Business Achievers Making A Difference

2019 / Vol 09 / Issue 05

Sudhir Sakhalkar Director

Yashdeep Joshi Director

SUDHIR SAKHALKAR & YASHDEEP JOSHI BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

SURPASSING LIMITS WITH UNWAVERING ZEAL

EdItOrIaL

A

iming for the best and striving for the better is what makes a leader an ‘Achiever’

With each passing day, the tech-enabled advancements are taking the world towards creating a unified platform. A platform which is unlocking diversified opportunities for the present-day individuals and has the potential of passing on a better earth to the Gen Z. What makes these opportunities more intuitive is the acumen to transform every challenge into a viable business solution. This acumen is nothing but the ‘Charisma’ of a leader that helps in carving out a new pathway and achieving infinite milestones.

Defying Conventions, Defining Leadership

Acknowledging the skyrocketing demands and a plethora of industrial complexities, these personas are striving to bring in ‘Change’ and define the true essence of ‘Leadership’. Embracing technology to the core alongside making thought-provoking decisions is what helps them to be at the helm of ‘Innovation’.

Business Achievers are personalities who have the knacks of learning from the past and successfully implementing it in the future. What makes them different is their idea of ‘Giving Back to the Society’.

Putting their best foot forward in rolling out solutions for the overall development of the business world helps them in creating a win-win situation and stand against all odds. Consistent endeavours of ‘Making A Difference’ gives leaders the will to create a hassle-free work environment, thereby encouraging the employees to bring their ideas to the table. For them, the achievement is all about outperforming own milestones and be an inspiration to others. This ray of inspiration plays a pivotal role in crafting out effective solutions and breakthrough enactments leading the world towards a positive disruption.

Rahul Niraj

Editor-in-Chief Pooja M. Bansal Managing Editor Rahul Niraj Contributing Editors Darshan, Shruti, Devasish Art & Design Head Amol Kamble Associate Designer Poonam Mahajan Art & Picture Editor Mayur Koli Co-designer Shweta Ambilwade Business Development Manager Megha Mishra Business Development Lead Ashwini Pahurkar Business Development Executive Pravin Yalameli Technical Specialist Amar, Pratiksha Digital Marketing Manager Prashant Chevale SME-SMO Executives Manoj, Ketki Circulation Manager Tanaji sales@insightssuccess.com

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08

Sudhir Sakhalkar & Yashdeep Joshi

Surpassing Limits With Unwavering Zeal

Cover Story 20

Interview with Insights Success Akshay Mehrotra

Simplifying Lending!

34

article

What’s Trending Unboxing the Business Trends of 2019

CONTENTS

16 Abhishek Shinde Heading Towards Success Delivering Excellence

24

Ashish Jhagarawat RedeďŹ ning Business Leadership with Passion

26 Chandru Kalro Leading Change to Achieve Growth

30 Rajashree Sampath A Seasoned IT Professional

32 Tejas Goenka Tally Solutions Private Limited

BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

The Change-makers of the Business World

W

hile the second quarter of 2019 was an enthusiastic year for the Business world, the end of the third quarter is taking it beyond the success horizons. Recognizing the personas that are revolutionizing this business space and keeping innovation on their radar by staying up-to-speed with the developments, we have come up with this special edition of “Business Achievers Making A Difference”. This issue has featured a handful of professionals offering a diverse and engaging mix of creativity and distinctiveness. This edition of ours will help you to walk through a list of profiles embracing multi-disciplinary approach and covering a range of relevant issues in its sector.

On the Cover of the issue is Sudhir Sakhalkar & Yashdeep Joshi – Directors of Quality Report Software Pvt. Ltd. (QRSPL). They are outshining their competitors with an innovative approach and redefining the business space like never before!

Apart from such an insightful cover story, we have also enlisted, Abhishek Shinde – CEO & Director – Sales and Business Development, Excelsior Research Pvt Ltd. who has the ability to face the challenges head-on and be a change-maker; Ashish Jhagarawat – CEO & Director of Moon SEZ Consultants Pvt. Ltd. who is distinguishing the concept of being a leader in a new way and driving success with a passion for business; Chandru Kalro – Managing Director of TTK Prestige who has successfully embraced the industry changes and reached the epitome of success; Rajashree Sampath – Associate Director-Staffing at Klaus IT Solutions Pvt. Ltd. whose professional journey is nothing less than a roller coaster ride and Tejas Goenka – Managing Director at Tally Solutions who aims to disrupt the business world in a positive way.

While flipping the pages, take a note not to miss out an exclusive Interview with Akshay Mehrotra – Co-founder & CEO of EarlySalary.

To complete this edition we have an industry-focused article penned by the Editor – Unboxing the Business Trends of 2019.This article will help you understand the current market scenario of this industry. Looking at the emerging opportunities and the growing possibilities, this issue of ours will introduce you to a whole new world of novelty.

