Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Founder, Info Edge (Naukri.com)
Annual Turnover : Rs. 274 Crore
Did you have a mentor, like Sachin had Sunil?
No, I did not have any mentor when we started. In those days the networking opportunities and platforms for entrepreneurs starting out were very few. Today organizations such as TiE have managed to create a great eco-system for start-up entrepreneurs in India – mentors, investors, networking and education.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
You cannot build a fast growing large company through micro-management. You need to have great leadership at all levels in the company. Scaling up is about letting go – to the right people and putting in processes at the same time.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch? Can you cite some instances?
For the first seven years we drifted and did a lot of small stuff before we launched Naukri. And then after we launched Naukri, we bootstrapped it for three years. Financially, this was a very difficult decade. And then, after we raised venture capital, the dot com meltdown hit us. So, all in all we had fourteen years of very difficult times. We dealt with critics by ignoring them and going about our work.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
When you are not working for money but for a cause that gives meaning to your life you find the energy.
Vandana Luthra, Founder, VLCC Group
Annual Turnover : Rs. 500 Crore
Did you have a mentor like Sachin had Sunil? How important a role did that mentor play for you?
Everyone who is successful has to have a role model. Someone who is there by your side when you need them. A friend, philosopher and guide whose support is rock solid and he is also your worst critic at times. My role model/best friend and guide is my husband Mukesh. A man of few words and great business action. Like you shift gears in a car while going uphill, he helped me shift gears of my business from a personalized set up to India’s largest beauty empire. And he has a large part to play in the commercial success of VLCC.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
While I am still very involved in the direction of where the VLCC Group is headed, I focus more on R&D, Customer Delight and Service Delivery Quality. The day-to-day management of over 225 VLCC outlets across 86 cities in 7 countries, manned by over 8000 employees is handled by an extremely competent group of professionals. This allows me to focus on issues that will ensure the continued relevance of VLCC as an enduring concept. Incidentally, the current board of directors of VLCC Health Care. comprises of only two whole time directors(and I am not one of them!) and six independent directors. So yes, giving up "Captaincy" of sorts has certainly made me a better player.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch?
Critics are your best friends. As long as their criticism does not stem from jealousy. Objective criticism helps you to constantly raise the bar on product and service delivery. I have had my share of stubborn people who did not change their lifestyle, for example, and then blamed their failure on our fool proof systems. I have always dealt with criticism with peace and patience.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
What drives me are successful stories of then and now. What thrills me are clients in whose lives VLCC made a significant difference for the better. That for me is true success that stems from the heart and soul.
Vipul Jain, Co-Founder, Kale Consultants
Annual Turnover : Rs. 150 Crore
Did you have a mentor like Sachin had Sunil? How important a role did that mentor play for you?
I was deputed to the Taj Hotels Company to set up and head the Information Systems Department for computerization in Taj Group. The CEO of Taj, Ajit Kerkar, could be called as mentor for me. He entrusted me with a lot of responsibilities at a very young age. It, at some level, gave me a lot of confidence to start my own venture and it also directed me to information technology. This at that time was not a very preferred option if you happened to be from IIM Ahmedabad: you end up joining banking, FMCG, or Hindustan Liver. So the first few years of your life are very influential in shaping your career.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
If you are happy with the size and you want to run that efficiently, then I think you continue to micro-manage it. But if your goal is to scale, then you can’t go on scaling if you are micro-managing. So, you will have to build a team and you will have to let go and become a coach rather than a person who does everything. So the rule changes: you become a coach; you have to mentor people and develop them and take chances with them.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch? Can you cite some instances?
We all grow through that, whatever you call it: lean patches or challenges. In case of our company, we did an IPO. The IPO was extremely successful in year 2000 at the height of the tech world and dot com boom. So our share price jumped manifold and later on it started coming down to unrealistic levels; and then September 11 happened. So people thought that airline industry is gone and people involved with this industry are gone. Our share price came down to extremely low level. Soon after the IPO, the share price was Rs. 700/- and at its lowest end, it was Rs. 17/-. So you have to take it all in your stride and not get carried away either way. You have to find your compass within. You need to be realistic about what you doing and if you are making and continue to believe in yourself—very important to believe in yourself.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
I think what keeps me going is the fact that there is no one else to win. Apart from that, I enjoy what I am doing because at the end of the day, if you don’t enjoy what you are doing, you won’t do it.
Annual Turnover : Rs. 274 Crore
Did you have a mentor, like Sachin had Sunil?
