The 10 Most Creative Shepreneurs to Watch in 2019

2019 | Volume 10 | Issue 5
THE10
10 MOST
Creative
S H E P R E N E U R S
TO WATCH IN 2019

E
Sheprenures
Bridging Empowerment and Entrepreneurship
oday, there is an opportunity to accelerate the progress towards gender equality. Moments like #MeToo have
Thighlighted an unacceptable status quo and demonstrated how too many women in the world continue to be deprived
of respect and equal opportunities.
As per an independent report, there has been a little progress towards greater equality. Where, on the one side, the maternal
mortality rates have dropped by over 50 percent. On the other hand, we can’t deny the fact that an equal number of girls and
boys are now enrolled in primary school education in recent years. But, the overall progress remains too slow. Things need to
speed up.
Everyone is well aware of the fact that setting up a business is a key means for women to empower themselves and break out
of deplorable financial conditions. But just as becoming an employee is harder for women, so is becoming an entrepreneur.
Well, the good news is that despite all the constraints, the number of women entrepreneurs has been increasing day-by-day,
also they have been particularly successful. At a global level, about 126 million women are running their own businesses and
whereas in India, about 8 million women have started their own businesses. This has been possible for every woman through
the gender-responsive funds, programs to support SMEs, and strong advocacy to ensure women’s entrepreneurship is
prioritized in national policy making.
Women are seen as leading active members but also holding strong portfolios in the public and private sectors. As gender
equality has risen over the years, this would make a huge contribution to achieving sustainable development and reducing the
poverty in India.
Going ahead, supporting women’s empowerment will definitely help to eliminate gender inequality, protect fundamental
human rights, and bring considerable economic benefits. As India wants to build a successful country to develop a genderresponsive
entrepreneurial ecosystem; we can only hope that soon it will be seen as the most entrepreneurial country in the
world about achieving equality and give women the support and opportunities they deserve.

“
Making life easier for women entrepreneurs is to
support women’s empowerment
“
Shruti P. Jambhale
Let’s build on this momentum for change, as women entrepreneurs have a key role to play. Thus, this month, Insights Success
has come up with the special issue “The 10 Most Creative Shepreneurs to Watch in 2019 ”.
We have enrolled a passionate entrepreneurial figure, who has come up with the most unique solutions and building the
unique path. Thus, we have featured a special story of Hema K, the Co-founder at DimenZion3 talent consulting LLP
who is going beyond her talent with passion and curiosity. Meena Srinivasan, the Co-Founder & CEO at Scion Social
who is one of the most sought after specialists in the emerging world of social media and the brightest mind working to
deliver phenomenal results. Nirmala Kandalgaonkar, Chairperson at Vivam Agrotech—she is a real face of persistence
and adaptability. And, she is the encouraging reminder to keep pursuing your goals–and succeed despite your age.
An ultra-modern leader, Surabhi Dewra, the Founder at CareerGuide—is one of the leading shepreneurs influencing and
guiding young intellectuals to discover his/her true potential and interest. Pari Purohit, the Founder & Creative Director
at Studio Glyph, who is showcasing the perfect blend of creativity and expertise.
Along with this, we have an exclusive ‘Interview with Insights Success’. In this interview, we get to understand one such
creative and prolific entrepreneur, Shalini Gupta, the Founder and Director of Zorba Books which is one of India’s leading
self-publishing organizations. Here, Shalini talk about their overall journey and the influences made by their firm, service
offerings, winning honors, current and future perceptions.
This magazine includes leader’s thoughts as well. Shriya Kolte, the Founder at Imagination Inc.—a company addicted to
design, providing comprehensive solutions to finer things; discusses the topic “Significance of having Women in
Leadership Roles”.
The editor’s thoughts are also part of this magazine where they have made some amazing info-graphic article “In Search of
Success.”
So, flip the pages of our magazine and explore interesting insights into the world of business!

CONTEN
Interview with Insights Success
18
Shalini Gupta
Simplifying Book Publishing
cxo
26
CXO Standpoint
Signicance of having
Women in Leadership Roles
34
Exclusive
In Search of Success!
ARTICLE

TS
Hema
14
Meena Srinivasan
A Pioneer in Building
Virtual Team Model
10
K
Going Beyond Talent with
Passion and Curiosity
22
Nirmala Kandalgaonkar
A face of Persistence
and Adaptability
30
Pari Purohit
The Art and Science
of Creativity
38
Surabhi Dewra
An Ultra-modern Leader

Editor-in-Chief Pooja M. Bansal
Managing Editor
Contributing Writers
Shruti P. Jambhale
Rajkunwar, Abhishaj, Sneha
Art & Design Head Amol Kamble
Associate Designer Poonam Mahajan
Art & Picture Editor
Co-designer
Business Development Manager
Business Development Lead
Savita Pandav
Sapana Shinde
Megha Mishra
Ashwini Pahurkar
Business Development Executive Snehalata Lad
Technical Specialists Amar, Pratiksha
Digital Marketing Manager Prashant Chevale
SME-SMO Executives Manoj, Ketki
Circulation Manager
Tanaji
sales@insightssuccess.com
October, 2019
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RNI NUMBER: MAHENG/2018/75953

THE 10 MOST
CREATIVE
SHEPRENEURS
T O W A T C H I N 2 0 1 9
Hema K
Going Beyond Talent with Passion and Curiosity
As Albert Einstein says: “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious”
Hema K
Co-founder & Director
10
| October 2019 |

