Hang in there, brave founders. Funding winters, and Tech layoffs on one side. News of reckless kids driving their companies to the ground on the other.    A lot of heavy stuff is floating in the air, and on our minds. Before we get to them, let's blow off some steam, and imagine an acceleration of Karma, shall we?                                                          Karma at the speed of action - Scene 1 She had just completed an interrogation, and it had not gone as planned. Why did the....

Our previous blog focused on the qualities of successful people. Along with certain qualities, successful women also develop certain habits that help them in getting to their goals. This blog brings to you a list of certain habits that successful women have developed in themselves over time. You might be implementing a few, if not try a few to see the change in the success chart you draw for yourself. Set Clear Goals                                                                    You need to....

There is too much data, and nobody has time! Can technology be used to help decode this data and generate insights on the go? A micro insights platform- where you need it and when you need it.  Almost like an insights co-pilot!   These were the burning questions that Harsha Angeri and Nisha Dutt answered by founding decode’m.ai.  They were both driven by the passion to do something on their own and quit cushy jobs as CEOs to get started.    Harsha has a strong appreciation for technology with 6....

 With Diwali around the corner, it is time for festivities. It is the time when most employees seek to take time off so that they can spend it with their families. As an entrepreneur or a founder, while you might want to support your employees during this time, managing work and ensuring business continuity becomes critical.                                              ​​   Here are a few tips that can create an atmosphere of trust and transparency while allowing your employees a fair chance to....

How do we define success, it can be the result of achieving a norm we set for ourselves that can include the desire to reach a certain state of power or a rank, through attaining wealth or a position of importance. While these definitions may describe some people, women are constantly redefining what it means to be truly motivated and successful as women tend to define these terms based on their values, beliefs, and circumstances.   It seems that men and women can be in the same work scenario....

Homo Erectus stood up a couple of millions years ago, early sapiens started telling stories 70000 years ago, and an early version of the plow appeared 10000 years back. But it was only when we started producing 10-step listicles on Twitter on “How to be more Productive” that we truly reached the pinnacle of evolution.    Nothing against productivity. Or lists. Or you, if you are the type who likes to give Productivity gyaan and if you have deigned this article worthy of a read (it may not be....

As a startup founder, it is an exciting time when growth happens and the company starts expanding rapidly; especially after a long period of a lull when things simply seem to be quite steady with no major blips. Rapid growth means you are doing something right and a great validation for your products and services. But unplanned growth can be daunting and can bring with it a few challenges too - miscommunication, overworked employees, and chaos!    ​​                                             ....

No, this post is not about Diversity or representation for Women. Though that is what we at FlexiBees do for a living. We already know there is a vast amount of work to be done to level the field of work for Women, and we, together with others, are hard at work doing just that.    There is another kind of levelling that bothers me. And rather than sharing my advice, I will share some worries with you today. Because, as a fellow founder - you might be thinking about these too.   I was a textbook....

The greatest boost a growing economy can get is through more and more inclusion of women into the paid workforce. Women’s economic and financial inclusion in society narrows down the gender gap in any work culture and improves teamwork and productivity. The pandemic situation of 2020-2021 has paved the way for counting in more women into the workforce by providing work-from-home opportunities to them in different fields. This work-from-home opportunity is especially a boon for the women....

A healthy inflow and outflow of money tells us about the financial health of a company.    But as a start-up, we might have started off doing this manually, simply, by keeping a log in pen and paper, or on an excel sheet. This might work for a while, till you reach that point on your growth curve that demands the expertise of a Finance Manager. Or sometimes, even sooner, if number crunching is not your strength and starts to feel like a chore. Missing a few entries or thinking you can update it....

When it comes to flexible work models, organizations are often cautious and worried about opening that can of worms. Pre-pandemic, it was a pure play employee benefit that often masqueraded as a paid holiday. It was frowned upon and assumed that the employee was simply taking time off and not really being productive while opting for work-from-home.                                      But the pandemic has been a test case for us all. It has shown organizations that there could be tremendous....

When I became a people manager for the first time in a large MNC, we had a lot of specific training to go through. - in those sessions, there was quite a bit of emphasis on delegation. In fact most of our younger trainers (who had been managers themselves only a short while) said that this was one of their biggest challenges when they became managers, and one that they were still in the process of overcoming. Little did I know then, that this very key managerial skill will become extremely....

Motherhood confers upon a woman the responsibility of raising a child. This process also changes how she is perceived in society and at her workplace. Significant social and personal adjustments are necessary to cope with such a situation. A working mother, especially one who has the good fortune to be able to balance her home and work, enjoys the stimulation that a job or career provides. She develops the ability to raise a useful member of society and at the same time gains financial....

When you imagine business partners, you would imagine classmates from B Schools, or friends. Working with family can always be challenging. And we have seen numerous examples of siblings fighting and parting ways.    But busting this myth are the brothers, Neeraj Medirattaa and Anuuj Medirattaa who are the men behind Ace-Data.com.    They were both driven by the passion to do something on their own and we were pinning to start a business even while cushy job offers were coming their way.  ....

Most parents who work from home face extra challenges when trying to balance the demands of work and home life especially if their child isn’t at an age to go to school or during vacations when they are home. Though many parents have had a “one-off working-from-home day” when a kid is sick or the weather is bad, the reality of working remotely every single day alongside your kids would have been a “steep learning curve” for a lot of people.   Below are  five simple tips for implementing an....

Building new products and applications are exciting and hold the promise of a bright future. But it is an uphill battle. Even with the most appealing, consumer-centric idea that addresses the current need of the people, it will only work when you have the right team to support it.    Having said that, it is hard to find the kind of people you want for a start-up as you might have comparably less to offer a brilliant coder or a developer; as they might get picked up by bigger organizations with....

Preparing for an interview is just one facet of the returnship. The questions that haunt many women who look forward to returning post a break vary from how do I justify my break to why will a company hire me?   Mother’s Day week was celebrated by interacting with two mothers Pranoti Nayar and Ruchika who are successful career returnees themselves. Both these ladies gave us great insight into the aspects that become apprehensions in most women who wish to return to their professions and ways to....

Remote working is a way of life at FlexiBees. But that doesn’t mean we don’t like to meet! The pandemic sure did put its spanner in the works; but this year as soon as things started opening up, there we were, planning physical meets across the multiple cities that FlexiBees lives and works out of.   But what happens when you have 40+ folks (albeit in groups of 12-13) meeting for the first time? Many have joined recently, some that you may have worked with and know the faces of, some you know....

Think of sophisticated technologists and future-ready digital solutions.    We would usually imagine well-lit plush offices in metro cities. Engineers, developers and architects from premium institutions with impressive brand names on their resumes.    But what if there are pools of untapped talent in other parts of the country? From lesser own institutions, with almost no experience, but with promising potential?   Would you work with them?  Would you trust them to deliver the output you are....

Your Business Development Managers might boast of prestigious schools and great educational accolades. But is that enough?    While educational background and experience are markers of possible success in the field, there are some counterintuitive traits that can make certain BD Managers stand out from the crowd. In start-ups and small-sized organizations that tend to have leaner teams in the formative years, this one hire can make all the difference!    While all BD Managers must have great....

Returning to work after a career break can be a daunting task. This can lead to apprehensions in women who aspire to rebuild their careers post a break. Voicing their concerns gets difficult and their minds can be bogged down with queries like   “What if I cannot answer about the latest happenings in my field?”   “I may have forgotten many things about my work. I can never compete with today’s generation in my job search.”   This Mother’s Day, we got an opportunity to interact with two mothers....

A lot of information and research indicates that hiring processes are often biased and unfair. We are not always conscious of it and make snap judgments about people based on their race, age, sex or region of origin.    But this might be eliminating eligible and qualified candidates for the roles you are looking to fulfill.  So, how can you recognise your biases and reduce them in your hiring process?                                                                                              ....

As a student and early career professional, I was highly achievement-oriented. “Accumulation” and “Coming First” were critical themes around prizes, degrees, and accolades. I had developed and nurtured solid professional and breadwinner identities.   Before exploring other identities fully, motherhood became my most prominent role. A resultant career break caused gaping holes in my carefully crafted identity, and it felt like a rug had been pulled out from under me.                             ....

How much do you really know about the organizations or partners you work with?   With the advent of technology and information at your fingertips, one might think that they know enough.    But do you really?   It is easy to find information about funding, services or products an organization is offering. But figuring out financial information, like - how well a company is doing, what are their profits, what are their biggest expenses, etc. is privy to only a certain few, if at all.    Solving....

Content is the future.    High-quality content that can captivate your audience is key to the future of an organization’s  brand presence.    In this digital age, content is crucial to cut through the clutter and stand out. There are more than three million blogs published every day!    It plays a critical role in the marketing space and can result in business growth when done well. It is an effective way to create visibility for your business, enhance brand presence, and ultimately drive....

Hiring good talent is a battle, retaining them another one entirely.    Both have become increasingly fierce in today’s landscape where people with proven abilities and demonstrable skills are calling the shots.    How then do small and unfunded or relatively lower-funded businesses hire and retain good talent?    There is no easy answer, and it likely will be a collection of aspects, but in this article I will speak of what makes it work for us at FlexiBees.    Oh, and it does work for us. We....

