that change the lives of millions globally.

🔥 Job Creation – They create new high-paying jobs, fueling economic growth and providing opportunities to India’s budding talent. 

🔥 Personal Wealth – They own equity in a successful startup – the fastest way to build personal wealth.

🔥 Fame – They gain recognition as a visionary leader and become a respected authority in their domain.

🔥 Powerful Network – They build soft power through extensive networks of influential contacts including the who’s who of the startup world. 

Take for example, Ritesh Agarwal, founder of OYO. Ritesh is a college dropout who started Oravel (the original name before OYO) when he was 19. He learnt at the school of hard knocks and built a multi-billion dollar company in a decade, claiming the title of being the youngest billionaire in India at one point. 

Imagine if he had joined an MNC. 🤦 

Ritesh’s story is not unique in the startup world but rather emblematic of a broader trend where unconventional backgrounds are no longer seen as a disadvantage but as a unique strength.

There are many more examples of self-made leaders in the startup ecosystem from Vijay Shekhar Sharma of Paytm to Azhar Iqubal of Inshorts app.

And not so surprisingly, you’ll also find successful examples of corporate executives switching to startups:

• Prashanth Aluru of TMRW started his career with Meta and is now building a house of D2C brands.
• Harish Sivaramakrishnan, Head of Design at CRED has a unique journey of his own. A celebrated singer and lead vocalist of Agam band, he started his career with Adobe and then moved to Myntra to start his illustrious career in startups. 

But before any of these leaders entered the startup arena, they had to answer some critical questions, like: 

1. How will I deal with the constant pivot and uncertainty inherent in startups?
2. Am I equipped to adapt to market changes quickly?
3. How will I build and retain a top-tier team in a competitive market?
4. Am I equipped to manage the challenges of scaling operations while maintaining efficiency and quality?
5. How do I expand my product into new markets and geographies?
6. How do I balance short-term growth with long-term sustainability?

Today’s mid to senior-level professionals struggle with these questions. Because no one has formalised the systems and playbooks of startup leaders to learn from.

In the last two years of building Inc42 education, we have repeatedly heard the same concern from dozens of top startup leaders, albeit in different words…

“I’m constantly firefighting, I need people who can anticipate problems and come up with solutions proactively.”

– founder of a Unicorn.

“We’re on the verge of something big, but our team still lacks the sophistication needed to execute at this level.”

– founder of a Series B funded startup. 

“Even after 5 months, my managers aren’t able to transition from being an IC (individual contributor). There’s an insecurity that they’re not doing the ‘important’ work just because they’re not hands-on.”

– founder of a Series A startup. 

The concerns you hear in these conversations are indicative of the industry-wide lack of managerial and leadership talent that high-growth startups need. 

And this lack of high-calibre talent can derail India’s ambition to become a $1 Tn digital economy. Frankly, India needs to empower its startup workforce with new-age skills to build a new layer of leaders and operators who can effectively drive innovation and expansion. 

This is precisely the reason Inc42 is building ManagementX – a 6-month transformative program to turn ambitious professionals into high-impact startup leaders. 

Introducing ManagementX By Inc42

We start our career when we get our first job in product, marketing, engineering etc. From there, we try to grow to the VP/CXO roles or even launch our entrepreneurial journey. 

But to reach the top, every professional needs to successfully navigate two critical phases:

• Transitioning from Individual Contributor to being a Manager. 
• Levelling up from being a Manager to a Leader. 

The ones who don’t make it to the top fail at one of these two phases because they’re unable to level up. Or because they confuse Management with Leadership. Even though they’re two sides of the same coin, you can’t reach the top without both.

ManagementX is designed to overcome the obstacles in both these phases. And not only this…

Whether you’re aiming to accelerate your startup career, lead a high-growth startup, or launch your own venture, ManagementX is the launchpad for your ambitions.

We’re not just offering a program, we’re forging the startup leaders of tomorrow! And when we say ‘forge’, we really mean it.

Stay tuned as we unveil ManagementX over the next few days and how we’re plugging the growing leadership gap in India’s digital economy. 

Don’t want to wait? Explore ManagementX Website

Explore ManagementX