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Ashok Vashist (WTI Cabs): The Anti-Unicorn Founder, Bootstrapped to IPO!
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"The solution to every problem lies in the market, not the boardroom."
Ashok Vashist shares a powerful lesson on the importance of staying grounded and understanding customer needs directly, rather than relying solely on theoretical discussions in boardrooms. This principle has guided WTI's success.
Ashok Vashist is the Founder of WTI Cabs (Wise Travel India), one of India's leading B2B mobility solutions providers. He built WTI from scratch, starting with ad-hoc services in 2009, to a 400Cr revenue company which had an IPO in 2024, and is now expanding globally. Ashok's story is a testament to resourcefulness, customer-centricity, and the power of a "hungry" team.
Key Insights from the Conversation:
👉Niche to Scale: WTI started by dominating a neglected niche (ad-hoc corporate transport) before expanding into broader mobility services.
👉DCO Model Evolution: The interview provides a unique perspective on the rise and fall of the Driver-Cum-Owner model in the Indian mobility landscape.
👉Customer-Centricity is King: WTI prioritizes long-term relationships and bespoke solutions for its corporate clients.
👉Building Internal Strength: Ashok champions financial prudence and building internal liquidity over reliance on external funding.
👉Org Structure by Capability: Organizational design should be based on the capabilities of the team, not just abstract process frameworks.
👉Global expansion: A strong B2B focussed expansion strategy to grow into a global mobility major.
Chapters:
0:00:00 - Introduction: Ashok Vashist's Journey Building WTI
0:03:43 - The Origin of WTI and the Early Days
0:05:41 - Finding Opportunity in the Ad Hoc Market
0:08:50 - Scaling Up: From Ad Hoc to Process-Oriented
0:17:34 - The DCO Model: Origins, Benefits, and Drawbacks
0:29:28 - The Future of Fleet Aggregation: Beyond DCO
0:35:56 - Expanding into Car Rentals and MSP Services
0:40:39 - The Commonwealth Games: A Defining Moment
0:45:08 - Organizational Structure: People Over Process
0:50:37 - Going Public: The SME Board and Beyond
0:58:45 - Global Expansion: The Dubai Strategy
01:03:51 - Culture, Hunger, and the Importance of Staying Grounded
01:09:16 - Building sales culture, and the power of honesty
#IndianStartups #FounderJourney #Entrepreneurship #BusinessStrategy #CustomerCentricity #OrganizationalCulture #CompanyCulture
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Transcript
The Art and Science of Business
00:00:00
Speaker
For us, it was like a romance land. I think more than the opportunity, it was the itch to have your own business or to start your own venture. Operations is only about three things. Maximize your utilization, minimize your cost, and ensure your customer satisfaction.
00:00:18
Speaker
Business is not a science. Yes, process is important, but business is a combination of art and science.
00:00:27
Speaker
It is very rare to find a founder who will say, I am running a very simple business.
Building WTI Caps Without Venture Capital
00:00:49
Speaker
He told me that when he started WTI Caps, a lot of people told him there are so many players in this logistics, transportation, people who went space. Why you want to do it?
00:01:00
Speaker
And he said there are 2000 companies in this space. I have the 2000 at first. My goal is just to survive. Today, WTI Caps is among the top five players in the space. It is a publicly listed company.
00:01:13
Speaker
Their market cap ranges between 600 to 800 crores. And all of this was done without any venture capital money. Ashok is a phenomenal entrepreneur and also extremely funny and witty. I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did. I'm your host, Akshay Dutt, and this is the Founder Thesis Podcast.
00:01:42
Speaker
Tell me about WTI Caps. What is WTI Caps?
00:01:48
Speaker
Okay, before I start talking about WTICAS, I think it will be important that I talk about myself.
From Mahatma Gandhi University to Mobility Career
00:01:55
Speaker
I graduated from Mahatma Gandhi University in Kerala, in Anakalam. And then my first job was with Trans Corporation of India, their franchisee, which was Hertz. They were the first franchisee of Hertz in India.
00:02:14
Speaker
And that's how, you know, it from 1995 till today, I'd been only into mobility space. So I started with Hertz and then with Jorupcar, got into, you know, I was the CEO for EZCabs.
00:02:35
Speaker
And it was a natural progression where in 2009, 10, thought of starting
00:02:42
Speaker
a business of
Inception and Vision of WTI
00:02:43
Speaker
my own. and so so That's how in 2019 WTI originated. and you know and that point of time, I was thinking of various names which came to my mind, World, Global, Solution, Travel, Mobility Solutions, Sumsolution, Dash Solutions. and I did send all these names to ROC and the only name which was selected was Wise Travel India Private Limited at that point of time.
00:03:11
Speaker
And I think that was God's message to us rather than, you know, we wanted some fancy names, but that's what was yeah his jurisdiction and we got that name.
00:03:26
Speaker
Rest all his history. Is there a full form WTI? Wise Travel India Private Limited is how we formulated the company. And then the short form became WTI Caps.
00:03:38
Speaker
okay So we started, three of us, me, my other two co-founders, Hema and Vivek. So that that's how we started this business. And we ah used to work together sometime in TCI, remained in touch. And that's that's how things started.
00:03:57
Speaker
okay
00:04:00
Speaker
Okay. 2009, when you started, was there a VC funding
Adapting to Challenges and Focusing on B2B
00:04:05
Speaker
concept? VC funding was there. It was not there. Okay. But very few people used to get those kind of fundings.
00:04:14
Speaker
Also, at the same time, I think, same time, almost in 2010, there were other two companies in this space, which was... um ola and uber came out in 2010 itself and really progressed well our only shortcoming as far as businesses concerned is that our understanding of android was zero because none of us were techie so we were still doing that call center business people used to call helpline and we used to book a car
00:04:50
Speaker
But I think the technology progressed and and then somewhere, you know, we did not understand that piece. And that is the reason we got into B2B space.
00:05:02
Speaker
But whatever that happens, is that happens for good. ah I want to understand, what was the opportunity? What made you want to start this business?
00:05:15
Speaker
So first and foremost is, and let me be very honest, that...
Entrepreneurial Spirit and Drive to Succeed
00:05:20
Speaker
I think more than the opportunity, it was it was the itch to have your own business or to start your own venture.
00:05:30
Speaker
So that is the reason I took that plunge. And, you know, but once you are there and you have burned all the bridges behind, then you have no other way to succeed. The only only only thing that you can do is that you have to succeed now um because we have nothing else to do.
00:05:48
Speaker
So, martha canhikata ah you to find ways and means of doing it. Did you have a role model there for becoming an entrepreneur? Not really. not they So if I talk about myself, my father was in defense.
00:06:02
Speaker
The entire Khandar had been into armed forces. So I'm the first person from the entire clan to get into something called business. For us, it was like a no man's land.
