Pros
Disclaimer: I work for Sahaj currently (at the time of writing this review). So of course, I speak with some insight into the organization and also with some bias because I committed to this choice at this time in my career. However, I'll try to be objective. Sahaj is a startup that started a little more than 2 years back. It is young, finding its grassroots and trying to make its mark. However, there are several reasons I chose to join it about a year or so back amid multiple offers from several startups in India and abroad. Most of them hold true as I reflect back after spending a year here and I think they have made all the difference in my journey. Bootstrapped, profitable and rapidly growing --------------------------------------------------- It was self-funded by 5 founders. It broke-even very early on in its lifecycle and has been profitable ever since. Growth charts are great. Finally, it is NOT externally funded. And this was one of the strong reasons. I have seen great founders crumble under investor pressure, lose sight of their goal and customers in favor of money. However Sahaj, in that respect, is truly in-charge of its own destiny. Infused with experience but comfortable taking risks ------------------------------------------------------------ Founders at Sahaj are seasoned with considerable pedigree. The aspect that has been crucial to Sahaj's success is their risk-taking appetite. Several times Sahaj as an organization has gone out on limb made promises and delivered. It has made bets and investments and they have paid off. I continue to believe that risks and gambles in long run are going to attribute to our growth. Operates in a Niche ----------------------- People generally make an assumption that it is a run of the mill services/consulting start up. Fortunately, that is untrue. It is a premium consulting firm and operates in a niche of problems which customers are willing to pay a premium to solve. Clients include folks who are aspiring founders with an inkling of an idea of a product to enterprises that are trying to keep up with changing tech landscape and rewriting the core of their business. Most of the work is complex, requires intensive cerebral cycles. I believe, that with growing technology advancement this niche will prosper, as more and more domain will hunt for partners to have a technology-centric approach to problems. People are smart and work with a wide array of technologies and domains both. Mobile, the web, desktop, Machine learning, Dev ops. Not democratic but inclusive --------------------------------- I don't think I'd call Sahaj democratic. I have seen curation of a decision with authority even though the organization is flat without any roles. Some people may see it as a negative, I personally think it is a positive. It brings in accountability and quick decision making. I was initially bit uncomfortable, but the more I have experienced it first hand, more I have come to like it. Finally, it fosters entreprenuership and it has absolutely no barrier to come up with a reasonably good idea and run with it. Investment and support are quick and easy to come. Transparent -------------- There is enough literature on Sahaj's website about this. Yes, salaries are open and everyone knows everyone's salaries, no role (more on that in cons section), Stock options assignment is open, revenue/profit numbers are open. None of the numbers are hidden. Unlimited leaves in a year. No formal policies in the organization. Food in office. Finally, it pays decently well in consulting spectrum. Given that it isn't paying you with money that has been borrowed with investors and you are part of profit sharing bi-annually, I choose to take that over ephemeral big-bucks that a lot of product starts ups offer on the back of a rapidly depleting venture funded account.
Cons
Lack of formal roles can make you dizzy --------------------------------------------- Sahaj has no internal roles. Neither within organization neither within teams. Teams are small and comprise of 3-4 people typically. Everyone is supposed to do everything. Ideating, planning, development, testing, devops and relationship. If you have a strong engineering focus, it can send you in a tizzy. It is great for customers as it delivers more value in smaller team, but it can take you time to get adjusted with the balancing act of all the roles you play. Sometimes it can be exhausting and frustrating both. However, in theory it does sound like a promising concept if you can adapt to it. Largely homogenous group --------------------------------- Sahaj was started with founders who are all ex-ThoughtWorkers. As it happens, so are majority of employees at Sahaj. While the diversity has improved in last few months; largely the group is homogeneous and shares a bit of history together. While the upside is that majority of folks have worked with premium consulting model and are really solid on extreme dev practices and agile way of building software; it just means that it poses a challenge for anyone who does not share that background to acclimatize in the environment and establish themselves.
