Devashree Pillai
Devashree Shinde Pillai is an accomplished Engineering Program Manager at Rubrik, where she leads release management and cross-team coordination for software launches in the cybersecurity, backup, and recovery space. In her current role, she collaborates with roughly 45–50 teams to ensure features, pipelines, and deployments are ready for production, overseeing complex integrations and maintaining software quality. Her work emphasizes user-centric solutions, operational excellence, and seamless product delivery.
With over a decade of experience in technology, Devashree’s career has spanned quality engineering, product management, and program management. She has a proven track record of leading cross-functional teams, analyzing user data to drive enhancements, and creating strategic roadmaps aligned with business objectives. Notably, she has spearheaded initiatives that improved customer retention, optimized pre-qualification processes, and accelerated product adoption, showcasing her ability to blend technical expertise with business strategy.
Devashree holds a Master of Science in Computer Science from Santa Clara University and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Savitribai Phule Pune University. Beyond her professional accomplishments, she values integrity, mentorship, and lifelong learning. After returning to work following a postpartum break, she credits her success to strong guidance from mentors and a commitment to rebuilding confidence in a new domain. She actively participates in the tech community, attending events like the Grace Hopper Celebration, and is passionate about fostering inclusion, innovation, and collaboration in technology.
• Product Management: Building a Product Roadmap
• Transitioning to Product Management
• Product Manager Certificate
• Santa Clara University- M.S.
• Savitribai Phule Pune University- B.S.
• Grace Hopper Conference attendee
What do you attribute your success to?
I think my husband was really supportive, and my parents, who actually helped me. We are immigrants, so we are first generation here. And then obviously, the mentorship from my manager. If it wouldn't have been for such amazing mentorship from my manager, I don't think it would have been possible. I'm really grateful to my manager who put trust in me and believed I could do it. Because of him, I feel I am where I am today.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Take as many risks as you can when you're young. Do what you want, explore - in career, in life, in everything. When you're young, you have no responsibility and you're carefree. At that time we worry about things, but when you start getting older, you don't have the physical bandwidth because your body might give up at some point. You are bonded due to duties - you can't do certain things because you have work, you have kids, you have responsibilities. In terms of career, don't worry about being stable so early. Take as many risks, they pay off. The younger you are, you can take more risks. The older you get, you can't take that much risk.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
It's pretty brutal in tech right now with all the layoffs that are happening. You have to constantly prove yourself and keep up with tech. There's a lot of burnout in general, not just for me but for everybody. Especially with all this AI coming in today, there's a lot of pressure to continuously keep proving ourselves. It's not like before when you could just do something and keep doing it for the next 30 years and be fine. You have to constantly keep learning, keep doing new things. I would say keeping up and proving yourself is one big challenge. The other thing is being a mom and balancing both - it's like you're cutting, it does take a pause, and once it's shot up, you don't want to take a pause again. Managing both of that has been my biggest challenge, more than anything.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in both my work and personal life are integrity and honesty.