Ashok Soota set up Happiest Minds Technologies in 2011, almost 12 years after he founded another IT-company, Mindtree. Soota, Executive Chairman of Happiest Minds, is happy with the way his new venture is shaping up. With its focus on “new and disruptive technologies; the Bengaluru-headquartered company is looking to break even by FY15. In Kolkata recently to attend Infocom 2014, Soota spoke to BusinessLine about his new child, its future plans and how he is enjoying his role as an entrepreneur. Edited excerpts:

How has the journey with Happiest Minds been so far?

It’s a journey I’m enjoying. I was a late-stage entrepreneur (with Mindtree, which he founded at 58) and now I am a late-late-stage serial entrepreneur.

I was very happy in Wipro; happier in Mindtree because I founded and took it public. And, happiest here because it’s a fresh challenge.

We have had some early successes but there are challenges ahead. These challenges keep me energised.

This is the third year for your company. How is it shaping up?

We’ll complete our third full year of operations in March 2015. Happiest Minds has been ranked No 2 in the Deloitte Fast 50 (India) survey in terms of the highest growth rate over the last three years. But to be fair, the survey is in favour of young companies. In this industry as volume goes up, the hockey stick effect comes in and we start generating cash. This apart, we have set ourselves a target of breaking even by the end of this fiscal year.

What about cash flows?

The good thing is that we don’t need money at this point. We can keep going for 12-18 months before expanding or go for an acquisition. By then we should be cash-flow positive.

Any acquisition or fund raising plans?

We are in no hurry for acquisitions. I believe acquisitions will happen if and when we go for a second round of funding.

Otherwise, we will avoid this altogether. Listing will come after six to seven years (from 2011).

As a young company how easy is it competing with established names?

Our strategic rationale in Happiest Minds was to have disruptive technology, providing a smart, secure, connected experience enabling digital transformation. Firstly, we avoid head-on collisions with others and we have a seasoned team.

The customer doing something innovative is not interested in the size of your company but in whether you understand what he does. We are not taking away business from anyone. We look at the new areas of a customer’s business, at segments where most large companies do not have a presence. That’s where we enter and then try and grow.

So, what’s the way forward?

We have also set ourselves a goal that in a span of five years, 25 per cent of business will come from our own IPs (intellectual property). That is a very high ratio for a services company.

At present, we have IPs largely in the infrastructure and security space. Most of these IPs were developed in the last 12 months.

What is you run rate (annualised last quarter revenue)?

This fiscal, our run rate is $45 million compared with a $30 million run rate last fiscal (being a private company, Happiest Minds does not share revenue details).

There has been a re-jig at the top level. Your comments.

Yes, I felt there was a need and so we appointed a new CEO and MD. The new CEO is in the process of obtaining clearances from his existing organisation.

He is yet to join and once he does, we will announce his name. So, after me, the executive chairman, there will be a CEO and MD, followed by the business line (vertical) CEOs.

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