Vizag possesses all ingredients to emerge as an outstanding IT hub

Hailing from Visakhapatnam, Sankar Lagudu, Co-founder & COO of Responsive.io has proved that there is no shortcut to success and through hard work, one can promote a global company that transforms how organisations share and exchange information.

His career began with Tech Mahindra (formerly Satyam Computers) in enterprise-scale projects and product development, where he spent the next over 10 years working across diverse teams and various implementations. And another decade he spent in technology with prominent IT companies in the US in many leadership roles.

Throughout his career, Sankar has had the remarkable ability to anticipate change and identify future opportunities. In the later stages of his journey, he recognized the potential of SaaS business models and response management when they were still in development, and this foresight drove him to co-found Responsive, along with Ganesh Shankar (CEO and Co-Founder) and AJ Sunder (CTO and Co-Founder). Sankar’s dream is to provide employment opportunities and improve the lives of people from rural towns.

With his focus centred around creating efficient talent and providing job opportunities, Sankar in an exclusive interview to Bizz Buzz said he is a strong believer in ‘purpose-driven mindset,’ referring to instilling a strong sense of direction and motivation in employees. In the context of talent management, a purpose-driven mindset becomes an essential aspect of attracting, developing, and retaining top talent within an organization, he said

Hailing from Visakhapatnam, how do you see the future of developing the coastal city as an IT hub?

The future of Visakhapatnam as an IT hub is filled with hope and potential, its success largely depends on the collective efforts of individuals and entrepreneurs, which can be accelerated by creating a vibrant tech ecosystem and an entrepreneur-friendly environment. The city possesses all the necessary ingredients to become an outstanding tech hub, including a high quality of life, a pool of entrepreneurs to incubate startups, and numerous large public organizations that can contribute significantly to R&D efforts. With a commitment to skill development and global networking, Visakhapatnam's IT community has the potential to shape a promising future. Additionally, diversifying into areas like R&D, product development, and emerging technologies can further enrich Visakhapatnam's IT ecosystem.

What do you think the city is lacking to attract major players in IT and ITeS?

Building a lasting IT and ITeS hub in Visakhapatnam or any other city is indeed a long-term endeavour, akin to constructing a city for the future. Knowing that the city has abundant natural resources, industries, educational institutions, and, most importantly, qualified individuals with high aspirations and talent, the need of the hour is to create an environment and ecosystem that integrates these strengths with a clear objective and purpose. I believe creating an incentivized environment where every stakeholder sees an opportunity to win (win-win) will encourage more people to take that initial risk! Leveraging the city's assets, such as educational institutions, entrepreneurs, investors, and large manufacturing plants, is crucial. A strategy to kick-start this process could involve factories and businesses sharing their operational IT needs and problem statements with aspiring entrepreneurs. This provides a formidable opportunity for aspiring tech entrepreneurs to solve these challenges and productize solutions for local and global markets. The current hyper-competitive landscape necessitates looking inward to generate initial traction through local companies and product ideas. However, it's important to acknowledge that this endeavour requires collective effort from all stakeholders, all hands on the deck is must!

In addition to government support through incentives, and infrastructure, few strategies to create a conducive environment that attracts tech businesses or individuals to realize the dream of founding and scaling IT companies.

1. Promote Innovation Hubs: Create innovation hubs or technology parks that offer shared office spaces, research facilities, and networking opportunities for startups and established tech companies. These hubs can foster collaboration and innovation.

2. Support for Startups: Create programs and funding opportunities specifically designed for startups, such as incubators, accelerators, and venture capital funds.

3. Networking Opportunities: Facilitate networking events, industry conferences, and forums to connect tech businesses with each other and with potential clients or partners.

4. Support Education and Training: Collaborate with educational institutions to ensure a skilled workforce. Offering training programs and partnerships with universities can help create a talent pool that aligns with tech industry needs.

5. Global Partnerships: Establish international partnerships and trade relationships to attract foreign tech investment and expand the global reach of local tech businesses.

