mentor

As I walked on to Cisco’s Raleigh, North Carolina (RTP) campus for the very first time I realized I was officially in the real world – joining the Customer Experience team as a Project Manager (PM) would be the first “real job” of my professional career. It was just two short months after I had grad…

In 1997, I joined Cisco as an IT Voice Services Project Manager. I never imagined I would be staying for 20 years. Two decades ago, I had no idea that working for an IT company would lead to the many roads I’ve travelled within my career. It’s true that Cisco changes and adapts itself continuously t…

In a world of scrolling through social media posts on our mobile devices, “thumb-stopping moments” are those that make you click with a purpose. That was what an article from the Atlantic was for me three years ago, “The Confidence Gap” made me slow my scroll. At the time, I was in the m…

I’ve been sharing my life at Cisco from my own personal social media channels for many years. Posts such as international team offsites, pictures from events in Bangalore, and more. I just completed seven years at this amazing company. Around here, we call our anniversary a “Ciscoversary.” I also ca…

For every young woman who wants to pursue a career in science, math, engineering, or technology (STEM), look no further than Ada Lovelace. Born in 1815 at the heart of the Industrial Revolution, she gravitated toward the fascinating world of science and mathematics, eventually becoming the world’s f…

A wise man once told me, “There’s no better title than ‘Dad’.” We were talking about career achievements and family, and how to balance the two. I have to hand it to him — he definitely put things into perspective for me. That title carries a lot of responsibility, not only in prov…

My eleven-year old daughter came to me a few months ago claiming an intense dislike for Robotics. As any other parent can tell you, her avowal made me terribly sad. More so since she claimed Robotics was a “boy-thing.” I told her, as I confess here, that I am certainly no authority on women and tech…

Before becoming CEO of Cisco, Chuck Robbins was Head of Sales. Even then he saw employees as the key to Cisco’s success, and met a few new hires at a Women of Impact Event. These women expressed some concerns about their futures at Cisco, and he jumped in to help, by asking for some leaders in the c…

Over 2000 innovators came together in San Jose recently to examine ways to ensure that buildings can survive powerful earthquakes. This was no ordinary trade show. It wasn’t an industry conference filled with engineers and seismologists, policymakers and building managers. Instead, the more than 200…