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How start-ups can compete with MNCs for talent

Sanjay Swamy, CEO of mobile payments technology firm mChek has an interesting answeer to this question in an interview to pluGGd.in:

How do you think startups can compete with well-known players [like Y!/Google etc] when it comes to talent hunt? [sky-rocketing salary, better infra/brand name] - Do you really think Indian IT crowd is coming out of it's comfort zone and is ready to take a plunge?

If we are competing for the same talent, then one of us is making a mistake – because the talent that would naturally fit in a startup is a misfit in a big company, and vice versa. In a startup you need to have a disruptive mindset – in a big company you need to be creative but work within a relatively more rigid framework. Google is perhaps an exception to the rule to some extent. As far as being able to compete with such companies, from a talent perspective - I think ONLY startups can compete with such companies.


Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the Private Equity and Venture Capital ecosystem in India. View sample issues of Venture Intelligence India newsletters and reports.

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