Life After the Sale – Thiru

If someone had told me 10 years ago that this is where I would be in my life, I wouldn’t have believed it. I was on a corporate IT track and could have kept going until I retired. But I felt the urge to do something on my own. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Three years after starting my company, though, I found myself struggling. I heard about Vistage and reached out. I needed to do something, or I was not going to go anywhere. Vistage has been a big part of my journey. I’ve learned so much.

I did not know, for example, that my professional growth is linked to my personal growth and my health. The power of taking a well-rounded approach to life was the most significant learning. We extended it into creating an environment for my employees to thrive.

Once I got the fundamentals right, we started growing 30-40% every year. We had the right people in the right seats on the right bus. We became one of the largest integrators of the Salesforce.com platform, and I did not have to work 80 hours a week. Our cultural foundation really drove the growth.

So, when I decided to sell the company, I looked for a cultural alignment and better growth platform for my colleagues. We closed the deal in August for $115 million, but it is not the money I am proud of. It’s the value we’ve created for our customers, colleagues and community.

When I first contemplated my future post-sale, I thought I would sell the company, not work and just have fun. Then I realized I need to be engaged in life. Work gives me purpose. After Mastek acquired my company, I became CEO of the Mastek Salesforce Business Unit. My role really hasn’t changed, but the management structure is different. I don’t carry the same burden on my shoulders. Next year, we will beat our 2024 forecast by a few million dollars.

The sale and the liquidity have given me the liberation to focus on the things that I want to do in my work and in my life. I feel that it’s the best of both worlds.