EP #135: Siva Balakrishnan - Indian-Based Entrepreneur (Founder of Vserve Ebusiness Solutions) & Angel Investor

Siva Balakrishnan is the Indian-based Founder Of Vserve Ebusiness Solutions ( @vserveebusiness ) and Angel Investor with the Mumbai Angels Network.

He joins Ara on this episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss how observing the scarcity mindset around him while growing up in India taught him to come up with solutions on the fly, why your first customer is always buying you as the founder (not the product/service), the state of AI being more probabilistic that deterministic at the moment, finding value in failing fast, living by the belief that the journey is the reward, and so much more.

Follow Siva:
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/siva-balakrishnan-38216b1/)   

Timestamps

00:19: Ara introduces this week’s guest, Siva Balakrishnan
00:49: How growing up in India shaped Siva’s solution-oriented mindset
03:02: Early entrepreneurship; being a mechanical engineer, outsourcing a web developer gig
05:01: Seeing a gap and capitalizing to launch Vserve; hiring a browsing centre
06:37: The evolution of Vserve; from what it was to what it is
08:21: How entrepreneurs can secure a first customer and find their niche
10:59: Balancing offering white glove customer service while being cost competitive
14:10: Maintaining company culture as the CEO of a distributor outsource workforce
17:28: Siva’s view on AI now and looking forward
21:25: What’s the next phase of life after 20 years into his journey?
23:11: How Siva decides what he is willing to put money behind as an angel investor
25:43: Other South Indian Tamil entrepreneurs making waves
26:56: The role Siva’s family plays in the choices he makes
28:48: The importance of failing fast; a past learning lesson from his journey
30:37: Advice he would give his 16-year-old self
31:47: The personal legacy he wants to be remembered for and the value of compounding
36:51: Creator Confessions
49:02: The Wrap Up  

Intro Music

Produced And Mixed By:
- The Tamil Creator
- Yanchan

Written By:
- Aravinthan Ehamparam
- Yanchan Rajmohan