Pramod Chaudhari

Dr. Pramod Chaudhari started Praj Industries nearly 40 years ago with a humble dream to build something innovative that would contribute to the making of a modern India. What started off as an entrepreneurial venture four decades ago, is today India’s most successful company in the field of bio-based technologies and engineering with presence in more than 100 countries across all five continents over the world. Praj is focused on the environment, energy, and Agriprocess industry.

Bio-MobilityTM and Bio-PrismTM are the mainstays of Praj’s contribution to global Bioeconomy. Bio-MobilityTM platform of technologies envisages utilization of bio-based resources for production of low carbon transportation fuels across all modes of mobility namely Surface, Air and Marine. Bio-PrismTM portfolio comprises of technologies for production of renewable chemicals and materials (RCM).

RCM produced from bio-based feedstock, are sustainable alternatives to products made from fossil resources. Praj Matrix, the state-of-the-art R&D facility, forms the backbone for the company’s endeavors. The zeal of working toward making the world a better place has been at the heart of all his efforts and still continues to fuel the fire.

FIRMLY GROUNDED IN VALUES AND GUIDED BY ETHICS

Dr. Chaudhari is an IIT Bombay alumnus in Mechanical Engineering (1971) and also holds an advanced management degree from Harvard Business School (1995). After graduating from his alma mater, he tried the usual route of working with the MNCs and building a corporate career. But, his dream was bubbling inside so in 1983, he gave his all to his venture – Praj Industries.

The organization started as a supplier of ethanol plants and today it is one of the most renowned socio-economic ventures with a wide range of sustainable solutions for bioenergy, high purity water, critical process equipment, breweries and industrial wastewater treatment. Owing to his foresight of creating a business in ethanol and scaling it to a level that Dr. Chaudhari has, he is often referred to as the ‘Ethanol Man’ in the industry circles.

Dr. Chaudhari had spent some time in his childhood near sugar industries and that is when he developed an interest in agri processing. He founded Praj Industries with a motive to support farming community.

PROUDLY TAKING THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

“Right from the beginning, as a proponent of sustainability I had endeavored to strike a balance between three P’s namely Planet, People and Profit,” said Dr. Chaudhari. His one true belief is that the 3 P’s are a perfect formula for sustainability. As an entrepreneur and a leader, innovation is what drives him. In the early days of Praj, Dr. Chaudhari had adopted the approach that innovation would always be the growth driver. He personally ensured that this culture was kept afloat at Praj in their day-to-day functioning as well. The company has structured programs, innovation awards and competitions to foster a culture of innovation. The company also has a dedicated R&D center called Praj Matrix which is a hub of new ideas. Creative problem solving is another intrinsic part of the culture promoted by Dr. Chaudhari. He also holds problem-solving competitions at renowned colleges, where he tries to identify talent and encourage students to consider careers in industrial biotechnology and green chemistry. This is not just business, Dr. Chaudhari is working to change mindsets about biotechnology as a career and raising awareness about the industry.

LEAVING A TRAIL OF GLORIOUS AND NOTEWORTHY ACHIEVEMENTS

Dr. Chaudhari is one of the most respected and recognized professional in the industrial biotechnology field. One can’t talk about biofuel and not take his name. His consistent efforts and progressive work have been recognized globally many times. He was recently awarded the prestigious ‘George Washington Carver Award 2020’ by BIO-Impact, Washington DC, USA – he became the first Indian to receive this global honor. He was also bestowed with ‘D.Litt.’ by Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth (TMV) for his exemplary contribution to the Biofuel Industry worldwide, and for establishing & institutionalizing a quality benchmark of Indian products & services at global level. He has previously been named amongst the ‘Globally Top 100 People’ in BioEnergy Industry by USA-based publication, ‘Biofuels Digest.’ Dr. Chaudhari has also been awarded the prestigious BioSpectrum Leadership Award for his extraordinary work in spreading the cause of biofuels in the past three decades. Under his able guidance, Praj Industries has also been the recipient of many industry awards. Last year, Praj Industries was ranked first among the “Best Places to Work in the advanced bioeconomy 2020” by ‘Biofuels Digest’. Biofuels Digest has also ranked Praj 2nd in a list of world’s 50 hottest companies in global bioeconomy for 2021 in low carbon fuels and renewable chemicals category. Besides, Praj secured 3rd ranking in the newly-introduced biodesign and engineering category. It has also been named the ‘Bio-Excellence Award’ by Government of Karnataka in the category of Industrial Bio-tech Sector consecutively for three years. These and many other premier industry awards and global recognition are testimony to the fact that Dr. Chaudhari is not only working tirelessly for a better world, but also ensuring the change begins right at his doorstep with his team and employees.

MAKING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE WORLD

In his journey as an entrepreneur and thought leader, Dr. Chaudhari has also ensured he extends his passion for social causes beyond his core business. He always believes in giving back to the society. In 2004, he established Praj Foundation to give an expression to all the efforts that he and his organization are taking towards social impact activities. Praj Foundation closely works with various NGOs and institutional partners on multiple projects in water conservation, education and preventive healthcare. They also conduct awareness drives to encourage more people to be part of the movement towards sustainability and betterment. ‘‘When you can do the common things in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world,” goes a famous quote by Dr. George Washington Carver. Dr. Chaudhari is testament to this quote. He chose one of the most underrated industries and made a huge impact. He put India on the world map and also became an inspiration to every individual who wanted to work in the biotechnology industry.

