TIE Vizag holds its maiden TIECON
The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Vizag chapter today held its maiden TiECON 2026 in the city of destiny at GITAM university which saw participation from plethora of TiE members across the country.
A global non-profit organization TiE was founded in 1992 in Silicon Valley by entrepreneurs with roots in the Indus region.
The organization is dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship by supporting startups through mentoring, networking, education, funding, and incubation, boasting over 13,000 members across 62 chapters in 18 countries.
Addressing a gathering full of entrepreneurs and aspiring innovators, Varun group’s chairman and city’s celebrated businessman Mr Prabhu Kishore highlighted the importance of consistency and focus in one’s entrepreneurial path.
“I can tell you that in my journey as an entrepreneur two key aspects played a significant role in my entrepreneurial success i.e. Consistency & Focus while being disciplined.
In the past 50 years nothing has deviated me from my goal” said the chairman of the Varun group.
He informed that the Varun group today employs more than 23000 people and has close to Rs 8000 crores in turnover.
Mr Prabhu Kishore similarly stressed on the need for managing one’s finances and being aware of their funds/liquidity.
“It ultimately boils down to money. You have to be smart in managing your funds. Apart from being smart in business we need to be smart with our funds too” asserted Varun group’s chairman.
Hailing Vizag to be a beautiful and scenic city he called upon young entrepreneurs to innovate and accelerate in their respective fields while also to give back to the society, city and state.
“We all have a responsibility to do something for our own state” opined Mr Kishore.
The managing director of Oracle India, Mr Shailendra Kumar highlighted the role of technology and its benefits in taking quicker and more efficient decisions.
“AI is accelerating India’s growth as it brings efficiency in an organisation. Companies across sectors are utilizing the benefits of AI to their advantage”, said Mr Shailendra.
He however also called upon youth to keep up with changes in technology and to upskill themselves as and when the need arises.
“Technology will keep changing. What you need to do is prepare yourself so that you are relevant for today. You need to ride the wave” stated Oracle India’s MD.
Mr Tapan Singhel, CEO Bajaj Allianz General Insurance highlighted two key traits in a successful entrepreneur. “Most successful entrepreneurs have a high level of empathy and secondly can quickly identify a problem to solve”, said Mr Singhel.
He however cautioned that with the changing advent of technology job losses could become a more pertinent issue and that one has to be more vigilant.
Mr Singhel requested TiE to set up a more robust ecosystem for startups to grow and thrive leveraging their vast and influential network.
Giving the welcome address TiE Vizag’s president Mr Kalyan Muppaneni said that Entrepreneurship belongs to those who are willing to take responsibility and build.
He said that the next wave of economic growth needs to come from Tier 2 and 3 cities and that is where cities like Vizag need to contribute through entrepreneurship.
The two-day event will see stakeholders participate in various panel discussions focussed on a slew of topics pertaining to innovation & entrepreneurship.
Ms Madhavi Vuppalapati, MD Cemetrix along with Mr Srinivas Savaram, Executive director, TiE Vizag, Mr Ravi Eswarupu, CEO RTIH, Vizag and a host of other dignitaries also participated.
