Leaders
Great leadership is surprisingly rare. In the ever-evolving landscape of technology and digital innovation, businesses & industries seek visionary leaders who could take charge and drive the community and economy towards unprecedented growth and excellence. Jyoti Soni, Co-Founder of THEBIRBAL, is one such leader who has donned the conscious leadership hat with a strong emphasis on inclusivity and making employment more accessible to a broader demography. As a woman entrepreneur, Jyoti’s prior industry experience has played a pivotal role in shaping her entrepreneurial journey and leadership style. Let's hear more from her in this one-on-one interaction.
Throw some light on the prior industry experience that you bring to the table. How does your industry experience empower you to be a better leader today?
I belong to a joint middle-class business family, hence business runs in my blood. I have learned a lot from understanding the personality traits and business style of my father.
On the educational front too, I have established a strong foundation for my career. Being an alumnus of CFA Institute, USA, and holding a B.E. from MNIT, Jaipur, and an MBA from UBS Chandigarh, I started my career joining DSL Software (foreign exchange operations role) in Bangalore. Later getting married I moved to Delhi and started working as an investment banker for boutique investment firms there. In my tenure as an investment banker, I've worked on a full gamut of investment banking, and that has given me a lot of learning and developed me into the kind of person I am today, understanding different human personalities. It was in 2020, that I stepped up to take up the role of an entrepreneur to establish THEBIRBAL along with the other five Co-Founders. Leveraging the strengths of each other we are on a constant journey of learning and growing together endeavoring to deliver the best.
Could you introduce us to THEBIRBAL and the underlying idea behind it? What made you switch from having a lucrative corporate career to foraying into entrepreneurship?
THEBIRBAL is an organization transforming business growth for client companies inspired by people empowered by experience. The company is conscientiously engaged in creating diverse and structured ‘Work from Home’ opportunities for women who cannot pursue a full-time career. Proving to be an extension of client's in-house team, THEBIRBAL is here to co-create its client's success journey.
Well, it had always been my dream to start my entrepreneurial journey belonging to a business family. I always felt like doing something really big that had an impact on society. And, while there are several reasons that should be on your side and make you realize it is just the right time to venture recognizing your financial resource side, good partnerships, thankfully we got all that rightly placed and THEBIRBAL was born.
In 2020, pre-COVID, my husband and I decided to have a venture. We actually wanted to build an environment where ladies could work comfortably from the comfort of their homes with flexibility and fulfilling their responsibilities. And this was an idea behind THEBIRBAL. Precisely, the venture is all about the inclusion of women in the corporate world and micro-entrepreneurship, and it is important if we want to achieve a five trillion economy by 2025, we need more inclusion of women in the workforce.
It's a very common thing in the life of females that they have to take a break due to family responsibilities, some odd life situations, and more. However, rejoining a corporate back seems impossible for many as corporates are not able to accommodate them often. So, by bringing back such women into the workforce, we aspire to nurture talent and boost our economic strength and capabilities.
Thebirbal is an organization providing strategic advisory, managed services & staffing solutions to travel, hospitality, new age companies & startups
Tell us about the most difficult aspects of leading THEBIRBAL and Rainmaker Securities. What steps do you undertake to overcome these roadblocks?
My husband had first conceptualized and started a female-only work-from-home channel for managing holiday sales (number one OTA) in India, and until 2019, the female employee strength crossed 1000+. Through our new 2020 incepted venture THEBIRBAL, we strive to maintain the same success rate.
The challenges we went through, and the ones that always held our women employees back include cultural notions, patriarchal pressure, and family responsibilities. However, encouraging them each time and keeping them motivated we have been able to give career progression to females who deserve a chance and have proven themselves. The number also includes the females who took long career breaks, and then working with people regained their confidence and went again to full-time office jobs. So, we are happy both ways- if we are able to create this impact by bringing women back to work or bringing them avenues to work for their financial independence, engagement, and better lives.
I work as a FINRA-licensed Broker with Rainmaker Securities, USA, specializing in late-stage VC and secondary private equity transactions. Though at times it is stressful, I am enjoying this immense opportunity.
Delineate some of the most important professional milestones or ‘wins’ that you have achieved over the years. What has been your mantra for success?
I would say all of my life’s accomplishments are milestones for me. I had a good beginning to my career, even after a break due to marriage and other things restarting my career, and then growing as an investment banking professional and now being an entrepreneur spearheading my brand THEBIRBAL all are noteworthy.
And, I feel like my success mantra is only hard work and determination.
What advice do you have for aspiring women entrepreneurs and business leaders?
We are often advised you should have passion. Passion makes you believe, and that belief builds your conviction and that conviction leads to action. Ture that! But when you start something, you have an idea, and realize the purpose behind it. It has to be something fundamental and that drives you. Having clarity of the purpose is foremost important, then comes proactiveness and aggression. It is imperative to be disciplined as well. The way our environment is, we have 80 percent oxygen and 20 percent nitrogen. Similarly, we want 80 percent discipline and 20 percent aggression in any business. This is how I think and the world suggests others to understand this theory.
Jyoti Soni, Co-Founder, TheBirbal
Jyoti Soni is a seasoned financial consultant, Co-Founder of THEBIRBAL, specializing in strategic advisory and capital raising for startups, unicorns, and emerging companies. With a diverse background in corporate consulting, including roles at KPMG and independent practice, she excels in fundraising, pre-IPO placements, and strategic investments. As a FINRA licensed transaction advisor at Rainmaker Securities, she is well-equipped to guide investors in secondary transactions and pre-IPO markets. She is holding an MBA in Finance and Marketing from Panjab University and a CFA institute certification in Finance and Investments.
