US-based Microsoft Ventures, the venture investment arm of Microsoft, has launched an advice hotline called Jumpstart for early stage startups in India.
Early-stage businesses will be able to call the free number and get business advice from dedicated Microsoft trained professionals. The unit has spent months working with lawyers, tax and human resources service providers and accountants to build a collection of answers and tips.
Calls will be routed through its call centre in Delhi, which Microsoft Ventures expects to handle between 500 and 1,000 calls a week. Microsoft will then use the data from these phone calls to ‘fine tune’ its Microsoft Ventures programme, which includes an India-based accelerator, to make it more bespoke.
Kattayil Rajinish Menon, director of Microsoft Ventures in India, explained: “Sometimes answering even simple questions about how to get started or which service provider to contact can really help startups avoid delays and cost overruns. While JumpStart cannot promise the success of a startup’s business, it can definitely help by educating entrepreneurs how to get started quickly by providing information on the vast resources available today.”