Several years ago, I interviewed Vineet Jain, founder and CEO of Egnyte, in an interview originally published in Thrive Global. Here is an excerpt from our interview:

Adam: What is something about you that would surprise people?

Vineet: While this story may not be uncommon, I arrived in the US with only a crisp $100 bill, and I knew just one person (someone I had worked with in my first job in India) who picked me up at the airport. I didn’t know anyone and didn’t have access to a car or TV in the first few months, so I went to the Office (Bechtel in San Francisco) on the weekends in my spare time. I began befriending everyone from folks on the CalTrain, my daily bus route, and even random people in stores. 

Adam: What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth as an entrepreneur and a leader?

Vineet: A large amount of “foolish optimism” and bouncing back from every failure and rejection are some of the traits that have become core to me. I was doing quite well at KPMG (my late 20s) and yet decided to leave that job to do my own company, my own startup. When you are young, the self-belief bordering on being invincible was very high. My first company Valdero, focused on producing supply-chain management software to help companies manage their inventory. After selling, I felt that it wasn’t a great exit. It felt like a failure. My goal and hope with Egnyte has always been to lead us to be a product that customers love, a culture that anyone associated with Egnyte likes (mostly everyone), and a company that creates a lot of value for all its stakeholders.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader?

Vineet: The most effective leaders are the ones who surround themselves with people smarter than them on respective functions, create a culture where decisions are not made by consensus, and have someone – maybe more than one who could one day replace them. And while building such a team, the leader remains secure and confident in their own role.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective entrepreneur?

Vineet: A consistent reminder that almost every day will be a grind, nothing good in life comes easy, and you have to deal with constant rejection – be it from prospects, investors, press, analysts, or folks you are trying to hire. Hence, my reference again to “foolish optimism”. While you are dealing with all this, extremely important to find lots and lots of “pockets” of fun to keep an even keel.

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?

Vineet: 

1. There is no substitute for high integrity even if in the short term you may not get positive results. 

2. Try to meet at least 2-3 people every week outside work with “no” defined or designed outcome from that meeting.

3. Learn to trust people and don’t second guess. Mistakes will be made by all including yourself.

Adam: What advice do you have on going public? 

Vineet: Core business metrics have to be in place like revenue growth rate, have you hit the threshold in terms of ARR (applicable for Saas plays), the rule of 40, etc. Going public should be seen as an “interim milestone” and not as the final destination. Bulk of value creation happens once you are public.

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?

Vineet: Leverage people’s strengths and work around their weaknesses. 


Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one-on-one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.

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