An Inspiring Conversation with the 24-Year Veteran and Pillar of ERP Evolution
Interviewer: Neha | Guest: Suresh Penugonda
Neha (smiling warmly):
Suresh, you’ve been with Sathguru Soft for three decades now. That’s rare and inspiring in today’s tech world. Tell us how did your journey begin?
Suresh (nostalgic, but with a spark):
Oh, it’s been a beautiful ride. I came in as an Industrial Engineer, fresh and eager, but had no idea that ERP would become my lifelong canvas. I was immediately put into ongoing ERP product development, no waiting, no warm-up lap. From day one, I had to understand how businesses breathe and how software should mirror that.
Our ERP journey began humbly but ambitiously. Back then, it was all about transaction processing, rule-based design, and high integration with each other. But that phase taught me the discipline of structure, which became foundational later.
Neha: From legacy ERP to where we are today, with cloud-native products like Retail ViVA, SpinJenny, SugarCube and ViVAgen, that’s a massive leap. How did that transition begin?
Suresh (leaning forward, eyes lighting up):
Yes, Neha, that shift was transformational. Around 7 years ago, we knew deep down that modifying legacy ERP for cloud would not make us competitive. We had to do the bold thing, rebuild from scratch, not retrofit.
So began the phase of exploration. We had dived into frameworks, conducted tech feasibility studies, and debated intensely. Ultimately, ADF and a set of connected modern technologies from Microsoft and Java emerged as the right bet for us.
This decision wasn’t easy, but it was visionary. It gave us the base to create ERP products that are born for the cloud, not adjusted for it.
Neha: Sounds bold. How did you tackle the challenge of re-skilling the entire team for this new era?
Suresh (with quiet pride):
That, Neha, was the biggest leadership test and it wouldn’t have been successful without the incredible dedication and willingness of the team. ERP is complex. Freshers and even experienced developers needed handholding. So, I wore many hats, designer, coach, mentor, motivator. but their eagerness to learn and their commitment to putting in the hard work were equally crucial.
We built training plans, did mock code walk-throughs, created sample projects, and repeated key concepts till they became second nature to the team. I kept saying: “You should remember this even in your sleep!”
And they did. Today, many of those freshers have become champions in ADF, web services, and integration. They’re not just coders anymore, they are ERP product craftsmen.
Neha (deeply intrigued):
And from there, you led them all the way to go-live success on SaaS? That’s phenomenal!
Suresh (smiling):
Yes, this was the most satisfying part.
Our first clients for Retail ViVA, SpinJenny, SugarCube and ViVAgen on SaaS were like new parents, curious, cautious, needing assurance. Our team, built over years, rose brilliantly. We guided them with care. We resolved teething issues quickly. We made sure they were never lost.
When we saw them going live, smoothly running their businesses on our cloud ERP, it felt like the culmination of decades of learning and evolving.
That day, I felt: “Yes, Sathguru Soft now has ERP products built for the future.”
Neha (in admiration):
But you didn’t stop there. Now you are into advanced integrations and product profile enhancement. What drives you even after achieving so much?
Suresh (thoughtful and deeply passionate):
Simple. Complacency is the enemy of product leadership. Once our SaaS journey stabilized, we asked ourselves, What next? That’s when efficiency and cloud cost reduction came in, lesser memory consumption, higher throughput, advanced user issue traction, all integrated elegantly into our ERP products.
Today, we are researching further, contextual automation, integration of components developed by our AI team, and even tighter integration between our products.
ERP is no longer just about transactions. It’s about business intelligence, decision support, and experience. That’s what keeps me and my team excited, even after all these years.
Neha (smiling widely):
You seem to have cracked the formula of staying curious and relevant for decades. What’s your advice to aspiring product developers?
Suresh (smiling back, with calm authority):
Curiosity is your compass. Patience is your fuel. Doing things the right way, not shortcuts is your craft.
Never stop learning. I was trained in Industrial Engineering, but today I talk ERP, design, Cloud fluently. Why? Because learning keeps you young, not age.
If you want to create great products, treat your users’ problems like your own. Build with empathy and precision. Then… watch how your products and career both rises.
Neha (concluding):
Suresh, your story isn’t just inspiring, it’s legendary. Thank you for being the silent force behind our ERP renaissance and for sharing this amazing journey today.
Suresh (with a content smile):
Thank you, Neha. But like I always say to my team, “Product journey kabhi complete nahi hoti.”
(Both smiles, knowing the next chapter is already being written.)
Suresh Penugonda is not just a product leader, he is a symbol of what long-term commitment, insatiable curiosity, and deep ownership can achieve. From legacy ERP to world-class SaaS, from training freshers to leading cloud interventions, he has shaped Sathguru Soft’s ERP landscape like no other. Like Edison said, Suresh knows how 1800 ways an ERP cannot be made. That’s the level of experience he has over these years. Otherwise, how can a small company dream of having well-built ERP products that compete with established ones?
The legacy he has built is cloud-native, future-ready, and very much alive. The Sathguru Soft team owes its deep appreciation for the dedication he brought right from day one and brings even today.
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