So, enjoy the exciting read!

COVER STORY

Sudhir Sakhalkar Director

Sudhir Sakhalkar &

Surpassing Limits wi BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Yashdeep Joshi Director

& Yashdeep Joshi

ith Unwavering Zeal

T

here are many instances in our lives, where the dilemma of ‘who we are’ and ‘what we can become’ often comes across our mind. The decision taken at that moment, defines our very lives for rest of our existence. May it be great or not, whatever we do with what we have, results to be a make it or break it situation for most of us. The battle for success still goes on, but the definition of it keeps getting changed, diluted even.

Sometimes to make sure that our vision manifests, the right amount of efforts and sense of direction is required which drives us to achieve greatness. Today, we will come across personalities, who have become epitome of success and still inspiring millions with their zeal to go beyond.

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IN THE ERA OF INDUSTRIES FOCUSING ON COST CUTTING AND RETURN ON INVESTMENT, DECISION MAKING NEEDS TO BE FAST WITH THE USE OF BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND ANALYTICAL TOOLS

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Sudhir Sakhalkar and Yashdeep Joshi – Directors of Quality Report Software Pvt. Ltd. (QRSPL), have set a benchmark in Business Intelligence and Analytical tools industry. Sudhir has an insightful journey of 35 years in Information Technology industry across various companies like Bharat Forge, Fujitsu ICIM and Tech Mahindra. He started pursuing the path of entrepreneurship in 2014.

“Yashdeep and I took over a 5 year old company (currently QRSPL) and it has been a very interesting and challenging journey so far,” says Sudhir joyously. The company’s total focus has been on Business Intelligence and allied space with a continuous growth of 20% per year. Yashdeep on the other hand, started his career in Merchant Navy and was employed in the field of operational logistics for almost 8 years before getting into IT & Systems logistics. After that, he worked in SAP materials management and warehouse management with KPIT and a freelance consultancy for more than 10 years. Now, he is completely into serving clients with simple and affordable IT solutions in Reporting, primarily Business Intelligence.

Pillars of the Business Sudhir is man of patience whereas Yashdeep is more aggressive with perfection. “Every person who has worked with me in my long career has been a source of inspiration for me,” tells Sudhir. Likewise, Yashdeep’s source of inspiration has been his experience at sea which motivates him to go against all odds. “I am just like ships. They look good at shore but they are created to sail and stay sea worthy at all times,” he adds. What keeps them motivated is the dynamic changes in the IT space which presents them with ample of challenges. Happy and satisfied customers

are their top priority and by providing the clients with world class solutions puts their mind at ease. The duo’s passion for giving affordable and adaptable IT solutions to any business may it be small or big outshines their efforts. “Our mission is to build a sustainable organization and selling the right value through the right set of channels,” both claim.

With the similar passion, QRSPL team caters to the ever-growing market of Business intelligence and Analytics software.

About QRSPL Headquartered in Pune, QRSPL was established in 2009. It operates via variety of channel partners as well as direct business associates across India, Middle-East, Africa and USA. In the past few years, the firm has diversified its operations into different data offerings and conducts business in three main verticals 1) Data Service Solutions: This includes Offering for reporting and business intelligence like My Report Essential, Power BI and Digital Signages and KPI solutions.

2) Connectivity and SAP Solutions: Connectivity solutions for SAP to other Apps, Data Sync utilities and other cloud connectors and SAP ticketing tool.

3) Virtual Reality Solutions: VR based training platform designed for organization’s Health, Safety and

The company is having more than 1000 customers using various services and solutions.

Its customer base is diversified across different industries which include Manufacturing, Retail, Banking, FMCG and Energy business etc.

The biggest challenge for the company was Competition and Brand Awareness. It has constantly worked on creating success stories with appropriate implementations past couple of years. One of the key decisions for the firm was investing in social media and marketing to promote its services in the market. Another issue QRSPL faced was Channel Building. “Low brand value makes it difficult to create channels to further resell our products. This makes it further difficult to reach people and various geographies,” proclaim the directors while discussing the challenges faced by them as entrepreneurs. QRSPL adopted self-scale strategy and opened new locations every financial year to address this problem. Creating awareness amongst few customers and then creating channel partners in those areas has been one of the company’s prime objectives. This phenomenon has helped the firm by strengthening the

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WE PROVIDE A SIMPLE AND VALUABLE MIS, REPORTING AND ANALYTICAL SOLUTIONS ACROSS ALL THE BUSINESSES SMALL OR BIG THROUGH AN EFFECTIVE, PRAGMATIC AND PROACTIVE CONSULTANCY

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Environment for effective health trainings and performance when at work.

communication and coordination between the channel partners via improving the processes, business model and offerings from them.

