Episode 9 - Get to know more about Harvard educated Vikram Sharma's Ikigai of being an Entrepreneur who's truly making a difference

[00:00:00] Hey there, once again all you lovely people some of whom might be a bit mad about the lockdown yet again Then we try and lift your moods today by introducing you to Yetten Nathra, Awesome Person in this episode of the RJ Suj Ikigai podcast

[00:00:17] When his name is Vikram Sharma, he's an entrepreneur who has successfully scaled and run several businesses currently running Wi-Fi Technology platform for blue collar workers to gain skills and employment And before Wi-Fi he was co-founder of Karnquo, which was bought out by the TVist group and before that

[00:00:36] He was CEO of a couple of big companies and also worked as a consultant with the McKinsey & Company Will Vikram is an engineer by education and undergraduate degree in India of course

[00:00:47] And of course graduating degree in engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and an MBA from the Harvard University And right now we have Vikram with us in our studios beginning the ninth episode of Get Up, Get Going and Find Your Ikigai

[00:01:13] Thank you so much Vikram for having agreed to be here Absolutely I am excited to be here and it's always great speaking with you Okay, if you say that I'll believe that but you know since our show is called Get Up, Get Going and Find Your Ikigai

[00:01:30] You know all of us find it in different ways right And usually many of us start thinking about what we want to do in life in our growing up years

[00:01:41] So tell us a bit more about your growing up years and more about how the influence your desire to be who you are today That is an entrepreneur Sure, Sussata so that's you know you're right

[00:01:54] I grew up in him Achila was born there in a very small village And the village where I was born and had my early years I think still has a population of less than maybe 100 people Right there was no a car road even there in my early years

[00:02:13] I recall there was hardly any electricity either So that's the kind of a place where I grew up But I was very lucky to have had an opportunity to co-study in a big city So I think I was around 4 or 5 years old

[00:02:29] Then when my dad got me and rode into a school in Chandigar Okay, which was about 6 hours away But I still you know, I was still so attached to my roots that I you know kept coming back to my village every month

[00:02:44] Have the other month, then I've ever had a chance And because of the large joint family where I was you know growing up those days And I had a lot of cousins I was the oldest one in my generation

[00:03:00] And you know those years I realized that I am the only lucky one who got a chance to go study in this big city There are all my other cousins, you know 10-12 of them They continue to stay and study in the village school

[00:03:18] And that kind of you know on one hand I realized that education opens up opportunities From the other hand my biggest realization was the opportunity to have education by itself is a blessing Absolutely

[00:03:35] So that's where I think my biggest realization happened that you know I am so lucky I am so grateful for having had this opportunity

[00:03:45] If given a chance or I will create a chance that I will want to be in a position where I can create opportunities for people to have education

[00:03:55] So that was all that was the starting point you know and from there somehow that that thought in my mind has stayed Over years then I had more learnings Another learning from my childhood days I recall you know there was my father was working in a government company

[00:04:16] And there were a couple of other people in the entire family who were employed You know working rest of the form farmers And you know I remember in the childhood when we used to look at things like let's say a car or a TV

[00:04:32] So sometimes the family members will remark This is the business of people who are doing business No, not the people who are doing business So that's all right That's kind of in early years of my life It's sort of the seeds in my mind

[00:04:46] A job business is very good Although I was too young at that time to realize what that business really means But that was the second thing that you know if you'd want to do well in life You have to be in business Not an job

[00:04:58] Job will pay the bills but what to do really value business Zero And then I think that was my second big learning But then the real Kind of learning which happened in much later years of my life was How do you create a business? How will make difference

[00:05:17] To society and move beyond the ability to just being in a job and paying your bills And having a life-living would came later It's really amazing you know Vikram You know what he was saying because I have grown up in a city

[00:05:30] I've been born and brought up in Mumbai And while you were speaking I was thinking that you know what if my life story was really different What if I was from a smaller town And what would my life have been like

[00:05:43] What would I have been inspired to do And I'm so happy to hear that you know you picked up the best of it Right? In terms of being influenced and being inspired And wanting to take that inspiration forward Thank you so much for sharing that Moving on

[00:05:59] We will move from your village to Chandigar To having being educated in one of the best institutions of the world Which is Harvard I mean it's everyone's dream Okay, let me tell you truthfully but you know you got at Harvard Tell us more about your time there

[00:06:20] You know in terms of the influence that it had on what you're doing today also Sure No, I guess I was very lucky to have had the opportunity to go to Harvard In fact to be honest I until I reached the US and started working there

