Thoughtworker Spotlight: Rajatha Ramesh

Enterprising, organized and adaptable is how Rajatha R. , Engineering Manager here at Thoughtworks, would describe herself. Considering how inspired she is by survival stories involving the planets Mars and potatoes, this makes sense.

And despite the excitement of working for Fortune 50 automotive brands or category-creating home fitness innovators, her favourite part of the day is always when she has the opportunity to give back to others, whether it's her colleagues or the next generation of developers.

That might also explain her favourite product - it allows her to do more of what she loves. Guess what it is in this week's edition of Thoughtworker Spotlight.?

Tell us about what you do in 50 words or less

At Thoughtworks, I collaborate with diverse clients, including a leading automotive brand and a pioneering fitness equipment manufacturer. My current focus is Project Jupiter, aimed at elevating member experiences. Additionally, I relish supporting Guild Initiatives, onboarding over 100 new engineers and mentoring university interns, which offers both humility and career growth.

What’s the most interesting challenge you're working on?

In terms of Project Jupiter, one must be wary of any minor changes or fixes as the product is live and could affect millions of members on the platform. The most challenging part of this project was building some really cool and exciting features while maintaining a consistent interactive user experience across various platforms in a very short time.

What inspired you to have the career you have today??

My world has revolved around phones or mobile development for as long as I can remember. Prior to working at Thoughtworks, I worked as a Telecommunications Engineer at Ericsson, where I got to explore various networking platforms. My inherent passion for mobile phones led me to casually take an Android development course, which took a detour to my career as a mobile developer.?

What achievement are you most proud of in your career to date?

I was extremely fortunate to work on Project Durian for an automobile company, building out their in-car digital experience that enabled private and carpooling riders to be aware of their trip details throughout their journey. Being involved in this dual-track project from the very beginning, I had the privilege of ideating and prototyping several user-centred designs.?

It was challenging to test several technologies on confined and limited automobile platforms and still ensure the best in-car experience is being provided. It was a treat gathering all the learning from the discovery phase to further develop the product and release it to the market.

If you could go back in time and give yourself career advice, what would it be??

Focus on the journey, not the destination. Be patient, and things will happen at the right time. Work hard and persevere to achieve your aspirations. Believe and have confidence in yourself. Never give up and have fun.

What do you love to do outside of work?

I love traveling and hanging out with family and friends. It's simple, which is a nice contrast to the complexity I often encounter professionally.?

If you were stuck on a deserted island, what album, movie, and book would you take with you?

Album - Jordi

Movie - The Shawshank Redemption

Book - The Martian by Andy Weir, and the obvious reason for this is I found it incredibly inspiring that the main character was able to survive on Mars with just potatoes. If he can do that, I can definitely survive this planet.?

And finally, what’s your favorite product and why?

The product that makes my life easy every day is my Shark Robotic Vacuum. The advancement of AI in this product is truly mesmerizing. Some of the most practical and useful features I love include memory mapping, navigation, the self-cleaning brush and a self-emptying bin.?