Abhishek Rungta is an Entrepreneur, Digital Strategy Consultant, Software Architect, Marketing Geek, Angel Investor, and a Visionary. A technology guy turned entrepreneur in his teens, Abhishek founded INT. (Indus Net Technologies) in the year 1997.
It is an entirely bootstrapped venture from one person to a family of 750+ full-time professionals who work from India, the UK, the USA, Singapore, and Australia. His expertise across technology and marketing gives him the unique ability to synergize business systems, ensuring a high success rate of innovation and change management initiatives.
In an exclusive interview with AsiaTechDaily, Abhishek says:
Digital expansion is easy, but sustaining, it isn’t easy, so your expansion strategy must better understand the kind of customers you wish to cater to. A good amount of time must be spent on understanding the customer segment you plan to address in different geographies.
The only thing which keeps me motivated is new ideas and ways to drive success for that. I can proudly say that I love solutions, and that’s what has got me going. I have never stopped speaking to my clients every day. It has always kept me on my toes.
I want to be remembered as someone who is building a sustainable growing business in adverse conditions through the power of partnerships and people transformation.
Read on to know more about Abhishek Rungta and his journey.
What background and domain expertise do you have?
Abhishek Rungta: I established INT. (Indus Net Technologies) in 1997. Built-up my organization from scratch to a 750+ employee strength enterprise; completely bootstrapped. Today, INT. (Indus Net Technologies) is the trusted partner of enterprises, fastest-growing Agencies, SMEs, and StartupsStartups across 20+ countries.
I have supported the growth of the startup ecosystem in the region from where mentoring base me, creating incubation centers and seed funding a lot many ventures. I am not just an Entrepreneur; I am a Digital Strategy Consultant, Software Architect, Marketing Geek, and Angel Investor.
My expertise across technology and marketing gives me the ability to synergize systems with business, ensuring a high success rate of innovation, and change management initiatives.
My domain expertise includes Performance Marketing, Negotiation, Bootstrapping, Scalability, Leadership, Business Model Innovation, Technical Innovation, Sales and Marketing, Business Strategy, User Experience, Design, Go to Market Strategy.
When did you first think about starting a fund?
Abhishek Rungta: It was during my days when I started participating in national events like Nasscom Product Conclave; I devised a term for INT. (Indus Net Technologies) as “We are a customer-funded company.”
I got obsessed with this term and started to look for entrepreneurs who believed in similar thoughts.
One of my friends got me connected to some budding entrepreneurs, and both started investing in an individual capacity. We later went on to set up a fund together.
What kind of startups/ sectors have you invested in till now?
Abhishek Rungta: I have invested as an angel in around 20 startups since 2008. Instead of small rounds, I now buy a big round, even as big as 50 percent, and become a co-founder.
Mostly tech innovations, I have invested in companies like iimjobs.com, Eudora, Azoi, Cropex, EnergyTech Ventures, iDubba, Lets Venture, Plivo, Secpanel.
What types of companies do you look to invest in? And What’s your mental model for investing?
Abhishek Rungta: I have an affinity for technology startups. I have always been a tech entrepreneur, and this is the space I understand the best. However, I love understanding the entrepreneur first and look to understand their psyche before deciding to invest.
What is your typical investment range, and how many startups you invest in per year in general? Additionally, can overseas headquartered startups get funding from you?
Abhishek Rungta: I generally look at one or two startups in a year where I can invest. My investment ranges from $100,00 to the overall requirement of the funded.
As for overseas headquartered startups, they often work with me to expand their technology strength, so I can surely invest in them.
What would be the KPI that you usually check about the startup growth? It may be diverse in each industry like LTV, CAC, MoM, etc., but it will be helpful to understand more about your additional investment factors?
Abhishek Rungta: I look at LTV as one of the major focus areas. Coming from the B2B segment, building a long term relationship is extremely important for me. The idea is to understand the impact the solution offers on the business’s growth and how one can quantify that. Not to miss out, I love focusing on new-age technology ideas, which excites me, and I wish to continue to invest in technology that can be path breaking.
