Obama lauds Indian woman who came to build her dreams

Washington: US President Barack Obama has lauded an Indian woman entrepreneur who came to America 'to build your own dreams and be your own boss' and set up a successful technology services company.

This 'promise of being able to build your own dreams and be your own boss led Prachee - Prachee Devadas to come to this country, become a citizen, and open up what's become a successful technology services company,' he said at a White House event Friday.

'Prachee told me that when she started, she had just one employee. Today, she employs more than a hundred people-including her husband Anand, who is here today,' said Obama with the Indian American couple sharing the stage with him after a meeting with a group of small business owners.

'Historically, small businesses have created roughly two out of every three new jobs in our country. To replace the millions of jobs lost in the recession, we need to make sure small companies are able to open up, expand, and add names to their payrolls,' he said.

'Small businesses will help lead this economic recovery. And that's why we will continue to stand by them,' Obama said. 'But ensuring that small businesses can thrive is about more than just economic success.'

'It's also about who we are as a people. It's about a nation where anybody who's got a good idea and a willingness to work hard can succeed. That's the central promise of America.'

'It's that promise that has drawn millions of people to our shores. It's what drives workers to become their own bosses. It's what propels some basement inventor to bring a new concept to market,' Obama said citing the example of Devadas couple.

Prachee Devadas is president & CEO of Synergy Enterprises, while Anand Devadas is its vice president. Synergy Enterprises Inc (SEI), a certified woman-owned company, provides information technology and management consulting services to local, national, and international clientele in the public and private sectors.

Before starting SEI, Prachee J. Devadas worked for small companies gaining experience in business development, managing multimillion-dollar contracts while providing professional services in training and technical assistance, publication development, grant review and conference management.

Prachee arrived in the US States in 1986 after receiving her bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Pune. Since inception, Synergy Enterprises, Inc. has grown from 1 to over 120 employees and was named among Washington Technology's 2008 Top 25 small contractors.