The team culture of an organization develops a great workplace. It is a combination of values, beliefs, and behavioural norms that we share. And at CollPoll, this is an intrinsic part of our organization. The CollPoll team met for the first time this year in Coorg and had a powerful and connecting experience. From enlightening sessions to random brainstorming discussions with the Founder himself, we learned a lot together!

In this episode of AMA (Ask Me Anything) we’ll cover an insightful session with our Founder & CEO Hemant Sahal who sat to have a candid discussion with all the team members. He talks about his journey, learnings from the past, and the overall road to success. Let’s dig in to learn more about him!

About Hemant Sahal!

Hemant is the Founder and CEO of CollPoll, comprehensive enterprise technology for educational institutions. He started his first venture – Ashoka’s Youth Venturer in 2009. Hemant is equally passionate about learning, human potential and technology; and loves to cook, write poems, and travel.

• Poetry Is Magic!

My school life was all about going out on bikes in Jabalpur and there was more music, poetry, and various flavours in the city. I love how poetry depicts so many emotions in just a few lines. Getting the chance to learn it in a small town brought a great experience of indulging in better thoughts and focusing on something even if for a little time.

I love the fact that someone can speak so much just in a line or two and it just stays!

• Exploration Is the Key

I’ve travelled globally mostly before starting CollPoll and I end up enjoying any place I travel to. Back in 2012, I had a long stay in Switzerland and during that time, I explored each and every corner of Switzerland. I believe travelling is more about getting deeper into places and knowing them better.

• Without Extraordinary Efforts, You Can’t Get Extraordinary Results

Personally, I believe in conversions although I completely respect work-life balance. I believe more in living a life where my passion, purpose and family, everything is together. CollPoll is just like a family to me and I give equal time to it.

In the initial days of starting CollPoll, my family always supported me and made sure that I follow my passion & dreams. However, at the same time when my family needed me, I gave them equal importance & time. So, there are times when you need to step back and focus on other things and make up for them later on. If you have intentions to make up for it, there will be no guilt.

• Emotions Play an Important Role

I sometimes get angry at people with whom I hold a deep relationship because I know they will understand the circumstances. Wasting energy on people who won’t understand the point or situation is useless. At the end of the day, we are humans and we run on emotions.

• Context Switching Is Essential

I am quite passionate about everything. If you really care about something, you’ll always find a way to work towards it. Context switching basically happens by default when you care about the other thing as much as the first one. Secondly, it’s more about practice so that your mind starts working in that direction.

• Technology Is the Supreme Requirement of Education

Right out of college, I used to teach entrepreneurship at some institutions and even tried setting up a design school in Delhi. This helped me gain experience with students, faculty, and administration and know their pain points as well. I thought education is one of the top three services in the world and deserved its own technology. Additionally, collaboration was necessary.

The idea of bringing CollPoll was not only to resolve issues but also to enhance collaboration.

This AMA session with Hemant Sahal was thought-provoking, insightful, incisive and focused on both personal and professional experiences. The discussion was full of lessons and insights. We look forward to more such team sessions ahead!