Who comes to mind when you think of the economic growth drivers of our country?   It is usually the large conglomerates and the large companies.    But MSMEs contribute ~30% to our national GDP and India had 83 unicorns with a total valuation of $277.77 billion.    These sectors provide 60-70% of employment, provide 50% of worldwide GDP and generate as many as 90% of the businesses.    And providing these businesses with financial support is Kinara Capital, a fintech company driving financial....

Remote work is here to stay The writing is on the wall. Remote work is here to stay and will likely see an increase.    According to this article by the Times of India, 82% of respondents admitted that they prefer working from home to going back to the office.   Remote and work-from-home options were forced upon us by the pandemic. But the last two years have seen a drastic change in the habits, aspirations, preferences and comfort of the working class.    The pandemic has normalized remote....

How We Started Our origin story was built on the foundation of loss. Loss of professional identity, that I encountered in my own career break after motherhood. Which we saw mirrored in thousands of Women around us.    Unplanned career breaks, and even planned ones can severely hamper the sense of contribution a person feels, and takes for granted while working.                                                                                   Our Vision Our vision at FlexiBees has been to help....

Introduction While the way we work is evolving and going through drastic changes, the process of hiring has pretty much stayed stagnant.    When you think of interviews, you conjure up an image of a room of serious-looking panellists sitting across from you, ready to grill you about your skills, experiences and more! And this has become the accepted norm of the hiring process, and eligible candidates prepare endlessly to succeed in this process. Many recruitment experts have written books,....

Introduction It can be challenging for an entrepreneur or even a recruiter to hire a qualified digital marketer as they might not have deep expertise in that field, and it is a complex function to hire for. A Digital Marketing role could entail many different skills to increase an organisation's visibility and digital presence, and figuring out what you need is critical to the hiring process.    And if there is an urgency to fill the position, the process could be rushed more often than not,....

There comes a point in every founder’s life when the company is growing so fast that it becomes important to track different kinds of metrics, but is not big enough to be able to afford expensive software like Hubspot or even Zoho advanced and the likes, to do it well.   That’s when we use human ingenuity and good old excel sheets (or its google version). In some ways it’s better because you can customise it completely as per your business needs.   ....

Introduction Startups usually have to toggle between the uncomfortable space of ‘doing everything by myself’ and the time-consuming effort of hiring people. Most of them might start with the former only to find that they don’t have enough time to do everything that needs to be done or are heading for an early burnout!    In addition, startups and small businesses usually operate with tight budgets. They need to find creative and effective ways to hire the right people without wasting too much....

We have written and said a lot about working from home, remotely, etc. Of late, we hear this whole "work from anywhere" phrase used a lot, so much so that like WFH, WFA is also kinda ubiquitous. As somewhat of an aspirational nomad myself and a hardcore believer and practitioner of working from home, I felt it would be interesting to explore this, and hence, here is my take... It’s WFH, except Home ≠ same city as the office The more common (and some would say boring) flavour of WFA is one where....

Sales is the lifeline of any business.    But when you get down to hiring one, it seems almost impossible to find the person you are looking for. Even with numerous options, you seem to be at a loss. Maybe they are not driven, passionate, or from your industry or when they tick all the boxes, you cannot afford them!                        Why is that? Not everyone is cut out for sales. And finding the salespeople that fit your exact business requirement can be challenging. And this makes hiring....

How does one summarize a year?    This week alone has seen two submissions, a few conversation threads with journalists, and has a lecture - yes a true-blue academic delivery to flesh & blood students - lined up in the last lap. And this is over and above the BAU stuff.    So yes it has been interesting. I became an entrepreneur to push myself outside of my comfort zone, and this year has given us that bounty aplenty, and then some.  Coming of age If I have to use a Bollywood analogy, this year....

Introduction:  As an entrepreneur, there are many hats one has to wear. While an enterprise might be conceived with passion, running it and managing the many functions can be a different animal altogether.    And in the midst of managing a start-up, many issues crop up - be it managing people, sales cycles, managing the supply-demand or finance or cash flow. India has the third-largest ecosystem for startups, yet 80-90% of Indian startups fail within the first 5 years of their inception.  ....

Introduction As a business owner or an entrepreneur, you don’t want to hire the wrong person. Hiring wrong can cost more than just money - it drains energy, time and costs to the company; especially as you might need to find a replacement sooner than later.                                                                       Apart from the visible, tangible direct impact on functional performance, additionally, a bad hire can cause wastage of time, effort, energy, resources, and the....

Introduction  The last several months have been a tidal wave of resignations. Unexpectedly large numbers of people are choosing to walk out of their jobs to re-evaluate their options and priorities.    A record 4.3 million people resigned in August, up 242,000 from July, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).   This is the highest rate of unemployment the US has seen since the Great Depression.    The American psychologist Anthony Klotz has called it the “Great Resignation” — a....

Are you one of those who is tired of the whole extroverts vs. introverts and tips on how to do a wide variety of things if you are one or the other? If your answer is yes, then please bear with me as I am likely doing that exact same thing again. The only thing I can promise is that I will try and make it an easy read.   A little bit of context on why I am writing this, or rather some creds - Most people who know me would call me an extrovert and I have been working from home for the past 4+....

 At FlexiBees it is our vision to empower Women via part-time, and remote work. We have had the privilege to be the launchpad for many women seeking to return to work post a career break. Having been in this space for half a decade, we are now celebrating the rise of these women through Returnship Stories - our Live Chat on FlexiBees Instagram Handle.   Returning to work is never going to be easy, especially as one falls prey to the humdrum of life and forgets how working life can be. However,....

My husband and I are currently interviewing with schools for our kid’s admission, and in one of these interactions today, a panel of educators on the other end couldn’t stop praising the work I was doing at FlexiBees. On any given day, we speak with folks like ourselves or with folks paid to interact with the likes of us, and so appreciation isn’t so forthcoming.    Of course there are the occasional testimonials, that come from our clients and more heart-warmingly our talent, and we do take....

Graphic design is an important part of digital marketing. It is not just about including images or visuals in a marketing piece but engaging in the art of communication that requires a vision, creativity and a well-thought out plan to achieve a particular objective.    It also helps build the brand identity and creates awareness in the minds of the customers, thereby influencing their purchase decisions.    With this in the backdrop, these two industries have become inseparable in the recent....

Do you remember buying things that you didn't even know you wanted because the sales person was so persuasive & passionate?    Everyone remembers a good salesperson. They tend to make an impression. What this often means is that who is selling becomes very important.   Sales is the lifeline of any business. They have the power to make or break a company.And in the case of start-ups, having the right person selling can mean the difference between life and death for the company.    But as a....

When hiring talent for your organization, you would look for exceptional qualifications and skill sets and possibly look for alumni from premium institutions. And without a doubt, most of this population would be residents of bustling cities and metros. What happens to the young talent pool with high potential in tier 2 & tier 3 cities and towns? Where can they seek this kind of opportunity? Working towards generating livelihoods and deeply focusing on inclusivity is FiveS Digital, which was....

In the everyday grind of our jobs, when we toggle between doing, troubleshooting, fire dousing, at work and life, we sometimes take others for granted. Sometimes we forget to mention what an incredible job they have done or their impact on us, simply being themselves.    So, when our Content Manager Deepthi wanted to organize a “Gratitude Week” for our all-remote all-Women team members, we gladly accepted the opportunity.    And what an uplifting experience that ended up being for everyone,....

 The rise of social media is one of the biggest changes to the business world and consumer behaviour in the 21st century.   It has changed the way people consume information, make purchasing decisions and interact with each other.    Numbers don’t lie and today’s statistics show that an average person spends 145 minutes a day on social media. The average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide amounted to 145 minutes per day. That is more than 2 hours a day!    And two-thirds of....

With the pandemic still raging on and with the imminent danger of a third wave,  people are choosing to stay isolated and still working from home. While remote working is becoming the norm, everyone has been pushed to rely heavily on technology.  While many organizations are embracing this new way of working and incorporating flexible and hybrid models of working, it is time to become tech-savvy!  This is what Pragmatic Techsoft helps businesses with! Pragmatic is a global open source....

As business owners, we are always balancing budgets.    And frugality is a useful value in today’s times. This especially comes into the forefront while you’re planning to expand your business and hiring new members to add to your teams.    So it makes sense to question whether one needs to hire experienced talent and whether a fresher or near-fresher might be able to do the same job, at a lesser cost.    For some jobs, a fresher might do as well or even better. But there are some jobs where....

The last 10 months have been orbit shifting for us at FlexiBees. Having run a growing boot-strapped organisation for 3.5 years from our inception in 2017, when we got seed funded in Sept 2020, we thought we knew the rules of the game. We knew it would be more, more intense, more fast-paced, but essentially more of the same.    That last one turned out to be completely incorrect. Sure, in a few ways it was a simple copy-paste only over a bigger canvas, but in most ways it was not that simple.  ....

The pandemic has touched every aspect of our lives.    Everything as we know it has changed - our social lives, our work lives and simple routines that we once took for granted.    What does this mean for the future of hiring?  What are organizations looking for? How is the hiring process or policy changing?   Skills Become the New Currency With organizations cutting costs and looking to create leaner teams, there is an urgent need for employees to upskill and stay relevant.    Another emerging....