[00:06:40] I actually did not know much about Harvard I had not even thought about MBA I was such an engineer You know, I used to only think about working with With car companies and mechanic, co-engineering And all engineering kind of companies And I had not really thought about Harvard

[00:06:55] But then You know then applied Had a chance to You know as a society to To get that admit The experience there was phenomenal It was definitely a life-changing Journey that we did of time The first biggest impact it had on my life is

[00:07:14] It kind of made me fearless Because what I realized is there were people from all walks of life there Until I was you know Studying at Harvard I had not really thought about starting a business Or had not really thought about taking any big risks

[00:07:35] And then being in that immersed in that program With all these very impressive people from all around the world And reading stories of successful entrepreneurs and businesses Made me sure I thought I can also do it And second thing I think it also

[00:07:55] Made me think is I also thought It's like an insurance policy Because when you want to be an entrepreneur One of the risk is failure If I fail, what are you doing? So then I thought I would go to the education I have this endorsement

[00:08:15] And I don't feel the fear of starting a business I can start something And if I fail I will look at the insurance policy That I will go to the office I will go to the office To the office for the office To the office for the office

[00:08:31] And then Did you become an entrepreneur immediately Or I believe you led a couple of companies So what was that journey all about? Right so when I graduated from Harvard I had kind of lived in the US for close to 10 years

[00:08:50] And I had just deep desire to come back to India I had offered to I had multiple offers to join companies in the US Including going back to my original company And live and continue to stay in the US But I somehow did not feel comfortable

[00:09:13] I felt that you know, while I enjoyed living and working with the US It was a great environment But I didn't feel that I was able to fully express myself Somehow there was this moment to come back So that led to my decision of finding opportunities

[00:09:30] Which will bring me to India right away So I happened to run into a company which was an American business Who had no presence in India But they were keen to start India business Basically moved back to India right away With that company It's a company called Huskou

[00:09:48] And then I moved to India in 2006 To build that company from the scratch in India So that included setting up the factory Building the business hiring team And getting the business up and running So moved to Puna and built that business up And ran back

[00:10:06] And we became the number one market leaders For our own apps within a span of a couple of years Okay, and from Huskou Was it straight to being an entrepreneur or In between there was another thing So Huskou was kind of like a startup

[00:10:22] But I never without any challenges Of fund race kind of startup While I was there I ended up running into a business Which was just the opposite of it Which was a mature company being around in a market leader for several years

[00:10:36] But had recently gone through some turbulent times And the owners wanted to exit But the business wasn't making money So I got them mandate to help the owners Turn that business around Get it back on path of profitability And help them get the exit

[00:10:54] While the business was struggling So I took on that challenge Right Ran that business Turned the company around Got the confidence Of the customers The stakeholders, the employees Everybody back And then The company was brought out by a large company So I launched a large multinational

[00:11:15] So the shareholders got an exit And after that I decided to You know, to come and not to turn that's hard Yeah because I feel that you've got In terms of you've gotten involved in the life cycle of the company in a way Right, you've started a company

[00:11:31] And then you know when it's really mature You've run that company Turned it around And actually sold it to someone I think the life cycle of the company Somewhere Having seen that has really influenced you And inspired the confidence in you To be able to

[00:11:50] Run your own shop What do you say? Right, right in different pieces But yes, we're right I had by that time I had seen the entire journey Of me starting something Building something from nothing Running it, making it grow and mature And also turn around and be exits

[00:12:08] So I've seen all those places Right, right So how is it being an entrepreneur And tell us of course We want to know more about You know, car crew and Why fight? WI, FY people Why fight is the latest company A big-remist running

[00:12:29] So tell us more about both these companies Sure, so I love solving problems You know, and the joy of building something from nothing Car crew is a tech platform Which basically helps Mechanics and repair people And various people working in the automobile industry

[00:12:58] To find opportunities of serving their customers And on the other hand, customers are able to discover these mechanics and repair shops Absolutely a platform So it really basically was an effort to organize A very unorganized industry There are, you know, lakhs of auto mechanics in India

[00:13:18] But almost all of them Struggled to find good quality customers Or struggle to find genuine parts Right, you have a car You are happy to sometimes take it to a mechanic But first innovation is this mechanic a good guy Even if you overcome that

[00:13:38] The mechanic may need to replace one or two parts in your car But when those mechanics don't have access to genuine parts So those are the two failure points we were trying to address One is providing the customers A layer of confidence

