Mr. Milind Godbole - I Have Developed the Organization to 9600 Employees with a Revenue of $ 99.4mm (CEO and Managing Director GeBBS Healthcare)



CEO is not about the title it is about the leadership style. My approach towards life is simple - No complications… No regrets… I will forgive but never forget. I have always been an active and innovative explorer in the healthcare industry with a large memory cell storage. Goes without saying that am a learner by heart.



1. Tell us about your background, upbringing, and journey


I am an MBA and have done my Masters in Electronics Engineering from Aurangabad. I started my career as a Deputy Manager – Operations & Customer Support in Meltron. Currently, I am leading one of the fastest-growing companies in the healthcare industry GeBBS Healthcare Solutions.


My journey has been both challenging and inspiring. With an entrepreneurial mindset and a proven track record of turnarounds, I helped businesses move away from challenging situations and helped the business grow off their current platforms using technology as an enabler. I have been instrumental in building my previous organization, the MphasiS BPO business from 10 Employees to 13,000 employees globally followed by growing Aditya Birla Minacs Portfolio from 3200 people to 12000 people in the Asia Pacific. 


I enjoy playing diverse roles from Technology, Global Projects, Transitions, US-based business development and Relationship management, Chief Operating Officer and now the CEO and the Managing Director. I joined GeBBS in 2013 when the company revenue was $ 17.8 MM with 2300 employees. With my thought leadership and vision, I have developed the organization to 9600 employees with a revenue of $ 99.4MM. Today my organization has reached new heights in Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) and now is in the league of a Tier 1 RCM provider.

 

 

2. When & how did you get clarity on what you wanted to do and how did this idea come to you? 


The market dynamics of Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) are huge. Opportunities in the healthcare ecosystem are growing day by day. RCM solutions generate greater efficiencies, reduce costs, and improve patient satisfaction hence the demand is also high. As an individual, challenges, innovation, and technology always motivates and excites me. So, to develop an umbrella organization with my vision and skills I joined this healthcare industry.

 

3. What have been your biggest challenges as a Founder CEO & what advice would you give to others to avoid them?


Being a CEO in the system, there is a range of challenges. As a business grows, different problems and opportunities demand different solutions - what worked a year ago might not be the best approach today. As a CEO, I have a lot of things to handle, including keeping track of goals, making significant decisions, and overseeing a team of employees and the list goes on. But some of the biggest challenges are:


  • Welcoming change: As the saying goes “Progress is impossible without change” we need to keep changing and adapting to the norms. Change is not a threat rather it is an opportunity to innovate, automate and transform.


  • Decision making: Every decision that leads to the company’s success is a combined effort. So every time making calls or making decisions is important for me, but it is not always agreeable to all. So as a CEO my strength lies in my ability to lead and build the corporate culture in such a way that encourages and supports smart, creative, and innovative individuals to take action, implement their ideas, and combine their skills to come up with the best potential strategy.


  • Keeping up with the market: Market research is not something that you do as a one-off when you launch your business. Business conditions change continuously, so your market research should be continuous as well. You should always keep yourself updated. Otherwise, you run the risk of making business decisions based on out-of-date information, which can lead to business failure.


  • Data drive insight: As products (and services) age, sales growth and profit margins get squeezed. Understanding where your products are in their lifecycles can help you work out how to maximize overall profitability. At the same time, you need to invest in innovation to build a stream of new, profitable products to market.


  • Planning Ahead: I believe that if you don’t have a plan, you won’t have a focus. As a CEO it is important to be a strategic planner. As your business grows, your strategy needs to evolve to suit your changed circumstances. For example, your focus is likely to change from winning new customers to building profitable relationships and maximizing growth with existing customers. Existing business relationships often have greater growth potential and can also provide reliable cash flow. I sincerely believe in standing by my clients in their gain as well as pain.


  • The right systems: All businesses produce and rely on large volumes of information - financial records, interactions with customers and other business contacts, employee details, regulatory requirements, and so on. It is too much to track everything without the right systems.

  • Responsibilities and tasks can be delegated as your business grows, but without solid management information systems, you cannot manage effectively. The larger your business grows, the harder it is to ensure that information is shared, and different functions work together effectively. Putting the right BI&DW infrastructure in place is an essential part of helping your business to grow.