With the pandemic still raging on, everyone and everything is in flux.    Businesses are changing, the way we work is morphing, and people are being pushed to pivot and reinvent themselves. While fear and worry take the forefront, this is the time to go back to the drawing board, introspect and ask the big questions:    What kind of work-life do I want? What do I truly value? What do I want to create for myself?    Kavita Neelakantan, the founder of Kavyata, helps professionals answer these....

 When we think of pollutants or harmful substances in our environment, our minds can conjure up only the elements that are tangible - like murky water, smoky air or contaminated food.  Rarely do you think of other harmful components like UV rays or pesticides in our food, and harmful radiation from our devices and cellphone towers - these are easy to overlook as they are invisible to the naked eye!    Working towards one such cause is LiveSafe.   LiveSafe, founded by Neehar Rao, provides....

The ongoing pandemic is teaching us many lessons. And the most important one has been about taking care of ourselves and our health. It has brought the popular maxim, ‘Health is Wealth’ to life.  People are now concerned about their immunity, eating better, exercising regularly more than ever before. Based on these new criteria, consumers are also making different choices - they are more conscious about their food, want to opt for healthier options, choose more sustainable products and the....

Yesterday was International MSME Day, and while there is a lot said about start-ups, there isn’t nearly enough about MSMEs and the impact they have been creating since decades.   India has around 63 million MSMEs and growing at an average rate of 18% YoY, they contribute a whopping 30% to the national GDP. Their size, scale and impact cannot be overstated; they are responsible not just for economic growth but for social development and are key drivers in semi-urban and rural areas of the....

 Are you waiting for the government to take care of you? What is your responsibility as a citizen of this country? Would you like to see change but don't know where to begin?   This is the story of Prem Kumar who went on a journey to answer some of these questions. He had a cushy job in a European country, worked with global clients and was climbing up the corporate ladder. Life was comfortable. But when he visited India, he could not come to terms with the reality that stayed stagnant over....

The harsh reality of the number of Covid positive cases and the poor medical infrastructure is daunting and heart-breaking. But, as the old adage goes, the show must go on. And as entrepreneurs, founders and business owners, you need to find ways to keep your business afloat, teams’ morale high and ensure steady cash flows.   But you might be caught in the middle of various difficult circumstances.    You might be facing a situation where your teammates or their families are sick and you need....

Fear, worry and stress are normal responses to either a real or perceived threat. Throw in an element of uncertainty and it is a recipe for a heady mix of perpetual stress and anxiety. So it is quite normal and understandable that many people are experiencing fear in the context of the ongoing pandemic.    Added to the fear of contracting the virus, there are other factors that are affecting our mental well-being - temporary unemployment, loss of pay, homeschooling, lack of social interactions....

With the pandemic still raging on, people are choosing to stay isolated and still working from home. While remote working has many benefits like saving time on commute, better work-life balance, and more, there can be a few watch outs too:  Teams might be feeling disconnected, missing informal conversations and struggling with keeping the same tempo going as in a physical office; especially as no one expected this phase to last so long.    While many organizations are embracing this new way of....

When the 2nd wave of the Pandemic hit, apart from the severe physical toll it took, it quickly became evident that there would be a much harder toll - emotionally and mentally on everyone. The extent of uncertainty, fear, and confusion that the 2nd wave caused made everyday living impossible.    At FlexiBees, we realised that one way to help was to learn individual stories of how people were coping and then share them back for the larger community. The rationale being, we sometimes forget what....

While the pandemic has pushed health to the forefront, education has taken a back seat; especially with schools closing down and classes turning virtual. But continuing their education virtually is a privilege urban kids, with laptops, smartphones, and internet connections can afford.   What happens to rural households with no internet access? Children in government or local schools? With electricity connectivity issues? And with a mindset that girls don't really need education?   No surprises....

With the pandemic running amok, we are hearing tragic stories every day. While some struggle for basic amenities, others are worried about their loved ones.    Imagine being in another city or stuck in another country on the other side of the world with your parents or elders in India. With all the resources available, you might still feel guilty and inadequate as you are unable to be there in person to take care of them.    Hiring a domestic helper might not cut it, you need someone who....

Cash is at the heart of every business, whether borrowed or earned. The last year taught us to be more mindful of it, to save some in the bank for a rainy day and hopefully most of us are not caught unawares by the second wave of the pandemic.    But what about growth? How can we grow in this environment, while still keeping our balance sheets cash-light? We decided to put down a few things that we at FlexiBees are doing, and which we thought might help other businesses such as ours.  Continue....

With the pandemic still raging on and running amok in the country, it feels like we all know someone who is dealing with the virus unless we are dealing with it ourselves. The Covid-19 virus seems to have stretched its many tentacles to reach almost every household. Or so it feels.    Apart from the frontline medical warriors trying to save the nation, many small enterprises and individuals are making the effort to help people in their own way.    And we, at FlexiBees, want to honour and....

I have said it a few times before and I will say it again. I kinda lost my voice during the pandemic. Between my husband and I, with no help, two full-time jobs, and a very, erm, active toddler, the pressure of day-to-day living was so high, that I had no time for reflections, articulations, expostulations. But more than anything else, it was because every time I opened my mouth to speak about my life, I felt the prick of conscience. Of guilt, at being in the privileged position of having....

With the world growing at a breakneck speed and everything propelling forward with mass productions and easy distribution, products today may not always be good for the planet and not good for us too. But flashy marketing campaigns and attractive offers make us buy them nonetheless, without thinking about the consequences of the usage of these products - how does it affect the water? How does it affect our carbon footprint? How does it affect us?   Seeking the answers to these burning questions....

Recently when speaking with a couple of entrepreneurs, I realized the way we went from founder-led marketing to team-led marketing over the last 4 years, might be useful for others to know.    As a bootstrapped business for the longest time, everything has been a journey, an evolution. My memories of our early days are steeped in nostalgia. The three of us running around (umm, metaphorically) doing this and that and the other. From big discussions on ambition, growth and pitching to clients, to....

Named after one of the pivotal characters of Mahabharata, Vidura Capital aspires to stand true to its name - as the voice of reason and wisdom in the investment banking space. The team of Vidura Capital strives to embody the great advisor’s proficiency, sincerity,and trustworthiness.   Vidura Capital was founded in 2015 by Sameer AH after his experience with ICICI Securities for over 8 years. While with ICICI Securities, he worked on many large deals for corporate clients and honed his....

With the current pandemic still raging on, working as we know it is changing forever. Flexible working hours is the way forward and many organizations are looking forward to integrating flexible working models and/or hybrid teams into their current structures.    Though some might believe that it could be a fad, the numbers tell a different story.    According to a study by Upwork, by 2028, 73% of all departments will have remote workers and 76% of workers would be more willing to stay with....

I started out in finance, thriving in the academic rigour, and expertise-driven achievement that my early career days offered. Post MBA, I transitioned to roles that introduced me to the excitement and messiness of new business research and incubation, lost my professional identity during an unplanned career break, and subsequently became an entrepreneur.    Today, I am very grateful, to be playing my part in helping women reclaim their professional identities, via FlexiBees, a startup, I....

 Thinking about growth strategy? Or need an efficient business plan? Or do you want to increase your revenue while growing your profitability?    Arete has all the answers to your questions!    Arete is a homegrown boutique management and impact advisory firm that helps clients solve some of their most pressing business and organizational problems. And they work across multiple sectors including Healthcare, Education and Skills, Food and Agri and Consumer/Retail to name a few!    Arete was....

 An interesting phenomena we experienced while attempting to grow FlexiBees to the next level is that it is not simply a matter of adding more people who all do the same task 10x.    “What got you here won’t get you there”, the famous saying goes.    For product or service businesses, growth comes with many changes: increased technology adoption, different routes to customer acquisition, and organizational structure transitions being a few of those.    This last one is especially interesting....

India is known for its unity in diversity. We have different people, with different customs and belief systems. India has an undying relationship with religion. It is a land of mystics, wonder, and rich folklore. Every region has its own unique beliefs and customs. But the one common thread that ties the temples, the public ones as well as the private ones we have in our homes, is the distinct gold adorning and our love for it!    That is what Mantra Gold Coatings caters to - The beautiful....

I am in Kerala. Pregnant and baby mooning. Lying on the sundeck with a book in my lap, a drink in my hand, contemplating life and whatnot. But then the phone buzzes. Somebody I had reached out to a while ago with a business proposition is responding now and wants to speak.    I think, I look up and around, then back at my phone. But it’s no use. There is a chance of a snowball in hell that I won’t take that call. Meaning, I will take it.    I did take it. And it resulted in us getting one of....

If you have ever been stuck in a metro city traffic (and most of us have) delayed on your way to work, chances are you fantasized about working from home someday!    Enter the pandemic and your daydreams have literally come true! But you soon realise this is not everything you thought it would be! The reality doesn’t live up to your expectations!   While you are aching to go back to work to have an ‘ordinary day’, companies are deciding to make remote working a permanent part of their employee....

India is now the world's 5th largest economy in the world with a GDP of $2.87 trillion in 2019, more than 4% higher than in 2018. India's GDP has risen quickly in the past 25 years, leapfrogging France and the UK.    When thinking about the country’s GDP, we usually think of the bigger players in the market - the established companies and large corporations. But start-ups and MSMEs have a huge role in contributing to that number. Last year, at the convocation of IIT-Madras, Prime Minister....

