Naresh Kumra, CEO, Partner, Jmatek Limited and Founder & Director, La Rochelle Ventures Ltd
Naresh Kumra takes us to his journey of having a series of unconventional choices. After finishing his Bachelor’s from IIT D, he went on to take a job with Schlumberger in instrumentation, as compared to all of his other classmates who went to the USA for master’s or pursued a job in IT
Podcast
Overview
Naresh Kumra takes us to his journey of having a series of unconventional choices. After finishing his Bachelor’s from IIT D, he went on to take a job with Schlumberger in instrumentation, as compared to all of his other classmates who went to the USA for master’s or pursued a job in IT. While working with Schlumberger, he got to head the research and development of electronic meters and even got to work in a factory. After finishing his MBA from Darden and working in consultancy with Mckinsey, he realized his true calling is to be a business owner. Here, he talks about how to make smart investments, the principles he abides by and his learnings along the journey.
Profile
Naresh has been a CEO and an Investor/Advisor to Entrepreneurs in Asia since 2006, and an entrepreneur himself since 2012. He is Founder Director of La Rochelle Ventures Ltd, an investment firm focused on Asia and Asia-based businesses targeting global markets. He is an active investor/advisor to early-stage technology and consumer companies with over 25 direct investments and is a limited partner in several early-stage funds. He is currently incubating 3 new ventures.
Work Experience:
• Schlumberger, France + Scotland + India, 1991-97. [Utility | Instrumentation]
• McKinsey, NY area, 1999-2006. [Business Consulting | Private Equity]
• Belden Inc, St Louis, MO + India + Hong Kong. 2006-12. [Networking & Automation]
• JMATEK Ltd, Hong Kong. 2013-2021. [Consumer Products]
Volunteer Work:
• Board of Trustee & Chair – Global Advisory Council, The Darden School at University of Virginia (Virginia, USA)
• Board Member, TiE Hong Kong
Memberships:
• Young Presidents Organization (YPO)
• Indian Angel Network (IAN)
• TiE
Specialties:
• Consumer Digital & eCommerce
• Technology Development, Innovation & Commercialization
• Business Transformations; breakthrough strategies, disciplined execution
• Exposed to many markets, e.g., consumer, industrial, hitech, financials.
• Worked + lived in US, Europe, Asia.
• Speak 5 languages, including French.
Causes:
• Education.
• Entrepreneurship.
• Economic Development of under-developed regions.
• Equal Opportunity.
