Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
Accomplishments
Work Availability
Software
Quote
Languages
Interests
Websites
Work Preference
Timeline
Generic
Nikhil Thatai

Nikhil Thatai

Cupertino,US

Summary

Co-founder and operations leader with over 12 years of experience in driving growth and leading cross-functional teams in tech and consumer startups. Expertise in building scalable operational systems from inception. Achieved $1M in ARR for the meal kit venture within two years.

Overview

13
13
years of professional experience
2
2

Certifications

Work History

Co-founder KOOK (Acquired) & Head Operations

Pluckk.in
01.2022 - 05.2025
  • Drove strategic initiatives alongside the CEO, scaling the business across four metro areas through structured growth planning, KPI alignment, and GTM execution, resulting in $1M ARR by FY24.
  • Managed high-impact projects, including the launch of Ready-to-Eat and FMCG product lines, overseeing GTM planning, supply chain readiness, and performance tracking, contributing to $7.5M in forecasted revenue.
  • Led the development and implementation of a complex Warehouse Management System (WMS) to optimize the full lifecycle of perishables (fruits and vegetables), resulting in a 17% reduction in operational costs.
  • Built and operationalized internal frameworks for strategic planning, business reviews, and executive reporting, ensuring visibility and accountability across departments.
  • Led strategic partnerships and special projects, including quick commerce channel expansion and vendor optimization, unlocking $90K in monthly recurring revenue, and 50% MoM growth.
  • Supported the CEO in board communications, investor updates, and organizational design initiatives to improve operating cadence and company-wide alignment.

Senior Manager, Business Excellence

Optum (a UHG company)
05.2018 - 12.2021
  • Championed end-to-end business process re-engineering initiatives across clinical operations, achieving over USD 5M in cost savings through productivity advancements, workflow optimization, and quality enhancements.
  • Defined and executed CXO-level metrics to evaluate the impact of Covid-19-driven process changes, enabling real-time decision-making and governance across global operations.
  • Drove a 75% productivity improvement and $1.5M in cost savings by designing and operationalizing a streamlined MD-RN decision-making workflow, improving cross-functional care coordination.
  • Collaborated closely with operations, legal, and clinical teams to eliminate redundant claims rework, unlocking projected savings of USD 2M, and elevating healthcare provider NPS.

Manufacturing Engineer

GreyOrange
06.2016 - 04.2017

Directed cross-functional teams to enhance and streamline manufacturing and supply chain processes for 3 warehouse automation products, decreasing downtime by 50%, eliminating $13.5K/month in rejection costs, and executing lease vs. Buy analysis to secure a $100K CapEx budget.

Senior Manager Process Re-engineering

Tata Motors
08.2012 - 06.2016

Led the successful execution of 55 capital projects worth $10.7M, including a $4.4M automated engine assembly line that expanded capacity by 50% with a 2.5-year ROI, while reducing non-peak operating costs by 30%, and cutting line stoppage time by 25%.

Education

PGP in Management (MBA) -

Indian School of Business
Hyderabad, India
04.2018

BE Mechanical Engineering -

Thapar University
Patiala, India
07.2012

Skills

  • Stakeholder management
  • Data-driven decision making
  • Executive communication
  • Operational excellence
  • Program and project management
  • Change management
  • Cross-functional collaboration
  • Strategic partnerships
  • Conflict resolution

Certification

  • Machine Learning by Andrew Ng (Stanford Online)
  • Lean Six sigma Black Belt by UnitedHealth group

Accomplishments

  • Winner UHG 2020 SAGES of Clinical Services : Awarded to top 0.3% of 51000+ eligible UHG Clinical services employees
  • Optum I-factor 1.0 (2021) Winner among top 5 out of 300+ participants
  • Business-standard: https://www.business-standard. com/companies/news/foodtech-startup-pluckk-acquires-diy-meal-kit-companykook-123050200664_1.html

Work Availability

monday
tuesday
wednesday
thursday
friday
saturday
sunday
morning
afternoon
evening
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Software

Anaplan

SAP

PLM

Microsoft Powerpoint

Microsoft Excel

Quote

The biggest operational superpower is the ability to simplify complex problems!
Nikhil

Languages

Hindi
Native language
English
Proficient (C2)
C2
Punjabi
Proficient (C2)
C2

Interests

Cooking & Food Enthusiast

Mentorship

Reading Novice

Work Preference

Work Type

Full Time

Work Location

On-SiteHybrid

Important To Me

Work-life balanceCompany CultureCareer advancementFlexible work hoursStock Options / Equity / Profit Sharing

Timeline

Co-founder KOOK (Acquired) & Head Operations

Pluckk.in
01.2022 - 05.2025

Senior Manager, Business Excellence

Optum (a UHG company)
05.2018 - 12.2021

Manufacturing Engineer

GreyOrange
06.2016 - 04.2017

Senior Manager Process Re-engineering

Tata Motors
08.2012 - 06.2016

PGP in Management (MBA) -

Indian School of Business

BE Mechanical Engineering -

Thapar University