UVC: Prayank Swaroop from Accel Ventures on the Accel Atoms Program, the 5 Why(s) requisite for predicting a startup’s chances of success, and the one quality shared by all smart founders
Understanding VC is a deep dive on how Venture Capitalists work. In this episode, I talk to Prayank Swaroop from Accel Ventures about his journey from IIT Delhi to becoming a VC. He shares some bittersweet turning points in his entrepreneurial journey which include a missed investment opportunity with Flipkart. He also enumerates some of the questions which are integral to his selection process as a VC. About Accel, Prayank discusses their Accel Atoms Program which has been designed to support founders with great potential, some ingenious strategies that Accel’s portfolio startups have successfully employed for acquisition and retention, and their plans for expanding in Southeast Asia.
In this episode, you will learn:
- Prayank’s journey from IIT Delhi to becoming a VC
- How did Prayank discover venture capital as a complete beginner? How did his missed opportunity with Flipkart lead him to Accel?
- What are some unique customer acquisition and retention strategies that Accel’s portfolio companies employ?
- Why does Prayank give precedence to NPS while evaluating product-market fit?
- What is the Accel Atoms Program? How does it aim to aid founders?
- What are the 5 Why(s) that Prayank asks before choosing any startup?
- Do founders really get to pick and choose between different VCs?
- What is the B2B thesis of Accel?
- What is the one quality shared by all smart founders?
- What are Accel’s plans for Southeast Asia?
- Prayank’s take on the evolution of the Indian startup ecosystem, the pros and cons of arriving a little late to the party.
About
Prayank is a Partner at Accel, and joined the firm in 2011. He focuses on cybersecurity, developer tools, marketplaces, and SaaS investments. Some of the investments led by him are - Aavenir, Bizongo, Maverix, OnsiteGo, Securden, Slintel, Skeps, and Zetwerk. Prior to Accel, he worked at Adobe and Standard Chartered Bank in India and Singapore. He held positions across engineering, product marketing, pre-sales, and product management. Prayank is from Ghaziabad. He has an integrated master's degree in Mathematics and Computing from IIT Delhi and an MBA from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad.
Prayank Swaroop
Partner at Accel India
Prayank is a Partner at Accel, and joined the firm in 2011.
He focuses on cybersecurity, developer tools, marketplaces, and SaaS investments. Some of the investments led by him are - Aavenir, Bizongo, Maverix, OnsiteGo, Securden, Slintel, Skeps, and Zetwerk.
Prior to Accel, he worked at Adobe and Standard Chartered Bank in India and Singapore. He held positions across engineering, product marketing, pre-sales, and product management.
Prayank is from Ghaziabad. He has an integrated master's degree in Mathematics and Computing from IIT Delhi and an MBA from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad.
Listen:
