Meet a UBC MM alum moving beyond borders and boundaries, in work and in life
Growing up across three different continents and pursuing a UBC Master of Management (MM) degree has given Arjun Doraiswami a distinctly global perspective. It’s no surprise that he has turned his cosmopolitan experiences into a promising position in global data partnerships at tech company, Trulioo. After all, data isn’t confined to physical borders or boundaries, and neither is he.
A childhood spent globetrotting and learning
Doraiswami learned to be resilient and appreciate different perspectives early in life. Because of his parents’ work—his father was a diplomat and his mother worked as an international schoolteacher—his family moved every few years. Doraiswami spent his childhood living in China, India, the United States, South Africa, Uzbekistan, and South Korea. Each time they relocated, he found a way to form a community in a new culture.
“I was so used to moving to new places and making new friends,” he says. “It made me very adaptable, and it became easy for me to step out of my comfort zone and talk to people.”
This global mindset is what first attracted Doraiswami to the University of British Columbia. After finishing high school in Seoul, he was looking to attend a university with a multicultural atmosphere that would complement his International Baccalaureate Diploma. In 2016, UBC’s ranking as the most international university in North America by Times Higher Education caught his eye.
He graduated from UBC in 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in History and minoring in Law and Society. As he began considering options for graduate studies, the world was shutting down because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thankfully, everything Doraiswami was looking for in a master’s program could be found close to home.
“I was very comfortable staying at UBC. What really attracted me to the Master of Management at the UBC Sauder School of Business was the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals from different programs—who maybe had a background in engineering, history or law—and they wanted to supplement that with a stronger business foundation.”
Business as a force for positive change
Another factor in his decision was UBC Sauder’s focus on responsible leadership. Growing up around the world, Doraiswami developed an interest in how different countries approach sustainable living. Having experienced the natural reserve parks in South Africa, as well as the density issues faced by large cities like New York, Doraiswami knew he wanted to live somewhere that was committed to advancing urban sustainability. In Vancouver, he found both stunning natural surroundings and a business school that embraces innovation in climate action.
“Business skills are the foundation to working with international governments and industry to solve long-term problems. That's what really attracted me to the Master of Management program because it gave me an opportunity to stay in Vancouver and it also introduced me to people who were using business to make a difference and solve problems.”
Though he completed the MM entirely online throughout the pandemic, Doraiswami was able to hone his business skills and apply them to a real-world challenge. During the program’s Community Business Project, he collaborated with a group of his classmates to develop an approach to online fundraising for Care BC, a not-for-profit organization that provides health promotion and supportive care services to British Columbians.
“Fundraising enables Care BC to provide their services,” explains Doraiswami. “With COVID-19, that was a new challenge. How do they fundraise remotely while still providing value?”
He and his team developed a strategy to help Care BC engage donors online and ultimately build their long-term digital presence.
Building community and developing resilience through COVID-19
As Vice President of Health and Wellness for the UBC Master of Management Student Society, Doraiswami was also focused on addressing another challenge posed by the pandemic: helping his classmates build connections and camaraderie despite their program being online.
“In the Student Society, we were working with multiple stakeholders, with different opinions on what should be done, budget constraints and restrictions because of the pandemic. We really had to be creative to build community spirit.”
To make sure his classmates didn’t miss out on getting to know each other and their professors, he also launched and co-hosted a podcast called MM Chats.
An exciting career in the tech sector
Today, Doraiswami is a business development executive working in global data partnerships at Trulioo, an identity verification company based in Vancouver.
“We're trying to build trust on the Internet. If you're creating accounts in payments, e-commerce, cryptocurrency or related sectors, we aid in making that process efficient and adherent to anti-money laundering regulations and local privacy laws,” says Doraiswami.
His role involves bringing on data partners around the world to perform those services securely and accurately. It’s exactly the kind of creative problem solving he envisioned focusing on in his career.
“What really attracted me to Trulioo and this role is the opportunity to refine my global perspective by working with our international data partners. You need to understand how somebody in a different part of the world works and how they use data to onboard a person onto a platform, and you're also looking at the legalities of that region.”
Doraiswami credits his MM experience with giving him the skills and confidence to embrace new challenges in his career.
“It's a program that really shapes you if you're willing to learn. The MM is life-changing in the best way possible because it challenges you. It really prepares you to be resilient in the face of business, industry and life changes.”