Newbridge, a Cornerstone Global Partners (CGP) Group subsidiary, is a premium executive search firm that serves the executive leadership needs of some of the world's best-known multinationals, local blue-chip companies, and venture-backed startups across Asia-Pacific. Newbridge is a Singapore-based firm that provides Executive Search, Board Consulting, and Leadership Strategy Services.

Tripti Devleker, as Founding Partner and Managing Director of Newbridge, focuses primarily on leadership advisory, consulting, and recruiting senior leadership executives across a spectrum of industries, particularly in the technology, media, and telecommunications sectors in Asia-Pacific. "I have always been a passionate executive search consultant. It is this passion in helping companies and candidates that have supported my professional growth. I find immense joy in matching the right talent with the right companies. This sense of purpose has certainly defined my professional achievements and today drives how I run Newbridge," says Tripti Devleker. In an exclusive interaction with Women Entrepreneur Magazine Tripti talks more about her professional journey and her unique play in Newbridge.

Take us through your early educational journey and prior industry experience. How does your former industry experience aid you in your current role leading Newbridge?

I did my master's in Business Administration in India. In my professional career, I have worked with public, private equity-backed, and venture capital-backed companies across the spectrum of high-growth global enterprise and consumer technology companies.  My earlier exposure to C-level executives, including CEOs, founders, and board of directors, honed my business acumen and taught me how to be solution-oriented.

Executive search is fundamentally a people business. Understanding the client's company and growth requirements is critical to identifying the best personnel for them. We share equal responsibility for identifying the right talent for the customer and for creating a meaningful job for the individual. During this time, I also learned and realized the value of developing good relationships with key company players. Without their encouragement and support, I would not have been able to advance to where I am now with Newbridge.

Tell us about what led to the foundation of Newbridge? As the primary leader of the firm, how do you drive growth within Newbridge?

I have been an Executive Search consultant for over a decade with a track record of progressive responsibilities in various companies. Professional highlights include successfully building and growing new executive search practices. Newbridge was born of my dream of becoming a successful female business owner in the executive search field.

Newbridge started off as a greenfield joint venture with CGP back in 2020 with a specialization in the Telecommunications, Media and Technology sectors. CGP's drive has always been in building their regional network operations through partnering like-minded entrepreneurs who are willing to pursue their entrepreneurial passions with the resource backing of a bigger parent company. CGP founders were themselves entrepreneurs and have received investment funding from Morgan Stanley. It is this spirit of building CGP as an executive search network of entrepreneurs that differentiates CGP from other talent search companies. It was also this ethos that also attracted me to form a joint venture with CGP.

It is always a team effort. No business can be successful without a successful team. Business growth within Newbridge is truly driven by my team. We believe in authenticity, transparency, and treating others in the same way as you want to be treated. Our business is all about the development of long-term and high-quality relationships with people.  Truly understanding the strength of each team member is critical for business. Honing in on their strengths, strengthens the business and at the same time, working together on improving their weakness will help take the business to the next level. Our employees are our assets so there is nothing more important than investing in our own people.

Our industry is unique in that we have two very distinct but overlapping stakeholders ­ our candidates are our potential clients, and our clients are our potential candidates. Only by being proactive and solution-oriented, we can properly serve the needs of both clients and candidates. We can only establish strong relationships with clients and prospects if we make a successful match. We believe in repeat business rather than one-time sales.

How has your path as a business leader thus far been? How do you stay in sync with the industry's and the tech world's cyclical evolutions?

It's been a rewarding journey and a life-changing learning experience. As an entrepreneur, I am responsible for everything. These operational chores can become overwhelming at times. I have learned so much in the last 18 months than I did in the last 10 years of my career.

“Newbridge was born of my dream of becoming a successful female business owner in the executive search field”

As an entrepreneur, it is even more important to be self-motivated to keep up with the developments of the industry. Unlike as an employee, there are no "industry updates" that are periodically handed out to you. I am now responsible for keeping my staff updated on the trends and developments. To render such insights, I frequently attend conferences, speak to industry experts, and read a lot of industry journals. My team also contributes thoughts based on their on-the-ground experiences. Such on-the-job knowledge exchange has undoubtedly aided the team in fast adapting and adjusting executive search strategies rapidly.

What is your vision for Newbridge's growth in the near future?

We have been growing rapidly since our inception. In fact, we are one of the fastest-growing startups within the CGP network. It is an internally recognized accomplishment. We are currently expanding our headcount and looking to establish offices in Australia, the Middle East, and India. Similar to CGP's mission, my goal is to find like-minded entrepreneurs in these markets to set up local Newbridge offices.  My vision is to be able to share the success of Newbridge with my staff. I believe in the potential of every employee, and everyone is considered equal. We are already discussing how high-potential staff can participate in the success of Newbridge by setting up their own subsidiaries. We provide opportunities for personal and professional growth to every employee.

As a successful business leader, what advice would you present to young women who aspire to follow in your footsteps and become business leaders?

If you want to achieve success in business, you will need to have a clear vision, be objective, and have ambitious goals.

Clear Vision: You need to know why you are doing this and the destination you want to reach. If you are unclear, then you are not ready to take the plunge.         

Being objective: You need to be unbiased in making decisions. You must also be ready to make changes and sacrifices when needed ­ pivoting when needed as they call it. There are no sacred cows in business.          

Ambitious goals: Many startups fold quickly because of cash flow issues. It is important to set ourselves bold targets and go all-in from the beginning. It is important to stretch ourselves right from the beginning, instead of panicking when the financial cracks show up. 

Tripti Devleker, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Newbridge

Tripti Devleker is a solution-oriented Executive Search consultant possessing over a decade of industry experience with a track record of progressive responsibilities in various companies.