Garima Sahai is a United Nations and Forbes recognised social entrepreneur in public health. She is the regional head (Asia) of strategic partnerships at Medtronic LABS, where she oversees the expansion of all their social businesses through government and large-scale institutional partnerships. She previously co-founded Svadha, a social enterprise driving an ‘unorganised’ rural WASH market to a ‘solution-driven’ organised sector. Garima is an economist by training and has more than 13 years of global multisectoral experience in impact measurement, strategy, and business development.
Excerpt:
“When I thought hard about the reason for these misalignments, I realised it was because I hadn’t done sufficient due diligence around the ‘adaptive aspects’ of the partnership with my co-founder—aspects which go beyond technical compatibility and revolve around ‘how’ we achieve our long-term vision. In hindsight, I feel that going ahead with my business idea on my own would have been a better route to take. I could have partnered when the road map was clearer, or when I could identify tangible gaps that needed to be filled. It would have been a better strategy to bring on a business partner after having tested our ability to work together for some time, and having assessed the key aspects of the partnership.”
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