Minda iConnect Pvt Ltd – Mapping New Routes for Customer-centric Connected Journeys

Our core iConnect platform is really at the heart of what we offer and this is a proven platform catering to all our products and solutions: Ravi Jakhodia, CEO & Founder Minda iConnect Pvt. Ltd.

A fundamental shift in individual mobility behavior is occurring due to ever-changing consumer preferences, tightening regulations, and technological breakthroughs. This shift will expand automotive revenue creation options with new business models such as car-sharing, ride-sharing, analytics, data monetization. It is being driven by new trends in shared mobility, connectivity services, autonomous vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems, electric vehicles and feature upgrades. Such trends are also encouraging new players to enter the automotive market with innovative products and services. To enhance the driving experience for all its customers, the automotive industry is embracing the disruptively changing technology in the market.

In light of the above mentioned, we are thrilled to present Minda iConnect Pvt. Ltd., a leading supplier of connected vehicle solutions to Vehicle manufacturers.

The firm has been incorporated in September 2014 with a vision to deliver enhanced value to vehicle owners and automobile manufacturers by offering end to end ‘connected vehicle’ solutions. Its focus is in providing useful functionality on owner’s smartphone to make car ownership more enjoyable, safer and a convenient experience.

Minda iConnect is based in Gurgaon, Haryana and has recently completed its 3 years!

Interview Excerpt: Ravi Jakhodia, CEO & Founder

Can you brief us about the history of your company?

The origins of the company go back to my working time in UK and Europe. This was when technology was disrupting the consumer and the industry, and the internet of things and connected vehicle was coming up as the next big disruption. With a desire to bring the benefits of connected vehicle to India we started in October 2014 with 3 people. We had an audacious vision – to provide better safety and security to car riders and their families while on road. This was especially relevant keeping in mind our poor record on road safety. This vision was clearly validated when Minda iConnect became the exclusive solution provider for the first connected car program in India, launch for passenger cars by Honda Cars India Ltd. This remarkable feat was achieved within a year of the company’s formation. The program recently completed 2 years of operations and has received an extremely positive response from end users. This was followed up by multiple further engagements with automobile companies.

Subsequently, we saw a big gap in the logistics tracking and management space– highly fragmented multiple players with primitive technologies and poor reliability. We decided to participate in this space with our ‘end to end ecosystem’ offering and over 99 percent reliability of the solution. We were able to help enterprises increase their logistics efficiency by leveraging our technology and are witnessing rapid traction here.

Can you tell us about how your company is positioned in the recent Market scenario?

We have 2 big segments:

• White label solution for Automotive OEM branded telematics program
• Logistics and Fleet management along with Business Analytics for large enterprises and logistics companies

For the first one, we now have largest number of OEM (original equipment manufacturers) programs in the country and we are market leaders in passenger car segment. From an Automotive industry perspective, this is a fabulous achievement in a short span of 3 years. However, we are relentless and want to continue to differentiate ourselves with our ‘end user’ focus and deep domain expertise.

We started focusing on the second opportunity only about 6 months back. With our current successes and traction, we are confident that in next 12 months we should get to the top 2 positions in the market. As our logistics and fleet management solutions address the whole ecosystem of Logistics- from vehicle owner to transport aggregator to the shipper to consignee!

Can you provide brief information on your service/Product offerings and how does it benefit your clients?

Our solution comprises of:

• Telematics hardware which works beyond a GPS tracker to gather engine data as well as sense shocks and jerks
• Backend technology to ingest data from tens of thousands of such devices and process with virtually no latency. We have built proprietary algorithms which deliver significant value-add and differentiation.
• Web/Mobile applications for commercial use or fleet management, and personal use (i.e. for personal cars)

Generally, we provide all three solutions together although they are agnostic to each other and in many instances, we have offered only our IT platform to step change our customers’ current application capabilities.

Who are your big clients?

In the automotive space, our two marquee clients include Honda Cars India and SML Isuzu with others in the pipeline. We provide end to end solution for their connected vehicle programs.

In logistics and fleet management we have clients across a very wide spectrum. For instance, we work with Delhivery in eCommerce fulfillment to Transport Corporation of India in traditional long-haul logistics. We enable track monitoring solution for Railways to Solid waste management for Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System Ltd (DIMTS).

What is it that differentiates you from others in the domain?

Our core iConnect platform is really at the heart of what we offer and this is a proven platform catering to all our products and solutions. This is powered by advanced IoT and big data technologies with a strong data analytics engine.

But beyond that, it’s really our organizational culture and simple principles which set us apart:

• We get excited playing with advanced technologies as well as executing simple operations right on-ground. We have seen that most of our competitors fail in one or the other.
• Everything starts with the end user. We believe if the user is happy we will generate value.
• We prioritize quality of existing commitments over new business opportunities.

What are the challenges faced by your company?

We are unique in having competition with the global giants for Automotive OEM business, and also with a small entrepreneur for fleet management business.

But this wide gamut of competition has made us stronger, agiler and focus on what we do best rather than looking at others all the time.

The Brain Behind the Picture

Ravi Jakhodia, CEO & Founder: An IIM Lucknow 2003 pass out, Ravi Jakhodia comes with years of experience in the field of marketing and product innovation. He has successfully launched several new to world products and brands across the world. And after having spent close to 8 years outside India, Minda iConnect was his home calling. He is passionate about the end user experience and that’s their guiding light for all the activities they do at Minda iConnect.