The company’s hall of fame has some noteworthy considerations. In the past 4 years, QRSPL has branched into a myriad of data solutions offerings with products catering to SME, ME and LE needs. “We have been successful as a team in adding more than 100 customers in last 3 years of business along with raising our team from 5 people to 25 people today,” tells the duo proudly.

QRSPL is determined in working, investing and diversifying in the field of DATA related solutions with a vision to simplify it in an agile and affordable manner. It will keep its focus in the areas of Data Service Solutions, Connectivity and SAP solutions along with virtual reality solutions. The company has plans to diversify with different product line into the same space.

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THE MANAGEMENT STYLE THAT WE BELIEVE IN IS TO ENCOURAGE A BLEND OF PROFESSIONALISM, FOCUSING ON QUALITY TRAINING, EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION AND AN ENTHUSIASM TO TACKLE CHALLENGES

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Exquisite Range of Products MyReport Essentials – It is a curated set of competitive tools enabling client organizations with quick ROI alongside driving efficient decision-making processes.

It is a catalyst for prominently analyzing organization’s data spread across systems and applications.

Presentation Point – It is an easy-toimplement solution rolled out in association with a Belgium company aiming to automate and update power point presentations in real-time, that can be used for: • • • •

Managing digital signage (iPoint) Data-driven presentations (Data Point) User friendly dashboards Dynamic PowerPoint (Dynamic Elements)

Immersive Factory VR Solution – Working in unison with a France based company Immersive Factory to embrace Virtual Reality training exercises dedicated to occupational Health and Safety. It offers • Content based real situations • Created with expertise of large corporates • Easily accessible and deployable CDATA & VirtDB connectors – CData Data Sync is a simple and easy-to-synchronize and replicate data solution for On-Premise / Cloud Data with wide range of traditional and emerging databases. On the other hand, VirtDB is a software technology startup developing new generation data access solutions.

Way to Go To maintain complete transparency in the solutions and commercials offered to the end consumer, the key to win people’s hearts was the culture at QRSPL. Determining the right expectations with commitment to what can be delivered while delivering it the said had made the company a real trend setter against the prevailing competitors. “Our oldest customer is one of the manufacturing companies, who bought MyReport from us since our inception and is still working with us. We take pride in having him as one of our first few customers, during this 10 year journey,” opines Sudhir. The experience gained by Sudhir (over 30 years), provided him with the opportunity to think about jumping into the business. This resulted in creation of more employment opportunities for the people. He used to manage large delivery teams where he got a chance to oversee end-customer issues across the globe.

In case of Yashdeep, finding out viable and affordable solutions from available resources has been his way of life.

This kind of attitude encouraged him to serve even more customers in a better fashion. “New challenges from customers and the satisfaction that I get from delivering a

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WE ARE GLAD TO SHARE THE MYREPORT SUITE OF TOOLS WHICH ARE AFFORDABLE AND GIVE QUICK ROI

BY HELPING THE MANAGEMENT TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS THROUGH ANALYZING FIRM’S DATA SPREAD ACROSS SYSTEMS AND APPLICATIONS

‘‘

solution to their issues, drives me to stay entrepreneur and innovate,” tells Yashdeep. His biggest achievement till date is his comprehensiveness of IT and Systems, especially

after having served in logistics domain and then striving to keep it simple, understandabl e and affordable.

There have been many memorable moments during stints at sea, SAP and now QRSPL for Yashdeep.

According to him, his personal best was the satisfaction received by him when completing of 1000 days in business emerged as a highlight. It became a proof of sustenance in the market and the trust showed by the customers and peers on QRSPL made him feel great all together. “First 1000 days had been a foundation stage to set processes, systems, get customers, build teams and much more. The journey was full of challenges but would always stay memorable to me,” claims Yashdeep.

“Today working with startups gives us the energy to keep going and excel at the work that we do for our customers,” concludes the duo.

Words of Worth Finally, shedding some light on entrepreneurship, the directors inform the budding business people to stay patient and remain consistent in whatever task undertaken by them.

They say, “Product or Service, both may have different challenges, but if you are building a product and trust and if it’s going to work then keep working on it. If it’s a service, then always have a plan to diversify and keep increasing spectrum on the services. The key is going slow but steady on your investments and building liabilities.”

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BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Abhishek Shinde

CEO/Director Sales & Business Developmen

16 | INSIGHTS SUCCESS

Abhishek Shinde Heading Towards Success Delivering Excellence

VOLUME - 09, ISSUE - 5, 2019

A

chievement is a sense of success. A medal of honor that one gives himself, for making a difference through all the adversities faced. Challenges are inevitable, but facing those challenges head-on with a proper plan is the way to go. Breaking through the limits and rising above the horizon of hard work will place you on the top.

