The Future Is Now: Balaji Sreenivasan of Aurigo Software On How Their Technological Innovation Will Shake Up The Tech Scene
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Talk to your customers. Ask open-ended questions, and learn about their jobs, the gains they are looking for, and the pains they are experiencing. Focus on your customers and not your competition.
As a part of our series about cutting edge technological breakthroughs, I had the pleasure of interviewing Balaji Sreenivasan.
Balaji Sreenivasan is the founder, Chief Executive Officer, and board member at Aurigo Software Technologies. Balaji has played a critical role in shaping Aurigo to be a modern enterprise cloud software business that is helping infrastructure owners plan and build over $300 billion of capital projects more efficiently. Balaji spends his time on product strategy, customer delight, and enabling the amazing people at Aurigo to be their best. He is an alumnus of the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Trichy, and the University of Florida, Gainesville.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
My dad got me my first ZX Spectrum 8-bit personal home computer when I was eight years old, hooking me on the world of software technology. I have always been fascinated by how software can solve the world’s most significant problems. I started Aurigo Software to make the jobs of construction inspectors easier. In the last 18 years, we have expanded our product offering to streamline the entire construction lifecycle and are the premier software provider for infrastructure owners who want to build a better tomorrow.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
When I first got out of college, I briefly worked as a design engineer for an engineering consulting company, where I observed inefficiencies all over. I scheduled a meeting with my boss and proposed digitizing our processes to work more efficiently. He told me I had two choices — to focus on my job or leave the company to do whatever I wanted. I followed his advice, quit my job, and decided to start my entrepreneurial venture. That was the best decision I have ever made!
Can you tell us about the cutting edge technological breakthroughs that you are working on? How do you think that will help people?
At Aurigo, we are on a mission to help build a better tomorrow. We deliver easy-to-use cloud software for infrastructure owners to plan and prioritize their capital investments and manage their construction processes more efficiently.
We are investing in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) so infrastructure owners can leverage their project data to make smarter decisions.
We are also partnering with the University of Florida to jointly invest in drone technology for infrastructure inspections. Our goal is ultimately eliminating the need for humans. Construction inspections by drones can significantly reduce accidents at construction sites, improve inspection turnaround time, and increase the accuracy of inspection data.
How do you think this might change the world?
Infrastructure in America has a C+ rating, and we are experiencing massive disruptions to our quality of life due to failed electric grids, collapsing bridges and highways, and limited access to broadband internet. As the world moves towards autonomous vehicles and a green future, it needs to invest trillions of dollars in maintaining the first-world quality of life. We cannot build tomorrow’s infrastructure with yesterday’s technology. Aurigo helps public and private enterprises build better by building smarter, which improves the quality of life for everyone in the world.
Keeping “Black Mirror” in mind, can you see any potential drawbacks about this technology that people should think more deeply about?
I think you are referring to the Sci-Fi technology TV show “Black Mirror,” which has theories that technological advancements can lead to the downfall of humanity and ultimately destroy it. You know, it’s funny that in the 1980s, we all thought that robots and artificial intelligence were distant Sci-Fi dreams. And here I am 35 years later, leading a company invested in AI and unmanned robotic drones to transform the construction landscape! As long as we intend to help humans live a better life, technology can only be an enabler. At Aurigo, we are very disciplined in how we think about the intent of our software and technology and ensure that we are continually building safeguards that do not compromise human life or the right to privacy.
Was there a “tipping point” that led you to this breakthrough? Can you tell us that story?
I learned early on that if we don’t help our customers do their jobs better, we cannot build products or solutions that make a difference. Customers don’t care about the technology, but how can it help them simplify their lives. Many companies get caught trying to convince customers to use their existing products. It should be the opposite — companies should build products that meet customers’ existing needs.
During the journey of building Aurigo, the customer has always been at the center of our efforts. Listening to them and understanding how they do their jobs and what pains they are experiencing has been an essential part of our product development roadmap. We started with a construction inspection product and soon learned that this was not the only problem that our customers faced. So, we expanded our product stack to help manage their projects and project financials. We later learned that they struggled with prioritizing which projects to invest in, and so we built our capital planning capability, which is the best-in-class in the industry. There is a customer story behind every product feature or enhancement we have built!
What do you need to lead this technology to widespread adoption?
Making solutions only for large enterprises can never lead to widespread adoption of any technology. Less expensive mini computers replaced expensive IBM mainframe computers. The PC revolution eliminated the mini-computers industry. Now computers are making way for tablets and smartphones! Similarly, to ensure widespread adoption of Aurigo’s technology, we need to get our innovative planning and building software tools in the hands of every planner, construction project manager, contract manager, and inspector. We are focusing on making the jobs for planners and builders easier, regardless of how much they can afford to spend on technology. We are also very excited about our strategic partnership with Autodesk, the leading software company in the design world, to help drive adoption downstream and into international markets.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I have more than one person to thank for my success that I am deeply grateful for including my family, colleagues and early-stage investors. However, I would make a special mention of Aurigo’s chairman and lead investor, Ravi Gulati. Ravi and I have had a particularly good partnership and friendship during the last 15 years of growing Aurigo, and I have learned a lot from him.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
It is the responsibility of every successful entrepreneur and company to be good corporate citizens and integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations, for the greater good of society. During my OPM program at Harvard Business School, I learned that one of the main charters for a business is to “Make a decent profit, decently.” Our CSR initiative is “Aurigo Cares”. We help sponsor a school in Bangalore, India, that provides free primary education for over 600 not-so-fortunate children. Our staff spends their time volunteering at food banks, animal shelters, and hospitals, and we consider this a privilege more than a duty. We have also run several COVID inoculation camps over the last 12 months to help those in need.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why. (Please share a story or example for each.)
- Think Big. To build a billion-dollar business, you need to address a trillion dollar market.
- Talk to your customers. Ask open-ended questions, and learn about their jobs, the gains they are looking for, and the pains they are experiencing. Focus on your customers and not your competition.
- If you cannot sell it, don’t build it. Many entrepreneurs get so excited about building their product and don’t check if customers are willing to pay for it.
- Less is more. Focus on your niche, and don’t get distracted by the shiny object syndrome that affects most entrepreneurs.
- Hire people smarter than you, and delegate everything you possibly can!
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I am deeply passionate about access to education for those who cannot afford it. Education is critical to building great civilizations and ultimately eradicating poverty. There are too many people on this planet getting left behind simply because they have not had access to education, be it attending school or college. I would encourage anyone reading this to think about at least one person they could impact and try and make a difference in their lives. We have to pay it forward.
Some very well known VCs read this column. If you had 60 seconds to make a pitch to a VC, what would you say? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂
Fact: Governments and enterprises will spend over $5 trillion in planning and building infrastructure assets over the next 15 years. The current solutions involve outdated systems, spreadsheets, and paper. Aurigo builds modern cloud software that helps infrastructure owners build a better tomorrow. If you are interested in joining our mission, check us out at www.aurigo.com
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Twitter: @_bsreenivasan
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/bsreenivasan
Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.
The Future Is Now: Balaji Sreenivasan of Aurigo Software On How Their Technological Innovation Will… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
