Articles
Indian Execs Land Top Roles in Silicon Valley
The Economic Times of the Indian Times reports on the rise of Indian executives in various sectors around the globe. Many tech industry giants, like Twitter, Airbnb, Tesla, and Dropbox, are being run by Indians in managerial roles. Although widely known in this sector, Indian executives are present in many other industries. Anjney Midha is a Stanford student who is working with well-known Silicon Valley company Kleiner Perkins. Deb Roy explores new digital territory as the chief media scientist at Twitter. Sujay Jaswa is 34 years old and has been named CFO after helping Dropbox raise money. Head of Global Operations at Airbnb, Varsha Rao, is also an investor. As well as helping the majorly disruptive company expand its footprint across a variety of regions, Rao has also been well known in the technology and finance industries since before the .com bubble burst. Although a lot has changed since she first exploded onto the scene, her passion for business and innovation remains alive.
Varsha Rao Speaks at Echelon 2010
Tech in Asia reported on a special interview at the Echelon 2010 conference with Varsha Rao, then CEO of SingTel Digital Media, who shared her opinions on the event and discussed her work at inSing.com. SingTel is the publisher of INSing.com, and had Rao as its CEO between 2008 and 2011. Her role was to oversee the entire production process, including developing products, marketing materials and content, taking care of technological aspects, and overseeing the sales and finance teams. As a veteran in the industry, she had at that point spent over a decade working in the digital web and mobile arena, and now has vast experience in both the Asian and US markets. Before she joined Airbnb, Rao was the VP of Old Navy Online, a top ecommerce business in the US, where she was responsible for nearly 100% growth in the space of two years.
Premier Online Lifestyle Destination Launched
In 2009 PRWeb covered the exciting launch of a new online lifestyle destination. SingTel launched a new division, SingTel Digital Media (STDM), to work with its web and mobile site, inSing.com. The idea was for STDM to build a different kind of lifestyle destination on the internet, for the people of Singapore, and inSing.com was the end product. CEO of STDM at the time, Varsha Rao, stated that the main difference between inSing.com and other lifestyle destinations online is that it is focused on hyper-local content and exclusive editorial, which offers a uniquely local perspective. In addition to more than 100,000 listings, the site also features over 10,000 stalls and restaurants, a comprehensive events calendar, and up-to-date promotions. Fun editorial features include ‘Things to do in Singapore’ and an area where readers can discover food and beverages around Singapore, like restaurant ratings, kitchen gadget reviews, and promotions. The shopping section features tips, and the entertainment editorial features insights into celebrity lives and local news.
Married to a Powerful Silicon Valley Woman
The fastest growing demographic group on Facebook is people over 30, and in her Huffington Post article Varsha Rao explores the journey of connecting on this social media platform. In particular, she contemplates how these men and women have time to manage both their lives and their online presence. After reducing television time, Rao was able to spend more time on social media, make connections, and learn what friends and family are up to around the world. Although she is still not a radical Facebook devotee, she shares that she finds it interesting that this medium helps her to connect, despite her busy lifestyle.
Varsha Rao and Cameron Poetzscher Get Married
Varsha Rajendra Rao and Cameron Paul Poetzscher married in 1997 in Boston at the Copley Plaza Hotel, as reported by the New York Times. Dr. Jayant Sane, who is a Justice of Peace, performed the ceremony and officiated the marriage. Rao is the daughter of Rajendra and Renuka Rao, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. Mr. Rao is a broker at A.G. Edwards & Sons and Mrs. Rao is an analyst for the Policy Management Systems Corporation in Boston. Poetzscher is the son of Bernhard and Gillian Poetzscher, and a graduate of the University of Queensland in Australia. The Poetzschers are retired from B. Poetzscher & Company, their furniture manufacturing and exporting business. Both Rao and Poetzscher achieved MBAs from Harvard University Business School, where they met. The couple are successful business executives and work in New York – Rao for McKinsey & Company as an Associate Consultant, and Poetzscher for Goldman, Sachs & Company as an Investment Banking Associate.