One such remarkable entity, instilled with the above-mentioned ideals is Abhishek Shinde - CEO/ Director - Sales and Business Development, Excelsior Research Pvt Ltd. The journey of an entrepreneur is never easy. “I actually had to go through a lot of tough times during the inception of my company,” says Abhishek. Every failure in his life gave him the strength to move forward, and he learned a lot from his mistakes. As far as his driving force is considered, he thanks his wife primarily.

“Personally I would like to thank my wife Vrushali Shinde who left her carrier and helped me in my worst times to get the company to this level,” states Abhishek. “I would consider my father, Shri. Deepak Shinde as my role model.

Seeing him happy gives me a lot of strength,” he further adds.

Excelling Excelsior Excelsior Research is a full-service market research agency. It offers a wide range of Research Solutions and services to a global clientele.

“We are providing a one-stop solution for all market research related needs of the leading large scale as well as medium and small scale companies,” tells Abhishek.

The company’s digital practice research services are customized to ensure that the clients’ campaign derives the maximum and most relevant leads. Its Lead Generation team works with laser-like focus and uses cutting edge digital advertising methods to drive in potential customers. “Excelsior Research is the best agency to work with and the best company to work for!” proclaims Abhishek.

One of the primary objectives of the company is to become the first and foremost choice as their go-to solution provider for all the companies and other users. “We want to be the prominent market research & ITES projects enablers in all the sectors, be it private or public,” Abhishek envisages.

He wants to grab more opportunities and create more employment opportunities for society. On a priority basis,

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he wishes to expand the company to an organization where his team would consist of more than 1000 employees. He is on the way to create a great pool of talent for the betterment of society.

Struggles and Troubles Working during odd hours was always a challenging task for Abhishek, which required a tough mind to cope up with work stress. Not just stress, but the pressure of performing as per the industry expectations and on-time delivery were also engaging factors. Finding the right talent has always been one of the difficult activities in this industry. The industry is in need of people who can manage and multi-task along with handling a tremendous amount of pressure.

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The industry has been changing at a rapid pace. With the growing innovation across various verticals like artificial intelligence and data science, are proving to be the modern solution for doing business. With new competitors emerging every day, client satisfaction is considered to be on top priority for being on the charts. “We have to be on toes to meet the requirements of the end-user,” claims Abhishek. “We have also been very well recognized by our clients across the globe,” he boasts proudly.

’

Another thing that holds the company together is its human resources or employees. Employee satisfaction is the key that has been incorporated in Excelsior from the beginning. Hence, within just four years of time-frame, the company has gained new heights and was able to create its own identity in the industry. “I am so glad that my team and I were able to get into this competitive market and make our identity,” informs Abhishek. Now, the company comprises of more than 250 staff personnel working in different segments. “Finally, when I see my team and Excelsior as a brand, it makes me feel so proud,” he relishes.

Abhishek’s advise to the young business heads is, “Take care of your employees and they will take care of you.”

INSIGHTS SUCCESS | 17

Interview with Insights Success

Akshay Mehrotra Co-founder & CEO

Akshay Mehrotra Simplifying Lending!

20 | INSIGHTS SUCCESS

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Interview with Insights Success

T

he below excerpt is an exclusive interview with Akshay Mehrotra - Co-founder & CEO of EarlySalary.

IS: Brief us about you and your journey since the beginning of your career.

Mr. Akshay: After completing my Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Symbiosis Pune, I started my own Start-up venture EarlySalary, a Fintech Start-Up which uses new age technology for lending funds. I have 16 years of experience in strategic planning and marketing and have worked with brands like Future Retail Ltd, PolicyBazaar.com, Big Bazaar and Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Co. Ltd. I was also conferred as one of the Most Talented CMO of the year award in 2013 – 2014 in the retail space, by CMO Asia.

IS: How do you describe yourself in one/two word?

Who has been your guide, source of inspiration, support?

Mr. Akshay: Determined and Self-motivated IS: What do you like most about your job? State us about your passions, mission, and goals. What acts as a motivation tool for you?

Mr. Akshay: As the Chief Executive Officer at EarlySalary, I oversee the implementation of the company's product strategy and focus towards building EarlySalary as a Financial Institution. I believe my unwavering passion for customer service and attention to detail, is one of my biggest strengths. Our TG of young working professionals is the fasted growing segment in the country and hence we would like to build EarlySalary as a market leader in this category.

IS: Kindly describe in brief about your company and its services/products.

Mr. Akshay: Headquartered in Pune, EarlySalary is a salary advance mobile application that enables users to borrow money for urgent cash requirements before they

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get their monthly wages. This Fintech Company uses new age technology for lending funds. The company aims to deliver a revolutionary new business model which is set to change the lending market in India.