“ Believe in yourself!
Have the courage to
take the risk and fail.
Business is a long
haul and not an
overnight journey
as perseverance
is the key
“
When passion and curiosity intersect,
innovation is born. To innovate is to emerge,
and to emerge is to proliferate! That is how
today’s generation works and functions. The diligence in
work and determination for creativity is the bedrock for
innovation.
Having a similar thought process as Einstein, there is one
person passionately curious to learn new things, Hema
K – Co-founder & Director, DimenZion3 Global
Solutions Pvt Ltd. DimenZion3 was established with
the vision of making the world a fair place to work. She
likes to meet new people and be a part of positive change
in their lives, thus also achieving the goals of
DimenZion3. “My goal is to put DimenZion3 on the
global map,” she claims. One of her goals remains to
consolidate global presence and have delible footprints
in countries like the U.S, Australia, Singapore, the U.K,
and the U.A.E to provide holistic global diversity and
inclusion.
Hema is a business management professional with about
22 years of experience. “I started my career in sales and
later moved to customer service,” she tells. She started
her journey in HR 15 years ago where she worked in
talent acquisition and core operations. Some of the
industries she has worked for are Hospitality, ITES,
Manufacturing, and Consulting. “I set higher goals each
time and working to achieving them is my biggest
motivational tool,” shares Hema. Women like Kiran
Majumdar and Indra Nooyi inspire her as they have
shown the path which she can follow and travel. Reading
books about other successful people, and how they
influence other people, along with thinking about how
she can incorporate their ways inspires Hema a lot.
“Personally, I am a great fan of Sudha Murthy, Infosys
Foundation,” describes Hema. Sudha Murthy was a
professor in her college who inspired her a lot.
Hema started the company in 2012 as an HR consulting
and training company. “We were fortunate enough to get
good brands to work with,” she adds. Their work quality
paid off great dividends resulting in continued client
referrals. By 2014, DimenZion3 transformed into a
leading Diversity and Inclusion consulting organization.
And by 2017, they had started offering innovative
theatre-based offerings through their brand Tiatr-O! and
produced the first theatrical play ‘BLACK WHITE AND
LIFE IN BETWEEN’ for corporate audience.
“We used theatre as a medium to train close to 1700
sales professionals from the Automobile industry in
2018!” exclaims Hema.
Whether one is an experienced entrepreneur or just
starting, there are a host of challenges every day like
building a brand and constantly innovating to keep the
competitors off the market. In such conditions ensuring
that the business remains profitable is a challenge. When
the clients are looking for big brands to work with,
convincing them how DimenZion3 can help them better
by offering customized solutions to address their core
issues is of utmost importance to Hema.
|October 2019| 11

Tackling Adversities
Even after so many years of experience, hiring the right
team member for a start-up is a challenging and daunting
task. “It’s not that easy to find the right talent and we
need to keep in mind their cost, cultural fit and
competency to be a part of the team,” addresses Hema.
This becomes exceptionally hard when the company
goes under the pressure of filling those positions as soon
as possible. The world is becoming more complex and
diverse. There are greater number of women and Gen Y
employees in the workforce nowadays. Technology is
also changing and upgrading at a fast pace. Therefore,
clients require quick access to data, technology-based
solutions, and innovative offerings. Gone are the days
when day-long instructor-led training programs were the
norms. The attention span is decreasing and there is a
need for innovative solutions.
Exceptional Services
DimenZion3 consults primarily in three areas:
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Sales Effectiveness
• Interpersonal Effectiveness & Leadership
Development
Tiatr-O is a DimenZion3 brand. It is India’s largest
theatre troupe focused on corporate learning using dance,
music, and drama as powerful media to deliver powerful
insights into the corporate world. Hema and her team at
DimenZion3 have used this art form to deliver high
impact learning in the field of:
Along with providing great services to the clients, Hema
and her team believe in making the world a fair place to
work. Her mission includes helping the organizations
inculcate inclusivity and diversity in everything it
undertakes.
Forecasting ahead Hema states, “Our solutions have
modern outlook yet very strong traditional flavor.
Therefore, we use traditional methods like Theatre, Music,
Art, and present them in insightful ways.”
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Gender Sensitivity
• Leadership Skills
• Selling Skills
• Intercultural Competence
• Interpersonal Effectiveness
12
| October 2019 |

THE10 MOST
CREATIVE
SHEPRENEURS
T O W A T C H I N 2 0 1 9
Meena Srinivasan
A Pioneer in Building Virtual Team Model
Meena Srinivasan
Co-founder & CEO
14
| October 2019 |

“
Rather than focusing
on overnight
success, focus on
steady and
sustained growth.
Keep doing small
daily improvements
and soon you will be
on top of the summit
“
For many, ‘Entrepreneurship is a Choice’, but for her,
it was ‘Entrepreneurship by Chance’. Today she is
one of the most sought after specialists in the
emerging world of Social Media. As life and business
evolve, some tough choices and decisions are part and
parcel of every entrepreneur’s journey. And if you are
women, your list of priorities is always in a shuffle mode.
As Meena Srinivasan, the Co-founder & CEO of Scion
Social puts it, “As women, to wear many hats, with family
& professional commitments that need our attention, so
balancing priorities is the key to harmony. So, Dream BIG,
Play BIG & Win BIG.”
Her Enriching Journey
With a Bachelor in Information Technology from C.I.T
Coimbatore and an MBA from London School of Business
& Finance, Meena has a fine blend of technical expertise
combined with management experience, in both the
Corporate & Business sector.
“In my role as CEO, each day is exciting and challenging
at the same time while working with our global clients,”
says Meena. Her role involves business networking and
building key client relationships. She believes that building
key leaders and empowering them to shape the company,
ultimately took her and the company to new heights.
Meena has participated in several industry forums across
the globe. And, also recognized by CMO Asia Council as
one of the ‘Top 50 professionals in Social Media 2016’ in
India; Meena was also awarded as the ‘Woman Super
Achiever Award for Excellence in Digital & Social Media
2018’ at World HRD Congress event at Singapore.
Passionate about giving the “gift of education” to underprivileged
children, Meena actively supports the Building
Blocks schools in Bangalore and serves as a Board Member
of the BNI Foundation. She loves reading inspirational
books, traveling with her family, and exploring new
cultures.
Meena’s Giant Leap Forward
Having lived and worked in the US in the IT & User
experience areas for a decade, her family’s relocation to
India gave a kick start for this amazing journey of
entrepreneurship. Combining India’s talented youth with
her passion for building high-performance teams that
deliver world-class results, Meena Co-founded Scion
Social. Over the past seven years, the company has
expanded its footprint globally to have operations in India,
the US, and now expanding Singapore where she currently
lives.
Meena is pioneering the virtual team model of Social Media
Specialists who work from multiple locations in Bengaluru,
Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, and other global locations. As a
woman, she understands the need for flexibility at work
powered by technology. And, thus her team has several
work-from-home moms who do a phenomenal job for their
clients worldwide. It’s not a part-time opportunity, it’s a
full-time professional career. Further, she said, “For me,
growing this team of virtual professionals is very
rewarding.”
Scion Social’s, its latest offering is TELESCOPE – a
custom-crafted Digital Marketing strategy that provides a
|October 2019| 15

