A team of four Class XII students from Chennai won the TyE (TiE Young Entrepreneur) 2013 Global Business Plan Competition for their idea of making Chennai the top destination for medical tourism. This is the first time an Indian team has won the competition.
The group won the TyE (TiE Young Entrepreneur) 2013 Global Business Plan Competition, hosted by TiE DC at George Mason University, Washington D.C., on June 15 and 16, for their business model. Their business model is based on setting up an enterprise, Prathipad . This, for-profit organisation, aims to provide all-round facilities to international patients. Twenty per cent of the profit from this enterprise would be channelled towards providing quality healthcare to the poorer sections of the society.
The team, comprising Shruti Krishnamurthy, of P.S. Senior Secondary School, Meenakshi Ramkumar, of Abacus Montessori School and Shruti Jhaver, of Sishya School, was headed by Roshni Ramkumar, who has finished her schooling and will be joining Tata Institute of Social Sciences this year.
The girls worked on their business model for three months. Roshni Ramkumar said, “I realised that a business works well when people come together to work with each other. This competition has enhanced my leadership skills.”
The team was mentored by several professionals, including Dr. Sankaran Raghunathan, dean, The National Management School, TiE. One of the other mentors, P.K. Agarwal, CEO, TiE Global, said that he was impressed by the presentation skills of the students. While, Shruti Jhaver added that she gained confidence by speaking before a large audience.
Gaining ground
The target group for the business proposition is Kenya. “After doing a thorough research, we zeroed in on Kenya, chiefly because its medical infrastructure is inadequate,” says Shruti Krishnamuthy. K. Swaminanthan, TyE cooridinator and founder, my Bskool, commending the business proposition, said, “What makes it different from other entities providing similar services is that they provide end-to-end service, from helping patients identify the appropriate doctor and hospital to making arrangements for their stay.”
