| Username |
Post |
| ashu |
Posted
on 02-Feb-02 08:23 AM
In Kathmandu, it's quite difficult for young people (age group: 26 to under 40)
(i.e.young people with MBAs, young professionals interested in starting their
own businesses, young people interested in meeting similar-minded other young professionals, young people interested in widening their professional network
in Nepal and beyond, and so on)
to informally meet with, do guff-suff with and learn from Nepal's top/inspiring/informational/helpful business people.
That's a problem.
Solution?
Well, over beer and chicken chilly the other night, some friends and I came up with this idea of starting a MONTHLY informal discussion session -- maybe over beer or coffee, either at a restaurant or at some public hall, depending on how things turn out -- with businesspeople.
One way such a MONTHLY discussion program could work is like this.
Using our existing network, we will invite a Nepali business person or a well-known Nepali entrepreneur (say, Padma Jyoti or Sanjiv Raj Bhandari or whoever else we think we would like to invite), and have that person INFORMALLY talk to us young people for an hour or so about his life, about his business, about his business problems and so on.
This would be sort of: "a Martin Chautari-like discussion for business."
The tone of the discussion would be relaxed and informal, and the discussion would allow us to ask questions and would sort of help us\with ideas, info and useful contacts to further our own business ideas/plans and so on. WE have yet to work out the details, but I am sure they will be worked out soon.
My role would be quite simple:
Get this thing off the ground,
run it well a few times,
sort of train other people to run this thing well on their own,
make sure this whole thing can run well without me, and then, in a few months, hand over major responsibilities to others and help make this thing a regular MONTHLY event.
I really don't know how this will all turn out.
Maybe this is a dumb idea. I really don't know.
But this seems quite do-able, and so, we have tentatively scheduled our first MONTHLY discussion for the first week of March. I'll keep you all posted about further developments. Please feel free to suggest names of people you think who would make good speakers.
Like I said, coming up with ideas like this is the easy part -- but making it fly well again and again would require team-work, efforts and dedication. Let's see how things go. Doing this once a month for two hours might be a lot of fun.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| ashu |
Posted
on 02-Feb-02 08:35 AM
I forgot to add,
The whole thing would be run in a non-hierarchical way within a high-trust environment.
This means, we are NOT interested in running this through some club or whatever, nor are we interested in being some president or secretary of this discussion group. We certianly would NOT want to run this as though it were select some club-house.
We will make sure that these discussion programs do not end up being boring
press conferences.
Both men and women would be welcome to attend these discussion programs.
The emphases will be on:
Learning from elder businesspeople's experiences
Possibly finding mentors/advisors to one's business.
Increasing one's professional network.
To serve as an INFORMAL platform to meet other businesspeople.
Sort of like live sajha.com for young business-minded professionals in Kathmandu.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| SMSainju |
Posted
on 02-Feb-02 10:00 AM
Ashu,
No idea is a dumb idea. Any idea is a great idea. You are doing a great job and I really wish you a good one. We need many people like you to help/jump start our lingering economy and what not for everyones good. I might be coming to KTM hoping that my students at NOVA will give me a break for a week. If so then I will see you shortly in KTM and we will do guff suff over tea and momo? I would be interested in joinging your discussion forum. I might be able to shed some light if it is of any value in doing businesses.
Talk to you soon buddy....
SMSainju
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| BK Joshi |
Posted
on 02-Feb-02 11:31 AM
Ashu,
I don't think we've ever met but I like your way of thinking and the initiatives you are taking. I am not in Nepal but I would be more than happy to participate in your discussion and contribute in any ways. I will definitely wanna contact you during my visit to nepal for guff n suff over chicken chilly and beer. In the mean time lets continue the discussion on what someone like myself can offer.
We need some one in Nepal like you that understands the value of information, networking and brainstorming.
So good luck to you in your efforts.
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| Sotto Voce |
Posted
on 02-Feb-02 11:33 AM
I would be intersted to participate. How do I do that?
The Same
Sotto Voce
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| Sagun |
Posted
on 03-Feb-02 10:51 AM
Ashuji,
Seems to me great idea. Working together we can make something different....something is better then nothing. Hope i will get chance to see u there and wish u all the best. Thanks.....
Sagun
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| torilaure |
Posted
on 03-Feb-02 09:05 PM
Ashu ji,
I do agree. From my personal experience, it is hard to get in touch with like minded professionals if you are a new comer to Kathmandu. So I fully support the idea of creating a platform whereyoung professionals could share their views as well as get to know some prominent(established) businessmen(or women). I'm very hopeful that this idea will be converted into action we can benefit from the discussions that follow.