blueprint for its clients to achieve effective ROI (Return of
Investment) for their online marketing spends.
Esprit de corps
“We have put together a fantastic team of Social media
strategists and Digital media experts and together we have
built an esteemed list of clients, to deliver some of the best
campaigns.” states Meena. Today, the company is proud to
serve some of the biggest global brands and have done
campaigns for the most renowned authors and speakers in
the world like – Tony Robbins, Jack Canfield, and Brian
Tracy to name a few.
The primary challenge for Scion is to keep decision-making
inline with the vision of the organization and keeping a
check on the pulse on various aspects of the business. There
are indeed a lot of new agencies mushrooming in this field
of Digital Marketing. But, what has set Scion apart, right
from the early days is its belief in creating a method to the
madness though very simplistic yet highly effective
processes.
The adage, ‘Excellence is a Habit’ directly reflects on the
way Scion is operating. Right from when a prospect reaches
out to the company, to the way it works out the strategy and
the way it onboard a new client all through to getting them
effective results. “Stating the vision and mission of the
company might be a cliché, but for us it is important to live
our values. For us, at Scion, it always starts with the
WHY?” says the management team at Scion.
At Scion Social, their focus and goal is to help people grow.
They strongly believe that happiness and contentment are
the foundation and a vital step in unlocking their own
potential for achieving excellence. In the ever-changing
industry of Social Media and Digital Marketing, the
methods may change, but the values remain eternal. Its
whole HR mantra is summed up in two words -the
“Happiness Quotient” - which simply means the happier
you are, the more productive you are!
As things have evolved rapidly in the Social Media world,
today, the opportunities that Social Media platforms
provide, for businesses and brands to leverage global
connections and showcase their offerings, is humongous.
Also, receiving instant and effective feedback from their
audience has revolutionized the way the world looks at
marketing. It is also an ever-emerging industry with new
platforms and features coming up each day. “So, we place a
high value on educating ourselves with the latest trends and
also share the knowledge with our audience.” says Meena.
Excellence through Foresight
In this ever-emerging social media industry, Meena’s vision
for the Scion depicts that she will help power up the world’s
biggest brands along with her fantastic team using new-age
Digital and Social Media Marketing techniques and
platforms. Agile in adapting to new technologies, Scion
plans to expand its TELESCOPE product to deliver custom
strategy globally. Thus, creating a handshake between the
Digital, Automation, and Real-world to drive ROI for its
clients.
To enrich the lives of team members who will be working
virtually across the globe, using its unique virtual team
model; the management team of Scion is aiming to
empower the community by contributing in meaningful
ways and giving the gift of education to several
underprivileged children.
Meena’s Success Mantra
Meena’s mantra is all about flexibility. She says -
Productivity starts with my daily morning yoga & walk and
being amidst greenery and fresh air helps me super-charge
for the day ahead. The day follows with key meetings
during the day or late evening calls with clients abroad.
Learning to strike a balance and knowing when to push
yourself or back off, will help prevent the proverbial
‘entrepreneurial burn-out’ syndrome.”
Social Media’s Move
The world of Social Media is simply fascinating. It has
evidently become the most effective marketing tool that no
company can afford to ignore.
16
| October 2019 |

Shalini Gupta
Founder & Director
Zorba Books
SHALINI
GUPTA
Simplifying Book Publishing
“
Entrepreneurial Mindset
A Secret to Success – To enjoy
what you do and be
constantly learning,
implementing and adapting
“
18
| October 2019 |

