Challenge the status quo, break the barriers, and focus on your goals: Nithya Subramanian, BBY India
Continuing with the exclusive series on women tech leaders, Express Computer highlights the inspiring journey and valuable insights of Nithya Subramanian, Senior Director Data & AI COE, BBY India (Best Buy). With a career shaped by a blend of determination, curiosity, and the guidance of key mentors, she has risen to prominence in a field that is redefining industries and shaping the future. Throughout her career, Subramanian has been driven by a passion for leveraging the power of data and artificial intelligence to solve complex real-world problems.
As a woman in a male-dominated field, she has faced challenges that many can relate to, but has overcome them with resilience, a commitment to continuous learning, and a dedication to supporting and mentoring others. She shares her thoughts on the evolving landscape of AI, the importance of inclusivity in the workplace, and the initiatives that have had the greatest impact in her career. Her story is one of empowerment, innovation, and leadership, offering a roadmap for women aspiring to break barriers and achieve success in AI and beyond.
Navigating my career path to AI and data science
My career in data and AI has been in part a conscious effort and in part a stroke of serendipity. In the early years of my career, I was working as and SAP consultant. At one point, as a lucky chance, I was introduced to the world of data science and machine learning by my mentors. I have always been highly curious, uncomfortable until I get to the bottom of things. So I spent some time learning about it incrementally – starting with basics, then towards building application and then moved on to solving practical problems. When I realised the impact of AI and the kind of problems that can be most effectively solved using data, it got me really excited about pursuing a career in AI and data science. It was not only professionally gratifying, but also where my natural inclination pointed.
Beyond the unwavering focus and dedicated efforts from my end, once I had very clear professional goals, I had loads of help along the way. Be it the opportunities I got at my workplace, the trust the leadership had in my abilities, the enablement and empowerment I got from them and the phenomenal teams and partners I had the opportunity to work with. I could capitalise on all of this and embrace the career of my choice on data and AI.
Emerging trends in AI and analytics that inspire me
I am super excited about all the latest tech innovations in AI, including agentic AI, in quantum chip technology, in robotics, in green energy, in nano technology / synthetic biology, etc. What makes this all real for us is the convergence of these tech innovations that could lead into solving some of the pressing problems in the world, including but not limited to, food security, health and safety, environmental protection, education, genomics and personalised medicines, etc. Attaining the sustainable development goals across our planet never looked so achievable. While this is true, what is also worrying is that the rapid pace of tech progress and the tech-war among corporates / nations could potentially lead into consequences that could potentially be devastating if not controlled. We keep hearing about people losing hard earned money by falling into online scams perpetrated by deep fakes. Also, we are aware of AI fiddling with elections. We also hear about crypto frauds that could only increase with quantum. And this is only the beginning. As tech becomes ubiquitous, cheaper by the day and easier to access, such kind of risks must be handled appropriately along the way as we develop tech and not as a remote afterthought.
IT initiatives that made a difference
I have had the opportunity to be a part of many initiatives over the course of my career that have brought about significant impact to growth, profitability, operational efficiencies and customer delight. Be it digitising and optimising end-to-end supply chains, or ensuring effective demand forecasting and inventory management, or to enable pricing and promo optimisation, or many other innovations where my team had leveraged technology in providing critical and efficient solutions. I am also super proud of how my team during COVID-19 could implement connected supply chain visibility solutions in a mission mode that have helped in de-stressing the supply chain and unblocking the flow of goods.
Overcoming challenges as a woman in a male-dominated field
As an ambitious woman, I did have my share of challenges. Honestly, it took me a while to realise that it wasn’t a problem with me, but with the way the society thinks that I should behave. There are somethings hardwired since generations and our minds have also been tuned in a certain way. So, as women, we end up downplaying our dreams and impeding our own progress due to our pessimisms and prejudices. Though we speak highly of diversity and inclusion and organisations have put in systems and policies in place, nothing much would change without a fundamental shift in mindsets and increased allyship from male colleagues. Once I realised that I should be not paying attention to the nay sayers, who do so mostly because of their own insecurities, and take only genuine constructive feedback, I figured out how to filter out the noise and focus on what matters to my career. I started to invest in my learning and development. I felt more confident in conversations and could fearlessly put forth my points of view. I started seeking out and grabbing opportunities. I did seek and gain mentorship from phenomenal individuals and started to participate in forums which were great opportunities to network and stay up-to-date. And most importantly, I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to pay it forward by mentoring future women leaders.
Empowering women to lead and innovate in AI
To all women in AI, aspiring to be future leaders, I could only advise them to be fearless and ambitious. Aim big and work towards achieving it come-what-may. There would be challenges, of the making of generations of a social fabric that prohibited women from chasing their dreams. But it is onto you to challenge the status quo, break the barriers and focus on your goals. Seek mentorship, leverage allies and don’t be shy in asking for help. For nobody deserves them more than you. Women are usually very harsh on themselves, blaming themselves for every mess which may not even be of their making. This is becoming increasingly prevalent given how the boundaries between work, health and family are blurring. It’s important that all of these exist in harmony and, therefore, as individuals we need to constantly prioritise among multiple commitments on a daily basis. Sometimes it can be difficult, but we need to stick to the ground rules. Nothing is more important than one’s health and happiness. Thus, invest on yourself, stay happy, be gentle on yourself and grab your rightful place in the industry and society.
