Watch your thoughts; they become your words. Watch your words; they become your actions. And Sanjiv Sidhu, founder and chairman of i2 Technologies is one such person whose words, thoughts and actions mean courage, conviction and integrity. No wonder, the man has erected a business empire, which today worth more than $7 billion. Born in Hyderabad, 48 year-old Sidhu, had a humble beginning. Later he went to do his BS in chemical engineering from Osmania University and two years later he completed MS from University of Oklahoma in the US. He also worked in systems and control engineering at Case Western University in Cleveland, Ohio.

Sidhu started his career by working in the world-renowned artificial intelligence laboratory at Texas Instruments in Dallas. Based on his observation that even the smartest people can juggle no more than nine variables when making decisions, he proposed a design for computer software based on artificial intelligence and advanced simulation techniques. The software he proposed enabled planners at Texas Instruments to dramatically improve the management of the production process by taking real-life constraints and variables into account when making planning decisions. Sidhu, whose entrepreneurial skills remained latent for some time, finally broke free to launch a supply-chain management firm, i2 Technologies. With him was an ex-Texas Instruments programmer, Ken Sharma.

Sanjiv observed that both share the same beliefs as far as work, ethics and customer service are concerned. Sidhu's then pregnant wife Lekha too joined in as a technical writer. The i2's solutions turned out to be innovative as it generated measurable value for business. Their intelligent planning and optimization software, RHYTHM, helps companies maximize efficiency, collaborate with suppliers and customers, conduct intelligent e-business over the Internet, and become more responsive to market demand. Sidhu, along with Sharma, virtually dominated the entire market segment of scheduling / distribution.

Ken's business approach gelled easily with Sanjiv's analytical mind and within a few years their self-funded management software company grew into a raging multinational. Later, the i2 Technologies went public with an initial offering of 2,530,000 shares priced at $20 per share. Such was the euphoria over i2 Technologies that within two weeks of listing, the shares came to be traded at $54 on the Nasdaq market. Today, i2's clients include 3M, Caterpillar, Merck, Motorola, Bell Helicopter and Sony Music. The company maintains offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Charlotte, Dallas, Detroit, New York, Los Angeles, Brussels, Copenhagen, London, Melbourne, Mexico, Munich, Singapore, Tokyo and Toronto. Its employees - totaling around 5,000 - are considered one of the most experienced and highly educated workforces in the business. The Hyderabadi tech tycoon, who lives in Dallas, Texas loves listening to Indian folk music, jazz, and rhythm & blues and counts surfing and snowboarding as his hobbies.