Ritesh Agarwal, who has spent nearly a decade building OYO and envisions steering it for years to come, reflected on the challenges of running a startup. He stressed that while success may come quickly, lasting endurance depends on core values.
“There’ll be good days and there will be tough days. What will allow you to tide past the tough days is your value system,” he said.
For Agarwal, three principles define this foundation. First is transparency — ensuring trust across all stakeholders. “I’ve always tried to ensure that in the early days, monthly, and when the company became much bigger, quarterly updates, board meetings, and every basic thing possible in order to ensure high levels of transparency.”
Beyond transparency, he emphasized the importance of genuine engagement with stakeholders. “It is essential to try and have not just the letter but also spirit of the business conversations with your stakeholders. I think that has helped me a lot.”
Listening to customers and partners is another pillar of his leadership approach. Recalling a challenging phase in 2019 when OYO faced criticism from hotel owners, Agarwal said he responded by initiating monthly town halls. “I ran monthly owner townhalls ever since to be able to listen from our hotel owners and continue improving. So it’s not like every time things will be all right, but you got to learn and keep improving.”
The final principle, he noted, is meticulous tracking. “Remember that you are the trustee of the ship but not the owner of the ship… even if you’re buying a stapler, try and ensure that data can be tracked.”
He also outlined four core company values: respect, trust, resilience, and bias for action. “Respect, regardless of who you are. I and our company respect you. Second is trust — we constantly seek to give trust and get trust. Resilience — we never give up. And the last is bias for action.”
Agarwal’s philosophy underscores the idea that startups aren’t just built for rapid success but for enduring impact — anchored in values that stand the test of time.