Tell us about yourself, your professional life after the ISB including your career progression.

Well, life has been eventful so far and I’m loving it! Prior to the ISB, I did my B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from Delhi. I then worked for a few months, as project manager with a Russian firm, which is one of the biggest power companies in the world. I then joined the ISB where I majored in Marketing & Finance.

Soon after the ISB, I started my entrepreneurial venture, The Royal Time Machine and got lucky with it! It was a pioneering concept in the field of luxury travel that took the media by storm at launch time and has grown from strength to strength ever since. By God’s grace, in the three years of its running, the company has expanded, both in terms of regions it caters to as well as its service offerings. The venture has been ranked among India’s top 50 by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and among the top 5 entrepreneurial ventures of the year by Business Today, in the women’s category.

What was your key take-away from the ISB?

At the ISB, I was a passive learner and believed more in listening (read 0 CP points!) but it worked for me. ISB modified my thinking process. Everyone is born with the power of observation. But the ISB taught me to analyse that observation, arrive at its business implication, spot the business opportunity and make maximum use of it by stretching to reach out to goals. That was my biggest takeaway (and my best CP so far!). The institute also made me understand the importance of a network and its diversity.

How do you think the ISB has contributed to your career growth as an entrepreneur?

ISB has contributed to my career growth substantially. To begin with, it makes you believe in yourself and gives you the courage to take that leap into entrepreneurship. It helps you structure your thoughts and put them in a framework. The sharpening of one’s business acumen that is done at the institute helps you make good & sound decisions.

Also, I wouldn’t shy away from admitting that the brand name surely helps too by way of people willing to place their trust in you since you belong to a well reputed b-school. So it gives you the very important foot-in-the-door.

During the session, every now and then, I would hear someone mention “network” and “diversity” and their importance. Never believed it! They turned out to be some of the most important tools of work life. Another bonus that the ISB has given me is a group of smart, fun & very supportive friends!

What is your vision for the School?

My vision for the school involves the ISB working towards shaping the business environment in India by training the best minds specifically in fields that the country is lagging behind in and motivating them to take on economically viable projects in those fields. It would certainly: 1) give India a much needed boost in those sectors 2) help those alums excel as there would be plenty of opportunities in such sectors and 3) further the brand image of ISB as a pioneer and a respected & responsible b-school. Easier said than done, but I believe that my Alma Mater has the capacity to do all this and more!

What are the strengths that the School can leverage upon and areas in which it can improve?

ISB has various strengths including its visionaries, the faculty, a diverse mix of students and a good network of successful alumni working in diverse fields in various parts of the world. It is actively making good use of all these for its cause. One of these that the school can further leverage on is its alum network. What needs to be worked upon is the interaction between the school and the alums as well as that between alums across batches and across programmes. The onus of this, surely, lies on not just the school but on the alumni also.

Being an entrepreneur myself, another area of improvement I particularly observed was in the support provided to alum entrepreneurs. We could further work on a structured source of guidance & networking and non-monetary help for the same.

What role do you think the alums can play in building the School?

The part played by alums in building the school involves doing full justice to their work, organisation and their own potential while extending their support to the school, in whatever capacity they can. While alums need to keep the school informed and updated about their work and any particular opportunity they see for the school or its students, the school needs to reach out to its alum pool and ask for volunteers, as and when required for a particular task.

What is the area you can contribute in?