Interview with Insights Success
ndian art and literature space have
Igiven some absolute gems to the
world, especially women. From
the devotional verses of Meera Bai, the
agape love in Amruta Pritam’s work,
the everyday emotions in Sarojini
Naidu’s work to the contemporary and
hard hitting take on society by Jumpa
Lahiri, the women power is there to
see. But every author needs a platform
to showcase her work and that is where
the publishing houses come in. But in
this sector too, women have had their
own share of fight. Determined, to
make their own mark in the field of
publishing, few Indian women left no
stone upturned to make the most out of
it. They are making a difference with
their creative ideas, running successful
ventures, and giving rise to a new
sustainable ecosystem. Each of them is
scripting her own new story in today’s
world. Hats off to all these women
entrepreneurs.
In the following interview, we get to
understand one such creative and
prolific entrepreneur, Shalini Gupta,
the Founder and Director of Zorba
Books which is one of India’s leading
self-publishing organizations.
The excerpt below showcases Shalini’s
experiences, about what it takes to
build a thriving business, to learn about
Zorba Books and what it offers, and
some insights about the current state of
self-publishing in India.
Kindly brief us about yourself, your
initial journey since the beginning of
your career?
We had an exciting beginning. It began
with a love for writing and reading
books and led quite naturally into
setting up a traditional publishing
business. When we set up Zorba
Publishers eight years back, we started
from scratch – getting to know the
book publishing business, building
relationships with dealers as the
primary distribution channel, etc. We
were in for a surprise because though
st
India has moved into the 21 century,
in the book trade people seemed to be
still stuck in the twentieth century, if
not the nineteenth! It was haphazard
and women were certainly not
welcome. There was an element of
discomfort and a casual attitude
towards women. In Europe and
elsewhere self-publishing was at its
peak. The three years of trying to fit in
and apply modern practices to the
traditional publishing business did give
us a lot of insights and connections in
book publishing. We decided to move
st
into the 21 century with book
publishing services and in 2014, Zorba
Books was born.
State your passions, aims, and goals.
The fact that we were ruled by
outsiders for centuries never sat well
with me. Even after the British left,
MNCs rule the roost. I aimed to
combine books and business practices
that were superior to those of an MNC.
The warmth and customer engagement
of an Indian business combined with
the emphasis on honesty, transparency,
quality, and timeliness of an MNC.
Zorba Books’ book publishing services
are already far superior to those offered
by the largest MNC offering publishing
services to Indians!
Please mention the challenges, issues
you have faced in your professional
journey and your efforts or solutions
you have identified to overcome the
challenges.
There were many challenges in the
early part of our journey. The first
challenge was to introduce to the
Indian market the concept of selfpublishing
or taking publishing
services from experts in order to
publish a quality book. This model is
well-established in Europe and North
America and many famous authors
have tasted their first success through
the self-publishing route. In India, we
have Amish Tripathi who first tasted
success through that route and many
others have followed them. In India,
aspiring authors were not aware that
books can be published in a services
model. We were the pioneers, we
started by creating a lot of noise
around self-publishing, reached out to
the media and they supported us by
writing about it in their newspapers
like ET, TOI, HT, and others. Since
authors stay far from the publishing
|October 2019| 19

house, it was a challenge to convince authors that Zorba
Books is reliable and functions better than an MNC.
Testimonials from our authors from all walks of life, the
First Lady Air Marshal Padma Badopadhaya, Ambassador
Prabhu Dayal and many many others helped.
Kindly describe in detail about the company and its
unique services and products.
The uniqueness of Zorba Books is in the attention to detail
and the passion we bring to each book. Since we are
professionals and book lovers, with vast experience in the
book publishing industry, Zorba Books can offer the authors
a world-class product with highly effective promotion and
worldwide distribution. We have an expert’s eye for
storylines, book layouts, the manner in which the cover
page and the synopsis should be crafted to attract the reader,
the choice of the book’s title, the market positioning of the
book to get the most traction for the book from the reader.
The result is there for all to see.
Our book Sirri was announced as a bestseller at the Jaipur
Literary Festival in 2018, several of our books are in the
Library of Congress the US and many of our books,
because they are so professionally edited, formatted, etc
they have been picked up by traditional publishing houses
for release under their banner. Lots of our books regularly
hit the Amazon bestselling charts too.
Share the vision and mission of your company.
Offer Indian writers exemplary, professional and transparent
book publishing services to produce a world-class book that
they can be proud of.
Share with us the noted milestones, accomplishments of
your journey along with highlighting the company’s
achievements under your leadership.
Our journey as traditional publishers began in 2011 as
Zorba Publishers. We took our first step in publishing
services with Zorba Books in 2014. In 2015 we introduced
free self-publishing software. As pioneers in the field of
paid publishing services, the task of creating awareness of
this relatively new concept devolved on us. The years 2015
and 2016 were marked by creating awareness of the
concept of paid publishing services in India through media
stories devoted to self-publishing. In 2015, we were invited
to the Gurgaon Literature Festival. In 2016, we were invited
to take part in the Delhi Literature Festival and in the same
year, our books were showcased for the first time at the
World Book Fair, Delhi. In 2017 we put up our first stall at
the New Delhi World Book Fair. In 2019 we are ready to
launch a new platform called Poet and Author Spotlight
where budding writers can upload their work free of cost
and generate awareness of their talent at no cost to them.
Brief us about the industry scenario from your
perspective.
While there is an awareness of using publishing services to
publish a book in the Metros, we have a long way to go in
spreading awareness in larger parts of India. As awareness
grows, we expect to see a great future for self-publishing.
What is the one thing that is acting as your motivational
tool? Or, who is your role model and how the person
inspires and motivates you?
My motivational tool is myself, with huge support from my
husband. I don’t believe any one can be ideal. I admire
people who have worked hard and honestly to build
businesses from the ground up like Kiran Majumdar, Rohini
Nilkeni
If you had one piece of advice to someone just starting
out, what would it be?
Before I give one piece of advice, I would like to say that it
is a combination of factors that help you succeed.
Dedication, hard work and experience in the field in which
you would like to work in are necessary conditions for
success, which combined with a never-say-die attitude,
leads to success
How are you foreseeing the future in terms of expansion
of your business, the advent of new technologies and
increasing tech-enabled players in the market?
Yes, technology is already playing a big role in selfpublishing.
Selling books online, reducing the role of the
less organized distribution sector. Also, in terms of reach for
authors with the reading public, through technologyenabled
social media. With growing awareness and growing
literacy in India, there is no reason the sector should not
grow too.
20
| October 2019 |

THE 10 MOST
CREATIVE
SHEPRENEURS
T O W A T C H I N 2 0 1 9
Nirmala
Kandalgaonkar
A face of Persistence and Adaptability
Mrs. Nirmala Kandalgaonkar
Chairperson
22
| October 2019 |

