Interview with Vishwanath Sunkari: One of our Office Managers at Omnics shares his background, journey and insights into working at Omnics
In this article, we interview Vishwanath Sunkari (called Visu), one of our two Office Managers in our Omnics office in Hyderabad.
He will tell us about his first steps as a curious developer to his current role as a project manager and leader at Omnics.
He will share his perspective on growth, values, resilience and innovation and how these play a role in his role as a leader of our strong outsourcing team at Omnics.
Dear Visu, thank you for allowing us to ask you a few questions.
First of all, tell us about your career as a developer and what inspired you to pursue a career in tech.
Of course, I’m happy to share a few of my thoughts and something about my professional journey so far!
The starting point for my career choice of IT was probably my basic fascination with how things work.
Growing up, I didn’t have a laptop, just a small touchscreen phone that I used to watch YouTube videos, read my emails and try out new apps.
From the very beginning, I was curious about what was happening in the background and how these applications worked.
Even when I was checking online results for my entrance exams, I wondered how these systems worked.
This curiosity is the reason I enrolled in and graduated with degrees in computer science and engineering.
So the constant question of “why” sparked my passion for the software industry.
After graduating, my journey as a developer began in November 2016 when I landed a job at my dream company.
Initially, I went through an apprenticeship in development, which was exactly what I was interested in.
However, after the apprenticeship, I was assigned to a testing project.
This unexpected change was quite disappointing as it happened for no clear reason.
Instead of leaving the company, I decided to prove myself.
In my spare time, I ambitiously worked on self-initiated development projects and independently created front-end, back-end and database solutions to show what I was capable of.
My colleagues and managers were impressed, but I was still not given a development role.
Feeling unappreciated, I resigned and started looking for a new role.
Shortly after, I was hired by another multinational company and was thrilled to be given the opportunity to work directly in development on an Angular project.
The small team allowed me to take on important tasks straight away and my efforts were appreciated.
I later moved on to a complex React project.
Despite many challenges and little guidance, I managed to master development and team management.
However, the demanding work often led to long working days, leaving me little time for my family.
A few years later, I moved to Omnics, where I appreciate the combination of independence and team responsibility with an appropriate work-life balance.
Nevertheless, I wouldn’t want to miss any of my stations, as I was able to gain a lot of experience in different roles and projects, which allowed me to develop professionally, but also to gain clarity about which working methods and which working environment suits me best.
How did you come to Omnics and how have you developed there?
That was an interesting journey too!
Ravi, a co-founder of Omnics and long-time friend who I’ve known since school and who was already living in Germany at the time, asked me if I could help develop a mobile app using React Native for a client from Germany.
At the time, I was very busy with my full-time job and had to decline the offer.
However, I suggested my friend Anurag, who also had the right expertise for the project.
Anurag got in touch with Ravi and Florian and successfully completed the app project for the German client.
It is important to note that Florian and Ravi did not have a team in India at the time and were working with subcontractors from other countries.
Based on previous experience, Florian doubted at the time whether it was a good idea to set up a new team in India of all places.
However, Anurag’s work convinced Florian and the German customers so much that a larger commitment in India became interesting.
Anurag’s performance was therefore the key to demonstrating the talent in India and finally overcoming existing prejudices that often prevail in Europe against developers from India.
In view of the positive results, Florian, Franzi and Ravi then decided to found Omnics together in India – incidentally as the first founders in the state of Telangana!
About a year later, when the opportunity arose for me because my job at my other employer was no longer as fulfilling as I wanted it to be, I took the chance and also joined the then still small Omnics team.
It was an exciting opportunity for me to work with long-time friends and create something together.
It’s fantastic to see the company grow from an idea to a team of now over 25 people and to help shape everything (almost) from the very beginning, first as a project manager and later as a manager.
At this point, I also have to mention a memorable moment during a job interview at a startup in 2019.
I talked about my longtime dream of starting a company with my friends and the HR manager was very supportive and we had an inspiring conversation.
She even said that she would be interested in joining as HR once we launched the company.
When Omnics was finally launched, I got in touch with her.
Although she had since left the software industry, she congratulated me.
It was a fulfilling moment to see a dream I had only talked about a few years ago come true.
What challenges have you experienced in the transition from developer to project manager and executive?
The transition from developer to project manager certainly came with its own challenges.
As a developer, I was focused on my code and my tasks, but as a project manager, I had to oversee the entire project and balance the needs of the team and the clients.
Another big challenge was to lead and motivate a whole team.
While ensuring that all the client’s specifications and requirements were met, I also had to make sure that all team members were happy with their work in order to achieve the best possible results.
I remember a manager in my previous company who handled this exceptionally well.
He was always approachable and didn’t put unnecessary pressure on the team, which was very inspiring.
I have tried to adopt his approach by being supportive and fair and taking great care to ensure that no one feels overwhelmed despite our high standards for the quality of our work.
Another challenge in managing client projects is understanding the client’s requirements and translating them into actionable tasks for the team.
This is of course much more complex than simply completing individual tasks that someone else has already broken down into small packages and for which it is not even necessary to know the purpose of the project.
The project manager’s job is about really understanding the customer’s needs and organizing the team’s work so that the result meets the technical requirements and is completed on time.
