But while the group started with technology incubation, he says the team is now working on business processes, as exemplified by their research on the 'gamification of IT'.

"It is about taking the mechanics of game dynamics and utilising it in enterprise apps to drive user behaviour and engagement," he explains.

"What can you learn from the success of Angry Birds and Farmville that you can utilise in the enterprise?"

So what does it take to succeed in this type of role? "A start up mentality," says Kelkar, without hesitation. "I came from two to three start ups, [with] that mentality [of] fail early, fail often."

"You have to straddle technology and business in this role; you have to manage both or you lose track of one," says Kelkar, a mechanical engineer who has a masters in robotics and an MBA.