Inspiring Journey of the Shepreneur
“ Hard work. Learn
new things and
innovation is necessary
for the business.
Be honest while doing
the business is
my secret of success.
“
There is no deadline for success, and while some can
adapt their career path out of a passion they’re born
with, it takes time and trials for most people. For
some entrepreneurs, finding out their ideal industry and
initiating their gig didn’t happen until they already blown
out 50(or more) candles on their birthday cake. After all, it’s
more important to give yourself time to work out the kinks
and build confidence, setting you the entrepreneurial road
ahead.
So if you’re worried that you have run out of time to make
a name for yourself, we at Insights Success bring an
inspiration that goes by the name Nirmala
Kandalgaonkar, a sole proprietor of Vivam Agrotech.
Mrs. Nirmala, a fifty-something female entrepreneur who is
an encouraging reminder to keep pursuing your goals–and
succeed despite your age. She is on a mission to make
“Clean India, Green India” utilizing her scientific
backgrounds and innovations into successful waste
management business.
Belonging to a family prioritizing education made her
competitive in the academic career. Serving as a social
worker while working with organizations like Akhil
Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad and Rashtra Sevika Samitee
were some of her life experiences. But a Biology
background kept her inclined towards a green approach in
waste management solutions.
Traditionally farmers made their manure. She aimed to
discover a pathway or mechanism that could make the
natural manure fashionable again. And the first step towards
it made her study the techniques that had been passed on
from generation to generation. According to her, a
traditional method works but it lacks a scientific approach.
Mrs. Nirmala utilizing her science background and some
fundamentals, started conducting experiments such as
vermicomposting. To measure results she ensured having a
controlled environment and through trial and error, she
gradually learned the ins and outs of earthworm excretion
making the experiment successful. As a result, realizing the
benefits farmers started demanding manure making her
manufacture few pieces initially and selling them at a
minimum price range.
The surging demand made her decide to go commercial.
Thus a sole proprietorship by the name ‘Vivam Agrotech’
was born on 5th June 2001.
As she’s nurtured her company, she’s approached her career
from a more eco-friendly perspective. Her business is
focused on convincing people about the benefits of organic
manure as many of them were unaware of the
methodologies to make khaad and its lasting environmental
benefits. Additionally, the farmers were given
demonstrations and offered free samples.
Motivating Achievements
Mrs. Nirmala’s work has been appreciated by many social
institutes as well as corporates by giving her various
awards. Most prestigious among them is “TATA TiE STREE
SHAKTI Award as National Woman Entrepreneur 2009”.
“Udyogbodh Award” by Saturday Club, Maxell Award
2014 Great Businesswomen Award “PUNYRATNA 2013”,
|October 2019| 23

Innovative Leadership “CHANAKYA 2014” by PARCI,
Mumbai.
Vivam Agrotech: Offering Environment-friendly
Solutions
Vivam Agrotech is in the field of solid waste processing
such as Composting, Vermicomposting, Mechanical
Compost, and Biogas since ten years and in City Solid
Waste Management for the last five years. They specialize
in Municipal solid waste treatment plants for power
generation.
It is the maiden firm to create energy from waste and is
developing a platform to benefit rural India. It provides
varied services that can convert waste into manure. Each
vermin-compost unit provides multi-faceted service
comprising 200 cubic foot box, earthworms, free transport,
and installation, as well as training at customer’s residence.
The latest product the company has developed is an
automatic waste processing machine in 24 hours where
there is space constraint. Now the firm is diverting into
effluent treatment plants on all scales small to large.
Solutions Ahead of Challenges
Government funding is necessary and implementation of
waste management rules is a bigger challenge. The
Challenges concerning government funding, bank loan
approvals and implementation of waste management rules
can be solved by motivating the environment loving people.
They can influence the other individuals by making them
aware of the benefits of waste management solutions
therein creating a positive pressure on the government to
incorporate the change.
Mrs. Nirmala feels, by creating awareness among the
people and positively influencing people with the help of
environmental loving people could solve the challenges
concerning government funding, bank loan approvals and
implementation of waste management rules.
The field of solid waste management has high potential in
terms of employment and innovation which motivates Mrs.
Nirmala. Her best advice to the people who just have
started entrepreneurship is, “Be prepared for hard work;
learn new things and innovation is necessary for the
business. Be honest while doing the business.”
Converting plastic waste into fuel is the next big innovation
her business is trying accomplish in collaboration with
foreign ventures for bigger cities.
She asserts, “Every village should have one biogas plant to
have a gas connection to all. Every river should have clean
water by having a water treatment plant. This can happen
with proper waste management. All Municipal Corporations,
councils, Grampanchayat should have processing plants for
waste management to get organic manure to farmers.”
To learn more about Vivam Agrotech and its offerings,
connect with Nirmala Kandalgaonkar or visit
http://vivamgroup.co.in/
24
| October 2019 |