00:06:14
Speaker
And venturing out on your own at a young age, I think it was difficult. But somewhere in my mind, I was pretty sure that I need to do that. Because when I was... um management trainee till today whenever i have worked in any organization i have felt that it is my own business so that is the reason at a very young age i got some very senior positions where people double of my age used to report to me at that point of time with lot of experience but business or position or professionalism i think more important is intent and if you uh
00:06:57
Speaker
ensure that you have to do something you will always find out ways and means of attaining those objectives in my kind of business there's no great idea ultimately uh do come a job asana a car banana guardard Everybody knows it.
00:07:21
Speaker
once Once in lifetime, you know. So because until unless you actually venture out in that and figure out, oh my God, where did he work? So doing any business at a small scale, yes, you can do it. But once you have to scale it up, ah even if it is a boot polish um or are making tea, I think moment you want to or do it on a large scale, then the entire economics, the way... um Things that would changes.
00:07:53
Speaker
Then you're not talking about giving a bespoke solution. What you're talking about is a process oriented solution and same kind of of service every time has to be given.
00:08:06
Speaker
Okay. ah How did you apply this in growing WTI? but but You also must have started bespoke or gradually it would have become process oriented. Tell me that journey.
00:08:17
Speaker
Yeah. So, and I think it was step by step. It is not something which happened overnight. Day one, what did you start with?
00:08:28
Speaker
It was, this so, okay. There was a company who was into employer transportation and We went there making a sales call. ah So there was something called ad hoc, which nobody was doing.
00:08:43
Speaker
And the rates of call was very, very low, what they were offering. But beggars are no choosers. So what we did is, okay, accepted that particular job, which nobody else was accepting.
00:08:59
Speaker
And we had no cars. So we leased out 10 cars from one of the leasing companies. Because for buying the cars, nobody is going to give you funds also. What does it mean lease out a car? Like yeah my piina No sir, a daily basis, first time pay we used to get some radio taxis.
00:09:15
Speaker
Okay. So on daily basis, let's say we used to pay some 800 bucks to that company which was into radio taxi business. And that's that's how we started our business. So it was very expensive.
00:09:27
Speaker
So my sourcing was expensive and my you know business was at the lowest cost.
Overcoming High Costs with Strategic Operations
00:09:33
Speaker
But the only winning point was I understood that In car rental or any in any other production business, the only way out is three things. One is ah your utilization has to be very high.
00:09:47
Speaker
That means if people are running the car for 200 kilometers, I'll have to run the car for 400 kilometers. Minimize cost. So on the cost front, I had no control as far as the cost of the car is concerned because we are pretty new. So we accepted whatever was available.
00:10:06
Speaker
But what we did is we opened our own small workshop and a mechanic was hired. So every day after 400 kilometers, when the car used to come back, we used to just do quick repairs, maintenance there itself.
00:10:22
Speaker
And last is the chauffeur. And the chauffeur was incentivized for doing these 200 kilometers in eight hours or 12 hours. So that's that's how we started doing it. And believe me,
00:10:34
Speaker
our margins were 25% out of that business, which nobody was accepting at that point of time. And that was the first ah time we thought that, okay, we are in the right spot.
00:10:45
Speaker
And we started growing only in that business, which nobody was doing because lot of planning was required when you talk about ad hoc. So for somebody, it becomes ad hoc, but for a person who's providing service for whom it is not ad hoc,
00:10:59
Speaker
You require a lot of planning in terms of how you have to utilize your asset. At the same time, how you have to ensure your customer gets his his vehicle on time. So everything was on Excel. Everything was on phone. There were no softwares which were available.
00:11:15
Speaker
But I think hats hats off to um the team which we built up and still the team is here and doing some great job. They were like mini computers.
00:11:26
Speaker
um
Team Bonding and Organizational Culture
00:11:27
Speaker
Everything used to be independent. They used to remember the phone number of each and every driver. So amazing guys. I have not seen that kind of a commitment in some of the large organizations.
00:11:42
Speaker
I think when you sit with your team, that's what makes the difference. We used to, ah you know, from Monday till Friday, used to be in the office for 12 hours, 14 hours, whatsoever. People used to be there for 16 hours.
00:11:56
Speaker
And on Saturdays, first half, we used to have the planning for the the next week, the sales, et cetera, et cetera. But after two o'clock till six o'clock, he used to play cricket with all these guys.
00:12:09
Speaker
And the kind of bonding which happens on the field at that point of time was much more important than all these exercises which these HR companies and etc, etc, they do every day.
00:12:24
Speaker
Because that's where you are able to analyze each and every person in your organization. so So I think the growing years were very, very important.
00:12:36
Speaker
and yeah you I want to just ah recap your business model. Tell me if I understood correctly. There is a company like say Accenture or Infosys or TCS, which provides pick up and drop service to the employees.
00:12:49
Speaker
They will have one master vendor which is offering that employee pickup and drop service, charging them per employee basis, per kilometer basis, something like that. that vendor has a fleet of X cars, which 80% demand is managed, and the rest of the 20% demand is ad hoc demand for which he was using you.
00:13:09
Speaker
Correct. Not the vendor. Accenture or whatsoever the name of the organization was using us. Okay, the employer directly was using you. okay correct Correct. So what happened is that 10% of requirement, which is not ah managed by this so-called direct vendor, then ad hoc,
00:13:26
Speaker
oh we were the ad hoc guys who used to manage those 10%, 5% of the business, which nobody else was willing to take. Okay. take and so That's how we started. And we started doing that ad hoc business with 10 corporates.
00:13:39
Speaker
So it became more organized than the organized business itself. so So that was the, that's, and it was not planned, you know, we went, we accepted. So it is not that. Ad hoc is the easiest entry to the door. was my wait That time, yes.
00:13:52
Speaker
That time, yes. right right So that's how it happened. so So then what? Like once you built that entry into the company, then you started becoming ah like a more important vendor for them, not just- Yeah. So the the the business started growing. the We were able to meet the SLAs and we started- You were only taking share away from the other vendors basically because you were- you never started doing that.
00:14:17
Speaker
Yeah. not We never started doing that. What we started in ad hoc business itself, we started signing various accounts. Okay. Because each of the corporate has got this kind of a problem where 90% or 95% of business is taken care of, but 5% of the business is a problem.
00:14:33
Speaker
And we started to go after that 90%. Yeah. Uh, issue is that, uh, we didn't have the inventory, which was very large that time. No bank was even willing to give us the inventory.
00:14:45
Speaker
The vendors were not coming to us directly. Though i was I left one of the cushy positions when I was working, but the moment you leave and start a new business, then you're like any other man. So you'll have to start your journey again because you're as good as your last innings.
00:15:03
Speaker
So we were starting absolutely afresh. And I remember in 2010, we purchased our first car. And for that, the bank even mortgaged my kidney.
00:15:16
Speaker
So
00:15:19
Speaker
so so the kind of papers I remember signing, et cetera, et cetera, were, I think today if somebody comes to me and says they signed these kind of papers, I'll never be able to do that.
00:15:32
Speaker
But then that was the first car. And it was a Fiat Linear that we purchased because that was the cheapest which was available at that point of time in that sedan category.
