Previous Occupation: Senior Analyst, TresVista Financial Services
Present Occupation: Consultant, Arthur D. Little
Sector: Management Consulting
Work Experience: 5 years
Interests – Professional/Personal: 
Reading non-fiction, especially works by Nicholas Talim Taleb, Steven Levitt, and Malcom Gladwell; listening to music by Kishore Kumar, Mohd. Rafi, and RD Burman; and travelling to new countries (Personal goal of travelling to 27 countries by the age of 27 - 17 completed)

Can you tell us a little about your family background/history?
I was born in Jallandhar, Punjab and brought up in Mumbai. For those who are from Mumbai or have known a Punjabi or a Jain, the dichotomy of my existence for most people is that I am a Punjabi Jain. Picture the mixture of Patiala peg minus the tandoori chicken and dal-chawal minus the onions. Agnostic in terms of belief system, my family consists of my retired father, home-maker mother, and a younger brother who is currently working as an assistant ad film director

Briefly describe your personal and professional achievements (including recent awards\special projects)
Instead of talking about multiple achievements, I would like to focus on one which is in progress – I am currently working on launch of Next Generation Broadband Network (NGBN) in one of the largest economies in Middle East. At the completion of this project, I am sure to feel a sense of pride because (1) The launch aims to complete from planning to implementation stage in well under 12 months – a feat, to my knowledge, not yet achieved anywhere else (2) The country is shrouded in economic and political trouble and the challenges seem to multiply on a daily basis. If we are able to succeed in spite of these, we would have been able to lay the base of moving the whole nation of 75 million people forward by at least 5 years (3) The client is the incumbent operator who have been recently freed from under government control but the culture still remains bureaucratic. Finding the solution to this dichotomy of launching next generation services while aligning the whole archaic culture with this change will surely (or hopefully) be an immensely satisfying one.

Tell us about your profile pre ISB, and recap your professional life after ISB including your career progression?
After completing my undergraduate degree in finance from Mumbai University, I joined a financial advisory and valuation start-up, TresVista, as one of their first employees. TresVista’s rapid ascent from a seven-member firm when I joined in 2007, to 70 employees by 2010, was the growth trajectory that provided me with the opportunities to work on professionally-rewarding projects with private equity firms. This work experience was my ticket to ISB and provided me with a platform to work as a management consultant with Arthur D Little in Dubai in affiliation with strategy & organization practice.

Describe your fondest memory at ISB?
It will undoubtedly have to be those 15-20 weeks spent on putting together Solstice 2010 with some of the best professionals that I have had the privilege of working with. Despite a great loss on campus, the ISB community rose to prove its resilience and ability to come together as a family. The current students, professors and staff interacted with alums and their families over three days; I saw what it really meant to be a part of the ISB community.

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?
It is very hard to find a mix of personalities, with such diverse experiences, in one place. The environment at ISB has made me a lifelong student and has better prepared me to take on the challenges ahead.

How do you think ISB has contributed to your career growth? 
ISB has provided me with an international platform, a supportive professional network, and friends who are my pillars of strength. Post ISB, I truly believe that the only constraint to my future success is my own fears and inhibitions.

If you have to sum up ISB in one word
Family

What was the main highlight of your programme at the ISB?
Receiving the young leaders’ award from the hands of our esteemed dean, Prof. Rangnekar

Word of advice for the current class?
Don’t pick your first job out of ISB based on the primary criteria of money

What was your favourite course/class at ISB and why?
It will have to be Prof. Krishnamurthy’s international finance class which was as engaging as it was enlightening (there was always an Aha moment in his class)

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.
Nidhi Reddy – For impartial, in-your-face advice, backing you and your skills when most others will not, and understanding/ trusting your next steps based on nothing else but faith

What are the areas that you can contribute in to ISB?
Working with the Middle East alum chapter to further the ISB  brand in the region, educating potential students about ISB’s offering and helping any current students’ and alums who reach out to me in any way that I can

What do you enjoy most about your current career position?
Travelling and consulting corporate professional at board room level with experience which is 3X to 5X times my experience

What is the next new thing in the industry or vertical you are working in? Any trends that you can see?
Emergence of Over the top (OTT) players which are reducing traditional telecom players’ roles to bit-pipe (dumb-pipe), the windfall to be gained in the ICT industry from reaping the spectrum ‘digital dividend’, and blurring of boundaries between mobile and other verticals which will open up new arenas for entrepreneurship much in the same way that internet did almost a decade ago.

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