CEO Insights Magazine

The rising carbon emissions have emerged as a major long term threat to our planet. Many subject matter experts believe that extreme weather events, melting of glaciers and polar ice, and localized food shortages due to droughts are just a precursor to what is going to come. Acknowledging the dire need for a change, Governments, as well as, businesses are working around the clock to reduce carbon emissions. The drive towards renewable energy and electric vehicles (EV) have been the most crucial and successful innovations to tackle the rising carbon emissions. In the Indian commercial EV segment, Etrio is quickly becoming one of the most preferred names owing to the quality, reliability, and ingenuity of their vehicles. Kalyan Korimerla is driving the strategy and innovation at Etrio and by leveraging his diverse industry expertise and leadership, he has been able to break new business frontiers and strive for greater heights in the Indian EV domain.

In an exclusive interview with CEO INSIGHTS, Kalyan gives more insights into his professional journey and the unique operations of Etrio.

Can you talk more about your professional experience? Also, what motivated you to enter the EVvertical?
Prior to entering the E-Vehicles segment, I ran a renewable energy company that developed wind, solar and hydro power plants. Prior to that, I was an Investment Banker at JP Morgan Chase in the United States and worked for several years in the semiconductor industry at companies like Intel.

After having spent a decade of my career in renewable energy sector where we worked on reducing GHG emissions in electricity generation sector, I wanted to focus on

reducing emissions in the sector that currently is the second largest contributor of emissions. In addition, with increased standard of living in emerging markets more and more automobiles will be on the roads thus likely increasing emissions further. So, I saw a market need and opportunity for sustainable transportation solutions. And through our offerings we want to contribute to the reduction of emissions in this segment drastically .

Elaborate more on Etrio and its uniqueness
We manufacture electric vehicles for cargo applications. Currently our vehicles are used by our clients in e-commerce, FMCG, and logistics industries primarily for last mile logistics and deliveries. We introduced India’s first certified electric light commercial vehicle and Country’s first FAME certified 3-wheeler in L5 category. Our vehicles are deployed at customers such as Amazon, IKEA, Big Basket, Reliance Jio Mart, FlipKart/ Walmart and Nestle to name a few.

We are a very customercentric organization with a dedicated team who are committed to offering superior customer experience. We focus on helping our customers make the transition from conventional vehicles to electric vehicles seamless. While technology is an enabler, we believe that customer experience and operating economics are the key to driving EV adoption since the entire automotive ecosystem is new to EVs.

What is your success mantra and what kind of a leadership style do you adopt?

My success mantra is to remain centered and balanced. This has helped me deal with strikes and gutters, borrowing terms from bowling, in a much more effective manner even in challenging scenarios. This also gives me clarity in developing my long term vision and strategy while also have a clear idea on the things that I want to accomplish on a daily basisso I can maintain a good work life balance as well.

When it comes to leadership, I like to lead by example and my ability to take tough business decisions has trickled down to my team as well. I focus on empowering those who work under me, and delegate certain tasks to them. I don’t like to micromanage and this has allowed me to give ample freedom to the rest of my team. This helps, in the long run, by making the team grow together and also work together in solving complex problems.

What are the new market opportunities that you foresee in the market?
Despite recessionary winds, Global EV Sales are seeing an upsurge due to maturing technology and universal desire to reduce emissions. We believe that EVs are a promising alternative as they bring down the operating costs for vehicle owners and fleet managers. In addition, the on-board technologies that are IOT compatible are enabling effective fleet management through improved route optimization and vehicle utilization. We are gearing up to meet the growing demand and are aiming to expand the use cases of our vehicles.

What advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
This is a sector that demands a lot of patience with different cogs being a crucial part of this wheel moving forward. Aside from that, it is important to keep up with the latest trends, customer preferences, and regulatory changes. Also, have a broader mindset and a 360-degree view which will help you to see and understand the issues faced by the industry. Solving these issues can be crucial to the sustained success of your company as well.

Kalyan C Korimerla, MD & Co-promoter, Etrio
A game changer with market disrupting ideas and solutions in the EV segment.