Witad Awards 2020: Consultant of the year—Selvi Pasumalaithevan, SS&C Advent

Selvi Pasumalaithevan wins the consultant of the year category at this year’s Women in Technology and Data Awards. Pasumalaithevan, principal consultant at SS&C Advent, has a lifelong interest in technology, one that she has blended with her interest in finance. Her passion for computers began at the end of high school when, she says, computers were booming.

“That interest in computers made me start in the space, which was primarily focusing on designing the accounting platforms and getting up to speed on the technologies and coming up with solutions,” she says. “All of the technologies that I’ve developed were for asset managers, hedge funds or fund administrators—that’s why I blended the technology with the finance industry.”

Pasumalaithevan stresses the importance of building bridges between groups of technology users and technology providers. “You cannot just be a technology person because to understand the business, you need to be able to talk to clients and translate what you can do [for them],” she says.

Pasumalaithevan plays many roles at SS&C Advent, from being an implementation manager to project manager, but what is common is that she works closely with clients. She takes note of what their end-users need from their products and their concerns about implementing new platforms in their environments. “In all the roles I play, it’s really just about one thing—working with clients and collaborating with them to ensure their success,” she says. “When you work with them, you hear about their different needs, so you get to work with different flavors of clients.”

For Pasumalaithevan, being able to expose girls at a young age to technology and finance is crucial. As a mother of a 10-year-old daughter, she says young people know how to use technology, but their passion must be harnessed to attract them to the sector. “It’s important that we encourage young women and show them women who have accomplished great things in the sector,” she says. “We also have to encourage a good work–life balance so they can be more motivated in their work.”