The venue was packed to hear Ravi Bhagwan share his insights on M&A and he didn’t disappoint. Earlier, the event began promptly at 5:00 PM with folks slowly walking in picking a cracker, a slice of cheese and one or two grapes and chatting with fellow attendees. There were animated discussions, earnest handshakes and a gentle tap on a familiar shoulder. After waiting for the panelists to arrive, Venkatesh Shankaran spoke about TiESoCal, upcoming TiECon (October 25, 2024), and introduced the speaker and the event. Attendees seemed to like Ravi’s presentation, as was evident from the questions, both during the talk and in the su
After Ravi’s presentation the panelists, Amit Dhir, Azad Virk, Jaywant Nitturkar and Sanjeev Kuwadekar took the center stage. This discussion, again, was very well received and attendees asked some relevant questions from their personal experiences. It was a very lively conversation which was peppered by spontaneous clapping, acknowledgements and an occasional laugh especially when Jay Nitturkar pointed to Azad when asked why he sold his company. Jokes apart, Jay gave the thought process behind the decision and then pointed to Azad rather playfully.
The evening was graced by Anshu Gupta of ‘Goonj’ (https://goonj.org/). Venkat invited Mr. Chugh to introduce Anshu (https://goonj.org/milestones/) who spoke about his motivation, pivots, journey (in the bylanes of Delhi), a heart wrenching story (you should hear it from him someday) and what sets Goonj apart from other similar nonprofits. Few of TiESoCal CMs took special interest and asked some pertinent questions and were seen chatting with Anshu after the event. One of the CMs was overheard saying that they would work with Goonj to see how their model could be woven into theirs.
After the talk as wine and beer bottles were opened, attendees made their way to the kitchen and enjoyed some pizza & cookies and washed it down with their favorite beverage. Venkat then ended the event thanking Mangesh Mahajan of Singleskull for event space and the volunteers (Ramesh Nair and Dhaval Kapadia) for their contribution.
Overall it was a great event with some amazing insights by the guests. Stay tuned for more and join us for the next one.