From Local to Global - How Did Zoho Do It?

15-10-2024 03:39 PM - Comment(s) - By Norhannah Zahyrah

From Local to Global - How Did Zoho Do It?

In an ever-digitalizing world, it has become the norm for technology to closely intertwine with most, if not all, of our daily tasks. Businesses are no exception as integrating operations with technology helps with enhancing accuracy, productivity, and time-efficiency. Those who fail to do so risk falling behind in the face of competitors, which is what makes companies like Zoho so important.

A Glimpse into Zoho Today

Hailing from the suburbs of Chennai, Southern India, Zoho Corporation is a business software company founded by Sridhar Vembu along with several of his brothers and friend, Tony Thomas. As of 2024, Zoho offers its 100 million worldwide users a range of over 55 applications that optimize business operations from marketing and sales to CRM (customer relationship management) and finances. 

Employing over 12,000 people around the globe, Zoho has established its identity as a leader in the software industry. However, unlike other productivity suites like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, Zoho sets itself apart through its affordable pricing, easy integration (with the various Zoho apps as well as many other third party apps) and its high priority for data security and privacy.

Early Years

Sridhar Vembu, 2024 (https://t.ly/WhrNc)

The cultivation of Zoho began in 1996 as a network management company formerly known as "AdventNet". By the 2000s, Sridhar and his co-founders began launching cloud-based software services for businesses, releasing their first suite of business productivity tools in 2005 with the application, Zoho CRM. In 2010, the company officially rebranded to Zoho Corporation with an emphasis on such software. 

From the jump, Zoho demonstrated its unique and innovative personality — famously declining a venture capital offer of USD10 million, a decision Sridhar firmly stands by till this day. He expressed how it has allowed him to "experiment with technology, and invest 50% of my money in R&D without having someone telling me where I should put my money", choosing to nurture the company through their own profits rather than venture capital to ensure they have control over the direction the company heads to.

“Made in India. Made for the world”

Expanding Horizons

Zoho was birthed in a remote village in India, yet miraculously, its products are used today by businesses in every corner of the globe. Zoho embarked on the journey of international expansion in 2001, opening its first foreign office in Japan. Eventually, one office became over 25 in countries ranging from USA, Brazil, and the Netherlands to UAE, Malaysia, and even Kenya. Its geographic expansions help to cater Zoho to diversed markets around the globe through the localization of their products in terms of language, regulations and cultural preferences, allowing each country's market to resonate more closely with the product.

After just 26 years of operations, the company's tagline of "Made in India. Made for the world" stands true having over 2,000 consulting partners, like Aplikasi, and a global presence in over 150 countries. These global partnerships combined with the localization of their diverse product range and cloud-based software (eliminating the need for regional physical infrastructure) are key elements for Zoho's "global presence" leading to its "success and profitability" as noted in a Medium.com article.

Opening of Zoho office in Kenya, 2023 (https://techcabal.com/2023/05/23/zoho-opens-local-office-in-kenya/)

But Zoho's expansion goes beyond geographic growth; the company has also ventured into other sectors, such as education — launching the Zoho Schools of Learning in 2005, where they offer a "meaningful alternative to conventional college education". Further exhibiting Zoho's unique personality, Zoho Schools aim to provide more practical education and skills that will strongly benefit those headed into software careers. Notably, Zoho offers this program at free of charge and instead pays its students a stipend. After graduation, the student is immediately inducted as a Zoho Corporation employee, with Zoho graduates making up 15% of Zoho's total employee count.

"Who Said You Need to Be in Silicon Valley to Build World-Class Products?"

Zoho Philosophy and Local Impact

By now, it should be undoubtedly clear that Zoho's vision is unconventional at the very least. The key that has propelled them to success is their deeply rooted belief in "Transnational Localism" — the concept of expanding a business globally while empowering and enabling the lives of local communities to ensure sustainability. Sridhar has repeatedly spoken about his commitment to this philosophy, often expressing that developing world-class products should not be exclusive to urban hubs and cities only and further stating that "migrating from villages to cities is not a good idea". Here, he notes the negative nature of cities becoming increasingly polluted and densely populated while contributing to the brain drain of local communities.

Zoho School of Technology, 2024 (https://youtu.be/ylwkMhtSFUs?si=2SPACVNSluRTPN2P)

This idea is reflected through Zoho's own initiatives, such as Zoho Schools and their Rural-Revival Mission. Zoho Schools' ability to offer free education directly mirrors Zoho's Rural-Revival Mission of revitalizing rural areas by providing "hard-working and hungry talents" with quality education, expertise, and work opportunities that they may lack the means or access to otherwise. Zoho's focus on nurturing talents in rural areas has manifested into the opening of two hub offices in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh with plans of establishing future offices in other districts of non-urban India as well. 

What's Next For Zoho?

From a network management company in a remote Indian village to a global leader in the cloud-based software industry, growth has certainly been a constant for Zoho. So, what else will there be in store for the future of the company? According to Aplikasi's very own Zoho MVP, Nik Khairul, he sees that "Zoho will open new frontiers of non-customers". Nik anticipates that thanks to Zoho's flexible technology and pricing, even individuals outside of their target market will discover solutions in Zoho to issues they were not even aware they had. 

For one instance, Zoho Creator (a low-code application) allows users to fully create and customize applications in Zoho to fit their needs. It also holds the ability to integrate with other Zoho applications, all without requiring advanced coding skills. Furthermore, the competitive costs of Zoho applications and bundles allow users a customizable experience that other software companies lack. Users can choose to subscribe only to applications they need at the fraction of the average cost.

With this potential of an entire "new frontier of non-customers" and the need for businesses to digitalize as to keep up with competition, Zoho's flexible technology and pricing, sustainable philosophy, and evident community support make its future seem nothing but bright.

Sources:
  1. https://www.youtube.com/embed/6KvcChyHHoM
  2. https://fubbi.co/zoho-built-billion-dollar-business/ 
  3. https://medium.com/@tanyaagarwal9812/do-you-know-the-success-story-of-zoho-a-bootstrapped-startup-0ae5b29da169#:~:text=Sridhar%20Vembu's%20sister%2C%20Radha%20Vembu,Made%20for%20the%20world%E2%80%9D.
  4. https://zenatta.com/the-next-25-years-of-zoho-zoholics-london-2022/ 
  5. https://www.forbesindia.com/article/big-bet/cover-story-sridhar-vembus-vision-from-the-village/59833/1
  6. https://www.zoho.com/partners/ 
  7. https://www.zohoschools.com/
  8. https://www.forbesindia.com/article/big-bet/cover-story-sridhar-vembus-vision-from-the-village/59833/1
  9. https://cxotoday.com/press-release/zoho-expands-its-rural-initiatives-to-stay-rooted-to-basics-opens-new-hub-offices-nd-schooling-centres/
  10. https://www.zoho.com/creator/ebooks/deluge-workflows.html 

Norhannah Zahyrah

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