After I quit my corporate job to co-found FlexiBees with two of my friends, the questions that I got asked most often, were ‘What made you take the plunge?’, ‘What was the final push?’, ‘How did you really really decide?’, ‘How did your pros and cons look?’, ‘What if you fail?’, ‘Will you regret this?'... you get the gist :)   This is an attempt to answer some of those questions, which plagued me, but also most importantly, plague all of us who want to jump off our reliably running high-speed....

The whole year of 2020, we have been witnessing and experiencing changes at a rapid pace - from brick-and-mortar offices to virtual workplaces that need only one desk in a corner of your home and a high internet connection.    As we step into 2021 with the hope of going back to our familiar normal, we may see some game-changing ideas and radical changes in the workplace and how companies work. The way we work might significantly look different in the next decade or two.    To help you imagine....

In continuation of our series “Women of Substance” to celebrate every Woman who Inspires, Leads and Paves her own path, we bring to you our next feature of Roomana Basha, Founder, Ekdali, a company that creates fun educational products for kids without technology.   From being an HR professional to following her passion and starting her on venture, read on to learn what makes Roomana a Woman of Substance...       1. What is the story behind your entrepreneurial journey?   I am an engineer and....

With the recent turn of events and the mandated push to work from home, many of us have adapted to the new normal and are powering through. Adults and children alike are cooped up in the safety of their homes with virtual classes and remote working models.    This was a huge pivotal moment, especially in the educational, self-learning and, upskilling space - as the pandemic has forced schools, universities, and companies to physically shut down and combine technology and learning to create....

In continuation of our series “Women of Substance” to celebrate every Woman who Inspires, Leads and Paves her own path, we bring to you our next feature of Avantika Kukreti, Head Brand and Alliances, Momspresso-India and Founder of Fit Moms Tribe India   Not one word, nor one skill can describe this versatile and talented mother fully. A champion at making significant transitions and becoming an expert at every new found career path she has paved for herself, read on to learn what makes....

  This month was Women Entrepreneurship day. To celebrate every Woman who Inspires, Leads and Paves her own path, we launched the “Women of Substance” series to showcase Women entrepreneurs and trend setters every alternate Thursday on FlexiBees’ social media platforms.    It was an inspiring beginning indeed with - Nikita Barmecha, co-founder, EcoRight Bags (https://www.ecorightbags.com/). Read on for excerpts of our chat with Nikita and to learn what makes her a Woman of Substance.   1. Tell....

Recently, FlexiBees had a tete-a-tete with Jefferies, a reputed diversified financial services company engaged in investment banking and capital markets, asset management, and direct investing. In their 'Feet on Street' edition, they interacted with us, at FlexiBees, to dig deep into Flexi Hiring -  An Opportunity for India. We spoke of trends, challenges, what it means for businesses, and what the short and long-term impact of the pandemic is likely to be.    We are honoured to have got the....

Getting people to collaborate, not just within their own teams but with cross-functional teams as well, is the single most important challenge that many organizations face. This, with the twist of the ‘new normal,’ amid this raging pandemic is a whole other ball game. Many organizations and employees who have never worked remotely before are now suddenly in the midst of it and grappling with its nuances. But, this model is here to stay as organizations are choosing to make remote working a....

Covid -19 has changed the world as we knew it.    The pandemic has disrupted nearly every routine in our day-to-day lives. The extent and duration of mandated lockdowns and home isolations have forced people to give up some of their most deeply ingrained habits—whether it is taking the kids to the park, going for a workout in the gym or travelling to work in a congested bus or train.   With unlocks being announced across the globe and offices slowly reopening, we are entering the world of many....

 Growing up in the 90s, some products were staples for surviving the sweltering summers of Chennai. Various brands of Glucose, juice mixes and other elixirs promised “instant energy” to those who returned home from the scorching sun.    I have often wondered if there could be such instant “elixirs” for mental and emotional wellbeing as well.    The startup journey cannot be described adequately in words, as many of you founders know. There is so much to be done, the times are hard, and we have....

Remote working is gaining a positive momentum for many reasons including increased productivity, lowered attrition rates, and happier employees. But something that is less talked about is how remote working actually levels the playing field for all employees by improving diversity and inclusion.    Though organizations might encourage neutral standpoints and inclusivity, human beings harbor conscious or unconscious biases that can sometimes cloud the judgement of individuals within an....

With the possible exception of the World Wars, very few events have had such radical impacts on the global workforce as the pandemic of Covid-19. Cities shut down, governments closed the borders and all travel stopped - for a while, it felt like we were all stuck geographically. The mandatory lockdowns forced organizations to pivot and restructure to enable employees to work remotely and to tap into new sources of consumer demand.    The pandemic pushed everyone to make an abrupt switch to....

Most people think marketing is primarily creativity. It is. It is creativity channelized: drawn, beaten and forged in an iron furnace to meet your specific needs.    Marketing does need a right-brained approach, that resonates with your consumer or her problem, an instinctive understanding of human psychology, and that leap of faith even when you know in your gut that a creative will work even when the tests say otherwise. But it also needs the science that can take its unbridled energy and....

You want your sales teams to achieve their targets and crush their quotas!    You were used to having your team and the hustle of chasing numbers in a packed office that reminded you of a war room!    With the advent of the pandemic and remote working staff, the whole dynamic has changed. And this might be the new normal with organizations opting to work remotely for the foreseeable future and possibly even after the pandemic.    And let’s face it, remote working is not a walk in the park,....

Gone are the days when offices would be filled with rows and rows of dusty files and endless trails of paper. Today, we are in the generation of digital and real-estate friendly ways of storing information! Millennium Business Machines can help you do exactly this! Go paperless and have all your documents handy with a click of a button!    MBM was founded in 1999  to provide state-of-the-art technology solutions in association with global technology majors. In the last 21 years since its....

As we all acclimate to the remote working environment, there are many of us who miss the hustle of the in-person interactions and can’t seem to imagine some activities remotely. This is more so true in functions that traditionally involve large group formats like training, town hall meetings, and onboarding! Quite a few organizations face the challenge of fitting processes such as hiring and onboarding new talent into an environment that is still new to them. With no physical contact and....

Managing an exceptionally cohesive team that works like a well-oiled machine is a major challenge for most organizations. With remote working and geographically distributed teams, this challenge takes on a new color. But with the change in the work environment post the pandemic, this model is quickly becoming the future of work.    There are many advantages to successfully building and managing a remote team - including - cost-effective, reduces overheads, and removes geographical barriers to....

Stay home, stay safe is the new normal. There was a time when you were sick, you felt safe enough to rush to the nearest hospital to seek medical help. You wouldn't be satisfied with a digital consultation or diagnosis. You wanted to meet a doctor in person. But post the pandemic, no one wants to venture out if they can avoid it - especially to a hospital! Today, digital healthcare is quickly being adapted by the medical fraternity as well as the patients. This is the need of the hour. And....

In today’s world, work culture, flexibility and the way employees are treated in a firm play a bigger role in determining attrition rates. According to a Glassdoor survey, 56% of employees find a good workplace culture to be more important than salary.   The culture is at the heart of any organization. When we hear the word culture, our minds go to the perks of the organization like a game room, happy hours and the likes. But culture is way beyond that. It embodies the company’s values, vision,....

I will cut to the chase. No point in introducing the pandemic and its many ominous credentials, it needs none.    Looking back from the tailend of July, it seems like this year has been at least a decade long. There was that quote from Lenin doing the rounds a while back, “There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen.” Yes, this, exactly.    But now that the unlocks have started, businesses are slowly but surely creaking back to life, and demand is beginning....

Owing to the pandemic, work-from-home has become the new normal. Every organization is grappling with the protocols, procedures and communication channels for existing employees and teams. But there is also a challenge of acquiring new talent and bringing them onboard as a few organizations are restructuring by choosing gig workers or remote employees while others are looking to hire new teams to support the growing demands of their industries.    A few industries such as Aviation, Travel &....

Card games, including poker, were once looked upon as a game of chance and luck. It would be considered gambling but today, the perception is changing. Poker in fact, is a game of skill. You can learn it, get better at it and even make a career out of it! Though it is relatively a new sport, poker is gaining popularity among Indians with the advent of the online platforms such as https://www.9stacks.com/   9stacks started in 2017 with online poker. Today, it offers other skill-based games like....

Nature seems to have thrown us a curveball with this pandemic.    Organizations and employers who once considered work from home, a benefit, are pushed to change their perspective and quickly adapt to the implementation and new challenges of having everyone working from home. But this is no routine work from home scenario. These are special circumstances with the lockdown.Then adding pressing work deadlines, domestic chores, and personal commitments to the mix, gives work from home a whole new....

Covid-19 has pushed everyone to try their hand at cooking. Whether you are a seasoned cook, who can artfully repurpose what’s in your pantry or a new cook who is still learning the ropes, everyone can be found spending more and more time in their kitchens. The numerous images and recipes shared on social media are a testament to that.    But what if you’re bored of your own cooking? Or if Work From Home s blurred the lines between work and home so much that you have no time left to cook? And....

Startups are celebrated because they succeed in spite of great odds. Imagine entering as a wild card candidate in a 100 metres race that has Usain Bolt no less, with both of your hands tied behind your back. Everyone, including your mother, thinks you have the chance of a snowball in hell; but this is no ordinary race and it ends with Mr Bolt looking at you in slow motion wonder, watching you pip him to the finish line by the blink of an eye.    This is daily life for a start-up: going against....

We may be juggling a lot of roles while at home during this lockdown, to manage cooking, household chores, and our kids. We can barely make even time to cook and make sure there is food on the table for all three meals.    But what about the evening hunger pang? What can we snack on? With having little time, we probably opt for the store-bought, packed snacks - quick and easy. While we sit at home, in front of our laptops (our children included), we are consuming more calories than we’re....

Imagine a happy family, you know the picture-perfect one you see on hallmark postcards. Now, imagine the dad gets sick with a chronic illness, that needs day-to-day care. The family is scampering around for information on how to help him and what therapies to consider. Of course, the internet is the place to look. It definitely has a lot of answers yet it also throws up a lot of questions! There are too many sources, opinions, and forms of medication and therapy suggested; and one doesn’t know....

Covid-19 changed the way most companies work. There was a time when working from home was considered a luxury but with the pandemic taking over the planet, it became a necessity and forced companies to adapt quickly. Though this transition had its own challenges, with the lockdown coming to an end, there is a new problem that has cropped up. Parts of teams are being called back into the office while others continue to work from home; to ensure the continuance of social distancing, only 20-30%....

Food makes the world go round – well, right after love! Most social media handles are choc-a-bloc with people turning chefs in this lockdown. But there are some who must be on their own or tired or looking for a break from the kitchen. So today FlexiBees decided to feature Authentic Food Stories, just for such occasions! The brainchild of Savy, an IIM Bangalore alumnus, AFS is a platform for home chefs to provide authentic, traditional and regional food!       Authentic Food Stories....

In our “Let us Help Each Other” series, today, FlexiBees features MAKERDEMY, a portal whose mission is to bring about a “maker revolution” in India through it’s online courses on maker technologies.Through this series FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to thrive in times of  COVID-19.      MAKERDEMY (https://makerdemy.com) is an online portal which offers courses on maker technologies like Internet of Things, 3D Printing, and Artificial Intelligence. The idea is to....

Looking for ways to build your network and gain traction in these difficult times especially on platforms like LinkedIn, then you need to read on!   Today, in our “Let Us Help Each Other” series FlexiBees features Saloni Mehta Company (ww.salonimehtaco.com) or SMC, which specializes in helping you effectively use LinkedIn to get leads, get hired and build your personal brand. Through this series FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to thrive in times of COVID-19.     ....

It is said extraordinary times require extraordinary responses. With COVID-19 forcing startups to think beyond the normal to survive, FlexiBees offers you talent hiring solutions that can help you smoothly tide over this crisis. Take a look at how flexible talent from FlexiBees has helped our clients.     FlexiBees has provided companies, both startups and established players, with part-time talent for many projects and roles; across a variety of functions & skill-sets like  Inside Sales,....

“What new skill have you learnt?” A lot of companies are asking their employees to gain new skills as they sit out the lockdown period. Though there a number of online resources to do so, today in the “Let Us Help Each Other” series, FlexiBees features Koach AI Technologies Private Limited, an AI conversational platform for skilling, built on the Science of Coaching.   As the fight against COVID-19 intensifies, and many start-ups and companies are trying to survive, FlexiBees aims to amplify....

Have you ever struggled to keep all your health records in one place? Or scrambled around to locate them when rushing to the hospital? Then this post is for you.   In these times when COVID-19 is challenging everyone, health has become the topmost priority. Having your and your family members health records handy has become essential. That is why today in our “Let Us Help Each Other” series we feature DRiefcase Health-tech Private Limited. We take a look at the initiative that they have taken....

Winning at Marketing while working remotely is likely not perceived to be as difficult as some other functions like Sales (you could go here for some ideas on winning at Sales in the era of remote working), but it has its challenges. Marketing is thought of as a function that is fuelled by face-to-face jamming sessions and late night bursts of creativity, and while there is some truth to that, marketing is a lot more than that. Also, one can find ways to recreate the creative high of jam....

With the COVID-19 Lockdown across the country, most people have been struggling with staying connected and engaging their children. In these times virtual meetups have taken a whole new meaning. Are you someone struggling to celebrate events due to the Lockdown? Then this post is for you.   Today, FlexiBees features Evibe.in (https://evibe.in) in our “Let us Help Each Other” series.     A one-stop platform to plan family celebrations like birthday, anniversaries and others. It takes care of all....

In our “Let us Help Each Other” series, today, FlexiBees features GoLivMo the “Amazon of activities,” an in-city e-commerce marketplace that efficiently connects Activity Creators with local users who are actively searching for fun and meaningful activities.    In difficult times supporting each other is the sure way to succeed. Through the Let us Help Each Other series FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to thrive in times of  COVID-19.      GoLivMo....

Next in our “Let us Help Each Other” series, FlexiBees features DealShare, a B2C and a B2B hyperlocal e-retail business, currently operational in cities like Jaipur, Mumbai, Kota, Ajmer, Sikar, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara. With COVID-19 a lot of businesses are trying to remain operational and sail through these tough times. Through this feature, FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to thrive in times of  COVID-19.      DealShare (dealshare.in) is an incredibly....

With the lockdown continuing and businesses and governments struggling to deal with the aftermath, start-ups are having to really put their thinking caps on to survive and thrive.    Today, in our “Let us Help Each Other” series, FlexiBees features Arsiare Consulting, an organisation that helps companies in cost optimization and process improvements to ensure growth in their profitability. Through this feature, FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups/ organisations are taking to....

Education technology space is growing at a rapid pace in India. Online education is perceived as a good option for complementing the education network in India. With an increase in the consumption of content online, it is fast becoming a popular option. Today, we interact with Suresh Avantsa, Founder and CEO of Aaraat (www.aaraat.com). Aaraat’s offerings include two products - a comprehensive learning management platform for delivering courses online, and an exclusive assessment platform that....

Continuing with our endeavor to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to survive and thrive in times of  COVID-19, today, in our series, “Let us Help Each Other,” FlexiBees features LogIQids.    LogIQids (www.logiqids.com) is an online platform designed to develop logical reasoning, critical thinking and problem-solving skills in kids from Sr KG to Class 9. Its gamified worksheets are educative and fun at the same time. The worksheets help enhance various critical skill-sets like....

  Today, in our series, “Let us Help Each Other,” FlexiBees features Qandle, a cloud-based, hire-to-retire HRMS platform. Through this feature, FlexiBees aims to amplify the initiatives start-ups are taking to make the best of the situation during COVID-19.    Qandle enables organisations to maintain their entire employee and company data in a single place while managing all tasks across the employee lifecycle seamlessly. Qandle places its focus on being mobile-first, with employee experience....

Does cold calling work?   If you are an entrepreneur or a Sales professional, then you would know that cold calling is the lifeblood of Sales, especially B2B Sales. While cold calling techniques have also gotten fancier over the last few decades, so much so that they are no longer recognisable as ‘cold’ calling, many small businesses today still operate using pristine cold calling techniques. They do relevant lead generation to the extent possible, create a list of contacts who fit their target....

The COVID crisis came out of the blue and has already made us change many things about how we lead our lives. Many of us, coming from backgrounds of some privilege, are learning to work with our hands for the first time, from the bountiful era of plenty where pretty much everything was available at a click, some of us are learning to ration for the first time. And of course our work, learning and consumption patterns are changing, transitioning from offline to online.     Businesses, startups,....

Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. It is times like these that separate the “wheat from the chaff.”    COVID-19 has tested the limits of humanity and its ingenuity. Businesses, including start-ups are facing the heat. But entrepreneurs are not ones to give up. Today, many startups are trying out new models, approaches, channels, etc, in order to tide over this situation. We at FlexiBees want to amplify their voices, showcase their work and initiatives so that it reaches as....

A year ago we would have laughed at the notion that we would be called upon to do the one thing that could save humanity from disaster: stay indoors and do nothing. On paper it sounds ridiculously easy, but the reality is far from it. Now, into our second week of lock-down in India, we know that only too well. Many of us are managing our homes, our kids and our work, and it can seem like there is no respite and what’s worse, even with these round-the-clock schedules, everything seems up in the....

With the Coronavirus threat hanging over all our heads, we hear that one of the things businesses are doing is to enable remote-working for their employees. It is actually a pretty good thing to do, ensures business continuity and employee safety.    Now we have some expertise in the area of remote working, as some of you might know. For those who don’t, we provide flexible i.e. part-time, project-based & remote-working talent to businesses; having done this for hundreds of engagements now, we....

Having worked in Sales and led sales teams for now half my career, there are some tricks I have developed that help me in the role. Still learning, Sales for me is the most interesting job in a company, not only do you get the business, you also work with the most kick-ass team of people who put themselves in the line of fire everyday.    As FlexiBees, we primarily work with startups, and we routinely see young folks working in Sales leadership roles for the first time. So here goes, some of my....

  Numbers don’t lie.    In this post I could talk about how truly we believe in giving our clients the best possible talent and models that unlocks growth for them, how madly we work to achieve that and how deeply we understand the problems that lack of good talent can cause for startups.    But this is not a truly madly deeply song.  And while hips don’t lie, lips can. So we will let the numbers do the talking here.      Any founder who says they don’t mind spending 40-50 hours spent hiring....

