Meera Kaul,an attorney by education began her journey in the regional channel industry roughly 15 years ago with ventures like Learning Zone, Momenta and finally Optimus Technology and Telecommunications.
Kaul set up Optimus in 2008, with the objective of filling the evident gaps in the regional channel market. “My vision from the start was for Optimus to be a successful value added distribution business, and we built it out from scratch by introducing several value-added services, which has helped us stand out from other distributors in the region,” she says. Kaul believes the company’s achievements marked the beginning of a shift across the larger industry.
“One of the first things I noticed was the largely trading mentality that existed across the regional distribution space, so I set up Optimus Technology and Telecommunications with one aim in mind- to fill the value gaps in the channel, from the very top of the channel. Today, I believe this is Optimus’s biggest achievement. It was the front runner focused on delivering value in the channel from world class technology products and solutions to technical expertise and capacity building,” she says.
Kaul believes that traditionally the role of a group executive was aligned to monitor and execute compliance of business strategies and group commitments. However, over the last few years the shift has been towards strategising and executing technology innovation. “The executive level officials now need to make innovative decisions that shift from efficiency measures to innovation initiatives that will deliver results. Companies have been historically run to measure success by revenue and profit, whereas the new paradigm of success recognises companies to be measured on their creative ability to innovate all aspects of a corporation’s functions and service levels across the business execution. The role of the executives has been redefined to be more visionary and innovative than just as a functional revenue driven leader,” she states.
This is why, she adds, a successful group executive is a creative risk taker, who follows a tangible thought process. He or she is one who is socially connected and well-informed of market dynamics. Most importantly, Kaul says they are pragmatic motivators, who never shy of a challenge and are always loyal to the company and its many stakeholders.
Kaul adds that a group executive must understand the role the organisation plays in the larger scheme of things. “A successful IT distribution company is a supply chain management conduit between the vendor and its channel. A successful IT value distribution company is a partner to both the vendor and its channel. Apart from fulfilling the traditional roles; the USP for a value player is to promote a deeper multivendor solutions portfolio of its vendors to its partners, to technically support these sales and to cover the gaps in skills required to sell, implement and support these technologies,” she says.
Kaul says it is the ability to bring learning and innovation together that she perhaps enjoys the most.
“I enjoyed bringing in innovation to the value added distribution model by rolling out business support to Optimus’ partner network. For any business to do well, we need the right people in place and it was a tough task putting together a strong team of technically qualified professionals with the skills, knowledge and expertise in the IT domain,” she says.
“As a mentor, I always look to grow careers of individuals who have positive attributes, a ‘can-do’ attitude and a focused goal driven acumen. I consider these important parameters for further growth. I am of the opinion that nothing is impossible if an individual can put his or her sincere efforts to achieve the goals and I have immense respect for people who know what they want and work backwards with a focus to achieve them. These are the people who have the capability to be leaders,” she concludes.