How do you handle this COVID-19 outbreak situation for your fund’s survival in the future?
Abhishek Rungta: I have been fortunate enough to learn from my family why it is great to be conservative and prepare for challenging times. This mindset has helped us survive the Dotcom Bubble in 2000, The Economic Depression in 2007, and more. I have focussed on backing companies by continuously guiding them to build long-term businesses that can survive these challenging times. Fortunately, all my investee companies have survived the tougher times as they had a stronger reserve in place.
Right after being an investor, like in the early days, there must be some tough times in building up the first fund along with building up a second fund or giving back the good returns to those LPs. If there is any similar tough time like this, please tell us more about it and how you (or your team) overcome the difficult times?
Abhishek Rungta: Yes, every new journey is challenging, and I have also faced the same. However, the challenging times haven’t been that problem when it comes to me believing in an idea. With some of my friends, such times have been handled well as people around me joined hands with me when I needed urgent funds. I have been investing a lot in my capacity and will continue to do so for the time being.
Additionally, Do you have advice for anyone looking to start a fund?
Abhishek Rungta: The single best advice for anyone looking to start a fund is first identifying the niche and examples they wish to be part of. This helps in defining the purpose of the fund and also lay down initial ideas of growth. It is critical to have a well-thought direction early in the process.
What mistakes do you see founders make when raising money?
Abhishek Rungta: The most serious mistake I often see is the rush to raise funds. It is important to treat investors as partners too. Funds help us grow, but we need to see how much impact investors can make with the right advice and support.
What’s your advice to entrepreneurs who have a chance to meet investors like you? What are the top 3 questions that you always ask the founders?
Abhishek Rungta: Honestly, I love connecting with young entrepreneurs as they have great stories to share. My advice will be to focus on his plans to ensure a high LTV and highlight his journey’s technology side.
The questions I often ask are:
- Who are your current users?
- What are the top 3 things that will drive your growth?
- How do you define being conservative?
What’s your general thought about the term “Global,” and What are the important factors (criteria) for local startups to consider for international expansion?
Abhishek Rungta: For me, Global means a company that is located in any part of the world but serves users globally.
Digital expansion is easy, but sustaining, it isn’t easy, so your expansion strategy must better understand the kind of customers you wish to cater to. A good amount of time must be spent on understanding the customer segment you plan to address in different geographies.
What kind of startup or tech industry will impact the world in the future, like 2-3 years locally in your view?
Abhishek Rungta: The industries which I see moving at lightning speed are Edutech and Healthtech. These two industries, I feel, will change remarkably in the next few years. I am watching both of these closely and speaking to some of our clients at INT. (Indus Net Technologies) regularly. I am super excited about it.
What are the top-three books or movies (TV series) that changed your life and why?
Abhishek Rungta: I love books written by Ben Horowitz, like The Hard Thing About Hard Things. I love knowing a lot about Bill Gates, his thinking models, and how he built such a great enterprise in a record time. The other book which I often recommend is Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari.
How do you keep yourself motivated every day?
Abhishek Rungta: The only thing which keeps me motivated is new ideas and ways to drive success for that. I can proudly say that I love solutions, and that’s what has got me going. I have never stopped speaking to my clients every day. It has always kept me on my toes.
What are the top three life lessons that you want your (future) sons and daughters to know?
Abhishek Rungta: The top three life lessons for me are:
- There is no black or white (right or wrong). Everything is in gray. It’s a matter of principles and perspective
- The only way you can understand that the business is creating real value is – ask your users/beneficiaries to pay for it. That, too, determines the true value of your business
- Building a business is like climbing a mountain. Enjoy the journey and do not run people the wrong way, as you will meet them on your journey back
What would you like to be remembered for?
Abhishek Rungta: I want to be remembered as someone who is building a sustainable growing business in adverse conditions through the power of partnerships and people transformation.
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