We often hear about Steve Jobs, Warren Buffett, Lakshmi Mittal or Eric E. Schmidt, who are recognised as the best CEOs in the world.
The CEO is the highest ranking executive in a company, whose main responsibilities include developing and implementing high-level strategies, making major corporate decisions, managing the overall operations and resources of a company and acting as the main point of communication between the board of directors and corporate operations.
It will be dream of any executive to become a CEO of a company; to get there requires a lot of knowledge, hard work, dedication and strategic thinking. It’s a long journey for any executive to finally become a CEO and one that always takes time.
However, Sindhuja Rajaraman is different. She has become the CEO of Seppan, a Chennai-based animation company, at just 14 years of age. According to media reports, she has been recognised as the “world’s youngest CEO”.
Sindhuja is a girl with rare talents and was adjudged the fastest 2D and 3D animator by software lobby, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) at the Gaming and Animation Conclave held in Hyderabad last year. She is also the youngest digital caricaturist certified by Corel Corporation.
Speaking about her interest in the animation profession, she said, “It all started five years back when I wanted to take my mind off studies and do something new. My father, who is a cartoonist, instilled in me the passion to do animation and taught me the entire process. I have tried my luck with animation even before I started learning it professionally. I did my first mini animation project when I was 11 years old. It was titled ‘Do Not Disturb Animals.’
The world’s youngest CEO is now handling three projects: Virtual Street, Garbo.in and First Planet.
Kumaran Mani, her mentor, who supported her in establishing Seppan, said: “Initially she was a little uncomfortable being a CEO. But now she has learnt the tricks of the trade. When she meets a client, she immediately shakes hands, collects their cards and neatly puts it in her folder.”
At present there are 10 people working at Seppan – and the young CEO plans to increase the headcount.
As I said at the start, some may argue as to whether anyone could become a complete, professional CEO at the age of 14. You may not have mastered everything needed for a CEO at that young age, but what counts is the confidence she has in accepting and performing this responsible job. Her positive attitude and burning desire to try out new things is amazing.
This is a quality that is lacking in many people in Sri Lanka, where we rarely find the confidence to accept challenges. We are bound by mental frameworks and never willing to take risks and be innovative, which are two prime requirements to become a good CEO or a leader.
It’s true that the hidden factor of Sindhuja’s success is that she has the backing of her father, who realises she can make it really big one day. But never wait till your father or mother shows you the right path! It’s your own inspiration that matters at the end and will enable you to make it big one day.
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