ArthaVidhya in yourstory

1. 5/27/2014 ArthaVidhya exposure: Games business accountants play
http://yourstory.com/2014/01/arthavidhya-learning-games/ 1/3
STORIES NEWS STARTUP ADVICE WORLDWIDE RESOURCES RESEARCH
211     
Malavika Velayanikal | January 29, 2014 at 7:30 am
ArthaVidhya exposure: Games business accountants
play
To learn business accounting would seem like a drudgery to most people. But for commerce students using
ArthaVidhya’s skill development course called Business Accounting Process (BAP), it’s just as engrossing as playing
World of Warcraft. Using a virtual office, students can simulate multiple workflow scenarios across over 60
accounting transactions commonly performed in any business enterprise. At the end of the course, students would
have gained an exposure equivalent to six months of ‘work’ experience in just 120 hours, Nagarajan G, Founder,
ArthaVidhya, tells YourStory.
The Bangalore-based education startup uses gaming to enhance the job-readiness of their students. “There is a huge
gap between college education and industry requirements in accounting, banking and insurance. We want to bridge
it through practical learning programs,” says Nagarajan.
The student undergoes a blended learning approach: theory sessions delivered by chartered accountants are
complemented with hands-on practical sessions using experiential learning software hosted on the cloud. For
example, a student can learn how to calculate taxes and deductions from a textbook, but he would be far more
familiar with the process if he plays a game that requires him to go through it step by step, overcoming hurdles on
the way.
Assessing, counselling and reaching out
“Our mantra is ACT: Assessment / Counselling / Training,” Nagarajan says.
This three-pronged approach starts with their assessment tool delivered
through the cloud. Students are assessed on academic knowledge, process
knowledge, analytical skills and software skills (Tally / Excel). Each student
gets a report on their standing on completion of the test. A report on all the
students is also given to their college to help identify gaps in knowledge or
skills. So far, 4500 students from 45 colleges in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Coimbatore have been assessed
in this manner.
While industry experts and working professionals see the gulf between what is being taught in colleges and
workplace requirements, students and college authorities do not see that clearly. This is one of the challenges for
ArthaVidhya. That is why the ArthaVidhya team included counselling as one of their core activities. “We counsel
students about the gaps that show up in the individual assessment reports and help them choose the correct path in
terms of identifying the right skill training required. At this stage, the students get a demo of the main training
product,” Nagarajan explains.
The people behind it
Promoted by a group of chartered accountants and software professionals, ArthaVidhya was started by Nagarajan
in Bangalore in August 2011. He is a senior chartered accountant with 30 years of
experience in the information technology industry. He started his career with Enfield
India and moved on to Wipro, and worked with them for 13 years. He also worked with
Redington as chief financial officer (CFO) before starting up ePalmleaf ITES Private
Limited. ArthaVidhya is ePalmleaf’s education initiative.
ArthaVidhya is a skill development partner with National Skill Development
SEARCH...
12 Powerful Quotes from
Narendra Modi to Kindle
the fire of Leadership in
you
Ramesh Babu, the barber
who owns a Rolls Royce
Sachin Bansal spills the
beans on recent funding
and Flipkart’s plans for
the future
Word Lens app - your
own real-time personal
translator
5 important Agreements
for a Start-up
entrepreneur
The Journey of InterviewStreet: From NIT
Trichy to the White House | StudentStory
What is happening at
Airbnb India?
POPULAR POSTS
YOURSTORY SOCIALSTORY HERSTORY YS TV YS PAGES JOBS EVENTS 

2. 5/27/2014 ArthaVidhya exposure: Games business accountants play
http://yourstory.com/2014/01/arthavidhya-learning-games/ 2/3
Nagarajan G
   
Malavika Velayanikal
Follow @vmalu
Malavika Velayanikal is Executive Editor of YourStory.com and an innovation junkie . She is hooked
to bold ideas. Got a NEWS TIP related to anything in the world of tech, startups and entrepreneurs?
Email her at [email protected]
Latest Posts
ISB grads’ SkillBoost raises first round of funding from private investors
IIT, Wharton, UCLA grads aim to transform education with SlideRule
IDG funded ad tech firm Ozone Media looks to cross $100 million by 2016
3 avid gamers-cum-engineers make work play at CreatioSoft
What's in fashion in India: This Baggout survey tells you
ArthaVidhya is a skill development partner with National Skill Development
Corporation in the BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) space. Their project
is currently supported by a loan from NSDC, and funds from founders and friends.
Online course coming up
The ArthaVidhya program targets ready-to-work commerce graduates or students in
their final year of B.Com / M.Com / BBA /BBM/MBA. Students who have enrolled for
ICWA/CA/ACS and fresh accountants who want to branch out to other finance and
accounting functions are also their target market.
Currently, the team is working with colleges in Coimbatore and Bangalore. “While our virtual office environment has
been deployed on cloud from day 1 of the course, we will be launching a complete online version of the course in
February 2014,” Balaji Srinivasan, Head of Product Development, says.
Recommended Posts
Presenting EduStars of
2013 - FACE, KNOLSKAPE
and Trusanga
CrackMyMBA: Priya
Vajpayee's effort to help
students with choices
about MBA
Women in chartered
accountancy profession –
T N Manoharan, former
president of ICAI
How startups can crack a
$40 billion market with
job-oriented MOOCs
TOPICSEDUCATION STARTUP
Facebook social plugin
Also post on Facebook  Posting as Srinivasan Gopal (Change)Comment
Add a comment...
Bajaao.com, the e-
commerce venture that
has been playing
successfully since 2005
Angel funded Apartment
Adda launches an app to
move towards private
social networking
[Jobs Roundup] Top Jobs
of the week YourStory
+ 49,007
Follow +1
13 emerging startups solving the last mile
problems
The India Social Entrepreneur of the Year
Award is back, application closes on May
31
How Gates Foundation is helping mobile
money payment in developing countries
Nokooda: How two brothers are trying to
solve India’s garbage problem using
waste-to-energy plants
Shelley Saxena’s journey from managing a
multi-million dollar product portfolio at
IBM to founding Sevamob
SOCIALSTORY

3. 5/27/2014 ArthaVidhya exposure: Games business accountants play
http://yourstory.com/2014/01/arthavidhya-learning-games/ 3/3
© 2014 YourStory Media Private Limited. All rights reserved.
About Us | Team YS | Contact Us | Jobs@YS | Testimonials | Disclaimer | Privacy | Code Of Conduct | Terms & Conditions