My advice to the blooming leaders is “You have to take a total leap of faith. There are no guarantees. Even if you have the best foolproof business plan in the world, failure is still a possibility. I agree that it is an uncomfortable reality to come to terms with – especially for people who know nothing but success. And that discomfort is perpetual. These challenges will arise in some shape or form for every CEO. The journey of CEO is a roller coaster ride, so accept it and move on.”

 

4. What is your view on implementing ESOP buybacks and liquidity programs in startups? 


My management team brings in years of expertise to this organization, help us meet our long-term goals and vision. As an award for their prolonged dedication and contribution, we offer stock options plans to them. We are an employee-centric organization, and we want our people to make money and stay engaged, involved, and grow with the organization. Buyback might be a one-time instant gratification program, but we believe in the good wealth creation of opportunities for our leadership team.



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5. When should one consider raising funds, according to you is the right time? 


Raising funds depend on the growth strategy of the organization. There might be numerous roadblocks that can emerge on the road of growth strategy. But focus on your company’s financial forecasts and do your necessary investments to grow in terms of leadership, in terms of innovative products or services offered to the clients.


6. What does your typical day look like and how do you handle setbacks?


I wake up early in the morning to avoid procrastination. My internal clock has makes me wake up early and ready to take on the day without an alarm clock. Early in the morning, I attend the reviews with my leadership team. Once in the office, I meet with my executive assistant to go over my agenda for the day, followed up with regular meetings on operations, HR& recruitment, Finance, Software/ technology, and Sales and Contracting. I also spend significant amount of my time on learning and development, enabling platforms and tools, and ensuring robust governance.


I am a people person and I believe in building relationships both with my clients and my employees. So, my late evening is stored for building up these relationships. I take time to catch up on conversations and follow-ups. This could include phone calls, texts, emails, etc.


After catching up on work throughout the week, the weekends are typically only with my family. I find that personal development is another way to unwind myself. I am an avid reader and stay updated on current affairs. In our ever-changing world, I find that it is important to continue to develop a competitive edge in leadership and business in addition to working on my personal development.


Every CEO will have a different daily routine. I put priority on being visible with my team, so I build my schedule around that.


As a CEO and Managing Director, I always have to deal with setbacks, conflicts, and challenges; it just comes with the territory. I think setbacks are learning and such kind of exponential learning gives you sufficient knowledge to handle setbacks, address challenges and successfully work through them. It is important to realize that setbacks are not the end of the world, and they don't reflect your overall professional success. One setback does not imply that the project or team is doomed. 


Instead of focusing on what is not working, concentrate on what is working. Even when things go wrong, it is your role to keep a cool head and inspire confidence in your team members. I do not blame setbacks on any individual or any circumstances. Setbacks are learning opportunities, so I always advise you to have a positive outlook that will make you and you and your team well equipped to handle any challenges. Both growth and setbacks are the collective responsibility of the leadership team at work.



 

7. Which is your favorite book and why?


My all-time favorite book is Good to Great by Jim Collins. This book may not have been read by many young leaders and might be irrelevant or outdated for them. But this book always helped me to formulate correct thought process on systemic framework and business strategy. 


The book, Good to Great addresses how good companies might become great companies, and how they went about doing so. Jim Collins identifies the three critical factors to running a great corporation of any size. He develops a compelling profile of what it takes to be a leader of a great enterprise under any given situation. Here he talks about ethics and what composes ethical behavior. He demonstrates the building of a successful business because of ethical behavior rather than sliding rapidly downhill.

 

8. What are your future plans for yourself and your company?

 

My future plan for the company is to look deeper into tomorrow’s talent and aggressively hire people for level 5 leadership. I want to come up with products and services and a roadmap, and disruptive business deals that can triple the revenue growth in the next 3-4 years. 


I intend to focus on both organic as well as inorganic growth which is continuously driven by adding values and insights to our client.


Well, on a personal front my future plan is to retire from the active CEO life in coming 4-5 years and staying engaged with like-minded and ambitious young leadership for guidance, innovation, and breakthrough strategies for the businesses to succeed and spend remaining time in doing things which I couldn’t do because of the heavy work schedule and responsibilities in past 25 years, which includes acting, farming, and setting up an old-age home.