In an exclusive interview, Prem Prakash, CEO, CapitalVia Global Research Ltd., talks about the company's business model, growth and hiring plans, and how they keep employees productive and engaged. Prem also shares the digital practices CapitalVia has adopted and how they foster a culture of employee wellbeing.

Here are a few edited excerpts:

CapitaVia's Business Model and Growth

Prem: CapitalVia was founded by Rohit Gadia about 15 years ago. He was pretty young at the time — 18 or 19 years of age — when he saw a massive gap in the capital market, specifically in the equity space, where brokers and the broker community managed the entire research and execution of trades. Decisions about which stock to invest in and the execution of these investments were suggested and advised by brokers. That's when the concept of Pure Play Financial Advisory came into Gadia's mind, and he established CapitalVia Global Research Limited. We've been seeing about 100% CAGR in terms of revenue growth and the number of customers.

CapitalVia is a Pure Play Financial Advisory. Our research is all based on technical analysis and fundamentals. Of late, we have been using AI and machine learning for our new age products and to research stock movement. We advise our customers based on the kind of requirements and goals they have in their life.

Our business model is purely subscription-based. We don't indulge in commissions. So, irrespective of whether you want to invest Rs. 10,000 or Rs. 10 lakh, our fees and packages remain the same. We have several packages, and all of them are dependent on the kind of goals you have, the expectations you have from investing, and the type of research analysts who are getting involved with your product and subscription.

Hiring Plans

Prem: We plan to hire 100–150 people in the next two quarters. Even during the lockdown, when there were many layoffs, organisations were cutting down their costs, and corporate biggies froze their entire hiring process, we hired around 60 people. We honoured all the offer letters which were rolled out to business schools last year. Almost 100 people joined us over the previous six months.

Attracting, Engaging, and Retaining Talent

Prem: We have a performance-based working environment in which we don't wait for reviews and appraisals. We don't limit employees' growth based on age, tenure, or experience. What matters out here is performance. And if you are a go-getter, then the sky is the limit.

We reinvest our profits in our employees and workforce. If you join CapitalVia tomorrow and wish to pursue higher education, we will sponsor it. We go the extra mile to help you prepare for your exam; if you're getting a scholarship, we sponsor that as well.

Apart from the above, CapitalVia is also a fun place in other ways. I would not be exaggerating when I say that we have our own music band, cricket team, and football team. When employees feel involved at the workplace, they tend to deliver results, and that is what attracts people, especially people from B-Schools. We have been improving on these aspects on a day-on-day basis.

During the lockdown, we made sure that all the seniors talked to their subordinates almost every alternate day. We used to do a Fun Hour when nobody was allowed to work. We ran a lot of quizzes. Of course, technology enabled all of that. There were a lot of initiatives like sharing your workspace, sharing a picture of your family, talking to the family members, etc.

Technology Adoption and Digital Transformation

Prem: CapitalVia has always been at the forefront of technology. To name a few, we have our own indigenously built CRM – Hash – that has been conceptualised, built and managed by our engineers.

We have built our own chat windows. The guest management system at reception is also an example of a beautiful piece of work put in by our engineers. You can rate us to be on a higher side or above-average regarding technology and technical know-how.

In these changing times, we put in a lot of effort and focus on building certain platforms. During the initial days of the pandemic, not even phone calls were getting through because there were a lot of call drops. So, we immediately built a mobile app for all our core customers. That was done within 15 to 20 days.

We helped our customers understand how to operate those mobile applications to understand our advisory services. Of course, technology cannot replace humans; that is one reason why our hiring has been rapidly growing.

Self-Care and Holistic Employee Wellbeing

Prem: My day starts with an hour of yoga at 05:00 in the morning and then the daily chores. The pandemic has also taught me how to cook. And the best part is that I am continuing with it. I make breakfast for my kids every day. Even if there is a helper to assist me, I make sure that the breakfast is all made by me.

I'm a music lover. So, even if I get home at 10:00 at night, I spend 30 minutes playing the drums.

As an organisation, we are into reading in a big way. It's compulsory for everybody to read books, and everybody has to present a summary of the book that they read last week.

We also make a point of giving our employees some breakout time every second hour.

We have many tie-ups with local gyms and hospitals. We also provide discounts when it comes to getting regular health checks done. These are some ways we ensure that we take care of our employees and their health.

Watch the full video interview here: <https://humancapitalonline.com/HR-Talks/68>