Interview with Asoke K Laha

                                             President and MD, Interra Information Technologies

The journey of Asoke K Laha, President and MD of Interra Information Technologies, has been nothing short of sensational. A bachelor of engineering from Kolkata’s Jadavpur University, Mr Laha acquired double MS from the Northwestern University and University of Saskatchewan. He’s served as MD of Cadence India and senior software manager in companies like Digital and GTE Communication Systems. InterraIT, founded in 1996 by Mr Laha, has evolved into a diversified services company that caters to many customers worldwide, including those in Fortune 1000 companies. The company headquartered in California has operations spread across five continents with a sales network spanning the US, Canada, U.K., India and Japan. It is the largest privately held offshore consulting company with operations in India and boasts of a large team of certified professionals skilled in diverse technologies including product engineering, virtualization, big data analyses, mobile domain, healthcare and more. Mr Laha speaks to Consulting Editor Yogesh Sood

You have been in top leadership positions in the global IT space for well over three decades. Needless to add, you’ve seen it all. In your field, what separates the men from the boys?

The key attributes for a successful leader are sharp focus, extreme desire to succeed, Go getter approach, taking ownership, excellent communication skills, ability to articulate crisp and concise, ability to influence people, ability to recruit and retain A+ people, taking risks, willing to make mistakes and learn from it, must know his/her limitations, always willing to learn (must internalize that “what got you here, will not get you there”). These attributes separate men from boys. 

In the cerebral battle zones of Silicon Valley, highs and lows are common. They say that only one in ten start-ups will go on to achieve glory. According to you, what are the main reasons that cause the others to die unsung?

Out of 5 companies which fail, are due to their inability to manage their expenses and finance (they run out of money). Other 4 companies fail because of poor business model, poor leadership and inability to cope with adverse environment.