From VBS to Building His Own Venture – Nitesh Manwani’s Journey

Looking back at the beginning of my career, I was mainly focused on completing my PGDM and finding a placement to start my career. My interest was in finance, so I chose Finance as my specialisation because I was curious to understand how businesses managed money and made decisions.

Two years at VBS gave me good amount of knowledge & understanding of finance as well as other areas of management. A lot of it came from group projects, case studies, assignments, presentations and classroom discussions.

All these things made us to think about situations and scenarios what was written in textbook. It also helped me to become more comfortable and efficient to working with others and looking towards problem from different angles.

At that time, I didn’t think how these things will be useful later in real business world. Whenever I think about those experiences, I feel they gave me a good base for the different stages of my career that followed.

Became More Comfortable Looking at Problems Differently

After completion of my career.  I entered in corporate world. In the nine years of my service, I got many opportunities like I worked in different organizations, in different roles and take on different responsibilities.

My career’s very important stage or point came when I was working with CRISIL as a Business Analyst and later joining Tata Consultancy Services as a Senior Business Analyst. 

After several years in the corporate world, gave me an opportunity to apply many of the things I had learned at VBS to real business situations. I started understanding what the business needed, analysing the situation and speaking with different stakeholders. Then worked on practical solution, because there cannot be single answer for every problem.

I became more comfortable handling these situations with the experience, and I learned that being a business analyst is not just analysing data or processes. Understanding people, asking the right questions and making sure that everyone knows and they have idea about what need to be done.

What My PGDM Taught Me

My finance specialization career which I chose and VBS shaped it perfectly helped me to understand number, financial performance and business decisions. The other part of my leaning did not come from classroom or textbook, but it came from presentation, group discussion and other activities.

When I look back at my time at VBS, I can see that many of the skills I use professionally started developing there.

One of the biggest things I developed in VBS was communication. Because in my professional life I had to interact with different stakeholders and people, understand their requirements and explain everything clearly. In these situations, a confidence level helped me a lot which I gained through presentation, case studies and working with classmates.

During my PGDM journey professors use to gave us different task & situations and asked to think about how we would approach it. and I found my self doing similar things in my career, although the problems were much real and had actual business impact. This analytical thinking and problem-solving approach helped me a lot.

Taking a Different Direction 

Design and interiors were something in which I had so much interest. So, after spending many years in corporate world and gaining experience there. I decided to explore it.

After going through the multiple option, I decided to start my own venture, SpaceArt Interiors and Works. Today, my work involves much more than interior design. I also handle vendor coordination, customer relationships, business relationships, budgeting, cash flow management and project planning.

From working in corporate world as Business Analyst to running my own business was a big change. In a corporate role, you have a defined role and responsibilities. But when you run your own business, you find yourself handling many different things and making decisions every day.

When I started my own business, I realised that a lot of what I had learned over the years was useful. From understanding client requirements, preparing budgets to planning work, negotiating with vendors and managing projects all requires planning and decision-making.

So even after moving from corporate world to my own business, whatever I learned and experienced, it not gone waste.

My Biggest Learning

If I had to pick one important learning or lesson from my career, then it will be that your career does not always go according to you the plan you make because sometimes destiny also have their own plans.

When I started my PGDM journey in VBS, I had clear idea that I wanted to build my career in finance only. Over time, I gained experience in the corporate world, moved into Business Analyst roles, worked with organisations like CRISIL and TCS, and eventually decided to explore my interest in design and build something of my own.

Every step was different from previous one, but each one taught me something. I understood one thing that you don’t have to know everything from the beginning. Sometimes you know at what you are best or what you enjoy after getting some experience.

What I Would Tell Current VBS Students

Scoring good marks is important but I should not be your goal or target.  Try to improve your communication skills, analytical thinking and problem-solving skills. Always takes part in presentations and internship. Talk to your professor and discuss with your classmates as well. Be Open to learning and trying different things. If you keep developing of yourself and stay open to opportunities, you will find your way.

Looking Back at VBS

Whenever I think about VBS today, I don’t see it only as a college or institute where I completed my PGDM. but it was a starting point of my professional journey.

Since then, my career has taken me from Finance to Business Analysis and eventually to entrepreneurship with SpaceArt Interiors and Works. The work has been very different at each stage, but the basic skills of understanding a problem, communicating with people, planning properly and making decisions have remained the same.

I may not have known exactly where my career would take me when I joined VBS in 2014. But looking back, I am glad I had the opportunity to learn, explore and build that foundation there.

Nitesh Manwani
Entrepreneur – SpaceArt Interiors and Works 

PGDM | Batch 2014–16

The views expressed in this article are of Vivekanand Business School (VBS) and do not reflect/represent those of Shiksha.