Ritu Raj

Ritu Raj graduated from Kirori Mal College at Delhi University, and worked for IT consulting firms in Delhi before moving to the US in 1994.[1] Upon his arrival in the US, he worked for a small startup, AT Systems, and was later an executive with TMP Worldwide.[2]

In 1999, Raj founded Chapter 2, an application service provider (ASP) that supports the business applications for companies as an outsourcing company running the companies' existing networks.[3] The company based its name on the idea that chapter one of the internet was web site hosting, with chapter two being business application hosting.[4] In 2000 the company secured $9.5 million in funding.[5] That year they also opened offices that provided back-office operations, security management and call center operations services.[6] As of 2001, the company had raised $50 million from investors.[7] That year Chapter 2 was renamed Avasta - a name based on the Sanskrit word "vasta," meaning "to stand and remain" - in order to reflect the company's new services.[8] In 2003, Avasta was acquired by NaviSite.[9]

Following Avasta, Raj was a partner with the information technology consulting firm Accenture. He was away from home and his dog frequently.[10][11] This was the inspiration behind his venture Wag Hotels, a California-based line of luxury hotel for dogs and cats.[12][13][14] In 2005, Wag opened its first location in West Sacramento.[15][16][17] The company also operates Wag Store, a hotel-affiliated store.[18] In 2007, Wag opened a location in San Francisco.[19] In June 2007, the company also bought a stake in the Modesto-based pet quarterly publication, Wag Magazine.[13]

In 2010, Raj co-founded OrchestratorMail, and serves as the company's CEO.[2][20] An application that works on top of an existing user's email platform, OrchestratorMail organizes email into a set of categories.[21] Users then use this differentiation to determine what emails to reply to first.[22]

From 2011-2012, Raj was an Entrepreneur in Residence at Spring Ventures, LLC, a venture capital firm in San Francisco.[23] While there, he helped launch SideCar, a ride-sharing app that connects drivers with people looking for rides.[24] In exchange, passengers can give drivers a financial donation.[25] The apps were initially banned, however new regulations have since allowed them to operate.[26]

In 2012, Raj co-founded Objectiveli with Jonathan Yankovich.[14] Objectiveli is a web application designed for companies to set and manage objectives and goals and track the outcomes in real-time.[27]

• Wag Hotels
• OrchestratorMail
• Objectiveli