At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring some of the meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community of entrepreneurs, investors, management students and aspiring entrepreneurs. This weekend we invited yet another seasoned entrepreneur and business leader Bharat Wakhlu for an interview with us. He is a Thought Leader, Coach, Speaker, Author and also the Founder of The Wakhlu Advisory. Let’s learn more about his astonishing journey and his advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with him:
We are aware of your contributions to the business and entrepreneurial ecosystem. Talk us through your background and your journey as an entrepreneur, please;
From an early age, I was committed to using my knowledge, my skills, and capabilities, to serve the greater good of all. This was my passion, and this is what inspired me. If I could therefore be helpful in any situation, I would volunteer and would derive great joy in doing so. I was also inter-culturally sensitive, having attended school in the UK and Germany, and that also made me a good team-person and one who could get along with almost everyone.
In school in Srinagar, I was active in a number of initiatives covering sports, Radio, Television and community work. I even created a Student’s Club with another friend of mine, called the “Fun-to-do Club”. This was way before the era of smart-phones and OTT television, but we realised that in doing something novel and creative and having fun along the way, was the best way for each one of us to bring out the best in each one of us.
As time went by, I graduated as an Engineer from BITS, Pilani. In college, I taught German to students and helped a number of people in my class become fairly proficient in the language. It was here that I also realised that helping other people, communities, organizations and even our society and the nation, could all be amalgamated into impactful leadership that is driven by strong values and impeccable communication skills.
After college, I joined Tata Motors, in Pune. As an engineer on the shop-floor, my interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate assertively got honed further. I also learned the basics of effective leadership, working and interacting with some of India’s leading business leaders at that time – people such as Mr Arun Maira, Mr S Y Jakatdar, Mr. S A Sabavala and some others.
In my two years in Tata Motors I also learned a lot about the critical elements of good leadership, especially how it manifests, how it gets subverted and the role of values, credibility, communication and interpersonal skills, in making leadership impactful and effective. It was also in Pune that I learned how to speak Marathi, enabling me to be proficient in six languages, and imbibe the culture of another vibrant state of India.
I then left Tata Motors and went to IIM Bangalore for an MBA. The two years I spent there were extraordinary years from the perspective of learning. I delved deep into entrepreneurship, successful business models, leadership, marketing, and interestingly, even Japanese Management. My personal purpose became clearer, and I was ready to start as an entrepreneur.
However, that’s when I was selected to the prestigious Tata Administrative Service (TAS) – the Leadership cadre of the Tata Group. Upon joining this cadre, I knew that the Tata Group offered me a chance to be an entrepreneur within this large group – with the attendant benefits of lower risk and not having to look outside for funding.
It was a good assessment, and so I spent the next three decades being an intrapreneur in the Tata Group, creating new businesses and improving processes so that I could create value consistently for the benefit of the Group, as well as its customers.
When I left the Tata Group in 2014, I then joined Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation in the USA, as their Managing Director for South Asia. My intrapreneurial stint with them continued as well until I left the company two years later, a year or so after the firm was acquired by Lockheed Martin.
So you amalgamated entrepreneurship along with a corporate career?
Yes, that’s what I did! The Tata Group by virtue of being a large and diversified set of independent companies was an ideal place for being an intrapreneur – an entrepreneur within a corporate eco-system. Besides, being in the TAS allowed mobility between roles and companies and it was therefore very exciting.
I spent 17 years in the Tata Steel system in Jamshedpur and made innovative business changes in the areas of Total Quality, E-commerce, Corporate Relations and Supply Chain. Not only that, I was the founder – along with Ms. Aarti Luniya of SAIL -of India’s first e-commerce platform, the Metal junction (metaljunction.com). That company to this day remains one of India’s most successful and oldest e-commerce companies.
I was then posted in New York as the President of Tata Inc. USA. Here too I established new business lines for the company, and worked out a new partnership with Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (way before I became their employee) to make an important part of the S-92 helicopter in India! All these were exciting entrepreneurial initiatives that were led by me but supported by my Boards and the Chairman of Tata Sons, Mr Ratan N. Tata, who has always encouraged an entrepreneurial approach even within a business.
‘The Wakhlu Advisory’ is such a unique name; talk us through its setting up, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problems you are solving with the help of your start-up?
The Wakhlu Advisory was set up after my stints in the corporate sector (Tata Group and Sikorsky/Lockheed Martin) was completed in 2017. The primary aim was to use my skills and experience to help other leaders, entrepreneurs and businesses to work more purposefully to make a wholesome impact in the world.
As the Founder and President of my firm, I work closely with leaders: coaching and guiding them, apart from helping them to co-create businesses that are aligned with the principles of Sustainability and the Circular Economy.
Many of the firms that I’m working with, have to look for novel and innovative solutions to some of the strategic problems in the sustainability space, that they are grappling with. Furthermore, existing companies also need to continuously re-invent themselves, and that’s another area where my associates in our firm and I help out.
During this COVID-19 crisis, what measures have you undertaken to continue your business without disruption?
My firm is fortunate to be a lean one because we rely on the Associate Model of collaboration for our expertise. Therefore, the challenge for us was to quickly ramp-up our online delivery capabilities using the platforms that were most compatible with our needs, and convincing our clients that we could continue to serve their needs effectively, and without a break.
We obviously had to work closely with our clients and the leaders we serve, to ensure that they were ready after the initial periods of the lockdown.
How do you manage yourself and keep on going despite the challenges? What drives you?