CXO Standpoint
Women
Signicance of having
in Leadership Roles
“There is no limit to what we, as
women, can accomplish.”—Michelle
Obama
What better path to take up
to be successful than
shattering the glass
ceiling of all the prejudice?
Many columns have been written and
papers have been published
acknowledging this issue, as it goes
without saying that women leaders
bring a lot to the table may it be
excelling at soft skills and emotional
intelligence that prove to be a key
competitive advantage. Women being
in a leadership position in a firm
brings in a diverse perspective to
organize a potential team that brings
in results.
An analysis conducted in a global
survey that included 21,980 firms
from 91 countries suggests that the
presence of women in corporate
leadership positions may improve the
performance of the firm. The
existence of women in institutes has
not only played an important role in
the shaping of every progressive
organization’s character but also has
contributed to maintaining gender
balance among corporates.
The gender pay gap is an aggravating
phenomenon that despite the
progressive corporate continues to
remain unchanged in many
organizations. Nonetheless, the huge
gap in wages in almost every line of
profession is an illusion of
impartiality that continues in this
man dominated civilization and the
gender gap in the workplace remains
a big business problem.
Though a constructive change can be
seen emerging as a number of
countries, including France, Finland,
Iceland, Norway, and Spain, have
taken a constructive step to mandate
female representation on corporate
boards, and other countries are
considering following it.
Women potentially are more driven
to achieve and deal with today’s
business problems that require
leaders with diverse skill sets,
perspectives, and experiences. It’s
high time now that more women take
the front seat and emerge as a leader
that they are.
Such a symbol of soaring leadership
is the praiseworthy entrepreneur
Shriya Kolte. As the saying goes,
“Leadership is about vision and
responsibility, not just power”, the
leader and face of this prestigious
design studio is Shriya Kolte, an
interior designer herself. She is not
just the founder of Imagination Inc.
but also a navigator who continues to
flourish the team and their goals
towards new successful heights. She
studied Interior Designing from
Institute Callegari Milano and
Central Saint Martins, London. With
an educational background that
26
| October 2019 |

About the Author
Shriya Kolte has been in the field of
interior designing for over two years.
She is the Founder of Imagination
Inc., a company addicted to design,
providing comprehensive solutions to
finer things.
Shriya always believes in promoting
art and design in every form and
through this vision the company
offers design consultancy along with
providing services for turnkey
projects. She set foot into her first
venture by taking on a premium
project at Hinjewadi, Pune. In such a
short span of time, she has actively
delivered over 85 projects PAN India.
As the founder, she is responsible for
formulation the of creative concepts,
strategizing and planning, overall
execution and management that
concentrates on the growth.
Shriya Kolte is a BBA graduate from
NMIMS, Mumbai. In order to enhance
her design and creativity skills, she
went to study further at Instituto
Calligraphy Milano in 2012-2013 and
then she conceptualized Imagination
Inc. in 2015 in Pune.
Shriya Kolte
Founder
|October 2019| 27

speaks for itself, she associated her passion for art to gain further expertise in the field.
Shriya goes on to set Shepreneurs goals with her enthusiastic leadership trait at Imagination
Inc. Be it residences, offices or any commercial space, Imagination Inc. doesn’t miss out on
crafting expressions through art, originality and Finesse. Her accomplishments include over
100 projects in Pune that are known for its innovative designs, astute sense of style and grace.
As the corporate community strives to advance women in the workplace by securing an equal
pay scale or by getting more women in board seats, there is one major key in influencing and
creating a corporate culture that makes gender equity a priority that is to keep the desire to
win and start out stronger with equal determination to succeed and enter leadership, after all
as Helen Keller, American Author, Political Activist says ‘Optimism is the faith that leads to
achievement’.
We have identified the 3 S’s to strengthen and empower our Shepreneurs:
• Speak up: A major mistake many women make is being modest; they sit back and let
others do the talking. Self-Branding may come handy to women leaders who often appear
to be silent about their own accomplishments. It is necessary that women leaders learn how
to brand themselves by sharing their achievements and skills with others and also to make
sure they voice their opinions. If you have a strong point make sure that it is known, make
people notice what you are capable of, as they cannot recognize your leadership qualities if
they can’t hear you.
• Stand out: More than half of the women agree that, “as women,” they are more cautious in
taking steps towards leadership roles, they spend more time in Planning and none in
executing. Almost six in ten find it hard to see themselves as a leader. If you want to get
noticed, you have to stand out so ladies quit playing it safe, try to blend in and make waves.
• Shine bright: Now that you have the S’s in your purse it’s time to take up the initiative and
shine bright like a star. This does not involve obnoxious bragging about every job
completed or milestone reached or letting your boss and others in the company know when
you’ve made an important contribution, its more about developing the leadership qualities
within.
Leadership has always been a deep-seated character in a woman and it’s yours for taking if
you have the courage for it.
28
| October 2019 |

THE10 MOST
CREATIVE
SHEPRENEURS
T O W A T C H I N 2 0 1 9
Pari Purohit
The Art and Science of Creativity
Pari Purohit
Founder & Creative Director
30
| October 2019 |

“
We like to think
limitlessly, so we
know that we are
considering
everything before
recommending
what's best for
your brand
“
The Indian economy is growing like never before,
and as it does, newer businesses and brands
sprout and make dramatic entries into an already
cluttered customer’s cone of vision. It’s become
increasingly imperative, almost hygiene, for brands to
stand apart. And consequently, branding and design
companies are required to continuously raise the bar.
Business, brand and product success depends on it more
than ever before.
At the same time, the Indian talent is striving hard to be at
the forefront of innovation by outdoing international
standards alongside with addressing the ever-changing
needs of the ever-changing consumer.
Pari Purohit – Founder & Creative Director at Studio
Glyph likes to convert challenges into opportunities, to get
her hands dirty and deep dive into the guts of the brands
Glyph works with, to simply create ‘work that works’.
Driven by sheer curiosity, she’s constantly experimenting
and challenging convention, which contributes to Glyphs’
prowess and enhances the growth of clients in the long run.
Be it a brand launch, trying something on new software or
toying with a new concept, Pari stands tall to disrupt the
design universe with her courage to think differently, in
good measure. At Glyph, we don’t entertain being creative
for the sake of being creative.
Inspired by the learnings which sculpted her into an adroit
leader, Pari says, “I’ve learnt from people I’ve known,
people I’ve read about, my teachers, my past employers,
superiors, colleagues, my students, and am constantly being
inspired by my team, my peers and clients. As someone
who’s ever-curious, I’m always absorbing as much as I can
from all my interactions.”
About Studio Glyph
“We challenge our clients, and expect that they challenge
us back,” asserts the founder.
Housed in a heritage bungalow of 1929 vintage, Studio
Glyph is a multidisciplinary design company providing
creative and strategic, goal-oriented design solutions to
positively impact their client’s business. It is a boutique
agency which believes that the best output comes by
enabling its thinkers and doers to directly interact with the
clients. ‘We’re selective about projects we take up, since
we’re keen to demonstrate how design makes an actual
difference to the top and bottom line of a business. How
design can solve a lot more than just surfacing blemishes
for a brand’ says Pari Purohit.
Acknowledging that satisfied employees are the driving
force behind the quality of work in a creative studio, Glyph
believes in enabling people, and investing their growth.
Harboring an open milieu, where new ideas are encouraged,
the company acts as devil’s advocate for its partners as well
as the clients. It helps brands and businesses in meeting
their objectives by offering strategically surgical design and
decision-making solutions through its collaborative
approach. To push the creative envelope within the
category, budgetary and changing consumer perceptions are
really where the challenge lies - And Studio Glyph has
successfully proved their mettle in this regard.
|October 2019| 31

