Spotlight:
Aruna

Explain your role at VidMob and your contribution to the Tripod?

I am a thought-leader in the Data Engineering space to promote best practices in data management and governance. My role is to help provide scalable solutions around storage and processing for our data science team and product stakeholders to enable faster analytics and reporting.

What brought you to VidMob?

The wonderful people I talked to during interviews and the problems presented to me brought me here.

How did you get into your field?

For the first 12 years of my career, I was in the Data Analytics/Management space and wanted to explore a new domain in data. With cloud-based computing also becoming common at the time, I wanted to try Data Engineering. This is my fourth year in this domain, and I love it!

Name 3 people (living or dead) who inspire you and why?

• Anand (my husband): He inspires me everyday with his talents and attitude. Growing up, he had dyslexia and he never let that condition define who he was. He recovered from it while in high school. He is now a Vice President at US Bank. He is also a great guitar player, an excellent handyman and a carpenter.  He continues to accomplish anything he puts his heart into. 
• Adon (my older son): He taught me to be content in life. He was diagnosed with low functioning autism with global developmental delay at 4.5 years. His diagnosis didn’t limit/define him. He is the most calm and joyful person I have met. 
• Asher (my younger son): He taught me to love unconditionally and be resilient. My all time favorite quote from him is “Everybody is a genius”

What do you like most about your work?

I get a chance to solve complex problems with data, and get to work with engineers and data scientists in the process to help build a sustainable data ecosystem.

What’s the biggest work or life challenge you were able to overcome?

When I had my boys (who are just a year apart), I was working full time. It was tough to manage work, having a newborn at home and expecting another baby. There were a few years while my children were growing up, it was challenging to give them quality time while focusing on my career. Through the support of my husband, I was able to overcome those years and come out strong. Looking back, I realize that it taught me to be resilient.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given? Why?

“Never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn, and don’t feel sorry for yourself.”