Managing oneself is the most important requirement for a leader.
In fact, I lay a lot of emphasis on my journey towards Self-Mastery – which is a systematic journey that requires a conscious internalization of the following elements:
a) Working with Values that create happiness, and wholesomeness for all people, including our planet and the myriad living beings – flora and fauna – that flourish and thrive in the oceans and on land.
b) Acquiring the skills for Interpersonal excellence. This implies one gets to a stage that enables one to communicate, listen to and engage with others – no matter how diverse and different their ideas are from one’s own – in a manner that fosters collaboration, peace and teamwork, and finally.
c) Emotional Intelligence and Maturity: the requirement being that one does not fly off the handle the moment something unusual occurs and foils one’s plans, and at the same time one also sees things in the larger perspective so that one is in a state of equanimity in all situations.
I am perpetually working on all these three elements to acquire self-mastery. Let me also share that this is a life-long process but it is a very beneficial journey since it impacts wholesomely all the roles one might find oneself in.
Please share with us – what has worked well for you so far?
Everything that I have done in my life so far, has worked well for me. Yes, that includes the hits and misses, the losses and the gains, the successes and the failures as well as the highs and lows.
The reason for this is that fulfilment is the sum of all of one’s experiences – and if one has the right, positive attitude and is not attached to any specific set of outcomes, everything one encounters provides great learning and fulfilment.
Besides, knowing that almost all that happens in one’s life is a consequence of one’s own decisions and circumstances, helps to become accountable and responsible for oneself and one’s life, and that in itself is deeply enriching and edifying.
In your opinion – what is more necessary: An Idea or a good team for a successful start-up?
I’m of the view that both are needed- good ideas that when brought to fruition can make a lasting and positive difference to the quality of life of all; and a team of committed, capable and driven people – with the right Values – who can bring the ideas to scale for everyone’s benefit in an optimal manner.
On that note it’s worthwhile to mention that just before the pandemic my brother Arun and I co-founded another organization, the Foundation for Peace and Compassionate Leadership (fpacl.com).
It’s based on the idea that only leaders with a compassionate heart and who understand their interconnectedness of us all, with the web of life, can contribute to resolving the more “wicked” and intractable problems of the world. This company is meant to be a not-for-profit company (Section 8 firm) but it’s based on a good idea and good people are being drawn to it to bring its vision to fruition.
What are the business mantras you have embraced as you sought to pursue your passion and goals?
The business mantras are all there in my answers above. But one that I have not mentioned is that a desire for money alone can never be the basis for a lasting enterprise. Values, Purpose and a robust service-orientation are far more potent as drivers and predictors of success and fulfilment and must be given due attention.
Furthermore, staying positive and emotionally stable are also imperative. After all, whatever manifests in the outer world, has to emanate from our “interiority” first. If the inside is unclear and confused, so will the outside be. But if we are clear and bold within, that’s how things will manifest on the outside.
You are always positive and motivated, what keeps you going?
(laughing) Yes, thanks! I am one with a positive outlook because I see myself as a traveller on planet earth – who will be in this realm for a maximum of 90 or 95 earth-years.
So, in that short span of time that’s left (about 35-40 years) I want to use my gifts to make the world a better place. Since there is still so much healing required in the world and so many injustices to undo, and still so much to be done to bring happiness to people and to rejuvenate Mother Earth, I wake up in the morning eager to connect with like-minded people and do whatever has to be done urgently. There can be no other source of energy and drive than an outlook that is underpinned on the greater good of all.
What are the three most important lessons you have learned building your start-up?
There are many lessons one has learned, but if you want the three most important ones, I think those are:
a) One is not one’s business. This implies that even if your business has highs and lows, you still remain the same, a capable and purposeful individual who started the enterprise.
b) The world is constantly in flux, and hence be ready to change rapidly and frequently. It does not help to be attached to one’s original plan, or business model. Keep experimenting, and change and fail fast if needed, so that you keep adding value to those whom you serve, and finally
c) You are a traveller, so travel simply and travel light. What this means is that your enterprise must not complicate your short life on planet earth. Even if you end up being a billionaire from your business, you cannot take a cent along with you when you leave the realm of Planet Earth.
So, keep your business simple, transparent, and committed to serving your clients, and enjoy the process of running it. When you’ve had enough of it, hand it over to your successors in a clean, hassle-free manner, and you may then take up something else that gives you happiness and fulfilment.
And yes, don’t ever forget that good health is true wealth and needs to be preserved and taken care of at all times. Those who are interested to learn more about these points, should read my recent book, Navigating the Maze – Simple, Smarter Strategies to Fast-track Success, published by SAGE Publishes and available readily online.
We would love to know your advice for all those starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur?
People committed to being entrepreneurs must be driven by a desire to serve others, and to improve the quality of life of people, organizations, nations and the whole globe.
That must be the ultimate goal. The pursuit of such goals can be further refined into specific themes and ideas that the entrepreneur is passionate about. Such an approach alone will enable the enlisting of other capable and like-minded people so that together they can make a positive difference.
The other point is that however good the idea, sometimes it may not fly and that can be disappointing. However, looking at mistakes and failures as learning opportunities, that provide one lesson that can be applied in future ventures, is essential.
Simultaneously, know that every entrepreneurial journey is as diverse and different as the people behind the initiative, so don’t try to follow someone else’s trajectory. Your uniqueness is the greatest asset that you as an entrepreneur bring to any initiative.