Born in the city of Jodhpur, Mohit Baheti always had a dream to become a businessman. He completed his higher education in the field of commerce and went on to qualify as a CA and CS. He always had a natural interest in the commerce related subjects, especially financial management, economics and costing.
Talking about the times when he completed CA qualification, Mohit states, “As you learn with time, the real journey begins post-qualification, especially, when you have the dilemma to choose between a job and starting up your own business. Starting a business not only requires a good capital investment but also thorough knowledge of the field, interestingly, both of which you can gain from a job at that stage of your life, so going for a job was the prudent decision to make.”
Steep learning curve
He moved to Mumbai and started his career in a UK based MNC GlobeOp Financial Services, the company was listed on the London Stock Exchange and offered hedge fund accounting services. There he witnessed an extensive use of technology to carry out the accounting, reconciling and reporting processes. The technological prowess of the company was such that it was later acquired by a US based IT company named SS&C. He remembers “while most of the employees were focussed on how the acquisition will affect their work schedules, perks etc and how the automation was hindering their quest for practical experience; I saw immense possibilities in the ways IT can be used in improving financial processes.”
The next 2 employments at Quantum Mutual Fund and ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund allowed to implement the learnings from the first job and further strengthen the thoughts about integration of finance and technology. He adds, “I was addicted to automating the manual processes, thereby saving time and errors. I felt like I had found my passion”. It was after 3 long years that he learnt about an opportunity with Capium, a UK based accounting software company.
Capium’sstartup culture offered him the opportunity to work across departments and (for the first time ever) realise the true potential. He worked in areas like R&D for software development, software support including help text and videos, demos and even sales. Explaining the stint at Capium, he adds “It was the best ever work experience from all angles, the learning, the support from across departments and the top management was pivotal.”
From career to passion
Finally, time had come to realise the business dream. In 2018, Mohit co-founded Online Account Filing Limited, where he currently serves as the Director of Operations. It’s a London based accounting firm catering to micro and small businesses. With all the learning and energy put together, and an immensely capable founding team, Online Account Filing turned out to be a massive success. With more than 8,000 customers it’s the fastest growing accounting firm in UK, in terms of the number of clients. It’s also rank 1 accounting firm on Trust Pilot, an independent business rating platform.
The secret for a successful career
When asked about the secret sauce for his success, Mohit listed down the below points that young finance professionals need to keep in mind:
- Capable mentorship: like any other industry, the finance industry is also so vast and ever evolving, that its neither feasible nor advisable to learn from your own mistakes. You need someone who is competent and experienced enough to show you the right path to success.
- In your twenties, you shall approach any work at hand with a positive approach. Do the best that you can in any given job, don’t do much of cost benefit analysis. If you don’t like what you do, or feel that you’re not getting rewarded for the work you’re doing, either switch the job or work even harder, as you never know which skill will be put to use at what stage in your career. Until you find the job you’re passionate about, don’t take the current work at hand for granted, there is always something to learn.
- By the time you turn 30, you must have a clear direction and the next 10 years will define the quantum of your success. This is the time when you have all necessary experience, as well as, the best of energy to accomplish your goals.
- For success, preparation always precedes opportunity, so don’t sit idle while waiting for an opportunity. If you direct all your efforts to achieve something, opportunity is bound to come your way.