Nerd Journey: Career Advice for the Technology Professional
John White | Nick Korte
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Leadership as a Responsibility: Establishing Credibility and the Pull of New Opportunities with Srikanth Bollavaram (2/2)
Looking back on one’s career, it might be easy to connect the dots between job roles you held in the past, but what can we really do to influence where the dots are placed in the future? Srikanth Bollavaram took an approach that pulled opportunities in his direction. What if you could do the same? This week in episode 336, we continue the discussion with Srikanth and focus on his consistent openness to taking different roles across various areas, many of which came to him at the suggestion of leaders who knew his reputation, skills, and capabilities. In the cases where a new role pushed Srikanth out of his comfort zone, personal growth and more opportunities always followed. It suited his desire to keep learning. Srikanth found over time that leadership isn’t a specific title or role. It’s a responsibility you have that could be an aspect of many roles. Srikanth also stresses the importance of defining your non-negotiables like self-care and family as a leader to help manage time constraints. Original Recording Date: 03-30-2025 Srikanth Bollavaram is a product development leader with experience spanning the financial, railroad, and consumer packaged goods industries. If you missed part 1 of our discussion with Srikanth, check out Episode 335. Topics – Gaining Experience along the Path Less Traveled, Connecting the Dots Backwards, Leadership as a Responsibility, Time Constraints and Non-negotiables Before we begin, did you do the homework we assigned last week? If not, we highly recommend you go back and listen to this episode before listening to part 2 of Srikanth’s story – Episode 325 – Overwhelmed by Ambiguity: DevOps, Innovation, and the Search for Clarity with Daniel Lemire (3/4). 3:18 – Gaining Experience along the Path Less Traveled Was it normal for people who were brought in for roles like the one Srikanth had to have or be very interested in both business and technology operations and the marrying of the two? We would probably classify this type of role as operational technology today. When Srikanth first started working for the railroad, he began working on the digitization of the customer interactions. He did not go directly to the operational side. “First, you have to gain some credibility in whatever you do. It doesn’t matter what that work is.” – Srikanth Bollavaram In those days, customers might call, fax, or e-mail the railroad. Srikanth’s role was to digitize all customer interactions end-to-end. This included building, tracking, tracing, payments, and more. After working on the digitization for a couple of years, Srikanth started noticing several other interesting projects. The work on control systems he mentioned earlier was the result of the opportunities given to him over time. “A lot of times it’s not me seeking. This is actually a very repeated pattern in my career. People identified me as a potential candidate…and then pulled me into those roles, whether it’s an architect role or even a principal engineer role…. The leaders in the company identified me as a potential candidate and just started giving me those opportunities.” – Srikanth Bollavaram The control systems were part of a project for the railroad’s dispatch center, which orchestrated all switches, signals, and communication to locomotives. At the time Srikanth was selected for this project, it was not going very well, and it was not considered a good move to take on the role. Srikanth tells us he likes to choose the “path less traveled” to see what happens. “If it is interesting enough and challenging enough, you just go and try it, give your best, and see what happens. That always, at least to me…worked out well. I gained an experience which I wouldn’t have if I thought what would have been best for me rather than looking at my superiors…. They’re telling me, ‘hey, maybe you should do this.’ I probably would have chosen something in my comfort zone as an extension to my comfort zone. All these things actually pushed me completely out of my comfort zone…. Especially if you have been asked to do it, and if your seniors trust you enough so that you could do it, just do it. You may not like it initially, but that would add a very valuable experience for you.” – Srikanth Bollavaram, on considering opportunities 6:37 – Connecting the Dots Backwards Did Srikanth’s move into the railroad industry also involve shifting from individual contributor to leader? Srikanth began as an individual contributor when he was working for the railroad but transitioned quickly into a technical lead role and then into more of an architect role. These were moves up into leadership type roles. “Instead of seeking for a next level job, you try to do a next level job…in your current position, and then that automatically opens up positions for you. And I think pull is always better than a push in my opinion. Creating those opportunities and making you as an ideal candidate is how I operated…. It all depends on…where you are in your career and what that involves…. How many changes can you adapt at the same time…not only in career but also family wise…? …That’s why when somebody asks it’s always based on the context at which you are taking that decision.” – Srikanth Bollavaram Srikanth tells us the shifting of roles may involve a relocation or moving to a new company. For those who have children, consider their age and where they are in school to determine how changes you make will impact family stability. According to Srikanth, we should seek to make ourselves candidates for multiple things and not just one thing through building credibility and gaining critical experience in different areas of a company. Srikanth once received advice to think of himself like a stock. If you are traded out in the open market, you should always be more valuable in that trade than to the current company. In this way you’re providing more value where you are operating because it’s like they get the stock at a discounted rate. Instead of focusing too much on a level you want to achieve, improve your skills and capabilities so that you give more value to where you are currently operating. John mentions patterns we’ve seen related to the idea of growth vs. comfort. When we are comfortable, we are operating fully within our capabilities, but growth means learning and pushing beyond what is comfortable. It helps to have people pushing us to grow. Srikanth also mentioned being pulled into specific roles, which speaks to having a strong brand within the organization as someone who can adapt, problem solve, and troubleshoot effectively. It means people recognize you as having the skills and abilities to perform a role when opportunities arise. Additionally, it can be difficult to move to a new company based solely on having a strong internal reputation at your existing company. With the above items in mind, let’s talk about Srikanth’s move into leadership and out of the railroad industry. Srikanth says if you are comfortable in your job, you are likely not growing. If you have good leaders and mentors as Srikanth mentions he did, they will be able to spot some of your gaps / blind spots and suggest ways to fill those gaps. Srikanth tells us that moving out of the railroad industry was also a family decision. The family lived in a small town and wanted to move to a warmer climate. Srikanth’s kids were in elementary school, and he had extended family in the Dallas area. Srikanth viewed changing companies as something that was better to do earlier in his career rather than later. Initially, Srikanth thought he would still be working for the railroad if his family relocated, but that was not the case. Srikanth saw a leadership opportunity at a different company that needed someone to build digital platforms, and he had experience from the railroad industry which would easily transfer. “I had a very good knowledge in terms of how to build those platforms, so I took that as an opportunity to come and start a new career in the CPG (consumer packaged goods) industry. But what you said is totally true. You just have to start from zero again in terms of your credibility and your relationships. It’s going to be a struggle, not only because you’re trying to build that within the company but you’re adapting to a new environment, new city…. It was a bit stressful to be honest at least in the initial years….” – Srikanth Bollavaram Srikanth was excited about building a new team culture. He was energized by the opportunity to build internal products and solutions. The team needed to think about how to build and make the platforms like a product. Srikanth says they were buidling the capabilities in the cloud, and it was very exciting. “In terms of leadership, first you have to establish yourself as a credible leader. You have to bring along your team. I think that’s something from time to time you have to go through. You have to go through this phase of reinventing yourself….And you can always say this looking back.” – Srikanth Bollavaram Srikanth reiterates that the change was more for family reasons than for a different position or to move up. John says being able to tell a story looking back does not mean we know at the inflection point we know what the story is going to be. There is a range of possibilities in any decision. Srikanth says if you’re very clear and focused about exactly where you want to go, that is a good thing, but he likes to remain more open. “I am going to trust the process and see where it leads me, and what I learned in the process is establishing the relationships, building credibility. And while you’re working, not only think for your success but how do you make sure you’re always thinking of people who are working, how they are going to be successful? If you…go with that attitude – more of a
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