[00:13:53] This is a garage which has been Or a mechanic which has been tested and approved by us And you can go there Second is now solving that The pair problem also which is getting these mechanics And repair people access to right parts

[00:14:10] Earlier I thought you were going to be a mechanic But then the mechanic would say You know, in your garden you are not going to get me the part And you can take it to the right You solve that problem

[00:14:21] So we provided doorsteps, service of any part of any car To these mechanics So that really solved a very big problem in the country And since then you know, number of other startups have started In this area and become quite successful Wow, that's quite inspirational

[00:14:40] And you sold it to a much larger company right? Yes, we were brought out by TBS Group TBS is a Chinese based conglomerate And they have a large presence in the automobile Right, right So for them it was a very interesting new channel

[00:14:57] Because they were already in the automobile parts business But they were selling those or distributing them to the conchannel And this was a new channel Wow, and such a big conglomerate Actually looking at you for inspiration You know, to kind of take their business Into another direction

[00:15:14] I thought that is fantastic Vikram and I think why five WI-F-Y Again, also similar kind of problem Yes, so WI-F-Y is a similar platform But it is in different industries So this is more in the construction and home improvement space

[00:15:33] So what we are doing is we are building a skilling and employment platform on one side So we help various kind of tradesmen Like carpenter, stormers, electricians, electronics, engineers All of them get skilled and certified

[00:15:53] So that they can do their jobs better and also have access to employment And on the other hand, we've worked with large brands Was serving these markets To avail services of these people So we are a bit too first company So example being let's say you buy

[00:16:12] Let's say a modular kitchen from Ikea So Ikea in the best maybe a DIY Kind of a project to yourself So you might be able to buy something from Ikea But then you will make a full fix at your home So we provide those installation and assembly services

[00:16:32] There are actually two Ikea So Ikea can sell you something And also provide you that assurance That we are also going to provide you assembly and installation at your house So that you are sike And they are able to do that to our platform

[00:16:46] Where we have these trained qualified technicians available So we are solving kind of one hand We are enabling and empowering millions of tradesmen But providing them is feeling an employment And the other hand, we help hundreds and thousands of brands

[00:17:04] To get access to these tradesmen in an organized manner So we are organizing a very unorganized sector You know and something came to mind right now As you were speaking So if you are too busy to DIY then just call Wi-Fi That's amazing, Siyata I think

[00:17:26] Yeah because in India we are too busy to do anything on our own To be neat support and help for everything And I think you hit the nail on its head By creating a solution for that problem Who wants to DIY in India?

[00:17:40] So many of these as you said unorganized Skill people, though unorganized And they are always willing to kind of come to you And the way you negotiate hard with them And I am so happy that you provided this kind of a platform

[00:17:54] Because I am sure that there would be at least a minimum guarantee That they would make out of each assignment working with you right? That's right. I might have to steal that tag line that you gave me today I really love it But I won't charge quality

[00:18:10] It's my return gift for you being on my podcast Awesome, no that's great But but you're right So while we are not the first one trying to do this kind of business There are other companies who have done this And have been very successful Much earlier than us

[00:18:30] But most of these companies the other platforms are more B2C focused Right? They are helping Direct consumers find plumbers and electricians And and competitors We are up to B2 business We are solving this same problem for large enterprises So that they don't have to struggle

[00:18:50] Impining the right people or working with With small contractors Or having different or you know Giving different kind of consumer experiences To different parts of the country So what we do is we help the brands Solve their problems and provide a very very uniform and consistent consumer experience

[00:19:12] To you whether you are sitting in Chandigar or Delhi or Mumbai or Kerala wherever So that's our value proposition to the brands And as a result we can create massive opportunities for all these tradesmen and workers In the in these industries

[00:19:30] That's amazing and I think as far as there is a need Right? There is always a problem to solve And whether it's for a business or for consumers As long as you're trying to solve that problem I'm sure that you will do very well

[00:19:44] And as you said consistency I think that's the key here Right because these competitors Or whoever else that we are talking about You know not all of them are asked Killed you know someone might end up Damaging something Oh whatever we don't have that trust right

[00:20:00] If we don't know that person Except if he or she has been working with us for years And that's how trust builds But you know if there is a company like Wi-Fi Who's promising a huge organization saying that You know don't you worry about the quality

[00:20:12] Or the skills of these people That's on me I think the organization would go for you in a jiffy right? Absolutely and the skill is the key word here Right Then you know most of these These statesmen have not really been formally educated

