‘A business standing still is a business going backwards’ Abheek Bose of Robots Alive

Entrepreneurial Story about Abheek Bose who Founded ‘Robots Alive’ located in Bangalore, India.

About : Abheek completed his B.E. in Mechanical Engineering from RVCE in 2003 and then went to Germany to complete his MS in Intelligent Robot Systems with the Fraunhofer Institute. He came back and joined his family business as a technical engineer to help the company develop technology expertise before starting Robots Alive on his own in 2009.

When Started: May 2009

What motivated you to start your Business?

I was always interested to start on my own and I had always been encouraged by my parents to do so. I realized the need for application of robotics & automation in various Indian industries and hence decided to form Robots Alive

Tell us about your Business…

Robots Alive builds robotic products for Small and Medium scale industries. We focus on re-usable design, use of standard off the shelf components use and easy maintenance of the systems to build systems that provide quick ROI to the customers.

Since we build our technology indigenously, we can customize the solutions for the customer

What is a Day in a life of you like?

It is an organized chaos! I have a calendar to schedule my day but there are so many things that need to be done ad-hoc, which adds to the Brownian nature of the day.

I typically keep all the creative work (design / developments) in the morning, meetings in the afternoon and documentation works in the evenings.

One particular skill you got right and gave you best results.

I am quite adept in technology understanding. This gives me the advantage of constantly being innovative in my approach to new product designs.

I also have a tendency to listen more than I speak. This helps me assimilate more information than I give out. Which sometimes helps.

What have been your biggest challenges in running your Business so far?

Too many challenges to list down, but the top three challenges were

1. Hiring the right people and firing the wrong ones

2. Taking quick and correct decisions

3. Streamlining the execution and operations to reach the targets

How did you overcome these challenges?

There is no magic formula, but one has to learn fast and adopt. I also realized that I needed to connect to people who were experienced and could advise me on the business side of the company (Since I am mostly a techie). That of course brought things in the right perspective.

I still have not been able to overcome the challenge of the need to hire and fire quickly

What have you found the most effective way to get new clients?

For our business, it is a slow and steady process. We need to educate the client about the advantages and opportunities of deploying robotics and automation solutions in their plant.

We typically partner with organizations who generate leads, we try to get a proof-of-concept development approved and then deploy the product / solution

What advice do you give to other business owners?

Each business will take its own time to grow. You never know when the tables will turn and you find gold!

How did you keep motivated through difficult times?

It is important that you spend time with people who are encouraging and supportive of your work.

Also you need to have an iron clad conviction that things will work out

What are your Marketing, Funding and Team Building Strategy?

For marketing, it is vital that we are able to push our benefits to our customers and address industries where the need for robotics and automation is more critical (e.g. areas where work atmosphere and operations are harmful for humans)

We are not looking at funding till we reach certain internal milestones. Currently we are funded by the business our customers give us

We are very very specific in terms of hiring since we need very good engineering talents as well as extremely dynamic personalities. We typically analyze the recruit on the job for 2 -3 months before taking a decision. Most people were not able to survive even this period

Your Achievements?

• Awardee for NDBI Venture Ready Fund

• Techsparks 2011 Top 20 companies

Whats your favorite quote?

• It is not if we fall down, but if we are able to get up again

Who inspires you?

• Ratan Tata

• Anand Mahindra

Do you have a Business Philosophy?

• A business standing still is a business going backwards

Contact links

Website | Facebook  | Twitter | LinkedIn

More Inf0

https://www.startupfreak.com/robots-alive-consulting-pvt-ltd/

 

StartupFreak wishes Abheek All the Best!