Hoots and Cheers to Achievements
Within a short span of time, Pari has knitted Studio Glyph
into a one-of-its-kind design studio. She believes that the
effective work from the studios past projects is the best
testimonial or credential. Under her aegis, the company has
proved their mettle and worked with renowned Indian and
o
international clients. Her 360 approach blended with a
solution-driven design methodology has helped the
company effectively craft brands from paper napkin
sketches and transform their business outcomes to the best.
“Our clients value us to the degree that they consult us even
after our engagement is over. That is the biggest reward for
us and proof that we made a cognizable difference,” she
adds.
A Note to Remember
Pari believes that it’s the ‘never giving up’ attitude which
can take beginners to the places they have never been
before. Recognizing the current scenario of the Design
industry, she advises young graduates to “Always be
objective and critical of yourself. Question everything.
Absorb as much as you can. Sharpen your powers of
observation. Master your craft. Read - Design is as visual
as it is about philosophy, the socio-economic and cultural
fabric of people. It’s human.”
A long way to go
Pari is a ‘karigar’ who would never stop creating. For her,
Studio Glyph has always been her first love and will always
be her springboard for future pursuits. Speaking of her
teachers, she states “I may involve myself in academics
more actively. I think of my teachers often, and owe to them
my creative courage and thinking. I would like to pay it
forward someday.”
Pari is all set to go beyond the realm of communication &
brand building with an aim expand beyond design. Her
passion and love of design is what keeps her going and
enables her to march forward with a greater gusto. Her
words “Our pursuit would be to do more, and even better.”
reflect her limitless ambition.
32
| October 2019 |

Success!
IN SEARCH
OF
Success might be a relative term but is very crucial for human beings.
Various dictionaries define success as the achievement of the desired
result, mostly positive results. But truly speaking, our whole existence
is defined by success however small or big. If we scrutinize our single
day at the end of it, we can see small success as well as failures. But
what makes successful people really successful is that they analyse
and learn from their failures and turn them into success.
So what constitutes a success story? Especially
for an entrepreneur who takes a giant leap of faith
in themselves and their ideas to look for success.
What do they consider their key and their moment
of success? Here’s what a few have to say when
asked. “Success according to you is- ……
“Hard work that has no replacement; keep
going and you shall get your dues. Also never
get carried away.”
Ashok Rajpal, Managing Director, Ambrane
“Success means to find happiness in the
little things and to achieve the goals you set
for yourself however big or small.”
Shefali Desai, Founder, BASE 501
34
| October 2019 |

Hard work, persistence, setting clear goals and working
towards them sure seems to be the key.
So with Going forward, what motivates them to keep going even when things
are not the way they wanted to be?
“Whether you need to watch motivational videos on TED Talks or
YouTube, listen to music that gets you revved up, or simply embark
on an empowering mental journey that will help you to envision
your goals lucidly, you have to do what it takes to stay Motivated.
Because, at the end of the day, it’s up to you to stay focused on
your goals, and not someone else. The only person you would be
cheating by not putting in the effort every single day to achieve
your goals is yourself. Do your best to avoid distractions and time
wasters, and work towards your goals by staying motivated”
Here’s what Arjun Bajaj – CEO, Daiwa India has
to say about staying motivated:
Here what that sense of achievement feels like:
“Each person has a different definition for success. Some
measure it with money, some with ‘accomplishment, awards or
recognition’. With Glyph, my intention was to work in meaningful
ways with brands. To partner with businesses to help grow them
with design. To create a work environment which nurtures
individuals and the collective. To this end, we have been
successful.”
Pari Purohit, Founder & Creative Director at Studio Glyph
Exclusive
“Success is the feeling of satisfaction when a customer
recognizes you in a crowd, even after many years and
communicates emotionally, the amazement and aura that my art
has created in their home or workplace.”
Moiz Arsiwala, Founder Isra Glass
|October 2019| 35

“Success according to me is making sure you are
personally happy and in turn, the people around you are
happy as well and what you are doing is bringing about a
positive change in this world and for our planet”
Hear it from the Editors:
Prateek Sethi, Founder, TRIP Creative Services
Motivation and dedication are required to keep the tempo going. An entrepreneurial
journey is not a smooth one. It has its own share of ups and downs and loads of risks. But
some risks are worth taking! The end result of success, recognition and the immense
satisfaction of achieving what you set out for are worth it!
Here’s what they had to say...
“I believe that “Being Successful” is a feeling of
freedom. Freedom to craft your own life.”
Shruti P. Jambhael, Editor at Insights Success
So here’s what the recipe for success looks like:
• Decide and choose what you love to do;
• Prepare yourself as you commit yourself;
• Give 100% of your efforts and maybe more;
• Grab the opportunities that come your way;
• Chop off negativity;
• Add love, loyalty, and praise for employees and co-workers;
• Season it with motivation;
• Have patience and faith as your work takes time to ripe.
• Enjoy all the success that you deserve and worked so hard for!
Celebrate each day as it comes and stay grateful for the wonderful
opportunity life has given you!
Sneha Sinha, Editor at Insights Success
Happy Success!
36
| October 2019 |