00:15:44
Speaker
Trust me, on the third day, this car was robbed in Ghaziabad. And the police wrote a complaint saying that it is a theft.
00:15:57
Speaker
We put a claim, insurance claim, saying it is a robbery. It has been 14 years. The claim is not yet settled. because Because there is a difference in connotation what police is saying, what insurance company is companies saying and the case is gone after Supreme Court.
00:16:16
Speaker
Oh, wow. Just because theft and robbery world, that is
Financial Challenges and Business Model Shaping
00:16:21
Speaker
a semantic difference? No, no, it is an implication. it is theft it is negligency bias. Oh, okay. pleasealtinate thefto theto it is negligency bias oh If there is robbery, how can I get a robbery in that area? Okay, okay, okay, okay, anyways, at chaas saloe from of we have around
00:16:50
Speaker
but wo claims at new wow well okay So that has been very, very instrumental in terms of how we started our business. And then, uh, not really, but, uh, what happens is when you are doing B2B business, sometimes you have to, uh, portray that you have the skin in the game.
00:17:17
Speaker
And that is what a corporate account, when he's giving you a very large business, they always want that to happen. because they are also putting their trust and faith in you and giving you contract, their employees, safety, et cetera, et cetera.
00:17:32
Speaker
So that is the reason we have to buy fleet. But we came out with a model whereby we started aggregating cars. And ah one of the things is normally we give we take cars on lease. For example, it is your car. We'll tell you, okay, we'll give $75,000 $100,000 per month.
00:17:51
Speaker
above and based on kilometers and some other parameters. So it is as good as your own car. And that's that's how we started attaching cars with us. So this is the driver-cum-owner model. So DCO actually was originated by me. I think I should be proud of it. What is the DCO model? What did you change before? No, no. It didn't happen before.
00:18:15
Speaker
no no belaoute either but was sit financiers say means to wahota catta key I used to work with a company which is a Bombay-based organization because of some issues and this is I'm talking about 2000, 2001.
00:18:28
Speaker
thousand So, ah because of the losses in the balance sheet, the banks were not giving finances to this company.
00:18:40
Speaker
And even the operating costs used to be very, very high a because The driver took it as a right that every day he has to steal five liters of petrol.
00:18:52
Speaker
and oh they used to go near the airport. He used to make a dent in that so that 5.5 liters jives came there. They used to put a pipe and suck the petrol out of the car. if say, let's say if the...
00:19:10
Speaker
they used to put a pipe and suck the patrla of the car yeah and you so if say let's say if the rate of control is around 40 rupees per litre at that point of time they used to get somewhere around 32 33 rupees which is a gray market so we used to lose out on both the fronts one themara had a passenger tutorro for would you beach where we'll be minus twenty twenty five percent perage
00:19:42
Speaker
So one day i was addressing all these drivers and I told them, why are you selling this oil there? You can send me a 5 liters, you'll get me in Delta. laya
00:19:58
Speaker
And trust me, some of the guys are so naive. One of the guys, ah he filled up his pipa and brought it to me. He was bringing. And one guy caught him on the road saying, where are you going?
00:20:11
Speaker
He said, sir, I'll give you more. He said, I'll die.
00:20:16
Speaker
but letting i go up these yeah So that was a problem. The finance was not happening. happening The operating cost went up to 95-96%, which results into our huge losses.
00:20:32
Speaker
And one day I was standing at the airport with one of the drivers to receive somebody.
00:20:37
Speaker
It was a sudden struck of the idea. I said, why are we getting buying the car, then managing the car, then managing the petrol, then managing the repair maintenance?
00:20:49
Speaker
tired and the spare parts was too much of a very very operational heavy business so some percentage came to my mind at that point of time and the driver who was standing with me i still remember his name was samrathi so i said rathi if i give you this car then so and this goes How can you give this car? I will give it to you. I will give it to you. I will give it to you. the car is 70% of the car.
00:21:18
Speaker
And the company is 30% of the car.
Limitations of the DCO Model
00:21:21
Speaker
scar seventy percent the ahcompaning a kli thirty percent But this guy jumped on the idea. aka gardika am my app repairment rate akienka or aka yes i up finance mataon like manka harimajo hisavowa oskadai yeah card this guy jumped on the idea So there are two kinds of people, one who wants to work, one who doesn't want to work.
00:21:49
Speaker
So out of the lot of some 40, 50 drivers, some 70% of the drivers were like, sorry, you're carrying 30% of the driver, they went and filed a case against me in the labor court.
00:22:01
Speaker
That's it. so ustenbaam attawa taio youwa But of the driver, they started working. They started earning like crazy. Each of the guy was taking home at that point of time around 15,000. So if you see the net present value, it must be around 60, 70,000.
00:22:19
Speaker
So slowly all those labor cases also... And one interesting story which happened at the labor offices, the commissioner, I started meeting him very often. and And such a great guy, up pressing each other mon archipla yeah he was from one of the ah remote villages.
00:22:45
Speaker
and pa jackki So where is your family? said, in Sonibad. Sir, kids are living in Delhi, so they are good.
00:22:55
Speaker
but daoggi a saraja bar butana sorryli but so but And who is studying, who is studying, is not that true. So it is not that true.
00:23:11
Speaker
ask that many people, they talk about going to US for studies and then you don't know. You lose out on the identity also that you belong to which British country.
00:23:22
Speaker
So, ah and then this is how the DCO model originated. And then the entire industry adopted it. That was the model which we started in EZCabs also when but i was the CEO.
00:23:40
Speaker
Because when you have- EZCabs was serving businesses, yeah, consumers. No, it was B2C, completely B2C. Like Meru? Yeah, Meru and EZCav. EZCav actually was the first one.
00:23:52
Speaker
So we did our test marketing at Chandigarh and then subsequently followed with launch in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Bombay. So build up a portfolio of around 3,500 cars and then I left ah so this easy cashmeru are like the previous generation of uber and ola like a do but less service time be up revis i was there yeah the thought was there that time also that we should uh be doing something on the tech but uh kya tacky uh when an organization becomes large the agility uh goes off and you don't get time from your rojana
00:24:33
Speaker
operation so you're not able to think out of the box and that is the reason you know you have such large conglomerates but why are they not able to take decisions or why they are they not able to start the new ventures or identify areas where the need gap has to be filled etc etc is because you are caught up in your daily activities so much you have a new solution
00:25:03
Speaker
And that's what happened. and And it will keep happening. yeah Right. the DCO model, may I want to just do a little bit of like discussion with you.
00:25:16
Speaker
This DCO model, about 10 years ago, was what all this Uber and Ola were pitching that we are asset light and we are aggregating supply, which is basically... Aggregating supply is an alternate name for DCO, right? Yeah.
00:25:32
Speaker
But today... I think a large part of Uber's fleet at least is with these ah organized corporate players who are actually so actually we are all taking cabs on their balance sheet. the wo So DCO model seems to be going down.
