Sarala Vasudevan

I attribute my success to my family and to my coworkers who recognized my skills. Of course, myself too, because I have a passion for learning. I have a passion for contributing, for being productive, and bringing some impact. My family has been crucial in supporting me throughout my journey, and the people I've worked with have seen my capabilities and helped me recognize them in myself. But it's also been my own drive - my passion for continuous learning, for making meaningful contributions, and for being productive in ways that create real impact for the teams and customers I serve.

The best career advice I've received is to not be shy to reach out. Sometimes we have this imposter syndrome where we second-guess ourselves or doubt ourselves, and we shouldn't do that. For a very long number of years, I wanted to get into leadership, but somehow I didn't take that step until people recognized that in me. My work had already shown that I was ready - I had already done more above and beyond to get to that point - but I had doubted myself. When people recognized it in me and started pushing me, telling me 'you deserve to do this, you're capable of doing it,' I realized I had the passion for it and I wanted to do it, so why wasn't I doing it? That's what I tell my daughters now - don't be afraid of reaching out, don't be afraid of going for the stars. When you know you have it, go for it. What's going to happen? You don't get it the first time, but at least you tried.

I was a keynote speaker for Women in Tech at Rutgers, and this was exactly the question we talked about. When I started, the technology was so different, and now where we are going, the technology is different, but the common theme has remained the same. You need to continue to educate yourself and never feel shy. Take opportunity where you find it. The technology landscape will keep changing, but your willingness to keep learning and your courage to seize opportunities - those are what will carry you through. Don't let fear or self-doubt hold you back from reaching for what you want.

There are a lot of opportunities in the software development field - you have an ocean of opportunities. With AI emerging, you can start learning and seeing how you can leverage AI to do a lot of things. Beyond the technical side, if you have the mindset to lead and bring impact, you have the opportunity to excel in leadership as well. You can bring changes to your society from the experience you have. The opportunities are really limitless if you're willing to keep learning and growing. As for challenges, one I faced personally was becoming a mom and then coming back to the workforce. When you take a break after becoming a new mom and come back to the workforce, you have to prove harder to showcase that you have the same ability as others. Things have changed now - my daughters are in their twenties, so I'm talking about a couple of decades back - but that was a real challenge for me at that point.

Work-life balance is important to me, but at the same time, having a balance with family is also crucial. Continued education and openness to learning are values I hold dear. And in the whole process of getting up into leadership and climbing the ladder, remembering where you came from is so important. Being empathetic towards people who are just starting out - that matters deeply to me. I make sure to protect my team, give them the right opportunities, and not let them get burned out. I'm all hands in, meaning I don't sit outside - I'm with them, shoulder to shoulder. I want to provide a safe environment for my team to excel and bring their best capacity, and I make sure every individual gets the right opportunities they deserve.