EarlySalary was founded with a mission to offer consumers the convenience of availing loans at a short notice with minimum legal formalities involved. The service is available as a Mobile App that offers small bridge loans to working professional who are short on cash and need funds till their salary gets credited at the start of next month. Users can just download the mobile application and login using their Facebook account with some basic details and apply for a loan. Within minutes, the user will be notified whether his/her loan request has been approved or not. Once the documents are approved through the mobile app, the money gets transferred to the loan seekers account within minutes.

IS: State us your major achievements and your company's achievements under your leadership.

Mr. Akshay: The inception of EarlySalary took place when we realised there is a large credit underserved population in India. Easily accessible financial assistance was non-existent for young professionals and blue or grey collar workers in the country. We set up EarlySalary to initially provide short-term financial solutions to help our users combat the month - end cash crunch. The company began operations in 2016 and now, EarlySalary is India's largest consumer lending application for salaried professionals having disbursed over INR 1350 crores so far. We are also the ‘financial wellnes’ partner for more than 300 companies. We have also introduced a free credit score feature for our users to make it easier for them to check their credit score and take steps towards improving their financial health. EarlySalary has won numerous awards and has been touted as one of the Must – Have applications on a millennials phone.

IS: State us about the most memorable and remarkable moments of your life.

Mr. Akshay: EarlySalary was launched in Feb 2016 and within 3 years of the launch of mobile app, the company

INSIGHTS SUCCESS | 21

has disbursed 9L loans amounting to Rs.1, 550 Crores.

The mobile application has 9 million downloads disbursing 80,000 loans, amounting to INR 140 CR per month. Moreover, nearly 400+ corporates and over 1 million employees have partnered with the Financial Wellness Offering & Salary Advances of EarlySalary which help the users to create a financial cushion in times of need.

IS: Kindly tell us about the challenges you took and the risk associated with it and how did you overcome them?

Mr. Akshay: Learning a new business model and then to disrupt it with new technology was a huge challenge.

Having to learn something new is a big leap, especially when you are a seasoned professional. EarlySalary is my dream project. In the last three and a half years we have gone through phases where funding cycles were critical, and we came out with flying colours with marquee investors like Eight Roads (Fidelity) Ventures and Chirate (IDG) Ventures participating in the funding rounds. Today we have raised not only $ 23Million in Equity but also raised more than $50Million in debt to build growth our business and today have disbursed over Rs.1500Cr. Growth cannot happen without building a strong team; at EarlySalary we have been able to build a strong team of nearly 250 people comprising of data scientist, core technology development, and risk & underwriting, collections, product and marketing which allow us to grow business in a high automated manner. Large customer acceptance is critical to any early stage business, today we have over 9Million app downloads, disbursed over 900,000 loans and tied-up with over 400+ large corporates to help kick start hyper growth.

shopping to financial transactions, everything is gradually going digital now. The long and cumbersome process of getting loans from banks has been cut short with just few clicks made using smartphones. Today, the Fintech startups have been successfully addressing the under-served micro- and small-business segments for their financial needs which are not met by banks. Fintech is indeed a complex ecosystem but has been rapidly evolving. The overall potential for Fintech in India is very promising. It is imperative for governments, regulators, financial institutions, entrepreneurs, lenders, borrowers, market participants, investors and lending platforms to play a responsible role towards the development of this powerful business model. Currently in India, the personal loan and credit card debt outstanding is close to Rs. 576,600 crore at the end of FY18. Today, only 20% of working young salaried professionals have an access to credit cards. Hence, this creates a huge potential for EarlySalary.com for tapping the remaining youth population of India looking for easy loans.

IS: What would you advise to the budding entrepreneurs?

Mr. Akshay: Focus on building a model which makes business sense not a problem you want to solve.

IS: Please tell us about your future business plans.

Mr. Akshay: Our TG of young working professionals is the fasted growing segment in the country and hence we would like to build EarlySalary as a market leader in this category. And in next 3 years, we aim to build a billion dollar balance sheet.

IS: Share your point of view on the current scenario of the industry and its future.

Mr. Akshay: With internet penetration, technology in the financial space is catching up in India. Right from

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BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Ashish Jhagarawat Redening Business Leadership with Passion

D

etermination is the key to achieve greatness in anything you pursue. A strong resolve always solves the small dilemmas. To ensure the smooth flowing of any activity, one needs to channelize his/her core strength and bring about sound decisions throughout the work. Being a leader is not about changing things around in the workplace, it’s more about changing perspectives of the people working there. That’s how the identity of a true leader is derived.

