Uma: 🏃♀️ Running as grounding - she stays centered and thinks clearly. Her team could always tell when she hadn't run in the morning. 🏃♀️➡️📱 Marathon = Product development - Uma draws parallels between marathon training and building products - both require endurance, planning, and thinking beyond the "launch" to adoption and sunset. 👩💻 Top 50 Women in Tech 2021 - Recognized for her work at Infor managing products globally, though she humbly credits mentors and being in the right place at the right time. 🤝 Mentorship focus - She mentors product managers and engineers, especially helping them navigate AI changes and career decisions. 💪 Difficulty accepting help - Uma admits she struggles with delegation and asking for help, a realization that became clear during her cancer treatment. 🎗️ Cancer journey - Went through chemotherapy while still trying to do everything herself, until her daughter noticed her finally asking for a glass of water. What is next: 🤖 AI Companion project - Building a conversational AI companion for cancer patients that provides emotional support 24/7, captures symptoms, translates medical jargon, and supports survivorship beyond remission. ❤️ Survivorship challenges - Highlights that returning to "normal" after cancer is actually harder than people realize, with ongoing anxiety about recurrence.
Uma Welingkar is a globally recognized product and strategy leader named one of the Top 50 Women in Tech in 2021. Uma has led global SaaS organizations through transformation by building high-performing teams, streamlining operations, and driving meaningful growth. After navigating her own health journey, she’s become a passionate advocate for using technology with empathy creating products that truly serve people. She now mentors product leaders and advises mission-driven startups on how to scale through product-led and AI-powered growth.
Linked in https://www.linkedin.com/in/umawelingkar/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/rnrgrlsf.bsky.social
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uwelingkar/