Enterprise: AND Business Consulting
Founders: Kirti Poddatoori, Dhruv Tandan, Sowjanya Bonda
Industry: Professional Services
Year it was founded: 2014
Location: Hyderabad, Telangana 

The founders of AND Business Consulting bring their combined business experience of 30+ years to help small and medium businesses achieve their strategic objectives and improve performance. Since their inception they have helped more than 100 clients across a spectrum of business verticals from food, fintech to clean energy and more.

In conversation with GlobalLinker (GL), Kirti Poddatoori shares the story, motivations and challenges of their business journey.

GL: Kirti, tell us a little bit about AND Business Consulting's journey. What motivated and excited you to start it?

Kirti: AND's business journey is intertwined with their clients' journeys. AND started by evaluating business ideas for promoters (feasibility studies) and making business plans and financial projections. As these business ideas got investments, AND drafted term sheets and shareholders agreements. Once implemented, promoters sought support in improving operational performances where AND entered into management consulting (increasing revenues, reducing costs, through process improvement, SOPs, benchmarking, etc).

Since 2014, AND has executed more than 100 projects across multiple sectors including food, agriculture, life sciences, energy, fin-tech, education, etc. Our client base includes renowned companies such as World Bank, CII, Mytrah Energy, Greenpark Hotels & Resorts, Almond House, and Lamco Industries. We have supported companies in USA, Ghana, Guyana and Uganda.  

A huge gap in the availability of quality consultants’ services to small and medium businesses was evident which caught the attention of AND’s founders. Minor interventions led to tremendous results in short intervals. AND has been helping businesses achieve their objective, manage risk and improve performance through expertise working across multiple industries.

Also read: V Arun Kumar, Director, Primark Garments

GL: What has been the most effective way of raising awareness about your business?

Kirti: Participating in events has been the most effective way of raising awareness about the business. AND has made presentation on various topics such as ‘Start-up Financing Opportunities’ at T-Hub and ‘Fundraising Fundamentals’ at Start-up Leadership Program. We also attended multiple events organised by ISB, Tie, FTAPCCI, etc which became a platform to build awareness about AND.

One-on-one discussions with people in our network also helped us in building our client base.  

For any new entrepreneur spending time to understand the business landscape with a complete grasp on the value propositions, key activities, customer segments, cost structure and revenue streams is very essential. 

GL: What are the challenges for your business to grow bigger, better and faster from here?

Kirti: Generating leads and hiring are our current challenges. Our success rate of converting leads into assignments is very high but we are dependent on our own network to generate leads. We are tackling this issue by being part of networking platforms, hiring a business development executive and participating in more events.

In order to hire talented and motivated people we are conducting an interview process which tests their aptitude and passion for consulting. We also prefer to hire people who have come through referrals. 

Also read: Hooma Roy Choudhury, Founder, Travel Jaunts

GL: Based on your rich experience, what advice would you give to an entrepreneur just starting out?

Kirti: For any new entrepreneur spending time to understand the business landscape with a complete grasp on the value propositions, key activities, customer segments, cost structure and revenue streams is very essential. 

GL: What is the next big thing on AND's business agenda?  

Kirti: Management consulting will play a pivotal role in the growth of our business. We are engaging with SMBs to help them improve productivity, reduce cost and increase profitability. Our key services include business process engineering, process optimization, financial benchmarking and strategy.

GL: We would love to know the person behind the entrepreneur.

• Every day you wake up at - 6 am
• The first thing you do when you wake up - Read the newspaper and prepare my schedule for the day.
• Three things you do to unwind/ relax are - Spend time with my family and friends, read a book, and watch web series.
• When you face a big challenge - I talk to people to understand their perspective.
• The best piece of advice you’ve ever been given - Entrepreneurship is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.
• The one book everyone should read - Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish.

Also read: Can farming be sustainable and accessible for all? Yes! Thanks to this entrepreneur

Network with SMEs mentioned in this article by clicking on the 'Connect' button on their profile. Kirti Poddatoori, Dhruv Tandan, Sowjanya Bonda

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