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The true value of education

You realize the true value of education when you are able to apply your academic learnings in the workplace. Sunil Mangalore, CEO, India and sub-continent, Datacraft, reveals to Renuka Vembu how to do this successfully

Studying engineering and management is not enough, the true test of a professional is how well he applies this learning into his everyday work successfully. Sunil Mangalore’s father, a Director with the Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council, wanted him to learn technology and business, and pushed him towards the same. Mangalore explained, “He always felt that to be successful in life you must be a well rounded personality, and technical skills with a business orientation will help you become a leader and grow faster in your chosen career. I had an aptitude for technology. I pursued my MBA because I felt this would add to my engineering degree and equip me for the business environment.” Mangalore’s education was completed in different places of the country—schooling in Mumbai, with BE in the Government College of Technology at Pondicherry, followed by a management degree from IIM Calcutta.

Strong foundations

His desire was to apply this solid educational foundation in technology to overcome business challenges and put them in use for organizational development. With this intent, he started his career in Godrej and Boyce in the Office Equipment Division. He felt that this beginning was a good learning school on sales management and technology product selling. He then moved to Sprint RPG under the profile of a Product Head. Sprint RPG had a joint venture with Datacraft which eventually broke off with the latter, coming into India on its own. Thus, Mangalore’s final destination was joining Datacraft five years back, and he has been in the capacity of a CEO since August 2005. Though change is a part of growth, in the 16 years of his career, he has technically changed only two jobs. From a sales manager at Godrej and Boyce to a product head at RPG to regional profit centre head at Datacraft to becoming the CEO, he has steadily climbed the success ladder.

Belief in team work

As the CEO of Datacraft, India, Mangalore is responsible for achieving the financial targets of the company and in maintaining its market leadership in the IT solutions and services and systems integration industry. He is also responsible for its business operations and handles the management in India and the sub-continent. The rapid growth and turnaround seen by the company with growth rates exceeding 75% is largely due to his efforts and contributions. He had constantly strived to be the best, believed in his team and together with them has brought Datacraft towards the high growth rate path. His sincere belief in team work has let him build teams with strong business heads who are well-experienced and capable of taking over senior posts and additional responsibilities of the company in the near future.

Mangalore’s vision is to develop the organization into a $500 million company. He shares the plans which are underway in helping cross the magical mark. He claimed with confidence, “We have a clear-cut road map to do so by 2010. The company is currently at $170 million and growing at 30% annually. We plan to up this to 35% and will be bang on target.”

Datacraft with its humane touch thoroughly fulfills the corporate social responsibility under the wings of Mangalore. ‘Carecraft’ is a program that encourages community building activities. He proudly asserted, “I work for Carecraft with the same importance as for the sales and revenue plans. I believe that this is our way of giving something back to the communities in which we work. That may mean sponsoring vulnerable children, fund-raising or other forms of charitable giving. Or it may mean donating our IT expertise in ways that would enable communication, promote education and connect communities.”

Mangalore has a fine work-life balance too. He ensures that he does not carry work home, avoids attending calls or reading emails on weekends, and spends at least two weekends a month with his family, comprising his wife, a homemaker, and two children. He explained, “I firmly believe that your organization is a reflection of how well you manage your personal life and your home. Balance in life is created by ensuring that work and home are not parallels, but equals, and need equivalent effort and time.”

Man of principles

The principles he has rigidly followed reflect on his career. Mangalore claimed, “If you do not make your journey difficult, you will never exceed and create new destinations. I have been hard and demanding on myself and have achieved the results. Sticking to your organization and growing with it, working with a focused, objective-oriented growth, long-term planning and establishing niches are essential to do well. Do not change jobs for benefits, but for taking up new challenges.”

He is an avid reader with Kaplan and Norton’s Strategy Maps having inspired him the most. He loves traveling with his family, which explains for the two vacations in a year. His favorite destinations being Bali and South Africa. Mangalore also has a passion for photography and likes capturing different structures and shapes in the natural environment.

renuka.vembu@expressindia.com