Unmesh Srivastava

Having graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Rajasthan in India and a Master of Science degree from California State University at Northridge, Unmesh brings a wealth of engineering experience to the company. His expertise lies in data-driven automation and technical solutions. Unmesh has also successfully completed the Emerging Leader Program at The Wharton School and the Artificial Intelligence Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

AN IMPRESSIVE CAREER

Before joining P3, the leader-cum-innovator was an Associate Vice President at Optum Care, where he led innovations and business transformation. Also, he oversaw the creation of new management strategies and operating models for UnitedHealth Group, Toyota Financial Services, and Kaiser Permanente in Southern California. Unmesh believes the experience he has gained from his internships and past work has given him a unique perspective on the art of sales and implementation, which is likely one of the reasons for his success. He is well known in his circle for his extensive knowledge and expertise.

A TECHNOLOGY WIZARD

Unmesh loves technology and stays abreast of the latest trends in the industry. With his innovations, healthcare providers have been greatly empowered. Among the technology products, he has delivered include clinical decision support technology for providers, data analytics, and artificial intelligence that enable seamless care delivery to patients, and multiple other innovations that reduce the administrative burden for providers and hospitals. Moreover, P3 Data Fabric—his brainchild, gives intelligent insights to the entire care ecosystem at the point of care. With this platform, partners of P3 Health can manage medical risk, care delivery, and patient experience by using advanced data integration, analytics, and artificial intelligence.

A GREAT TEAM PLAYER

Unmesh enjoys being in charge, just as a good leader should. The technically sound and focused leader is also a team player who strives to bring out the best in those around him. It is his razor-sharp focus on putting together a world-class team that makes him so successful. He deeply values his team’s participation and recognizes the importance of their involvement in the firm’s success. As a true leader, he develops a growth strategy and provides direction to his team to meet the company’s goals. With the help of his dedicated and proactive team, Unmesh has created a digital technology ecosystem and a data ecosystem at P3 that supports the experience of patients and providers. As a focused leader, he ensures that the entire team is aware of the collective goals they are pursuing.

TOWERING ACHIEVEMENTS

Like a true leader, Unmesh constantly looks for the next big challenge. His leadership qualities have earned him several prestigious awards, including the Digital Disruptor Award by Globant Of 2021, the Top 10 Best CTO’s of 2020 by Industry Era, Talend Data Masters Award 2020, and IFAH top 100 Healthcare Leader Award. Yet he doesn’t trust in resting on his laurels, but rather constantly strives to improve himself as an individual and as a leader.

Prasad Guntupalli

As the Co-Founder of Attra, Prasad created the company from the ground up, transforming it into a global technology services and solutions provider in the banking and payments space with over 2,200 domain experts and revenue of $75 million. Under his stewardship, Attra has grown to have offices in 13 countries across four continents, with a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30%.

AN INDOMITABLE SPIRIT

Prasad is a first-generation entrepreneur who made the brave decision at a young age to soar beyond his humble roots by forging a successful future. He took up odd jobs at the age of 16 to get by. He began his career as an engineering apprentice. He paid his way through college by working and studying part-time and earning a bachelor’s degree in commerce.

He subsequently moved into the nascent Indian IT sector after being hired by DCM Data Products, where he quickly rose through the ranks, being promoted eight times during his nine-year stint in the company. He then went on to work for IBM for three years. Following that, he worked in senior positions at Pentasoft and Birlasoft, managing accounts in Sydney, Australia, and overseeing the Asia Pacific region. As the founding member of Pentasoft and Birlasoft in the APAC region, he swiftly scaled both businesses through customer acquisition.

Prasad devoted 18 years to the IT sector before embarking on his entrepreneurial adventure in 2005, establishing his mark wherever he worked by tackling every challenge with entrepreneurial zeal.

His successful track record of building numerous businesses from scratch compelled him to leap into entrepreneurship to uncover his true potential. In 2005, he associated with Attra, Melbourne Australia, founded by Anil Gammampila that primarily served the Australian market. Despite a solid earning potential and a secure job at the top of his career, Prasad invested his life savings in becoming a co-founder of Attra, with a mission to transform the company from a regional to a global player.

As soon as he took over as co-founder of Attra, he launched a series of transformative moves that catapulted the company to the next level, Attra 2.0, which began with the company’s first offshore development center in Bangalore, India. He said, “It was difficult to persuade customers to entrust their projects to a small delivery facility in Bangalore. We persisted in convincing potential leads for the next 12 months until we finally won the trust of a very large Global Payment Credit card company, the center’s first client and project.” With Attra 3.0, the company experienced increased growth and expansion, adding more services to its portfolio to meet the growing demands of customers. Under Prasad’s supervision, Attra expanded globally, opening additional offices and offshore development centers in various geographies and gaining a competitive advantage in 24 countries worldwide. Last but not least, he also oversaw the acquisition of Attra by Synechron, a global transformation consulting firm helping banks, asset managers, and insurance companies accelerate their digital initiatives. Attra has broadened its offerings beyond payments to include wholesale banking, wealth management, and insurance with the acquisition. It has also enhanced its digital, consulting, and technological capabilities. Prasad played a key role in leading the arrangement, which proved to be a huge success and a win-win situation for Attra’s clients.

EMPHASIZES A POSITIVE WORKPLACE CULTURE

Prasad believes that a positive and employee-centric workplace culture significantly improves teamwork, increases productivity, and helps retain employees. He has a well-deserved reputation for tenacity, endurance, and putting staff first. Creating a new practice structure to ensure that teams remain market-aligned and customer-focused is one of the notable initiatives taken by him for the development of his team. Simultaneously, he promotes a culture of continuous learning and development to encourage and support in-house talent.