00:25:48
Speaker
but look Is that true? Everything is just one thing. It's just one lifespan. So DCO has lived its life. that? It's been almost 20 years. Hmm.
00:26:00
Speaker
ah
00:26:03
Speaker
When I buy a car and give it to other driver, I take some rupees as a deposit, which is not a deterrent. I have no control on him in terms of the SLAs or quality of service that needs to be delivered.
00:26:23
Speaker
And that's the biggest issue and challenge which has come up. Just by giving $3000, $5000, $10000, this guy thinks that he's the owner of the car, which is not true, which is just not true.
00:26:35
Speaker
There is no discipline. ah that is There is no skin in the game as far as his financial commitment is concerned to acquire the asset. Whereas if he takes the same asset from the bank,
00:26:49
Speaker
oh he will jolly well do all the jobs which is required because he has to pay the MIs, he has to pay the down payment, he has to then get the asset on his name after the completion of the loan etc etc.
00:27:02
Speaker
Here this guy is paying some three four thousand bucks uh paying some amount and that also with a lot of difficulty and he starts thinking that it is his uh car so this is in <unk> defense of dco model but what you also said is that dco model key life is finished and we are seeing that also with companies like uber not using dco model much now uh
00:27:29
Speaker
see you don't have control on the DCOs because they are doing business as per their wins and fancies they are not they are taking orders they are refusing orders they are not wearing the uniform there is no discipline they are not going for the training think that
00:27:51
Speaker
So somewhere, this is the case that the kite will still soar high in the sky, which is not a fact.
00:28:03
Speaker
Right, okay. Whereas, moment you are in some kind of disciplined environment, then yes, you will grow. But it is vice versa here. it is It is not happening the way it should happen.
00:28:18
Speaker
And because the asset is with him and there are so many competition, so much of competition is there because today if the guy is checked out of Uber, he'll go and join OLA. Then there's Inderive, then there's RapidO, then there's XYZ. There's no limit.
00:28:35
Speaker
And you are at the mercy of the chauffeur. So that is the reason these companies are going back. Now, going forward, I think there will be only 50% of the fleet which will be aggregated by all these companies will be from companies like us.
00:28:51
Speaker
So we will be giving them the fleet. We will be controlling the chauffeur component by creating those hubs and hub and spoke model. And that's how we'll grow. So if I may say that Uber Black, which is recently started, all the cars almost are provided by us.
00:29:12
Speaker
Okay. So today Uber is at 50%. Like 50% is this supply aggregation. in like Uber Black, of course, will be completely under this kind of a model. Corporate partnership. Yeah, they'll be corporate partnership. But then if you talk about the normal Uber Go, which is an economy model, um still I think 85% of the fleet is with DCOs. But they would like to take it to a level where at least 50% of this fleet is with the corporate.
00:29:46
Speaker
Okay. I guess there's also technology as one of the factors, right? Because Now you can track everything. like You can track, is he misusing? Is he driving rashly? Because cars have sensors now, so you get a lot of data.
00:30:02
Speaker
so Because you get so much data, so some of those old problems, like is he stealing fuel? Today's not a problem because you have enough sensors in your car to exactly predict that this driver is stealing fuel and when he stole the fuel. and I guess that could also be a reason why the DCO model is not so appealing today.
00:30:22
Speaker
Some of those problems which it was solving are not problems. Yeah, stealing issues are gone now. Stealing issues are not there because most of the vehicles are on CNG g and electric, etc.
00:30:33
Speaker
But they there are some other challenges which has come up. You are, for example, giving to one aggregator. You have purchased a car given to the chauffeur. Chauffeur is going to one aggregator and you are telling him to only drive with him.
00:30:46
Speaker
Now he buys another mobile, puts an aggregator too, and he's driving for him also. Or he has his own customers where he's taking them. So there's lot of misutilization of asset which happens. And sometimes they're able to control and sometimes not.
00:31:03
Speaker
and too much of manpower is required to actually control them. Technology is fine, but ultimately, you know, at the end of the technology, there has to be some action which has to be taken.
00:31:17
Speaker
And the action has to be hardware and not a software. Okay. So you are still ah in favor of DCO. What percentage of your fleet is? ah so I'm not in favor of DCO now.
00:31:29
Speaker
I was in favor of DCO, I think, till 2019.
Unsustainability of the DCO Model
00:31:36
Speaker
so But now I'm not in favor of DCO because there's lot of misuse which happens.
00:31:40
Speaker
And from day one, the discipline goes for a toss. He takes the car and he thinks he has bought the car. that's not right. DCO is a good So there he's got a skin in the game.
00:32:01
Speaker
But whereas if the company buys and gives the car to the driver, in that case he takes you for a ride. So what you're saying is that the company has said that this car is like yours, that if I'm having EMI, we'll calculate it and it will be yours. In that case, the company will remain in debit because it's a cat and a my story.
00:32:21
Speaker
Yeah, it's a cat and my story.
00:32:24
Speaker
Okay, okay, okay. Got it, got it, got it. And this supply of the first kind where he bought the car himself, is there enough supply in the market of these? Yes, still that that kind of people are also there. Now, what will happen is, let's say if today i have started saying saying that, okay DCO is not something which or giving my cast to the driver is something which I would not like to do.
00:32:45
Speaker
And similarly, there will other companies which will follow because they all are going through the same pain. So once that starts happening, the drivers will start, one, buying their own cars.
00:32:57
Speaker
ah There'll be more stringent terms for assigning DCOs, et cetera, et cetera. So oh I think, again, there'll be the model which will come, will oh let's say if I have a hub.
00:33:16
Speaker
So the driver will come, he will pay a day's rent. and then he can drive the car for any of the aggregators he want. In the evening, he has to return the car at the same time after driving for 12 hours.
00:33:30
Speaker
So that model will certainly be there in next couple of maybe months and years. We don't have to wait for
Future of Car Leasing Models
00:33:39
Speaker
too long. So it will not be a DCO, but it will be like a professional who is coming, using the asset and paying you your dues.
00:33:46
Speaker
Very interesting. So essentially, then, in a way, the driver is your customer. You are getting a fixed payment per car per day. Yeah, the sales will be more than corporate.
00:33:58
Speaker
So, driver is my customer. Right, very interesting. Is this already happening? No, but yes, it will start. It has changed to a certain extent. But we are giving salaries.
00:34:10
Speaker
The salary has to stop and the model has to become successful. Right. We will call the model successful only if the salary stops. And instead of I paying to those guys, they have to pay me the rental.
00:34:24
Speaker
Right, right, right. I think some these EV logistics companies like moving, some of them are doing this kind of a model where the driver... Yeah, it's evolved a Because they are... Yeah, I think BlueSmart has this model, I think. They must be trying that out because...
00:34:43
Speaker
They must be trying it out. They have both fixed and variable pay, which is there as of now. But maybe they must be working on it. Is the driver totally your a customer and you don't care how he's getting it? Or you also give him business?
00:34:59
Speaker
Like you say, this is my 10 customers. Who wants to work with? Both ways. Because once you evolve the model, there'll be a different kind of permutation combination which will come out.
