Jyothi leads the Major Incident Management (MIM) team in Asia Pacific. Since her journey at Oracle Cloud Infrastructure began, her career and family life have blossomed. Along the way she’s learned the power of diverse perspectives, setting boundaries, and building her brand—all three of which have helped her become the successful leader she is today.
Human nature transcends culture
Jyothi joined Oracle in 2006 as a technical analyst on our global service desk—a formative period in her life which opened her eyes to the sheer diversity of people and the unique challenges they face. “We handled calls and web tickets from Oracle employees all around the world,” she describes. “It was my first stint working with a global audience across different countries. As we waited for the system restart to happen, these conversations helped me understand more about the people I was helping.”
Collaborating with people from other cultures helped Jyothi realize how much we all have in common. “I realized that while our perspectives are different, how we approach things are similar. Life gives everyone challenges they must face, that’s something I learned from every new customer. In that sense, there’s no difference between developed countries and us.”
While Jyothi’s career has grown much since then, she never lost her passion for diversity, a value which she has successfully instilled in her own team. “I’m very proud of the fact that my team never has any regional differences,” she shares. Whether we’re working with Europe, the Americas, or Asia, we all act as one unit and treat each other the same. We may speak to people in different countries with different working styles, but we have a common language: respect.”
Igniting a passion for firefighting
Jyothi’s support role evolved with the advent of a new team which was set up to focus solely on incident management. This paved her way onto the Major Incident Management team in 2010. “I wasn’t always firefighting like I do now,” she explains. “But when I was asked if I wanted to continue down this path, I jumped at the chance because every incident is such an incredible learning experience.”
Jyothi enjoys her work not only because it helps her grow, but because she can see the impact it has on Oracle in the larger sense. “When major incidents happen, I feel happy that I’m able to connect all the technical aspects and drive a solution. It feels like important work to me,” she affirms. “Closing major incidents gives me a wonderful sense of fulfilment, and the subsequent trend analysis leads to architectural changes that ensure the same problem doesn’t reoccur. So I know I’m contributing to Oracle’s success.”
MIM’s the word
Thanks to the flexibility and supportive culture at Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Jyothi has been able to find the elusive balance between work and home life. Her two children have grown up watching her resolve major incidents while working from home, while her youngest has even affectionately nicknamed her MIM instead of Mum.
“I’m indebted to my managers, they’ve really helped me with this,” she admits. “Saying no was never easy for me. By nature, I’d rather stretch myself and do it rather than decline. My old manager used to make me take vacations when I needed them, he taught me to consciously understand when I’m becoming stressed out.”
Her manager also taught her the importance of saying no. “When a meeting is set at night time and it’s just an update, I decline the meeting and send an email. I learnt that once we call out what’s ok and what’s not, people co-operate. Create your own rules and shout them out, my manager would say—don’t make rules and keep them to yourself and then get frustrated when people don’t stick to them.”
To make these kinds of decisions, Jyothi suggests asking yourself: “Is this call important? Am I adding value? Will there be an impact on my team? If yes, then join,” she says. “But if it’s just a sync up call that I can read over email, I’d rather not.”
Family dynamics
For Jyothi, boundaries play an equally important role at home as they do at work. “We all talk about work-life balance but it’s not easy to strike unless you make an active effort,” she suggests. “It was hard when my first was born, but I have a good support system. My kids understand when I tell them that I’m busy at work. They have a handle on what calls are important versus when I’m with my team having a casual chat. They also understand my challenges better now that they’re home schooling on Zoom. Even if you have a toddler, I advise young moms how essential it is to help them understand that your career is important to you.”
When it comes to raising a child, they say it takes a village. That’s why, according to Jyothi, it’s important to make sure everyone is on the same page. “Family plays a huge role,” she agrees. “There were times when I was on an outage call and had to give the kids fruit for breakfast. They’re fine with that of course, but my mom/mom-in-law used to complain. I had to help them understand why my meeting was important and why I have to make choices sometimes. They don’t complain anymore, they realize it’s important for me to grow in my career.”
Gender inclusion tops the agenda
As a woman in tech, gender inclusion is something which is very important to Jyothi. “I try to find a balance between the genders,” she says. “In the past there was a clear bias—people used to talk about women being of marriageable age and taking time off for babies. These days, I see that managers are far more gender inclusive, unlike a decade ago.”
While there’s been definite progress in recent years, there’s no doubt that the tech industry could still benefit from more female perspectives. “What managers need to do is make better judgements,” Jyothi advises. “I always ask myself if someone is a good fit for this role, irrespective of gender. Most importantly, if you have questions, ask them. Don’t just assume you already know the answers. I’ve seen men and women alike become timid on an outage call when working with extremely senior stakeholders, so it’s obvious to me that capability in this role has nothing to do with the gender.”
Building a brand that people believe in
Jyothi’s inclusive philosophies and renowned technical capabilities have helped her build a strong professional brand that contributes to her success at Oracle. “It’s through the networks I’ve created and the brand I’ve established for myself that people recognize me as a go-to person when it comes to critical projects,” she reveals.
One of the biggest ways Jyothi has defined her brand is through effective networking. “My network understand that I’m serious about work,” she notes. “I’m good at problem-solving and communication. They know that I’m hands-on and will implement and deliver complex projects once I commit. I’m seen as a go-getter.”
Jyothi believes one of the things that differentiates her, is her ability to brainstorm problems and propose solutions that clearly indicate how her team can add value. “I’ve been able to bring new, high-profile projects to my team,” she describes. “I’ve also established communication across the regions. This has also helped my peers trust me. They’re confident about my expertise and ability to deal with major incidents and handle very senior stakeholders. I’m now seen as a leader that people can approach.”
Jyothi’s 5 lessons for women in tech
- Respect the work—no matter what the role is. Whether it’s development or support, it plays a role in your company’s success.
- Be a professional. Understand the work and what it entails. Create trust-based relationships and don’t take advantage of the trust your team places in you.
- Set clear expectations. Talk out the challenges you may be facing, be it in the short term or long term. This helps you set the right expectations with your manager and get to the next level. Even though your work speaks on your behalf, it’s still important to do this.
- Realize that, just like you, managers have their own ways of doing things and may need some time to adjust, especially when taking on a new team.
- When someone takes an action you don’t understand, think about why they may have done what they did, but don’t make assumptions or conclusions. Check in with them and ask—communication is key.
Do you want to join a flexible, inclusive team that supports women leaders? Explore the range of career opportunities at Oracle Cloud Infrastructure in India.