He has also taken the initiative to create special career pathways for employees with untapped potential, preparing them for success and speeding up their advancement. Moreover, Prasad is also an advocate of gender diversity, which is an essential factor for the company in creating an equal and positive work environment.

As a result, Attra has 31% of women in its workforce. Attra has 85% of its senior management team from within the company, including 75% of the Business Unit leaders. Furthermore, the tech-savvy leader has pushed for the digitization of internal operations to boost intra-organizational operational efficiency.

ACHIEVEMENTS WORTH APPLAUSE

Several awards have been bestowed upon Prasad for his outstanding leadership abilities. He was named one of India’s “Top 100 Great People Managers” by The Great Manager Institute and Forbes India for modeling surefire strategies that encourage his technical leaders to grow and develop organically. Over 5,200 managers took an active part in this evaluation, and the best 100 were picked through a 4-tiered rigorous assessment.

He was also named ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ at the Payments and Cards Summit (5th edition) in 2017. Under his leadership, Attra has earned numerous awards. In 2019, it was honoured with the ‘Best Payments Organization of the Year’ award at the 7th edition of the Payments and Cards Summit. In the same year, Shri Nitin Gadkari, India’s Union Minister for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), presented the company with the ‘SME 100 Award, 2019’ at the International MSME Convention in New Delhi.

VENTURING WITH HEART AND SOUL

Prasad is also a proponent of environmentally friendly practices. He chose to set up Attra’s new office in a building that was the first in India to be awarded an EDGE green building accreditation by the World Bank/IFC and the Green Building Council of India, despite having more appealing options. Additionally, Attra teamed with ‘Social Venture Partners Melbourne Limited’ under his direction to support seven not-for-profit organizations in their efforts to help underprivileged yet talented youngsters learn, grow, and thrive in life and work. In addition, the firm contributes to the PM’s Relief Fund (India) planting of trees to improve the environment and help farmers, and more recently, the building of essential infrastructure for a two rural school in India.

Fazeela Gopalani

A member of ACCA since 2004, Ms. Fazeela possesses over 18 years of experience in accounting and finance. Her mission is to increase the awareness of the importance that highly trained accountants bring to companies and economies across the world.

EARLY LIFE

Ms. Fazeela, who was born and raised in the UK, completed her Bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Birmingham and the University of Strathclyde, respectively. Before moving to the UAE, she managed and operated an accounting firm in the UK, where she offered specialised financial services to a variety of clients. She was also a Senior Manager at PwC in Dubai.

It’s no surprise that accounting is in her blood, thanks to her father, who was an ACCA member and ran a successful accounting practice in the UK, offering professional financial services to a wide range of customers, including private individuals, small companies, and large corporations. She decided to follow his footsteps as she grew up. The determined leader was constantly mindful of the ACCA qualification from an early age.

THE CONVERSATION STARTER

Ms. Fazeela’s role is to act as a conversation starter, to make people aware about the critical role that accountants play in businesses and economies, especially in the Middle East, through the implementation of VAT, IFRS changes, the incorporation of Islamic finance, business sustainability, and much more. Her position entails managing and developing strategic relationships with regulators, business leaders, stakeholders, and the ACCA Middle East stakeholder network in order to influence dialogue and discussion about key issues affecting the region’s ongoing economic growth.

FORGING KEY PARTNERSHIPS

Ms. Fazeela collaborates with a variety of educational institutions and government agencies in the region to help new generations recognise not only the value of the pandemic-proof profession, but also the critical role that a professionally trained accountant plays in the development of economies.

CONSTANTLY MOTIVATING YOUNGSTERS

With her ceaseless efforts, she has been successfully motivating the next generation to consider and pursue a career in accountancy and finance, while also emphasising the importance of financial literacy being ingrained at an early age. She believes that mentoring can assist young aspiring accountants in achieving career success. Her goal is to empower young people with the required skills such as creativity, communication, and collaboration, along with emotional intelligence, and empathy so that they can navigate effectively through whatever situations arise in this ever-changing global environment.

She regularly designs interesting campaigns to challenge youngsters interested in Finance or Accountancy. ‘Take the Challenge’ campaign, launched in January 2021 has been specially designed to challenge children aged 13 to 16, particularly those interested in accounting and finance.

She lives in Dubai with her husband and two children. She loves spending quality time with her family and maintains a healthy work-life balance.

Amit Gaur

There are entrepreneurs and then there are change-makers. Mr. Gaur belongs to the latter category. After gaining over 22 years of experience in the banking and telecom sector, Mr. Gaur saw a huge gap in the digital payments industry in the African market. He decided to not only tap that but also lead the digital transformation of how Africa transacts online.

REALIZING THE OPPORTUNITY

Mr. Gaur completed his graduation from India in Commerce and went on to pursue masters in International Marketing and Finance. He then completed his MSc in Finance from the UK. After that, he started a fulfilling career in the banking &telecom sector. Over the years he led big names of the industry like SADC, I-Tel Group, Sierratel, Surfline, and Busy. In 2016, Ezipay was launched by the parent company Artificial Intelligence Technologies limited.

The basic premise of Ezipay was to have a safe, convenient and cheap way to send money online to other countries at good rates. It has now grown to be a one-stop shop for all kinds of online services from groceries to air ticket booking, anything can be done on the Ezipay app. The app boasts of over 250 merchants and businesses through which the customers can avail themselves a horde of services.