So at first it wasn’t so easy for me to switch from the perspective of a developer to a broader organizational view, in principle a higher altitude, but over time I have learned to master these different perspectives and to switch perspectives as required.
How is the collaboration with the founders of Omnics going?
After all, at least Florian and Franzi are from Germany, where Ravi has also lived for many years.
Were there any cultural difficulties or did you have the same mindset right from the start?
It worked well from the start.
Although I have known Ravi for many years and we are friends in our spare time and enjoy doing things together, we find it easy to maintain a professional relationship at work.
This is definitely because we both value focusing on project goals and work requirements as well as fairness and respect.
Because we have known each other for so long, we knew from the start that we were on the same wavelength and had no teething problems.
I also get on really well with Florian and Franzi.
I got to know them before I joined the company and it was very cordial right from the start.
In the first year, when Anurag was already working at Omnics and I was still in my role at my other employer, I was able to observe how well the collaboration went and how purposefully and calmly they drove the development of the company in India, from the foundation in fall 2021 to the expansion of the team and the construction and equipping of the office.
My enthusiasm for my role and the opportunity to work with such a supportive team made joining Omnics an easy decision when the time came.
To become part of the team, I even accepted to give back my entry level bonus from my previous job to make the move happen.
Ravi, Florian and Franzi are always open to new ideas and give us the freedom to explore them while making sure we don’t lose sight of our responsibilities.
I have never experienced such a collaborative and encouraging work environment in an Indian company.
And now to your role as a manager: how do you create a productive and collaborative environment for your team while supporting individual growth?
I think it’s about finding the right balance.
I encourage team members to take responsibility for their work, which means they do their own thinking and learn to understand for themselves what is needed.
In this way, no one feels overly dependent on others and everyone can overcome challenges independently.
This is important for personal growth and ensures that everyone is able to get things done, even if help is not immediately available.
I would like to emphasize that this is not necessarily the way of working that is common in software development in India.
Tasks are often divided into such small work packages that the interrelationships are no longer clear to those working on them and a comprehensive understanding is not even desired.
I also emphasize the importance of a work-life balance.
If we are productive during working hours, there is no reason to think about work after work.
This helps to keep motivation alive, avoid burnout and have energy for fresh ideas.
Constant learning and creativity are also crucial in my opinion.
I believe it is important for developers to constantly learn new things – this not only improves their professional skills, but in the best case scenario also increases self-esteem through personal development, creating additional potential for professional growth.
In terms of team dynamics, I try to keep things relaxed.
People often call me “Mr. Cool Captain” because I avoid putting unnecessary pressure on the team.
Even if on rare occasions I have to call an employee outside normal working hours, I make sure that this only happens for urgent matters and the team knows that I value their time.
I take daily contact with the team and informal conversations during breaks, e.g. at our coffee and tea time together, very seriously; they serve to keep the team’s needs in mind.
What do you like most about working at Omnics?
What I appreciate most about working at Omnics is our management’s commitment to employee satisfaction.
Our leadership shares the goal of ensuring that the negative experiences many employees have had with employment relationships in the past are not repeated, and they place a high value on creating a positive work environment.
This includes maintaining a healthy work-life balance through fair working hours, recognizing and appreciating employees and organizing fun activities such as our quiz and games session every Friday, team cricket matches and other outings.
By asking for regular feedback, they give us space to actively contribute and implement ideas for improvement, making everyone feel like a valuable part of the Omnics family.
Overall, it’s the supportive and inclusive culture that makes working here really enjoyable.
What advice would you give to graduates who are planning to start a career in IT or are just starting their first career?
An important piece of advice I would give is: focus on continuous and independent learning.
Take the initiative to explore and learn things on your own.
It really helps to dig deeper and understand the “why” behind things, not just the “how”.
Also, hands-on experience is priceless – you learn the most through practical work in my opinion.
Another important factor is enthusiasm.
If you are really enthusiastic about what you are doing, it will be easy for you to overcome challenges and stay motivated.
Passion makes a big difference when things get tough.
And don’t forget to persevere.
Every path will have obstacles, but the key is to keep going and not give up.
This attitude has helped me incredibly along the way.
Looking back, what is the most important lesson you have learned in your career?
Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of office politics and unfair treatment.
It was disheartening to see talented people not getting the opportunities they deserved.
It made me realize how important it is to create a fair and honest workplace.
I am very fortunate to now work in a company where everyone shares this mindset.
We have created a place where people are truly passionate about their work and put in the effort simply because it is important to them.
In the future, I hope to see more companies in our country adopt this approach.
The way a company treats its employees shapes its future.
If we focus on treating people well and making sure they are happy, the whole company benefits.
No matter where I am in my career, I want to keep these values in mind.
What inspires you professionally and personally?
Who is a role model in your life?
For me, my biggest role model is my mother.
She taught me that perseverance is key – no matter how hard things get, you have to keep going.
I believe in the saying, “The past never dies; it shapes itself based on how we look at it.”
When we see our past as a collection of lessons, it becomes a series of milestones for our future.
This perspective helps me stay motivated and move forward with courage, no matter the circumstances. Thank you, Visu, for sharing your experience and perspective with us!
We are proud to work with you and thrilled with your outstanding work!
