Dhruv Shringi, CEO
As co-founder and CEO of Yatra, Dhruv has led the company from its launch in 2006 with three people to a company of some 2,400 people. At the Phocuswright Conference 2018, he will take part in an executive interview on online travel in India.
In a series of interviews with executives participating at the event in Los Angeles in November, PhocusWire finds out what makes them tick...
If you weren’t in travel, what industry/company would you like to be part of and why?
I would have been a soldier. I think there is no other institution like the Indian Army. My father was a part of it, and I would have loved to have followed in his footsteps in this regard and do something for my country.
What would you tell your 20-year-old self?
Keep up the right attitude and never give up. While failure may be disorienting and confusing at times, yet it's challenging and prepares you to become stronger and wiser. Also, I would have told my 20-year-old self to enjoy the journey of life as life is not a "destination."
Tell us something you dislike about your role in the company?
The never-ending to-do list. My schedule is incredibly tight and busy and sometimes I don’t have enough time to spend with my family post-office hours.
If you could teach everyone in your company one concept, what concept would have the biggest positive impact?
Being customer-centric. Too often people put internal constraints before a customers needs - we must always think from a customers point of view and do whats best for the customer. Everything else will fall in place.
How do you stay inspired?
We in the current generation in India have been blessed by the timing of our birth to be in a country that offers immense amount of opportunity. This is a once in a multi-generation opportunity and that's what drives me. Also, seeing my colleagues and the team motivated and working hard to take Yatra.com to the next level keeps me pumped.
REGISTER NOW! Expedia Group, Booking Holdings, Ctrip, Yatra and others speak at The Phocuswright Conference 2018
What do you consider to be the most important invention in the digital world in the last 20 years?
The internet and then smartphone that has enabled us to take the internet to the masses are by far the most important consumer inventions of the 21st Century.
Who is the person you most admire within the industry and why?
Elon Musk. I marvel at his ability to do multiple things and succeed.
What’s your must-have app?
Amazon Prime (spend a lot of time stuck in traffic), UBER (given the constant travel), Google maps.
What one mistake do you witness others making more than anything else?
I have often seen people settling into a role and doing routine work, instead of focusing on challenging the present and searching for new and innovative ideas.
You're explaining the industry to a new employee - complete the sentence "Beware of the ..."
Beware of the pitfalls of getting complacent and thinking you are doing a great job because competition could be starting up in the garage next door. Instead, embrace the ambiguity and constantly shifting technologies and consumer habits.
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