Under Mr. Gaur’s guidance, the brand has risen to become one of the most coveted fintech companies in Africa. The company now offers a host of services under one umbrella like utility payments, fee payments, money transfer, online shopping, OTT platform, and much more. It was Mr. Gaur’s endeavor to solve the common man’s problem and make their life easier.

An astute businessman and a keen problem solver, Mr. Gaur had the foresight to see this kind of opportunity arising in a developing country where the internet was getting available to everyone. Ezipay is operating in many African countries, including Ghana, Togo, Senegal, Niger, Mali, Cote D’Ivoire, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Benin & Zambia

NOT JUST A BUSINESS

Ezipay is not just a business idea to tap into the growing fintech market. For Mr. Gaur, providing access to financial services to underserved populations is vital in addressing the smart digital financial service. It was Mr. Gaur’s vision to bring the world closer to the African countries. To enable them to stay connected with their families and friends abroad.

A smart digital financial inclusion move that would give access to financial services to all citizens and in turn transform the economy into a cashless digitally empowered society. “Ezipay is committed to making Africa the next powerhouse in digital transformation and financial inclusion for 1.3 billion Africans,” Mr. Gaur shared.

His hard work is starting to pay off. As per the latest data from the Ghana Interbank Payment & Settlement Systems (GhIPSS), digital transactions in Ghana saw a tremendous increase both in volume and value in 2020 compared to 2019. The data showed that the number of transactions rose from 38 million in 2019 to a whopping 77 million transactions in 2020 across all platforms.

The numbers indicate a 103% increase in digital transactions. In a short span of time, Ezipay has become a key player in this bludgeoning market. Under the leadership of Mr. Gaur the organization has become the most preferred online payment app because of its simple user interface and easy transaction method

HARD WORK PAYS OFF

The sheer hard work and diligence of Mr. Gaur and his team have also been recognized by the industry. At the recently held Ghana Business Standard Awards, Ezipay was named the ‘Most Outstanding Fintech Company’ for the year 2020. At the same ceremony, Mr. Gaur was awarded the best CEO of the year and also became the ‘Most Outstanding Business Leader’.

The same year, at the Customer Choice Awards 2020, Ezipay won the ‘Most Outstanding Fintech App of the Year. “It is overwhelming for Ezipay to triumph in such an endowed and competitive category,” Mr. Gaur shared while accepting the Customer Choice Award.

Ezipay’s easy platform came in especially handy at the time of this unfortunate pandemic. A time when people could not reach out to their families and friends and were stuck at home, it was a boon for thousands of people wanting to send money to their families outside of Africa.

Mr. Gaur ensured the Ezipay became a quick and safe way for money transfer with low-cost remittance for people to transfer money to their families outside of Africa. Over time, under Mr. Gaur’s vision more and more services were added all of those helped the people of African countries sail through the routine chores with utmost ease and comfort.

During the Covid-19 outbreak when all over the world online transactions saw a huge jump, people in Africa also embraced the new way of shopping, ordering groceries, money transfers, and utility bills thanks to Mr. Gaur’s revolutionary service.

Under all his efforts and ideas lies Mr. Gaur’s passion to make Africa a cashless economy and lead the digital transformation in the continent. He leads the team with a strong foundation of passion, integrity, and determination.

Mr. Gaur had the courage to tap into the right opportunity at the right time, but it’s not luck or the timing that has helped him reach these milestones. It is his undeterred zeal and drive to stay focused on his goals that make him a leader par excellence.

There is still a long way to go for the online payment market in Africa. There are various reasons which are holding the industry back like masses not being able to transition from offline to online payments, trust deficit, and aversion to change.

It is more of an awareness project than just doing business. It is up to leaders like Mr. Gaur to lead that mindset change and make people embrace new technologies which will put Africa ahead in the global scenario.

Mr. Gaur’s story is not only inspirational but in times to come his name will be among leaders who led the digital payments movement all across West African countries and beyond. It is the mark of a true leader to not only change his destiny but also transform the lives of other people along the way.

Asheesh Chanda

Mr. Asheesh Chanda is a postgraduate from IIM Bangalore Batch of 2002 and a Computer Science Engineer from IIT Delhi Batch of 2000. He started his career in the financial services industry in 2002 with organizations such as Citibank India and JP Morgan Chase.

In 2014, he ventured into his entrepreneurial journey with his first startup Kris Capital. It was a Singapore based global macro hedge fund. But it is 2 years later with is second venture that Mr. Chanda found his true calling.

SPOTTING AN OPPORTUNITY

At Kris Capital, Mr. Chanda was dealing with managed investments across multiple asset classes and programmed trading strategies. But due to various reasons he wrapped up that venture and started a second company to tap into the digital wealth management space targeting both accredited and retail investors. Highly influenced by how technology is changing every industry, Mr. Chanda was inspired to enter the Fintech sector. His vision was to create something that the market had not yet seen in its entirety. He put in a lot of thought and research to understand how portfolios can be creates such that they outperform the index as well as peer portfolios. While it is shop talk for others, in simple words – he tried to fuse the traditional means of investment banking with Artificial Intelligence heuristics to deliver the best investment experience. He saw a gap where mutual funds weren’t being to target small investors. This gap presented as an opportunity and thus was born Kristal.AI.

Kristal.AI is a new-age fintech startup that gives investors access to curated portfolios from the world’s top Portfolio Managers with the help of its proprietary algorithms. It has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, and India.