No, I did not have any mentor when we started. In those days the networking opportunities and platforms for entrepreneurs starting out were very few. Today organizations such as TiE have managed to create a great eco-system for start-up entrepreneurs in India – mentors, investors, networking and education.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
You cannot build a fast growing large company through micro-management. You need to have great leadership at all levels in the company. Scaling up is about letting go – to the right people and putting in processes at the same time.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch? Can you cite some instances?
For the first seven years we drifted and did a lot of small stuff before we launched Naukri. And then after we launched Naukri, we bootstrapped it for three years. Financially, this was a very difficult decade. And then, after we raised venture capital, the dot com meltdown hit us. So, all in all we had fourteen years of very difficult times. We dealt with critics by ignoring them and going about our work.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
When you are not working for money but for a cause that gives meaning to your life you find the energy.
Vandana Luthra, Founder, VLCC Group
Annual Turnover : Rs. 500 Crore
Did you have a mentor like Sachin had Sunil? How important a role did that mentor play for you?
Everyone who is successful has to have a role model. Someone who is there by your side when you need them. A friend, philosopher and guide whose support is rock solid and he is also your worst critic at times. My role model/best friend and guide is my husband Mukesh. A man of few words and great business action. Like you shift gears in a car while going uphill, he helped me shift gears of my business from a personalized set up to India’s largest beauty empire. And he has a large part to play in the commercial success of VLCC.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
While I am still very involved in the direction of where the VLCC Group is headed, I focus more on R&D, Customer Delight and Service Delivery Quality. The day-to-day management of over 225 VLCC outlets across 86 cities in 7 countries, manned by over 8000 employees is handled by an extremely competent group of professionals. This allows me to focus on issues that will ensure the continued relevance of VLCC as an enduring concept. Incidentally, the current board of directors of VLCC Health Care. comprises of only two whole time directors(and I am not one of them!) and six independent directors. So yes, giving up "Captaincy" of sorts has certainly made me a better player.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch?
Critics are your best friends. As long as their criticism does not stem from jealousy. Objective criticism helps you to constantly raise the bar on product and service delivery. I have had my share of stubborn people who did not change their lifestyle, for example, and then blamed their failure on our fool proof systems. I have always dealt with criticism with peace and patience.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
What drives me are successful stories of then and now. What thrills me are clients in whose lives VLCC made a significant difference for the better. That for me is true success that stems from the heart and soul.
Vipul Jain, Co-Founder, Kale Consultants
Annual Turnover : Rs. 150 Crore
Did you have a mentor like Sachin had Sunil? How important a role did that mentor play for you?
I was deputed to the Taj Hotels Company to set up and head the Information Systems Department for computerization in Taj Group. The CEO of Taj, Ajit Kerkar, could be called as mentor for me. He entrusted me with a lot of responsibilities at a very young age. It, at some level, gave me a lot of confidence to start my own venture and it also directed me to information technology. This at that time was not a very preferred option if you happened to be from IIM Ahmedabad: you end up joining banking, FMCG, or Hindustan Liver. So the first few years of your life are very influential in shaping your career.
Sachin gave up the captaincy to be a better player: Did you ever think likewise?
If you are happy with the size and you want to run that efficiently, then I think you continue to micro-manage it. But if your goal is to scale, then you can’t go on scaling if you are micro-managing. So, you will have to build a team and you will have to let go and become a coach rather than a person who does everything. So the rule changes: you become a coach; you have to mentor people and develop them and take chances with them.
When out of form, Sachin handled criticism with poise, only to bounce back in style. How did you deal with critics both within and outside while going through a rough patch? Can you cite some instances?
We all grow through that, whatever you call it: lean patches or challenges. In case of our company, we did an IPO. The IPO was extremely successful in year 2000 at the height of the tech world and dot com boom. So our share price jumped manifold and later on it started coming down to unrealistic levels; and then September 11 happened. So people thought that airline industry is gone and people involved with this industry are gone. Our share price came down to extremely low level. Soon after the IPO, the share price was Rs. 700/- and at its lowest end, it was Rs. 17/-. So you have to take it all in your stride and not get carried away either way. You have to find your compass within. You need to be realistic about what you doing and if you are making and continue to believe in yourself—very important to believe in yourself.
If it’s the passion for the game that keeps Sachin going strong, what is it that drives you to set higher goals as an entrepreneurs and as a person?
I think what keeps me going is the fact that there is no one else to win. Apart from that, I enjoy what I am doing because at the end of the day, if you don’t enjoy what you are doing, you won’t do it.
Comments