StartupInsiderteampaida
visittoDiscretelogix,anISO
9001 : 2008 certified
technologyorientedsolution
providercompanyserving
clientsworldwide.Itwas
startedbythreeuniversity
students,FarrukhMalik,
AhmedNadeemandZia-ul-
Ghafoorin 2006.
Inanexclusiveinterview
withStartupInsider,Farrukh
walksusthroughhisjourney
ofsettingupDiscretelogix
andmakingitaleading
technologysolutionprovider
thathasdeliveredmorethan
800 projectstoover 400
clientsinmorethan 30
countries.Startup:Whatwerethe
reasonstoenterthisfield
andwhatchallengesdidyou
initiallyface?Farrukh:Itisaneraof
changeandwewantedtobe
onestepaheadofour
generation.Penetratinginto
analreadycompetitive
marketwasalaborioustask.
Inthebeginning,wefaceda
lotofchallenges,suchas
limitedfinance,lackof
resources,shortageoftime,
justahandfulofclients,lack
ofvaluableprojectsand
intensepressurefrom
friendsandfamily.Usually
peoplestartfromzero,inourcasewehadtostartfrom
negativenumbers!Startup:Andhowdidyou
overcomethesehurdles?Farrukh:Hardworkis
necessary,butonedoesn’t
justhavetoworkhard,one
alsohastoworksmart.One
hastostanddifferentiated
andfocusonmicrolevel
detailsofeachaspectofone’s
business.Therefore,inthe
beginningtherewasasmall
teamwhichwasundertaking
avarietyoftasks
simultaneously.Thesame
peoplewereproject
managers,teamleadsandIT
developers.However,over
timethedifferentpositions
werefilledupbydifferent
people.Inordertoensure
thequalityofworkcontinues
toimprove,adeterminedand
passionateteamwas
recruited.Thenumberone
competencythatwassought
ineverypotentialteam
memberwaspassionbecause
onemighthaveawonderful
skillsetbutitwouldbefutile
ishe/shedoesn’thavethe
passiontowork.Startup:Whatisthedriving
forcethatkeepsthediverse
teamofDiscretelogix
motivated?Farrukh:Weprovideeach
andeveryteammember
immenseopportunityfor
careergrowth.Thework
environmentisveryrelaxed
andencouraging,andwe
haveanopendoorpolicy.
Also,fromtimetotime,we
organizedifferentsportingcompetitionsinwhichall
theemployeesparticipate.
Tokeepouremployees
physicallyactiveand
upbeat,wehavenumerous
recreationalfacilitieslike
anin-doorgymwith
modernandstateoftheart
equipment,cricket,table
tennis,football,board
gamesandnetwork/online
gaming.Startup:Whatarethe
futureplansof
Discretelogix?Farrukh:Ourshort-term
goalistobecomePakistan’s
besttechnologyoriented
solutionprovidercompany
inthenext 4 - 5 yearsand
ourlong-termgoalisto
becometheworld’sbestin
thenext 8 - 10 years.Ine-
lancing,wearealready
amongsttheTop 5 in
PakistanandTop 70 inthe
world.Startup:Lastly,what
advicewouldyougiveto
theaspiring
entrepreneurs?Farrukh:Oneshouldhave
anideawhichmightnotbe
uniquebutoneneedstobe
differentinexecutingthat
particularidea.Onemust
alsohavesinceritywith
oneself,one’sworkand
everyonearound,whether
theyareyourclientsor
teammembers.Andlast,
butnottheleast,believein
yourselfandyou’rehalfway
there!Exclusive interview with Farrukh Malik, Co-founder and CEO Discretelogixdon't work hard,
Hard work is necessary, but one doesn’t just have
to work hard, one also has to work smart. One has
to stand differentiated and focus on micro level
details of each aspect of one’s business.SUCCESSSTORIESBy Ali Ashrafwork smart!
10 | Startup Insider
ALIASHRAFIS A FREELANCE
STARTUP JUPRNALIST