[00:20:32] And even if they have been to a ITI or a vocational training institute Does killing curriculum that they have been taught Is so outdated right In a complementary course But they are learning today is not really used in the market Right or the word has moved

[00:20:48] So the so the latest technology is not taught to them in a formal manner And some of them learn Just by experience by making too many mistakes Or taking too long to learn So what we are doing is we are shrinking that

[00:21:02] You do it all the time in which they learn To a very very small time What we are what I would like to think is What we are building is a spirit tech organization On the other hand so

[00:21:14] You know you may have heard of platform like 5 Jews and so on Right or upgrade All for for white collar or for students What we are building is the skill tech or the skilling platform for blue collar workers

[00:21:30] So I would like to think that we are on the supply side Building the by-Jose or the upgrade for the blue collar workers They can come and learn upgrade their skills Get certified and hence have access to high quality employment And hence create opportunities

[00:21:50] So this goes back to my original thought what I said You know which is having access to education Is a great opportunity And And I think maybe the impact that we can have on these millions of tradesmen is

[00:22:06] Is it maybe there will be able to have good livelihoods So they can create high quality education opportunities to their kids I'm saying they will have a higher or better future That's an amazing thought Vikraman Is that what keeps you going because

[00:22:22] I'm sure that you know being from Harvard You know when you meet your classmates See you of XYZ and you know whatever else Right? That's what we hear What keeps you going in this entrepreneurial journey So you're right, you know

[00:22:40] So my classmates from Harvard are very highly successful Famous people, you know, they are large companies or are You know, CEOs of Private equity firms or independent large companies And it is The glamour of that is great

[00:23:00] So it kind of sometimes make you feel you are making a car Right? But you know because Being entrepreneur and being running a startup is a struggle It's a constant hustle, right? There are times

[00:23:12] Then I don't even know if I'll have you know money to pay my bills this month Right? But it's still you know what helps you overcome All those challenges and risks Is the joy that you know you get from making a difference Everybody is actually making a difference

[00:23:30] I don't mean to buy any means say that People who are CEOs of large companies I'm not making a difference They're also making a difference But everybody has their own They of you know feeling that sense of fulfillment For me that sense of fulfillment come

[00:23:44] From creating something from nothing So I find my joy in that Plus you know touching the lives directly A thousand or you know a large number of people And helping them do better in life So I feel directly you know that I feel a direct connection

[00:24:04] With my work soil It is not like ten layers of separation between me and the impact I'm having So that sense of fulfillment is easier than right there There are now Wow, and I think that's the energy I hear in your voice as well

[00:24:21] Vikram you know a direct direct impact Because it's coming from your heart And I can feel it and I'm sure our listeners Will be feeling and you know feeling inspired as well Just listening to the warmth in your voice Last but not the least

[00:24:37] Your message to all listeners On how they can find their Riki guy And how to stay on that path right Because tough times Don't last but tough people like Vikram Sharma do So go on this stage is yours That's a toughest question in you saved

[00:24:59] Tough one for the last but I don't feel that I am You know so qualified to answer that question But what I feel that remaining to oneself Helps number two is having confidence and trust in yourself Like back yourself That you can do you can do it Helps

[00:25:24] Then I think to some extent You know having some sort of insurance policy helps I think this is a more practical point So for some people the insurance is you know having money in the bank For some people the insurance is family or something else

[00:25:47] In my case my insurance is That I have done enough in my prior journey That that I'm not worried you know I can find something Or if this doesn't work I'll have something to go back to Right so what has helped me personally is a spirituality

[00:26:08] So I'm not a very religious person But you know I live I learn a lot from I think in Indian philosophies like the Dante or yoga So what that has taught me Listening to these scholars and having the experience it myself It's nothing it for is permanent

[00:26:30] Right if you're going to a hard time just create Hang in there Believe in yourself and it will change And similarly on the other hand also you know If you're having a very very good time And things are going far far better than imagined

[00:26:47] Then also don't get overcome with that You know just don't start believing Like a subcooked Mary would just say you were right Just a lot of luck driving it and a lot of nature driving It's just remaining scent So what spirituality helps is in remaining centered

[00:27:03] Not getting carried away by too much success At the same time not getting too down in tough times Tough times don't last But tough people like Vikram Sharma do Thank you so much for sharing your inspirational story Vikram

[00:27:22] And you know as I keep saying even if one person who's tuned in can get inspired You know by what you've said I think our job is well done What's safe? I'm clearly Siddhata I am grateful to you to giving me the opportunity to come and speak here

[00:27:40] And I love it