Varsha Rao and Cameron Poetzscher Get Married
Varsha Rajendra Rao and Cameron Paul Poetzscher married in 1997 in Boston at the Copley Plaza Hotel, as reported by the New York Times. Dr. Jayant Sane, who is a Justice of Peace, performed the ceremony and officiated the marriage. Rao is the daughter of Rajendra and Renuka Rao, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. Mr. Rao is a broker at A.G. Edwards & Sons and Mrs. Rao is an analyst for the Policy Management Systems Corporation in Boston. Poetzscher is the son of Bernhard and Gillian Poetzscher, and a graduate of the University of Queensland in Australia. The Poetzschers are retired from B. Poetzscher & Company, their furniture manufacturing and exporting business. Both Rao and Poetzscher achieved MBAs from Harvard University Business School, where they met. The couple are successful business executives and work in New York – Rao for McKinsey & Company as an Associate Consultant, and Poetzscher for Goldman, Sachs & Company as an Investment Banking Associate.
Celebrating Indian Startups
Start-Up India is an event that brings together thousands of people from around the world to share best practice and challenges in business. As a guest speaker at this Delhi conference, Varsha Rao shared some of the learnings she gained over the course of her career with the audience, and later wrote about them on Airbnb's blog. One of her insights was that it is better to have 100 people love you than 1,000,000 people like you – meaning that rather than focusing on rapid growth she concentrates on building a product that people can really relate to. Eight years ago, Airbnb was only an idea, and now more than 65 million people use its services. As the company's Head of Global Operations, Rao feels this proves that a simple concept people love can have a huge impact on an industry. The Indian government is commended for its efforts to encourage startups and fuel growth in India, and Airbnb looks forward to bringing exciting announcements about its presence in India in the near future.
Varsha Rao Speaks at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women's Conference
Fortune magazine covers Varsha Rao's personal appearance at its 2014 Most Powerful Women Next Gen conference, where she spoke about the importance of diversity. To Rao, Head of Global Operations at Airbnb, the biggest mistake the company made last year was not having enough diversity in its leadership team. Addressing an audience of 250 female thought leaders, she said that soon after she started working at Airbnb, she realized that it was not considering expansion to Asia. The company did not have enough knowledge to approach the market there, which changed when Varsha joined its leadership team. After spending years living in Asia, Varsha Rao developed a deep understanding of the market and its potential. She believes that having a diverse range of experiences is important to business.
Airbnb is Going Places Fast
Marie Claire magazine reports that there is no other travel company that is causing as much buzz around the world as Airbnb, and writes a special article featuring Varsha Rao's role in the company. Airbnb was launched in 2008 when two graduates wanted to generate extra income by renting out a room and an air mattress, which is where the name of the company came from. The concept grew and eventually became a $10 billion business enterprise and a keystone of the sharing economy. Airbnb has even made the fashion pages, with jet-setting fashionistas posting photos of its offered spaces on Instagram.
Making Valuable Connections with Facebook
The fastest growing demographic group on Facebook is people over 30, and in her Huffington Post article Varsha Rao explores the journey of connecting on this social media platform. In particular, she contemplates how these men and women have time to manage both their lives and their online presence. After reducing television time, Rao was able to spend more time on social media, make connections, and learn what friends and family are up to around the world. Although she is still not a radical Facebook devotee, she shares that she finds it interesting that this medium helps her to connect, despite her busy lifestyle.
Varsha Rao’s Latest Entrepreneurial Venture
Bloomberg reports on Varsha Rao’s venture Zoelle, a jewelry design and retail company. Her first try at the online retail market was Eve.com, which sells cosmetics and is one of the top companies online. After three years of operating, the company made $10 million in annual sales and had 110 employees. Despite cosmetic industry executives claiming that women would not buy cosmetic products online, Eve.com had 250 brands signed up to be sold on its website. Zoelle, on the other hand, only sells original pieces and aims to be like Tiffany, but younger and trendier because it appeals to women directly, instead of men who buy jewelry for women. In the article, Rao shares that she feels the self-funded company is already profitable because it is offering something nobody else can match.
Varsha Rao’s Latest Entrepreneurial Venture
Bloomberg reports on Varsha Rao’s venture Zoelle, a jewelry design and retail company. Her first try at the online retail market was Eve.com, which sells cosmetics and is one of the top companies online. After three years of operating, the company made $10 million in annual sales and had 110 employees. Despite cosmetic industry executives claiming that women would not buy cosmetic products online, Eve.com had 250 brands signed up to be sold on its website. Zoelle, on the other hand, only sells original pieces and aims to be like Tiffany, but younger and trendier because it appeals to women directly, instead of men who buy jewelry for women. In the article, Rao shares that she feels the self-funded company is already profitable because it is offering something nobody else can match.