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In an interview with TechGraph, Krishanu Mukherjee, AVP of Growth at ADDA.io, explained how its platform’s deep understanding of local compliance and hyper-local needs empowers communities to automate processes while ensuring human-centric engagement for seamless resident adoption.
Read the interview in detail:
TechGraph: How does ADDA’s platform align with the growing demand for hyper-localized digital ecosystems, and what strategies ensure its scalability across diverse communities?
Krishanu Mukherjee: ADDA.io has been a pioneer in the housing society management and accounting segment for the last 15 years. Our unique strength has been the strong knowledge of local compliances, and other hyper-local needs of communities (e.g., GST in India, or Specific pet-related guidelines of specific Indian states like Tamil Nadu or Maharashtra). Each community is also unique and has various unique requirements.
Our configurable architectures and hyper-local features foster localized governance with features like gate security, amenity booking, and communication platforms, empowering resident associations to digitize operations effectively.
We have also effectively built-in multilingual capabilities – For example – our platform can be made available in any local language while AI features can translate resident requests submitted in any language to English, which helps better understand requests and faster resolutions.
While there is the capability to offer unique localized solutions, the platform is also highly scalable. This has empowered it to be seamlessly used across multiple countries other than India, like the USA, UAE, Singapore, Mauritius, Oman, etc.
Product strategies like the use of AI, keeping the product clean by not getting into ad-based business, and having robust data privacy measures, including GDPR compliance, further build trust within communities and have helped in scaling the business across geographies.
TechGraph: Given the rise of IoT and smart infrastructure, how do you integrate these technologies to redefine the living experience in gated communities and housing societies?
Krishanu Mukherjee: ADDA integrates with IoT, smart hardware, and software systems to redefine the living experience in gated communities by enhancing security, convenience, and efficiency.
Enabling Smarter Gate Management, it connects with IoT-enabled gates. Many communities use technologies like RFID, ANPR systems, etc. at the gate to ensure security and hassle-free entry for residents. We instill the capability to drive automation by integrating with these smart systems at the gate.
Utility Metering: Smart metering systems for electricity and water enable real-time consumption tracking, cost allocation, and reduced wastage. Integration with these systems enables various possibilities resulting in resident delight and enabling operational efficiency for the community management team.
As for the other smart systems, it has worked on enabling multiple smart experiences in communities. For example – a landmark highrise community in Bangalore integrated our visitor management with their lift access, making sure that the visitors only have access to the floors for which they have got approval from the gate!
TechGraph: Data management and privacy are critical in community platforms. How do you address the complex regulatory landscapes across regions while ensuring robust data governance?
Krishanu Mukherjee: Ours is an Ad-Free, Spam-Free product, and hence it has very clearly defined data privacy guidelines and policies. Our only business and focus is the Housing Society Management & Accounting Software. This has made sure that the platform is able to easily comply with the data privacy requirements of multiple other countries.
Other Ad-based software in India have huge conflicts of interest, as their business is based on monetizing the data of apartment owners and residents. They would obviously find it hard to abide by more stringent data privacy rules of countries outside India.
TechGraph: As the Society Management segment becomes increasingly competitive, what unique differentiators make you a market leader in this space?
Krishanu Mukherjee: With the surge of Cybercrime cases, the use of ad-based Community Apps has become very risky. Whereas, we provide India’s only ad-free, zero-risk community App. Also, we are the only globally accepted housing society management product – having customers in India, USA, Dubai, Singapore, and 10+ countries. A pioneer in this segment, we’ve been innovating for the last 15 years. For example – ADDA is the only AI-enabled Community App in India.
ADDA Gatekeeper is the only Privacy Conscious visitor management product in the market while ADDA Books is the only Auditor-recommended housing society accounting product in India. We cater to all fundamental requirements for Communities – Communication, Society management, Accounting & Visitor Management.
Several advanced features inspired by best practices from the USA, Dubai, and Singapore are also built into the product – for example – Violation Tracking, Annual maintenance contracts, Complete Budgeting, and Expense management process, etc. We further help RWAs remain compliant with various government compliances.
We are also the only organization that conducts regular training workshops for RWA/Committee members and Estate Managers around various RWA-related topics. These activities have a direct impact on the living experience of lakhs of urban dwellers who live in apartment/villa communities. Our Rise High Awards is touted as the Oscars for Residential Community Initiatives, an award for RWAs/Housing Societies for work done across 20+ categories like waste management, sustainability initiatives, etc. The award covers residential communities in India, Dubai, etc.
TechGraph: With urbanization intensifying, how do you tackle the operational complexities faced by large residential complexes without compromising personalization for smaller societies?
Krishanu Mukherjee: By blending scalability with advanced levels of configurations, we empower large complexes to operate efficiently while delivering a user-friendly experience for smaller societies, addressing the unique challenges of both without compromise.
TechGraph: How do you navigate the interplay of digital transformation and human-centric community engagement to foster stronger resident relationships?
Krishanu Mukherjee: While digital transformation focuses on process automation for the Community management team, so that they can do their work in an effective and efficient manner, human-centric community engagement is equally important so that residents embrace the technology with open arms. ADDA bridges digital transformation and human-centric community engagement by combining advanced technology with a focus on meaningful resident interactions.
Our zero-ads, distraction-free platform enables real-time communication through app-based notices, polls, and discussion forums, ensuring residents are informed and engaged. These tools foster transparency and collaboration, strengthening trust between residents and management.
We facilitate initiatives like community sports/cultural events, fundraisers, and volunteer groups through its community-first design. Multiple features like Community Forms, Online Guidelines, Opinion Polls, etc. foster human connections and encourage a sense of belonging among residents.
Automation in billing, facility booking, and visitor management simplifies processes while freeing up time for estate managers to focus on personal engagement. Tailored features, such as multilingual support and customizable workflows, ensure inclusivity for diverse communities.
TechGraph: What emerging trends in urban living and community dynamics do you predict will shape the next phase of growth, and how are you preparing to stay ahead of these shifts?
Krishanu Mukherjee: When ADDA was founded in 2009, Community Portals like CommonFloor and OneSolution dominated the landscape. These tools were focussed mainly on Communication, these were free products. With a focus on Treasurers and Managers, it for the first time provided a serious Community management platform – along with a paid subscription model.
In the Indian market, over the last few years, however, some disturbing market trends have been started by some housing society software. One trend is to offer freebies and allied benefits to Apartment Owners Associations to get their product adopted. This is equivalent to bribing.
Very few companies in India are presently focused on creating a completely secure system where users are not worried about the security of their data.
The housing society management segment in India is expected to reach at least INR 4 billion by 2030. The market is in a transition where Owners Associations are realizing the need for an Ad-free serious ERP tool. The popularity of ad-based Community Tools is going down.
Associations prefer software with a clean business model, like ours, where 100% of business is Software Subscription. Most developers are now opting for Clean Apps that they are feeling proud to hand down to their customers. They do not want to associate their brand with Community Apps which have risks of Cybercrime. We feel that over the next 5-10 years, the housing society segment will become more organized. Clean business models will become the norm. We think that more such software providers will emerge in India, who have clean business models and who truly believe in making a change.