Yogesh Sharma never shies from accepting the fact that he used to be an average student during school days. However, his coupe de grace was his charm, which has time and again helped him in catching the attention of all present. Better known for his effervescent and jovial nature amongst peer groups and colleagues, Sharma has carved a niche for himself in the corporate world as well.

When Sharma completesd senior secondary (class XII) with a good percentage, his father wanted him to become a doctor. However, it was engineering that lured Sharma from the beginning. He went to Pune to pursue further education in engineering.

All things bright and technical
His love for the technical functioning of objects started showing at a very young age.

Yogesh Sharma,  Country Manager-India and SAARC, Netgear

Education Graduate in Engineering from Bharti Vidya Peeth, Pune First job Micro Clinic Best-known qualities Effervescent nature, hard work Immediate goal Direct marketing, not selling, of Netgear products in top ten cities across India Fond of Vehicles, philanthropy Favourite adage My experiences are the best teacher of my life

Immediately after completing engineering from the Bharti Vidya Peeth, Pune, Sharma began hunting for a job and got his first break in Micro Clinic. Kick starting his career in IT industry with a very inconspicuous profile in Delhi-based system integration firm Micro Clinic, Sharma never felt short of vigor for trying challenging opportunities.

In 1995, Sharma switched gears with D-Link, joining the networking company as their service support manager. It was due to Sharma's caliber and perseverance for work that he steadily climbed ranks in the company. It was primarily under his aegis that D-Link registered the kind of growth in the Indian market that every other vendor would envy.

But Sharma believes that possessing a premier designation in a company has never remained his ultimate target. He reflects, "It is not the designation that makes a difference to your overall approach towards work, although it is important to impress the customers, but I believe that it is responsibilities that outpaces position."

The road ahead
As Country Manager of Netgear, Sharma has a plethora of tasks up his sleeves ranging from developing channel sales force, contriving various channel initiatives, RMS support among others.

He is largely concentrating on extending incessant support to the channel partners. Elaborating further Sharma says, "I try to keep myself in the shoes of a reseller partner, who has to very often face problems on the support front. So it is my quest to make partners comfortable at all times. After all, sales is nothing but
management of relationships."

Sharma is also devising various promotional and brand building initiatives for Netgear, prominent among which is the direct marketing (not selling) of Netgear products in top 10 cities across the country for which logistics part would be handled by partners itself.

A people's person
Talking about his much-touted amicable nature, he quips, "I've always believed in maintaining a healthy relationship with every person I deal with in professional arena. I am a firm believer of the philosophy that one should not always treat people from business perspective, but it is the close personal rapport that goes a long way."

Sharma's business and channel associates recognize him as a man who stands by his commitments. Says Jaipal Reddy of HCL Infosystems, "He is one of the finest OEM partners to work with. He is a man of commitments and not only that, the cordial bond that he shares with all the people he works with is very important."

Summing up, Rajesh Raizada, Sharma's friend and colleague, says, "Sharma is a thorough sales person. He always does his homework meticulously and offers exact solutions to fulfill his customer's need, even if this means promoting a competitor's brand."

Amongst his pals Sharma is admired for his fun-loving personality. His friend and batch mate of engineering college Sandeep Sharma concurs, "Sharma is a very high-spirited person. During our engineering days in Pune he was the only guy in whole college campus who was popular not only in his friend circle but with all other groups as well."

Beyond business
Apart from his profession Sharma regularly indulges in various philanthropic activities, which he says brings him tranquility. Recently, Sharma contributed for the construction of a temple at his hometown in Uttar Pradesh and now he is contemplating on building a small
hospital there.

ANJALI CHOUDHARY

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