Under his leadership, Kristal.AI has now built more than 40 strategies on its platform that focus on specific themes like biotechnology, EV, FAANG, and more. He has hired a diverse team of financial advisors, researchers, and market experts to take care of every aspect of a client’s needs.

It is his vision and foresight that Kristal. AI boasts of a client line-up that includes top names like Citibank, JP Morgan Chase, Google, Nomura and Standard Chartered and many more spread across Asia, Middle East, and the America, Kristal.AI continuously strives to provide the best investment strategies to its investors and build a community of portfolio managers, affiliated partners, and investors. Giving unmatched value and a seamless experience to each client is what drives Mr. Chanda.

GOING WITH THE FLOW

Mr. Chanda has a diverse experience of 15 years behind him and that is what makes him extremely perceptive about the market. He saw that the opportunity in India for a fintech company is huge. At the time when he started Kristal.AI, there weren’t a lot of players focusing on mutual funds for smaller investors. On the other hand, affluent, emerging investors weren’t getting undivided attention of the banks; this is where he planned to fit in. His vision worked and how. He has almost created and started to lead the digital wealth management niche.

His focus is on providing personalized investment services. His strategy is simple, the target audience is underserved and he is trying to use technology to tap into it. In India though, the work goes beyond what you have to offer.

New-age companies such as Kristal.AI also have to educate and make noise about their work. Very few people stray from traditional investment models and when it comes to money, people are extra cautious. Essentially, what Mr. Chanda is trying to do with Kristal.AI is to expand the buying by increasing awareness about the financial market.

LEADING FROM THE FRONT & INSPIRING UMPTEEN OTHERS

When Mr. Chanda began Kristal.AI, he had only 4 interns. Today, the company has a team of over 60 employees in Singapore, Hong Kong, and India. With the latest funding in place, Mr. Chanda wants to expand geographically in India and other APAC regions with varied offerings.

Mr. Chanda is a driven professional who wanted to break the norm. “I could see how traditional banking doesn’t live up to its promises. Therefore, I really wanted to help people have access to smart and easy financial solutions, no matter how much they want to invest,” shares Mr. Chanda. The trust that the investors put in Kristal.AI is what motivates him and his team.

Under his aegis, the company reached 10,000 customers recently and it’s only going to be upwards from here. In the near future, Mr. Chanda and his team are looking forward to adding more specialized services to their portfolio.

Mr. Chanda likes to keep his team highly motivated and for this he has ensured a very open and transparent work environment. All the team members – from an intern to the senior-most executive are respected equally and ideas are welcome from everyone. Each member can work as an individual contributor. There is absolutely no discouragement to anyone who wants to come forth and share. The organization is run on basic principles like passion, integrity and hard work.

The biggest influence on Mr. Chanda has been the advent of technology. He loves all things technology and truly believes that the ‘democratization of technology’ has changed the way we experience everything. A self-confessed quasi techie, Mr. Chanda is also a python programmer. He likes to spend a lot of his time understanding and trading financial markets.

An important trait of any leader is how much they can inspire and empower others. Mr. Chanda is a prime example of that. He stands by his team like a solid rock. If his team gets stuck, he pushes them to find new routes and keep moving. His biggest asset in this ever-changing startup culture is creativity. He highly values creativity and believes that it is at the core of everything he does.

At the end of the day, he knows that the startup culture doesn’t wait for anyone. You have to be relevant and you have to be quick. Fast-paced is not just an option, it is a necessity when you are operating in a dynamic industry. “Being fast-paced and adaptive means you have to be quick on your feet and those who aren’t, do not survive the process,” Mr. Chanda asserts.

Ashish Khandelwal

It is said that businesses take not only sweat but blood and tears to build – and who is better to share that than family. BL Agro is one such brand that has was started by a visionary but sustained by his children. Mr. Ashish Khandelwal has been efficiently carrying forward the legacy of excellence established by his father, Mr. Ghanshyam Khandelwal, who started this business back in 1985 with a seed funding of Rs 10 lakh. Over the years, BL Agro went on to become a name to reckon with and changed the face of Bareilly – the small town in Uttar Pradesh where the company was started. Mr. Khandelwal joined the business in 1999 and had big shoes to fill. Under his guidance and perceptive leadership, BL Agro has scaled new heights and is today a well-known FMCG brand with a turnover of Rs 2,500 crore.

TAKING FORWARD A LEGACY

Since joining the business, Mr. Khandelwal has made it his mission to establish himself as a growth motivator by bringing in new age marketing concepts & innovations. He has worked really hard at establishing an unmatched hold on the market pulse. “I am committed to take BL Agro to newer heights,” he says. He continuously works on the infusion of new cutting-edge technologies, modern innovations, & adaption of the latest marketing trends. Translating his futuristic outlook into action, he has scripted the firm’s venture into many modern business methods. He brought in consumer packs segment, latest fully automated packaging system from France, an automated racking system from Japan & various other machineries from Germany, Spain, Korea, Italy, Belgium, etc.

