Dheeraj Pandey, founder of a Silicon Valley-based startup, believes there are many challenges for people from India to come to the United States and reach top corporate positions, but he thinks they're doing it. . This resilience has been demonstrated by Google's Thunder Pichai, Microsoft's Satyanadera, Adobe's Shantanu Narayan, and others. Mr. Pandey himself is included in the list. He is the former CEO of Nutanix, a NASDAQ-listed technology company, and currently leads his own startup, DevRev.
In a conversation with Mukesh Bansal, founder of Myntra and Cult.Fit, Pandey said that Indians working in the US technology sector are very focused on achieving their goals. .
“I think we are good at thinking about ourselves. Someone said this recently and it really resonated with me. American Indians are good at thinking about themselves. , and it is the ability to concentrate that speaks for itself,” Pandey said. Bansal said in the latest episode of his podcast SparX. He feels that as an immigrant, a lot is at stake.
“You have this single-minded focus because you came to this country with almost nothing in your hands. And hunger is definitely going to continue. First of all, you're different. You're being looked at as someone with dark skin, maybe you know “dark skin. So you have to prove that you're a good engineer,” he said.
But that's just the beginning. On their way to the top, Pandey said, engineers need to prove that they are not only good engineers, but also good at management, design, product, sales and distribution.
“And finally, you have to prove that you can take your company public and be a public company. You can communicate, you can inspire, you can motivate. So all of that. I think just like immigrants, we've had to prove something.' There's a little bit of that hunger because there's a lot going on along the way,'' explained Pandey, who is also a current board member at Adobe. did.
Pandey co-founded Nutanix in 2009 and retired as CEO in 2020. During his tenure, he led the company to a successful IPO in 2016. Currently (February 7, 2024) Nutanix's market capitalization is $13.72 billion.
Also Read: Meet Ajeet Singh, Muzaffarnagar-born IIT Kanpur graduate who founded two companies worth $10 billion in Silicon Valley
Shortly after leaving Nutanix, Pandey co-founded DevRev with former Nutanix colleague Manoj Agarwal. The business software company says its mission is to connect “makers (Dev) and customers (Rev).” DevRev's investors include a number of notable Indian-origins, including Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures, Ravi Mhatre, MD of Lightspeed Ventures, and Navin Chaddha, MD of Mayfield Fund.
Mr. Pandey praised India's education system and middle-class values that allowed Indians like him to compete in the United States. “I was recently at this summit and was talking about the US-India Corridor. The foundation that IITs have given you, what Indian education has given you, and what English education has given you. I feel like there was a foundation that they gave me, even though we were kind of lower middle class, middle class, 'Hey guys, there was a lot of spirit that valued hard work, and I took that to IIT. You bring it in, and from there you go to the United States, and the United States gives you something more,” he said.
Mr. Pandey also mentioned how his previous company, Nutanix, expanded its operations in India.
“We had over 2,000 employees working in India and had spent over $100 million on research and development. [India] alone. We came here 10 years ago in 2013 and we feel this is not just about giving back but also appreciating what this country has actually given us. In the early days, education cost $300 per semester. So I feel like it's completely over and it's like the clock has gone full circle,” he said.
The former Nutanix CEO appears to be following a similar trajectory with his new company, DevRev. The technology company has operations in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Chennai.
Related article: Naukri.com founder Sanjeev Bikchandani supports Narayana Murthy, but says 70-hour work week is 'not a religion'
Also read: Rajinikanth's 'Jailer' releases today: Freshworks CEO Girish Mathrubootham reserves 2,200 tickets for employees