00:35:13
Speaker
um for your own business, for aggregation business, just your rental of the car to the driver. So, a number of models which will come out. Okay, very interesting. So, coming back to your journey. So, you started buying and and your own cars also and also aggregating cars and being the ad hoc vendor for corporates.
00:35:35
Speaker
So, what happened to that?
00:35:39
Speaker
Muskepad, I think we started consolidating our position. now So 2010, we did a revenue from four crores. 2011-12 is when eleven twelve is when we opened some of the other cities and which was Bangalore, Bombay, Hyderabad,
00:36:01
Speaker
yeah, Pune. So we did 19 crores in the second year. Wow. That's like tripling almost. Four times. When start the It makes no sense.
00:36:17
Speaker
Now I'm saying that I've done
Corporate Car Rental vs Ride Aggregators
00:36:20
Speaker
four times. That will make amazing sense. ah But it was time-tending. um Then in know I think we started doing one after another corporate signing.
00:36:33
Speaker
We got into a car until we purchased one company by the name of India Fleet. yeah What do you mean you got into car rental? What does that mean? scar yeah i what is that head that' it This was ad hoc.
00:36:46
Speaker
Car rental is a very organized kind of a business where you sign up with the corporate um providing cars for airport transfers and in very simple terms or for disposal when you are traveling into Bombay and you need car for the whole day.
00:37:02
Speaker
um and you're going into city from one city to another city. So we started signing up with various corporate only for car rental initially.
00:37:13
Speaker
This is like fixed, like I want five cars on rent or five cars, but just which I'll use or is it like, per use case. So you're going to Bombay, you're going to Bangalore, you're going Hyderabad, you need only airport transfer, you need disposal, you want to go into city.
00:37:30
Speaker
So it is case basis. does It is not fixed. So they'll like book a cab. It's like booking a cab, except that book camp you're not booking an Uber, but you're booking through the corporate admin team. yeah And the admin team has some agreement with you on the rates and all, which will be more favorable than Uber.
00:37:48
Speaker
Something like that would be the... Absolutely. Absolutely. If you if you talk about disposal or intercity, I think we'll be more economical than all the aggregators that you're talking about. Okay.
00:37:59
Speaker
But wouldn't Uber and Ola want to move into this market? They are trying. They are trying. But only thing is, let's understand the difference between what Uber is doing and what our Ola is doing or any other aggregator.
00:38:14
Speaker
Their business is very driver-centric.
00:38:19
Speaker
For them, driver is a major stakeholder. Their sales a driver. gothi And our business is very customer-centric. In our case, I pay a driver a certain amount and after that, he can't say yes, no to a particular duty.
00:38:35
Speaker
He can't say that I will not obey or follow the rules and processes. So ah we are customer-centric organization. They are very, very B2C and a driver-centric organization.
00:38:47
Speaker
So that difference is there. It is not that, why will they not get into that kind of a business? So each of the organization, they have certain DNA.
00:39:01
Speaker
Of course, you can change, you can pivot, you can do whatever, but then the basic DNA will not change. For example, we are into a B2B and would like to remain in B2B and strengthen not only here, but across the globe ah in B2B.
00:39:18
Speaker
So so that's that's our strength. Okay. Okay. Like with an Uber and all other reliability would be lower because their driver can say no to a ride. that They can say no to a ride. And what kind of bespoke solution will they be able to offer to a corporate or to you?
00:39:36
Speaker
Because yeah the training of the driver also, they can't control. ah Whereas you can control how to train a driver, what uniform he should wear. we We have customers since last 15 years who are using good, bad, ugly, whatsoever. But they can always vouch for the service. And if something happens, at least there is a face to the service.
00:39:59
Speaker
You always know that there's somebody who is there to control. There's an account manager and you can call and say. Yeah, there's a face to the service. Okay, interesting. Interesting. A booking.com is a hotel book.
00:40:11
Speaker
And directly, let's say you corporate account with Taj, there'll be a lot of difference. Yeah, True, true, true. Okay. Understood. Okay, okay. So, okay. So, you got into this car rental business in 2013, I think.
00:40:27
Speaker
No, 2011, 2012, we started doing small things. And then we started signing some of the very large accounts, very, very large accounts.
Managing Logistics for Large Events
00:40:38
Speaker
We started conducting the fleet. In fact, in 2010, our company was the only company which managed the total... oh Commonwealth Games.
00:40:50
Speaker
And that too, when the contract was awarded to us only some four days back. Because the earlier player was not able to
00:41:01
Speaker
you know take care of the scale. So because somebody knew me and he got into the thev event and understood the route only for one day and then executed the entire plan.
00:41:19
Speaker
The agility of a startup. agility of a startup. So we were able to call people from left-hand center, make the entire plan. The whole fleet was powered at Vinay Mark, which is next to this Ashoka Hotel.
00:41:35
Speaker
So we booked two rooms there for the entire team who's managing the event. And that took them 20 days. We are not going home.
00:41:46
Speaker
And in fact, those 15 days, I can write a book in terms of how the entire event was changed from being so unorganized to being organized. That the next Commonwealth Games were managed and happened in Scotland.
00:42:03
Speaker
And their team flew down and they wanted to speak to us to figure out how did we manage it. Oh, okay. Amazing. Okay. So a lot of such events, which is like Moment of Truth, we have seen while doing some or managing some very, very large events. Because there we were talking about 1,800 cars and some 3,600 drivers to in span 20 days.
00:42:27
Speaker
we' managed in ah span of printed days Ismay, how did you build the supply? Because you would have needed to ramp up supply very quickly, right? No, so what happened is ah Tata Motors gave 1800 cars, brand new vehicles. Our only job was to get drivers.
00:42:47
Speaker
And that was a very, very big run operations run the operations. Oh, okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Interesting. Okay. Uh, these, uh, car, uh, rental contracts, are they exclusive or non-exclusive? Like are you one of our many vendors or are you the, uh, both actually. And in 2014, we came out with the concept of, uh, something called MSP, uh, which is like managed service provider.
Implementing the MSP Model
00:43:12
Speaker
So, uh, In managed services, what we do is we go to a particular corporate and we give them assurance that we will be managing the complete mobility solutions for them.
00:43:27
Speaker
be it their employee transportation, leasing, car rental, anything to do with the mobility. So we have signed many such accounts. But initially it used to be like, um you have five vendors, you have the sixth vendor.
00:43:40
Speaker
So we make a you know software based on their requirement. and These softwares are very, very bespoke software for their employer transportation, for their car rental requirement.
00:43:53
Speaker
ah So once you sign these kind of contracts, then these are very, very long term contracts because you are investing into lot of things. And to sign such contracts also takes a lot of time because you have to understand their operations. You have to...
00:44:08
Speaker
prepare a white paper for them and then then that's how you know these come to you. And these are very high value contracts. Okay. What percentage of your revenue comes from this MSP business?
