Previous Occupation: Business Analyst, Amdocs

Present Occupation: Program Manager, Microsoft
Sector: Technology
Work Experience: 7 years (5 years before ISB)
Interests – Professional/Personal:
Technology, Advanced Mathematics, Applied Physics, Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Algorithmic Trading and Leadership

Can you tell us a little about your family background/ history?
My father is a government servant and my mother is a professor.

Briefly describe your personal and professional achievements (including recent awards/ special projects).
Among my recent professional achievements is that I shipped Microsoft Lync for Windows Phone 8. In my previous job, I was recognized as a "Promoter of Amdocs value: Excellence." On the personal side, I am an endurance runner and I’ve run the half-marathon at SCMM multiple times. I am also an amateur photographer with work licensed to travel guides.

Tell us about your profile pre-ISB, and recap your professional life after ISB including your career progression.
Before ISB, I was consulting with Amdocs' clients across North America and South East Asia about Customer, Order and Billing Management products of Amdocs. Post ISB, I joined Microsoft as a Program Manager in the Office division.

Describe your fondest memory of ISB.
Watching TV shows and gaming until dinner the night before an exam, then studying through the night and walking into the exam room ready to pass out the following morning. When one is at most two weeks away from an exam at any point of time, one begins to see exams as a part of life, demanding nothing out of the ordinary.

In your personal life, how have you changed post-ISB? Do you see yourself doing something differently because you went to ISB? What has left a lasting impression?
I have become more accommodating of differences in perspective - more aware that in many situations, there may be multiple perspectives that are equally justified.

How do you think ISB has contributed to your career growth?
It helped me achieve my short-term goal of managing a product end to end, in order to move towards being a technology entrepreneur who draws from that experience.

If you have to sum up ISB in one word?
Evocative

What was the main highlight of your programme at the ISB?
Making a couple of lifelong friends.

Word of advice for the current class?
Focus on what you truly enjoy doing and learn whatever interests you.

What was your favourite course/ class at ISB and why?
Professor Vasant Dhar’s Algorithmic Trading class. Being a computer science engineer with a strong research interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Analytics/ Machine Learning, I enjoyed the course through and through.

Was there anyone during your time at ISB who acted as a mentor for you? Tell us a little about this relationship and why it was valuable.
My elder brother. He helped me retain my sanity during that time by sharing his experiences from his business school days and kept me grounded.

What are the areas in which you can contribute to ISB?
Some areas would be orientation of new classes and résumé/ interview preparation. Hopefully, I could help with placements and endowment too someday.

What do you enjoy most about your current career position?
Working on cutting-edge technology in communications.

What is the next new thing in the industry or vertical you are working in? Any trends that you can see?
The transformation of computing to mobility. How the die is cast eventually is too hard to predict, but in five years, I anticipate to be in a post-desktop world.

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