A DISTINGUISHED LEADERSHIP STYLE

Mr. Khandelwal puts a lot of importance to decisiveness. He truly believes in making decisions quickly, even the most difficult ones. The other thing that he always keeps on the forefront is innovation. He is always keen about uniqueness and novelty. As a leader, he tries to always motivate the team to achieve higher levels of success one task after another. “I deal with crisis & challenging situations with courage and endurance. During my growing up years, I had seen how my father built the business from scratch and took it to great heights. His journey has always inspired me. At the same time it was a challenge to expand further and take our company to the next level,” he shares. But, he did deliver. He managed to take a business that was built with spirit & resolve and made it into a modern multi-million FMCG brand. His most successful initiative was diversifying the firm’s portfolio & adding food items to the existing oil business. Mr. Khandelwal worked tirelessly to launch food products under the brand name ‘Nourish’. His efforts received immediate acceptance and appreciation from the market when the new products got a great response. It was his carefully thought strategy in developing each product. He did an elaborate study of market dynamics & consumer behavior & launched products that had higher health and nutritive value. To support this he also established top-of-the-line production capabilities.

ONE STEP AHEAD, ALWAYS

It is the characteristic of a true leader who sees beyond just statistics and figures. One who thinks of each and every individual in the company while moving ahead and also tries to influence the surroundings with his ground-breaking efforts. At BL Agro, Mr. Khandelwal has led many such initiatives that have had a lasting impact on all employees as well on the environment. One of the most appreciated efforts has been the installation of air purifiers that improved the Air Quality Index of the region by 88%. Along with the air purifiers, he also led initiative where the entire manufacturing plant was made to operate fully on solar power. Such initiatives have a chain effect wherein first the employees benefit as their work place becomes better and in turn the city became more breathable for everyone. To fight the Covid-19 pandemic, the management at BL Agro recently organized COVID-19 vaccination camp on their premises for the entire workforce based at the corporate office in Bareilly. Mr. Khandelwal and all senior management ensured all their employees and their family members get vaccinated. The company also took responsibility of Covid-affected employees with all the necessary things such as hospitalization, arranging oxygen cylinders, doctors, timely delivery of medicines, etc. Mr. Khandelwal is always the frontrunner in all such initiatives. For their products they rely on farmers and agricultural value chains. To give back to the community, the company also aims at empowering farmers and driving long-term growth through creation of infrastructure to support the agri-industry. At the same time, BL Agro is contributing considerably in the domain of employment generation. Mr. Khandelwal is committed to work towards empowering the nation through large scale employment generation. He ensures that the company continuously updates its employees through skill development programmes. Technical & motivational classes by subject experts are held regularly for all employees. As part of their skill development initiatives the company also imparts training to about 200 business & technical graduates including students from I.T. BHU, HBTI Kanpur and more every year. Mr. Khandewal also organizes industrial visits to diploma and graduate students of various streams.

THE ROAD AHEAD

Under Mr. Khandelwal’s leadership, BL Agro has received many awards. In 2018, the company won Corporate Excellence Awards from Rohilkhand Management Association and the same year World Federation of Marketing named BL Agro ‘Emerging Company of the Year’. More recently, Zee TV awarded the company ‘Uttar Pradesh Business Leadership Award’. Mr. Khandelwal’s sincere efforts have been recognized widely. To explore newer markets, newer opportunities and ways to make the brands visible, he has decided to invest heavily into advertising and promotion of both their brands. From celebrity endorsements to launching a full-fledged ecommerce portal, he has taken all possible initiatives to take the brand name even higher. He has even adopted an innovative distribution strategy by opening exclusive brand stores in various states. He has proved that he not only has vision but a firm mind that takes difficult decisions at the right time, which is vital for any business. It is with his foresight that the changing times were converted into growth opportunities.

Abhishek Agarwal

Everyone knows and raves about the latest technologies, cool startups, and disruptive services but little is known about how these function internally. What goes into the smooth functioning of an IT company to let it disrupt the outside world with its innovations? In the era of online job search, how does one go about recruiting the right talent and retaining employees? These are some crucial questions that can only be addressed by an industry veteran like Mr. Agarwal.

He has spent the last 20+ years enabling some of the biggest names in the industry with seamless IT services. Currently working as the President for Global Delivery – Judge India at the Judge Group, Mr. Agarwal has acquired over 2 decades of experience in building up delivery centers across the Americas, Europe, India, and APAC. He has worked in distinguished global brands like L&T Infotech, Capgemini Invent, Birlasoft, and Genpact.

LEAVING NO STONE UNTURNED

Mr. Agarwal is a firm believer in hard work and that is what he has built his career on. Born and brought up in the small city of Hapur in Uttar Pradesh, India he completed his Bachelor of Engineering from Marathawada University, India. After working for a year he went on to pursue an MBA from Ecole des Ponts Business School, Paris, France to further his goals. After his MBA, he landed a job with Headstrong in India where he got the opportunity to work with some top-notch professionals in the IT industry. He has come a long way since then. He went on to work in global talent acquisition, resource management, workforce planning, delivery, and operations. He is currently working at The Judge Group as the President of Judge India & Global Delivery. The Judge Group is a leading global professional services firm specializing in technology, talent, and learning solutions. When they wanted to enter the Indian market around 4 years back, they roped in Mr. Agarwal for his dynamic and exceptional experience in the sector. His key responsibilities were to launch and oversee the growth of Judge India, a key component of The Judge Group’s global delivery strategy. In the last few years, Mr. Agarwal has made unimpeachable efforts to quadruple Judge India’s employee footprint; he also introduced and implemented a revolutionary hybrid work model due to which the organization’s productivity has increased considerably. Mr. Agarwal leads and abides by the company’s people-centric outlook towards all stakeholders.

AN EXCELLENT ORATOR

Mr. Agarwal has amassed a great repute and recognition in the industry for his undying spirit of dedication towards his work and expertise in dealing with all kinds of problems and issues in the business arena. He also represents The Judge Group at many well-known events and speaks on important issues related to IT and HR.