00:44:21
Speaker
I think as of now around 20%. thirty percent Okay, okay, okay. Okay, okay. So ah let's continue the journey. So you got into MSPs, you got into car rentals.
00:44:33
Speaker
Yeah, and employee transportation. And every year, I have a lot of fun in my team that every year, I have to change a model every year. So sometimes you come on a regional model, sometimes you are on a national model, sometimes...
00:44:50
Speaker
on a strategic business model, but every year or every one and a years, we figure out, okay, we play a little romantic and we keep changing.
00:45:02
Speaker
So, this you're talking of the organization structure, like reporting structures. Yeah, reporting structure also. For example, sometimes you have the regional structure for the entire businesses, for all the business that we're doing. Like you'll have one North Head reporting to you or North Head sub-Sambhal, right? Okay, okay.
00:45:18
Speaker
okay okay Sometimes you say, okay, MSP across the country is managed by one person. Employee transport by one person. So, this is all the games. this is all the games. Time and again. So, what did you learn? Like, what organization structure is and useful for what situation? one.
00:45:37
Speaker
No, none. etc But, you're learning something. Learning is that all business models are great. yeah i did Provided your business heads or the person who is running that show is intent and his capabilities are there to manage the show.
00:46:00
Speaker
So whether it is vertical wise or it is horizontal, it doesn't really matter. It depends on the intent and capability of the person. Okay.
00:46:11
Speaker
So you're saying design your organization's chart based on the capability of your team. Many people say that you have to be process driven, process driven and sometimes you don't want to give name in the organization chart. It has to be only the position which has to be there.
00:46:30
Speaker
I don't agree. I think it's a good thing. But please ask yourself heart to heart whether is it that, is that true?
Blending Science and Art in Business
00:46:41
Speaker
Don't you visualize a person that who will be able to control this and who will not be able to do a particular job? You all know that. it is It's a good case study, and people should talk about it.
00:46:54
Speaker
Business is not a science. Yes, process is important, but business is a combination of art and science. Yeah, yeah, so true. One of my friends, he recently quit his job. He was in a bank.
00:47:06
Speaker
When he quit, they replaced him with not one, but three people. And even though in the org chat, there was one role he was handling, but for his replacement, they got in three people. Just because he was able to manage so much, when he quit, they realized that the work is not one person.
00:47:21
Speaker
And have seen one more thing in the management. The things say, Sometimes in the operating businesses, you should not take those people.
00:47:34
Speaker
yeah that so Okay. deliver people, sometimes. That's it, okay. kki Because he always thinks what he wants to rather than actually thinking what he wants to do. Okay, okay.
00:47:50
Speaker
And this has been, and especially in the operating jobs. Because operations require a lot of... Listening? Meditation. Actually meditation.
00:48:01
Speaker
okay operations is only about three things maximize your utilization minimize your cost and ensure your customer satisfaction but for these three things, it gets taken to know true so one has to actually understand his numbers has to understand the DNA of his people, organization ah bjaque hosak just by putting a point for the sake of putting a point or for the sake of talking, it doesn't make sense.
00:48:34
Speaker
Interesting. I think across all roles, probably, I personally feel that ah finding good listeners is more important. Unless it's a role which needs you to talk, like say sales.
00:48:45
Speaker
Maybe there you need someone who's... Sir, this is a mislomer. I think I don't really agree to this also. The ones that are sitting in front of me,
00:48:58
Speaker
You don't have to actually prove your point. You have to understand his requirement.
00:49:11
Speaker
a k kolysky shut li address sunke And if you are able to articulate in two sentences, I think you are able to do it. Otherwise, you you you keep blabbering all the time. It is not going to make sense.
00:49:25
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, yeah. You have to know have to fire which bullet you have to do to win a deal. For that, you have to listen. Absolutely. whoa And today, when you go to a sales call, you know that you will say a lot.
00:49:40
Speaker
Please surprise him by not talking. Yeah,
00:49:46
Speaker
yeah yeah, yeah. Very true.
00:49:50
Speaker
genuineitity email is are salesmen madam If you talk about people, if you are able to give your solutions genuinely to your customer, it is not talking which is required.
00:50:02
Speaker
Yes, yes, yes. So what made you ah take the going public path?
Strategic Decision to Go Public
00:50:15
Speaker
It okay was not required at all. but You didn't need money. That's what you mean. No, money was not required. It was a profitable business.
00:50:26
Speaker
Of course, there was a lot of reserves and suppliers. In spite of COVID, we were able to ah survive. um the year Last year when we did our IPO,
00:50:39
Speaker
Immediately after COVID, we were able to clock our revenue of 400 crores, which was kind of great growth.
00:50:51
Speaker
Reserves and surplus was there. And that is the reason I thought this is the right time. Because when you want money, you don't give it. So true. So when you don't want money.
00:51:05
Speaker
position of strength is true true true so when and this how i learned is only from the banks because initially when we wanted car loans or whatever we know used to get so difficult i remember having mortgage my house without even telling my family a in 2010 11 mortgaged it without telling anyone and it was actually i'll I'll be lying if I say it was not stressful. It was stressful.
00:51:39
Speaker
Then you have to ensure that you have to work with really, really hard to ensure that it comes back to you at least. So then we realized whatever you have to do is do it in time.
00:51:51
Speaker
Otherwise, you won't be able do it. Then the bank started chasing you. Take a loan. Give us business. Things change, sir. What do we do? It's 2 lakh crore. lakagatheki dula carrodope uh reserves and surplus men dal ke 4 lakh crore ka usi ke against me and don't le sakta yeah right so that is the strength and today if you have got uh 200 crores which is lying in your bank and you can take 400 crores from uh the bank as a loan koi bhi awaj kare you can pay it off no ultimately uh what will the bank do with their money they have also to invest it somewhere no yeah
00:52:30
Speaker
And what will be more ah profitable than giving loan to the company where they are 100% sure that it will be repaid? Because for us from day one itself, some of the fundamentals, your bank has to be on your right side, your check can never bounce.
00:52:49
Speaker
ah These are the fundamentals that we started our business with. absolutely The bank is actually like a very important supplier for you. know you Because to build a fleet, you need ah Here we are talking about fleet, which is a very, very capital intensive business.
00:53:09
Speaker
But then you talk about any business. Your bank has to be on your... And in today's environment, I think it is very important. Right, right, right. this what is the stake that you still hold WTI between the founders and all? the founders hold around 70%.
00:53:30
Speaker
ah Okay. And you listed it? 70% and 70%. Okay. okay you I think there are different ways of doing IPO. know There is an SME board and there is a main board.
00:53:41
Speaker
So we started with SME. Okay. What is the difference? like SME, not much, but one, the share lot is of 500. When you have to buy or sell, it is in the lots of 500.
00:53:57
Speaker
Okay. shares The second is in SME, you have to declare your results twice in a year, whereas in case of a full board, it has to be four times in every quarter.
00:54:10
Speaker
And then some compliances. That's nothing much. Also at the same time. Anybody can invest in SME board companies? yeah You have to be an accredited investor. No, no, no. Anyone.