A Business Baron "I believe that business is in my blood and soul," expresses Ashish Jhagarawat boldly. He is distinguishing the concept of being a leader in a new way and driving success with a passion for business. As a CEO/Director of Moon SEZ Consultants Pvt. Ltd. Ashish has always focused on creating and delivering solutions to the problems encountered by people on a daily basis. Most of the issues are related to compliances and right advise at right time these days. Hence, he decided to venture into the field of management consultancy and to be precise Special Economic Zone consulting business along with IFSC (International Financial Service Centres) the only IFSC in the country at present is at GIFT City, Gujarat which is Hon’ble Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi’s pet project.

He hails from Udaipur, Rajasthan and has a traditional family background.

Before entering the business world, Ashish had to go through various personal challenges in order to fulfill his dream. After moving out of his home and coming to Mumbai in 2004 for pursuing Chartered Accountancy, his goals were getting disoriented as his parents had different visions for his life. They wanted Ashish to work and excel in the service sector. Without the knowledge of what his parents had in store for him, he completed his graduation in B.Com and appeared for CA (inter) examination. Behind his back, Ashish’s father made arrangements and admitted

24 | INSIGHTS SUCCESS

him to Indira College, Pune for MBA which was a very shocking experience for him.

Nonetheless, he moved to Pune and completed his MBA as well. He got placed with HDFC Bank as a credit manager in the unsecured loan division.

He left the job from HDFC in June 2010 and started his own venture of financial services. Initially, it didn't do so well for around six to seven months and finally, it came to an end. Later, Ashish joined Moon SEZ Group in April 2011 after having served as a salaried employee for three months. Since then, there was no looking back for him. He started new business verticals at various intervals of his life.

Now, he looks after overall business development activities, operations handling and client handling across sixteen different locations in India for Moon SEZ. "What I like the most about my business is that every day there are new challenges and something new to do," says Ashish. "My work is a self-driving force for me and my passion for it acts as a fuel," he adds further. His mission is to make the Moon SEZ group as equivalent to the Big 4 consulting firms in India.

Business and Beyond When he is not thinking about business, Ashish turns into a thorough family man. He considers his parents as guiding light and treats them as a moral compass in his day to day life. "I appreciate and thank my family, especially my wife!

She has always stood by me through thick and thin," Ashish tells. According to him, the most memorable moment for him was finding his life partner in 2010 and leaving his job to venture into the business. "Those were the two most important turning points in my life," he claims.

As far as his source of inspiration and support system is considered, his passion for work and the team he works with are the engaging factors. "I am passionate about

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“

Don’t think of what people will say just go ahead and do what you feel like doing.

“

everything that comes to me," states Ashish. Explaining the current situation pertaining to the industry Ashish opines that he does not see any recession anywhere, but a bright future for Indian entrepreneurs. To emphasize this, he articulates the reason as the negativity in Us-China trade relations. "Chinese are not known as good English speakers. Hence, it's an opportunity for us to grab the international deals as in India, most of the population is well versed with the English language," suggests Ashish. It will provide more business opportunities for India due to the availability of young brains in the country. Furthermore, with the Indian economy opening up more and forming bilateral relations day by day with FDI norms the opportunities have grown tenfold.

Like any other businessman, Ashish also faced some challenges while navigating through the difficulties in Moon SEZ. "Since our line of business mostly deals with clients that are looking for consulting and compliance including import and export clearance for them, there are a lot of risks associated with it," he informs. Every step right from any approval the company obtains for the client and any incentive it claims for them, all of it propagated uncertainties.

However, with the robust and uniform processes, and automation system implemented in the company, it is now able to handle all the matters extremely well. This has minimized the risk by eliminating human dependency and chances of errors.

Inspiring the young and new entrepreneurs, Ashish's advice to them is - "There is no shortcut to success and learning is a never-ending process. The more you read, the more you will brush up your knowledge and then it’s my challenge to you that no one will be able to beat you."

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Ashish Jhagarawat CEO

INSIGHTS SUCCESS | 25

BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Chandru KALRO

LEADING CHANGE TO ACHIEVE GROWTH

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n India, people especially women, spend around 13.2 hours a week on an average in the kitchen. Food and matters related to food are central and often revered for an Indian household. So it is natural that good kitchenware is quintessential and often a prized possession for the lady of the house. The modern Indian kitchen has long moved on from earthen cookware and now relies on modern cookware that ranges from non-electric to electric. They need kitchenware that can keep pace with their fast forward life, and add value to their kitchen collection.

Since 1928, TTK Prestige has been catering to the changing whims and fancies of the Indian kitchen. The TTK Group was founded in 1928 as an indenting agency by Mr T.T. Krishnamachari who pioneered organized distribution in India. Today it spans 30 product categories with 7 group companies and a turnover that cross 30 Billion rupees. The group company products reach every continent of the world. TTK Prestige Ltd. is the flagship company of the group.

played a key role in several strategic initiatives with a strong focus on innovation, superior customer service, and long term planning.

