Somaskandan’s professional experience consists of him performing various roles, as an investment banker, consultant, strategist, CxO, change agent, entrepreneur, mentor across various businesses around the globe, from start-ups, mid-size enterprises to one of the largest investment banks in the world.
His professional experience totals a cumulative period of 9+ years, with more than 5 years of diverse experience from a leading investment bank – Credit Suisse (Mumbai and London Canary Wharf), across various roles, including Derivatives Analyst for APAC, EMEA and Americas, Operations and project manager, global Hedge Fund and Investor consultant and Transition Manager. Somaskandan received several appreciation letters from clients and top management at Credit Suisse, being particularly pleased with his consistent, valuable contribution.
Somaskandan has consulted Scandinavian companies on India entry and inorganic growth strategies, by leveraging on his expertise of global markets; and has advised an Indian start-up to digitally transform in the payments space with a view to not only maximising the bottomline but also creating socially responsible ecological footprint.
While pursuing his MBA at IE, Somaskandan advised Microsoft on creating impact with Azure, their cloud platform; and also strategised on the pilot launch of Los Chihuahuas, a micro-franchise initiative of Microfranquicias in Colombia by creating a business plan to connect all participants in the value chain, from the borrower to the microfinance lenders.
Somaskandan believes in the importance of social impact and has been involved in various social initiatives right from his childhood, as one of the youngest website designers in India in 2000 covered by Mid-Day, a leading Indian newspaper, for having built an environment conservation awareness website to volunteering with NGOs such as ‘Indian Leprosy foundation’,’Toofles.com’ and ‘Association for Disabled’.
Somaskandan is currently serving as a change agent in the capacity of a Chief Strategy Officer for a UAE based fintech and financial advisory company; and a global Canadian payments company. He has been able to successfully structure every department and function of these companies from the ground up, thereby maximising value for every element within the corporate governance framework of these entities.
Somaskandan’s global and diverse professional experience, his expertise in innovation and disruption by leveraging on technology and cost/ differentiation strategies, his focus on identifying an entity’s business model canvas and maximising core competencies and efficiencies of each element in the canvas, and the wealth of business knowledge gained from his top tier MBA gives him the ability to amalgamate himself into the culture of an organization, and maximise value for every participant in the ecosystem of the organisation, including shareholders, customers, employees, the government, the environment and others.