Anshul Magotra
Anshul Magotra is a lifelong learner, a mother, and a wife. She grew up in India and now lives in Singapore. She is the Co-Founder and Partner at Social Innovation Circle, a leading training and funding platform for social innovators looking to build sustainable business models for impact and unlock funding. Her work intersects with her passion so there is never a dull day at work! But when not working, she loves to read, travel, and spend time with her family.
What were your initial years of growing up like? Tell us about your life before starting your corporate journey/venture/initiative.
I grew up in India. My father was in the Army which meant we moved around quite a bit during my growing up years. I absolutely loved the experience of moving onto new adventures, meeting new people, and travelling to different places. It made me resilient, adaptive, and very confident as a person. I was always very ambitious, and it helped to have a supportive family that allowed me to make my own decisions whether it was about what I wanted to study or how I wanted to shape my career.
After my schooling, I did my graduation from Delhi University and then pursued an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. I then began my banking career at Merrill Lynch in Hong Kong. And after 8 years of working in Corporate and Investment Banking, I moved to the field of social innovation.
Was there any turning point in your life that changed your journey? If so, what was it? Please tell us the backstory behind it.
Yes, after building a career in banking, I pivoted to a career in social innovation.
When I started my banking journey, it was nothing short of amazing. A young 23-year-old working in the high energy trading floor of Merrill Lynch overlooking the glitzy Hong Kong skyline. And the job came with fat salaries, business class travels, and 5-star hotel stays. What could possibly be better!
But as I plunged myself deeper into the waters, I found myself struggling to stay afloat. Something was amiss. I was not enjoying it and I felt no sense of purpose. Innumerable times I wanted to let go, but I continued. And so did the resentment.
Then one fine day, I finally decided to call it quits. It wasn’t just something that snapped that day but the constant toll of 3am panic wake ups, palpitation inducing red blinks of the blackberry and work that seemed as purposeless as it was endless.
I knew that it had to be a clean strike. I needed time to think freely. In the next few months, I opened myself to new experiences, met a lot of interesting people, and listened to a lot of stories. And one fortuitous day I met someone from Ashoka. Now, Ashoka is the largest network of social entrepreneurs globally and at that time I had not even heard of it. But as I spent more time, I was literally blown away. And the main reason was the opportunity I had working closely with social entrepreneurs. These were extraordinary people who were driving social and environmental change through path-breaking, innovative ideas and solutions. People who were, in equal measure, brilliant, innovative, resilient, determined and extremely courageous.
At that point I knew that there was no turning back and I started thinking how best I could support their work. In my numerous interactions, I realized that one of the biggest hurdles social entrepreneurs face in scaling their impact is funding. So, I started focusing on supporting them in raising investments. And after a few years of working at Ashoka, I launched Social Innovation Circle where I continue to work with and support social entrepreneurs in raising funding and scaling their impact.
Every industry that is now a large-scale, top-notch business once started as a small idea in the minds of entrepreneurs. What was that idea or motivation that made you start your business /initiative? What motivated you within to say “YES, go for it!”
While working at Ashoka, it was clear that social entrepreneurs needed a lot of support to get investment ready and raise funding to scale their impact. We ran a lot of investment readiness accelerators, workshops, courses, and training programs to equip them with the knowledge and tools they needed to effectively raise funding for their organisations. This gave us the opportunity to work closely with social innovators from across the world and across sectors including, healthcare, climate change, education, sustainable agriculture, and digital literacy.
Armed with experience and a desire to share our learnings beyond the networks we were a part of, 3 of us from the team decided to launch Social Innovation Circle with the objective of creating a unique platform that funds and trains social enterprises in how to build sustainable business models and raise funding. At SIC, we aim to create a robust community of innovators and investors who are unified in their objective of creating change.
Everyone has their own set of challenges when starting an entrepreneurial journey. Still, the most essential part for others to learn is how you deal with those. Would you like to share with us your challenges and your coping mechanisms?
Entrepreneurship is challenging. It comes with its fair share of obstacles and difficulties. And it requires determination, perseverance and patience to keep pushing along. Whenever faced with a challenge, I take a deep breath and think about the mission with which I started my venture. And that is what motivates me to keep going.
While the global pandemic of COVID-19 is associated primarily with adversities, it has also brought about a true boom in startups, with successful entrepreneurship in many countries. The pandemic has impacted all of us in one way or another. Would you like to share your experience on a personal and professional level?
I started my venture during Covid. And given the restrictions on travel, we developed an online model for delivering our training and courses. But working through such unprecedented times taught us the importance of staying agile. To survive and succeed in the times we live in, businesses need to have the ability to pivot and adapt to changing circumstances.
Your journey and your vision are very inspiring, but are there any achievements or accomplishments you would like to mention?
I would say in terms of academic achievements, getting into IIM Ahmedabad was the biggest achievement for me. Professionally, becoming an entrepreneur and launching Social Innovation Circle has been the highlight of my career. It is very encouraging and motivating to see that we can be of some value to these brilliant and passionate individuals who are working towards solving some of the most pressing social and environmental problems our world is witnessing.
Would you like to share with our young budding women entrepreneurs the change you would like to see in the world if given an opportunity?
There is a need for everyone to understand their individual and collective responsibility towards our people, our communities, and our planet. And I would like to see everyone become powerful agents of change. You could be a homemaker, an entrepreneur, a student, a corporate professional or anything else. But no matter what you do, build purpose into your practice. Make a conscious effort to contribute to the social ecosystem. There is no action that is too small, but the price of inaction is too heavy.
What’s the most important thing you’ve learned in your personal life and professional journey? What is your personal motto in life?
There have been many learnings. But there are a few I definitely go by. I value time, I value hustle and I value action. I like to set my priorities and my objectives but maintain the ability to pivot as and when needed. When under stress I think about something my father always told me- ‘This too shall pass’ and it proves to be effective every time.
Women are a growing force in the workplaces worldwide, standing shoulder to shoulder with their male counterparts. There are cracks in glass ceilings everywhere, with many women breaking through to carve out a space right at the top of the pyramid. What are your thoughts about women’s leadership today?
Women’s leadership has come a long way, but we have a longer way to go. While there is a growing realization of the importance of women leaders in the workforce, women still have to fight various conscious and subconscious biases to strive their way forward. For every couple of women who manage to break ceilings, there are millions who don’t even get heard or acknowledged. But things are definitely looking brighter than before. Women can create remarkable change, and the world is slowly opening its eyes to it. And the growing number of women reaching top positions and smashing barriers is serving as an inspiration to millions of other women who have tremendous potential but need the encouragement and support to fight the battles they face in their journeys.
With your grit and determination, you are making a considerable impact, breaking through, and serving as role models for many budding entrepreneurs. What would you want to say to our young women leaders/audience reading this?
My humble advice would be to first believe in yourself. As women, we fight so many battles. Both external and internal. To fight these battles, what you need is a strong belief in yourself. Believe that you are exceptional. Believe that you have the potential to do wonders. Only when you believe in yourself will the world start believing in you. So be confident, trust yourself and be unapologetically ambitious.
And honestly, it doesn’t matter what age you are at. There is no right age to start learning. No correct age to start working or to launch a business. So, no matter where you are or what you are doing, keep learning, keep growing and never give up. The world rewards those who believe in themselves and can play a long game.