THE10 MOST
CREATIVE
SHEPRENEURS
T O W A T C H I N 2 0 1 9
Surabhi Dewra
An Ultra-modern Leader
Surabhi Dewra
Founder
38
| October 2019 |

“
A Secret to
Success- keep
walking, when tired
take rest but don't
stop walking if you
want to reach
the destination
“
Students develop consciousness of what they are
doing in their education and highly motivated
towards their future when they have a welldefined
perception of themselves. It reckons how they
might live and work when they leave school for higher
education. This kind of perception has high relevance
with his/her counsellor or guide that can mentor him/her
to opt good education. Social media has become a hurdle
for the young minds in their path towards a good career.
This is diverting them from opting a capable future.
Considering the current scenario where maximum of
students are under the domination of social media, the role
of a guide is becoming immensely important. But social
media platform can also have a positive impact on students
which can help them from getting derailed. These positive
efforts are taken by some people to create a platform which
can help the students act decisively. And women
entrepreneurs are not an exception in this development.
Surabhi Dewra is one of the leading shepreneurs
influencing, and guiding young intellectuals to discover
his/her true potential, and interest.
Meet the Motivating Personality: Surabhi
This excerpt ehibits her journey that has been at the frontier
of various professional paradigms, and how she has
managed to stand tall by the virtue of her courage, and
firmness. Surabhi is the CEO & Founder of
CareerGuide.com. Surabhi graduated from the prestigious
BITS, Pilani Institute of India.
At regular intervals, she has donned different roles that have
helped her to excel in her profession. Her responsibilities at
CareerGuide.com include are product development, training
& counselling, budget planning, and allocation. They also
include designing marketing, PR communications, hiring
talent, building team, fundraising and, investor relationship.
Surabhi has volunteered with the NGOs of several Indian
states viz.,UP, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh to
understand the psychology, and dearth in the learning
pattern of young ones. Her engineering degree brings in a
strong tech understanding, whereas her passion for
education brings her close to the venture:
CareerGuide.Com. Translating her passion into a business
where every student can have answers to their career
questions is what she dreams of. She is a task-focused
leader and coordinator.
With her passionate aim and zeal Surabhi has secured
Medical Association Award-2019, Indian Education Award-
2018, and Top 100 Social Entrepreneur -2015. Also Listed
in India’s Top 40 Women Entrepreneur -2015, Award by
Assocham in 2012 for the best initiative in career
counselling.
Recently she is awarded as the “50FabEduTech” by the
th
WorldEducationCongress which is her 7 award in the last
few years apart from other mentions and
acknowledgements. Besides this achievements she is also
honoured with “CEO with HR Orientation” award at the
Asia Pacific HRM Congress.
|October 2019| 39

Withstanding Challenges
Initiating a venture led her to put in big bucks and sacrifice
a job. Raising money, team building, initial sales, etc were
some of her bothers but she faced the shortcomings firmly
making herself a confident founder. Handling half a million
students queries every month, she believes is her biggest
achievement. Whereas, the ability to make a change and
impact lives through CareerGuide acts her motivation tool.
Her source of inspiration are people from all the spheres
where she tries to inculcate their qualities like perseverance,
hard work, confidence, and determination.
As a woman entrepreneur, she believes more women should
join leadership roles. She says, “A Simple Mantra to
overcome challenges which I try to follow is stay the
course, stay deaf to naysayer and work not to prove anyone
but to yourself.”
Providing Inclusive Services
Surabhi’s venture, CaeerGuide solves challenges regarding
career, education, and accessibility for students of the age
group of 13-25 years. It helps to find an appropriate career,
educational program, and imminent higher education
opportunities.
Careerguide.com is an “On Demand career” guidance
provider based in India. Under her leadership, the platform
has become a marketplace of professional career
counsellors and experts. The AI-driven Human+Hybrid
counsellor provides live interactive call sessions with career
experts and/or Q&A Forums. The experts address career
concerns of students from all parts of the country and guide
them thoughtfully. Besides 1000+ experts, the organization
has 8+ psychometric assessments which have been
scientifically designed by a panel of psychologists and
psychiatrists.
The firm has helped not only the students to choose a perfect
career but also several people who work for the firm. It has
helped the career counsellors to find means of an additional
source of revenue. This has also generated microentrepreneurship
by helping them with tools, technology, and
processes for setting career counselling practice. The
organization’s objective is, to be a one-stop destination for
career guidance in the country.
A Leader’s Perception
Surabhi feels, “The world of work is changing and new-age
careers are taking over conventional careers and wisdom.
But there is a massive shortage of talent in many sunrise
industries and sectors since many obsolete careers &
courses are still mushrooming of colleges, and universities.”
Surabhi believes, just getting a college degree is not worth,
yet advice, guidance, and mentorship in a student’s life can
make a difference in the hyper-competitive world.
Another noticeable trend she has witnessed is, parents take
an active interest in shaping the career of kids in India and
often go out of their way to meet any demand required to
enable a good education for kids. According to Surabhi this
is a defining trend for Careerguide as parents & students are
more serious about making career choices and are willing to
pay for the right advice at any important juncture of a
student’s life.
“Nothing succeeds like success, and career guidance is
necessary for success”. Hence, though in India the trend of
career guidance platforms is limited to big cities, the culture
is to be defied and made best use of which could make things
a lot easier for very youngster.
40
| October 2019 |