The Indian Greenpreneur: Management of Frenemy Talent and Coopetition

During the 2013 Indian festival of colours, a young green entrepreneur and owner of Green Horizon Consulting (GHC) faced a plethora of business growth challenges. His former employee, who had quit GHC a while back to work for a major rival, wanted to return. However, the entrepreneur could not figure it out — would rehiring an ex-employee be a sound business decision? Should he take a risk and give the former employee another chance? If he did, he could look after GHC business in India, and be free to work on his plans to start a new venture in Dubai.<br><br>But, his dilemma didn’t end there. Being the eldest son in his family, he realized that besides the aforementioned strategies, there was also the possibility of living and working with his joint family. His father was getting old and his younger brother had joined the family business; merging the two companies (his and his father’s) would allow both brothers to take care of the businesses and family between them. If that happened, he would no longer need his old frenemy. Even so, there was no doubt in his mind that relocating to Dubai would be a very lucrative move, especially as prospective clients in this region understood the language of green loud and clear. But, despite his excitement at the idea, he could not forget that there would still be all the usual (yet critical) business problems of low consumer awareness and the need to swiftly catch up to the existing competition. What other factors and options would he need to consider to keep his budding, eco-friendly company afloat and to successfully navigate the contemporary business world?

The concepts discussed in this case will enable students to acquire new skills and understanding in the following broad areas:<ul><li>To understand the theories of eco-entrepreneurship.</li><li>The logic of decisions related to the hiring of boomerang talent (a frenemy) can be examined.</li></ul>Specifically, students will be able to appreciate:<ul><li>The emergence of green entrepreneurs and their typology.</li><li>Eco-entrepreneurship in the context of developing nations such as India.</li><li>Fundamental drivers for green businesses.</li><li>Relocation challenges and the career path of eco-entrepreneurs.</li><li>Communication of innovation.</li><li>Strategy of talent management.</li></ul>

• Green
• talent management
• millennial
• innovation
• India