Chetan Shah: Living the talk

Chetan Shah's journey as an entrepreneur has indeed been a very eventful tale. He is a determined individual with clarity in his thought process and persistence to turn his entrepreneurship dreams into reality. The focused and hard-working Shah believes that entrepreneurship skill can be owned by all, but delivered successfully by a few. So, what keeps Mumbai born Shah going? He strongly believes in the adage-‘Live. Don't just exist'. Shah explained with confidence, "When you wake up each day, it is a blessing to walk on the plans for the day. And, this gives me a positive energy of drafting a well-mapped plan on how to begin my day, to end it on a winning note."

The Beginning

Computers and technologies have always excited him. Shah realized that this is the field where his heart lay and groomed his talents accordingly. During his graduation, he decided to dig into his entrepreneurship interests. Following his dreams, he started assembling PCs at home. This laid the foundation for what we know today as Xpress Computers.

"It is all about passion for what you do. I am proud of what I do, as in some way or the other, my work touches the lives of people around me. You should do what you want to be known for; so if you feel great being known as a homemaker or a chef or anything that interests you, then you should do it. It finally comes down to one's own choice," explained the confident Shah. His passion was the fuel that kept him moving ahead. Dedicated and diligent execution of expanding business was his top priority. By the time, he graduated from Sydenham College, Mumbai, single-handedly he was building and supplying PCs to many businesses and home customers. Along with this, Shah had done a couple of part-time jobs as a software programmer while in college. To leave no stone unturned, he even underwent his initial training with his cousin, who used to sell IT hardware.

Business was booming and the circumstances were favorable for further expansion. Soon from being a one man show, he began employing many people. The market was at its nascent stage, and the demand was increasing day by day. Armed with right offerings, there was no turning back for him.

Vision without execution is just hot air

Many people take the bold step of setting up a business, but only a few reach the top to enjoy the sweetness of success. This man is one of those. Currently, Chetan Shah is the MD of Xpress Computers, having over 20 years of industry experience, and still one can notice a sense of purpose in his stride. According to Shah, constantly driven and grabbing the right opportunity is what makes one successful. The path to accomplishments is not an easy one and Shah also had to strive really hard to get his share in the industry. The IT channel industry is full of many players who are willing to offer solutions, consulting, and expertise for little or no margins. Such practices are the biggest challenges one faces, while doing business in this market. One cannot ignore this, as till date customers are not yet willing to pay for partners' consulting and solutions. This attitude of consumers directly impacts the bottomline of a company.

"Due to cut-throat competition, the industry is plagued by bad practices. Under-selling, price-cutting and wafer-thin margins are the results of these. This results in low margin and thus growth becomes challenging. Apart from this, high-attrition rate has also plagued this industry," said Shah. However, he is one of those individuals, who have consistently been process-oriented and focused. These are the key factors that have helped him immensely in his career. "I have learnt to tackle challenges calmly, and in fact learnt to break down problems clearly and work towards the solution. Also, I have learnt to take disappointments as a lesson and move on in life," said Shah. He is a person who is open to innovation and looks to move on to newer spheres and technologies in his field, besides always looking to catch the coming waves of opportunity.

Working hard to reach the desired goal and putting his best efforts in training employees to make a win-win show, has been Shah's forte. "Today, we have implemented strong internal systems and processes to ensure that our company delivers superior service and values to our customers. This clearly indicates that we have had a good run so far with sustained growth and an increase with the customer base," explained Shah.

Priorities outside work

Outside his work, Shah has always given importance to his family's happiness. His family consists of his wife-Nina Shah and 2 daughters. "While the business meetings are important, so are the needs from home. This is something a working man should never ignore and has to learn to deal with. At the end of the day, it is all about planning well and utilizing time effectively," said Shah. His cool demeanor and the ease with which he comfortably fits into any surrounding is strikingly apparent. "I have always drawn a line between my professional and personal life. Normally, I complete my official work in a fixed span because I do not prefer to bring work home. Hence, I spend a healthy amount of time with my family, participate in my kids' world and spend enough time with family," said Shah. He loves going on long drives with family on holidays, and, on weekends, he prefers going out to restaurants and movies. Calling himself an adventure sports-freak, Shah exclaimed, "I love to go trekking and rafting instead of spending days sitting at home and working like a geek. Also, I spend more than 1 hour daily jogging, walking, swimming and cycling. And, very often, I play cricket on weekends."

Looking ahead

Despite a string of notable achievements to his credit, he still strives to create a difference with his everyday work. Having been able to successfully manage Xpress computers and making it a true partner for its customers, Shah expressed that there is still a long way for to go for Xpress as an organization. "I have always believed that my role in the company is to set a path, develop systems and processes and manage customer relations. I will continue to do this. We are hoping to make virtualization and other trends as a key part of our solution offerings," said Shah. Defining his goals further, he explained, "We are looking ahead to expand our network across the nation and certainly we will grow by about 25% this fiscal year."

Sikta Samantaray

(siktas@cybermedia.co.in)