CEO Insights India

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad is delighted to have an alumni network made up of illustrious individuals from a range of academic subjects and a history spanning more than 90 years. For many years, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad has been a leader in Indian education, generating outstanding graduates whose accomplishments bring honor to the school. Aashish Kumar is one such skilled professional who graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, with a degree in engineering. On the professional front, Aashish Kumar has a proven track record of success as a director with a background in the information technology and services sector. He possesses knowledge and expertise in management, pre-sales, solution architecture, service delivery, and agile methodology.

In an exclusive interview with CEO Insights Magazine, Aashish walks us through his professional journey along with the unique traits of the company.

Tell us about your history and experiences in the workplace. How has your experience been using Mastercard so far?
My career began with a concentration on mining technology, and after a while I transitioned to IT where I had the chance to work on a variety of technologies, ranging from the most antiquated, like mainframes, to the most cutting-edge, like AI/ML. I currently have a strong interest in Mastercard's most recent developments in payment

technology. I have a lot of room to express my broad range of abilities,from technical to leadership, thanks to Mastercard. Mastercard also provided me with a variety of mentoring opportunities, which sparked in me a great desire to coach and advise corporate professionals on how to improve themselves by maintaining good physical, mental, and spiritual health.

Could you discuss the knowledge and experience you gained from IIT Dhanbad and how you use these in your current position?
We were able to learn and experiment in a wide range of engineering and technology fields, including mechanical, electrical, electronic, and computer, at IIT Dhanbad because of its wonderful combination of dynamism, inventiveness, and friendship. I was able to approach technology problems more holistically thanks to this broad exposure. For someone like me who had spent all of his prior years in a very small place in Bihar, that kind of exposure did wonders for broadening my thinking, cultural adaptability, and capacity for forming relationships with diverse people. The teachers and students there were from very diverse backgrounds. It also provided a really good environment where I was able to make many close friends who have acted as my rock throughout my entire life. I still have a lot of friends from my IIT class nearby, which is a luxury that not many people have.

Think about some of the most significant obstacles you have faced thus far on your path. What lessons have you learned from them and how did you overcome them?
The biggest obstacle I had to overcome was when I lived abroad for a long period. Despite eating healthy and staying active in sports, I discovered a number of new health problems,which was very unexpected. I started digging deep into the reasons and realized that there is more to life than just what I know. I then learnt a combination of yoga, ayurveda, and spiritual healing which helped me turn my wellness around. I have grown to be a fervent supporter of these human technologies and have helped other professionals to integrate them into their lives and work approaches.

How do you manage to combine your personal and professional lives just right? What is the key to your success?
Work ceases to be effortful when you are passionate about it and fully invested in it. Having said that, spending quality time with your family is crucial, even if you don't feel overwhelmed by your workload. Your family depends on you taking quality time off from work for them. So I make sure to spend weekends with my family and never check work-related emails or messages unless the sky has fallen. In order to spend more time with my family in the evenings, I also strongly believe in the benefits of working from home periodically. A successful working existence is mostly built on a happy family. The unwavering assistance of my wife Ritu Priya and direction from my parents have been the important pillars of my prosperous professional existence.

What are your longterm investment priorities and how do you intend to advance them?
My objective is to promote creative Payment Technology solutions that can help under served groups of our society become financially included and enable them to work, save, and invest money online.