Besides leading The Judge Group’s global delivery mission in India, Mr. Agarwal is also an active member of various professional organizations in the US. He is a renowned speaker at several industry forums for global recruitment, talent acquisition, and workforce planning.

He has is also an active member of various professional organizations in the US and is well known and respected for his thought leadership and speaking roles at industry forums.

LIVING BY THE CORE VALUES

A passionate worker, Mr. Agarwal places high importance on communicating openly and connecting with all clients. He and his team at Judge India always aim to create personal relationships with all clients. Every business opportunity and placement is seen as a chance to grow. Building a lifelong connection is at the core of how Mr. Agarwal likes to conduct business. It is with this passion and foresight that the Judge Group has also scaled new heights under the aegis of Mr. Agarwal.

He has a set of mantras that he abides by – the 3I’s he calls them. Intent, Integrity, and Intellect have been the backbone of his entire career spanning 20 years. His other belief that he always stands by is that learning should never stop. No matter what age, what stage of life you have reached, the eagerness to learn should always be within you. It is his keenness to learn that has enabled him to reach the pinnacle of success.

Mr. Agarwal also shares his learning with young entrepreneurs who are entering the industry. His advice to all young entrepreneurs is that they must know the market that they want to delve into, know the people they want to work with, and know how to make talented people work together for a common goal.

He also places high importance on understanding the need of the industry/people. “What problem you want to solve, what are your goals and most importantly whatever you do should create a positive impact” – are the questions which he suggests for the young minds.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

For his undeterred spirit and contribution to the industry, Mr. Agarwal has been recognized time and again. Recently, he was named one of the ‘Top 15 staffing owners and operators to watch in 2021’ by World Staffing Summit (all participants were nominated and selected by public voting.) Last year, he won the ‘Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the Golden Globe Tigers Award 2020’. He has also won the ‘Role Model and Exemplary Leader Award by ET Awards’ and ‘Excellence in Technology, Talent and Learning Solution’ by BAM Awards 2018 among many others. Under his vision, conviction, and leadership, Judge India has also won multiple prestigious awards. The company was featured in ‘Training Industry Top 20 Training Outsourcing Companies List’ 2021 and also won ClearlyRated’s ‘2021 Best of Staffing Client and Talent Diamond Awards for Service Excellence. The Judge Group also won the 2021 Top Workplaces USA Award by Energage. In 2019, the company won Clearly Rated’s 2019 Best of Staffing® Client and Talent Awards.

At the end of the day, Mr. Agarwal is a family man who lives with his wife and two sons and loves spending time with them. He also enjoys outdoor sports and reading. A firm believer in hard work, Mr. Agarwal is a go-getter when it comes to business. Once asked that if not this zealous, hard-at-work IT professional what would he have liked to be? He said, pilot – since he loves flying high. He is soaring nonetheless thanks to his untiring grit and determination.

Rabindra Narayan

A MULTITALENTED PERSON

Mr. Rabindra Narayan is a graduate in English literature, and has completed his diploma in Journalism and Marketing. Theatre has played a significant factor in his life. He has been a popular theatre artist right from his college days, and has shared the stage with several renowned stage personalities. As the General Secretary with the Delhi-based Collegiate Drama Society, he made significant contributions to the field of Punjabi theatre.

Mr. Narayan is also a renowned journalist who worked as the Culture Editor with Sunday Mail in the late 80s. He was also the Acting Editor with The Weekly Sun in the early 90s. Additionally, he worked as a film and music critic during his stint in newspapers. What’s more, he has also directed a lot of documentaries for Doordarshan.

A FOUNTAIN OF CREATIVITY

Mr. Rabindra Narayan is an immensely creative person who is an expert in ideating interesting and engaging content for entertaining viewers. His dedication, combined with his team spirit, makes him a pioneer in the field of Punjabi television and media. Mr. Narayan’s greatest achievement was the creation of the first Punjabi multimedia stage show – Aazadi De Taraaney, for commemorating the 50 years of Indian Independence. In the late 90s, when Mr. Narayan was the business head of ZEE Punjabi and Alpha ETC Punjabi, he laid the foundation of ETC Punjabi.

Today, five flagship channels, namely PTC News, PTC Punjabi Gold, PTC Simran, PTC Music, and PTC Chak De come under the umbrella of PTC Network, thus, making it the largest Punjabi Television Network. These channels have ushered their way into the lives of millions of viewers across the world with music, entertainment, news, spiritual ceremonies and programmes.

Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Narayan who has been successfully serving the cause of Punjab, Punjabi, and Punjabiyat by offering comprehensive entertainment for people of different ages, currently, PTC Network enjoys an 80% market share, both in terms of viewership and revenue. It has more than 350 employees consisting of top notch media talents and four state-of-the-art studios.

GOING GLOBAL

Under Mr. Narayan’s able leadership, the PTC Network has become the world’s most preferred and largest Punjabi Television Network. With his hard work and dedication, he has expanded PTC Network’s base to the USA, the UK, Australia, Europe, New Zealand, and Canada.

In November 2019, Mr. Narayan launched the world’s first Virtual Reality 360-degree Live Telecast Service to enable his global viewers to watch the live telecast of Gurbani from Sri Darbar Sahib through VR Gear. The VR based technology aims at wowing the viewers by making them feel as if they are physically present inside the holy premises of Sri Darbar Sahib. Viewers can avail of this spiritual experience on their smartphones through the PTC Play app or Jio TV.

