Pankaj Patel
Raising capital is harder than ever and investors need to be captivated by the underlying purpose driving your business, according to a former Cisco C-level executive and venture capitalist who aims to disrupt the IT networking market status quo, backed by $125 million in funding.
“Every dollar invested will be scrutinized, demanding you to paint a larger picture about how your vision aligns with clear business priorities of your target audience,” says CEO Pankaj Patel of Nile, a relatively new enterprise networking and IT infrastructure as-a-service company.
Nile was formed in 2018 by cofounders Patel (former Chief Development Officer at Cisco) and John Chambers (former CEO at Cisco), who have worked together for nearly 25 years as one of the network industry’s most powerful leadership duos. In the fall of 2022 Nile announced plans to disrupt the networking industry.
In a recent videoconference interview, Patel offered this advice to companies of any size who want to find investors to fund growth:
Have a clear vision from the start: it is crucial for your success. “At Nile, we have maintained our vision since day one, but adjusted how we present our solution,” said Patel. “We faced the choice of targeting to become a leader in an existing category or creating a brand new market segment altogether. Rather than forcing ourselves into a noisy market, we decided to boldly establish our own category and write our own story.”
Unlock success through effective communication. “I deeply empathize with engineer founders who may struggle with effective communication,” said Patel. “I have also heavily relied on my technical expertise in the past. But reflecting on my time at Cisco, I discovered a common thread among successful leaders: they had mastered the art of communication. Their ability to convey their strategy with precision increased their team’s effectiveness across the company and accelerated their professional growth.”
Build an unbeatable go-to-market dream team. “While a strong technical team is necessary for success in the early days, you also need multidisciplinary leadership to grow at an effective pace,” said Patel. “I ventured into the business side of the house as I managed fast growing teams, got to participate in Cisco’s acquisition of other companies and evaluated investments while at JC2 Ventures.”
Expand your horizon: look beyond traditional VCs and the US market. “In addition to traditional venture capitalists (VCs), it's crucial to prioritize strategic investors who can offer additional value for your startup next to financial support,” said Patel. “They frequently facilitate valuable connections with customers, and open doors to new go-to-market partnerships.”
Patel will address these issues and more as a keynote speaker at the third annual Growth Summit, sponsored by the Executive Next Practices Institute at UC Irvine Beall Applied Innovation on August 10, 2023. Patel will be joined by about 100 California CEOs discussing how to grow in this challenging economic climate.
“By having a clear vision, proving your value, communicating effectively, assembling a dream team, and thinking globally, you might get one step closer to building your own empire,” said Patel. “We will all be rooting for you.”
