On the lighter side of things, we ask Ranjith Kaippada, Managing Director, Cloud Box Technologies, what makes him tick.
Describe your current job role and a summary of the business model of your organisation?
I believe it is important to lead from the front and remain focused on building a strong team while encouraging positiveness. I take absolute pride in shaping the future of Cloud Box Technologies where we put in a lot of thought processes to rope in ideas, connect the dots and develop a system which generates unique ideas and solutions.
A team of 34 people have joined forces to create unique value offerings to customers since its inception in 2017. The company has grown into a trusted Systems Integrator with a unique set of solution offerings. It has been acknowledged for its outstanding consultation strengths and inhouse implementation skills which helps it stand apart from competition. It is also known for its holistic approach in tackling customer needs.
Cloud Box Technologies has its own cloud offerings and has a bouquet of services and solutions including IT infrastructure, data management, information security and virtualisation. It also provides data centre, storage, server, backup, Disaster Recovery and several managed services.
What are your strengths and abilities that you bring to the above role?
My strength is my belief. As a go-getter, I always try to find opportunity in everything we encounter in our day-to-day life. The holistic approach I apply to situations helps to develop the right solutions. It is also key to be of a progressive mindset, which helps in getting a clearer overview of situations and is a strong pusher of how we are able to address situations. Besides, there are other factors that I work towards, these include, the importance of networking with the customers. Other than that, I am extremely focused on holding to my principles and being true to myself, which then transmits its way into my associations with my team and customers.
Please describe the expectations of the end-customers that you address. What are their pain points today?
We focus on business verticals across education, retail, large commercial enterprises, etc where we come across different IT managers and C Level executives and we strive to understand and address their pain points jointly.
It is increasingly being seen that customers find their Digital Transformation journey a bit tedious to implement. On the other hand, there are also budget allocations which more often are a major challenge. Security breaches with BYOD concepts and work from home also have serious threats to the organisation.
This is where we see the need to have skilled resources, alongside making the right choice of products to address specific needs and understand the right fit for the organisation. More often it is the consultancy that is very crucial to ensure that the path to building and developing their IT infrastructure is smooth and seamless. This is where Cloud Box Technologies fits in and has grown to be a trusted partner.
Which technologies and innovations can make a difference to your end-customers’ business?
Technology revolves around IoT and the revolutionary changes that are taking place in this area are worth watching out for. And going hand in hand with this is the exponential support of Artificial Intelligence. We are already witnessing it across industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, banking and finance, logistics, retail, etc.
There is also a huge interest in advanced robotics which is driving a great amount of innovation especially in the manufacturing industry. This will prove to be a boon for organisations which are planning on upgrading or building smart factories and will bring about massive improvements across the manufacturing process.
Simultaneously at Cloud Box Technologies we are preparing for additional implementations for AI use in cybersecurity. This is relevant in an environment where our lives are taken over by automation and machines and there is an increased need for protection for both our customers as well as the end-users.
How can a channel partner in your industry disrupt the regional market and gain a leading competitive position?
Channel partners play a vital role in bridging the gap between customers and vendors. They are the flag bearers for vendors. However, the real potential lies in the right skill sets a channel partner carries as they are the implementors of the solutions. What is crucial is that they are up to the speed with the technology advancements and adoption.
Channel partners play a vital role in making the vision a reality, especially in keeping up with the Digital Transformation requirements. Channel partners are able to open a Pandora’s box of offerings to customers with their associations with some of the best-of-breed products and solutions that they have on offer.
What is important that customers are futuristic in their approach and make the right budget allocations to ensure that they are working towards their business objectives by putting in place technology that will help them become more efficient and effective.
Business leaders must evaluate the cost benefit analysis while adopting new technologies and foresee how it will impact the time to deploy, end-user productivity, speed to market, inventory cost and marketing effectiveness.
It is also important that there is strong focus on building employee awareness on the benefits of disruptive technologies. They must be made to understand the long-term benefits in the changes and must be willing to adopt these changes. Another crucial aspect that companies need to tackle is upscaling employee skills to be able to effectively bring in new technologies into the IT environments.
Which aspects of your job role do you find rewarding and which are challenging?
Positive results, no matter how big or small, are always encouraging. When putting in the best efforts produces very significant results, it is always such a joy to celebrate with the team. As a leader, getting the team to work closer and achieving milestones is always rewarding. However, nothing comes easy, we face challenges in every aspect of our sales cycle. Unhealthy and unethical competition is a threat. Getting the right skilled professionals and investing on the skill improvement is a task.
Entering into a competitive market and coming head-to-head with some industry giants and yet securing our top position and being recognised by top vendors and enterprise customers is something I cherish tremendously. It is also very fulfiling to know that we have set in place a group of skilled professionals that work as a close-knit team and are continuously achieving milestones.
How do you best like to de-stress and re-charge after work?
Business and stress are the two sides of one coin. You cannot evade one over the other. However, there are many ways to overcome it. Social events with a known set of groups are very effective. Indulging in high cardio training or sports is always a stress buster. A long drive, visiting places with friends or family is one of my go-to stress busters and takes me away from the stereotypical routine. It is also a great idea to take a short break from work for a staycation and is a very effective way to get recharged.