00:54:22
Speaker
Okay. It's just that one of the lot size is barrier. So small investors will stay away because 500 shares at a time a barrier. Yeah, but people who understand this SME game, they really make... It's a matter of understanding the game. That's it.
00:54:39
Speaker
And it's up to you to choose. up kiboard me list o you yeah You need to meet some requirement to go to the main board. No, no, no. I think it was our... We are we we were eligible for main board also.
00:54:50
Speaker
What is eligibility criteria for main board? think i'm I'm not very sure. Yeah, yeah. um You have to be more than 200 kovs, etc. or something like that. Okay, okay. So we we were eligible for the main board also when we did SME.
00:55:06
Speaker
But I think... I had something in mind as to when to do SME and went to do full board. What was the, what did you have in mind? Like, what was the We will not do IPO till we reach a particular figure and that okay must be in four digits.
00:55:29
Speaker
And, but SME was available. So I said, okay, let's take the experience and then we'll do full board once we reach that particular.
Global Expansion Plans
00:55:40
Speaker
But Abhi, you have not reached that figure, right? Four-digit?
00:55:44
Speaker
Four-digit main board. We it last year, IPO. But you have gone to the main board, you said? No, we have not. We will go to the main board. said you have not. Okay, got to go. So you will go to the main board once you cross that thousand crore turnover.
00:56:00
Speaker
Okay, okay, okay. And SME board, there is enough liquidity for SME? miracleo liquidity method If I say yeah investors should be able to make money and that is very important and that's what we should be working on because that defines my value also.
00:56:16
Speaker
But then as far as companies' liquidity is concerned, so here
00:56:24
Speaker
so here um we have to maintain the liquidity by our own business rather than always depending on outside funds. So not really. ah Okay. Okay.
00:56:36
Speaker
Okay. And what is your market capitalization approximate like as of recording time? 500 crores. Okay. Okay. Okay. Got it. Amazing.
00:56:48
Speaker
So you are basically like a legit crore, like 100 crore plus would be your personal net worth, right? You said less, it in pelebo jati likeing be a the market has a little crash, it has less.
00:57:02
Speaker
Sir, I don't have any difference. I don't have any share price. You asked me out of this latest question. oh So I don't really look into that. For me, important is that month on month, what is the number that I've decided the company should achieve?
00:57:21
Speaker
The share price or my value or anybody else's value is the byproduct of what we are doing today. so mi ko myorna yeah ah What is it that you want to do?
00:57:33
Speaker
Abhi, you know, you've already reached like from a stage where you have to get a home to today where you are worth hundreds of crores. Well, have you already reached a certain level? What do you want to do more?
00:57:53
Speaker
And that is the best equalizer for the moment you reach home. So very, very grounded. You know, we should always understand what is the market is saying. skibaman meco koiferni butra that kiss kibamannaly they What is driving you today? what What is a goal that is driving you? Market market position. market position and larry camp week What are the new things that we are going to launch and create?
00:58:24
Speaker
How well, firstly in this country and then globally, we are able to expand ourselves.
00:58:31
Speaker
After a while, when you're not in the business, let's say four or five years down the line, when I want to hand over the baton to the professionals to run the organization, um how well they're able to take it from there?
00:58:44
Speaker
Because rest all go. It doesn't matter it's not. Tell me something, why are you going global? There are such opportunities in India.
00:58:54
Speaker
Why not just focus on India? When we started our business, start together to Someone asked, there is so much opportunity in Delhi, so can go to the
00:59:10
Speaker
other side.
00:59:14
Speaker
So I'll just give you small example. I'm like, we started in Dubai last year. Dubai is your first global expansion. Yeah. And what did you start there? There's car rental. Self-drive. Yeah, car rental.
00:59:26
Speaker
Self-drive. B2C or B2B? B2C, B2B both. So anybody who owns a car, I not say no. So as plain and simple as that. So today we have a fleet of around 400 cars there in a span of 8 months.
00:59:40
Speaker
8 to 10 months. um And it's a profitable business.
00:59:48
Speaker
So if we can talk about Enterprise and Hertz and Davis and XYZ. Why would I go to China? me you
01:00:00
Speaker
So I think it is just a matter of management bandwidth. If your business profitable, it will be a sense of money.
01:00:11
Speaker
Right. ah But then why should I restrict to this boundary? Let's think beyond boundaries. And that's what we have been trying to do. And it gives you a different kind of a perspective altogether.
01:00:25
Speaker
What is the math for and going abroad? Like how much do you invest? How much do you get the return on that investment? and ah And how is it different from the math in India?
01:00:37
Speaker
won't tell you that.
01:00:42
Speaker
okay But I can tell you that these businesses are especially in the Middle East because I'm not going to other parts of the world who I have traveled and figured out.
01:00:55
Speaker
But in these countries, your size has to be humongous. You can't have a small size. If it's a size is good. How many cabs?
01:01:05
Speaker
How many cars? So, in next 4 to 5 years, I think if it's not 10,000. Wow. you're saying to compete in a Middle East, 10,000 is the fleet size that you need to reach to? No, you're profitable, you're doing everything.
01:01:26
Speaker
But then, if someone says that Dubai, how many car rental companies in So if I have been here for 14 years, I should have done it for 4 years. Because there was already platform there.
01:01:43
Speaker
Why do you think that you will hit 10,000? There will already competition there, right? When I started here, sir, in India, that time also people used to come and ask me, see, I'm a devil's advocate.
01:02:00
Speaker
well I'm not a devil. So...
01:02:09
Speaker
And what is the different thing you're doing? I said nothing. um There are 2000 car rental companies and 2001. My first priority is to ensure my head is about the water.
01:02:22
Speaker
ah skiba method for taking who And to make a product from the market rather than make a product.
Adapting Strategies to Market Needs
01:02:33
Speaker
You've got something do tomorrow.
01:02:36
Speaker
So first, The solution to every problem lies in the market. If you are in business,
01:02:46
Speaker
not the boardroom. So there is a, uh, there there is a, uh, formula, uh, 22, 44.
01:02:54
Speaker
So most of the decisions for 44 degrees are taken in 22 degrees in a boardroom. Nice. What do you mean by that?
01:03:07
Speaker
In the field, the temperature is 44 degrees. Ah, okay. ah okay And for that, you are taking a decision while sitting in 22 degrees. Air conditioned board room. Okay.
01:03:24
Speaker
Okay. Okay, very interesting. What will happen? 44 decisions without decision. but that that is Exactly. So your ears has to be very close to the ground and your spin should be exposed to the sun when you take these kind of decisions.
01:03:42
Speaker
Amazing, amazing, amazing. So India, where you were like 2000 companies, you were 2001. Today, probably you are one among 10. I'm guessing. too why Yeah, one among five actually.
01:03:55
Speaker
One among five. So why? right Why did you reach here? so What is your strength? I think I will not say anything else. I think it is only the manpower team that we have got and standing by the team all the time.
