Bajaj Auto’s Managing Director Rajiv Bajaj cautioned startups against falling into the trap of “burning strategy” like most “upstarts”. “Upstarts are those who don’t have a ‘build strategy’. They have a ‘burn strategy’,” Bajaj said.
Speaking at the CNBC-TV18 Leadership Summit, Bajaj spotlighted the differences between startups, upstarts and champions, highlighting how new-age entrepreneurs should focus on building brands, products, and technology.
He added, startups and champions are actually the same, emphasising that established companies are essentially startups with a proven track record.
“The only difference between a company like Wipro and Bajaj or a so-called startup is that we are startups with a story because we’ve been around for long enough to have built a story,” Bajaj said.
He elaborated on the difference with a line by legendary adman and long-time friend and mentor, Piyush Pandey, who once shared this quote in the context of startups and established brands: “Farak bohot hai aapke aur humaare taalim mein, aapne ustaado se seekha hai aur humne haalaato se.”
Read more: What SRK and Piyush Pandey taught Rajiv Bajaj: Five lessons for leadership