How did you conceive the idea of launching Responsive as a startup, an industry game-changer?

The initial spark behind launching Responsive was not so much about a specific idea but rather a shared vision to create the best possible workplace. As co-founders, Ganesh Shankar, AJ Sunder, and I had all experienced the challenges of supporting sales and revenue teams in our previous roles. We recognized the critical importance of supporting sales for top-line revenue growth. With this in mind, we embarked on a mission to address this challenge with innovation and determination. Our goal was to provide the best possible solutions to generate substantial value and impact for organizations. We were fortunate to assemble a team of exceptional professionals who worked seamlessly at Responsive. Their dedication has been instrumental in making us a niche player and a valued partner for our customers. Innovation has been a key driver at Responsive, making us pioneers in the SRM space and the first to introduce AI capabilities and a generative AI assistant capable of authoring a first draft. Generative AI is a game-changer that saves response teams hours of time, getting them closer to a perfect draft in minutes instead of hours or days.

When did you form Responsive, and since then, how has your journey been in the fascinating world of strategic management software?

We founded Responsive.io, formerly known as RFPIO, in February 2015. The Strategic Response Management (SRM) category is relatively young and emerging, and we saw a great opportunity to go beyond being a point solution. We focused on innovation with a customer-centric approach, becoming a leading platform with multiple use cases for response and sales teams. Our aim was to provide both a process and a platform for quickly and accurately assessing and responding to opportunities. Technologies like content automation, content AI, and workflow powered these platforms. Today, we serve 3,00,000 users from over 2,000 customers worldwide who trust Responsive.io for their SRM needs. Our success in the world of strategic management software has been driven by a commitment to innovation and customer value.

How do you ensure the secure exchange of critical information by your clients, and what initiatives are being taken by you to ensure data security?

At Responsive, customer trust is a top priority. We provide services to various industries, including healthcare, finance, utilities, and technology, where data security and privacy are of utmost importance. We recognize that our customers entrust us with their business-critical and sensitive data, and we are committed to safeguarding it. Our information security programme is comprehensive and covers every aspect of how we collect, access, process, and store customer data and user information. Our services are exclusively hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS), an industry leader in web hosting services with robust security measures in place. AWS's security programme adheres to the highest standards and compliances, in addition to AWS's security measures, Responsive maintains compliance with SOC 2, ISO 27001, and GDPR certifications, ensuring a secure environment for our client's data.

What is your success in meeting the expectations of Fortune 500 companies in delivering high-quality products/services and cost-effective solutions?

We understand the expectations of Fortune 500 companies well. They require reliable solutions, top-notch security, data governance and privacy, strong support with well-defined SLAs, continuous education and certification options, performance analytics, and more. Responsive meets these expectations by providing a comprehensive solution with both a platform and professional services to address SRM needs. Our success is reflected in the fact that 25 per cent of Fortune 500 companies trust Responsive. Our focus on delivering business value and an exceptional customer experience has made us the preferred choice across various industry segments. Responsive's core values are deeply rooted in a customer-centric philosophy, which continues to drive our success.

What are some of the skills that you expect in tech talent?

The tech industry is diverse, and the specific skills in demand can vary. However, foundational technical skills are crucial. Proficiency in at least one programming language is expected, and individuals should work with a clear purpose and path in one or more of these areas: Cloud computing, cloud-native development, blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning.

What do companies expect from young professionals aspiring to join the tech industry?

Companies understand that young professionals may lack real-world experience but expect them to possess foundational technical skills, problem-solving abilities, adaptability, a passion for technology, effective communication, and a customer-centric mindset. Building a portfolio of work, participating in coding challenges, and networking can further enhance prospects in the tech industry.

What is Responsive’s hiring pipeline for tech roles for the next 5 years?

While it may be too early to provide precise details for the next five years, we anticipate that Responsive's tech team will grow significantly. Our goal is to become a 1,000-member team, with over half of the team dedicated to technical roles. We are committed to expanding and nurturing our tech talent to meet the evolving needs of our customers.