Lakshna can be summarized in one line as an individual who is always looking to come out of comfort zone to try new endeavors. She is an enterprising and persevering individual, who has all the qualities one seeks in a successful sales person. She is highly professional and knowledgeable. She not only has a great work ethics but also is also proactive in problem solving and reporting results.
After completing her MBA from Columbia business school, she was engaged with many companies across different domain. This not only gave her ample experience but also helped her generate vital contacts in the industry. From the start of her career, she has closely worked in technology driven companies. Like many other entrepreneurs, she also started out to venture her own company called SRide. It is a carpooling service to make connect people within a community for easy and cheaper commute.
Please provide a brief overview of your product/ service.
sRide is the latest carpooling app on the block and it’s one of a kind. The app connects riders and car owners to help commuters save money, reduce traffic, stay green and definitely make a lot of new friends. sRide is making the entire carpooling experience seamless using cutting edge technology under the hood cutting – making daily commute easier, cheaper and safer.
What inspired you to build the above product/ service?
sRide idea came out of my personal experiences. Whenever I saw traffic jams and everybody driving alone, I always thought why people don’t carpool. Do they have a way to carpool easily? I found that people do want to carpool but its so hard to coordinate with each other. There are some websites to help in carpooling but they are so old technology that nobody uses them. sRide is making the entire carpooling experience seamless using cutting edge technology under the hood cutting – making daily commute easier, cheaper and safer.
What is your life mantra?
I strongly believe in the fact that if you want to achieve something in life & you put your full weight behind it, then sooner or later you will definitely achieve it. I have personally experienced it many times in life & I can assure that determination and passion make a winning combination
What was the most challenging part of your journey till now?
Challenges are the important milestones of every startup’s life. These challenges are essential learning lessons and helps a startup to grow. We have had many challenges but 1 of the main challenge was the problem of too much. A decision on what all features to develop before you launch the app or a new release is a critical one.. Too much or too less, both can be harmful for the business
How did you overcome those challenges?
We learnt quickly from our challenges & with every new release we learnt how to optimize the strength of each release.
Share some details about the investments that you have been able to fetch for the business till now.
We are currently funded by a personal investor for half a million $ & we are in discussion with some big VCs for our next round funding.
How do you protect yourself from the problem of Brain Drain?
We do not face that problem as we are a close knit family. The work is exiting & gives a lot of learning experience & growth opportunities to our team members. The employee engagement level is very high
According to you, what are the three qualities an individual must have to achieve success?
1. Determination
2. Passion
3. Clarity of thought process
Which online tools/ services/ apps do you use the most and would like to recommend as well?
1. Trello – For task management
2. Whatsapp – for communication within team
3. Github – Task management
4. Google Docs – To manage documentation & sharing with team
Share any one habit which you think makes you more productive.
In a startup environment, one things which is very common across the board is that you are always stretched too thin and are involved in multiple tasks on a daily basis. It is very important that you prioritize your tasks and assign responsibilities to your team members. Micro-management is a necessity at times but micro-management on a daily basis is non-recommended practice if you want to improve your productivity
Share any one habit which you wish to change in yourself.
In an ideal situation, I like to keep a balance between operational activities & strategic initiatives but being a startup, sometimes I get pulled into operational activities which affects the strategic initiatives. I thrive on a daily basis to keep that balance in order to ensure that the product moves forward in the right manner
Answer in less than 50 words
One tip to success:
Never let go your dreams… Follow your dreams & you will definitely achieve them.
One mistake you believe every individual must avoid:
Understand your limitations & try to find a balance on how to address those limitations.
One most important lesson that you have learnt till now:
Ups & down are part of the startup lifecycle. Don’t get bogged down by few failures.
What are your plans for next 3 years?
We target to grow by 300%-400% each month & cross 1 Mn subscribers at the end of Year 1. We would like to be the largest carpool company at the end of Year 3 & have a major impact on the commuting habit of the users which helps to reduce traffic as well as reduce pollution across cities.
If you get a chance to start your career again what would you do differently this time?
Nothing. I think I have done well & I would still do the same.
What are your top three getaway destinations?
Bahamas, London & Mexico
Share a quote that inspires you the most.
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change” – Charles Darwin