Jaipur : Creating a world class institution in the field of computer training is what Keshav Sharma is aiming at and, as Director of CIStems Software Ltd., he has already created a niche for himself. His institution has been chosen as the best run in the country for the DOEACC `O' level course by the Department of Electronics.

Sharma, 36, a Kanpur IITian, who did his M. S. Computer Science from Washington State University, USA in 1984, says he has still to go a long way before he could feel wholly satisfied with his work.

It was in 1988 that he had entered the software business and two years later he launched CIStems Software Ltd in Jaipur and since then he has never looked back. Last year, CIStems did a business of Rs 1.25 crore. ``We are a profit-making company for the last three years", says Sharma.

Sharma's institute is maintaining and upgrading the necessary infrastructure for training in keeping with the state-of-the-art developments in the field of information technology. Already no fewer than 20 centres are being run by CIStems. Soon Sharma will cover the metros.

``We have tied up with Consulting Partners of Rochester, USA, for the development of manpower and software. The scope to enlarge the activities is tremendous as the entire world is now our market", says Sharma.

CIStem is providing custom designed training to some of the country's best corporates such as NTPC, BHEL, Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd., and Modern Group besides RBI, NABARD and UNICEF.

Sharma, who is a partnership with Tusher Kulkarni and Alok Kothawala, has ambitions of starting a deemed university in the next five years to impart education in information technology and management. "I want to make it a premier institution in the whole world".

Soft spoken Sharma could have achieved something more had he moved out from Jaiur in 1988 but due to some ``family constraints'' he confined his activities to the Pink City. ``We have already trained about 8,000 students and my boys have been consistently topping the DOEACC examinations at the national level in past three to four years".

The guiding principle at CIStem is that the students should undergo a rigorous training schedule designed to the emerging be needs of industry. But Sharma is a man in a hurry and believes in the dictum `time is money'. Judged by his achievements, there is little doubt that he is destined to scale new heights.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.