A Legacy that kept Re-inventing Itself TTK Prestige is India’s leading kitchen appliances brand with a 64-year-old legacy of continuous innovation. It is the first company in India to offer a range of innovative and unique products both in the electric and non-electric category thus offering end to end solutions. It has nourished and developed three brands over a period of time namely – Prestige, Manttra and Prestige Xclusive. These brands have struck all the right chords with the Indian customer and the products range from pressure cookers to gas Stoves, Induction cook-tops, Mixer Grinders, Air Fryers, Roti makers, to hob tops and many more. TTK Prestige retails its products via exquisite Prestige Xclusive stores and enjoys a strong distribution network of over 550 stores across India.

Seeking and Capturing Opportunities in the Market

The People’s Leader In 1993, Chandru Kalro joined TTK as a Product Manager. In 2015, he took over as Managing Director, and today manages the largest and most profitable company in the Kitchen appliances category. An engineer by academic qualification, Mr. Kalro has played a key role in changing the course of the company from being a pressure cooker company to making Prestige India’s number one kitchenware brand.

In a career spanning over three decades, he has been a part of BPL Limited for a brief stint of seven years. His move to TTK saw him climbing up the ladder quickly to General Manager Marketing in two and a half years. He has since 26 | INSIGHTS SUCCESS

With strong economic growth and increasing employment opportunities in India, the country’s kitchen appliances market is witnessing continuous growth. The expanding working class, especially working women; increasing nuclear families coupled with busy lifestyles are among the major factors boosting the demand for kitchen appliances in India. According to reports, the kitchen appliances market in India is set to grow at 25% CAGR. We have recognized these changing market dynamics early and have we have consistently launched new products to suit the ever-changing needs of the Indian homemaker.

Cashing in on the market trends, Chandru Kalro played a key role in several strategic initiatives that were taken to VOLUME - 9, ISSUE - 5, 2019

Rajashree T

Sampath

he below excerpt showcases the professional journey of Rajashree Sampath – Associate Director – Staffing at Klaus IT Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Kindly brief us about your professional journey and what kind of ethics, principles and manner of working you observe while managing the business operations?

The 25 years of my professional journey have been a roller coaster ride. I began my career soon after my graduation and since then, one over-riding principle that I followed in my life was to keep on learning endlessly. I have extensive experience working in small setups to large corporates in wide-ranging areas such as Human Resources, Finance and Admin.

I formulated policies which helped the organizations I worked for create a positive work environment and a culture which imbibed equal opportunities for all. The results were evident through employee loyalty and higher productivity.

Share with us the noted milestones, accomplishments of your journey along with highlighting the company’s achievements under your leadership.

I have been a part of this Organization since its inception and having seen this Company grow from a size of 40 to 1200 is amazing. We have evolved from a HR Company to a Technology Company today and are mature to handle projects in IT and Engineering. Our diversification from Staffing to managing large projects has attracted good talent.

Please tell us about the business model you follow and the services you provide that makes the brand unique in the mid of cut throat competition.

Our business models are agile which gives our clients the comfort to work with us. We work on Staffing,

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A Seasoned IT Professional

Development and Testing activities. Our uniqueness lies in our flexibility to cater to every client differently. We consider people as the biggest asset and give a lot of importance to their progression which in turns leads to the Company’s progress.

State us about the most memorable and remarkable moments of your life.

There are many memories that I treasure, both personal and professional. On the personal was when I became a mother of a beautiful girl and on the professional when I got promoted to the position of Director at Klaus. The journey of both has been incredible.

Where do you see yourself and the company in future?

Or, what is your goal to mark the uniqueness in future?

The future of Klaus looks very promising. My goal is to take Klaus to the next level by reaching a headcount 2500 in next two years with continued focus on Latest Technologies Kindly tell us about the most daring challenge you took and the risk associated with it.

A client of ours wanted us to manage resources working in a very remote location. Tracking them on a daily basis was impossible. We took the risk to take up this assignment and managed it very well.

Advise for the budding entrepreneurs who are trying to embark in the same field.

Life isn’t easy and people who learn the hard way sustain in the market. As they say, there is no shortcut to success. But thanks to technology and mentors in the Industry who are ever willing to help budding entrepreneurs and support & finance their ideas, the present generations have much scope to succeed

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BUS NESS ACHIEVERS

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

What is the one thing that is acting as your motivational tool? Or, who is your role model And how the person inspires and motivates you?

My role model is our Managing Director, Mr. Varma N K who in spite of seeing so much success in life is very down to earth and ensures that every employee is happy.

He has inspired many people including me. His urge to take up new challenges and drive it to success is highly motivating.

Rajashree Sampath Associate Director

Share your views on the current technology-enabled business scenario in India.

