Breaking barriers in the healthcare industry

Shikha Suman, Founder – Medimojo

Shikha Suman was one of the first amongst her family to attend convent education and probably one of the first in her community, to start her own business! Native of a town in Bihar (India), by the time Shikha completed her PhD in Technology Management from IIT Kanpur, she was very clear about her future plans – she wanted to do something on her own. Her entrepreneurial journey started from a sampling research to founding Medimojo, a Digital Health Assistant in 2015.

Shikha was always excited about playing with numbers and keen to use it to drag out an abstract report that can help companies grow. This prompted her to get into research that can provide niche scientific methodology and not just data collection service to clients unlike many other research companies. That is the genesis of ‘Sampling Research’ — a company which Shikha founded single-handedly in 2010 and is currently among one top ten Market Research companies in India. (www.samplingresearch.com)

While Sampling Research grew leaps and bound, Shikha was unsure about its scale and wanted to do something in Healthcare space, from the consumer side. She started looking at the challenges Indian patients face and came up with a solution through Medimojo in 2015.

Medimojo is a Digital health assistant to effectively manage one’s health by digitizing health records, presenting visually analyzed reports and connecting with one’s doctor from anywhere, any device, all for FREE. Medimojo is improving health outcomes by early detection and evidence based treatment. (www.medimojo.in)

Apart from working on startups, Shikha loves travelling and cooking. She is a homemaker and proudly calls herself a “mompreneur”. Her husband teaches at IIT Delhi in Management department and they have a 11 yr old daughter.

High point in career

“For me, the high points are my team and the consumers. It’s so satisfying to have team members place their trust in me for the growth in their career. I feel so happy to see them grow. On the other hand, when my consumers come and tell me how the product is solving their biggest pain point around their family’s health, nothing compares to that high.”

Most challenging assignment so far

“Biggest challenge we face is consumer education. Market is still not matured and ready and the product is futuristic. The need is there but it’s not an urgency for people. Getting them to platform and getting them hooked is the biggest challenge for us. Making a mark in someone’s life is not easy.”

Greatest inspiration

“My father is definitely my greatest inspiration. We belong to a rural place and most of the men pick up petty jobs to earn and support their family. My father went against all odds and jumped into entrepreneurship and built business from scratch when he didn’t have any means and support. This is awe inspiring for me. Secondly, he went against all odds and completely supported me in my work and my life, when daughters do not even go out of home to study.”

Most important milestone in life

“Life has been fulfilling. I married the person of my choice and I have a very well balanced work-life. At professional front, biggest milestone so far is to see Medimojo coming to shape slowly and steadily. This is a journey where I experiment and learn every day and this keeps me motivated and grounded. I have the greatest team that I can ask for. They are nurturing mine and their dream and we definitely have a long way together.”

Women are the better halves. What does it mean?

“I would not like to say “have we moved beyond this” as this would mean it is a goal for women. Rather I would say that women are proud to be better halves, anything cannot run on single wheel and women completes one half, as much as men does to the other half. It’s about bringing the best from your partner and support each other in the ups and downs of life.”