1. What have you found most challenging as a CEO or executive of a large enterprise?

The need to invest in continuous and successful innovation to stay ahead of the competition

2. How did you become a CEO or executive of a large enterprise? Can you please briefly tell the story?

I Co-Founded the company with a domain expert (CEO) and a technology nerd (CTO), as the business acumen support function of the start up. Together we took the company to a market leadership position.

Before this, I was part of senior management in a listed company.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

Ideally, I would build day wise, hour wise slots for external meetings, emails, calls to be returned, reviews, new learning MOOC, emergencies and keep one day in two weeks free for catch up on all pending

4. What's the most recent significant leadership lesson you've learned?

In a pandemic, being only cost focused is like being in hibernation to survive the winter. One must take risks with new concepts and solutions and products as the main strategy, so we emerge a much stronger and larger company when spring arrives.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

Straight from the Gut by Jack Welch. This is his lifetime learning from taking his company to Jupiter from Earth. There is too much in here to be able to share in a few lines. Read the book if you have not done so yet.

6. How do you build leadership capacity in a large enterprise?

This starts with right hiring for the company vision, top grading once in six months to a year, empowerment of leadership post con-jointly building the strategic map for the next 12 months, funding the great ideas on zero budgeting basis and finally giving more responsibility to the leaders who are ready to move to the next level before they find an opportunity outside the company.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a CEO or executive of a large enterprise so far?

Care for people, internal and external, and you will earn respect, adulation and love, instead of respect and fear. People who love you will go to any lengths for you. That will make you truly a great leader.