For most of us, especially men, shoes are a matter of utility, but Flatheads has decided to change all that, once and for all. With the millennials redefining how workplaces function and bringing casual wear to the forefront into the 9-5; Utkarsh and Ganesh have decided to take this trend on a new path, literally. With their latest venture, focusing on sneakers for men that can be worn to work and beyond, they are making sure the shoe is part of a man’s style statement.   With a growing team....

Shreya Prakash, together with her batchmates from IIM Bangalore, started FlexiBees, an organization with a vision to re-employ qualified women through flexible work opportunities. It was the unconditional love and support from her family, which enabled her, along with Deepa and Rashmi, to take FlexiBees to new heights.       "The thought had never crossed my mind that I could not be everything that I wanted to be. I was lucky to be raised by parents who, in fact, went out of their way to tell....

As the year draws to a close, one tends to reflect back on the various things it brought our way - moments of success, moments that taught us something, and those that left us spell-bound. Businesses do it too. Just a little differently, with many more charts, graphs, percentages and presentations.    And we at FlexiBees, have a surfeit of those these days. This was the year of data for us, delicious data, that changed us in some ways, fortified us in others, and became the foundation for a....

Lakshmi Soundarya Andra is working flexibly as a Digital Marketing Associate for a Learning Solutions Startup. Her family not only inspired her to get back to work, they provided a great support system to her, so that she could work without any worries.   "I live with a beautiful daughter, two lovely dogs and my cat that I adopted a couple of years ago. I was a single mother, but now am engaged to a wonderful man who's been super supportive of me at both work and otherwise, too. I am truly....

Hetal Patel is working flexibly as a Research Associate for a Stock Broking Company. Returning to work was not easy for her specially in the field of finance. The reason behind her successful return, is her family's constant support and encouragement.   "We live in a fast paced society, full of opportunities and challenges where people are finding it difficult to adequately fulfill their roles, both at home and at their workplace.  It is difficult to attain a balance in personal and....

Vaishnai Jai working flexibly as a content writer for a Financial Services company, calls her husband and her mom, her biggest pillars of support. They encouraged her to do her best, always, be at home or in her career and gave her a helping hand, whenever she was caught up with work.     My husband and mom are my biggest pillars of support. My husband was the one who initially encouraged me to give a try to getting back to work. More than the remuneration, he wanted me to feel proud of what....

Rashmi Nair, is working flexibly as HR Recruiter with a Digital Cataloging Startup. Her husband not only encouraged her, but also pushed her to do something for herself and accomplish her dreams.     "I am married & my in-laws stay with us. It's not always a rosy day everyday, but a bit of maturity, dash of empathy & loads of common sense help a lot in handling family ties! Our shifting to another far-off area in Bangalore, last debacle of a job along with my miscarriage made me stay away from....

Yesterday we spoke about how family support is so important in your returnship journey. Today we will talk about how you can go about ensuring you have your family’s resounding support.    From our experiences with 1000s of women, and witnessing and helping them on their journeys, here are some ways you can help get your family on your side:    Identify and make your needs known    The trick to helping your family see your perspective is no trick at all, it is to let them know what you want.....

  Often have we heard (and quoted) that behind every successful man, there is, apparently, a woman.    The reverse is equally true. Behind every successful and fulfilled woman, is her support system. Her husband, her parents, her in-laws, her friends - more recently, known as the village, the folks who provide succour to her on her tremendous journey by providing emotional and physical support. And that is why, as the next step to getting ready to return to work (here are the three steps to....

Anyone who has ever worked with creative professionals is aware of the challenges it brings; though you could argue that every professional eventually creates something.   In one organization, the moment you walk into the creative department, you could end up hearing strums of guitar music to people crowded around one system watching the latest animation videos or arguing endlessly, defending their idea. In another, you could end up in a complete silence zone, so the creative juices can flow.  ....

Smack-bang in the middle of the Internet revolution, no business today can afford to ignore Digital Marketing. While Digital Marketing can be seen as more of the same old marketing, simply on a new set of channels to reach your consumers, the truth is that it has changed the way marketing is done. For the simple reason that technology and internet access has changed the way consumers consume and interact with brands.    None of this will be news to a visionary entrepreneur, who more likely than....

Flexible work models and the Gig Economy are not new in the industry. However, what is new is the fact that more and more companies are choosing to hire flexible talent for their specialized needs. A recent news piece reported how 67 BSE 100 companies had hired 57% contract workers in FY19 as opposed to 54% last year. While there is much debate as to whether this is a healthy trend or if organizations are opting for this to cut costs, the reality is that this trend is here to stay.   More and....

How has Sales transformed in the last couple of decades    Gone are the days when Sales was all about knowing your own product and making sure your potential client knew it too, and in fact, was never able to forget it thanks to repeated follow-ups from you.    "Today is all about Solution Selling instead of Product Selling"   With an increase in service businesses, especially led out of software, it is important to know your potential client’s problems and offer your product as a solution that....

The season of lamps and lights, online sales and gift distributions is here. It is that time again when many employees either want to go home to be with their families or simply take time off to partake in the Diwali festivities.     If we were to ask what is the biggest challenge you, as a business owner or a manager leading a team face during this time, then handling multiple leave requests during festive season could be high on your list.   Handled incorrectly it can result in disgruntled....

Today we want to talk to our finance whizkids. Are you a finance professional looking to return to work in the near future? Want to know what skills are in vogue today? Read on.   Today morning we posted a blog about the broad finance space, where it is going and how to upskill yourself. Now let’s talk about what these skills are. Below are some of the ones that we come across on a regular basis. We will give you a very short teaser of each, and you can do your own research on them too.  ....

As a part of our Industry Expert series, meet Anshika Srivastava, Digital Marketing Manager, FlexiBees who is responsible for developing, implementing and managing marketing campaigns. She plays a major role in enhancing brand awareness within social media space as well as driving website traffic and acquiring new leads/clients.    Read on to learn how she has built her career as Digital Marketing professional while working from home.     1.     Tell us about your experience, and your role as a....

This month was HR month for us. That means that this month, we created messaging and communication around hiring HR talent via flexible models for your business. We realised a while ago that every function has its unique nuances that unlock differently, and if we want to create a world where nearly all roles can be carried out flexibly (flexi-time, part-time, remotely), then one approach is to do it function-first.              This has led us down a fascinating road, where we have to get into....

Content Marketing is all the rage, and rightly so.    With the roti-kapda-makan trifecta rapidly turning into roti-kapda-makan-internet, a phone and a data connection is all one needs to become a consumer. Of news, views, reviews, memes, polls, ads, articles, listicles, gifs, videos, etcetera - by no means an exhaustive list and every year, more get added to this mind-boggling array of formats and channels.    If you are a brand whose consumer is spending increasing amounts of time online, you....

Yes, but how Many of you will answer that question in the affirmative. Who doesn’t want good marketing, which not only creates  a unique voice for you, but also by creating awareness & visibility gets you business.   But isn’t marketing talent expensive? Yes. And rightly so. Branding, positioning, consumer insights mapping, all tried and tested concepts in the marketer’s toolbox, don’t come easily. It takes years of working with brands - doing research, deciding strategy, executing campaigns,....

Hello ladies,   Hope you liked what we put out this week i.e. tips & tricks on updating your social media profile, to land your dream job.   If you could not catch it, then go here to learn how to make the best use of LinkedIn to boost your profile, here to know what immediate actions to take on social media to catch the attention of recruiters, and here to read what our Industry practitioner, Illustrator and Graphic Designer par excellence, Debjani had to say about how to go about using Social....

In the second of our Industry Experts series, meet Debjani Bhattacharya, freelance Graphic Designer who works for several high growth businesses! Read on to learn how important “Social Media presence” is for her field, how she makes the best use of “Social tools” to showcase her work and source new work. Social media presence is important not only for Graphic roles, but all roles in general such as Marketing, Digital Marketing, Technology, Content Writing etc. If you are interested in making a....

Are you a techie looking to return to work in the near future? Want to know what skills are in vogue today? Read on.    Yesterday we spoke about the broad Technology space, where it is going and what skill-sets it needs. Today let’s talk about today’s skills. Below are some of the ones that we come across on a regular basis. We will give you a very short teaser of each, and you can do your own research on them too.   Front-end Developer: The skills/languages popular today are HTML, CSS,....

“Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.” - Carl Jung   That’s right, the objective of this step is to awaken your professional self - think about what you were before your career break and where you want to go after it. Think about the work you used to do, the skills you built while at it, whether you liked doing it or not. A second career can be the change in professional direction you wanted, so think about what you would like to do going forward - what skills you would like to....

Once you are ready to return to work or even half way there, start putting yourself out there via Social Media, especially LinkedIn. In our blogpost from yesterday, we speak on how to create a fantastic LinkedIn profile to land your dream job. Read it here. But once you have created that profile and presence, and are looking for jobs, know that LinkedIn provides a set of tools that can be put to great use to help you in your quest.   Some of those are -   1# Open to recruiters   Go to the....

If you have clicked on this article, you probably are aware of WHY you should use Social Media, especially LinkedIn, to attract recruiters when you are on the job hunt. But in case you are on the fence about it, do these statistics below help make up your mind?   2 mn job-seekers have landed a job via LinkedIn so far AND 89% of recruiters have hired someone via LinkedIn   So there you are. LinkedIn is used by at least 500 Mn people, and has around 10 Mn active job listings. Moreover, not only....

