In my quest for excellence and supremacy as an entrepreneur, I know that accomplishments are just a step toward achieving life's higher goals. It is the process of continuous improvement that makes "success" complete and propels me to reach the highest bastions of excellence.

I believe in this philosophy and have always tried to practice this at work and at home. For me, change has become the order of the day. It is evident at every level and in every moment.

My entry into entrepreneurship started when I was in college. In the initial stages, it was a tough battle. I found myself competing with the giants of my industry. Though the battle still continues, I now understand how important it is to be aligned with the learning process. I have also realized that perseverance and commitment to development are the key factors to maintaining a strong foothold in any industry. To stay ahead, I have to think ahead.

The finance business in India is both a challenge and an opportunity. It is a challenge because too many players are willing to fund nearly anything and everything at the lowest possible interest rates. This makes competition tougher and unbalanced as players start to break convention to gain business. The finance business is also an opportunity because everybody is increasingly more aware of their state of existence. They want to have the best of things even when resources are limited. I was no different.

I made the conscious decision to merge my company with another one so that I could become a small part of a large pie instead of remaining a large part of a small pie. This merger provided us with a much larger market capitalization. Almost overnight, our joint entity became a force to be reckoned with. We were able to borrow at a much lower rate, and our bargaining power increased thanks to the sheer increase in size. The merger resulted in the formation of a US$1.5 billion asset company with more than 4,000 employees.

Being at the helm of affairs and managing the total operations of this newly formed company is proving to be a wonderful learning experience. I’ve discovered that technology is a must to grow your business. I’ve also learned that size matters. Once I started thinking big, my whole thought process changed. But most of all, sound management principles and quality human resources are the two most important factors that have determined the success of my business. Both need to work in harmony to achieve success in totality.

I keep coming back to the concept of change. It is the one thing that is constant in today’s world; everything else seems irrelevant. If I hadn’t learned to adapt to change, my business would have been left behind in the business wake. It is this change that compels organizations like mine to look for new and innovative models of growth. Knowledge and its application are certainly the key elements of corporate growth, which remains the core value of my organization.