Q&A With Madhumita Mantri
Sr Technical PM, Data Platform & Products at LinkedIn
March 04, 2020
Madhumita Mantri, Sr Technical PM, Data Platform & Products at LinkedIn is a Data TPM managing large scale cross-functional initiatives for accelerated analytics to unlock data potentials to data consumers and producers. She is passionate about product innovation, strategy to execution, defining why & what, and loves coming up with solutions.
Deck 7: Were you always interested in the field of technology? What made you interested to pursue a career in the same?
MADHUMITA MANTRI: I was always interested in the field of technology & builder at heart! My journey and passion to pursue a tech career began when I was 12 years old. I was inspired by my uncle who was an engineer back then designing and building bridges using technology. I used to go on field trips with him and learnt how to design bridges. I was determined from that age to become an engineer. I finally got my engineering degree and pursued my career in tech.
D7: Why are there too few women in data science? Do you feel the efforts to improve female representation in this industry have started to gain momentum?
MM: Only about 30% of professional data-related roles are held by women as of 2019. The gender gap in technology and data science has grown significantly over the last two decades, raising global concern about the state of open-mindedness of the information and tech industry. There used to be a general lack of interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) positions and data science is another technical field where women remain statistically a minority. These roles have been too demanding wrto time commitment to work & needs a strong tech background from top grad schools. Yes, I can totally see the efforts in this industry have started to gain momentum.
I am working as Data TPM at LinkedIn. LinkedIn runs a program called Women in Tech Leadership. It is an awesome program. I am lucky to be part of this program and it is one of many reasons for my career growth and success at LinkedIn. I see many conferences like Grace Hopper, Women of Silicon Valley, Women in Data Science conference (WiDS), Women in Machine Learning and Data Science (WiMLDS) community giving women a platform to share their voice, get visibility, feel inclusive, empowered & motiviated to make career choices in tech.
"Only about 30% of professional data-related roles are held by women as of 2019. The gender gap in technology and data science has grown significantly over the last two decades, raising global concern about the state of open-mindedness of the information and tech industry."
D7: How can data analytics be used to bring profound effects on the development of modern marketing strategies?
MM: Over the last decade or so, marketing has been revolutionized by data analytics, allowing brands to deliver more targeted messaging and measure their return on investment (ROI). Data analytics can be leveraged in the following areas to bring profound effects on development of modern marketing strategies:
• Personalized customer interactions
• Channels that are working vs not working
• Gaining cross-channel visibility in an increasingly complex eco system
• Full funnel marketing in the digital age
• Data scientists can be as useful as the data itself
• Building customer empathy
"Over the last decade or so, marketing has been revolutionized by data analytics, allowing brands to deliver more targeted messaging and measure their ROI."
D7: What is your favorite part of working at LinkedIn?
MM: LinkedIn life, culture & leadership are my favorite part of working at LinkedIn. #inittogether #linkedinlife
D7: What technology can you not live without?
MM: The available forms of technologies just keep increasing, and many are heavily dependent on them.
The top 5 technologies seem hard to leave without are:
-- Sharing & reading news, picture & moments in social media
-- Online shopping
-- Managing money - online or smart phones or smart apps
-- Smart maps - finding our way (GPS)
-- Making video calls
-- Music on the go
"LinkedIn has InDays once in every month which helps employees to spend the whole day, they would like to spend by doing hackathons or watching LinkedIn learning videos to learn something new."
D7: How does LinkedIn embrace an innovative culture in the company?
MM: LinkedIn is bottoms up culture. Everyone is empowered to come up with a great idea, have all resources and support to bring it to life. The leadership & culture enables a psychologically safe place for employees to take intelligent risks. There has awesome reward system called “bravos” to encourage & motivate employees to bring their best to work, thrive to innovate, inspire excellence, build great relationships & act like owner. LinkedIn has InDays once in every month which helps employees to spend the whole day, they would like to spend by doing hackathons or watching LinkedIn learning videos to learn something new or attending an internally hosted LinkedIn event managed by culture champions at LinkedIn.
D7: What is your favorite quote?
MM: Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do. By Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
About LinkedIn
With millions of jobs on LinkedIn, find one meant for you. #InItTogether
Founded in 2003, LinkedIn connects the world's professionals to make them more productive and successful. With more than 675+ million members worldwide, including executives from every Fortune 500 company, LinkedIn is the world's largest professional network. The company has a diversified business model with revenue coming from Talent Solutions, Marketing Solutions, and Premium Subscriptions products. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, LinkedIn has offices across the globe.