Shipra Sonthalia, Recruitment Head - FlexiBees, who along with her team owns the entire recruitment effort for FlexiBees, entailing hiring from across industries and functions. Read on to know what she has to say about her role, what techniques she uses to evaluate candidates, and the advice she has on writing eye-catching resumes for those of you who want to return to work.   And if reading this makes you want to apply to for a second career, apply to us today! (*details given below).   ....

  As part of our I-RISE series, we speak on the 5th step - E-update. The article below covers the very important aspect of updating one’s resume to get back to work.   **   Taking a career break is one of the most difficult decisions that women often have to make. On the one hand is the beautiful feeling of starting a family, but on the other, there is also the worry about the repercussions a career break would have in your professional life. And if the break needs to be extended, there is also....

Welcome to the last step of I-RISE, our 5-step plan to help you become technically ready to return to work. Now that you have gone through the first four steps, and hopefully feel more ready and confident, the big question is, how DO I get back?   Well, there is no one answer. You will have to repeat the first four steps; for example, networking yields results only over time, so if you started getting back in touch with your industry colleagues as per Step 3 - Interact, it will take more than....

Of course you do.   Now here is another interesting question: is there such a thing as a part-time Investment Banker?   Yes.   Well, we were surprised too. When we got our first requirement, for a part-time Investment & Research Associate, we worked hard to fulfil it (and we did; it was a roaring success and the client not only extended the association to a more permanent one, but also recommended us to a bunch of other similar firms). When we got our second such requirement for an Investment....

This week we have been speaking about the Human Resources profession, trends, skills needed, which you can read here and here. Today we will be talking about how one must go about brushing up one’s skills in HR. And if you are already there, and want to start exploring what your second career holds for you, wait no further, and start applying today.   Ways to brush-up skills in Human Resources   Become Active on LinkedIn: While understanding how to use social media as a whole is a desirable....

Human Resources is a vast field with many different specialisations and facets. Yesterday we spoke about some of the trends in this space, which you can read here. If you were an HR professional before your career break and are looking for a way to re-enter, these below are some of the skills you could brush up on. But like we always say, don’t wait for perfection, but attain it on-the-job. So start applying today to get into the groove and back into the game.   1) Enhance your Digital....

After covering skilling for Marketing, Digital Marketing, Finance, Technology, Sales, Content, Graphic, this week we will talk about yet another function that many of you might be interested in - Human Resources.   While we will speak this week about the new things happening in this space, skills of today and the future, our sincere recommendation is that you don’t spend time perfecting these new skills, since that could take time and you would be losing out on precious on-the-job experience.....

Introducing the first of our Industry Experts, Merril Diniz, Head of Communications - SHEROES, and Writer at Heart! Read on to know what she has to say about her role, what keeps her going, and the advice she has for those of you who want to make a career in Content & Communications. And if reading this makes you want to make a second career in the field of Content & Communications, apply to us today! (*details given below).   *********   1. Tell us what your role at Sheroes is, and what are....

Yesterday we asked you Are you a Graphic Designer? Read on to know what new is happening in this area and promised to come back with tips to help you navigate these waters.   So here we are. So if you have always been the artistic type, used to walk around with a sketch pad when you were younger, and have a keen eye for color and detailing, then Graphic Design might well be the profession for you. Here is how you could brush up your skills.   How should you skill-up for a thriving career in....

Last week we started talking about Content - trends, skilling, examples, myths - about the various facets of Content i.e. Content Development, Creation, Strategy, Management and Writing. Why did we speak about it in detail? Because Content today is the most universal components of all businesses - whether you are a start-up trying to generate demand for your product, or an MNC wanting to engage in Influencer Marketing, Content is critical to both of these.   This week we will talk about yet....

Content today is one of the most universal components of all businesses, whether for a start-up trying to generate demand for their product, or an MNC wanting to engage in Influencer Marketing, Content is critical to both of these. Content Writers are crucial to businesses today, and if you want to make your second career as a Content Writer, then these below are some of the skills you need   1# Research A lot of business writing today is done to help potential customers get acquainted with,....

Yesterday we spoke about the 5 trends that had changed the world of Content and promised to come back with tips to help you navigate these waters. So here we are. If Content is what interests you, and you have a flair for it, then read on to know how you could brush up your skills.   How should you skill-up for a thriving career in Content   This week we are speaking largely about Content Strategists, Managers and Writers. We will come to Graphic and Video artists next week. So here are some....

A quick refresher, we have been talking about the I-RISE plan since the past few weeks. I-RISE is your roadmap to Technical Readiness for Returnship and to know about it, go here. As part of the 4th step, Skill-up, this week we shall talk about Content, Content Development, Creation, Strategy, Management and everything to do with it, in some detail. Content is one of the most sought after skill-sets in this new economy, and if you plan to continue or start your second career in Content, read....

“Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise.” - Maya Angelou   I rise, you rise, we all rise when women achieve their dreams. Technical Readiness is a big part of achieving that dream, of ensuring you become fighting fit. No wonder then that our 5-step plan to attain technical readiness is called I-RISE.   I is for Introspect: Look within, gauge your skills, talents, likes & dislikes R is for Research: Look around, see what new....

An extended maternity break and her mother’s diagnosis of terminal illness, led Deepa Narayanaswamy, co-founder FlexiBees, to quit her full-time career. Later, when she was ready to get back into the workforce, she realized that there were limited opportunities for qualified women who wanted to return to their careers on a flexible basis. It was this lack of meaningful flexible opportunities that led Deepa and her batchmates from IIM Bangalore, Rashmi Rammohan and Shreya Prakash to set up....

One of the things that Akshatha’s son is the proudest about is the fact that she is a former Air Force officer.   Akshatha is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) who is currently working as a freelance content writer. One of the things that her 10 year old son, Saksham is the proudest about is the fact that she is a former Air Force officer. Though Akshatha had completed her tenure at the Indian Air Force much before Saksham was born, he is still very curious about it. “Saksham keeps asking me....

Motherhood was what prompted Nithya Kalyani, a Post Graduate in Mass Communication to quit her job and opt for a work-from-home profile, instead. However, Nithya also credits motherhood and all its accompanying ups and downs, for helping her become a stronger person. The mother of two - eight-year-old daughter Harshita and four-year-old son Harshavardhan - has carried forward her own mother’s strong will and determination to never give up, and hopes to pass it on to her children.   The mother....

A hands-on mother, wife, a dutiful daughter, a foodie and a passionate recruitment manager, Akshatha Padar wears many hats on any given day. Akshatha’s life has become even more beautiful over the past five years, since her daughter, Ishana, was born. “My proudest moment was when I first held Ishana in my arms and she was able to make out my voice and touch. She would stop crying the moment I would hold her. This journey has taught me so much - to appreciate the little things in life and the....

Sayantika Adak, who describes herself as a ‘stay-at-home-full-time-working mom,’ has handled many profiles across industries, but the one she enjoys the most is being the mother of five-year-old Tishaam, aka Pickle. And, while quitting her job was never in the pipeline, the happiness that she derived from being around her tiny bundle of joy, the fact that her husband's job required him to be away for more than half a year and the dearth of good opportunities in the city she lives in, made the....

First of all, you might ask, what does flexible Sales talent mean?   Well, it means on-demand sales talent, that works with you in a flexible approach - could be part-time or fully/partly work-from-home or both, with very clear deliverables and incentives that are linked to those deliverables.   Now some of the benefits of this model are clear; of course, clear deliverables, and KPI linked incentives will drive performance, and every business needs that. But what may not be as clear is the....

We have spent the last few weeks now talking about trends and skilling in functions like Marketing, Digital Marketing, Finance, Technology. Now for the most interesting of them all, Sales/Business Development.   One might think, what could possibly have changed in Sales? Once a good salesperson, always a good salesperson. Isn’t that true? Well, that is true, Sales people never really lose their gift. But in order to compete well in the hyper-competitive world of Sales, they do need to freshen....

Technology changes every 2-3 years if not sooner. The good news is that today we have a pretty fair idea of what the next 2-3 decades hold for us in terms of the broad areas that will lead the change. So if you plan to be a part of this industry for the next 2-3 decades, you need to understand what these areas are, and how to prepare yourself for it.   But before we begin to get into tomorrow, let’s talk about today. As a person aspiring to return to work after a career break, to get back in....

A few days ago we spoke of the ways to kickstart your upskilling journey for marketing and digital marketing. You can find the article here. Today we are going to talk about Finance and how you can upskill yourself for the new-age Finance industry.   What skills does the finance industry comprise Few functions are as diverse as finance, with a wide variety of sub-skills and specialisations. In fact, it can be seen as a matrix of hard skills and industry segments. Hard skills like Accounting,....

Last week, we spoke about the need for skilling, and followed that up with starter resources on how to know which skills are relevant for you. You can read this article here. This week we are going to break it down into different functions, and also touch upon how to go about acquiring these skills.   Why Marketing needs skilling-up? This time our subject is Marketing, which is nothing but the science to creating and communicating products and ideas to your consumers. The consumer of today is....

