There are various factors that drive leadership. Leadership can be defined by successfully integrating years of learning and experiences to fruitful execution. Sucheta Mahapatra, MD India , Branch International is one of those charismatic leaders with an enviable track record of setting up and scaling tech-enabled businesses. Sucheta also sits on the Board of IIM Sambalpur. Sucheta was also the COO for WeWork in India and has held leadership positions with Airtel and with Bain & Company in India and the US. She also has broken the glass ceiling by becoming a CXO at such a young age.

In an exclusive interview with Women Entrepreneur, Sucheta shares about her illustrious career, her strategies to stay ahead of the curve, and much more:

Throw some light on your early education and prior industry experience. Tell us about business lessons that you learnt over the years?

Growing up in Hyderabad to parents both of whom worked hard and succeeded in public sector jobs, I did well academically, being an All India Topper in class X, gold medalist in engineering before moving on to get an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. My experience as a management consultant with Bain and as Head of Strategy at Airtel helped me master the business toolkit and how to steer others to drive impact. Subsequently, as a leader at Airtel and CXO at WeWork, I learned how to be a true P&L operator, build new business grounds-up and take accountability of top line & bottom line.

I have learned to operate from a strong grounding and conviction in what is right while running a fast-growing startup or a scaled business, or being a parent or a Board member. I also have learned that success is a team sport and I benefited from gracious coaching, support from my mentors, supervisors, and leaders who created opportunities and took a bet on me. I also obsess about setting clear goals, tracking progress, and ensuring I share the same with my stakeholders, which helps me prioritize and cut out distractions.

What are the various roles & responsibilities that you currently shoulder at Branch International? What have been some of the challenging aspects of your role as the MD and how did you overcome them?

As the Managing Director, I am responsible for the entire P&L of Branch International’s India business. My responsibilities also include driving strategy, fundraising, regulatory management, and making sure we execute on our mission to serve millions of underbanked customers in India through a full-scale digital banking solution.

As a startup, we have our own share of challenges. Not only are we building a digital-first bank, but are doing that as India emerges out of the pandemic, and in a time when there is intense competition for talent. I have had to adapt my operating style to a remotefirst environment, navigate the tradeoffs on growth and profitability, and do it while staying ahead of the disruptions in India’s Fintech sector. My strategy has been simple: to stick to basics, focus on inputs as much as outcomes, trust and empower my leadership team, and stay alert in response to the ever-evolving external environment.

What strategies have you put in place to drive growth within Branch International?

With financial services being at an inflection point and markets evolving due to smartphone penetration, rapid digitization of core infra like Aadhar, KYC, and so on, we will see the majority of banking services get mobilefirst. Unfortunately, the majority of the common people have still not reaped the full benefits of this digitization. Branch International, a personal finance app with more than 4 million customers globally and $500 Million in loans disbursed across the world, is trying to change that. We are a NBFC and are focused on creating easily accessible loans at the click of a button. Our growth comes from using technology to underwrite and segment users, introducing new products, partnerships and creating a seamless UX that makes banking simple and intuitive.

“My strategy has been simple to stick to basics, focus on inputs as much as outcomes, trust and empower my leadership team, and stay alert in response to the everevolving external environment”

What have been some of the major milestones in your professional journey? What has been the driving force behind your success as a business leader?

It has always been the journey rather than the milestones that mattered to me. I want to become a better version of myself - scaling myself as a leader, as a professional every day. Starting my career as a consultant to becoming a board member, the whole journey has challenged me and yet has been the most fulfilling. An operator’s role is tough and lonely and can be even harder to pull off as a woman. However, staying resilient and staying the course has helped me beat the lows, each time giving me the courage to pursue a bigger goal.

How do you keep yourself abreast with industry changes?

With the FinTech space in India evolving rapidly, I have a clear mental model on how to stay ahead of the curve. Being a voracious reader, I consume multiple research reports, actively track developments and distill out on a weekly basis what some of the near or long-term trends can mean for Branch. I also lean in on various experts in the sector by reaching out to other CEOs, mentors within and outside the company, digital banking experts, or even my own team members for advice on topics that are new to me. Finally, the best learning happens if you try and teach! I am creating time to discuss topics with my teams, be a guest faculty at B-schools, also volunteer on various panels at Tech or FinTech forums.

Sucheta Mahapatra, MD India, Branch International

After holding many leadership positions for reputed organizations such as Airtel, WeWork, Bain & Co, Sucheta is now leading the India scale-up of this a16z and Visa-backed Silicon Valley startup.