01:04:09
Speaker
What is my strength? My strength is just being with my people and they go all out to deliver more than what you can expect from them.
01:04:21
Speaker
So if you are with them, you'll be able to take a right decision. Stand by them. don't have to worry about the wrong thing will do the wrong thing.
01:04:36
Speaker
Yes, right. True, true. The wrong thing will not do the wrong thing. So I'm always happy with people who are making mistakes because at least they are trying. The most wrong thing in this company is I do.
01:04:51
Speaker
isri nikiva subia come guam because i take some bold decisions and sometimes those decisions are right and wrong similarly i try and inculcate that habit in my team please take decisions and that is what i would like to do in next three years time so that ah professional management can completely take over I have a feeling when a promoter stays in a business for too long, he starts cannibalizing into his own business.
01:05:24
Speaker
What do you mean by that? I am a man, I am a man, I am 12 or 15 years old. I am 10 years old.
01:05:33
Speaker
the salorki So ego will come, will be reduced, and you will not be able to inspire your team or to inspire your team.
01:05:46
Speaker
That is where you start cannibalizing. You start going into a comfort zone. And then, you're 22 degrees. right, sir. Your age is, your mindset is, your hunger is not there.
01:06:00
Speaker
mindset ai um war hunger hunger is not there You have to stay hungry to achieve something, whether it is business or anything else in life.
Creating a Culture of Hunger and Ambition
01:06:12
Speaker
So either you pass on the baton to your next generation as soon as possible and then shut up. If you trust them. If you don't, then please don't pass on that pattern. one half but marathha aga but
01:06:29
Speaker
but I think like basically the reason why you're in the top five today is because you built a hungry organization. like yeah I think so. I think, yeah, I think so. And they should remain hungry. That's that's what oh I feel. How do you drive hunger as a culture?
01:06:47
Speaker
I think I can't give my son to my son. He has grown up with everything. you know was so yeahka i good i you I worry about that.
01:07:00
Speaker
No, no, that is not right. He has grown with everything. That happens with most of the people. But then, just do the work. Just put a photo on the wall. You'll get the answer.
01:07:16
Speaker
and maybe in nelson mandela beach mapner foral then ask us and speak a of a nu out there you'll get the answer
01:07:27
Speaker
So, somewhere, you know, ham up could mean dieeal and theyro thanana so you may do whatever you want to do, but ultimately, whether your folks are actually inspired by you or not is something which has to be seen very, very closely.
01:07:44
Speaker
yeah How do you drive hunger in your company? ka of it sir wo one as simple say yeah It is not that they come with hunger when they join us. um but There is a culture that if we talk about growth, we don't talk about growth.
01:08:00
Speaker
Because rest of the processes will be taken care of. As a CEO, was what is my job? Other than sales.
01:08:11
Speaker
Even if you go to some of the greatest conferences in the world,
01:08:25
Speaker
Ultimately, they'll be trying to sell each other, right? Yeah, right. So at every position, I think this hunger has to be there that finally, as the head of businesses, our only job is to sell.
01:08:41
Speaker
Okay. And do you screen for selling skills when you are hiring?
01:08:50
Speaker
um basic thirty wat rings othe answerr We have started something like graduate management training programs and all that. We take people young in the organization because they will be able to make better managers than people who are hired from outside.
01:09:07
Speaker
So since last three years, we have started doing that. it's it's so giving us moderate results. But then I'm sure with the refinement of the program, things will be better.
01:09:20
Speaker
And as far as training is concerned, it's a continuous job. It'll keep happening. But then intent is more important than anything else. Let's say you want to have a deal.
01:09:34
Speaker
First and foremost is be honest. yeah let's say you want to have a deal first and foremost is be honest
01:09:44
Speaker
smartness is not about sales it is misconception and it is there since i don't know ages uh genuinity uh always base true true true forever and that guy will become your customer not for once but for always be genuine uh if you don't have something you don't have something because subkipaepri's name wasti I cannot cannot be Shah Rukh Khan, I cannot be Mark Zuckerberg, fine, but whatever I am, I am able to give you. This is what I am.
01:10:21
Speaker
Take it or leave it. If you else, you will feel cheated.
01:10:33
Speaker
so mean ji Being genuine is very, very important. Sir, when we there is a lot of our energy.
01:10:46
Speaker
We always remember that I said something wrong. How many kidney energy we miss and how many energy we lose? True, true, true. Even if you have asked me for 50 years, what happened? If my memory was stuck, I would that it was not a problem.
01:11:03
Speaker
We don't remember that. Yes, yes, yes. So true. So honest person will always be more productive in the long run.
01:11:15
Speaker
lot of people feel that Gen Z hair is not hungry. but of Gen Z is more entitled, not as hardworking.
Evolving Work Culture Across Generations
01:11:23
Speaker
So when you're hiring these graduates, how do you drive hunger into them?
01:11:29
Speaker
gusatwa ah coffee by my anyi belong key name I'm always happy with them. But then that's the way it is. Now, I'll i'll tell you, 1900 century was the time of Europe, US, Inga time.
01:11:45
Speaker
Industrial revolution all happened in these countries at that point of time. They really slogged their ass out in 1800 and 1900. nineteen hundred and ah eighteen hundred and ninety nine
01:11:57
Speaker
After that, they were talking about the weekend, family time, your time, my time, everybody's time, etc. Work-life balance.
01:12:09
Speaker
So this happened at the end of 1900 century. It started happening maybe from 60s till 2000. 2000.
01:12:21
Speaker
two thousand is the time for Asian countries. Because if you see all the growth which is happening is here. So when did we started working? Maybe from mid of 1950.
01:12:34
Speaker
And we'll keep working till 2030, 35. Too much of those things have started coming in us where we are saying work-life balance, time to the family, et cetera, et cetera. And we will go down to four days. Four days maybe.
01:12:51
Speaker
I'll come to office only twice in a week. I'll work from home and etc. etc. And a lot of such issues will start cropping up.
01:13:03
Speaker
Now what will happen? 2100th century will be the century for Africa. Because they are hungry. So it is a cycle. It has to happen. When we are talking about this generation, when they grow up Zenzi and they are in 50s, they'll be working only three days or four days a week because that's the way things are going to be.
01:13:24
Speaker
And everybody will be talking about a three days, four days, work-life balance. Because you're marjuana no Right. pet per When you grandfather, what is the balance of work-life balance? I think they balance their life much better than what they are able to even think about.
01:13:49
Speaker
So it's it's only time bond, circumstantial
01:13:58
Speaker
and bond to happen. It is not that you and me can stop this or anybody else can stop this. This is a phenomenon. And that's the reason I started with the time of Europe and then Asia. And then how Asia ke baad mein it'll come to Africa.
01:14:14
Speaker
Antarctica ka meil pata nahi bout time lagega.
01:14:19
Speaker
Okay. ah Okay. hook Okay. Awesome. Cool. ah Thank you so much for your time, Ashok. It was a real pleasure talking to you. Thank you very much, Akshay. Thank you very much. And we'll continue.