Rajashekhar Vodela: Pioneering Design Build In India
Rajashekhar Vodela
CEO & Managing Director
Could you give a brief account of your professional background and experiences? What is the motivation that fuels your daily routines?
I have been fascinated with the act of building since my childhood. Being raised in a family of civil engineers gave me the chance to witness it first hand. Consequently, I decided to pursue Civil Engineering at JNTU and a Master's degree in Structural Engineering at Arizona State University. I worked for Black and Veach in the United States for many years, gaining valuable experience and insights into the construction ecosystem. In the early 2000s, I had the option of continuing with them or starting my own business, and I chose the latter. I relocated to Hyderabad and founded Ancon which built a range of structures, from homes to India’s first Public-Private Integrated Logistics Park.
As we constructed more projects, I discovered that there was a significant opportunity to provide our clients with greater quality, efficiency, and value by streamlining procedures. This led to the creation of Nova. Over the last decade, we've utilized Design-Build techniques to create top-notch infra facilities in India.
My everyday motivation is straight
forward I enjoy finishing things! Whether it is completing an infra project, doing an audit, or a workout session, I show up and finish it.
You possess over two decades of experience. How has been your path to success?What are your success mantras?
For me,a significant change was recognizing that success goes beyond being a skilled builder. When I established Ancon in India, the construction industry had complicated processes. Having witnessed the power of planning and organizing an ecosystem to create a seamless building process in the US, I began focusing on delivering high quality projects to clients within their specified timelines and budget by aligning people and processes toward a common goal.
Our Design Build approach and efficient delivery model made us a strong contender in the market. As an instance, we accomplished the construction of a 65,000 sq. ft. facility for an oncology chain within 120 days, which showcases our capability to offer significant benefits to clients by saving them time and money and minimizing their building related concerns.
I follow three key principles for success. First, start with the desired outcome and work backward, holding yourself accountable to the deliverables and timeline. This will help you find solutions. Second, build a business by generating new value, not solely by competing on price. Be open to possibilities that others would typically reject. Third, develop an organization of experts and utilize processes that allow you to accomplish things in innovative ways.
How would you define Nova Design Build as an organization and its current position in the market?
Nova Design Build has transformed into a turnkey construction company, providing exceptional specialized infrastructure across India. We have constructed more than 50 state-of-the-art hospitals and specialized diagnostic and research laboratories. Drawing on our extensive experience in building
You possess over two decades of experience. How has been your path to success?What are your success mantras?
For me,a significant change was recognizing that success goes beyond being a skilled builder. When I established Ancon in India, the construction industry had complicated processes. Having witnessed the power of planning and organizing an ecosystem to create a seamless building process in the US, I began focusing on delivering high quality projects to clients within their specified timelines and budget by aligning people and processes toward a common goal.
Nova Design Build has transformed into a turnkey construction company, providing exceptional pecialized infrastructure across India
Our Design Build approach and efficient delivery model made us a strong contender in the market. As an instance, we accomplished the construction of a 65,000 sq. ft. facility for an oncology chain within 120 days, which showcases our capability to offer significant benefits to clients by saving them time and money and minimizing their building related concerns.
I follow three key principles for success. First, start with the desired outcome and work backward, holding yourself accountable to the deliverables and timeline. This will help you find solutions. Second, build a business by generating new value, not solely by competing on price. Be open to possibilities that others would typically reject. Third, develop an organization of experts and utilize processes that allow you to accomplish things in innovative ways.
How would you define Nova Design Build as an organization and its current position in the market?
Nova Design Build has transformed into a turnkey construction company, providing exceptional specialized infrastructure across India. We have constructed more than 50 state-of-the-art hospitals and specialized diagnostic and research laboratories. Drawing on our extensive experience in building
modern hospitals, we offer clients access to industry best practices and innovative solutions for facility design, building, and management.
Our inhouse expertise and our willingness to partner with external architects, specialists, and technology teams, further strengthen our ability to deliver high-quality results. Now, we are expanding our expertise and services into developing specialized infrastructure for Pharma Manufacturing and Industrial Construction.
Going forward, what are the changes in market behavior that you anticipate and what are the opportunities that you foresee?
The construction industry must adapt to changes arising out of remote work and prepare for it, which will require reorienting spaces to meet these needs. There will likely be a shift towards developing many ancillary units with a few assembly facilities, which will necessitate significant changes in how we design, plan, build and integrate technology. Additionally, construction is becoming increasingly global, requiring facilities to be compatible with global standards, quality, and sensibilities. India can seize the opportunity to meet or even exceed global standards by being agile and learning quickly to meet the expectations of the process, people, quality, and technology.
In light of your strong experience within the industry, what advice would you give to budding industry leaders?
To aspiring leaders, I believe that we can create world class infrastructure in India by modernizing our approach to construction. We need to adopt global mindsets, sensitivities, and processes. We need to cross learn from other industries to bring change.
Importantly, we need to motivate our people to take pride in their work. We must help them understand the value of their work. Only then will they be inspired to deliver to global standards and go beyond. That’s the way to build something truly exceptional.
Rajashekhar Vodela, CEO, Nova Design Build
An industry expert in Construction, Design-Build, and Property Development, Raj has extensive experience in the US and in India. He holds a Bachelor's in Civil Engineering from JNTU College of Engineering and a Masters in Structural Engineering from Arizona State University.
Our inhouse expertise and our willingness to partner with external architects, specialists, and technology teams, further strengthen our ability to deliver high-quality results. Now, we are expanding our expertise and services into developing specialized infrastructure for Pharma Manufacturing and Industrial Construction.
Going forward, what are the changes in market behavior that you anticipate and what are the opportunities that you foresee?
The construction industry must adapt to changes arising out of remote work and prepare for it, which will require reorienting spaces to meet these needs. There will likely be a shift towards developing many ancillary units with a few assembly facilities, which will necessitate significant changes in how we design, plan, build and integrate technology. Additionally, construction is becoming increasingly global, requiring facilities to be compatible with global standards, quality, and sensibilities. India can seize the opportunity to meet or even exceed global standards by being agile and learning quickly to meet the expectations of the process, people, quality, and technology.
In light of your strong experience within the industry, what advice would you give to budding industry leaders?
To aspiring leaders, I believe that we can create world class infrastructure in India by modernizing our approach to construction. We need to adopt global mindsets, sensitivities, and processes. We need to cross learn from other industries to bring change.
Importantly, we need to motivate our people to take pride in their work. We must help them understand the value of their work. Only then will they be inspired to deliver to global standards and go beyond. That’s the way to build something truly exceptional.
Rajashekhar Vodela, CEO, Nova Design Build
An industry expert in Construction, Design-Build, and Property Development, Raj has extensive experience in the US and in India. He holds a Bachelor's in Civil Engineering from JNTU College of Engineering and a Masters in Structural Engineering from Arizona State University.