At the beginning of 2015, I shared some thoughts on the growth of online test prep in India and unique challenges for the industry. 

At last count, there are close to 30 startups in this space, most of them using a mix of video content and adaptive testing.  Differentiation is limited. Content is getting commoditized. 

A consolidation in this space with the larger (as in, the ones who raised big $$$) buying out smaller players and several smaller players shutting down is imminent. 

The need for a revamp of the test prep industry is not just for building new models of consumption by going online, but also to solve fundamental issues that have hindered the growth of the market - high costs, poor accessibility and a conventional one size fits all approach.

My take:

1/ Test prep has not changed for decades. A model that was meant to alleviate the problems of school education has become plagued with issues that need correction within itself. It has become a 'factory' model with high student-teacher ratios and no personalized learning opportunity for students who need help. Online videos/adaptive testing does not address the human intervention required for a teenager who is struggling to balance school pressure with test prep. Personalized one-to-one tutoring is expensive (INR 500 to INR 1800 per hour) and not scalable.

2/ Test prep remains inaccessible. Of the USD 7 Bn test prep market, 15-20% is organized. The rest belongs to the mom-n-pops and local tutorials - that's USD 5 Bn of the market consisting of students who cannot afford expensive test prep (urban/semi-urban markets) and/or access it for geographic reasons (rural). What's more, the urban-rural divide continues to widen. The Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) published results of a 2012 study citing that students from high-income families have four time higher success rate in the IIT admissions than those from lower income groups. Also, close to 60% of those entering IITs are from the CBSE, a board that represents just 6% of the target group. At a price range of INR 1.2 to INR 3 Lakhs, test-prep is available to only to a very small number that can afford it. As far as the rural market goes, the larger players don't want to enter them for economic/tutor supply factors.

3/ Student behaviour is changing. Today's test prep student grew up on Facebook and WhatsApp, queries Google whenever she needs to find something and the first device of choice is the mobile. She does not understand desktop. When everything around her has changed, how does the old test prep model fit in?

At HashLearn, our product HashLearn Now hopes to alleviate these problems. We are building a model for test-prep leveraging technology for scale, yet, with human intervention and not pure-play online video courses or testing platforms. By building a system that can offer high-quality at low price points, our vision is to provide a tutor to every student with a smartphone and a data plan.

We believe we can truly empower every student irrespective of location and financial background to learn better by connecting him/her with a tutor right at the moment where the student is stuck.  

​And this focus on that particular moment of a student's learning curve is where true intervention and resolution matters. 

A few years back, my parents were visiting Bangalore and had traveled to the outskirts of the city for a meeting.  While checking in on their status, it became evident to me they were barely going to make it to the airport on time.

"They are going to miss it." In the next 20 mins or so, I did a bunch of things that ensured they made it. 

I did not know anyone working in the airline. I was not even based in Bangalore at that time.

All it took was some digging around and a call.

I knew calling the airline's (Air Deccan in this case) customer support would be pointless as they would have no control of the environment in the airport. The only chance I had was to connect with someone directly responsible for things that happened in the airport. That could mean a check-in agent or anyone with some sort of authority working in Air Deccan's airport terminal.

My hack?

Those were the days of Orkut. I searched for employees working in Air Deccan and decided to call any person who appeared to be working with Air Deccan, Bangalore. The moment I came across one such profile, I called, explained the situation and requested him to ensure my parents are able to board the plane. The random gentleman I spoke to turned out to be a Security Officer for Air Deccan based out of the airport. Not only did he keep the gates open, he also had their boarding passes printed and was standing by expecting them.

The only thing my folks had to do was to board the flight. They made it.

While recalling the incident recently, it reminded me of the the number one trait to look for in teams - the ability to get things done. With minimum supervision. To not come back with an excuse until all possible options were tried. To keep digging till you find a solution. To be directly responsible for the task, to own it and to close it. The perseverance required to get things done is the default mindset required to build a company and the inherent resource that we have unlimited access to. 

For me, my folks missing the flight was not even an option in my head. Of course, it did help that the random individual I called up turned out to a nice, helpful person too (If you are that person reading this by some chance, thank you, once again!)

The point is there is always a way. If not, you make one.