Chandrasekhar Goda
Class of 2011
Director, Head of Strategy, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Biologics
Previous Occupation: Entrepreneur
Present Occupation: Director, Head of Strategy at Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Biologics
Sector: Biotech/ Pharma
Work Experience: ~14 years
Interests – Professional/ Personal: Reading, Travelling and Photography
Can you tell us a little about your family background/ history?
I was born and brought up in Hyderabad with roots in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. My father recently retired as a Judge of the AP High Court and now heads the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in Delhi. My mother is a homemaker who in her spare time pursues charitable causes and translates English literary works to Telugu. I have two younger sisters, both attorneys currently based in Hyderabad. Three members of my immediate family are ISB alums − my sister Kaumudi Goda (Co2012), my wife Soujanya Kaluri (Co2014) and I (Co2011). And now a fourth is joining the Co2015, so we are all deeply invested in the School!
Briefly describe your personal and professional achievements (including recent awards/ special projects).
Founding and running a couple of successful dotcoms in early 2000 out of a small kitchenette in suburban Chicago was a great experience. I walked out of that a little richer, a lot wiser and with a passion for entrepreneurship. Over six years starting in 2003, I founded and ran a niche consulting firm, creating a strong practice with over US$15 million in revenues. Being able to do this as a first generation entrepreneur with no support or prior experience is a proud achievement.
In 2009, through Upasamana, a charitable trust I founded, I organised relief packages for over 300 families affected by the floods in Kurnool. I support regular ophthalmic care for the poor and the elderly through Upasamana, an ongoing activity that I am proud to be driving.
More recently, at Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Biologics, I formalised the Business Systems and Planning group as a key central function and staffed it with high quality talent. I led the development of governance, reporting, integration and planning processes that are critical to a rapidly scaling business such as ours. I have been driving several other initiatives that are important to the leadership and growth agenda of the business.
Tell us about your profile pre-ISB, and recap your professional life after ISB, including your career progression.
I had over 10 years of experience coming into ISB. I started my career with Morningstar in Chicago where I worked for about two years consulting in alternative investments. Thereafter, I worked briefly with a technology startup before going on to start my own firm that provided niche consulting services in finance and supply chain, primarily to healthcare and manufacturing companies in the US. I relocated to India in 2010 to join the Class of 2011 at ISB.
Post-ISB, I joined Dr. Reddy’s Biologics as an Associate Director, heading the Business Systems and Planning group. In my current role as Director and Head of Strategy, I am responsible for synthesising internal and external perspectives to develop actionable insights and strategic stances for the Biologics business.
Describe your fondest memory of ISB.
There are so many fond memories of ISB, particularly since I spent two years on campus, first as a student and later as a student spouse. Going up the roof garden at 5 AM, enjoying that moment of solitude, admiring the beauty of the campus and taking photographs is a fond memory. On a lighter note, the many interesting “high” level conversations I had with my “homies” are unforgettable!
In your personal life, how have you changed post-ISB? Do you see yourself doing something differently because you went to ISB? What has left a lasting impression?
ISB helped me pause, reflect, learn and equip myself with skills and perspectives I needed for the future. It gave me the clarity to choose the path forward and the conviction to pursue it. Doing an MBA from ISB was also cathartic in a way, like taking a dip in the Ganges. It helped wipe clean some of my past professional sins!
How do you think ISB has contributed to your career growth?
ISB continues to positively impact my career. The exposure to various disciplines and cases helps me connect the dots better, handle depth and manage breadth effectively in a complex business environment.
If you have to sum up ISB in one word:
Calibrator.
What was the main highlight of your programme at the ISB?
The peer group experience, the infrastructure, the world-class faculty – these are unparalleled in the Indian context.
Word of advice for the current class?
You are all here to challenge your top-lines, not manage your bottom-lines. Don’t obsess about grades and jobs. Obsess about learning − learning that comes not only from class but from unprejudiced interactions, intellectual debate and reflection. Grades won’t transform your lives, the learning will and the jobs will follow. Leadership and change is not just the mandate of a few elected students. Have your own personal leadership agenda, own brand ISB and think of ways in which you can enhance it by contributing to your class, to the School and to the community. Be situationally aware − being a part of ISB in its early stages of evolution gives you the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play a defining role in shaping the destiny of the School in the years to come.
What was your favourite course/ class at ISB and why?
I loved all the so called “faff” courses at ISB. As one progresses in one’s career, from functional roles to general management roles, it becomes important to go beyond tactical approaches and learn to lead through influence. The strategy and leadership courses at ISB helped me understand the nuances of applied organisational and leadership constructs that can significantly impact the trajectory of a business.
Was there anyone during your time at ISB who acted as a mentor for you? Tell us a little about this relationship and why it was valuable.
Several alums, my classmates, ISB staff and faculty − almost everyone I interacted with in the ISB community − helped shape my perspectives in their own individual ways. In that sense, they have all been my mentors!
What are the areas in which you can contribute to ISB?
I have been a regular panellist on admission road shows and interviews. Each year, I mentor a few aspirants to both the PGP and PGPMAX programmes that I feel would be good additions to the classes at ISB. I hired ISB grads and alums into my team at DRL and continue to engage with CAS and the alumni on opportunities within Dr. Reddy’s. Going forward, I intend to also contribute to the alumni leadership in its efforts to strengthen brand ISB, enrich the alumni experience and give back to the School and to the community at large.
What do you enjoy most about your current career position?
Being at a defining moment in the industry, the sector and the role are the most compelling aspects of my current career position. At DRL Biologics, the culture is entrepreneurial, largely free from bureaucracy and intellectually dense. The opportunity to work in an incubating business set within the larger context of a mature group makes for an ideal learning ground, gives me the opportunity to bring my skills to bear and the freedom to create impact. Even if I don’t meet patients on a day-to-day basis, knowing that what I do ultimately helps improve the quality of their lives is very gratifying.
What is the next new thing in the industry or vertical you are working in? Any trends that you can see?
Biologics are large-molecule pharmaceuticals that are effective in the treatment of diseases such as cancers and auto-immune disorders. They are complex, highly targeted and generally expensive therapies that form a growing part of the global healthcare spend. The cost burden on patients and payers has resulted in an increasing demand for generic alternatives to off-patent biologics, commonly known as biosimilars.
Globally, the case for biosimilars is compelling. In emerging markets there is huge unmet need caused by the exorbitant prices of originator biologics. There is a need to make biologics accessible to many more people in these regions through affordable biosimilars. In developed markets, there is a need to drive significant reduction in the cost of biologics treatments through proven products.
In the early stages of the industry, without clear regulatory guidelines and a drug development model to follow, the capabilities to develop and manufacture complex biologics and to commercialise them were considered inaccessible to companies in emerging markets. In the recent past, regulatory guidelines for biosimilar development have been published by the European Union, the US, Japan and the World Health Organisation (WHO), establishing global standards for development. These guidelines however set onerous data expectations on biosimilar developers that include extensive clinical testing. As a consequence, development costs tend to be extremely high and there is a high degree of commercial uncertainty.
In the future, the ability to reduce the data burden by finding innovative ways to establish biosimilarity in a clinical setting, development strategies that reduce development timelines, efficient manufacturing processes that produce high yields and reduce capital consumption, and distinctive go-to-market models that accelerate biosimilar acceptance by patients and physicians, will be the key differentiating factors.
The biosimilars industry is poised for exciting times ahead and companies with the best business models will prevail.