With the surging information and communication technology infrastructure, the time is not far when each household in Pakistan would own a personal computer rather than a TV set. In the wake of growing need to harness digital automation in the country, entrepreneurs like Hamza Matin have been promptly responding with a pragmatic vision.

A graduate of the IBA and former chairman of Pakistan Software House Association (Pasha), he is the CEO of a firm which is engaged in enterprise application development and end-to-end business automation solutions. He has dealt with over a 100 clients in Pakistan and has more than 500 projects to his credit, including majority of the country’s financial sector.

Following are the excerpts from the interview:

What were the driving forces behind your successful business?

I was fortunate to have been raised in a family that encouraged business; therefore, armed with an ingrown passion for entrepreneurship, I opted to go into business rather than a job.

What were your aspirations, when soon after graduation, you launched your personal business?

I established my own business concern with the aim to have more freedom, life of choice, and to motivate others to participate in the vision. After a few initial difficulties, I was able to establish a business spanning in three countries with sizable talented resource working and sharing the passion.What have your experiences been with fresh graduates coming from various institutions?

It was obvious from their behaviour that business schools do not sufficiently focus on entrepreneurship. There is, therefore, dire need to have a curriculum that develops business acumen. Recently, to encourage the same entrepreneurship spirit in Pakistan, we have also launched the first entrepreneurship association in Pakistan called Apex.

How did you overcome the inherent impediments in the system to further your business interests?

Although I had an advantage due to the family's business background whereby I was aware of the regulatory, tax and corporate issues, I still had to struggle under the constantly changing environment with determination. Altering operational strategies in harmony with the dynamics of the market is the only way to sustain struggling businesses.

How is our neighbouring country exporting software in the region of US$50 billion whereas we are hovering around US$200 million mark?

During the ’90s we neither had the capital nor the market access, whereas India had both. They brought in research and transformed the industry into an attractive proposition.What are the initiatives of the government to accelerate IT sector in the country?

Apart from IT parks and bandwidth facilities, we have been given tax holiday for exports. However, we require a liberal foreign exchange policy so that companies can invest abroad without restrictions, which in turn will enable use of our capital, which is human. But still a lot has to be achieved.

With your diverse experiences, should the local entrepreneur be product-focused or project-focused?

Although, local institutions are increasingly opting for international packages I urge that public and private sectors should go for local solutions as well. In mature and competitive markets, developers are product-focused as they are capital intensive whereas for us being project-focused through alliances is a better option.

Are investors or the government willing to part with venture capital for the IT sector?

Banks and institutions do not have resources to evaluate these businesses hence they are reluctant. Initially people tried to set up capital venture funds but there was no support from the government by investing and sharing capital in technology funds. Exact knowledge about the industry and confidence building of the investor can raise venture capital, provided the government also shares some risk of investors.What is the current state of IT business and how do we see it in the future?

I foresee phenomenal growth in demand for human resource and products in the coming years, both on local and international front. The demand for young IT graduates is likely to multiply manifold, however, with around 20,000 IT graduates being produced annually, I reckon their quality will remain to be the primary concern.