CEO Insights Magazine

The amalgamation of advanced technology across various sectors has evolved our thought processes and has changed our way of life. While the traditional educational system in India has always favored the face-to-face learning process, over the years, people and educational institutes have got more familiarized with the online learning process. The online learning process has further been adopted during the pandemic, with people becoming more accustomed to learning through their phones or laptops over the internet. After being involved in the educational sector for years, Rohit Kumar finally found a gap in the industry in terms of people favoring their mobile more than other tools for learning. After realizing that the future of content, to a great extent, will be on mobile, he started Chapter Apps, a mobile-based world-class platform for engaging and developing professional learners, in 2014. Under his able leadership, Chapter Apps has gained momentum over the years and has already trained more than a million people over the platform.

In an exclusive interview with CEO Insights, Rohit shares his early educational background and overall professional experience, the underlying idea behind starting Chapter Apps, and much more:

Tell us about your professional background and experiences. What inspired you to establish Chapter Apps?
During my engineering at IIT Roorkee, even though my degree was in Electronics, I realized my interest was more in Computer Science and programming. I started my career in software development as the first hire of Andersen Consulting in the New Delhi office and worked for a few years before I went to do my MBA at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Later, I joined BCG in Chicago and worked in Strategy Consulting. I realized I was missing technology again, and that made me move to Oracle in Silicon Valley as a Senior Product Manager, where I worked in the product group for Oracle's first internet product called the Application Server Group. After five and a half years at Oracle, I

returned to India and joined Wipro, where I worked for a few years before joining Microsoft. I got interested in education during my Microsoft days which was also part of the responsibility that I was handling.

I realized that to make a true impact on people, you need to build something that engages students. That’s when the journey started and it took me around ten years to identify a gap in the market that no one was filling at the time. During my days as the Managing Director at Elsevier Health Sciences, the largest scientific and medical publisher in the world, we were building a software product that I conceived to reach students with digital content in the classroom. Yet, students preferred to consume this content back in their dorm rooms at night. That’s when I realized people would learn more on mobile than on any other platform because of various factors such as internet issues, and students’ preferences for offline courses. People also preferred mobile as most of them didn’t have a laptop and had their mobile available with them all the time. After realizing that the future of content to a great extent will be on mobile, I left my job and started Chapter Apps.

Could you talk about the learnings and experience that you acquired from the IIT Roorkee and how you apply them in your current role?
I learned some valuable lessons during my days at IIT Roorkee. IIT Roorkee gave me the insight to build some thing that will be useful to others. The Institute also gave us the ability to do our programming. Even my summer internship allowed me to learn programming on my own. I also built some software applications during my IIT days, which boosted my confidence and gave me clarity regarding my future career plans. By my final year, I had figured out what I wanted to do, and I'm still doing that even after 30 years of graduation.

How would you define Chapter Apps as an organization and its position in the market? Shed some light on your leadership approach. What are the guidelines and methodologies you follow as a leader to lead your team?
Chapter Apps is a world class platform for engaging and

developing professional learners. We help organizations engage and train their work force, and enable them to perform better in their jobs. While the overall training operation used to be done in the class room, nowadays, especially after the pandemic, it gets done online. While we started before the pandemic, the idea has gained momentum after the pandemic. Post pandemic it is now about blended learning.

As a leader, I am a man of my word and value integrity a lot. Throughout my professional experience, I have observed some managers going back on their words without any regret. Honesty is important to me, and I make sure that I am honest with everyone. I am also very approachable as a leader. Anyone can come and discuss their issues, and I help them resolve the issue. I am also clear with everybody regarding our goals and show them a path to a better future.So being approachable and open, integrity, humility, and clarity are the key aspects of my leadership style.

Based on your experiences, what would be your advice to entrepreneurs starting a new in this domain?
Be clear about the mission and what you want to achieve as an entrepreneur that will keep you motivated through the ups and downs. It always comes down to the goals that you're setting for yourself. If your mission is to just make money, you might find yourself leaving the entrepreneurship journey with good timing, but perhaps a job left unfinished. How ever, if your mission is to make a positive impact, you will be able to stick through the ups and downs. Being an entrepreneur is unlike anything else that I have ever experienced. As an entrepreneur, you also need to be flexible. Whether it's a job or an entrepreneurial venture, find out what you want to do and work on developing your skillsets.

Rohit Kumar, Founder & CEO, Chapter Apps
Rohit Kumar is a seasoned technology executive with years of experience in various sectors in many reputed organizations and is the founder & CEO of Chapter Apps, a mobile-based world class platform for engaging and developing professional learners. A staunch believer in honesty and integrity, Rohit has done his Engineering from IIT Roorkee and his MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Favorite Cuisine: North Indian, Turkish/ Middle Eastern
Favorite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Hobbies: Reading, Watching Sports, Playing Tennis, Travelling
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