33: Deepak Verma: Modeling Success as a Force for Good

The Indian American Experience Podcast

My guest Deepak Verma’s is a story of deep dedication and drive, of building up on one rich experience to lead to another bigger and more impactful accomplishment, each done with selflessness and grace and joy. In spite of all his accomplishments, Deepak is remarkably unassuming and has a very generous attitude toward people and life. Interestingly, that may explain his degree of success and the joy he continues to derive from his work. It’s interesting because Deepak’s definition of success is built on generosity and being a force for good, and so the source and the effect of his success both reflect his values and attitude. In his words his aspiration for his professional success has been: “The more successful we are financially, the more the beneficiaries of the business, and I like that link, and to me, being able to do that is success”.
Since 2019, Deepak Verma has served as a Partner at Innospark Ventures, an early stage investor that invests in startups using AI in innovative and defensible ways to solve complex problems. In April 2024, he took the helm of EnglishHelper, an Innospark portfolio company. Earlier, Deepak was the Managing Director of Nv Vogt Singapore Pvt. Ltd. (NVV), an Asia-focused solar power developer that he founded along with a German solar company. Deepak was also the COO of Emergent Ventures India Private Limited (EVI), and before that, the CEO of The Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI). Deepak is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology (Delhi), has an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from University of Notre Dame, an M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota, and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. For more on his career path, go to his LinkedIn (link at the end of the show notes).
How did he accomplish and achieve so much? He explains that well in this conversation, and surprised me with his take on the work ethic he gained in his childhood by being a rule-follower and believing in his parents’ direction, which, ironically, prepared him for a career marked with innovative thinking, initiative, and creative problem solving. And yet it makes sense when he explains it in his own words.
Deepak also makes some very enlightening points about us as an Indian American community perceiving our own identity. He almost makes me wonder if our diversity as an Indian American community is not always a blessing?
One of the most inspiring episodes yet, I hope my listeners enjoy it as much as I did, and are as impressed as I am. I especially hope that the younger generation listens and learns from these valuable lessons shared!!
Deepak’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepak-verma-4b2450?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
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