Rashmi Guptey
1st February 2022
Harish Talreja
25th January 2022
Sid Talwar
31st December 2021
Ankit Moorjani
30th June 2021
20th January 2024
Sandeep Murthy
17th March 2022
1st January 2020
20th November 2017
7th June 2022
15th May 2022
17th February 2022
28th November 2023
Prashant Mehta
2nd February 2022
22nd September 2021
30th August 2021
15th March 2022
21st January 2022
14th January 2022
4th October 2024
5th August 2024
25th June 2024
20th December 2023
20th October 2021
25th April 2021
Akshat Jain
12th February 2021
31st May 2020
Tanya Rohatgi
19th August 2024
20th June 2024
Siddhant Ahuja
25th April 2022
14th February 2022
2nd June 2018
5th June 2024
15th February 2024
9th February 2024
26th May 2022
1st February 2024
20th November 2020
Shivani Daiya
20th February 2020
17th August 2014
18th July 2019
17th September 2021
15th September 2021
Maansi Vohra
28th January 2021
Atharva Purandare
10th January 2021
Tanvi Ghate
23rd January 2024
Ahan Rajgor
12th May 2022
8th March 2022
22nd February 2022
22nd August 2024
29th July 2024
5th June 2022
5th May 2022
16th April 2021
15th November 2014
25th October 2021
8th March 2020
7th August 2018
27th December 2016
17th February 2021
29th September 2020
24th September 2020
26th July 2020
20th January 2020
15th October 2018
26th June 2018
13th June 2017
21st May 2024
13th February 2024
15th July 2024
10th April 2024
20th February 2024
It’s really hard, but so powerful. The "hack" culture of Facebook or the "do no evil" approach of Google or the "respect everyone" culture of the Mahindras. It is amazing to see what great things can be accomplished when a founder drives core values effectively through an organization.
I was recently asked the question, who inspires you and why. The who part was easy, but when I sat back and thought about why, the answer to that was really inspirational.
As a builder of early stage businesses, I find that I often struggle with the challenge of how to retain the culture that starts with the founders as the companies grow. An idea starts with one person. Culture is easy. Then it's shared and there is a co-founding team, managing values are a little more difficult, but the team spends so much time with each other that the fundamental principles become clear and shared.
But once scale starts to creep in and a company is formed, how do you make sure that the principles you hold near and dear (that you feel are self evident) are retained? This is the crux of building a great company and something that I think the best companies have been able to create. Whether it is the "hack" culture of Facebook or the "do no evil" approach of Google or the "respect everyone" culture of the Mahindras, it is amazing to see what great things can be accomplished when a founder drives core values effectively through an organization.
A person who inspires you and why?
Since moving to India 9 years ago, I have had the fortune to get to know Anand Mahindra and have always walked away from my meetings with him inspired - both personally and professionally. On the professional front, I am amazed at the clarity with which he has built his federation of companies and the efficiency with which he executes his business. On the personal front, I am inspired by the genuineness with which he approaches his relationships and interactions - no matter who you are, he takes the time to make you feel important. While both of these factors are inspiring, what makes him an inspiration to me, is that he has figured out how to drive these qualities across his organization... everyone I have interacted with at M&M seems to embody these attributes. It is one thing to be disciplined and diligent in how an individual manages oneself, but scaling that across an organization is a truly amazing feat and this is what I find inspirational in Anand Mahindra and M&M.
Hitendra and I discovered this opportunity through an iterative set of conversations that took place prior to funding the business. It was this deep engagement and exchange of ideas, even before there was an economic incentive that allowed for a strong relationship with an open exchange of ideas to develop.
Look for an empty work station, a chair and get ready to go
When we first met to discuss starting a fund, one of the things that we all had in common was that we were entrepreneurs. We had launched our own companies, gotten rejected by investor after investor, produced good and bad products and experienced failure after failure. We were start up warriors and had the battle scars to prove it.
Those that make it through are not unscathed – they have battle wounds. The challenges of the first year take their toll… emotionally, organizationally, culturally. While the first year has likely felt like a sprint, it is important to remember that this is a marathon and it is impossible to continue to run a marathon at a sprint pace.
The best thing a startup can do for its brand is to invest in creating experiences that make people whip their phones out to tweet or instagram immediately. Your brand isn’t what you say about yourself, it’s what people say about you.
Tech companies are nothing without growth. The real value creation will take place in companies that are able to demonstrate differentiated growth by taking advantage of the imminent technology boom (a result of the explosion in data & apps).
Handling a downturn has little to do with what you do when the downturn starts, but more to do with how you built during the boom. At the start of a downturn, if you’re asking “What do I do now?” it’s probably too late.
We are at the cusp of creating great technology businesses in India. It can’t happen without the right support from a great board. And a great board needs independent directors.
You will receive the next newsletter in your inbox.
The monthly Gazette is your source of happenings within Lightbox - updates, blogs, deep dives, opinion pieces and all things consumer tech
Join the thousands who hear from us