Sridhar Vembu, the founder of Zoho Corporation, took an unusual route to building one of the world’s leading software companies. He left behind a high-paying job in the United States, and returned to rural India with a bold vision: to build a global tech company from a village without any external funding.
Sridhar Vembu, a graduate of Princeton University, began his career in Silicon Valley, working in the tech industry. Despite his success abroad, Vembu believed that true potential could be found not just in elite institutions or major cities, but in small towns and villages.
In the early 2000s, he made the decision to return to India and settle in a village in Tamil Nadu. From there, he started working on what would later become Zoho, a global software-as-a-service (SaaS) company.
He is also the driving force behind the Arattai messaging app.
A Bootstrapped Beginning!
Unlike many startups that rely on venture capital, Zoho was built without any external investment. The company was entirely “bootstrapped”, meaning it grew using its own revenue and resources. This allowed Vembu and his team to focus on long-term goals instead of short-term profits.
Zoho initially operated under the name AdventNet Inc., before rebranding to Zoho Corporation. The company focused on building business software that could compete with global tech giants, all from a village-based setup.
Training Local Talent
One of Vembu’s most unique initiatives was training local youth instead of hiring only formally educated engineers. He created training programs and schools in rural areas, helping young people learn software development skills. Many of them were later hired to work at Zoho.
This rural-first approach challenged the idea that innovation must come from cities or expensive offices. Today, a large part of Zoho’s workforce continues to operate from non-urban locations.
A Global Tech Leader
Today, Zoho offers more than 50 cloud-based software products used by over 100 million users in more than 180 countries. Its tools cover everything from email and accounting to CRM and HR management.
Despite its global success, the company remains private and continues to operate independently. This is a rarity in the world of tech startups.
A Model for Future Entrepreneurs?
Sridhar Vembu’s journey stands as a powerful example of alternative entrepreneurship. By rejecting investor funding and focusing on rural development, he has shown that world-class companies can be built anywhere with the right vision, values, and patience.