Let me know if I can be f any help.
Amar
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| diya |
Posted
on 03-Feb-02 10:09 PM
i could not agree any better with you all. The idea of getting a group of dynamic people for discussion, brainstorming, mentoring, networking etc in Nepal had been on my mind. But was not doing anything towards it. My kudos to Ashu et al. for initiating this. But why only business, though? Perhaps other arenas can be incorporated in the meetings and continued in an ongoing manner. That way it will attract people from other domains, too.
I shall be interested in participating the meetings when i'm in Nepal.
So, keep us posted!!
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| ashu |
Posted
on 03-Feb-02 10:17 PM
Thanks all for your encouragement and support.
Please visit sajha.com regularly.
I shall be posting details here as soon as they become confirmed and
available.
oohi
"running a good business is a worthy social service one can do in Nepal"
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| ashu |
Posted
on 07-Mar-02 12:12 AM
Hi all,
I have managed to get two private-sector firms
(one a distribution company, run and managed by young Nepali
professionals in Kathmandu)
and
the other, through the network of that distribution company, a hotel,
located in the heart of Kathmandu
to join forces to put together this
MONTHLY
Business Forum in Kathmandu as their joint regular event.
The first of this forum will take place late this month (March), and will hopefully EVOLVE as a regular monthly event thereafter -- along the lines of, say, "a Martin Chautari-like discussion on business".
The format will be like this:
A senior Nepali businessman/woman will give a oral or a slide or a powerepoint
presentation -- a mixture of autobio, early struggles, present business constraints, future business potential, you know, in a typical Harvard Business Review magazine ko "First Person" narrative style -- for about 40 minutes or
so, and end with a few key messages to the members of the next/younger generation.
There will be a Q & A session, which I hope will be lively.
This is all I can and will say publicly.
The idea behind this Business Forum is to provide a forum once a month to
link elder businesspeople with younger Nepali entrepreneurs/businesspersons so that everyone benefits from an exchange of ideas, from a free and frank discussions about business policies and related stuff and from forming
networks and from making new friends and so on and on.
The participants themselves need to be entrepreneurial and curious about business possibilities to take advantage of this forum.
If you are in Kathmandu, and you run a business, and are interested in
attending this forum, please send me an email: ashutosh@post.harvard.edu
No summaries of the discussions will be posted, for certain magazines/newspapers will use the discussions as story materials.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| ashu |
Posted
on 07-Mar-02 12:36 AM
>No summaries of the discussions will be posted, for certain >magazines/newspapers will use the discussions as story materials.
And, yes, those story materials, once published, will be posted here, preferably by the publishers/journalists themselves.
ashu
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| ashu |
Posted
on 20-Mar-02 10:19 PM
Hi all,
It is my pleasure to announce that the first Business Discussion Forum (see details above) has now been scheduled for Wednesday, April 10, 2002, from 5:30 pm -7:30 pm at a business-hotel in Kathmandu.
Two dynamic young Nepali entrepreneurs Suman Sakya and Shekhar
Chettri -- both of bitarak dot com, a distribution company in
Kathmandu -- and I have been doing the background work for the last several
weeks, and we have lined up necessary finances and have taken care of the logistics to make this Business Discussion Forum happen on a MONTHLY basis
in Kathmandu as a networking- and knowledge-sharing platform for young entrepreneurs and businesspeople.
As plans stand, the whole forum will be Bitarak dot com's own monthly
show -- and that's fine, and that's because if the forum becomes everyone's property, so to speak, it won't be a regular thing and will die out soon.
Attendance is by invitation only.
Those of you who run your own business in Nepal and have contacted me to
be included in this venture as an attendee, you will be getting direct info from
Bitarak people soon.
It's just great to see that an idea that was informally discussed over dinner last February is finally turning into reality through all our various collective efforts in Kathmandu.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| 13-thum |
Posted
on 20-Mar-02 11:33 PM
Ashuji,
This definitely tops my list of things-to-do when i am in Ktm. Great idea and even greater is the speed with which you guys have managed to execute this idea into reality.
13-thum
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| inspiredDude |
Posted
on 21-Mar-02 06:36 PM
Kathmandu will be good place to live if people work hard. We need creators, innovators, doctors, engineers, marketeers, philanthropists, but not murderer. La Viva Kathmandu, and its innovative spirit!
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