GARNERING AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

Owing to his dedicated efforts and unswerving focus, Mr. Narayan has added several feathers on his cap through these years. He has been honoured with the prestigious ‘Delhi State Punjabi Media Award in the year 2003 by the Delhi Government. Recently, he received the Jewel of Punjab Honor from the ex-Prime Minister of India, Shri Manmohan Singh.

Datuk Prakash Chandran

As President Director and CEO of PT Siemens Indonesia, Prakash has guided the company with his sharp business acumen since October 2017. The leader brought Siemens’ cutting-edge technology to Malaysia and Indonesia, capturing landmark nation-building projects across the areas of Electrification, Automation, and Digitalization. His ability to develop and implement successful long-term strategies that outperform company expectations is particularly noteworthy.

Prakash was born and brought up in Kerala. He earned his Bachelor of Technology degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Kerala, India. A brilliant student, Prakash, graduated from the University in 1985 with first class and distinction.

A GLORIOUS PROFESSIONAL JOURNEY

Prakash embarked on his career in 1986 as an Assistant Project Engineer at Crompton Greaves Ltd., India. In 1990, he joined ABB Industrial and Building Systems Sdn. Bhd. Malaysia as a Project Manager.

In 1996, he joined Siemens Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. His initial role was that of Vice President of Medium Voltage, Energy Management, and Power Automation. He became Senior Vice President of Power Transmission and Distribution in 2004. After serving as Executive Vice President and Head of Siemens ASEAN Energy Cluster from 2008-2011, he was named President and CEO in 2009. Over the past 30 years, Prakash has overseen numerous nation-building projects in the Power, Energy, Infrastructure, and Oil & Gas industries. Siemens appointed Prakash as President Director and CEO of Siemens Indonesia in October 2017.

A LEADER WITH DIVERSE CAPABILITIES

Having extensive experience in multiple areas, including Human Capital Development, Program & Project Management, Strategic Alliances & Partnerships, Business Development, Government & Public Relations, Organizational Restructuring, and Change Management, the well-versed leader brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table. When asked about his career highpoint, the leader says, “The Malaysian energy and infrastructure market proliferated between 2010 and 2015, with numerous significant project opportunities. We developed customer-focused strategies and formed special teams to capture projects. Customers’ needs were my top priority because I understood, business is not just about selling, but it is about what the customer needs.” “Our efforts paid off, and Siemens won multiple projects in Transportation, Power Plants, and Infrastructure, resulting in a significant increase in Siemens market share in Malaysia and a growth in the Germany-Malaysia business relationship. Soon Malaysia became prominent in the Siemens world map, and everyone appreciated the results. I consider this outcome to be one of the pinnacles of my career where Siemens was also honored with the Talent Corporation’s “Life at Work” Award,” adds the enthusiastic leader.

AN OUTSTANDING TEAM PLAYER

Prakash puts the customer in the front and centre of his business strategy, actions, decisions, and processes. During the lockdown prompted by the pandemic, he facilitated 70 virtual events to keep clients engaged via thought leadership and technology topics.

LEADING WITH HEAD AND HEART

Prakash is a benevolent leader who is passionate about creating a brighter future. Through his tireless efforts, PT Siemens Indonesia has earned a reputation for excellence in its community involvement programs. He asserts, “The integration of corporate social responsibility has always been an indispensable part of our business strategy, and COVID-19 offered a valuable opportunity for us to evolve and contribute to society.” He adds, “I’m deeply touched and amazed at how my team handled this situation.”

Under his leadership, the company swung into action to assist the public response to the pandemic by contributing 7,000 units of personal protective equipment (PPE) and a ventilator machine to 61 hospitals in Indonesia’s top six COVID-19-infected regions. Under the supervision of the National COVID-19 Task Force, these items were delivered directly to the hospitals to assist medical workers and patients in fighting the disease. Additionally, Siemens Indonesia and its employees have donated over 100 million rupiahs to support global efforts against COVID-19. We have also distributed 300 food packages to aid low-income families and orphans.

Additionally, the leader looks to help the next generation, mainly engineering students at universities, through software grants to better prepare them for the competitive and complex power systems and substation automation market. Prakash also led the company to participate in the German Dual Vocational Education & Training (GDVET), certified and quality-controlled by the German-Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EKONID). His objective is to help the Indonesian government improve its workforce by promoting skill-based learning and industry-readiness among the youth in the digitalization era.

IMPRESSIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Prakash has received numerous accolades throughout his distinguished career spanning over three decades. The Malaysian Institute of Management inducted him as an Emeritus Fellow in 2018 during its Court of Emeritus Fellows. In 2017, he was conferred with “Panglima Setia Diraja,” which carries the honorary title “Datuk” by the King of Malaysia. In 2014, he received the Transformational Corporate Leader BrandLaureateICON Leadership Award.

Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in Indonesia in March 2020, Prakash took several initiatives that are still ongoing. A wide range of measures was taken, including implementing strict health protocols at work in conformance with central and regional government regulations. Prakash’s selfless service helped Siemens receive recognition from the Jakarta city administration for implementing exemplary COVID-19 protocols in the workplace.

MUSICALLY INCLINED

Prakash is a successful leader, a gourmand, and a music fanatic, all bundled into one. He enjoys film music and pursues vocal music as a serious study during his leisure time. Another fascinating thing about Prakash is his signature trait of sharing nuggets of wisdom by digging into his seemingly endless collection of anecdotes.