We are glad to be collaborating with Entrepreneurship Cell UVCE which is striving for entrepreneurship development within UVCE. They have started this new series of interviews with Entrepreneurs from UVCE. So, we will be publishing the same in Sampada and make sure it reaches more wider audience through our readers.
Inside the Mind of Mukund Krishna: Leading Through Empathy and Expertise
In an ecosystem obsessed with quick exits and overnight success, Mukund Krishna represents something different: the long game. The UVCE alumnus (B.E. Mechanical Engineering, 1986–1990) has spent nearly three decades building companies with a clear-eyed understanding that entrepreneurship isn’t a sprint, and that the metrics that matter require patience and discipline. What sets him apart is his commitment to testing ideas rigorously (a lesson learned from hard mistakes), his focus on building products that alleviate immediate pain rather than being merely “good to have,” and his three-part business mantra: empathy, expertise, and dependability. From his mechanical engineering roots to mentoring emerging entrepreneurs through TiE and other organizations, Krishna represents a generation of UVCE alumni who’ve quietly built the infrastructure of India’s tech ecosystem.
What was your experience during your time at UVCE , any special memories?
Lots of special memories. I used to hang out a lot at the quadrangle. My name at UVCE was Mukund Krishnaswami but my friends used to make fun of me by calling me TT Swami as I was used to “living” in the table tennis hall overlooking K.R circle.
( Batch of 1990 Mechanical Engineering)
What made you shift from mechanical engineering into tech and business?
My career path was an “accidental” one, driven by opportunities rather than anything planned. After graduating from UVCE and working at L&T, I earned a master’s in mechanical engineering from SUNY Buffalo. My work then transitioned into software development and management through various roles in the automotive industry at Ford and General Motors. During this time, I also completed an MBA in finance at Indiana University. My eventual move into entrepreneurship came about after a company closure prompted me to take a risk and start my own venture.
Can I ask you what your inspiration was to become an entrepreneur and start your own companies?
My career kind of evolved into entrepreneurship. It is not that I had a dream of starting a company, but circumstances led me to starting and building companies as I also realized I enjoyed making decisions, creating new opportunities & exploring innovative ideas.
Can you tell us more about Suyati and SOCXO — what they do and how they started? Which industries have your companies mostly worked in?
Suyati provided Digital Transformation (DX) and Product Engineering solutions with a focus on customer acquisition, engagement and retention (CX) by ensuring a high value experience for all stakeholders. System integration between various CMS and CRM platforms, and a slew of e-Commerce, Marketing Automation, Social Media Listening, email and social marketing, and customer service systems is Suyati’s forte. Suyati’s specialized knowledge in Salesforce, open source and .Net based systems enables it to build effective custom integrated solutions for its clients. Suyati was acquired in 2024 by Milestone Technologies.
Socxo (pronounced sockso) is a startup focused on building ‘organic social marketing’ tools to help brands maximize their investment in brand content, engage their audience with trust and increase brand reputation on social media. Socxo — the core brand advocacy platform, helps brands to ‘amplify content on social media’ by engaging their employees (brand advocates) as trusted ‘word of mouth influencers’, thereby increasing organic social reach, authentic engagements and quality conversions. Brand advocacy is the need of the hour for companies to leverage social media through organic and authentic brand communication to drive employer culture branding, social selling, social hiring and personal branding of employees. Socxly — is an integrated & essential tool for social marketers which helps them create ‘smart social posts’ for brand & non-brand content, with short links, social cards, call-to-action-banners, utm builders and pixel retarget codes. Socxly also offers a unique ‘organic social campaign’ distribution tool to engage first-party (customers, partners, community) data and drive social referral / affiliate marketing. Socxly helps brands make their content more presentable, actionable and measurable on social media.
Goodwork Capital was started by my wife and me. The firm actively seeks out companies with women in leadership, diverse teams, and a focus on innovation and sustainability. I have been active in tech and entrepreneurial organizations in India and the US. You can learn more about my professional background on my LinkedIn profile.
What are some common mistakes you see young entrepreneurs make and what would you advise them?
Sometimes people jump into business too quickly without testing their ideas. I have made that mistake myself, these are hard lessons. So, I would say that test your ideas quite a bit more, especially if you’re an idea guy like me, you’ve got to test it a little bit, make sure that just because you like it doesn’t mean there’s a real need for everybody to like it.
Look for building products that alleviate immediate pain rather than a ‘good to have’ and can be easily adopted by the users. The metrics I use to evaluate companies are cost per customer acquisition and the time taken to acquire a customer. Understanding these and planning cash flows around this is critical for the business.
There’s no hurry to be an entrepreneur, make sure you have reasonable financial backing to support yourself by saving up. You don’t want to stress your personal life by improper planning.
Entrepreneurship is not a short game; it’s a long game. Find partners so you can be a sounding board for each other, because entrepreneurship can get lonely. Cash is king. Don’t be in a position where you need to beg for it. It is bad for the business.
Did you have any mentor or a person who inspired you particularly in your journey?
Oh, there were many influencers, mentors and guides in my life. I am grateful for every relationship I have had in my life so far. In one way or the other, many people have trusted me and helped me in my journey, both personally and professionally. With regard to inspiration, I had many people that inspired me. My dad was my first inspiration. I admired and loved him, for his compassion, helpfulness, and for being non-judgemental. I am inspired by great visionaries like Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Indira Gandhi, Abdul Kalam, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Narendra Modi. I was also lucky to have some good bosses along the way in my career who taught me courage, innovation, and to build lasting relationships.
Do you have any business mantra or a motto?
For me, two or three things. One is to be compassionate in your decision-making. Be really good at what you do. Be an expert. You don’t need to be an expert in everything, choose a field and stick to it… And then the third thing is to be very dependable, if you say something or agree to do something, do it and take responsibility for actions. Of course, it means think before you commit to doing something.
My company’s motto is empathy, expertise, and dependability.
Could you elaborate how you have been involved in mentoring, startup support or any educational work?
With respect to mentoring, I mentor at TiE through many of their entrepreneurial programs. I have had the opportunity to work with dozens of entrepreneurs through other organizations like NASSCOM, CII, Indo-US Chambers, local and regional organizations in India and the US. I am an advisor to undergraduate and graduate programs in a couple of universities. I have also established scholarship funds at a couple of US universities and will likely expand that in India as well. I frequently take sessions on Sales, Marketing and Product Development/Ideation. I have also worked with emerging women leaders in helping them develop into leaders assuming even greater roles.
To check the original article published in Medium by ECell UVCE, click here. Also, if you or anyone in your batch is interested to share your experiences with ECell UVCE, please write to us and we will put you in touch with them.
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