With the ever-changing technologies in the global scenario, there is a growing demand for technologyenabled services and India is leaving its footprint in this arena.

With its large talent-pool, India is a force to reckon with and has become the digital capabilities hub of the world. India is the topmost offshoring destination for IT companies across the world, having proven its capabilities in delivering both on-shore and off-shore services to global clients.

Emerging technologies now offer an entire new gamut of opportunities for top IT firms in India.

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Simplifying Numbers

Tally Solutions Private Limited What sets a company apart is as much in its DNA as its achievements. Today, more than two decades since its founding in 1986, Tally a pioneer in the business so ware products, enjoys a reputa on as India’s leading business management so ware product company. Tally’s simple yet powerful products has changed radically in the race of businesses.

Today, more than 10 Lakh businesses benefit from its product philosophy named as 'Power of Simplicity'. Tally products are transforming businesses and brought drama c change in the business processes and technologies across industry in over 100 countries.

Having delivered path breaking technology consistently for more than 30 years, Tally symbolizes unmatched innova on and leadership. Tally was the first to introduce codeless so ware, a natural language interface, path-breaking remote func onality and other unique capabili es. Its strong principle right from the early years to reach customers through a dedicated partner network has resulted in a robust partner system.

Today, it caters to millions of users across industries in 140 countries and con nues to be the unchallenged industry leader in the enterprise resource planning (ERP) so ware domain.

More informa on available on www.tallysolu ons.com

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE

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Unboxing the

Business

Trends T he year 2019 has already pulled in a plethora of evolutionary changes across the business world. With technology playing its part, the number of opportunities for the existing and budding entrepreneurs is growing at a faster pace alongside ensuring successful business foundations. On the other hand, embracing a customercentric approach and quenching the needs of the clientele has become the need of the hour. As such, it has become crucial for the corporates to call for an effective plan-of-action, leverage proactive trends, and implement novel strategies to generate profitable outcomes in the longer run.

As the third quarter of 2019 is coming to an end, let’s take a deeper dive into the business trends that will continue to engage every sector and prove significant in the business transformations: Enhancing Community Interaction Peer groups are going to be one of the major catalysts in uplifting the commercial framework of the 34 | INSIGHTS SUCCESS

established organizations as well as the startups, says an independent survey.

In an increasingly tech-driven world, where entrepreneurs face the complexities of engaging with their communities, these groups would prove to be the funnel of new business opportunities. Also, when it comes to financial high grounds, ‘Human Interaction’ can be truly achieved with the help of these Peer groups, thereby enabling companies to stand tall amongst its market competitors.

The Rise of Drop Shipping For any Small Business Unit (SBU), be it online or offline, expanding its reach across the globe is not an easy task.

Also, keeping up with the international standards and making more sales comes with numerous challenges, when it comes to logistics. This is where Drop Shipping is helping businesses across the E-commerce realm in managing the inventory tasks, shipping, and packaging, thereby automating the processes. It acts as a competitive business approach towards achieving desired results. An effective drop shipping collar helps an online

of 2019

company to target virtually any market domestically as well as internationally in a seamless manner.

Stronger Hold on Data Access to customer’s personal data is a privilege, not a right!

Acknowledging that customers nowadays demand more control over their data, the companies have initiated more transparent processes with respect to data security. Today, the companies are focusing on sharing information about various security systems and applications alongside mitigating the risks associated with the payment processing. Gripping the customer data rightly, the online retailers are keeping no stone unturned in displaying trust badges that ensure efficacious data security and SSL encryption across all payment procedures.

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Currently, the companies are moving towards an ‘opt-in button’ approach which enables the clientele to keep a track on what type of data is discharged and gathered during various online interactions.

Hyper-personalization Transforming the E-services Online personalization has come a long way from a curated product suggestions list to delivering services like subscription boxes, customized health products, etc. As digitalization is deepening its roots, today’s customers

are becoming much more dependent on online businesses than ever before.

‘Change’ is the name of the game, and recognizing this change is helping the companies to set up their game and roll out the kind of customization that the clients demand. For instance, some companies are using VR to study the user’s dimensions and preferred colour & fabric to craft out a customized outfit. With the convenience of this in-home technology, the companies are transforming the overall picture of E-services with hyper-personalization.

The Bottom Line The above trends have unlocked the doors to success for the business leaders and will continue to disrupt the business world with a similar force. Embracing these trends is helping the companies to offer unmatched experiences. On top of that, the customers have the potential to determine the trends that stay and the trends that change with time. As such, for establishing a benchmarking presence, it’s necessary for the businesses to keep up the ante with novel solutions that rightly satisfy the clientele in the coming future. As time goes by, it will be interesting to witness trends that would emerge as the game-changer.

- Rahul Niraj

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