Never has the need for skilling been more acute. Technologies are changing every 2-3 years, which is disrupting not just the way we work, but entire business models. Companies such as Uber, Swiggy, Amazon, PayTM, Google, Facebook, Tinder, are changing the way we travel, eat, shop, pay, read, socialise, date and much more. These and other tech breakthroughs have given birth to a host of new functions, job roles, industries and sub-industries.   In fact the need for reskilling applies to people....

Getting back into the work think mode means refreshing your connections and going out and conversing with more people. This is Interact : the third step of ‘I RISE’, the 5-Step plan to Technical Readiness. It is one of the most crucial phases of your journey, and entails reaching out to people - your bosses, your peers, work colleagues and acquaintances, and start connecting with them in general or even on work specific topics. It’s a great way for you to accelerate the building of your body of....

  This husband-wife team have pooled in their individual, yet complementary, skill-sets, talents and strengths to take their experiential event management company, Seventeen Events, to where it is today. Seventeen Events provides unique experiences in every event they conduct, and helping them in this endeavor is FlexiBees consultant Ruchi Jain who has been working with the company as a Business Development professional for the past ~1.5 years as an integral part of the team.   In a....

A crucial part of the Returnship Journey is Readiness, and a huge aspect of Readiness is Technical Readiness. Technical Readiness has many facets but they can all be summarised in one word: I-RISE. That’s right, I-RISE means Introspect, Research, Interact, Skill-up and (E-)Update. Today we are here to speak about the second step i.e. Research - why it is important and how to go about it.   The first step i.e. Introspection connected us back to our professional selves. You will see that simply....

FlexiBees now has a thriving community on multiple social platforms. Last week’s Live chat with our co-founder Deepa N Swamy, on one such platform, was all about Readiness to Return. Many of you came with questions around those, around skilling in particular. So we thought it was worth diving deep into, to bring forth the different facets of Readiness to keep in mind before actively starting to look out.   “Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the....

Transcript of Live Chat on How to be Ready to Return to Work (answered by Deepa N Swamy on 14th March 2019 online in the thriving FlexiBees community within Sheroes App)   Q: 3 years back I left my job and moved to Indonesia post marriage. Since then I took up freelance content writing. But it was a makeshift arrangement. I now want to shift to traditional marketing again. Can I do so by working remotely from Indonesia? Are there companies that entertain in such a situation?   A: First of all,....

Yesterday we conducted our first Live Session - a community chat - on Sheroes on ‘How to be Ready to Return to Work’, and it was an amazing experience. We loved interacting with you and feel enriched for having the conversations that your questions sparked. This below summary is our way to close the loop on the chat, but also a way to open a door for more such conversations that we will start very soon.   “One big reason for falling out of confidence is once out of work, we are also out of the....

“Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them” - Anonymous Last week was amazing for us - in the process of bringing examples of women to you who had achieved success in their returnship journeys, we got inspired ourselves. The idea we started with was to showcase the successful journeys of these women, but also to highlight the different paths they took across diverse functions and skill-sets to reach that destination. And that is the whole point of flexibility....

Mumbai-based Bansi Mehta’s story mirrors that of many other women. Armed with a Management degree in Sales and Marketing, Bansi was working with a credit rating company when she had to take a break after her baby was born. This break stretched on for eight years, as Bansi stayed home to be a part of her growing child’s world. “While I tried to continue with the company on a part time basis, it did not work out as the profile needed me to travel around. With little support at home, I could not....

Pune-based Management graduate and mother of two children, Franky Aggarwal has had a vast career and experience of over 14 years spanning multiple domains such as banking, telecom, technology, edu-tech and the hygiene and health industry, where she currently works as a marketing consultant. In telecom, Franky worked with two leading companies which saw her grow professionally and earn numerous awards and accolades. The birth of her second child, however, put a break on her career. “Both my....

Life had taken Shipra Sonthalia, Recruitment Lead with FlexiBees, through a number of different roles before landing the profile that was her calling – Human Resources Management. After her marriage, Shipra took an almost seven-year break from corporate professional life. “Over the years, I dabbled in a few things, which included a business selling decoupage products, when my daughter was a year old.”   While this fueled the creative side of Shipra, it did not satisfy her professionally and she....

Securing a fully-funded PhD position in Life Sciences from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, was not a challenge for the studious Dr Shruti Sharma. Armed with the PhD and a Post-doctorate fellowship in cancer biology, Shruti returned to India and over time, found a job as a Research Associate, where she discovered her passion for teaching and discussing science with her students.   However, as is the case with many working women, after her baby was born, Shruti took a career break. “My....

A woman has the most challenging role of all – as a mother she has to ensure that she is there for her family, supporting and nourishing it. As a professional, she needs to break the glass ceiling that she is often faced with. Life becomes a balancing act, emotionally and physically exhausting – and this often causes many women to quit the rat race.   However, you don’t always need to sacrifice one for the other- and that is something that Mohua Das, FexiBees consultant with a leading edu-tech....

FlexiBees now has a thriving community on multiple social platforms, and this week we are talking about the Returnship journey. This post below is an encapsulation of this week’s conversation, with the journey fleshed out. Read on.   The Returnship Journey   Returnship or returning to work after a career break, is no easy thing. It takes courage, some know-how of where to start, and loads of support along the way.   It is a return to the jungle you were once familiar with, that now seems....

FlexiBees now has a thriving community on multiple social platforms, and we recently published a series of polls to create awareness of the different aspects of flexibility in work. This post below is a continuation of that effort, with insights from the poll responses embedded in it. Read on.   Flexibility is the solution, it’s a revolution   Over the last couple of weeks, we have come to know you a little. And we daresay, you might have come to know us a bit too. We like to bust myths for....

Recap: Recently, FlexiBees partnered with Transformance Forums to organise a summit discussing the Future of the Workplace. The people attending were leadership from Human Resources, Transformation and Digital Teams of top organisations - all with keen interest and stake in kitting their organisations with new ways of working. The whole day was packed with insights, and my one strong take-away was that leaders across organisations are thinking about how to prepare themselves for what is to....

Throughout my career, I have been a business person - Sales, Marketing, Communications, Branding - believing these to be crucial to the growth of any organisation. But now, after having been immersed in the world of talent solutions for two intense years, I am happy to say my horizons have broadened (a big draw of being an entrepreneur by the way) and I cannot emphasise enough the role that Human Resources plays or can play along various aspects of what makes organisations tick. Especially....

As a small business trying to grow, my biggest learning over the last two years has been that there is no one big lever to making a company successful. It needs good direction, great talent, quick execution, the right partnerships, steady clients, some funding, and that magical something that is vision or passion or purpose that breathes life into it. Oh, and luck.   Phew!! Is quite a list.   But today, poised at the edge of the rollercoaster that 2019 is likely to be, let me make your day - by....

The world is going through one of the most significant periods of disruption, ever. In fact, the pace of change is so rapid that, as American inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil had predicted at the start of the millennium, the next 100 years will experience 20,000 years of relative technological change. With digitisation, and artificial intelligence taking over the world, it is also shaping the way we work.   The world of work has been going through changes at a break-neck speed. When....

According to findings released by multinational staffing firm ManPower Group in June, this year, global talent shortage is at a 12-year high - out of almost 40,000 employers surveyed globally, nearly 45 per cent are struggling to fill in roles. The Talent Shortage survey also reveals that India is among the top 10 most affected markets in the world, with 56 per cent of employers facing difficulties in filling positions.   However, juxtaposed with these findings is also the fact that India has....

In today’s dynamic world of work, the flexibility to expand or contract your team based on the demands of the business, is one that is highly beneficial. This is where contingency hiring, also known as project-based or short-term hiring, helps. Here you recruit talent on a per-project basis, with the understanding that the relationship does not extend beyond the duration of the project, unless you wish for it to continue. This ensures that you are able to get your work done professionally and....

Companies today –  startups, SMEs, and large organisations - are all hungry for growth and looking for new ways to hire high potential talent. At the same time, the gig economy, a phenomenon which is also known as the ‘Uberisation of the workforce,’ is slowly becoming a reality around the world. This means that forward-looking companies are now going beyond the standard full time 9-5 talent, to explore more flexible options which include on-demand or contract basis, remote talent and those who....

A conversation that is happening around workspaces the world over is how to get the best talent – one that is productive, motivated and cost effective. Today’s world is inundated with startups – companies which are revolutionising all aspects of life, providing unique technologies and benefits to consumers and, in the process, creating interesting disruptive businesses. These dynamic companies cannot afford to hire talent in the same old-fashioned way where everyone is a full-time employee,....

In today's dynamic world, conventional hiring practices don't always deliver the goods. You need flexible, fast paced solutions in order to EXPERIMENT & GROW.  Are you a high-growth start-up needing lots of skill-sets but not having the budgets to afford full-time employees? Or a business manager in an MNC needing a high-specialty skill-set for a time-bound project?       Then come to FlexiBees. We provide flexible part-time talent for all your needs, as and when you need it.         So if you....

Work-from-home-mothers Shruthi Rao and Nithya Kalyani have a reason to celebrate – they have just completed a major milestone – one year with FlexiBees, a startup that provides on-demand talent and teams on a flexible/part time basis.   Shruthi, a B.Com graduate who is pursuing Company Secretaryship, always wanted to be independent like her mother – a working woman who managed her house and family, beautifully. Life, however, had other plans. As Shruthi embraced motherhood, she had to take the....