Dr. Naveen Singh, Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Inery, speaks to us about the company, his leadership philosophy, the blockchain market and the importance of businesses adopting a decentralised database management solution.
Can you tell us about your current position?
I am the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Inery, a Layer-1 blockchain. Inery is one of the first decentralised databases. Every application needs a database, most of which are centralised; however, these are not secure. This is why we thought of creating a fully decentralised database and putting it on the top of the fundamental layer for Layer-1 blockchain – to enhance that security.
Why do businesses need a decentralised database management solution?
Centralised databases are prone to hacks. If the data is on the centralised database and it gets hacked, the hacker can actually copy the data and actually delete it all. This is a huge loss for any consumer-based corporation because if the data is gone, you’re gone.
Decentralised databases, however, come with a wall, protecting the data, thus making it difficult to access and ultimately hack. And even if you compromise one node, you cannot manipulate the data because there’s layers of encryption and a distributed ledger system, equally sharing the data around all the nodes. So it’s almost impossible to manipulate that data, which is vital for businesses.
What would you describe as your most memorable achievement?
For me, it’s difficult to say just one. First, I was an athlete for over 20 years and then I shifted into entrepreneurship, building and leading companies in different sectors, such as healthcare, IT and real estate. These companies were great successes, and it’s fantastic to know I played a part in that. Now, with the formation of Inery, I feel like I have lots to be proud of and many memorable achievements.
What style of management philosophy do you employ in your current position?
My management philosophy is quite simple and straightforward. First, you have to take care of your team as you would yourself. Think of your team as one big family. Secondly, be very transparent, fair and direct with them. Thirdly, prepare them to take criticism in a healthy and positive way while also embodying the spirit of teamwork, after all the company’s interest comes before individual’s.
Why is there a gap in the market for blockchain solutions?
Blockchain technologies are still in a very nascent stage. We are still in very early days of the decentralisation and the adaptability of blockchain. However, we’re only going to see this grow and you’ll see a lot of adaptation by huge enterprises, tech companies and social media platforms in the coming years. Blockchain gives the the foundation of Web 3.0, where the user is the owner of their own data or activities on the Internet, as such big tech companies can’t take our data and sell it or manipulated the way they want.
Blockchain also provides you with security and smart contracts allows you to execute a deal between two parties without having a middleman. So these benefits are really lucrative for businesses and for the individual – which is driving the whole blockchain right now.
If you could go back and change one career decision, what would it be?
The choices I’ve made in my career have helped me become who I am. So, I don’t think I would change any career decisions I have made so far.
How do you unwind outside of the office?
I have a mobile office, that is, my smartphone and laptop, so my office is always with me. But I enjoy meditating and when I get time, I close my eyes and focus on breathing. That helps a lot.
What’s your go-to productivity trick?
My go-to productivity trick is pretty simple – always keep it short and precise, and don’t beat around the bush. I address problems individually, based on priority and impact, by trying to find a solution precisely, close that chapter and proceed to the next. Then proceed with the normal tasks.
What do you currently identify as the major areas of investment within the finance space?
The major niche of investment in finance is decentralised finance or DeFi. But there’s also remarkable technology coming into the FinTech space, so I will also be looking into investment within the FinTech sector.