Mr. D. Senthil Kannan
Founder
Tuticorin
Enhancing Skills with Pearlcity Academy
Mr. Senthil Kannan is the founder of Pearlcity Academy. This organization provides training orientations in soft skills such as leadership, time management etc. The academy has a mixed set of corporates and students in Tuticorin who attend these training sessions and workshops.
- What motivated you to start your venture?
In Tuticorin, there isn’t much opportunity for learning. I myself had to travel to Chennai and Bangalore to attend such programs. Hence, I started an academy where trainers are outsourced based on requirements from various cities on a freelance basis.
- Tell us more about your training program.
If a certain organization signs up for our membership, a program is conducted once every month which lasts for two hours. We also conduct programs in colleges. Our members comprise of business owners, professionals, corporate employees and students. Normally, we look at areas that need to be attended to, formulate a program where the trainers also suggest topics and then we promote it. No marketing is done.
- Talk about how your business is doing at present.
We are a self-sufficient organization with about 40-50 memberships. We also send out our monthly magazine called ‘Palms Plus’ where we provide a wide variety of content such as management tips, short stories and humour aimed for the benefit of both members and our trainers.
- What are your future plans in expanding or bettering the business?
We plan to branch out to other districts and smaller towns where people need soft skills programs. We are currently looking for prospective franchises.
- What are the other disciplines that you are currently involved in?
As a charitable trust started by four friends, we periodically organize workshops for business people who wish to improve their business skills. In addition, we also conduct overseas trips once in two years to trade fairs and business events.
- Who inspires you?
My inspiration is self-driven. Besides that, I observed JAYCEES, an organisation following similar objectives. They had norms such as age that stated that these programs were not open to all. In Pearlcity Academy, we attempt to provide these soft skills to anyone who wishes to learn.
- Any advice you would like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
Training is crucial but people often tend to neglect it. Entrepreneurs must invest on training their employees. At the moment, we have a team of 200 freelancers in our network and we continue to invite the right talent that our organization needs.