“Matchmaker” is how Ms Sarita Bahety (MPP ’10) uniquely describes herself — not in the romantic sense, but as someone who connects clients with technology, products and solutions in her role as a Cloud Alliance Leader managing the Google Cloud partnership across EMEA.
Ms Bahety, who was born and raised in Nepal, is a globetrotter – before settling in London, she lived in Singapore, India and the Philippines.
What does she miss about Singapore?
“Its remarkable efficiency, from public transport and public services to everyday administration, as well as how clean, green and orderly it is. I still remember opening a DBS bank account in just a few minutes! My MPP experience and public-sector internship there also gave me a lasting appreciation for efficient institutions and well-designed systems.”
Moving from place to place was shaped by where opportunities arose, as well as the practical reality of securing visa sponsorship. While it was not a straightforward process getting to the United Kingdom, it ended up being a worthwhile move.
On a day-to-day basis, Ms Bahety works with a variety of global stakeholders from those working in sales and marketing to technology. While ensuring a solid relationship with her company’s partners, she works with partners to develop new business opportunities. She specifically manages alliances for cloud provider partners, data, artificial intelligence (AI) and agentic AI.
She began her career at a startup in India. Today, she works at one of the world’s largest technology services companies. Having experienced both, she notes a few differences. “Startups work at speed,” she explained. “Everything has to be delivered yesterday, not today.” Large organisations, on the other hand, work at scale. With hundreds and thousands of employees, they can deliver enterprise-level outcomes.
Her experience across different workplaces has also helped her become a proponent for the inclusivity of women in STEM. Though more women are entering such disciplines and postsecondary education rates are increasing, she says that organisational culture plays an impactful role in retaining female employees. With the advent of AI, there should be greater flexibility in work schedules and how people work, but because many workplaces are not designed by women, their needs are rarely taken into consideration.
She recommends that organisations should start gathering feedback from women on where they want to work and what would make it more conducive for them, as well as understand what they need to feel valued at the workplace. “The pipeline [of women going from higher education to the workforce] is there, but it needs to be nurtured once they are in the organisation,” she advised.
For Ms Bahety, however, navigating a career across countries and industries has taught her that professional success depends on more than technical expertise. It also requires an ability to understand and connect with people. Asked what she would tell her younger self, and she is quick to point out the importance of interpersonal relations.
“It’s all about communication. And to be able to communicate well, and to be able to build trust… otherwise businesses don’t move. And to build that trust, you need to know people in and out. And to be able to do that, it’s all about interpersonal skills. Be it knowing the culture, be it knowing the language, be it understanding the food, music, and everything else. I would say that textbooks are great, education is great, but it’s the real people and interactions. Those are the friendships you make which last very, very long.”
SARITA BAHETY’S LONDON
Diversity
Often dubbed the “capital city of the world”, the diversity in London is truly like no other. As multicultural as Singapore is, Ms Bahety says that “London is much bigger, with lots of different cultural influences and languages.” There are even distinctions within the English language, although she initially thought speaking it would be no issue. She had to learn to understand the various accents, which sounded vastly different from the textbook English she was used to.
Networking
“I also value London for its networking opportunities and the way it brings together people from different industries, countries and backgrounds.”
Food
The variety of cuisine in London allows her to reminisce about the places she’s previously lived. “There are so many people from South Asia here. There is a lot of Indian food. There’s lots of Nepalese food, there’s lots of food from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan as well. There’s also good Singaporean and Filipino food,” she said. She likes patronising Dishoom, an Indian restaurant with multiple outlets across the UK.
Culture
London boasts a robust display of knowledge and a vibrant arts scene. “You walk into museums; there’s so much history. You go for musicals; there’s so much they have to offer.”
Nature
The 240-acre RHS Garden Wisely, run by the Royal Horticultural Society, is one of Ms Bahety’s “favourite places in and around London.”
