Talk
about
Exterprise!
A
bootstrapping success
story
Who said you
couldn't start a company with a wallet full of credit cards?
Manoj Saxena has done just that. He raised US$200,000 with
close to a dozen credit cards to launch Exterprise, a
company that he co-founded with Dr.
S.P.Rana.
Who is Manoj
Saxena?
An alumni of
BITS Pilani, Manoj Saxena made his way to the United States
and joined Michigan University to pursue a Master's
programme in Business Management. This was followed by a
seven-year stint at 3M. In the seven years that he spent at
3M, he made a quick climb up the corporate ladder. It was
towards the end of this period that he felt he was moving
into a comfort zone, and needed to start a venture of his
own before it was too late. It took him close to a year to
get enough credit cards to allow him to touch the magic
figure of US$200,000. He was forced to opt for the
bootstrapping route because he had very little liquidity. He
was also confident of being able to repay the loans in case
the venture failed. Three years later, he continues to put
in 12-hour days, and carries the same passion that he had
for the company when he first started out. He readily admits
that he has been successful as a CEO because of the support
that he receives at the home-front from wife and
kids.
What do they
do?
They target the
best companies globally and prepare customised software in
Java that enables these companies to work in collaboration
in the virtual world. Their architecture for B2B
marketplaces allows for buyers and sellers to meet and
exchange data effortlessly and in real time. They have been
able to add value to their customers by allowing them to
share and evaluate information besides price before making a
purchase decision. They have radically cut down costs and
redefined the way their clients approach problems related to
logistics and sourcing. The sheer quality of their offerings
has attracted leading players such as Dell to become
partners.
What is their
Revenue
Model?
They operate
like most other companies in the IT sector. They offer their
software solution on licenses. While developing customised
solutions they charge a consultancy fee and a set-up fee.
These licenses start from US$25,000 a month and have been
known to go up to US$250,000 a month. Their clients include
corporate names such as Dell Computers, 3M and Bell
Canada.
The
people
The staff
strength at Exterprise is over 150. They have seven offices
in the United States and have a branch office in the United
Kingdom as well. Over one-third of their team is Indian and
includes several PhDs and professionals from institutions
such BITS and IIT. It is the quality and expertise of his
team that has allowed the company to climb to the top of the
industry in such a short time. Manoj readily credits the
numerous awards that the company has received and its
current standing to the intellectual capital that is at its
disposal.
One of their
more recent clients includes a virtual marketplace for
agriculturalists. Manoj hopes to provide branding and CRM
solutions for this client; something which has yet to be
seen in a comprehensive manner on the virtual world for this
particular sector.
Like
most of his contemporaries, Manoj wants to make a name for
his enterprise on the NASDAQ. The company will be listed in
the not too distant future, and the current bottom lines of
the company guarantee a good showing in the financial
market. He is a true believer in the Internet and is of the
opinion that the current phase is one of consolidation.
Manoj Saxena is bracing himself to exploit the potential
that the medium has to offer.
Related
reading:
1.
“Going through growing pains“;
Frook, John Evan; B2B; February 2001
2. "Collaborative Ag
Marketplace Planned; Barla, Demir ; Line 56; January
2001
3. A
B2B Gamble Pays Off”; Lorek, Laura; Interactive
Week; December 2000.
