2023 was an eventful year, to say the least - personally and professionally. It was a year of learning, some acquired through experience (read as mistakes) and others through deliberate and conscious effort.
Goal Setting
At SoluteLabs, we started January with an ambitious 2-day goal-setting exercise with our core team, based on the book Scale at Speed. There were some intense, thought-provoking discussions, some fresh, and some over-ambitious ideas that we discussed.
We finally agreed upon a few yearly goals, only to be rudely shocked by funding winter in the startup world that had just sunk in. Still, we hustled on and ended the year with some wins and, obviously, a few misses.
New Office Setup
We re-evaluated our remote-friendly policy, and while we found no issues with the trust within the team, we did find that at certain places - there were a few communication gaps. Ideas could move freely and grow face-to-face, and thus, we moved to a hybrid work environment. To accommodate the growing team, we added an office space as well.
I always wanted a table tennis setup in my office, and I finally got one after 9 years of starting SoluteLabs. 😅
Client Success
- January started with our client PeepulTree raising a seed fund of USD 6 million.
- Our Marine Industry client, Synergy Marine Group, rose to become the 3rd largest ship management company in the world, and they expanded their presence in the Nordics as well.
- The product that we’ve been developing for Amagi got them the “Content Innovation Award 2023”
- NDTV Profit acquired our client, BQPrime. We helped them revamp and relaunch the brand-new applications for one of the largest financial news platforms in India. The applications received one of the largest launches for a news publication in India.
Migrated to a Private Limited Structure
We started SoluteLabs as an LLP (a company structure) in August 2014, and 9 years later in August 2023 - we made the leap to become a Private Limited Company. This will help us be more flexible in terms of expansion, attracting talent and other benefits.
Company Retreat
We had our annual retreat, wherein we got team members (remote and local) at our Ahmedabad HQ and went to a resort nearby to relax and unwind. The team also spent a lot of effort curating the day, along with the award ceremony that followed towards the later part of the day.
New Clients
There was a lot of activity in the marketing and sales team, wherein we onboarded new clients such as NDTV Profit (one of India’s largest financial news platforms), Deccan Herald (one of India’s oldest English daily newspapers), Prajavani (local news provider), VTV Gujarati (local news provider), Fi Money (one of India’s fastest growing Fintech startup), Emertxe (Education Industry), and more.
Rebranding
SoluteLabs has undergone a brand revamp, and while the new website should be out very soon, we undertook a detailed rebranding process. Looking at details such as our past, existing, and future clientele, our work ethos, processes, and much more.
The new website and logo will more accurately reflect what we do, the work we’ve done, and the clients we are working with, and attract partners whom we want to work with.
Events
Last but not least, work is where we spend most of our time, and we have tried to make it as engaging as possible for everyone. We organised Game Nights, Karaoke, Movie Nights, Diwali and Christmas Celebrations, and more!
As 2024 arrives, I’m personally really optimistic and even more ambitious about the milestones that we will together achieve at SoluteLabs. We have some really big plans for the coming year, and can’t wait to see what the future holds!
Up and Onwards! 🚀
