K. Ravichandran, Chief Technology Officer, Ascend Telecom

An engineering graduate, K. Ravichandran, chief technology officer, Ascend Telecom, started his career with the Indian Railway Service. He served in senior management positions in Western Railway and Konkan Railway for 10 years before moving to the telecom sector. Thereafter, he worked with companies like Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Limited, Tata Communications and Telsima Communications.

His stint with Ascend Telecom began four years ago, where he is currently the chief technology officer. ?The biggest challenge before the industry is to achieve asset management efficiency,? he says. This can be achieved through energy optimisation and the adoption of new and innovative technologies, he says. However, technology transformation requires high capex and the majority of the telecom infrastructure providers do not have the required funds to undertake technological upgradation.

On its part, Ascend Telecom has been continuously experimenting with new and sustainable technologies, says Ravichandran. At present, 5 per cent of the telecom sites managed by the company do not use diesel generators for their daily operations. Also more than 25 per cent of the sites handled by it have achieved optimal air conditioning costs. ?We have deployed a number of renewable solutions to power telecom sites. Now, we are in a position to scale-up these solutions. Our aim is to power 20 per cent of our sites using renewable energy solutions in 2013,? he says.

Ravichandran believes that the telecom industry has not been able to recover from the impact of the Supreme Court order cancelling a number of 2G licences in 2012. He points out that the industry is unlikely to see the growth rate it witnessed in 2007-08. However, he is optimistic that going forward, all industry stakeholders will experience realistic and profitable growth. The roll-out of renewable energy-led solutions will be the key focus areas for the players.

He counts his grass-roots experience, hands-on operating style and analytical approach to decision-making as his key strengths. As a manager, he is approachable and open to ideas from his team and colleagues. He believes in giving due credit to others for their achievements and ensures people take ownership for their decisions.