India Emerging-Sasken Communication Technology

Economic Times dated 8 July 2011

Company Info

Sasken provides services, solutions and technologies to customers across the telecom value chain. Their main customers are large network equipment, semiconductor manufacturers supplying to telecom market, wireless terminal product vendors and test and measurement equipment providers, worldwide.According to Business Today survey, Sasken was ranked the second best company to work for in 2005 and the rst best in 2004.It is currently one of the best companies considering the age of wireless technologies and need for energy ecient devices.

Origin and Founder

Sasken began a brain child of its CEO and Chairman Mr. Rajiv Mody along with two co-founders.Sasken began into being as Silicon Automation Systems(SAS) in 1989 in a warehouse in Fremont, California.The name Sasken is an amalgation of its original name and scottish word for knowledge. Two years later Mody returned to India and the company grew into one of the rst few India based rms to oer IP Driven solutions in wireless and telecom.One of the reasons for Mody to become an entrepreneur was to be his own boss and not limited nancially, living from paycheck to paycheck.Within 2 months of starting the company he was introduced to Nortel Networks who remained thir customers for 18 years which was a big gain for them.One of the major boost was Dr.G Venkatesh and Dr.S D Sherlekarof IIT Bombay to leaving 1

the institution and joining a start up. Modys leadership is seen from the fact that during downturn salaries were decreased by 20 percent and people accepted.Rajiv initially worked with AMD, Seattle Tech Inc. and VSLI Technology Inc.

Advise by Rajiv

Follow your dream, be your own benchmark.Look out once in a while but do not get deterred by others.Do not look for instant gratication, It takes a long time for a olant to grow into a tree.

Advise by Charlie Munger

If I have seen a little farther than other men, it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants.